A Little Bit of Elbow Grease (Nosferatu and Sigma Octantis)

[Nosferatu]

Morry watched silently for the entire half hour. There was something wrong with this guy, to be so damn entranced with the smelly remnants of his own corpse. Granted, Morry recalled his first respawn being a whole lot messier and a lot more chaotic, so he hadn't had much time to go back and look (and maybe he'd tracked himself down after ceasefire, just to see...), but he most certainly didn't poke at it for the better part of an hour. That was just unholy.

He chuckled and shook his head at the BLU's enthusiasm. "I know - I saw the whole thing, remember? Was sittin' here tha whole time." Or, well, behind a crate. But the view was about the same either way.

[Two Faced]

"Yeah, I remember that," Enzo mused-- and though me might have sounded a little bitter, the grin never left his face. "Pushed me out here to go face off with your spy friend." He plucked up his pistol and pocketed it before standing-- "So it's quiet back here again. Not dead yet, so your snipers must not have moved this far up. What does the field look like, then? I figure I'd better not get splattered again today, or else I'm going to have a lot of explaining to do."

The engineer glanced back at his corpse and frowned at it-- "What happens to the bodies after battle, do you know?"

They couldn't exactly just let them pile up, and maybe they'd have a use. Enzo wouldn't mind poking around with them for a bit... as long as they died towards the end of the day. A fresh supply of corpses opened all sorts of possibilities, and since respawn virtually cloned copies...

[Nosferatu]

A snort was thrown in the BLU's direction. "If he were my friend, I'dda just chatted it up with him instead'a sendin' you." He flicked a bit of grit off of his kneepads, chuckling at the other man's assessment. "Jes stick w'me and ye'll be fine. And get away from that damned thing or ye'll start smellin' like it." He felt for a moment like a mother chastising a child for getting too close to a dead rat or something.

Morry frowned at the next question though. Oh, he knew where this guy was headed with this question and hell if he was gonna -- "Dunno," he shrugged, "Figure they jus' pile 'em up and dump 'em somewhere. Not somethin' I make a habit'a thinkin' about."

[Two Faced]

"That'd make you a bad friend then, wouldn't it? Stopping him from doing his job." Enzo grinned at the RED again, giving the corpse a look over only when it was mentioned. "It's fine. I always take a shower before dinner anyway-- you can't cook when you're coated in dirt an' grime." He continued to smile even when the other frowned-- because that answer was pretty much what he wanted to hear.

"I think I fancy examining them a bit. Better then letting them rot, at least. If I could find a way to... There are possibilities... given the right circumstances, you'd able to replace damaged parts from one body with another's with no chance of rejection..."

[Nosferatu]

"All I'm gonna say is ye'd better leave me the hell outta any'a this madness yer cookin' up." Morry brought his hands up in a defensive gesture. "I don't want a thing ta do w'dead bodies or experiments or any'a yer mad scientist stuff."

He shook his head and pushed himself off the ground. "Y'do all that in yer free time then. And the rest of yer free time," Morry grinned, "will be with me. So I can teach ya how t'defend yerself."

[Two Faced]

Enzo waved his wench in Morry's direction, but cringed when a bit of gore started to slip down the handle. He leaned down to wipe it on his clothes (his old clothes) before sighing. "I'm not a mad scientist. I'm not trying to violate God's territory or nothing, either. I'm only interested in furthering mankind. Improving our health and lives and you know, making things better. Heck, if it weren't for people like me we'd still think bloodletting was the best way to handle everything."

He turned his head to keep an eye on the other engineer-- so what, the enemy was supposed to teach him how to fight? Wasn't that against policy? Heck, RED hadn't even asked. RED hadn't even given his name.

"Because you really want to have to deal with more resistance when you get to BLU base. You're not one of them 'the more challenging the better' types, are you?"

