I do not own Team Fortress 2, or an of its characters. Those rights belong to Valve. Lovely company they are~.
Oh man. A TF2 Fanfiction. With a female character.
Apparently some people don't like female characters in TF2. I've never really understood that, but I assure you- no one here is going out in the battlefield in five tons of makeup and the world's biggest rack on their chests.
I'll admit, I'm pretty new to this whole writing thing. I think I know enough to actually have at it, but eh. Lemme know if it sucks or not with a review. Or advice! Advice is sweet too. Anyways, enough rambling. HERE YOU GO.
Life at the Reliable Excavation Demolition was odd at first. If you would call being shot at, killed, and brought back from the dead, odd. They never told her what it'd be like when she signed the dozens of contracts and what she thought seemed like a hundred thousand waivers. Anyone in their right mind would have declined such a strange and suspicious job opportunity. But alas, she was in a little bit of a problem.
Now, she was a smart woman. Eleven hard earned science PhD certificates proved that without question. But that was just the thing- she never paid attention to anything else besides math and science. She wasn't "dumb" in other subjects. She was just a little under the average person's knowledge in trivial matters. She could read and write just fine, although her handwriting was just a bit of the rough side.
Finding a suitable job was hard for her. There were many companies seeking out her employment, but all of them were not to her liking. She never wanted to be a plumber, or an electrician, or even a architect. She just liked building things. So when a strange woman in a purple dress and some rather large looking glasses showed up in her humble family built house in Bee Cave, Texas- her curiosity was easily attracted.
The woman- Miss Pauling she called herself- offered her a place in a subdivision of TF Industries. She could remember that day like it was just five seconds ago.
"Did I say something amusing, Miss Conagher?" Miss Pauling asked.
"Pardon my rudeness Miss Pauling, but I thought I just heard you say TF Industries. N-" The Engineer said while laughing.
"I did."
Her laugh died down, and she gave Miss Pauling a bored look,"So you're tellin' me that ya' came all the way down from Washington- from probably the largest military and weapons supplier companies around- just to hand me about a' thousand papers in that there folder a' your's?"
"Precisely, Miss Conagher. Actually, this is more so of a start date for you. If you decide to sign these papers that is."
"Now why in Hell would I go and do that?"
"You're currently unemployed, with no money, and because of such, your house is going to be taken soon." Miss Pauling stated in a deadpan manner.
Engineer tilted her head up, watching the woman in front of her. she then gave a sigh, lowering it back down,"Well.. Guess I ain't got a choice but to hear ya' out.."
"Oh no. I won't be here for more than two minutes." Miss Pauling then handed the folder to the Texan,"There will be a number in that folder that you should call if you sign off on the signature lines. Somebody will come pick you and all of them up afterwards."
"Pick me up..?"
"You will just have to find out if you sign off on those. And I saw the workshop outback. I think you would fit nicely with our line of work." Miss Pauling said.
The lady then fixed her glasses and turned, walking down the dirt path to a black vehicle with tinted windows. Getting into the car, it started up after a few seconds, and drove away quickly. The Engineer stood there with the inch thick file in her hands, now very spent the entirety of a good week reading those damn papers- and sign off on every single one she did.
When she made the call, she was on a plain to God knows where. She watched the ground below for a long while, before she finally fell asleep. The Engineer awoke just in time to see a town not far off. They circled, and eventually landed in the town of Tuefort, New Mexico.
Grabbing her luggage (a simple suitcase, along with her guitar case) and stepping off the plane, she saw Miss Pauling waiting. Most likely for her. The Engineer approached the small woman and gave a light nod.
"Howdy, Miss Pauling. How do ya' do?" The Texan asked.
"Fine. Come with me. We have to get you fitted." Miss Pauling said, as she turned around and began to walk away, with a notebook tucked underneath her arm and shoulder.
The Engineer followed, seeming confused,"Uh.. Fitted?"
"We require all personnel on base to be fitted with a uniform so that they are easily recognizable and fit in well."
