Lt. Robin Hopper: I Let the Music Speak
Lt. JG Kivik
((Amity Outpost – “The Cellar”, Shuttlebay 4))
Richards: ::Smiling:: You know, with Ygrix, there was no chance of him and I getting along from the get-go. But you… I like you. I think this is that start of a beautiful friendship.
Hopper: Yeah, well, don’t speak too soon! You haven’t been forced to listen to my playlist yet. ::Pointing at the shuttle:: Found it, by the way.
She reached her hand around the lever and gave it a slight tug. The hatch to the shuttle released and began opening. As it did, she turned around and put her hands on her hips, looking back at the engineer.
Hopper: ::Smiling:: But if you can put up with me, I like to think I’m a pretty good friend.
Richards: ::Teasingly, flipping his hair:: You just can’t fall in love with me. ::smirking, winking::
Hopper: ::Eyebrows raised:: Oh! ::Containing a laugh:: That happens a lot, does it? ::Mock shock:: Tell me that isn’t what happened with you and Crewman Ygrix!
Nathan crossed his arms, giving Robin a sly smile.
Richards: Unfortunately, no. I only seem to be able to put beautiful humanoids under my spell. ::wiggling fingers at robin::
Robin scrunched up her face, unsure just how serious Richards was. oO Oh man. You gotta work on that line... Oo In deciding between laughing or running away, she decided to cut the guy some slack and picked the middle option.
Hopper: ::Sarcastic smile:: Okay, well, I’ll try to be careful then. ::Pointing into the open shuttle:: Come on, lover boy, show me what we’ve got here.
Richards joined her, walking up the small ramp that had extended from the open hatch.
Richards: Well, obviously the door hydraulics are working. I hadn’t had a chance to test those yet, so that’s good.
Robin nodded, crossing her arms. Evidently this project was still in the very early stages.
Hopper: So what can she do?
Richards: Right now, not much besides light up and throw error codes.
Hopper: ::Chuckling:: What about music? Can she play any tunes?
Richards: Currently the only tune she can play is ‘Oh God Please Help Me I Don’t Know What’s Going On.’ But I do have the PA speakers mostly hooked up.
Robin rolled her eyes, but enjoyed Richards’ joke all the same. More importantly – if the PA system was wired and just required a touch of re-programming…
Hopper: ::Grinning:: Well, we know what our first priority is then, don’t we?
They stepped into the rear storage compartment of the shuttle to begin the tour, a few bare shelves with storage lockers lined the walls with a clear open floor for larger cargo.
Richards: Obviously, this is the cargo bay. Nothing special about it really. I need to make sure the lockers actually lock at some point, but that’s not important.
As they moved through the shuttle, the proud engineer continued showing Robin around. It was clear he was passionate about the project – though to Robin’s eye, he seemed a little uncoordinated in his efforts. Perhaps there had been a kernel of truth in Kivik’s assessment. oO Definitely seems like he could use a little hand-holding when it comes to organising his priorities… Oo Robin rolled her eyes at her own subconscious choice of words. oO Professional, Robin Oo she reminded herself.
Richards: Well, here we have the crew quarters and medical bay. Very multipurpose. Over here ::gesturing towards the Munitions door:: is where the micro torpedoes and armory will be. ::Pointing towards the EV door:: EV suit storage.
Hopper: And these two doors, here?
Richards: Behind each of those doors is also access to the engineering systems of the shuttle, and both warp cores. One per side.
Robin nodded as she looked about. The shuttle’s interior was a bit of mess. In fact, it kind of reminded her of some of the College Dorm Rooms she’d seen back at UC Berkeley. What was it about some men that made them want to leave their toys lying around?
Hopper: ::Tapping the console on the side of the BioBed:: I see what you mean. ::Turning to face Richards with a teasing smirk:: This thing is crying out for help, isn’t it?
Richards: The Bio Bed is still out of commission. I’m having trouble finding spare parts without just going and replicating new ones. ::leaning against the bio bed:: I might just have to give in and do that.
Hopper: Well, as novel as it is scavenging everything, I think that future patients would be happy to know their biobed was not assembled using bits of old circuitry and chewing gum. ::Shrugging:: If you’re going to replicate new parts for anything…
She continued onwards, moving towards the front cabin, while Richards continued the tour.
