The Diego Diaries: Farmville (dd6 398)
-0-Goin' Down
He sat winched into the command chair as all around him the displaced energy, gigantic engines and slow steady descent of the big mechanism in tandem with the other ship created havoc to everyone else not fast enough to sit and buckle in. Prime glanced around with a grin as he watched Ratchet bounce all over the deck with a giant smile on his face. He was hopping around like a drop of water on a hot surface, arms flying and legs akimbo.
Ultra Magnus had lasted gamely for a while but fell on his aft even so. He was currently sliding toward the forward bulkhead on his back with a disgusted expression on his face. Prime waved a servo as he slid past earning a frown from Magnus as he did.
Behind Prime sitting on his backside, Raptor popped around the floor with loud laughter. Hard Drive was magnetized to the floor, a risky move with few dividends. He was flouncing as the rumbling made him look like a wooden puppet on a stand with a button underneath that made the toy fall down limply, then straighten back up when released. He was actually laughing loudly at the absurdity even as he hung on for the duration. It was remarkable that his limbs didn't fly off his body.
Ironhide had lost his footing and was rolling around the floor like an oversize bowling pin, his arms flailing as he tried to grab something to hold onto. Ratchet bounced past him with a smile, then hollered to Ironhide. "MAGNETIZE YOUR AFT, IRONHIDE!" he said as he bopped onward heading toward the walls again.
Ironhide did and found his legs and arms bouncing like ping pong balls in a whirlwind. "FRAG! THAT HURTS!" he bellowed as he demagnetized and found himself sliding in the general direction of Ultra Magnus.
Arcee who had joined late and found a console seat to buckle into laughed loudly. "I could watch this all orn."
So could Prime.
-0-A good joor before on world
Prowl walked to the door to take a bridge to a ship. Prime was there and would ride the vessel downward. Invincible would be following just several hundred feet higher, then link up on ground level. He would hold 600 feet above ground while Thrasher set down and was hooked in to the general set up. The rest would follow after Invincible settled himself. Orders had been issued and the media had been alerted.
All was go.
-0-Hoomans
In the habitats around the colony, all the humans were getting the word. They wore a band on their wrists that seemed innocuous and was very thin. Some of the more fashionable complained about how plain it was but they would find out today, most of them, one of the many reasons they were required, these tough devices that could withstand everything including attempts to tamper and scan. They located the lost and gave information to the entire group when needed. Or to the one. It depended upon the message. Right now, the adults and elders of all the human population stopped to listen to the message being relayed through their bands.
"This is the Office of Emergency Services who with Fortress Maximus Flight Center have prepared a bulletin for all humans on world. Please listen carefully. All flight traffic into and off world will be put on hold for the next two hours due to the landing on world of two dreadnought class vessels in the construction site southwest of the Mall of the Tri-Cities, southeast of the Industrial Park Cities and west of most of the habitation areas of the colony.
"Construction has been undertaken there for the past month in preparation for their arrival. Because they are ships of the highest titanic rating, the operation of their landing is very dangerous to those on the ground. The areas from the Terra Hub though the Industrial Parks Cities, south through the Tri-Cities and north to Seven Cities-South are being evacuated of all traffic as well as those who work in the Public Works buildings along the Industrial Park Highway to prevent anything untoward happening. The area for 100 square miles in all directions will be evacuated of traffic and all who might be there to ensure that nothing and no one is overlooked.
"It is impossible to stress how important it is that you be out of the zone of concern that landing such vessels creates. The displacement of energy will create a dust cloud that in all likelihood will take more than one day to dissipate. Debris blown away in the displacement will turn small objects into lethal weapons. Anyone who feels the need to breach the barricade we are creating around the disrupted area will be arrested and face charges. If these ships land on you for whatever reason, you will perish forever. There will be no way to retrieve you.
"The operation will begin when the sirens sound. The lights of the metro-titans will continue to flash for the duration of the descent. Heed them. When the ships are secured and all is in hand, sirens will sound again. You will still be barred from going there until the final all clear is given by Commander Jetta of Iacon who is chief engineer of the colony and this project. A dreadnought class ship has never landed on world," Inferno lied as he read the message. "This is new territory for this colony. Heed this warning and all will be well. Breach it, then go to jail. Inferno for Emergency Services, out."
The message stopped but the organizing didn't. Every Day Watchman, most of the Night Watch and several hundred soldiers were building road blocks and manning sensor sweeps of the area to reach everyone who might wander in while Seekers waited to lift off to provide assistance for the ships. All were working hard. It would be a massive, massive operation.
-0-Earth 1
"God, I wish I could see this. Television doesn't do it justice," Brandon Clark said to Jerry Skura who nodded in agreement. Brandon had ordered everyone at the habitat who was still on world and not gadding about with the Autobots around the system to return. All of the habitats had the same orders. Return, count everyone, then send the report to Emergency Services in Metrotitan.
He did.
-0-Earth2
They stood at the window with a grim countenance. They wanted to watch but had to comply. To not comply with emergency bulletins or orders was to be kicked off world forever. Safety was the mantra of the day every day. A monitor played the operation which showed a lot of equipment leaving the pad where the ships were apparently going to sit.
"No one knew this was going on," Kyle said as he hung up on the Consulate. He had called everyone and no one knew or was willing to tell what was going on. "What is he up to?"
Owen Harris shrugged. "I don't know. What would you do with two ships that big?"
