Made to Suffer [Arcan IV]

[Arya Ravenwing]

"Look, I don't care what you were told, there's no way I'm taking that as part of my payment." Arya pointed a long finger at the deactivated blue protocol droid slumped in the corner of the scrapyard. The Verpine clicked and clacked, and shook it's head, antennae twitching.

"This is what you are getting," said it's translator droid said, an M-TD hovering next to it's owner. The Verpine might have shrugged, but really, what did body language mean when you were dealing with an entirely non-human alien? He might have been flipping her off.

"Ziz," Arya said, "The deal was I bring the shipment and I get paid. I don't bring the shipment and get paid half what I was told and then given a scrap droid."

More clickity clacks. "But this is what you are getting."

She pursed her lips, looked at the impassive insectoid face of Ziz, and threw up her hands. "Fine! That heap better function."

"Of course, feel free to verify."

"I'll just do that." The smuggler glared at the alien, and stomped over to where the droid leaned. She reached behind it's head for the switch and toggled it on.

[Twopio]

//subroutine.startup.function.photoreceptors.on/off? on.primarysystemsonline//

The protocol droid's optics flickered to life, golden light illuminating them. The droid lurched upright. "Oh my! I am certain that you -" He stopped, and looked around. He was not really a He - droids had no gender after all - but he was programmed to think of himself with male pronouns.

There was a woman standing over him, her hands on her hips, and she looked decidedly non-plussed. The droid put his hands on his knees and pushed up to a standing position, servos whirring audibly. He would need a maintenance bath soon, or he would probably lock up completely. "Pardon me, I am D-2PO, human cyborg relations. I am fluent in over six million forms of communication, including Twi'leki lekku sign language and the interpretive dance of the -"

She raised a hand, cutting him off mid sentence. "Are you fully functional? All systems operating?"

"Yes Miss, all systems are operating at optimal. Although my joints could use maintenance, it appears someone has allowed me to sit deactivated for a long period of time." He canted his head, noting the Verpine and the inferior M-TD. "Perhaps an oil bath?"

"And what is your assigned monetary value?"

The photoreceptors might have blinked, or perhaps it was just another start-up flicker. "Three thousand, five hundred credits."

[Arya Ravenwing]

"I'm not familiar with any D model protocol droids. I thought Cybot Galactica was committed to their C line." Arya looked the blue droid over, circling around it.

"I was one of the first of Cybot's new, improved, protocol droids." D-2PO canted it's head a bit, looking at her with it's amber gaze.

"So how did you end up here...?" Arya mused. Three thousand credits was more than the balance of what was owed her.

"I confess I have no idea, Miss. Last I remember there was a Hutt -"

"That was rhetorical," she said quickly. Arya turned to Ziz. "Fine, I'll take him off your hands. But I'm still not happy about this."

"Your dismay is noted." Ziz folded his/her/it's arms.

The conversation was apparently over. Arya sighed, her expression flat. "C'mon Bluebell, you're with me."

"As you say ..Master." Twopio took a step toward her, knee joints audibly moving. She was going to have to pay for an oil bath. Just another expense to add to the list, and they were two-thousand short on expected credits. Jaas was not going to be happy.

[Jaassuuvi Ageerrodarr]

"Fook me, look at th'size of 'im."

"How big er'you?"

"Hey kids, how big is 'e?"

"He's a big man, that's fersure."

"Hey ma, come look at the size of this fella."

"I bet you box a little, don'tcha now? You look like a boxer."

"Fuck off."

His words seemed to fall on deaf ears as the Arcanians continued to press against him and stare. Their grubby, dirty hands kept reaching out, touching his coat, feeling his hands, even poking him in the chin a few times. His hands were planted firmly in his pockets, to deter thieves from slipping in their own.

Everything was mud on this godforsaken planet. The houses were mud. The people were mud. The money was probably going to be mud. It better not be. He had to take off his boots if he wanted to visibly count the number of things they needed to buy, replace, or repair. Inertial dampener was on the fritz again, the particle shields could go out at any time, and he really wanted to buy a Dejarik board for long distance trips.

