Someone Didn't Pay the Electric Bill

[out_of_order]

WHO: Cal Kestis, Kaz Brekker, Asterope Glass, Merrin and whoever might want to drop by
WHERE: Not-Temba/Sh'Ka's Power Station and related areas
WHAT: Cal's assembled a team to work on restoring the power and maybe establish communication from the other city
WHEN: End of August to mid-September OMG WHY IS IT SEPTEMBER ALREADY
WARNINGS: Kaz N/A


Basecamp was set up within some of the offices of the power station, with a space for a rudimentary campfire outside if people wanted to heat up food or water to drink or use in general, or just enjoy the fresh air at night. Cal had brought along a couple of portable space heaters he'd cobbled together in case things got too cool inside at night, free for anyone's use.

The first day had mainly consisted of setting up a space for them to stay in and unloading whatever they'd managed to bring by way of equipment and rations, and a bit of territory scouting to see what was available for them. While the water plant, wherever that was, would have to be another project entirely, at least water itself was available, if requiring a bit of a walk from the station. Kyle's buddy system would be recommended, mainly out of concern for the large creatures that have been known to dwell within the wooded areas not far from there.

The power plant itself would be the next thing to look at to see what might need repairs, and if parts would be needed from the other city. Cal had Reeve's notes to share as well as previous experience in working on power restoration for Temba, and the similarities between the cities would make things at least a little easier. The most tedious part would be inspecting the connecting lines to make sure there wouldn't be any damaged areas that might cause problems if they went ahead and turned everything on. This would take the longest time, so the inspections would be divided up in sections, and they'd check back in after each one. The option to swap out between engineers would also be there so no one would be stuck with any one task, and Merrin would be able to bring them back and forth as she got more familiar with the layout of things.

It would be a lot of work and effort, but if there were things worth learning here, getting this done would be a key part to it.


((OOC: Feel free to treat this as a mingle and task sort of thing! Working on stuff? Taking a break? Getting chased by bunnyboars? Dropping off care packages for your hard-working engineers and friends? Do it do it do it! I will post an update on progress once I get some infos~))

Comments

[out_of_order]

It's easy for Cal to get lost in his work. He's made some decent progress in removing frayed wiring and exposed cables, and by the time Asterope comes back, he's working on soldering the replacements. BD-1 glances over at her from his perch on the padawan's back, giving a beep.

"Has it?" Cal powers off his arc welder once he's satisfied with the progress, turning with a pleasantly surprised smile as Asterope had thought to bring something to eat. "Probably a good idea. Thanks," he says as he takes one of the bars.

[pleiade]

Asterope sets the weather protection supplies aside to indulge in her own ration bar. She seems, on the whole, to be one of those people who could subsist completely on these and unflavored protein without complaining. Or at least, she doesn't seem to care what flavor's on the menu any given night. Food is food, right?

"Your, uh, mechanical friend doesn't need any snacks or anything, right? Wasn't sure if there was anything else that'd be nice to bring."

[out_of_order]

It's not becoming for a Jedi or even one in training to complain, and Cal's had worse, so to him he figures there's nothing really to complain about. He bites into his ration bar once he's settled down to sit, only then realizing that maybe he is a little hungry after all. That's usually how it goes though, you don't realize as much until there's something to eat right in front of you.

"BeeDee? No, he's good. And he's on a fresh recharge so he shouldn't need to plug in for a good while." He grins at the droid who's hopped down, translating for BD-1 when the droid tweedles something in response to Asterope. "He thanks you for thinking of him though."

[pleiade]

"You're very welcome." She nods, addressing BeeDee directly, sitting beside Cal. "Inorganic intelligences of the level of sophistication that'd be needed to thank people sincerely are outlawed, back home. There was a fear of them being weaponized. But it's hard to imagine people getting scared of him."

[out_of_order]

"Outlawed, really? That would include a lot of droids back home. They have varying degrees of personality in general. BeeDee-One's definitely no exception." Cal smiles fondly at his little friend. BD-1 glances down at himself as Asterope considers him.

