The Diego Diaries: Lock down T-Minus 4 Orns edited
-0-Up there
"Where's Babe?"
"Helping with something. I think there's a mission coming up."
Sideswipe glanced over his shoulder at his brother who was sprawled on a couch sketching. "We'll go, right?"
Sunstreaker shrugged. "I don't know."
Sideswipe walked to a chair and slumped into the cushions. "This is fragged."
"Do something. Clean up something. Be useful," Sunstreaker said enjoying Sideswipe's malaise.
"Frag you," Sideswipe said with a grin.
"Same to ya," Sunstreaker replied.
:Ada:
:What?:
:What are you doing? This is fragged: Sideswipe said putting his peds up on the coffee table in front of his chair.
:Cooking. Cleaning. You know. *THE USUAL*: Ratchet replied as he paused putting things into the fridge for re-heating at dinnertime.
:We're fragged: Sideswipe said.
:Well, welcome to the group, slaggers. I am assuming that Sunstreaker is with you: (grin)
:I'm here. Where the frag can I go?: -Sunstreaker, grinning
:How about helping around the apartment? Clean something, you slaggers:
:Nothing needs cleaning. You know us better than that: Sideswipe said. :Unlike you of course:
:Frag you: Ratchet said with a grin. :We have a few more dependent sparklings than you have:
:I don't know. We have four: Sunstreaker said as he ducked a pillow from Sideswipe.
:He includes himself. What do you know about a mission? Someone in the Central Hub at Terra told me that there is one coming up: Sideswipe asked.
:HOW THE FRAG DO YOU TALK TO SOMEONE IN THE HUB AT TERRA!? YOU ARE IN HOUSE ARREST, SLAGGERS!: -Ratchet, going nuclear
:They called me. My favorite sight mechanic works there. I think Blue is going to have to pick it up for me: Sideswipe said making an internal note.
:I heard about camps that need liberating but not much more. Call Prowl. You know you want to: Ratchet grinned.
:Frag that: -both twins
-0-At the Prime Residence
Prowl sat in his office working on bringing the mission together. They were going to utilize three of the battle cruisers filling their hangar decks with runabouts to ferry rescued bots from their prisons. The intel was solid with possible variations given the amount of time that had passed between Shockwave's capture and the here and now.
They were refitting the vessels for communications as well as researching the signals that would have to be made for transit into the Empire. They would have to be careful. It could be dicey for them on the way in. On the way out, they could reposition a spacebridge to pull them out easily enough. They just had to make it in with overwhelming surprise.
Lists of soldiers were gathered, front liners and Wreckers. He considered adding the twins, then put them on stand by. All of them would have to be painted The Fallen gray, then wear magnetic Deceptibrands as well. It wouldn't be too much fun. Not for the twins anyway. There would also be Home Guard mechs on this run, some of them facing combat for the first time. They wouldn't see it if he had anything to do with this. It would be designed to be a smash-and-grab and nothing more.
The afternoon passed slowly in the Residence in consultation with Prime.
-0-Elsewhere
Sio's atar sat in the cell in the Courthouse lock up. Other mechs were there. None of them had to suffer seven orns like him. Six others would be getting out at the end of the next orn. He was furious and intent on doing something about things. His son was in the hospital at Metroplex on a psych hold by Primal order.
PSYCH HOLD!
No one in his family had ever been crazy. This was the government's way to discredit them and cast aspersions on their vision of life and how it should be lived. He had heard the warning about the System being banned by Primal Decree. It had rankled but he like all the rest of his group waited to see how things were here.
He had not been given a job commensurate with his life on Cybertron. Even in the colony where they had landed, Burris leading them forward he had not been forced to do anything that his caste would consider beneath them. Here, not so much. He had been given a job … GIVEN A JOB, not a POSITION in the Energon Administration. He wasn't even a supervisor or director. He was a cog in the wheel.
He sat back considering his situation, then looked at the others who were talking to each other. They were two to a cell but he was alone. They would go soon and he was stuck. "What will we do about this?"
The others looked at him. "What do you expect us to do? We are out numbered. Prime has an army. Do you have a solution?"
"We need to strike a blow. We need to make a stand."
