[D1 MM] A Tune Up

[Kaiu Ryosei]

The clanging sounds of metal hammering metal filled the shop today as Ryosei worked some small project. Hand forging such as this had fallen out of favor for most but he found the work cathartic even if it was "inefficient"

Due to the heat in the workshop he had both garage doors open letting the metallic ringing spill out into the street a bit. He wore a light tank top to help deal with the heat of the fires.

He moved in a steady rhythm clearly in some sort of flow state. The world around him falling away replaced by the electronic notes thumping through his headphones as he worked.

[Yoritomo Ochiba]

Snip

A similar musical beat was rapidly approaching the workshop, although it was intermingled with the roar of an engine and intermittent horn blasts. In short order a sports car flies into the nearby carpark and screeches to a halt halfway across one carpark and halfway onto an adjacent flower bed.

A Mantis exits, flipping off the truck that had been slowing her for half the visit and laughing when the driver flipped her off right back. Fair enough.

Then Ochiba turns, raises a finger, spots Ryosei's shop and heads over, poking her head in through the open garage door and knocking a hand against the metal to signal her arrival (although that too might struggle to beat out any headphones).

There appeared to be an athletic singleted man working the forge...fleshcrafters here were clearly a lot more interesting than the ones she was used to.

[Kaiu Ryosei]

the knock on the metal shelf would indeed have gotten drowned out by the headphones however when the mantis walked into the garage a light blinked on in Ryosei's field of view. He paused and looked up from his work not expecting any clients today.

He pulled the piece of metal he had been working on aside and set it on a rack to cool. Ryo brushed sweat from his brow and wiped his hands on his loose fitting top before bowing politely.

"Good morning, is there something I can help you with?" He asked pulling one of his earbuds out, the music bleeding into the room slightly from the tiny speaker.

[Yoritomo Ochiba]

Snip

"Hoi Kaiu-san! I am Ochiba of the Yoritomo, new in town."
Ochiba bows casually, stepping in and looking around with interest, feeling sweat break out on her forehead from the heat radiating out of the forge even as she started mentally pricing everything inside.

"I am hoping this is Kaiu Roysei-san's shop? A friend of a friend said they knew their way around fleshcrafting and are willing to work with less than conventional materials."

Looking him up and down.
"I was kind of expecting some old dude, but uh, you work out."

[Kaiu Ryosei]

Snip

He smirked a little "I try to when I can."

He continued on though and nodded throwing the rag over his shoulder "You found the right place. Steel Claw specializes in custom fleshcraft so if you're looking for something unusual or unconventional I can usually deliver."

He looked her over this time "What part and what material are we talking about here?"

[Yoritomo Ochiba]

Snip

"Purrrrfect"

Ochiba advances to just outside of 'in your face' territory and flicks up her two arms, decorated from elbow palm with an intricate metallic tattoo.

"Bio-electrical fleshcraft, stores an organic charge and then releases it."
Her brow furrows slightly in concentration and the patterns begin to glow a light bioluminescent blue.
"Thought activated...in theory. But last couple months I've seen them start charging on like, subconscious stuff. Anger, surprise, tension. Worried the input has gotten a bit sticky."

She lowers her arms, putting one hand on her hip and fixing Ryosei with a grin.
"Preeeetty advanced stuff, and I'm told, mildly no good bad karma. Think you can handle them? If there is something going on I'd rather know now than when I need them to be doing some work."

[Kaiu Ryosei]

Snip

His eyebrows rose up and he started examining her arms more closely "Fascinating, I've heard rumor of something like this but never actually seen it before. It was said that Mantis had fleshcraft like this but it's cool to see up close."

He leaned in his eyes scanning over the lines up and down her arms when he spoke his voice was different than before, far away. His mind was working faster than his mouth could and she could tell he was enthralled.

His hands began to rise and almost grabbed her but he stopped short, a slight blush dusting his nose "Forgive me Yoritomo-san, may I?"

[Yoritomo Ochiba]

Snip

"Usually folks by me a drink first, but considering I came all this way, I reckon it's alright."
Looking around.
"Should I sit or lie down or is the standing helpful?"

