Jethro Goes to War (Wandering Engineer Jethro's tale) (38 page)

“
Hell, I don't
even know where to start with you,” he grimaced.

“
Start at the
beginning. Finish at the end,” Chirby said, waving his eye
stalks in different directions. He danced in place on all four legs.

“
Yeah, funny,”
the armorer sighed. “You are going to be a long term project,”
he said waggling a finger at the alien. “I'm going to outfit
those I can then I'll get to work on your suit miss.” He nodded
to Betty. “The rest of you lot, come with me.” He
motioned them to follow to a booth around the corner. It was a tiny
closet affair.

“
We've got
your measurements on file somewhere, but we need a bit more here. I'd
normally set you up in here, but you big guys can't fit.”

“
Yeah,”
Sergei said dryly.

“
So, we're
going to do the others. I'll show you how to do it, then you run the
system while I pull the suit's I've got on hand,” he looked at
Jethro and Hurranna.

“
Sure,”
Jethro nodded.

“
It's simple.
Here,” the armorer said. He pointed to Hurranna. “Up you
get.” He pointed to the box. She nodded and got inside. “Strip
and then wait. The floor is a turntable. It'll spin you around as
lasers measure you. Then you'll do exercises in it. Jumping jacks,
knee bends, toe touches, and stuff. It's to get your joints and range
of motion mapped.”

“
Okay,”
she nodded and closed the door.

He turned to the
console and then back to the class. “Anyone know where this
tech came from?”

Jethro shook his
head. Ox snorted. They looked up to him. “Games.”

“
Go to the
head of the class,” the armorer said nodding. “Video
games. They created this to scan people so they can use them in video
games. See the early ones would have you in a nylon skin suit and a
tech would attach white ping pong balls to your joints so the
computer would create a skeleton of your body. Nowadays we got
software that can figure it out all on its own.”

“
Cool,”
Jethro nodded.

“
See we need
the movement stuff so the computer can figure out where your joints
are so it can create a custom suit. That way you can move in it
without running into too many problems.” He looked up to the
bulkhead. “I hope,” he said feverishly. Jethro shot the
others an amused smile and flick of his ears.

“
So what about
us?” Ox asked. “I obviously can't fit in that thing.”

“
No. Not going
to happen. I don't know. Let me check the manual,” the armorer
grimaced. “I think we'll have to make a temporary booth out
here.” He waved to the room. “Or out there. I don't know.
I kinda skimmed that part.”

“
Wishing you
hadn't now?” Jethro asked dryly.

“
Yeah, you
could say that,” he grimaced. “Also wishing I had called
in sick this shift. Hell this week.” He shook his head. “Okay,
once she's done it will green light here. If it's a good file, it'll
be green and this will list the data. Never mind that, you're not up
for it. Just hit this here save when it comes up, next, then click
finish and then have her exit. Get the next person in and then they
will start the system by telling it they are ready. Repeat for the
rest.”

He gave the panther
a look. “Think you can handle it?”

“
Sounds simple
enough. If there is a problem I'll holler.”

“
Shouldn't be,
but there's always a first time,” the armorer sighed. “Just
try to do it right the first time okay?” he asked plaintively,
giving them all a look. “It ain't easy fitting you all, getting
things sorted. It takes about a shift for each suit for what I've got
in stores now. Maybe two if we've got issues. I ain't lying. And then
it takes each of you about thirty hours to break it in till you're
used to it and it's used to you.”

“
Yeah, okay,”
Jethro nodded.

 ...*...*...*...*...

“
Done?”
Chirby asked as Hurranna came out of the booth. She was still
straightening her digicam BDU. She put her cover on, straightened the
hem of her  jacket and then nodded. “My turn?”
Chirby asked, giving the panther a look.

“
Lets see how
it goes with Paige,” Jethro said amused. He wasn't sure what
the computer would think when all those limbs were mapped. He'd
rather get the others done before it balked. He nodded to the chimp
in the doorway.

“
Great. Least
I don't have to strip for an audience,” she muttered.

“
What are you
doing back here?” Chirby asked.

“
Suit wouldn't
fit. It's for a chem. A male. So off we go,” she growled
climbing into the booth.

“
Just strip,
then follow the instructions,” Hurranna said. “Even you
can figure it out,” Hurranna said with a smile. Paige snorted
and closed the door.

 ...*...*...*...*...

“
All done?”
the armorer asked as he came in wiping his hands on a rag fifteen
minutes later.

“
Yeah. Chirby
is the last that can fit,” Jethro nodded. “Hurranna did
me,” he explained. He nodded to the lynx lounging in the corner
with the others. “I was wondering how you’re going to
handle our tails.” His lashed back and forth.

“
Seems like
she doesn't have much of one,” the armorer said giving Hurranna
a look. She growled a little.

“
Genetics,”
Jethro replied. “I heard stories of some marines docking their
tails and ears when they had to fit in human armor. I'd rather not do
that. It's too useful.” He grimaced, touching his tail.

“
It is?”
the armorer asked. Sergei's tail lashed out and grabbed the rag from
the armorer's hands and then tossed it into the air. He caught it
with the tail and then handed it back to him.

“
Oh.”

“
We also use
it for balance when we're on all fours.”

“
All fours?
All fours?!” The armorer shook his head. “No one told me
about that,” he rubbed his brow, getting one of those headaches
he dreaded.

