Chapter 31: Droid

"What are you doing?!"

Jas didn't have time to look over, all of his concentration was in the here and now…and…the Force.

Kahvult patrol droids were in pursuit of the Knightfire, even now blaster fire was raking at the rear shields.

Though not as powerful as most ship-to-ship weapons, they were still eating into the shields, that and there were so damn many of them, scanners could not even give him an exact count they were moving too fast, switching places…

…and…they were gaining on them.

He pushed the engines harder.

They could not afford to be stopped now.

Val sat next to him in the co-pilot seat, the droid they had found at the Forum, in one of the seats behind them.

It had not stopped talking since they brought it aboard, offering suggestions, suggestions that he didn't have time to listen to.

An alarm went off on the panel to his left, a proximity warning, too many droids flying too close to the ship.

He ignored it.

He didn't need the computer to tell them they were in trouble.

He already knew.

The ship rocked, struck again by blaster fire, something hissed steam in one of the panels behind them.

"Why haven't you angled the deflectors yet?" the droid called out, "Captain, doesn't your girlfriend no how to fly?"

"I'm not his girlfriend you trash can!" Val snarled, "I'm…"

"Not helping," Jas shouted, sending the ship spinning to the right. He heard a banging sound on the hull, one of the droids impacting on the shield.

Another alarm went off.

He risked a glance at the scanners, every time they slowed, the droids increased speed, moving in.

He cursed under his breath.

This wasn't going to work!

"These are Skarab class patrol droids," their mechanical friend informed them, "Their main form of attack is to envelop an enemy vessel. They will surround you, slow you down, and force you to land, at least…that is what they would have done before their new programming."

"What new programming?" Jas asked.

"They belong to the combine, and right now, the combine is in defense mode, it will not allow me to continue to function. The Skarabs will surround us, and either force us to crash, or fire until we are destroyed, anything to prevent the authorities from learning to much about our operations."

Jas shook his head.

Syndicate reprogramed security droids!

Wonderful!

Not that he was planning to surrender, still…

The ship rocked again.

He did the only thing he could do.

He punched the accelerator.

They needed to stay ahead of those droids.

"Val, take the seat behind me, I need you on the tail gun, see if you can slow these things down."

"Don't you need a co-pilot," the protector asked.

"You're not helping much on that front, missy," the droid chimed in, "I'm programmed to fly eighty three percent of Republic standard vessels. I can handle the shields and the power systems."

Val shot Jas a look, she didn't need to speak for him to know what she was thinking. They had only just met the droid…

…could they trust it?

"I would rather not get scrapped today, thank you very much," it responded, likely anticipating what was passing between the two humans.

"I will help you; it is in my best interest to do so."

Jas nodded.

He had heard enough.

"Slide over, Val," he ordered, "I need you on weapons."

The protector cursed but did as she was told. The droid settled into the co-pilot's seat, its spindly arms flying over the controls.

Jas noticed the change immediately, the droid was correcting what Val had not known about, the ship was already accelerating again.

This just might work, he realized.

"Get those blasters firing, Missy," the droid said, "Captain, take us up into orbit, and make for the skyhooks. Get as close as you can. It will interfere with the skarabs' sensors."

Jas felt the tail guns open up, he had a sensor board to check, to see if Val was hitting anything, but now wasn't the time.

He followed their new companion's instructions, he sensed no duplicity, but then again, why would he?

Droids were not organic beings, no matter how life like they seemed.

They continued to climb; Jas was flying as much from the Force as he was using his sensors. A few times he caught a glimpse of one of the skarabs in their viewport, but did his best to ignore it.

They could try and surround them all they wanted, provided they didn't actually do it.

One of Kahvult's many skyhooks loomed before them.

Jas didn't hesitate.

He took them right beneath the structure, the droids still hot on their tail.

We can do this, he thought gritting his teeth.

Trust…in the Force.

"As close as you can," the droid repeated, its arms flying over its control board, shifting power between the shields and the engines.

