InsaneJournal

Tweak says, "Fat Bunny rules the world!"

OMFG! Anakin might do ~something~ *pearl clutch* (darkforcerising) wrote in makebelievelog,
@ 2013-08-20 20:36:00

Entry tags:

anakin skywalker, john shepard

Who: Anakin and John Shepard
What: First meetings,
When: Sunday afternoon
Where: Outside the stables
Rating/Warnings: Probably low
Status: In progress/Closed

It was a clear, brightly lit afternoon, and Anakin didn’t see any need to work on his bike in the confined darkness of the stables. He was ever removing one part or another to increase its task proficiency; or, because he’d had to build a good many components from scratch using what he would call ‘primitive’ technology – this world didn’t even have standard repulsorlift technology, he was forever improving upon his own designs.

For safety purposes the bike was not hovering today, but rested on braces. Anakin did not want to experience any electrical feedback. He wrenched the final fastener loose on the part that was this afternoon’s project, and then he was setting aside his tools so he could remove the component in question.

Out of the corner of his eye he noticed a man moving about the yard. But there was nothing in the Force to indicate this should make him wary. Anakin continued working on detaching the rear stablizer.

When the man drew closer, he did look up and gave him a polite nod of acknowledgement.

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spectrestatus
2013-08-20 06:49 pm UTC (link)

Weekends had never meant much to Shepard. In the Alliance, you were either "on duty" or "off duty", and for him personally there was always considerably more of the former than the latter. He wasn't sure if he could really call himself "off duty" now, but the lack of a weekend was much the same when you had almost nothing to do. He kept as close to the same daily routine as he'd always done. Granted, there were a lot less people to shoot now, but who else could consider that as routine as he did.

Trekking over the castle grounds always remained informative, though not in as much of a productive manner as surveying a planet or getting a feel for enemy territory. He was learning a lot about the people who lived there, and thankfully the deluge of insane information about the world he was in had subsided a bit. Normalcy was creeping in, or the closest equivalent that he was capable of without being actively resigned to his situation.

The sun was something strange to get used to, having spent weeks, or even months aboard the Normandy without stepping on natural terrain for more than a few hours at a time. Even the Citadel had artificial lighting, or the haunting glow of the Serpent Nebula itself. Here, the warmth of the sun was one of the most difficult things to dismiss as he continuously reminded himself that this was not Earth.

His feet moved in the familiar patterns along the paths of the castle grounds, though he never quite took the same path twice. This walk took him by the stables, but it wasn't the building itself, but what rested outside the caught his interest. He saw the vehicle before he noted the presence of the man, noting instantly that this was a construct that didn't belong in this world, from what he'd seen. It looked far more like something that belonged in his.

The tech was different, that much he saw in his second glance, but there was enough information that he could gather even as he closed the distance. No wheels, so it likely had hovering capabilities. Open-seated, so the chances of it having inertial dampeners were low, unless its owner had some other way of doing it. The build itself was low, aerodynamic, made for speed. He only realized just how closely he'd moved in when he saw the unfamiliar man move, nodding his head. He almost looked surprised, as lost in his thoughts as he'd been, but quickly regained himself as he always did, offering a nod in return.

"Work in progress?" For as different as the tech was, he couldn't entirely tell if it was finished or not, though a lot of time and love had certainly gone into it.

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darkforcerising
2013-08-21 04:04 am UTC (link)

Anakin stopped trying to disengage the rear stabilizer from the frame of the bike and looked up to address the man.

“I’ll probably never be completely satisfied with how it runs.” Even if he had unfettered access to all of the technology from home, he would still tinker and find ways to improve upon what he’d already built. He was forever working on whatever starfighter he was currently assigned. It was his way of relaxing after all.

“It works… passably so right now. But there’s a slight balance problem I want to work out. At slow acceleration it’s fine, but if you start fast there’s a slight drag to the portside, mostly noticeable when you shift on the x-axis.”

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spectrestatus
2013-08-21 06:29 pm UTC (link)

Another thoughtful nod followed the relay of information, and in his mind he was picturing how easily Cortez might have shot back so many ideas to fix all those issues. If he'd been more familiar with the tech he might have also been able to assist, but only now was he even starting to recognize a few parts here and there that looked even remotely like anything from home.

Shepard walked a half-circle around the vehicle to the side in question, eying it closely, then crouched, leaning his elbows on his knees. "Is the material weight that you're using pretty comparable to what you'd find at home? Any vibrations?" He paused before realizing he was probably overstepping his bounds and laughed apologetically. "Sorry, I don't usually butt in to other people's pet projects. It's a fine-looking machine, though."

