The Diego Diaries: Chat (dd6 240)
-0-Conference Room, The Fortress the next orn
"Seems like ten vorns ago we did this," Ratchet said as he sat in his chair leaning against Ironhide. Halo lay on the table before them sleeping fiercely through some kind of puppy dream. Everyone was still coming in to join them and the snacks and drinks flowed.
"You have your report?" Ironhide asked as he took another donut.
"I do. Do you?" Ratchet asked with a grin.
"Maybe," Ironhide replied.
Prime walked in, sat and pulled Halo towards himself, folding her form into his giant arms. Grinning at her, he glanced at Ironhide. "Mine."
"It's catching, the insanity and grabbiness," Ratchet said with a smirk.
Prowl who came in next with datapads glanced at the baby. "I see you've retrieved our newest acquisition."
"Ha!" Ironhide said as the room began to fill in earnest.
Data pads hit the table and folks picked them up, counting down the list until their turn to see how long they had play before they were on the hot seat. Prowl sat back. "We are in order. First order of business is to ask if there is an update on the attack Teletraan recently went through. Anything new to add to the general database?"
"We have nothing beyond what we know, Prowl," Perceptor began as Wheeljack pulled Resolve from his carry hold. He tucked him in blankets as he lay on his arm and the baby fell back into recharge. Everyone in the room was watching him as Perceptor spoke. "The beam that hit Teletraan came from a point in space but no further. It came from nowhere and can be traced back to nothing. I am of the opinion that its a different dimensional point of origin that our own because where it ends … or begins, if you will, is nowhere. Where we traced it back to is just empty space. There is also no discernible trail of propulsion to be had there either. We are working on it but its like chasing ghosts. You can see something but does it really exist? How does it exist and better yet … where does it exist?"
Prime nodded. "Keep me informed, Perceptor. Perhaps we can pray its a one off situation."
"Will do, Optimus," Percy said as he glanced at his sleeping son. He grinned at Resolve. Everyone grinned at Percy.
"Medical?" Prowl asked as he glanced up from his datapad.
"We all participated in the femme problem yesterday. I turned the devices over to science for study. I expect you'll have something to say about them eventually," Ratchet said as both Wheeljack and Perceptor nodded. "As for the rest, we're doing good work in all the hospitals. We now have a medic at every Watch station in the colony so that there can be immediate emergency response ahead of the system. Those medics are to the last one army or Home Guard soldiers so that when its time to step out and help a migration or support a battle, they can do that as well. Its very well organized and professional. Our newest protocols for protoform wasting for the severe and resistant cases are working out very well and its being blitzed through Cybertron and the Inner Planets as swiftly as possible. It can be transfused in mass quantities which shocks it into arresting, then reversing. More study will come but its doing the job on the most persistent hold outs."
"Where is medical on Cybertron now? How is that going?" Prowl asked.
"We have medical going everywhere. They're still finding the strange hold out, mostly those with mental problems, and bringing them in. The trainee programs for processor health, field medicine and child/elder care are exceeding our expectations. There are a lot of trained and capable individuals in the population who've picked up on their old careers. It's enormously relieving, especially in the little burghs and the villages. The city camps are being tended to in a very organized and even routine manner but getting it to every crevice of Cybertron was the hardest part. We're doing good stuff there."
"That's relieving," Prowl said as Ratchet nodded.
"Are the titans providing enough?" Prime asked.
"Those dedicated to medical and hospitals are doing great work and can handle the burden thus far. The worst cases still go to Gliese or here. We're managing family care, making it easier on everyone, especially the victim in their recovery. I will keep you apprised," Ratchet said.
"Thank you. Please do. This is very relieving," Optimus said.
"General Raptor?" Prowl asked. "Your district?"
"We're finishing up our territorial assessment and map for the overall plat book for Cybertron. So far, we've located and denatured 134 out of 327 ammunition disaster sites. There's a lot of munitions spilled around. These are the huge caches and warehouse districts. This doesn't count the ammo that's just there or the unexploded bombs and the like. We want the ones closest to where our camps are to be cleared first. A child could pick something up," Raptor said. "We've found a lot of dead and are digging them out. The mass burial site at sector B-2 has a lot of my district's lost people and we expect to fill a lot more. I thank the priests for making the effort to send them off with good wishes. We try our best.
"We have a balance going, Optimus, between the living and the dead. Both get our best," he said. "We have a lot of Decepticons working the area, some in security, others in construction. They're slagging fine individuals and the backbone of what I'm trying to do. They've pulled their weight and given us a lot of help but that's because this is their home, too. We have them managing the weapons that are found or turned in. We're going to gather them in a big warehouse near Kaon, go over them for feasibility, then destroy and smelt down for steel those that are worthless. Most of them are."
"It sounds like my district," Hard Drive said. "We've decided among us," he said glancing at Turbine, Delphi and several others around the room, "to work out various kinds of problems together. Raptor will have the problem of weapons confiscation and destruction, I have small ships and runabouts in battle configurations because Nova Cronum is in my district and the huge airfield there can handle the ships being brought in. We all handle some things on our own, like the dead, but we've parted out the major stuff to be shipped to each others district so we don't waste expertise and manpower by doing duplicate ventures. All the relics, art, antiques, anything of cultural, historical or even monetary value for that matter goes to Turbine's district because of his clan. He can handle it respectfully if its religious and otherwise. As a Maker, he's the only one short of Lauren, Chevron, Chrome and you, Optimus who can safely handle some of that."