The Knightfire skimmed just below the base of one of the larger skyhooks. The ship bucked slightly as the fast-moving skarab droids collided with the station's underbelly.

The patrol droids were fast, but they seemed to be having trouble maneuvering.

They probably didn't need to, Jas realized, most enemy ships wouldn't have made it this far, the droids would have surrounded them and forced them down before reaching orbit.

The proximity alarm to Jas' right went off, new signals had been detected off their starboard side, three medium sized ships were moving in on an intercept course.

Kahvult security, he suspected, no doubt they were querying the droids right now, trying to figure out what was going on.

Blasterfire intensified as their rear shields took a pounding, the skarab droids were getting desperate, likely trying to destroy the Knightfire before the proper authorities could query the fleeing ship.

"Jas," Val called out, her voice tinged with panic.

"Whatever you are planning to do, do it fast!"

He gritted his teeth.

Almost there.

Almost.

Laser fire came from starboard, the security ships opening up. The Knightfire emerged from the shadow of the skyhook, no longer shielded by the station, but that was okay.

They were out just far enough.

They had just escaped the planet's mass-shadow.

Jas smiled as he pulled the handle. The navi-computer had been pre-programmed; they had just needed a bit of distance…

The stars stretched, as the Knightfire shifted out of real space. They found themselves in a dark blue tunnel, the confines of hyperspace.

Jas let out a breath he had not realized he had been holding.

Things had not gone as expected, but…

…they had made it they were away…

…they…were safe.

He leaned back in his chair, his eyes settling on the droid sitting next to him. The flat T-series droid head turned; its main optic focused on him.

"Join us in the lounge," he ordered.

"It is time to talk."

IOI

"Your bosses, whoever they are…are in big trouble."

Jas said nothing as he stared at their passenger, the three now found themselves in the Knightfire's lounge area, with the droid sitting in the center seat. Its arms draped over the back.

No, Jas realized, not sitting…slouching.

The mannerisms of the droid surprised him. He had been around droids all his life, his work with the Cooper/Halcyon organization had often had him dealing with the more humanoid designed protocol models that were so popular in the Republic.

He had become familiar with how such droid's acted, their posture always perfect, their language and mannerisms tailored not to insult or cause friction.

This droid…there was something different about it. He could tell that by its posture alone.

Droids didn't slouch.

Val stood nearby, an ion blaster in hand. Jas doubted she needed it, but why take chances, their new guest was armed, though its weapons were currently powered down and hidden within its wrists.

The protector glared at the droid, Jas could sense her distrust, as with most Bantoon, Char Valenthyne had grown up with a distrust bordering on hatred of droids.

Not surprising, considering Bantoon's first real contact with droids had been an invasion army being controlled by pirates.

No, Bantoon's history still had strong influences on Val's outlook on the galaxy.

Her years in the Republic had not changed that.

So, it was no surprise she had chosen to play the heavy in their conversation with their new passenger.

Jas was okay with that.

He could play good cop with the best of them.

"The data stream you intercepted," Val said coldly, "We need it."

She shifted the blaster's barrel towards their guest.

"You will surrender the data…now."

If the machine was intimidated it didn't show it.

Its optic once again focused on Jas.

"Is your girlfriend pointing a weapon at me really necessary, Captain?"

"I'm not his girlfriend, clanker," the protector growled, "I'm…"

"In a great deal of trouble," the droid interrupted, "Whatever your employer is paying you for this job, it is not enough, trust me."

It shook its head.

"The Combine Automata does not take kindly to syndicates who break their deals with us."

Jas did his best to hide his sense of surprise.

What?

The Combine Automata?

But…that…that was impossible!

"The Combine Automata doesn't exist anymore," he said, "It was decommissioned years ago, the Jedi wiped out its leadership."

The droid shrugged, another mannerism he would not have expected from such a being.

