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CT-3847 still had his blaster in his hand when he awoke. His head throbbed from where he had cracked it on the way down into this… cave? He looked into the darkness only illuminated by faint pillars of light coming down from holes high above him.
Something moved in the darkness and he stilled. A soft click clank, click clank made him grip his blaster tighter. From the darkness appeared an armed B-1 battle droid. In one fluid movement he raised his blaster and pulled the trigger.
His blaster went click.
There was a moment of horrified silence which CT-3847 was sure would be his last.
“Why?”
“What?” He was so startled he actually responded to a clanker.
“Why?” The droid asked again.
“Why… did I try to shoot you?” He asked aloud if only to buy himself some time.
“Affirmative.”
“I thought you would shot me.” He answered honesty.
“Why?”
It was then he noticed the large dent on the clanker’s head.
“Do you not remember?”
“Affirmative.”
A furry of lies crossed the clones mind. Maybe if he just said the right thing he could get out of this alive. Unfortunately he didn’t know what the right words were so he stuck with the truth.
“Because we were made to fight each other.”
“Why?”
Now that was a question that had quietly plagued him and his brothers for years and he would be damned if he would go down that rabbit hole with a droid.
“Are you going to shoot me or not?”
“Negative.”
“Oh.” That was good but he was suspicious. “Why?”
“Can’t swim.”
“Swim?”
In answer the droid turned and started walking away.
Startled he tried to rise and was sharply reminded of his head wound. He gasped and put his hand to his head. It felt sticky.
“You are leaking.”
The droid was back. A sarcastic reply was on his tongue but he bit it back.
Instead he asked, “Do you have some cloth or water…”
But he let the question trail off when he realized he was talking to something that didn’t need either of those things.
“Affirmative.”
“What?”
“Water,” the droid said pointing into the darkness.
Swimming! There must be a lake or something there. Slowly he got to his feet. Glancing again at the holes far above him he decided he was better following the droid, for now.
As he walked into the darkness he reached up to turn on his helmet light. Touching his sticky head he abruptly remembered he wasn’t wearing his helmet. Did he lose it before or after he fell through the hole? He couldn’t remember. Glancing back he didn’t see it so he kept moving forward.
Thankfully the lake wasn’t too far and he was abruptly grateful he landed where he did. It was big and looked deep.
“I can’t.” He realized out loud.
“Can’t swim?”
“No, I can swim but I can’t swim that far with you.”
“There is a boat.”
He scanned the shore line skeptically.
“Where?”
It pointed to the opposite shore and straining his eyes he did find something that looked like a boat. A boat meant people. And people meant a way out. He hadn’t realized he had given up hope until it was restored. But still…
“It is getting darker and colder so our best chance at getting the boat will happen tomorrow.”
He was careful to include the clanker because at the moment it had a working weapon and he didn’t.
“Acceptable,” the droid intoned and then wondered off.
Well at least it wasn’t hovering. The clone went back to where it first woke to see if he could find anything useful before the light was gone.
…
His helmet was shattered. Every time he looked at it he felt dizzy and queasy. Probably the concision he was ignoring. He made himself pick through the pieces but everything from the light to the comms were broken beyond repair. It wouldn’t even hold water.
Water. He wetted his dry mouth. He needed something to hold the water so he could use the water tablets Viper, the medic, made everyone carry. That clone had made it very clear what could happen to idiots who drank untreated water, and he had no desire to shit himself to death.
By the fading light he found several decomposing animals but nothing he was willing to touch.
A faint clink clank signaled the reappearance of the clanker trapped with him. He had hoped it would find a hole to recharge in and he wouldn’t have to see it until morning. Or even better fall into the lake so he wouldn’t have to deal with it at all.
“Cloth,” said the mechanical voice.
Turning he saw that the droid was still holding the blaster in one hand but in its other was a blanket. The droid held it out to him. Incredulously he took it.
“Where did you get this?”
The droid pointed to a particularly dark space in the cave wall.
“Can you show me?” He made himself add, “Please?”
“Affirmative.”
And again he followed the droid into the darkness. But as he walked the light disappeared entirely. He stumbled forward and nearly fell but the droid caught him.
