[TF TIDBIT] Atlantis 01

 Series: Transformers
Title: Atlantis 01
Characters: Prowl, Jazz, assorted side characters
Summary: A soft-light map illuminated the center of the room, showing off the many caverns and the giant leviathan circling on the port side.
Warnings: Offscreen violence.
Disclaimers: I do not own Transformers. This is written purely for fun.

~~*~~

“Brace yourselves!”

Prowl crashed into the wall as the whole Submersible jarred sideways. Red warning lights flooded the hallways. Battle stations , the alarm blared. The bridge looked like someone had kicked over an insecticon hive. Mechs darted about, reading reports, carrying out orders. A sonar-light map illuminated the center of the room, showing off the many caverns and the giant leviathan circling on the port side.

“-some kind of watch dog,” he caught Nightbeat saying as the sub lurched again. Electric blue light flashed across all the screens as it spat lightning at them. “The entrance should be close! Look for a crevice, something that goes straight down-” 

There was nothing he could add or take away from those instructions, so Prowl checked in to the main chatter line. Prowl was logistics . It was his job to manage the schedule and the supplies, to keep all the personnel in order so that the researchers and scientists could dotheir job without distraction. 

He tagged at least five mecha that were assigned to other parts of the ship rushing about, looking panicked. There were no active orders attached to them to explain why they were here. 

He grabbed a yellow minibot as they rushed back. A new recruit, someone who signed on looking to get experience. He was supposed to be with Lieutenant Flip’s crew in Operations. “Ensign Bumblebee, get back to your post!”

Bumblebee looked at him with wide eyes. Scared. “Section 12 is sealed off, sir!”

Sealed off? Prowl accessed the schematics. Section 12 was down on Blue Deck, part of the sub that had taken damage first. It was originally sealed to contain water damage, and it was marked with a yellow warning. The sub shuddered again as the monster made another pass.

He tried to ping Lieutenant Flip, and only got a dead line. The warning yellow changed to red, and he knew the crew left there was gone.

They losing parts of the sub, he realized with cold dread. There…were still people there. Why were there no evac warnings? Section 14 was locked down, still yellow, and section 3-7 were taking heavy damage.  Nothing on the chatter line implied there were orders for the compromised parts of the sub. 

“Ensign Bumblebee, I’m reassigning you to Omega crew. Report to Chief Petty Officer Ironhide on Red Deck. He knows that you are coming.” Bumblebee looked like he wanted to argue, probably that Prowl did not have the authority to reassign him, or panic some more. He grabbed the ensign’s shoulders and gave him a quick shake. “ Listen. Being here will only get in the way of people who need to do their job. Report to Ironhide. Get the lifeboats ready. I’ll be directing crews to you. Go!”

Bumblebee’s optics hardened in determination. “Sir!” he acknowledged, and sprinted off. 

Ironhide pinged confirmation of the new plan. “ It’s about time someone is being sensible about all this . My crew is ready. Send the stragglers my way.”

Prowl settled himself out of the way of the command staff, and got to work. If the lieutenants were confused as to why Prowl was giving them updates, they didn’t question it. 

Bumblebee tagged him with three other members of Section 12’s crew that had made it through. He also assigned them to Ironhide. He received a ping from Lieutenant Moonracer in Section 3, and ordered her to get her crew out of there . Seal the area behind her, and assist with Section 5’s evacuation after. Rendezvous with Ironhide on Red Deck. 

“Sir, sir!” an officer called up from one of the monitors and caught the Commanding Officer’s attention. “Yellow Deck is compromised, we are going to lose firing capabilities!”

“We’ll be sitting ducks if that happens,” another officer murmured.

“Disengage locks on Yellow Deck. We’ll jettison the whole section to buy us some time.” The sub rocked violently. “Give that monster something to chew on while the rest of us evac. Get the lifeboats online!”

That could work. Linked in as he was, saw the proposed junctions where they would disengage. There were still three torpedos in storage, and when the leviathan ‘took the bait’ so-to-speak, then they could remotely detonate them.    

Prowl jumped up and grabbed Crosswise’s arm as the realization struck him. “Sir, Yellow Deck still has crew!”

“What?” Crosswise stilled, likely just now noticing him in the room, and checked the data Prowl had. “Noted. My order still stands . ”

Prowl had to have heard him incorrectly. “But sir!”

Again the sub rocked, and this time there was a horrible screeching. The monster outside howled. Crosswise jerked his arm out of Prowl’s grip and glared at him. “I will not sacrifice this entire mission for the sake of a few ensigns. We are out of time.”  

Bumblebee was tagging him with more stragglers. A couple of desperate ensigns pinged him from the inside of the detached Yellow Deck. Several crewmembers from the Blue and Red Decks called asking for orders. The command chatter had gone silent. 

Crosswise left him there. Shouting to the Corporal about issuing the call to evacuate. The whole crew wouldn’t be able to get out fast enough, even with Ironhide have everything ready to go. 

He had to...prioritize. Evacuate. Reorganize. Find out where the hell communications broke down and left so many crewmembers stranded and without orders. Fix the problem, or court marshall whoever was responsible.

Radio contact with Yellow Deck went dead as he piled into the lifeboat.

“Hold tight, everyone!” Nautica was at the helm. Primus help them all. “This is going to get bumpy!”

Explosions knocked the lifeboat around like it was made of tinfoil. Prowl cracked his helm on the side, something shattered, and everythingcut off into darkness and silence.