The Diego Diaries: Meeting (dd7 245)
=0=Big Conference Room, The Fortress
"That's the general outline for the Jumble. They'll have the final report to submit for the next Planning Commission meeting. The University and the Museum will be there with their team. The design manager for the project will be Jade. He's become an amazing restorer and has a good view of where the educational aspects of preserving this area should be focused." Elita flipped through the data pad, then glanced at Prowl. "That's all Jetta has."
"When is the next meeting?" Prowl asked.
"On Second Friday next decaorn," Elita said as Prowl noted it.
"Thank you. Loon?" Prowl asked as he sat back with a grin.
Ratchet smirked at him. "We put the Messiah of Our People™ back on his rather giant peds with successful surgeries on three broken struts, four wounds, a lot of burn rash on his shoulder where he slid a long way and other things I'm not suppose to mention given that this is personal medical knowledge." Ratchet flashed a gigantic heavily wattage smile.
"You just did," Prowl replied with a smirk. "Oh, ye of little ethics."
"Did I? I don't remember," Ratchet said. He grinned as he looked over his report. "We have a lot of refugees coming from Omega Base who are part of the group that Jetta's genitors belong to and they show the same degree of abuse, negligence and trauma. I have a case request into Omega Base and will send a team over to check this out. We need to know what happened and most of them either don't want to talk about it for obvious reasons or are so happy to be here that they've already put it into the past.
"Those who were injured at Nova Cronum or at the site in The Ruins have checked out and are on their way to full recovery." He read onward. "The titans are rebooted, restored and in some cases upgraded. We know that the charge that hit them was a massive wattage force and it shocked everyone on Clipper back to a stasis condition at their root mode sites. No other titan was injured who didn't have themselves on Clipper in pretender format. There's that bit of news. It would appear that if they face a group of titans, they have to take them down one-by-one unless they're congregated on one in pretender gear. New rule … no one comes along for the ride on one ship."
"That would make sense," Perceptor said. "It would appear that this energy stream can follow circuits backward and take out the main generation area for physicality and thinking of its victims. Since pretender gear is mostly particles held together by the generation of energy within a field of containment, it would carry the charge through the construct back to the source. We can work on that angle because it appeared to us to be the most promising. If we can figure out how they do it then we can find a way to counter-measure."
"Very good," Prime said. He glanced at Prowl. "What have we done to beef up sensors around Cybertron and the local group?"
"That's being done now. We're repositioning some of the quadrant dishes and are having some made to look deeper, especially in the direction of the Benzuli and expedite the information back to us faster," Prowl replied.
"Very well. We have to accept that they were given the location of Cybertron. That makes moving it climb up the list of things that must be done right away," Prime said.
"Consider it done," Wheeljack said. "The situation with the planets that have been moved is going well. Sun Base took to its orbit without much, if any problems. Homeland is a different configuration and took a bit longer but both are doing well. We have ships on station to monitor them and if it continues we have two more habitable planets only a hop away."
"How are the gas planets doing?" Ratchet asked.
"Very well," Wheeljack replied. "They're taking the big stuff and even though small stuff can get by, its changed the dynamic and trajectory of a great deal of debris."
"That is good to hear," Prime said. He glanced at his data pad. "We would like the select committees to tell their information."
All of the standing committees for elders, children, orphans, clubs, unions and guilds … all of the representatives for the many groups around the colony gave their reports. Then the Unified School Board was repped by Ironhide. Springer gave the police report, Magnus on the overall status of the empire, a report by the representative from the elected body that helped everyone have a delegate to represent their district was heard, then the last few items were had.
"Tell us about the ship that was picked up … Yautje, apparently," Prowl said as he sat back to listen.
Hercy considered the information that he had. "We know its Yautja. It has the same configuration and trail residue profile as others of this kind but this was three or four times bigger. I don't know why it is … perhaps it has a larger crew but it was agile, fast and had good cloaking."
"You didn't fire on it did you?" Springer asked.
"We were going to dance but he fled. I half expected to see a glass slipper floating in space," Hercy said betraying his visits to the schools.
"I wonder if they laid down a hatchery that way," Drift asked.
"I don't know. They flew away," Hercy said as Kup nodded.
"We need to patrol out that direction. If there's a hive starting there I want it destroyed," Prowl said. "I would like all Seeker patrols that direction to stand out with a shuttle. I don't want any Seekers having encounters with a ship without big support. Springer, arrange it. Round the clock until we figure out this group and their purposes here."
Springer nodded. "Will do."
They continued onward to the Good of the Order.
Prime sat back with a grin. "Entertain me, minions."
"How was It digging around a primal frame?" Arcee asked with a grin.
Ratchet considered that. "I thought it was old home week. I think I've seen the inside of all of you numerous times."
"Any old tools or sandwiches in there?" Springer asked.
Snickers rounded the room as Prowl frowned, Venture looked askance and Miler hid his own belly laugh around a shocked expression.
