Chapter 129
=0=Ops Center
The senior staff gathered around Teletraan II looking at the intel that had come through the night before. There was a list of e-mails included that confirmed a meet up with 'Night Flyer' at a mansion he'd rented in Aspen, Colorado. It was not far from the house that Nast owned. In one week, they were expected to gather, Nast, Galloway, Daniels, Weaver and Shockwave.
The Autobots would be there, too.
They discussed the situation together, who would do what and how they'd not only ensure that Nast would be there and on his game but how they themselves would be able to listen in to collect data. It was not completely clear why Shockwave had murdered the informant in the weapons exchange. It could be that he was just keeping loose ends tidy or that somehow he'd found them out. Either way it was problematic.
"I'm leaning toward him tidying things up. He hasn't spiked the connection or used anything to trace back to us. So far, our connection is clean and functioning. Nothing Cybertronian appears to be working against us over it," Prowl said quietly. "There's nothing in the e-mails to indicate that he has suspicions and there are no indications that he's increased the number of active Decepticons here on the Earth."
"I would like to enter this with the idea that he has suspicions but with obvious caveats. It could be that he is just that ruthless, which most of us can attest to from long vorns of experience with him. He could just be closing paths that might lead back to him. We do have the Seekers and he might know that or he might not. We do not know and cannot second guess anything. We have seen worse from him but I do not want to take chances. I want our stakeout to be there days in advance. This is a resort area. If we cannot use Nast's house as a base then I want to hire a house nearby. We have to be especially careful," Prime said.
He turned to Lennox who with Fulton, Epps and Graham listened while sitting on the console. "We need you to help us with that aspect and to be boots on the ground. Do any of you ski?" he asked with a grin.
Epps and Graham smiled.
"We do," Epps said glancing at Lennox. "He doesn't. Maybe you can learn."
Prime grinned. "Nice cover, teaching him. The chalet that Shockwave rented is on a ski run."
"Well, a duty I can finally get into," Graham said.
"Good," Prime replied. "Then to Snowmass you go."
=0=Med Bay
Sunstreaker sat on a berth with Bluestreak next to him, his arm around the yellow Lamborghini. Sunny bore his usual frown, his tension evident in every curve of his elegant form.
Bluestreak leaned on his shoulder with the cords plugged into each of them downloading code.
Ratchet walked to them with a scanner then ran it over the Lambo. "How do you feel, Sunstreaker?"
He shrugged diffidently looking away from both of them with a sour expression.
Ratchet looked at the two and felt a pang. "You know, Sunstreaker, you were lucky you didn't hurt yourself and the sparkling."
Sunny's helm jerked up. "I wouldn't hurt any sparkling, Ratchet. Not mine or anyone else."
"Fighting with Cliffjumper was hardly a good idea."
"He's lucky to be in one piece, the fragger. If I see him again he's going to be sorry he was born."
Bluestreak squeezed Sunstreaker's shoulders. "He was a slagger to talk to you like that."
Sunstreaker looked at Bluestreak. "He could've made it all public. He didn't." Sunstreaker looked at Ratchet sharply. "You didn't tell them did you?"
"Just Magnus."
Sunstreaker's expression turned to poison as he dropped his helm, shaking it in aggravation.
Ratchet reached over to raise his helm fixing him with a sharp expression. "He had a right to know that you had reasons beyond your reputation to do what you did. Cliffjumper is in the brig and will be for thirty days."
Sunstreaker considering this smiled with pleasure. "Good."
"I agree," Ratchet said with a slight smile of his own. "I asked Prime to keep you here until separation. What I want to know is do you want to separate here or on Mars?"
"I don't want to do it at all," Sunstreaker said fiercely.
"Well, then what's your second option? Earth or Mars?" Ratchet persisted. "Or do you need to hold Orion a bit longer before you decide to accept reality or not?"
Sunstreaker looked at Ratchet with an expression that anyone else would have fled but Ratchet returned the gaze waiting for him to decide. He did. "I would like to hold Orion for a while," he said softly.
Bluestreak smiled and squeezed his shoulders. Looking at Ratchet expectantly, he stepped down tugging Sunstreaker to his peds. Blue pulled Sunny into Ratchet's office, the two sitting on the couch as Ratchet left to find his sparkling. Bluestreak slid his arm around Sunny's shoulders kissing him on the cheek. "Are you going to be okay?"
"No." [intense frown]
"You really planted Cliffjumper good?"