He rose then, offering a hand out amicably. "Commander John Shepard."

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darkforcerising
2013-08-24 06:50 am UTC (link)

“Substitute materials are fine.” He’d had to find substitutes for a few parts, but that’s not what was giving him problems. Assuming the man knew what Anakin was working on, he said, “It’s not calibrating with the anti-gravitation mechanism in the respulsor-lifts. I have to find out what relay is not feeding information correctly.”

Anakin reached for the man’s hand, extending his gloved right (mechanical) hand. From appearances alone, covered as it was, it looked entirely normal. But any one shaking it would notice instantly is lacked a distinct flesh and blood feel. More metallic, robotic feel.

“Skywalker,” Anakin said. “We spoke over the network.”

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spectrestatus
2013-08-24 09:31 am UTC (link)

The word 'calibrating' made John smirk a little, thinking of Garrus for a brief second before he returned his full attention to the machine again. He could figure out what the man meant, but again, the tech was so different from his own that he could offer much in the way of help. "More like trial and error at this point?"

John noted the feel, and while it surprised him for a second, he wondered if he and this man weren't all that different. His own cybernetics were covered in flesh, and perfectly camouflaged. Less than a year ago, however, he couldn't have hidden the glowing scars across his entire body to save his life. Knowing the story behind his own cybernetics wasn't a terribly joyful, and that the man's likely wasn't cheery either, he still felt oddly better for the moment.

The name 'Skywalker' instantly clicked, and John nodded. "I remember. Thank you again for all the information." The man before him had offered some of the most jarring news, but that wasn't his fault. "So, how long did this little project take you?" He remembered that Skywalker had stated he'd been there for a year and imagined that was plenty of time to get a good start on a project like this. "Did any of the parts come with you? Or is it entirely from scratch?"

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darkforcerising
2013-08-24 10:27 pm UTC (link)

Now that John was in close proximity Anakin could tell the man sported some cybernetic components. The Force was just brimming with details, but Anakin backed away from learning more than the enhancements existed. He paused ever so slightly, his eyes shifted in understanding. But he didn’t bring it up. There was no polite way to ask someone about their body parts – mechanical or not.

Fortunately they had the ready topic of this bike to discuss.

“This one I started about nine months ago. It’s been complete, more or less, for months now. Nothing came with me; I’ve had to improvise for some parts. But I work at the University in their engineering department. It grants me access to materials I need.”

Anakin shifted to look back down at his bike. “This is the make and model the army commissioned for use back home. The schematics were fresh in my mind when I showed up here.”

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spectrestatus
2013-08-25 11:08 am UTC (link)

Part of John wished he could record all of this for the engineers on the Normandy, knowing that they'd all be fascinated with the tech, and mostly with the fact that it had been built from scratch. He could imagine Adams, Tali, Daniels, Donnelly and Cortez all crowding around, pummeling the man with questions, and for a moment he felt glad that it was just the pair of them. He couldn't think of a worse introduction than siccing a gaggle of tech-geeks on a guy.

Honestly, he was asking enough questions on his own at is was, but he was just fascinated by the whole thing himself. He should have asked about the University when it was mentioned, something that pertained to the world itself and could be used later, but he couldn't get away from the topic of the bike. With the problems Skywalker had mentioned before, it was obvious the man had taken it out for a joyride at least once. "I haven't seen any native tech even close to this yet. Does the 'university engineer' angle keep people off your back? I can't imagine this doesn't draw any attention." He tossed another meaningful glance at the bike before adding. "Especially with how fast I imagine it goes."

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darkforcerising
2013-08-27 03:09 am UTC (link)

“I don’t use it in the populated areas. It’s more just a pet project than a means of conveyance.” Anakin had enough problems with his name; he didn’t need to draw more attention to himself. And for the most part, Anakin was content using public transportation. A throw back to being a Jedi, Jedi had few personal possessions – mainly their clothes and lightsabers. Rarely anything more. Personal transportation ownership was a new feeling for him. “There are enough forests and grasslands, hardly anyone notices. The university is just my connection to materials the average individual can’t access.”

A slightly wicked smiled did appear on Anakin’s face as he added, “It can reach speeds up to five-hundred kilometers an hour, though.”

