The Diego Diaries: Showdown (dd6 135)
-0-At the terminal in New York
The crowd that was heading for Mars were told an inadvertent delay would mean the trip to Mars would take a back seat for a moment or so. No details were given out to the 206 individuals waiting to go. There was a groan, then everyone sat down to wait. Whatever was going on out there was not going to be shared with anyone here.
Sitting by the window with frowns on their faces, six men were equally put off. All of them were going to direct employment at Earth2 and now they had to wait. They would go with the tourists, wait at the terminal in Autobot City to be picked up, then go to their permanent jobs as security at the giant habitat itself.
Silvio Lombardi, formerly Foreign Legion, formerly Intel-Martin-Asia glanced at the others. "This is unfortunate. I was looking forward to getting there by lunchtime," he said in his silken Italian accent.
Sam Hedges nodded. "Me, too. I think the rest of us just want to get through customs."
Huge laughter erupted as they settled in. This wasn't their first rodeo, after all. Todd Baseman, Lawrence 'Larry' Dobbs, Jim 'Big Jim' Johnson, Sam Hedges, and Steven 'Steve' Anson had been on the personal security detail of the former liaison and now full time federal prison inmate, Jason 'Jase' Daniels. It would be a bit of a wait for the group, then they would be called to board the ship that would take them around the inner planets and then Mars itself. They would be on the radar and sensors of any number of bots when they arrived.
Springer wouldn't be amused. Jazz on the other hand would be.
-0-At the standoff
They stood at the other end of the street, all of them together as Elita listened into the conversation with Prime down at the other end of the eight lane highway that divided Autobot City into two huge chunks. Standing behind them out of the line of fire, Lancer leaned against a building. They had been on First Saturday 'girls day out' with Hero who looked forward to it with almost a mania.
"ADA! MY SISTERS ARE COMING! WE DO FEMME THINGS TOGETHER!"
Ratchet stared down at the tiny femme in her 'femme's orn out' garb, her 'camo jammies', a gift from Chromia to her. She was encased head to toe in a onesie that was fleece lined and comfortable. It reminded Ratchet of the Teletubbies suits, the head cap to toe booties style without the little embellishments.
Yes, his littlest kids loved the Teletubbies.
The suit was white, had large splotchy brown blobs all over it and looked comfy. Ratchet grinned. "What if they decide you need your nails done? I hear everyone is getting their digits painted."
She looked at him, then her mitten encased servos. "I'll have to take this off. At least, my servos."
"What about your little toe peds?" Ratchet asked as he picked her up.
She looked at him with amazement. "They paint your toes?" she asked.
Ratchet grinned. "That's what I heard."
There would be another highlight to the whole experience as the femmes had another orn on the town(s).
Right now, Hero was in Lancer's carry hold nestled among the cashmere blankets she had picked out for just such an occasion with the femmes who thought she needed them, playing with her dollie as she read to it from one of four nice books they had picked out at a bookstore in Gambian. It had astonished the group how good she could read so they had gotten a number of nice books with a lot of plot. It amused Lancer as she held back to listen to Hero read to her doll even as it amazed her that she could.
Heavy treads brought their attention to the rear as Jetta and Ultra Magnus joined them. "What's the sit-rep?" Magnus asked.
"Ten hostages likely held by Sherma and Momus. The baby, Angus is one of them. All of the hostages are barricaded in the shelter below but for Epps and Lennox who didn't have time to get there before they broke in," Lancer said. "They ripped them both out of the emergency pods and are showing them as hostages through the window."
"Frag," Magnus said. He was silent a moment then looked at the others. "We have to hold. No one moves yet."
-0-Shelter
They sat on the couches in the shelter, almost none of them warriors in the traditional sense. Some of them were older scientists, some were just science nerds that never were much into activities that required violence. Others were tough, loyal and ready to rumble while one was a frightened mother.
Cindy Teasdale and her sister, Lola stood in front of the elevator. They had found the odd item to use as a weapon and were on guard. Lola had a two pronged barbecue fork that was on a long handle and a heavy pan. Cindy had a heavy pan and a gimlet optic. Alejandro Lopez sat next to Hildie. The twins had organized the 'defense'. Everyone would stay with Hildie and Angus defending them to the death while the two sisters would hold them off "until Optimus saved everyone. Okay?"
