The Diego Diaries: Aftermath (dd8 302)
Sorry. Went out to dinner last night. It got to -4 degrees last night. I HATE THIS! Here WE GO!
=0=Downtown Autobot City
Prime walked with his officers grim faced and silent, heading toward the airfield that had just been signed off as secured. There were groups captured all over the colony, most of them throwing down weapons when it was clear that they were abandoned. Not all of them were the hardcore Decepticons or criminals that usually were their combatants. Some of them had no home and ended up in terrible circumstances. Overpowering force made the choice simple.
Right now, Prime was heading for The Fortress. He walked past the intersection where home used to be without glancing that way. The thought of seeing his home and that of his parents destroyed wasn't part of what he needed now. He had to focus. He wasn't the only one homeless. Over 100 families lived in the missing floors. There would be a lot of effort made to rehouse them until this was repaired.
He walked past damaged ships, destroyed equipment and damaged goods as he cut across the Military Airfield. Crossing Fortress Road, he walked to The Fortress, crossed the empty courtyard and entered through the now open doors which showed damage from mechs trying to break inside.
The Rec Room was slightly disheveled with chairs and tables scattered like someone had run through them shoving them out of the way. The Flight Center looked fine, its heavy doors still locked and bearing no marks of forced entry.
He noted the Ops Center doors were unmarred as well, then walked through silent heavily armed mechs waiting there to enter the room. It was untouched, fully staffed and managed by Alor who was joined by Paragon. They glanced at him, then waited as he walked across the floor to join them at the Command Table. "Alor, Paragon," he said calmly. "What is the overall situation report? Do you have it or is it still being gathered?"
Alor glanced at the data pad in his servo, then Prime. "We were pretty blasted where they touched down but most of the colony is not broken. What is broken is thrashed."
Prime nodded, then pulled a chair to sit. "Please tell me what you know thus far."
Alor glanced at Paragon then began. "The Hu-An held off the slaggers and destroyed three incursions without any injury to them or their habitat. The N.E.S.T. HQ was destroyed but the habitation part is not. They took out the Operational Center and some of the side rooms but the computer annex was put into automatic lockdown like they are everywhere so that won't be problematic.
"The Sciences Habitat is thrashed. The top floor. Homes are alright. The domes all held fast and didn't breach for every habitat on . Given that everyone's data was on the mainframe sectors that are theirs, no one suffered a loss. All animals and such were taken down so there was no harm to anything that was alive.
"I wish I had good news for your tower, Optimus. The first four floors were sheered off by a crashing shuttle and though it stands, its only structurally sound at the moment from the thirtieth floor to the ground. Its not fit for habitation until things are secured and sounded, then the top 20 floors will have to be rebuilt from scratch. I'm sorry, Optimus," Alor said.
It was funereally silent for a moment, then Prime nodded. "Thank you. Continue please."
"There is extensive damage in downtown Terra from the school to the main commercial area. Ships crashed and ground combat was heavy there. Sparkling Day School needs to be repaired from the sub floors upward because of the shuttle crashing into the ground floor. Several businesses including Full Circle and The Confectionaire are destroyed. The fires and dangers are under control there. A number of Metro stations there and a few around the colony need repair."
He considered his data pad, then Alor continued. "We have damage to the downtown and businesses in Centurion though the schools aren't harmed anywhere but Terra, a care facility was flattened with a fighter crash, Tyger Pax will need a few new aerial roads and walk ways due to fighters clashing, Seven Cities-West has damage in a couple of the cities due to fighters crashing and combat on the ground.
"District Four, City Three has damage and the Shrine to Micronus is damaged from aerial debris falling on it in Pax. All of the human habitats were entered and thrashed but the titans took care of the intruders before much beyond the first floor was touched. It would appear its nothing structural. Its mostly the interior and its different items. Fort Max is going to do the structural integrity checks with a couple of his brothers for all of the damaged buildings in the colony.
"There was combat at the Monastery where Cyclonus and some mechs held off anyone. It also prevented anyone getting to the Resort and from there the roads leading to Aerie Hill. Aerie Hill didn't take damage due to the Home Guard Air Wings protecting the city and its districts. We have damaged roads everywhere and a number of buildings in a number of cities who had fighters crash into them, some low and others farther up.
