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PINNA'S APARTMENT - AFTERNOON
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Maybelline walks up to the indicated address on the service request, sighing a bit at the sudden uptick in service calls. Lots of little power failures city wide, brown-outs mostly. She's assuming this request, put in by one of the construction crew bosses, will be more of the same. She's in her work jumpsuit, with her tool set slipped into her pockets and belt. She double checks the apartment number and knocks.
Pinna opens the door almost immediately. "Maintenance? You're maintenance, right??"
Maybelline nods, taking a moment to adjust her view... down... that's not too common, "Yep! Maybelline Frecklemeyer, City Engineer. I do maintenance as well. What seems to be the problem? Lights? Water heater?"
Pinna practically pulls the stoat through the door. "It's my partner! He hasn't been able to move since this morning!"
Maybelline eeps as she's pulled inside by the mouse, "Gah! Um, your partner? I'm not really much of a couple's counselor...?"
Pinna pulls May towards a figure resting motionless under a blanket, on the floor. It seems dire. "Please, you gotta help him!"
Maybelline blinks, creeping towards the blanket with an ominous swallow. "I'm uh... I'm not much of a doctor either..." Her hands are shaking as she reaches for the sheet, pulling back the cover.
Pinna: [A mechanical face is revealed as May pulls back the covers. This is clearly just a machine, but Pinna continues making concerned noises on the side.
Maybelline stares at the machine beneath the cover, then slowly pulls the sheets back the rest of the way, "Oh! Oh wow! I'd heard about these coming down the line, but never got to see one for myself! Is this a Model L-4? I can diagnose this! So, problem seems to be in the ambilation? Is it powering on correctly?" May cracks her knuckles and starts to check the machinery's joints.
Pinna blinks. "L-4? Y-yeah, he is! I try to take good care of him, but he still breaks every now and then..." Her ears droop sadly.
Maybelline nods excitedly, "I've only seen a few of the diagrams out of the Sarn Engineering Journals, stuff like the initial designs of the leg array, but never a fully intact unit! Still, I imagine being a construction worker puts a lot of stress on it, even if... he, you said? Even if he's in the best of shape."
Pinna nods. "If you get him working, I can show you what he can do!"
Maybelline opens up a diagnostic panel and starts checking a few things, humming. She glances at Pinna with a smile, "Haven't met a piece of Magitech that I can't fix yet. You uh... you help build him, or just work partners?"
Pinna chuckles. "Just work partners. The bosses put me on a special prototype test run because I'm so good at drivin' stuff. Plus the driver's seat is mouse-sized anyways!"
Maybelline chuckles, "Makes sense. I got to train with a lot of the smaller scale work in the Sarn Generators because I could fit into some smaller spaces." She thinks, trying to run the mech through a power cycle. "Yeah, okay, I thought so... I think it's a power supply problem."
Pinna scratches her head. "Hmm, battery might have gone bad?" She sits opposite May and pats the machine on the head."
Maybelline sighs, "Maybe? Have you been charging over local lines, or independent power sources?"
Pinna: "Ahh, I might have had to charge local a couple times when I was uh...out doin stuff. Not good?"
Maybelline shrugs, glancing back down at the panel as she unscrews a few connectors to reach the power supply. "Not bad. But there's been some heavy strain on the power grid lately. Might have caused an issue? I'm uh, still tracking down the root cause."
Pinna pats the machine again. "Aw geez, I'm sorry buddy..."
Maybelline smiles sadly at the display of attachment. One she knows well with her own creations. "Well, depending on the cause of the strain, it's more likely my fault? Err, in so much as you can't actually find the City at fault, anyways. I just mean that as... well, it should be able to handle powering up something like your partner without issue. But I'll just find the faulty power supply, replace that, and probably make a little feedback dampener to stop too much power going in or out at once, and you'll be all set!"
Pinna fist pumps. "Nice! You're amazing, May~"
Maybelline chuckles, working her fingers in to pry the last panel upwards, "I try to remain humble, but sometimes I can be, yes. I don't think I got your name?"
Pinna smiles. "It's Pinna. Oh! Do you want a snack or a drink?"
Maybelline starts to shake her head, then stops, "Err, maybe? If you've got something sweet." She pats the mech, "What about him? Does he have a name? Probably silly sounding to ask, but..."
Pinna gets up and moves towards the kitchen. "Oh, don't worry, folks call him Pinna, too! He doesn't mind."
Maybelline raises an eyebrow at Pinna, or well, 'Pinna', then back at Pinna with shrug. "Well, makes it easy to remember at the least." She reaches in fiddling a bit to work to remove the burnt out power supply and take measurements for a new one.
Pinna rummages around for some candy or baked goods. "Some people call him "Metal Man" but that just sounds silly."
Maybelline slides out the bad power supply, turning it over in her hand. She calls back to Pinna "Well uh, I call the city generator Amee.... she's a lot bigger but a lot less mobile."
Pinna comes back with some sweet bread and bottled orange juice. "Oh, for real? Do you sometimes hear her talkin' to you?" She pauses. "Sorry, that was weird."
Maybelline glances at Pinna, growing quiet a moment. "I... don't. But I swear sometimes she's talking to me. Like, sometimes doors open, or I get weird readings, or... err, sorry. That's weird too, isn't it?" She pats Pinna (the mech), "Do you hear him talking? I'd believe it."
Pinna takes her seat again and passes May her snack and drink. "Well, y'know...yeah, it's like a whisper when I'm driving, sometimes. Wonder if it's because I'm sittin' so close to the magitech thingy."
Maybelline wipes her hands before gratefully taking the sweet bread and drink. "I've heard similar things from other engineers, you work with a piece of tech long enough you start to develop a sixth sense with it. Amee seems... different though. Maybe it's something else with him too?"
Pinna munches on her snack thoughtfully. "Hmm, I wonder if they can talk to each other?"
Maybelline enjoys her snack as well, considering it as she eyes the bad power supply. She slips it into a pocket of her jumpsuit and pulls out a fresh one. "That... could be interesting? They could make friends with each other, maybe?"
Pinna giggles. "Like a magitech playdate? Maybe I really should bring Pinna over~"
Maybelline giggles along, "Well, worst to happen would be nothing, and I can use my bigger tools to give Pinna a tune-up. I've got enough here to get him working and hopefully prevent another incident, but back at the Generator I could really give him the works, you know? And uh... maybe something will come of it?"
Pinna grins. "So what other kinds of tech do you work on, May?"
Maybelline finishes her sweet bread, setting the juice aside as she turns back to finish replacing Pinna's power supply. "Oh, besides the Generator, I work with all sorts of little stuff on the side..." She and Pinna continue to talk while May works.
Pinna gets along quite well with May over the next hour or so, until they regrettably have to part ways and go on with their day.