Conor
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Post by Conor on Feb 7, 2022 21:27:47 GMT
It had taken Conor a few hours to fall asleep, and when he had slept, it had not been particularely restful. His body had been in pain, and his mind was still reeling, casting itself back to incidents long past. Dealing with the police had been tedious, and when they finally had gone he had mourned over the remnants of his weapon.
His shotgun was important to him. It had guided him though the desert, the diesel and the dust, the salt and the sand, until it had brought him here. Now it was broken. He had set it down in the back of his car and covered it, then replaced it with an equally well-worn, similarely made shotgun he pulled from under his car’s dashboard. The desert taught you to always work with a contingency.
Holstering it, he set about to open up his shop.
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Post by Tarsys on Feb 7, 2022 22:13:18 GMT
Tarsys rolled his shoulder. It had been a good workout and his delts were feeling it. He tossed his gym bag into the back seat of his suped up, lifted, lightly armored truck, coequally called the "War-Horse." He had put a lot of time into this ride of his, and he really didn't like other people working on it. But, he as that may be, he didn't have time to do a tune up on it. The Fire Chief was riding his ass. A number of arson related fires were under investigation, and he was in the middle of filling out the paperwork. Always paperwork.
He peeled his sweaty stringer off, as task in itself, and stuffed it into the bag, then pulled a tight white undershirt tank top over. He preferred sleeveless shirts, mostly due to the sheer size of his arms, and the frequency in which they burst through the fabric. He hopped in, and started her over. A deep rumbling purr issued from under the hood.
It didn't take long for him to find that shop. One of his friends had highly recommended this mechanic, so he was going to take the chance.
He pulled in, got out of the truck and pushed open the door to the shop. "Oi!"
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Conor
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Posts: 47
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Post by Conor on Feb 7, 2022 22:21:24 GMT
The gnoll started at seeing this enormous orc push himself through the door. His hand had slid down to his weapon, and it took him a tiny moment to realise that another mob attack was unlikely, especially by someone walking into his place during daytime shouting 'oi' at him.
He peeled himself out from beyond the shadows of his own vehicle and looked at the orc, bandaged hand hanging by his side, his good hand within inches of the gun, but not actually touching it.
"Can I help you?" he asked, gruffly, but not unfriendly.
His dark eyes flicked over the mountain of a man. He easily dwarfed him, and Conor was considered tall. The man's arms were large enough that he felt they'd be able to crush him with ease, so he kept his distance, remaining close to his vehicle and watching the orc intently. Unlike most of his people he had no quarrel with their race, but it was still prudent to be careful, especially after last night.
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Post by Tarsys on Feb 7, 2022 22:49:21 GMT
The large ork gave the gnoll a wide tusky smile. He was tall, strapping, and a little on the weary side. That was pretty normal, considering one never knew if their present company had hostile intents. Given how the Gnoll acted, he must have seen some real shit in his time. Possibly hunted. But that's wasn't his problem. The ork was a firefighter, not a bounty hunter. "You mus' be Conor? 'Eard you was one of the best mechanics around." He came in further, acutely aware of the shotgun. "I ain't lookin' fer trouble, mate. Jus' lookin' t'get my truck fixed, and Vin' recommended you. He gave you high praises, he did."
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Conor
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Post by Conor on Feb 7, 2022 22:54:44 GMT
Now was the time to make a judgement call. He was looking for someont to fix his truck. Of course. Why should he have any other intentions. His eyes still guarded, Conor sized him up, and narrowed his eyes, before some tension left his body and his hand moved away from the wooden grip. He raised his shoulders in a light shrug. "I am" he said quietly.
He looked down at his broken paw for a moment, then looked back up at the orc, with his facial features much more composed.
"What's wrong with it?" he asked "I may have a bit of a queue right now, but if it's something manageable..."
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Post by Tarsys on Feb 7, 2022 23:01:51 GMT
"She's in pretty good order. I was lookin' fer a tune up. I'd do it meself, bu' I ain' got the time righ' now." he sighed, is vast chest swelling. "An' besides, might be good t'have anotha' person lookin' at it. Before I head out t'the badlands. He thumbed over his shoulder.
"But I wan' someone who knows what he's doing. A prop'ah mechanic."
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Conor
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Posts: 47
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Post by Conor on Feb 7, 2022 23:05:03 GMT
"Badlands?" the hyena said sharply, looking up at the orc with surprised eyebrows "What are -" he stopped for a moment. Was this any of his business? Definitly not.
He raised his hands and shrugged. "I can definitly do that. If you want to leave the truck here I can get onto it today, or I can see if I can do it now if you are in a hurry. Though, it might take a bit" he waved his bandaged hand around
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Post by Tarsys on Feb 7, 2022 23:11:19 GMT
"Aye." he said in a low growl. "I ain't in a hurry." he watched the gnoll, and noticed that bandaged hand and he cocked his head. "You okay there mate? Looks like yer 'and took a beatin' If this ain' a good time, I can come back.
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Conor
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Posts: 47
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Post by Conor on Feb 7, 2022 23:14:17 GMT
"No, No" he said with a shrug. "It's fine." he waved his hand dismissively "I should be good with my other hand. Not the first time this has happened, though..." he shrugged again. "You don't, perchance, happen to know anyone who can help fix this?" he raised the paw upwards.
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Post by Tarsys on Feb 7, 2022 23:22:42 GMT
The ork eyed the paw. "I'm certified EMT. Give me a mo'." He headed out to his truck, retrieved a med-kit and returned. "Let me see that." he said as he opened the kit and pulled on a pair of latex-free exam gloves.
