The Diego Diaries: Forced in the Field (dd8 126)
=0=Shortly after
They stood on their sides of the invisible wall that kept them apart. Raptor and the elders had arrived to meet PVC and the others along with everyone else but for Seekers who were going to be flying around to get the lay of the land. They stared at each other, then Raptor stepped closer. "What happened to you and yours?" he asked.
"We came here looking for a temporary place to land so that we could listen for other colonies to go to. We didn't know they were here. We were heading this way because this planet has things we could use and before we even got here we were in orbit around the planet. It was so fast we don't even remember it happening.
"The colony answered our hail, then we landed. It was a slagfest from the start. They didn't let us live in the colony. They pushed us out and we were about to go toe-to-toe when it happened again. We were here and there was a force barrier separating the two groups. It was a good thing. We were ready to fight them.
"They were the usual … hateful and disgusting. We ended up here and we're still here. There's no fraternizing because the force field won't allow it and neither will they." PVC considered them. "I don't know why you aren't sorted out given your fight."
"We haven't had a fight beyond that small one. It was sort of a getting acquainted fight," Raptor said with a big grin. "What was the timeline for this action between you? Are there any others here?"
"We were the first ones here since they came. They've been here a really, really long time. We came not that long ago," PVC said as the others nodded. "We got into it and just before real fighting broke out we ended up here. What about you?"
"We got into a brawl but it ended pretty fast," Raptor said. "I'm not clear why we weren't divided as well." He thought a moment, then glanced at Ratchet. "What about the idea that the first interaction was unexpected and thus, the reaction of whatever this is was swift and reactionary. How about us still being together is a reaction based on the other as a learning step?"
Ratchet considered it. "It could be that whatever is in control of this sees this sort of thing as perhaps a greeting ritual among our kind now that its happened two times at the beginning of arrivals. What if it, whatever it is sees that brawl as something we engage in when we meet each other? What if the first time was a surprise and now its being taken differently, like this is how we greet each other."
Raptor nodded and so did the other elders.
"I've seen stranger things myself," Lissie said.
"So have I," Sun said. "This unseen force is learning. Each interaction is a bit of intel that fills in a picture with blanks. It would seem reasonable that they or it views our fighting as normal and that means we're still free. We could test it by getting into another fight. Who's up to finding out?"
Everyone glanced at each other.
"What about this meet up? What if they see that we can see each other without fighting? It might be problematic to the picture they have," Hercy said.
"Maybe." Jack considered the situation. "How about we find out?"
=0=Shortly later walking into town
Jack, Hercy, Kup, Raptor and Ratchet walked into the town from the dirt road leading to their bivouac. There were individuals about doing their business who paused to stare at them, then walk indoors. They reached the sidewalk, then headed into a very interesting city that was small in footprint but tall in stature. Buildings that were a good 30 stories high were numerous and so were buildings with businesses, a notable school, a medical clinic and other civic buildings that were arrayed around a nice open space with green trees lining each side of the square.
As they got farther in they saw more individuals including a group of a good dozen armed mechs heading for them. Leading them was Reset. They crossed the square, then stopped at the edge of it where the Autobots were waiting. No one was happy in that group. Reset stared at them with intense coldness. "We told you to stay in your area."
"Yeah, well … I never did take orders from the lower castes willingly," Raptor said with a smile. "Being Praxian Elite and all, I'm not used to being bossed around by lower castes." It was frigid between them as they stared at each other, then Raptor stepped closer. "Tell us what we want to know and maybe we can get off this rock."
"You don't think we haven't exhausted that idea?" Reset asked with a glacial tone.
"Maybe. But I've learned a long time ago to check things out myself. Many are the high caste slaggers that thought they knew it all and didn't. Just so you know," Raptor said with a light tone in his voice.
"You aren't allowed in this colony. No one is. You need to leave or we're going to make you," Reset said.
It would be talked about a long time how fast the knife appeared in Raptor's servo and how much faster it was pressed against Reset's neck. For his part Reset stood very very still. "How about you give us what we want, then we can all go to our corners and regroup," the big mech said.
"I have no data to give you. That would mean that there's a source for this and it hasn't been found," Reset said. His mechs were intensely on guard, their guns in their servos and pointed at the Autobots. It was hair trigger between both sides.
"Then you have no idea what this is," Raptor said.
Reset stared at him with molten rage. "No."
"Then its not mechanical, some kind of protective machinery here?" Hercy asked. "Answer, slagger. I guarantee that the General is very good with knives." He glanced at Ratchet. "Is that the one he got from your genitors for Christmas Surprise?"
Ratchet leaned in to peer at the blade, then nodded. "Yep."
Raptor grinned. "You have no idea of what's going on here then. You're as stuck at sea as the rest of us. Is that it?"
Reset shifted his glance to Raptor. "We've detected no source for this. It appears when it does and no other time."
"And when would that be?" Kup asked as he chomped on his cygar.
"When someone of dubious quality shows up," Reset said. "Fortunately, it took the last trash collection out."
"Yeah," Jack said. "You were separated from that nice group over that way. Good move on whatever this is."
Reset looked like he would growl with rage. The mechs with him shifted with tension. Their expressions were evident of their desires.
"Well, this is disappointing," Ratchet said. "I was hoping that they were of some use but they haven't got a single shred of an idea, Raptor. Frankly, I see no need pursuing information from them. They're clueless. Surprise, surprise," he said with a malicious grin.
