Jovan: Please take a number

[Damon Void]

You were STILL a 1 or a 0. Alive or dead. The thing about living though, was that sometimes you were forced to adapt. His 'fortress' on Coruscant? Gone, some ridiculous revitalization program the Empire had thought up because it'd look good in the six-o'clock holofeed. It'd never take, you couldn't retake the lower sections of Coruscant, it'd been tried before and failed each and every time. But did that do him a lick of good? Nope. He was out a home, lost a good chunk of his hardware rushing out of there when the crews started swarming.

It'd been child's play to slice his way through the systems and get himself a passport off world. Yeah, he could have stuck around, found another building to fortify, but why bother? Everyday the Jackboots of the Imperial War Machine beat down his door, time to figure out a new strategy. And if being left alone wasn't going to work, then he had to evolve.

He adjusted the sign in the window, flicking it on and watching it light up:

Black Hat Bay
Buy - Sell - Trade

Heh, a little on the nose perhaps, but it'd work. He'd happily hide in plain sight, here on Jovan Station. Continue his slicing work while maybe taking in some quick and easy parts to rebuild his systems with. The resources had come from some banking systems he'd gotten into before he'd left Coruscant, you steal several thousand credits from one person, they notice. You steal 2 credits from a thousand people, no one was the wiser. It hadn't been much, but it was enough to get him set up with this shop, and some basic inventory. A bunch of prefab garbage and repo pieces, some he'd scavenged straight out of the dumpsters. Like anyone on this place could tell quality work from trash anyway.

He unlocked the door, and flipped the sign in the window to read 'open' and returned to the counter, kicking back on a stool and turning on a flickering holofeed, some local color to the station. Eh, it was something.

[Captain Monmoo]

Monmoo pushes open the door to da Black Hat Bay, lookin for something for da Blob Place. Needin a sprocket or jumbawhanger for the board at the bombad blob race. To be telling the truth, Monmoo doesn't know what hesa needs. . . or what disa store be selling. "Hello dalee! Mesa Monmoo. Are yousa having a sprocket for racing board in disa place? Or a melli jumbawhanger, needs lights to work, maybe its the LEDs, desa on the blink yousa see." Hesa nearly trips on his cloppen, hailu flippity floppity as hesa gets his balance.

[Damon Void]

The bell that signaled someone had come in for something rang, and in walked a customer, a Gungan customer, a talking Gungan customer. Void listened to his request, blinked once, twice, then a third time as it registered.

"What?"

No, no way. This wasn't going to be his first transaction, dealing with whatever it was the Gungan wanted, that he couldn't even figure out with the strange disjointed Basic being spat at him.

"No, I don't want any Gungan Scout Cookies. I gave at the office," This was the office he realized, "Or whatever." He blinked at the Gungan, still standing in the middle of his store expectantly and sighed, turning around and flipping through some components he'd sat on the shelf, finally grabbing the one that looked the easiest to pawn off and setting it on the counter.

"Yeah, yeah man the Whumbajumper, the Whumbajumper2000 even. I got what you want right here." He tapped the bit of wire and metal, it looked like a relay board of some sort, probably for an LED array. He'd said something about LEDs right? Close enough. "50 credits." It was worth 10 tops.

[Captain Monmoo]

"This is not the jumbawhanger," said Monmoo, frowning. "Maybe yousa trying to pull on over on mesa? Disa is a jumbawhanger!" Hesa grabbed a doodad from another shelf and slapped it neb on the counter. "I need to get the proper holonet feeds from the 'net in order to offer realtime betting. And the leds are still on da blink, so even if da feeds are current da signage is wrong!" Monmoo buries his face in his hands.

[Damon Void]

He blinked at the scene the Gungan was making, the claim of impropriety from him. HIM.

Still, the fishbait had slapped the component he'd needed on the table. Huh. Void didn't even remember picking that piece up. Still, it would be a sale. Easy one at that, other than the irritation of having to listen to the garbled mess that exploded from a Gungan's mouth.

"Errr... Sorry. The jumbawhanger. I thought you said you needed a whumbajumper. It's your accent it's... a little thick." He glanced at the piece of electronic equipment on the counter, suddenly unsure what to charge for it. He really didn't know the piece, could be anything. Still he doubt he'd paid anything for it at all. Probably salvage. Who cared if he let it go cheap. He'd build some good word of mouth that way, and get the damn mushmouth of his store. "$30 credits sound fair?"

