The Diego Diaries: All Around the Merry-Go-Round … (dd8 34)
=0=Conference room in the Operational Center of Fort Borderlands, the farthest reaches of the Central Security Sector of the Prime of Cybertron and his Empire
The discussion had been made with a lot of mechs, some of them specialist thinkers and tacticians like Prowl, Delphi, Metroplex and Scimitar, a titan class mech with green visor pulling duty at Cybertron who was as old as Methuselah. It was quiet in the room as everyone considered the possibilities.
Ratchet glanced at Prime. "What happens when you drop a rock in a pond, Prime?"
He stared at Ratchet a moment as he ran the scene in his helm. "Ripples flow out in all directions."
"True, that," Ratchet said, "but the pond is also disrupted. They're meeting now to hammer out strategy, kill each other over command and find a place to sit and take us down if they can. This far out they can add to their numbers without much fuss. What if we drop a stone in their midst right now?"
"What do you propose, Ratchet?" Prowl asked.
Ratchet considered things a moment. "What about bringing three big ships, perhaps Tennyson, maybe Typhoon and Caliper out here, then 'dropping them into the midst of their position?"
Prowl did the calculations. "It would scatter them in all directions for starters."
"And we can pick them off. Have a couple of groups come here the moment that the dreads and titans transport from inside our secure zone so they can't be detected easily. When that happens, the bridges open on three sides of the slaggers allowing our shuttle battle groups to form up immediately, pointing their big old guns at the slaggers. Nitrate's group will be the one who faces immediate threat and will run. The others are not here yet and if we 'drop' a line to them about the threat, they might not even come."
"Or they'll come more prepared," Prowl said.
"Work out the scenario and composition of this. I like the element of surprise and the idea that we field more than just normal battle configurations. It might do them some good to see big ships. I would suggest that this happens fast. We cannot determine how long their conference is going to last."
It would be frenetic, the activity in the command center as Operation Big Rock began to take shape.
=0=In the middle of a big mush floe
They sat together going over the situation as each sorted out the others, listening to Nitrate discuss his take on how things were and what to do about it. They could either band together, go their own way or dig in separately.
"If you go, then where? The sectors here … the charts call the Vast Desert would take eons to cross to find anything that resembled normal space. The only direction that won't take forever is down the pathway that Prime monitors. He'll be waiting for you if you go and his firepower is formidable.
"You can dig in alone and he'll pick us off or we can band together to make a force that has enough power to do more than present targets for him to shoot. Razorclaw is here with his big group and Ominous as well. They dug in and are under Prime's surveillance. We can't get to them yet and they can't come to us but we can figure out how to communicate if we work together." Nitrate sat back to wait for the inevitable question. It came fast.
"But who would lead?" Inana asked as she sat on the bench flicking a small knife open, then closing it with one servo. "That's always the question isn't it? Who gets to call the shots."
"Whoever commands has the others for consultation. We can play Prime's game of divide so he can conquer or we can be smarter," Nitrate said with a tight humorless grin.
It was silent in the ship.
=0=Gathering again
They sat down together after working out a plan that would send a signal of Prime's resolve and power to the interlopers. Discussion was had for a joor with all the possible angles where this could fail given the once over. The idea of anyone making a run for it was more acceptable here than closer to home because they were so far from Mars and Cybertron that no enemy ship could reach it before being intercepted. They also got to pick off forces before they dug in and became by doing so harder to route out. This had intriguing possibilities and could deliver a shock to the 'Cons that could have far reaching potential when spread by those involved to others who might come this way.
"I think I like it," Prime said finally. "What is our operational timeline?"
Hard Drive consulted his data pad. "We are go in half a joor."
Prime stared at him a moment, then Prowl. "How? We have to get the fleet prepared."
"Um … since you appeared to like it we mustered," Delphi said. "What we mustered can stand down swiftly or be reconfigured. We understand our window of opportunity. All we need is your consent."
Prime stared at the group in the room, mechs of all size, type and experience. It was a good sight for his sore optics. "You have it."
Hard Drive followed by Scimitar, Metroplex and Typhoon walked to a computer, plugged in to listen, then derezzed after a moment. The Seekers walked to another and other mechs did the same. The hum of voices and machines on deck indicated that orders were being given and actions were organizing to deliver a punch to the intruders that would end the problem before it became worse.
Prime watched them as Prowl worked on his part of things. He glanced at Ratchet who grinned at him. "We have done this before."
"Too many times. I wish the 'Cons were faster learners. I think Christmas Surprise is going to be as much fun as Thanksgiving wasn't," Ratchet replied.
"I hope you are incorrect but I have no real hope anymore," Prime said with a grin.
Hard Drive walked back. "It's mid afternoon on Mars and evening on Cybertron. The groups are gathering and will form up at the spots where the bridges will transport them. Typhoon, Tennyson and Scimitar will be bridging in themselves at your go."