"Something big as well," Perry Beliveau said.
Cameron Fraser who was staring at the monitor nearby glanced at them. "Building a habitat?"
Owen glanced at him, then the window. "I wouldn't put it past him. But to what ends?" he asked himself. "What are you up to, Prime?"
-0-Prime
He laughed as the ships began to vibrate anew as they hit the atmosphere of Mars in a big way. Though there wasn't much of one, the difference in texture between void and something capable of weather and winds was instructive. Ratchet was howling with laughter as he popped around on his aft like kernels of corn in hot oil.
Magnus and Ironhide had slid from the front to the back and were heading back to the front again as both of them gave in to the inevitable. It was now impossible to stand up without enormous luck and skill so they gave in and slid on their backs however the ship vibrated.
Raptor had given up and when he slid past Arcee's chair gripped it tightly. He lasted a while, then slid onward torn from his grip by the increased vibration of the vessels. Hard Drive had shaken himself half to pieces and thus, gave up the ghost. He had slid on his aft toward the back of Prime's chair, then braced himself with his peds from going further. They were having a laugh riot together as the rest slid and bounced around the floor.
Sitting buckled in at the consoles around the room, the others mocked the bouncers unmercifully. Ratchet didn't care. He had no shame. He sat on his aft smiling broadly as he skidded and bounced back and forth. It would be an amusing descent for some and an ordeal best not talked about by others.
-0-Resort, N.E.S.T., Family Tower, Sciences
They were all there but for the on world N.E.S.T. leadership. Epps, Graham, Fulton and Morshower who had come over along with Joe Bowers and Will Lennox were in Ops Center watching film of the deck on Thrasher. The mechs bouncing and sliding around were ENORMOUS entertainment for everyone there including the humans.
The Resort, Tower and Sciences were gathered around monitors watching with amazement as Harley and Amos Epps grinned. The farm was coming to town.
Literally.
-0-Consulate
"Sam told me that the new ships can be seen by us from here when they finish transforming," Carly Brooks-Spencer said as she stood at the window with her colleagues. They could see nothing yet but the rise of dust in the area.
"What do you suppose Prime is doing?" the Australian consul asked.
Carly shrugged. "I have no clue," she said truthfully.
-0-Around the area
Literally tens of thousands of Cybertronians gathered around the edges of the quarantined area to watch the show. Security was out in force and the area where the vessels would land was nearly evacuated. Big equipment had been removed and the last of the worker bees were driving swiftly away. There was massive underground infrastructure for the vessels to feed and manage their maintenance. It would be occupied after they sat and all of the hookups that were going to happen would then. Right now, it was evac time and everyone was churning up dust to get clear.
When they would, the sirens would roll and the titans around the area would flash their lights until the all clear sounded again.
-0-Coming down
Thrasher who was flying himself downward was also enjoying himself on a scale that was hard to imagine prior to leaving Soft Space. For a very dignified mech, all of the hoo-haw undergoing around him was hilarious. He was laughing as hard as Prime who was having a good time watching his command crew flailing in the turbulence. He had warned them and they had taken reasonable precautions for a normal ship but these weren't normal vessels. He was as fully mature as Ty but bigger. Both he and Invincible were either 15 miles in hull length or close to it. Given their age and life experiences, they were unclear how big they really were themselves. It never came up in conversation.
Neither of them were size queens.
Dust began to rise as the downward push of this much weight met the unyielding ground below. The turbulence would get worse before it got better.
-0-Jetta
He stood on a safe hillside watching the dark spots overhead coming closer to the ground. The area had been policed and no one was in harms way but the few rocks that would be pulverized when billions of tons settled down on the ground. The shock waves would be minimal due to the unheard of strength of the two mechs but it would be felt everywhere. Things might even fall off shelves. Dust was kicking up and would be an issue for a while. Removing dunes from the city would take a few orns. It would be a small price to pay for the benefit of having another two dreads in The City. Paribolus was helping them with an off line conversation. He would be happy to have another dread on the ground here as well.
Dust kicked up and there was nothing to see but a dark spot overhead heading their way. Then thrusters kicked in and a whirlwind of dust blotted out even that.
-0-On Thrasher
He was in conversation with Invincible as they descended together. Thrasher led the descent, heading more slowly toward the ground as his thrusters slowed and controlled their downward movement. It lightened the hilarity of those unfortunate enough not to get a seat belt and they began to stagger back to their peds.
Prime glanced their way with huge amusement as they did. Watching the altimeter nearby on a console, he waited for touchdown. As Magnus and Ironhide walked forward with grim expressions, the thrusters cut out, then they finally set down with a gigantic internal rumbling thud. Ironhide and Magnus, Ratchet, Raptor and Hardie hit the deck, then were tossed upward to hit the ceiling before falling back down with a rapturous clatter. Laying where they fell and listening to the birdies sing, Prime leaned over to look at Magnus. "We touched down, Magnus. Just so you know."
He sat back with a grin. Sometimes it was good to be Prime.
-0-TBC 6-29-18 edited 7-1-18
In most shows, gravity plating of some sort prevents that from happening. However, it didn't this time. I love G1 Prime. He would howl with laughter over such tomfoolery. :D
That is a great introduction, 'I am Invincible'. Until you told me, kattenbelletje, I hadn't noticed it. :D:D That's why readers are gold. HUGS!