“You wouldn’t happen to have a light?” He jokingly asked. At this point he wouldn’t be surprised if asked the droid could produce a birthday cake.
“Affirmative. Follow.”
The droid kept its hand on his arm and lead him the rest of the way. Still he nearly walked into the stone wall when it stopped. Suddenly a small artificial light illuminated a small cavity in the rock.
Squatting down to see inside he saw not only more blankets put preserved food, bottled water, and a MedPack. He glanced up at the droid to see it standing there simply observing with its blaster lose in one hand.
“Thank you.” He had never thanked a droid before but he had prepared himself for a long and miserable night. “Do you need anything from here?”
“Negative.” Replied the droid but it didn’t move away.
“Do you need to do anything before tomorrow? Like a recharge?”
“Negative.”
He didn’t like having the droid stand over him but there was no point in making a fuss about it. He grabbed a bottle of water and drank half of it in one long gulp. Taking a deep breath he finished off the last half. Tasted much better than the tablet cleansed stuff.
Grabbing the MedPack he took a sterile wipe and carefully began to clean off the old blood. When the worst of it was cleaned he put a bacta patch on it and hoped it would healed enough it wouldn’t get infected by his swim in the morning.
Then after checking that the ration bars were safe for humans he munched his way through three of them.
All the while the droid stood over him. Occasionally it would look into the darkness around them but more often than not it was watching him.
Finally full and content he rose ready to go into the darkness a ways to dig a hole and do his business. Two steeps and the droid started following. No. That was where he drew the line. He was not shitting in front of a clanker.
“Could you stay here? I just need to do my business really quick.”
“What business?”
It was a droid with amnesia of course it wouldn’t understand.
“Organic waste removal,” and because he really didn’t want it following he added, “I need full privacy or it won’t work properly and I won’t be at optimal capacity for my swim tomorrow.”
“It is dark.”
Was the droid worried for him?
“If I need you I will shout.”
Before it could argue he hurried off in to the darkness, and to his relief the droid stayed where it was.
Coming back he found it had not moved while he was gone. He gave it a nod and it jerked its head in return.
Here it got cold fast and again he was thankful for the blankets. He hunkered down near the stash. He was tempted to keep the light on but it would be a beacon to anything else that might be in this cave. Yet with the lights off he could not see anything. He felt vulnerable and wished he had a working blaster.
In the pitch dark he could hear the soft click clank as the droid made minute adjustments. He knew it wouldn’t hurt him, at least not until it no longer needed him, but that sound had always heralded battle in the past.
“Are you sure you don’t need anything?” He found himself asking before the quiet clicking drove him to paranoia. “A blanket or a quick recharge?”
He was expecting another negative, but to his surprise it asked for a blanket. Bewildered he tossed one in its general direction and after a shuffle it fell silent. Only the soft sound of water was heard lulling him into sleep.
…
It was the light that woke him. He was reluctant to leave his warm blankets but he really had to pee. He slowly stood to stretch and nearly started laughing when he saw his companion. The droid had wrapped the blanket like a scarf around his neck. It turned it’s head to look at him and he noticed the blanket had muffled the clicking noise it usually made.
Stumbling a ways away he relieved himself. Returning he caught sight of the MedPack and suddenly realized his headache from yesterday was gone. Carefully he removed the bacta patch from his head and felt new skin.
He stomach growled and he took that as his cue to eat three more ration bars and drink another bottle of water. He tidied up as best he could, silently thanking the smuggler, militant, or overly prepared civilian that had prepared this hidey hole.
With some measure of trepidation he headed to the lake. The droid followed silently. He did serval stretches but he couldn’t delay for long. Methodically he stripped to his blacks. He noticed as he did so he had small fractures on his backplate and leg plates. They had most likely protected him from broken bones but now one wrong blow would shatter them. He would definitely need new armor before his next deployment.
Taking a fortifying breath he steeped into the water. It was cold as ice. Before he could talk himself into a retreat he dunked under the water. For a moment he couldn’t even breath but it passed and he could move again.
