Ask Nar Shaddaa Busy Bees

[Yoshiko "Sleek" Ryder]

___"Well, once y'get more creds saved up, y'bring yer bird back'n we'll see 'bout gettin' that reactor upgraded," Sleek responded as she finished the last of the soldering. She didn't resist as Kotru pat her on the back. The woman removed her goggles and glanced over at the shield deflector. Sleek kept her trained eyes on it for several moments, ensuring everything was up to snuff.

___"Y'did. Good job. Shield deflectors can be a pain," she grinned. "En't done bad, yerself. I do reckon we're near done," Sleek said, setting her tools down to walk away. The Fiani approached a large piece of sheet metal, bending over to examine it closely. Satisfied, Sleek grabbed the sheet and dragged it over to the starship.

___"This should do nicely," she stated. "We get it in place, I can trim it down an' get it welded on so nice, folk'll never know y'took the shot t'begin with," Sleek said confidently. "Di-Gi, y'mind goin' t'jack into the maintenance rig t'get the claw in place t'hold this up so's we can weld it?" she asked, to which Di-Gi blipped in confirmation and hurried away. "Kotru, y'mind helpin' me hoist this up?"

@FreelanceGarbageMan

 

[Kotru Eabrod]

Kotru nodded in agreement to her offer.

"Mhm. Sure wouldn't mind modernizin' one'a these," He hummed back. "Copyright laws be damned."

When she looked over his work on the shield projector, the Iridonian couldn't help but chuckle. "Oh, sister, y'have no idea. I am the worst on the software side'a things," Kotru admitted, turning the older servodriver between his fingers as he set it back in the faded red home that was his toolbox while she carried the metal over to the ship.

He looked over the durasteel plate himself, nodding with satisfaction. "Mhm. Paint'll cost extra?" A quick joke was made in response, smirking back to share the Fiani's confidence. Her request was swiftly nodded to, moving to the other side of the sheet to secure his grasp around it. Their combined strength made it much easier to hoist up and press against the hull. After a few moments, a claw carefully moved between them and secured itself in place in the centre of the sheet to hold it in place.

"Perf'. Atta boy, Di!" A quick thumbs up was cast in the droid's direction, keeping the new hull nice and steady for the Fiani to work her magic.

@Remileah

 

[Yoshiko "Sleek" Ryder]

___Once the durasteel was in place, Sleek set to work. She took her all-kit tool and activated the fusioncutter, cutting the sheet to size and welding it in place.

___"Nah," she laughed. "No extra charge fer paint, least not this time," the woman jested. "I en't real good 'bout the software side-a things, m'self. That's more Di-Gi's thing," Sleek continued as she work, the progress slow but steady. The durasteel plate was taking shape and gradually being fused to the hull, clean enough that the visual scars of welding lines were barely visible. They would undoubtedly disappear entirely once the paint was on.

___"We can modernise 'er once y'get some creds saved. I'm hopin' after yer experience here, I can expect ya t'come back t'see yer pal Sleek?" the Fiani inquired, casting a sidelong glance towards Kotru before resuming work. It wasn't a lengthy process at all after chunks of durasteel hit the ground and plenty of sparks flew, that Sleek perfectly fitted the plate and securely fastened it in place.

___"There. Quick spot-a pain an' she'll be done," Sleek said as she pulled her goggles off to set them on top of her head. "Unless y'wanna do that yerself?"

@FreelanceGarbageMan

 

[Kotru Eabrod]

Kotru set a pair of goggles over his eyes as Sleek got to cutting, the bright flash of her fusion cutter reflecting off of the lenses as the ground below them was pelted with metal shavings and sparks from the weld.

Nodded his head at her jest, laughing along.

"Hah! Makes two of us then," He grinned, shuffling along as Sleek carefully welded the plate into the hull while he kept it still and steady. "Might have ta' find a teacher for Binary. Could barely understand the lil' man," He mused aloud between the hiss of plasma on metal. "Lemme know when y'got another one of 'em in stock."

As the welding reached it's conclusion, Kotru admired the barely visible seam with an impressed whistle. "Y'kiddin'? Can barely make out the line! I'll be comin' round next time I get smacked by a bolt for sure!" He cheered in response, meeting her gaze with the look of a very happy customer.

Gave an affirming pat to the replaced section, nodding his head as he let the goggles slip down around his neck. "Ah, I'll just throw down a layer'a off white 'n call it there. Ain't lookin' fer' nothin' fancy."

Wandering on over to a shelf he had been eyeing while holding the plate up, Kotru's fingers traced along it until he found a shade of white to match the rest of his craft. He took the can, gave it a quick turn over in his hands and a couple shakes. A thumb secures itself under the lid, popping it off as he presses down and begins applying the layer of paint over the surface of his ship.

