2011-03-02 - Contracted to the Ark Hammer?

Despite the vaporization of the farms a few days ago, the Ark Hammer has been put together rather well, and made somewhat easy to repair. Or so it seems when it appears over the Hellas Sea, freshly painted and all of its systems intact. However, the crew is a bit more upset than the captain. "Miss Helmsley, you have command for the time being." "My lady? You're not going out into the open, are you?" "I am. I have to make sure someone is all right, especially after Mister Luddite etricated her from our med bay. Prepare a dropship." "Yes My lady. I'll send a pair of Defenders with you as well." A sigh comes from Divada. "Very well, if you insist." Five minutes later, Three ships can be seen flying towards the ground, namely towards Sinya and Ascian's last known position. The Ark Hammer keeps off to the distance, just in case someone decides to go after it without Divada aboard.

Shortly after serving as her distraction in order to escape from the Ark Hammer's medical bay, Sinya had been neatly deposited along with her guymelef on a freighter back to Pandora Frettum. At least she could say one thing for the Divine Crusaders, they'd let to break their word to her, which is more than she can say for her dealings with some other factions. It isn't that hard to track the wayward mechanic, especially as the techs abord the Ark Hammer were smart enough to put a tracker on the guymelef just incase their visitor ended up being trouble. A little bit of paranoia does come in handy from time to time. The tracker leads down to a small, scrubby looking warehouse with an array of mech parts stacked outside. There is enough place to land, just barely, and the tall doors are open to the air.

After a not-quite successful meeting with a fellow Trailer who wanted to do more than just business, the catgirl mechanic had decided to call it a day. Well, actually it was more like her body decided to call it a day. It seems as if she had been mid-way through working on Arius's control systems when she all but passed out over her work bench, tail twitching inside some distant dream. There are parts stewn everywhere throughout the small work space, most of them stripped from the heavily damaged guymelef. "Noo... no more catnip." She mutters in her sleep, moving her arm a bit before snuggling her head against it.

As for Ascian, he's nowhere to be found, although he's likely able to be tracked to somewhere in the city. It appears that Divada isn't the only one keeping an eye on the mechanic to make sure she doesn't complete the job that the Frightener had started by overworking herself.

The Three ships are quite fast, quiet, and are able to avoid radar for the most part. So in Sinya's rather catatonic state (pun intended), Divada's ship and her pair of guard mechs are able to almost literally walk into Sinya's workshop. Looking around the shop, she shakes her head as the pair of gunships transform and land somewhat gracefully outside of the workshop. However, she takes her time around the shop to look at the various parts and stuff strewn about, until she manages to find the perfectly (pun again) comatose Sinya asleep underneath her mech, apparently right in the middle of repairing it. She takes a minor chance and lightly pokes Sinya's stomach, mostly to wake her up.

It isn't that unusual for the catgirl to sleep through most anything. Years of having to sleep while others were clanging metal or working on giant war machines certainly has developed that particular gift into quite a skill. As the three ships land, there is little in the way of alarm. Obviously this is a pretty downtrodden part of the city and such things as alarms are hardly standard. Still, the energist crystals on Arius's chest, flare to life, glowing softly in the presence of others. It seems that the crystals are one of the few parts of the guymelef that were not damaged in the blast, which is probably a very good thing - as dragon energists are not exactly easy to find this side of La Gias. Besides that momentary glow, though, there is no responce from the machine, obviously not anywhere close to the semi-sentient mechs some other pilots fly.

The catgirl continues to mutter, first something about tuna and then some slurred technobabble. Luckily it is cut off quickly by the nudge to her stomach. "Rrarw?" Ever so slowly, the girl's head lifts from her arms, eyes half-lidded. Raising her uninjured hand to rub at one eye, she blinks a few times before focusing on Divada. Waking up with someone else that close by is a bit of a shock, as her eyes widen and she gives a small yelp before wheeling back off of her chair and landing firmly on her butt. There is a moment of silence as she stares up at the tall blonde, and then she murmurs a small, "Ow." Rubbing at her rear, as if that were the worst of her injures (obviously not) she props herself up, sitting on the floor. "Where did you come from?"

"Actually, scratch that. Nevermind." Her ears cup forward as she seems to finally come fully awake, "Um, what can I do for you? I've got a pretty good selection of spare parts if that's what you're looking for. Otherwise I am open for repair contracts. Need some cash to fix up my mech." She obviously has no idea who Divada is, especially as she hasn't actually met the Ark Hammer's captain in person. "Mind giving me a hand?" She asks, reaching out her good arm and bracing her uninjured leg underneath her, obviously looking for a hand up.

