Chapter 4

Glitch winced a little as Mister Fixit gently pulled away the dressings wrapped around his midsection. He analyzed the wounds carefully. Glitch sat still, not only waiting for him to hurry up and finish, but also for a good verdict. Mister Fixit finally looked up at him. He lifted his welding helmet. "It ain't lookin' quite right," he solemnly stated.

Glitch tensed. "What's wrong?"

Mister Fixit suddenly descended into a laughing fit. Glitch facepalmed himself, growing annoyed. "Of course," he mumbled.

"I gotcha again!" Mister Fixit chortled.

Glitch gave him all the time he needed to finish up his cackling. He irritably watched the colorful, country mechanic repeatedly slap his knees and rock to and fro in his chair, laughing as if he hadn't in forever.

Mister Fixit ultimately calmed down and wiped the oil from his eye. "Woo," he sighed. "Woo-wee, haha." He began properly redressing the repairs. "It's lookin' mighty fine," he said. "Give it a couple more weeks, and you's gonna be good as new!"

"That's great to hear." Glitch genuinely thought so.

Mister Fixit completed his work and helped him down from the procedural table. He stood and put his tools away before turning back to Glitch with a smile. "Say!" he spoke up. "How'd ya like to come inside? I haven't shown ya 'round the abode yet!"

Glitch shook his head slightly. "Ah, thanks, but, you don't have to do that," he kindly declined. "I'm supposed to be going to see Feeble. He's gonna be able to help me find all the gateways and—"

"Naw, I insist!" Mister Fixit cut him off mid-sentence. He began moving Glitch in the direction of the side door leading into the house. Glitch reluctantly let him, but not without noticing how quickly Mister Fixit tried to divert the conversation from the Morbot gateways. Rev's right, he thought. He's gotta be hiding something.

Glitch found himself hurriedly stepping into the small room awaiting them beyond the door. Mister Fixit closed it behind them and continued leading him deeper into the home. "That was the dinin' room," he quickly noted, pointing back to the area.

The home was something reminiscent of a shotgun house. The garage was an add-on. Mister Fixit continued listing each room they walked through or past. They didn't need to go far, so the tour didn't take long. Lastly, they made it into what appeared to be the living room, where Mister Fixit plopped Glitch down onto an old, cushioned chair. It was incredibly dirty. Glitch stayed silent about the observation, though. It was merely a reflection of everything else. From what Glitch had been shown, the house was more of an indoor junkyard. There were endless piles of garbage, equipment, and other various objects, some of which towered up to the ceiling. Mister Fixit's home turned out to be nothing more than an extension of his garage. It was cramped full of useless stuff.

"Pardon the loveseat!" Mister Fixit said. "I ain't got 'round to cleanin' it yet. Same with the rest of the place." He chuckled.

Glitch looked down at the mangled pile of cushions and rags he'd been dropped onto. If this was the loveseat, then the mound of moldy rubbish Mister Fixit was sitting on had to be the "sofa."

"Uh, Mister Fixit, I'd love to stick around and everything…" Glitch started to object.

"Hey, hey, there ain't no need to rush off!" Mister Fixit countered his protest. "How 'bout a drink?"

Glitch quickly shook his head back and forth. His core plummeted at the thought. "Uhm, no, thanks, really!" he insisted. "I appreciate it, but—"

Mister Fixit briefly disappeared. Glitch dismally hung his head, wanting it all to be over. What had he gotten himself into? He didn't have much time to consider things, though, since Mister Fixit had already returned with the refreshments. He had two aging tin cups filled with…something…placed on an equally old metal tray. Both were filthy. Glitch tried to hide his disbelief while studying the offering. Mister Fixit set the tray down and handed Glitch one of the cups. Ever so worriedly, he peered into it. He didn't even want to know what he was looking at. Whatever it was supposed to be, it was no longer. The mysterious particles floating around inside, coupled with the strange discoloration and sludge-like consistency, made Glitch dare not try a single drop.

He tried getting out of it again a third time. "It's nice of you, honestly," he said, "but I gotta go, Mister Fixit."

Strange rustling noises made him pause. He and Mister Fixit glanced over at the movement among one of the junk piles near the living room entrance. At that moment, a medium-sized, robotic animal leaped out from the other side, snarling and yowling. It came right for Glitch. He braced himself, realizing there was nowhere to run.