Surfing the holonet was okay, but he was getting tired of being told there were sexy young singles in his area when all he could see outside the viewport was the long streaks of hyperspace.

"Get off therre!" He yelled at the child who was trying to climb into the speeder they had rented to get all the way out to this junkyard. They had not wanted to walk all the way in the mud, especially after the heavy rain last night. It was like a mud lake with a city in the middle of it. The child was pushed away and the crowd was momentarily distracted by the appearance of a woman and a droid.

"What jiss that?" A clawed finger was pointed at the droid, which did not look anything like a suitcase full of credits.

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya pointed Twopio toward the speeder. There was just the one bench seat, so it looked like he was riding in the middle. She handed Jaas two credit chits set at a thousand each. "This is half of half our payment." She smiled too brightly. "Isn't it wonderful?"

Arya shaded her eyes against the sun, looking back at Gregories Part Emporium, the bright neon sign struggling to be noticed among the other gaudy signs the Arcanians seemed to love so much. "Ziz was there, not Gregory. Said he was told that the droid is half our payment. He wasn't going to budge - you know how Verpines are - and the droid is worth more than 2k. I figure we can sell it, make up the difference."

She looked at the blue droid awkwardly trying to climb into the speeder. "Maybe."

[Twopio]

Twopio as finding it difficult to step into the speeder. His knee joints were half frozen; apparently no one knew the value of good maintenance anymore. He struggled to grasp the sides of the door while lifting his foot, and he slipped, falling backward into mud.

"Oh dear," he said, his arms waving in the air.

[Jaassuuvi Ageerrodarr]

The sound of his slack jaw snapping shut was lost in the din caused by the droid. Half the payment? A droid? Combine that with the almost literal piss he earned in the very illegal underground bareknuckle boxing match last night and Arcan was looking like a total bust for them. Not a complete loss, mind you, but definitely not one of their most profitable outer-rim excursions. "jI told jyou we sshould have taken the jjob frrom the Headlessss Monk jinsstead." Jaas said begrudgingly as he bend down, winced at the soreness of his back, and then pulled the droid of the mud and full bodied tossed it into the speeder. Thank goddess it was a rental, because now it was full of mud.

"jI hope jyou know a gujy who bujyss drrojidss." He climbed into the speeder after the droid, sitting behind the controls. The speeder was uncomfortable small for his bulky frame, forcing him to bunch his knees up and bend his shoulders and head almost comically. A moment was spend looking longingly at the two cred chits in his hand. A quiet sigh slipped out from between his fangs. "No Dejarrjik boarrd..."

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya grimaced at the muddy droid and gingerly climbed into the speeder. "I actually do not know anyone who buys droids! Can't be too hard to find." Jaas started the speeder going - not a true speeder as it didn't hover. What did they call them here? Rollers? He pulled out onto the road, a paved strip of land that was one of many that crisscrossed the city.

There were some true speeders up in the sky, but they'd gone with the economy choice. Living hand to mouth bites. Arya looked out at the grimy buildings and allowed, "Maybe not on this planet. Not much call for fancy protocol droids on Arcan IV."

[Twopio]

The indignity of being manhandled into the speeder was almost too much to bear. Twopio sat stoically, in what was colloquially known as 'the bitch seat.' The huge Cizerack crammed himself into the vehicle beside him, and Mistress Arya squeezed in on the right. Twopio was very careful not to move, lest he upset either one of his traveling companions.

"Everyone can benefit from the services of a well programmed protocol droid, Mistress," he said, turning his head to look at her. "I can ensure that all social events are perfectly planned for all in attendance, minimizing cultural confusion and bridging the gap between - oh my! Look out, Mistress!"

He lifted his arms in alarm as another roller ran a red light in front of them, jostling the Cizerack as the speeder fishtailed. Mistress Arya grabbed him, pulling him back, and Twopio squawked with surprise, his legs pushing into the Cizerack's as he tried to straighten himself out in the seat again.

[Dave Skywalker]

The sugar frosting landscape flew by at light speed as the teddy bear clouds floated on their merry. There was a chance of rain. That's why he had the shower cap on. The radio was playing folk tunes and backwards subliminal subversive political messages and advertizements for fizzy drinks while all the boys and girls kicked gumdrops to pass the time.

