[RM - J8 - Dorin] The Difficult Way

[Part 2 of a collaboration with @ThisDadBricks]

Vasher had imagined a repair shop.

What he found was something closer to a droid graveyard run by very small lunatics.

Parts covered nearly every surface of Brikk Voss’s cramped workshop. Tink, Zip, and Klik had already placed Red on the workbench and were swarming over the damaged chassis while BD-9R chirped diagnostics.

Brikk opened a panel in his cybernetic forearm. A slender probe extended from one finger and plugged directly into Red’s processor.

“You built that into your arm?” Vasher asked.

“Needed it.”

Brikk studied the readings.

“Motors I can fix. Power system too.” He tapped the processor housing. “Memory core’s the problem.”

“Can you replace it?”

Brikk frowned. “Easy. But whatever wakes up afterward wouldn’t be Red.”

He turned to the others.

“We do it the difficult way.”

The Anzellans cheered.

Vasher found this deeply concerning.

The workshop erupted into motion. Tink disappeared halfway inside Red’s chassis. Klik worked through corrupted memory addresses with BD-9R while Zip vanished into a pile of parts and returned holding a power regulator.

Brikk eyed it. “Where’d you get that?”

Zip grinned.

Brikk sighed. “Never mind.”

Then Red’s core surged.

“Cut power!”

Brikk drove his cybernetic hand into the chassis. Metal contacts snapped from his wrist and clamped onto the regulator.

Crack.

Smoke curled from his arm.

Vasher stared. “Is that bad?”

“For the arm? Yes.” Brikk glanced at Red. “For him? No.”

Minutes later, Red was stable—but still dark.

Brikk studied the readings. “Memory’s intact. He just can’t find his way through it.”

BD-9R connected to Red and began a slow series of familiar chirps while Klik rebuilt the damaged memory paths.

Nothing.

Then—

beep.

Red’s eye flickered to life.

A second beep followed, sharp and distinctly irritated.

Vasher laughed.

“Yeah. That’s him.”

The Anzellans erupted in celebration.

Brikk allowed himself a small smile.

Vasher looked at him. “What do I owe you?”

“Parts.”

“That’s it?”

Brikk glanced at the celebrating Anzellans.

“And caf.”

He sighed.

“A lot of caf.”