Kaleb threaded the CNS thread through the small hole in the shoulder joint. He was careful with the delicate thread even as Clara sighed loudly next to him. She'd been making noises ever since he started working with the threads and she hadn't stopped. She was clearly displeased with him using the threads, but he sure as hell wasn't going to install the arm without them. Kaleb picked up another thread and got ready to push it through the shoulder joint when Clara sighed dramatically again.

He removed his magnification goggles and glared at her as the owl-woman shrugged her slim shoulders.

"What?"

"Don't 'what' me, Clara. You sigh any harder and I'll have to staple down my tools."

"It's just… do you really have to use all of it?" Clara practically whined.

"YES! We've been over this. The electrical signals I'm dealing with need the best transfer method in order to reduce latency. We've already scanned the damn things, so you know how to make your own now."

"But having a physical sample would be so much better. Wouldn't you agree?"

"Again, yes, I would agree. If my arm's efficacy didn't rely on these damn threads. But since they do, I need to use as many as I can."

Clara huffed, not having another argument. Kaleb used the chance to install the thread and then looked back at Clara. She had been assembling the arm's frame with Daivor before the gnome hopped over to help Roy with something. He looked at her side of his workstation and saw the forearm frame was ready to go. That was probably another reason she was being such a brat. Clara was bored.

"Why don't you help Marie with forging the new plates for the arm?"

Clara squawked, surprised. "Hammer metal? Are you crazy? You have perfectly good plates laying about this sty you call a workshop."

"Then why don't you cut down a plate or two that'll fit the forearm?"

"What, with that archaic machine of yours over there? I think not."

Kaleb rubbed his eyes. "Then what would you like to do, Clara?! Seriously, your input has been invaluable, but your practical skills are appalling. How is it that you can work for one the foremost Robotics companies in Austin and yet have…"

He trailed off as something he hadn't thought about occurred to him. Narrowing his eyes, Kaleb asked. "What do you do at TekNik?"

Clara squawked again, this time indignantly. "What are you implying?"

"You have limited skills with actual fabrication and yet you are fairly knowledgeable about cybernetics and robotic design. Clara, are you a theorist?"

The bird woman crossed her feathery arms and gave him a glare. "I am in charge of product design and head the team dedicated to competitor review."

"But you have no actual building experience?"

"What I have are two doctorates in cybernetics and robotic engineering, professor. So how about you stop questioning my abilities?"

Kaleb put up both his hands and grinned at the irate bird-woman. "I'm just saying you're not one to get your hands dirty, are ya?"

Clara scowled at him. "Do you know how long it takes to clean these feathers?"

Kaleb hid an eye-roll as he went back to what he was doing. He waved a hand at the frame on Clara's side of the desk and grumbled. "Just assemble the rest of the synth-muscle then. That shouldn't dirty your precious feathers."

He heard her gather up the cords of synth-muscle as she complained about his gratitude. But Kaleb ignored her and finished his own task. Once all the threads were in, he examined the shoulder joint again. He still needed to add the contacts and get a power line attached, but the joint seemed to be in working order. They had assembled it from the original joint along with a few other bits and pieces from other arms. It wasn't a pretty joint, but it would get the job done. Besides, it was going to be covered by the plating and synth-muscle.

Kaleb took a moment to stretch and looked around. His assistants were still hard at work on things. Although now it was mostly to help with his own project. Roy and Daivor were seated at Roy's station going over some design while Marie and Terrance were melting and shaping the plates. He gave them both a crooked smile as Marie held up a piece of black metal. It was in the rough shape of a shoulder. He gave it a thumbs up and Marie nodded at his approval. She wasn't forging the alien alloy, just the standard plates to cover the arm.

He had told the pair that he wanted to smelt and forge the alloy himself. Both had agreed, but only after extracting a promise from him they could watch the process. Kaleb figured it wouldn't hurt anything, so he allowed it. The promise seemed to spur the two hunter teens to work that much harder. Apparently, they were both interested in alien metals. Although both tried to pretend otherwise.

A loud thwip sound informed Kaleb that Daivor had swung back to his desk and he looked around. The gnome was walking toward him while watching Clara with a wary eye. Once the gnome saw Kaleb was watching him, he nodded and pulled out his pipe.

"We should grab some of the Weikacol and bring it up. We'll need it for power testing."

Kaleb nodded as Clara jerked her head up quickly. She glanced over at the pair of them with a hungry look in her eyes, and Kaleb chuckled.

"You know, you seemed more professional when I first met you."

"I have no clue what you mean. I'm always professional."

"Uh-huh. You wanna help me bring up a sample?"

Clara quickly tossed down the synth-muscle cords in her hands and got to her feet. She was fast-walking to the door as Kaleb suppressed a laugh with Daivor. He slowly got out of his chair and stretched his back before looking down at his Familiar.

"We'll need something to test the power consumption on."

"Roy and I were on that. We've retrofitted a repulsor to take liquid power. It's not great, but should do for testing."

"We're going to fry a few of them, y'know."

"We've got plenty, and the boy pointed me to a website where they are sold."

"Repulsors? In bulk?"

