Night Divides the Day

[Caulder Dune]

THE MACHINATOR
CARGO BAY A3

[member="Spark Finn"]

Today, Darth Adekos needed to run some tests. Tests of the most sinister variety, if by sinister what was actually meant was something pertaining to his precious droids and his equally precious corporate wermacht that was Hegemonic Automaton. Despite the setback that was the apocalypse, Darth Adekos still had some things in mind for his next move into the galactic economy. Something that would shake some foundations and stir some pots. At least, he'd like to think he would accomplish that much. In reality he was probably just generating more ego-fueling vanity projects only used by him or his ilk.

But that was how most companies ran themselves anyway.

So in order to get the proper readings of an experimental droid control computer his underlings had designed, Adekos had to call in one of Carach's more intolerably sassy pebbles. Spark Finn was a technopath, gifted despite being squandered on the Light Side of the Force. His own apprentice was pursuing a radically different skillpath and he didn't wish to make himself so gauche as to force anything upon her. Just because he was Sith didn't mean he was impolite. Generally. Usually. Rarely.

The H1 Droid Control Computer sat in the middle of the landing bay, three lines of nine TA1 Battle Droids each arrayed in front of it. Darth Adekos passed the time until Spark finally showed up in the landing bay by idling inspecting the rigid, inactive droids.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Darth Adekos"]

Converse-clad feet squeaked down the transport walkway. She was given clearance to land because her gangly-self was expected. Her Lord gave her permission after much drilling in her mind that it was okay that someone like Master Adekos teach her the less important things, the things that Carach himself didn't have time for.

Gray-blue eyes immediately went to the battle-droids. "Ohhh, pretty."

Nerd. Out.

Lower-lip pouted in a frown as she looked to the hooded, masked man. The last time she saw him, he had blond hair and a scowling face. The face was probably still there, just hidden. But he wasn't the only one that changed since their last verbal tirade. He would probably pick up that her force signature was changed - not half as warm and jedi like as it used to be.

She fumbled with the datapad in her hand, popping the last bite of a chocolate-sprinkled doughnut in her mouth. "You....needed me?" Eyes scanned the screen looking for his name, "Darth Adekoos-us-os?"

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Spark Finn"]

"Adekos." He corrected her, giving her an annoyed, quizzical look after she fumbled over a relatively easy name. "Please, try not to hurt yourself."

There were only trace amounts of the warm, fuzzy Jedi feelings that had been hovering about her person the last time they met. Clearly Carach's training had been good for something. A pittance he couldn't work his arcane Sith Magicks on her wardrobe. Anyone who wore shoes that squeaked clearly hadn't been taught the finer points of subtlety. Or style. If Carach wasn't careful, she'd end up looking like one of those gothic cyberpunk degenerates his droids occasionally beat up during their patrols on Coruscant's deeper levels. It was probably the natural transition, although Adekos wasn't entirely sure what the evolution of youngster trends and subcultures looked like. Probably something messy.

He gestured to the supercomputer in question. It was a large, perfectly spherical thing that thrummed with electricity. A prototype that was currently drawing heavily on the Machinator's power supply. That would need to be taken care of some other time. Now was the time for data gathering. He turned away from the droids, approaching Spark and stopping next to the supercomputer, placing a hand on the smooth, gradually warming metal. This would likely have to be quick, or not, depending on how well the cooling systems worked.

"How has your training in Technometry been progressing?"

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Darth Adekos"]

She pushed the glasses up the bridge of her freckled-nose and approached cautiously, even if she couldn't hide the hunger in her eyes - the data hunger. "Hurt myself?" She snorted, then straightened as if nothing happened, tucking the datapad away.

"That's one slick super computer," she squeak-shuffled around the entire shape.

"And training has been okay. I got to manage five battle droids on Kashyyyk. It's small but it's a start." She stopped just beyond physical slapping distance of the Darth's arm. "What exactly do you need me to do here?"

Voice squeaked like her shoes.