He'd been about to sell him the part and push him out the door when the magic word filled his ear. And even a word he managed to understand. Betting. His smile widened, turned sharkish. Betting meant numbers and money and data and coding. Coding he could do. Numbers he could manipulate. Money he'd be happy to take. "Hey, I just opened you know - maybe I could take a look at the LEDs - try to figure out what your problem is. Call it being neighborly."

[Captain Monmoo]

"Really? Yousa would do dat for mesa?" Monmoo looky up from his hands and his eyestalks goggle a bit. "You are so berry spleed! Berry spleed indeed, mesa tank yu so mui, yesa, yesa, please, come, looky at the LEDs. Hata hata, disa is just in time for the races, maybe even tonight. Melli good night for a race mesa think. Yesa!"

Monmoo pays the thirty mula, and picks up the jumbawanger. Hesa turns for the door, still talkin and talkin. Hesa just too excited. "Mesa monab but dalee are so many moving parts to a good, amma buisness. Yousa know? Wesa need to hurry, some people arrive faddo for placing bets on the umgul blob races, and the feeds are still on da blink!"

[translation (http://theholo.net/forum/showthread.php?55866-Gungan-translations-no-copek-allowen!&p=1036044&viewfull=1#post1036044)]

[Damon Void]

"Yeah, yeah, mesa know." Void mimicked, and really didn't. He'd gotten maybe a few words in the ridiculous accent, but from the reaction of the floppy annoyance he took it to be gratitude. He followed him to the door and walked out, turning and sliding a card through the door behind him, locking it.

"Lead on, buddy." he clapped Monmoo on the shoulder in a friendly manner, immediately wishing he hadn't - but fought the overwhelming urge to pull his hand back, rush inside and light it on FIRE. "Let's get those LED's fixed for you."

[Captain Monmoo]

"Oh yesa, wesa gos now," agreed Monmoo, smiling, his hailu perking a bit as hesa pointed his cloppen out the door and walked toward da Blob Place, hesa new friend behind him. "Da blob place sorta old, but isa a good place. Yousa like blob racing? Berry fast, berry fun."

Outside da Blob Place finally, Monmoo leads Void inside. Da place havin a few customers on the feetwalkin disa time of day, most sittin at the bar on da east side. The inside was roughly circular, arranged around a sunken area where da blobs raced. R4-B0 is neb in the center, puttin up new obstacles for the next race. BeeOh is a good mackaneek. Berry monab.

The big wall of screens on the north wall all be showing a bunch of races, most old recorded ones from Umgul. In da center is the scoreboard and race results. "There, LEDs blinking and the holonet feed be too slow. Nosa betting on Umgul races if feed is not live!" Monmoo covered his eyestalks with his hands mournfully.

[translation (http://theholo.net/forum/showthread.php?55866-Gungan-translations-no-copek-allowen!&p=1036044&viewfull=1#post1036044)]

[Damon Void]

The frog was mumbling something in his broken Basic he barely comprehended, but there it was again, the word that Void knew and stuck out like a giant glowing sign that said "PAYDAY".

Betting

Void went straight to the scoreboard, tracing his fingers over the piece of hardware, turning back to his new 'friend'.

"So, let's start with the basics. This..." He tapped a finger on the board, all but leaning on it. "Connects to the holonet feeds - then displays the data. I'm guessing you've replaced the LEDs, since that would be the first bit of trouble shooting anyone would do." He had to hope the frog was at least that smart. "So let's rule out a software issue before I start tearing into the hardware, right man? So, I'll need access to whatever systems you have regulating the flow of information to the board. Passwords, addresses, you know the basics for this level of data communication."

[Gradoona Pod-Floewander]

"Lookin' for looove in aaall the wroong plaaces...lookin' for looove..."

