The Diego Diaries: Run Up To Ho-Ho-Ho! (dd8 47)
=0=At the Diner
They ate together debriefing on the mission amongst themselves. The odd friend who was there stopped by on the way in or out to congratulate everyone and pay their respects to Optimus. He himself was relaxing at last, glad that the depth of his army staff allowed others to pick up the slack on wind downs. Ending a mission was detail heavy and there were mechs like Paragon and others who excelled and even enjoyed getting things back together and putting data into reports. That Paragon was a champion at it didn't go unnoticed by Prime and Prowl who let him know their intense gratitude at his precision.
What they didn't know was how much it pleased the calm handsome mech that someone noticed his skill set and appreciated it. This was the first time in his long career that it had happened and it was ridiculous how much it pleased him when it was noticed.
"Thundercracker will do a good job out there. I'm surprised that they recommended him. He likes to be home with the family after work," someone was saying.
"Starscream likes him to push himself. He wants to write movies and Starscream wants him to find a command style," another said.
Ratchet grinned. "The quarters out there are luxurious and I heard he was going to pump them up. I hope so. I want to see what mirrored ceilings look like."
The mechs around the table snickered as Bezel grinned. "Mirrored ceilings. That's funny."
"You don't have them?" Ratchet asked with fake surprise. "I thought all mechs your age had them."
"Not yet," Lon said with a smirk.
Bezel glanced at him with surprise, then sat up straighter to finish his meal.
Grins greeted that around the room. Lon and Bezel were really a well loved pair of kids.
Speaking of kids …
Sil rose and walked to Ratchet, sliding her arm along the back of his chair to lean against him. It was cute how much the kids fit in and how happy and affectionate they were with the 'big mechs'. "Commander, we worked out the schedule for us to be elves with the Santas. We're going to give it to Miss Holi. I just wanted to know if the rounds were going to be canceled over Christmas Surprise. All of us voted and we're good to go on them," she said with her usual sweet intensity.
"Well, that changes everything then," Ratchet said with a smile. "I'll check the schedule. I'm doing rounds on the Decepticon prisoners that were brought in. I think it might be interesting for you to attend them. I'm going to do them during the usual time you come to get in your joors. Why not come with me when we're done here?"
Sil smiled a dazzler. "Really? You would let us observe rounds with prisoners?"
"You have to do what I ask for security reasons but yes. If you're going to be a security officer or an officer-medic in the Watch, you need to see all sides of the puzzle. I don't want you to be surprised."
"THAT'S SO GREAT! I'LL TELL THE OTHERS!" Sil said.
"Tell them that instead of working with their mentor doctors and techs, you'll come with me. I'll have security arranged so no one will be in any danger. All you have to do is follow the protocols," Ratchet said.
"We will. WE ALWAYS DO!" Sil said, then she hugged his neck. Hurrying back through the tables, she walked to the one where a number of the 'senior members of the club' were sitting to eat and watching her excitement with great interest.
She sat, then they huddled, then they exclaimed their pleasure. They glanced as one at Ratchet who waggled his digits in a wave. They clapped their delight, then huddled together to chat excitedly about how 'fun' things were going to be 'during rounds' later this morning.
"Do you think that's wise?" Prowl asked as he watched the kids with amusement. "How many will come? Isn't the senior group thirty kids now?"
"The second years are," Ratchet said. "I can have them with me without worries. The wards for the security patients are wide for a reason. I often take groups of trainee doctors and techs in to go over the problems of their treatment without issues. Besides, Drift and Springer will be there. AMIRITE!?" he asked them with a dazzler.
"Apparently," Drift replied with a chuckle. "When is this slag supposed to happen?"
"When we get done here. That's when I lay servos on, these servos, THESE HOLY SERV-"
A rap to the noggin by Prowl ended the sermon.
"You, granny, are a fragger. Let's get drunk, you and me," Ratchet said.
"You assume that I surf in the gutter like you do," Prowl said.