"Yes." [savage smile]
"I love you."
He looked at Bluestreak, squeezing his servo tightly. "I hate this."
"We know," Bluestreak said with a grin.
=0=Ops Center
"I need him for a moment."
"You do?" [pout]
"Sparkling therapy."
"For Sunstreaker?"
"Yes."
Ironhide reluctantly coughed up his sparkling. Ratchet took the infant and kissed Orion several times on his little face.
The infant chirped at his carrier bringing the room to a halt for a moment.
Then Ratchet tucked him into his arm to leave.
Ironhide gripped his arm for a moment. "Youwill bring him back."
Ratchet grinned. "Yes, Ironhide, I will bring him back."
"We have a date with the armory. We have to finish storing my munitions and it's like my old mentor used to say. 'It isn't a job if it doesn't have a straw boss'."
"Old Hercy used to say that?" Ratchet asked remembering a bot as old as the universe.
"All the time."
"As he sat on his aft being the straw boss," Ratchet said.
"Of course," Ironhide said with a grin. "Don't be too long. He'll miss me."
Ratchet looked at the sparkling lying in his arms looking at them with his usual unknowable expression. "I can see that." Then he walked away aware that Ironhide's optics followed him all the way out of the door.
=0=Med Bay
He walked to his office pausing at the door.
Sunstreaker was slouched on the couch, Bluestreak whispering into his audials his arms around the big front liner. They looked up as Bluestreak sat up. Sunstreaker who was slumping on the couch looked at the little sparkling.
Ratchet held him out so Sunstreaker took him, leaning back to look at the little infant who looked back with his unwavering gaze.
Yellow Face was back.
Ratchet sat at his desk busying himself with his work as he ignored the two who sat nearby enjoying his infant.
Bluestreak was loving and vocal while Sunstreaker was silent.
A surreptitious glance now and again let him know that Orion therapy was good for the sullen Lambo. He held Orion gently, touched his little digits and peds as he looked at him, enjoying his company silently.
Ratchet smiled.
Again.
=0=Outside at the air field
They gathered on the tarmac, strike teams that would be going to Colorado. Perceptor and Wheeljack were included as they would be running intel collection and monitoring Nast. Nast would come out later on closer to the date of the meet up with Prime who would oversee the entire operation. When he did he would be as ready as he could as well as wired for sound and video.
Ratchet had placed a tiny transmitter into Nast's ear, one that was designed to mask detection. He also placed a number of other bits of metal around the human's body as a counter measure, all of them mimicking normal surgical enhancements for injuries in humans. They were of Terran metallic design and composition, enough here and there to make one more if detected seem innocuous. They knew Shockwave would scan. They hoped he would be fooled.
Nast for his part was terrified. He was caught between two immovable forces, the Autobots and the Decepticons. Either way he had little to hope for beyond keeping his skin. He couldn't even appeal to the U. S. government for sanctuary so great and clear was his treachery.
The soldiers had been finally brought up to speed on the entire matter. They'd asked to speak to Nast, a request that was granted. They'd met in the brig, the three and Colonel Fulton looking at him with something akin to hatred.
Fulton began. "You need to talk to us and tell us everything you can, Mr. Nast. If one of my men or any of the Autobots dies because of what you've done you will hang. I will personally hold the rope."
Nast swallowed hard glancing at the other three in the brig besides himself and then he began. When he was done telling every thing he knew and all the supposition that he could manage they left him without a word.
Entering Silverbolt, the two teams, the soldiers and the two scientists took off heading for the snow covered Rocky Mountains and a date with a demon from another world.
=0=In the armory earlier
Orion who back with his father sat on a box watching as the big black center of his entire universe stacked things in a locker. It was already packed with munitions and weapons, rifles and guns of all sizes hanging on hooks along the inside walls. Ironhide who was keeping a running commentary about what he was doing moved things around and put the last bit of the dangerous stuff that was kept around the quarters since before their good fortune to spark into a safer containment.
Turning around to get more, he grinned at the infant, a tiny black and yellow bit of fluff sitting on a stack of grenade boxes. He looked so cute and sweet that Ironhide had to take a moment to manage the emotions that arose in him. Walking to the infant, he leaned in closely. "You're one cute little thing," he said picking him up to hold him before his face. "I don't know what I'd do without you. And Sunstreaker? He's going to find out, too." Tucking him into the crook of his arm, he began his rounds making sure that everyone was safe inside the embassy.