Dave rode low on his bucket seat, pressing the remnants of his spliff to his lips held together by a wing and a prayer and a laundry clip. He'd just passed a giant turtle. It must be Tuesday.

[Jaassuuvi Ageerrodarr]

Several things happened at once. First, Arya was talking and Jaas was paying far more attention to the conversation than the road. Then some asshole, backwater, probably incestuous, lowlife cut through in front of them, which caused the droid to panic and flail it's metal arms around, which clipped Jaas in the side of the head and shoulder several times, which irritated the headache he already had from the fight last night. Breaks were applied, the wheel was cranked, and the roller slid just short of clipping the errant driver. Mud went everywhere, including all over the windshield.

The windshield wipers and Cizerack curses were generously applied to the mud until the passengers could see again. Jaas prayed that all the curses of his beautiful underworld goddess would be delivered upon the head of that driver. The accelerator was applied and the roller resumed it's trip across the intersection, now void of punkasses who cannot drive. "We mjight not ljive long enough to get off thjiss sshjit planet." He was seething with anger. First the droid, now that driver, and this terrible planet. He thanked Traanjirra that he did not have fully body fur, or he would never get the mud out.

"And jyou, drrojid. Sshut up."

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya's teeth hurt from gritting them, adrenaline making her hackles rise. She took a deep breath and forced herself to relax as Jaas got the roller back under control, mud smeared all over the windshield. Twopio had stopped flailing, thankfully, and she pushed the droid into a better position. "Nice driving," she said.

She twisted to looked over her shoulder at the offending vehicle. Whoever the driver was didn't seem to care he'd almost killed all of them. "Just get us back to the ship so we can figure out what grade of parts we can afford."

[Twopio]

The Cizerack was incredibly rude. Twopio tried to stay as still as he could, only swiveling his head from side to side. His new Mistress didn't sound happy, and the Cizerack could certainly use help with his manners. He resolved to do his best to help them before they sold him.

After a few minutes of silence he said, "I must add some of those obscenities to my Cizeri database. I do not have them combined in those arrangements. Quite inventive. And you worship Traanjirra! Fascinating! I have a gap in my programming when it comes to the customs of her believers. If you wouldn't mind telling me, I will update my software immediately."

[Jaassuuvi Ageerrodarr]

"jI would rrealljy apprrecjiate jit jif jyou djidn't go arround telljing people jI worrsshjip Traanjirra..."

He was not ashamed of his beliefs, but there were people in the galaxy, other Cizeracks, who would frown upon such things in light of the popular worship of Saanjarra, the sun goddess. He had once been counted among the sun's worshipers, but that was another time; a whole life ago. When he landed on Kessel he cursed Saanjarra's name and found solace in the bosom of her dark sister. She haunted his dreams, a beautiful maiden ruling over her realm of fire. She called out to him, moaned his name. Jaas knew she was only tempting him into his own damnation, but he was already damned. There was nothing Saanjarra or Nomaani could offer him, not even salvation. Traanjirra is his queen now. His mistress.

"How jiss jit jyou even know Cjizerrack cusstomss at all?" He was impressed, even if just a little, that the droid could understand Cizerack. They had not been the most social of species in the galaxy until their partnership with the Alliance. This droid had to be far older than that, and he very much doubted it was getting regular service updates while rusting in a junkyard. Very odd, indeed.

The roller skidded to a halt outside the starport where Arya's ship was waiting for them.

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya hopped out of the vehicle, brushing mud ineffectually from her pants as Jaas pried the droid out. "Jaas, take Blues here to the ship. I've got to make a few calls, try to track down the best droid dealer who isn't Gregory. See if you can get some oil in those joints or something."

He nodded, and she walked toward the starport technicians garage, located next to the landing pad. No fancy ship garage system here; just ships on slabs of duracrete. The commercial transports kept the other end of the starport busier, but really, you couldn't call Arcan IV a bustling center of tourism.