Mister Fixit came to his aid, luckily. He put down his drink and lurched forward, stopping the creature in its tracks by restraining it with both hands. "Heel now, boy! Heel!" he commanded. "This bot ain't no threat!"

The inorganic animal finally calmed down. It gave Glitch an extra growl before slinking away. It made itself comfortable beside Mister Fixit, where it continued analyzing Glitch through cold, calculating eyes. They were a piercing, glowing yellow. The creature's gray, spotted metal was surprisingly shiny and sleek despite its environment, suggesting that it regularly cleaned itself. It certainly wasn't a dog, Glitch gathered. It didn't look like Zobby or anything similar. It was smaller than Zobby, but long and slender. The points of its big ears were rounded. The tail was rather long and skinny, as well. The creature slowly moved it back and forth while studying Glitch with its eyes narrowed.

Mister Fixit stroked the animal on the head and along the back with a laugh. "You'll have to forgive Serval here," he told Glitch. "He don't really care for company. Cats, am I right?" He laughed again.

Glitch met Serval's gaze. He decided to wave to him. "Hey there, Serval," he piped up. "I'm Glitch! 'Sup?"

Serval made a disapproving sound. It was a meow, metallic and tinged, almost toy-like in pitch. Glitch knew it wasn't a good noise, but he was still amused by it for some reason. The Droid feline was full of attitude. Mister Fixit brought Serval into his lap and scratched him between the ears. "I'm surprised to see 'em in here!" he commented. "He usually spends his time sunbathin'. He must've been after somethin', heh!"

Yeah, tell me 'bout it, bud. Glitch kept the remark to himself.

"Dad!"

Glitch and Mister Fixit both jumped a little from the voice. They turned to see Rev standing at the living room entrance, peering past the junk piles. She looked upset. Drill-Bit was at her side, holding her hand. Glitch had an idea of what was wrong. Mister Fixit didn't seem to pick up on the energy, however. "Motorbug! Sillybug!" He elatedly threw out his arms. "Ya'll came out ya rooms, I see!" he exclaimed. "Ya'll must wanna help me welcome Glitch into the house!"

Glitch lowered his head from second-hand embarrassment. This guy did not know how to read a room.

"No, we don't." Rev sounded as angry as she appeared.

"Serval!" Drill-Bit noticed the feline in Mister Fixit's lap. He looked up at his name being called, then stood and slunk his way over. Drill-Bit happily threw her two normal arms around him. He melted right into Drill-Bit's embrace, even going on to rub his head against Rev's leg. Glitch was astonished; Serval was no longer the prickly little beast that attacked things he didn't recognize. It was clear he had a soft spot for the girls.

Rev's stern glare remained trained on Mister Fixit. She glowered at him for some time before glancing down at Drill-Bit. Her gaze then jumped to Glitch. He was able to understand. "I'll take 'er out," he offered.

Rev looked surprised at the gesture at first. But then her eyes warmed and she mouthed a "Thanks." Glitch quickly got up and stepped over the detritus to get to Drill-Bit. She realized what was about to happen.

"Where we goin'?" she asked.

"I want the best tour guide in the world to show me her awesome backyard!" Glitch eagerly requested. He remembered Drill-Bit wanting a chance to show him around.

As he expected, the tiny she-Droid's turquoise optics lit up the second she heard his wish. "You got it!" she exclaimed with a dutiful nod.

Glitch let Drill-Bit pull him outside by the hand. Serval ended up following, possibly out of a distrust for the newcomer he just met. Either way, it was a successful attempt at giving Rev the privacy with Mister Fixit she needed. Glitch experienced a strong hint of concern. He simply couldn't believe the condition the home was in. Rev stayed out a lot. Perhaps this was the reason why.

He tried to let Drill-Bit's tour-guiding distract him from the issue. She led him all over the backyard, pointing to different things, many of which she referred to as landmarks. "And if ya look to yer right," she said, "there's the old shed. Papa keeps it locked."

I wonder why, Glitch thought.

Drill-Bit carried on. She led him over to the old shell of a car. "Me and Rev sit over here a lot!" she explained. "This is where she tells me bedtime stories! Last night, she told me a story 'bout a robot princess leavin' 'er tower to see the rest of 'er planet."

"How was it?" Glitch asked. "Is Rev a good storyteller?"

"Ah, boy, is she!" Drill-Bit breathed in awe. "She's the best!"

