Private Mechanics and Warriors

[Minerva Fhirdiad]

​

Tag: Under Foot

Inner Rim, Iseno Sector, Planet Denon​

Beneath the neon lights, holographic images and bright signs were the crowded street below. Amongst the throngs was a lone figure in a gray hooded cloak that covered up to the knees. Navigating through the sea of people Minerva Fhirdiad scowled both underneath the hood and her helmet. Admittedly she wasn't exactly thrilled being here in all honesty.

Two rotations ago Minerva had to make an emergency landing on this world due to her ship's hyperdrive being heavily damaged. On top of that the young warrior had lost track of some smugglers who had stolen from the Enclave. As she avoided colliding with a Wookiee she thought bitterly.

Just my luck that it had to happen just when I was about to disable their ship when the engines acted up. Kark it's so humiliating.

Her mood remained sour as Minerva pressed on with the masses. All around a multiple of voices echoed added with the loud thudding music coming out from the cantinas and clubs. Steam suddenly burst out to the side of her, causing Minerva to tense up for a moment. Calming down she sighed then kept moving down the sidewalk.

Hopefully this mechanic is as good as Herk claims he is. Or else Herk is gonna have a broken snout next time I see that overgrown lizard.

Soon enough she reached a public elevator and closed it before anyone else could get inside. Pressing a set of coordinates Minerva then stood back and the elevator went down smoothly. Arms folded inside the cloak the proud warrior was alone with her thoughts.

Truth be told she hated the fact that she had to rely on a complete stranger for assistance let alone let inside her ship and home. Yet no matter how much Minerva resented it she knew the engine's were too damaged for someone of her skill to repair. Hence a professional was required, assuming this Under Foot truly was one.

Minutes later the elevator stopped with a sudden thud and with a whine the door slid open. Stepping out, Minerva found herself in the lower levels and marched on into the next lane. Much later she found a landfill and the workshop adjacent to it. Standing yards away Minerva took a deep breath before releasing it.

"Here goes nothing."

After almost a minute she reached the shop, loudly knocking on the door with one hand.

"Hello anyone here?" Said Minerva beneath the hood.

 

[Under Foot]

"Hello anyone here?"

The Squib's ears twitched.

Was that the sound of a potential source of income walking through his doors? A fox-like head poked up over a counter. Large, blue eyes were starting up at... an armored figure draped in a gray blanket?

Well, profit was in the eye of the beholder. "For sure, yes," the Squib supplied cheerily, before coming out from behind the counter so that the small alien could better see this potential client.

"Welcome to Squib Reclamation," Ree announced, with a slight bow . As he straightened up, he offered, "We have a special today on duplex circuits," "Buy two, get two free. Any two duplex circuits, get two free."

Did she look like someone in the market for deflector shield parts?

Maybe not, but it was hard to say. Maybe she wanted weapons? Hyperdrives?

A good deal on a caf dispenser?

Minerva Fhirdiad​

 

[Minerva Fhirdiad]

Tag: Under Foot

Through the t-visor Minerva blinked in quick succession at the sight of the fox-like face. Upon realizing that the owner truly was a Squib the warrior didn't know whether to laugh or groan. Of course this would be someone Herk would recommend, the information broker had a soft spot for underdogs.

Well at least this little fellow is not a Jawa. If this works out I might even buy that scaly bastard some ale next time we meet. Otherwise I'm gonna strangle him with his own slithering tongue.

Keeping those options in the confines of her mind Minerva listened to Under Foot's sales pitch. For several moments she was silent before speaking through the helmet.

"Actually I'm here for a repair job…My ship's engines to be more specific. The hyperdrive has been leaking."

Despite her best efforts to sound professional Minerva still sounded slightly embarrassed at this predicament. As someone who was raised to be self reliant it wasn't easy to make these kinds of requests.

Realizing the little Squib would need a reference she pulled out a small holoprojector with the right hand. Activating the device, the holographic form of her ship appeared before Under Foot's eyes. Allowing the mechanic some time to view before turning it off.

"Think you can handle that and if so how much?”

 

[Under Foot]

"Actually I'm here for a repair job…My ship's engines to be more specific. The hyperdrive has been leaking."

The Squib's ears twitched happily. She was talking his language!

"You won't find a better deal on hyperdrive repairs!" Ree boasted with an excess of cheer. "We'll even throw in air filter changes and carbon scrubber cleaning for free with a flow value flush of the hyperdrive -- most manufacturers recommend that every 10,000 lightyears, don't you know!"

Smacking his hands together, the credits were practically dancing in his eyes as he asked, "So, what kind of ship do you have? SoroSuub? Nubian? Corellian?" Please let it be Corellian. He had parts for days in the salvage yard.

The armored woman in the gray blanket produced a holoprojector, displaying an image of the ship.

As soon as he saw the image, the Squib's head tilted to one side. His tails drooped down onto the floor, as his ears seemed to almost wilt downward toward his head.

The kark?

"Think you can handle that and if so how much?"

The Squib's mouth opened, his species trait taking over as he automatically answered, "Yes." Except the look on his face was decidedly not positive. Wincing, the Squib walked that enthusiasm back as he switched the forecast to, "Maybe."

It was a firm maybe, though.