"You'd sell your spark to be as uninhibited yet deeply refined as me," Ratchet said.
Prowl stared at him with The Look, then sat back. "What were you saying?" he asked to great and resounding derision from everyone around them. "Uninhibited? Is that the new term for lunatic?"
"I really hate it when you use my formal name, Boo-Boo," Ratchet said using Halo's word for everyone who had a name too hard to pronounce.
"Don't bring my daughter into this," Prowl said. He glanced at Ironhide, then held out his servo. "Do I need to make it an order?"
"Yeah," Ironhide said.
"What was Herling's number again?" Prowl asked Ratchet.
It was remarkable how fast Halo appeared in Ironhide's servo. He set her on the table, then handed her a butter knife. "Here. Stick this in Uncle Fragger's optics."
She took the small knife with a giant smile, then began to walk to the end where Prowl and Prime sat. Walking around the stuff piled on the four tables shoved together, smiling brilliantly at everyone she passed, she finally reached Uncle Owl. She smiled, then held up the knife. "HERE, OWL! ATAR SAYED DO DIS!"
Prowl took the knife, then picked her up. "Atar. huh." He glanced at Prime. "She's talking about you."
"She is," Prime said as he deftly took her from Prowl who frowned as he did. "Hello, my baby."
Halo laughed, a musical sound. "UNCLE OTIS SAYED ME DEM THING!" Her laugh was sweet and tiny.
Everyone grinned at Halo, then a frowning Prowl, then a glowering Ironhide.
"Well, isn't this group of sourpusses a barrel of laughs," Sun said with a guffaw.
"Where's my duty schedule?" Prowl said as he pretended to consider what he was actually thinking of making happen.
"Empty threat," Ratchet said. "When you wanna tank it, slagger?"
Tomorrow night is the only one or perhaps tomorrow afternoon? We can grab a bite, then bar crawl," Prowl said as he sat back with a smug expression as he folded his arms over his chassis.
"I have to work. Who wants to trade with me?" Alie asked.
No one did, the slaggers. In fact, none of those who wanted to come could get off work but for Prime.
"Are you coming along to keep us from stepping on our tongues?" Ratchet asked as Optimus listened to a detailed barely coherent detailing of Halo's orn thus far.
Optimus glanced at him with a grin. "Sure."
Huge laughter greeted that. Everyone penciled in the following afternoon at 1200 joors and made secret plans to con someone into their duty so they could come. Of course, no one told Ratchet, Prowl and Prime.
=0=On the street
Ratchet stood on the street corner with half of the kids who were taking a 'professional orn off' to 'expand their training and usefulness to the colony and our people, Commander'. The other half were going with Drift and Springer to the office.
Drift and Springer hadn't planned to go to the office today but kids.
"Make sure that you include both commanders in the conversations with the intel mechs at the Watch Tower, Coros. The details are what makes things happen. All the gory minute details," Ratchet said to the rapt kids as two big mechs shot him nuclear optics of angst and ennui.
"I will, Commander. Thanks. Its this kind of stuff that we want to learn," Coros said as he glanced at Drift and Springer. "We appreciate it a lot, Commanders, that you help us the way you do."
All the kids nodded and exclaimed their everlasting gratitude completely unaware of the abuse that both mechs were ladling out to Ratchet off line. Ratchet for his part smiled his best smile at the two as they did.
"Alright, infants," Ratchet said. "Walk this way." With that, he swished off heading for the Medical Tower down the street.
Everyone watched him go, then Hercy grinned. "Let me know when you dump Ratchet or he dumps you, Ironhide. I get first dibs."
"I dumped him when he brought up Herling. He's yours," Ironhide said with a grin as he got his daughter back from Prime. "I'm outa here. If Ratchet wants to know where I am, tell him I'm on Gliese." With that, he powered out of there with his daughter on his arm heading for the Metro and the train system.
"Since when did you raise a wuss, Alor?" Steiner asked.
