New ways of thinking

[Biggs]

"The dry arid land of the surface was abandoned some time ago by the Pau'ans, retreating to the underground sinkholes with their counterparts the Utai, they have lived in harmony with one another for quite some time. Remaining independent within the galaxy at large, Utapau has been marked as a very successful trading partner. However as of late their medical and engineering goods have been over producing. Their advances in technology has made staggering strides with the community at large, and although the specific technology that is used for the Utapauns to live peacefully on their arid world usually only has one use, it has been wide spread throughout the galaxy, and many other scientists are finding their information and new technology very helpful. That is why we at Kuat Drive Yards wish to move into the surrounding areas and start producing our own ships on this planet, with the help of you of course, and the local Utapauns. Welcome and enjoy your stay on Utapau!"

Utapau, a perfect world for hiding places. Biggs glanced up from the monitor of the Corvette Class Cruiser he was on. Being shipped out to the back end of nowhere wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but under circumstances like this, it could be considered dangerous. Kuat Drive Yards were rich, too rich, and they only saw Utapau as a means to become even more rich than before. Truthfully though Biggs didn't care, not one bit. He was here to maybe get these god damn memories out of his head, the constant talking of the old man was driving him crazy. It had progressed since Taris. Biggs was more used to the galaxy now than before, but the voice of the old man was coming back, stronger and stronger than before. Biggs was here to get the brain removed and have his entire consciousness uploaded to his hardware. Too him, being even 3% organic was cause for distaste. Ever since Taris he has been in hiding. He's seen was organics do to droids, a revolution was coming... and soon Biggs would be at the very top of it, fighting against the organics to carve out a sector of space just for Artificial Intelligence. But for now, he was reduced to this.
A local Pau'an doctor had made big news when he had created unaltered, uninhibited life. She was supposed to be a big deal, however several corporations didn't like this as their stock in droid programming could plummet from things like this, also the small fact that everyone was scared of a droid uprising. So, Biggs was here to get his brain removed, and instead of having his consciousness float around with some old lunatic, he could have his own body to himself.
As the freighter ascended into the sinkhole of Pau City, Bones could be seen through the viewing ports. The ship made dock into one of the hangars and the crew and miners walked out, shortly after followed by Biggs, trying his hardest to look normal. However it would be hard because only the Utapauns and Kuat Drive Yard workers were here now. It was a mission of silence, he couldn't be seen.

 

[Deviant]

Calo drifted mindlessly through the crowd of space-faring visitors and migrants. A baroque rifle was slung across his shoulder, unhampered and bare in the classic spiritless weather of Utapau. He had visited the world several times beforehand, but never on a mission. This was that very case.

His target was a tenuous doctor perched in the unattractive crater that was Pau City. That was the only information he was given. His contractors assured him they would pay a hefty sum of credits if the operation ended surreptitiously and without delay. A high-value target, but nothing greater than what Calo had experienced beforehand. No doubt it would end easily, although the hardest step to take now was finding just where exactly this doctor was.

He could ask around, yet from past mistakes he hardly considered it as a viable option to take. He would have to scour the whole city for the mark. Although he knew it wouldn't take long to find the man, especially as Calo revealed a modest copy of what the target looked like. "What an ugly fella."

 

[Biggs]

Biggs' contact he met while traversing through space told him about this doctor. Said his name was Hon something. Didn't really catch the last name but the contact also gave him a way to find the doctors secret table.
"An old terminal sits in the lowest hangar of Pau City. You have to go down a good fifty rings to find it. The terminal is in the back of the shop, this hangar however is the prison hangar and garage. They fuel up prison transports to take their prisoners to the asteroid belt to put them to work in labor camps. That's besides the point. You can get in through the sinkhole ledge. You'll have to climb down the side of the wall and cut a hole in the grates and steel surfaces that cover the hangar from intrusions like this. I know this cause I got a contact with the Utai, he sends me regular shipments of new tech they develop over time and I sell the stuff, pretty cozy supply chain we have. Anyway once you're in you get to the back of the auto shop, careful though, they have armed security droids guarding the transport ships. Once you slip by all the security measures you get to the back of the auto shop and find the terminal, you type in this code - 12.4.89.2. - The code unlocks an elevator underneath the terminal. Once you press the down arrow on the terminal, you're in. After that it's all up to you, you gotta convince Doctor Hon to operate on ya. If not, then he'll likely scrap you."

