Snooping Discoveries
Fascinating! Truly incredible! Tech could not help but feel giddy as he gazed upon the crate found within the Temple on Dantooine. He ran a hand over his head, gloves fingers combing through his thinning hair. Reflexively, the settings on his goggles shifted from normal light, to infrared, then to x-ray, as he tried to get a peek at what lay inside the ancient, durasteel box.
The others were not as interested as he was, it seemed. Hunter was simply grateful to have survived the encounter with Imperial hunters on the planet's surface. Wrecker was thrilled to blow stuff up, per usual. Echo was the only other member of their strange family to hold any remote interest in the box, but that interest passed as he went to work as the navigator for the ship.
This time, Hunter insisted on flying. A curious decision in Tech's opinion. Normally, he and Echo were the ones in charge of piloting everyone to their destination. It was the only logical choice. Echo was the most seasoned member of their crew and the most familiar with the facilities of the ship. Meanwhile, Tech was the one who knew how everything worked, right down to the spark plugs and flashing lights behind transparisteel panels.
As Tech scanned the box, a frown creased his thin lips. He lifted his goggles from his eyes, peering at the dull, durasteel shell. A hum left his lips as he rubbed his sharp chin, puzzled.
"Curious," He muttered.
"What's so curious?"
Tech jumped where he stood, taken off guard by one of the only beings in existence who could slip past his armor's life scanners and sneak up on him. Aniviel the Jedi; or, rather, the grown-up, Jedi Padawan they found not too long ago. She uttered a snort of amusement when she noticed his alarmed reaction.
"By the force, you're jumpy today, aren't you?" She asked, smirking, arms folded as she leaned against the wall.
"Jumpy? No, not at all. I am merely engrossed with discovering the contents of the cargo which we are transporting."
Aniviel raised an eyebrow. "Do you think Cid would appreciate the snooping?"
Tech uttered a scoff. "It is not snooping! I like to call it: taking security precautions. There could be anything in this crate, after all, including nothing."
A light laugh left Aniviel's lips. "That wouldn't sound so out of place where I'm from, y'know."
Tech titled his head, puzzled. "Are you insinuating I sound like a Jedi?"
Aniviel strolled from the wall over to the box. She kept her smug grin on her lips as she stood next to Tech, hands on her hips.
"I'm saying, you enjoy talking in riddles."
"Riddles?" Tech remarked, blinking in surprise. "I have half a mind to be offended. Riddles run quite counter-intuitive to discovery, don't you think?"
"The whole point of a riddle is to discover meaning, so you tell me," Aniviel countered. She rubbed her hands together then crouched in front of the box, running one slender hand along the scratched, beat-up, mossy durasteel shell. "Whatever's in this thing has been there for a long time."
Her eyes closed. From an outsider's perspective, it looked like Aniviel was resting. But, Tech knew better. His scanners bleeped and whirred within his armor. It was as if he was detecting the very make-up of the crate shifting and changing. A slow exhale passed from Aniviel's lungs as her hand remained on the box.
"Well, there's not nothing in here," Aniviel remarked, eyes cracking open.
Tech furrowed his brow. "Strange. My scanners detected nothing."
"Do you have any idea how easy it is to fool a scanner?"
Tech opened his mouth, closed it, then huffed. "You make a strong point." When Aniviel said nothing in response, instead choosing to remain focused on the box, his curiosity morphed into more confusion. "Do you mind informing me of what you think is inside?"
"Something with the force," Aniviel muttered, brow furrowed. Her usual relaxed, almost lackadaisical demeanor had evaporated. Tech saw this on rare occasions in the field, whenever they were under attack. But, to see her become so serious when they were safe within the ship alarmed him. "Let's open it."
"I don't think Cid would appreciate that," Tech said, watching Aniviel as she moved to the dusty, slimy control panel on the box.
"You were the one who started the snooping," Aniviel replied, her voice absent as she stayed completely focused on her goal. Her hand wiped grime from the panel. She tapped the ancient, mechanical buttons, a frown creasing her lips. "Tech, do you mind tech-ing?"
It was Tech's turn to chuckle. He crouched beside her, one hand rubbing his chin as he eyes the mechanical keypad. It was an ancient model, pre-republic in design. Manufactured long before the Ruusan Reformation one thousand years ago. However, it was still a machine, and machines were Tech's domain.
He cracked his knuckles, pulled out a screwdriver, and got to work. Within seconds, he pried the face of the keypad from the box's surface, revealing the wires and gears dormant within. A smirk cracked over his lips as he fiddled with the wires, easily figuring out the various connections. While the setup might be old, it was still familiar. Technology might evolve, but that evolution stands upon a stable foundation of simple instructions and designs.
A moment later, the wires sparked to life. A happy hand shook his shoulder.
"Well done!" Aniviel grinned.
"I'm pleased to see you share my enthusiasm," Tech smiled in return.
He twisted a couple more wires. The box hummed, then hissed. Pressure seals released, venting stale air from inside of the box. With a gentle, shaky hand, Tech pushed the lid open.
The inside of the box was barren except for a small cube situated at the center of the box, sealed within a protective, white, durasteel case. Tech's initial confusion turned to rabid curiosity when Aniviel sucked in a sharp breath. Her trembling hand reached out and took the cube. She then closed her eyes and exhaled.
Whatever she did caused the cube to react. The protective, durasteel shell cracked open. Aniviel pulled it off of an artifact that left Tech in awe.
"Is that what I think it is?" He breathed.
Aniviel opened her eyes, a shuddering breath slipping from her lips. "A Holocron."
"A Jedi Holocron?" Tech pressed, moving closer to Aniviel, excitement making his voice tremble.
Aniviel cracked a sad smile. She nodded as one hand brushed along the intricate, golden surface.
