The Diego Diaries: Semper Fi (dd6 502)
-0-San Diego pull out pocket park
"What do you mean?" Carrie asked as Raptor took the baby into his arms.
Startling a moment, John pulled his phone out and snapped the picture. The twins sensing a moment stepped to both sides of Raptor and leaned in. "Take it now. Its finally a decent shot."
Raptor laughed, then elbowed the two as the baby leaned against his chest with a smile. "Infant knows a grandpa when he sees one." He looked at Carrie. "What do you two do here for a living?"
"I fly experimental helicopters for private aviation manufacturers and John makes video games. He's into helicopter games and I help him with them," Carrie said.
"I know something about helicopters myself," Raptor said with a grin. "That's one of my many specialties. It also helps to have a grandson who's a triple changer with a helicopter mode. That doesn't count the many times I showed the junior set how to fly helicopters in the war games."
"I have all of those on tape. I wish I could be there," Carrie said as John nodded. The baby was nearly dozing off on Raptor's arms. It was amazing to both.
"Did you ever apply to be hired through Autobot Nation?" Raptor asked as he gently swayed back and forth.
"We wanted to. I don't have a hard science or agricultural background and neither does John. We didn't think we had a chance. A video game programmer and a pilot," Carrie said as John nodded again.
"You would have gone if you were hired then," Raptor said.
"In a moment. We would have," John said as Carrie nodded. "We couldn't conceive of how we'd be hired with our resume. Carrie has a broader one with her military background but me? I make video games."
"Don't downplay your skill set, Johnny. You're a master programmer," Carrie said.
"What if I say you're hired if you want to come?" Raptor asked. He glanced down. The baby was sound asleep. "What's his name?"
"Hart."
"What a great name. How about coming to Mars with us now and look around. We can give you the grand tour and you can decide," Raptor said with a smile. "You can see the city, run around a bit and then come home to sit and hash it out-"
"Yes."
Raptor grinned. "You haven't been there yet."
"I wanted to be an astronaut. I never had the background for the science or medical positions but I could fly anything. I wanted to fly the space shuttles," Carrie said. "It was the next step after Diego. I had an application in and with the situation, I was placed out of competition for a spot."
It was silent a moment as the twins stirred angrily. "You were harmed by him and this happens to you?'
"They don't want scandal or controversy. The budget depends upon a glittery front. They don't want congress to punish them for things like this because they do," Carrie said. "There was a scandal a few years ago and they have a zero tolerance policy now."
It was silent a moment, then Raptor grinned. "Then beat them there."
"I would love to go. When?" John asked as he glanced at Carrie.
She nodded, then looked at the bots hopefully.
"How about now?" Raptor asked with a smile.
-0-Moments later
"Okay, Raptor. Lennox out." Will Lennox stared at the comm device in front of him, then turned to the table where his compatriots were eating lunch. The N.E.S.T. HQ was filled with soldiers. "Is Jessie around?"
"She's at Sciences," Epps said. "Why?"
"Can you call her in? We have guests coming, humans Raptor picked up on Earth. He asked that Jessie be rounded up to come along. They're going on a tour of the colony with the twins and Raptor," Lennox said. "I need to get gear ready for them and a baby."
"What the hell is Raptor doing on Earth picking up people?" Niall Graham asked as he held his daughter, Aedh on his shoulder. He was doing daddy duty.
"We're going to find out shortly."
-0-Earth, on their way
They drove along the highway heading for a turn off that led into less populated areas. A side road would host a space bridge long enough to let them escape Earth and end up on the road from the Prison to town. Sitting in the back, staring out the tightly drawn windows, breathing air that Raptor supplied himself, three humans … two attentive and one sleeping … watched with astonishment, They drove past enormous buildings that they'd seen on television to which nothing could do justice but for seeing it yourself.
Ahead, they turned off the road and began to cut across the airfield toward Cultural Center Road where the N.E.S.T. HQ was located. Passing ships and crews working, the odd human on a segway and hangars so tall their roofs were lost in the sky, they finally reached their destination. Before them, the glittering dome of Global N.E.S.T. HQ, Mars Garrison, United Nations Territory came into view. They drove around it to the bot door, then entered. The huge doors closed, the atmosphere reasserted nearly immediately, then the vehicles stopped. Ahead of them, the glassed wall separating the garrison building from this big entry way could be seen and those working inside as well. The doors to that space opened and the soldiers walked out with gear in hand. Jessie was among them.
Sunstreaker and Sideswipe transformed and stood up to stare at the humans with smirks. "Hi. I see you do as your told."
Lennox snickered. "Fuck you, Sideswipe. What's going on? Who's here?"
"Friends," Sideswipe said.