“
It figures,
left hand doesn't know what the right is doing,” Hurranna said
amused and sympathetic. She dropped to all fours for a moment and
stretched.

“
More likely a
SNAFU,” the armorer snorted watching her for a moment and then
looking away. “Situation normal...”

“
All fracked
up, yeah we know,” Hurranna answered, rolling her eyes to the
others as Chirby came out of the booth.

“
I was
wondering, can you use the data the EVA techs got when they made our
custom suits?” Jethro asked, logging Chirby's measurements.

“
The.. wait,
you've had EVA training?” the armorer asked.

“
Yeah.”
Jethro nodded. “It's part of boot actually.” He looked at
the others. “Well, us and Alpha. Beta and Delta never got
around to it apparently.”

“
Why didn't
someone say something earlier?” the armorer demanded.

“
It's a
prerequisite for armor. I thought you knew?” Jethro asked
amused.

“
I didn't.
Wait I did, I just forgot,” he sighed.

Hurranna flicked her
ears and smiled slightly to the others. Betty snorted.

“
Okay. That
puts a different spin on things,” the armorer said after a
moment. He rubbed his chin in deep thought. “Let me make a
couple calls, see if I can get the files and convert them. Not all
file types are golden but it might work. Save us the hassle of trying
to set up a booth for them.” He waved to indicate Ox and
Sergei.

“
Gee thanks,”
Ox said picking at his ear with one finger. “I think.”

“
He's all
heart,” Sergei said dryly.

...*...*...*...*...

Jethro tried not to
grimace as he crossed his arms and watched the humans getting fitted.
He glanced at Hurranna sitting on a tool chest and Chirby clicking
his pincers together idly.

“
You know you
can go about your duties,” the cranky armorer said. “Not
clutter up my work shop and the morgue.”

“
These are our
duties. We're here until we get our suits and the basic training in
them. For the next two weeks or until it’s done. Which ever
comes first.”

“
Why? Why me?”
the armorer muttered shaking his head as he used a wrench to adjust a
fitting on Mile's left arm. “Okay fine, you’re going to
be here just stay out of my way.”

“
What are you
doing?” Ox asked.

“
And be
quiet.”

“
That's not
going to work. We want to learn, we need to learn,” Jethro said
ears forward. “All of us.”

“
Fine fine,”
the balding armorer sighed. “I'm adjusting this here elbow
joint since I can't seem to get it to change in the software.”

“
Oh.”

“
I think it's
something on the servo board. Which is here.” He pointed to the
gauntlet. “I'd look it over but I'm being pulled six ways to
Sunday here. Every time I change one setting it knocks four or five
others out of whack.”

“
You are
chasing the bubble. I know the problem you are referring to. I'll
take a look,” Ox said reaching for the gauntlet. The armorer
turned to bat his hands away but the Tauren carefully picked up the
gauntlet and then sat down in a corner. He pulled a jack cable out of
his waist pocket and plugged himself into the device.

“
You've got
tech training son?” the armorer asked.

“
He's a
Tauren. They are born with it,” Sergei snorted. “They are
practically born with a spanner in one hand and a keyboard in the
other. I've got a few skills, but nothing like some of the others.”
He shrugged. “Ox is more than a pretty face.”

“
He's not even
that,” the armorer snorted a laugh. “Okay. Access the net
in here. There is a manual. Use it.”

“
Already got
it,” Jethro replied. “We've all had the basic manual for
a week. We've passed the book tests at the end of it.”

“
So you know
what a greave is?”

“
Armor
paneling around the calf of a leg below a joint such as a knee,”
Jethro answered immediately.

“
Ah,”
the armorer nodded. “Codpiece?”

Jethro snorted.
“Protects the genital region of humanoids.”

“
And don't you
forget it. It also protects the front of the hips from a hit. Lose
your hips lose your legs.”

“
Okay.
Pauldron, gauntlet, codpiece, greaves, but why are they named that?
Why can't they name them for the parts they cover?” Hurranna
asked, legs kicking back and forth.

“
Lets see,”
the armorer tapped his chin with the wrench. “It's all named
for armor the Terran knights wore before space flight,” he said
after a moment.

“
Oh.”

“
Gotta name it
something,” he shrugged. “It makes it easier to tell
things apart.” He picked up a magnifier and strapped it on over
his eyes. Apparently his implants could only zoom in so far. “Damn.”
He pulled fine tools from his breast pocket and started to work.
“Give me a sec here. Be quiet.”

Jethro shot an
amused look to the others then shook his head. After a minute the man
looked up, pulling the magnifier up to his brow. He wiped his face
and then took a drink from a canteen nearby.

“
That it?”

“
Yeah till I
look at the gauntlet.”

“
Here,”
Ox tossed it to him. He caught it and took a look. “Firmware
chip is bad. You'll need a replacement or a repair.”

“
Replace. I
keep the bad chips to take them apart to see what's broken. But I
ain't had the time now.”

“
Why?”

“
Why not?”
the armorer asked, giving the Tauren a look. “I want to know
what gives in these beauties. What's strong, what's weak. What I need
to watch out for.”

“
Good point,”
the Tauren nodded. “Wisdom.” He looked to the others. “I
was thinking about the problem of the armor. Could we combine the
technology of the suits with the armor?”

“
Hmmm.”

“
Hard on the
parts that don't bend. Exterior powered exoskeleton. Like the first
ones. The first suits.”