The Diego Diaries: War (dd6 97)

I mixed up numbers and it took FOREVER to find the next two pieces. HUGS!

-0-Out there

They flew toward the unknown enemy. It was silent on the command deck. Then Prime glanced toward Prowl who was sitting at the command table with Alor. "Prowl, send the message."

Prowl glanced up, then nodded. He looked toward Communications. "Blaster, send the message I'm giving you now."

Blaster nodded and complied. It was silent a moment, then a message came back almost immediately. "You are trespassing on the sovereign territory of The People. Leave now or we will be at a state of war."

"That was fast," Raptor said as he glanced at Prime. "Generic or a genuine reply?" he asked.

Prime glanced at Blaster who was working. He turned toward Prime. "Hard to say, Optimus. It came from the location of the settlements. It could be whoever has them is using their channels or something set on a beacon that was triggered by unknown means. The signal is strong and not far away, either way."

Prime nodded. "Open a channel." Blaster did. "Unknown aliens, I am Optimus Prime. I have come here to rescue and retrieve my people who have settlements in this area. Allow us to bring them out and we will leave. We come in peace on a mission of rescue and mercy."

A text message was received almost immediately. "Leave this area. Now. Any attempt by you to trespass here will resort in a fight. Leave now."

It was silent as Prime considered the message. He glanced toward Blaster. "Call up Ratchet. We may have a shooting war here."

Blaster did, then turned to Prime like the others to await his orders.

"What is the lay of the land, Prowl?" Prime asked.

"Between here and the coordinates given for the settlements are broken chunks of planets and ice that could be as big as this ship or bigger. There are lots of places to hide, to build forts, to attack and retreat. It's going to be a very difficult situation on its best orns."

"That doesn't count the unstable energy rifts and the temporal dislocations that abound out here," Blackjack said as Alor nodded. "We mapped a lot of it but not this far out. We do, however, know how to read this sort of disturbance. Mostly."

At that moment, Ratchet followed by a stoked Partition walked from the elevator to pause beside Prime. "This is my student, Partition. He's shooting for regular army."

Prime looked at Partition who nodded to him with an intense expression. "I'm here to help get back our people, Prime."

"That's an admirable sentiment, Partition. You are assigned to Ratchet and you will obey his orders," Prime replied.

"Got it," Partition said with a nod. He stood beside Ratchet, staring around the command deck, noting everything with intensity. He nodded to those who stared at him as he seemed to absorb all the sights deeply.

Ratchet grinned at him, then Prime. "I'm here. Who needs a tune up?"

"None of us, I hope," Prime said.

"We're getting a signal, very faint, sort of surreptitious," Blaster said as he monitored the signal. "It's like someone hiding but sending a distress, hoping the right mechs get it."

"Prime to Springer."

:Springer, boss:

"We are receiving a faint signal, a distress-type. We need it checked out," Prime replied. "Take a Seeker with you. Do a distance scan but get what you can. If someone is stranded or harmed, we need to retrieve them."

:Will do. Stand by: Springer said.

Partition stared at Communications, then walked to Tactical where Raptor sat. He leaned in to stare at the screen. Raptor glanced up, then grinned. "Pull up a chair, youngling. See how this works."

Partition glanced around, found a chair, then pulled it over to sit beside Raptor. Partition stared at the screen intently, Raptor began to explain the set up outside. "This is the fleet," he said pointing to data on the big screen. "The enemy is here. The faint signal is here. All of this is debris. The enemy could be hidden there. If we go in without care and planning, there's all manner of places they could attack us."

Partition nodded. "What do we do, Abba?" he asked.

Ratchet grinned, then glanced at the others who were amused and surprised at the word of respect applied to Raptor by the hard-headed kid. "That's my boy," Ratchet said quietly.

"We wait to see what the Wreckers and Seekers find out," Raptor said.

"I joined the Wreckers, Abba. I want to do this. I think its important," Partition said with earnest intensity.

"It is. What about diplomating?" Raptor asked.

Partition thought. "I can do both. Ratchet needs the help."

Laughter erupted all over the deck at that remark as Ratchet smirked at the others. "Frag, yeah. Team work, Partition. That's how we win."

Partition glanced up at Ratchet, then looked around the deck at the amusement around him. Then he grinned slightly. "So you tell me."

:Springer to Prime:

"Prime here."

:We found a small shelter, like an emergency shelter. A shuttle, a small runabout is crashed there. The signal comes from that. We could have injured. We read three very faint signatures inside the structure. What do you want to do?:

"We need to check it out. We need a medic too. I am going to send Ratchet. Have back up nearby and a ship to evacuate the injured if necessary," Prime said. "Prepare for them to intervene if this is a set up."

:Got it. Bridge over, Ada. We're ready for you. You are there, right?:

"I'm here. Would it be a real war without me?" he asked as he turned to walk to the elevator.

Huge laughter at both ends of the line erupted as Partition arose to follow. He nearly reached the elevator before Raptor called to him. "Infant. Get back here."

"I'm going with Ratchet, Abba. I'm his assistant," he said, pausing to turn to Prime. "I'm going to help him, Prime. Let me help. Please."

For a moment, there was real emotion in the room among the mechs at the tone of the kid's voice. Everyone there knew his story and all of them were as moved and amazed as Prime. Prime stared at Ratchet who nodded. "Very well. Ratchet has command and discretion. Do as he says."