Having next to zero patches or markings that define her as the Captain of the Ark Hammer, or even being a Crusader would probably confuse Sinya even more. However, Divada giggles at Sinya's fall onto her butt and just helps the catgirl up. The tall woman is quite strong, as she helps Sinya up slowly, not quickly. Once she's up, she takes a good look at SInya's mech. "You do good work, even with only one good arm." Perceptive, this one. "Repair Contracts, hmm? it looks like your own mech should be finished and you should rest a bit before you think about taking contracts again. Looks like you were in one hell of a fight." Obviously meant to not give a clue to who she is...yet.

"Thanks." Sinya gives a small nod as she's helped to her feet, surprisingly stable even with one in a brace for the time being. Perhaps it's that natural cat-like grace that comes with being well... a cat? Her eyes flicker to the two guards, obviously not exactly comfortable with being outnumbered, or outgunned in her own shop. Some of the fur on her tail remains puffed up, twitching behind her even as her ears swivel to focus on Divada.

"You work with what you've got." Her shoulders shrug upwards, "As for Arius, I've got the parts to replace most of his internals. The worst part is his armor." Sitting back onto her stool, she takes the weight off of her leg and smirks slightly, offering a chuff of a humorless laugh. "I can't exactly replace metals from La Gias, so I'll have to get new armor custom forged. That's the pricy part of it." Like any good salesperson, she can make small-talk with the best of the. "On the plus side, though, they should be a little more blaster resisistant. I hope." The last part is said with a laugh, running a hand through her hair. Taking a moment to push some of the parts she was working on to the side, Sinya seems to consider her answer for a moment. "Taking on trained military when you're not combat trained isn't so great an idea." Clicking her claws on the keyboard, she pulls up an inventory screen, switching away from what was probably a design schematic for her guymelef.

"Anyways, rest or not, I need funds to get the forging done, so it's actually a good time to get a deal from me. Parts, repairs, it's all pretty much discounted for the time being. That is, at least until I can get some more steady work." She bites at her lower lip, then shakes her head. Steady work other than from a fellow Trailer who probably was just trying to get into her pants - that would be much preferred. "So, what can I help you with?"

Divada nods a bit before looking towards Arius, just as she hears the taping of keys on the computer. "If I really wanted the technology, ma'am, I'd have let you sleep." She then shrugs. "Actually, the reason why I came by is because I was worried about you, Miss Leland." Taking on a more formal air in her voice, which might sound familiar. "I was willing to let you stay in the medical bay until you fully healed and we'd have repaired your mech to the best of our ability. Seems you were snuck out before you had a chance to do either." If Sinya looks at her back, she'll find a pair of 'wings' stitched into the back of her bodysuit, like a pattern. Upon her collar, she'll find four stars. "But if you truly require work, I'm sure Mars has plenty of places for you to start working and repairing...like the farms that were vaporized by a certain ship buster cannon..."

"I'm not worried about you stealing the guymelef technology. It's not exactly advanced science, to be honest. The problem is that it has some things even science can't..." Sinya seems about to continue her train of thought when Divada's words start to sink on to her head. Her head tilts, ears slicking back. "You?" She asks, blinking green eyes in surprise as she draws her hands away from the keyboard. "How did... Oh. Right." Apparently, she's just figured out that she's been tracked. Then again, she wouldn't have been that hard to find anyways, with or without it.

"Please don't get me wrong." Her voice drops from the 'salesmen' social level, sounding a bit more timid as her tail tucks between her legs. "I really appreciate what you did for me. I'd probably be dead if it weren't for your ship picking me up." She sighs, rubbing at the back of her neck with a sheepish, unsure expression. "I just don't like being trapped anywhere or taking undeserved charity. No matter what Ascian tells you, I got myself into that mess on my own. I knew what I was getting into, and it was my choice." Not a very wise choice, obviously, as she certainly wasn't ready to go up one on one with a trained soldier.

"I apologise for sneaking out. Just easier taking care of things myself. That way I don't owe too many favors. Oweing you my life is bad enough, without oweing you my mech, too." Trust, is not something that comes easy for catgirl, especially after having been a slave most of her life. "I hope your ship wasn't too badly damaged helping me."

"I Don't offer charity, Miss Leland. I help people when they need it. You certainly did, and that's why I picked you up. I say 'I' like I'm the entire crew of the Ark Hammer." She says with a little bit of Mirth. "I know what it's like to be on your own, at least for a time. Easier doesn't always mean better though. The Hammer has a Zero-G repair bay, if you have need of such a facility, but once again, it's not charity. You assisted the best you could to keep the Martians from starving, and I'd say you earned the medical and repair benefio loss of personnel though, as they usually wear masks as part of their battle stations orders. Shields were able to compensate before the Atmosphere reached critical. We're fine, but we do need help with repairs for now..."

Far too much time among people living on the edge has made Sinya just a little bit skeptical of most human intentions. There's an almost hypocritical view that while she's willing to 'white knight' a situation, that most others don't tend to be so giving without having strings attached. Then again, at this particular point in time, she can't actually argue the point. "I do appreciate it. I owe you one. So, if you ever need a hand, give me a call. I'm not a mercenary, but I do repay my debts." Unlike some Trailers, Sinya's morals are a bit strange. They tend to be built more around business and personal relations rather than just money.