Gradoona had punched the clock an hour ago. A short trip to her quarters to put up her tool belt, hit the sonics, apply moisturizer and change clothes, and she was back on the town. A flannel sleeveless shirt and a set of well-worn denims were the Herglic's casual choice of attire, and with a glance in the mirror to make sure everything was as it should be, Gradoona happily set of on her jaunt to Monmoo's Blob Place. There was an extra skip in her step tonight, because the rumor was that the live stream from Umgul would finally be ready for prime time. Not that the local races weren't fun and all, but Umgul was clearly where the pedigree events were held. She'd already downloaded the racing stats for the evening, and had enough down time at work to flip through them to get an idea of where she wanted to put her money. Long Tall Sally was the oddsmaker's favorite, but Gradoona was never one to simply buy in to the talking heads. She had eyes on Florrum Flossy. Not too hot on the straightaways, but an expert obstacle negotiatior. If she worked her position on the track just so, she could make up a lot. Plus, the payoff on her taking the lead was practically a mint.

It was with that thought that Gradoona breezed into the blob place, a buzz of whistles and clicks as she fweee'd in a carefree blowhole puff. Carefully pulling aside two stools at the bar, Gradoona kept her feet as she flagged down the barkeep.

"Hey Mac! Howabout an ice coold pitcher and a bucket of prawns?"

The Utapauan bartender was busy slinging margaritas and he dipped his head to the Herglic as he worked.

"You got it, partner. Zhlits lager?" She was a regular, and even if she wasn't, you didn't soon forget when a Herglic walked into your establishment.

Gradoona whistled, her tongue lolling slightly within her open grin.

"Cizeri style on those prawns?" Again, knowing your customer. It was a more polite way of asking Hey, ya want some raw and maybe live seafood?

"Ooh suure." Gradoona slapped down a chit, authorizing it but leaving it open for a tab.

[Captain Monmoo]

"Oh yesa, of course. " Monmoo's eyestalks lookin around and seein Gradoona belly up to da bar like a quiglee from the ome-goosa, ordering a gup. Hesa hmmed a bit, and then looked at Void. "What did yousa spake?"

After a moment it comin back to hesa, and Monmoo nods quickly. "Sorry, mesa plansa. Mesa will get yousa into da system fast like a dop after a wollod. Mesa will put the codes in for yousa for when yousa need. " Hesa leads Void to the side where the control panel is.

[translation (http://theholo.net/forum/showthread.php?55866-Gungan-translations-no-copek-allowen!&p=1036259&viewfull=1#post1036259)]

[Damon Void]

Well the Gungan was smart enough to not just throw around his passwords at least. A miracle. Clearly he'd met the leading intellect of their species. Not that it would matter.

"Right, well let's go ahead and get me in there, in that case..." He reached into the small bag of tools he'd brought and pulled out a rather beat up looking datapad, flicking it on, it booted to a base operating code - he'd need to run his tricks through the box into the system. It should look like any other analytical piece of tech, but that was it's appearance only. He'd loaded it with all the basics. Decryption hacks, holonet rerouting programs, trojan base code just ready for him to customize it to whatever he needed.

It'd be a simple task to just dump a backdoor on this antiquated hardware and make it sing and dance to his tune whenever he wanted. Nothing could possibly go wrong. Then he spotted her at the bar. His glasses fogged over almost immediately. At least 200kg, curves everywhere - there were curves there shouldn't have been curves. Damn but she was gorgeous, Herglic chicks, man. Herglic chicks.

Still it wasn't that bad, she wouldn't distract him too much - he just had to make sure he was able to ignore...

She suddenly spoke in an accent that was as thick as he was feeling right in that moment. His face flushed, which was amazing since he hadn't been sure he had enough blood in the upper half of his body to cause that. His mouth felt dry, and he turned back to Monmoo, "So... yeah. We were... what were we talking about?"

[Gradoona Pod-Floewander]

"Ooh hey there Captain! fweeee"

Gradoona hoisted her pitcher as she caught a glimpse of the Gungan proprietor. She still had no idea why he was called captain, whether it was a nickname or from a time in the Gungan Liberation Army. He didn't say, and she didn't ask. He ran a pretty decent establishment from the few dozen times she'd frequented it, and although it was sometimes wicked hard to understand what the amphibian was saying, she got around the language barrier well enough.

The face next to Monmoo, however, was a new one. The Herglic's beaky grin narrowed slightly. From the goings on, he seemed to be helping the Captain out with a technical issue. Maybe this was the last fix to get the live races in from Umgul?