The Diego Diaries: Avalone and Banner (dd8 287)
=0=Saturn Shipyard, Command Center of the Yard
They walked onto the bridge with Banner surrounded by titan mechs followed by Prime, Ratchet and Prowl. He walked toward the big windows then placed his servos on their hard glassine surface. "He's so damaged. Oh, Avalone," he whispered in despair.
"There's nothing you're looking at, Banner, that can't be repaired and I've made sure he feels no pain," Ratchet said as he walked over to stand beside him. For a moment Ratchet explained the situation, showed where repairs were already underway and laid out the plan and timeline to get Avalone back into a high level of functionality.
Banner listened, nodding now and again but his intense gaze never left the figure in the lighted gantry of the repair bay. He floated in number seven, a massive broken debacle of a vessel. Many were the lines attached to Avalone and many more were the mechs and vessels that scrambled over him. He turned to Ratchet with a stricken expression. "What is it that you said about his mental state? I want to know what to do."
"He's overwriting his memories, Banner. That indicates that his mental condition is under extreme stress. He's sentient right now and he knows you're alive. What we have to do now is bring you over to him. I want you to understand that he's not in very good shape emotionally and he's going to not be himself.
"If he gets emotional or distraught know that he can't hurt himself. I took that interface down. I just want you to comfort him and let him know its you. Plug in and let him know. Jack out if he flounders. This is going to take maybe a few times approaching him before he gets it that its you."
Banner nodded, then looked at the ship. "I miss him so much. I don't know how to tell you how much."
"Let's go then. Okay?" Ratchet said as he squeezed Banner's servo.
They walked toward the door nearby to the forward bridges that were below the command deck. They were auxiliary bridges and had an escape hatch function as well. They bridged over, the entire group, then walked across the command deck of the battered titan.
Banner looked pensive, then paused by the command chair. "I can't believe I'm standing on his deck." He glanced at Ratchet. "When can he have pretender tech? I want to show him … everything."
Ratchet nodded sympathetically. "We have to ascertain his mental stability, then we'll decide when. It'll be his eventually but we want his safety first always."
Banner nodded then walked to the command chair. He touched it lightly, running his fingers along the back of it, then moved to sit. He sat a moment gathering his fears and emotions together, then pulled a plug to insert it into the panel before him. It was silent a moment, then a howling cry of anguish split the silence of the room.
=0=Out there
He stood on the deck watching as they approached more open space. Paladin had called him to the bridge to discuss the situation that had resulted from their mission. It was clear to Paladin that Prime was situated well but would be hard pressed to take on a full on assault from his group. If they bridged into the coordinates given from the sweep according to the information gathered from that Cord had handed over, they could likely get the upper hand swiftly.
Cord had answered all his questions leaving out volumes of information about the totality of Prime's power. He didn't tell him of the incredible array of vessels that he fielded including titans nor did he mention that millions of Cybertronians worked and lived in his cities, making the things that all advanced civilizations needed and wanted including munitions. Cybertron and its forces and power was also not mentioned, leaving Paladin to conclude a lot of things wrongly.
Cord had culled the data giving only that which was enough but without giving anything away as to the true power of Prime. Having done the flyover, remembering his own astonishment during it as he watched the data roll in, he wanted Paladin to find out the hard way the error of his plans. Cord answered, received congratulations and condolences about the dead member of his crew, then sat at a station to watch as they slowly navigated the dense energy around them.
It would take a while to get through, then it would be up to Paladin what to do next. Cord hoped it would be what he was planning to suggest. He hoped that Paladin would bridge jump to the main settlement planet of Prime and into the waiting armada of his vast army.
Then he and his mechs could defect to Prime in the shooting.
=0=Administration Module, Earth2
Carly sat in the main office of Earth2 along with Brandon Clark. They were there to help Cindy get up to speed on the running of the vast habitat. She was versed on the program and all of that but the daily administration was another level of work. "What do you suppose Owen is going to do, Cindy?"
Cindy who was sitting back in Owen's chair with a number of data pads spread out before her shrugged. "I don't think he's going to take this lightly but he literally has no recourse. He's going to want to have the directorship back."
"What about you? Do you want to be director?" Brandon asked.
She considered that. "I would to keep the station free of this sort of thing. I don't like that they live here without contributing anything to the program. This place is not a billionaire's playground. The mechs made it and they contributed nothing to that actual process. I don't care if they got the ball rolling on Earth. It was always going to happen with or without them. The reputation of this place deserves to be free of scandal."
"Its going to be interesting to see. There's something about being in the eye of the hurricane that makes me glad to be here. This is a voyeur's dream, this place," Carly said with a grin. "To be here to watch the show is a hoot."
"I have to agree with you," Cindy said with a rueful grin. "What do you want to do about the two conferences? I think we can pursue them anyway. Do you want to do a joint statement about this matter or do you want to wait?"
"I think a joint statement, something neutral but earnest would be a good thing," Brandon said.
They would spend an hour getting it worded, these extremely good friends, then loaded into the feed heading toward Earth on the MCA.
=0=The Hourly News
"Good afternoon. My name is Lim-Lee and here is the news at this hour of the colony, Empire and Earth. The latest information about the situation on Earth concerning the data download known as the Panama Papers is as follows. The District Attorney of the Southern District of New York in conjunction with legal teams in several other countries including the United Kingdom, Spain, France, Germany, Austria and Russia has issued indictments against a number of wealthy investors of the Earth2 United Nations Habitat Corporation. Some of them are minor investors of Earth 1 as well but those holdings are negligible at best. Lord Optimus's team of economists and directors for human habitation made ownership in more than one project by any one investor extremely limited.