They considered that. "Nothing we can do will end anywhere else but here in these cages. The only hope we have is our own city."
They sat talking about it for some time, then it was quiet again. Dex who was the father of Sio and a former highly placed bureaucrat in the local government of Capital City considered that shock methods needed to happen, hang the consequences. He would sit and brood through the entirety of his sentence, then with the Iacon Order find a way to change things here forever.
-0-That afternoon
"ADA!"
The door slammed open and several shorties ambled into the house pausing to look up at their ada who stood grinning down at them. Hero, Orion, Praxus and Sunspot smiled up. "ADA! GOOD ME!" Orion said with a huge grin.
Ratchet chuckled, then reached down pulling the harnesses off the infants as they crowded around babbling to tell about their orns. When they were free, they fled to their rooms ready to play hard until dinner. Taking Prowler, Ratchet turned and sat down. "Notice anything different, Ironhide?" he asked.
Ironhide who sat down on his chair nodded. "You got to stay home all orn. Goofing off is good for you."
"Besides that," Ratchet asked with a smirk. Prowler lay on his shoulder humming to himself as he sucked his thumb.
Ironhide pretended to look around. "Place looks neat and clean."
Ratchet nodded. "It does. I worked my digits to the substructure today."
"How do you like the dishwasher?" Ironhide asked.
Ratchet snickered. "I think I am in love. Did you know it only takes less than a breem and its very quiet. I didn't do any laundry. I thought I would share the moment with you. Why should I have all the fun?"
Sunspot who was listening walked to Ratchet and leaned against his leg. "What's a washer?"
"Your old atar got a washer and dryer for me so I don't have to go to the laundromat," Ratchet replied stroking Sunspot's wings gently.
"I like going there," Sunspot said. "Where are they?"
"In our wash rack." Ratchet watched him walk to their berth room and disappear for a moment. Then he came back out and climbed onto Ironhide's lap. "That's nice. I like the color."
"They had red and yellow. I thought blue was nice," Irohide said with a nod. Sunspot vented a sigh, then relaxed. He sat on his father's lap with a grin. Reaching down, he pulled Ironhide's arms around him.
"How was your orn, sparkling?" Ratchet asked as he patted Prowler's little fanny. The infant was drowsing.
"I had to send my letter today to that kid in London, Mike. I sent pictures I made."
"I am sure he's going to love that, Sunspot," Ratchet answered. "Imagine, getting a nice letter and pictures from a youngling so far away. I like this idea and that you get to learn something new."
He didn't speak merely nodding at his ada's remarks. "Atar?"
"What, son?" Ironhide asked as he concentrated warmth against the armor of his son through his own.
"Are you going to the mission soon?"
"What mission, Sunspot?" Ironhide asked.
"The mission to the Empire. Someone saw three ships being changed over to Decepticon ships. They said a mission needed it," he replied.
"I don't know. Will you be upset if I have to go?" Ironhide asked.
He nodded. "I like you to be at home. I like us being a family together." He looked at Ratchet. "You were home when we came. I like that, Ada."
"I will be for about three more orns, son," Ratchet said nodding. "I even cooked dinner tonight."
They looked at him, then Sunspot slipped down. He walked to the kitchen and peered up at the oven over his helm. "Did you fix something in there?"
"I did," Ratchet said. "I made it just for you."
He glanced at Ratchet and grinned. "You did?"
"Sure. Everything your atar and I do is for you younglings," Ratchet replied.
Hero ran out of the hallway and paused looking at Sunspot. "Sunspot, can you help me?" she asked sweetly.
He looked at her and smiled. "I will," he said, then hurried down the hallway behind her to the berth rooms beyond.
They watched him go, then settled again. "You hungry?" Ratchet asked with a smirk.
Ironhide smirked back. "Maybe. What did you make?"
"Why do you care? You're going to sneak out tonight and eat at your ada's house. Coward. Big femme." Ratchet chuckled. "I worked my aft off today, Ironhide. I intend to pile your plate high."
Ironhide snorted. "I can always regurgitate it later."
"Slagger." Ratchet poked Ironhide's ped with his own. Prowler mewled, then settled again dozing lightly. Ratchet patted his aft and he settled.