The doors to the heavily tinted TopKick opened and feet could be seen getting out. Two humans had stepped down, then the big vehicle broke into pieces and raised up as Raptor. He grinned as the soldiers stared at him, then the humans. Jessie then screamed and ran forward. "CARRIE! JOHN!" She hugged them tightly, then took the baby. "What are you DOING here?" she asked.
"They came and offered us a job," Carrie said as she turned around to look upward at the bots. She was used to seeing the big frames but her husband wasn't. He nearly had vertigo looking upward.
Lennox glanced up at the big mech. "Raptor … what's going on?"
"I went recruiting," Raptor said. "We need a game programmer and a pilot in this mech's army."
It was mayhem a moment, then everyone turned to the bots. "What's the real story here, Raptor?" Lennox asked.
Raptor considered the moment, then knelt down. "We don't have many femmes in our species. We have maybe 2.5-3% of our people trend 'femme'. We don't identify mech or femme outside our species but we do when others do. Right now, we're all just mechs among ourselves. You've made that distinction among us necessary. You have differences and we respect that because we've been everywhere and seen everything. We don't like slaggers taking advantage of someone due to their gender or anything else for that matter. I heard about what happened to you. You were slagging good because I checked. Combat pilot, search and rescue, nerves of steel and a big spark.
"You were pushed out and he was given a venue change and a slap on the wrist. It didn't matter that his options were culminated. He still had his career. You didn't. He's here working at Earth2 as their expediter and procurement officer. I'm just a little bit fragged off to know that, though there's a number of slaggers at Earth2 who didn't seem to suffer too much from their behavior. I don't think that's right. So I'm offering you a chance to come here to live and work. You can fly experimental ships that the colony is developing and give us your view of them as a human pilot. You, John, can work at Unidad in the programming department. I would like to see decent helicopter games produced that take in Martian terrain and aspects. Both of you can live at Unidad as employees of Autobot Nation.
"If you still want to work at your programming job from Earth, John, you can here long distance. We have state-of-the-art teleconference tech here that can keep you tuned in and we can get you there and back either by bridge or you can take a ship as an employee. They run every fifteen minutes between Earth and Mars and now only take 25 minutes to go one way."
It was silent a moment as the two stared at Raptor. Then they stared at each other. The rest of the group was watching them with something akin to fixation. Carrie stared up at Raptor. "He's here."
"He is," Sunstreaker said as he knelt beside Raptor. "If he so much as looks your way, we slag him. Sideswipe and me."
Raptor grinned. "You won't be anywhere near him unless you make it so. He's at Earth2 and you'd be at Unidad. Even if you have for some reason to be near each other such as parties and things, the humans from Unidad will be with you. He won't ever have you alone again."
Carrie turned to John, then they walked away a moment to whisper together as Sunstreaker stood up.
:You two slaggers won't do a thing. That's my job. This is a project: Raptor said as he watched them talking.
:I was afraid of that. Slagging Praxian customs: Sideswipe said. :Shall we tell them?:
:Not now. Later when they settle in. Something tells me we have a sale: Raptor said with a grin.
Both turned to the three, then nodded. "We've lived our entire lives for something like this, Raptor. We want to take up your offer," Carrie said as John nodded.
"Slag yeah," Raptor said as he slapped his servos together in triumph. "Get into the duds. We're taking a road trip."
"First stop, Earth2," Sideswipe said with an expression of controlled mayhem.
"The hell," Lennox said with a grin. "I volunteer to come along."
"I'M COMING! That baby is my godson," Jessie said as she took the baby from John. "Come here, angel. Come to me."
James Brooks-Spencer grinned at her. Epps glanced at him. "Run while you have a chance, bro."
"Too late," James said. He glanced at a beaming Jessie who nodded happily. "We're engaged to be married."
The roof nearly came off the building.
-0-Road Trip
They drove along Cultural Center Road, a convoy of amazing cars and N.E.S.T. trucks following a black TopKick pickup truck. It was noon and there were scads out and about to take advantage of the food possibilities. Sitting in the truck with Jessie, John and Carrie listened almost dazedly as Jessie explained what they were seeing. Jessie had put the baby down in the small playpen that babies, bot or otherwise used when at N.E.S.T. HQ. Hart would be dozing alongside Aedh while they ran around the colony with the bots.
They reached the intersection, then drove through, turned left and headed toward the Temple District. As they did, they paused at the light change at the corner of The Diner On The Corner and the city administration building. As they waited, Ratchet glanced out the window, then sat up straighter. The twins and Raptor were waiting at the light with loads of passengers followed by N.E.S.T. trucks filled with the same. "What the frag?" he said as everyone finishing lunch turned to look.
"What is Raptor doing driving humans and leading a parade?" Prowl asked as the others craned their necks to see.
"I don't know but I'm going, too," Ratchet said with a giant smile.