Richards: We have bunk beds here, and the Lavatory right next to it. ::pointing at the second module:: That’s about it for back here.
Hopper: Got it. She needs some TLC, but her bones are good. ::Chuckling:: Is that a thing engineers say or have I been watching too many old movies? ::Shaking her head:: Never mind. Let’s see the rest and get into the computer cores.
Richards led Robin to the large bulkhead separating the sections, pulling on the release for the door. There was a clunk and hiss as the mechanism slowly began to move the two halves aside.
Richards: Once we have more power flowing through this thing, this should go much faster.
Hopper: Mhmm. We’ll get automation back up and running too. No point wasting time opening and closing these doors manually.
Richards: ::Smiling as the doors finished opening:: And here is where all of our magic will happen. The computer cores are mounted on either side of the main bulkhead between this section and the cockpit. I have the PA system running to the science console ::motioning to the console on the right side of the section:: and everything is wired into the weapons console here on the left.
Hopper: The PA goes to Science? ::Nodding, impressed:: It’s like you knew!
She slipped into the seat at the Science console and hooked her PADD directly into the PA system with a wired connection. With power running into the system from her PADD, the speakers came to life with a light hissing sound.
Richards: So you wanted to start with getting some music going right?
Hopper: Yep. This big empty shuttlebay gives me the heebie-jeebies. Plus I find it easier to do PADD-work when I’ve got something to listen to.
Robin tapped into the PA settings on her PADD. It was, indeed, running a fairly outdated software iteration. She ran a quick scan for available updates and, coming up empty, determined that they were as ‘up to date’ as they wanted to be.
Hopper: Okay, give me two seconds and I’ll load a newer iteration of the firmware into the system. It will be mad for a second.
As she tapped away, the hissing changed into an off-putting garbled alert tone. Robin grimaced as she scanned through the errors and, one by one, adjusted code parameters to ‘spoof’ the SPOFs.
Hopper: Sorry! Sorry!
Fortunately, the PA system’s backend was also relatively simple. There were only a handful of built-in fail points and, before long, the alert tone ceased and reverted to the same ‘hissing’ as before. With the system’s OS updated, Robin could access the settings using her PADD and adjusted the gain down until the hissing stopped.
Hopper: ::Smiling proudly:: Okay! Well, it’s a bit of a mess if you look under the hood, but she’ll play a song now!
Richards: Let’s get started then. ::smiling:: What do you like to listen to, by the way?
Robin made a dramatic face in response to Richards’ question and cocked an eyebrow.
Hopper: ::Grinning:: This is where we decide if we can be friends or not… ::Tapping at her PADD and starting a song:: …It’s a classic.
As the song began playing, Robin closed her eyes, enjoying the rhythmic bass and drums layered under the rising strings. As the singer’s falsetto kicked in, she opened her eyes and looked at Richards, curious what his reaction would be.
Richards: Response
Hopper: ::Rolling her eyes playfully:: I have been told it’s an acquired taste. But then, so are Mozart, Brahms, or Zimmer. ::Shrugging:: Besides, you try dancing to “Fur Elise” and tell me that’s what makes good music.
Richards: Response
Hopper: ::Smirking:: You can pick the next song and then we’ll judge your taste in music, Ensign Richards.
Richards: Response
Hopper: Don’t think acting cute will make me spare you, Nathan. You’re up next! Now – speaking of next… Let’s get some power running into this thing so we can boot up the old cores and get a look in there, shall we?
Richards: Response
While he fetched the temporary power cells, Robin watched with amused interest. Nathan might need some help, but he was clearly passionate about his work and had no shortage of enthusiasm or spirit. She could imagine many of the lyrics in the song applying to the ship they were working on. This was clearly “more than a shuttle to him”...
This is the only way that we should fly
This is the only way to go
And if I lose your love, I know I would die
Oh, say you'll always be my baby, we can make it shine
We can take forever, just a minute at a time
It had been her passion for holonovel programming that had initially led her to a career in a STEM field, even though she had eventually found her niche studying physics. Starfleet had a way of bringing out the best in people, and seeing others shining through their work would never get old for her.
Hopper: ::Smiling genuinely:: How’d you find this old girl, anyways?
Richards: Response
TBC