Prime nodded, then watched Hard Drive walk back to the console where Delphi was coordinating the battle array each ship and group would undertake when they came out of the bridges. "This never gets old."
Ratchet nodded. "I feel deja vu all over again."
Prime grinned at him. "Is that what it is?"
=0=Mars and Cybertron
On airfields away from urban centers and refugee camps battle groups were coming together. Flights of Seekers, all heavy gunner were waiting in space after heading the call for mustering. They were getting their briefings and would join the ships they were assigned to shortly.
All over the colony ships were rising from military flight lines which were now diversified around the vast area. Lighter vessels in the military ready-go fleet had risen from the Autobot City Military Airfield, the oldest one in the arsenal while others mustered, then rose upward at different places here and there around the periphery of the colony.
Civilians, the press and humans watched, wondering again what new threat they were going to address. That was when the transponder system of every fully adult Cybertronian and IntraCom lit up to give a short statement from Optimus Prime. All over the colony and at Cybertron in affected places those who were activated through the Primal Emergency System paused to listen.
"This is Optimus Prime. I am sending you this message to explain the military activity that is undergoing now on Mars and Cybertron. We have noted on our deep space dish arrays anomalies that appear to be ships that are in the Bootes Barren. We have determined that they are three former Decepticon battle groups that have struck out on their own and are taking the easiest route away from the Empire by traveling down what is known on our charts as the Chute.
"This is the route by which a number of refugee migrations travel and its protected space by Primal Decree. We have detected this group over 100,000 light years from Cybertron and Mars, a very great distance for them to cross if they decided to come this way. Given the level of firepower they would face if they did, it would be highly unlikely that they would make it half way before having to surrender to us.
"It is the position of my government to defend the migration routes of our people with extreme prejudice. Anyone who comes here without peaceful intentions will face the might of my empire and its military. Given that this includes titans as well as more conventional forces, it is a very poor judgment to persist.
"We have a policy of meeting such groups with overwhelming force which is gathering to leave both Mars and Cybertron to come to a new fortress we have taken from an interloper we now call Fort Borderlands. We will be sending information and images of this new outpost shortly but for now we are going to show these intruders what a bad decision it is to come here.
"It is our vow as your Prime, your government and your armed forces to protect you, to protect all refugees and settled worlds within our Empire with everything that we possess. I am encouraging you to have confidence in us as we go to defend all of you against an interloper who will rue the orn they decided to come this way. When we return, I will give an address to the Empire about what has transpired and then you will be given information and images of our newest and most intensely formidable outpost. Until all are one," Prime said, then the transmission ended.
It would be a few moments before everyone turned back to their business and they would do so with tension.
As always.
=0=At Triggers
Lines of ships formed up, most of them cruisers and battle shuttles. This combat would require agility and heavy duty firearms. Anything bigger than a cruiser or shuttle would find it hard sledding in the density into which they were heading.
Lissie sat at her engineer's station watching the soldiers settle on her ship. Steiner, Hercy, Kup, Springer and Drift as well as several others were in her portion of doom that waited with a cruiser commanded by Raptor. At the other bridges both here at Mars, at Cybertron over Iacon at the big bridge in orbit there and at the Saturn Shipyard, lines of the same configuration waited as well. All of the Seekers were aboard the cruisers waiting for whatever deployment Sun, Raptor and Jack would command. They were running the field game aboard the cruisers.
Chat was rife on the ship lines. It was hilarious.
Lon, Bezel, Smokey and Hot Rod sat on the shuttle with Springer and Drift. Their ship medic was Partition getting field practice. Ordinarily, they didn't take so many newbie kids with them but this appeared to be an operation designed to over take with surprise and overwhelming force so they were deemed a reasonable inclusion.
"Do you think they'll fight?" Lon asked Drift who was like a god to him.
"Most likely. They usually don't give up without a fight. But we have the element of surprise. Mostly," Drift replied with a slight grin. "We do have a secret weapon, though."
Everyone on board including the twins and a couple of older vets glanced at Drift. "What?" -everyone
"We have the God of the Hunt leading the way," Drift said with a serious expression as he glanced at a smirking slightly preening Springer.
It was silent a moment, then Partition nodded. "We do. Good thing you're here, Drift," he said without guile because he had never been let in on the joke.
Yet.
The laughter was long and loud.
=0=Fort Borderlands
Prime stood at the communications station staring at the tactical screen on the huge monitor forward. The groups were still there though the data was hit and miss. Signal bounce was key here. He glanced at Prowl who nodded. "Blaster, open a channel."
Blaster worked a moment, then glanced at Optimus. "You're open, Prime."
Prime considered his thoughts, then began. "Nitrate and the other three captains who are with him, this is Optimus Prime."
=0=TBC 12-07-2020