He wouldn't be the only one.
-0-On the way
"You really know this place," Carrie said as she sat beside Jessie. Next to the door, John watched the world go by. "This is so different than the shows."
"It's better. Once you've been here a while, you'll get used to it," Jessie said. "This place is my home, too."
"The Basilica," John said as he leaned forward to stare at a massive building appearing ahead of them.
"That's the Mausoleum of Mars and that's the Basilica of the Primes. That big round about can take you other places. Where are we going, Raptor?" Jessie asked.
"I thought we'd go to Earth2 but we're going to Unidad instead," Raptor said out of the radio of his console, something that was planetary diameters more complex.
They reached the roundabout, then drove onward toward Unidad to take the paved eight lane to the huge parking lot in front. There were cars and trucks there, most of them non-sentient which were unloading or loading, going here and there to the main loading docks around the side. Beyond, the parking lot, the glittering dome of the monstrously huge agricultural area could be seen. Lines of trees were being planted near the edge of the dome facing the outside to decorate the look of the area.
Raptor drove onward to the entry and when he drove inside a number of others followed. When they were inside, the doors closed and the atmosphere equalized. "You can get out now, infants," Raptor said.
The doors opened and everyone stepped out. As they did, the bots began to transform. They stood up and smiled down at the humans who were watching them. When a forest of bots were finally around them, Ratchet waved to the humans. "HI, TINY PEOPLE! IT IS I! RATCHET OF IACON! Huge laughter and mockery greeted that, then Ratchet knelt. "Carrie Fields. How are you and who is this young man?"
She stared at him, a bot she had talked to a couple of times and watched play a lot. "Ratchet, I'm so glad to see you again. I'm great! This is my husband, John Calley. General Raptor wants us to work and live here."
"Done deal then," Ratchet said with a grin. "Raptor may know a few things with emphasis on few but I trust the time or two when he's right, which isn't very often."
Huge laughter and agreement greeted that as Raptor smirked at Ratchet. "Slagger. Let's go inside. Who's the boss around here?"
"Why, I am," Ratchet said as he batted his optical ridges coquettishly. Technically he was.
"These two are going to be working here. At what is still to be worked out. Get them settled and let's go have a beer," Raptor said to Ratchet.
Ratchet grinned. "Done deal as I so majestically said before. I, Ratchet of Iacon will lay servos on-"
A rap on the noggin took care of that. He turned to stare into the mildly bemused optics of Prowl. "Why, Prowl, you fragger, you."
Laughter and mockery greeted that, then Prowl looked at the newbies. "Welcome to Mars. The local administrator is Carly Brooks-Spencer and she will help you settle in. I'm assuming you've taken these two on as a project?"
Raptor smiled brilliantly. "Do you doubt me, Raptor of Praxus, appa of many and enemy of few?"
"Are you sure you didn't get that backward?" Sunstreaker asked as a small cab drove up from the concourse and slowed to a stop.
Carly stepped out and walked to the group of bots, literally a dozen or so, many of which were here for the first time. "Hello. What brings everyone here?" she asked as other humans there began to come to see what brought a platoon of Autobots to their habitat.
"We have two new employees for you. We need them settled in. I'm going to tell Ops Center to allow use of the ops center's space bridge to their home to get this rolling," Ratchet said as he glanced down at the humans. "You do know that's possible. We can drop you off and pick you up in your living room. Also, pets are allowed. Jessie? Can you help them?"
"I will," she said with a smile.
"Did you want to tell them or do I?" Lennox asked her as the soldiers grinned broadly with him.
Jessie smirked, then looked up at Ratchet and the bots. "James and I are engaged."
For a moment the bots stared, then they hooted. Ratchet bellowed with delight and betrayal. "WHAT THE FRAG! YOU DIDN'T *TELL* ME!? HOW THE FRAG CAN I MEDDLE IF YOU DON'T TELL ME?!"
James laughed as he slipped his arms around Jessie. "We were too afraid to do that."
HUGE laughter and agreement.
"Frag all of you," Ratchet said with a grin. "This is nice. Raptor does a nice. We get two new kids and the world spins onward. Frazer will be fragged."
"He WILL be if he so much as sneers. Carrie is talented. I figured she could try out some of the sims and the small fast ships we're building for a human pilot's point of view," Raptor said.
"Do we make them that small?" Prowl asked.
"We do now," Raptor said with a smirk. That got all the love it deserved.
-0-TBC 10-22-18 edited 10-23-18
Guest: Thank you for the notes. I will get on them. :D
Note: Re: NASA scandal: A woman astronaut stalked her ex-boy friend astronaut, a noted cad and was going to kill him. There was a lot of long distance driving and adult diapers. It was all over the place. Google it. :D