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Spark Finn"]

"Five droids." Adekos mused. "Interesting. But I bet you can handle more, given the proper equipment."

Adekos had almost wanted to coat that statement in sarcasm, up until he realized he couldn't even completely control one droid at present. Not without cybernetic assistance. Great, now he was being outpaced by an acolyte. An acolyte with squeaky shoes and a wavering voice. If he weren't still picking bits of obsidian out of his teeth every morning, he would have decreed this the greatest indignity he had suffered thus far. Then again, the galaxy was still young. Maybe he could find a bigger throne to be kicked off of before he was lowered into the ground.

He removed his hand from the supercomputer and gestured to it. "This is the prototype Hegemonic Automaton Droid Control Computer. Hermaeus Series. H1 DCC, more succinctly. I'd like for you to commandeer it and see how well you can puppet those droids over there with it."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Darth Adekos"]

Face soured like a tart-lemon as she scrutinized him for traces of sarcasm.

It was surprisingly absent.

Eyes lit up at the challenge. "So, I'll be interfacing with the H1 DCC to control them," finger pointed to the awaiting droids. Bony-shoulders shrugged. She wasn't sure why he didn't just want her to control the droids directly but she liked the challenge and didn't voice her question.

"Okay."

She plopped cross-legged on the floor, next to the supercomputer. Eyes squeezed closed. Using the force, she began to plug-into the supercomputer's mainframe. Eyes moved rapidly beneath closed-lids.

It took her awhile but eventually, the whirring of the TA-1 battle droids joined Darth Adekos' breathing in the relative-silence of the hangar as they jolted to movement. One by one, they began to surround the sith lord.

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Spark Finn"]

One by one, the TA1s righted themselves and began to saunter over to Darth Adekos. It was difficult to surround him as it were, given his proximity to the supercomputer, but it was enough to let him know that the computer was working as intended. He looked up an over to a viewport, from which he could see a duo of technicians buzzing over some consoles and view-screens. One of them gave the Umbaran an affirmative nod, signaling that data was being gathered. This was going just swimmingly, although he wished the Finn child would be a little more ambitious.

"Why are you activating them one by one?" Adekos inquired. "Activate the rest simultaneously."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Darth Adekos"]

Freckled-nose crinkled in concentration.

"I'll...try," exasperation tinged her voice. She could just imagine the glower or sneer on the sith's face beneath his face-jewelry. That's what evil-doer masks were. They were the male's equivalent of jewelry. They always came in different colors and sizes and were definitely accessories.

Thin lips thinned into an even thinner line.

Brow-furrowed. The droids snapped to attention, in unison. They marched away from Spark and the sith lord and halted just outside of the viewport, arms raised at the technicians inside. The technicians would suddenly find their data going a bit...wonky. Their screens flickered. Music started filtering through the speakers in the room as an image from the Elf Fun Factory version of http://www.jibjab.com/holidays filled their screens.

A cut-out of a dancing Darth Adekos head filled their screens.

It took all of the apprentice's concentration not to let the snort erupt from her nose.

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Spark Finn"]

The technicians exchanged worrisome glances. Or, at least, one of them tried to exchange a worrisome glance. The other was trying his best to suppress fits of laughter and had to duck away from sight to compose himself. His more serious colleague decided to inform Darth Adekos as to what was going on over the intercom system. A largely apathetic, typical control tower operator, voice cackled over the speakers.

"We're, uh, experiencing some difficulties."

"Difficulties as in slicers or your own incompetence?"

There was a pause as the technician briefly pondered whether this could possibly be his fault. He decided it wasn't, albeit tenuously.

"Uh, slicers."

"Fascinating."

There was exactly one slicer on this vessel that Adekos knew about. And right now she was sitting cross-legged in front of a supercomputer puppeting his droids to surrender to the control room operators. Such a strange, delinquent child. Now she was interfering in the test she was supposed to be contributing to. There was only one natural response to that. An invisible hand gripped Spark by her hair, pulled her head back, and then slammed it with marginal force towards the casing of the supercomputer. It was unlikely she would lose consciousness. Adekos wanted her to be fully awake, if dazed and concussed, to experience the repercussions of her oafishness.