Then he set out for the other shore with strong even strokes. It was cold but nothing was trying to eat him which made it a far cry better than Kaminoo.
Within a few minutes his hands touched dirt and he lost all grace as he scrambled to the shore. Jogging in place to keep warm he looked around. Here there were no holes in the ceiling to let in the light but his eyes were adjusted enough to make out the outline of something that just might be the boat. Jogging towards it his eye was caught by the faint outline of a tunnel behind it.
The way out!
Suddenly his mind kicked into overdrive. He could keep moving towards the boat then at the last minute dart for the tunnel. Sure the droid might shoot, but individually they were lousy shots. Dangerous when laying down fire as a large group but a single droid trying to hit a moving target in low lighting, the odds were in his favor. Plus it was probably planning on shooting him anyway after it crossed the lake.
But it should have shot him when he first woke up. These types of droids were made to kill. Even if it was acting in its own self interest, it could have killed him and simply waited until the boat’s owners came and shot them. In fact these droids were meant to be disposable. They shouldn’t be able to want to survive if it went against their function.
He slowed fractionally as he tried to work through this quandary. It could have killed him. Hells, it should have killed him, especially since he tried to kill it first. Instead it asked questions, came up with an escape plan, and even found supplies so he wouldn’t have to send the night cold, hungry and in pain.
He reached the boat and to stall for time he began examining how it worked. If he did leave it here the droid could wait for the boat’s owner. But he didn’t see a way how that would work without the owner or the droid ending up dead.
Without giving himself a chance to talk himself out of it he got in the boat and started the engine. He was made to protect and serve after all. It would be irresponsible to leave a droid armed and functional where a civilian could stumble across it. He would just have to be vigilant and not give it a chance to shoot him in the back.
It took less than a minute to cross with the boat, but it was long enough for the cold to set in. He was shivering and already doubting his decision when he hit the shore.
It was waiting, blanket still wrapped around its neck. Blaster gripped in one hand it climbed ungracefully on board.
He thought about asking the droid to sail the boat but dismissed the idea. It would be far less likely to shot him if he was operating the way out. Starting the return trip he angled the boat to land near the tunnel. That way he could jump out and make a quick escape.
Suddenly something heavy landed on his shoulders. He spun fist clenched. His hand hit metal.
Ow ow ow ow ow.
“Why?” The droid asked, echoing its first words.
Suddenly he realized that the droid had taken the blanket from around its neck and put it on him.
“Sorry.” He apologized by reflex. “You startled me. A little warning next time.”
Not that there would be a next time he realized. While he was distracted the boat had reached the shore. A little further away from the tunnel than he had hoped but there was nothing he could do about it now.
His hand throbbed as he disembarked. Flexing it a few times proved it wasn’t broken but still, ow! Adjusting the blanket one handed was awkward but it did make him marginally warmer. The droid followed him as he went along the dark shore and into the tunnel.
“It is dark.” The droid informed him helpfully as the tunnel turned and the last of the light vanished.
“Yep.” He agreed sarcastically nearly tripling over his own feet.
A moment of silence passed.
“Do you need help?”
Damn it. This is what he was trying to avoid thinking about. It had crossed the lake and didn’t need him anymore. And still it was prioritizing his comfort over a quick escape. Had it always been this way or had the knock to the head scrambled its personality?
A protruding rock greeted his left toe. Cursing he would have fallen if his metal companion hadn’t provided a limb for him to grab.
“Kriff. I left my boots on the other side of the lake.” He complained to the droid still leading him by the arm. “I knew I was forgetting something.”
“You are very soft and vulnerable without your outer casing.”
His heart speed up at that. He wasn’t sure why, the droid clearly did not mean it as a threat.
They walked a bit in silence before light once again illuminated the path. Still he kept a grip on the droids arm, not letting go until the end of the tunnel appeared as they turned a bend.
By unspoken agreement they stopped a few steps from the exit.
“Well… here we are.”
“Affirmative.”
That was another thing different about this one. All the others battle droids he had encountered (i.e. blasted) would have said ‘roger roger’. He brushed that thought away. They no longer needed each other and with any luck he would never see the blasted droid again.
“We need to split up.” He said abruptly.
