Posted by Lieutenant Commander Bethany Kovra Gadi (Chief of Security) in Bang, Clang, Hammer and Twist! - Open

Posted by Lieutenant Miranda Martel (Chief Engineer) in Bang, Clang, Hammer and Twist! - Open

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Bethany Kovra Gadi (Chief of Security) in Bang, Clang, Hammer and Twist! - Open
Posted by… suppressed (10) by the Post Ghost! 👻
It was late afternoon, getting toward evening in the ship’s shift rotation. Miranda was officially off duty. There were other senior chiefs that took the other shifts, but she was still on call when things went sideways. Despite how things were going, she felt no small amount of frustration. And counseling wasn’t.... It just wasn’t. So it was she made her way into her quarters, stripped out of uniform and into civies. Dark pants, boots, a comfortable shirt, then a long-sleeved starched top over it that already had a few burn holes in it, small, but if one looked they could spot them. Her hair went up into a bandana. It wasn’t a flattering look, but… it was meant for work. A different kind of work.

Grabbing a heavy tool bag she slipped out and then down the corridor. Moments later the door to Gadi’s quarters slid open and Miranda stepped inside, casting her gaze about. Making her way to the drink station the Lieutenant Commander kept stocked, she pulled out a thermos from her bag and went to setting it up for some tea. Bethany had left a standing invitation to come on in and make some whenever she wanted. At least that was what Miranda had understood, and she hoped that agreement still stood. Or this was gonna get very bad, very fast, if she took exception to it.

Miranda, totally not being sketchy

Bethany usually worked alpha shift. That’s when most of the senior staff was on shift, but she was also always on call. And if Elias was on board she was watching him. She had just finished the hand over when she got an alert on her PaDD. Checking it brought up a video feed of her quarters, and Miranda making herself tea. Good the woman needed to feel she had friends and was secure.

It was a short ride down to her quarters. She walked in, “Hey Miranda.” And she went about her new routine of looking to see if anything was missing.

Gadi

As the hatch opened, Miranda jerked ever so slightly, then glanced over her shoulder. Seeing it was Bethany, she relaxed, especially when the woman used her given name. “Hey,” she echoed back, then sat her items down on the work space so she wouldn’t drop them. Considering for a moment she chewed her bottom lip, then turned around. “Sorry for …” She gestured around vaguely. “But I didn’t wanna go down to the mess hall. And you said…” Her face heated. Clearing her throat she straightened up. What was wrong with her?

Bethany nodded as she collapsed into one of her chairs. “I did say, and I told you then. I wouldn’t offer if I didn’t mean it.” But she was really going to have to clean up. By some standards this was neat, but not for her. Oh well, time for some adulting. “Any time, help yourself.” She laid her head back and stared out the window behind her.

Studying Beth for a moment she tilted her head. “You look more wiped out than I feel. Are you okay?”

Bethany waved her hand, like she was drawing everything in to her. “Yeah, just busy, like everyone else. Prep for this mission is taking too long.”

“I uh… while I have you here… I was wondering if I could borrow your karambit knife you had the other day. Just for a few minutes.” She’d liked the design, and well, she wanted to try something related to it.

Miranda, a glowing idiot

Bethany raised her head and looked at Miranda. “My karambit? Sure, but only if you tell me why.”

Gadi

“Uh, well. I can tell you, or I can show you,” she said, dropping her sealed thermos into her bag. Bag in hand, she made her way over then offered her free hand. “Come on.”

Miranda

She grasped Miranda’s forearm but when she stood out was under her own power. “Let me grab the knife.” Bethany never carried the same weapon constantly, she never wanted to get caught overly comfortable. She slipped into her bedroom and returned a minute later. She flipped the blade around handing it to Miranda handle first and then followed her out.

Gadi

The engineer accepted the blade. Her index went into the ring at the end of the handle and she spun it once, then back the other direction like it was part of her. She gave Bethany a nod, then lead her out into the corridor. Making for the lift she sent them to Deck 3, and made her way to Cargo Bay B. Stepping through the double, heavy doors, she headed up to the second level, up a ladder, then toward the exterior bulkhead. There, in a small area that was maybe three meters by three meters, taped off on the floor was a set of positively archaic pieces of equipment. There was a large box with insulated casing around it, with tubes that ran off to tanks. It was pushed against the wall and didn’t look like it was in use. Then there was another device on a stand with big metal coils. A bucket that was sealed. A work bench with a grinder. This bench she sat her bag on. But in the middle of it was a large wooden block, with a horned hunk of steel, a London anvil that looked like it weighed more than both of them put together. There were various other tools, neatly organized in bins along the perimeter, and reaching up another three meters, a neat cube she’d sectioned off for herself.

