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The estuary for the race, was a regular meeting place, for Jie and Skeet. Jie was tiny. NOT a dwarf but tiny.
Unlike the love of her life Skeet who was some size taller, not a giant but tall. It had bothered her re her height BUT, she soon realized, as Skeet confessed to her that he too was self conscious when it came to his? 
Small, is as special, he had reminded her, as you say I am to you, seems opposities do attract. So much in common AND from the same planetary system. Neighbours!
Just a zimp short hop. Jie was the daughter of a merchant.
Skeet, the son of an engineer, a solar systems scieste.
Sent to the Akademy as a means to experience what lay outside of their worlds. To understand that not all races are your enemies and good for business.
Others not so good but knowledge is power. Understanding and knowing who you can trust, who you can avoid ever doing business with ?
Skeet, the moment he, had set eyes on Jie, felt protective towards her. Discovering, that she was from their homeworlds more so the protector.
The Matsupa, were known and, ignored by them, as being trouble makers. NOT that they paid them any attention.
Lixii, Zetian and Xixian were trying on their outfits for the concert.
Sent to them by their benefactor, all three of them, were wearing very expensive outfits. NOT Babinsky but certainly equal in quality and price.
“We have set in motion some events for Betany. Lixii giggled.
Without her male there to rescue her, we can trash, how she had to suffer the consequences on her own.
Spread a few rumours, that not all is well between them. He is such a pathetic male. Gutless.
Her, working in the Stratorium on her navigational skills, whist he is resting, due to over exertion yesterday on their assigned team exercises. Losing because of her ignorance. Letting the team down.
We did get some good responses re the rest of their team, when we beat them at the same tasks. Reminding them, we are their masters, with some of them getting sour faced about what we had said?
We only told the truth. I made it clear to them,, that they, would not dare to berate us, for our team being better than them. We won FAIRLY. Even the adjudicator has made that clear.
YET we still; got a lot of abuse? All sticking up for Betany? New to the equipment and, it was natural for her to lose.
Not as bad as the Kalheiron.
Those have been entered by us, bought and paid for by us. 
They’ll win. Those primitives, will not kbow, what hit them.
Cheating? Who is cheating. They look the same, they are identical twins.”
She grinned. TWINS.
In the strat. Betany, was trying to use the equipment and getting frustrated. Her team losing and, knowing it, was because of her? Was not helping her stay focused.
Tears were forming, misting of her eyes that made things worse as her vision was suffering. Not much, she could do, to stop them.
An argument, between her and her CoJoined ?
The droid sent to watch her, by those three, was being abusive.
It, had been programmed by them, to do just that.
The tears, more abuse on her being weak, a born loser as it, heckled her?
Grabbing her, to shove her up against the bulkhead. Screeching abuse.
A malfunction in its programming as NO droid could in normal circumstances; do that
She was terrified. Its strength was beyond her being able to fight back, shove it off her?
Shaking with fear, she was trying but failing to shift it from her.
Then it happened. The thing was hit, struck from behind and, thrown with some force, against the bulkhead.
Bits flying off it, as its limbs, twisted violently and the bulk of its form, felt the crush of another against it.
Stomping on its legs, as we would know it. The noise the click click of parts doing nothing, as it lay there, whirring and useless.
She felt a hand, grabbing her, to put her back on her feet.
Turning to see a huge BEAR? What the might spring to mind but in fairness,
Betany was not the swearing kind. 
“Are you OK?” Its tone was kindly, understanding, comforting.
“I am Bartu fiom Bexes. An elder here.
Your lot will not come across us cept maybe in the Ovir.
Then you, would probably not, recognise me, from my transformed form. HE turned with his back to her and shifted back.
She gasped. “Never seen one of us animorphs eh?”
He grinned as a female approached, to hand him his clothing. “
It, rips apart easily, so I can change form, without having to worry. Naked an all.” Libi smiled, as she, sat Betany down, for them, to sip at some Frubu washes.
“Darn things, those Dreadloxs, can be a nuisance.
Never seen one go rogue like that before.
Someone tampered with its programming.” Bartu returned with something n his hand. Handing it to Libi. “Fried, it burnt out the memory scales. Whoever programmed it, made sure, the memory of all that had taken place, could not be recovered.
The Strat, will have recorded everything, we can’t find out WHO reprogrammed it. Bartu was still staring at the wreckage of the droid. Tha was a series a1. Someone got that out of storage, from the scrap lockup.
Old model and thus easier to reprogram. The newer series 5c are almost impossible to program without the ident codes to do so. Prevents those who want to do that sort of thing with them from doing just that.
One good thing, I will make sure, that all of the remaining OLD models, are incinerated in the furnaces.”
Libi nodded. “Bout time. Taking up valuable storage space I need for my dolls.”
Claria arrived, to find Betany, receiving training from Libi. A few shortcuts, that proved to be, giving her, an edge? “Next time remember those short cuts AND they will be the ones crying!
NOW, the next tests, you have coming up, are on system 4d2e console controls,. Sequencing them in order, is important. Easy to get them wrong BUT, here is a little trick, to improve your memory.”
She whspered to her to fall back laughing. 
“Whoa that’s a little.. rude.” Betany grinned. “I won’t forget that, in a hurry!” “Forget what.”
Claria was curious, no luck though, as Betany was not telling her. “You, need to be Cojoined for that Claria!”
“But you are BONDED?! “ Beteny ignored her.
“So that thing was called a ‘Dreadlok’? “”So, Libi told me.
Old stock, old model droid. Someone Claria. tried to injure me.
IF it had had its way, might even have ended me.
If I find out who.. “ Her voice tailed off but she was thinking aloud. Claria had a good idea, of who those, predisposed to doing her harm might be.
She would be talking to ‘Inter’ later. It seemed they needed another reminder of what to expect if they were caught!
For now they had no evidence, just suspicions.
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