She paused suddenly. Glitch wondered what could have caught her attention. That was when he noticed her studying a certain area on him.

"We both got axes!" Drill-Bit eagerly noted.

Glitch realized she was right. He turned to fully show her the pickaxe strapped to his backpack. He let Drill-Bit compare his to hers with a chuckle. "Guess we're twins!" he joked.

Drill-Bit smiled up at him through her cracked left optic. Glitch had almost forgotten about it until then. Drill-Bit was so active and adventurous that it didn't seem to bother her. But Glitch wanted to be sure.

"What happened to your eye there, kiddo?" he asked her.

Drill-Bit froze for a second. It was as though she'd forgotten about it herself. She lightly touched the damaged optic with a finger, then blinked a few times. "Oh, this," she murmured. She giggled. "I ran into Papa's work table a while back."

"It doesn't give ya any trouble, does it?"

Drill-Bit shook her head. "Nope!" she replied. "It don't hurt or feel weird or nothin'." She scratched her chin. "Papa said he was gonna fix it for me, but…"

"He hasn't gotten 'round to it, huh?" Glitch presumed.

"Nah," Drill-Bit responded. "But that's all right. I can still see okay with just my right eye." She gasped suddenly. "Ooh, hey!" she exclaimed. "Since I only got one eye, I can be a space pirate! You wanna play?"

"Sure!" Glitch agreed.

"Ok, hang on one sec."

Drill-Bit began rummaging through the old shell. It, too, had been filled with junk. Glitch watched her yank something out: an old cloth. She quickly wrapped it around her head so that it covered her bad eye. When she was done, she turned to Glitch and showed him.

"Ta-da!" She proudly placed her hands on her hips. "I made an eyepatch!"

Glitch laughed. "Not too shabby, Drill-Bit!" he complimented. "Not too shabby."

"Thanks! My name's gonna be Captain Rustbug," Drill-Bit continued. "You can be Captain Helmet Head, since your head looks like a helmet!"

"Uh, ok." Glitch shrugged and went with it.

Drill-Bit looked at Serval. "Serval, you can be Scratchclaw, my first mate," she instructed. "You're gonna help me keep Captain Helmet Head from takin' our spaceship!"

Serval forced himself to play along. It was obvious that he would rather be doing something else, but he went with Drill-Bit's game, anyway, likely to keep her happy.

Captain Helmet Head proceeded to attempt taking over Captain Rustbug's ship for the next 30 minutes or so. He didn't expect to get as much enjoyment out of it as he did, sword-fighting with Rustbug and taking her first mate Scratchclaw hostage. Rustbug was a fierce captain, indeed. She successfully rescued Scratchclaw and the rest of her imprisoned pirates. She then went on to go toe-to-toe with Helmet Head in a heart-stopping final battle. The intense fight took place in the volcanic region of a desolate planet. Rustbug emerged victorious. She watched her longtime nemesis sink into magma, perishing for good.

Drill-Bit sat down on her rump to give herself time to cool off after their game of Space Pirates. She pulled off her homemade eyepatch. "That was so much fun!" she exclaimed. "What else do you wanna do?"

"I'll leave that up to the best space pirate to ever roam the cosmos." Glitch responded with a wink.

"Ok!"

Drill-Bit began rummaging through the old car to find something else. She pulled out another object after almost a minute: a short steel rod with metal feathers attached to a wire on one end. "Ooh! Look, Serval, I found your toy!" she gasped. "So this is where it went!" She wiggled it back and forth in front of Serval, and he immediately jumped after it. The robotic cat leaped and rolled as he tried to catch the toy with his front paws. He managed to get it finally. Drill-Bit squealed with excitement. Glitch quietly spectated their playtime, surprised at how carefree Drill-Bit was despite the looming problems.

...

Rev sat across from Mister Fixit in the makeshift loveseat he had Glitch in. As much as she disliked sitting on the pile of filth, there was no place else. Mister Fixit shifted uncomfortably under her displeased stare. He was still sipping away at the horrid drink he'd offered Glitch. She caught one glimpse of the disturbing liquid inside the tin and interjected. "Dad, that stuff looks disgusting! Put it down!"

Mister Fixit gave it consideration. Rev could tell there was a strong part of him that wanted to continue drinking.

"Now," she ordered.

He did what she asked and placed the drink back on the tray.

"I can't believe you were trying to make Glitch drink it," Rev condemned. "How could you do that? How could you even bring yourself to show him the house?"