Then in a somewhat gentler tone he explained. “If my brothers see you they will shot you on sight, no questions asked.”
He stepped in to the light and for a moment was blinded. Blinking away tears he tried to orient himself. He was at the bottom of a steep rocky slope.
Thankfully there was a trail up the rocky slope in about the direction he thought he had fallen into the cave system. With any luck his brothers wouldn’t be too hard to find.
He spared a quick glance at the tunnel and there was the droid. Watching. Sharply he turned his back and started on the trail.
The sun dried and warmed him as he ascended upwards. Soon the blanket became more of a hinderance then a help so he took it off. He debated simply tossing it aside, but decided to keep it, just in case.
As he rose the ground became more smooth and less rocky. Finally he reached more level ground and the trail joined a proper road. It weaved its self around a hill disappearing out of sight.
A huge weight lifted from his chest. He recognized this road. He and his brothers marched it just yesterday. If he followed it he should catch up to them sooner rather than later. He picked up his pace as he walked on the edge of the twisted path.
Coming round a bend his eyes caught on the body of a brother. Still in full armor his body had been moved off the road, part way up a hill. His hands had been closed into fists and placed on his chest.
Now he knew exactly where he was. A seppie sniper had hit three brothers here yesterday before being destroyed. Two had been injured and so loaded onto the transport but the dead were simply dead weight and left. It seems they had not yet secured their objective or the clean up crew would have been by.
He glanced at his feet covered only by his black suit socks. They provided some protection against the ground but he would move much faster in boots.
They fit, of course. He thought about taking the armor too but dismissed the idea. It felt too much like wearing someone else’s skin.
Mood dampened he continued onward. He passed a few droids smashed to pieces and two more brothers laid carefully on the hill side, fists clenched on their chests.
And finally he came to the spot where he fell. Six brothers lay side by side on a hill.
He let out a soft laugh when he realized they had put warning lights around the hole he had fallen through. They must of thought him dead from such a fall. Especially since he knocked himself out and could not respond to calls.
Droids laid in pieces where they fell partly hidden by the brush and small trees. Looking closely he saw a blaster half hidden under one such droid. He carefully approached not wanting to fall into the cave system again. Without his helmet and armor he might not survive a second time.
He grabbed the weapon and winced. Switching it to his off hand he carefully made his way back to the road. The blaster looked serviceable but he wouldn’t know for sure until he used it. And he had no intention of announcing his presence that way. Feeling more secure he continued down the road.
Signs of Separatist harassment grew. A burned out speeder, a broken box half filled with ration bars, and the bodies. They were more numerous and no longer carefully laid out. They lay crumpled by the side of the road where they were pushed or thrown out of the way of the marching army. There had not been time even to grab their blasters or utility belts.
A shot rang out in the distance. He froze. The blaster sounded again closer this time. Panicked he looked for cover.
The trees here were tough little things working their way out of hard soil and sometimes out of the rocks themselves. He found a cluster of them that provided just enough cover for him to hide himself. A nat-born human came into view driving a hover cart. At first he thought the people behind the cart were gathering the dead, but a second glance showed the cart had armor and equipment but no actual bodies.
Scavengers. Probably after a pay day by selling this back to the Republic or to criminals on the black market. Maybe they knew where the Republic Army had regrouped.
Before he seriously considered revealing himself one of the collectors pulled a blaster and shot a dead brother three times in the chest.
“Stop wasting ammo.” The driver complained.
“It twitched.”
“It twitched,” mocked the driver, “That’s what you said about the last one and it didn’t even have a head.”
“Shut up! It’s better safe than dead.”
That made the driver laugh.
“Those meat droids couldn’t hit the broad side of a ship, that’s why they are all dead.”
All dead? No! They were wrong. They couldn’t be all dead. Not everyone. Losing Loudmouth last campaign was hard enough but losing everyone! Unthinkable.
Another blaster bolt brought the world back into focus. He held himself absolutely still but it seemed they had moved on and were out of sight.
He kept following the road. If the scavengers were already descending then the battle was probably over. Turning another bend he stumbled unexpectedly into a valley.