"Since he became a father," Alor said with a chuckle. "Slaggers. I WANT TO GO ON A BENDER, TOO!"
"Make it happen, Alie," Blackjack said. "Don't be a wuss."
It was amazing the punch Blackjack got to the gut for that one. Even Pudding flinched.
=0=In a high security ward at the Medical Center
They'd gone through the security protocol before entering the ward with guards including Breakdown who was there for the lulz and because he liked the kids in the program. He was a mentor for the field medic part of their training and was surprised how nice and worshipful the kids were for him.
It was a new sensation.
"Notice that the berths are spread apart and that the patients are not only securely cuffed to the berth railings, those who can handle it are also magnetized to the berths. We have several restraint options available and use those which don't interfere with injury or the mental condition of the patient. Some of them are given multiple restraints because they pose that big a risk or they're placed in various levels of light stasis," Ratchet said. "We have two huge wards for these kinds of patients and can rearrange their configuration any way we need them to be.
"The security here is very high at the moment because some of these patients are well known criminals with long records. Some are very, very dangerous so you have to stay inside the red lines," he said pointing to tiles on the floor that were well back of the berths and still allowed good viewing. "I'm the only one in this group that's rated to step out of the lines. These lines are well within the field of view and defensible with the types of weapons that we use in these wards. I can't stress enough how unpredictable and dangerous some of the patients in these high security wards can be and are."
The kids listened with serious expressions, pausing now and again to furiously write notes on their datapads, ones they'd commissioned that had their logos, tattoos and names to show they were a coordinated group.
These kids were adored by the adults that worked with them for that and dozens of other reasons.
"I'm going to go from berth to berth and read the charts. Staff here will come if they have questions or information for me. Most of the time, we keep out of the way unless the patients require something or need to be checked. It keeps the situation in order. Some of the worst mental patients that we hold in the prison or capture on missions are found here because they won't give up and fight to the bitter end. Some of them don't make it and the ones who do require a lot of care to restore. That's why the protocols are so strict. Its better to be safe than sorry." Ratchet waited until all the notes were written and fifteen pairs of optics were upon him again. He grinned. "Let's go."
He walked to the first birth as the kids followed inside the red lines. He picked up the datapad and began to read to them. "This patient is in serious but stable condition with several wounds to the torso that damaged a lot of his internal communications gear and required a surgical replacement of said gear. He's in a mild stasis condition due to his agitated behavior when brought into the surgical suite.
"All of the equipment replaced was of a high caliber and also found were several non standard features that were removed that enhanced his ability to stealth, listen long distance and record conversations. A lot of soldiers do enhancements. They add equipment, systems and software that allows them to do their work better and more efficiently. We always remove these enhancements when found on enemy combatants."
"What do you do, Commander, when you can't remove the enhancements?" Coros asked.
"Good question," Ratchet said as the kids smiled at him. He grinned back. "We have a number of solutions that nullify different equipment and enhancements. We do a survey of it to understand what it is and how to remove it. If it can't be removed, and some can't without harming the bearer, then we apply dampening devices, nullification strips or take out any key pieces that can be removed without harming the individual. It would amaze you what we can pry lose from something we can't remove that stops that piece of gear from functioning. Its like taking a leg off a chair."
The kids listened, then they moved to the next. It was a mech who was awake and to say he wasn't happy would be an understatement. It was hard to tell who offended him the most, Ratchet, Breakdown or the kids.
It would be an interesting case and the first one that orn where the patient was aware and speaking.
"WHAT THE FRAG ARE YOU DOING TO ME! LET ME OUT OF HERE!" was the way it would start.
The kids would be taking mad notes.
Breakdown would be watching them like a hawk just in case and Ratchet would be laughing loudly the whole time.
=0=TBC 12-22-2020
ESL
ennui: (on-wee) a sort of despair and a word I love to say. :D:D:D (There's more to it being a French word. I love French words.)
angst: (ang-stuh) upset