The Diego Diaries: Vacay 6 (dd6 578)
=0=Later on
"You were lucky not to get deported," Sam Hedges said with an edge in his voice. He glanced at Kyle and Owen. "We can't draw attention to ourselves. It'll give them the opening they need."
Owen considered that, then glanced at Johnson. "Lie low for a while. Stay in. Let them get back to the usual."
"I want to kick Ratchet's ass. He agreed to meet up," Johnson said.
"It'll be the last thing you do here before they toss you. Besides, what makes you think you can best him even in that form?" Kyle asked. "He decked that alien thing Springer made, remember? One punch."
Johnson glared at him. "What makes you think I won't?"
"Let's see if he remembers it," Owen said. "For now, let it cool off."
=0=Elsewhere
Ominous read the message, then considered a memory that it triggered. Something about the message and its signature made him remember a vast unpleasantness that he didn't want to repeat. He stared at it a moment, then glanced at Pleon. "Did this also get sent to Razorclaw?" he asked.
"It had a bifurcated dispersal about halfway here. I'm guessing it was," Pleon said dryly. One could barely hear the concern in his tone, something one had to search to find normally. "I doubt that one was sent to Prime."
It was tensely quiet on deck for a while as the two considered their options. After a quick search, the fears that came to Ominous proved to be accurate.
=0=Ops Center, Autobot City, Mars, Cybertron and the Empire
Prowl and Prime carrying Possibility walked in to gather at the table with Devcon and Smokescreen who were on duty together, exchanging this shift with someone for another orn off. A short chat was had, then a call for Senior Autobots to come was made. A grim Prime and Prowl walked into the conference room to wait.
Moments later, they began to filter in, half of them carrying brightly cheery children. They were placed on the table to walk around, hug everyone there and babble their usual happy stuff. Ratchet was last with Springer and Drift, the two walking in to sit as Smokescreen closed the door behind them. Everyone turned toward Prowl and Prime.
"We have a possible situation coming our way," Optimus said. "We intercepted messages sent to Razorclaw and Ominous requesting a meet up with the newcomer who is taking a longer way toward them than he had when we chased him from the migration earlier. It is unsigned but it has a signature and framing that suggests that the sender is a phase six mechanism."
It was silent in the room, then Ironhide glanced at his uncles and other family. "We bagged several before. We can do it again."
Ratchet vented a sigh. "Which fragger is this one?"
"We are unclear to be precise but it appears to favor Pulsar," Prime said.
"He's bad," Steiner said. "I know of him. He's high caste, slagging well educated … an engineer and wants to be king. He's patient, strategic and without fear. He's worked on his armor and format for a long time. Every time I saw him he was different and more lethal. I think he does some of the work himself. He has skills and his enhancements can only have gotten better and more deadly over time."
"He's messaged our two locals," Turbine said. "What about the free agents? Imperialis and Shrike? Any intel on that?"
"We lost track of Shrike's whereabouts when he left our field of vision in the Bootes and Imperialis has laid low since the last encounter. What that means, however, is anyone's guess. If he's absorbed them we haven't been able to tell," Mirage said.
Jazz nodded in agreement.
"Then I suggest that we have a meet up with Razorclaw and Ominous on Cybertron. I think it might do them some good to see real power to help them decide who they fear the most … Pulsar or me," Prime said coldly.
=0=Pulsar
He walked to the brig of his ship to pause before the bars of a cage where a big mech sat without expression. He was restrained with energon chains and dampening control devices which accounted for his lack of physical reaction to his captor. Pulsar stared at him a moment, then released the bars of his cell. Walking in, he sat down next to Shrike. "I thought, captain to captain, that you were entitled to an update on your armada. It's mine now. Any questions?" he asked without mirth.
Shrike stared murder at him but said nothing. He couldn't.
"Well, I'm glad you took it so well," Pulsar said as he rose again. "See you later." With that, he walked to the door and left.
Shrike would be unable to follow, move a finger or even turn his helm until such time as Pulsar decided he could.
=0=Prime's Office
"I have some ideas, tactical and pointed, Optimus," Ratchet said. "You want to give a good impression to Razorclaw and Ominous that will help them with their future command decisions. That's what we ultimately want, right?"
Prime grinned slightly. "Only if you tell me about the ride over from Diego at some point, yes."
"Done deal," Ratchet said with a brilliant smile. "I have an idea for your office in the Citadel. That's where we're going, right?"
Prime nodded.
Ratchet then sent Prime his idea WIFI.
Prime received it, thought it over, assimilated the willies, then nodded with a grin. "You are incredibly devious, Ratchet."
Ratchet smiled. "That's what all my mechs tell me," he preened.
Prowl gagged. "Loon," he said as Ratchet rose to walk to the door.
Ratchet looked back at the group. "Strategy, infants. Go hard, then they go home." He left.
They stared at him, then each other. "Don't mind me if I don't look at your big bookcase," Prowl said as Prime sent all of them Ratchet's proposal.
"I do not plan to look at it either," Prime said with a grin.
Everyone who didn't have an Ironhide face would agree as well.
