The Diego Diaries: Incident: Solution? (dd8 238)
=0=Early morning on the flight line at Autobot City Military Airfield
They gathered, armed crews and special ships that were loaded with gun turrets facing all directions. The crews, pilots, navigators, soldiers and gunnery experts gathered outside of each as they were loading with ordinance to be readied to go. In a few moments they would fly to Trigger 1 and come out in orbit of Earth and her big beautiful moon.
After an agreement hammered out by Ratchet and Prowl with the various governmental agencies worldwide on Earth, the bots were going to be patrolling the planet in real time for the foreseeable future. They would remain in the high stratosphere out of the easy view of those on the ground without assistance and be ready if the intruders came again. Experienced commanders would be on each ship and they had plans in place to coordinate any attacks that might arise.
Hercy lounged on the deck of his ship, a type he'd used in the war at different times and knew to be a safe, fast and vicious fighter. He glanced at the gunnery crew and the soldiers that were standing nearby. None of them he knew very well but several of the gunners he knew by reputation to be noted marksmen. Prime was pulling out all stops he considered as the orders to go came through.
Rising, he walked inside followed by his mechs, then took a seat next to the pilot. When they were inside, the hatch closed and they waited their turn to lift off. Up they rose into the darkness of space and were through the Trigger in no time.
=0=Ops Center
Prowl glanced at Prime who was organizing call backs to half the worlds leaders it seemed. "They're gone."
Prime glanced up. "Good. What is the status of the Midway Array and the roving satellites we placed in stationary orbit around Earth?" he asked.
"All is in place. The Midway Array just came on line. We can see street level activity if we wish," Prowl replied.
"Very well. Now we wait," Prime said grimly.
=0=Here and there around the Earth
They sat in their groups, the dissidents against the bots and made plans to exploit the situation to raise outrage against the Cybertronians. It was a hard sell on Earth, a place with a terrifically high approval rating of their presence in the system. Now it was fluid in the sense that the calm had been shattered and everyone was rattled. If they were going to be getting ahead in the game with Prime, now would be the time to do it.
=0=Ratchet at about the same time
He sat in his office in the officer's wing of the Ops Center going over a speech he would give in person to the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York at their headquarters. It would have to be filled with truth, plans, encouragement and steely steadfastness. It would have to remind humans why the alliances were so important.
He wrote and wrote, sending drafts to Prime and Prowl as he toiled away. Their corrections, additions, suggestions for deletions or retools as well as their own points of view were shaped like wood in an awl until the final product was as finally tuned as possible. It would take a bunch of time as well as a lot of input and readings before the words Ratchet would deliver hit the right tone all the way around.
=0=Playing in the background all over the place
"In other news, the United Nations General Assembly will be meeting on First Friday to hear what Ambassador Ratchet of Iacon has to say about the situation regarding the treaty agreements and the unknown intruders into the solar system. Given the gravity of concern displayed by the human signatories of the Earth-Autobot Treaty alliances, a coalition of members called for a meeting of the General Assembly to hear what Optimus Prime believes and is doing through the meeting with Ambassador Ratchet.
"There is discontent among some of the member states about this situation which is viewed as a failure by Autobot Nation to undertake the degree of security and protection that the treaties imply," Gen-O said. "It is believed that the incursions wouldn't be happening without our presence here, an argument that has been utilized against Cybertronian presence in this system since 2007. That was when our status as allies was ratified. Optimus Prime signed the treaties and was allowed to declare the original buildings at Diego Garcia an independent embassy and consulate with all the related freedoms and securities as any other.
"The United Nations Security Council has been holding talks both privately and publicly about the situation as it stands and there is a desire to wait to see what Ambassador Ratchet has to say before any votes on the resolutions brought to it can be debated and taken."
Edict who was working on a display as he listened at his job at Full Circle in Terra glanced at Joon who was weaving on a big loom nearby. "I don't like the sound of this, Joon. We aren't going anywhere and they don't have the tech to fight off these intruders. What is their game do you think? Those who want us gone?"
"Fear, Edict," Joon said. "Everyone is afraid and that's not when the best decisions are made. We just have to wait and see how Ratchet does. He's worked miracles in the past. He will again. I feel it."
"I hope you're right, Joon," Edict said with a trace of worry. "First Friday, then."
=0=On the way
They lined up, slipped through the Trigger's bridge, then formed up in the vacuum over Earth.
Hercy stared at the beautiful blue marble that was Earth, then gave the orders. He had operational control of the mission so they listened, moved out and began to begin slow perfectly spaced orbits of the Earth to search out and destroy anyone who would try to cause harm here. It would be a very impressive show for those in the International Space Station to see when a ship slowly passed by in their range.
=0=That night
"I'm going to be going with Springer and Drift. I want you to have Tell while we're on Earth. Maybe you can wait at Diego. Both of them are very tenderized about Tell. He's feeling the fuss after the treatments and they last a few joors before they level off."
