The Diego Diaries: War (dd6 99)
-0-Salton Sea
Prime brooded as he waited for something to happen. Then a message sounded. "You may get yours at these coordinates." Then the message ended.
Prime turned to Blaster who worked a moment, then glanced at Prime. "We have coordinates, Prime. It's a location on the edge of the cleared area, a small planetoid."
Prime glanced at Prowl who worked on the datapad until he found the broken chunk of a long destructed planet. He enlarged the image, then glanced at Prime. "We have it."
Prime nodded. "General Hard Drive, take who you need and go get them. Use Omega, Beta and Xantium to escort."
Hard Drive nodded, then rapped Ironhide on the arm. "Come, infant. You too, Raptor and Blackjack."
The big mechs rose up, then followed their patriarch to the elevator. They entered, then were gone. Prime waited, then watched as Omega and Beta pulled forward, forming up on Xee. They flashed forward cutting across the broad open expanse and as they did a cloud of Seekers and five Wrecker shuttles followed. It was silent in the room until Hard Drive cut the audio into the command deck at Salton Sea. His calm voice could be heard clearly.
"All ship commanders, listen in," he said. "Signal compliance." Eight commanders reported, then it was quiet again. "Red Leader, link up and scan the location. Deep scan for ordinance. Impactor's Revenge and City of Praxus, go with them. Supremes, form up on line. The battle sequence is loaded. Signal compliance." Two commanders signaled, then Hardie formed up the remaining shuttles. "All in formation, we go together now."
Xantium moved forward and the others joined, running in a line toward the destination nearly reached by the vanguard.
Prime watched them on the screen, both as blinking lights moving across a data screen mirroring the battle datapad and a real time view of the operation from the ships themselves. The chat was minimal until the vanguard got within range of the planetoid. Then it picked up again.
:Hercy to General Hard Drive... we're close and we have signatures. The energy cloud is muddying up the signal. We're not sure if its one or two. We're going to go in. So far, we don't read slag for booby traps. We're switching to sight and ship optics. Stand by:
The view port ahead changed from a general view of what was happening to something very specific. The screen split into about six different views, all of them the optical viewpoints of mechs. Their names were listed underneath each sector, then a translation into English for the humans formed. One of them was damaged with a singular viewpoint. The name under it was Drift.
The murmur of voices of mechs gearing up, the motions of their hands checking guns, assuming ammo belts and swords could be seen and heard. A flash of someone glancing back disclosed a pensive but resolved Gypsy carrying her medic kit. A voice spoke to her. "You remember the drill, right, little Missy?" the voice asked.
"I do, Sandstorm," Gypsy said. The optics lingered on her, her beautiful face, the organizational and personal tattoos that ran down her arm indicating her family and professional ties. Her Wrecker and Autobot sigils were prominent among them. A big servo gently squeezed her arm. "I'm coming fast on the all clear, Sandy. There's injured out there."
"We know. Just do what we train for, Gypsy. You don't have to prove anything to us," Sandstorm was heard to say.
Huge agreement among the mechs answered that as they moved toward the hatch door. It opened with a flash of light indicating an energy barrier keeping vacuum out. They turned toward it, their giant hands holding an incredible array of guns and swords as they waited. Outside, the darkness was filled with the flashing by of bits of things.
A mech turned to look at the others highlighting a calm but resolved Hercy, a tense but ready Kup, a group of pensive younger mechs, Lon and Bezel among them, and the twins who looked terrifying. Their swords slipped in and out of their sheaths as they waited at the door, claiming the right to be out first.
The ships appeared to move downward swiftly as the viewpoints displayed showed on the forward monitor of Salton Sea. Then they landed and an explosion of color indicated mechs jumping out to the ground, some of them a distance before their ships even landed. Bouncing indicated running, some leading and some following as around them Seekers flipped down to land with their rockets and guns appearing out of nowhere. They, too, ran swiftly, heading in the same direction as the others. No one said anything, then Hercy directed the action.
:'A' Team, secure the area. Forensics, scan the shelter for traps. Everyone hold back:
It was tensely silent as the group watched specialist Seekers walk forward with different equipment that appeared in their servos out of nowhere. They walked toward the shelter, then began to work, each of them taking a side after scanning the ground some distance out.
Standing on the bridge of Xantium, Ironhide and his family waited. Delphi had transferred over and he stood beside Ironhide holding his servo. Ironhide in his dilemma gripped it tightly. They were frozen in their fear as Hard Drive sat on the command chair exuding an air of confidence. It was incredibly tense.
A Seeker turned toward Hercy who stood with Cloudburst, 'Blue Leader 1' and Red Wing, 'Red Leader 1'. :Commander, the area and the site are clean. I don't detect anything inside the shelter that can be construed as dangerous:
Hercy nodded, then turned to the mechs. :Gypsy and Sandy, go in and see what's happening after we remove the shelter. I need someone at all six corners. Scan again, then we lift it off. Move it away just in case:
They nodded as Gypsy and Sandstorm came closer. Six big Seekers walked to all the corners of the shelter, waited for the final scan, then lifted it off. It revealed who was inside.
-0-Everywhere
It was nearly unbearable. It always was with a prisoner situation but this was Ratchet, a spark everyone knew and who was 'essential equipment' in the lives of almost all of them. Prime felt turmoil as he waited, then Hercy was back.
:Hercy to Prime:
"Prime here."
:We have the kid. Ratchet isn't with him. He's okay and he needs to speak to you. He says they still have Ratchet: Hercy said.