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Darth Adekos"]

Shock flecked her face with the first invisible tug. Pain quickly joined her expression with the second invisible tug, and by tug, a head-bang. The blond crumpled like a matchstick on the floor. The dancing head figurine of the Sith Lord virtually exploded on the readout screens before dissolving away entirely. The droids, as if from their own volition, moved in unison to perform a protective semi-circle around the technopath. The air shimmered for a moment as an invisible protective bubble in the force formed a chrysalis around her small form.

She whimpered and gingerly pressed her fingertips against her throbbing scalp. She wanted to yell about how he would be sorry because Qun and Darth Carach would....do....something? The thing was, they weren't here. And she wasn't entirely sure if they would or could do something against Adekos.

Running and hiding were in her repertoire of skills. She decided to add something else that was coming very naturally at the moment: groveling, much much groveling.

"Please. Please don't hurt me!"

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Spark Finn"]

Adekos rolled his eyes. He couldn't stand it when young women started groveling. It made him feel like a bad guy. Not that he wasn't a bad guy. Anyone calling themselves Darth was bound to be a pretty terrible person in one way or another. Adekos just generally preferred not to feel like a bad person. It helped him get through the day. He ignored the droids that formed up around Spark and instead continued his conversation with the stalwart technicians.

"Has the technical difficulty ceased?"

A moment of silence as the technician who hadn't erupted into fits of giggling checked the system.

"Yessir."

"Marvelous." He replied, looking back to Spark. "Generally speaking, when I call people here to enrich their otherwise mediocre training regimen and facilitate important research, I expect them to not commit acts of sabotage against me in the process."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Darth Adekos"]

"Sabotage?" She sputtered and looked up beneath tented-fingers. She remained in a protective cocoon position on the floor. "It was supposed to be...funny."

There may have been a snicker quickly disguised as a cough heard from the control-room.

"What are these experiments for? Why are you doing this research? What's the point?"

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Spark Finn"]

"Humor has a time and a place." Darth Adekos explained, blissfully unaware of the exact nature of Spark's alleged sabotage. "And it certainly isn't funny to go around mucking up vital research."

The Umbaran tsked several times, and then scowled indignantly as she pressed him with questions. This wasn't supposed to be a question and answer session, but it seemed that if there was any hope of this insipid little girl coming out from her fetal position, he would have to answer.

"They are for a supercomputer I intend to develop. It will coordinate and command droids for various purposes and be available for sale on the market. The point of that is money."

He smirked and continued. "Money is a thing adults such as myself have some concern over. I don't suspect that you would understand."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Darth Adekos"]

"Hey don't do that. Don't talk down to me," she blinked up at him. Ironi--erm. The invisible force bubble remained surrounding her small form as she rose to a sitting position. The nanites from the technovirus already healed the bruise on her blond-haired head. The droids remained standing between herself and the sith lord.

She pushed trembling fingers flat against the plating of the floor and took a breath for her incoming boldness. "I'm helping you with this. You're making money. I want a cut. I want a signed, written contract that I get a portion of these profits. Or..."

Fingers curled into small fists at her sides to steady herself against the floor.

"I'm not helping you."

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Spark Finn"]

His jaw sagged, and his mouth remained agape for several seconds.

Darth Adekos, the former Emperor of the Sith, founding father of the current Tion Hegemony, owner of Hegemonic Automaton, acting Viceroy of Hypori, former Senator of Umbara, was shocked beyond words. This was the first time that had happened in some number of years. Long enough ago that Adekos didn't even realized what had happened until a dust particle entered his mouth, causing him to enter a ferocious coughing fit. The doubled over Dark Jedi Master eventually righted himself after the fit, whereupon he started to laugh hysterically. Up in the booth, both technicians exchanged concerned glances. There had not been one instance in the history of this vessel where Adekos, Tyrin, whoever had laughed as hard as was presently taking place.

