The Diego Diaries: Speaker (dd6 606) Not fully edited
=0=Home front: The Hourly News: Latest Breaking News ...
"There is new information coming from the Office of Strategic Communications about the confrontation with the armada of the phase sixer, Pulsar and the forces of the Prime. The Autobots have blocked the passage of the combined armada of both Pulsar and the recently repulsed Shrike from coming further down the Orion Arm toward our colony, the migration trails and Cybertron. They were on their way to make contact with Razorclaw and Ominous, two contained Decepticon battle groups in the local cluster.
"Shrike who led a group on the same mission through bridge jumps from the Bootes Constellation was blocked from entering Prime's sphere of influence some time ago. It commenced a confrontation between both sides which led to a furious battle and intense casualties.
"That group, Shrike's, was decimated by forces led by Prime when they refused to leave. Those of the group that survived the battle, roughly one third of the armada, fled and included their leader, Shrike. It appears that they were overtaken by Pulsar and Shrike was taken prisoner by him. When confronted, they didn't surrender nor leave so combat began immediately forced by Pulsar. During that combat, Shrike was retrieved by the Autobots and taken aboard as a prisoner.
"The group with Pulsar was very large with many battleships and cruisers. There were also a very large number of battle shuttles mid-sized and small along with fighter transports. The forces of the Prime included two dreadnoughts, a metrotitan, a large number of battle shuttles and heavy weapon/ship boarding specialists among the Seeker air wing, the Salton Sea for general command, Furious Storm for air command, Phobos for medical along with Beta, Xantium and Omega Supreme.
"The Office of Strategic Communications states that several of our battle shuttles were destroyed and all personnel are accounted for. The enemy group when combat began fled into a nebula and while there, electronics were compromised making pursuit harder and more dangerous for both sides. It's stated that ships have run into each other, many are being pursued, a very large number of prisoners are being taken on board prison ships and other vessels there to gather them and that Xantium and Omega Supreme have been magnificent in capturing and destroying ships ranging from cruisers to battleships.
"There is a segment of film that's been released that we will play now," Aleph said as the screen changed.
There was a cacophony of movement in a large but crowded open space surrounded by shimmering curtains of charged energy, flowing gas clouds and particles of ice and dust. In the middle, a number of shuttles were blasting a battleship that was in its death throes. Running lights and spotlights for just such things illuminated the area making for a surreal scene. It was then that Omega Supreme appeared out of the darkness at the farthest end of the area chasing a ship which he rammed hard.
He gripped it with his servos crushing it, then barrel rolled, taking the ship out of its flight path and drawing it with him across the open space where he began to shred it with his bare hands. A shuttle swerved sharply to miss both of them as a fighter transport appeared out of nowhere. It then began to launch fighters.
The scene changed to show a huge battleship that was fleeing this scene where another was being shot up by Autobot shuttles. It flew onward, then seemed to jam up. It stopped abruptly and the ripple of its hard jolt against something unseen could be seen down its entire hull. It listed backward as things came apart while in the space it was heading a huge fireball could be seen. A nose cone of a cruiser sized ship flashed out of the darkness as pieces of a big ship began to drift toward the clearing.
The battleship which was mortally wounded began to degrade and it was enhanced by the fact that several battle shuttles began to fire upon it to help it along. Crew were pouring out as Seekers and small pick up ships from the armada began to weave in and out to drag them toward safety and repair. It was deadly among the firing and debris flying everywhere.
The scene cut back to Aleph who looked at the film as it ran. He glanced up to the screen. "The information available to us indicate a number of large ships of the battleship and cruiser class have been destroyed, a tanker group exploded and destroyed three of their own support vessels, a fighter transport ship has launched their one- and two mech fighters against the Autobots. That combat is currently ongoing.
"The toll of the enemy ships is still being processed. Commander Prowl will release the information when he can confirm the number of destroyed and/or disabled vessels. Right now, the nebula is not cooperating with that process. The prisoners are being brought to Mars and the prison. Wounded are going to Gliese, Autobot City and the local system planets of Cybertron. The exact locations are being withheld due to the security zone protocols for that area.
"The number of casualties for the Autobots is small given the intensity of the combat. There are a number of mechs who were taken to the hospital here at The City including Commander Springer, Head of Security for the Empire. His injuries are being taken care of and are not considered life threatening ..."
=0=Watching in a hospital room
"I don't know about that," Springer said as he sat up in his berth. "That slagger hurt."
Drift who was sitting next to him with his peds up on Springer's berth glanced at him. "I thought you said it didn't hurt."
"It didn't. Some of it. A bunch of it did," Springer replied as he sipped his beer.
"How much?" Drift asked.
Springer thought, then shrugged. "About 52% or there abouts."
"Oh," Drift said with a grin. "I'm glad it wasn't 100%. You whine like a baby when its that high."
"And you don't?" Springer asked with a smirk.
"Nope," Drift said with a chuckle.
Springer grinned at him, then the screen. "You don't. I suppose you think I'm a cry baby."
"Nope," Drift said.