"It's our home, Motorbug," Mister Fixit argued. "'Round here, we welcome Droids."

"Dad, look around you!" Rev was getting more fed up by the minute. "The house is filthy!" she cried. "It's gotten worse in the past year! When are you gonna get rid of all this crap?"

"I ain't gettin' rid of nothin' in here," Mister Fixit snapped. "Parts don't grow out the ground, Missy. You know how much good scrap sells for? Gary down the way told me certain kinds are goin' for half a million washers! Copper goes for nearly two million!"

Rev slumped down into the loveseat pile with a dismal wail. "Geez, Dad…," she muttered.

Mister Fixit took another sip of the drink against Rev's wishes. He downed it, then went for the second cup, the one Glitch refused to touch.

"Oh, for the love of Iron Star, you're so stubborn," Rev huffed. She gave a long sigh, knowing her criticisms wouldn't make much of an impact. At that realization, she decided to change the subject. "I thought I heard Glitch saying something about the Morbot gateways," she said. "Other Morbot gateways. So, like, there are more? Aside from the one farther west?"

Mister Fixit shook his head. "Rev, nope, uh-uh, now…"

"What is it about the Morbots, Dad?" Rev questioned. "Why's everybody so scared of them?"

Mister Fixit lowered his head. "You know Droids ain't supposed to say nothin' 'bout 'em," he told her. "Unless they wanna get deactivated and recycled."

"How do we know that?" Rev pressed.

Mister Fixit didn't respond. His eyes stayed planted on his now-empty second cup. Rev defeatedly sat back in her seat after realizing she wouldn't get any more out of him. Maybe even he didn't understand why Droids feared the Morbots. It was, perhaps, a tale as old as time, passed down many generations to keep robots in the dark. So many secrets. But why? Rev wondered.

...

Drill-Bit was still in the middle of her rope feather game with Serval when Rev came out the back door. She tiredly skated over to join Glitch and her little sister. Drill-Bit happily wrapped herself around her. "Hey to you, too," Rev said. She was trying to sound pleased, but Glitch sensed a bit of gloominess in her voice.

"I'm gonna go show Papa I found Serval's toy!" Drill-Bit announced. With that, she soared back toward the house. Serval gave Glitch a neutral look before going after her. Glitch awkwardly scratched his head. It was better than a scowl, he supposed. Serval steadied Drill-Bit with his body on their way up the steps to go inside. "Ok, ok, I'm bein' careful," she argued.

They both disappeared through the back door, leaving Glitch and Rev alone together. He looked at her sympathetically. It was easy to see the toll Rev's father had on her from her expression alone. The green and blue she-Droid came closer. Glitch made room for her inside the shelled car as she plopped down beside him. They sat together in silence for a while, taking in the sounds around them. Glitch paused suddenly. Sounds. They were like a constant buzzing.

"Cicadas."

Glitch blinked. "How'd you…"

Rev giggled. "I could tell by the way you were looking around," she elaborated.

"Ah." Glitch chuckled. "Thanks!"

Rev turned to him. It was a bit of a chore with all the junk crammed around them, but she managed. Glitch quietly stayed beside her, studying her inquisitive green eyes. They were focused intently on his. She was studying him back. The inside of the car shell was dimmed slightly in its position beneath a set of old steel beams. It acted as a canopy, providing overall shade while allowing a modest handful of wispy gold rays from the sun. The narrow beams filtered through the holes littering the car's rusting rooftop. Glitch watched them shine down on Rev; they were like tiny, bright specks along her face and parts of her body. He wondered if the sunbeams had the same effect on him.

"You're really not from around here, huh?" Rev's voice was soft, hinted with curiosity.

"You're not, either, technically," Glitch bantered.

"Well, no, I'm not," Rev admitted. "But you, however. You're really not from around here!"

Glitch raised a brow. Something in her tone felt a little off. The question almost seemed rhetorical. He could tell she was feigning ignorance. "You know that already," he said to her. "You eavesdropped on my conversation with Dr. Axon, didn't you? What all did you hear?"

Rev gave another giggle. "I heard stuff," she playfully answered.

"What kinda stuff?" Glitch found himself playing along. He wasn't sure how this turned into a game, but he wasn't mad about it.

Rev's optics narrowed. "Test me!" she dared.

