A New Co-worker [Ratchet]

[Joanne Rhodes]

((Location: Gate Entrance then Medical Bay // Date: October 1st, 2027 // Time: 5:00 pm))

A slender woman dressed in Army BDU’s with the rank of Sergeant Major drove an army green 2009 Jeep Rubicon off the cargo bay of a C17. She crossed the tarmac and received clearance from the security entrance bordering the runways and the rear of the base. She gave them her NEST ID and once they accepted her registry information and verified her ID, they waved her off. “Welcome back to the United States ma’am.” The guard said as the gate opened for her. ”Thank you, Airman.” she replied with a brief smile before driving through casually. She proceeded towards the small road between the majority of the taxi-ways and the tarmac surrounding the base. Driving past some of the supply shacks and external buildings, she rested an arm outside the Rubicon’s window. The heater was running since it was getting cool out, the hard top cover over her head secure.

To her right were a set of a couple military-issued bags full of the clothes and other miscellaneous personal items she had, along with a few military issued weapons, a laptop, etc. Her right wrist resting on the lower part of the steering wheel, the female Army Major abides the speed limits and gradually drove around from the left side of the base towards the front. {"Wonder who’s home."} Joanne thought as she adjusted her matching BDU cover.

It was the Pretender's first time here at NEST, despite the fact that she was Cybertronian. She had heard of the legendary medic among the Autobots named Ratchet, but it had been well before the Great War since she had even interacted with the Bot. She admired him even more since she had heard so many stories about all the lives he saved, and to now see him on Earth serving with Optimus was truly impressive.

Joanne had missed her kind, and was glad she had been called to serve with them again. Sadly, she felt more human now than Pretender. She wondered if anyone might recognize her, and if Ratchet or any of the others would even recognize her Cybertronian self, as it wasn't like she could hide her scent. Most of the Autobots here didn't know the Pretenders that well, they hadn't had as much participation in the war until the All Spark was lost.

She parked the Jeep and registered at the in-processing office on the far side of the main complex, then was directed to the medical bay. Supposedly she was supposed to share the medical bay with the soldiers if the goings got rough. She had no power as a Cybertronian medic and mechanic but she had supreme medical jurisdiction over all the NEST operatives on the base.

Hesitantly, Jo peeked into the medical bay, wondering if Ratchet or any of his assistants were around.

((sorry this is so long, but I have a good bit of muse...))

[Ratchet]

Ratchet was sitting at a large desk as he logged onto and typed on the computer that was with him in the med bay. He was uploading some files into the database to keep record of all the mechs that he'd worked on, just in case he would need them. Ratchet also kept records of supplies in case he needed to tell the human that was in control of that department.

As he was doing this he was completely unaware that any one had came into the med bay. As Ratchet worked, he was highly focus on what he was doing. He didn't realize he was humming to himself - just a tone that he used to hear on Cybertron many years before they had to leave in search of the Allspark. Looking at the monitor, he stopped humming . “What, slagging earth tech,” he said in a mild tone. Eventually he got the monitor unfrozen. “FINALLY!” he said with a bit of an aggravated tone. “I sure miss the Cybertronian computer systems... so much easier,” he said, looking back when he heard something. “Hmmm... hearing things are we, Ratchet?” he said, talking to himself. He turned back to what he was doing. He still didn't see anyone anyone and wasn't thinking to look further or consider it.

[Joanne Rhodes]

Jo took a couple more steps forward as she entered and glanced right then left, then back to the right as she saw Ratchet at a computer station that was well away from where most of the work was done. "Hello? Pardon my intrusion," Joanne greeted the large yellow mech, a tad bit intimidated by his size. She hadn't been around many Cybertronians for a while, as she had only recently been recruited by Lennox. "I'm the Cheif Medic among the NEST operatives, I was told this was where I was going to be working, I hope I'm not mistaken. You must be the famous Autobot Cheif Medical Officer Ratchet?" she offered a small smile, introductions weren't always her strong point, especially around older mechs. Furthermore, Ratchet appeared notably more attractive than she had recalled...

[Ratchet]

The large medic had his attention focused on the monitor for a moment. He heard a voice talk; from what he heard it was right in the room as he sat up and turned in the direction of the voice. He looked down he saw with his own optics, a beautiful human woman standing there smiling at him. “Hello there, I am completely sorry... I thought I heard someone but, you see, I did not think to look down, my apologies,” he said to her as he tuned to face her more directly. “Yes you are at the right place and I am indeed Ratchet, minus the famous part…” he said not trying to be funny. “Chief Medic, hmm, I don‘t recall anyone coming here... must have slipped my mind,” he said, looking to the side a bit. “So what do I call you?” he asked, not recalling if she'd said her name.