A thought strikes.
"Oh, and no copying proprietary stuff, you know. Or at least don't make it obvious if you do. Got some monks who would not be happy and they're a lot grumpier and uglier than I am."

[Kaiu Ryosei]

Snip

He chuckled a little, this woman was quite forward or just had a peculiar sense of humor.

"Well maybe we can work out dinner later, doesn't hurt to do things out of order sometimes. Not with engineering of course, that has to be done in a very precise order or things get messy if they work at all..." He trailed off and softly chuckled as he realized his joke turned into a ramble. He shook his head a bit.

He nodded though letting his hands drop "Yea, yea of course you can take a seat over here." He pulled a rolling stool out next to a table "just rest your arm there and I'll take a look at things."

[Yoritomo Ochiba]

Snip

"No pressure then, but think of all the quality sushi you might miss out on."
Ochiba plonks herself down on the the stool and rests her arm on the table palm up, flexing it a few times before forcing herself to stop fidgeting.


"Okay, all yours. Just, want me before poking anything that's gonna give me a jolt, almost nearly broke one samurai's nose today, would feel terrible if I made a habit of it."

[Kaiu Ryosei]

Snip

His eyebrow rose for a second time during their conversation "Well that seems like quite the story. How'd you manage that? Did they at least deserve it?" He asked as he started to look at her arm once again.

He reached down and grabbed her arm turning it over in his hands this thumb would trace some of the lines following them to see how they moved about her body and if they had an origin point.

[Yoritomo Ochiba]

His eyebrow rose for a second time during their conversation "Well that seems like quite the story. How'd you manage that? Did they at least deserve it?" He asked as he started to look at her arm once again.

He reached down and grabbed her arm turning it over in his hands this thumb would trace some of the lines following them to see how they moved about her body and if they had an origin point.

"Some Imperial who surprised me. I have the sort of duties where if a threat turns up you gotta put it down pretty quick, nearly fried him on instinct. And that...would have been hard to explain to a magistrate. 'Sorry Hiruma-sama, but I flinched, so Otomo-sama is a little crispy right now.'"
She shakes her head ruefully.
"He didn't really deserve it...well at least not a full one. Kinda weird as Imperials goes, but not in a bad 'hunts heimin for sport way', very devout I guess." Elaborating slightly. "We were in the temple to Dai-koku-no-fortune, and I thought he was making sport of the place at first. But he was just praying...wearing rat ears."

Her first half clenches before she focuses on just keeping it still and seeming unconcerned, the tattoo seems very slightly raised off the skin but it's clear most of the circuity is below the epidermal layer, tracing them the lines seemed to dive beneath the skin at the elbow, and there were hints of circuity leading from the arm up and across to her torso, presumably the power source was in her torso somewhere.

[Kaiu Ryosei]

Snips

"Incredible" he said under his breath while she was talking. It was clear he was half listening but honestly having someone filling the silence was nice while he worked. Quiet during this sort of thing felt oppressive and like there was a social obligation for him to fill the void.

His fingers traced over the tattoo a few times up towards her elbow where the visible parts disappeared but he thought he understood it well enough to- he looked up suddenly, bewilderment on his features

"Did you say rat ears?" Ryosei asked confused "why would an imperial be wearing rat ears in a temple?" He shook his head of the strange image and looking back down at Ochiba's arm.

"Well the tattoo makes the nature of installation rather permanent. To examine it further I would need to take scans of your chest and torso. To actually check the connection points would likely require surgery. I'm assuming it's powered by your heart, some integration into your spine to get the "thought activated" nature of it?" He was making educated guesses.

"Working on something like this is pretty invasive. I can see why so few people have them. Damn cool though." He leaned back "I don't know if there is much I could do for you today I could likely take a few quick scans and study those, for medical purposes of course. Wouldn't want to piss of those ugly monk friends of yours." He grinned slightly. "Up to you though I know some people get touchy with clan proprietary tech."

[Yoritomo Ochiba]

Snippy

"He said it was because the fortune has a rat which...yeah, I guess? Still strange, right?"

