GSIH: Sound Of The Engine
Apr. 22nd, 2010 11:29 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsCallisto and Cammie start the work of trying to restore an engine to working order.
The siding house was old and in disrepair. Both UN peacekeepers had bickered while taking them over to it on whether or not the locomotive that had spent twenty years slowly rusting in it would even get out the door, much less pull the train of cars that had been cobbled together from other local lines which were months away from being repaired for service. The huge doors creaked open, and they followed the sidetrack into the middle, where the train sat.
It was old; a WDM-2 engine which had likely come off the lines in Varanasi during the late sixties. Despite the obvious age to it, the engine looked better than it had any right to. The siding house's status as a military building had prevented casual looters or vandalism, and whomever had retired the locomotive had known their business when they had shut it down. The UN troops set down the packages of tools and supplies which had been airlifted in to try and get the locomotive active and nodded to Callisto.
"We'll be outside, ma'am. Let us know if you need anything."
"Hotwire a few cars and everyone automatically thinks you know engines," Cammie grumbled, looking at the train engine. She did know mechanics – you had to if you wanted to negotiate your price on car parts- and she could see some of what she knew in that engine. It was just. bigger. Holy crap was it bigger.
"This is going to be fun. Well, at least whoever kept this knew what they were doing, as far as I can tell from first glance and all that crap," she said, stretching her fingers, "So I'll follow your lead here. I don't want to break something because I'm trying to fix a car."
"Can't say I've ever fixed a train myself..." Callisto shot Cammie a trademark wry smile, and leaned to press her ear to one of the riveted, slightly rusted plates along the side of the engine, giving the metal a sharp rap of her knuckles. "Needs loosening up a bit," she murmured, pursing her lips in thought. "Little metal fatigue here an' there." She smirked. "This might take a whole lotta WD40..."
"Oh fuck, I think I drank it," Cammie said, "Just kidding, I think they left some here." She started tying her hair back, "Well, hopefully we can get through this without fucking it up big time. Since you know, they need it and all. You point, I'll fix. That'll keep it somewhat safe. And maybe they'll have some extra oil for me."
Callisto raised her eyebrows slightly but said nothing, only pulling a spanner from her tool belt and turning back to the engine, beginning to loosen one of the rusted panels on the side. "Grab a wrench and help me strip these panels off first, then," she said, nodding to another part of the engine. Anything rusted tight leave it for me."
"Right," Cammie said, picking up a wrench with balanced ease. They made great hand weapons, if you needed to rely on that sort of thing. She moved over and started pulling the panels. Slowly. She didn't want to break anything today. "So... uh... yeah," she said, as she started on one, this one was indeed rusted tight.
Callisto fought the urge to roll her eyes. "There in a second..."
The pair barely noticed the hours pass as they slipped into a rhythm - stripping the engine, Callisto mentally noting and commenting on areas that required work or new parts, politely (or perhaps just bemusedly) ignoring Cammie's habit of occasionally eating grime from the surface of the engine.
The siding house was old and in disrepair. Both UN peacekeepers had bickered while taking them over to it on whether or not the locomotive that had spent twenty years slowly rusting in it would even get out the door, much less pull the train of cars that had been cobbled together from other local lines which were months away from being repaired for service. The huge doors creaked open, and they followed the sidetrack into the middle, where the train sat.
It was old; a WDM-2 engine which had likely come off the lines in Varanasi during the late sixties. Despite the obvious age to it, the engine looked better than it had any right to. The siding house's status as a military building had prevented casual looters or vandalism, and whomever had retired the locomotive had known their business when they had shut it down. The UN troops set down the packages of tools and supplies which had been airlifted in to try and get the locomotive active and nodded to Callisto.
"We'll be outside, ma'am. Let us know if you need anything."
"Hotwire a few cars and everyone automatically thinks you know engines," Cammie grumbled, looking at the train engine. She did know mechanics – you had to if you wanted to negotiate your price on car parts- and she could see some of what she knew in that engine. It was just. bigger. Holy crap was it bigger.
"This is going to be fun. Well, at least whoever kept this knew what they were doing, as far as I can tell from first glance and all that crap," she said, stretching her fingers, "So I'll follow your lead here. I don't want to break something because I'm trying to fix a car."
"Can't say I've ever fixed a train myself..." Callisto shot Cammie a trademark wry smile, and leaned to press her ear to one of the riveted, slightly rusted plates along the side of the engine, giving the metal a sharp rap of her knuckles. "Needs loosening up a bit," she murmured, pursing her lips in thought. "Little metal fatigue here an' there." She smirked. "This might take a whole lotta WD40..."
"Oh fuck, I think I drank it," Cammie said, "Just kidding, I think they left some here." She started tying her hair back, "Well, hopefully we can get through this without fucking it up big time. Since you know, they need it and all. You point, I'll fix. That'll keep it somewhat safe. And maybe they'll have some extra oil for me."
Callisto raised her eyebrows slightly but said nothing, only pulling a spanner from her tool belt and turning back to the engine, beginning to loosen one of the rusted panels on the side. "Grab a wrench and help me strip these panels off first, then," she said, nodding to another part of the engine. Anything rusted tight leave it for me."
"Right," Cammie said, picking up a wrench with balanced ease. They made great hand weapons, if you needed to rely on that sort of thing. She moved over and started pulling the panels. Slowly. She didn't want to break anything today. "So... uh... yeah," she said, as she started on one, this one was indeed rusted tight.
Callisto fought the urge to roll her eyes. "There in a second..."
The pair barely noticed the hours pass as they slipped into a rhythm - stripping the engine, Callisto mentally noting and commenting on areas that required work or new parts, politely (or perhaps just bemusedly) ignoring Cammie's habit of occasionally eating grime from the surface of the engine.
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