[Joanne Rhodes]

"My name is Joanne Rhodes, was recruited by Lennox. Been in the medical field for quite some time, with a few other specialties as well. And no worries about the size difference issue, I'm going to have to get used to it myself. I hope I am not interrupting anything important." Jo climbed up a Bot stretcher to get a better look at the tall mech, a faint light blue glow glinting in her human eyes as she adjusted her gaze on him again. At least she hadn't arrived while Ratchet was in the middle of a procedure or something. If she had, she would have tried to get right down to business and help since she knew Cybertronian anatomy as well as the human anatomy. After a short pause, she added with a brief grin:

"Come on, you're more famous than you think! There are so many stories of how you've saved various Autobot lives, it's even spreading among the humans a little more now, since you all are working with NEST." Joanne added. She quickly shut her mouth, realizing she was giving herself away sooner than she had planned, and she silently hoped he wouldn't catch onto the way she had worded that statement. She wasn't going to tell him that he was practically an idol in the medical field to her, but perhaps later she might. How could Ratchet not think he was at least a little famous? He was the best medic there was, few compared to him from what she recalled.

[Ratchet]

Ratchet looked at her as he listened to her speak, noticing her beautiful blue eyes. They nearly glowed to him, but stubborn as he was he pressed his mind back to what he she said.
“Hmm, Joanne, that is a pleasant name,” he said. Hearing what she said after that, he looked at her with a puzzled expression for a moment. “Joanne, how did you come to know our anatomy?” he asked, not quite sure but he was truly curious about this woman. Was there something more to her? He wondered, but would not dare to ask her such a thing, not wanting to judge her as they only just met.

As the medic turned his gaze a bit for a moment to think, he turned back to her slightly once again. “I save lives, Joanne, and yes, I am well aware of some of the stories,” he said, not picking up on what she said. He thought she was telling him a way he would understand. “I do what is required to restore life, to help others whether it's small or life threatening. Being famous is nothing to me, but helping other mechs... now that is more important,” he said to her, but he knew she was honored to be working with him. “Well Joanne, there is not much to do at the moment, how about I give you the grand tour of the med bay?" he said to her with a smirk. He was trying to be at least a tad bit nice to the new assistant who was assigned to him.

[Joanne Rhodes]

Joanne couldn't help but smile a little when he complimented her on her name. "Why thank you; Yes indeed, a tour would be nice, and appreciated. The set up is different in some way every time one gets transferred." Joanne replied cheerfully. She paused a moment as they started to move. Ah slag, she may as well tell him off the bat so there were no surprises. She wasn't going to BS an answer about how she learned Cybertronian anatomy.

"How do I know about you Cybertronians?" She transformed into her Pretender self, a much taller (but not much in scale to Ratchet) and mostly silver Cybertonian with the exception of some Cybertronian markings on her figure. "Well, in truth, I am one, but I'd rather keep my appearance low profile. May as well explain that outright. It's easier for me to stay in human form given my size difference, and it draws less attention when working around humans. But, I learned from the best, well, tried to. Way back when. Then I just had to learn on my own after a while. Though it's been years since I've worked with you guys, way too many to count." she transformed back to her human self just as easily, not that she always enjoyed doing so, but she knew it was better this way, at least until she got used to the atmosphere around here.

Ratchet was not only a Co-worker, but technically still her boss, as far as the Cybertronian side of operations were concerned. Jo had no jurisdiction there, only able to help and recommend at the ready. Regardless of her power limitations as a Cybertronian, she didn't mind, and she knew that communication and honesty were important aspects to a successful bond between a subordinate and a superior, or among superiors as well. Dynamics were always stronger in the long run.

[Ratchet]

Ratchet looked at her and nodded.
“You're welcome, Joanne,” he said in response. He walked across the floor to come up to her and, hearing what she was saying, he stopped and looked at her for a moment. He saw that this was no ordinary human, but Joanne was in fact a Transformer, a pretender which to him was rare for he'd only seen a few in his life cycle. “Joanne, do not worry. Your secret is safe with me, and thank you for telling. Slaggit, I knew I was picking up something but didn’t know what! Now I know. It was, in fact, you, Joanne,” he said, smiling down at her as she transformed back into her human appearance.

“Joanne, even though you are a Transformer, I will treat you no different then any mech here. Again, thank you for telling me and showing me this now that things make sense,” he said, looking away a bit. He kneeled on one knee and held out his hand to her, as it seemed that it would be safer to let him show her the med bay so he would not have to worry about stepping on her. “Climb on. I will show you around this way if it is alright with you,” he insisted to her, hoping she would consider the offer.

[Joanne Rhodes]

Joanne smiled, appreciating the offer and his reassurance. "Thanks, it's appreciated, as is the lift. I'm sure the other Bots here will catch on soon enough. I'd just rather not have rumors among the humans spread if I can help it, I don't want them uncomfortable around me since I'm disguised as one of them and all." she shrugged lightly. "Luckily I'm not too afraid of heights." Jo was certainly not the overly reckless type and of course she didn't approve of putting herself in precarious positions, but generally, height didn't bother her too much.