Glitch shrugged. "Alright!" he said. "I'll tell you certain words, and you lemme know if you've heard them in the conversation or not."

Rev nodded. "Done."

"Droid Town."

"Yep!"

"Morbots."

"Mm-hm!"

"Morbite."

"Righto."

"Void."

"Uh-huh."

"Gateways."

"Exactomundo."

"Power chips."

"Bingo."

"Uh…" Glitch hesitated on the last few terms he had in mind.

But Rev already knew them. She lay on her back, casually wrapping them off. "Doomsday, Alloy, jail, dead guard, fugitive, Exavolt, Vlax, Epsilon, Vex, war, Mils, map, Feeble." She looked over at Glitch expectantly. "Was that all of 'em?" she asked, brimming with excitement.

Glitch nodded up and down, smiling slightly. "Pretty much."

"Yesss!" Rev pumped her fist, pleased with her accomplishment. She lay back again, gazing upward. "Can I go?" she asked.

Glitch sat up. He had a feeling she would want to. "I dunno, Rev," he told her.

Rev sat up with him. "Why not?" she argued.

"For lots of reasons," Glitch said. "Exavolt ain't someone you need to get tangled up with, Mister Fixit would probably kill me if anything happened to you, and Drill-Bit needs you."

"Those are three reasons!" Rev fussed. "Not lots."

"Aren't they good enough reasons, though?" Glitch asked her.

Rev started to protest further, but Glitch's logic seemed to stop her. She got back comfortable, with her eyes closed, and exhaled softly. "You're right," she admitted. "I'm not in any position to just up and leave, am I? Not with…" She turned her head, glancing away. She was looking toward the house. "…Everything," she finished quietly.

Glitch listened to her respectfully. While he hadn't been expecting to, he felt somewhat sad. He could see parallels between Rev's life and the robot princess story she told Drill-Bit. He wouldn't be surprised if Rev was projecting herself through that innocent little tale. She was the princess. And she knew there was a world beyond her tower. She desired to see it, more than anything.

He remembered her symbol, and the visit to the astral Morbot realm they shared. They were clearly connected through their origins. Rev was right in that regard; she, too, had a past that needed discovering. It wouldn't be fair to keep that from her.

Rev suddenly looked toward Glitch again. Surprisingly, she began speaking his thoughts. "But I'm connected to the Morbots, too," she pointed out. "Doesn't that give me a say?"

"Well, yeah, it does, but…" Glitch trailed off. He couldn't argue with her there.

It was Rev's turn to raise an eyebrow. "But, what, 'cause I'm a lady?" she teased. "Dad didn't tell you about the time I shot a burglar, did he?"

"Huh?" Glitch's blue optics widened.

"Yep!" Rev was nonchalant. "It wasn't very long after he repaired me, so before Drill-Bit was built. Dad had gone out that night. To scrounge for parts, as usual."

Glitch developed a personal, vested interest in the story. Once Rev began, he couldn't stop listening.

"I was inside when I heard banging sounds coming from the garage. Dad usually gets in through there, so I thought it was him and went to check. Thought maybe he was having trouble getting the door open." Rev shook her head. "Wasn't him, though," she said. "It was a bot breaking in. He had the door opened a little more than halfway when I was standing there waiting for him. I shot the hell out of 'em with a nail gun. Pew, right between his rusty ass eyes!" Rev bragged, chuckling.

"Whoa!" Glitch chuckled with her. "Sounds like he went up to the wrong house!"

"Yeah, damn right!" Rev agreed, still snickering. "He was screamin' on the ground like a lil' baby bot until Dad got back!" She stopped suddenly. "Except," she added, "it wasn't really a burglar. It was Mr. Gary, a friend. He came over to borrow something."

Glitch froze.

Rev awkwardly shifted. "Yeah," she sighed. "Yeah, Mr. Gary almost died from that. He's good now, though."

"That's, uh…good to know," Glitch commented.

"But guess what happened to the nail gun!" Rev said.

"What?"

"It's on Drill-Bit now!" she revealed.

"No way!" Glitch was legitimately taken aback by the trivia.

Rev let out a laugh. "You know what I tell her?" she said. "That the nail gun's strong enough to fend off a monster. And she believes it, of course! I'm, like, so terrible, aren't I?"

Glitch couldn't help but laugh alongside her.

...

Back at his lab, Dr. Axon handed the map of Iron Star to Glitch before he went to speak with Feeble. "Show this to him," he instructed. "Then he will know for certain that I sent you."

