PWD #39: Bring Me Something
Bring me Something
Summary: Sera and Duke meet at the Hangar Bay, the chat ends with a request.
Date: 27/Nov/2012 (OOC Date)
Related Logs: None
Duke Sera 
Hangar Bay - Deck 3 - Battlestar Orion
Each hangar deck is divided into five one-hundred yard sections, each divided from the others by massive blast doors that close vertically from the floor and overhead. Each hangar section houses all of the Vipers, Raptors, and Predators that the wing operates as well as the vital work areas to support and maintain these fighting platforms. Each bay is large enough to accommodate one of these frames and still get heavy work done, though the fore- and aft-most sections are dedicated to overhauls and major work to be done. The bays along the center section are located across from launch tubes and elevators in order to provide scramble and Alert-Five capabilities. The second-to-aft bay provides major elevator and transport access to the starboard bay as well as the major manufacturing facility. Due to the nature of the work, the hangar decks are major hubs of activity at all hours of the day and all but four hours overnight.
November 27, 2004 (PWD #39)

The deck is, almost unfailingly, a noisy, busy place swarming with entirely too much going on at it. Controlled chaos would probably be the best way to describe it. But with the ship in port? Well, it's really more about loading and unloading equipment than prepping Vipers to launch, which is work that can be performed by a shell crew while half of the Orion's knuckledraggers are drinking down planetside before spending the next 18 months floating through the black. There's only a handful of people around, one of whom is Sera. At the moment, she consists primarily of a pair of legs dangling from the guts of a Predator, which she's literally had to crawl into in order to repair. The boots, the orange jumpsuit? All easy to mistake for anyt other deckhand. The muffled swearing in a thick Trojan accent echoing from inside a giant tin can? That's gotta be her.

And you know? That swearing? That has probably been there since day one, which means, it'll be something very familiar for Duke. In the particular situation they are in right now, it means that Richard Duke, and a lot of the other pilots from the Air-Wing, are enjoying a little more free time. For Duke? This means that he is often seen wandering around the Battlestar, wearing his normal off-duty outfit, just checking on things. His wandering leads him towards the Hangar Deck, where all the pretty Vipers and Raptors are. A few times he asked if he can give a hand, knowing a few things when it comes to Repairs, being able to at least assist…but normally, rejection hits him in the face. The legs dangling underneath the Raptor is not what calls for his attention, no. It's the cursing, it's that cursing that brings a slightly amused smile to his lips (if, a little faint) He marches towards the Raptor and gets one knee on the floor, leaning to do side before saying "If it isn't the mouthy jailbait"

"Did you know," she announces from behind a metal panel, which causes her voice to simultaneously be stifled and echo, "that whoever designed the fuel lines on this beast ought to be court marshalled? I've seen asteroids with less cracks in them." Her pronouncement of guilt is accompanied by an irritated huff. Some hello that is.

"I think it might have been one of my professors at the University" announces Richard Duke, leaning down against the frame of the Raptor, slowly looking around for a moment before adding "Then again, so many people worked on these guys, I cannot be certain if he's the one to blame" The Viper Pilot has a degree in Aerospace Engineering, specializing in astronautical engineering. "Which of course only means that every Raptor Pilot should worship you for keeping them alive" And there is another faint smile.

A few seconds later, a length of hose comes dropping out of the access panel. Well, not dropped, so much as flung down to the deck with vehemence. Sera's boots follow shortly, then the rest of her. She hasn't got her helmet on, which must mean that she couldn't physically fit in there with it strapped to her head. No wonder her safety goggles are askew and she's got several long gray smudges down one side of her face. "Will you look at this?," she demands a little too loudly, no doubt compensating for the plugs in her ears or the metal panels that had just been surrounding her, but which aren't any longer. A length of cracked and pitted black hose is dangled in front of his face, while hers sports and exasperated expression. "Who the frak expects THIS to survive the cold, hard vaccuum of space for more than ten seconds?! Someone who isn't in their right mind, that's who."

Duke lifts his right hand and taps on his ear with his index finger, possibly telling her to take the earplus off. Then, he examines the hose she is showing him and says "To be fair, it seems that this has been ready for replacement for quite some time now" He smirks at this last and then adds "It was good that you caught this, otherwise, they would have faced some serious trouble" He looks around one more time but his attention goes back to her almost right away "A lot of people enjoying Virgon it seems, I was down there a couple night ago" See, the good thing about seeing familiar faces (meaning people he met before joining Orion) is that he perhaps talks a little more, which is good really.

Sera takes a second to readjust her goggles in order to keep herself from squinting up at him all screwy-eyed and the brush her bangs out from underneath them. Given how dirty her hands are, it doesn't really help with the whole stuff-on-her-face thing. "Virgon? Really? I thought you were zoomin' off to Aerilon for a few to see your folks. I would've stayed down planetside longer, but with exams comin' and Mama bein' out of vacation time, I didn't want to be in the way."