Ochiba nods along to his statements, murmuring yes or nos.
"Yeah, that's about the most of it. Anything more than the actual sparks on my arms is squirreled away. And right again on the thought activated part. I sort of have to think of it like clenching a new muscle, felt weird at the start."

The Mantis looks a little downcast at the complexities Ryosei lists, although she can't really complain given just how complex it was.
"Might as well start with the scans, and I'm not one of those people, well, not most of the time. Just give me your word you won't go sending them around and I'll accept that. Never known a Crab to be breaking their word...well at least a Crab who wasn't a Yasuki, no offence to the glorious governor-sama. Then take all the scans you want."

At the 'for medical purposes' Ochiba shoots Ryosei an amused look.
"Can only imagine the sheer entrancing power of a scan of my nervous system."

[Kaiu Ryosei]

snip snap

He had meant not for clan espionage purposes but he just chuckled and shook his head once more "well if your nervous system looks as good as the rest of you maybe it will be." He kept himself from cringing at the bad joke and tried to just own it as he moved along.

"But yes of course I promise to not go running to the Kaiu fabricators with the plans for these things. On my honor." There was a bit of seriousness to his tone but not too much to make it weird, maybe a tiny bit awkward. He then slid over to get the scanner and came back. Ha paused uncertainly.

"Uhh for this I might need you to lay down." He looked about but no table large enough for the feat was around "on the ground? Or stand if you can be perfectly still while I take the scans."

[Yoritomo Ochiba]

Snip

She snorts loudly, like a bike backfiring. "Terrible, but that's okay, it's a unique pickup line for me, so memorable at least."
Ochiba nods at his promise, taking the Crab at his word before looking around, shrugging and simply lying down on the floor. She was not the sort to keep absolutely still for any period of time.

From the ground: "Why do I get the sense you don't run a lot of full body scans in your shop? Surprisingly clean floor though, as they go."
She runs a finger along the surface next to her.

[Kaiu Ryosei]

Snips

He rubbed the back of his neck a little as he smiled embarrassed "Yeah it was terrible wasn't it. I wish I could say it sounded better in my head but honestly......." He shook his head and followed to where she lay.

As she lay on the ground it was cool but not cold, having been warmed by the forge fires earlier. It was completely smooth concrete and it was immaculately clean. She might even sweat he buffed it.

"No you're right I don't do a lot of full body scans. I usually just handle the manufacturing, maybe installation after they get the nerves all worked out. I have a basic understanding of how it all works but you're moving into territory I'm less familiar with."

He took the scanner and held it above her, he studied intently following the lines and circuits the device detected and how they all connected leading back to her heart. He leaned forward focusing hard on the heart and spine connections, he muttered to himself most of the time not fully audible to her ears as he priced things together.

[Yoritomo Ochiba]

Snip

"You're kinda fastidious then, huh."
Ochiba tries to wait patiently, but is simply incapable, doubly so when Ryosei starts audibly thinking things through.
"I'd have though maybe there was some kind of nerves 101 or whatever they teach you folks. Though I'm told it's a bit more complicated than that."

Trying again to be quiet and wait and lasting almost a whole minute.
"Soooooo have you always been a fleshcrafter? I'm not getting that as your vibe, or at least, not the whole vibe."

[Kaiu Ryosei]

Clips

He had let Ochiba talk to her self for a bit but at her last comment he flicked his eyes up at her and raised an eyebrow "you don't handle silence well huh? Not one for quiet meditation I take it?" He smiled and flicked off the scanner after saving the images.

He smirked a little "oh? And what is my vibe?" He asked with a genuine curiosity.

[Yoritomo Ochiba]

Snip

"I can be alone with my thoughts...in a hot tub with a drink and some music playing." Drumming her fingers on the ground
"Harder when I'm waiting on stuff, never liked doing it outside a sensei's office, no more so now. Stuff to do, you know? Active relaxing."

Narrowing her eyes slightly in thought.
"Reminds me more of a military mechanic, like some folks I've served with. 99% of the time it's rote work but you take it seriously because you take everything seriously, and 1% of the time it's something fun and novel and you get to do something new. Never saw our guy happier than when he was figuring out a way to wring a few more days out of the lifesupport with nothing but backup power and one working solar cell."