The Human Prime
Chapter 9: X-Tech Industry
Artemis sat in office chair with her arms crossed, her feet flat on the ground. She hadn't even gotten a chance to get breakfast before Sam pushed her down in a chair and began drilling her questions and assumptions. Every so often, Artemis would say a phrase like 'don't you need to get ready for school' or 'I'll explain when you get back.'
"Are you a drug dealer?"
"No."
"A hit man?"
"No."
"Oh my gosh, you sell illegal weapons, don't you? Oh my gosh, that explains it. All that money. All that money!" Artemis began to ignore Sam just as she was ignoring her. She looked up at Wheeljack who was waiting to take her to school. Artemis finally picked up the television remote and turned it on.
Without even flipping, a news channel was interviewing a large man in suit. The words X-tech supervisor, Gregory Talson, was in large lettering at the bottom of the screen. Sam stopped yelling when she saw the interview being conducted.
"Mr. Talson, tell us more about the head of company, Miss. Artemis-"
"Artemis is the only heir to her families company. X-Tech is proud to have such an intelligent mind behind the greatest technological invention company in the world." Gregory crossed his arms, ready to answer the next question.
"Is it true that X-Tech is secretly working in nuclear weapons?"
"No, Artemis completely restricts creation of weapons of any sorts." Before the man could finish, Artemis turned off the TV.
"Now, will you please go to school?" The silence of the room suffocated them as they just stared, Artemis waiting for a response.
"Fine, but I expect some answers when I get back!" Sam ran down the stairs jumped into the car finally allowing Wheeljack to drive off.
"Early in the morning and I got a splitting headache." Artemis rubbed her temple then looked up at Ratchet who was feeling a similar pain.
"What is X-tech?" Optimus looked over at his partner after previously watching Sam leave. Artemis tapped her chin as she thought of an adequate explanation for the company.
"It's like a science company or laboratory. We create inventions that help humans with their daily lives. My father inherited the business from my grandfather, as I inherited it from him. Our company was actually the first to invent microchips. You know the things they put in important things to be able to find them. Pets, vehicles…agents." She sat down on the couch and thought about getting a nap before her interrogation later that day.
"What did they mean by weaponry coming from your company?" Ratchet gave her a suspicious look, but she completely understood.
"In the past, the company did invest in weapons and dooms day devices. When I took over, I discontinued the sector. Unfortunately, some of our products are still being sold and manipulated to people who would use them for great harm. I'm still snuffing out all the bad seeds." Before she could say much else, Optimus interrupted her.
"People like MECH."
MECH Headquarters
"Sir, something is trying to get through our firewalls." The masked grunt came behind his leader, Silas, and informed him of the issue.
"A virus?"
"No, a transmission."
"Do you know its origin?"
"Unknown sir."
"Terminate it."
"We've tried sir, it only returns."
"Fine, let it through."
"Right." As the man allowed the transmission through, Mira's figure enveloped there screen. Her smile bore into Silas' mind until it stuck with him.
"Man, Silas, you're hard to get a hold of, so much security." Mira leaned forward from where she sat in an undisclosed location.
"Who are you?" Silas nodded at his men who were standing by. Within moments, they began to attempt tracing the transmission.
"Oh right, introductions. I am Mira, of the Decepticons. Don't worry; even though our past had been a bumpy one, I'm not here to take revenge on anyone. In fact, I want to help you." She grinned when the interest in his eyes were visible.
"What assistance could you offer MECH?" He kept his arms firmly behind him, never once showing any sign of giving in.
"Don't play dumb with me, we both know your conducting a little science project along the lines of Cybertronian biology. Though, I am the only one who knows that it won't work." Mira leaned her head against her folded hands and waited for him to squirm, but it didn't work.
"Why not?"
"Because you are missing a key ingredient, a piece to the Cybertronian construction plans that I just happen to know where you can take it from." It was with that that the leader of MECH cracked a smile.
"I'm listening."
"Meet up with me Silas, we have much to discuss."
On the Road
Artemis held the stirring wheel loosely, only so that Optimus could drive without looking suspicious. Sam sat in the passenger seat calmly trying to sort her questions without turning into an uncontrollable ramble. Everything was silent which made the drive a little uncomfortable.
"Alright first, how long have you been receiving money from them? I mean there were times when we were starving. Could you have just gotten money anytime?" Sam sounded so depressed, as if the hardship they went through was unnecessary.
"I wasn't allowed to start earning my inheritance when I turned fourteen. When I turned sixteen, I began working for the money. The time before then, when we were starving, wasn't my fault. There was nothing I could have done, but I tried my best to make sure that never happened again." Artemis insisted which Sam believed.
"Why do they give the money to your boss Minnie? I mean she's a stranger, how do they know she won't steal some of it?"