[Twopio]

Twopio watched Mistess Arya leave, and then looked at the Cizerack. "Master Jaas, I am D-2PO, human cyborg relations. I am fluent in over six million forms of communication, including three Cizeri dialects. I am versed in mating customs, hospitality, and religious practices. My former master, Hallak the Hutt, did business in the Cluster from time to time."

[Jaassuuvi Ageerrodarr]

"Yeah, and what kjind of bussjinessss djid Hallak rrun?" Jaas asked absently as he pulled out his comms and hailed the starport's rental service to let them know that the roller had been returned and was waiting out front for them. By the time he managed to convey his message despite his heavy accent, the Cizerack and droid had entered the ship. Hanging up the comm Jaas escorted the droid down the hall to the maintenance space behind the engines. It was cramped, especially for the large Cizerack, but he managed to wedge the droid inside, sit it down on a mag locked crate, and fit in after it.

Jaas was no mechanic, but he was trying. The Wing of the Raven was in constant need of repair, and that meant somebody had to be back here tinkering with it at all times. Obviously that meant him since Arya was the one flying it. Thankfully he managed to track down a user's manual for the ship, complete with mechanic guide, and was doing his best to learn what he could from the worn pages. So far they had not fallen out of the sky, so he was doing something right.

They kept oil on hand for keeping the many old parts spinning. The can wasn't optimized for being poured into the joints of a droid, but he made it work as he tipped the oil into the servos and then jiggled the limb forcibly to work it in. "jYou'rre not ssecrretljy an assssassssjin drrojid, arre jyou?" He asked offhandedly as he moved on to another limb.

[Twopio]

"An assassin droid? I am afraid not, Master Jaas." Twopio sounded apologetic as he watched the Cizerack apply oil to his joints inexpertly. "You know, an oil bath would..." His voice trailed off as Master Jaas gave him a look that seemed to mean shut up.

"Master Hallak dealt in many different kinds of business. He spent a great deal of time on Tatooine. However, I really am not allowed to talk about the dealings of former owners. You understand." The droid experimentally flexed his elbow joint, and each finger individually. "Ohhh, that is much better. Thank the Maker."

[Arya Ravenwing]

The techs had recommended a used droid lot on the other side of the city, and Arya had to pay for a taxi ride as Jaas had efficiently turned their rental in already. Standing outside of the unassuming store, she ran her hand through her short hair. Friendly Frank's Droid Emporium didn't look like it was the type to cater to high end clientele, the sort that would be interested in a top of the line protocol droid...even if it's paint was a little scratched and it had been sitting unused for a few months in the weather.

She sighed, mentally crossing her fingers, and pushed open the door. A little bell ran, signaling her entrance, and she stood still for a moment past the threshold, her eyes adjusting to the dim lighting.

[Dave Skywalker]

"Oh hey man."

Dave stood behind the shop counter where he'd previously been parking his feet and eating a tub of reconstituted tuber salad. The room was still buzzing a little but at a moderate buzz this time.

"Welcome to the...uh...store. You lookin' to buy somethin' man?"

A little concern on his face. Dave pulled the sunglasses off his nose. The lady was changing colors. That was probably on account of the psylo and not because she was a metamorph.

[Arya Ravenwing]

There was a distinct odor to the place that made her nose itch, and Arya gave it a surreptitious rub as she approached the counter. "Looking to sell, not buy." As she got closer she realized it was the man, not the store, that had a decidedly herbal aroma. Her nose twitched. "Word is you have connections within the Cronese Magnate when it comes to importing droids. Are you Frank?"

[Dave Skywalker]

Was he frank? Yeah, sure. He was sometimes frank about a lot of things. Dave cleared his throat a bit.

"Yeah man, I'm frank."

Although frankly, not any connections to the Cronese Magnate.

"Whatcha got, man? Been looking for a 3T-43 or a Versa X, but you know those are kind of hobby things hehehehehe."

Getting a little more animated, Dave started talking with his hands. Ooh, the buzzers were kicking in.

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya looked at him askance, and hesitantly smiled. "Got a D-2PO protocol droid. Top of the line. Needs a little TLC but it's functioning perfectly. What can you give me for it?"