Prime glanced at Turbine. "What are you finding, Turbine?"
"Lots of relics, some of them appearing to be relics from the shrines that were either pillaged or cached to keep them safe. I'm keeping a bead on the keys but they shouldn't be here. We have one key from Cybertron and the rest will be found off world if the Chronicles are to be believed. We have a lot of good warehouses in a secure district that we're using to house this and lines into the Temple and University for expertise. We also have the Temple at Simfur in my district as well," Turbine said.
"How is the work going there?" Prime asked.
"They have nearly removed all of the debris and broken buildings away from the Temple District. It gives the archaeologists clear access to the vault rooms. They seem to go downward forever," Turbine said. "Its disheartening to see such a big crater there but its at least cleared out and cleaned up. When the time comes, they will rebuild and it will be a massive comfort to The People when it happens."
Prime nodded. "Thank you. Call upon me if you need me."
Turbine bowed his helm. "It will be my honor, Lord Optimus. Thank you."
"We're searching for the same things in my district. I have daily visits. The People get worried they've been forgotten so we go there on a regular schedule and see what's needed. I'm gratified that their requests are filled so fast. Sometimes, it matters more than you can know to get some little thing. It's my duty to go in the field and I encourage other district commanders to do as much as you can around your other demands. It means that much to see us coming to them," Raptor said. "All in all, my district is coming along well."
"Thank you," Prime said after comments from the other five district commanders. "What is the rebuilding like now? How is it coming along? What can we do to help? I know that sub ground infrastructure and planetary stability is a problem around the world."
Everyone nodded. "We've managed to make deep structural repairs in the worst hit areas, Prime. We have water flowing in its tracks and there's even new emerging energon rivers in the lowest structures that we need to make the repairs topside. Down deep, we're aware that the energon lakes and deposits are beginning to recover and hopefully, energon will flow on the surface once again some orn," Jetta said as he consulted his datapad.
"Some cities which have been at it a longer time have a good deal of construction rebuilt. Iacon is 25% reconstructed. We're talking the housing districts. The rest will come after our people have a home. We have plans in place that will go one after another as things progress. Overall, I would say that 12% of the housing we're going to provide in our redesigned and eventually rebuild cities is now completed. It might not seem a lot but it's yeoman effort, I can tell you."
Prime nodded. "I know. I congratulate everyone for their effort. I know it seems slow to those who have suffered so much but everyone will have a home some orn, everyone."
They discussed supply lines and building materials, then moved onward to such things as finance, investment and other things both on and off world that put even attentive mechs to sleep. By the time they reached Springer everyone was ready for the drunk tank report.
Springer grinned at Drift who pulled a datapad out of subspace. "You took notes?"
"No," Drift said with a grin. "Maxi told me to give you this."
"Oh," he said as he glanced over the data. "We have no real headway on the bombing campaign of yore but will be continuing to work on it. We have a drunk problem in this colony among the young and full of themselves. We were told that the magistrates have decided to have newer and more public punishments for public intoxication. They will be sending their ideas to you, Optimus, for your approval and/or input."
"Such as?" Prime asked.
"Working along the roads and other public works projects under the supervision of the Watch. Some of them feel maybe a little bit of public humiliation might make a dent in their swerve," Springer replied.
"You aren't arresting Cliff as much, are you," Ratchet asked.
"No," Springer said. "Buzzie made a new mech out of him."
"Buzzie is sparked in case some of you don't know," Ratchet said. "He told us at gun point so I guess its public news."
Some hadn't heard and clapping was had by all including speculation whether it would be a massive mech like Buzzie or a shrimp like Cliff. Either way, everyone was inordinately pleased.
Especially Prowl.
"Herling, please? Tell us all how my many children are doing," Prowl said with a smirk. He got many back.
"We are excelling. Our spelling program has been updated and voted into use by the school board last week, thank you, Ironhide. It is a comprehensive program in NeoCybex that leads from level to level in a manner that builds, then reinforces skills and rules. We are attaching it to our writing programs. Writing is essential and spelling is, too. They will be taught progressively with the goal to be fully literate by the time they reach Intermediate Day.
"Our human students are doing well. Those from Earth2 are still in half orn pull out for personalized education and tutoring. They go the rest of their orn back to their classrooms for their general instruction there and the asset classes," Herling said.
"What are asset classes?" Arcee asked as she lounged beside an attentive Magnus.
"Those are classes that teach things that fall outside the academic program that will be asset skills for our kids … music, art, dance, swimming, all the physical education classes, our band, the new drama program we've begun with Trooper and Scout … those things. We'll be adding to them as we go. Our children need to have exposure to everything we can," he said earnestly.
The room had an internal aww moment, especially the many genitors among them, then Herling and Nova continued. They told of the vocational program upgrade underway, the mentorship and apprentice offerings available to third level Intermediate Day students, the visiting expert program, progress in science on Trypticon, the level of art being produced, and a host of other things. It was an impressed audience who listened, then they moved onward.
By the time they reached the end of the agenda, everyone's optics had glazed over. Hovering over the baby, Prime glanced up. "What about the good of the order?" he asked with a smile.
What about that, indeed.
-0-TBC 1-8-18 edited 1-14-18