How Much for the Synth in the Window?

[eighthfamily]

One benefit of being a syndic was that Thrass got to visit interesting alien worlds and have it charged as a business expense. Currently, he was negotiating a trade deal for the Mitth family, a deal that had to benefit a few ally families too, one of which was unfortunately connected to the Chaf family. The Chaf and Mitth were officially neutral towards each other, but that didn't change that there were certain Chaf family members that Thrass didn't care for.

Having some time for himself before his flight home tomorrow morning, Thrass chose to visit the street market, intending to buy a souvenir, and maybe something for Thrawn. Vendors sold jewelry, small toys, and even small paintings that could be put in an album. Thrass wondered if Thrawn would like a little painting, when he saw it.

Someone had a machine on display behind a glass container. It wasn't like any machine Thrass had ever seen. Thrawn had described droids to him from that time he'd visited the Inner galaxy, and that was the closest comparison Thrass could make to this. It had some wear and tear on it, especially with the synthetic skin it wore. It was a unique piece, one that didn't look appreciated as it was.

After negotiating over the price, Thrass bought the droid and somehow managed to get it into the cargo hold for the flight back to Csilla.

Once he'd settled back at the mansion, Thrass overlooked the stats that the droid's old owner had given him, which fortunately were written in a way that was easy to understand. After connecting a few loose wires and recharging it with an old speeder battery, he watched as its eyes lit up.

Comments

[detectivetoaster]

Last Nick had known he'd been on a job. He remembered the type of job. He didn't remember what the one he'd been on had been about. He had been following some trail one second and the next, everything had gone dark. He wasn't sure if he'd been attacked by someone or something or if his internal components had just given up the ghost.

He just remembered having been on a case and then darkness. He had been activated only a few times since then and never really for that long.

When his eyes opened this time he was somewhere unfamiliar again. Being looked at by someone blue. He turned his head from side to side to take in his surroundings, expression shifting from confusion and then into something more focused.

"Where am I...? Who—"

[eighthfamily]

Well, the droid worked, at least. Thrass didn't understand the words the droid said, though, making him realize there was something of a language barrier. He should have expected that, since it was likely that the droid came from inner space.

He cycled through a few common trade languages, asking, "Do you know this language?"

[detectivetoaster]

Whoever this was he was well educated. Nick couldn't recognize any of the languages he cycled through though so he shook his head— hoping that that sign he knew of as no was relatively universal.

The man was strange and the situation was too, but given that things had gone dark for him, perhaps what he found strangest of all was that he was working again.

He looked down at himself. Flexing the fingers of his bare hand and then the ones on the hand that still had silicone. He moved his legs too to make sure they worked, though didn't move to get up— not wanting to spook the man with any sudden movements. He was somewhat comforted by the fact that he still had his own outfit. And that he still had his hat on his head.

"This sure is a pickle," He commented, more to himself than anything.

He had been... Rescued? Bought? He wasn't sure. But there was a language barrier between the two of them. Which was more than just a little inconvenient.

[eighthfamily]

Thrass was at a loss with the languages, since if the droid was unfamiliar with trade languages, he probably wouldn't know Cheuhn. Did that mean he wasn't from this region of space? Seeing as the Ascendancy and neighboring systems didn't have droids, perhaps he was from beyond the Chaos, or that Republic that Thrawn had told him about.

When Thrawn had visited Wild Space, he'd returned with a language packet, insisting that it may be a good idea in case he ever went back to the Republic. He'd also given Thrass a copy and urged him to study it too.

Taking a stab at it, Thrass said in accented Basic, "Do you know this language?"

[detectivetoaster]

"I do," Nick said, smoothing his own accent out to something that was a bit slower and easier to understand. The language barrier was still there even though this man apparently knew English too as it seemed like a language he hadn't quite mastered yet. Spoke a hell of a lot more languages than Nick himself did though.

Keeping his accent slow and under control then, he asked again, "Where am I?"

A head tilt that looked more like the motion of someone who was very much alive than a droid, "And who are you?"

[eighthfamily]

Thrass silently thanked Thrawn for making him study Basic. He was also grateful that the droid was using common phrases that he could easily parse, that were included within the packet as basic questions one might ask or be asked.

He spoke slowly and did his best to clearly enunciate. "I am Mitth'ras'safis, and you are within my home on Csilla. I purchased you and..." He searched for the correct word or phrase. "Turned you on."

[detectivetoaster]

"Right," Nick said, brows furrowing slightly. He had gotten conked on the head. Taken away from his own. Had remained deactivated. And now he had been bought by this man. Having an owner felt wrong. But then he was in a completely new situation so he couldn't exactly do much about it. He was somewhere completely alien and his situation had changed to say the least.

He glanced around again, taking his surroundings in.