"That's a Jaeger," the Squib noted, as though that explained the pained expression from earlier. "Jaegers don't use a standard hyperdrive, no siree. I wish they did, because then I could give you a straight answer, for sure," Ree went on to explain.

The problem with high-end ships. The curb appeal was real, but those custom fabricated engines were a Hutt-and-a-half to try and work on. And it was still just a Class 1.0 hyperdrive... assuming she hadn't modified it.

In which case, she'd have been better off yanking it out and slapping a Lucerne Labs stock hyperdrive in there. That would get her a faster drive that used standard parts.

"You've got a custom job there. I'd have to look under the drive plate to even know what kind of fuel you're leaking, let alone what parts would be compatible for a repair."

Minerva Fhirdiad​

 

[Minerva Fhirdiad]

Tag: Under Foot

At the Squib's pained expression Minerva immediately knew this was not going to be a quick repair job. The fact he didn't even give a price was quite telling. Inside the helmet she grimaced as Under Foot faltered in his sale pinching. For a moment Minerva actually felt a bit guilty but listened on while Under Foot explained how complicated this will be.

I should've known. It's never this easy. Then again being a Mandalorian is never easy nor should it ever be.

She said nothing at first, taking in all that he stated. Finally after nearly a minute Minerva nodded in acknowledgment. At least he seemed honest enough and as a warrior she respected that.

"Very well if you're willing we can go back to my ship and see. If the job is done I’ll pay whatever your price will be. You have my word."

To empathize her point Minerva Fhirdiad removed the hood, fully revealing to Under Foot her helmet with its famous or rather infamous t-visor. Since he was willing to be straight up about the chances of success or failure she will be honest about who she is.

 

[Under Foot]

The t-visor was distinctive.

Ree wasn't certain if Mandalorian or just bounty hunter, but Denon's society didn't lend itself to asking a lot of questions either way. A customer was a customer. How they got their money wasn't material. It all spent the same.

Unless it was those Sith-Imperial credits from the Sith Empire. Those had pretty much been dumped in value and holding them was an investor's liability at this point.

"Excellent," the Squib agreed, scrambling over to where a toolkit was laid across a countertop. Grabbing that and slinging it across his body, the amber-furred alien looked up and said, "Let's go!"

As they exited the shop, the Squib offered, "I've got a speeder if you don't have your own transport."

Either way, they could be on their own.

Minerva Fhirdiad​

 

[Minerva Fhirdiad]

Tag: Under Foot

Seeing that Under Foot was willing to go, Minerva had to suppress a sigh of relief. She had a reputation to uphold after all. Nevertheless the warrioress was inwardly glad the little mechanic agreed. Whether he succeeded or not is another matter entirely.

"Very well let's take your speeder and I'll direct you to where my ship is."

As they went to go fetch the Squib's vehicle something occurred to Minerva.

Surwearoe! I hope I can fit in his speeder. Oh well at least I got my jetpack just in case.

Outloud she instead commented. "Just in case you're wondering, I'm not a bounty hunter. Well not usually heh." There were times during Minerva's travels people usually the shady type would come up to her, offering a bounty job or two. Even though the confusion was understandable it still tended to get annoying after a certain point.

Best to clear that point up.

 

[Under Foot]

The Squib's speeder was a cargo skiff, which had the benefit of having adequate space for tall and small alike!

In addition to carrying some common parts and equipment to hopefully minimize any trips back to the scrap yard once he started working on the ship.

"Just in case you're wondering, I'm not a bounty hunter. Well not usually heh."

"Well, with a ship as nice as the one you've got, I imagine you do a lot of travel regardless," Ree remarked. And, by the fact that she owned a Jaeger and was wearing probably five years worth of earnings in her armor alone, probably was doing fairly well in whatever her industry was.

After the pair had arrived at the ship, the Squib hopped down from the skiff and started toward the Jaeger. As he did, he looked back and up at the armored lady to say, "You'll have to authorize me with the ship's computer," Ree noted.

"These ships have layers of internal security."

It was another facet of them that was as prized as it was a key element in price gouging for repairs -- because they were so difficult to work on. The ship's internal safeguards would literally work against someone trying to perform maintenance.

Minerva Fhirdiad​

 

[Minerva Fhirdiad]

Tag: Under Foot

Upon arrival Minerva stepped out of the skiff. Marching alongside Under Foot she heard what he said next. "Yea this one has a lot of security." It had to be considering her way of life. Raising one of her vambraces Minerva pressed a button on it.

Hissing out steam the vessel's ramp opened up and dropped with a thud before the pair. With a head gesture she urged the Squib to keep following her. Walking up the ramp Minerva entered inside. Once onboard she let Under Foot see the forward hold that contained a speeder bike and several gray containers with Mando'a inscriptions and symbols.

As they moved on Minerva closed up the ramp behind them, reactivating the gunship's outer security. Just because she was trusting the local mechanic enough to allow him access doesn't mean she wasn't going to allow anyone else a chance to enter inside during this repair job.

Once entering the engineering bay she pointed to the main terminal. She pressed a series of buttons on her right vambrace to allow Under Foot access to it without being viewed as a threat by the ship's security systems. Then realizing how small Under Foot is to the console Minerva went over to the side grabbing a chair. Putting the chair in front of both the terminal and the mechanic Minerva said.

"There you can start now. Let me know if ya need anything else."