=0=In Aspen that night
They arrived and drove to their house, Nast's house, entering, then turning on the lights. They emptied the five car garage that belonged to the 'cabin'. It was the usual mountain mansion, many rooms, immaculate décor and a garage filled with vehicles only used a few times a year. They drove out a jeep, a range rover, two pickup trucks and a trailer filled with snow machines. Putting them out of view behind the house, the Autobots rolled inside out of the snowstorm.
Perceptor and Wheeljack hunching over in the open storage part of the garages put together the surveillance equipment and monitors that they would use during the conversation which would take place in four days. They had the capability to listen to a perfectly level conversation over ten miles away due to Nast's implant. Otherwise, the clarity would fall below unimpeachable standards even if it would be courtroom admissible.
Ironhide, Trailbreaker, Bumblebee and Smokescreen squeezed in maintaining their vehicle modes as Jazz sat nearby leaning against a wall.
Lennox stood in the doorway of the house, itself a five bedroom palatial palace. He snickered.. "This looks like the worst slumber party I ever saw."
"Ha ha, Lennox," Ironhide said as his holographic image flashed to life.
Lennox, never having seen it before stepped down to walk toward it. "Hide, you never showed me this."
"You never needed to see it until now. Handsome devil no matter what form I take, don't you think?" he said as he lounged against the side of himself.
Lennox nodded, then called to the others. "Hey, Epps! Graham! Get in here!"
They came and stepped down to stare at Ironhide's holo-image with a look of shock and surprise. "This is awesome. Can the rest of you do it?" Graham asked, jumping slightly as images popped into view all around him.
Ironhide was very tall, brawny and tough looking. A handsome enough figure, he looked invincible and a little intimidating. Dark hair contrasted with his blue optics. On his arm were the tattoos he wore on his body, all of them in tight circles, tiny glyphs of a dark brown metallic color.
Trailbreaker was handsome and rugged in his holograph, tall and well made. He had short hair and looked like he could punch his way through stonewalls. He smirked at the soldiers and moved slightly to allow Bumblebee to step out of the crowd.
At least it appeared to be Bumblebee. He was youthful, slim and compact. His complexion was pale and his thatch of longish blond hair curled around his ears. He was cute all around and youthful as he stood next to Trailbreaker, a reflection of his sweet Autobot personality.
Jazz, moving around the end of Ironhide's alt truck format smirking at the men who stared at him. He was African American, handsome and well made, his humor and elegance so much a part of him that no matter what format he took it shone like a beacon out of him. He reached out to touch Lennox. The soldier feeling him do so reached out to take Jazz's hand. He squeezed it, looked at it and turned to the others. "His hand is warm and solid. Amazing."
Smokescreen, a tall rangy individual stepped around Ironhide to look at them, his black hair, handsome face and familiar knowing smile unsettling. He looked like himself, like the smartest man in the room, someone with a great secret he wasn't going to tell anyone else. Then they disappeared leaving the room strangely empty.
"'Hide? Where did everyone go?" Epps asked as he stepped closer to the Topkick truck.
"Takes a lot of energy to do that to the degree that we just did," Ironhide said from somewhere in the middle of his truck form. "We can do it but not forever. Some of us can do it longer and make more images, too."
Lennox looked at Wheeljack and Perceptor who looked back at them. For a moment, they stared at each other, then their holograms appeared, two of them side-by-side staring at the soldiers curiously.
Perceptor was tall and rangy, his hair black and his complexion pale. He was handsome and elegant, the type of sort who was a gentleman no matter what or who he was.
Wheeljack looked more of a sport, a tall blond haired figure with a smile on his face. He was big and broader, stronger looking than Perceptor and then they disappeared, the robotic forms of the two once more their sole representation.
"That's so cool," Lennox whispered. "You have to do that more often. It would come in handy on assignments."
"We would need to boost our power considerably," Perceptor said as he considered the problem. "We could," he said turning to Wheeljack. "We'll put it on the list." With that, he turned back with his partner and began to work once more.
Lennox grinned as he patted Ironhide. "Anything we can do for you out here?"
"Nope. Get me my sparkling," Ironhide said.
"Sorry, Ironhide. No can do," Lennox said with a chuckle.
The others begged off so they went inside determined to enjoy Nast's hospitality to the fullest. The garage settled down and so did the bots, waiting out the storm outside and the one gathering on the horizon in less than four days.