Chapter 145
-0-Ops Center, Diego Garcia
The day continued with a lighter step in everyone's footfalls as the threat of at least one of their enemies subsided. The news organizations were all over the hearings dissecting them with verbal scalpels that left the junior Senator from the Great State of Texas in small strips on the floor of his proverbial career. Monitors played all over the base as the soldiers and Autobots basked in the failure of their enemies.
Red Alert who was monitoring the e-mail and phone traffic between major players was happy to report to Prime that Daniels and Galloway who had expected to speak, Galloway in person and Daniels via conference video were livid at the outcome of the hearings and let Weaver know. They hadn't been called and they let him know how they felt over their lost personal opportunity to be in the public eye.
The burden had been lifted as everyone turned to the details that loomed largely. A mini-con village and Autobot escort were orns away from the farthest reach of their sensors and communications range. The other refugee group was two orns away from communications range and would be within rescue outreach even sooner.
Magnus was organizing soldiers and shuttles to go out to meet them. The continued provocation of the garrison by Daniels and his mercs at Diego as per their agreement with Shockwave was troubling. The meeting in less than 27 orns with Shockwave and anyone else the traitors were going to bring was a big issue because they would capture or kill him at that moment.
Hopefully.
The weapon that Shockwave promised Nast needed retrieving and the hit-and-run investigator was due in three days. That didn't include items of personal interest such as Starscream's hatchling transfer in six orns, Sunstreaker's trine's protoform discussions, the growth and progress of the little mechs and femme ... all of it was important.
Ratchet left Orion with his big old Pa, then walked to their quarters. He was feeling light as a feather and when he rounded the corner, he smiled. Sunstreaker was leaning against the wall outside his door waiting for him. When he reached the door, keying in his lock, he smiled, "Come on it," he said as they entered together.
Ratchet looked at the big mech standing by the door staring at him silently. "Sunstreaker, I hope you know how important it was for all of us that you manned up and went to the barracks to talk to those two soldiers."
Sunstreaker nodded as he shifted in his struggle to say what he wanted Ratchet to hear. "You stuck up for us. Me and Sideswipe. You stuck up for us with Weaver."
Ratchet nodded. "You're mine now, you and Sideswipe. You belong to Ironhide and me. No one will ever slag you or Sideswipe without hearing from us about it."
Sunstreaker nodded. He was silent and Ratchet could see that the words he wanted to say were hard going. He walked to the Lambo and slipped his arms around his waist.
Sunstreaker immediately grabbed him into a tight hug.
They stood together a long time, then Sunstreaker stepped back to look at Ratchet with an almost savage expression. "If there ever is a need you have, you and Hide, you know I'll be there. Sideswipe and me, we'll come."
"I know that," Ratchet said. "And you know that Ironhide, Orion and me will be there for both of you. I meant it when I agreed to be your genitor. You're mine, you and Sideswipe. Don't you ever forget that."
"I won't," Sunstreaker said. "I ..." He struggled a moment, then shook his head in exasperation at his own inarticulate emotional paralysis.
Ratchet smiled. "You two were the biggest wildest pair of yahoos I ever met. I think that's why I love you both so much."
Sunstreaker relaxed, his form and expression mellowing before Ratchet's eyes.
He pulled Ratchet to him and held him gently. "I love you, too," he whispered.
Ratchet grinned. "How is Sideswipe?"
"He gets back tomorrow."
"Good," Ratchet said. "I'm going to make an appointment with Wheeljack so you three can decide on your protoform."
"Will you come, too? I don't know slag from protoforms and neither does Sideswipe and Bluestreak."
"I will. What do you want to have it look like?" Ratchet asked.
"I want it beautiful. I want it perfect."
Ratchet snorted. "Like father, like son?"
Sunstreaker leaned back to look at Ratchet with a smirk. "Can it be any other way?"
Ratchet chuckled then shook his head. "Nope."
Sunstreaker smiled. Genuinely.
-0-Autobot City, Mars
Springer sat in the Ops Center watching data from the array that was just out of the orbit of Uranus, placed with care to monitor deep space. NASA had asked to have a piece of it, to focus a camera on the star masses beyond our own galaxy and Optimus has agreed. Their little camera, as advanced as anything that mankind had ever made was parked in the array along with alien technology so far ahead of the curve that stars would burn out before humans caught up.
