The Diego Diaries: Clubbin' (dd7 346)
I was so tired last night I was hallucinating. :D ON WITH THE SHOW!
=0=8 Ball
They walked into the club pausing together to take in the lay of the land. The place was jumping so they claimed their territory propping Ironhide up in a chair. He was snoring, literally, as he sat there magnetized onto its metallic framework by his elders. Taking their own chairs, they ordered, then watched the fun.
Hardie glanced at Prime. "Are you going to dance, Optimus?" he asked with a slight grin.
Optimus who was waving at this and that individual glanced at Hardie. "I do not know. I only dance with Prowl or my genitors."
"You should branch out. You don't need partners for most of the dancing in here," Sandstorm said as he eyeballed the local talent.
Drinks came and so did bar food, something that would keep the elders and a blotto Partition busy for a while. Some of the mechs got up to dance including a stiff Smokey and a vengeance minded Hot Rod. Slipping into the churning mass of vibrating, skippity-hopping and all around bounding dancers, they were lost from sight right away.
"I wonder if there's going to be a fight? Those two need to slag it out," Hercy said to Devcon.
Dev grinned. "They're probably a lost cause. Hopefully."
Everyone laughed. Most of them didn't hope so. The two were a laugh riot for most of them. At that moment a mech was punched, then flew backward to the floor. Materializing almost out of thin air, bouncers gathered him up and began to carry him off for the door. One of them, a Man Mountain Dean of a slagger stared at the crowd searching for the one who had hit the victim. No one was speaking so he walked off leaving behind a massive aura of menace that was lost on no one.
"That was fun," Blackjack said as he sat beside his son. Ironhide's helm was thrown back and he was snoring through his mouth. Fortunately, he wouldn't fall on the floor which would have been more comfortable for the big doofus.
"I was hoping for a brawl," Sideswipe said as he grinned at Ironhide. "You must be very proud," he said nodding toward Ironhide.
Blackjack glanced at his son, then laughed loudly. "I AM!"
Huge laughter was had by all as most of them entered the dance party nearby to jump around themselves. Most of those doing so still had movement in their extremities and a relative sobriety level. Prime and Tagg, Hard Drive, Ironhide who was in the bag, Blackjack, Hercy, Kup and Sun sat together watching.
"I missed so much not being here," Sun said. "I might have helped teach the infant to hold his liquor."
"No one can, Sun," Blackjack said almost proudly. "That mech has an Achilles heel about booze. Anything hard and he's out sooner rather than later. Beer takes longer. He's beyond fixing. I've tried."
"We might have to have a project then," Sun said as the sounds of a fight rising nearby could be heard.
Everyone turned in their chair to look in time to see Hot Rod fly out of the mob. He landed on his back next to Prime who grinned down at him, then waggled his digits.
Hot Rod stared at Prime, then sat up. When he did, a big mech walked out of the mob with an expression of murder on his face. Roddy jumped up, then stepped back. "Why are you mad at me?"
The mech paused before him. "You're a fragger. You STEPPED on my PED!"
The music ran on but a lot of the room's attention was on the two. The bouncers hadn't picked up on it until the big mech punched Roddy's face dropping him like a rock. Seemingly satisfied, he walked back into the mob. Roddy lay on the floor watching the birdies sing.
A bouncer walked over and tapped him with his ped. "He with you?"
"He is," Optimus said. "I will personally vouch for him."
"Well," the bouncer said, "if you say so, Lord Optimus." He nodded his helm like a well rounded religious mech, which he was, then walked back to the bar nearby.
Optimus nearly fell out of his chair bending down to look at Roddy. He sat back, then glanced at his father. "I suppose he needs medical assistance. I would call Partition but he appears to be slag faced."
Tagg smiled at his son. "I will tell you what, Orion … if he doesn't come around in a moment or two, I will personally find Partition to assist him."
"That would be nice, Atar," Optimus said as he sipped his drink. He sat back, then leaned into his father.
Hardie watched the pair, glanced at Roddy a moment, then grinned. Tagg and Optimus were truly sweet together. "I got this, Tagg," Hardie said as he nudged the slowly rising Not Rod with his ped.
Smokey walked out of the mass with Sunstreaker, then stared at Roddy sitting up slowly with amusement. "What happened? Did he trip on his nose assembly again?"
Huge amusement greeted that as the youngster walked over to sit enormously pleased with himself.
Dev and Smokescreen walked out of the crowd to join them. They stepped over Roddy on their way to their chairs.
No one ever got a break amongst professional soldiers.
Dev glanced at Smokey. "Did you do that?"
"NO!" Smokey said rather defensively. "I wanted to, though. He must have fragged someone off. I can't imagine why," he said with a smirk. "Much."
Hot Rod stood, then glanced sourly at Smokey. Without another word, he walked back into the seething mass.
Prime watched him go. "You do not think he will get punched again, do you?"
"I don't know, Orion," Tagg said as he sat with his son. He patted his arm. "He's a big mech. Just enjoy yourself."
"Maybe I should go in there just in case," Optimus said as he began to rise to do so. That was when Hot Rod flew out of the mass again.
"Well, isn't this special," Smokey said with a chuckle.
Hot Rod rose swifter, then turned on Smokey. "Frag you, crybaby," he said, then he waded back in again.
"Something tells me that this is not going to end well," Optimus said doubtfully.
"That's why I signaled Raptor that the party is moving onward," Hardie said as mechs began to emerge from the dance mob like children of the corn.
When they were all together everyone turned toward the mob once more. Hot Rod was still in there.
Raptor glanced at his father. "Do we get him?"
