The Diego Diaries: Callow (dd8 413)
=0=The next orn
He sat on a couch in the lobby of the Legislative Building waiting for someone from the Election Commission to talk to him. He'd gone to the City Hall in Terra to see about registering a complaint but they told him that he had two better options than writing one up at this location which would have to be forwarded to others to review anyway. He could go to the Legislative Building and the Election Commission to formally complain and speak at a School Board meeting as well.
Callo of Praxus watched the hubbub of individuals bustling around doing the business of government and public service while he waited. It had a vibe of the Senate Affairs Building on Cybertron in the orn where all the offices and the worker bees did the business of the Primes and senators.
This place was different as well. There were loads of mid and low castes here who looked like they had real jobs with real power. It was disconcerting but he held his fire. First he had to be elected, then he could say and do what he intended.
A young femme walked toward him. "Callo of Praxus?"
He rose. "Yes."
"If you would follow me. Commissioner Polax is out of their meeting and can see you." She walked toward an elevator in the glisteningly beautiful marble faced building and they went upward together.
=0=At a strategy meeting at The Hard Time Cafe near the Courthouse in Iacon
No-A, Sunstreaker and Ironhide met together along with Hugh-E to have a dessert and discuss re-election strategy. Several of the current board had challengers for the first time ever including everyone of them sitting here. They were discussing their strategy to win their seats in the upcoming election. It'd just been announced also by the Election Commission this very morning after a meeting that a debate or perhaps two would be part of elections in the colony now.
If you wanted to run for office a public debate was now an assured thing.
Sunstreaker wasn't happy.
"This is fragged. Why should I have to debate a slagger?" he asked as he dug into his cheesecake angrily.
"You don't have to debate Callo," Ironhide said gloomily. "That slagger has been dogging me since I was born."
"I would suggest that you tell them what you've done for the kids, how you were there from the beginning and that this slagger hasn't even visited all the schools," Hugh-E said. "My challenger hasn't. He also doesn't have kids in the schools."
"That helps. We have to attend our kid's classes 2 joors a month. We get to see the process and meet the needs when they're given to us that much better because we have knowledge first hand," No-A said. "I think we're going to ace it. I don't know about Dorset though. He's got a lot of things going on with his new business and he might decide this is too much to continue."
"That puts a high caste slagger on the board. What about the others?" Sunstreaker asked darkly.
"They've been on the board for a decade. They have family growing up and its a lot of work. We could lose three seats to them," No-A said. "I don't think any of them would be too crushed if they lost."
"That's all we need is high castes on the board. They're trying to pack it. If they get enough of their kind on they can short circuit what we've achieved. Frag that if they try," Sunny said.
"Then we win," Ironhide said.
They would work out what they could do and wait to see.
=0=At a stable earlier in the orn
They walked in after shift leading their horses toward the tack room where the horseback patrols kept their gear and saddles. Waiting for them were the grooms and one of them was Waldeen. He watched them come in silently, then stepped up to take reins.
"Thanks, Waldeen. How are you doing? I heard that you work here now," Drift asked.
Waldeen who was stroking the neck of King glanced at Drift. "I work here full time now. I love this place. I love horses."
"I'm glad," Springer said, meaning every word as he said it.
Others nodded.
"Here's my reins, infant," Hercy said. "You might check out Lariat's left hoof. The one in the back. I checked for defects but didn't see one. Maybe the vet can see him."
Waldeen took the reins, then nodded. "I'll see to it," he said as he gently tugged the reins. The horses followed him inside where he would tend to them and turn them out into the paddock.
They pulled gear, hung it up, then walked onward toward the Metro nearby which would take them all onward. Walking toward the street outside the huge stables, Drift glanced at Springer. "I'm glad he found himself. Its a process."
Springer nodded. "Me, too, though the brawl when they came was epic. I wonder how Traachon and Millow are doing?" he asked as the group walked down the steps to the Metro platform below ground.
"Ask Ada," Drift said as they disappeared from sight.
Inside …
Waldeen ran his servo along the powerful flank of Lariat. His power was incredible and his usual feisty disposition wasn't evident at the moment. He was listening to Waldeen talk to him telling him how beautiful he was.
Most grooms didn't care to work with him. Lariat would kick if you walked behind him. If you checked his feet he would bite. He was pent up energy on four legs and often bucked and spun when the weekend passed without a rider. Mondays were a kaleidoscope for Watch riders of this big roan horse.
The only one who he was calm and gentle around was Waldeen. It was so for almost all of the 'difficult' horses. Waldeen of Capital City was a find.
=0=Affairs
He walked into the Commissioner's office and greeted him. Walking to a small conference table near the big windows, Polax and Callo sat down.
"I hear you want to make an election complaint," Polax asked. He was a former forensics accountant who was one of the architects Prime appointed to work out the framework of legislative representation for the colony. He was learned, genial and made of integrity.