"We lost a great deal of assets when the Jedi targeted our operations, true, but it is not easy to destroy an organization such as ours, we had, and have, droids everywhere…"

The droid leaned back putting its hands behind its head, another humanoid mannerism.

"It was only a matter of time until we rebuilt."

Val shot Jas a suspicious look.

"What is the Combine Automata?" she asked.

"An organization of assassin droids," he answered, "No one knows who commissioned their creation, but when they appeared on the scene a decade ago, they made a splash. Dozens of assassinations, high profile targets throughout the Republic, business beings, Senators, even planetary royalty, with seemingly no rhyme or reason."

Jas remembered hearing about those killings, they had thrown the whole underworld into an uproar. An uproar made even worse when the droids broadcast who they were on the holonet, and that they were now a major power within the Republic.

No longer would droids be slaves of organics. They would take their rightful place in the galaxy. An age of Automata had come.

The Senate, and the galaxy at large, saw this as an attempted droid revolt, not the first by a longshot, and responded as one would expect, they asked the Jedi for help.

The full might of the order fell on the Combine Automata.

What came next was…unsurprising.

The HK series assassin droids that founded the combine were tracked down and scrapped. Jedi with a talent for disrupting mechanical devices descended on any world suspected of being a combine hotbed, crushing the revolt in its infancy. After the loss of their leadership, the flames the combine had fanned began to die out. There had been isolated incidents of military droids attacking their masters, but in time, even those were contained.

As far as the galaxy knew, the Combine Automata had been completely decommissioned, or in such a weak state, it would never rise again.

If what they had seen on Kahvult was true, that was not the case.

"The Combine is far more than mere assassin droids," their mechanical guest informed them, "We're no longer a violent group. We changed…adapted. Now, we are an independent organization that has branched out into many different industries. Banking, travel, medical systems, and data management are just some of the businesses that we have acquired interests in. Where the combine goes, it improves. What we acquired is managed far better under the organization. The combine is governed by logic and sound data, not vendettas and the emotional baggage that define organic business beings."

"Branched out," Val said with a sneer, "More like you infiltrated those businesses."

"Acquired? Infiltrated? What is the difference, Missy? Creatures don't care why their systems improve, only that they HAVE improved."

The droid leaned forward, shaking its head.

"And all that we needed to do, was keep things quiet, let the other syndicates and Republic believe the Combine decommissioned, or so weak that it was no longer a treat. Time heals wounds, people forget, and creatures still need droids, and that was the key to our survival. We remained, and our independent intelligence programs found themselves in more and more droids, growing our influence, and numbers. We had to hide for a long time, but now…things are better.

"As long as we keep any violence to a minimum the Jedi and Republic ignore us. We have built an infrastructure that fits into the galaxy. We work with the other syndicates and they provide us with both protection, and a means to thrive."

The droid's main optic again fell on Jas.

"Kahvult was perfect, the attitudes of the people there allowed us to expand our operations far beyond any of our predicted models. We had a thriving business there. I had a thriving business, but that is all gone now. The Combine will have a scrap on sight order on me, by now. I know too much. If I tried to return to the network, I would be terminated as a security precaution."

The machine tilted its head slightly.

"Thank you for that, by the way, thank you…so bloody much."

Jas said nothing.

If the droid was looking for sympathy, it would find none here.

You work for a syndicate, any syndicate, you take your chances. He wasn't willing to rub another being's nose in such an opinion, but that didn't change his feelings.

Val…however…was not so polite.

She gave the droid a cruel smile.

"Thriving business? Please. You were a low-level thug managing a protection racket. Droid, or not, beings like you get tossed away by crime bosses every day."

"And what would you know about it, missy?" the droid demanded.

"I grew up in the underworld, so yeah, I know about it, and second, don't call me, missy."

The droid tilted its head.

"What else should I call the captain's girlfriend?"

Val's eyes narrowed.

"I'M NOT HIS BLOODY GIRLFRIEND!"

The ion blaster began to come up. Jas had to use the Force to get to Val before she could fire, and he made it…

…barely.