Hardie grinned as Prime and Tagg stood up, Optimus rather unsteadily. "I don't think so. He can find us."
"I can assist you, General," Optimus said as he leaned into his father.
"Where would be the fun in that, Optimus? How about we take the Metro to Terra and swim?" Hardie said.
It was met with universal agreement so everyone gathered up including Ironhide over the shoulder of his great uncle Jack. They walked toward the door and the street beyond. Behind them in the pulsing mass on the dance floor, Not Rod was getting his block handed to him.
The humans buzzed along behind. This was that side of awesome.
=0=Metro Line to Terra
They rode in one car tightly packed inside. It was between rushes obviously so they made it to Mall of Tyger Pax Metro Station #2 in jig time. Staggering off, they took the giant escalators upward to the main floor which was still busy but overall was closing soon. The water feature was all night and at the moment the pools were rather empty.
Jack put Ironhide on a lounge chair arranging him comfortably. Grinning at the nephew he didn't know he had, he watched as a long line of drunks made their way to the stairs to climb up to the rides both easy and death defying. He joined them.
Ironhide sawed logs.
Prime stood at the top at the boarding site where water was gushing by at about 60 miles per hour. He was drunk enough that what should have been really easy had become nearly insurmountably hard.
Behind him waiting with a grin, Tagg considered his boy. Optimus Prime aka Orion Pax was his greatest pride and joy. He leaned closer. "Do you need help, Orion?"
Optimus grinned. "I don't think so, Atar," he said as he stepped down into the water. He was immediately swept off his peds and roared away head first.
"Oh, my," Tagg said with a laugh. He jumped in and followed Optimus peds first on the first curve in the long convoluted ride that would take them around the entire ceiling of the massive, massive mall before dumping them out into the air over the giant pool that would catch them.
Behind them, everyone else came in hot pursuit.
=0=At the Club
He was flat on the floor getting pummeled by the big mech who had tossed him out of the dance pit twice. During his attempt to get payback, he was flipped onto the floor, then hit over and over again. The only side benefit to the entire ordeal was a slow but steady rise to sobriety.
That and Smokey didn't seem around to watch this abject humiliation.
=0=Swimmin'
They climbed the steps, jumped in, then screamed their way around the building. Down below, an ever changing group stepped out of the pool to drink, eat snacks, then run back. Lounging next to Ironhide, Lissie relaxed herself. The night was hilarious, fun was had, the boys (and femme) were bonding over beer, cronuts and activities. It was nice as pie to be the Honorary Girl™ of the Prime's Posse™. Where they would go next was anyone's guess. Raptor, after all, was the official Boss Hog™ of the whole expedition.
Splash after splash lapped water around her knees as she relaxed in the warm balmy lounge area around the pool. They would stay here a while, then motor onward. There were endless diners, theaters with good movies, bars and dance clubs in the colony. They would probably hit more than a few of them before the night was over.
She glanced at Ironhide. His chin was resting on his chassis as he slept it off. She patted his arms. "You're a good little mech, Ironhide. Auntie will take care of you. Never fear."
SPLASH!
=0=The Club
He was dragged out by his ped even as the crowd closed around his dominator. The bouncers had come and sneered at the punters who almost to the last mech and femme couldn't tell you who's fist Hot Rod had broken his helm upon. Given that there was no aggressor, they dragged the 'perp' out onto the sidewalk and handed him over to the Night Watch beat officer, Cariolus and his partner, Rube.
Cariolus who was an old school mech and didn't know the 'perp' splayed out on the sidewalk called for a police wagon to collect Hot Rod. They drove up, picked him up to put him inside, then slammed the door shut. After a moment of slag and gossip with the beat officers, the wagon drove off for the jail.
Laying on the floor inside, two mechs who were guards stared down at Hot Rod. Roadbuster glanced at his partner, Saint. "Roddy don't look too good."
"Nope," Saint said. He grinned. Both of them knew Hot Rod. "Too bad. He messed up his paint. He's not going to like that."
[Silence]
"Is that a ped print on his chassis?"
Roadie nodded. "Looks like it to me."
The wagon drove off toward Cultural Center Road with a load. It wouldn't be the last one of the night.
=0=On the street
Raptor was swaying good when he led the way to the Metro trailing everyone behind him from the street to the platform below. They were going to take a train to a club somewhere. He had the datapad. They were just following his lead. When they reached the platform, the train came. Several got on and it took off. Another came by when the rest finally reached the front. Climbing on that car, they rode off with the train. The first one was going to The City and the other was headed for Aerie Hill.
=0=The Jailhouse (now)
The van arrived and the doors opened. Roadie and Saint climbed down, pulled Hot Rod out and carried him between them to the booking desk. They put him on the floor.
Moov-2B, or 'Movie', the desk sargent glanced over the desk railing to see what had been the catch of the day. "Who's this slagger and what did he do?"
"This is Hot Rod of Nyon and he didn't duck fast enough. Drunk and disorderly minimum," Roadie said without pity.
Saint grinned. Roadbuster didn't have a microbe of pity for dummies. "Jail him in the back or here in the drunk tank?"
"The back," Movie said. "The medic can see him there. He isn't dead is he?"
Everyone stared at Hot Rod a moment, then Roadie poked him with his ped.
Roddy groaned slightly.
"Nope," Roadie said.
"Good. Stash him, boys," Movie said as he leaned back to play his online game with his two brothers again.
The Boys would.
=0=TBC 8-6-2020
Aerie Hill … what a a great suggestion. :D:D:D:D:D Thank you!
Slang: sawing logs: snoring.