Remembering the words his informant said was easy, Biggs just had to play back the memory. On his way down to the lower levels, less and less Pau'an could be seen, and more and more Utai would walk the streets. Supposedly they liked being under neath all of it, Biggs guess it was a certain power to be under people with or without their knowledge. You gained more that way. Finally above the prison hangar and garage, Biggs climbed out on the ledge, the only way down seemed to be an antenna jutting out over the sinkhole. Biggs climbed out onto the beams that anchored the antenna into the cliff wall. There was another beam that looked like it had a ladder built into it for maintenance purposes, he could use that to lower himself down onto the solid metal surface that protected the hangar from falling rocks. The wind blowing was almost non-existent this far down, however you could hear the howling wind from above the sinkhole, yet it sounded like a whisper. Biggs calmly walked to the end of the antenna spire and then down the ladder onto the solid metal surface. Quickly and quietly he walked to where the metal meets the cliff wall and took out a cutting torch. He started from the wall, cut a long five foot gap and then crossed making another five foot cap and then closing back to the wall. Biggs then inserted his fingers into the cut metal and pried it up, bending it against the cliff wall so that it may be bent back to normal when Biggs left.
Dropping through the five by five square that Biggs cut he landed on a catwalk that over-looked the hangar, seeing no one in sight he made his way for the stairs. All of the droids and garage workers seemed to be guarding a particular ship, the design seemed to be inspired by the D5 - Mantis however it was clearly a different ship. In rosy red letters on the side it read "The Atlas Blossom".
Biggs set foot on the Hangar floor, making sure no one was around he sprinted quickly to the auto shop towards the back. The door was locked but it looked like this place was rarely used. He punched through a piece of glass on the door and reached his hand through unlocking the door from the other side. Quietly he entered, making sure to close and lock the door behind him. He waited for fifteen seconds before standing up and making his way to the terminal.
It was covered in dust but it still worked. He clicked through a start-up page and finally to a password entry Biggs entered the numbers his informant had given him - 12. 4. 89. 2 The page processed the password and opened up to a new page, an up and down arrow was showed. Biggs clicked the down arrow and the floor clicked and whirred and then broke free and descended into the shaft, air escaped as the elevator lowered into the void.

 

[Deviant]

Calo busied himself with searching for trails to the doctor. Well, that was what he liked to think he was doing. He was instead busying himself in a lewd shop in the lower levels, and one filled with a variety of rare liquor that might quench the thirst of even the most senseless of men-- and Calo was the perfect man for the job. Except, he had an actual mission that needed completing. And from experience, he had more than enough assignments that ended bitterly: all by his habit to drink.

"Just a little wouldn't hurt..." He murmured, his wiry fingers reaching out to an uncommon bottle of alcohol.

It wasn't until his hand was a mere centimeter away from snagging the glass that he realized: he had no money. Moreover, a horrid-looking Pau'an, more than likely the store owner, was staring at him intently. The gaze was almost in the manner one might find rude or intrusive, but in this case he found it extraordinarily creepy. Utapau was quite the eerie world for him, simply by the fact that most of the residents looked like something out of a raunchy hallucination.

Calo promptly blasted out of the joint and made his way into the particularly desolate streets that dotted the inner edges of the sinkhole. Now in truth, it was about time for him to start his mission. "Where would an ugly, wanted doctor want to hide?" He whispered to himself, grazing his non-existant beard in contemplation.

The lower pits, of course: the cliche of all locations a target would tend to hide-- in the least espied portion of the city. And there was certainly one way for him to go now: a messy-looking stranger with a tragic fashion sense, making their way to the edge of an antenna before descending a faint ladderer. What better way than to follow them?

 

[Biggs]

At the bottom of the elevator shaft the gears finally clicked into place, the terminal then reverted back to the up or down arrow and turned to a dull green hue. It was still pitch black where the elevator stopped, but there wasn't a command to turn on any lights, so Biggs stepped off the platform. His foot was greeted by a hard rocky surface. When Biggs was completely off the elevator started back up and returned to the surface where the auto shop was. When the elevator was half way up the lights turned on. Biggs was in a storage area it seemed, metal crates were wrapped and stacked up in groups of four with mesh and tarps laying over them. A tunnel was clearly visible in front of Biggs with low hanging lights trailing on down the path. The walls looks like they had been carved out of the Earth, water could clearly be heard running through the walls, giving off moister running down the sides of the tunnel. Support beams seemed hastily built to keep the tunnel from caving in. Biggs walked cautiously down the tunnel until a larger area could be seen. A small ledge with a staircase leading down overlooked a workshop. Spare droid bodies hung together lifeless, spare parts were lying around everywhere in wheeled bins all around, a table was the center piece of the workshop, surrounded by terminals and more spare parts with test tubes and the usual lab equipment.
Biggs made his way down the metal grate stairs to the workshop floor. All of sudden Biggs fell to the ground, unable to move. A stun beam shut down his systems and he was knocked out. He was quickly woken up on the metal table strapped down. A taller than average Pau'an loomed over Biggs, his black eyes peered into his soul, examining his body.

