Fortification 1.02

I was in a sour mood as I stumbled into work. This morning as I'd looked through the paper, I'd spotted an article about a new cape that the media called "Lilith" who was seen participating in a gang fight. They described this "Lilith" and I immediately recognized her as my Taylor. All morning and the whole trip here I couldn't help but think of how horribly things must be going for her. The best case scenario is she was at the wrong place at the wrong time. The worst… I don't want to think about it. If I did, I'd have a hard time stopping myself from going completely off the rails, and that wouldn't help Taylor.

I didn't see any sign of her on the way to work. I'd just have to try and put her out of my mind until later and try to focus on my work. As I walked in, I noticed some of the boys heading out with some of the new tools. I'd gotten a few ideas for tools that would make dock work easier. Nothing too big, yet, and not many of them, but building these things and really throwing myself into my work was helping me stay grounded in reality. Kurt came in. looking contemplative.

"Can we talk a bit?"

"That depends, about what?"

"About this stuff you've been building."

"Okay."

Kurt took a minute to adjust himself.

"Well, some of the guys and I have been talking, and Lacey and I did some research, and, well, we think you're a cape."

This was the last thing I expected to hear.

"Why do you think that?"

"Well, for one, there's the stuff you made. I'm pretty sure it's Tinker type stuff. I mean fusion welders sound like something a tinker would make, and I've seen that sketches for those robot suits you're thinking about."

I went into my desk drawer and took out the sketch in question. Well, the Specialized Construction Vehicle was a bit advanced. I could see why people would think-My thoughts were cut off when Kurt spoke again.

"And then there's the… Thing. With Taylor."

And that's when it clicked. Director Piggot had said it back in the meeting, Parahumans get their powers after the worst day of their life. With what's been happening with Taylor…

"Okay, I think you're right."

"So, what are you going to do?"

I thought about it for a good bit. I'd been working on these things and throwing myself into work to distract myself from my problems. Maybe they can be the solution to my problems, instead?

"Well, there's an upcoming meeting at the mayor's office for. Maybe, just maybe, dockworkers equipped with Tinker-tech will get more jobs and more funding from the city?

*break*

Mayor Roy Christner was about what you'd expect when you think of a mayor. Late middle age, distinguishable face, male pattern baldness. The only thing off were his big ears. He depicts himself as a family man, and from previous interactions with him, it seemed to be the truth. The negotiation meeting had gone about as well as you'd expect until I mentioned that the Dockworkers would have access to Tinker-tech soon. The meeting devolved into chaos for a bit, then ended abruptly., and I found myself in a private meeting with the mayor soon after. Mayor Christner seemed to be anxious but cautious.

"So, Mr. Hebert, what do you mean when you say that your dockworkers will have 'Tinker-Tech?'"

I pulled out my notebook.

"You've read or heard about this 'Lilith' in the news, right."

"I have."

"Well, Lilith is... She's my daughter. This whole situation with her is the result of one hell of a misunderstanding, one I have evidence of, but nobody in the PRT will even look at it. Afterward, I started getting ideas for new technology. I've already built a few tools for the dockworkers, and productivity is through the roof. I've talked with some people, and we think that this fiasco with my daughter was my trigger event."

"I'm-I'm sorry to hear about this."

Like I said, he's a family man. I slid him the journal, opened to a few designs I'd drawn.

"I appreciate your sympathy, but anything I can do for her will need more money than I have. I don't particularly feel like abandoning the docks, and I've never had much of an interest in crime, so my options are limited to what I can do with my technology."

"And what is that, exactly?"

He sounded more cautious than anxious now.

"Well, I've already made tools for the dockworkers that have improved productivity significantly. Workers with Tinker-tech seem to do more work in less time and do a better job than they would have otherwise. I can't help but wonder how much better they'd be if I had all of them outfitted with the full range of devices I've thought up. The problem, of course, is making my full range would take more resources than we have available to us on the docks. I have a solution for that, though."

"And that solution is?"

"The Boat Graveyard! Think about it, all of those ships are technically abandoned property. So, under the right circumstances, anyone could claim them. Why not the dockworkers? Not only would that provide me with literal tons of raw materials I could recycle into tools and other equipment to maximize productivity for the dockworkers, but it'd also clear away an eyesore in this city and the abandoned ships are a known hiding spot for assorted criminals and drugged out people. Three birds with one stone, and it doesn't cost the city a dime.."

"You do have a point, Mr. Hebert."

"And that's just the start. If the dockworkers and I can do more and better jobs in less time, the the city saves money on jobs sent the way of the Dockworkers Union but still gets the best quality work done."

I could practically see the dollar signs in his eyes.

"And it's not just dock work-my technology is applicable for a variety of fields. Construction, demolition, renovation, obviously, but also security and the automotive industry. I was good with cars before I triggered. I could upgrade, repair, or even replace the city's vehicles-school and city busses, police cars, fire trucks, ambulances. We could also fortify important buildings-the hospital, the police station, City hall and that way if there's a natural disaster or Endbringer attack, there'll be less to rebuild."

And now, for the clincher.

"And of course, I'm more than willing to sell some of my technology to the city. Off the top of my head, there was this outfit I'd thought up to provide protection while my boys were on the job, and I overdid it."

I reached to the journal and turned a few pages to show Mayor Christner the outfit in question.

"Resistant to tears, cuts, and stabs and the padding redirects a bit of force. It won't stop a bullet from hurting, but it'll stop it from going in you. It's tight, so it won't catch on anything, but it's also easy to move in. I could certainly see our boys in blue wearing this under their gear, and with a bit of armor here, here, and a bit here it'd be more than suitable for SWAT teams. Speaking of SWAT teams, I've had some ideas for weapons that they might be able to use, if say, it turns out that a hostage taker is a Parahuman with a Brute rating."

More Page flipping

"And I plan to build some vehicles, I could sell some of those to the city as well."

The Mayor stood up from his desk, looked out the window, and, after a moment, turned back to me.

"Mr. Hebert. You've been at this job for a while now, yes?"

"That's right."

"...From all signs, you're an honest, hardworking man. Do what you want with the ships in the graveyard. I'll send some work your way. If things go the way you think they will, we'll meet again and we'll negotiate a more permanent arrangement."

"Thank you, sir. There is one complication, though. There's a lot of Gang activity down by the docks. If I could take measures to keep the boys safe while they're on the job-"

"Do what you need to do to keep your coworkers and their families safe. Just, try not to hurt anybody more than you'd have to."

"I understand, sir."

After that, there was an exchange of pleasantries and the Mayor wished me well with the Taylor situation. Things were certainly starting to look up now.