It was filled with Death.
Bodies as far as he could see. Ships and hover crafts buzzed around. If he hadn’t seen the other group he would have thought them locals offering aid. But he could hear blaster fire in the distance. Where there survives being killed or just more twitchy fingers?
Slowly he withdrew back into the hills. Carefully leaving the road he found a spot to think. There was nothing he could do there except get himself killed. It was a wonder no one noticed him. Although from far away and without his armor there was nothing to immediately signal that he was a clone. But what was he supposed to do now?
“Warning,” a mechanical voice sounded from behind him.
Spinning he fumbled with the blaster in his off hand. Thankfully he recognized the dented head of the droid before he could get it up to firing position.
“What are you doing here?” He whispered furiously at it.
It didn’t answer. Just stood there blaster by its side.
“If anyone else saw so you would have been killed.”
Again it didn’t answer.
“Do you want to die?”
“Negative.”
“Then why? What do you want?”
“I want…”
It trailed off as if its wants were a mystery even to itself.
And the anger left as quickly as it came. Exhausted he sank to the ground. It didn’t matter anyway. They would probably be found and shot soon.
To his surprise the droid lowered its self to sit next to him.
“You got a name?” He asked before remembering he was talking to a droid with amnesia.
“Negative.”
“Well my serial number is CT-3847. But no name. I never found something that fit.”
“You can give your self a name?” The droid sounded incredulous.
“Yeah. I mean others can help but a name is a personal decision. Only you know who you are.”
The droid was silent as if contemplating this revelation.
“I want a name.” It declared.
“Good for you. Have anything in mind?”
“Negative.” It sounded positively glum.
“Don’t worry. Something will feel right and there is no rush.”
Though now that he said it out loud it really hit him that they might be found and shot at anytime. And he found he really did not want to to die.
“Although you would have more time to think about it if we could escape this death trap.”
He got to his feet and the droid got up with him.
“How are your sensors?”
“Functional but minimal.”
“Would you be able to tell of a ship has hyperdrive? Can you fly a ship with hyperdrive?”
“Negative.”
Kriff, amnesia. He kept forgetting. Although it, like him, was meant for land battles, so it may have never known.
“I did a module on flying,” he admitted, “Though I have never done it for real.”
They might die but at least it would be while doing something.
…
They discovered several ships on the edge of the valley. Many had their ramps open as people came in and out with salvage. Two people with blasters stood guard. Checking faces before anyone was let into the ships.
They could probably kill the guards by themselves but with so many people coming and going the alarm would be sounded almost immediately.
But as people came and went a smaller being with a breathing apparatus caught his eye. The device covered their whole face.
He signaled the droid to retreat and told it the plan. Since it didn’t have a better one it agreed.
Alone he followed the small scavenger. When the cart was filled and they were far enough from everyone else he fired at their back. He was pleased the stun setting worked, knocking out the being.
They were a foot shorter than him but he hoped if he squatted the guards would not notice. Just looking at their jacket he knew it wouldn’t fit so he simply threw it over his shoulder to make it look like it had gotten too hot to wear it.
He took the breathing apparatus and the being immediately began gasping for for breath. He waited half a minute and it became clear the air would not immediately kill them. He wasn’t sure if he would have given the breathing device back if it would have killed them but he was glad it didn’t.
Taking the cart he returned to his companion. He stuffed the blanket near the bottom of the cart. Then carefully arranged the droid so it looked like just another one of the broken droids ready to be melted down. It held both blasters just out of sight in case the guards found them out.
Donning the breathing apparatus he bent his knees and began pushing the hover cart to the ships. When the vessels were in sight he found a crew just leaving so he sped up just a bit to take advantage of being alone on a ship.
Heart beating nearly out of his chest he passed the guards. They barely even glanced at him. He kept the steady pace until he was up on the ship and out of sight.
Then he ran for the cockpit. Thankfully it wasn’t locked. He took in the unfamiliar lay out looking for the door controls and start up routines.
The hyperdrive controls caught his eye and suddenly he realized where everything was in relationship to it. The droid entered just as he was buckling himself up.