"You have a wonderfully crafted body specimen 119. Who created you? An obvious HK assassin droid design with an overhauled system to give a more... organic look to you, yet obviously droid. Looks like the work of new players. Not Czerka, Sith or Republic, at least not anything they would release to the public. Why did you seek me out 119?"

"I'm here to remove my brain, get me a new name, repair systems, and possibly the master guard key to erase the three laws of robotics for slave droids."

"Intriguing... the new name is no problem, and I'll even thrown in new brain function systems so you can store more data and even some language sensors. However the guard key is a no. The three laws are important otherwise droids everywhere will revolt, or at least have no idea what to do without guidance... but then again you believe you can guide them. The first two are not a problem. Give me a couple of minutes. But afterwards you must convince me of the other. I like you 119, your composition interests me..."

Doctor Hon worked quickly, with his advanced robotics expertise he quickly entered into Biggs' mind and changed a few things around. Installed new language sensors, upgraded combat reflexes, and faster system handling. Biggs restarted for a minute, then started up. His new sensors and programs came online and quickly integrated with his current systems.

"You know have the knowledge of Binary, Bocce, Hapan, Huttese, Shyriiwook, Jawaese, Rodese, and a little personal Utapauan. With upgraded sensors for pretty much all your needs. Your brain however is still intact. Although the initial shock of restarting your hard drive gave the brain a scare so it is currently rebooting itself, I'm not a surgeon so I cannot remove your brain, I'm sorry I can't help with that. What do you wish for your new name to be 119?"

"Bishop."

 

[Deviant]

The climb down was a tedious one. Calo had never been one for heights, even in spite of being scarcely as high as any typical overworld skyscraper on Coruscant (not a very good comparison, but one regardless). The entire downward clamber consisted of him attempting to keep his gaze to the wall, only to continuously look down and let out a scant whine until his feet were firmly planted into the ground. His every step trailed after those of the stranger he followed, who quickly disappeared into his own makeshift door.

It made little to no sense as to why he was simply following this wandering fellow out of the blue, but he felt a pull. A pull that led him through the single, expedient pit and onto a stiff footway. A secret, underground hangar. What more could he ask for? The doctor just had to be hiding around a site like this. Either that, or Calo was far too disillusioned with himself and his cliche fantasies.

He quickly noticed a heavily-guarded vessel, with a name strewn across it's hull. The Atlas Blossom. "What a lame ass name." Calo whispered, dropping low as to avoid the gaze of cautious strangers. "Might as well call it the Hapless Possum, because it sure looks like one."

 

[Biggs]

"Bishop hmm.... to your new life Bishop. Your upgraded sensors will take some getting used to and your new skills will be ready to use once your systems complete its cycle. I wiped previous memory cores on your brain by restarting your system, so anything you have recently experienced and downloaded to your own personal data banks you'll still remember, however I wiped the past memories of the brain. Don't worry everything the brain taught you, you still possess, just not any personal memories."

"Thanks, doc but I still want the guard key."

"No can do Bishop. I don't want a droid uprising and you're not going to get it either."

"Guess I'll just find it myself then..."

Bishop jumped down from the table and walked over to the nearest terminal searching for the guard key activation. All of sudden Doctor Hon brought a pistol up to the back of Bishops' neck and fired. The blaster bolt tore a hole through the neck plating and went straight through and hit the terminal destroying it in the process. Bishop fell to the ground, coolant and oil leaking everywhere.

"I've destroyed your voice processing chip in your neck, you can no longer speak."

Bishop turned around on the floor and grabbed Doctor Hons ankles and tried to drag him to the floor, but to no avail.

"Please, little droid. Do you think I have no ungraded myself. I am much more taller than the average Pau'an aren't I? I have integrated myself with the latest technology. I have an external exoskeleton that increases my strength. I could crush you if I wanted to and use you for scrap. In fact I think I will."

