Inevitable {Tech}

Chapter Eight: Consolation

Cass laid on her side, one hand propping up her head, and the other scrolling through her data pad. She could see Echo's arm out of the corner of her eye, hanging over the top bunk, indicating he was sleeping on his stomach. The dark of space kept the room dimly lit, which attributed to her eyes growing heavier. She had already spent the past hour or so reading up on different subjects that would appeal to her newfound friends, and prepared herself to be awake for another few hours to battle her thoughts.

She had found a recipe for Fringi spice cake, something she immediately knew Wrecker would love. She also noticed Wrecker's Lula doll and decided to research Tooka cats so she could share fun facts about them to Wrecker.

She read that Merr-Som Munitions, Inc. has an upcoming release for ionizing focusing coils, ones that would easily modify Crosshair's 773 to increase a bolt's effectiveness against droids. She didn't know if Crosshair would even take suggestions about his beloved modified rifle, but it was worth a shot.

She looked into double-layered blacks for Echo since she noticed him shiver a few times while he was half awake in the co-pilots chair. She assumed it was from being mostly metal and perhaps his skin had thinned over time in cryo. It seemed like a simple solution, maybe she would bring to to Tech's attention and see what he thought.

Hunter's armor was in need of new paint, especially the skull emblem, so she tried to find a soluable substance that could be added to the standard Republic paint to make it more durable.

By the time she got to Tech, her eyes were half-closed and her head was threatening to fall forward. Perhaps she could find a manuscript on the force for him to read, one that could help him gain a better understanding. Maybe one they could go over together. She knew that he might not fully comprehend something like the force, it being something intangible, but it was Tech. He was willing and eager to learn everything about everything, and she was confident he would yearn to learn more about something he only had an inkling of an idea about. She searched through archives until she found one that was simply put, yet dove deep into most aspects of the force.

As soon as she sent the link to Tech's data pad, she rolled onto her back and stared at the bottom of Echo's bunk. She closed her eyes, doing so in hope that if she gave her eyes a minute of rest they would be good to go again. However the luminescent light of her data pad had worn her out more than she thought, so she began breathing slower and relaxing more, until she fell asleep all at once.

Within only a few minutes, Echo was awakened by Cass' murmurs beneath him. Groggily, he leaned over the edge of the bunk and looked below, finding Cass tossing and turning, dried tears on her cheeks and desperate mumbles escaping her lips. Her breathing quickened and her mumbles became more coherent.

"Master...I-No!" she cried, rapidly becoming more fervent and unsettled. "Let him go!"

Echo hurriedly hopped off the bunk and placed a careful hand on her shoulder.

"Cass, Cass wake up," he nudged her calmly.

"Get away from him!" Cass swung a hand and forced Echo off of her.

"Cassiopeia, it's me, Echo," he scurried back over to her and tried once more, gently taking her hand in his. At his touch, her eyes flung open, meeting Echo's eyes as she gasped for breath.

"Echo?" she whimpered in a way that broke Echo's heart, as he had never seen her so vulnerable.

He squeezed her hand to remind her she was safe, and when she came to this realization, she crumbled. She dropped to the floor in front of him, in turn, Echo caught her and held her firmly. She sobbed into his shoulder, not even having the energy to wrap her arms around him.