Glitch nodded. "Roger!" he said. "Thanks again, Dr. Axon."

He turned to leave, but a light touch on his shoulder made him stop. He glanced at Axon again, wondering what else he wanted. He appeared uncertain, nervous, even.

"Everything okay?" Glitch asked.

"I just had another thought," Axon told him. "You are still healing, Glitch. I was wondering if, perhaps, you could give yourself time to fully recover before starting this journey?"

"But…," Glitch began.

"There are multiple gateways," Axon warned. "All in different regions. Different climates, conditions…and threats, possibly." He gestured to the circled spots on the map as he spoke. "Your travels will be long, undoubtedly dangerous, even with a guide as well-versed as Feeble. Are you sure you will be able to proceed in your current condition?"

Glitch gave it thought. He looked down at himself, scanning over his bandages. He locked eyes with Axon again, aware of his concerns. He gazed at the Droid scientist respectfully. "I appreciate the worries, Doc," he answered. "Really, I do. But I gotta keep moving if I wanna restore the gateway in Droid Town and stop Exavolt. Plus, I need to find out who I really am."

Dr. Axon gave an understanding nod. "I see," he said.

"Look, how about I use this first gateway as a test run?" Glitch offered. "It's just farther out west. If it's too much for me right now, I'll give myself more time."

Dr. Axon seemed more accepting of this idea. "That has a possibility of working!" he said.

Glitch knew Axon was right about the journey's potential perils. He certainly didn't think it would be easy, especially in his state. He was still a few weeks out from being fully healed, according to Mister Fixit. If he left, neither Axon nor Mister Fixit would be there to monitor his health. Maybe it was wise to be more patient. He weighed his options, then looked up at Axon with a lit up face as he got an idea. "Why don't you come with us?" he suggested.

"Me?" Dr. Axon blinked a few times. "Oh, I don't know," he said. "I do not wish to impede your efforts, my boy. I believe you can save Iron Star a second time without my old metal parts slowing you down!"

"Isn't Feeble, like, over a century old?" Glitch joked. "You won't be the only ancient bot, trust me! Melvin can come, too, if he wants."

Axon stayed silent, considering. Eventually, his face softened and he smiled. "Alright, then," he decided. "I will gladly accompany you!"

...

The place reserved for the oldest Droids in Ridgebolt was the elder's lodge. It reminded Glitch of the senior home Tank resided in, only smaller. Much smaller. It was hardly the size of the standard civilian homes in Droid Town. The elder robots who lived in the lodge, though, didn't seem to mind. They mostly took solace in one another, participating in board games and conversing happily. When Glitch asked a middle-aged Droid working at the lodge about Feeble, however, his demeanor completely changed. In fact, he almost seemed frightened. Glitch frowned. That couldn't have been a good sign.

"Everything okay?" he asked the worker.

"No." The worker gave a short and sweet answer while rapidly shaking his head. "Are you sure this is the bot you want to see?"

Glitch stared nervously. Now he wasn't so sure. Regardless, he firmly nodded his head. "Yeah," he answered. "That's the Droid I'm here to talk to. I need to, it's pretty urgent."

"O-ok."

The worker was reluctant in leading Glitch deeper into the lodge. Glitch looked around at each of the elder bots they passed, wondering which one Feeble could be. But they never stopped at any of them. Much to Glitch's confusion, the worker only took him farther and farther away from everyone else. When they stepped out back and advanced across the courtyard to a highly secluded area, Glitch felt himself tense with dread. He thought Dr. Axon said Feeble spent his time with the other elders. It was unsettling knowing he had to be kept separated.

The worker put out an arm to halt him suddenly. They both stared up ahead, to the very edge of the courtyard. Although the spot was secluded, it was accompanied by several strange figures. Each one was hand-crafted with various objects. The worker finally motioned for Glitch to continue following him. Glitch warily examined each of the odd creations they walked past. The figures were life-sized; their bodies were made with wire. Some of them had buttons for eyes, while others were faceless.

They eventually saw him—the artist himself. It was a small, decrepit centennial Droid. He sat alone in the shadows, intently focused on whatever he was carving. Glitch swallowed hard at the sight of the knife he was using.

The elder Droid sharply looked their way. His single pale optic glowed at them furiously. Glitch stood rigid, while the worker ran back into the lodge screaming.