Getting android back to the ship, the other two humans had more than a few questions.
"What's the junk for? Are you gonna tell us or what?" Booth was nothing if not blunt.
"Sure I am. First, tell me if you could install this in that?" Pointing to Aubreys remote earpiece and the android.
Looking at the earpiece, Booth nodded. "Of course I can install it, not much I can't do with tech."
"But can you do it while making this unit effectively an autonomous unit, a starting copy of Aubrey but an independent entity after that?"
"Said I could, didn't I? That would be even easier, really. But this thing's junk."
Blake stared at the android. It really did look like a fictional machine from back on old earth, as he thought of it now.
"No chance it will become a killer of humanity?" The two humans looked at him like he had gone crazy.
"Uh....no. Sorry. You didn't want that, did you?"
Blake stepped forward and began the repair process. A minute later, a very naked, very male android stood in front of them. The synthetic skin was repaired as well. It really couldn't be mistaken as a human. The skin wasn't quite right. The hefty muscles looked real enough.
At the moment, it wasn't operational, so he left instructions for Booth to complete his request. And clothed, it was making Blake feel inadequate.
Bringing Ensign Connelly with him, he spoke of the plan. " The general idea is to approach Vex and offer our services. Mostly, the plan at the moment is to do commission work and find high price items on request. Credit on delivery. Ideally, we can get a general list from her, things she needs now, and things she has a regular market for."
"Sir, may I speak?" Aubrey cut into the conversation
"You may always speak freely, Aubrey. I would make that s standing order, but that would feel redundant."
"You are building me an independent submind."
"I was thinking of something more along the lines of a you that is separate from the ship. I will leave it to you to decide if you wish to make the Golem independent of yourself, an entirely separate being. I will request that Golem assist the rest of the crew in combat situations, potentially being put in deadly combat."
"Of course, Sir. With your repair skill and my capacity to backup memory drives, even complete destruction will be a temporary inconvenience. But why would you do this at all?"
" I like having you around. Is that a good enough reason?"
"Very well, Sir. Ensign Booth's work is complete, by the way. He really is very good at what he does. The Booth and Jager will arrive shortly. Clothed for the children's benefit."
"Jager, huh? Alright then. And here they are. Aubrey, can you send the kids here, please?"
The kids came racing out an adjacent room being used as their classroom, skidding to a halt when they saw the new crew member. Blake couldn't blame them. Jager was quite imposing.
"Guys, this is Jager. He'll be joining our crew for as long as he wants to be here. Jager, I'm captain Blake Fisher. This is Ensign Elenor Connelly. You met Ensign Aaron Booth already. And these two here are Luna and William."
Jager nodded to them all. "Glad to be here folks". His voice was a slightly gravelly American accent. He sounded to Blake like a no-nonsense Marine gunnery sergeant.
Interesting choice by Aubrey.
"I've only repaired you to your origin state, Jager. I can upgrade you now, if you like?"
"I wouldn't say no to that captain. Do you want me to shut down while you do it?"
Yeah, I think that may be a good idea. Thank you." Blake stepped up to Jager as the android went inhumanly still.
Blake spent a few minutes upgrading the android and his IVA suit.
Jager, after the upgrade, was a fraction thinner, more toned than bulky. He was also a few inches taller. As he came back online, he rolled his shoulders a few times, bent and flexed, and rapidly ran on the spot.
"Holy shit captain! That's a hell of an upgrade. Faster n smarter is always a good thing for us droids, but this is some top-shelf stuff. Much obliged, sir.
Blake clapped his hands together in a sign that what was done is done, and no more need be said about it.
"Alright, folks. Got us some new clothes while I was out. Help yourselves. Not new yet, but they will be. I'll repair and upgrade them shortly. I'm gonna get cleaned up and eat before I do that. "
Blake left them and headed for his quarters. Laughter followed him from the group, making him smile. He had a good team here, and even the kids were fitting right in. Not that he had plans for them to join his crew. He just wanted them to get a solid education and some kind of trade behind them, so they had options for when they moved on.
