Chapter 133
-0-Optimus and Fulton, on the go day [D-Day]
They drove into Aspen on N. Galena after a nearly four and a half hour drive of a three and a half hour route. The snow and traffic had been a problem with people skidding and sliding off creating hazardous situations the whole way. Fulton who was relaxing in the cab chatted with Optimus as he made the pretense of driving but it was more of a show than reality. He was thoroughly enjoying himself.
-0-Springer and Nast, the night before [T-minus-1 day and counting]
He sat in his cell going over the information he'd been given to make a good show. He had no idea that the area would be locked down although tactically he thought such things in his mind. He was aware that it could go one of many ways. He could be meeting a holographic image of Shockwave, one designed to be ingratiating to his sensibilities. He could actually meet the beast himself. That was considered less likely. Or he could see a representative of Shockwave himself, another Decepticon or even an unknown human ally. Anything was possible.
They walked him to the shiny green and yellow jet waiting on the tarmac but they didn't tell him that it was Springer. The irony would be lost on him and he was high strung enough for now. A soldier medic would ride with him administering a mild sedative that he would explain away as a cold remedy reaction. He would be mentally clear but his nerves would be managed. Settling into his seat, he watched as the base taxied by and he disappeared into the fading blue sky for Colorado.
-0-At the house in Snowmass the night before [T-minus-1 day and counting]
They sat together playing poker as the clock ticked down to the moment when they would step out to park here and there, close enough to be ready and not close enough to be seen. Given the area and the amount of ostentatious wealth that was gathered here, no one would be too surprised to see such vehicles around the area. The soldiers lounged around, Epps, Graham and Lennox playing cards with a ruthless lust to win that was amusing to the bots. Ironhide after having downloaded every manual on the internet about how to play the game and all its versions was still losing. Even cheating didn't do him any good.
"You know, Ironhide," Will said with a grin. "You have the perfect poker face but you just don't have the bluff in ya."
"I have the bluff," Ironhide's brawny hologram said, tossing in his cards. "I've been bond to Ratchet for eons. I have the bluff."
They laughed as they tossed their cards back. Jazz who had won and was pulling in the winnings smiled. "You know who wears the pants in that bond," he said smirking at Ironhide who frowned.
"I didn't carry," Ironhide said defensively. "No matter how hard Ratchet worked it I didn't carry in the end."
"Oh, I don't know," Jazz said, picking up his cards and looking them over. "Every time I see ya, you have that sparkling' of yours on your arm."
Everyone chuckled as Epps looked at Ironhide. "He's one cute little bug," he said. "When's the next one?"
Ironhide looked at him, the expression on his humanoid face eerily familiar. "When Ratchet tells me."
The laughter filled the house as they played on with the clock ticking down. When it was late, they called it and everyone settled down to pull a few z's, waiting for the word to go.
-0-Shockwave, the night before [T minus 1 day and counting]
He sat in the garage, the mansion affording seven cars worth of space in it. Before him was a large crate and inside were two mini-cons. He had them rewired, ready to power link with his frame to give him what he needed; energy enough to formulate an infallible holographic image for the humans to meet. The two mini-cons had been captured in combat and were redesigned to link with him. They would slave their energy to his and he would be charged with phenomenal amounts of power to use as he wished.
Sitting on a tech crate and reflecting on the situation to come, he wondered where Prime was at that moment. Diego Garcia was far away from where he was, a mere tiny dot in the vast blue ocean. Prime's defenses were very good but he had still gotten through, flying in over the pole during an especially bright display of auroras. It had been easy, he thought, as he calculated his positions. Too easy.
-0-Ops Center, two nights before [T-minus-2 days and counting]
Prowl watched as the ship flew into the Earth's magnetic north. Auroras were in full bloom in the frigid air over the pole. It would be the most logical place to try to come through, so he had positioned extra satellite time in that direction. Shockwave didn't fail him and he smiled slightly, comming Optimus who was driving down I-70 from Denver to Lakewood. Prime, acknowledging, continued onward, ever more cognizant of the danger presented thus far. The most dangerous known living Decepticon was on the Earth.
-0-At the Aspen Airport, that morning [D-Day]
Springer taxied over to the area where VIP jets were parked and took his place in the line up. Nearby, sitting with his motor purring, Jazz waited nearby in alt mode. It was for now a silver Porsche 911 Turbo reflecting his impeccable tastes. He was to take Nast to his own house. From there Nast would drive in one of his own trucks to the meeting.
The plane pulled to a stop as the door opened and the steps lowered. For a moment, no one came and then Nast appeared, impeccably dressed and pale. He walked from the plane with his soldier medic escort toward him, then paused for all intents and purposes by a beautiful Porsche. Anyone would might know Nash wouldn't be surprised at the car. He was mad about expensive cars. Jazz's hologram greeting them. The medic opened the door and pushed Nast toward the seat, the sullen silent figure sitting as the door closed.
Jazz nodded to the medic then entered the car, closing his door to pull out in the light traffic. They drove out of the airport and down the street heading for Snowmass Village and Nast's house. For a while no one talked, then Nast looked at Jazz. "Which one are you?"
"Jazz," he replied keeping his visor covered optics on the road. He was handsome, casually dressed and elegant, everything Nast wanted to be and would never achieve.
"What now?"
"We take you to your house and you wait until its time to go. Then you drive your truck to the house. You'll arrive just behind Galloway, Daniels and Weaver. They're already here, stayin' in Aspen at hotels."
