The Diego Diaries: Forward (dd6 27)
-0-Ask The Autobot
Devcon sat at the table in his house. He was off duty and just about ready to go to Earth to hang out with Smokescreen who was commander of the garrison there when the mail arrived and he was given a task. Apparently, it was his turn to play 'Ask The Autobot' with infants from Earth. He was to write answers to questions, then ship them to Mikaela Banes for transmission to the website at NASA which published them. Rising with the datapad in servo, he subbed it then headed out for the bridge to Diego.
-0-On the ground in Diego Garcia
The Embassy doors were open but the bots weren't in sight to those who were hanging around outside. The garrison had stayed back a while after the announcement. Their ships had almost disappeared overnight. The transport through this, their port of entry was no longer a thing. For the next seven days, the bots would be holding things back. Their state mourning meant the end of commerce between Mars and Earth. Sitting around in the muggy sunshine, all manner of humans watched anyway. Inside, they could see bots lounging around the rec room with the odd human driving a hummer inside to do duty or dispatches. No bots sat on the shipping crate benches outside or parked around the entrance sunning themselves and probably wouldn't for a while longer.
Overhead on the flagpoles that towered over the Embassy, the flags of the Primes, Cybertron, Mars, and the Empire had been replaced by strange ones. They had a white background but in the middle were giant servos cupping the image of Cybertron. They flicked in the light breeze that took the edge off the heat that burned down on them. No one knew what they meant and no one had ever seen them before. There was a brisk traffic in the news and on the internet about what they could mean. No one inside would answer requests for clarification. No requests from the reporters on base were returned.
Dev stepped into the rec room scanning for both his grandson who was stationed here and his bond. Both were in the command center so he walked across and entered. Playing cards at the command table, both glanced up when he entered the Ops Center. Waving him over, Smokescreen pulled out a chair. "Sit. Watch me slam the infant."
"HA! I'm going to beat you. Eventually," Smokey said with a grin as he dealt the cards to everyone.
Dev passed his cards back. "I have to write letters to Earth kids."
"You got 'Ask The Autobot'?" Smokey asked. "YOU'LL BE GREAT!"
Dev grinned, then pulled the datapad. He looked at it, then read the first one aloud.
"Dear Autobot Devcon,
"My name is Tyler and I'm four years old. I like robots. Is it fun being a robot? My dog is named Spooky. I go to school and like cats. Would you come to my house to play? I hope so. What does a bounty hunter do? I love you, Tyler"
Dev grinned. "I think I'm going to like this duty." So would the rest of his family.
-0-Autobot Outpost retail outlet in Manhattan, New York City, United States of America, Earth
The staff of the huge facility had gathered to get the word about the ten day closure of their store, one of about 1,500 in the worldwide chain. The store manager had been given the word from their overall general manager, a young bot named Caro who worked on Mars. Warren Roberts, senior business agent of Autobot Nation, Incorporated was onscreen with him having traveled to Mars to get the word from Ultra Magnus, Prime's colonial manager on Mars ... the 'mayor' ... and chief administrative officer of his empire.
Magnus had spoken to the collected managers of stores, dispersal centers and the internet facility over Skype with a grave tone. "Our people have suffered a great calamity as you might have heard on the news from the message to Earth by General Morshower of N.E.S.T. Global. The Prime has declared a ten day term of state mourning. That means that the chain will be closing their doors until that period passes. At that point, we will reopen. We have send to you a flag to replace those on the pole. Please raise it for the period, then replace it with the flag of Empire and the Emblem of the Primes in the secondary position as usual.
"When the period of state mourning is past, then you can reopen. Please let the staff and all of our workers know they are on paid leave. If there are questions please let me know via email and I will do what I can. Right now, only emergency services are open on Mars and will stay so for the duration. We hope that our customers understand our position and respect it. Close even the mail order department. No one is to be on the job."
They chatted together, the managers, Magnus, Roberts, and Caro before signing off. It would only take a few minutes for the chain to comply worldwide.
-0-Giuliani, Italy
"Dear Autobot Devcon,
"My name is Giuliani and I live in Florence, Italy. I love you robots and want one for my birthday. What is your planet like? Do you go to school too? I saw robot dogs. They were cute. Do you have a dog? I am going to get one for my birthday. I hope its a robot dog. I love you, Giuliani, 4 ½
Dev grinned, then began a reply:
"Dear Giuliani,
"I don't have a dog but if I did it would be a robot too. My planet is Cybertron and its four times bigger than Earth. The days are longer too. We have 47 ½ hour days on Cybertron because our planet is bigger so our day takes longer to come around. Our year is longer too than yours, about 2 ½ times. My planet is beautiful. I hope some day you can visit. I'll give you a spin around. I love you back.
"Devcon, Autobot bounty hunter, soldier and 'Grandpa' too."
-0-Others
Hobbes walked along the street with an emotional Edict. They walked servo-in-servo as they negotiated crowds to go to the Temple. Behind them was Riff and Rad-R. Bron-E and her beau followed them. It was strained and would be anyway but things were coming to a head in Hobbe's mind that the situation between Bron-E and the youngster was more than friendly. He wasn't going to say anything to her or anyone else in public but he would ask about it in the evening when he alone with his family. Riff, Rad-R, and Bron-E didn't live at home, something which was strange now that he was home on special leave. It was glorious to be with Edict again but strange without the children around. They fell into line and waited for their turn to see the AllSpark and seek solace from its warm yet inscrutable presence. It would take a while.