From one side of the workbench she opened a tray and pulled out a sheet of white material. Paper. On this she sat the karambit’s curved form, and very quickly went to tracing the outer shape, as well as inside the ring. Handing the weapon back, she gestured around. “I know space is at a premium,” she said as though she could already hear the objections from the ops chief. “But I can set this all up so that it collapses and takes much less space for storage. I just have it all folded out for now. Welcome to the forge. My forge.” Idly she bit her lower lip, bouncing lightly on the balls of her feet nervously.

Miranda, plz don’t kick me out…

Bethany took her knife back, flipped it around and with a strange little wrist flick the knife disappeared. She looked around at the equipment and grinned. Jake would love this, F’actar too. “Traditional blacksmithing, almost a lost art.” Bethany shrugged at Miranda’s comment about space. “We’re all allowed a bit of storage space for our personal things. If this is what you use yours for, that’s your business. Especially if you enjoy it. So what do you plan to do with it?” Bethany pointed at the paper.

Gadi

bump

It was way more space at least when in use than regs allowed for. BUT! When it was put up, it wasn’t a lot. At least on a ship where space came at a premium. compared to some other’s she’d been on, the Asimov was claustrophobic and cramped. Very Spartan. Not that she minded. “Well, I haven’t made one, so first I wanna at least try it. And…” She sighed, fidgeting a little. “I wanted to make a nice matching double set, if I can. And yeah, I know I could just cut out some steel with a laser, water jet, or plasma cutter, but it’s different when you actually shape it by moving glowing hot steel, work it down, harden, sharpen, and put all the fit and finish on it.” The engineer shrugged one shoulder and rubbed at her left forearm with her right hand, shifting her weight from side to side while not quite meeting Gadi’s gaze.

Miranda

Bethany smiled, “Then make it. We’re just sitting around watching molasses drip. If you enjoy blacksmithing then enjoy making it. I’d like to see them when they are done.” Everyone needed a hobby and Miranda seemed to love it. She also seemed to think Bethy would judge her harshly for it. That wasn’t going to happen.

Gadi, CoS

Miranda nodded with a small smile. “Alright. I’ll let you know when I have something, unless you’d like to get involved,” she asked. She doubted the security chief had the time. In truth with the work going on with the ship, she didn’t really either. But it was an outlet, and something she needed. and could make that into useful things. Some might have raised an eyebrow at choosing to make the knives. But to her mind, they were pieces of art, functional tools, and might save a life one day, even if it might also take a life. There was balance in all things. And if her gift would help someone she cared about, she would do it a hundred times over.

At the same time, she knew she could have developed what she wanted in the holodeck or on a PADD and then simply had it replicated. But the value wasn’t just in the creativity, but the work put in. And it would always be unique in a way that a replicator never was. EAch one would be unique, even if they appeared the same.

Miranda

“I have no experience with anything like this, but I’m happy to give you an hour or two. Not sure how much help I will be.” Bethany didn’t really think twice about Miranda wanting to make by hand. All her weapons, except those issued by SF, were hand made, just like the karambit that Miranda had borrowed. “So tell me what to do. I think I remember how to take orders,” Bethy grinned.

Gadi

An hour or two. That was enough to get things well under way and more than she could have hoped for. “Alright.” Miranda rubbed her hands together. “See that induction forge, with the circular coils? roll that out a couple feet, make sure it’s hooked up to that EPS outlet. Then feel free to initialize it. While you do that, I’m going to start getting set up for my billet.”

The engineer quickly moved off to the side and pulled out a couple flat pieces of metal only a few centimeters across, but a few meters long. Some stroke with a plasma cutter chopped them down to size very quickly. The pieces went into a tray of solvents to make sure the metal was very clean. She enlisted Bethany’s help in drying them off while she got more equipment ready, and welded the pieces together into a block, alternating the metals. As they went,s he explained the process, and the hows and the why’s. Then she attached a piece of metal for a long handle, and then, into the forge it went, resting on a piece of ceramic in the middle as a shelf. It would be a pain to hold it in the middle of the induction field for long. Thankfully, an induction forge was far faster than traditional forges. In a couple of minutes the whole thing was glowing a bright yellow, until it’s heat stopped rising (she checked). It wasn’t magnetic anymore, so it was at proper forging temps.

From there she pressed the pieces together in her main press. Satisfied that the welds were good, it was time to consider any further patterns. Splitting the billet in two on her force hammer took maybe a minute, then from there, drilling the sides out, a couple more. Satisfied, she smiled to herself and explained to her momentary assistant, what kind of pattern it would make. Raindrop Damascus. Then it was time to reheat, and the first hour had gone by.

“Time to go,” she asked, cleaning her hands on a towel while waiting for the pieces to heat up. The shop was quiet for the moment, save for the hum of the coils and their power supply and the air scrubbers moving air about, and the deep hum and vibration of the Azzie’s over-powered engines rumbling away.

Miranda