=0=On the way to Autobot Med Center
Ratchet walked along grimly thinking about what he had to do. Part of what he needed was on Cybertron and the rest here. He'd be busy for a while deciding, then perfecting his plan as he sent an order to The Science Center for what he needed to complete the presentation.
It would be a very weird crate that would be journeying with them to Cybertron that afternoon.
=0=Razorclaw
"What are you going to do?" Poison asked as he sat in the conference room with Razorclaw and Dagger discussing the message just received from Prime.
Both of them were his lieutenants while Poison was his 'general manager' if you will. Razorclaw was loathe to give formal military titles to his minions. He didn't want anyone getting ideas about bumping up to something a bit more prestigious sounding.
"I think I'm going to go. Pulsar sent the first message. He plans to come here and take over. He'll have no problem with Ominous. Then he's coming here. If Prime wants to do something about him, I'm not adverse to hearing the plan and let him do the work."
"Then we go to Cybertron?" Poison asked.
Razorclaw nodded. "You and I do. No one else does. If everything isn't the same when I get back then consider yourself dead," he said as he arose.
=0=Ominous
"We better get ready to go. It's been so long since I was home I'm almost afraid to see it," Pleon said as he walked to the door to wait.
Ominous nodded as he arose. "You and me both. This could be interesting."
"It could also be a trick," Pleon said as they both walked out.
"Either way, we very well could be fragged. If you had to be taken over by someone which one would you want? Pulsar or Prime?" Ominous asked as they stepped out to walk to a small shuttle nearby.
"Ask me later," Pleon said as they entered the ship. They would take off right away.
=0=Flight line, Autobot Air Base, Military District 1, Greater Iacon, Cybertron
The number and amount of ships that were landing to settle for a show of force to the slaggers that were coming would dazzle even Megatron. The line up seemed to disappear into the dark distance as they were guided to set down where they were assigned. Battleships, battle cruisers, battle shuttles, support vessels, fighter haulers and ammo supply and fuel tanker ships stood in seemingly endless rows, all of them pointing toward a fast exit if needed. They were part of the huge fleet that was Prime's to call and they were being orchestrated to impress.
Support vehicles hustled everywhere, all of them working hard to be a part of an 'exercise' for 'readiness' that was just handed down from the Most High. Fighters were being towed to the extended runway that bordered the main lanes of the vast military base where the fleet was designed to clear in moments. Lights were trained on the ships showing them in their gigantic brutal aspects while small carts with technicians passed by massive amounts of ammo and supplies driven onward to their final destinations.
Beyond this area, the housing for soldiers, airmen and techs for the base was placed to bivouac while on duty, their bright lights part of the beautiful scenario of restoration. Duty individuals lived there on their tours before returning home to the camps, towns, villages and/or towers where their families and partners lived beyond the noise and hustle of this place.
The housing situation in Iacon was approaching 34% of new construction. Beyond the buildings that stood rebuilt and occupied, a fantastic dark mass of spires that would be new towers spread out in all direction. A master plan was guiding the construction and it was going to be extraordinary when completed, Iacon Proper. The remaining areas around it were being laid out with clearances and infrastructure rebuilding the first step.
It was going to be an amazing thing when completed, a city that was built for everyone. It would be organized to be sensible and beautiful, made in a manner that didn't favor anyone, was up to code everywhere and open for everyone. It was in short what Optimus Prime wanted, promised and was delivering. It would be interesting to see what Razorclaw and Ominous would think when they saw it.
Their ship landed, the one with the senior Autobots that included the newcomers. Stepping off with Ironhide and Sun carrying the big box that Ratchet had packed between them, Ratchet slipped his arms through those of Jack and Prowl. "Well, isn't this exciting."
"Unhand me, ghoul," Prowl said with a smirk.
"Prowler, Prowler, Prowler," Ratchet said with a brilliant smile. "Lighten up," he said as they stepped into a transport to be driven to the Citadel and the drama that would begin in about a joor.
=0=Prime's Office, The Citadel, Iacon City, Cybertron
They set the box down on a beautiful table, then everyone turned to Ratchet who smiled brightly. "Show time," he said.
"I think I'm going to purge my tanks," Prowl said as he leaned against the enormous desk made from a big slab of marble that belonged to the Primes and had hosted all of them but the first three. Prowl had METICULOUSLY restored the office and the building, almost as a past time. It showed. Oddly enough, this was Prowl's domain as well.
S.I.C. and all …
Ratchet walked to the box, rubbed his servos together with delight, then pried the lid off. Everyone took a step back almost instantly as he peered inside. "Well, hello there," he said with a grin.
Ironhide snickered. "You're one sick fragger, old mech."
Ratchet grinned at him. "You think so?" he asked as he reached inside, grabbed something, then tossed Black Shadow's helm to Ironhide.
He screamed.
So did everyone else.
It was epic.
=0=TBC 1-25-19 edited 1-26-19
ESL:
Bifurcate, bifurcated, bifurcation: (by-fur-kate, by-fur-kated, by-fur-Kay-shun) When something branches, it bifurcates. This usually means two branches but it can include more. Branches bifurcate from the trunk of a tree.
A snake's tongue is bifurcated. When you part your hair, its bifurcated, the part is a bifurcation … uh, I think I just beat this to death. :D:D:D