The first group of refugees would be in range of subspace communications in a couple of joors. He would be there to catch their condition, numbers, composition, needs and location. All of the Aerialbots and the two Protectobots on base would be going out to meet them and do what was needed to ensure that they came to Mars in as good a condition as their travel would allow. Every field medic in their garrison and that of Earth had been in advanced training since the first group of refugees had arrived months ago. They'd rotated out of Diego Garcia and Ratchet's expertise. Now it was going to pay off.
Three shuttles, two Aerialbots minimum and a full compliment of soldiers would be going out. All they needed now was information. He sat and waited, watching the experts all around him do their jobs seamlessly. It was good to be a part of an organization that had a base, a hierarchy, a foundation of order and productivity and a goal beyond living through the next confrontation. He was glad to be here, this place he considered home.
-0-Daniels
He sat in his office watching out the window as Autobots went through the different targets on the firing range. He was as livid as he could be that the hearing where he was going to lay out the case that the cost in all areas of doing business with the Autobots was too high had been a failure. He was going to take his first step out onto the public stage and show the world what he was made of. It had all backfired when Weaver let the hearing get away. The worst part of all was when it ended without Daniels or Galloway being called.
Ratchet was a wily operator and Prowl … stick-up-his-ass Prowl had been there to assist. The video was hard to argue with although die-hard allies in the press were trying. 'Faked', 'edited', 'alien lies' ... they tried but even he had to admit that they sounded and looked stupid.
He sat back to consider Ratchet. He was their public face, spokesman and defender. He was the one who went into the fray and did battle. Prime hid behind a curtain of mystery, a very good tactical idea he considered. It made him seem so much more than he could be if everyone knew him and had a litany of events to belabor. He could be this magisterial presence in absentia. Ratchet on the other hand was a rather relaxed and regular personality and had great appeal among the unwashed masses.
He had to do something about that. He had to check the influence that this oddball had on the public. First, he was yellow and now he was red and white, a sort of parody of a medico. He was funny and seemed warm. He also wasn't afraid and had some experience doing this sort of thing, that much was clear. Ratchet had to be removed from the equation. There had to be someone else to step up, someone less experienced, less capable.
He mused on the myriad ways he could do this, then put it item number one on his to-do list before the next meeting. He didn't know how he could do it but things sometimes presented themselves. He also considered that bunch of kids. The investigation was coming in a couple of days and he wondered how they would ever prove it wasn't their fault. He would have to wait, watch and be wary.
The sun filled his room, the sea breeze was soft as all around him the world of the professional military was moving along. From two worlds, from two species, the experts at defense and offense honed their skills but he didn't notice that. He was too busy with other things.
-0-Prime
He walked from N.E.S.T. and the love fest that had taken place over three continents. Washington, D.C., London, England and Sydney, Australia had rejoiced with him that the integrity of their soldiers and organization had been affirmed along with the dignity of the Autobots by the gangling medico with the curious paint job. Prime had chuckled all through the meeting, the items being almost of less consequence than the gloating of the participants over the face plant of the redoubtable dim bulb, Beau Weaver and his faction.
Entering the hangar, he turned into Ops Center to walk to Prowl who sat in the middle collating information and doing three other things at the same time. He sat, then grinned. "Hello."
Prowl looked up with a grin of amusement. "Hello, yourself. You look mighty pleased."
"I feel mighty pleased," Prime said relaxing into his chair. "I do in the face of great competence."
Prowl grinned. "Are you being specific or are you in a more general mood with your smilies?"
"Smilies?" Prime asked as he gently put a ped over Prowl's.
"Your constant smiles since the hearing," Prowl said as he relaxed slightly. "You're playing 'footsie' under the table. What will the mechs think?"
"It might be good for them to see that the morale of their dear leaders is at an all time high."
"That's true," Prowl said leaning forward as he lowered his voice. "My morale is rather high if you know what I mean."
Prime grinned. "Well ... I'm glad to hear it."
Prowl glanced around because he was at the very core proper, prim and easily derailed by acting on impulses that he may have during working hours that didn't require a slide rule. He grinned slightly. "Um, I'd be happy to have a bit more morale later if you know what I mean."
