TBC

Posted on Saturday May 25th, 2019 @ 02:31 hours by Mercy & Ares Onasis

Mission: Pixie Dust
Location: Deck 4 - Main Engineering
Timeline: MD05, 0900 Hours
1049 words - 2.1 OF Standard Post Measure

“Woah.”

Ares couldn’t help but feel her lips tilt up as she stood in front of Mercy, a creature that could have easily been manifested from one of her childhood storybooks. She was unreal, nearly double Ares’s height and probably a good six times her weight. The long dark locks that flowed from the Sirran’s head only added to the mythical aura beaming off of her. “You’re not hard to miss.”

The massive lupine woman looked up from her PADD, near comically small, round reading glasses on her muzzle like nose. "Yeah. I get that a lot." she offered, voice thick and warm, rich like molasses. A triangular ear flicked as she gave a soft smile, making sure not to show too much teeth. "Name's Mercy. I'm the new engineer. And you are ... ?"

Ares gave her a strong jut of her chin. “Ares, First Mate. Welcome aboard.” She kept her hands on in her pockets as she leaned against the pillar next to her. She wasn’t one for handshakes u less necessary. Mercy didn’t seem like the handshake type. “Getting settled alright?”

"Ask me again in a week." Mercy flicked an ear, broad shoulders slumping slightly. "I'm inventorying the list of things I need to inventory. Also need to manually diagnose the entire ship, double check all the consoles, what software they're running, any configuration issues, software incompatibilities, hardware issues, general wear and tear on the ship's vital systems, and so on enzovoorts und so weiter."

Ares let off an easy chuckle. “I didn’t exactly make things easier for you with the environmentals after what happened before you came here. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, right?”

"If you say so." Mercy sighed, reaching up to rub the back of her neck a bit before streeEEeetching out her arms and rolling her shoulders, stifling a yawn. "What happened anyways? And what residual effects can I expect?"

Ares gave her a nonchalant shrug, “Nah, we cleared everything out already. Something got into our environmentals that was making everyone a bit loopy.” Loopy was definitely an understatement and not the right word. It was more like schizophrenic, unstable, and borderline psychotic. She knew May would kill her if she chased off any new staff. They were already bareboned as it was. “I tried resetting the system but nearly broke it as I’m no engineer by any sense of the word.” She laughed again. “How’d you wind up here anyway? The Captain didn’t give me much of background story about you and the other guy. Though you don’t look beaten up so that’s a good sign.”

Mercy shrugged large shoulders. "Captain needed an engineer. I needed a job. I qualified. Not sure there's much more to explain, really."

Ares's smile widened. The roadblock had been put up and trying to pass it was futile. She was no stranger to closing herself off. "Fair enough. Need anything from me before we set off? Help make your job a bit easier?"

Mercy considered a moment, rubbing her chin in thought. "Anything I should know? Anyone I should be - ... more mindful of? I know I don't conform to the standard of humanoid life in Federation space and am very well aware that my general appearance is ingrained in some cultures' histories that of a figure of antagonism. As first mate, do you believe there is anything I need to know about this ship and her crew?"

Ares shook her head confidently, reassuring the new crew member. “We’re not exactly a traditional crew, Mercy. In fact, I think you’ll fit right in. Everyone here is pretty laid back and for the most part keep to themselves. If anyone does have an issue I’d offer to straighten them out for you but I feel like you’d be able to handle yourself rather well.”

Mercy chuckled, a low and deep sound. "Yeah, but I'd rather avoid problems or have them solved by a neutral party before it comes to a point where I have to solve them myself." her tail gave a lazy wag. "So you say life support took a knock before I came onboard? I'll go over it with an extra fine comb then. Make sure it's in reliable working order."

Giving her a slow nod, Ares felt pretty solid about the Engineer. She had a very keen sense about people when she first meets them, which has gotten her through a lot of pickles in her life. "Appreciate it. I'll let you get back to work and your 'Honey, Do' list."

"Thanks, Ares." Mercy smiled, her tail giving another lazy wag. "Thanks for dropping by." Beat. "Ares ... Interesting name, by the way. If memory serves me, isn't that the name of some old God of warfare in Earth mythology? Can't quite put my finger on which ancient society had him in their pantheon, but I remember stories from when I was in the academy on Earth, fifty-ish years ago."

Ares's eyes crinkled slightly at the question. "Greek. Born and raised."

"Greek! Right. That was it. Explains the name." Mercy smiled, posture straightening a bit. "Your parents must've liked their old mythology. Fascinating."

Ares nodded. "If you could look up the word Greek in a dictionary their pictures would be under it." Her heart warmed up slightly at the thought of them, which surprised her. Normally she would feel a storm of sadness and anger at their mention but she had come to realize since her hallucination that they would have been proud of where she was today. She was finally gluing the pieces of her shattered life back together. "Greek blood through and through."

Mercy, on the other hand, seemed to withdraw a bit behind a wall, closing an open door. She simply gave a nod. "Well, thanks for dropping by and introducing yourself, Ares. Was a pleasure meeting you."

"Right. The pleasure is all mine." Ares turned to leave, then paused, looking back over her shoulder. "My door is always open, Mercy. Just in case," and with a final nod she walked out, leaving Mercy to fix the hot mess that was the S.S. Fawkes.

Off:

Mercy
Engineer

&

Ares Onasis
First Mate