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spectrestatus
2013-08-27 06:43 pm UTC (link)

That made plenty of sense, but part of him felt it was a shame that the machine was practically being hidden, impressive as it was. Still, who knew what sort of effect that would have on this world, though. For a moment, it made him wonder what exactly would happen if the Normandy miraculously showed up out of nowhere, hovering above the city. Not likely to happen, but the drama that would follow could likely change everything here.

John whistled, impressed, nodding a bit to himself. For some reason, he hadn't quite pegged the speed as being that fast, and knowing that he'd undershot it just made it all the more interesting. "Do you have any sort of shielding to protect you from the air friction? Or do you have to actually suit up?"

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darkforcerising
2013-08-28 08:35 am UTC (link)

“It has your average dampening field generator standard on vehicles of this class. It works well on lower speed for general air friction. But no ray shielding. It’s not going to stop a blaster bolt or a highspeed projectile. And if you want to go above one-sixty, you’ll want to wear protective gear. A place like this, there’s not much reason to go faster than that…” Anakin shrugged and gave John a knowing look, “Other than for fun, I mean.”

Anakin gave John another assessing look. “Your world have vehicles like this?”

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spectrestatus
2013-08-28 06:19 pm UTC (link)

"Along the same lines, but different enough." His left arm drew up, and the fingers of his right arm waved over his forearm to activate his omni-tool. The holographic orange light encompassed his arm from fingers to elbow. A screen appeared, and after some maneuvering of his fingers in the air, the three dimensional schematic image of the X3M appeared. "The civilian model hits about three-fifty kph. Mass effect field powered propulsion drive. It's not built for joyriding so much as for transport through some pretty vast cityscapes." He paused before thoughtfully adding. "Had a good, old-fashioned car chase in one once, but you can't feel the speed because of the inertial dampeners. Most of them are two-to-four seaters."

He gestured with his head to the speeder again, the corner of his mouth turning up. "Honestly, if you managed to drag something like that into my universe, and find a way to mass produce it, you'd make a killing."

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darkforcerising
2013-08-29 06:38 am UTC (link)

Anakin tipped his head to the side out of curiosity for Shepard’s arm device. It looked similar to the holo-comms they used in his universe, but, as Shepard was learning of tech form Anakin’s world, it was slightly different.

“Mass effect field powered propulsion drive?” Anakin raised an eyebrow, as none of that sounded familiar to him, but he was interested none the less. “How does that system work?”

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spectrestatus
2013-08-29 07:16 pm UTC (link)

"There's a substance in our universe called Element Zero that releases dark energy when channeled through an electrical current. Manipulation of that creates a mass effect field. The fields can increase and decrease the mass of space-time, letting space-faring ships in my universe hit FTL," he paused to clarify, just in case, though he figured Skywalker knew what he meant. "Faster than light. The fields themselves have a lot of other uses, but the military takes the most advantage of the mobility enhancement. Certain people who were exposed to Element Zero in utero, biotics, have the ability to manipulate self-generated mass effect fields."

There was another pause before he added with a laugh. "My comm specialist had a toothbrush that was powered by mass effect fields. Apparently it was very, very expensive."

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darkforcerising
2013-08-30 09:07 pm UTC (link)

Anakin did know what Shepard meant by ‘FLT’ , he was intimately familiar with the hyperdrive systems of his own universe. He thoroughly enjoyed getting his hands into a generator and tinkering. This drive to work on machines and electronics was more than just a hobby; it was his means of centering himself in the universe.

“A toothbrush?” Anakin raised his eyebrow to that. It sounded frivolous. Part of him wanted to get his hands on it to, obviously, tinker with it. The other part, the one raised by the Jedi, discounted the idea as needlessly extravagant and over powered. Usually the side seeped in engine oil won out.

“I have another bike, different make and model. I don’t usually have someone to go flying with, but maybe you’d like to some time? When this one’s put back together.”

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spectrestatus
2013-08-31 11:27 am UTC (link)

"Yeah, it saved the Normandy once." It felt a little weird saying it out loud, and without any context involved. Evil clones trying to steal your life, your ship, and kill all your friends, and a tooth brush is the deciding factor. "That's...uh....a long story." He felt as if he'd said that phrase more times in the past few days than he had in his entire military career. Part of him wished he'd bothered to get a schematic on the Cision Pro Mark 4 when he'd had the chance. He did still owe Traynor a replacement.

The offer made both of Shepard's eyebrows shoot up, and it was obvious he was more than interested even before he opened his mouth. "Thanks, that would be great. You'd have to go easy on me at first, though. I bet these things have a hell of a kick when you're starting out."

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