The Umbaran's eyes were watering by the end of it. Clearly, Carach had instilled her with his own sense of humor. Or his incredible lack of good judgement. Typical, typical Carach. After a few moments, composure was regained and he could continue.

"I only, ahem," Darth Adekos started, wiping away some of the infernal moisture collecting under his eyes. "I only pay my employees. You'll have to speak to Carach if you want monetary compensation. Otherwise you'll have to settle for me not electrocuting you for this insubordination."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Darth Adekos"]

Anger flashed in gray-blue eyes beneath glass lenses. "What do you mean I would need to speak to Carach?" She was on her feet fairly quickly and somewhat well-coordinated for someone so uncoordinated. The force bubble remained and was boosted slightly with the mention of being zapped - no, electrocuted.

Rude.

"Haven't you ever heard of contracting?" The question was there but she cowered next to the computer terminal, edging around the side and putting more space between herself and the sith lord. "I'm not helping you anymore unless you agree. Oh, and one of the contract's stipulations are that you can't push me around anymore with anything force related."

The young-teen was fething serious.

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Spark Finn"]

Adekos gave a flippant, dismissive wave of his hand. "I'm sorry, but standard galactic law is very clear about the illegality of child labor."

"Instead, you'll have to talk about it with your legal guardian: Carach. I'm sure he can afford to give you an allowance. Or a pony."

There was absolutely no end to the mockery that could stem from the likes of Darth Adekos. He folded his arms now, staring down the steadily retreating Spark like a parent would stare down a disobedient child. Kids these days. Thought they were entitled to everything. Really, the only thing this Spark character deserved now was a walloping. Why couldn't these damnable kids just appreciate the work experience and move on with their petulant lives? When he had been their age, he had been running around Umbara as some sort of angsty assassin hellbent on fulfilling the will of his father. And when that wasn't going on, he was being tortured for his training at the Umbaran Sith Academy!

Kids these days.

"Come now, stop this nonsense and I'll reward you proportionate to the results you generate."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Darth Adekos"]

"Standard galactic law is also very clear about child abuse," she quipped before snorting. "A pony? Only if it's a droid-pony with an intricate algorithm design." She slid a datapad from her pocket and took a moment to type up everything Darth Adekos just said in writing with an awaiting signature line. Timidly, she slid it across the floor between the droid's legs. It landed against the tip of the sith lord's toes.

"I'll stop. Just sign the contract. I added the part about no abuse, too."

Arms crossed beneath her unremarkable chest.

 

[Caulder Dune]

[member="Spark Finn"]

"Galactic law distinguishes very clearly between child abuse and gentle corporal punishment." The Darth snorted contemptuously, glancing down to see a datapad appear between a droid's legs.

Adekos called the datapad to his hand with the Force, not about to lower himself to grabbing things from the floor between the crotch of a robot. He poured over the document, making sure there was no binding agreement to give Spark a million bajillion credits and a shuttle back to the Jedi Holdout on Ossus. Or something like that. Even if some asinine stipulation were smuggled in there, he had no intention of honoring it. This wasn't even a legal document. Lawyers had to draw those up. She was, like, ten years old. Max. Sighing, the Umbaran detached the stylus from the datapad, signed his alias, re-attached the stylus and then slid it back to Spark and her unremarkable chest.

Now gritting his teeth for having lowered himself so, Adekos continued. "If you're quite done playing at lawyer, you have work to do."

 

[Spark Finn]

[member="Darth Adekos"]

There was a hidden clause about a million bajillion killer droid-ponies. But that was neither here nor there. She quickly looked over the contracted and electronically sent it to upload safely into the Space Cloud, immortalized forever. She stashed the datapad and inched back, away from the supercomputer as if coming out of hiding.

The force-shield was still up. Gentle corporal punishment her bony-butt.

"Okay. What do you want me to do? Darth Carach said I'd be here for a few days so I still need to unload my stuff, too."