Years after the eradication of the Ellie plague, Earth was on the mend as its population of humans and other species grew with help from the Confederation of Worlds. Space travel was now common and spacefarers from distant planets needed a waypoint where they could stop, refuel their ships, and affect repairs. Thus, was born Nell's, a miles-long gas station in the asteroid belt where anyone could stop and take a load off.

Ashley Callisto--waitress, Zeta Reticulan, and Doctor of Anthropology--hails from a distant universe where Ellie and the Confederation never existed. Her life is saved by an elf who dropped from the storeroom ceiling in the nick of time. Problem is there are no elves in this universe.

Gerry Warren-elf, low-grade magician, and amnesiac-lands on a pile of crates after dropping through a hole in the universe. Now, if only he could remember why he entered it in the first place.

Mechanic is the fifth installment of the Parthenon saga and marks the first cross-over between the League of Planetary Systems universe and the Parthenon universe.