"The plain is littered with wreckage. Two cruisers, a troop carrier which blitzed escape pods … all of them did preventing monumental death. We picked them up according to Hercy's last report. We have a fighter transport down as well. They crashed on the Number 5 Energon Transfer station which will impact The Elevens and The Eight Ball. Those went up in a fireball before the system shut them down. That means glassed ground for about a half mile and a dig out. It won't be like Metroplex due to the redesign of the tunnels for such things I'm told.
"The Electrical substation at the Train Yard midway was slammed and half the colony has no electricity. That's being handled by Inferno and Public Works. Right now, there's no electricity for every place west of Terra which means The Elevens, The Eight Ball, all the Crater Districts and Seven Cities-West are dark. The train tracks are broken in several areas and two of the several municipal airports, most of them private near Crater District Four are flattened. A lot of personal aircraft are lost."
It was silent a moment as Prime absorbed the report. It wasn't as devastating as it could be because the entire colony was safe. But it was damning and terrible. Their people were underground and now they had to determine when they could come out again. "What is the likelihood that our people can come out again?"
"It would make things hard until either daylight or the electrical grid returns," Alor replied.
"When can we expect that?" Prime asked.
"No earlier than this time tomorrow, Optimus," Paragon said. "They're going to build another one nearby and run cables out to the lines. It means replacing a lot of them and that takes time but the hardware and equipment is already in stores at the Industrial Park. They keep replacements in the warehouses just for this after Metroplex was injured. It cuts the time down considerably not to have to make the replacements from scratch."
"That is good to hear," Prime said. "I have to have the final report so I can contact the people. What is the communications situation like?"
"They ransacked IntraCom but it functions. All of the businesses on Cultural Center Road are thrashed. They rampaged in the courthouse but that was in lockdown so they didn't get far. That and the fact that the Dinobots arrived to keep the damage down was a relief," Alor said. He looked at the data pad that was updating in his servo. "All of the renegades are collected and on their way to the prison. All of the prisons held off invasion. Gee-Gee has them and the others coming in. Most of them surrendered and some of them appear to be possibles.
"Its also true that the Autobot City Space Bridge is intact but needs its control station rebuilt. Both of our Triggers were shot down and crashed in the regions north of the colony without any casualties. Both of them will have to be replaced. No one made it past Mars to the defensive line at the Midway Array and Prima Station and no one took advantage of this moment to attack the DMZ or other places. Caminus has checked in and all is well."
Prime nodded, then rose.
"I will speak to The People on the broadcast system," he said glancing at Jazz and Mirage who were looking at him from the console nearby. "Can we broadcast, Jazz?"
Jazz nodded. "Blaster and I will help you, Optimus," he said kindly.
With that, they walked toward the door to cross a damaged airfield, past damaged ships and shipments, around potholes in the ground and roads, through broken doors into the control center of the huge broadcast system. It would take a moment, then the broadcast would be sent to the 240,000,000+ citizens and visitors to the colony.
=0=In a shelter
Will Lennox leaned against the wall brooding on things as his daughter rested next to him. Sarah was nearby chatting softly with Judy Witwicky, Lois Morshower-Howell and an intense Charlotte Mearing who was four months pregnant with her first ever child. Sitting nearby chatting with the men, her now husband, Seymour Simmons was engaged in spirited conversation about how this would play on Earth.
When the monitors winked on the room startled, then stared at the image of the Office of the Primes seal which always prefaced a statement by Prime or his deputy. It got very silent as everyone turned to the screen to wait.
It was so everywhere in the colony.
=0=Prime at IntraCom
He waited for the light, then began. "Good evening. I am Optimus Prime. I am here to tell you that the invasion has been put down and that the enemy has fled or been captured."
He didn't know that the crowds listening howled with relief and happiness at the news. He considered his words, then continued.
"The combined forces of the Autobot Army, Autobot Marines, Autobot Air Forces and the Home Guard met the enemy and defeated them. It was a brutal event and there is damage in the colony. I would also say that there were casualties but no one has been reported deceased as of this broadcast. When we have news we will update. For now, we have wounded but no dead comrades.
