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RESPITE FALLS GENERATOR - MAY'S HOUSE - EARLY AFTERNOON
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Gareth stands at the edge of the lane surrounding the generator building and engineer's residence, reading through the bounty poster one more time to note the details of the target, then nods as he rolls it back up and tucks it away in his sleeve. Glancing around a bit, he strides over to the front door of the engineer's house and knocks smartly.
Maybelline answers the door a few moments later, looking rather professional in her jumpsuit, though behind her she does seem to have been preparing lunch ready in case a certain Captain happens to stop by for lunch, her expression drops slightly at the sight of the strange wolf, but not quite into disappointment. She quickly recovers and grins, "Oh um, hello? Can I help you? Generator business really should be inquired about at the other door, but..." She glances at the peculiar outfit. "I'm going to guess you're not here for Generator business."
Gareth blinks and angles his head down a bit when May answers the door, having expected someone at approximately eye level. He smiles a bit and shakes his head. "Aye, ye'd be right, lass. This isn't about the Generator, but it does have somethin' to do with magitech." He gestures a bit at May, "And with ye being the town's generator engineer, I couldn't think of anyone better to talk with."
Maybelline frowns a little suspiciously of the... pirate. "If you're selling parts, I can appraise them, but I'm not fully authorized to purchase. You'll have to speak with the city officials to actually receive any payment, but I can earmark whatever you've got and send you to them with a purchase order for them to approve."
Gareth shakes his head again, shrugging. "No, don't worry, lass, I'm not here to sell anythin' o' the sort to ye. I mostly just have a couple o' questions to ask about magitech, or... more specifically magitech applications and construction."
Maybelline tilts her head, now more confused then anything else. "Alright... magitech applications and construction, I can do, sure. What do you want to know?"
Gareth hums a bit, adopting a more relaxed posture now that they've gotten the misunderstandings out of the way... despite his appearance. "Mmh, well, regardless o' what ye think, I'm not a pirate, not anymore. Be that as it may, me current profession requires some heavy liftin' sometimes, and while I could just hire folks to help, I heard tell of someone - an inventor, I guess - that came up with somethin' fer easier solo work."
Maybelline hums, thinking it over, "Well... you'd likely be looking for something small, clamp with a lift on it? Some basic physics, really, just with a magic battery to amp up the lifting strength. Ironically easier to do at larger scale, but magitech is always hard to 'scale down'. If you give me a few hours I can probably get around to drawing you up a quick design? It wouldn't be perfect though."
Gareth chuckles and shakes his head again. "Thanks, but the inventor I heard o' knows how to make these..." He furrows his brow and looks up in thought for a moment, gesturing vaguely with a hand, "...Like... counter-gravity pads, or somethin' o' the sort. I appreciate the offer of ye blueprintin' somethin' fer me, but mobility is also necessary."
Maybelline raises an eyebrow. "Counter...gravity pads? Come to think of it, I think Nesseth had something like that? Probably something Strix built? His designs are... unorthodox, but more reliable then you'd think from first sight. So if you don't mind unusual design principles, Strix is quite brilliant."
Gareth shrugs and smiles. "Unorthodox is perfectly fine, so long as they get the job done." He tilts his head after a moment, "So... Strix, ye said? What's he charge fer all this?"
Maybelline shrugs, "Can't say. He sets up just outside of the market from time to time, I think he just tinkers some general use stuff together when he needs to buy more supplies for his other ideas."
Gareth nods. "Interestin'... well, maybe he'll cut me a deal if I offer to buy enough o' those pads off o' him..." He sighs and scratches a hand through the fur on his head, "Well, thank ye kindly fer the information, miss. I appreciate the help."
Maybelline nods, "Uh, yeah. No problem. So... why do you dress like a pirate anyways? You know you wouldn't always have to say 'I'm not a pirate anymore' if you changed the look. No offense, I guess it's definitely a unique look."
Gareth chuckles and grins again. "Old habits die hard, as they say. I'm rather fond of the dress style. Lightweight, and it protects from the sun if not necessarily the desert's heat. Plus, it makes fer a good deterrent fer the foolhardy idiots that don't get chased off by this, thinkin' they can cause trouble." He points at his left (and blinded) eye.
Maybelline shrugs in response, laughing lightly in turn, "Well, as long as you're not looking to cause trouble in turn, I'm no expert on fashion."
Gareth laughs heartily. "Only if there's a good reason. That doesn't happen too often, thankfully." He clears his throat, "Though, truth be told, it's mostly a vanity thing."
Maybelline smirks, "Can't say I've ever thought of a vain pirate, but I guess that makes sense?"
Gareth shrugs, still smiling. "Shortcomin' of me own, I guess. Kind o' hard to let go o' the style when it's been all ye've worn fer over a decade."
Maybelline shrugs, "I guess my style is a lack of style? Ah, well, anyways, I won't keep you, Mister um...?"
Gareth holds out a hand. "Gareth. Gareth Gwynn. Pleasure to meet ye, miss...?"
Maybelline reaches up to take Gareth's hand. "Maybelline Frecklemeyer."
Gareth gives May's hand a gentle shake, though his strength is probably somewhat evident in his grip. "Well, good to meet ye, Miss Maybelline, and again, thank ye kindly fer the information."
Maybelline does her best to give Gareth a strong grip back with her much smaller hand, "Of course. Good luck!"
Gareth dips his head as he breaks the handshake. "Thank ye, Miss Maybelline. I hope ye have yerself a good day." He smiles and waves as he turns to head out again, only to pause, "Oh, er, right, I almost forgot to ask... Where can I find Strix?"
Maybelline points towards the market. "Usually? Southern edge of the market, there's an alley he sets up in, if he's got stuff to sell. Beyond that, I can't rightly say."
Gareth nods again and looks over in the direction May's pointing. "Good to know. Hopefully he's there with things to sell, once I get me budget worked out."
Maybelline gives Gareth a thumbs up. "Well, hope to see you around town again, Mister Gareth!"
Gareth smiles brightly at May and gives her another wave as he turns to head away towards the Minnow again. "Ye'll be seein' me here and there, I'm sure, Miss Maybelline. Take care!"
Maybelline waves, "You too!" She turns and closes the door behind her with a shrug, "Pirate? Weird. This town has all kinds..." She goes back to her lunch, not really thinking much else about the encounter with Gareth.