"Well, that's another thing. Minnie isn't a stranger, she's my aunt. I didn't want the company to be able to find me because then they would try to take me away as often as possible until they could turn me into a work-o-holic like my father. So, I told them to give the money to my Aunt Minnie in Jasper, they don't even know I live nearby." Artemis smiled at Sam who was smiling at her.
"Sneaky."
"Anyways, I pay visits the company twice a month to keep them happy. I work for my Aunt at the library in exchange for the monthly gift the company sends me. Though, she doesn't like me working for something that was mine to begin with. She's always trying to sneak my money to me before I work for it."
"That explains why she gave me the money." Sam nodded and laughed. "Artemis, exactly, what do YOU do?"
"Me? Well, let me show you." Artemis noticed the gates of X-Tech come into view. Driving up to the gate's guard station, she smiled warmly at the young woman and older man sitting there working the cameras. "Training someone?" The young woman guard snapped to attention and looked at her suspiciously.
"Do you have an appointment?" The woman said with narrow eyes. Artemis laughed a little at the girl's ignorance, but slightly felt sorry for her.
"Yes, newbie, she'll loosen up sooner or later." The old man grumbled, coughing a wheezy cough of someone who has been at this job way too long. "This is the company's owner." Immediately the girl frowned and had a slight panic in her eyes.
"I'm just here to give my kid here the grand tour." She joked to her old friend who smiled and looked through the window at Sam.
"You're a little young for children, aren't you?" He said with a raspy voice.
"Adoption programs are so despite these days." She watched the man look behind them then look back at her.
"You expecting an accident or something?" He asked which struck her with surprise.
"Huh?" Artemis adjusted the mirror and found an ambulance right behind them. She didn't know when he got out of the base and tagged along, but she was honored to have brought the rebel out of him. "A friend of mine tagged along. It would be a mere coincidence if something were to happen."
"You're a funny one Artemis, I give you that. Hope they don't hammer you too hard." The man opened the gate allowing them to continue.
"Thanks." She drove around to the side of the building where there was a garage door to drive into. Sam's mouth dropped open when they drove inside and didn't find themselves in a garage or loading dock, but in the actual building.
It was as if the building were designed for Autobots. The halls were large enough for even Optimus to roam in; the room's ceilings towered far above them. To Sam, she felt as if she were the alien on another planet that's how large everything about the building was. However, the occasional long tables were piled with normal sized inventions. The amount of white in the room was blinding due to the lights that were high above them reflecting off the surface of the tile and marble.
Workers in white lab coats and comfort clothes walked around the room unfazed by their entrance, working diligently on their individual projects. One man in particular Sam recognized as the man on the television, Gregory Talson. He immediately stopped however noticing the large red and blue truck on the inventing floor and folded his arms. He obviously knew who it was.
Artemis was the first to get out and told Sam, Optimus, and the tag along Ratchet to wait there. She disappeared behind the only small door/entryway in the room and before long her voice was over the intercom.
"Everyone this is Artemis your boss, I have a few announcements to make. First of all will Burgundy and Elson please reports to the inventing floor immediately. Second, I'd like to congratulate you all on a great days work. Since you've done so well, the rest of you make take the rest of the day off. By the way, this offer is limited so you better be out of the building in the next sixty seconds." Artemis began counting down and the workers scrambled towards the doors, hanging up there lab coats as they approached their hooks. Sam giggled at the silliness, but knew that Artemis saw this as an easy way to evacuate the building without drawing to much suspicion.
Gregory was no pleased. His face was red with anger as an old man in a black suit stood next to him with a questioning eyebrow. Her voice paused when she got around forty- eight then the click of the intercom expressed that she was finished. Two men came stammering through the doors, one with a feminine looking figure. Sam assumed they were Elson and Burgundy. When Artemis walked out, Gregory was on her like a lion to a meat carcass.
"You can't just waltz in here and announce to everyone that they get the day off!" He screamed loudly, but Artemis walked passed him until she was in front of Optimus.
"Well, I am the owner of this company, so yeah. I believe I can. Who's this guy?" She pointed to him casually.
"A partner opportunity." Gregory stood next to her and whispered in her ear. Artemis nodded and smiled at the man. "Thomason."
"Thomason, I would love to have a discussion with you, but I'm afraid here is not the place. Meet me in my office and we'll have a nice long chat." Sam was shocked at the different attitudes she just transitioned into. Though, Thomason was impressed and nodded. "Gregory will meet out in the hall shortly, if you would please wait out there for him."
Thomas did just that and went through the large doors into the hall. When the doors swung closed, Gregory began shouting at her again about barging in and acting so quote unquote 'un-profound.'