As her eyes sweep over to Arius, still without his outer armor and quite a few bits of his internal workings which have to be replaced, the catgirl presses her lips together. It's sometimes hard to stick to your beliefs and your own ways when under pressure, but she is free now, and it /is/ her choice. "I think it's best if I get him working, myself. There aren't many techs this side of La Gias who have even seen a guymelef before, much less worked with one. And to make matters worse, he's retrofitted custom." She nods once, firmly, "He's kind of my responsibility, so I need to take care of that much on my own." Perhaps, like many pilots, she has a bit of an affinity when it comes to her machine, and that same sort of 'no touchy' policy towards it.

"As for the Ark Hammer... if you need an extra set of hands, I'd be willing to lend mine for a while. It's the least I can do."

Divada nods quietly. "Fair enough. The offer of the facilities still stands, though." She then puts her hands behind her back and chuckles. "I would appreciate it, Miss Leland. As would my crew. But I would rather have you rest before coming to help. The Hammer was hit pretty hard by that shot, but thankfully, it's shields deflected some of the blast, so we remained airborne. Can't really say the same for the farms though."

Sinya seems to mull this over for a short time, considering just how things are going on Mars just now. The last few weeks since she'd come back from searching for work on Earth had not been all that positive. Things seemed to be getting worse. "I'd be glad to lend a hand once the military moves on. But... I've already gotten my tail into enough trouble when it comes to the A-LAWs. I'm just just lucky that..." And then she realizes that telling a ship captain, even one from the side of the Crusaders, that she had been involved in the deaths of four Acemos inspectors would probably not be the smartest of things in the world to do. "Err... well we're just lucky that I don't have a bounty on my head for trying to do the right thing." Her ears stay backwards, voice timid. "It's probably in my best interest to lay low for a little while until things blow over. Especially since Arius got shown on the news." There aren't exactly a lot of vaguely gryphon-shaped guymelefs flying around these days.

Divada nods quietly. "It's up to you, Miss Leland. Unfortunately, A-laws seem to be 'shoot first, ask questions later' with very long memoryies when someone helps anyone they're shooting at." She then shrugs. "you're also not the only trailer I've helped. However, I will refer people to you when they need repairs. I was making a bit of a contract offer to you to help with the repairs of the Hammer. Short term, decent pay and no strings attached. It'd help you with your mech.."

"No kidding." Sinya mutters, "I got shot at just for trying to help evacuate farmers. What kind of sense of honor is that?" Then, she simply claps her mouth shut, realizing that discussing the honor involved probably isn't exactly a good thing. When the offer of work comes up, she sits up a bit straiter, returning to that whole outer persona that seems to come along with her profession rather than her as an individual. "Hrm. Well, I already offered so... I guess that's a contract I'm willing to take. If nothing else, it'll let me lend a hand until I have a chance at repaying my debt." Of course, it isn't the money kind of debt she's referring to, but the personal type. "As long as there's no one on your ship allergic to cats."

Divada only chuckles a little bit. "achoo." She says with a laugh. "none that I know of. As for your debt, it's not that sort of debt I'm worried about. anytime you require help, radio me and I'll help you out. However, Most of my readiness if geared towards an Alien invasion. That's when I'll require your aid the most, Miss Leland."

While Divada may be quick to dismiss the debt, Sinya isn't as easily dissuaded as it might seem. Some day, she'll make sure to repay it, no buts about it. A small smile quirks the corner of her lips as she shakes her head, "I was kidding anyways. So-far as I'm aware, people aren't allergic to me, regardless of the fur." Perhaps it is simply because for the most part, she only has fur in a few sparce places, such as her cheeks, elbows, ears, tail, but the rest is actual skin, just in various shades that are wholely inhuman. Her head tilts though, curiously, "Aliens?" Sure she's heard about them, but never come face to face with one. "Can't say I've ever run into one, not yet anyways. Sometimes people think I'm an alien, or one of Lord Genome's beastmen." Her tail twitches at the last part, obviously not happy to be lumped in with that group.

Rolling her eyes, she chuckles a bit more. "As long as you're not an Aerogator, I'm sure you'll be fine. Just be careful around these guys." She says jerking her thumb at the two rather huge mechs outside. "They're /quite/ protective of the ship, and me. Thankfully, they're quite loyal to the ship." She starts back for her dropship though. "Whenever you're ready, Miss Leland, go ahead and come aboard. Just...." She says tapping a device on the side of her mech. "....keep that on board of your ship, anywhere you please, and it'll relay to us who you are and grant you clearance." She says before looking towards the two larger mechs, and twirls her finger once. Both Mechs power up loudly, as does the dropship. "See you on the Hammer soon, Miss leland. and thank you again for your help on Mars." She walks into the dropship and they all fly off. To be continued....