"Well, it's true that there's the potential for them to be weaponized," Cal notes. "In the war I had to take part in, we were fighting armies of battle droids. And although BeeDee's an exploration droid, I wouldn't discount him. He's not built to fight, but he's not afraid to jump on something several times his size if he thinks he can help out."

[pleiade]

"You were part of a war? Were you a soldier?" There's a complex mix of emotions on Asterope's face. Fear, discomfort, sympathy...envy? But whatever she's feeling isn't enough to chase her away from where she's sitting next to him.

[out_of_order]

"...yeah," Cal admits with a nod, but he hardly looks proud of it. He'd been barely into his teens at the time.

"Five years ago. Not exactly a soldier. I was part of an order called the Jedi. The knights and masters ended up becoming generals and commanders for the Republic we fought for. And since most of the Jedi were out across the galaxy to do this, a lot of the padawans, myself included, ended up having to do our training in between if not on the battlefield itself."

[pleiade]

"Back home, the threat of war loomed over the whole planet. Some scientists even turned to...trying to design enhanced humans who'd make good soldiers. Stronger, faster, better senses, better minds. Countries would buy these perfectly designed soldiers for their armies. Though sometimes the labs would be discovered, destroyed."

She tells it like history, like it's not her own story, like she's not revealing something deeply personal to him. She removes herself from her own past--but then, hasn't she been talking around herself this whole time, in a sense?

[out_of_order]

Cal grimaces at that, looking quietly over at the woman for a moment. There's something she's not saying here, or at least there seems to be some sense of that. If he were to put it into words it wouldn't be nearly so easy. But a created army is unfortunately something he can relate to.

"The Kaminoans created an army too, one no one knew about until conveniently, the Republic found that it had one at its disposal." He frowns. "Maybe they should have wondered more about it. But the Separatists pushed for a war, and with millions of clone troopers ready for battle, the Republic had its army, and the Jedi to lead them."

[pleiade]

"It's not reassuring, to hear it's a story that repeats itself on other worlds, in other universes. None of them should have had to live knowing they were only made to be used." She seems to deflate slightly, picking at what's left of her ration bar. "Did...were...is the war still going on? Did any of them make it?"

[out_of_order]

"No, it's not. But at least the Jedi treated them as people, cared for their troops like they would anyone who would have been placed under their command. I think the worst part was finding out that the creation of the clones, the war itself, it was all part of one big plan. In the end everyone was used, and the Jedi were wiped out. That's...how the war ended. Our troops turned against us, just like that. It was like they were pre-programmed themselves. They had...some kind of chip..."

Cal frowns. "The clones...I think there are still some in service to the Empire. Maybe training the new Stormtroopers- they were made to age faster so that they'd be battle ready. Maybe the Empire's phased them out because they'll be too old to fight. It's...sad to think about. And it still hurts. I had some good friends." Before...things went horribly wrong. "There's a clone trooper here. His name's Echo. I didn't know him from back home, different battalion, but he's a good man, and I'm glad to get to know him here."

[pleiade]

She literally bristles at hearing about the chip, eyes widening, and there's a moment of stunned silence before she speaks again. "Echo? It might be good to meet him at some point, maybe."

Because she doesn't know what to say about the idea of people like her enhanced human clones being pre-programmed. She's probably going to have nightmares about it, about some switch she doesn't know about being flipped, leaving her out of her own control.

[out_of_order]

The reaction seem a reasonable one for any person, but there's an uneasiness, a fear that lingers. But maybe that too, is reasonable. There are horrible beings in the galaxy. There are some who might were quite possibly pulling the strings here, involving the Agrii, involving those brought to help them.

"Sorry," Cal can't help but apologize. "I didn't even learn about all that until I was here, and met another Jedi." Finding others like him had still survived or were somewhere out there was a relief. "Couldn't hurt though. To meet him. He usually does patrols around Temba. Hard to miss- he wears white armor, trimmed in blue."

[pleiade]

"So after the work is done would be the best time to meet him, back in the other city." She nods, finishing lunch and wiping her hands off on her tunic before looking to see his progress on the circuit that needed fixing. She checks the connections, and tries to stop thinking of where she came from.

