The Diego Diaries: Stuff (dd6 545)
=0=Prime's Office, The Fortress
They sat on the big comfortable couch in Prime's amazing office going over things that were stacking up. The coffee table in front of them was covered in work which Prowl was discussing for scheduling and time lines.
"So far, the deadline for Crader is past. The Pantheon?" Prowl asked. "Anything?"
Prime shook his helm. "Nothing. My sentencing is going to prevail. We have to schedule the final stages of his trial for as soon as possible."
Prowl nodded and made a note. "There is the business of Stormy and Denita. Then there's the Stunticons and … I'll get with Barron."
"Good. Just tell me when and where and if nothing is burning at the time I will be there," Optimus replied.
"The refugee flow is coming along very well. We have assimilated 5.5 million new refugees from Omega Base so far. Dai Atlas sent us a preliminary map of the search area he's conducting that shows 6.3 million possible refugees that will need evacuation," Prowl said as he consulted his data pad.
"What is our population on world now?" Prime asked as he sat back to consider the situation.
"We have 36,000,000 population give or take a few. Right now, Crater District 1 is coming to full capacity and Crater District 2 which is nearing completion has about 15% occupation," Prowl replied.
"That sounds better than I expected. What about the other five construction sites? How are they doing?" Prime asked as he keyed on the map of the colony which burst into light. It was vast, beautiful, beautifully laid out in its planning and had expansion potential in the first two security zones of double what was already built or underway. It was relieving to see.
"They have all broken ground and when completed will hold nearly 60,000,000 individuals. Two of them are the focus of construction efforts right now, though all of them are laid out for upward momentum. The Industrial Cities have expanded and will continue to do so. Our ability to supply building materials and skilled workers is meeting and exceeding demand. Having the overland train systems going to the construction sites is helping with supply. The idea is to expand the train system all over the colony with above ground lines linking each urban center. That way we can alleviate traffic density and make things more efficient."
"I like trains," Prime said with a slight grin.
"Good thing we have a big apartment given that you and Rambler have built that train set up so much," Prowl said with a grin. "By the way, that nice engine he likes is one of his Christmas Surprise presents this time."
"I can not wait to see it myself," Optimus said with a grin.
The conversation would continue.
=0=Elsewhere
"Is this all the boxes?" Ratchet asked as Ironhide trudged in with the second load of boxes from Speedy Delivery and Storage Company in Terra where it was kept between uses.
He set them down on the table with the others. "It is. I'm having the tree delivered. I put it in the storage unit on its stand. I don't want to put the slagging lights on again." Ironhide opened a box, then grinned. Pulling out tiny trees, he walked to the window and set them down in a row. "There. Done."
"In your dreams, big boy," Ratchet said with a grin. He pulled things out and they began to decorate, putting up lights, placing their growing collection of decorations everywhere and fusticating around until the door bell rang. Walking to the middle door, he opened it.
In the hall holding a tree shaped package that was about 35 feet tall, a mob of mini-cons smiled together. "YOUR WISH IS OUR COMMAND! SPEEDY DELIVERY IS HERE TO SAVE THE ORN!"
Ratchet laughed loudly and held the door open as a mob mini-cons muscled a tree inside, pulled the wrapping off, folded it into their subspace, then turned to Ironhide and Ratchet. "Is there anything else?"
"Nope. Slagging thanks," Ironhide said.
"TO LIVE IS TO SERVE! SPEEDY DELIVERY SERVICE IS AT YOUR SERVICE! YOU CALL, WE COME!" With that, the little slaggers walked out and closed the door behind them.
Ironhide and Ratchet stared at the door.
"What did we ever do to deserve mini-cons?"
"I have no idea, Ironhide." He looked at the big mech, then smiled. "TIME TO DELIVER THE GOODS!" With that, he walked to a box and began to pull out ornaments. They would spend over a joor placing them 'just so', then the lights that were also in there for each room, then the special dollies in Santa drag that the kids had during the season, the stockings with their name on it and the like.
Ironhide stared at the scene, then the floor. "We don't have a sock for Robby."
A hairy little red cow with big curving horns stood beside Ironhide dozing slightly.
"We can't have that. Cousin doesn't have one either. What kind of atar are you, slagger, that the fur babies don't have their own ho-ho-ho?"
"Beats me," Ironhide said as he opened his carry hold and pulled Halo out.
Ratchet walked to the door and turned off the lights. Taking the control from the table he turned on the lights of the decorations. It was beautiful.
Halo stared at the room with a startled expression on her little white Ironhide face. She glanced all around gasping with surprise, then wiggled until Ironhide put her down. She stood beside Robby who wasn't much impressed, then walked to the tree where Cousin sat staring at his own reflection in an ornament. She turned to the two with a deeply shocked and surprised expression on her cute little face. "ADA! ATAR! WHY SHES?" she asked in deep and almost overwhelmed surprise.
Ironhide and Ratchet stared at her with grins. "Oh frag," both of them replied together.
=0=Shortly later at The Animal Place
They walked in together, Halo sitting on Ironhide's arm while Robby the Bruce ambled along on a long leash. The store was great. There were animals in the back who were already to be claimed by someone as well as some whose pictures lined a big bulletin board. Protoforms of different animals and birds were there for viewing and the hopeful adoption of those who wanted pets. Many were the animals of Cybertron and Earth whose beauty graced that space. Those who were already chosen and retrieved from the Well were waiting for their pick ups either today or before Christmas Surprise. More choices not yet retrieved were always placed on the board, protoforms developed for sparks to be sought by those who might desire an animal companion.