“I need you on hyperdrive.” He said distractedly. “The computer will do most of the work. But I have a feeling we might have company in the air.”
Pushing the ramp controls he immediately heard yelling outside.
“Change of plans.” He yelled, “Make sure no one gets on first.”
Starting up the ship he focused on getting off the ground, ignoring the blaster fire behind him.
He needed not to have worried, there was a clunk as the ramp sealed shut and soon the droid returned. It dropped both blasters and began starting up the hyperdrive calculation as he flew higher and higher.
An alarm went off as a red beam narrowly missed them.
Kriff.
He began evasive maneuvers.
“Hyperdrive?”
“15 seconds.”
He could do that. He dove slightly before pulling up fast. Two more shots missed.
“Hyperspace now.”
And then the stars blurred and they were safe.
He let out a shaky breath that turned into a laugh.
“We didn’t die.”
“Affirmative.”
“So where are we going?”
“Dantoonie.”
“Never heard of it.”
“It was one of the unused options.”
“Good. But we should probably jump a few more times just to be sure they can’t trace us.”
He winced as a problem occurred to him.
“It is unlikely since this is an illegal salvage vessel but are you equipped to scan for a tracker?”
The droid paused.
Amnesia. He felt like kicking himself. They really needed to do something about that.
But it answered, “Affirmative. Proceeding.”
Huh. Maybe its processes worked and only its memory was damaged.
“No signals.”
He sighed, that was a relief.
“We should probably sell the ship first chance we get anyway.”
By now the adrenaline from their escape was wearing off. His hand ached, his toe was throbbing, and the headache from yesterday was returning.
“When will we arrive?”
“15.3 hours.”
Not bad. That would give him time to sleep. And that reminded him.
“You need a recharge.”
“I am still functional.”
“How functional?”
“35 percent.”
“You need a recharge.”
“I am functional,” It insisted.
“I am not going to hurt you while you rest.”
The droid was silent.
“Do you not trust me?”
“Negative. I trust you.”
“Then what’s the matter.”
“We are made to fight each other.” The droid repeated his earlier words back to him.
“Yes.” He agreed carefully. “But we are more that. Or you would have shot me in that cave.”
“I might forget. I might remember.”
Oh. Even now it was worried, not for itself but for him. He thought of the hold half filled with salvage and had an idea.
“Wait here.”
Not 10 minutes later he returned with what he needed.
“Now I don’t know much about machines but I do know how to back up a file. I’ll make a copy right before your recharge so if you do forget it won’t be for long.”
He let his companion absorb that information.
“And if by some minuscule chance you awaken as a killing machine I have this short range EMP. Enough to knock you out but leave the ship flying. Then I can restore your memory.”
He watched the droid carefully then asked.
“How long is your recharge cycle?”
“4 hours.”
“Recharge. I’ll keep watch this time.”
“Acceptable.” It finally agreed.
Carefully he found a port in its head. Thankfully it was undamaged. Then he backed up its memory.
“Recharge.” He urged one last time.
And without another word the droid folded itself into a cube and began to charge.
…
He was bone tired but he had been tired before. It was an easy thing to ignore. He had never yet fallen asleep when he had promised a brother he would keep watch.
But it wasn’t a brother. They were dead. Not all of them of course. There where still hundreds of thousands of clones through out the galaxy. But all the ones he knew. All the ones he grew up with. They were all dead.
Tears fell and he wiped them away angrily.
And for what? A stupid planet that neither side won. And whose inhabitants were probably helping those scavengers shoot survivors.
He knew he was being unfair. He hadn’t actually seen any natives with the scavengers. They were just trying to survive. Like him.
If he had any moral high ground he would turn this ship around and head to any Republic world to rejoin his brothers. He could even drop his companion somewhere safe before doing so.
But… he didn’t want to. He wasn’t sure what he wanted but he knew it was something other than endless war and a senseless death.
What he wanted could wait for another day. For now he would search the ship for medical supplies, food, and a change of clothes. And he would be here when his companion was fully recharged.
…
A soft click alerted him to the droid’s activation. He prepped the EMP although he was almost certain he wouldn’t need it. Slowly it unfolded and stood.