"Ah.. I don't mean to badger ya' with questions an' all, but.. This don't seem just a tiny bit odd to ya'? Y'know.. Ya' seem to know a lot about me, but I barely know a thing about y'all." The Engineer said, seeming slightly apologetic in tone.
"I am well aware of how different our protocol is from other companies, Miss Conagher. Our process is easy and fast, so that we waste little time." Miss Pauling replied.
The two approached the same black vehicle that the Engineer saw last time. Miss Pauling entered the driver's seat, while the Texan loaded her luggage into the trunk. She relaxed slightly as they began to drive from the airport, and away from the town in general. The desert stretched as far as the eye could see, but it wasn't the kind of sand desert. Mostly dust, and a lot of dry dirt. And rocks. A lot of rocks. It was calming in a way.
Don't get her wrong- the Engineer likes people- but only the right kinds of people. People that are practical. They do the things they say they will- they don't just sit around and wait for someone like her to do the task. Unfortunately, a lot of people were not that inclined. Though, she kept her anger to herself. She wasn't passive aggressive either- she just bottled it all in. And when she was angry, well.. Boy, you best hope you ain't the target.
Miss Pauling uttered a small curse as she looked at her watch,"Shit.. Screw it- I don't have time- do you know your measurements?"
Well that was sort of impolite to ask.
"Ah.. L-" The Engineer was cut off as the now irritated lady spoke again.
"Nevermind. I need to make a call." She said, and with that, the woman took a cell phone out of her pocket, and dialed a number like she had done it billions of times. Not a moment later, she was speaking again,"It's me. Yes, I got her. On our way to the base now. Yes ma'am. I won't be late ma'am. Uh.. Yes, I am running twelve seconds behind schedule, I-.. Yes ma'am.. Thank you, ma'am." She hung up the phone then, placing it back in her pocket.
The Engineer cleared her throat slightly,"So.. Pardon me for askin', but was that your boss?"
Miss Pauling kept her eyes glued to the road, seeming a bit tense,"Yes."
"I don't mean t' insult her or anything, but.. She sounds a tad bit strict.."
"Very.." The woman in purple replied with a bit of exhaustion mixed in.
"Well, I'm sure she don't mean nothin' by it. Well.. I mean, she must have a good reason t' push you so roughly. At least, that's what I could hear from over here- sorry for listenin' in to what's none of my bees wax."
Miss Pauling seemed conflicted for a moment,"It's just a bit overwhelming."
The Engineer nods slowly, seeming contemplative,"Well, that's just a given. Let me see, ah.. The way you explain it- her givin' ya' work t' make ya' overwhelmed and all.. And her strict tone.. Think of er' as a scolding mama, constantly pushing you t' do just a bit better every time you succeed."
Miss Pauling relaxed just a little bit at hearing this, and gave a soft hum,"Hm. Never thought of it like that before. Interesting.. I, uh.. Thanks."
The Engineer gave the woman one of the world's most kind smiles,"Don't mention it, pardner."
Now it was Miss Pauling's turn to clear her throat, and then she was back to her usual business-like self,"Your uniform will be at a shipment drop sight a few miles away from the base. It's a small broken down shack. I'll drive you to that, you get changed, and then we go on for a few miles to the base."
"Well, if it's only a few miles away from this base you keep speakin' about, I'd be glad to cut your time with me short. So you can earn back that, uh.. Twelve seconds ya' lost gettin' me here. I don't mind the heat at all- this place ain't got nothin' on the good ole Texas frontier." The Texan insisted.
"You sure? Alright, if you say so. You're a big help, Miss Conagher." Miss Pauling gave a faint smile.
"Please, call me Della."
"Della.. Oh! That reminds me. You're being given a new name. Er- not really name, but the people you will be working with go by their class names."
Della seemed confused for a moment,"So ya' mean like a nickname?"
"Yes, exactly. Each nickname, pertains to what you do. For instance, your's is the Engineer. Or, well- people won't say the 'the' part. Just Engineer."
The Engineer pondered this for a moment,"Huh.. Engineer? Vague and simple. I like it."
