A Week With Kylo and Hux

Day Two: Matt and Millicent

Matt prodded the frayed cable of the radar system with the rubber-wrapped handle of his pliers and frowned. Then he pulled out his datapad and consulted his text book.

If this was a metal wire, a new section could be spliced in to bypass the fray. If it was a fibre optic cable, it would need the whole length replaced. If it was a superconductor cable, a new section could be spliced, but the insulation for the whole length would need replacing.

Matt checked the cable. Fibre optic. More costly, but faster and more efficient than metal wire, but slower and cheaper than superconductor. He wrapped a little bright pink warning tape around either side of the fray and filed an update with his supervisor that the system would be offline for approximately an hour. Then he started assessing the length of the cable.

It was a long connection, running from the base of the radar system, where a junction unit allowed feed from multiple sensors to coalesce into it, to the nearest connection to the imaging computers, a length of three corridors. Matt didn't carry that much cable in his tool vest, so he sent a quick order to stores and started disconnecting the damaged cable while waiting for the new one.

He'd completely disconnected the radar junction end and had started marking access points to get at all the points the new cable would need feeding through when he heard the frantic squeaking of an approaching mouse droid. The little robot rounded the corner, pursued by-

Orange fur. Lithe body. Pointed ears. Long tail. Whiskers. Claws.

The cat pounced on the droid, which kept rolling towards Matt, squeaking increasing in pitch towards ultrasonic. Matt winced, ears starting to hurt, and reached out to catch the animal.

Three tears on his jumpsuit and one long scratch across his cheek later, Matt had the cat settled in his arms and starting to purr. He scratched her ears and gently calmed her, pushing her towards sleep.

The mouse droid beeped and bumped his foot. Matt looked down at it and smiled.

"Yes, I haven't forgotten you. She's asleep now. No attacking." The technician pulled the cover to the mouse droid's internal storage bay off, retrieved the long spool of cable, and flipped the cover upside down and deposited the cat in it before resting it on top of the droid. "Stay with me, would you?"

The mouse droid gave a series of beeps and drones.

"I understand, really, but this'll keep her out of the way. I can keep her calm if she's close by, see?"

The droid beeped a bit more.

"I promise, I promise. What's your designation?"

Beep bebeep boop beepbeep.

"Nice to meet you, five-one-seven em-em-dee. Can I call you seven-em?"

Hux punched the override to Kylo's quarters into the keypad and strode in. "Ren, where have you-" He broke off.

Kylo pulled his blond wig off and tossed it aside before working on his tool vest. "Hux, don't you ever knock?"

"What are you doing?" Hux demanded. "And is it really more important than helping me negotiate the takeover planetside?"

"Seriously?" Kylo retorted. "Half the time you complain that my ʻlurking presenceʼ is off-putting, and the other half that I'm not backing you up suitably. I thought you'd be glad to have me out of your perfectly-coiffed hair."

Hux closed his eyes and sighed. "I see. In future, it would be appreciated if you would inform me if you will be present at the negotiations or not. May I ask what you have been doing?"

Kylo scowled at Hux's slightly demanding tone, but answered anyway. "I have been trying to get a better idea of what life is like for the lower ranks. I have some skill as a technician, so I had an alias slipped into the complement of radar technicians. I go by Matt."

"Matt," Hux repeated. "Do you enjoy your…forays into the lower orders?"

"It is rather calming," Kylo admitted. "I replaced a length of fibre optic cable that was damaged and took the Port Four radar installation offline, and I have an idea what may have caused the damage."

"Did you report it?" Hux asked, not terribly interested but being polite.

"I didn't think you'd appreciate it," Kylo admitted. He whistled and a mouse droid whizzed out of the bedroom.

"Millicent!" Hux cried, scooping up his ginger cat.

"She was chasing the droid, and may have been causing all sorts of damage," Kylo explained. "I, uh, used the Force to put her to sleep, but she should be waking soon."

"She must be sneaking out my quarters somehow," Hux fretted. "Thank you for keeping it to yourself. Could you examine my quarters for the fault?"

"Of course," Kylo shrugged. "If you'll let me have my own pet?"

Hux narrowed his eyes. "What sort of pet?"

"Seven-em. The mouse droid."

Hux groaned. "Seriously?"