Those named include Christoper and Damon Pallas of Greece, James Dickerson of the United Kingdom, Dimitri Petrov of Russia, Cossimo Rossi of Italy, William Pearl, Kyle Davis and Hamilton Brown of the United States, Michael Pare of Canada, Hans Webber of Austria, Clare Hilliard-Barnard and her husband, Thomas Barnard of Australia, Micah Rivera of Mexico and Eino Vertanen of Finland. It should be noted that habitat director Owen Harris is not on the list or in the data. He has, however, been put on leave from the directorship of the habitat by Lord Optimus until this is resolved. The treaties and contracts give Lord Optimus the ultimate authority when it appears rules and laws have been breached.
"All of these individuals were early promoters of human habitats on Mars and invested a lot of their wealth into promotion and development of that idea which resulted in the creation of Earth2 United Nations Corporation and the habitat itself. Some of them as well own minor shares in Earth 1 but have no controlling interest in it. Earth 1 itself under the directorship of long time human resident Brandon Clark has been reorganized as a non-profit science installation unlike Earth2 which is a for profit entity.
"From the beginning of the installation, these individuals lived on-world. They ran their businesses from the habitat and fulfilled various functions there attracting businesses and investments, one of which resulted in the Mall of Terra, an on-world business center that is a favorite recreational, shopping and social gathering spot for the human population here.
"The Mall of Terra was recently in the news when a misunderstanding about how its business model would run nearly turned into an interplanetary incident. The Mall of Terra is operated on the business model of the colony in which residents may partake of the businesses there without resulting in cash transactions. That dispute was settled when Owen Harris, director of the Earth2 United Nations Corporation was made to understand that only the Mall would utilize our model and not the habitat proper. It would be intended by Lord Optimus as a lab experiment for humans to see in their own businesses the equity and beauty of this program.
"Yesterday, the bulk of the individuals named returned to Mars by overriding spaces on a commercial transport at Berlin. They were there attending a conference designed to build more habitats including those on the moons of Jupiter when the indictments were announced. An investigation with the crew at the loading dock, a major supply and redistribution center for Europe for Autobot Nation Commercial Interests, Incorporated indicated that the individuals overrode them to force their way onto the ship. That incident has been turned over to the Watch to be investigated as a breach of protocol and safety.
"It's to be fully understood for this entire process that no human on-world can claim diplomatic immunity. It's understood by all humans who live here that the law applies to everyone and no one is excluded including the Consuls at the Human Consulate. To get a resident visa to live here or anywhere else in the Empire, that information among other things must be read and understood, then signed off. Its not understood what they were aiming to do by coming to Mars from Earth.
"If the different governments that have a national involved decide to extradite them from here there is no law of asylum or location that will protect them from being returned short of returning causing them injury or death. If that is the case then temporary asylum will be granted pending negotiations with the extraditing entity.
"The Office of the Primes hasn't received any requests from Earth yet for their return nor has the Office of the Attorney General. The precedent of honoring extradition requests has been set during the incident involving humans held in our prison several years ago in which during an incident one was killed there. They were in the end returned, these humans involved in the kidnapping of a Cybertronian civilian assigned to curate the traveling art show at the time and the laws are in place for future incidents.
"We'll be talking to Attorney General Barron of Iacon later in the program about this. Right now, we're going to have short profiles of the fifteen named humans to understand who they are and their relationship to the habitat and its corporation. Jacx?" Lim-Lee said.
Cut to a screen in a room with a huge monitor.
"Hi. I'm Jacx and I want to tell you a bit about the fifteen humans who live here who were indicted by the courts on Earth who were announced just yesterday," he began.
=0=Shipyard
"Banner."
Banner leaned closer to the mike pickup. "Avalone … I've looked for you over oceans of time."
"Banner …"
It was stagnant with emotion on the bridge as Banner gently reached out to the distraught energy of the great titan Avalone. No else one spoke. The titans around the room looked agonized with worry and sorrow as the two danced around each other. Avalone was having trouble believing.
"I'm here," Banner answered with a rising sense of despair. "We're home, Avalone. No one will make us leave here because Optimus Prime is here and governing. Everyone we love is here. Hammer is here. Metroplex. Even Fortress Maximus. Remember how he loved to play games with you? Remember all the games? You taught him a lot, Avalone. We're all here to help and take care of you."
"Banner. Where are we? What … I couldn't find you. I looked and looked … forever."
"I did, too. I looked everywhere for you. I never stopped looking," Banner said nearly tearfully. "We can live here. You and me. We can talk and play chess. You can tell me stories and I'll read you poetry, the kind you always liked. I have books and books of poetry I've saved to read to you."
The sound of a sigh could be heard, then a soft whisper. "I love poetry. Tell me some, Banner. Make me believe its you. I think I'm dreaming. You can't be here. I can't believe but I want to. I think I'll believe even if it isn't you. I can't go on this way anymore …"
Banner glanced at Ratchet and a pensive Jarro. "What can we do? He sounds desperate and endangered."
"Read him poetry, his favorite," Ratchet said. "Tell him in the way only you can."
Banner stared at them, then sat back again. "Avalone."
"Banner …" he whispered back.
"I came to you, beloved, when the moon was full in the darkness of the night sky. I came to you, beloved, with joy," he began.
=0=TBC 10-27-2021