Tech could hardly believe his eyes. They found an ancient Jedi Holocron on Dantooine. The amount of knowledge stored within could be a treasure trove the likes of which no one had seen in centuries; millennia even. His eyes locked with the dim, pulsing, sapphire light thrumming softly within the cube. Then, he raised his eyes, locking with Aniviel's emerald gaze.
His heart thumped in his chest. They were much closer than he thought, with only the Holocron humming between them. A dry gulp made his throat bob. Aniviel cracked a shy, nervous smile. It felt like seconds turned to minutes as Tech heard his pulse pounding in his ears.
Then, Aniviel darted her eyes down. One hand pulled her auburn hair from her face back behind her ear.
"It's um…" She pursed her lips, looked up, and gave Tech a sheepish smile. "Looks like it might be a little broken." She finished with a whisper.
Tech blinked, the spell cast upon him breaking. "I-Is it?" He glanced at the Holocron in Aniviel's hands. "Seems to be working just fine to me."
"Have you ever handled a Holocron?"
"No."
"Then how are you an expert?" Aniviel asked.
Tech drew back, ready to retort. However, he could not. For one, Aniviel bested him in this debate through knowledge alone. He had no idea how a Holocron functioned beyond their connection with the Jedi Order, and therefore, the Force. However, even he could see the absurd level of engineering and technology placed within the device. For something so ancient, it appeared far more complex than most current machinery.
And Aniviel was offering him a chance to work with her on it. Tech almost smacked himself. How could he question such an opportunity?
"To the bench," he breathed.
"Right," Aniviel nodded.
They scrambled to Tech's workbench, located against the far wall of the ship's cargo hold. Tools lay scattered across the entire bench. Even more tech and parts were hung up on the wall and resting within drawers beneath and beside the bench. Resting on one of the cupboards was a full, B-1 battle droid. Its processor and power core were removed and part of the mess on the cluttered bench.
Tech unceremoniously wiped all of those projects and tools out of the way, clearing space for the Holocron. He tapped the top of the bench. Aniviel gingerly placed the Holocron there, then stepped back.
Immediately, Tech flicked his goggles over his eyes, bringing every scanner he had within them to life. He hummed to himself, eyeing the Holocron from various angles.
"I don't see any obvious damage," He mumbled. He zoomed in his goggles. "Perhaps some slight scuffing along the edges, but that shouldn't impede the internal processes. Why do you believe it is malfunctioning?"
"A Holocron opens when the force runs through it. This ensures only a Jedi can ever operate one," Aniviel replied. "When I attempted to do so, nothing happened."
"Are you certain you used the force correctly?" Tech asked. He reached out to the side for a tool hanging nearby, hand swiping at the air as he kept missing it.
After several unsuccessful grabs, he felt the tool smack against his palm.
"Are you seriously asking the Jedi that question?" Aniviel retorted, smirking as she let go of the tool he had been reaching for.
There was the smarminess Tech and the others had grown accustomed to. Whatever worry, concern, or nervousness Aniviel had displayed, even if briefly, was hidden beneath a snarky shell once again. Rarely did Aniviel appear vulnerable, but when they discovered the Holocron in the crate, Tech got to see the woman beneath the surface. It didn't even require a scanner.
It was Tech's turn to utter a sheepish laugh. "When you put it like that…'' He trailed off, cleared his throat, then prodded the edges of the Holocron with his tool. "Do you mind explaining how the force and Holocron function together? Is it a conduit? A symbiotic relationship?" He blinked, jaw falling open. "Am I dealing with an artificial lifeform existing in symbiosis with organic life and energy?"
"Slow down there," Aniviel laughed. "Don't get too far ahead of yourself."
"I simply must know!"
"And you will," Aniviel replied, clapping her hand against Tech's armored shoulder. She gave him a sharp shake, jostling the thin clone where he stood. "Because we're going to be working on this together."
Tech's heart soared. He had a project with someone else in the crew; someone not named Echo? He could scarcely believe it! A wide smile formed on his face. He turned his attention back to the Holocron, watching the dim light thrum within, pulsating with unknown, unmeasurable energy.
But it will be known to me. Tech's heart raced. I shall be the first non-Jedi to understand the inner workings of their great, information devices!
Right as he was about to get back to work, the full weight of Aniviel's words hit him. His brow furrowed and he drew back from the still, silent Holocron.
"Something wrong?" Aniviel asked, arms folded.
Tech glanced at her. "You said we would be working on this together?"
Aniviel nodded slowly. "Yeah?"
"Does-" A laugh of disbelief spilled from Tech's lips- "Does that mean you have no idea how a Holocron works?"
Aniviel was quiet for a moment. Her response finally came in the form of a sheepish shrug.
"I'm only a padawan?" She replied, a nervous laugh tumbling out of her.
Tech ran a hand over his face, a light groan threatening to leave him. But, he held it in. So what if he and Aniviel were starting from square zero on this project. It meant spending time with her, discovering something new.
That made him more than happy.
Part 2 of this little Bad Batch One-shot collection! This chapter was commissioned on Fiverr by onojavakarian. If you are interested in having your one-shot, chapter, or story written, contact me on Fiverr! Username: thebobcat18
Come join the Fanfiction Treehouse Discord server! Discord code is: 9XG3U7a
Also, come check out the Fanfiction Treehouse Podcast! Myself, Stormtide Leviathan, RedXEagl3, GrandPaladinTyrux, and Rozey_Pozey are the hosts! We talk about writing, share writing tips and tricks, discuss fiction and fanfiction, and chat about whatever else comes to mind. You can find all of our episodes on Spotify and Soundcloud, as well as our video episodes on Youtube. You can also find the entire crew on our Twitch channel, where we play games, do editing breakdowns, and continue our DnD campaign! Hope to see you all there!