"Good, because even if you hated it, we couldn't change it."
"So who am I exactly workin' with? Other engineers?"
Miss Pauling shook her head,"No. You'll be working with eight other people on a team. They have their own nicknames too, like Medic, Spy, Heavy, and- uh- Scout."
Della gave a slow nod in understanding, and then tilted her head slightly, looking back to the woman beside her,"So why go through all the trouble of a nickname when you could just use our real names?"
"I don't.. Actually have an answer for that. It's just highly recommended that you do so. You can tell other people your name, but.. That'd seem a bit weird to them. You also signed off on a sort of 'rent' for one of our base rooms. You'll be staying there for maybe a few weeks, and then you and your team will move out to a different base for a different assignment. And don't worry.. Everything available at the base, is free to you, and your team. Your company pays for all of that. We basically take care of you. The payment is your continued working with us. Also. You can file in requests for the supply drops, for whatever you need- so long as you provide a reason for it, and we deem it not stupid." Miss Pauling explained.
"Well, course' I wouldn't request anythin' stupid. I don't think anyone would wanna back up the process of important goods and needs."
Miss Pauling rolled her eyes slightly and gave a small huff,"You'd be surprised, Della."
About an hour or so later, the vehicle came up to a small, rusted, and worn down metal shack on the side of the road. Clearly it looked abandoned, and one could probably catch about a billion diseases if they cut themselves upon the rusted metal. The car stopped as Miss Pauling turned to look at the Engineer.
"This is it. You'll find your outfit in there. If it's too big or small, leave me a message and I'll take care of it when I can." She said.
The Engineer gave a nod and pat the woman beside her on the shoulder,"Thank you kindly, Miss Pauling. I reckon I just keep followin' the road and all get there?"
"Keep following the road until you reach a broken down billboard. Then, move East. You'll see it. It's hard to miss once you get close."
The Engineer gave a nod and hopped out of the vehicle after thanking Miss Pauling again. She quickly rounded to the trunk of the car, and opened it. She took hold of her guitar and bag, and shut the trunk. The vehicle then sped off as soon as this happened, leaving a trail of dust. It was almost comical how much of a rush that woman was in. The Texan chuckled to herself and proceeded to the shack. She leaned her guitar against one of the walls, making sure it was steady, and then set down her suitcase. Upon entering the shack, it was a bit warmer than outside. It had also seen better days, the material old, rusty, and obsolete.
A neat and clean wooden crate sat in the middle of the shack, sticking out like a sore thumb. She knelt down on the creaking wood, and began to pry open the top- which proved fairly easy. She expected it to be nailed shut. Peering inside the odd crate, the first thing to catch her eyes, was the yellow hardhat. She took the hat out, and inside of it, rested a pair of black goggles. The lens were tinted, as expected. Next was a light red collared shirt, which had a yellow circle with a red wrench in it on the upper arms of the shirt. After that, she found a yellow gloved, with the fingers tipped with grey. She failed to find the other. There were also deep maroon.. Er.. Half- overalls, that stopped just above her knee, along with yellow knee guards, a utility belt (with two pouches to hold her tools in), a white undershirt, a pair of very deep red trench pants, and some brown boots.
It was.. Actually a bit stereotypical, really. But, none the less, the Engineer began to change out of her current clothing, and into the uniform. The white undershirt came first, then the collared shirt. The overalls went over that, and she had no trouble getting that on. She then stepped into the pant legs, buttoned them up. The Texan then stepped into the brown boots, tying them tightly, before tightening the utility belt around her waist (just to keep the overalls from swinging around on her front too much). She also put on the metal knee guards, though she doubted she would need them at the moment.
After packing her original clothes away into her suitcase (along with the hardhat and goggles, because those would just act as conductors for the heat), she slung the strap to her guitar case over her chest and shoulder, letting it rest on her back. The Engineer then picked up her suitcase, and began to make her way down the road, whistling to herself as she did.
"This'll be interesting," She thought.
I don't actually have any scheduled update times either. If I had to guess, I'd post every other day. Love ya' readers.