Heres the next chapter. I hope you guys like it. As for it's quallity, I hammered this little bugger out in a hurry; not only to continue the story, but to keep in habit. I will probably come back and spiff it up a bit. Anyway, I hope you enjoy and please review. (I know I don't have to tell you, Ri2!)I can read my stats and I know you people are reading this damn thing. Thank you!

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Chapter 6

SID

I love a good slice of pie. Unfortunately, this was NOT a good slice of pie! As I walked out of the alley, I heard a loud clattering sound behind me. I turned around, half expecting to see Gorn dragging himself out of the dumpster, only to find that the
morning garbage pick up was emptying the thing into the back of the trash unit. It would no doubtedly be heading straight to planet Compostia 12. Let's see the little slark-for-brains get out of this one. That's when I noticed an odd coloration about the garbage hauler and smiled. Gorn wasn't going off world. He was going to the sector's incinerator.

My heart ached to think that someone as wonderful and good-natured as that would no longer be in existence. It's so sad. And I'm so sarcastic!

Anyway, I threw the nasty pie into the nearby gutter and headed down the street. The sirens were steadily getting louder and I knew I needed to find a place to hide. Then I saw it, the simple thing that would forever alter my miserable, little life as I knew it. There sat an older model transport conveyance. You pig-smellies might call it a "taxi". But regardless of what you call it, I called it an opportunity.

It was an older model. Rust caked the sides and the whole thing looked like it would fall apart at any moment. It could have been a pile of slark for all I cared. It wasn't like I had another choice. I wasn't at the used ship lot. I looked around to see if the owner was in the general area. And when I saw that the coast was clear, I quickly popped the door lock and climbed in. The thing smelled like donuts and oil and the seats were
worn out and I couldn't see the floor from all the trash on it. I could get used to this. It reminded me of my apartment with Xella. The control console was simple enough. It had a few buttons and switches. Within a few seconds, I hacked into the main computer's hard drive and quickly hot-wired the little beauty. Just then, I hear a shuffling sound coming from the back seat. I turned around just in time to come face to face with a little, orange robot. Make that a very pissed little, orange robot.

He mustn't have been more than two feet tall; which made the enormouse laser cannon that protruded from the top of his head look almost cartoonish in comparison.

The little robot flailed around madly screaming, "HALT INTRUDER! SURRENDER OR FACE VERY PAINFUL PAIN! YOU HAVE MADE AN UNLAWFUL ENTRY INTO MY MASTER'S VEHICLE AND I MUST …"

"Hey, what's that behind you?" I said and pointed eyes wide with my best surprised expression.

He turned around to look. "Huh?"

Quickly, I ripped open the little access panel in his back and turned the little nuisance off.

"Hey, ThaT's no-No-OT V-V-VERY NicE …" it sputtered and stuttered before falling limp in the back seat. I'm sure the little conversation we were about to have entered would have been absolutely fascinating, I'm sure, but I need to find a place to stash my newly acquired vehicle and make the proper "alterations" to it.

I sat him down in the seat next to me and gunned the engine of the cab. I quickly found the box of monies the driver kept his fares in and reloaded my wallet. Now that I had transport and monies, I needed to find a safe place for a while. I pulled out onto the street and headed toward the older district. Every now and then a wave of paranoia would wash over me and my eyes would dart back and forth searching for the law that was waiting around every corner. But fortunately, there were none to be seen. I knew they were looking for me, but I guess they were looking elsewhere.

I drove around for a few hours before I finally came to a rather
derelict area of the sector. I drove for a few blocks before I found a suitable place to hide out. As far as I knew, no one lived in the old plasma-armed battle tank factory, so I found the main entrance and drove the cab inside. I must have been my lucky day, or my AMAZING piloting skills, but at that exact moment, right when I was out of danger, the engine died. It was almost like the cab new when the best time to die was.

Now that I had some privacy, I could get started on the idea that had been
formulating in my amazing brains. I got out of the cab and had a quick look around to scrounge for the appropriate instruments. Seeing how this was a factory, I figured there might be a few tools about.

The place was in shambles. It was a caddy-cornered maze of rusted railings and pipes. Old machinery and even half-finished tanks lay collecting dust where they had been left. Parts of the roof had caved in. The floors were covered in puddles of water and oil and masses of debris and broken bits of tables and chairs. It reminded me of a freshly bombed enemy hospital. Trust me, I've seen one. All it missed was fire and dead bodies.

Then, I came across a door marked 'equipment' and walked inside. It was a small room. The walls were caked with years of filth. The shelves were almost bare. There wasn't much of anything, but there was enough to do what I needed to do. I gather up the few tools I found and loaded them into a toolbox that was on the floor.