Raptor nodded. "We'll figure it out. Then maybe we'll share it. We're slagging good at this ourselves. Maybe crouching in the bushes this long has taken your edge, Reset."
"If he ever had one," Hercy said drolly. "What now, General?"
"Let's get back and get on with it. This has a source. We're going to find it. By the way, if any of you try to take a shot at us leaving here take a look up there."
Everyone glanced up to see three Seekers in silence mode hovering above the city. They stared at them, then Raptor and the bots.
"I've given them orders to shoot everything that moves if we can't leave here in peace every time we come," Raptor said. "I'd suggest that you put your guns down and get a clue. We're never coming here without aerial support and unless you have more firepower than we do with our shuttles that can operate on remote and twenty Seekers, you need to get a grip." He glanced at the others, then waved to the Seekers.
One of them dipped a wing but none of them moved away.
With that, Raptor and the four with him began to leave for the camp in the forest at the end of the dirt road. They'd leave without incident. When they were safely away, the Seekers would jet off with a roar of engines.
Reset and his mechs would remain until the last one disappeared, then they'd walk back to their administration building together.
=0=At camp
They gathered together, the two teams to hear what was learned and to figure out what to do. Raptor, Ratchet and the elders sat around the fire pit with the rest standing or sitting in concentric circles around them, oddly enough seemingly in rank.
"What do we know, Ratchet?" Jack asked as they relaxed together.
"Well, whatever is powering this is hard to find. None of those slaggers know what's going on and they've been here forever. Even if they turn out to be the usual dimwits, they've had enough time to get a clue. They haven't.
"All of us are inside energy domes of some kind. They appear to be permanent. They appear to be unbreachable. Given that the other group has spent time trying, its probably safe to say that they're not going to be an easy thing to penetrate. I pressed my servo into it and so did the kids. We pressed until the pressure pressing back was overwhelming. It didn't give an inch.
"They were together until conflict got them parted out. Apparently, our conflicts have been absorbed and learned, assigned as typical greeting behavior so we weren't moved away like the others. The areas everyone occupies are interesting. They appear to be big enough for them to live but not big enough to be too big. Just big enough."
"That would assume someone or something with intelligence is doing this, perhaps someone protecting this planet from harm," Lissie said. "The space they live in is tight and just about right for a group that can't fly around. They're in a terrarium. So are the others. I have one and I know that they take up space that's available and nothing more. Until we do something that appears to be out of character to whoever this is, we're in the same terrarium as Reset and his group."
Ratchet nodded. "Maybe there's a larger intelligence that likes this planet and is defending it. Maybe there's some kind of machine that we don't recognize left by someone from the past who wants this place protected. Maybe its the planet itself. Maybe its natural or maybe this planet is a being and is isolating an infection, all of us."
Raptor nodded. "I think our first step is figuring out how this works. Prime can't come or he'll be stuck here. Maybe you can send this information to them and allow Sciences to have more data for a cure. Too bad we can't send more intel about this solar system. It could be a sentient being, both it, the planet, both or only one. We don't know but we've seen odd ball things before and I won't cross off any of the aforementioned as unreasonable possibilities."
"Me either," Ratchet said. He rose. "Who wants to be a good boy?"
The twins grinned.
"Not us," Sideswipe said.
"Fraggers," Ratchet said. "How about you, Warlord and Red Wing? Saber can come along to watch."
Huge laughter greeted that as the big mechs fired up their thrusters. Gripping Ratchet by his ankles, Red and Warlord lifted off with Ratchet hanging upside down smiling and waving to the encamped group until they disappeared from view.
Saber chuckled as they flew upward toward the colony's airfield. He grinned at the others. "I watch," he said, then lifted off to join them.
Raptor snickered. "Rainmaker has some fine youngsters."
Everyone there agreed.
=0=There
They let him down and he rebounded up, smirking at the Seekers as they walked to Hercy's shuttle. Nearby, they could see several mechs with guns but they stayed back. Entering the shuttle, then sat down as Ratchet began to compose his message. Staring out the window, Red and Warlord kept guard.
When it was composed, Ratchet sent the letter. It flew out on the low band, then hit space and expediter number four before heading toward Mars at astonishing speed.
=0=Lower Ops Center
They sat in the center eating food brought in from The Catering Place when Prowl received notification of a message from Ratchet. He rapped his knuckles to get their attention, then put it up to play. Everyone, human and bot listened and watched.
Ratchet appeared with Red Wing and Warlord in the background. Sitting next to Ratchet was Saber who was watching him make the message. 'Morning, slaggers. All is well here overall. We ran into another group caught the same way not that long ago. They were about to fight it out with Reset and his group when they were whisked away nearby and domed like Reset's group.
"We can't enter their dome and they can't leave. Apparently, when they came they were the first group and when it looked like a fight might happen, the source of the energy divided them under separate domes. We weren't treated that way when we actually brawled so its thought that what's behind this has studied what it has and has decided this is how we greet each other. Otherwise, we'd be in a dome as well.
"We're not sure if its natural to the planet, old tech that's protecting this place or if the planet and maybe even the solar system is a being and we're fleas on its back.
"Reset would kill us if he could. He and his group is no help. Study this and get back to me. We're sort of hung up here. Tell the humans that all is well. Ratchet out."
It was silent a moment, then Prime glanced at Perceptor and Wheeljack. "I need information yesterday," he said.
=0=TBC 03-29-2021