"My apologize Gregory, but as your boss, I believe I'm the one who should be yelling. It clearly states that business meetings including partnership consultations are to be made with me present." Artemis sounded very responsible despite the scene she just made not a moment earlier.
"It was a…pre-meeting. I was desperate, ever since the press conference, the board has been up my-"
"I'll take care of the board Gregory. Just relax, you're a good friend of mine, I won't let them slander you." She patted his shoulder then looked over at the men she called in. "Alright, gather around. Sam get out." Sam hopped out and joined her across from the row of men that stood like soldiers. Artemis strode over to Gregory and brought him close. "Remember when I said I had a previous engagement?"
"How could I forget? I begged on my knees trying to get you to work more days." He mumbled lowly.
"Yeah, well." She gestured at the truck and ambulance that were side by side from each other. "This is it."
"A truck and an ambulance, that's it?"
"Not exactly." She knocked on the truck's grill with her fist and said the next words in the calmest voice possible. "Make something of yourselves."
At that moment, Optimus and Ratchet transformed. It was almost as if time were in slow motion, the men scrambled backwards with their mouths agape. Artemis was happy it all worked out, she had been trying to convince Optimus all morning that it would be okay to reveal themselves to her advisor and assistants.
"Meet Optimus Prime and Ratchet."
"H-h-how do you do." Gregory said slowly as if they wouldn't answer back or wouldn't understand.
"It's a pleasure." Optimus said which startled the men.
"Did you make them, Artemis?" Gregory asked as if this had become a new breakthrough for the company.
"Well, I never." Ratchet grumbled, feeling obviously insulted.
"Sir, we are autonomous robotic organisms from the planet Cybertron, also known as Autobots. We are no creation of this world." Optimus expressed his common speech.
"Aliens? You know aliens?" Gregory turned to Artemis who was smiling at her assistances who were mind blown to the point between brain damage and seizure.
"No, I know autonomous robotic organisms, weren't you listening? Anyways, Elson, I need you to give Sam and these guys a tour of the facility. Burgundy, I need you to protect me from Gregory." Gregory was about to say a something more about the robots that towered in front of him, but Sam interrupted him.
"Wait, you're leaving us?"
"I have to do some business; I'll catch up with you before the end of the tour. I promise." She placed her hand on Sam's head before heading out with Gregory and Burgundy.
"Alright, um, no better time than the present. Well, this is the inventing room. It's where scientists mold their ideas into reality."
Near end of the Tour
"This is the power core research lab." Elson pointed to the room, but didn't open the door. Sam went to sneak a peek, but he stepped in front of her. "I wouldn't, it's been acting a little, sparky lately."
"You said research lab." Sam suggested which was enough for him to get the hint.
"Artemis works on this personally. She says that this new power core will change the use of electricity for businesses everywhere. Certainly shuts up those environmental freaks." Elson locked the door as a precaution.
"So Artemis is an inventor?"
"Inventor, mentor, supervisor, etc., it all depends on what the company needs her to do when she comes to visit." Elson was about to keep moving, but then noticed Ratchet was falling behind, staring at an entryway. "Oh, that's the display room."
"Display room?" Sam jumped on Optimus' foot before he started walking back towards Ratchet. Elson began to jog just to catch up to the large life forms.
"It's where the digital diagraming of inventions and such are viewed together with the board or simply for a bigger view for Artemis to play with." Elson let out a single chuckle that ended as a snort.
"What's so interesting Ratchet?" Sam asked, but when she turned the corner she knew now what was so mesmerizing. "Is that-"
"Cybertron, that's Cybertron." Ratchet's eyes drifted over the holographic orb which had edges and grooves of the cities. Without even knowing it, his eyes drifted to a girl reviewing the large hologram.
"Artemis?" Optimus noticed her right away.
"I was just about to go find you; perfect timing." Artemis used her stylus pen to make the holographic planet smaller and allowed it to slowly rotate. "Well, how'd I do Ratchet?" She looked at him directly, wanting his approval.
"It's, perfect." Ratchet walked up and hovered his hands below the globe. Artemis gave a slight smile, pleased she did so well.
"I'm glad. I've been working out the map ever since I saw the surface of Cybertron in memories. Though, it could never compare to the real Cybertron." She said proudly yet sadly. "I'm glad you scientific curiosity got the best of you today. I'm glad you got to see this."
"Me too."
California Train Station
Mira stared at the newspaper for a long time, so intensely that many people thought her crazy. Finally, she circled all the words in the cross word puzzle. Tossing the newspaper on the waiting table, she leaned all the way back until her head was leaning against a man's, who sat behind her, shoulder.
"I know you have incredible resources, what took you so long?" Mira cooed in the man's ear, but he moved his shoulder to make her move her head.
