Posted by Lieutenant Commander Bethany Kovra Gadi (Chief of Security) 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 Lieutenant Miranda Martel (Chief Engineer) in Bang, Clang, Hammer and Twist! - Open
Posted by… suppressed (9) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)
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.”

Bethany looked where Miranda was pointing and nodded. She walked over to the forge and activating the anti-grav sled it was on moved it out so it was about 3 feet away from everything, turned the anti-grav sled off and made sure it was securely in place. Then she ran the cables and hooked into the EPS outlet. It was a good thing Bethany was a whiz with computers, otherwise she’d be lost on how to ‘initialize’ a forge. In truth it wasn’t difficult - it was a machine like any other.

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, she 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.

She dried the metal off, placing them where Miranda indicated and then helped to put things away as they were no longer needed. Bethany listened with quiet attentiveness as Miranda explained what she was doing. She had a passion for this hobby and it was almost palatable. There really wasn’t much for Bethany to do, but that wasn’t the point in asking her to stay. Miranda didn’t need her help, she just wanted the company. Bethany was happy to fill that role.

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

Bethany pulled out a PaDD from the cargo pocket of her pants and looked through it for several long moments. “No one’s paged me and everything looks good for now. I said two hours, looks like you’ll get the second one. So, what now Boss?”

Gadi

OOC: Can I get in on this?

-Kieron-

OOC: Of course!
Jenn

((OOC: The honorable delegates from Malastare concur. Feel free to join, but be mindful of the hammers, and there’s lots of hot and sharp things around.))

“Well, if there was anything urgent, they would have hit your combadge,” Miranda replied while shoving one billet back into the the induction forge. . “Soon as this gets back up to temp, gonna stretch it out on the big hammer. Get it hot again. Then we start the shaping. I’ll want to do the ring first, so we’ll need to use a swedge. How are you with a hammer?”

Martel

Bethany shrugged with a grin, “You use it to hit things, while avoiding smashing your own digits to pieces. I’ve never used one to bang hot metal, but tell me what to do.”

Gadi, CoS

“Well,” a voice came from across the room, “Certainly an interesting tactic to pass the time Commander,” Paddy chuckled and added, “Mind if I offer my assistance?”

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counsellor-

Bethany looked up, “Counselor,” she said by way of greeting. “Well that would be up to Lt Martel. This is her project and her equipment. I’m just here to follow orders.” Bethany turned the hammer in her hand a couple times and then flipped it - handle to hammer and back. “It’s got a good weight, make an awesome assault weapon.”

Gadi, CoS

Paddy, trying not to let his concern flash up at Gadi’s initial thought of turning a tool into a weapon, glanced about at some of the tools strewn about the room before him, “Have all of these been replicated, Miranda?”

-Lieutenant Patrick McMillan: Counsellor-

That she’d addressed him by her given name did not pass her by. They weren’t that close. Even her last name would have been preferable. She stared at the man as she shoved a bar of steel into the induction coils. “Counselor. And mostly, only in the interest of expediency. It’s not like the machine shop really is worth making single run jobs in, for making gear for a hobby. Some of it I had to assemble by hand, of course.” By then the bar of steel had gone from a dark cherry back to forging temperatures. Making her way over to the tall power hammer there, she put one foot on the large press bar to activate it. The massive ram slammed own with enough force to vibrate the decking several meters away. Bam-Bam-Bam-Bam-Bam-Bam-Bam. Over and over it struck, hard, fast, in a steady rhythm. Every blow, she adjusted the billet in time, spark flying, moving it back and forth. The rectangular block, in a matter of moments stretched into a long bar about the length of her arm.

Stepping away the shop fell silent again and she went back to the induction forge, working the metal back up to heat. She glanced over at Bethany, then back to the Lieutenant. “Can we help you with something,” she asked. She was uncertain as to his purpose and presence. Was he here to help? Join in? To try to cause a problem sticking his nose in their business? Was he out to try to blackmail them? His tone certainly seemed overly casual and overly familiar.

Lt Martel, CE

Bethany found a crate among Miranda’s things that wasn’t labelled as fragile or dangerous and took a seat while she watched. The skill and power (despite the power hammer Mira was using) was impressive. She didn’t miss Miranda’s guardedness. She was slow to trust and open up. Even though she was quick to defend anyone she thought deserved it even if they didn’t need it. Paddy on the other hand was eager to socialize and be everyone’s friend. It was an explosive situation. “It’s really a beautiful process. Did you know that Klingons still make all their weapons this way? The weapons are passed down through the families which most people know, but it’s more than just an heirloom, it tells a story of the smith who made it, where it was made and why. Including the story of people who wield it. That’s where this came from.” From out of seemingly thin air the karambit appeared in her hand and she twirled it on a single finger from the O ring on the back end. “Friend had each of us made a different weapon several years ago. He commissioned them from Ochil, son of Shalvad, House of D’Ghor.” It might sound like a brag, but there was great respect and reverence as Bethy spoke and looked over the blade. Ochil was one of the best known weapon smiths of the century in the Empire.

Gadi, CoS

Bump

Miranda paused in what she was doing, looking down at the template pattern on the workbench in front of her. Her jaw took on a hard set as her head hung. Her dark red hair obscured her face. After a minute she turned toward the induction rig. Reaching out, she pulled the heating pieces of metal free with a jerk and then tossed them on a rack to air cool, almost throwing them down. What the hell am I doing. She shook her head.

She took a deep breath then turned toward Bethany, giving her a smile but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Awesome. And no, I didn’t, but that’s ..” She paused for a half second. “Pretty great. I’ll have to look into it more. I’m sure there’s a lot to learn there.” She put both hands on her hips for a moment, then reached up to scratch at the edge of her upper lip. She opened her mouth as if to say something more, then turned back to the forge, arms crossed over her chest, fingers of one hand tracing over her lips as she stared without really seeing.

Martel