Early Morning Grilling

Posted on Sun Apr 29th, 2018 @ 11:08pm by Bomoor Thort & Amare & G2-O7 & 2-1BH "Useless"
Edited on on Thu Jul 19th, 2018 @ 1:12pm

2,205 words; about a 11 minute read

Chapter: Chapter V: Unbound
Location: Red Raptor
Timeline: Follows "Nova Discipulus" before arriving at Irrikut
Tags: Bomoor, Coda, Thane, Axion, Nala Sao

ON

It was very early in the morning, but Coda was determined to follow through on her promises to Bomoor and Thane. She would make sure the Red Raptor's entry door was more secure than ever, and fresh home-cooked breakfast was ready before her new masters were awake.

"Okay, G2, try it now," she told the astromech droid.

G2 probed the access panel below the lock mechanism, and all seemed well for the first few seconds, and then there were sparks popping from around the panel prompting a simulated holler of shock from the droid who aborted the operation.

"I'm sorry, little guy," Coda said rubbing the shiny chrome dome that was G2's head. "At least the updated encryption works. We just need to tweak the voltage next time we drop from hyperspace. I'm gonna need your help with that. I know almost nothing about this ship."

G2's bleeps suggested studying the owner's manual in the computer system.

"I don't know," Coda sighed. "Master Thane has high expectations for my Force training. I may not have the time to read the manual." She extended a hand out towards the old broom she had left leaning on the opposite wall nearby to try and grab it with the pull of the Force, but the broomstick instead flew past her hand much faster than she anticipated and it bopped her hard on the face. "Ow!" she stumbled back putting a hand to her forehead. "That's going to leave a mark."

G2 shook its head side to side and whirred off towards the galley.

From out in the corridor, there was a slight scuffle and another voice resonated, “Oh, watch out there, G2.”

A moment later, Bomoor’s elongated head poked into the cockpit, tracing back the droid’s path, “Ah, so you’re already getting a start on the ship. Very well done!”

He brought his tall form around and fully into the room and bent his knees to bring himself down to the access panel that Coda was tinkering with, “I have not done much electronics work, aside from crafting and modifying my lightsaber, but I doubt that you have that many components lying around on the ship here. Even G2 gets to request things for the ship so, if there are any bits and pieces that would make your job easier, then we can pick them up next time we are docked. Ultimately, it will benefit the whole crew so I do not mind a few investments.”

Bomoor looked away from the panel and towards the young Nautolan woman. She seemed almost a different species to the last Nautolan he had any contact with: Nala from the Cult of Axion. While all the defining features of the species were there: the large pupilless eyes and those smooth head tendrils, young Wolph seemed to wear it all so differently, with no malice behind her soft form.

Relaxing his features, he changed the subject, “But, enough about the ship. How are you settling in on the Raptor? Your quarters suit you well enough?”

"Yes, Master Bomoor," she nodded while still rubbing the small welt on her forehead, feeling a bit more at ease around the gentler features of the Ithorian. She wondered if Thane had noticed by now the difference in comfort she felt between the two. There was a degree of warmth from Bomoor that the intense human didn't quite have as much of. "I've lived in smaller spaces with no bed before. I am grateful to have a mattress to sleep on again." She didn't mention the plush bed she had most of the time while working for Feril and Chesto, but then she always felt like it was sleeping in a stranger's bed while having to wear that tracking anklet and sometimes shock collar. "Um, I was hoping to do all of this before you and Master Thane woke up. I'm--"

"Cooked food levels are approaching critical burn!" cried out the voice of Useless over the comm.

"Oh no!" Coda dashed past Bomoor, through the door, and bounded down the center hall for the galley. She had linked Useless to holo-project from G2 and use the astromech's sensors to act as a food monitor. She grabbed a spatula and flipped the toast over and frowned at the mostly black carbon on that side. "Well, at least it's not a total loss," she sighed. The other side was buttery brown, and the inner filling was melted just right. She placed it on a ceramic plate and presented it to Bomoor just in time for his arrival. "An amazing Coruscanti dish called 'grilled cheese'. This one is yours. Don't worry, everything is vegetarian with a little speckled ant-fly spice. The cheese may not be real, but...the love that went into it is."

Taking the plate, Bomoor inspected the dish, the wafting aroma triggering the reminder that he was indeed hungry, even if tarnished somewhat by the singed smell that intermingled with it, “I think it might be the love that burned but this is very thoughtful of you.”

Grabbing some cutlery from the kitchenette, he placed the plate down at the table: a smooth plasteel, bolted-down replacement to the tattered wooden one that had been left by the previous occupants of the ship. With all the updates they had been making, the ship was really becoming more like a permanent home.

“I see you found the powdered Ant-Fly spice I picked up; I am not sure there is any dish that cannot be made better with a dash of Ant-Fly but perhaps you have to be an Insectivore to appreciate that,” Bomoor used his knife to separate a small corner of the grilled dish and inserted it into his right mouth. After some chewing, the charred taste gave way to a pleasingly-wholesome flavour, with a hint of the spice Coda had included. After swallowing, he hummed his approval before continuing, “I see you are still cooking but, if you have a moment, please sit with me. So much has been changing lately; it would be therapeutic to have a nice normal talk.”