"I do," Callo said. "I'm running for the School Board, seat 4. During the game between Polyhex and the Comets, the bond of my opponent wore a weird costume while watching the game in the Primal Box. On the front of it was a sign that said, 'Vote for Ironhide for School Board'. I was shocked. I would like to file a complaint about this action. There's strict rules about advertising campaigns."
Polax nodded as he sat back to consider the situation. "There's very strict rules about campaigning and advertising a candidacy. I saw the same thing and it was amusing. However, I'm not sure that its illegal. I could take your complaint and have my legal adviser go through the regulations and laws to see if some rule has been broken. I cannot guarantee that it has."
"But it was political advertising during a public broadcast without the possibility for me to match it. One candidate can't outpace another. It must be equal time," Callo said.
"That's true. I would have to discuss this with my colleagues once I receive a legal opinion. Our researchers and legal advisers are first class thinkers and have access to all the databases here and on Cybertron. We also have a separate panel of lawyers and legal researchers that we consult with as well before a decision is made. We can give you an opinion in about two orns," Polax said.
"And if they find that he broke a campaign rule?" Callo asked.
"Then we take it from there. There's a hearing and we vote to determine if the candidacy would be legally allowed to run at that point," Polax said.
Callo grinned in spite of himself. "Where do I file my complaint?"
Polax would take the complaint and Callo would leave with a spring in his step.
=0=Checking the mail
Ratchet went through the mail as he took a break from rounds. He was expecting a receipt for a thing he ordered from Specialty Fabrication which was a small dollie for an infant that was just getting over severe protoform wasting and was being discharged shortly. That was when he saw it.
Popping the message open, he read it, grinned faintly in spite of himself, then set off to find Ironhide. It wouldn't be hard. He would be in the office with Halo.
=0=Office with Halo at the armory
"Well don't you two look happy," Ratchet said as he walked into the office of the 'head honcho' of Munitions and Armories.
Ironhide grinned. "Cookie?" he asked.
Ratchet took one, then sat.
Halo grinned at him around his cookie. "Hi, Ada."
"Hi, baby," Ratchet said. "I checked the mail."
"Did you check mine, too?" Ironhide asked. He didn't like to do it so old 'hard aft' got one more duty added to the pile.
"I did. You got a mail that you might want to read," Ratchet said.
"From my many admirers?" Ironhide asked with a grin. "I do trend on Twitter don't you know?"
Ratchet snickered. "They admire a fine aft on Twitter. This is more down to earth. You have a mail from the Election Commission. Its about a complaint filed against you."
Ironhide stared at him a moment with cookie in servo, then hit his account immediately. Since Ratchet had cleaned out and answered all his mail there was only the one left at the moment. He opened it, read it, then ignited.
=0=Central Office Tower of the Autobot City Unified School Board, Metrotitan, Metro District 3, Mars
Callo walked out after securing a speaking spot on the general comments of the next School Board meeting. The agenda wasn't that long given the elections and other pressing colonial wide items. All of the curriculum approvals were passed. All of the needs were met.
He would get a chance to speak. He would be the fourth on the list.
He walked toward the Metro station nearby and disappeared into the crowd.
=0=Armory
"What the frag? How could that be anything but a joke?" Ironhide asked.
Ratchet shrugged. "I intend to stand on street corners all over your district in this slagging suit and hold up a sign for slaggers to vote for you. Its my solemn duty."
Ironhide stared at Ratchet a moment, then burst into laughter. "Its a lot of thing, Old Mech but sacred isn't one of them. What the frag do I do?"
"We have a meeting with an attorney. Haul aft," Ratchet said as he rose and picked up Halo. Stowing her in his hold along with her cookie, Primus dollie and Ironhide's ill will, the two of them walked out to go to Terra and the meeting.
=0=Meeting
They walked into the prestigious office of a prestigious private lawyer. He was Calin who was a high caste 'high binder' who understood election law like nobody ever. He had the patter of a born bullshitter, think car salesman, and the track record of a serial killer. He never missed.
He barely made it through the Diaspora and things had been made clear to him that most of what he believed, supported and worked for had been crap. Now he was interested in helping the burgeoning system of representation democracy here become what it should have been on Cybertron.
He also liked Ratchet.
A lot.
Truly.
"Have a seat," he said as Ratchet and Ironhide did. He sat, then grinned at both. "I got the message and did a bit of looking around. I know that family. Pure D slaggers to the bone."
Ironhide glanced at Ratchet, then Calin. "You're worth every penny so far."
He laughed. "Never bullshit a bullshitter, my old atar used to say."
"Is he still alive?" Ratchet asked this mech who he really liked even if he was flirty and outrageous. Rather, he was Ratchet's kind of mech.
"Sure," Calin said with a guffaw. "My old atar is a real dealer. He ran the Gambling Commission on Cybertron. Tell me THAT wasn't a racket."
Ratchet snickered. "Slagger. I had a bookie then and I lost large. It was rigged, right?"
Calin nodded. "Sure."
Even Ironhide laughed at that.
=0=TBC 4-17-2022
a high binder was an insult among my father and his friends who were truck drivers. the word meant a person you couldn't trust, someone who was crooked.
