The Diego Diaries: Aftermath (dd6 610)
=0=Salton Sea
He leaned down to peer into the human's case. Grinning, he tapped it with his digit. "You still alive in there?"
:We are. What about you?: Lennox asked. He LOVED this mech.
"Well, we took down a bunch of slaggers but it was mostly sweeping up scraps behind Xantium and Omega. Those slaggers are still out there messing around," Raptor said. "We lost a few shuttles but we got new ones. Right now, its almost time to leave."
:Are you ever going to show the films?: Epps asked.
"After they're studied. It might be a good idea to let you see what this is like. The fragging nebula was a pain in the aft. We were running into each other. We actually ran into a ship, two of us. Fragging fog," Raptor said with a laugh.
They chatted together as the captains of the shuttles began to come aboard and gather around Prime. Some of them looked the worse for wear and others didn't. Outside, their vessels were being taken over by other crew to be flown home as escort for everyone here. Typhoon, Dangerous and Tennyson would finish up the sensor mining and warning beacons about local space in all the Cybertronian dialects for anyone else who would come this way, then follow behind with the Supremes.
The big ragged lot chatted with Prime and each other, trading slag and insults about the debacle that had just transpired. This was a difficult mission but no one had died. A few would be laid up and most of them would need a good detailing but all in all, the other guy paid the price of entry.
"I would like all the video to be sent to Jazz and Mirage. We will review the mission in two orns. Right now, I would like a moment's breather before going through this. Jazz and Mirage will prepare the final mission report." Prime glanced at Ratchet who was standing beside Ironhide with his arm slung over the big mech's shoulders. "Ratchet, what is the preliminary situation among medical? If you have it that is."
"Well, it would appear that we pulled 21,482 off the ships and of them 9,522 are confirmed dead. The number missing, probably from the explosiveness of the ships is still conjecture. We'll cull the ship manifests with Jazz and Mirage and match names where we can. Then we'll know.
"There are a large number of critically injured who are at Gliese getting treatment. How many of those survive is still a guess," he said to a solemn group. "Our side consists of 17 wounded, some with a road to full recovery in front of them but no deaths which I consider victory. I just received word that Springer is walking again and lifts a beer to all of us."
Huge laughter, relief and insults greeted that.
"What is the situation then overall, General?" Prime asked Hard Drive.
He was standing between Alor and Delphi. "We can pull out at your convenience. Ty, Dangerous and Tennyson are doing the field review and postings. We'll have deep sensor range here when they finish and the warning buoys are already placed. It's your call," Hardie said.
Prime considered that, then turned in his chair to spot the humans. "Gentlemen, is there anything you need before we go?"
:No, Optimus. I have to say this was one of the most outrageously amazing things I've ever seen. Thank you for having us along. If you want my opinion, it would do Earth a lot of good to see what you bring to the table when this happens: Lennox said.
"I will take that into consideration, gentlemen," Prime said as he nodded to them. He glanced at Devcon. "Would you please fly us home? Prowl, call the armada to go."
Prowl walked to the comm channel to put out the all call for form up on Salton Sea as Starscream and the Seekers left to go to Furious Storm. Everyone else walked to an empty seat or the benches forward near the humans to sit their weary bones. It would take a while to make formation, then check with Omega and Xantium who would come in triumphant to Autobot City later on with Ty, Dangerous and Tennyson.
"That was fun. Haven't had that big a frag up in vorns," Sun said as he leaned back against the bulkhead.
"The last I saw you, you were floating off strapped into your gun turret," Sideswipe said with a slight tone of awe. "And you were still firing it."
"I was," Sun said with a big grin. "That was unexpected. I managed to stitch a ships' undercarriage and it blew up causing the one next to it to fall apart. I barely made it to shelter."
"We saw that," Hercy said as he grinned at Sun. "We picked you up. We couldn't figure out why a ship's plating was flying in a straight line toward us. You're lucky we didn't shoot you, then check."
"I knew you wouldn't, ya wimpy Autobot," Sun said. He grinned. "We got Shrike as well. He was trussed up in a cage. That must have been Pulsar's battleship."
"It was," Ironhide said as he sat muy contento listening to the elders lay down the slag. The youngest among them, he was always ready to learn something.
Maybe.
"We got eight of their command structure," Delphi said as he began to relay some information about the battles as the data officer. "All of the highest ranks, some of the others and a lot of enlisted. There's a lot of civilians in this group, criminal elements, but none of them in command. Pulsar kept that to himself."
Kup nodded. "Should have expanded his staff. Could have used some new wisdom. Mech didn't last too long. He just came apart. I wonder what the frag happened?"
"He's an engineer. He wouldn't have crappy ships. Something happened on the inside," Blackjack said as Jack nodded.
"I knew him before he went pro," Jack replied as he crossed his huge arms in front of his chassis. "That slagger was obsessive-compulsive about things running right. Something tells me that this feels like sabotage."