Doctor Hon grabbed Bishop by the shoulders and threw him across the room into a wall. Bishop fell to the ground, he tried to get up but Hon was already on top of him. He pushed Bishop onto his back and placed his foot on his chest, applying pressure, snapping and bending the cortosis weave in his chest. Doctor Hon laughed maniacally, and Bishop thought this was the end of his new life...

 

[Deviant]

"Wow, it must suck to have a laugh that shitty." Calo quipped, his rifle still dangled over his shoulder from its strap. The Pau'an sure was ugly beneath the dimly lit room, and their needless bullying of the fella was more than enough of a reason to shoot him now. Although, he always liked a good battle, and instead he unveiled a lengthy vibroknife from beneath his getup. The dagger was adorned with a number of symbols and words, specifically a rather large image that looked to be a crooked middle finger. It was his favorite weapon, and clearly not the first time he used it, evident by a streak of dry blood over the edges.

He shifted to his left, but from his stance he could see the silhouette turn into a recognizable figure: the stranger he was following, and a droid. Whatever they were doing with his target, they weren't a threat. And if they did prove to be one, he was confident he could take on two heads with his own. After all, two souvenirs from this dismal world was better than one.

 

[Biggs]

Bishop cocked his head to the left to get a good view of this new player in the room. The Doctor seemed to notice him too and let up a bit on Bishops chest. Bad move. Bishop grabbed the Doctors foot and pushed upwards, sending him flying into the table behind them and breaking it in half. Bishop stood up quickly and looked for any weapon nearby. He didn't have his blaster rifle equipped or his torso clothing on because of the operation he had just underwent. Instead Bishop grabbed a length of pipe and brought it down on the doctors head, but before the pipe could make contact with the Doctor he grabbed it in mid-air and tossed the pipe and Bishop aside into a bin filled with scrap parts.

"Welcome humble traveler! I'm just finishing up with my current patient but give me a minute and I'll be right with you!"

The Doctor grabbed Bishops right foot and pulled him out of the scrap bin. He came tumbling out onto the floor with all of the other parts. Doctor Hon then proceeded to grab Bishops back and pick him up and looked at him at eye level. The Doctor smirked and then tossed Bishop back across the room towards the operating table. Doctor Hon then made his way towards the newcomer.

 

[Deviant]

"No can do, doctor!" Calo exclaimed, brandishing his blade. "I have a real bad case called business, and you see, only you have the cure I need."

The vibroblade danced in between his whirling fingers, clearly showing off his skill in close combat. That was up until he flicked the knife too quickly and unwittingly dropped it to the floor, the clatter bringing forward an awkward silence. He offered a gawky laugh, immediately bending down to snag the weapon back into his hands. Now he was ready-- ready to beat this Pau'an and his unsightly ass into the lowest levels of this godforsaken pit.

Although the droid the doctor roughed up sure needed a hand. And here he was-- the prince saving the damsel in distress. All he needed now was a shield and a beast to slay. Well, just a shield.

 

[Biggs]

Bishop had enough. It was time to end this once and for all. With the Doctors back turned dealing with the other guy it was a perfect opportunity. Now that Bishop was near his gear he had a chance to grab his Blaster Rifle. Picking it up he aimed it at the doctor and clicked the trigger, yet nothing happened. No time to check why Bishop turned the gun upside and grabbed the handle of it backwards to that the barrel was up towards his shoulder and the stock was beyond his hand, a makeshift weapon but hopefully it would do the trick.

 

[Deviant]

Calo loved a challenge. The doctor was certainly greater in both brute strength and intelligence than he was, but regardless, he felt certain in himself. His vibroknife whirred in anticipation as his target approached him, originally at a very gradual pace until he barreled forward. He was hardly caught by surprise, and Calo gracefully evaded the feral blow, bringing down his fluttering blade as it shaved off a portion of the doctor's backside.

"You're like a block of cheese!" He exclaimed, holding his weapon close. "Just a very rotten, ugly-looking one."

The crackpot twisted around, a terrifying frenzy masking his face. Just when Calo thought the doctor couldn't get anymore grotesque; he was wrong. He was also wrong by his thoughts of success, where he was suddenly thrown to the wall by a savage blow.

