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On any given day, if you were a merc, you could probably find the Psychologist in her shared space with Medic, but if you were to go looking for her today, you’d find her walking down the hallway with her nose in one of her notepads.
The same could be said about Rigger; who normally would keep to herself, but today she would be found in the hallway, playing with her drones. She crouched down, back against the wall, her eyes fixed onto the console she was holding. With a smirk forming at the edges of her mouth, she piloted Spot, her compact surveillance drone, around the corner and down the same hallway.
Usually unlucky when it came to avoiding collisions, the Psychologist was fortunate enough to detect the quiet whir of the drone’s flight systems and look up before she ran face-first into it. She allowed a knowing smile to grace her features and observed the drone quietly, knowing which merc would be behind the controls.
The drone came to a smooth stop, then began to strafe playfully in half circles around her head. Poking her head around the corner, Rigger smiled, getting to her feet and walking down to greet the Psychologist.
In turn, the Psychologist waved. “Hello there, Rigger. New drone today?” She then gestured to the object in question with her free hand as she lowered her notepad.
‘Nope, same little Spot,’ replied Rigger excitedly. ‘I’ve just been tinkering with him, is all.’ She began to furrow her brow and her purse her lips as she stared at the drone, getting lost in her thoughts. There was always so much to keep track of, be it modifications or repairs.
“I suppose he’s new to me,” the Psychologist hummed as she watched the drone move.
“Although, if I may make a suggestion, you may want to cover the rotors. Don’t want stray items falling in, namely birds, bottles, and cigarettes.”
Placing her hand firmly on her hip, the Rigger’s face contorted with incredulity. ‘Perhaps. But I certainly would not sleep well at night knowing my drones are functioning below optimum efficiency.’
Raising her hand in a gesture of goodwill as she realized her mistake, the Psychologist made a mental note about the Rigger and allowed herself a short laugh.
“Understood, but I don’t suppose that Medic would be too happy if something were to happen to Archimedes, though. In fact, I was just heading to the lab, would you like to walk with me?”
And with that, the Psychologist resumed her walk to the lab.
‘That is true…’ she considered, a frown appearing on her face. ‘And of course, I needed to see Medic about improving my drones anyways.’ Rigger then switched Spot to auto control and he dutifully followed behind the pair.
“Perfect.” Feeling rather satisfied with that conversation, as they moved along, the Psychologist asked, “While we’re there, can I trouble you to confirm a few items on your file?”
For a split second, Rigger’s eyes became dark with concern, cocking an eyebrow ever so slightly. ‘Of course…’ she hesitated. ‘What things did you have in mind?’ hoping her interested tone masked her unease.
Never one to miss such an interesting reaction, the Psychologist picked up on the Rigger’s answer with a slight raise of an eyebrow. “Just things that could be subject to change with time. Height, weight, medications and the like.”
Sighing a quiet breath of relief, Rigger’s expression warmed. ‘Oh I see! I would be happy to assist.’
“Wonderful,” The Psychologist confirmed before pausing to consider how to continue the conversation. “Hmm. So. What is Spot made of?”
‘Cutting edge carbon fibre, titanium reinforcements, lightweight polymer rotor blades…’ Rigger’s eyes were bright now, barely containing her excitement. ‘And let’s see. Oh yes, a custom lithium ion battery for maximum power.’
Interesting. The Psychologist perked up. “That seems rather expensive.”
Casting a sideways glance at the Psychologist, Rigger leaned in towards her, ‘It really is, but don’t be telling the others that…’ She swiftly looked over her shoulder, ‘I swear if Scout tries to steal it again there’s going to be a homicide.’ She chuckled darkly, ‘Maybe I could electrify Spot…’
Taking note, the Psychologist smirked and made the motion that indicated that her lips were sealed. Then, as they reached the doors to the lab, she knocked on the metal doors and shouted, “Medic! I’m coming in! And there’s another with me, so everyone better be decent in there!”
A chuckle escaped the Rigger as the doors swung open to reveal a smiling Medic, covered in unidentifiable body fluids.
“It was one time!” Medic pointed a finger at the Psychologist before peering down at the Rigger. “Ah! The new woman! Come in, come in.” He beckoned them inside, neglecting to warn the newcomer of the slight smell in the lab.
Inside the lab, Spy sat atop the operating table, placing a small brown bottle into his breast pocket as everyone entered.