The two stared at them, pointing out the two cows and four little horse protoforms that were going to be someone's little buddy some fine orn, then walked onward to look at all the cool stuff. Getting a sock for Cousin and Robby the Bruce would be a great way to avoid work in the office before disappearing into the metro to visit two new armories and hubs in the new construction. All in all, it was a great way to spend one's work orn.
=0=IntraCom
Jazz walked to the office where he worked not only for his show but as a director for IntraCom and all communications on world and the empire. He and Blaster were board members of the ruling body when not soldiering. He entered to see Mirage dozing in a chair nearby. Grinning, he put down his meal and sat. "You alive?"
Mirage shifted, then glanced at him. "Maybe."
"I checked the stats on the video on Autobot Nation on YouTube. We just past 500,000,000 views. The idea of letting Cybertron see the show is genius. I heard its trending there like a wild fire. The comments are gold. 'Who ever saw a Prime laugh before? I almost don't know what to think. Is it sacrilege or what?' There's a lot of that on the page."
"I don't remember ever seeing a Prime laugh before Optimus. We used to go to dinner with the rich slaggers that ran things and often Sentinel would come. I never saw him show enjoyment," Mirage said.
"I did. In the rough trade clubs and gang bars of Kaon and Tarn," Jazz said with a grin. "You needed to get out more."
"Obviously. Did you bring me lunch, too?" Mirage asked as he sat up and stretched.
"I didn't know you were here," Jazz said. "By the way, we're doing the play-by-play and color for the basketball broadcasts. Blaster and me are on it. Why don't you do floor interviews?"
"No thanks. I don't want to get hit by flying bottles," Mirage said as he rose to walk to the door. "I'll be right back with lunch." He walked out and was gone.
Jazz grinned. "Wuss," he said as he began to eat.
=0=At the Sports Arena of Autobot City in the City of Retriarius, the '8 Ball' District
They rolled onto the middle court and paused at the center circle. It was so vast, the game floor that it would take a very long time for a human to jog all the way from one end to the other. The baskets themselves were able to be raised or lowered but would be set at 50 feet off the ground. They were huge, the hoops. The floors looked like they were liquid gold as they drove slowly across its smooth and highly polished surface. The stands went up enormously high and would hold an enormous number of spectators. The wall around the court was set high so it would take a concerted effort to land a player in the audience.
:This is amazing: Gavin Pritchard said as he sat on the segway that was being driven by Bobby Epps. With them were Will Lennox and Niall Graham, Corey McFarlane and Trevor Smith. All of them were off duty and had headed here to see the greatness before the storm. :I'm going to have to be on my deathbed before I miss this:
:You and me both: Niall Graham replied. They stopped in center court. :I think I'm going to be an Iacon home boy:
:The first game, the inaugural ones will be Iacon versus Tarn, Polyhex versus Altihex and Vos versus Kaon. No matter what, I want to see that one. The Vos team will be Seekers. I heard that the Elder and his sons are on the team: Trevor said as he looked up to a roof that went up 300 feet. It gave him vertigo to do so.
:Grimlock is playing for Tarn. I thought he'd play for Simfur because that's his home town: Niall said.
They considered that a moment. :Prime versus Grimlock. I know which one I'm attending: -everyone but Trevor
:That will be awesome. I heard that Jazz and Blaster are going to have a long pregame show with the M.C.A. sportscaster pool to explain the rules and how this works. Prime is going to play. I can't get over that: Corey McFarlane said. :My dad is bringing his brothers here to watch it at the Tower. He wants to get in on the ground floor of something new:
:You and me both: Lennox said as he pointed to the corridor that led to the locker rooms. :The balls are over there. Drive, Epps:
Bobby drove the vehicle across the floor and past the walls that bordered the court. In a huge wire bin nearby, gigantic basketballs were gathered. They were huge, bigger than the tallest among them. They stared at the round balls, then each other. :I can't wait: Epps whispered.
Everyone nodded silently.
=0=Omega Base
They stood in lines expectant and excited, weary and anxious as they snaked slowly forward to enter into a building where two big bridges worked full time to take in measured numbers of refugees for a new life on Mars. They had been sorted, tagged for their time to leave, then shown all the videos and informational devices that told of their new life to help with future shock at arrival.
The camp was vast but enormous numbers were already gone. Dai Atlas and his crews were getting ready to evacuate an entire sector of colonies for transport here. Their own bridges were going to facilitate that both by ship and foot traffic. It was a well ordered machine as legions of workers came here from Mars to work their shifts, then head back home while others took their places. It was the fastest, smoothest and most efficient way to do this that could be arranged. They had sent 12,000,000 refugees through since organizing with Prime. It kept the camps in trim and allowed them to go through the crowds to find those who were either in need of medical and psychological attention or a jail cell. It would continue into the foreseeable future until everyone was found and retrieved. No one expected that to end any time soon.
=0=TBC 12-15-18 edited 12-25-18
ESL: fusticating, fustication: an old slang word for fussing around. Doing things anxiously. (Fuss-tih-cay-shun)