Gone (Shark) Fishing

<During the meeting>

Plisken was alive! At least his consciousness was. And – while his face wasn’t exactly showing it - Alex was extremely happy about this. However, things were a little confusing to both mind and body, because ‘alive’ wasn’t the only thing Plisken was.

Plisken was a woman.

A woman who appeared to be the corporeal, well, mechanical, equivalent of a well-made banoffee pie - perfectly-formed, smooth, and delicious.
Alex thought in some hazy, confusing, interdimensional way he recognised her. Of course, it might be the fact that she looked like Lexa Doig. Like Plisken, he’d enjoyed her show.
He’d laughed it off, but had been privately flattered, when – during his floppy hair days - sometimes people had said he looked kinda like the guy in it, Dylan. Although Alex was not as tall, and an appearance-concerned Jacob had informed him he had a “better nose”.
He unconsciously touched it, at the thought.
His younger brother hadn’t been particularly camp, but sometimes he did like to joke around with his gayness, playing up to a stupid stereotype and putting on an affected voice for a laugh. With a flap of the hands he’d sigh dramatically at Alex’s ripped jeans and old sweaters, to declare. “Dahhling, you need to understand: Appearance. Is. Important!”
Alex had normally rolled his eyes and mumbled something about not calling him darling, when he was his brother.

He sighed at the thought of Jakey and, keeping his somewhat relieved PTSD held down to a minimum, brought his mind back to the present.

Plisken had been good, and warm, to Alex. They’d shared a few tough times, and Alex respected the older man a lot.
So there was someone Alex cared about, inside an extremely attractive woman.
Not just an attractive woman. An attractive… robot… woman. The AR computer’s voice echoed through his mind, much as it’d echoed through the Chamber of Boridium. “… Possibly Robosexual.”

Alex frowned, deep in thought, trying to process the information.

Plisken was clearly currently gorgeous, and was a great person, but Alex was definitely not attracted to old men.
As far as Alex was aware, Plisken had never shown any signs of actually being a woman – having a female soul – thus, he was currently an old man trapped in an attractive female’s body.

Alex sighed in relief.
Okay. Good. I don’t fancy him.

Plisken choose that moment to smile at him, his immaculate, doe-like eyes, glistening appealingly in the artificial lighting of the refectory.

Solvay blinked.

----
After the meeting.

<SNIP o' Eve's>
Evelina looked at Alex with pouting eyes and desperate appeal as she said, “Jaxx told me you know this ship better than anyone else and you know all the machines. Please Alex your my only hope.”
</SNIP>

Alex cleared his throat.
“I uh… I dunno about knowing the ship better than anyone else. But ‘course, I know it.” He nodded. “And yeh, I’ve poked about a fair bit since stasis. With Bedge, y’know?”
The girl looked somewhat blank, and he realised she probably didn’t know much about Bedge. The weight of the Sim’s need for rescue was still pressing heavily on his conscience. Soon, Bedgey, soon.

"So, will you help?" Eve prodded.
Solvay ran a hand down his tired face, bringing it to rest on his chin. While he was knackered, what Eve was saying made sense, and he couldn't just do nothing and not help. He could help traverse some of the more trickily evolved areas if need be. And many further back were still post-stasis unexplored and potentially very dangerous. He couldn't let her look alone. He glanced back at the dreadlocked GELF.

“Yeh. Okay.”

---

After an embarrassing encounter with Caffatron - the gossipy coffee machine, who claimed TAMMY-24 (the allegedly alluring dispenser of female products near the drive room) had been insinuating that Alex spent an unhealthy amount of time gazing into her LEDs – Eve and Solvay soon established that Jaxx’s consciousness was not in corridor 69-G.

“Next corridor?”
“Yup.”
"Cool."
"You do know what Caffatron said was rubbish?"
Eve grinned. "It's none of my business what you do in your spare time, Alex!"

--

Adjoining corridor.

“Today’s fish is trout a la crème.”
Solvay sighed. “No, I didn’t ask for fish. I asked if you’d seen a big sharky guy in a mechanical body.”
“I am afraid there is no shark on the menu today, sir.”
Alex grumbled something inaudible.
"... Or shark fin soup..."
"Don't make me disassemble you-"
“… But, today’s fish, is trout a la crème.”
“No...”
“Today’s fish, is trout a la crème.”
“Gah! Forget it!”

I smeggin’ told Bedge to sort this fish-happy bugger out.
Alex slammed his hand into the wall next to the machine. In reality more frustrated at having left his workmate behind than the fact the well meaning former ripper of human spines had forgotten to do the work.
Gotta rescue Bedge, gotta rescue Cass...

Eve’s face fell and she patted his arm. “Alex, are you all right?”
“Huh?” He turned to face her. “Oh. Yeah. Sorry.”
He saw the concern for Jaxx, and lack of sleep, etched over the woman’s face, causing temporary lines of tiredness and shadows beneath her eyes. He was being selfish. He put his own worries away and smiled.
“Don’t worry." He reassured. "We’ll find him.”

A slightly undersized blue skutter trundled along towards them. Alex crouched before it, affectionately tickling beneath its lower claw. Evelina’s eyebrows raised at the tenderness.
“Hallo boy. You seen a shark-guy in any machinery? Have you? Have you?” Alex's voice was soft, as if he was talking to a puppy or a baby.
The little skutter shook its head, adorably. “No? Well let me know if you do. "
It nodded.
"Be on your way now. Good boy.”
He stood up, but the Skutter didn’t move off. “What?”
It rolled forwards and nudged his leg.
He snorted, amused. “Oh I know what you want!”
The blue-clad man removed a mini-can of WD40 from a tool belt pocket and gave the wee machine a squirt. After that, it rolled merrily on its way.

“That was sweet.” Claimed Eve.
Alex’s face lost some of its post-skutter softness. “Pfft. Don’t be silly. Come on-“
“Wait! Alex. I’ve got an idea!”
“Oh yeah? What?”
“Them!”
Solvay frowned. “Come again?”
She pointed at the cute retreating skutter. “Artie’s wife is one of them, isn't she?”
Alex nodded, and the now excited GELF continued.
“Then I bet I know someone who might’ve heard something...” She grinned.

“... Let’s go and talk to The Missus!”

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