[out_of_order]

Cal nods his confirmation of that. Unless Echo decides to drop by, but the best bet seems to be back in Temba. Finishing the rest of his ration bar a little slower, Cal watches as Asterope goes to have a look at his work.

"...it bothers you," he says after a moment. "I know a lot of people don't respond well to the things I tell them regarding the war and the troops we fought with. But why the interest in meeting Echo?"

[pleiade]

She tenses, glancing over her shoulder at Cal, before mustering the faintest little smile for him. "Common ground. It would be good, speaking to someone who understands, perhaps."

[out_of_order]

The padawan regards her thoughtfully before he nods. "It's always good to be able to find someone to connect with," he says. The smile he offers her is faint in turn, but apologetic. "Sorry. I won't pry."

He begins to push to his feet then, tucking the empty rations wrapper into a pocket. "So how's it look? Ready for phase two?"

[pleiade]

He doesn't pry. That makes it easier, perhaps-illogically, for her to make herself explain.

"Spent the first sixteen years of life in a lab, as they tried to figure out if it was a successful experiment. Others...other kids were sought out for soldiers. The lab was eventually shut down by a team of American special forces. No one wanted...a less successful specimen."

[out_of_order]

The response, an explanation, rather, is the last thing Cal had expected. He blinks as it sinks in as to what Asterope speaks about, looking over at her again. "Were there many?"

He's not even sure what the rate of success was with the clone troopers in Kamino. He knows vaguely from the memories he'd seen from Echo that the clone's squad had nearly not made the cut for the standard sought for. What do you do when the one thing you're created for is suddenly not an option? If there was ever really an option to begin with.

[pleiade]

"A good few. Maybe thirty to forty? Turned out into the world--in the foster system, if underage. No one kept in touch, afterwards. It was...discouraged." If they banded together, they might have been a threat to...someone, anyone.

She begins the weather protection work as she speaks; there's going to be a protective case fashioned over this vulnerable junction, allowing access if needed but keeping water out.

[out_of_order]

He lets his attention drift to her work rather than Asterope herself, setting himself up to offer her the tools and materials she might require as she does things, a flip from the previous task.

"I see..." Cal says quietly. Even without the details it isn't difficult to figure out why. It's also become more clear as to why she was happy to have something to do, and an expectation to direct her focus. A need to feel needed.

[pleiade]

"Wasn't planning to talk much about it here, but if there's others who'll get it, maybe that's worth it. It's not like the government can impose sanctions for being open about it, so far away, right?"

She finishes marking where the holes in the casing will need to go for the cables, and begins to carefully cut them.

"It does mean a lot that you're both listening to and hearing all of this. Thank you."

[out_of_order]

"What we do is completely apart from any place we're from," Cal confirms. He's not sure how much she knows about the strangeness of the circumstances from person to person, place to place, but at the very least he can reassure her that there won't be any repercussions here.

BD-1 hops up to offer some additional light for her work, Cal standing by to provide the droid the height and perch in the meantime. "It's hard to talk about those kind of things, I know. But sometimes, it helps. Just being listened to. Just having someone there." He smiles a faint half-smile. "And for the record, I'm glad you came along to help here."

[pleiade]

She lightly waves at BeeDee, not looking at him (at least, not while he's shining that light). "The illumination is appreciated but not necessary. Part of the enhanced human package was better senses, including vision. Out into the infrared and ultraviolet bands, so this isn't that hard to see in. The downside is getting overwhelmed easily, by brightness and noise and strong smells."

There's a few moments of concentrating on her work, but soon the casing is set up as needed. "Glad to be here to help, Cal. It's been good, really."

[out_of_order]

The droid takes this into consideration before obligingly turning off the light. Cal chuckles a little. "Wow... Your night vision must be something then. Unfortunately we can't do anything for noise and smells, but at least out here it's not too much of either. Have you tried...what're they called- sunglasses?"

Once the casing is finished, Cal looks it over with a nod. "Looks good."