"I did go to Aerilon. My father is not keeping well, it's nothing bad, but the old guy thinks he can do whatever he wants without caring for his health" he shakes his head at this and adds "My mother pretty much revoked his permission to go outside and play, so I covered all his work for the following weeks. It was pretty nice, I missed flying the cropduster" He half smile seeing how dirty her face is and then adds "You know, it would really help if you keep a bucket of water and some towels near the birds." He shrugs at this "Just my input" Then, he finally asks "How's your mother doing? And the sister?"

"Help with what?," she asks, blinking. If there's one thing you can trust in a knuckledragger, it's complete and utter ignorance of what a mess they're making of all the shiny new surfaces — so long as everything works. "Mama's doin' okay. Lonely, I think, with everyone gone or out of the house, but keepin' busy. Elle's…," she trails off, starting to grin just a little. "Elle's changed her mind about what kinda medicine she wants to go into. Again. I think it's goin' to end up being whatever she was studyin' in her last week of school, just because it was the latest thing to catch her eye. That girl."

Duke extends one hand towards her and makes a circle with his index finger "Dust and grease" Another faint smile is showing to the girl and then he nods at what she says about her mother "I think that, as long as she keeps herself busy, there won't be any problems. It's hard, for the family that remains in our home planets…my mother doesn't particularly like the fact that I'm away for so long, even when I'm almost 39 years old. I guess things don't change" And then her sister? "You light up when you speak of her" He nods at this and then offers "Being an only child, is, strange I guess…"

"Well, it's not like I signed up for three years on this floatin' can for the sight-seeing tour, you know?," she says, idly reaching up to rub stuff off her face with her sleeve. Which isn't particularly helpful, but at least it doesn't make it worse. More like it distributes the dirt more evenly. "She's doin' really well in school and I wouldn't expect any less, given the circumstances."

"Granted, it's pretty good money" he says, not really in disagreement with the amount of money he gets paid for being here. Besides, for him? It works perfectly, he wanted to be away of Picon, now he is very away from it. "Oh you can say you are more than proud of your little sister, allow yourself that. I promise not to reveal that you are actually, not that much of a hard ass as you portray yourself to be" Now, the man takes a deep breath and rubs both hands on his face, as if trying to wake himself up a little more "I feel like I should get as much sleep as I can before we leave again." Or perhaps it's the alcohol that gets him sleepy.

Her grin. It's shameless. "Someone has to keep the kids on their toes, before they make somethin' go boom and we lose half the port side of the ship. I mean, that's where the pool is." There's a pause before she adds, while pointing to a small counter near the doors that's reserved for plans and coffee pots, "We made a fresh pot. You want one? It's not like it's stamped 'deck only' or somethin'."

"We don't want to lose the pool, no" says Richard Duke, agreeing to this. When she points to that counter, he looks and then clicks his tongue "You know, I will actually accept the invitation." And with that, he takes just a couple steps in that direction but turns, waiting for her. "Then again, are you sure it doesn't have anything funny in it?" Past experiences? Maybe. But at this point, he could really use a cup of coffee, really. No, really. "So no visits to Virgon for you then?" asks the man, revisiting this subject.

"Naw, it's clean. I drink the same stuff," she says, bending down to pluck up the piece of discarded hosing she'd left on the deck. Sera, of all people, is not about to leave a pile of FOAD around to get sucked up into some engine. She tosses them into the scrap bin before following behind him. "Stocked up on some of the good stuff planetside, too, for special occasions next year, when we're all staring at freeze-dried gods-know-what, dreamin' of bein' back in our own kitchens. I might go back down one more time or two before we pull out of port, but like I said, Elle's got exams comin' and I don't want to be in her way. That's too important."

"I understand it's important, but I'm not saying you should place yourself in Elle's way…just..go outside, smell the flowers or whatever" Look who's talking. "I can't say I miss my own kitchen" offers Duke, showing a bit of faint smile that Sera will understand. While she gets everything cleared, he pours two cups of coffee, placing hers on the counter next to the sugar and all other elements that one can add for flavor. For himself, he just adds a little bit of sugar and then takes a sip from it, licking his lips afterwards.

"Maybe," she says with a faint shrug of her shoulders, which are entirely enveloped by her jumpsuit. Gender neutral? Really? The thing is like a tent on her, even with a smaller size. "I mean, yeah, it says Virgon on my papers and all, but it's not exactly home, if you know what I mean? I'm Virgon because my parents were Virgon, and their parents were Virgon, and their parents were Virgon when they went to Troy in the hopes of findin' work. That's… about it."

And Duke nods "I know what you mean, but I never mentioned going down there for a sense of home. I'm purely talking about seeing something other than…" and then he looks around "Know what I mean?" He drinks some more coffee, this time just enjoying the taste a little before speaking again. "There's a bar called, The Royals, or something around that nature…the other night I went there and found that a lot of people from Orion did the same thing"

Sera doesn't bother putting sugar in hers. Just a tiny little dash of cream, barely enough to keep from drinking it black, before swirling her mug around a bit to stir. "There's always the Pyramid teams. I can't imagine what the goin' price for tickets to see United play the All Reds is, though. Man, I could probably furnish half a flat for what I bet the scalpers are askin' for those."

