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That was odd. Droids didn’t work in shifts like organics—Teedle was always there, whenever the cantina was open. Except that she wasn’t, today.

Neither were Jos and Tolk, but that was to be expected, given that the latter had just made the drop from MedStar. The players, besides himself, were Klo, Barriss, I-Five, and a new face—one he was rather pleased to see: Eyar Marath, the Sullustan singer from the troupe. Den took his seat, which was right across the table. She looked up from her drink at him and smiled.

Den smiled back. He’d been wondering how to casually run into her, and now here was a platinum opportunity. It had been so long since he’d seen another of his own species that he’d probably find the hag-witch of To’onalk attractive. No problem here, though—Eyar was drop-dead gorgeous. She was young, true—he was probably old enough to be her father—but, judging from the look she was giving him, she wasn’t thinking of him in that way. She had lustrous eyes, dark as obsidian and large even for a Sullustan. Her ears were delicately shaped, with large whorls and lobes; her jowls glistened with saliva. They flushed a deeper shade of pink as she smiled at him.

Oh, yeah. What a sugarcane this one was!

“Wa loota, maga nu,” she said. “Mi nama Eyar Ahtram.”

Den blinked. She was speaking in the inferior inflective, just as a fem would to a mate.

“Wa denga, see’t boos’e. Mi nama Den Dhur.”

She smiled again, and suddenly Den wasn’t the least bit cold. Not the least bit. Nobody’s father at this table.

“Where’s Teedle?” he asked the table at large. He felt a sudden urge for a drink.

No one answered.

He glanced at Merit, saw the big Equani looking slightly discomfited. He said, “She is no longer with us.”

“What? Reassigned? She just got here.” He wanted a Blaster or two to loosen him up; it wasn’t like he needed it, but still…

There came another uncomfortable silence. Then I-Five broke it: “The TDL-five-oh-one unit has been disassembled.”

“Come again?”

“It was necessary to obtain the central drive component. The TDL-five-oh-one unit was one of the latest models from Cybot Galactica, and its YX-Ninety Drive’s technical specs were compatible with the phase harmonics generator secondary drive of the force-dome. It was—”

Den held up his hands to stop the droid. “Hold up a minute—you’re telling me she’s been cannibalized?”

I-Five’s expression and voice seemed flatter than usual, if that were possible. “Engineering Section learned that it would be a minimum of five standard weeks before a replacement drive for the damaged generator could be delivered, so they sought some suitable replacement, and requisitioned the TDL-five-oh-one’s—”

“Teedle,” Den said. “Her name’s Teedle.”

I-Five paused a moment, then continued: “They requisitioned the unit’s YX-Ninety. Its field parameters are within the range needed to realign the phase harmonics generator.”

Den stared at the droid, his jaw sagging. “I don’t believe this. They broke her down for parts? How could they? She was more than just—” He stopped as the full implications of I-Five’s statement hit him. “Field parameters. I remember. You asked her about that—”

Barriss said, “Den, I-Five isn’t—”

Den ignored her and stared at the droid. “You fingered her?”

I-Five said, “I was ordered to determine the potential usefulness of the unit’s drive.”

“I can’t believe it. One of your own kind.”

“As much as I hate to rain on your righteous indignation,” Barriss said, “there are one or two things about this that you don’t know.” There was something odd in her voice, Den noticed, but he didn’t have time to worry about that. His best server was gone and her “friend” I-Five had been responsible.

“I know all I need to know—”

“Teedle volunteered, Den.” That from Merit.

He stared at the minder. “Huh?”

Merit said, “She knew what the consequences would be. It was Teedle who noticed the range compatibility. I-Five merely confirmed it. It wasn’t his idea.”

Den shook his head. Gutted her. As sentient as anybody at the table,