The Diego Diaries: New World Ordered (dd8 536)
=0=The next day
The buses trundled off with the kids while Ratchet and Ironhide walked to the Temple with Halo and Ratchet's genitors to their store and the Circle Prep School with Prowler. Everyone around them seemed energized, as if a heavy burden had lifted and life seemed to be alright again. It was actually and even Prime and his group felt it as they headed off for their jobs and stations around the colony and Cybertron.
Ratchet and Ironhide made it to the Temple which had long lines of the faithful waiting to thank the Pantheon and The One at the Well. Walking ahead to enter and go to the school, they chatted up friends and neighbors as other genitors followed or led the way.
Entering, the murmur of voices in prayer and those in quiet chat seemed like a buzz as they headed for the school entrance nearby.
"I go wif lou?" Halo asked hopefully.
"Nope," Ratchet said as Ironhide grinned slightly. "School calls, infant. We don't want you to join a road rage gang later on because you missed counting to 100."
"I count to dis many," Halo said holding up three, then five fingers. "I think dis many."
Ironhide grinned. "That's because you're a genius."
She smiled at him, then relaxed against his armor.
Sela who was greeting everyone grinned at the three. "Any problems today?"
"Can't tell yet," Ironhide said as he set Halo down. Behind him ran two little kids and when they got to Halo they hugged her.
Halo hugged them back, then the three ran inside together happily.
Ironhide watched them go with a slight miff, then glanced at Sela. "I guess not."
Amusement was had by all then the two walked out through the throngs to the street outside.
"Where you going?"
"I'm going to Cybertron with Appa. He's going to visit schools and wants a School Board member there to add gravitas." Ironhide grinned. "I get to carry the cow."
"Robby needs to go on these orns. Too bad he's in school with Sunspot for Show and Tell. He could swing his little aft with yours," Ratchet said.
"I'll pencil it in. See ya," Ironhide said as he began to walk off to go The Fortress.
Ratchet grinned at him, then walked to the Metro to beat him there. He had something he had to do with new information that Lee-Lee had forwarded to him the night before. He wanted Granny on board before he set sail into the land of hopefulness where he preferred to be.
=0=Granny and Dad
Prowl and Prime walked in and paused by the command table to get the word from Remainder who was night shift commander. He was a Seeker of the old school, someone with exquisite manners, something that wasn't unusual considering he was part of Breezy's clan. He filled them in, then walked out to go to a religious school in Aerie Hill to watch his kids for two joors. The parental part of the school system was undertaken everywhere with gusto on the part of the schools and the genitors.
They watched him go, then sat down just as Ratchet appeared nearby. He crossed the room to join them.
"What's the word?" Prime asked with a slight grin.
"Why 'the bird is the word' or so old time rock and roll says," Ratchet said. "How do you feel after all this slag?"
Prime sat back. "Better. I am assuming that you are here to expedite the problem before us with the newcomers."
"You assume rightly, Oh Messiah of The People. I just got word on the configuration of the group that we pulled from the migration. The high castes have doctors and one of them is an old classmate." Ratchet gave them a brilliant smile. "Have you ever seen that English politician Jacob Rees-Mogg?"
"No but I suppose you want me to 'google' it," Prowl replied with a smirk. He did, then frowned slightly. "Whoa."
"Someone on a chat called him a 'Victorian undertaker'," Ratchet said with a giant smile. "I love it. The group has one like him and I went to school with him. He was a first class fragger. I still got better grades."
"Tell us about him," Prime said as he considered the data pad that Prowl handed him with the names of those from the migration who were part of this group.
"His name is Mikron," Ratchet said as Prime scrolled to his name.
"He appears to be a high caste doctor from a long line of them who lived in Crystal City. Tell me more," Prime said.
"He was at University with me in Iacon and considered himself a prodigy. He was good but he wasn't all that. We had classes together and he went out of his way to try to shame me. I planted him good outside the stadium one night when I was cutting across to go home. He didn't bother my aft again, though he was always up for the same jobs but I beat him out. To say we aren't friends is to underestimate what we both think of each other." Then he smiled his most glorious smile.
Both Prowl and Prime snorted.
"So why bring this tin pot up?" Prowl asked as he used a slang reference for Mikron that was as insulting as it got.
Tin pots were used to collect rancid oil when changing filters on machinery.
"Because I want him to witness removal of the chips so he can tell the boobs with him to come in and get this done. I want to take them out of him and some of the slaggers at the prison, the ones we didn't get to when the Pantheon arrived. There's about ten left."
"Sounds like fun. I'm in. You?" Prowl asked Prime with a smirk.
"Pencil me in," Prime said as he rose.
Prime and Prowl joined him handing off command to Paragon before leaving to go to the prison by the dedicated high security train below in The Fortress Metro.
=0=At the Prison
Gee-Gee met them at the gates, then listened to the plan. She nodded, then led them to the last cell where wary prisoners watched. All the others were watching as well including Fila as the group walked to the last of their party to remain unattended.
Gee-Gee glanced at the group. "I want the one named Mikron to step forward."
