Project Boussh: Ex Machina
by Brad Corletti

"Well now, that _is_ interesting. Of course, even more interesting is
the fact that there is absolutely no way on this planet that those
estates could legitimately have provided the sums of money that you
received."

The expression on Brad's face appeared genuinely puzzled. "What are
you trying to say?"

"I'm saying those accounts are fake. Some of them have no other
purpose than to funnel you money." Piggy paused. "Some of them can be
traced to the Empire."

Brad's shoulders slumped. "Fine. I'll talk."

He turned his back to the gunmen and wandered over to a window.

"Turn and face us," Piggy ordered. Brad ignored him and began
speaking.

"It's like this. I'm not a native Terran."

"You're what?!" Nick challenged. "Just shoot him, Piggy."

"My father is an ex-Imperial official from a nearby sector. He, like
many other Imperial officials, saw the writing on the wall. They knew
that the Rebellion was only growing stronger, and so they began
channeling funds away from their positions, into private accounts. I
know the Rogues smashed a private base Pestage set up on Tatooine. My
father was less ambitious. He simply chose to move his family and a
large amount of funds to a world that was not part of the Empire.
Terra."

"That explains the money," Nick commented. "But not anything else."

"You're right," Brad acknowledged. "That's because it's pure
bullshit." He whirled back around, a comlink transmitter held in his
hand.

He held up it in warning. "I believe you're familiar with a deadman
device. I let go of this button, my B-wing destroys this farm, killing
every Human, Gamorrean and Ewok in it."

Nick looked alarmed. Piggy raised his blaster warningly. "Deactivate
it or I shoot you now."

Brad snorted. "I'm willing to sacrifice my life to preserve my
secrets. Do you think threats are going to persuade me to change my
mind? Of course not. Drop your weapons."

Piggy stared into Brad's eyes for long moments, seeking the dedication
of a madman, the determination it takes to willingly sacrifice one's
own life.

He didn't find it.

Piggy pointed his pistol at the comlink and fired. The shot screamed
into the comlink and blasted it to pieces. Brad yelped, dropped the
remnants of the comlink, and nursed a burnt hand. "Are you crazy?!"
he yelled.

Piggy shook his head. "No. Neither are you. Your comlink was nothing
more than a comlink."

And then Piggy felt the cool circle of a blaster barrel against the
back of his neck.

Brad smiled. "Drop your weapons. You're right. I'm not willing to die
to preserve my secrets. But I am willing to lie to buy myself time for
the cavalry to arrive."

A chromed droid was holding a blaster rifle to Piggy's head. Piggy
tensed at the contact, then relaxed as the droid stepped back,
lowering its weapon to point at Voort's centre of mass. Voort dropped
his pistol to the ground and kicked it to Brad.

Nick glanced from the droid to Brad and back to Piggy, his tiny
blaster no longer as comforting as he waved it from side to side. He
realised he couldn't drop both Brad and the droid. Nor could he
guarentee that if he blasted the droid, that Piggy would survive. He
threw his blaster to the ground at Brad's feet.

"You know," Brad said, as he picked up the blasters, "I really wish it
hadn't come to this. You just couldn't let it go. I have my secrets,
true, secrets you can't know, secrets that some people would overreact
to, but I don't mean you harm. I'm just as dedicated to this mission
as you are, possibly moreso. I'm not willing to let the past sidetrack
me from it. And, of course, like a movie villian, I'm dying to know.
How did you discover that I wasn't telling you everything?"

Piggy spoke. "The sensor patterns confirmed what we already suspected.
You are operating with an unknown female wingman. Your account funds
reek of tampering and Imperial connections. And the music playing on
your B-wing's speakers when I informed you of Bill Skywalker's
existance beared strong mathematical relationships to the Imperial
March."

Brad laughed out loud. "The Imperial March? You don't get it, Piggy.
Here, the Imperial March isn't a sign of allegiance to a tyrannical
government. Here, it's a part of culture. A part of Star Wars. Most
AFWers have a copy of the Imperial March. It's not proof of anything
that a heavily modified Techno version of it was playing on my
speakers *while I was asleep*. Now, if you don't mind, I have a
retreat to make."

"It's not too late, Brad!" Nick urged. "We can still work together for
Quiara!"

Brad sadly shook his head. "Not anymore. I can't pretend this little
meeting never happened. If I do, I'm going to wake up one morning in
binders on a flight to Coruscant, charged with treason. Courtesy of
one Voort saBinring.

I'm going to have to continue my part of the operation without you.
I'd be happy to have any updates the teams get, and will send you mine
if you want, but I'll understand if you don't want to do that. If you
ever want an extra fighter...or two...in a pinch, give me a call.

And damn you, Piggy, for being such an inquisitive pain in the arse."

Piggy merely continued staring. Brad paused. Was the Gamorrean sizing
up odds? Best to make his withdrawal before Voort tried something.

"I can't believe I shot down two TIEs for you and you still think I
have Imperial loyalties. Well, I'm off. Got TIEs to shoot down, people
to see, places to blow up."

"Oh," he shot over his shoulder as he walked out the door, "you might
want to setup a new intel site. Those TIEs didn't just happen to come
across the base. This location has been compromised."

Piggy and Nick watched Brad's calmly retreating form. The droid slowly
backed out of the building, then twisted at the waist to keep the two
in its sights as it walked at full speed back to the B-wing. It
followed Brad inside the hatch and shortly thereafer the B-wing took
off, headed southwest.

"Why do we still think he has Imperial loyalties?" Piggy asked the
air. "The Imperial war droid could have something to do with it."