The Diego Diaries: Potpouri (dd7 60)
=0=In a conference room at the Processor Hospital
"Stop!"
Everyone froze, then glanced at an infuriated Prowl. "Sit. Now."
They stared at him, then reluctantly sat. The fury and fear in the room could power a building.
"I think you need to understand something very clearly," Hardie said as he leaned back in his chair. "First of all, this is about the Court and its rulings. These three individuals could be in prison. I'm not talking about nice prison. I'm talking about housing with Decepticons and real hardcore criminals. The court should be dead but its kept in place by Prime because he sees benefit in it.
"The benefit is two fold. It gives hard aft high castes another chance to mend their ways in this new paradigm. It gives me the right to do creative sentencing for those who feel that they want to not only disgrace themselves with Prime and the Matrix but with Primus and The One rather than throw you in prison. You may not have actually been there when Primus spoke His processor on this issue but we were. There is no leeway for you but for the Court.
"Ordinarily, it would be over but here we are. You have a very narrow avenue to venture in your tirades. If you don't accept the ruling of the Court, then you're saying that The System of Exception isn't valuable, that it can be ignored when it serves your purposes. If this is so, and it wasn't on Cybertron, really at that point why have it? Either all the rulings and parts of The System apply or none of them do. Why don't you tell me why I should put down the rule book and make an exception to the System of Exception when it wasn't even allowed on Cybertron during the orn?"
They stared at Hardie with fury but there was no answer possible that wouldn't sink their point of view permanently.
"Your appa placed his personal prestige and that of his House on this process and agreed to abide by the outcome. Your own little appa. Are you going to heap shame on him and make him outcast in the community because your feelings are hurt here? Because you can't get your way? Are you going to break your agreement with him when he took this step knowing full well that if anyone broke his vow that he would never live long enough to live down the shame and personal trauma?" Hardie asked quietly. "I'm unmoved by your opinion of me. That is of no consequence to me. I've done enough courts to know that no one in our former caste likes the Elites. We don't play ball with you. What interests me is how much you love and respect your appa as Elder of your Houses."
It was silent as they sat back, sunk in the unbending bind their position put them in.
Sortie leaned slightly forward. "We will not harm the prestige of our appa nor that of our Houses, General, but we have enormous concern for our family members. You can understand that."
Hardie nodded. "I do. I also have enormous concern for their victims. Given that your people chose to make this possible, this court and its results, I have less concern for them at this moment than the individuals who didn't ask for and didn't earn this personal attack. I'm interested in how you can only see one side of this situation, Sortie. Not one time during any of the conversation here or at Court did any of you mention them. Not once."
No one said as thing. It was easier and smarter to be silent though they wanted to bellow the room down.
Sortie shook his helm. "You are right," he said to the surprise of the others. "We didn't. My son is my concern because he's my son but the others … I agree. I do not support his actions."
Hardie stared at him as he considered what he knew about Sortie from the past.
Nothing.
"I've made a ruling. It's yielded fruit. Two of the three mechs involved actually feel something besides crushing entitlement and bigotry against our people for something they didn't earn but was imposed upon them by our caste, their crushing poverty and the imprisonment they lived every orn because of our culture's rules. Rockwell failed that portion of this exercise. He hasn't been moved even after digging out dead babies and seeing starvation and madness.
"These two have. They're on their way. The issue before us is how much trouble for them you will cause. I don't believe that they'll turn back to what they once were. Sometimes a healthy dose of 'realness' is all it takes. If you try to force that, I do believe you'll fail. Perhaps it might help if you had a tour of the killing fields, too. You might understand what they saw that caused this change."
"You can't do that," Periodic said with surprise. "You can't make us do that."
Hardie leaned forward. "Of course, I can."
The room literally broiled with emotions as the group talked together off line.
Then Judd looked at Hard Drive. "We don't intend to go there. You can do what you want but we're not going there, Hard Drive."
"You'll go wherever he says. You want The System. You know that when a Praxian Elite says jump, you ask how high," Ironhide said. "If my appa says you go, you will. You know The Rules. What's it going to be? Either you obey all the rules and patterns of The System just like everyone everywhere did for millions of years no matter what they are or you drop it all right now. All of it without exception. Its all or nothing. You couldn't pick and choose on Cybertron during the orn and you can't here, now."
It was funereal.
Ratchet who was thanking his lucky stars that he was a slagger from Iacon glanced at Periodic. "Are you religious?"
Periodic glanced at Ratchet sharply. "My views are my own."
"What about you four? Sortie? Judd? What about all of you and your bonds? Are you religious?" Ratchet persisted.
"We're not inclined to answer but we reverence our culture in all its aspects. Our religious beliefs are not for perusal," Sortie said.
"What does the Creed mean to you?" Ratchet asked.
They stared at him, then sat back without answering.
Ratchet grinned. "You have nothing to offer that can make it not say what it means. Until ALL are one. Primus said that. I've heard you say it several times as your last words when you died, Optimus. I never told you what a selfless slagger you were. Consider it told now."