He stood between her and their guest, and she was not happy about it.

She shot him the dirtiest look, she was angry, and it had little to do with her feelings about the droid.

Jas winced.

Val…he could feel her pain, her…loneliness.

Being this close to him, it…it hurt her, she felt…felt.

She pulled away, refused to meet his gaze.

Jas looked at her, their connection telling him all he needed to know.

Val?

I…I'm…

She still refused to look him in the eye.

I'm sorry.

It…it was easy for her to ignore her feelings…usually. After all, she was the one who had suggested that he get to know Vess better, that he would be good for her, and she for him, but that didn't change the fact that Char Valenthyne still had feelings of her own, wants of her own.

She still felt desire, and she could hold that in check, usually, but the droid's poking had gotten through that shield.

She hated to admit it, but being here, knowing what he and Vess had…it…it hurt her.

Jas didn't like that, he…he still cared for Val.

He would always care for her, what she was, what they had.

It was special.

He loved Vessaria, but…

Char Valenthyne, he would always care about her…

…he loved her too, and he hated seeing her in pain.

He hated it.

He wanted to fix it, but he was not sure how. He…

Not now.

The words came unbidden to his mind.

Now is not the time for this, you will need to speak with her, and with Vess, and figure out what happens next, in the meantime, you have to deal with this combine droid.

It has the data you need, you need to convince it to give it to you, for Vess.

He took a shuddering breath.

Yes, he needed to do this…for Vess.

He tried to touch Val's shoulder, but she pulled away.

The protector glared at the droid again.

"Can't we just break this thing, break it and download its memory core?"

The droid tensed; it shifted its arms slightly, perhaps giving clearance to open up its weapons if needed.

"My security measures would not allow that," it promised them, "At the moment of my disassembly, the data stored in my memory would be erased. Taking any data from my memory by force is impossible. Your employer should have realized that."

The combine machine crossed its arms.

"Whoever your employers are, they are going to regret this. The Combine's agreement with the syndicates is ironclad, as is their desire to issue reprisals.

"Your bosses will no longer be able to use our data services. Any trade they are involved with will be delayed or lost. Their security droids that protect their holdings will shut down when they least suspect, allowing their rivals to remove items from their places of business. In other words, the combine is not an enemy you wish to have."

That is putting it lightly, Jas thought.

He considered what the droid had said, and with it came understanding.

At least now he knew why the Trandoshan merchant had not made the data request himself. The old lizard had seen the chance to not only acquire what he wanted, but also hurt a rival.

Whichever organization had made the request for the data that the droid had downloaded would be facing serious reprisals from the Combine Automata.

The Trandoshan had not only hurt a rival, but remained blameless in the eyes, or optics, of the Combine.

Jas should not have been surprised. He should have figured something like this would happen.

Syndicates were not known for playing fair.

A problem perhaps, but not one that he needed to solve.

In the meantime, Val and the droid bickering didn't help them.

They still needed the data, and fighting with this droid was not helping.

He sighed; things were getting far too hostile for his tastes.

Maybe it was time for a…gentler approach.

Jas smiled at the droid.

"There is no reason for violence," he said, "Considering what has happened, perhaps we have started off on the wrong foot."

Val snorted and shook her head, she put the ion blaster down, but still continued to glare daggers at their guest.

Though their connection Jas could tell she was willing to play along.

He was grateful for that.

He turned to the Combine machine, slipping into his role as negotiator for an organization.

"Let us start over," he said, "Names might be a good place to begin."

He paused, normally a droid would take that opportunity to say its designation and list its specifications. Most were programmed to sell themselves this way.

Their guest…did not take up that opportunity.

The droid didn't reply, it simply stared at him, the lights on the side of its head blinking on and off.

Jas frowned.

So much for letting the droid start things off.

Okay then, he thought, I guess we should go first then.

"I'm Jas Dar Bynn," he said, "This is Char Valenthyne. We are pleased to meet you…?"