"Not in bulk. Those are for car manufacturers and such. But there's a toy company that makes floating models…"

"We'll have to increase the power cycles on those."

"I know, I know. We can worry about that later. Go grab what we need before that bird woman comes over here and drags you off by your non-existent tail."

Kaleb glanced toward the door and saw Clara giving him another severe look. He rolled his eyes at her as he walked toward his door and grabbed a lab coat. She eyed the piece of clothing with confusion as she said.

"We're not going far, y'know."

"Yeah, but it completes my ensemble."

Clara rolled her eyes and said nothing more before dashing through the door. Kaleb reached down and grabbed a power canister from the floor. The two foot high cylinders were normally meant for powering large construction equipment. But he and Daivor had emptied a few out to transport the Weikacol solution for testing. Kaleb slung the thing over his shoulder and hurried after the excitable professor.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

The two of them made quick work of rushing to the basement and grabbing the solution. All the way through, Clara was bombarding Kaleb with questions about how they'd tested the powerful substance. He kept things vague and tried not to mention the many failures they'd had. But he could see that she knew. They filled the canister up and hurried back to the main floor. Quickly entering the workshop again, Kaleb sat the canister down under Clara's watchful eye. She had hardly taken her eyes off the stuff since he grabbed it. If it wasn't for the deal she had made with Farrah and D34d-I, Kaleb would've made the woman empty out her pockets.

"Bring it over, Doc." Roy said from Kaleb's workstation. A repulsor was in his hand, the metal covering removed.

Daivor was on his desk as well, laying out differently covered plastic tubing. "We don't think the solution will eat through the line. But I think it is better to test each one, right?"

"Good idea. We should do a few inert tests and then some active ones if we can manage it. Where's the igniter?"

Roy held a slim bit of metal that looked like a set of tweezers. Electricity sparked between the two prongs of the thing, and Clara took a step back. Confusion appeared on her face before realization dawned.

"Your going to spark a current through the liquid."

"That's what gives the stuff its charge." Daivor explained. "Then it needs to start moving fast or the charge will disperse and the fluid will go inert again."

"That means your lines will have to be constantly pushing liquid through and into each area that calls for power." Clara nodded.

"Yeah, which means my arm will probably have a horrible start-up time. But once it gets going, it won't stop."

"I'd avoid stopping the arm or having it stopped on you while out in the field, Doc." Daivor said, as Roy nodded.

Kaleb agreed as he moved the canister to his desk and looked over the four different types of tubing arrayed before him. The first was a clear plastic-looking tube that had a decent thickness, but still seemed a little flimsy. The second was a sturdier all black number that was almost rigid under his fingers. The third was another plastic-looking bit of tube, but its coloration was more blue and the fourth was a flexible metal cable. He raised an eyebrow as he held up the metal cable to Daivor.

"That's actually our best bet. The metal will help bleed off some of the power so you don't fry yourself."

"It's got freaking LEDs on it." Kaleb argued.

"They are just red lights." Daivor said. "And you can change the color. Besides, like I said, that's our best option. The solution is going to be churning up a shitload of power. You'll need some way to burn it off."

"Isn't that what the repulsor is for?"

"Even with the limiter taken off, the repulsor isn't going to sap all the power, Doc." said Roy.

Kaleb set the metal tubing down and sighed. "Fine. Let's start this off and begin testing."

Roy and Daivor nodded as Clara watched with mounting interest. The inert tests were pretty straightforward and proved that the solution, while inert, was harmless. The blue liquid simply flowed down the tubes and into the second canister they'd prepared. Once those tests were done, Kaleb held the tubes while Roy and Daivor poured and ignited the solution. The difference was night and day. Not only did the solution heat up super quickly, but it carried the charge all the way down into the canister. The clear plastic and black tubing were burned through super quickly. While the blue tubing held up better, it too was quickly burned through.

Kaleb flicked some of the solution off his metal fingers and onto the floor as Clara glared daggers at him. She felt the action was wasteful. But Kaleb didn't want the sparking liquid getting into his electronics. The stuff kept its charge longer than expected, even when it was fully stopped.

"Final test: flexible metal tubing with Christmas lights, ready to begin pouring." Kaleb said toward his computer that had been recording everything.

Daivor scoffed. "They aren't Christmas lights, ya damn lizard. Just hold the line steady."

"I'm holding. You just be careful with that igniter."

"We've done this three times now, Doc. We all know our role."

"When did my apprentice get so sassy?"

"You three are children." Clara said as she observed them.

"Pouring." Roy stated.

The sound of the Weikacol solution flowing down the line entered the quiet room. Kaleb could feel the liquid sloshing within the metal tube as Daivor raised the igniter to where Roy was pouring and turned it on. The jolt of electricity brought the liquid to life, and the tube seemed to jump in Kaleb's hands. The lights on the tube's outside flashed in sequence as the solution traveled down the long bit of pipe and into the second canister.

Unlike the first three times, the solution didn't speed up like it had been shot out of a cannon after Daivor ignited it. But the tube heated up noticeably under Kaleb's hands. Combined with the flashing lights, the whole thing got way too hot for his liking. As the last of the solution poured from the tube and crashed into the canister, Kaleb flexed the fingers in his biological hand. Thankfully, he wasn't burned, but they were going to have to insulate the tube somehow. When he told the others this, Daivor nodded sagely.

