Then To Now

Pain, heat and an undeniable sense of something being very, very wrong. That's what awaited the eight year old girl as she came to.

The pain in her head was like a sharp knife piercing through the very skull that held it together. The girl's small, delicate hand found its way to her forehead and a still bleeding cut.

Someone was near, very near….

The scream that left her lips was from the body that her brown eyes had discovered.

Was it the pilot? Did she know this person? Why was she here? Was he alive? That last one should have been the first question but how could she even check?

Taking a deep breath the girl made her way towards the unknown, unconscious man. He wasn't breathing. - the sudden realization that a sharp piece of metal had penetrated the man's chest, made the answer clear. Dead. Definitely dead.

It was obvious, to the girl, she needed to get out of there. Get help. Exiting the ship wasn't difficult but the sight of nothing but sand made the girl almost want to cry.

No time for that. She needed to get - where? To whom? It was then the darkness of a memory gone hit her. Nothing - there was no memory, not even her name.

With no real opinions, the young brunette with the dark eyes began walking…"

Zoras sat watching her new droid wander around and explore the shop. She was trying to think of what to call it.

The droids at Wessire's Fix Shop were unique, one of a kind creations that Zoras had put together herself from spare parts. Odds and ends from various places and clients. Somehow, they worked or Zoras would get them to work.

Her adopted mother had one droid when Zoras found the shop. A DUM - series pit droid. It was the only one that wasn't a Zoras creation. The thing still wandered around for shop, doing its tasks. Her mother called it Pit and Zoras had kept the name.

This new one however, was unique. It wasn't pieced together or inherited, it had been won.

Last night had been slow, actually it had been a rather slow few weeks business wise, with Zoras only paying customer being Bri. If someone would just breakdown…

The woman needed something to do beyond reorganizing the shop or talking to the droids. Some human company.

The bar sounded good, the rooms that lie under the bar even better.

The speederbike made quick work of getting the woman to her destination. The bar had changed hands so many times Zoras never could keep up with what it was called.

As usual, the small town which held the bar was filled with various beings doing all sorts of activities. Business - both legal or not. Entertainment - both illegal or not.

The outside brown colored building, which was the mechanic's destination, was nondescript enough that it could have camouflaged itself into the desert sand.

The inside however was a far different story…

The inside was an overload of sensory fulfillment. The variety of characters that frequented places like this were an incredibly diverse and colorful bunch, which the eyes explored. The music from the various bands filled the ears. The smell, a combination of dust and alcohol.

The first time there was an exploration of sorts, Zoras had been there far too often to care much at this point. Mind your own - was the way to survive for this long, in this place.

Her focus was straight to the bar and to the Besalisk behind it.

"Hey, Mesun. How's the lighting?" Zoras asked the multi-armed bartender

"Open and very rich. Drink?" Mesun responded.

The conversation just told Zoras that the tables downstairs were open and a new one was playing- one with deep pockets.

Getting her drink, and paying then it was to the rooms underneath. She easily found the table and the new person. Pazzaak was the game.

The newbie was some rich business owner's son. Blonde hair, blue eyes, around Zoras age nothing remarkable except the way he lost like it was nothing. And won - Zoras usually was the one doing the winnings but tonight- she was evenly matched.

The two ended up being the last left, and a game for game tie. He'd win, then she would. Back and forth in a never ending contest.

Game number 5 - Zoras won with people other than the players gathered around the table.

"It's getting late, we should end it." Zoras commented to the young man she now knew as Shoan.

"I need to have a chance to win my money back." Shoan grinned slightly. "How about this - let's change the game." The man pulled out two cubes.

"You expect me to play Chance Cubes with your cubes? No deal." Zoras rolled her eyes.

"Then we'll get others." Shoan turned to the small gathering crowd. "Anyone have cubes they can lend us?"

Of course, more than one did and two cubes were placed on the table.

"If you win?" Zoras asked.

"You'll fix my ship at your shop, whenever I want for free. And one of your droids." Shoan responded.

"Wait how did you ..." the woman had mentioned owning a shop earlier but not about the droids. Did she really want to know how he knew? Nah.

"Free fixes, sure. Give you one of my droids, no. Besides I'm sure you could buy all the droids you want." The mechanic never bet her droids.

"True but yours are unique." The man smiled.

"How about this - The fixes and I'll make you a droid."

"Fine." Sloan agreed. "And for you - the money and I have something that might be of even greater interest."

Zoras listened and the offer was too good to pass up - bets made - she won.

Now, it was the next day and here she was with, of all things, a protocol droid. A nice standard 3PO model.

"Hey, droid do you have a name?" Zoras asked the metal being.

"My last owner just called me droid."

Well, that was unproductive. "How about Silver, you know, like your color?"

"Silver I think suits me quite well." Silver went back to exploring the shop.

Zoras just shook her head. Well, she talked to her droids all the time, now she had one that could talk back.