[Nosferatu]

The RED simply shrugged and went to fetch a small icebox from behind one of the nearby crates. "That's all well'n good. I jus' don't want any part of it." He returned a moment later with what looked like a beer bottle in each hand. "Here," he offered one to the other engineer, "as a peace offerin' and mark of my good intentions." He chuckled and cracked it open on his belt. It was going to be a slow day, he didn't expect many others to come by before ceasefire as the BLUs seemed to be holding the REDs at bay for the most part. And now that Morry'd found Enzo, he wasn't keen on picking up and moving to the front lines at the moment.

"Well, I like you, think ye've got potential, and would hate ta see ye killed out here. An bein' an engineer myself, I won't hafta much worry about seein' you on the lines." That seemed a sufficient explanation. And it was the truth. "Name's Morry, by the way," he offered after taking a long sip. "Don't s'pose you got one."

[Two Faced]

If Enzo had his way, their current medical methods would be out of date in no time-- but that wasn't likely to happen, so he had to push advances one step at a time. He eyed the bottle with slight suspicion as it was offered to him, but he couldn't exactly turn down a peace offering-- particularly one of food. Messing with a man's food in wartime was a tactic he didn't think RED would resort to, even on such a small scale.

He opened his bottle with his wrench and nodded at the other's explanation. "Don't think that makes much sense, considering there's got to be other engineers on RED." He tipped the bottle up in pursuit of the other, though his sip was quite a bit smaller.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't pleased to meet you, Morry. M'name's Enzo."

[Nosferatu]

Morry offered him a winning smile when he accepted the drink. He'd looked for all the world like he'd thought it was poisoned for a moment, though. Now that was silly. Why would he poison his own beer? "Well that makes two of us. Nice t'meetcha, Enzo."

"And it makes plenty'a sense. I choose the people I like and that's that. Besides, I'd hate ta see ye killed before ye can reunite with yer girl." He gave Enzo an exaggerated wink and took up a seat on one of the crates.

[Two Faced]

The BLU engineer stayed quiet for a bit, nodding and making small approving noises-- at least until he mentioned 'reuniting with his girl.' He'd love to see Clara again, of course he would-- but to even begin trying to trick himself into believing that Clara would still be at the old base by the time his contract expired was foolishness. She'd move on, find someone else to take care of her-- and damn they had better take good care of her--

Enzo sighed and sipped at his drink. Sure, Clara was still at the old base now. Maybe he could sneak off and go back to her. He should have refused the transfer. He must have let her down, when he told her about it. She was probably angry at him now. And who would watch over her? Hug her, kiss her? Love her? The thought of anyone else touching her made him queasy.

"Clara," he muttered, "her name was Clara. She was more of a fighter then I've ever been. She... works for RED. Likely she'd be transferred elsewhere before I... I can't exactly write a letter and check up on her..."

[Nosferatu]

The frown on Morry's face deepened with every word, and eventually he stood and made his way over to Enzo's side, beer abandoned by the crate. Carefully, as if about to approach a wild animal, he placed a gentle hand on Enzo's shoulder. "M'sorry," he said. "I really am." He didn't know the first thing about falling in love with an enemy, and especially having to transfer right after making something like that work in the first place.

He chewed on his lip, trying to think of something appropriate to say. "Sounds like she was a real keeper." He hoped that wouldn't make things worse.

[Two Faced]

Enzo chuckled a little when the hand was put on his shoulder, and he was surprised that he didn't have to squint to look up. It must have been later in the day then he'd thought. And Morry? He shouldn't say sorry. Sorry wasn't the right thing to say when talking about Clara at all.

"A keeper? She was perfect. Smart, strong. I think I admired her so much because she could fight while I ran away. She'd been given grievances and she worked through it. She was better then me. I don't think that she doesn't miss me, but I know she's doing what she needs to do right now. She'll be happy again, she'll stop worrying about me. I suppose she'd say I should do the same, but I really don't want to. I want to have her back, Morry."

His voice caught for a moment, and he found himself shaking his head. "Now listen, engineer-- RED-- I'll take you up on your offer."