"Enough to stop being worth it" says Duke, just shaking his head. He finishes his coffee and drops the plastic cup on the trash, later tuning around to see her again. "And now that we are past the half season mark, things will get even more expensive" Not that it will matter since they are leaving soon enough. He shrugs at this and simply says "I'll head down to Virgon a couple more times perhaps, I need to replenish my cigars, actually, get some clothes because I'm bored of the ones I brought with me and…" he thinks for a moment and just shakes his head "No, I think that's about it"

"Buy a couple of new Triad packs, will you? I was in the mess the other day when this jarhead calls me over, right? Says his name is Judah. Apparently, he appreciated the warnin' about keepin' his paycheck in his pocket if he plays me, but with two platoons comin' on board at port, I figure we're goin' to have a whole bunch of kids straight out of A-school signin' on. And bein' as you all were so very kind to me when I was a fresh-faced little thing on my first ship, I think we ought to continue upholdin' the fine naval tradition of cleanin' the newbs out." She cocks a black brow at him knowingly. Triad? Fresh meat? How can he resist? "I mean, the young bucks are always so kind and gentlemanly, offerin' to help a lady learn how to play, makin' sure she doesn't get taken advantage of by his friends from basic. Like this is Caprica City or somethin' and us poor little girls can't hold a door for ourselves, let alone figure out the difference between a straight and a flush."

"The thing is, I don't think look like a lady, specially when I'm showing a beard" says Duke, clearly amused by this. "But sure, I'll get some decks for you, I'm sure you'll want to use fresh cards when you start cleaning the house." Now, as for the for the Universal peeps being kind to her? "We didn't clean you that bad, did we?" he smiles a little and says "It's a good way to learn, I believe and to be fair, you got better a lot faster than most. I think you were driven by a thirst of revenge, and I think I'm partly, if not completely, guilty about that" He shakes his head "I think I might have created a Monster. My sense of duty tells me to hand flyers that read 'Beware of the tiny mechanic'" The man shakes his head at this and continues with "It's been some time since I last played, I would say that it's more than likely that you'll clean me up. Which is why I will refuse to play against you"

"It's really no fun if you go spoilin' the surprise, Bumper. Besides, with all my paychecks goin' home, a girl's gotta have a little pocket money to pay for cigarettes at the post, right?," she says, smirking over the rim of her mug. "I mean, if you're really soooo worried about the poor kids, if you feel sooooo duty-bound to protect them, the honorable thing to do would be to throw yourself in the line of fire and take the bullet for them. And it you don't seem to feel THAT bad about what you people pulled with my poor pocketbook on the Universal."

"You still can't win against me" says the man with a perfectly calm expression. However, an amused smile crawls on his lips before he says "And no, worry not, I won't be the one passing out flyers to warn people against your Triad skills. You can clean the house and make all that money, but I would hurry up, new people is already appearing. Not that I am so overly familiar with the old people that I can tell the difference, but still" At the last, he does chuckle with amusement, shrugging his shoulder "Hey, I wasn't the one that gave you the nickname"

"And yet, somehow, it seems to keep fallin' out of your mouth. Imagine that," she asks, canting her head to one side and giving him the most innocently expectant expression. Like she just can't possibly fathom how that happened. "I'm ten years too old for that, you know. We're going to have to find some other kid to stick with it."

"Hey now, I was assigned to another place just a few months after you joined, I'm just making up for all those lost years" says Duke, smiling at this. However, he does nod and adds "But, alright, have it your way…but don't say I'm not a kind soul" The ten year too old does get a chuckle and he just says "If any, you still look young? Not many can say that…I mean, look at me, I'm an old fart" He was also ten years younger at that time, after all. Damn, time goes by way too fast.

"Ohhh, yeah. A regular geezer. Almost forty! Pretty soon, we're going to have to take you out back and shoot you, like a lame horse," Sera advises him with a sage nod. "It's for your own good, really. I mean, if you keep at it, sooner or later they're just goin' to chain you to a desk and have you fillin' out papers in triplicate until retirement, anyway."

"A desk job is what I worked my hardest to avoid while doing Instructor work at the Airbase in Picon. I was out there all the time, flying…which I guess worked out pretty well. Yeah, I had to give theory too but…" says the man, shrugging at this. Then he says "At least I'm back in a Squadron, I was actually missing that quite a bit, to be honest" Now, he just looks at all the equipment around them and back at her "But anyway, should head out, I believe we are doing low atmo flights" He takes a step back and then says "So, Triad decks…something else?" asks Duke now, just checking to see what else does she wishes for him to bring her back.

"A cute Hibernian with a bit of scruff on him wouldn't hurt," she says with a shrug and a sip. "But I don't think command would let me keep him. Not in storage, anyway. Probably start to smell after awhile." This is muttered as much to her drink as to him, before she gives him the old coffee-salute — her cup raised in a departing toast before she has to get back to work.

Unless otherwise stated, the content of this page is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License