Food to nourish the body, words to awaken the mind Coda's mother once told her. She switched off the energy on the range and smiled when she saw Bomoor powering through the partially burnt veggie toast. She had to hold back a giggle, however, from seeing the way ithorians ate from a mouth that was on the side of their neck like that. She wondered what that felt like having two mouths positioned in that way.

"I'm very happy you're enjoying it," Coda said after covering Thane's sandwich for when he woke up, and brought her own grilled cheese to the table and sat beside the ithorian. "I have a feeling you've seen some difficult days recently. Are you okay? You look as if you haven't slept all night."

Bomoor's munching slowed slightly before he swallowed the mouthful, "It is true," he answered, "I spent much of last night in discussion with the holocron of Darth Krayt, telling the gatekeeper a lot about recent history and, in turn, learning a great deal about Krayt's own history and advice on how to build a lasting and meaningful power base. But it is a troubling pursuit and one that does not sit well with a good night's sleep."

The Ithorian seemed to think about something for a moment before continuing, "I know that you have only recently escaped from your slavery, but Thane and I have only just avoided such a fate: imprisoned, beaten and humiliated by a band of radical Mandalorian Exiles. We did get out but also lost an old friend in the process and the pair of us have certainly been feeling the effects since. That is why I have been trying to make myself stronger, not simply for my own safety but also so that I might be a more-effective guardian to others and perhaps eventually create something better than the Jedi Order."

Piercing another grilled sandwich slice with his fork and bringing it up for inspection, he asked, "Aside from finding your brother, which is a worthy cause, what do you see yourself doing with your freedom, young Zaracoda?"

Coda was working on her breakfast, also similarly burnt, and pondered the question with a frown. She didn't want the conversation to be about her, but she knew Bomoor had a right to know whom it was he provided food and shelter to.

"I used to ask myself that question almost every night for five years," Coda replied. "I had lots of ideas, like going back to Glee Anselm, but we'd have no home to go back to; our parents sold everything to buy their dream freighter for us. I soon gave up and just wanted to find Capo and let him decide. He was older, stronger, and smarter than I was. Mama and papa were always too busy or away, so Capo taught me how to read, write, and use a blaster. He always knew what to do. He'll figure things out again when I find him. What about you? Where will your plans take you and Thane to next? I mean, after we stop at this Irrikut planet he told me about."

"Irrikut will give us all a chance to reflect and learn some more," Bomoor replied, quietly noting Coda's apparent desire for others to decide her destiny, "That's why Thane and I frequent it. However, the main goal is still thwarting Axion's attempt to re-assemble the Kaiburr Crystal. We have found a shard, which means that facing him is now inevitable but it would be wise for us to seek more shards before taking him on."

Satisfied with his breakfast, Bomoor finished the last gulp and pushed the plate away, cutlery folded neatly atop it, "I can only hope that I will gain some further clarity on this mission for I have renounced my position within the Jedi Order so whatever future lies ahead, I shall have to carve it myself. Perhaps I shall return to my home planet of Öetrago and seek wisdom from the Herd Leaders. It has been so long since I have spoken to them, it would be good to remind myself of home."

"Home," Coda echoed almost mournfully. "Öetrago sounds lovely, master. I'd like to visit there with you and Thane someday. I don't know anything about Axion or your crystals, but if they're what's in your way from going back home in peace, I'll do anything to help you get there, go anywhere. Whatever it takes."

She almost instinctively placed a hand on his arm, but stopped herself from doing so halfway. It didn't feel appropriate to be so forward, but she empathized with his longing, and wanted to ease him of his anxiety. Perhaps in time once they got to know each other better.

Sensing her hesitant connection, Bomoor relaxed his eyestalks in a friendly manner, but was still troubled at the realisation that Coda had no previous knowledge of the Cult of Axion and the danger it represented. While they may teach her much, it would be for nothing if her life were cut short fighting their crusade. Still, thinking on Krayt's teachings, nobody can become truly powerful on the sidelines. Perhaps their path was the perfect environment to develop Wolph's abilities.

"Öetrago is a tremendous world, certainly, but we are not ready to go there just yet. Irrikut will be our first port of call," Bomoor thought back to the times he had spent, both with Thane and alone on the abandoned Jedi outpost. Still so much potential in the world that was ignored by most Reborn Jedi. Just like they discarded useful Force relics, so did they abandon Irrikut, "I know that Thane hopes to begin your teaching. But there is no harm in us having a short session of meditation, if you are game. I use the engine rooms sometimes as it is nice and dim in there and the hum of the hyperdrive helps me to picture the universe."

The idea of peaceful quiet reflection to quell the troubles of the soul sounded almost as good as swimming in a lake of warm crystal clean water.

"I would like that very much," Coda said looking up at the welcoming eyes of the ithorian. If Bomoor could understand the language behind the strange swirls in her eyes, he would see the presence of one thing: hope.

"Then let us make the most of the time we have before Thane rises," Bomoor nodded, rising from the seat and over towards the kitchenette, where he places his plate and cutlery into the sonic dishwasher, "Thank you very much for breakfast, Coda. It is nice to take the time for such simple luxuries while we can."

Bomoor was uncertain what the nature of Thane's teachings were on Irrikut, but he suspected that they were of a different nature to those they had attempted with Berry. The self-Exiled Jedi had his own practice to do on Irrikut, but the least he could do was to prime Coda's mind for the trials ahead.

END

RSS Feed