-0-On a corner in town
Partition stood with his brothers Inweld and Morius watching bots walk past, some with kids and pets. They were at wits end not having duties and work. His parole officer had told him that they would pick up the last four orns of his probation when the ten were up. For once, he didn't argue which was curious enough in itself. When the four orns were over he was going to work at his career full time. He was going to be a diplomat and that was that. He would have to be on his toes with Ratchet. That slagger was a piece of work.
"What do you want to do?" Inweld asked.
"What are the folks doing?" Morius asked.
Partition shrugged. "I don't know. Call them."
Morius did and found they were in line at the Temple. They would go there and try to cut into line to wait with them. A big mech would be incensed that they did and drop kick Inweld and Morius into the street. Partition would take longer. He was working in the Home Guard, after all, but it was a foregone conclusion. What would be different was when the Day Watch horse patrol rode up to investigate everyone would pretend to not know about a fight. Partition wouldn't forget it or the mech, nor would he forgive it. He, however, was smart enough to not blow his probation. They would go to the back of the line. They wouldn't know that if they had just asked to be with their genitors, Lucius and Laslo, that the crowd would have made a space for them.
-0-Cybertron
They walked along the shore of the Mithril Sea. It was beautiful. Nothing about it was somewhere that humans could abide safely. Very little of Cybertron was though it had a breathable Earth-like atmosphere before the war. Now it was poisoned by chemicals, fumes and other byproducts of a bots wrath toward another. It would take a bit of work to restore the balance but it was on the list that Sciences had for restoration once Cybertron was moved.
Moving the planet had just risen a notch considering her proximity to the confederated aliens. Cybertron, her moons, the local system planets and other places would have to be moved and reassembled around a star or system of stars within the golden circle of Prime's reach sooner rather than later. It certainly had priority in his spark. He paused to look upward at the stars. The familiar moons of his people, his youth and childhood were shining in the perpetual night of his home world. It hurt once again to note how faint and faraway his home star was.
They were visiting a camp together, he and his staff, walking among his people, hearing their stories and meeting them to give them courage and hope. This had been a blow, the loss of their people to such terrible mechs. Some of the elders told him their tales of the Council and he listened sympathetically. Soon, he would have to hear their case and give a verdict. Given the gravity of their offenses, it would entail removing them from circulation forever. He was glad once again for the Matrix and the support of the Pantheon who he knew would weigh in once he read his verdict. Everything in him told him that the Council would appeal and the Pantheon would have the final say no matter what his verdict would be.
The sea spread out before him as he stood on the docks listening to locals talk about their work reclaiming the area. A lot of debris had been hauled from its silvery waters and there was more to do. Someday, they told him, it would be a bustling resort area again where anyone could come and enjoy the beauty, not just those who could afford it. He was glad. He had always wanted to come here with his genitors and never could. It was an off limits high caste enclave, the majority of it and always had been.
"We have the notes, Optimus, if you think we should move onward," Hard Drive said as he watched the big mech stare at the water.
"There is no hurry, Hard Drive," he said as he bent down and touched the water. He watched his reflection in the weak light of the moons overhead. "No hurry at all."
They would stay a while and enjoy the beauty before gathering up to head onward toward another place and another waiting group of his people.
-0-Dear Autobot Devcon
"Dear Devcon,
"I am Marita and I live in Australia. I have a younger brother who wants to grow up to be an Autobot. I like you. I saw your picture and decided to write this letter helping my brother. I am ten years old and like fast cars. Are you fast? I like your colors. I wish I could take a ride with you. We live in Sydney and attend the same school. My brother wants to know these things. Do you like Earth? What do you think about kids? Do you have a family? What games do you play? What do you like to eat? Do you eat?
"My brother is named Earl and he's five years old. Thank you, Devcon. I like your name too.
"Your friends,
Marita and Earl
Devcon grinned, then answered the letter.
"Dear Marita and Earl,
Thank you for the great letter. I'm a grandparent too and have a great little grandson named Smokescreen. I call him Smokey and even though he's a grown up mech I still think of him as my baby. I like the Earth. I visited Alaska once and loved it. I love children. I love my grandson who I helped raise. I know that children are wonderful and you are too, you and your brother. I have a bond, Smokescreen, a son named Moda who is bonded (married) to a nice mech named Tress. They have a son, my Smokey, and I love them all.
"I work to protect them and we have a lot of fun as a family. We like to race and play cards. My bond is very good at card games and I've gotten a lot better playing with him. I like to eat food that looks like yours. Steak is a great dinner for me. We do eat and I'm a pretty good cook. I like to make my grandson's favorite pie for him. It makes me happy to feed him. Kids eat a lot.
"I like Earth and her people. Her kids are the best part of your species. Tell Earl that I love him. I love you too and will protect all of you to the best of my ability. Take care, go to school and figure out how you can help your planet and people some day. Maybe I will see you when you visit here.
"Your friend, Devcon, Autobot soldier and bounty hunter, protector of children everywhere they live.
He grinned at that letter, then looked at the next one.
"Ola, Devcon. My name is Miguel and I live in Barcelona, Spain ..."
-0-TBC 6-5-17 edited 6-6-17
NOTE: I am going to use the characteristics of Cybertron from G2 where the human characters could run around Cybertron without gear. They had an atmosphere that was human friendly.
One of the (many) things about Beyverse movies is the way they don't treat him like he was a great official of a great people. He's the singular leader of an entire world, an entire empire, yet he gets crap right and left. Having him be appreciated by those who know why they should, his people, makes writing this fun for me. I think he would be honored, loved and appreciated. He isn't in Bey's movies. Just a quirky thing from me about the movies. :D