[Nosferatu]

He listened intently. Every word made it perfectly clear just how hard he'd fallen for this gal, and it broke Morry's heart to think they might realistically never see each other again. "I know she misses ya," he said, completely sure of it. He had a feeling she was much of the same mind as Enzo. His hand didn't move from his shoulder once, except when Enzo's tone changed with a shake of his head. He removed it to shake his hand.

"Tha's right. Don' be doin' a disservice to her memory by lettin' yerself get killed sittin' around moping." The hand that wasn't shaking Enzo's moved to clap him on the back. "Y'can count on me. Now, whaddya say we get some drinks after the fight?"

[Two Faced]

Maybe she did miss him as much as he missed her. Part of him wanted to think that, but the rest of him would never wish that much grief upon her. He took the other's hand tightly (maybe a little tighter then he had planned,) and shook it. "Fine by me. Just... do me a favor and don't talk about 'her memory.' That's the sorta thing they talk about in a eulogy, and she's not dead yet."

Enzo frowned a bit at that, and he let go of the other's hand-- "But I guess I'm going to have to keep myself alive too. You can't be hiding me every battle."

[Nosferatu]

"Damn right I'm not gonna be hidin' ya every battle. Yer on yer own after t'day." Morry's grin didn't match his promise, and he nodded. "Sorry. Didn't mean it tha' way." He gave Enzo a concerned look. "I think ye've had 'bout enough for one day. No one'll notice if ye pack it in early." He clapped him on the back once more and gave him a friendly push toward the BLU base. "See ya for drinks tonight, and meet here after ceasefire tomorrow."

---------

Ceasefire the next day had come and gone and Morry was, true to his word, leaning against the wall waiting for Enzo to show. He hadn't seen him since the night before when they'd headed to town for a a few drinks; he figured he'd survived the day, if he'd managed to survive a night of drinking in that place. Which both of them had.

He'd prepared a basic regimen of things he'd had to learn the hard way upon being hired with RED. Things like combat techniques and the finer points of how not to get yourself killed horribly in stupid ways. He hoped he'd be as solid a teacher as a learner. He sighed-- only one way to find out. The other engineer was due at any moment.

[Two Faced]

The drinking went fine, though Enzo hardly had more then a beer and a half. They talked about a lot of things-- their old bases and this one, what was different. Clara was mentioned little more then in passing-- true to his word, the engineer had done his best to convince himself that he needed to move on for the night.

When morning came and went, and when the day had ended he set off to meet his new friend. He'd come to trust Morry enough to risk the training, even if he didn't much want to fight. At the very least, he'd come to decide, he'd better learn how to defend himself. The soldier at his previous base had done little more then show him how to throw a punch-- and some good that did him the other day.

When he whipped around the corner to their meeting place, Enzo was humming softly to himself. This was an attempt to keep himself calm, though he probably already looked it. Appearances first, comfort to follow. "I'm not late enough for you to be sighing like you've been waiting an hour, RED." The engineer flashed the other a grin as he stopped beside him and extended a hand-- "Good to see you alive."

[Nosferatu]

Morry's sigh turned to a warm smile and he turned to shake Enzo's hand. "Y'too, BLU. Two days down an' only one respawn, not bad fer you." He gave the other man a chuckle and a subtle wink and stepped away from the wall.

"Hope yer ready." Morry made a show of cracking his knuckles and squared his stance in front of the other engineer. No better time than right here and right now to drill a few survival skills into a man. No respawn, the medics were about their business indoors, teammates were showering and harassing each other in the bunks. It would be just the two of them.

The first order of business was the element of surprise. Hit first, explain later. And with that in mind Morry launched himself forward, arm swinging.

[Two Faced]

Not bad at all-- though still a lot worse then his previous record of 'no respawns.' Enzo continued to grin as they shifted away from the wall, but when the other started cracking his knuckles it shifted to more incredulous look. Why was it that his teachers never wanted to take things slow and tell him what was going to happen first? Maybe give a hands-off demonstration?

Enzo gawked inwardly at the other engineer-- and as soon as he made himself ready to spring, the man took a big step backwards-- well out of the other's reach. And he wouldn't exactly have time to stop himself, right?

