Hephaestus
Part XIII - Leadership 101
Although he now ran the train, Hephaestus still found himself starting his first full day as leader of Snowpiercer where he had always started his day.
In the forge.
For him it was a centering activity. Something he could use to give his body something to do while he thought out his plans as the train's new leader. He had to acknowledge that the days when the forge had nearly come to a complete standstill had some of his more important projects backed up now. And some of the parts the pretty little engineer had asked for he did realize were not just things she would like to have for the engine, they were vital. And so he started the day trying to get her certain parts she had requested days ago.
But as he worked the metal into the small, delicate shapes, his mind was also working on the ways he saw to improve things overall.
Layton had never understood the forge. Hes felt Melanie had a somewhat good grip on its workings, but still not a complete one.
The first thing he needed to do was better organize the workings of the forge. To him, it was all still very chaotic. The apprentices seemed to be making more mistakes than were acceptable. And when a mistake was made, it slowed things down in that he needed to stop what he was doing to assess if the part that was damaged was salvageable or needed to go back into the fire.
Yes, changes were needed. And now he was in the position to make them.
After a few hours spent in the environment he understood all too well, Hephaestus decided it was time to clean up a bit and go survey how his new domain was functioning.
Layton had told him he would make sure the separate governors of the train understood that he was now in charge. While Hes didn't completely understand the need for so many other 'leaders', he decided to let things be for now. But it was a situation he intended to take a firm look at in the future. Too many people trying to do one job was just a waste of energy in his opinion.
Going up to the engine room, Hes found it to be its usual sense of organized chaos. He didn't go there often, but once or twice he had needed clarification about a part, or needed to take measurements of exactly where a part was to go, so he had to venture up into that realm.
Looking about, he was a bit put off no one so much as stopped to say 'hello' to their new leader. The most respect he seemed to get was when one of the younger looking engineers side stepped him when he got in their way with a mumbled 'sorry'.
Looking around, Hes spotted the helm chair in the front of the train and a quick smile came to his lips. Now that seemed the appropriate place for the leader of the train, he thought, as he walked over to it.
The chair indeed looked like the seat for the person who ran the train. Sitting front and center of the engine room, it was large and imposing and commanded attention.
Stepping in front of chair, Hes slowly lowered himself into it, relishing the feeling as his body settled into the smooth, soft leather.
Turning it to face the front, he watched as the train moved seamlessly over the tracks. Miles seemed to pass by as he simply stared out at the frozen landscape, amazed that this had been his world for seven years, but he had never really seen it.
Lost in the mesmerizing view, Hes failed to notice when Bennett stepped up to the chair until he came to stand nearly in front of him.
"With all due respect..., sir," Bennett stated in a tone that clearly defined just how much respect he felt the new leader of the train deserved, "that is where the engineer on duty sits in order to drive the train."
Hes looked up at the man, then turned the chair towards him.
"Is a comfortable chair."
Bennett maintained his flat expressional response to the man. "Because we spend long hours in it doing our job, sir."
"Looked more like chair where leader of train would sit." Hes commented.
"Be that as it may, sir," Bennett returned, his expression as readable as his tone, "unless you know how to drive this train, the only person who needs to be in that chair is the head engineer on duty."
Hes paused for a moment before slowly pulled himself out of the chair. He could already tell this one was not going to be a friend. As he stepped aside, Bennett all but bodily moved him out of his way.
Hes watched as the second engineer quickly ran his hands over the various panels, making adjustments here and there as he called out readings to the people behind him, some of who occasionally answered back in the same cryptic sounding phrases.
Looking around and noting that no one seemed particularly interested in his being present, Hes decided it was time to visit other areas of his new domain. But on his way to the sub-train access, he ran into the only person who favored him with a friendly smile.
The pretty little engineer.
"Good afternoon, Hes." Melanie offered in a pleasant tone. "Good to see you. Taking stock of things, I presume?"
The metallurgist gave her a slight nod. "Have rarely been here." He replied in a softer than normal tone. "Is...confusing. Always only see chaos up here."
Melanie gave a small laugh. "I'm sure it seems that way. But it really isn't. But you'll get used to it."
"Nay. Is your place." Hes replied. "You run the engine. Not much for leader of train to do here."
Melanie considered the statement for a moment. "I suppose that's true to a point. I mean, Mr. Knox pretty much runs the engine's overall operations and keeps the apprentices in line. And the running of the engine itself is mostly my job. But sometimes decisions need to be made and that is your job."
Melanie could see the man start to fidget slightly over the thought. But she also remembered what Layton had said. About how he had been in his earliest days as leader.
Laying a hand gently on his shoulder, Melanie gave him one last small smile. "If you have a question, just feel free to ask." She offered.
Before she could turn to leave, Hes stopped her by placing his own large hand over her much smaller one.
Melanie turned back to him.
"Why help?" He asked suspiciously.