"California is a long way from here, despite my resources. Stop wasting time, get to the point." Silas fold his hands lightly over his lap as people passed by to look less suspicious. The whole meeting was humiliating and he had a feeling she knew that.
"I happen to know that you get a lot of your technology from a mole that works at X-Tech. Do you know the head?"
"I've heard stories, Artemis."
"Something you might not know is that she and the Autobots are very good friends. More you don't know, Artemis and I are very gifted people. While I can hear voices and gain visions of actions happening in the present, she can speak directly to the creator. Don't ask, anyways, another perk is that because we are sisters, I can tap into her head and extract information. All I need is a weak mind and resources."
"What's in it for you?" Silas turned his head to look straight into her eyes. He could see the gears turning and the black twisted soul of hers rising to the surface.
"I get to torture my sister until she begs me to end her life. What better reward could there be?"
X-Tech Inventory
"And this is where we keep all the parts needed to build said inventions. An inventor's paradise." Artemis smiled, glancing over the shelves.
"Why do you waste your money on parts when you have everything you need right here?" Sam picked up a stray screw from the floor.
"These belong to the company, I might order the stuff, but doesn't mean I can just dip into it whenever I want." Artemis stopped her face turning cold and stern.
"What's wrong, no more tour?" Sam laughed, but then she could hear whispering and shuffling. Artemis hurried over to a small door and swung it open. Two persons in green jump suits were trying to carry boxes toward the loading dock.
"You know, there are very few things I hate in this world. One just happens to be, traitors. Congratulations." She watched the men draw sticks. However, Artemis didn't back down. "Great, you have a toy that shocks the nervous system. I have two towering robots. Go ahead, try it, I guarantee you I'll win."
"Well we found some jackals." Sam whispered though she wasn't sure if the bots could hear her.
"Hold them Optimus. Ratchet. I'm going to go call security." Artemis called security and a few minutes later the men were carted to jail. While Sam was excited over the capture, Artemis and Optimus stayed silent, refusing to talk about the obvious issue. The two men in the inventory room were dressed in MECH uniforms. "Sam."
"Yeah?" Sam stopped and looked at Artemis, ready to get into the truck.
"Ride with Ratchet, I'll meet you back at base. Optimus and I need to do something."
Back at Base
Rafael and Sam sat on the couch waiting for Artemis' return. Miko and Jack began playing a card game a few hours before, but were considering going home as the hour grew late. Before long, only Rafael and Sam were left and barely that. Rafael was about to get into his partner when Optimus came rolling up.
"Artemis, where have you-"
"Before you say anything, sit down a listen. You too Rafael." Raf and Sam sat down on the stairs, staring at each other in curiosity. "First, I'd like to say I realized that I was being unfair. Wanting to be a model for good morals if fine, but forcing you to abide by those morals just because I wanted you to, was wrong. Second, I'm sorry about what happened to you, it was my fault."
"Oh, Artemis, I don't blame you for anything." Rafael frowned, Sam did as well but didn't say anything.
"So, I decided to do something out of character. I decided to use my wealth." Artemis took two large bags from the seat, allowing Optimus to finally transform. "First, I think it's time you're like any other teenager your age. Which means-"
"Oh my god, you're joking. Oh my god, Artemis, you-" Sam watched her pull a cell phone from the bag and toss it over to her. "I love the new Artemis!"
"Second, a little gift for the both of you, something I have done myself." Artemis took two computers from the bag and extended them towards them. Sam took it joyfully and Rafael took his with a questioning look.
"What did you do to it?" Rafael turned it on and found programs on the desktop he never saw before.
"It has a satellite up-link. An eye in the sky if you will, you can type in coordinates and the satellite hook you up with direct video feed to what's happening there at that exact moment. Other stuff too, but you'll have to find that out for yourself." She watched Rafael smile and work on the computer with excitement, already knowing what he's going to do first. "Lastly."
"There's more?" Sam was already on a high from the gifts she got.
"One more, here." Artemis handed her a debit card. "I opened up you an account, just don't go crazy, okay?"
"I promise….thank you."
"You're welcome."
Late at Night
Artemis put on her armor, ready to take a late night patrol with Optimus. Ratchet was rambling on about things he saw at X-tech that could use some tinkering. She offered him full employment at the company if he wanted to tinker himself, but Ratchet only huffed and went back to work. Though, she could have sworn he saw a slight smile.
"Prime!" Artemis jumped at the deep harsh voice that came out of nowhere. She turned to find a large black man come storming in with a very angry expression. "What's this I hear about MECH agents-" He stopped and looked directly at Artemis. She held her visor half way to her head, frozen. "Who are you?"
"Who are you?" Artemis insisted first, lowering her arms.
"Uggg." Ratchet rubbed his brow at the frustration, would the surprises ever end?