The Diego Diaries: Confrontation (dd7 190)
=0=Cybertron
They came swiftly and in droves. The Wreckers arrived in battle shuttles, heading for the far side of Cybertron to be off the sensors but not far enough away to be late to the dance. On the ground, an array of soldiers were still being placed around the airfield to pour firepower onto the scene if called upon. Seekers were gathered in the slowly resurrecting city of Nova Cronum nearby. They could some in and lay down the smack if called. More and more fighters came to give Prime flexibility in his decisions.
Prowl sat at the command table gathering information and making plans. Optimus had to have an array of options and their viability.
Prime sat on the command seat brooding.
=0=Homeland
"What's the scene now, Blaster?" Blackjack asked as he sat at the table with his grandfather. They were studying the maps which were trying to fill in the space beyond triangulating off the faint conversation happening among the aliens who were gathering to talk. It was a slow and inaccurate process.
"We have new voices," Blaster said. "I think they're gathering out there to discuss what's happening."
"I was afraid of that," Hard Drive said. "Hook me up with Omega please."
"You're on," Blaster said.
"Omega, this is Hard Drive."
:Understood, General:
"It would appear that the aliens are meeting up and may be coming this way in force. We have to plan for that," Hardie said. "What's the sit-rep among the mechs where you are?"
:We are picking up faint echoes of conversations several parsecs away. We are helping boost sensors to acquire the signals. Right now nothing is clear: Omega said.
"Very well. Keep us posted if you notice anything changing," Hardie replied.
:On it; will notify: Omega said, falling back into his peculiar cadence again.
Hardie glanced at Blaster. "Put me through to Prime."
=0=Nova Cronum, Cybertron
Prime listened, then gave Hardie discretion. Apparently, the worst case scenario for him – battles on two fronts - just opened up. He glanced at Prowl. "Work it out with him, then keep me informed." With that, he walked out with his mechs for the landing zone, one far enough away that would allow room to maneuver away from habitations and buildings on the base, the Old Airfield.
=0=Ops Center, Homeland
Hardie worked with Paragon to create a ring of steel around the planet and its two small moons. They were no more in size than Phobos and Demos to Mars but would be part of the lift to Sirius A if all things went well. "I think we need to get titans here, perhaps dreads. The more they face, the more they'll have to lose. Fortunately, the path to us is narrow and the only safe way to come."
Paragon nodded. "I will call Metroplex and have him direct to us those that are available."
They worked together and when they were clear on the plan, a dreadnought and three metrotitans were on their way.
=0=The airfields
Prime stood by a large building that was the main operational command system of the airfield. The tower that held lights and the controllers towered over him. There were ships parked 'casually', their guns turned toward the area where everyone would be landing. They would be able to blast the slag out of anyone who wanted to make trouble. He commed Prowl. "What is the situation, Prowl?"
:They're coming in toward orbit. I've broken down the order of landing. We're starting with the small fry unless you feel there's greater danger with the battleships being left in orbit:
Prime considered that. "Why not bring down some of each at a time? It cuts down on the possibility that they could gang up as a unit. Break up the units."
It was silent a moment, then Prowl was back. :We'll bring down two battleships and a cruiser first. The ships that look like road gangs are worrisome:
"Understood." Prime gripped his gun as he waited. Prowl would make the landing instructions through a voice filter. It wouldn't do that they would recognize anyone now. It would appear that they were gone so long they had no idea that Cybertron was no longer in Megatron's control.
It was silent again around the airfield as hundreds of soldiers and Seekers waited for the bad guys to come down.
=0=Homeland
They watched the faint lights of a gathering force far down the arm from where Homeland was located. The pathway here was through treacherous terrain for the group that was massing. Homeland and Sun Base were located in such a position in the energy floes that the Vergans had to take this route or go around a long way to come forward like Prime and his crew had from Mars. That path was safer but less convenient for the Vergans who lived the other direction.
"More and more coming," Paragon said as he sat beside Hardie. "I'll be glad when we lift out of here."
"They might try to interfere with that," Hardie said quietly. "We shall have to disabuse them hard and fast. What's the word on Cybertron, Blaster?"
Blaster checked. "Two battleships and a cruiser just touched down, they say." He listened a moment. "Fighting just broke out," he replied grimly.
=0=Mars
They ran for the airfield and the Ready-Go flight line. Ships were powering up as flocks of Seekers arrived, got the word, then lifted off nearly together for space. Mechs and femmes streamed in after getting the mass call from the Master of the Muster to report and where to go. They streamed into the ships, some of which closed hatches to lift off. They rose up even as more began to leave. It would be a very chaotic seeming but highly orderly bug out.
Standing at the windows of the Sciences Habitat and the Family Tower, humans preparing to go to Unidad for Christmas dinner and dancing watched with foreboding. Something huge was happening and they didn't know what.
"This is a big group," Fig Figueroa said.
"It is," Mama Figueroa replied with a nod. "I hope our boys and girls are going to be alright."
"What does your senses tell you, Mama?" Fig asked.