[Jaassuuvi Ageerrodarr]

"Not much usse then arre jyou?" Jaas replied as he finished up the last limb and gave it a good shake. Everything he could loosen up without taking the droid apart was lubricated, and now his hands were an oily mess. Snatching a loose rag off a hanging pipe he wiped his hands down. Smearing the mess around more than removing it. Like a bartender cleaning a glass.

"jInforrmatjion on the djirrtjy deajlingss of a hutt would fetch a hjigh prrjice. Too bad. jInsstead we arre gojing to ssell jyou to ssome backwoodss hjillbjilljy who'll ejitherr ssmassh jyou jinto sscrap orr make jyou hjiss wjife."

[Twopio]

"Dirty dealings!? Backwoods ...hillbillies?!" Twopio tottered backwards and bumped into a bulkhead. "I am a protocol droid, programmed with terabytes of language subroutines and cultural information! My services are priceless! The odds of my continued operational survival when paired with country bumpkins is one in four thousand ninety-nine!"

The droid stopped, put his arms down by his sides, and his head canted to the right two ticks. He regarded the Cizerack spacer in silence for a moment. "I would be invaluable for trade negotiations in foreign ports, Master Jaas."

[Dave Skywalker]

"D series, huh?"

Dave rocked on his heels, whistling.

"Pretty niche, man. Don't get a lot of discerning types around here. Don't have much in the way of scratch if you know what I mean, but I could barter you. Got a cache of trade in Henrietta back around the way."

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya grimaced. "Trade?" She looked around the shop, various droids in alcoves and arranged throughout. Not a fancy place, but neat and well taken care of. "I don't want another droid. I need credits."

She stepped closer to the counter and peered through the glass at the mouse droids arranged within. Arya sighed. "What sort of trade are you talking?"

[Jaassuuvi Ageerrodarr]

"We don't exactljy do a lot of trradjing, forrejign porrtss orr otherrwjisse. Jusst about the onljy negotjiatjing jyou mjight do forr uss jiss forr jyourr own ssale." Scratching his head Jaas grimaced and then leaned against the bulkhead, causing a panel cover to fall off and crash to the floor. "jI'm fajirrljy cerrtajin jyou don't know anjythjing about rrepajirrjing sstarrsshjipss, sso what elsse can jyou offerr?"

As much as it could be helpful for the various dirty dealings Arya and himself found themselves in, he didn't like the idea of having a droid there to remember every criminal action they had ever committed. While this one might be dedicated to preserving the secrets of his former master, Jaas was certain that a good slicer would have no issues digging out his memory banks and harvesting that information one way or another. Paying for that kind of work would no doubt be expensive, and would take a huge dent out of the profits to be made from that same information. Or take the whole cake entirely.

"jYou ssurre jyou don't want to sspjill the beanss on Hallak?"

[Twopio]

"Oh dear." Twopio looked down at the panel cover, and then back to Master Jaas. "Hallak Desilijic Beire is a very influential Hutt."

The droid stopped, processing the situation. He was not programmed with guile, or surely this all would have been much easier on his circuits. "I am not sure what beans would be relevant in this conversation, Master Jaas. Of course," he added, "if this ship has a droid brain I can facilitate communication between it and yourself, should the need arise?"

[Dave Skywalker]

"Depends on your flight of fancy, man. My ship's parked out back. Got a few collectors items you might take a shine to."

Dave punctuated the offer by hoisting another spoonful of reconstituted tuber salad to his mouth.

[Arya Ravenwing]

"More droids? I don't need to trade one droid for another I can't unload either." Arya stared at the tuber salad as he spooned it into his mouth and chewed.

[Jaassuuvi Ageerrodarr]

"jIt'ss not ljike Hallak would everr fjind out..." He let it trail off. He was getting nowhere with this droid. He would have to ask Arya if she had any Slicer friends that would cut them a deal. The credits were so close he could almost taste their dirty metal shells.

"Mjight ass well plug jin and tell me what'ss wrrong wjith the sshjip." Jaas waved toward the maintenance access panel on the opposite wall; complete with a screen, controls, and astromech droid integration port. Why couldn't they have been gifted an astromech droid? That might actually be useful in the ship maintenance.