"You knew that going in," Ironhide said.
"True that. What about the mission? Are we on it or what?" Ratchet asked.
"I am. I don't know about the rest, Prime and Prowl are still crafting it," Ironhide replied. "If you and Ada are then you're off house arrest."
"The twins will not be happy if they aren't on the go list too," Ratchet said.
"They'll live," Ironhide said with a grin.
Orion ran out with a broken car which Ironhide paused to fix. It was sunny outside but the orn had taken the long slow ride to evening and the shadows were long across the city. Other mechs were going about their business, heading for work or home or just hustling wherever they were headed. Traffic was picking up as shifts moved to change, the rest of the schools let out and others headed to dinner in town or the clubs.
Nearby, earlier in the orn …
A rap on a cowling caught his attention so he turned and crawled back out into the light of the hangar. Roadie was working on rewiring the ship 'City of Hydrax Plateau' for Decepticon sensors to read as their own. He was a Master Aviation Electrician at last and a Class Four pilot. He had reached the level of journeyman in his engineering degree but the pilot program was intensely exacting. He had three more go to before he could even think about flying the big ships. His aviation club was meeting regularly discussing the private vessels that they were building as projects, a pass time that was good for his overall knowledge base.
"Hello, Commander," he said stepping down to speak with Scar, his company commander in the Home Guard. "What's up?"
"You have been tagged to be flight engineer on this vessel during the mission upcoming," Scar said with a nod.
Roadie blinked, then nodded back. "Okay."
"Understand, youngling. You won't be going to fight. You aren't a soldier, you are home guard. You will do the job of flight engineer and nothing more. The bots with you will be veterans and if they tell you to do something do it. Understand?"
Roadie nodded solemnly. "Will you go too?" he asked.
Scar nodded. "I will. I'll be aboard this vessel. Remember, you are flight tech only."
Roadie nodded. "Yes, sir."
Scar grinned slightly. "We get the fun if anyone gets slagged." He slapped Roadie on the shoulder and turned walking back to the Ops Center for preliminary planning.
Roadie watched him go for a moment, then paused. :Blaster:
:What's up, Roadie?:
:I'm going to be a flight engineer on one of the ships in the next mission:
It was silent a moment, then Blaster spoke. :You will be a tech, Roadie, not a soldier. Take your gear and weapon because all of us do that. But don't think for a minute that you will fight. Remember that. The mechs with you are professionals. If they tell you something you jump. Do you hear me?:
:I was a soldier in the 'Cons, Blaster: Roadie began but Blaster cut him off.
:You did security on transport ships delivering supplies to outlying bases, Roadie. You will not be fighting, do you understand me?:
Roadie nodded. :I do. I can though:
:Everyone knows that: Blaster said with a lighter tone. :Come to the house after work. Your folks will be there and we can talk. If you don't come I will come looking. Understand?:
:I do. I'll be there:
:Good. We will talk then: The comm link went silent as Roadie stood considering the strange turn of events. He was maybe going to be in a battle. Though he didn't want to agree, Blaster was right. He had never been in combat. Revet had more combat than him and Revet had very little. He was uneasy about it but excited too. He would find out later that what he felt was just about right for newbies.
-0-In the bosom of love
"GET READY FOR DINNER!" Ratchet called out as the bell on the oven rang at last.
Ironhide who was watching with loathing stood up and walked down the corridor to round up infants. Ratchet who was sliding things into the lower oven watched him go.
/ … Run, Ironhide, but I'll find you. You can't hide from inevitability .../
He grinned. Glancing into the top oven, he opened the door. The smell coming out was actually pretty appetizing so he gripped the pan with heat gloves and pulled it out. Putting it on the counter, he removed the lid. Then he remembered he had to leave it in the oven for a few to 'crisp up'. Sliding it back in sans lid, he began to organize dinner at the table as the few entrees that he ordered heated up to perfection.
Ironhide marshaled his troops into the wash rack to get ready for dinner. As he did he considered how much purging he would have to do later. If it was like many of Ratchet's culinary attempts it would require more than one.
-0-TBC September 28, 2013