She took a couple steps towards the yellow Bot and carefully situated herself on Ratchet's forearm before she began to climb. It didn't take much of an effort to get up to his shoulder since he wasn't near as big as some mechs could be, but she still felt puny near him. At least she had a tough shell even though she looked human, she could still take a good deal more damage unlike those fleshlings that she disguised herself as. "This should be interesting, it's been a while since I've seen and worked with Cybertronian tech." she told him as she glanced towards the supply room and then towards the northern most wall where most of the stretchers for humans and Bots were.

[Ratchet]

He smiled, seeing her climb up his arm.
“Are you comfortable now, Joanne?” he asked, seeing that she was, in fact, not afraid of heights. “Well, let me start showing you around... and Joanne, do not worry about me saying anything to the humans, I don’t talk to too many humans unless it is needed,” he assured her.

Now fully standing upright, he turned a bit to her. “I see you are highly interested in learning about the med bay. Well, here we have the stretchers of many sizes and over here...” he said, walking a short distance to a large cabinet, “This is where the meds for bots and humans are kept. Human meds are on the bottom and meds for our kind are in the top shelf, secured in place. Now you have to have access to get in here, and I will log you into the system so you can get in with the access code, but only if I say so,” he said, explaining things to her as he turned away and headed over to the supply closet on the other end of the room. “In here are basic medical supplies like you would have at a hospital. Our things are kept in compartments, as well as supplies for human needs...” he said, turning his head slightly to look at her. "The berth in the center of the room that is as big as Optimus is our medical berth, which injured mechs would be placed on if needed for repairs," he added. Coming up to the monitors he was at earlier, he began to speak again. “Now this is where I log everything, you will have your equipment also, within a few days." He added, looking at her as stooped down to let her off him and on to the table, “Do you have any questions, Joanne?” he said, letting her get off him if she wanted to as he didn’t mind having her there, but gave her the option to if she wanted to.

[Joanne Rhodes]

"Not many that I can think of right now. How do you acquire new parts and supplies here? And can I get a review on Cybertronian equipment and physiology when you have the time? I'm going to be here a while and I'd like to refresh my medical skills with my own race. I know you have Jolt though, but it would be appreciated since I want to learn as much as I can, and I would like to be another option if anyone gets in trouble while I serve here." Joanne replied as she carefully worked her way down to the table. All the Cybertronian equipment present in the immediate area made her feel small, but it was a little less intimidating since she was technically one of them.

[Ratchet]

Ratchet smiled and nodded to what she asked of him.
“Well, Joanne, you see when I need to order some things, I talk to the human leaders here and they order it in mass quantities. You see, Wheeljack helps with some of the inventions that would help a bot... We all work together here,” he said to her, and looked at her more directly. “I suppose a brief description of some of the main equipment would be suitable, so you know how to work it...” He turned slightly, pointing to the large berth in the center of the floor. “I will tell you about that first,” he said scooping her up gently in his hand and taking her over to the berth, then sitting her down.

“Are you ready? You see, Joanne, this berth can scan a mech. I can switch the scanner on and it will scan the mech's entire frame, that is what this large piece over head is... It scans the front side as the back side is scanning. And unlike humans' X-rays you can be in here when I do so...” he said to her, looking down at her. “Any questions on that before I continue?” he asked her with a brief smile.

[Joanne Rhodes]

"That's cool, so does it show the results holographically or some other way? I presume holographically given the level of our technology. Or high speed data sychronizing. Their abilities seem familiar, just been ages since I've worked with patients on them...I worked in pretty small outposts so I didn't see much action sometimes. But I was trained to use them none the less as part of typical scanning when we had the option." Joanne replied. Of course now that she had been on Earth a lot longer than most, it almost felt like new technology to her. It would take her a while to get used to working around Autobots again, but she was sure looking forward to it either way, and at least she had faith in her strong hands and arms to help her out. A human would find it tough to work on Autobots at first because of their different structure, but for a Pretender, it was much easier given that their frames were essentially they same, they were just much smaller. They didn't grow too much and they didn't have a holoform, it was simply easier for them to just disguise themselves as one with technology.

She definitely had a greater appreciation for Cybertronian technology after having worked with rather primitive human technology for so long. Their medical equipment was vastly different, given the sheer differences in what they were!

[Ratchet]

Ratchet looked at her with a smile, seeing she was really interested in what he was talking about. He was happy to talk to someone besides Wheeljack and Jolt about their technology. “Yes it can, as a matter of fact... I can put it on a data pad to show someone, and if showing more than just one mech - like when I show Wheeljack or Jolt, I bring it up on the holographic projector,” he explained, not realizing that a kind smile graced his facial features. He turned his head then, and faced back to the computer. “Is there anything else you would like to see?” he asked her.

[Joanne Rhodes]

Holographic technology was always handy. She'd certainly have to get used to that. "Nope, I think that's it for the time being." Jo replied.

Then came that awkward silence as she studied the big yellow medic and her surroundings. The only thing she was really wondering now was: where did humans usually keep their equipment? "Nother question though, is there anything else I should know regarding you or the protocol when working in here? It might take me a while to get used to working around you guys. Thought I'd ask. I'm big on regulations and protocol due to being in the military."