‘Afternoon, Spy! You alright?’ Rigger asked happily.
Spy lowered himself off the table, dusting his suit down and pulling out his carton of cigarettes. ‘I am indeed, Rigger. And I trust you and Spot are doing well?’
‘Rather well, thank you!’ Rigger replied eagerly, earning a subtle smile from Spy.
‘That is good to hear,’ he nodded. Spy then glanced at his watch, giving the Doctor and the Psychologist an approving nod, before turning on his heel and briskly walking out.
Clapping her hands together, the Psychologist noted, “You’re both in better in better shape than expected.” After making her observation, she reached into her desk and fished around for a while before pulling out a manilla folder.
“Here we are. And not tampered with! What a pleasant surprise,”
She smiled as she punched Medic, who looked over her shoulder at the file and replied, “I do try.”
Scanning the papers, the Psychologist muttered to herself before speaking up. “Rigger, it says here that you’re 5 feet and 2 inches tall, can you confirm?”
‘Yes, that’s me,’ Rigger concurred.
“Very good…” The Psychologist flipped through again. “There are no listed medications for you here, but that is confidential and we can discuss that later.” At this point, she was just mumbling notes to herself while shooing Medic away.
“Hm… Anything I should know before we schedule an eval for you?” She asked.
‘Well… What sort of things would you need to know?’
The Psychologist twirled a pen in her hand as she gestured to a calendar next to her desk. “Your work schedule, presumably.”
‘Oh.’’ Leaning closer towards the Psychologist, Rigger replied in a hushed tone, ‘Well in that case I’m free tomorrow, I was just going to prepare my drones for their weekly reign of terror on the mercs. But that won’t take me long, heh. This week it’s Soldier’s turn,’ Rigger smirked.
Medic grinned. “Oh good! We can all talk at the same time. You need to show me your flight patterns.”
In response, the Psychologist pinched his arm. “I know you forget procedure at every opportunity, but maybe she’d like to keep some things secret.”
Shifting uncomfortably, Rigger stared expectantly at the pair. Unable to find the right words, she held her hands up in submission. Looking up, she noticed Spot buzzing freely around the lab.
Nevertheless, the bickering did not cease. In other areas of the room, Archimedes flew around Spot to inspect the newcomer to his airspace.
Spot took his place on a nearby shelf, almost as if the drone was watching the dove with curiosity.
Eventually breaking away from her conversation with Medic, The Psychologist addressed the Rigger. “Terribly sorry about that. Does Wednesday afternoon work for you?”
‘Yes, that’s good with me. Can I bring Spot too?’ Rigger asked with a wink.
The Psychologist turned to mark up her calendar appropriately. “Of course. I’ll write you down for 3.”
While the Psychologist scribbled numerous things down, Medic turned casually to the Rigger, his coat and hair untamed, or possibly just messed with. “While she does that, shall we act upon our earlier agreement?”
Rigger’s eyes lit up with sheer excitement. ‘Definitely! I wanted to ask you about improvements to my drones!’ She pulls out her console, gesturing to the Medic. ‘I was thinking of programming them to aid you healing the mercs...You know how they are in battle…’
Medic laughed jovially. “Of course. I almost never get to Scout or Sniper… That would actually help them a lot. Stop them from dying every ten seconds.”
‘Agreed!’ she laughed. ‘I’ve not even been here long and I just don’t know how you do it. Running after them all day!’
“He sometimes doesn’t!” The Psychologist shouted over her shoulder.
Medic waved a hand dismissively. “Oh, shut up. Heavy is a big man who requires a lot of healing and the Medigun can only do so much! Anyways,” he spoke as he pulled said device out of a locker, “Engie helped make my technology mobile, maybe you can make it fly.”
It was quite entertaining to see the Rigger mulling over the possible ways in which she could do this. Clapping her hands together with an admirable fascination, ‘Well I can most certainly give it a try! Perhaps I can calibrate the frequency of the emitter… ‘She began mumbling to herself, yet again falling victim to her endless thoughts. ‘Attach this part to a modified drone…’
Medic hummed, “Very good. I’ll leave you to it.” He’s nervous about someone other than him handling the Medigun, but the Psychologist has taught him to let go a little.
Said woman smiled and announced her departure. “Well, now that you’re settled, I’m going to meet Demo for a session. He’s probably too drunk to move on a Saturday evening.
And with that, she was out of the room.