"And this Shockwave? Is he here too?"
Jazz nodded. "He's here."
Nast closed his eyes and leaned his head back, resting it against the head rest. A few brief hours, that's all it was supposed to be, then he would go back to Diego Garcia and cower in the brig. All he had to do was nod and say yes. All he had to do was agree. Then they would leave. He could flee.
The trip to his house was short but he felt that the drive would never end. When he entered his house, passing through big unfriendly men gathered there, he would go to the downstairs bathroom and throw up.
-0-On their way [T-minus-1 day and counting]
They sat on the private plane together, Daniels, Galloway and Weaver. They had joined up in Virginia entering a plane donated by a campaign contributor, a businessman who wanted to be 'good friends' with Galloway. They sat in luxury and enjoyed the perk, feeling like kings. Drinks and light snacks of great quality were served by the cabin attendants who retired to the front of the plane.
"This is the life," Galloway said with a grin as he sipped his champagne. "I could get used to this. Have you ever been on Air Force One?" he asked as he glanced at Weaver.
"No, but someday when you or I are president, I intend to make use of the facilities," Beau Weaver said.
Jase Daniels sat sipping his drink as he watched the clouds out the window. He would listen and let them talk but in his mind, he was going to be president before any of them.
When the plane landed in Aspen they deplaned with all the panache of gods. A limousine was waiting so they entered, going to their hotels to check in. They would eat and drink, enjoying the hospitality of Aspen, getting their pictures taken with movers and shakers. It would be a perfect evening before they met up with High Flyer, the man they hoped would change their lives forever.
Little did they know how well their wish would come true.
-0-At the House of Shockwave [D-Day}
He sat in the corner of the garage plugged into the surveillance system he had rigged throughout the house. He would hear everything and feed to his holographic image all the right things to say. The humans wanted power and wealth. He had the fortune to grant that power and doing so would put them into his debt. He would manipulate them into positions of authority and they would bend to his will.
A pair of Decepticons were sitting by the box waiting for their lord to tell them what he needed. They were his entire crew. He didn't need more so secure was he that this would go easily and well. The humans were insects. The Autobots weren't fools but he was certain that his tracks were covered. He had ordered the death of the informant the moment his usefulness was over. He could do that again with anyone getting in the way. No tracks, no trail.
Intel-Martin would be receiving the weapon he had transferred to an intermediary. That would tie him and his firm to Shockwave. Starscream's investment in Nast's companies would also benefit him. The politician wannabe and the bureaucrat would be easier to ensnare. All it would take is money. He had more of it than he could ever use and he would make sure that they got what they wanted. Nothing bound the insects closer together than the reciprocity thread.
The time passed and he waited, patience was a virtue he had earned the hard way. Megatron trusted him over all others and even as he carried on the will of his master, he wondered where he was. Keeping the lid on a newly arising Cybertron and the fires over the empire had taxed him. He wanted this problem, the issue of the Prime settled. Getting them kicked off Earth would be a start. Figuring out a way to destroy the colony on the fourth planet would be next.
He would find a way. That was who he was. He turned and nodded to his soldiers and they arose, pulling the lid off the box. Reaching inside, they pulled out two mini-cons, both of them prisoner inside. They forced them to transform into the small vehicles that they ordinarily favored. Handing them one by one to Shockwave, he held them at power link points and they attached against their will, their programming and circuitry long since beyond their control. They snapped into place and the resulting power surge was enormous, a halo of light suffusing Shockwave. He off lined his optics as the initial charge flared then opened them, nodding to the pair who stepped to the doorway, taking their places once more.
Shockwave, feeling the surge of more energy than even Optimus Prime could overcome leaned back and concentrated on his holographic image. It flared before him, a tall and very cold looking human male. He wore incredibly expensive and tailored clothing, his hair was gray and combed back. A manicured hand straightened his tie as Shockwave worked once more through the file of human male mannerisms once more.
He then had the hologram turn slowly, comparing the image against the prototype he had built over a serious of orns to create an image unlike any most mechs had ever seen. It was real, solid, had warm skin and was capable of speech that was as perfect as any other human would have. He could sit and stand, hold things and hold things out. It was perfect and the energy surge of his slave mini-cons would make sure that it would hold up for as long as he needed it, at the quality he needed until he derezzed it.
He turned the holographic image to walk to the door then paused it, making it turn around. He made a simple change, one that slipped his processor then it walked to the door and out into the house beyond. Shockwave checked and rechecked his creation and made a note to be more careful. The minute change he had made was a telling one. He had changed the image's optics color from red to blue.
-0-At Nast's House [T-minus-30 minutes]
They had left one by one, the Autobots and their soldiers driving away, some in the early morning before light and others up to the last few minutes. They were scattered here and there taking station to wait. Overhead, the sky was cloudy, the air cold as the temperature dropped to create an ice fog.
A limousine drove down the street, an incongruous sight, and turned into the driveway of the mansion house. Three men stepped out and the limousine drove away. They stood together talking a moment, then turned to watch as Nast in his pickup truck drove in too. He parked and walked to the three to shake hands. They turned together and walked to the door, waiting together after knocking. The door opened and they walked inside as it closed behind them.
Ironhide, parked in a driveway down the street watched them and pinged Prime. Optimus, parked in a parking lot nearby waited. He was incongruous too so he relied on the intel of his soldiers. Nast and the others were inside. They were inside with Shockwave. All bets were off now so they waited and listened. The fog grew thicker.