The furniture looked familiar at least. If way newer and cleaner than anything he'd laid his eyes on before.

"The name's—" He began, only to think better of it and reformulate, "I'm Nick Valentine. And I suppose turned me on would be the right terminology."

Perhaps terminology was too difficult a word.

"I get your meaning," He clarified. How he had managed he didn't know, but he sure had done it.

[eighthfamily]

"A pleasure, Nick Valentine." Thrass had met enough aliens to know that their names didn't work like Chiss ones, and that some of them had two names.

It was odd, because Nick wasn't like the droids that Thrawn had described. The way Thrawn made it sound, droids were mechanical servants, there to either do chores or engage in combat. Something that you owned. A glorified appliance. He wasn't getting that impression from Nick.

"Forgive my Basic. My brother gave me a resource for it, but we haven't had any chances to... deep dive into it."

[detectivetoaster]

Basic. So that was what they called English here then. This place that wasn't Earth.

"You do a lot better with it than I do with any other language," He said, because it was true. Not a whole lot of opportunity to learn different languages where he was from. He wondered how far away from Earth he was. If he'd ever be able to go back.

But if this man had bought him fair and square he supposed not.

"All due respect..." He began, "Why did you buy me? I ain't— I'm not exactly in good condition. I think the vendor might have cheated you."

Not that he didn't appreciate the save. When his vision had gone black he had assumed that would be the last experience he ever got to have.

[eighthfamily]

"In truth, I bought you for my brother. He's an art lover, you see, and thought he might appreciate an antique, and perhaps figure out what sort of world or culture you came from."

Perhaps he still could, because obviously someone had to have designed and built Nick, and that was sort of like making art, much in the same way ship architecture was.

"Obviously I wasn't aware that you are sentient. We don't really have droids in this region."

[detectivetoaster]

"Well, I'm certainly old. Antique though. I don't think I'm all that."

Just a prototype.

He tilted his head slightly then. Droid. Perhaps a riff on android. He wasn't sure if synth was something that the man would understand so he said nothing.

"Well, I suppose that here I ain't."

If droids were something that could be bought and sold, then it stood to reason that in places where they were common, they weren't seen as people.

"Unless slavers are common, I suppose I must be equal to a toaster."

[eighthfamily]

"Sadly, slavers are common enough in this region. My brother wishes the Ascendancy would do more about them, but he can only do so much without breaking our preemptive strike laws."

Thrass knew where Thrawn was coming from, and shared his desire to do better for the galaxy, but he also knew that such desires were unrealistic. If he were ever caught breaking Chiss law, he would be exiled or worse. There was also the question of where the line got drawn.

"You are not a slave here, I assure you."

[detectivetoaster]

Not a slave but obviously not a person either. But he supposed he was just Nick at home too. Some people saw him as a person, even as a person important to them. Some people looked at him and just saw a synth. This man obviously hadn't known that he was sapient and had seen him as something of a toaster indeed. A useful appliance, but only just that.

"... Are you still planning on handing me over to your brother?"

Nick couldn't say he much appreciated being property but he also knew that this alien wasn't responsible for his predicament and he knew that acting out would get him nowhere since he was on a new and potentially hostile planet.

With new and potentially hostile people if they saw something like him.

[eighthfamily]

"Not anymore. I imagine he'll be curious and have many questions for you, but you aren't to be his property."

Which also left the question of what to do with Nick. Thrass didn't want to just sent him off, all alone, on a strange world, where some other Chiss could kidnap him and take him apart. Or get him eaten by a wampa.

"You are welcome to stay for as long as you want."

[detectivetoaster]

"Seems awful unfair that you bought yourself a guest," Nick commented, doing his best to keep his words easy to understand for someone who didn't speak as much English. Or Basic rather.

He did appreciate it though since it was a new and possibly hostile planet out there and he didn't think he'd fare well on his own. Especially considering the whole being a complete unknown thing. Curious folks with tools capable of taking him apart were probably out there.

"I ain't got anywhere to be," He said, even though that wasn't entirely true. The truth was that he wasn't sure how to get back there, "So I am thankful. If there's anything I can help with during my stay..."

He seemed wealthy and probably had people doing things for him already, but Nick figured it was only right to offer.

[eighthfamily]

"Actually, there might be something you can help me with. If you are willing, perhaps you may help me become more fluent in Basic. I think I know the fundamentals. I merely ask for you to correct my grammar when needed and supply me with words. Simply speaking to me in Basic all the time will help greatly."

He and Thrawn had both been taught the different trade languages in their schooling, and both of them had later gotten to immerse themselves in the various languages by visiting different worlds. Unfortunately, there weren't very many Basic speakers among the Chiss, despite Thrawn encouraging others to learn the language.

"In return, I can teach you how to speak my native language."