She considered that, then shrugged. "They're saying nothing at the moment. I will believe the good."
Murmurs greeted that. They all would.
=0=The Hourly News at 1335 TMC: Latest Breaking News, Autobot City, Mars, Cybertron and the Empire of the Primes
"This is Aleph with the latest breaking news. The Office for Strategic Communications has just released information that a battle group coming in to surrender at Nova Cronum on Cybertron has engaged the forces there in combat. Information is still spotty but it's clear that a battle group that was coming to Nova Cronum has decided to engage local forces led by Optimus Prime rather than surrender peacefully.
"The information that's known includes advanced notice they were coming to Nova Cronum, that they weren't disclosing all the information required for such a venture and that they were a group that was long gone from direct contact with Cybertron, perhaps dating to the time of Nova Prime during the Golden Age. Their absence was apparently due to the length of their mission to privatize along the farthest reaches of the frontier beyond the Rim. They appear to be a scavenging group, one that hunted for energon, supplies and other necessaries, often at the expense of those whose path they would cross.
"These groups are made up of very ruthless uncompromising individuals led by captains for whom criminal activities would be no problem. Many of these groups contain ship boarding crews whose function it is to overtake a vessel, control and loot it, then either kill its crew or leave them disabled to drift helplessly in space. It's not yet known definitively if this group has such crews, many of which form from criminal gangs and elements found on Cybertron during the Clampdown and Fall.
"The call up is to augment the forces that are currently engaged on the ground at Nova Cronum. It's not known if there are problems with that part of the incoming group that are in space waiting to land. Nova Cronum is a major airbase and aviation center with a refugee camp of 15,000,000 individuals three Cybertronian miles away. The entire base itself has been evacuated and everyone within two miles of it has been pulled out to safety.
"The Prime is leading the engagement with heavily reinforced troops of veterans, many of which are expert at boarding hostile ships and overtaking the crews. There's no information currently about that portion of the situation. We're not allowed to be on the scene due to the dangers inherent but will be receiving bulletins from the Citadel in Iacon where all the information is being sent.
"The Alpha Standby teams 1 and 3 have left the Military Airfield just now to head to Cybertron through a bridge system relay set up by Triggers 2 and 3 who are currently on duty in the part of the Benzuli Expansion called The Ruins. That operation is a rescue mission as designated by the Office of Strategic Communications and is still ongoing and fluid. More information will come of that mission shortly, one that has rescued nearly 5,000,000 of our refugee citizens from two planets in that region, an area that's highly dangerous due to unpredictable energy floes and outbursts from a parsec of stars that went supernova together in ancient times.
"Right now, the engagement is continuing. The Office of the Primes wishes everyone to know that the operation is fully in hand and no one who's a refugee living there or a worker from here or from the local area is in danger. It's typical for some groups to resist the current paradigm and make a situation for their surrender. Given the overwhelming numbers and firepower of the Prime, its only a matter of time before surrender is taken.
"When more information comes up, it will be brought forward to you. Let me repeat ..."
Will Lennox and the others stood by the hatch door of the Family Tower listening to the big screen newscast by Aleph. He was always the one who anchored disasters and this sounded about the same. Lennox glanced at his father, then the others. "Let's hurry up and get to Unidad. I want to see what's going on."
They hurried into the hatch for the trucks and were gone swiftly to the massive human habitat on Tri-Cities Road.
=0=Nova Cronum
The sirens of the emergency services went off, then stopped as the first of two giant battleships and a large cruiser came into view toward landing. They were setting down on the emergency field which was away from the base and in open territory. They came in dark and Decepticon in design, their menace evident, as evident as their battle scars, decals and markers of kills made on their hulls. They sat heavily, then powered down.
Prime who was standing in the doorway of a shuttle parked nearby, one filled with Wreckers and other shock troops, many of them ex-Decepticon waited for the hatch to pop and those inside to come out. It was quiet, then he called to Prowl. "Link me in, Prowl."
:You're in, sir, through the voice filter: Prowl replied, his all business battle facade firmly in place.
"Commander of the battleship Slasher, identify yourself."
It was silent a moment, then a dark sounding voice was heard. :This is Vice. Who's this? Where's Megatron?:
It was silent a moment, then Prowl's voice was back. :There was a ship named Slasher with a captain named Vice in the group that left with Nova Prime, Optimus:
Prime felt tingles on his exoskeleton at the news.
=0=TBC 1-24-2020 2-6-2020
ESL: privatize: either to make something private or secondarily, the actions of pirates who go and steal. Pirates are also called privateers. :D:D:D
(I almost got hijacked by videos on YouTube that show a company in Britain called The Green Machine building ASTOUNDINGLY BEAUTIFUL aquariums that are specialized by their use of plants. I can't recommend watching them highly enough. They are nature aquarium specialists. -Me
(UPDATE: I got sucked in. The aquariums are so breathtakingly beautiful and they show how they create them that I sorta sat there and watched. No more YouTube for me when I write. Fortunately, its Friday and so I will keep tapping away. :D) (This emoji looks like I have a double chin. LOL! )