Entry 4

We arrived to Phindar and made landfall in the capital city of Laressa. I believe Jax was disappointed at the condition of the planet's major populated area. It was a dark and grimy place, littered with trash and inhabited by despondent looking humanoids called Phindians. By despondent, I am not referring to their physical appearance—although they are a gangly species with knurled joints and long, misshapen faces—but to the pessimistic manner which they project. They walk around, eyes downcast, and shuffling about with a melancholy gait.

According to Jax, these beings were once under the control of a criminal organization called the Syndicat. About thirty years ago the Jedi helped overthrow the Syndicat, but the devastation of decades of cruelty and oppression still haunted the residents.

There are humans on the planet. They make up approximately three percent of the population and are concentrated in a colony twenty kilometers west of the capital city in a town called Svang. It is a mining town with reportedly all the amenities enjoyed by humans. Jax thought that might be a place worth looking into. Unfortunately the town does not have a spaceport, so we have to take a speeder to the location.

I decided it was best not to attract attention to myself. Humans were rare and I assume Human Replica Droids are even scarcer. I instead opted to have my droid brain transferred into my Artoo chassis.

Once inside the Astromech droid I came to realize I really enjoy being in the HRD chassis. When inside the Artoo body it felt like half my senses were cut off. I can see and hear with equal clarity, but my tactile sensations are limited. This droid has pressure sensors on the hull, but nothing like an HRD. In the human chassis I can sense the difference between a light caress and a grasp. The Artoo sensors only indicate something is touching my exterior.

I can't smell. My sensors analyze the air, but the actual sensation of smell is not there. I can't taste and this Artoo body cannot react to stimuli in the same way my human chassis can respond. The lack of sensations is unnerving, for lack of a better word. I do not enjoy being an Artoo unit. Another drawback is my friends once again ignore me. I know it is not intentional, but it happens with an alarming frequency.

Currently I am perched in the back seat of a rented speeder. Den, Norro and Jax are in the front seats and the two women are in the back of the vehicle with me. Not once have they tried to engage me in conversation. Instead they have rambled on about a myriad of female topics ranging from the changes of the female body during pregnancy to more intimate subjects involving my friend Jax. The latter conversation was spoken in hushed tones but was readily heard by my highly attuned audio sensors.

At this point I hope the two women don't remember I am sentient and within earshot. I am positive they did not intend their conversation to be heard by any other occupant in the vehicle.

I will not record in this journal exactly what was said, but suffice to say, Magash and Sacha have determined Jax is excellent breeding stock with capabilities I find questionable and is in most probability highly exaggerated. If I was capable of rolling my optical sensor I would, but I can't. That is another drawback to this droid body. Human facial gestures are impossible.

After a half hour drive we arrived to Svang. It was located in the middle of a tropical forest at the base of a mountain. We were told the ore mines run deep into the foothills. Most humans are miners, but there is a large town servicing the area. As we drove through the small city I observed restaurants, theaters, fuel stations, grocery stores, hotels, and a higher than normal percentage of taverns and cantinas.

Most of the humans walking on the sidewalks wore heavy overalls covered with dark dust. I did notice there was a very high male to female ratio. In fact I only saw a few women during our drive and I was not the only person to notice this disparity.

"There's not many women here," Sacha pointed out. She didn't sound happy about that fact. I assume she desired female companions. Den told me when humans become mated couples they are supposed to avoid close companionship with members of the opposite sex. I can see how this could be a distressing for Sacha. Magash is not in the same situation. I assumed she would be enthusiastic about the large amount of potential mates available, but that did not appear to be the case.

"Way too many men," Magash whispered to Sacha. "I don't like it."

I was confused over that comment for a couple reasons. First of all, why would an unattached female not desire a wide assortment of possible male companions? Secondly, why was I relieved that she expressed that sentiment? I decided I must be experiencing a glitch in my droid brain due to the switch in chassis.

"Where are the girls?" Norro moaned. "There were more women in the Slashtown Prison Colony on Despayre!" The young man let his head drop to the back of his seat as he stared to the roof of the speeder. "Please not here. I will never get a girlfriend. I will die a virgin."

