A young woman of moderately small stature made her way through the narrow alleyways of the holy city of Jedha. Her pudgy fingertips plucked at the walls that lined the path ahead of her. She felt a shiver down her spine. She wasn’t sure if that was from the cold or from the unsettling feeling brought on by looming imperial guards and pilgrims from nearly every relevant star system in the galaxy. It was probably some combination of the three. Her face lit up with with an electric blue tint as she studied the datapad she held in her hands.
On its screen was the image of a holoprojector component specifically made for the R3- designation K-6 astromech droid units. It had taken her quite some time to track one down. Reaching into the satchel that rested on her hip she held out a holoprojector component that looked to be of a similar make and model. She compared the two carefully. She sighed, and as she did so, her breath lingered in the air like hot vapor. Following her sigh was a warm smile.
Behind her the echo of all too familiar droidspeak filled the alleyway. Its sounds were deep yet almost feminine in nature. They were slow and concise in some strange way. Still, even more strange was the level of warmth and comfort its voice provided. The droid's inhuman sounds made it somehow more alive.
“Alright Kay-6, let’s open you up.” Tanda’s voice still carried with it an air of youthfulness and naivety. Still somehow optimistic in a world that sought to snuff that hope out at every turn. The mechanic approached her droid pulling out an array of tools as she did so. The droid only responding in its usually beeps of compliance.
A cacophony of tinkering and droidspeak filled the empty alleyway. For Tanda the noises were loud and uncomfortable; unnerving in the same way that her late night fridge-raids while her father slept were. She appeared to be quite handy in the realm of mechanical engineering. She stepped away from the droid and smiled as if lauding over her own handiwork.
“Crossing star-systems just for that…” the girl sighed to herself before motioning her droid to follow behind her further into the alleyway. “Remember Kay-6, if dad asks, it was Naboo.” Her companion met her with apparent protest.
“Yes, I know I’m a terrible liar. That’s why
you’re going to lie to him.” Tanda stopped as she kicked up a pile of sand to kneel on. Lira’s gold and brown color scheme served as a compliment to her owners own attire. Now in front of her droid she rubbed her gloved hand along its head. As she did so Kay’s head twitched slightly as if encouraging the embrace.
“One day I’ll find a way to open that data card input,” Tanda said as she continued to fidget with the buttons that lined the droids exterior. She knew that trying to pry open the data card slot manually would only damage what was inside, and that was the last thing she’d wanted. Flicking on a switch, and lightly banging on the droid’s head a projection shot out.
There the hologram of a woman appeared. Her resemblance to Tanda was uncanny.
“Is it..is it working,” the woman started. The drum of mechanical sounds and light banter in the distance accompanied the voice. The voice itself sounded slightly matured, but in some ways still youthful. It was loving, but also tired.
“Okay…” the woman sighed in contentment.
“Hey, honey...Tanda. I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday. Daddy promised that he’d save me a piece of cake when I got home… It... looks like I’ll be staying here for a tiny bit longer; so I need you to make sure that it’s locked up tight. We both know how hungry daddy gets after snack time.”
The woman chuckled softly before continuing.
“Listen...sweetie, I’m sorry that I can’t be there for you right now, but mommy is out making sure the monsters can't hurt any more people...I have all of the drawings you've made right here on my datapad; they’re so gorgeous honey. Mommy is very proud of you.” The woman took a pause clearly holding back tears. She steeled herself and continued.
“Var, I know it’s been difficult. I haven’t been able to keep up with communication as much as I’d like, but it seems like we’ve finally been making head way. The victories have been small...admittedly, but it’s starting to look like we might have a chance in this thing...so...go team?” She let out a sigh that implied hints of laughter.
“I just wanted to tell you both how much I love you, and miss you. It’s tough...I know. I can’t imagine what you must both be feeling, and I’m sorry for that.”
“But I’ll be home soon. For now…for now just remember that I’m one jump to lightspeed away.” The woman’s face turned away as if recalling a fonder memory. Her gaze quickly shifted back as she giggled.
“And no, permission to build a hyperdrive motivator, denied. Now back to your post so-” before the woman could finish the sound of a door opening made the audio playback glitch slightly.
“Major Wein you’ve been summoned by the Commander,” a man, who completely oblivious to the call, interrupted.
“Right away.” Wein nodded in compliance which was thankfully enough to make the messenger leave her quarters. She stood up from her seat before walking closer.
“Well...that’s me. This is Lira signing off, for now.”
With that the holoprojection abruptly ended. Wiping a tear from her eye Tanda sat in silence for a moment- or at least she would have if not for the chirping of her droid, Kay-6, beside her.
“I think he’ll like it too, Kay." The whites of her teeth showing through a cracking grin. "Let's go, the sooner we're off of this moon the better."