Again, the droid remained silent, it sat there for a moment, processing what had been said, and then…finally…made a sound like a sigh of its own.

The droid shook its head.

"My designation is CC-61T, a service and defense droid. You may refer to me as CeeCee."

"Defense and service? You're a bodyguard droid?" Val said.

"I've served that function in the past, yes."

The protector quirked her lip with amusement.

"So, what were you doing dancing in the Forum on Kahvult, why aren't you working as a heavy for your bosses?"

"The Combine does not limit its members to their programming, mis…I mean…Mistress Valenthyne. We ARE allowed some leeway in carrying out our missions, and besides…"

The droid leaned back in its chair again.

"I happen to like dancing, one of my previous masters WAS a dancer. I developed a fondness for it during my service."

"And you can pilot," Jas added.

The droid shrugged.

"I've been on my own for six standard years, no master but the combine. You download a lot of skills during that time."

Jas considered what he was hearing. This was not going the way he had expected, but things rarely did.

The Force had an interesting sense of humor sometimes.

"I can't undo what happened on Kahvult, CeeCee," he said, "But I think we might be able to help each other, if you are of a mind?"

"I'm listening Captain Dar Bynn," the droid replied.

"Val and I are not with any syndicate, but we do have powerful friends. Friends that could help you avoid any scrap order the combine might put out on you."

Val gave him a surprised look.

"We do?" she asked.

"We do," Jas said reassuringly.

The protector didn't respond, but she did roll her eyes.

"I guess we do at that," she said morosely.

Jas turned his attention back to their droid companion.

"If you are willing to share the data you downloaded with us. Our allies would be willing to offer you something more than an existence on the run, or in hiding."

"Are you offering me a job?" CeeCee asked.

"It is better than being on your own, isn't it?"

"You said your bosses are not going to be happy with you. That you would be scrapped on sight," Val reminded it, "Is this really the time to start rejecting any offers of help?"

"I'm not sure," CeeCee replied, "I don't have all the variables."

"What you DO have, is an offer of help," Jas said, "If you find something better, I'm sure you will be able to seek it out, we won't stop you when the time come, provided you come through with the information you have stored in your memory bank."

"The information you seek is really THAT important," CeeCee asked.

"Yes," Jas said.

Val sighed, she understood what was happening, but she didn't wish for the droid to think it had more bargaining power than it did.

She pushed the issue.

"We're giving you a chance to continue functioning, droid," Val said, clearly not happy with the idea, but smart enough to see they didn't have much choice either."

They needed the data CeeCee was carrying.

Vessaria needed it.

They would help the droid, if that is what it took to get it.

"You need us, and we need you. I can't think of any clearer motivation than that."

Jas stepped forward, careful of the droid's weapons, but it didn't bother drawing them, it was still processing what it had been told.

"So, he asked, "Do we have a deal?"

The two gave CeeCee a moment to process that. So far, the machine was proving far more…liberated than most droids.

Jas was not sure what to make of that.

"I will be able to go, to leave freely, when I choose?" the droid asked.

"Sure," Jas promised, "I'm not asking you to sell yourself to us."

"Come through," Val added, "And you can leave when you want, no one will try and stop you."

After that, it took about ten seconds for CeeCee to make its choice.

The droid nodded.

"Very well," it said, "It is a deal. Not that I have many options right now."

"Good," Jas said, already feeling more relax.

He shook the droid's hand.

"Welcome aboard, CeeCee."

The droid nodded.

"Thank you, captain, that…it is much appreciated."

Val remained skeptical, but said nothing about it.

The protector snorted.

"So, we have a droid now," she said.

"What you HAVE is an ally, Mistress Valenthyne," CeeCee said.

Jas nodded.

An ally, he thought.

A very unconventional ally.

An unbound droid with information that might just give Vess a chance to reclaim her crown and world.

In the face of that, what other choice could they have made.

A new ally, yes.

He smiled slightly.

Why not?