"Maybe we can coat the inside of the tube with some kind of protection. But otherwise, the MetFlex tubing is our best bet for now."

"I still hate the lights." Kaleb complained, but no one paid attention to him.

Roy was watching the second canister as it ran out of power while Clara had moved to look over the MetFlex tubing. Kaleb was surprised to see Marie walking over as well and looking at the flexible metal with interest. Daivor waved Kaleb down before he could join the two women and pointed at the repulsor on his desk.

"We still need to see how the liquid does with the retrofitted repulsor. I think with the MetFlex, the charge should be defused enough to not blow up."

Kaleb nodded and then moved to pick up the section of MetFlex they'd been using. Clara and Marie almost killed him with their glares, but he quickly grabbed it and beat a hasty retreat before attaching the tube to the repulsor. Daivor and Roy had jury-rigged a threaded connection on top of the repulsor. The idea was the solution would feed into the repulsor's power core and rapidly charge the thing for an attack. Kaleb was going to have to release the charge quickly or the repulsor's core would fry itself.

Once the Weikacol solution had run off its energy, he, Daivor, and Roy got into position again. This time the line was attached to the repulsor and Kaleb had a finger on the tiny device's ON switch.

"Once we have activation, immediately tip the line back the other way." Daivor instructed. "We need to get the solution out of the Repulsor's power chamber quickly."

"Got it."

"Yes, sir."

Kaleb and Roy got into place and then started the experiment. Again, Roy poured the liquid as Daivor got the igniter ready. Kaleb watched as the solution was fed into the top of the repulsor. Some of the solution bled out of the connection point. But nothing too bad. Things only started to go wrong when Daivor ignited the solution. Immediately, the repulsor's core sucked in the energy like a sponge. Kaleb quickly flipped the repulsor's switch, but that only made the thing whir loudly and try to take off from his workbench.

The repulsor was designed to send waves of force out from its underside to achieve lift. The power generated by the solution was such that the repulsor practically flew away. Kaleb had to tighten his grip on the MetFlex tube as Roy quickly dipped his end of the tube back toward the canister. They were draining the liquid back out when the repulsor glowed bright blue. Kaleb shared a worried look with Daivor before the gnome screamed.

"EVERYONE! DOWN!"

The repulsor flashed bright white as Kaleb pulled on the MetFlex and dragged the repulsor into his metal hand. He covered his palm over the repulsor as it flashed white one last time and exploded. Kaleb's cybernetic arm and chest caught most of the blast. Thankfully, the repulsor wasn't huge, otherwise Kaleb's armor wouldn't have been enough to handle the shrapnel. As it was, his lab coat and armor saved him from the worst of it. Unfortunately, he couldn't say the same for the metal fingers of his robotic hand.

The metal digits were bent and broken in places and he could see sparks of the Weikacol all over his metal palm and arm. Daivor and the others pulled themselves up from the floor to check the damage and winced as they all saw Kaleb. He grinned at them and waved his broken hand.

"It's better than it looks."

"I'd hope so, professor. Cause that looks horrific."

Kaleb shrugged. "At least we were building me a new arm anyway."

Daivor and Roy nodded as Clara got an angry look on her face. But before she could say anything, the door to his lab was shoved open and several brute clan lizards rushed in. The explosion had apparently been loud enough to overcome the sound dampening runes he and Daivor had placed. Kaleb raised his broken hand and waved awkwardly. The foursome of guards glared around the room before one guard snorted in annoyance at him. They quickly backed out of the room and told the rest of the hangar not to worry.

"… It's just the lab lizard blowing himself up again!"

"It doesn't happen that often," Kaleb grumbled as a bit of his metal thumb fell to the floor.

They all watched as a homunculi rushed over and collected the bit of metal. The little creature looked confused about what to do with the thing before it rushed away and threw it in the Junk Bin.

"Ah…" Kaleb started to say before he stopped himself.

Daivor watched the whole thing with a calculating look on his face before he said. "We'll need to limit the amount of liquid that flows into the front of your arm."

"Yeah, and we'll have to reassess the power output of the solution. I mean, we knew it was powerful. But this was a bit beyond what we imagined." Roy nodded.

"Um, excuse me!?" Clara interrupted. "Y'all just exploded a portion of your lab and we aren't going to address that?!"

Kaleb, Daivor and Roy shared a look before they each looked back at Clara and shrugged. The bird-woman huffed angrily and looked prepared to berate them further. But Marie put a hand on Clara's shoulder and shook her head.

"Don't bother. The three of them treat workplace explosions like they are normal."

"But they shouldn't!"

"Trust me, Clara. I get it. But they are idiots."

Kaleb spread his arms out in a 'what the fuck' gesture. But Marie simply scoffed and wandered back to her area of the workshop. Clara glanced at the three of them, clacking her beaked mouth in worry. But Kaleb waved her off.

Some people just didn't understand. In order to push science forward, sometimes an explosion was necessary.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.