@Remileah

 

[Yoshiko "Sleek" Ryder]

___"That's the neat part 'bout learnin' binary. Ya en't," Sleek laughed. "En't no one out there that'll be able t'teach ya binary. It's one-a those things y'just start t'pick up on after spendin' enough time 'round droids," she clarified. It was how she learned binary and, to her knowledge, how most others learned it, too. It wasn't a language that a teacher could impart like Fianan or other racial languages. It was simply something you got used to over time.

___"Y'wanna know when I get another BD-series in? Sure. If I get another, I'll keep it on hold fer ya," the woman stated. "Y'just missed one, actually. I had one fer a while, but it recently got a home. But I'll keep ya in mind fer future units," Sleek concluded. As Kotru confirmed his continued business, Sleek smiled and nodded. Another dedicated customer secured.

___"A'ight, suit yerself," she said when Kotru turned down the offer for a paint job, watching him take the spraypaint to begin prettying the hull again. "Di-Gi, go start powerin' things down. Work's pretty much wrapped up once that paint's on."

@FreelanceGarbageMan

 

[Kotru Eabrod]

Kotru raised a curious eyebrow at the explanation, humming aloud as he briefly stopped the spray.

"Huh. S'weird, do they just got their own way'a makin' sentences or somethin'?" He inquired, having only really spoken to droids that had vocabulators.

When she mentioned her current stock of BD's, the Zabrak shrugged his shoulders. "S'fine by me. Gives me time to get some work done, fatten the wallet a bit," As he resumed his work, each motion was slow and sway-like, moving across the renewed plating carefully and leaving a trail of an almost cream-like colour in it's wake as he painted the Junkspear. It didn't take too long with those wide brushes, two layers applied to make sure it would stay there.

The Zabrak smirked when he noticed the seam was practically gone at this point, clipping the lid back onto the paint with a satisfying click. "S'what I like ta' see," He mused as the Iridonian took a few steps back to take in their collective work.

"Fac' fresh. Y'do good work 'ere, slick," Kotru spoke as he turned to face her, offering a hand towards the Fiani. "Thanks."

@Remileah

 

[Yoshiko "Sleek" Ryder]

___"They do," Sleek answered Kotru's inquiry about how droidspeak worked. "Their sentences are more like calculations. It might help t'think of it as, instead-a sayin' 'hello' t'one another like we do, their sentence is gonna come out soundin' more like—"

___Di-Gi interrupted Sleek's sentence with a series of beeps.

___"Yeah, like that," she said. "Literally speakin' 'e said, Di-Gi equals happy t'see Sleek, stop, status equals prepared t'work, stop," the Fiani elaborated. "Binary's a lotta numbers fer every letter t'spell a word, so it's simpler fer them t'do sentences like logical calculations. Some droids got a diff'rent approach than others, but binary's the same no matter what way y'cut it, so it all comes out t'be roughly the same. Because all droids got a diff'rent approach, s'why it en't as easy as just learnin' it."

___It was a complicated thing, explaining the nuances of binary. It was all the more evidence that it was easier to learn through exposure than actively learning the thousands of numerical combinations for every number and word.

___"Anyway, glad yer happy with the work," Sleek smiled. "Y'bring 'er on back anytime y'need a routine check, more work, or some shiny upgrades. And tell yer friends, too."

@FreelanceGarbageMan

 

[Kotru Eabrod]

Kotru packed up his tools as he listened, lifting the goggles up and over his head and letting the protective gear drop into its slightly rusted container. A quick nudge from his heel closes the lid shut as he bent over and lifted up the toolbox. He placed the container in his cargo bay, closing the hatch up with a light pat.

When Di-Gi made an example in the form of a series of blips, Kotru turned and nodded his head. "Huh. All I got outta 'dat was status 'n prepared. Only really kept my ear out for it back when I was workin' on the corps," He explained. "Never really learned beyond what I needed ta' hear for workin'. Supposin' that makes sense though, the order'd be the other way 'round for Jay-six,"

As the pair clasped hands, Kotru gave a squeeze and a grin. "I'll be sure ta' spread the word to whoever's ship I end up blowin' ta' bits," He would then release her hand, returning it to his sides as he clamboured up the hull and into his ship's cockpit. After a good couple moments to settle in, he started pressing buttons.

The Junkspear hummed to life soon after, slowly lifting up as he got a feel for the new stability from the inertial dampener. He gives one last gesture through his transparisteel canopy, in the form of a two-fingered salute before taxing out of Sleek's garage and out into Nar Shaddaa once more.

At least his departure left a (somewhat) pleasant breeze in its wake.

@Remileah