"Morale with a side of hoo-ah?" Prime replied as he leaned in to rest his chin on his servo. With his elbow planted firmly on the table, he leaned forward until his nose assembly nearly touched Prowl's. "Look serious so that anyone watching will think we are actually doing something we are supposed to do."
Prowl smirking slightly leaned forward as his blue optics took in the beauty of Prime's face. "You want to be naughty, do you?"
"Oh yes," Prime whispered. "Naughty and maybe even bad."
Prowl sat back a moment gathering himself until he could school an expression of calm sanity. Leaning forward again, he gazed heatedly into Prime's optics. "Bad ... as in what?"
Prime feeling the burn of Prowl's stare almost lost his train of thought. "Bad as in ... I forgot. Give me a moment ... bad as in needing a thorough ..."
At that moment, Ironhide tapped the table startling the two half out of their peds. Grinning like a demon, his little mini-me looking at them over his binky, Ironhide leaned down. "Is this some of that phone sexy that Ratchet tried on me a while back?"
Prime looked at Ironhide with a chuckle. "No."
Prowl who looked like he wanted to crawl under the table began to shuffle datapads for mostly no reason at all.
Ironhide pulled up a chair to sit. "Don't look so embarrassed, Prowl. Good for you. You need to loosen your corset a little."
They both searched the internet for the appropriate language and definitions. Then Prowl gave him a withering look. "I don't wear a corset but I will take your sparkling."
And he did.
Ironhide who looked like his girdle had snapped glanced at Prime. "You really need to get him his own sparkling."
"We are working on it," Prime said drawing startled glances from both Ironhide and Prowl. He caught it then sat straighter. "Sunstreaker."
Prowl relaxed slightly as he grinned at Prime snidely. He patted and kissed Orion. "You're such a sparkling, Optimus."
Prime grinned. "If you say so, Prowl."
"I do and Orion agrees. You agree with Uncle Prowl don't you," Prowl cooed.
Orion grinned at 'Owl' chirping his delight.
Prowl grinned wider as he looked at Prime with a pointed gaze.
Prime looked at Ironhide. "Thanks, Ironhide," he said with a grin of his own.
Ironhide who sat back with amusement nodded. "Don't mention it."
-0-Autobot City, Mars
They stood in the Med Bay listening as Wheeljack explained the hatchling pod. Even though they were experts at such devices and had used them before, this one was more complex, more foolproof and hopefully, the infants growing that last part of their journey inside of it would actually come out of the devices alive. They certainly didn't with Megatron's gruesome experiments.
Even as Wheeljack obliviously explained and answered questions, the failures of flocks of hatchlings lingered in the minds of the trine.
Starscream relieved of the burden of specific detailed information through memory failure nonetheless felt 'something'. He had talked with them about it all the night before trying to understand the aching in his spark that came to him with the thought of Seekers disappearing. They patiently and selectively explained to Starscream how he and the five of them were ordered by The Fallen to raise an army for his disposal. However, the limitations of supply had ensured that clutch after clutch of hatchlings died in agony.
He'd been spared the images but the emotions clung to him and as he listened he felt the echo of lost youth, the echo of failure washing up to him like a dark tide.
When Wheeljack was finished and they'd left to walk back to their barracks he stopped to look up at the sky. His trine mates hovered around him, their optics fixed upon Starscream. He shook his head. "I know something about this," he whispered. Staring at the ground as he wondered again about something he thought he knew. He looked at them, his expression searching. "What is this thing that I don't know?"
"It's nothing, Starscream," Sky Warp said taking his arm. Turning him, they moved forward slowly. "You don't have to worry about a thing."
Starscream glanced at the purple Seeker. "You're wrong, you know. Megatron will find me. He will find me and the hatchlings. You must protect them. You must promise me."
Thundercracker looking at him with sadness nodded for Starscream's benefit. Sky Warp did, too. Starscream relaxed a little as they came closer to home. They walked onward slowly. "We will have Seeker infants shortly. You must take care of them. When Megatron comes and kills me they will need you ever more."
Sky Warp, his face a weary desolation slipped his arm around Starscream's shoulders. Thundercracker took Starscream's servo. The three walked slowly back to their home. It was quiet and peaceful in The Fortress. One wouldn't know there was a thing wrong in this or any other world.