The Diego Diaries: New 7 (632)
-0-Club Cybertron, in the lounge
Then Turmoil stepped forward. He cut through tables to pause before that with the three who stared at him with curiosity. Barricade sat back. "What do you want, Turmoil?"
Turmoil stood a moment without speaking, then pulled a chair out. He sat as Blind Spot took another. For a moment they stared at each other, then Stiletto glanced at Blind Spot. "How did you get out of the prison?"
"Cybertronian law," Blind Spot said with a smirk.
A waiter stepped from around another table, pausing uncertainly. A guard spoke up. "They can't drink. Anything that isn't high grade is okay." The waiter nodded then turned and hurried off.
Turmoil stared at the guard with his bland yet malevolent expression, then looked at the three. "Prime is following the law. That's how we got out."
Barricade sat forward looking at Turmoil with interest. "You do know that your former sub commander is living here. He's bonded with Springer. They head up security for the planet."
Turmoil nodded. "I do."
Their drinks came, the waiter setting them down, then turning to hurry off. Blind Spot who was lounging in his chair soaking in the ambiance of the place looked around. "This place is filled with NAILs."
"There are almost three and three quarters million civilians and soldiers living here. Did you see the new city formers?" Stiletto asked.
They nodded. "I have," Turmoil said. He looked around, then picked up his drink. :What are you doing about being confined here?:
:Nothing: Skorponok replied. :This place is locked tighter than Garrus 9. If you want to commit suicide, try and get away:
It was quiet a moment, then a bot moved through the lounge heading for a table in the dining room. They watched him go, then Stiletto smirked. "That's Bluestreak. Remember him?"
"I do," Blind Spot said, "but then I remember all the lookers. Why?"
"He's in a bond with Sunstreaker and Sideswipe," Stiletto replied.
"Those fraggers," Blind Spot replied with a grimace. "I would love to be alone with them for a while."
"They would kill you," Skorponok replied. "Everything has changed a lot since the old orns."
"Maybe. Maybe not," Blind Spot said sipping his drink. "I have to hand it to them. The energon is good."
Barricade nodded. "Shockwave is here."
They paused, then looked at him. "He's been missing a while."
Barricade nodded. "Prime took him down personally they say. He's somewhere buried deep, somewhere around here. Stasis too I'm told."
"Good," Turmoil said softly. "That fragger is more trouble than he's worth."
"Megatron will be looking for him. If he found out that Shockwave was here it might be a game changer," Blind Spot said with a humorless grin.
"Good luck getting that news out there," Barricade said sitting back in his chair.
"Its a thought," Blind Spot replied with a grin. As he sipped his drink more mechs entered to walk through the lounge to the dining room. Among them were Sideswipe and Sunstreaker. They also recognized Hot Rod, Kup, Springer, a couple of unknown younger mechs and last but not least Drift. "Frag. Look what the targs dragged in."
The group walked past, the younger mechs teasing the older as they made their way along. When they disappeared into the next room Turmoil stood up. He moved past the group toward the dining room followed by his entourage of heavily armed mechs. One of them stepped slightly in front halting the big malevolent mechanism. "You are not allowed to make trouble."
"Who says I will?" Turmoil replied. He stood for a moment like a statue... unfathomable, unknowable, then stepped forward. He entered the room then paused to look around. Several tables were pushed together in the back as the group with the twins and Drift along with other mechs sat down together to eat a meal. Waiters and a waitress were laughing with them as they took orders, obviously everyone well known to the other.
Bluestreak saw him first. The wait staff walked off freeing up the view. He gripped Sunstreaker's servo, then turned to rejoin the conversation. Kup noticed Turmoil next. "Well, we appear to have company. Maybe he's coming to make a courtesy call on your new format, Drift?" he asked with a slight smirk.
Drift turned in his chair spotting the big mechanism neatly filling the doorway. "It would appear he is."
Springer who's expression hardened into something less amenable looked at Drift. "We don't want trouble. There are sparklings in this room."
Everyone turned back to the moment ignoring the menacing presence nearby but for the twins who looked at him with murderous optics. Turmoil stood a moment, then turned walking back to the table in the lounge with the others. He sat and sipped his drink, watching the games on the monitors around the room as he memorized the energy signature of Drift in his new configuration. The conversation would be sparse, the drinks continuous if not highly energized and the first orn of freedom passing without incident.
Thus far.
-0-The Hourly News, Primal Colony of Mars
"And in conclusion, the newest Primal sparkling will be named tomorrow morning at the air field. This is the fifth youngling in the family, the second born to the bond of Prime and Prowl. Well wishers are invited, parties will be held throughout the colony and there will be fireworks over The City tonight. We wish the greatest happiness to Optimus Prime and Prowl over the newest addition to the family. We will return at the top of the joor to report the latest news including the schedule for the next migration retrieval and the update on the seven cities construction. Voting will close on the Community Bulletin Board for names of that new habitation area so make sure you weigh in with suggestions or vote for existing choices in the City Administration folder under the links "Names for New Construction" or "Suggest a Name For the New Construction". Take care and have a nice morning." Lim-Lee then signed off as the broadcast ended.
The screen changed back to programming from Earth, a number of talk shows that were popular due to their incomprehensible reliance on the discussion of human bodily orifices.