They stared at her without moving, then Gee-Gee glanced at Ratchet. "Which one is it?"
"That one," Ratchet said as he pointed toward a fancy mech with a frown. "Hi, Mikron. Remember me?"
Mikron sniffed as he stared at Ratchet. "I remember the smell. Its quite unforgettable."
Ratchet stared at him as old fires flared, then died. "You really should change your air filters then, slagger."
Huge laughter came from the Intervention Team with them.
Roadie glanced at Ratchet. "Want I should get him, Ratch?" he asked as he sized up the slagger.
"I'd say no most times and do it myself but I'd rather watch a Master At Work™," Ratchet said with a beautiful smile.
Roadie glanced at him, then grinned. "Okay," he said. He loved Ratchet. Glancing at Gee-Gee who nodded, Roadie let himself in, then walked toward Mikron who stepped away from him. "Walk out or crawl. That's the choice. I prefer crawl."
Mikron circled Roadie then walked out quickly. Halting before Gee-Gee who cuffed him, he glanced at Ratchet with a sneer. "I see you're as useless and puerile as ever."
"Why, Mikron, you know I always wash my hands," Ratchet said as everyone snickered.
He stared at Ratchet then stumbled forward as Roadie pushed him to go.
"If you could hold him over there, Roadie, you're in the will," Ratchet said as he pointed to a heavily secured transformer block that was a router of communications for the area.
Ratchet followed both of them then subbed a kit. He opened it and lay it on the router. "Lookie at what I got, Mikey. I have a kit to extract bad things from places they don't belong. You saw me rather brilliantly extract devices from the helms of the slaggers the other night, right?"
He stared at Ratchet with daggers. "I saw you brutalize innocent individuals," he said in an exaggerated upper crust accent. "You are a brutal low caste clown."
"Is that so?" Ratchet asked as everyone around them began to take offense. "The Pantheon doesn't think so. Primus Himself wants us to get along. Right now I'm going to remove chips from these slaggers and I want you to watch. I'd ask you to help but you're such a fraud I wouldn't trust you to extract the corn cob up your own aft without supervision."
He glanced at Roadie. "Bring me one of those slaggers. I have to save their sorry afts. Be a good son." He grinned at Roadie.
Roadie grinned back then let himself inside. He caught a mech trying to run around the small space to get away from him then dragged him out toward Ratchet.
Ratchet unsubbed a data pad then input a code to lock the mech's limbs, a precaution doctors could use around mechs whose movements might harm them.
He froze, then Roadie picked him up to carry him like a strange lamp to Ratchet. "Here. Want I should get another?"
"One at a time, my son," Ratchet said as he pulled the plate from the mech's helm. He glanced at Mikron. "Look inside to see for yourself. Its in the P-D sector."
He stared at Ratchet with rage.
"Either do it or I'll detonate the ones in your helm remotely and do it myself," Ratchet said as he poked at his meter.
Mikron stepped closer then peered inside. He was silent a moment then glanced at Ratchet. "You put them in."
"No," Ratchet said. "Did anyone come into the pen after we all left?"
Mikron stared at him then the chips. "What do you plan to do, clown?"
"Well, stooge, I plan to pull them out and save this idiot's life. When I get them all done I may even remove yours," Ratchet said as he scanned Mikron. "You have three yourself."
He glanced sharply at Ratchet.
Ratchet used tweezers to remove three thin silver chips, one of which was already showing degrading on its surface. "There," he said as he put them into a sappers box. "One down and a bunch to go," he said as he put the plate back on. "Get me another, Roadie," he said as Gee-Gee cuffed this one and held him to one side.
It would take a while and some would resist but all were taken care of but Mikron. He stared at Ratchet with loathing and concern. "What now, fragger?"
"I want you to do an all call to the idiots from your group and tell them to come to the Clinic on Indigo and 5th in Kalis. There's a clinic there that will do this and I'm going to run it. You tell them that this is real, that the Pantheon ordered it and to get there NOW," Ratchet said with his foghorn vocal capacity.
Everyone froze a moment as the sound reverberated through them then they turned to stare at Mikron.
"Do it or I will relive a moment in infamy where I kicked your aft so hard you had to part your butt assemblies to sneeze. Remember that?" Ratchet said as he moved closer to Mikron.
Mikron stared at him with real hatred.
It was silent for a moment. Then …
=0=TBC 10-03-2022
How's that for a real cliffhanger. :D:D:D
ESL and such:
prodigy: (prah-dih-gee) someone who is a genius level actor for some kind of skill, usually starting at a very young age. Kids can be prodigies of chess, art and music and very often are. Its unworldly skill at a usually young age.
puerile: (pure-aisle) childish, silly, trivial
Ratchet's answer reminds me of an old Hollywood actress, I think it was Bette Davis who said, "I'd like to kiss you but I just washed my hair." Its nonsensical but solidly in the awesome camp.
sapper: someone who removes dangerous bombs and explosives without them going off. They denature them and cart them away. Dangerous job to be exact.
For Buddy. I love you forever.