Partition stared at Prime, then he astonished the room. He bowed low. "I will," he said as he turned to hustle to the open elevator. He joined a grinning Ratchet, then the door closed and they were gone.

It was silent a moment, then Raptor laughed. "How about we give Ratchet Turmoil next?"

Huge laughter greeted that.

-0-Down to the bridge room of Salton Sea

It was silent a moment, then Ratchet glanced at a tense and intense Partition beside him. "You exceed expectations every orn."

He glanced at Ratchet, oddly warmed by the comment. "I want to do my part."

"You will. Here's how it goes. You come with me and obey me to the last word. No heroics. No stupid moves. You're a novice warrior. You will learn and become something good and fine but it takes time and effort. There is no shortcut for that. Hercy and Kup see it in you. I do too. Now, earn it from us. Do you understand?"

Partition nodded. "I will," he said simply.

They stepped off the elevator and hurried to the bridge room. Ratchet paused long enough to check his guns before subbing them again, then both walked onto the platform as a bridge erupted. They stepped into it, then out onto the deck of Impactor's Revenge. A gnarly group of Wreckers and regular army watched them come from the bridge on board. Lon and Bezel were among them. They glanced at each other in surprise when Partition followed Ratchet.

"Well, offspring! Mama is here!" Ratchet said with a big smile and out spread arms. "WHO NEEDS A BIG FAT HUG!?"

Huge laughter and a load of slag greeted that. Springer grinned at Ratchet. "We need you to come to the shelter and see who or what's making the life sign signals."

Ratchet walked to a cupboard to pull a medic kit. Turning to Springer, unsubbing his gun, he grinned. "Ready to rock and roll."

Partition took the medic kit, then turned to Springer. "Me, too."

Springer glanced at Ratchet with raised optical ridges. "Really?"

Ratchet stared at Partition almost too long. "Okay," he said. "This kid knows my rules. Right?"

Partition nodded, then glanced at Springer and a slightly amused Drift.

"Then we're go," Ratchet said. He glanced at Partition. "Stay behind me and obey. Are you on the combat channel?"

Partition activated a channel that was usually an emergency signal receiver that soldiers used in combat. "Now I am."

"Good." He looked at Drift and Springer. "Lead on, Gridley."

"I thought that was 'fire away, Gridley'," Drift said as they gathered at the door.

"That too," Ratchet said as the hatch opened. A shelter was nearby half covered in drifting silt and ice particles. A burned out shuttle lay nearby in pieces. Jumping to the ground, Springer nodded to three Seekers who had done a fly by and noted a clear area of possible troubles out several hundred thousand miles from here into space. Landing in a fine particulate matter as they stepped down, they began to trek toward the shelter nearby.

Partition followed clutching the medic kit as he looked this way and that. He had no guns. Ratchet had told him to come 'clean'. He did and filed the expression away in his army jargon file. He felt his neural net nearly vibrate with the intensity of his attention. He was here, on a fragment of a world, being a soldier among soldiers of the most amazing ability, on a mission for their people. He, at this moment, had never felt more alive.

They trudged toward the shelter and waited a moment as Drift and Springer secured it. Drift stepped out, then signaled Ratchet to come. :There's three in here. They look deceased:

Ratchet and Partition walked into the shelter, then knelt. Ratchet began to scan when a disturbance felt in the ground signaled something strange happening nearby. From his expert knowledge and experience, Ratchet knew it was detonations. Drift and Springer turned with guns drawn, peering out of the shelter into the darkness beyond. Seekers were directing fire to a string of explosions nearby. They were silent explosions, large in their blast intensity and threw fragments everywhere. Moving out, Springer and Drift with the others in tow began to stealth onward to the area where the fire was concentrated.

Ratchet peered out, then returned to the three bodies. They were adult, in good shape and appeared to have been dead a very long time. The traditional burial brands were on their bodies. He glanced at Partition who looked slightly queasy but game. :This is strange. These are bodies with the traditional brands. They were buried and now they're here: Ratchet thought, then jolted. :This is a set up. RATCHET TO PRIME! THIS IS A SET UP!:

-0-On Salton Sea

They jolted, the tense command crew, as they listened to Ratchet's call. :RATCHET TO PRIME! THIS IS A SET UP! THESE BODIES! THEY WERE BURIED AND DUG UP FOR THIS! IT'S A SET UP!: Then it went silent.

The air on the deck was thick with emotions and fear, then it cleared. Raptor's fingers flew, then he turned to Prime. "A bridge, Optimus. They used a bridge at the site of the shelter. Whoever was in the shelter is now gone."

Ironhide nearly overturned the chair where he was sitting. Turning to Prime, he looked berserk. Prime stood, then turned to him. "Wait," he said. Turning to the front, almost as if he could see through the distance to the site of the action, he spoke. "Prime to Springer. Check the shelter. This is a set up."

:On it, Prime:

"PROCEED WITH EXTREME CAUTION!" Prime replied.

It was silent a moment, then Raptor turned to Prime with a grim expression. "The shelter just blew up, Optimus."

-0-TBC 8-18-17 edited 8-22-17

PS I will write a bunch more later this afternoon after work. Have no fear. I am here. Mostly. :D:D:D