Melanie considered the question for a moment. "Because in the end of all of this, Hes," she replied, "Snowpiercer will always be my train. I built her. And I will always have a responsibility to the people on her, no matter who is in charge. And if helping you helps this train, then that is what I am going to do. I did it for Layton, and I'll do no less to you."
Letting go of her hand, Hes watched as she disappeared back into her beloved engine.
After a long day of touring various areas and trying to get a better understanding of how things ran on the train, Hes was beginning to think the pretty little engineer was the only person on his side.
As he went through the train, as soon as people acknowledged who he now was, all they seemed to want to do was tell him what was wrong with the train.
What had his former Tailie comrade honestly been doing the last several months? Because from the barge of complaints, it did not seem to Hes it was successfully running the train.
Before he even made it to the Ag cars, he was besieged by a Mr. Thomson, who came all but storming up to the train's new leader.
"So you would be the new leader then?" The man asked in an accent almost as thick as Hes' own.
Hes gave the man a slight nod. "Aye. And you would be...?"
"Malloray Thomson. I tend the sheep for car 153."
"Sound like ye be coming from the highlands then." Hes answered him with a slight smile. Maybe he could get one friendly word at least from someone from his own one time home land. "Lot of good sheep runners there."
The man offered back only a slightly less frosted response. "Aye. Been working with 'em most me life. Had 500 head before the freeze. Know my business."
"Good to have ye working with 'em on the train then." Hes tried again.
But the man did not seem the least bit interested in making a friend of the train's new leader. "That would be the doing of Ms. Cavill. Came down to the Tail. First time anyone ever asked us what we be good at. If we wanted to help the train. Stepped right up. Me and several others. Been working with the sheep now for months. Got 'em good and happy. But got problems with them cattle people."
Hes already knew the warning signs. People started off just being conversational. But it then quickly deteriorated into a rant about some problem they all seemed to want him to solve personally.
"Sorry to hear that." Was all Hes offered as he turned and quickly continued to walk down the corridor, trying to escape whatever problem this man was trying to force on him. But Thomson followed after him.
"Cattle are getting nice and fat off the grain. Grain what should be comin' to our sheep."
Hes gave a quiet sigh. There seemed to be no way of escaping these people.
"Why do cattle get grain?" He asked.
"Say they need it more." The man quickly responded. "Say their cattle be more important."
Hes made a derisive sound to voice his opinion of what the cattle workers thought. "No one animal is more important than another. Will have talk with 'em. Make sure they understand this from now on."
Expecting some sort of gratitude at his dealing so quickly with the problem, Hes could not have been more wrong as the man gave a slight huff as he shook his head. "Oh, that'll do a lot of good, that will." The man stated with little enthusiasm.
Hes stopped and turned to him. "And why not?"
The man just shook his head as he turned to leave. "You'll find out soon enough." Was all he gave as an answer, then headed back to his train car, grumbling all the way about not getting the help he expected.
Before he could even consider what could be done regarding that problem, a small woman wearing a pair of overalls came up to him from a side corridor in a rush it seemed.
"Are you the new leader of the train?" She asked.
Hes was beginning to wonder how long it was going to take for people to stop beginning every conversation with him like this.
"Aye." He stated in a less than enthusiastic manner.
"Well, we have a broken pipe in car 134. We need a replacement. Six feet. 1 1/2" diameter."
"So go have talk with person responsible for this."
The little breechman gave the man a decidedly unfriendly look. "I AM..., sir." She replied flatly.
"What has leader of train to do with pipes?" Hes asked with a frown.
"I can't just go to the supply car and tell them I need a pipe. They'll want my work order. You are the one who has to authorize the repairs so we can get the part we need."
"Fine." Hes replied. "Have authorized repair. Now go repair broken pipe."
The little breechman looked about to explode on the spot. "With. What.?" She asked in a very level tone.
Hes returned a look that did nothing for the woman's growing frustration. "With new pipe." He stated as though this was far too obvious.
The woman crossed her arms in front of her and held them there as though she was trying with every ounce of control she had not to reach over and slap the man in front of her.
"There are no pipes." She replied in the same tone that indicated she felt it was wasted time to have to tell him this. "As leader of the train, you need to authorize the repair, in person, to the people responsible for that order once you authorize it. Then the order moves down the line until eventually the forge gets the order for the pipe needed, the length, and the dimensions. Then, in three to four days, we get our pipe." But suddenly something seemed to click in the woman's recognition. "Don't you run the forge?" She asked.
Hes returned a smile, happy that finally he was going to get at least some recognition for what he did on the train.
"Aye!"
The woman gave him a even less friendly look. "Then hopefully we'll be getting that pipe even sooner." She stated before she turned and walked off.
Hes stood silently in the corridor as he watched her walk off.
Was there one friendly person on this train? Someone who would show respect for the train's leader?
Standing in the corridor for a moment more, Hes suddenly had an idea. The one place he had gone before where people seemed at least a little more friendly and everyone was there simply to enjoy themselves.
The Night Car.