I walked back toward the cab but failed to notice the exposed pipe on the floor and tripped. Suddenly, I came crashing down on the box of tools and, more importantly, my face. For the second time in two days, I had somehow fallen and busted my face on a floor. I laid there for a few minutes in a hazeful daze. Then I noticed a funny taste in my mouth. I had cut my bottom lip and it was bleeding rather profusely. When I opened my eyes, I thought I had cracked my head open because of the large puddle of green in front of me. Then I realized, it was a puddle of water mixing with the small amounts of blood that had lost.

I got up and gathered my scattered tools and carefully walked back to the cab. The little robot still lay motionless in the passenger seat. I reached inside and picked him up by his large head.

While in the military, I learned about SIR unit repair and maintenance and how to rig an enemy robot to obey me, so this was a snap. I quickly opened the top of his head and found his main servitude drive. Tweaked the aeon flag disruptors and cross- wired his main telveg processor. Confused yet? I closed the top and reactivated him.

"Wha' happened? He looked around in an extremely confused manner.

"I erased your memor… erm, never mind! I, Stiv, am your master now, understand?" I said in a strong, commanding tone of voice. "Your name is SID and you will serve me to the utmost of your abilities. Okay?"

" 'S.I.D.'? What does that stand for?" He asked.

"It doesn't matter," I told him. The truth be told, I couldn't think of anything to say. I had always like the name Sid. It had a good sound to it. Don't you think? Oh well, it didn't matter. "Now, SID, I just got a new vehicle and
I need you to help me fix the engine. Okay?"

We spent the next half an hour doing repairs and what-not. As it turned out, the main centro fluxor had a crack in it. I plugged it with a rag I found and it was as good as new; for now.

"Okay SID, I'm gonna' need you to patch into the cab's computer and find everything I need to drive this cab without the law hopping on my back. I'll need a license, some papers, and, um, whatever else I need. Okay?"

He stared up at me with his little orange eyes. "Isn't that illegal?" Great,
he's a goody-two-shoes!

"No SID, it's only illegal if you get caught! It'll be fine!" I looked at the back bumper and cave it a slight kick. It made a loud clatter when it fell off.

"Okay then!" He said with a smile and began working. He patched into the computer database and began his task.

"Sid, I'll be back soon. I need to go make a call." I said walking toward the door.

"Whatever." He said in a bored tone. I may have to fix his personality later.

I walked down the street a few blocks to a pay phone, as you'd call it. I could manage a few of the "necessities" it would take to run the cab, but for the license and the I.D. plate, I needed a professional. Fortunately, I knew of just such an Irken. Yes, I know drug dealer, master forgers; I'm very well connected. Praise me later!

I waited a few minutes for Edzel to pick up. "What do you want?"

"Is this the vist?" I asked. It had been so long since I'd talked to him over the phone. It didn't take me long to remember the code speak. We used it just in case the line was bugged.

"Ah, Mr. Nieghsayer, it's so good to hear from you. What can I bee doing for you?"

We talked for about twenty minutes in a language that would be a waist of time to, first, tell you about and then explain. The short version of what we discussed: I got a hot cab, I need papers, and a plate.

"I think I can provide these little finer things in life, eh? How much are you willing to give to your local cherity?" He said.

"At least a stoned bird and five Blorch Rats. At least." In other words, I'd at least pay one thousand-five hundred monies.

"Pleasure, see you soon." He then hung up and left me standing in the street with an empty line.

I walked back to the factory to find Sid dancing on the hood while listening to a horrendously bad song from the dashboard radio. This was not what surprised me, though. It was the fact that the cab he was dancing on was shining like new and had not a single speck of grime or rust on it.

"Sid, how'd you do this?"

"Does it really mater, Stiv?" He asked with a quirked eye.

"No, I guess not. Well, come one. We have to go."

"Where?"

"A friend; and further more, a matter that doesn't concern you. Now come on and get your ass in the cab!" I yelled and pointed at the vehicle. "And turn that slark off!"

"Fine!" He yelled with a huff and jumped off the hood, causing it to bounce, and climbed through the passenger-side window.

I sighed a large, annoyed sigh and opened my door. The cab started flawlessly and I pulled out of the factory. It had been ages since I had last driven and, to no surprise toward myself, dinged the front bumper on a rusting tank. "Son of a bitch!"

Sid looked up over the dash, "Where?"

I was definitely going to have to alter his personality or I was going to kill him; AGAIN!