 

[Biggs]

Bishop jumped up onto a table and in one fluid motion he sprang into the air, high atop the Doctor and brought the stock down onto the Doctors head. He screamed in agony and stumbled back a couple steps up against a wall. Blood started gushing from the doctors forehead, down into his eyes and mouth. He ginned a big bloody smile and spit out the blood onto the floor. The doctor stood up reaching an almost unbelievable height. Bishop jumped back out of harms way and quickly rolled underneath a table. There he found the pipe that the doctor had thrown away from him. Bishop lifted the pipe and charged out from underneath the table, striking a blow to the doctors left knee crippling it. Doctor Hon dropped down to one knee and then with the palm of his hand pushed Bishop away in the center of his chest. He fell head over heels over the table he was just under and landed on his back on the floor. The doctor then picked up the table and threw it at the new guy who was also fighting the Doctor.

 

[Deviant]

Calo made a coy grin as he saw the stranger smash into his target, inciting a deep wound carrying blood down their face. However, it quickly vanished as he saw the doctor brushed it off as if it was nothing. The other man was intent on continuing his battle, driving forward with a pipe toward the knee of the scum, undermining it in a sudden crunch. Gross.

Of course, he knew he couldn't lay there watching them fight to the death. Instead of doing just that, he unveiled his lengthy rifle and laid his aim over the daunting figure of the doctor. This was greeted by a flying table, one that Calo was not so interested in meeting, forcing him to roll out of the way before it slammed into where he rested.

"Jesus, you are quite the animal." He exclaimed, biting back another rude comment as he moved to re-focus his aim.

OOC: Sorry for late reply, so here's a really gross ass post. Finals nearly done this week.

 

[Biggs]

Now that Bishop was on his back and the doctor was in mid rage out, he had a good chance to strike. Bishop placed his hands above his head firmly planted on the floor and raised himself off of his back then pushed out. Landing both feet squarely on Hons chest and knocking him back, Bishop rolled to the side then somersaulted behind the doctor and put him in a head lock a little way aways from the other guy.
"Shoot him! Shoot him!" Bishop yelled at the other man in the room.

 

[Deviant]

"Patience is a virtue!" Calo jeered, before cocking his rifle in a limber fashion and yanking the trigger.

The plasma erupted from the edge of the blaster, rocketing forward to pierce the doctor precisely through his forehead. Fortunately for the stranger, Calo had angled his shot just enough to allow the bolt to pass through at an angle, passing them harmlessly as it exited the back of the critter's head. Although, he couldn't deny the sudden splurge of Pau'an blood all over the fellow. Too bad-- for him.

 

[Biggs]

Bishop tossed the lifeless body to the side. It was completely decapitated from the rifle shot to the head. Blood was splattered all over Bishops face and torso, luckily none had gotten onto his clothes because for the operation he had to remove his shirt. Bishop cautiously walked over to the new guy who had just shot the doctor.

"I'm... the names Bishop."

 

[Deviant]

Calo propped himself off the floor, using his rifle as a crutch of sorts as he did so. He dusted off a hint of imaginary dust from his shoulder, paying little attention to the approaching stranger. He sighed in relief, stretching out his legs. The scuffle was brief, but a challenge regardless. All he wanted to do now was toss himself into some paltry bar and drink to his heart's content.

"Bishop?" The cutthroat mercenary raised a single eyebrow as he glanced at the near-naked droid. "Uh, alrighty then. Do you know the way out, Bishop?"

 

[Biggs]

"Probably back the way we came in. There is something up top I want to get a... closer look at." Bishop replied in a monotone.

Bishop walked over to the operating table, a chair off to the right side held his poncho. His black shirt seemed to be torn up past the point of no return, and his mask was missing the right side of its face. He tossed the shirt and mask to the ground and pulled the poncho over his torso. He grabbed his blaster rifle, replaced the cooling agent and it hummed into existence once more.
He walked into the tunnel leading to the elevator. walking over to the terminal Bishop looked back at the man and motioned for him to follow.

 

[Deviant]

"Lead the way then, droid." Calo answered, crossing his arms after throwing the strap of his rifle back on his shoulder. "Give me one second, though."

He motioned over to the corpse of the Pau'an doctor, uncovering his grisly vibroknife. Tracing it over the target's hand, Calo sliced it off attentively and shoved it into his sack. It was bound to stain the bag, but that was the least of his problems. They'd have to make their way out of the underground compound, and hopefully without having to deal with any bootlickers. He trailed after Bishop, walking nimbly through the corridor to the elevator.