"Have him bridge to me, Commander. Scan the area, then fall back. I'm moving the armada into the clear zone," Prime said.
:Acknowledged: Hercy said.
Prime felt molten with rage and impotence. He turned toward Prowl. "I want a battle line drawn up. Make it ¾ of the way into the cleared zone. I want it impregnable. I also want Tennyson here in battle kit along with Typhoon and Dangerous. Make it happen fast, Prowl."
Prowl nodded, then sat down to make the arrangements. As he did, the elevator door opened as Partition walked in with Gypsy, Hercy, Kup, a limping Springer, and a field patched Drift. They walked to Prime, then halted. Prime looked at Partition who looked terrified but composed. "What happened, Partition?"
He seemed muddled a moment, then he began to tell the tale. "We were in the shelter looking at the … the mechs there. They were dead. Ratchet said they were dead and buried but they were there anyway. I don't remember that too clearly but then a bridge opened around us. We stood … Ratchet began to pull his gun when they shot us," he said as Ironhide walked back onto the deck with a solemn-faced Blackjack. They halted beside Springer. "Ironhide … I didn't leave Ratchet. I didn't want to but he said I had to be the spy."
It was obvious to everyone that the kid was shocky and slightly out of it, numbed by the experience. Ironhide nodded. "Good mech, Partition. Tell us everything. Don't leave anything out."
Partition nodded, then turned slowly toward Prime. "I … we were shot, then woke up in a dark room. It was a null ray. Ratchet said it was. Then he told me to obey him and do what he said. He would protect us and get us out of there." He looked around, then turned back to Prime. "He's not here."
"He will be," Prime said gently as he glanced at Gypsy. She was monitoring him, then adjusted a meter. It caused Partition to visibly relax. "Continue, Partition. Fulfill your mission."
Partition stared at him, then straightened. "Okay," he said. "We were there a while, then they came for us. They blinded us, chained us up and covered our faces with a metallic sort of bag. We couldn't see through it. We were led to a room, an operational center from the machine sounds, then someone asked us things. They wanted to know who we were and why we didn't leave. They said they would send me back in a bag. Then Ratchet lied."
"What did he say, Partition?" Springer asked gently.
Partition looked at him, then Prime. "They said I was your cousin and that if they did anything you would have to take an Iacon oath and track them to the end of time."
"An Iacon sanction. Go ahead," Prime said.
"We were taken back and sat forever, I think. Ratchet told me if they sent me back I was to remember everything and tell you. I remember them coming for me. They flashed the light and dragged me out. Then they bound me up, threw me onto a ship and left me here. I never saw them. They never showed themselves but they have to know about us a little. They spoke our language … Neo … uh … Neocybex. They kept flashing lights to blind us, Lord Optimus, and that means they know something about us, right?" Partition asked.
Prime nodded. "It does. Anything else?"
He thought hard, then looked at Prime with anxiety. "I don't have anything else. They made sure that we didn't see them. Maybe we know them. Maybe that's why," Partition said with emotion. "You'll get him out, right? You're the Prime. You'll get Ratchet back, right?"
Prime stared at the kid who was becoming emotional. "That is my job and duty, Partition. Yours is to go with Gypsy so she can help you. You did your duty and you did it well. Now, this is my job."
"Can I come back here when … I want to come back here," Partition asked.
"I will speak to Gypsy about it," Prime said with a nod.
"You saw that Ratchet was still alive and in one piece before you left?" Ironhide asked. Partition nodded. "Did it feel underground where you were?"
Partition thought, then nodded. "It did." He stared at Ironhide, then stepped closer. "I didn't abandon him. I told him I would stay. He told me I had to go to complete the mission. I would never leave him behind."
Ironhide and the others stared at him, an emotional young kid struggling with a terrifying real world experience, then he nodded. He placed his servos on Partition's shoulders and squeezed gently. "You did good, kid. The first rule of soldiering is obeying orders. You did what Ratchet told you to do and you're here. Don't count my old mech out. He's probably already on his way out."
Partition stared at Ironhide, then stepped into his body, gripping him tightly. "I would never leave him back there." He sounded nearly tearful.
Ironhide squeezed him. "I know. Semper fi. You being here really helped us. Now go get treated, recruit. Understand?"
He looked at Prime with anxiety. "Yes, sir," he said, then turned toward Gypsy. They walked slowly to the elevator, then were gone.
The mechs on the deck stared after them, then turned to each other. Prime looked at Drift and Springer. "You two need to go to the medics."
"After we get Ada back, Prime," Springer said grimly. He was pockmarked with shrapnel and had a decided shift to the left side as if favoring the right. Drift had a field patch over one optic and pock marks too. They both looked like barely controlled rage.
Prowl stood, then walked to stand next to Prime. "The ships are here."
All of them turned toward the screen where the flash of bright lights could be seen materializing out of nowhere. Tennyson, Dangerous and Typhoon flashed on the bridge seconds after, solidifying into solemn-faced facsimiles. "You wanted us, Prime. We're here. Command us," Ty said as the others bowed slightly in agreement.
"We have a situation, gentlemen," Prime began.
Transfixed in the travel box nearby, a number of soldiers and a civilian watched with almost overbearing anxiety.
-0-TBC 8-19-17 edited 8-23-17
optimusprime101: tip-tapping away. :D
Leoness: Someone told me twenty years ago, if you want to see if your readers are sleeping or not, leave a cliffhanger. :D:D:D I think Cliffhanger would be a great name for Buzzie and Cliffie's first kid. LOL! Hugs!