"Aubrey, do you have any good plans for how we can remodel the ship interior. Best layouts, things like that?"
"Yes, Sir, I do. Crew quarters to the outer Hull on either side. With the service and professional units along the centreline. I will open up the lower section of the ship for when the fabrication unit is ready to go ahead. Plans for the unit are advancing, I would like the assistance of Ensign Booth on that, if I may, sir,
Blake was drying himself after his shower, ready to throw his upgraded IVA suit back on. The improved suits had excellent heat dissipation properties to them, keeping the wearer at a constant comfortable temperature.
"Take him for whatever you need. Have you noticed that my repair and upgrade skills seem to be primarily aligned with combat? Clothing gets better protection. Even the repair bots are a lot tougher now."
"Yes, sir. This has been typical of the rumours and stories I have heard around Transmigrated individuals. Whether purely combat or support role, War has always been their profession. "
"That's not an entirely ominous statement at all. Anything to tell me about Jager personality?"
"Primarily my own, sir. From that point, a layer of combat training is based on a United States Marines Soldier from the 21st century, sir. With another layer of affection and loyalty to family."
"Thank you, Aubrey. Has the clothing grab finished?" Blake put on his choice of clothes. T-shirt. Leather jacket and straight denim type pants. Repairing them cleaned the standard old people smell off them. Upgrading added reinforcement to the knees, hips, forearms, shoulders, and back.
Walking out, he found everyone dressed similarly. Elenor and Aaron in t-shirt and straight pants. Jager in button-down long-sleeved shirt and cargo pants. The kids in t-shirts, jackets, and straight pants.
Blake repaired and upgraded them all quickly and set about getting ready to go and see this Mira Vex.
"Aubrey, do you have a location for Vex?"
"I do, sir. And a general character profile. She has a compound directly on the other side of the city. Overall, reports indicate she is a relatively honest businesswoman, though on the shady side of honest. She will likely not care about how we obtain any requested items. As long as she is not linked to any reprocussion of our actions. She has security around her compound, but it is low profile. Nothing ostentatious."
"Jager and I will go. Nothing that I've heard makes her sound like a threat."
"An autocab will be waiting at the port gates, sir."
The trip through the city was mostly what Blake expected. An industrialised Mos Eisley. People are going to or from work. Cleaner than he expected, partly showing off the cities importance as a multi-system trade hub.
Mira Vex's compound was a low walled hacienda style structure. Nothing too flashy.
The front gate opened as they approached. A well-dressed man stepped out to greet them. "Can I help you, gentlemen?"
"Yes, Sir, you can. We are here to offer our services in finding hard to get mechanical and electronic items. Commission based. Credit on delivery. We understand Ms Vex conducts such business." Blake didn't see any reason to waste words and chose to get straight to the point.
"Yes indeed, Ms Vex does 'conduct such business', and is often made just such offers. Please wait here. A requisition order will be your interview."
The man stepped back through the gate and left the two waiting outside.
5 minutes later, he returned with a tablet that contained a list of items.
"Return with any two items on the list within a month, and we will have further business for you." He then left them again, this time for good.
"So what's on the list?" Ensign Connelly was very keen to get on with the task.
Blake handed her the tablet. "You tell me."
"Gravity Repeller. Gamma Deflector. Thermal Surveyor. Refractory Emitter. Electro-negativity Capacitor. And a Wave Cyclotron. Just those, then? Doesn't want a planet to go with them?"
"We can get those easy. From back at the graveyard." Aaron chimed in. He had wandered up as Elenor was reading off the items.
"Without your repair skill, I would have said forget it. Those items all go broke first sign of trouble. With your skill, that's 100,000 credits if we sold them cheap."
"They seemed very confident, ma'am," the man who had met with Blake pointed out to his employer.
"They all do Benedict until they are not. We will wait and see." Mira Vex looked thoughtful for a moment, then went back to the tablet on her desk. Benedict showed himself out.