"As for this moment, a force of Decepticons led by two phase six mechanisms have been harassing us for a while before being held up in the Benzuli Region known as The Ruins. We have tracked them and as we did they disappeared off the radar, then reappeared almost immediately in the solar system between Uranus and Neptune.
"We had a battle which was hampered by the loss of our two Triggers and the Autobot City Space Bridge control station. It wasn't harmed, that smaller bridge but its not operational until repairs are made.
No one was harmed at any of the bridges but their downing left half our armada at Neptune and half here who made it before the Triggers were destroyed. It would take a good joor for them to fly back and join in the battle but they did and it was imminently helpful when they did.
"We fought them everywhere in the colony. They launched ground forces and we have finally captured all of them. There was damage to some buildings, structures and infrastructure as well. A shuttle was downed and slid into Sparkling Day School destroying the lobby. The school will not be operational until its structural integrity and repairs are attested to. No other school was harmed but many businesses were.
"IntraCom took a lot of damage as well as the Business Plaza, Pit Stop, the Courthouse and a portion of the Hangar District and Commercial Warehouse Depot at the Military Airfield. That airfield was shot up and so were vessels, equipment and commercial products there for shipment. Downtown Autobot City took damage as well by the enemy breaking into businesses and the City Hall," he said as Jazz held up new information for him on a big handheld data pad.
"There are damaged towers where fighters crashed into them and for me, Tower One in Autobot City took a direct hit by a downed shuttle sheering off the top four floors of the building including my home. All of the habitats were invaded and damaged but no one was able to breach the shelters anywhere and the security provided.
"Several airports are damaged, fighting occurred at the Monastery but Master Cyclonus and members of his congregation held off invasion of the Resort and past that, Aerie Hill and its districts.
"The Fortress was invaded but held out being relieved when the enemy invaders began to leave when it was clear they would be destroyed if they stayed. The fleet was over the plains between the Crater District and the Industrial Park Cities when they were heavily engaged by the titans of The Elevens, The Eight Ball and the Metro Districts. They brought down ships and were the compelling factor in the enemy fleeing at last.
"The Electrical Substation and the Energon Relay are destroyed and thus, half the colony is without electrical power. The shelters are on an emergency grid and thus they will protect you for as long as it takes to get things suitable for you to return topside. Right now, its no advised.
"Through the night, our technicians, public works personnel and engineers will be feverishly working to check the structural integrity of the buildings in the colony, finding and denaturing any munitions that are lying around and getting things ready for you to come back to the surface. Right now I am asking for your forbearance and patience.
"We will get our life back and rebuild everything. I am proud of our ability to adapt and come back stronger. We will be going after this group to ensure that they never return. In the meantime, we have to work together and live unafraid.
"The Temple is untouched. Nearly every home in the colony is untouched. For those of us who have been harmed by this attack, we will rise as well. I wish to express my deepest gratitude and pride to the armed forces that met this threat and beat it back. I am proud of my general staff, of the titans and dreadnoughts that were instrumental in our victory and the mechs and femmes of the Autobot Armed Forces. I salute the Hu-An who held off three waves of the enemy by themselves, of Master Cyclonus and his mechs who defended the Monastery, the Resort and the pathway leading to Aerie Hill.
"Right now, we have to relax and allow the experts to do what they do. For those who live in a titan and are concerned that they turned towers into weapons for our defense, know that they did so in the best manner for your homes. Few are as honorable as our Metrotitan and Dreadnought brothers and sisters.
"I would also like to tell you that the forward bases, Caminus and other installations of our colony including Prima Station and the station on the Silk Road are in good order and didn't experience any attack.
"We have work ahead of us. This enemy had no special features. It was the speed by which they bridged that was their best weapon. Our Science division is already working on countermeasures. For now, please relax and know you are safe. There will be announcements made over the channel I am using, channel seven on the emergency broadcast system that will update you as we go. Until then, let us all be calm and wait in solidarity." He paused to stare at the camera a moment. "Until all are one."
Then the image changed to the seal.
=0=TBC 11-14-2021
NOTES COMING TOMORROW!