It was a plan. Sort of.
"Cindy … do you really think they would come down here?" Sheila asked as she stood up to walk to them. She looked around for a tool, finding none, then decided that sheer pluck was enough.
"I don't know. They're pretty big. Maybe they won't fit." Then Lola and Cindy looked at each other at the same time. Without a word, they put their weapons down, then walked to the elevator. Glancing around, Lola looked at the others. "Find something that can work as a crowbar or a screwdriver."
That would occupy them for a moment.
-0-Upstairs
Will Lennox and Bobby Epps sat on couches in the lounge that moved them out of the line of sight of anyone outside. The huge open space of the kitchen and entryway into the facility had the best view both inside and out. The two big mechs were out of view as well, working on the rest of their defenses. They had lowered their own body temperatures to make it harder for Prime to see them with infrared sensors. They had also tinted the dome of the habitat to its full power rendering the facility completely blackened. They were conversing internally and both of them were pissed.
It was silent in the habitat.
-0-Outside
The big police officer who had spotted them from an old alert, Merl was talking to Prime. "I was assigned to hunt down Decepticon traitors during the run up to The Fall." He glanced at Prowl. "We were on the same trail but for different reasons."
Prowl nodded.
Merl continued. "My job was to find anyone who was secretly working for the Decepticons and discovered that Sherma and Momus were. Then The Fall happened and all the chaos … it was mentioned to me that they were killed or more likely murdered but by then my job focus had changed. I never saw them again but the alerts in my files are still active.
"I read energy. That's my special function, Prime. No one I ever read is ever forgotten. That's why I was assigned police work. Everyone's pattern is different, like fingerprints among the humans. I read it, copy it into a file, then keep it. I can find and identify anyone no matter how charred they get or broken up. I especially hunted the worst criminals even during the Diaspora. I don't like to think they got away.
"I was having breakfast at The Diner On The Corner after night shift with the boys when an alert sounded as two mechs got up to leave. By the time they reached the door, my files had confirmed that even though they changed their looks, the two were Sherma and Momus. We went after them, chased them down the street, then they went here to the Habitat. That's how it stands now."
Prime nodded. "I have dreaded this all along. We must be very careful. The hostages have priority. Ten are there, eight are underground in the shelter. We have to assume, and I do so guardedly that the humans below ground are safe for now. What we need to do is be as careful as possible with Lennox and Epps in their possession." He looked at Prowl. "Can you make contact?"
Prowl was stilled a moment, then nodded. "You're routed through Ops Center. Blaster is on the con."
Prime nodded. "This is Optimus Prime. Speak to me, both of you in the Sciences Habitat."
:Is that you, Prime? What do you want? We're busy: a cultured voice said in his audials. Prime cut everyone in including Magnus, the femmes and Jetta down the street.
"I want to know what you require to release the two humans and walk out of there," Prime said.
:Let us think about it. Just know, Prime, that if you attack this building we'll kill the humans. It won't be pretty what will be left after we step on them: the voice said.
"We know who you are. Sherma and Momus. We also know if there is no way to save the humans your deaths will help salve the problems, if any, that arise," Prime said. "Do not overplay your hand. You may have overestimated the cards you hold."
:You don't want to tell the humans that you killed their people: another equally cultured voice replied, this one with less restraint than the other.
"You would do well to watch human broadcasts. They kill each other for fun. They will get over it," Prime said. "Fortunes of war." They waited for a reply but there wasn't one. Prime turned to Prowl. "What kind of sensors do we possess that can penetrate the dome?"
"We designed it to be defensive," Prowl said. "You can't bridge inside, when the dome darkens it cuts down sensor scrutiny to about 2%. The facility was designed to protect against any contingency. I don't believe we can penetrate it either with our conventional weapons."
"Then we must talk them out," Prime said as he stared at the habitat. "We have to make them come out without hurting the humans. None of them must believe the humans matter to us. If they believe that then they have a hold over us."
Prowl nodded, then together with the solemn-faced mechs around them and the femmes, Magnus and Jetta at the other end of the street, they began to strategize what they could do.