[Nosferatu]

The last thing Morry had expected was a passive step back. His plans had included Enzo stepping forward to meet or even block his advances. Not simply stepping aside and allowing his momentum to carry him forward until he-- Morry stumbled and barely caught himself before he became acquainted with a patch of mud.

There was a low rumbling in his throat. "Well I'll be damned," he growled, righting himself and brushing the creases from his uniform. Alright. Time for a different approach.

"This time," he said, approaching slowly, "yer not gonna do that. Yer gonna block, or hit back instead." He readied himself for the next attack.

[Two Faced]

Well, that ended... interestingly. Morry came within a few inches of kissing that mud puddle, and Enzo had to resist the urge to press down on the back of his head. It would have been a more playful gesture then defensive, but who said he had to be so serious about this? The RED straightened up before he ever got the chance, but maybe that was for the better.

He frowned at the other when given instructions, and he shook his head-- "No, I don't think I am," he uttered-- "there's a bit of a problem in your approach. I don't know how to block or throw a decent punch. I can't do what I was never taught to do. If you're gonna teach me, RED, you're gonna have to start from block one."

[Nosferatu]

He was stopped mid-stride again. "Yer tellin' me..." Morry cocked his head and visibly relaxed his posture, "ye been with RED how long and never learned to throw a punch or even block?" It was more than a little baffling how the man had survived as long as he had. Not even respawn could completely protect someone in such an environment. It was nothing short of a miracle. Unless that pyro girlfriend of his did his fighting for him.

"Alright. I can work wi' that." Morry stood before Enzo and made sure his feet were shoulder-width apart. "See what I'm doin' here? Copy me." At least he was an engineer, which meant he couldn't be too slow on the uptake. "This's important. Keeps ye balanced and distributes the weight evenly." He bounced lightly on the balls of his feet, just to accentuate his point.

[Two Faced]

Enzo frowned again, but it was quickly replaced with a meek smile-- "Well... no. I never fought. I built parts to the dispensers and sentries and brought 'em up to the other engineers... I never saw any real combat." Enzo frowned and scratched the back of his hand-- he'd already abandoned his gloves for the day. Thinking on it, he'd hardly even gotten to watch combat, much less be involved in it.

He glanced down at the other's feet and did his best to mirror the even distribution, though several small adjustments were made before he settled down with it. "Makes sense." He mirrored the other's bouncing and settled down, looking between his feet and the other engineer again. "So do I bend my knees or anything? And my arms, how do I place them? Am I doing it right so far?"

The engineer might have been enjoying himself now.

[Nosferatu]

BLU learned fast, he'd give him that. It hadn't taken more than half an hour or so to teach him the absolute basics, following up each instruction with a demonstration. Allowing him to practice one step at a time to ensure mastery was clearly the right approach in this case, and in what seemed like no time at all he was ready to start holding his own.

Morry stepped back, putting just enough distance between them to be effective. Now he'd see if any of this had stuck. "Ready when y'are," he grinned, which really meant "right the hell now because I said so", and that's all the warning Enzo would receive before a solid punch was thrown his way.

[Two Faced]

Enzo learned quick enough for his own sake, and though he wouldn't exactly use the term mastery over any part of what he'd learned to do, he'd certainly picked up more then enough to satisfy his needs for the day. And when things were winding down, and Morry looked like he was ready to jump into combat, Enzo was ready.

He was already throwing up the first of the guards that Morry had taught (which involved a side step that he hadn't really thought about before,) and getting ready to throw a punch of his own. Dammit-- Morry had gone out of his way for this, so Enzo was going to prove that he worked hard to learn this. Sure, maybe he wouldn't win (he'd probably end up in some odd mess and completely subdued in one way or another,) but he wouldn't make it easy.

[Nosferatu]

He barked a laugh at the block, his other arm moving to deflect Enzo's punch. "Not bad," he assured, sidestepping to avoid another blow and blocking effortlessly. He'd been right to assume the BLU was a fast learner.

But let's see him block this. A dangerous gleam appeared in Morry's eyes and he doubled back to aim a blow to the jaw.