"What's the word on how many, Ratchet?" Ironhide asked as he wrapped Halo in a warmed towel, then stuck her little cocooned self into the basket he kept by the door for such things.
Halo smiled at him from her little towel chrysalis, then grinned at Praxus and Orion who were in the basket with her wrapped the same way. All of them loved their basket, their bath time and the resultant hoo-haw of bedtime that followed.
"Come here, Hero and Prowler," Ironhide said with a grin.
Both of them hoppity-skippity danced up to him and were plopped into the tub filled with bubble bath.
Grinning as they played with their bath toys for their allotted five minutes, Ironhide glanced at Ratchet.
Ratchet who held two towels for two more tots shrugged. "Its still inconclusive. It would be one more or several. I hope it takes fast but gene therapy is not for the faint of spark. I believe its going to take in the end but changing one's entire genetic profile for every cell in your body is a daunting thing even with our tech and babies sometimes struggle."
"He's fussy then," Ironhide said with a frown. "That doesn't seem right if you ask me. It just lasts a few joors after he gets it?"
Ratchet nodded. "He won't get one that morning. Its an off orn to allow for it to do its business. But Second Friday is the next one."
"I hate this," Ironhide said as he dumped a bucket of soapy water over the helms of the two in the tub.
They both squealed loudly as Sunspot and Spot came into the room for their turn. Hero waved to Sunspot who waved back. "They're so cute," he said.
"Almost as cute as you, Sunny Bunny," Ratchet said.
It would be a pleasant interlude in the wash rack at home.
Elsewhere in the house …
They sat in the lounge finishing up homework at they skyped with friends. The main topics rotated around the incursion, a number of classes that were demanding and the first real dance coming up at the school after midterms that they'd ever attended. All of the other dances were follow ups to games where the boys stood on one side of the gymnasium staring at the (mostly) boys on the other side longingly and awkwardly while great music played. Good food and drink were also dispensed under the watchful optics of the school's staff and parental chaperons.
This time there would be dancing along with everything else to celebrate the finish of the swimming competition season among the six, count them six Intermediate Day Schools that existed in the colony to accommodate the burgeoning population of older children.
"So you think anyone is going to come with their … you know," Fireball said. He was thinking about his sometimes stared at and often queried about relationship with Lumi which was considered among the kids at the school who noticed 'highly romantic'.
"I don't know, Fireball," Quadrus said over the monitor in the lounge at Appa and Ammas house. "Don't worry about them. You and Lumi can stay with us. No one will say anything if we stay together."
"They're just jealous," Genesis said with feeling. "I want to dance with Torus and Jesso. I like both of them a lot."
"Trines are okay," Fireball said with great seriousness bringing from the others small grins. His sweetness was his super power.
The conversation would continue.
=0=Early morning in the Bosom of Love™
Robby the Bruce stretched, then glanced down at Cousin. He was laying against the heating element near the window along with Spot. At night sometimes they liked to hang.
He could hear someone rising to walk to the console in the living room, pausing to check to see if anyone was awake along the way. It was Ratchet the Food Giver™ as the three of them considered him to be. He was sitting down at the 'squawk box' to talk to the One Who Is Tense™ as Prowl was considered among the livestock of the family. "I'm here. What's up?"
The conversation was tense, short and over.
Ratchet rose, walked to the back room to talk to The Pushover™ as they considered Ironhide to be, then he hurried back out and left the apartment without a backward glance. It was silent, the animals shifted, then fell to sleep again.
=0=Autobot City Military Airfield
They arrived at the same time after meeting up in the elevator to the ground floor of their tower. Hurrying out, they reached the shuttle that would take them to Diego Garcia. Stepping inside, the ship lifted off, went through the Trigger and was gone.
Inside the Citadel, Optimus Prime and the night crew of the Ops Center were watching a dog fight going on over the city of Helsinki on Earth.
=0=Diego Garcia
They arrived in no time, then stepped off to run for the Ops Center. Entering the Embassy as the day dawned here, they walked inside and plugged in. The sounds of fighting could be heard over the comm system, voices shouting and cursing.
Prowl was grim as death as he listened.
Ratchet was more introspective. All he hoped was that none of the ships involved would crash into the city below them.
The number and kinds of messages coming into the Ops Center on Mars and here was astonishing in variety and intensity. All they could do at both ends was watch and wait.
=0=Earlier
They moved over the curve of the Earth in time to see a bridge open over Finland. They scanned then hailed it. There was no answer so they flew swiftly toward the stark looking ship bristling with guns of their own. Following Hercy's ship were two others bearing the Primal seal heading toward the bogey as fast as they could fly.
Before they would arrive, the intruding ship began to open fire on Hercy and his crew.
=0=TBC 8-25-2021