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Conor
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Post by Conor on Feb 7, 2022 23:25:45 GMT
The gnoll had stayed inside the workshop as the orc departed, musing if it had been this prudent to tell the man about his problems. But then again, he didn't seem to be put out. If he was qualified, perhaps he could do something to help. Conor was used to patching himself up, but whenever it was effective or not he couldn't quite judge.
Holding out his hand to the orc he gave him a nod. "Thanks." he said. "I think the middle and index are broken." he said quietly
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Post by Tarsys on Feb 8, 2022 16:08:14 GMT
The ork took the hand, and though his fingers were large and rough, he had a gentile touch. Gingerly he turned the hand over, and gave the offending digits a small wiggle. "Ya. Middle and Index are broken. Got some serious swelling. He took out a small finger splint. "Really the only thing ya can do is splint it." He attached it to one finger, then wrapped both fingers side by side with some gauze and medical tape. "Looks like you got into a fight. 'Ope you gave those scallys a thrashin'." he said as he started to clean up some of the lacerations.
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Conor
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Post by Conor on Feb 8, 2022 16:20:03 GMT
Conor resisted the urge to pull back, leaving his paws in the ork's hands, staying still for a moment, tense. But the man was careful. He hadn't lied, he knew what he was doing. Conor looked up at the hulking mountain of muscle and shrugged, then nodded. Biting his lip, he remained still until the man had bandaged his hand again. It didn't immediately fix things, but the splint helped. At least he wouldn't need to worry about bending and disjointing the digits.
"Thank you" he said, before shrugging. "Sometimes people get the jump on you, and you end up with more than you can handle. Thankfully, someone came over and helped me." he looked down at his gun for a moment, before patting it. "It's the reason I carry this again. can't be too careful."
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Post by Tarsys on Feb 8, 2022 16:29:47 GMT
Tarsys eyes landed on the gun and he took in the make and stock. It looked like was a custom job. Perhaps the gnoll was a gunsmith as well. "Aye. A weapon is a mans best friend. 'Specially 'round these parts. Looks like she's been with you fer some time. Special connection?" he asked, wondering if the gnoll was some sort of soldier or mercenary.
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Conor
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Posts: 47
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Post by Conor on Feb 8, 2022 16:38:33 GMT
Conor looked up at the ork, back down at his gun, and then back up at the man. "It's... From way out past the desert, deep in the wastelands. My kind..." he looked sideways and shrugged "You propably know all the stories, given that your people and mine are, more often than not, at odds with each other." again, he looked down. "The gun was a gift. It was given to me by someone I called a friend. We ... fought together." he looked up at the orc again, before reaching up with his good hand and scratching his furred neck. "It was complicated. Everything is complicated, isn't it?" he laughed. "I am now here. I posess a talent to repair things that are broken, and everything seems to be broken in this town."
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Post by Tarsys on Feb 8, 2022 17:02:05 GMT
The Ork gave Conor a knowing nod. "Aye, I do, but I ain' like my brethren. Not since.... Well, let's just say that I don't harbor any resentments or ill will towards the Gnolls. My beef is with those overlord corpo-rats." he paused for a moment, "Which war?"
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Conor
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Post by Conor on Feb 8, 2022 17:07:32 GMT
Conor's brow furrowed for a moment. "I do not think it has a name. It was fought between my ancestral clan and the human settlement called Wild Creek." he looked up at the orc. The man seemed genuine. Interested even. Gentle, for one of his race. "You are not like many orcs I know." Conor acknowledged. "And you have seen conflict. It changes men. Changes how they exist. The way they look at things. It embeds itself in their marrow, and I can see that look in your eyes." he spread the fingers of his good paw "You must forgive my apparent lack of knowledge, but I have not dealt with the corps. I have heard of them, but their reach out in the waste is tenuous at best, and non-existant most of the time. What have they done to you?"
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Post by Tarsys on Feb 8, 2022 17:40:56 GMT
"That it does." he agreed. "I don't think many people have met an ork like me. As I'm the only one of my particular kind. I was, uh. I was genetically altered and enhanced. A kind of super soldier. An' as far as I know, I'm the only one to survive the process" he said, leaving it a bit mysterious. "Corpo's run the cities. The only reason they would be out in the wastes is to exploit resources." he finished his work, and closed the med kit. "I was a soldier for MiliTek. I did a number of. Unsavory spec ops for them. If ya never dealt with the corpos, that's a good thing. If the deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is."
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Conor
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Posts: 47
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Post by Conor on Feb 8, 2022 17:46:24 GMT
"You certainly look it" Conor heard himself say "You propably weight double as much as me and those muscles are something."
He stopped talking for a moment as if to collect his thoughts. "Well, if only you survived it.. that must have been tough." he reached for the orc's forearm to put one hand on it, a hand that lacked its fingerclaws. "Sorry" he said After a moment he withdrew the hand and then shrugged. "This is the same everyhwere, I guess. I have seen some of the corporate mining operations out in the wastes. They are ... difficult, but not impossible to take."
At mentioning his old employment, Conor's face fell slightly "We all do things we aren't proud of." he said, guardedly. "It's important that we do what we can to mitigate the wrong we did."
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Post by Tarsys on Feb 8, 2022 18:40:49 GMT
"Thanks," the large ork said at the complement. Then the gnoll did something quite surprising. He touched his forearm. He wasn't at all upset, just slightly surprised and amused. "We all are tryin' t'do the best we can with what we've got. An' those that follow a moral code tend t'be better off."
He studied the man for a moment when he brought up a comment about taking on the corporate mining syndicates. "Ya've taken down an encampment?"
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