[Twopio]

Twopio regarded the astromech port, and then turned back to Master Jaas, who had his arms folded across his chest. The droid looked back at the maintenance panel and pressed a few buttons. Text scrolled across the screen and then a series of whistle-beeps from a small speaker, and he shook his head slowly. "Your ship seems to use an amalgamation of Tech and Binary. It is quite difficult to parse. Of course," Twopio added quickly before the low growl he thought he heard over his shoulder grew louder, "I can still translate it.

"It appears Wing of the Raven has two droid brains - one original and one installed later. With weapon modifications? It controls the auto targeting. But," he said hastily as Master Jaas's rumble grew in intensity, "That is not causing problems except in the language the ship uses. That is, your real problem is your power converter is failing. Oh dear."

[Dave Skywalker]

"More droids? I don't need to trade one droid for another I can't unload either." Arya stared at the tuber salad as he spooned it into his mouth and chewed.

"Oh sure, I feel ya. Right on."

Dave nodded sagely between bites, feeling the vibes the spacer lady was putting out there.

"Well, you know man, I diversify the ol portfolio and so on. I mean, you kinda gotta do that out on the rim to get by. Come on, I'll let you dip your beak and all. Good times."

He gestured her to follow, going through the back of the shop and to the back exit where his Gymsnor-2 freighter waited in a delivery lot. It certainly didn't look like the pick of the litter, with it's mismatched hull plating and well-worn appeal. Dave reached into a cooler set up by the gangplank, pulling out two beers.

"Wet your whistle?"

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya was going to refuse, but then stuck her hand out for one of the beers. "Why not." She cracked it open, and jerked her head back toward the shop behind them. "Any reason why you don't keep your barter in your shop?"

[Jaassuuvi Ageerrodarr]

Swearing in his native tongue again he pulled out his comm unit and lifted it to his mouth. "Arrjya, jI had the drrojid connect to the Wjing and he ssajyss the powerr converrterr jiss fajiljing, agajin. Do we sstjill have the paperrworrk forr the warrrrantjy? jI want to sshove mjy fjisst down that mechanjicss thrroat. Prrobabljy ussed rrefurrbjisshed parrtss orr a sshjittjy jinsstallatjion."

Warranty or not somebody was getting their head smashed in.

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya turned her attention from the slightly swaying Frank, and thumbed her commlink. "The paperwork is in the file cabinet in my cabin. There's a padd with all the warranties and stuff, you can print up or transmit whatever you need. Let me know if you need my signature."

She looked at the shop proprietor. "You don't happen to have any power converters for mid-size freighters, do you?"

[Dave Skywalker]

"My shop?"

A slow dawning recollection hit Dave about the time he loosed the bottle cap.

"Oh, you mean Frank's shop? Oh, he ain't here man. I'm just holdin' it down and spellin' him a bit."

She'd said something else, though the temporal causality of which sentence came first was a bit of a question mark. Dave brushed back his hair, glancing toward the back of the hold.

"Yeah man, I got a converter kickin dust. Got 'er as a spare, but ol Henrietta's more of a sipper than a chugger."

[Arya Ravenwing]

"You're not Frank?" Arya was beginning to have the urge to punch this guy in the face. She clenched her hand into a fist and slowly relaxed it. "Do you know when he'll be back?"

[Dave Skywalker]

"Yeah, man. I'm frank. I mean, I'm not Frank, but I thought you were asking about my candor, man."

Dave shook some hair out of his face, taking another sip of beer. That should help clear him up. He paused, wiping away some of the collected suds in his beard.

"Frankly, I don't know. He's tending to his old lady I think. Asked me to mind the till while he ran off. Pretty trusting guy, but I guess nobody's gonna try nothin' funny with a hunter killer droid on standby mode behind the counter."

[Arya Ravenwing]

Arya rubbed her temples gingerly. "If you're holding down his shop why are you trying to sell me power converters out of your own ship? Nothing in the shop then? You know what, never mind." His eyes were glazing over and she was seeing her entire afternoon disappear as she tried to finagle a deal with this spicehead.

"Thanks for the beer, but I'll be going now."