-0-In New York
"Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention?" an attractive young man who would be their steward to Mars said over the com line. "We're going to be boarding shortly to leave for Mars. Our journey will take a short swift tour of the inner planets before reaching Mars and Autobot City. You will be asked to extinguish any cigarettes, cigars or vapor devices, all of which are banned on world, secure all your carry-on baggage, have your documents available for Immigration and Customs upon arrival and observe all the rules and regulations in place for your safety and enjoyment. There will be a safety demonstration before we leave orbit of Earth that you're required to watch and listen to.
"We've been held up by circumstances beyond our control but we're ready to leave now. The tour before arrival will take one and a half hours to complete, then we'll join the traffic in orbit around Mars. The average number of planetary revolutions we'll make while we wait to land is about four. All along the way, I'll be informing you of the sights both in space and on the ground. I'd like everyone who holds boarding passes for seats 1-25 please to come forward."
The six men sitting by the window watched the others stand, then walk happily toward the gate and two young women who were going through the paperwork of boarding. They would have their turn but it would be group '201-206'.
They would be in that group by request of Jazz of Kaon.
-0-Family Tower
They gathered around the screens including the big one in the lounge. Their friends were in trouble and even though there was little information about who, they knew where. Those who lived in the Sciences Habitat full time and were out and about sat huddled on ships watching monitors as they sped here and there around the solar system or on chairs and couches in the Tower.
N.E.S.T. was 'working with Prime' so they couldn't speak to Epps or Lennox. No one knew that they were part of the problem let alone in danger. Not even Sarah and Will's parents, Jon and Thelma Lennox along with Bob and Tina Evans were aware of the actual circumstances. They watched just as concerned friends and family, rather than the immediate kin of someone in big trouble.
"This is terrible. I wonder if they hate humans or what?" Lonnie Epps asked. "The kids who live in Autobot City, bot and human are going to be held at school until this settles by the way. They have the standby room there for them even if they have to sleep there."
"They said they'd bring the babies here," Linda Graham said glancing over to Lonnie. "They'll handle the big kids but bring the babies here by jet. They think it'd be easier to deliver them here rather than take care of them and the others there. School for humans is out for the duration. These are the new protocols about our kids put in since Black Shadow."
"Well, this sucks," Lonnie said. "There goes swimming lessons today among other things."
They chatted onward as they listened to the news and watched images of Prime and the others on the corner near the Habitat. None of them noticed that if there were N.E.S.T. soldiers there that they weren't in sight.
-0-At The Fortress
Glenn Morshower, John Fulton and Warren Roberts walked through the bridge transfers that had begun where they were located here and there around Earth, then consolidated at Diego Garcia to be bridged directly to The Fortress. They trailed their various essential aides as they walked to the elevator nearby, then entered to go upward. Mechs met them topside, carried them out, then put them down so they could enter the heavy duty vehicles that N.E.S.T. had in their fleet. They sped off toward the scene to join in the rescue.
-0-A joor and a half later
They stood as they were called, carrying their stuff with them. Walking through the clear sided jet-way from the ship that had brought them, the human visitors walked into the airport with great happiness and high anticipation. The six men followed the group, then joined a line. It would take a while to get through Immigration and Customs, though it was more a matching of information and formality than anything else. They would also be looking for Autobot City syndrome's early warning signs. Screening for other problems usually was taken care of on Earth before leaving.
Todd Basemen walked to the counter where a mini-con femme waited for him. "Papers, please," she said in a soft voice. He handed them over as he stared at her, his first real contact with a female alien. Arcee had been part of the base but hadn't any contact with the mercs. They had noticed her with a glimpse now and again but it was rare. She looked his papers over, checked her screen, then handed them back. "You will wait over there," she said nodding to a small lounge by the window.
He stared at the lounge then her. "Is there a problem?"
"We have a traffic tie-up in The City. Your transport to Earth2 will be delayed," the femme said.
He nodded, then walked to the lounge to sit. The others were going through their turn when the bulk of the newcomers were led out to a jet-way that was attached to a big bus. Standing on the other side of the glass separation, a group heading back to Earth was going through the process of leaving Mars. Some in, some out, it was like clockwork. By the time the six were cleared, they were sitting together watching the activity in the Hangar District outside. They would also be on the radar of Jazz and Company. At no point forward would they be off on world.
-0-TBC 9-21-17 edited 9-22-17 edited 12-28-18