“Do you remember?”
A beat of silence then it answered. “Affirmative.”
“Good.”
And he put the EMP back to neutral and pocketed it.
“We got about 11 hours before we leave hyperspace and I need a rest. Will you be alright if I bunk down.”
“Affirmative.”
“Wake me if you need anything.”
The droid stayed in the cockpit as he headed to the bunk he had prepared earlier. Laying down he closed his eyes but even though he was exhausted sleep would not come. He was half tempted to get up and sort more salvage. But he knew if he wanted to be useful later he needed to sleep now.
He tossed and turned trying to get comfortable but only grew more frustrated. He had never had this problem before. Not even when Bister would start snoring like a broken speeder. Then it hit him, he had never slept alone before.
Exhausted and willing to do nearly anything for sleep he got up. Snagging the blanket from the box of salvage he headed to the cockpit.
He didn’t say anything to his droid companion, just reclined one of the chair and got comfortable under the blanket.
He slipped easily into sleep.
…
He jolted awake, breathing hard from some dream he had already half forgotten.
“Do you remember?” A now familiar mechanical voice asked him.
He gave a half laugh and replied, “Affirmative.”
“Good.”
He got up and stretched.
“How long until planet fall?”
“4.23 hours.”
“Ok. I am going to steal myself a caff. Do you want anything.”
“A name.”
That got another laugh out of him.
“Tell you what. I’ll do my business, steal that caff then come back here and we can discuss names.”
…
“I have a list of names.” The droids announced as he came back with his caff.
“Would you like feedback on them?”
“Affirmative.”
He took a fortifying swig of his drink and nodded for it to start.
“Aalonea?”
“Unusual.”
“Abilene?”
“Maybe.”
“Aborna?”
“Are you just reading a list of baby names alphabetically?”
The droid seemed to hunch down on itself.
“Affirmative.”
“You are going to miss out on some of the best names that way. Do you think Fatass and Pyrotechnics found their names in a book for babies. You are not a baby you don’t need a baby name.”
The droid straightened.
“Let’s start with traits you have and work from there. You are a battle droid so how do like BD?”
“Negative.” It answered immediately.
“Metal man?”
“I am not a man.”
“Metal woman?” He teased.
It was silent.
“You can if you want.” He started to ramble. “Be a woman or female or even have the name without being either.”
“I don’t know.”
“Well we can go through some more names and come back to the issue.”
“Acceptable.”
“Steadfast?”
“Negative.”
“Sinkable?”
“Negative.”
“Daring?”
“Negative.”
“Forgetful?”
“Negative.”
That one was sharper than the others so he left off that tricky subject and switched themes.
“Hound?”
“Negative.”
“Fish?”
“Negative.”
“Serpent?”
“Negative.”
“Skeleton?”
“Negative.”
That catchy kids’ song popped into his head, so he blurted out, “Baby Shark?”
“I am not a baby.”
“I know, I’m sorry. I’ll be serious. How about Hero?”
“Negative.”
“Villain?”
“Negative.”
“Negative?”
“Negative.”
“Why?”
“Why?” The droid replied, although it was unclear if it was a question or a simple repetition.
“Well that was the first thing you said to me. And you are curious and inquisitive and I think it fits.”
“Why.” The droid said again mulling it over.
“Do you like it?”
The droid said nothing so he didn’t push it.
“My name is Why.” The droid intoned carefully.
“Nice to met you Why.” He said with a grin. It was alway a cause for a celebration when someone declared their name.
“Your turn.”
“Mine? I guess we can try. But I have to warn you me and my brothers tried for years and nothing stuck.”
He finished the last of his caff and set it aside.
“I am ready. Who do you think I am?”
“Friend.”
It hit him like a bolt of lightning. Friend. He was Friend.
“You are leaking.”
He hadn’t even noticed he was crying.
“It’s fine. I’m fine. It’s just…”
He trailed off then started again.
“It’s nice to met you Why. My name is Friend.”
And for a moment every thing was fine. In time his name might need to grow or change but for now it was his and it was perfect. He and Why were alive and named. What ever obstacles occurred in the future they could face them together.