"No. But I did see my own reflection on some of his shinier bits," Ratchet said. He grinned. "How do you feel?"
"Stiff in the joints. Sore," Prime said.
"Physical therapy will help with that," Ratchet said. "Your calibration for your audials, the final one will be later this afternoon."
"I thought you did that this morning," Prime said.
"That was a measure of basic sound levels and to adjust your short term pain management. When the techs get through your hearing will be first class again. THESE SERVOS-"
That was as far as he got.
=0=Shortly later
They walked out in a good mood after watching Rockwell silently grump his way to Cybertron with his 'dad', Ironhide the Elder of Praxus. Prime was already on his way home with Prowl fussing him there in a cab. He would work from home for today until Prime was adjusted, rechecked and discharged into light duty. Until then, Granny Pants was determined to manage him.
Ratchet turned to Springer and Drift. "Where are you two going?"
"To the office. No rest for the wicked," Springer said. "You?"
"Back to Prima Station." Ratchet peeled off to walk to the bridge room and the short and direct bridge jump to the station.
Springer and Drift would go home to sleep, frag and then go to the office.
=0=Prima Station, Midway
Security and a mini-con army helped the newcomers to find their way to their new homes. For a while, they were busy settling in before gathering together when Ratchet finally came back. The place was huge, vast on a scale they never expected and as state of someone's art as could be. The 'art' was beyond them, most of it, but the parts that were theirs to use, the town, labs and everywhere else was so normal it was hard to imagine they were in space on a station.
The downtown looked like any anywhere but there were islands in the middle of the roads painted on the decks that were flower beds and tree containments. There were trees and flowers everywhere carefully attended by a grounds crew of mini-cons who were botany specialists.
Businesses were already marked off and their wares stacked in boxes inside. There were restaurants, department stores, electronics, groceries and a bakery. It would expand as the population grew but for now it was big and varied enough to support very well the humans who would come.
The city hall would be ruled by their new mini-con overlord. There were fast food places, a medical center, a newspaper and media building and more. It was beautiful, highly lighted in a manner that simulated seasonal lighting and made it feel like they were actually in a real world place and not inside a metallic ball.
At the moment it was mid morning on the station when Ratchet walked through a bridge, then headed upward to the deck where everyone was located. He walked out of the elevator, then crossed the deck where everyone was waiting. "Well, I see you're still here," he said with a smile.
Huge laughter greeted that as they babbled together about the place.
Ratchet grinned. "Follow me and we can see what we can find."
They did.
It would be most excellent.
=0=Turbine and Ironhide
They rode on a ship here and there but it was only when they were on the ground that the grilling began. Growing up in a family that sported important individuals in many fields, Ironhide had had a very comprehensive education all around. Having musicians of exalted stature, Immortals, one of the most highly esteemed religious scholars and a Maker of the Elder Clan no less had left its mark. Being Praxian Military Elite had been the cherry on top of the cake.
He had been thoroughly trained in their people's religious and philosophical beliefs and thus had a pretty good working knowledge of all the sacred tomes. All of them, especially Turbine had made sure of it. He trudged along answering questions, expanding on ideas and discussing the sacred in the midst of the profane with his beloved Amma Tub-Tub.
He was having a great time.
He would pull out his tongue before he would tell anyone.
It would be a pretty happy jaunt by the two of them here and there on Day Two of his Bad Life Choices™.
=0=Recovery
Jetta and Mack walked along the street with their genitors, Imaldo and Corsair. They had just left the Central Labor Hall complex where they were attending counseling together at The Refugee Center of Autobot City. It had been difficult to get them to talk about things in front of their sons so they would attend two sessions, one with and one without. Now they were going to lunch.
Walking along, still wearing the thermal coats that would help their compromised immune systems recover, they were goggle eyed at The City. They were still struggling to believe that they would be able to live in their apartment.
"We thought we'd take you to a great restaurant nearby, Ada," Mack was saying. "Its an international type place where you can eat food from a lot of different places. We both like it."
"Okay," Corsair said. "They said you don't have to pay for anything."
"You don't. Optimus and I always said it would be a barter system if we ever got a chance to change things," Jetta said as they crossed the street. The restaurant was two more away.
"I still don't understand how this works," Imaldo said.
"Then we'll show you," Jetta said as they continued onward.
They would arrive at the restaurant, eat dinner, then go back home. When they got to their apartment and settled into a rest in their berth room, Imaldo and Corsair would both listen for their sons to leave on errands before returning shortly. When they were sure the two were gone, they would hurry to the kitchen and hide the food they sneaked out of the restaurant around the apartment before going back in to fall into an exhausted recharge.
When Jetta and Mack returned with food for their kitchen, they would find that which they'd hidden and the counselor would have a new topic for their therapy. The unspoken one would be the anguish Mack and Jetta would feel about their genitor's hoarding.
=0=TBC 4-1-2020