Pair of hands

Posted on Monday February 24th, 2020 @ 22:58 hours by Carl Clark IX & Mercy

Mission: Hot Couture
Location: Main Engineering, Deck 4, SS Fawkes
Timeline: MD 07 - 23:15
1402 words - 2.8 OF Standard Post Measure

"Hey! You! With the shirt!" A warm, resonant voice called out. "Got a moment to help an engineer out? Need a pair of hands," the voice added, belonging to a massive creature of black fur smeared with oilstains, wearing overalls similarly fouled.

"Uh-hi!"

Onyx was so focused on getting the layout of his new home that his brain stuttered as he stumbled upon a creature of which Onyx had never seen before, and hopefully would never see again. Onyx's eyes shifted higher and higher, craning his neck a little to match the eyes of the creature. The oil on her black fur made it difficult to tell where one started and where the other began. Realizing he probably looked like a total jerk at the moment, he approached her.

"O-of course I have a moment. How can I help?"

"I'm Mercy, ship's engineer. Nice to meet you. You new here?" she asked, as she motioned towards engineering, not far from where they were. "Been tearing down the ship's engine, honing, cleaning and rebuilding during our layover. Need a pair of hands to screw something down while I hold it in place."

Onyx followed her motion and he heard her talking about a task that literally Onyx had only one mode of experiencing: holding something in place while the engineers did the work. There was no way Onyx was going to pass up gaining the experience in the engineering department.

"Lead the way. I'm Carl by the way, but my friends call me Onyx."

"Onyx, huh. How'd you come by that one?" she asked, glancing over her shoulder as she walked, ears brushing against the ceiling as she did. It wasn't a long walk and soon they made it to engineering proper, where parts of a conduit were strewn out over a workspace. The pieces were big, bulky and looked freshly scrubbed and honed.

He looked around and he tried his best to make sure that he remembered every piece of equipment that was on the ground. He recognized the parts, and he recognized them as being heavy and often requiring two or three people. Considering she took them apart, Onyx figured she had strength beneath her bulk. He also did not really want to talk about his family, so he told Mercy what his grandfather told him.

"My grandfather named me after his cat because one day my curiosity is going to get me killed or in deep trouble."

Mercy could spot the similarity as Onyx looked around trying to soak as much of Engineering as he could.

Mercy gave a soft laugh. In fact, every time she talked or made a sound, it seemed like she was speaking quietly, and that she would be capable of an impressive volume should she choose to. "That's actually amazing." Her tail gave a soft wag. "Ok, Onyx it is. So. Stool's over there, it has wheels but it locks down like so. Here are brackets, here are bolts and here's a rattle wrench. Should have the right socket. Now I'm going to hold this conduit in place, you tighten it down, alright? I can hold it steady for some time, so don't worry about hurrying up, just don't take too long. Can you do that?" she asked, hefting the main conduit piece with a grunt, massive muscles bulging as she did so.

Onyx did not have time to reply as he watched her lift up the piece and hold it in place. After admiring her physique, Onyx got to work and he put the brackets and bolts in place. First, he set the bracket, motioning to make the fine adjustments to line up the bracket and the mounting hole for the bolt. While he did not rush the job, it was evident that Onyx knew his way with tools, as well as ensuring that the brackets were tightened to the point where if they needed to make last minute adjustments, they could. There however was always the one that would cause problems, and Onyx did not like problems.

"This bracket and bolt does not seem to want to line up."

Mercy let out a guttural curse in Sirran. "Oy vey. It's the same bracket that came out of these holes." she sighed. "What's the number on the inside curve?"

Onyx took a look at the part and he tried to look for the number on the inside curve.

"It looks like...24 or 25 or something. Parts of it are faded out or just worn out."

Mercy sighed. "Ok. Can you undo that one to the left, second one in, and use that one? That'll hold the conduit for a while until I can source a replacement." As he worked Mercy shifted position, starting to feel the effects of holding up the heavy weight. "So what brings you to a ship like the Fawkes?"

Onyx nodded as he started to undo the bracket Mercy mentioned and started to make the swap.

"Very long story short, your Captain offered me passage in exchange for free labor. There's a job in the neighboring sector that pays decently. Not exactly what I wanted but it pays well and it gets me experience."

Onyx then looked at the bracket and paused as he looked at the bracket and then back at the trouble spot. Onyx quickly moved around her to get back to the troubled spot and set the bracket on it. Sure enough, it lined up and Onyx gave an "Aha!" Tightening it up, Onyx watched in relief that the bolt slid in like a glove, the bracket holding firm. Getting out of the way, Onyx nodded to her.

"That should do it. What do you think?"

"Should hold for now." she mused, her voice warm and rich as usual, as she sloooowly let go of the conduit, giving a satisfied nod as it held. "Can't really put power on it yet until I've replaced the bracket and tightened them to torque, but at least it's in place. Any step forward is a step nearer the goal." she offered with a smile, wiping her brow, wincing then rolling her shoulders. "I'm getting old."

There were a dozen alarms that were ringing in his head. This was something his father warned him about when Onyx was a child and was learning manners. There were plenty of rules, yet two sprang to mind: never mention weight, never mention age. As Onyx gave pause, he tried to come with the correct response for her comment, and like a fool he came up with something that was on his mind.

"I'll have to take your word for it."

She chuckled, tail giving a slow wag. "We Sirran embrace old age. We're not like humans who are afraid to grow old. To us age symbolizes experience, knowledge, wisdom. I'm 76, which puts me at about half my expected lifespan, give or take." Mercy explained with a smile, her voice low, thick and warm.

The tail wag reminded Onyx of his namesake, but considering that this tail belonged to a woman who, he could admit it, can manhandle him into submission within a second, he made sure to be extra careful with what he would say.

"Oh, it's not that. I have a rule that says a woman's age, regardless of lifespan, can only be discussed if my life depends on not forgetting her birthday."

"A very human sentiment. I've grown quite used to seeing it." Mercy mused. "I, however, am not human." she added with a wink. "Anyways, I think that's all I needed help with for now. Thank you for your help, saved me a lot of time and hassle trying to do it all myself."

A grin appeared on Onyx's face, and a gentle feeling of pride flowed into his veins as the gratitude of Mercy was something Onyx would take care to ensure that he did not make too many mistakes to make her hate him. There was something to the wink, especially when she declared that she was not human. Was that an invitation for Onyx to loosen up around her? He was not sure, except for the fact that perhaps this Engineer was friendly enough. While stories did flow into his head, he let them pass.

"Any time. If you ever need me for anything else, don't hesitate to ask."

[OFF]

Mercy
Engineer


&


Carl "Onyx" Clark, XI
Deck Hand (Ordinary)