Jax grinned. "There are a lot of female Phindians."

Norro made a choking noise. "I don't want to appear to be a speciesist but the Phindians are not even close to looking human." He shook his head sadly. "A near human would be nice." He grinned. "I wouldn't mind a Twi'lek, a Zeltron or a Zabrak." Once he mentioned Zabraks his face blushed bright red before turning to Magash. "I didn't mean you." His eyes widened a bit. "Not that you're not beautiful…I ah…I mean I would like to meet a girl my age."

Magash laughed. "Understandable."

Norro blew out a breath as he turned and looked out the front windshield for the remainder of the trip.

"There's the hotel we booked rooms in." Jax said as he parked the vehicle in the adjoining parking lot. Once parked, Jax and Den helped me out of the speeder. I detest the poor maneuverability of this droid model and regret my choice of chassis for this trip.

When the women exited the vehicle I heard a series of whistles and suggestive remarks coming from the men passing by. One bearded human offered the women his mustache as a form of transportation. I assume the male was either deranged or confused because his proposition made no sense. Both women scowled at the stranger and I noticed Jax's jaw tightened as he glared at the men.

"Come on, let's get inside." Jax ushered us into the hotel lobby where he rented two rooms. "One for the ladies and one for the males."

He held out the door passkey to Sacha who pouted. "Can't we afford one more room?" She pressed closer to Jax who blushed profusely. She wrapped her arms around his waist as she laid her head on his shoulder. "I still have money I saved from my pod racing days. Let's splurge."

Jax looked to his friends sheepishly. "Would you mind if we broke the group up into three rooms?" He glanced at Den. "You, Norro and I-Five can bunk together and I'll get a separate room for Magash."

That sounded like a reasonable compromise, but Magash balked at the suggestion. "I do not wish to sit in a room alone. I will become bored."

Jax looked over to me. "How about you and I-Five stay together? He's has a voice synthesizer. You two can converse with each other if you get bored."

At that moment Den grinned wildly and disguised a chuckle as a cough. "Three rooms is fine with me." He patted Norro on the back. "Norro and I will be fine together."

Magash looked to me and shrugged. "That is acceptable. I-Five tells amusing stories."

I noticed nobody asked me what I thought about this arrangement. 'I'm just an astromech droid. There would be no reason for me to protest'. That was what I was thinking in a sarcastic internal monolog, but I didn't say anything out loud. I didn't want to make a statement that might be misconstrued by Den...who obviously thinks my predicament is very humorous.

That belief was confirmed as we walked down the corridor on our way to our rooms. He winked at me before humming a tune that I recognize as music said to be ubiquitous to skin-holos. "Bow wow chicha bow wow," he sung before making a suggestive hip thrust.

For a second, I considered extending my arc welding arm and shocking my friend. Instead I lowered the volume of my voice synthesizer to the bare minimum and said, "Please stop."

Den laughed as he patted the dome of my chassis. "I'm just messing with you."

We arrived to the rooms and Jax handed out the keys. "Why don't we give ourselves a couple hours to relax and freshen up? That sonic shower on the ship just isn't the same as a long, hot shower."

"Or a bubble bath," Sacha chimed in with a suggestive grin.

Jax suppressed a smile. "Or a bubble bath." He looked at his wrist chrono. "Why don't we meet at the hotel restaurant at 1800 hours?"

All nodded in agreement and retired to their rooms. As soon as the door closed behind Magash and me she laughed. "I cannot believe Jax only asked for two hours to relax. According to Sacha he can relax all night."

I trundled over to a corner of the room as I thought of a response. "That does not sound odd. I was told humans normally rest throughout the night."

Magash laughed at my comment. "Your sense of humor is enjoyable." She shrugged off her jacket and boots. "A hot bath does sound good though."

I turned my optical sensor away once I realized she was stripping for a bath. Now I am glad I am in my Artoo body. This chassis does not react to the same stimuli as the HRD body. For that I am thankful.

I wonder if she would mind if I use the power station and go into sleep mode. I know my circuits could use the rest.