"We need to find out," Prowl said as he joined them. "He was fine, then his battleship came apart. They just don't do that, at least not with him. He was always a by-the-book individual, if memory serves me."
"Well, I have him in stasis and when we get back and I remove his arms and legs, then we can figure out what happened," Ratchet said. Everyone turned in place to stare at him. He shot them a dazzling smile, the only things missing the gleaming sparkles when he did.
"Why does that sound like a ghoul talking when there isn't a one of us that hasn't pulled the arms and legs off someone more than once in their lives?" Steiner asked as Lissie sat down beside him.
"Because we're doomed to The Pit," Lissie said. "By the way, I checked the list of hits and kills. I win. By several." Huge groans and whining suffused as she leaned into her brother. "Whiners."
"We need to hit the clubs," Sun said as he accepted a beer from a youngling Home Guard femme who was carrying a box with them to everyone.
They thanked her, then took a swig. All was well with them.
"We can club," Ratchet said. "I'll get my bullet holes fixed and then we can go on the town until we get arrested-"
"WHAT THE FRAG!?"
Everyone glanced at Ironhide, then Ratchet. Then they sat back for the fun.
"WHAT FRAGGING BULLET HOLES!?"
"Keep up, Ironhide. We got ground sluiced by fighters on the triage deck. My ship, MY SWEET BABY GOT VENTILATED!" He grinned at Ironhide. "I do depend upon you fraggers to keep my whip in mint condition."
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE? WHY AREN'T YOU IN EMERGENCY OR SOMETHING?!"
"Because I'm having a beer with you reprobates," Ratchet replied as he glanced at the grinning Home Guard femme who was standing nearby with the half empty box. "Infant? Are there any snacks, too?" he asked with a dazzling smile.
"I'll see, Commander," she said putting the box down next to Steiner. "Wait here!" she said as she ran for the elevator down the deck.
Everyone watched her go, then grinned.
"The Home Guard kids are great. What a cute little femme," Delphi said.
There was complete agreement even if Ironhide frowned at Ratchet. "What kind of wounds, slagger?"
"The kind that only hurt when I laugh," Ratchet said. He snickered. "WHAT THE FRAG! THAT HURT!" he exclaimed. Then he glanced around the group. None of them were doing more than watching him with a grin. "Fraggers. I really mean that." He glanced at Prime who had arisen from the command table to walk over. "Do I get a medal, O' Most High?"
"Your ada would slap you," Turbine said with a chuckle as he tossed a beer to Prime.
"He would," Optimus said as he sat down to sip his brew. Prowl sat next to him and it was just as if they were shooting the shit at a rodeo or NASCAR race, a bunch of friends around a fire pit.
:I wish our army was as informal as this: Niall said to the others.
:You and me both: Gavin replied. :I might still be in it:
It was silent a moment, then everyone glanced at each other. :Nah:
"I see that Salton Sea took hits," Sun said as he clicked beers with Prowl and Prime.
"She did but not as badly as Phobos. We are going to have to revise our order of battle plans," Prime said. He glanced at the twins who were sipping beer nearby. "You are on for Polyhex shortly. We are off this round."
"We are," Sunstreaker said as he took a package of cookies from the little femme who came running back with a big box filled with them. "Thank you, Mit-Z."
"You're welcome. I want to know if you all need anything more," she said with a big smile as she walked around the group.
"You sitting right here, little femme," Ratchet said as he patted the seat next to him.
She would hand them out, refill everyone's hand who was empty of beer, then sit beside Ratchet, dazzling at the mechs around her as she listened to their humor and stories.
=0=Pulsar
He lay on a gurney rolling down the hallway of Autobot City Medical Center Emergency. He had been taken out with the leadership, those who needed specialist care at the Med Center and now was wending his way to a surgery. They had him slightly out of stasis to get his vitals as they were when he was awake, though he couldn't move anything. He had no idea that they were blocking his nexus points against that very thing.
Rolling in, he was lifted and placed on a med berth. He would have to wait until Ratchet arrived and with the orthopedic doctor on call, Rickets, only then would he go under for the duration. That would be when he would have his arms and legs disjointed until he was either sent into stasis like the other sixers or not. It would be up to him for what he could tell them about others like him and the world beyond Prime's redoubt, or Prime himself.
Either way, he was fragged.
=0=Military Airfield, Autobot City
They came in, small ships bearing crews or ships filled with injured. IntraCom and the other news outlets both Cybertronian and Terran were there filming and talking to those they could. Standing in the safe box where humans went to watch things like this on the edge of the airfield, over 120 individuals conversed, sipped drinks and watched the show.
They were the group from Earth2. They were here to speak to Prime and the others about matters of mutual importance. It seemed more likely now that they would, given that the fleet was beginning to come back. They would be here to see it.
=0=TBC 3-11-19 edited 3-12-19