Turmoil considered the news of a Prime sparkling for a moment, then glanced at Barricade. "That was interesting. Prime and Prowl. Two of their own."
"Barricade still has hopes," Stiletto said with a snicker. He got a punch in the arm for his insolence. All of them got a warning from the guards but Stiletto didn't mind. He had scored.
Turmoil snorted derisively. "Prowl was always out of your league."
Barricade looked at him with loathing. "Frag you." He grinned humorously. "Who have you ever fragged? If you have ever fragged that is."
Turmoil stared at Barricade considering the many ways he could take off that bot's helm, then looked at the dining room beyond. "Frag you. I do like the winger."
"Bluestreak?" Stiletto asked. "He's mine."
A snort caught their attention. A Seeker was laughing at them with a sneer. "In your dreams, slaggers."
They stared at the guards, then returned to the games playing overhead. It was going to be a long first afternoon.
-0-Omega
He stood on the tarmac watching the ships being configured. They would be using Phobos for a medical platform, the other converted 'Con battleships for fighting. The Guardians would remain behind on standby to manage the ships that would inevitably flood the area when they began to bring back their citizenry. Kappa who was the designated medical platform ordinarily was going to be a triage station out there. She would ferry back those who had been triaged or even met with surgery along with over sized formats in need. Zeta who had always been a command platform would fulfill that function here as well.
Xantium was filling him in on how to manage in combat since his experience had been limited on that score. Built to be a warrior and nothing more, Xantium was the teacher this time around. They stood together taking in the sun, troubleshooting the mission with 'the kid' as they did their part to get ready for what looked like a shooting mission of mercy. At their feet watching, kibitzing and all around yammering, the Dinobots watched with the expectation they could go along and fight.
It would be a forlorn expectation.
For now.
-0-Sunspot
He stood in the center of the Great Aerie of Aerie Hill watching as his teacher showed him a tactic for swift transformation. He had been measured and scanned by the Seeker youngling specialist, a very jolly mech named Zoomer. Zoomer was young, cheerful and very talented with children. Sunspot adored him. Sunspot found out he was growing well, becoming stronger and doing a good job of being a youngling Seeker. He was nudging more fully into younglinghood from the high cusp of sparkling-youngling status with which he had come to the colony. He could no longer be said to be on the cusp.
The sounds of transformation resounded as a big mech changed from a bot into a bomber. Back and forth, taking and answering questions, his teacher patiently showed the little yellow and white infant how to do what he should not be ready to do.
Sunspot's transformation cog would have been underdeveloped at his chronological age. He was too young to have adult functions but he had been tampered with by Shockwave. He had been merely accelerated since he had been found fully developed for his age and thus a risky spark transfer to an adult body was avoided, the fate of too many of his kind who were younger and industrially raised.
Sitting or standing in a circle around the area, dozens and dozens of adult Seekers watched as they always did when the little mechanism came cheerfully for his lessons. All of the Elders were there as usual including Rainmaker and his bond. His sons were part of the crowd that watched and encouraged the little bot as he was instructed in what was going to be his forever.
Sunspot watched intently. He asked good questions. He smiled brilliantly. His dog was his boon companion waiting patiently as he haltingly but gamely tried each step they showed him. Big servos gripped him, holding this and that part gently as his instructor and two other mechs stepping up assisted. He would transform, then transform back looking up hopefully each time for reassurance that he had done the right thing.
He got it. From everyone.
Rainmaker clapped with the others as he watched a baby struggle. A fire was lit in his chassis that would never go out. He would go to the communications operator of the Flight Control Center after Sunspot was flown back to finish school in The City. He would put out a message on the Seeker secured communications network that any infants found alone any where be brought to him personally. He put out the word to not only identify any infants forced to work as adults but to make a special effort to rescue, assist and bring along any of them out there. From what he had learned from others, it could be a large terrible number.
Sunspot turned from his teacher who had praised him for an especially well done transformation. He smiled brilliantly at Rainmaker, then ran to him. Rainmaker picked him up hugging the baby tightly. "You did so well, Sunspot. I am proud of you."
"I TRY, ELDER! I AM TRYING SO HARD!" Sunny said with joy.
"We can all see that, infant," Rainmaker said as everyone in the area nodded and murmured in agreement.
"MY TEACHER IS SO GREAT! DO YOU WANT TO SEE ME DO IT AGAIN?" Sunspot said slipping down to the ground.
"I would delight to see you do this. You are a very good little infant, Sunspot," Rainmaker said around the despair in his processor.
Sunspot who stood with his fists clenched in excitement nodded, then turned to run back. He stood in the circle of immense mechanisms of all size and status, a tiny yellow and white baby. Then he began the process of transformation, a process he would be normally too young to do. When he did it he would become the poster child against war in the sparks of everyone there. He would also reaffirm their commitment to a very important fully expressed goal of their Great Elder. They would affirm to themselves that Megatron was living on borrowed time.
-0-TBC February 21, 2014 edited 3-12-14
NAILS: The NAILs (Non-Aligned Indigenous Life-forms). Prowl is the one who coined the word which is why TF Wiki states that it sounds slightly 'rude'. :D:D:D