Ratchet glanced at the group who watched him warily. "Primus came to us when Sentinel was dragged off. He came to us when the Functionalist Council was as well. The One and The Matrix showed up at one of the two events. The dazzling beauty of all of Them sort of makes it seem like beautiful blur now. One of the things They made very, very clear was that if The System of Exception continued Primus would take it as a personal affront to His person and authority and take steps. Who wants to be first to be slagged by Primus?"
They stared at him, then the others, their optics lingering on Prime.
Then Periodic sat forward. "All we have is your word it happened."
"Actually, slagger, there were dozens and dozens of mechs and femmes there. Dozens. All of them saw what was said and heard. It wasn't just his word … and I will say … his word bears more weight than yours six ways to Sunday. Prime speaks with authority and he does so as the First Disciple of Primus. He was chosen by The Matrix Itself by Its own volition, something that hasn't happened that way in hundreds of millions of years. Even if there weren't plenty of others to tell the story, I'd still believe him over slaggers like you any day," Prowl said with real venom in his voice.
Jarro who was listening tapped the table. Everyone glanced his way. "You have to understand … what's happened here is something that's profound. Two mechs have found out that their world views, their lifelong world views don't hold up. They saw the outcomes of their beliefs in the mass death and destruction of Cybertron. You will only make it worse if you don't support them toward finding a way to live with this and making their way forward."
"You mean supporting their supposed new views?" Periodic said sourly.
"Rockwell is still an aft. You don't have to support anything and maybe you never will," Ratchet said. "Rockwell didn't feel a thing digging out parts of dead babies. I don't hold hope for you either. So why don't you sit this one out."
Periodic stared at Ratchet like he could kill him. But he said nothing else.
"General," Sortie said as he stared at the table top. "What are you planning to do about this?"
"We came here to break the news to you so that you could sit with us and decide how we can best help Pico and Carbide along the path they've chosen by this experience. They said they no longer hold The System as their own. They feel a bit of desperation about what they can do to help here, to try to feel better and make some amends. We need you to understand that they won't be going down the road you're on ever again. You can either support that or not," Hardie said.
It was silent.
Hardie sat forward. "Alright. Here's what I'm going to order. Pico and Carbide will remain in the Processor Center until they're found fit to leave. Then they'll be taken into the homes of my family until I say otherwise."
A shocked response from the group was cut short by Sortie who glanced from them to Hardie. He said nothing but listened with intense emotion on his face.
"They will stay with us while they attend therapy. They will accompany us to Cybertron where they will work in administrative roles as they recover and find their way. You all will attend daily group therapy with them but that is the extent of your personal involvement until I cut them loose. They won't be coming home until I say so. They wouldn't in prison and they won't here."
"What about Rockwell?" Periodic asked.
"He stays in jail. He works on Cybertron doing whatever he's told. He follows the finding of the Court, unless you're all ready to denounce it to the Congregation and take a public Matrix oath to seal the deal," Hardie said.
"No," Periodic said with fury.
Sortie rubbed his face with his servos. "I'd like to discuss this with family and think about it in less fiery circumstances."
"I give you until noon tomorrow. If I don't hear from you about an oath to the Congregation then the verdict stands. I will tell you that nothing I've decided before or decide now is negotiable. I'm a soldier. I had to fight the war that the decisions and behavior of my caste created. You may think Megatron is just a criminal, but he's more than that. The System of Exception was the disease. Megatron was just a symptom. Until that's made clear, then nothing will get better.
"I won't be fighting another war alone this time. I will personally order every high caste slagger to the front lines with me. Do I make myself clear?"
All of them stared at Hardie, then bowed their helms slightly in agreement but Periodic. He hissed, 'crystal clear' as he stood. Then turned without further word, all of them left.
It was densely quiet a moment, then Ratchet glanced at Prime. "Well, I think that went well."
Prowl tossed a stylus at Ratchet.
=0=On the street outside a moment later
"We're going to lunch. Come with, as Miko Nakadai would say," Prowl said as they gathered together.
As they did, Password, President of several sports groups and football was passing by. He grinned at Prime and Ironhide. "We're having a meeting in three orns to finalize things. We got agreements from Cybertron as well, Optimus. Then we can make announcements and release the schedule," he said, then nodded to everyone as he continued onward.
Everyone watched him go, then turned back to Ironhide and Prime.
Prowl watched as Password walked down into the Metro, then glanced back at Prime. "What schedules? What's he talking about?"
"Nothing. How about lunch?" Prime said to the others.
Prowl frowned. "What's going on, Ironhide? Unless, of course, you want duty on the Midway Array like *FOREVER*!"
Ironhide stammered, then a light bulb went off in Prowl's processor. He turned on Prime. "You're not … this isn't about that thing we talked about a while ago?"
Prime looked as innocent as a baby. "I am not sure what you are talking about, Prowl. How about lunch?" he said as he turned to go to the corner and the crosswalk.
Prowl impaled Ironhide with a look, then Hardie. Then it clicked. "WHAT THE FRAG!? WHAT THE FRAG! OPTIMUS PRIME!"
TBC 8-12-19
LEONESS: I think Prime sees utility in the Courts or otherwise they would disappear. Sometimes hitting them with their own rules makes things simpler. :D:D:D