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RESPITE FALLS - SAUR ENCAMPMENT - LUNCH TIME
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Maybelline climbs up from the trench dug by the construction crew, having finished up the first stage of the work for running lines to connect to the generator. She's wearing her usual work overalls, along with heavy gloves and construction helmet over her safety goggles. She was called in as 'expert advice' as the builders are lying down the power infrastructure for the new buildings. Lighting and water pumps and things like that, all need to be connected to Respite's grid. As she gets out of the hole, May removes her helmet, returning it to the crew and slipping her goggles up ontop of her head as she goes to take a seat and rest a moment, and consider what to do for lunch.
Scilla climbs up from another nearby trench, the muddied-up genet having been doing less-glamorous but just as important job of making sure the pipes down there actually are straight instead of merely looking like it. Some might say she has an eye for it, others merely think of her a dang perfectionist when it comes to this stuff, but either way she gets the job done better than the Saurs with varying levels of eyesight greatness. Not to mention that most of the Saurs are too big to comfortably work in a hole like that.
Maybelline tilts her head at the genet, as she comes close, having tried to been friendly with the construction crew, even as May's felt nervous and... hostile with the Saur. "Oh, hey there. You're with the construction crew?"
Scilla shrugs with a grin, not really bothering to dust off her overalls: "Construction crew of me, yup. Just helpin' these guys out to keep myself in muffins, you know how it goes."
Maybelline chuckles, "Sure. I'm Maybelline, but you can call me May."
Scilla grins: "I'm Scilla! Usually around to help hammer things the right way, or I could say that but I haven't really been in Respite long enough to justify a 'usually', so let's just go with that being my aim?"
Maybelline laughs again, "So you're not just going to pack up with the crew once the job's done, then? Thinking of staying permanently?"
Scilla shrugs, glancing around: "There's always tools that need be fixing, and I don't see that sort of work ending down here anytime soon. You?"
Maybelline grins, "I'm the Head Town Engineer... well, only town Engineer. I run the Generator, here make sure all the pipes get connected properly and that you're getting maximum output."
Scilla grins brighter: "Ooh, that's pretty spiffy! I wish I could get that kind of position one day." Her tail swishes in mild annoyance: "Been travelin' too much to really end up with that."
Maybelline tilts her head a second, then shrugs, "Well, took a lot of work for me to get this far. Spent more than a few years at Sarn Central University, and sorta... well, at the time I thought I blew my career in coming here, but honestly... I love this town now. Some recent company withstanding..." She glances around the Saur encampment with her own flash of bitterness.
Scilla blinks at May's glance, but gives a mental shrug. It's not like doesn't have problems involving 'recent company', herself. "I'm not much of an university gal, tried it but it's all so dry... I want to hammer things, not figure out the exact theory of how to do it. Failure is the best teacher!"
Maybelline 's face falls slightly, recent failure a bit too recent still, "I've had my fair share of failure too... can't work with magitech, or magic in general without it doing the unexpected now and again. Still... I prefer to approach things with as much knowledge as I can. Never been all that good at just 'figuring it out as I go'."
Scilla shrugs: "Pfweh. Magitech. Gimme raw metals to work with, I leave magic'ing that stuff to others." She hefts her trusty hammer with a grin: "And figuring it out as I go is basically the school I learned this stuff from." Her somewhat frizzled and muddy look would indicate that this has been the case today, too.
Maybelline nods, folding her hands onto her lap. "I've... a friend who does things much the same way. She's... ah. Don't worry about that. Point is... it uh, takes all kinds to learn and make things work. Magitech wouldn't be where it is today without folks who got themselves dirty. So uh, my respect."
Scilla grins brightly: "What's it matter if I get dirty if I get the job done, right? I'm not here to impress anyone with my -fabulous- looks anyway."
Maybelline laughs aloud, "Oh, looking 'fabulous' is definitely never been in the job description. Hear hear."
Scilla giggles: "At least someone gets it. Usually people around our type of professions, funny how that works."
Maybelline grins, "Hey, don't get me wrong, I've met plenty of stuffy engineers who think everything should be 'just so'." She blushes in embarrassment, "I used to be one myself. Until I met some better folks and got my hands a bit dirty here."
Scilla winks: "Well, at least you've learned so gotta give points for that." She cracks her neck: "Exact measurements are for engineering, not the looks of said engineers."