They watched the broadcast companionably as the news continued.
=0=At the Big Frame Hangar, Hangar 1 in the Hangar District, Autobot City
The siblings of Xantium and Omega Supreme watched the broadcast both internally and on a big screen nearby where the night shift crews had gathered to get the latest. The film of Omega taking out the shuttle had been exhilarating to see. Both he and Xantium were the battle models of their frame. They were built to kick aft.
The rest had been programmed to fight but it wasn't their special or even first feature. They were diplomatic, colonial support, troop and/or supply transport and administrative vessels. They were designed and utilized to show the power and prestige of the Cybertronian people to the rest of the galaxy.
When they went to other worlds and were part of missions that greeted other species, the idea of the vessels being sentient was a HUGE thing. Most of them had been assigned a city or city-state as their own but they had been utilized for just about everything but that as things fell apart. It was rumored that Kappa had been killed doing troop transport in the war but that proved to be untrue. Perhaps they all hoped that the rest of their siblings would come back at some point. For now, they watched the fight with intense amazement.
The sheltered gents and lady.
Silverbolt sat with them watching Omega with pride and some worry. It was obvious that both he and Zee had taken shots and there would be more medical treatments in their futures. Omega was back to speed and this was the last thing that Silverbolt hoped they would see for a while. But being a soldier meant risk so he sat with his in-laws to watch and wait for the armada to come home.
He wouldn't be the only one.
=0=A lounge at Earth2
They sat together drinking wine and beer, smoking cigars and watching with almost mute astonishment the news and its filmed segments. More clips were being released showing intense fighting at a pace they hadn't seen themselves outside of space movies. Even Star Wars wasn't this dense and fast depicting their own fight scenes.
"I don't know about you, Owen," Matthew Collins, a venture capitalist and banker said, "but I'm damned glad they're here all of a sudden. I know this isn't the first time they've driven off or intercepted something awful heading our way but I've never really seen anything like this before and I'm damned glad the Autobots here. On that score, you and I have to part ways."
"There are those that believe they wouldn't be coming here if the Autobots left," Owen posited.
"Those people are assholes. Given that we're practically made of their food and fuel source, this solar system, there would be no way they'd go. You, yourself said its an intensely rare substance. They won't leave the mother lode behind," Matthew said as he sipped his wine. "That argument is over. It's dead. There's no way to put the genie back in the bottle and anyone who continues down that road after this is going to be a laughing stock.
"Only the fringe holds that as a truism anymore, Owen. Just so you know. I personally won't have anything to do with that kind of thinking. This is the way the world is now and everyone has to get with the new reality."
Several of the others nodded, then the oldest and most 'old money' among them leaned slightly forward. "You don't hold truck with that kind of thinking do you, Owen? Seriously, how can anyone watch that and think that its ever going to be different again?" Logan Marker asked.
Harris looked at the group who stared at him. "I agree." He did to a degree but they didn't have to know how much.
Another clip came onto the screen and they watched as Seekers and others pulled the wounded, dead and merely inconvenienced into ships where they were triaged by doctors and secured against rampaging. They watched as Ratchet was seen doing duty on the hangar deck of his ship, Phobos. They would hopefully meet with him before they left to go back to Earth in three days. It was interesting to watch him and the others work in the middle of hell.
=0=Prime
He stood in front of the map on the forward screens which was filling in nicely. A number of identified kills were marked but most weren't. Ships were fighting here and there and as he pondered what the deal was going to be for their next move, about 23 one- and two man fighter vessels appeared out of nowhere and began to bear down on Prime's ships, the victims floating helplessly in space and the broken destroyed hulks of their own vessels floating everywhere. "Frag," Prime whispered as he turned to the officers on the deck. "FIRE ON THEM! NOW!"
They did.
=0=Phobos hangar deck triage area
Breakdown looked from the doorway toward Ratchet. "WE HAVE FIGHTERS INCOMING!" He subbed his guns and turned to the doorway. "EVERYONE GET DOWN!"
Outside, the Seekers began to scatter, some with victims and others free of burden. They flew out to regroup and attack the incoming marauders in numbers.
Behind them, doctors and nurses, triage specialists, medics, techs and other more gently raised individuals froze in place with fear etched on their auras. Around them, those who had ratings to fight ran toward the door with their weapons unsubbed including Gypsy with her rifle.
Ratchet had pulled his big old gun, then turned to the kids and other civilians watching with terror. "PULL EVERYONE AWAY FROM THE DOOR, THEN FIND SHELTER! STAY BACK! YOU AREN'T RATED TO FIGHT!"
That was when a fighter flashed past and stitched the entire length of the hangar deck. It was loud and as it happened, doctors, nurses, techs, triage and field medics, those rated to fight and those who weren't fell to the fire to land hard on the floor. Some of them rolled over and lay over patients to save them from the other fighters who were coming in behind that one.
=0=TBC 3-5-19 LVTIM4EVRDJB/AMBLV4EVR
Will post note replies tomorrow. :D:D:D 3-30-19