Maybelline chuckles. "Well, I meant in terms of... well, yeah, that too though. I am an engineer, after all. But honestly, for outfits? Just give me something with a lot of pockets and I'm fine." She nods down at her jumpsuit, which as she says, is rather lousy with pockets containing an assortment of tools.
Scilla glances at her toolbelt that's very heavily loaded: "I get what you mean." She shrugs: "My thing is more really fixing things than making them anyway. I'm decent at figurin' out how stuff works, maybe less so at that whole 'creating stuff' part."
Maybelline nods, "I'm trained in design and maintaining ICEE Generators. Kinda had to pivot a bit since then, what with AMP and all. So Respite has kind of an AMP-ICEE Generator, and now I'm just doing a lot of upkeep around town. Running a generator this size is mostly boring... unless things go wrong, then it's terrifying."
Scilla smirks, idly throwing her hammer up a bit and catching it: "Isn't that the case with most tech? But like, especially generators of any size, they're just looking for an excuse to blow up on your face."
Maybelline chuckles dryly, "Sometimes I think that's a literal statement..."
Scilla gives Maybelline a look: "Any experiences, hmm?"
Maybelline pats her side, "I've got the ICEE burns to prove it under this, yeah. My friend, Strix, only recently had an accident as well." She grows quiet, glancing down. "The one that hit me was just because the last Engineer was gone for years, leaving the generator to fall apart. Strix's accident was... well, we still don't fully know what happened."
Scilla hums, frowning: "I suppose with just steam stuff asploding, you know almost always what's the result of the explosion. Just survey damage, fix, move on. Magic..." She shakes her head: "Yeah."
Maybelline shrugs slightly, "Magitech is basically just applying steam technology to a much greater power source. A... much more unpredictable, unstable source too, sometimes. We've done a lot to make it as safe as possible, but..."
Scilla shakes her head: "It never is. Though I suppose no tech reaaaally is, so, yeah."
Maybelline nods, "Just the degree of damage the explosion causes that differs. Steamtech can do some pretty impressive damage, if you let it. But you know what that damage is going to do. Magic just does... stranger damage. Unpredictable damage."
Scilla glances aside: "Don't I know it..." She quickly shakes her head: "I mean, yeah. It's all kind of crazy if you think about it too much, which is why I usually don't."
Maybelline pats one of her pockets. "Fair enough. I still use all the old tools with magitech the same as any other kind of tinkering work. You'll never find a shortage of things to fix, I expect, no matter the type of technology it's made of."
Scilla smiles: "Yeah, pretty much what I'm counting on. I'll probably try to stick to mostly the stuff I can fix without glittering sparks coming out of it, but yeah."
Maybelline chuckles, "Well, if it's got glittering sparks, you can always call me. I'm in that big domed building in the center of town most days."
Scilla smirks: "I've been meaning to come investigate that place, so now you've basically invited me."
Maybelline nods, "More than basically. Consider yourself invited." The two continue to have some small talk about the jobs being done in the Saur Encampment before their break ends, and each heads off to resume their work.
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RESPITE FALLS - GENERATOR - LATE AFTERNOON
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Maybelline stretches as she returns to the generator after a long day of work. A few tests running in the background while she was off helping the construction effort, she just wants to check the results, file them away for tomorrow, and then head home.
Maybelline climbs the ladder up to her work displays, yawning slightly. She idly picks up her records and goes to write down the current readings.
Maybelline: "Output at 110. Efficiency loss... negative? Variance... zero?"
Maybelline blinks.
Maybelline double checks the numbers.
Maybelline lowers the clipboard and scratches her head. "Just yesterday you were running hot with a 30% variance... How is output even AT a hundred and ten percent expected?"
Maybelline puts her hand on the side of the generator, feeling the steady thrum vibrate through the room. She glances at the loose panel that had been troubling her, noting that it's still closed tight. After a moment of confusion trying to piece together this sudden, unexpected improvement, she shakes her head, chuckling, "Well, whatever's gotten into you... it looks good. Keep it up. Output like that, who even needs an amplifier upgrade, eh?"
Maybelline chuckles again, making a few more notes and triple checking the readings, then climbing back down to head home, smiling as the generator hums happily behind her.