Sleepy Salutations
Posted on Sun Dec 23rd, 2012 @ 5:37am by Berry & Morgo Le'Shaad
Edited on on Sun Dec 23rd, 2012 @ 3:59pm
3,500 words; about a 18 minute read
Chapter:
Chapter II: Era's Dawn
Location: Galactic City, Coruscant
Timeline: 0515 hrs (local time), Day Seven
Berry rubbed her eyes as the taxi flew through the air, then slumped over against Eva.
The mechanic had changed into her more rough clothes since last night, her eyes bright and alert for work. Slipping up between machines could mean life or death.
“Berry, wake up,” Eva said not unkindly.
“Mmrrph,” the part-Aquar groaned as she struggled to keep her eyes open.
The mechanic just smiled at her. It had barely been a full day since Eva had met the strange girl, but so much had happened…a race almost won, a wealthy man scorned, her pantry almost emptied…very, very interesting. A little too interesting for her. She preferred routine, with some rowdiness every now and then but not this kind. “So where are we going again?”
Berry’s eyes closed. “Hmmmm?” She slumped forward and rested her head on the seat across from her.
“The dock number! Berry, I can’t be late for my shift at the shop.” Eva smiled anyway and pulled on a golden-green ear. “C’mon.”
That drew a very prolonged whine from the young woman, who pouted up at the mechanic. “I don’t knooow…nine fifty?? Ermph.” She plopped back on the bench.
Eva sighed and gave the directions.
This led them to stand in front of the service desk, a peeved mechanic and a sleeping part-Aquar drooping around.
“Whaddya mean you can’t find the Red Raptor here?”
The woman at the desk shrugged, looking very bored and speaking so. “Nope. Wrong Dock. Try another.”
Eva turned to Berry, helping the girl up onto her feet. “Well, what dock is it then? C’mon, I’ve only got a few minutes left.”
“Mmmmpphhh,” Berry whined/groaned again. She sleepily glared at Eva, her annoyance abating at the thought of all the food she had last night. “Ummm….five ninety? Ugh, I’m hungry…”
After dragging her off, Eva was quick to find the area of the correct dock for the inept Berry.
The mechanic eyed the guard at the entrance and glanced over at the woozy Berry. “Well, I guess this is where I dump you.”
Berry smiled sleepily, chuckling slowly. “Hahaha, dump meee…okay, good night.” The part-Aquar fell against the mechanic and hugged her. “Thaaanks. Have fun with your machinations…”
“Machines,” Eva corrected, smiling amusedly. “You’re better off going away from this crowded planet, Berry. Rub too many people the wrong way and they could rub you out forever.”
Berry flapped a hand, smiling widely with her eyes closed. “Naaaah, not gonna happen.”
“Here.” Eva gave her a small bag to add to her growing collection. “Food for the journey.” Then her eyes flashed. “And the LAST of my pantry!”
“Sorrryyyy,” Berry whined, laughing anyway and sticking her hand in a pocket to pull out some credit chips. “Heeeere…”
Eva grinned. “Nah, gifts aren’t gifts anymore if you trade. See ya.”
Berry smiled with her eyes closed before turning around and stumbling to the desk.
“Identification, please,” the guard asked, a bit impatient as he was about to get off his shift as soon as Coruscant Prime finished moving past the horizon.
“ ‘m Berry, and I need to get to m’ship R’Raptor,” Berry mumbled sleepily.
The guard’s eyes widened as he nodded. “You…need to get to your ship.” He stepped aside.
Berry smiled. “Thaaaanks,” she managed before stumbling along the hallway and into the dock. Her eyes opened, tiny slits as she saw a blurry red thing in front of her. A ship? She promptly ran into a part of it, the metal going pang.
“Waaah,” she whined as she found the boarding ramp and crawled up it on all fours. Bed…she needed a bed…hers was in the corner, right? Corner…hmm, some of these doors were locked…hmmm…ah here was a corner.
She opened a door to a room that was not hers and fell onto the bed, promptly falling back asleep.
Meanwhile, at that moment across the ship, Morgo was in complete darkness, her body pressed against the wall directly beside the Medical Bay doorway. She’d immediately shut off the lights and closed the door to the Medical bay as soon as she’d heard the Red Raptor’s doors open and a pitter patter of footsteps make their way up the ship’s ramp.
The fact that she had the rusty scalpel she’d found in the cabinet before grasped tightly in her hand now, pressed against her chest as she waited for the sound of footsteps coming her way, didn’t quite register to Morgo until a full minute of careful listening and silence.
When she finally peeled herself away from the door, scalpel still in hand, her heart rate returning to normal, Morgo carefully opened the door and ducked outside noiselessly. Who had come aboard?
Worst case scenario: Thane had a change of heart amidst his meeting with his Jedi Council and had given up her location. If that was so, however, the mysterious new passenger on the Red Raptor would be searching for her, from room to room—and there was not a sound of such a search going on.
Morgo crept quietly down the corridor (thankful that she was barefoot), poised to strike at the slightest motion. Carefully poking her head in what was presumably the Training Room, Morgo found it empty and moved on to the next room, which was also empty.
Of course, Morgo thought to herself, there was the possibility that whoever had just boarded the ship was one of the crew, but Thane had not mentioned that anyone would be returning so early. Morgo narrowed her eyes, not liking the mysterious silence. Well whoever it was, Morgo decided she would feel much more comfortable facing them with a proper weapon on hand. Looking at the rusty scalpel in her grip, the blunt weapon probably couldn’t do anything save give someone a nasty case of tetanus.
Morgo’s room was at the edge of the corridor, thank the Goddess, and as she approached her door, Morgo turned around, eyeing the Recreation Room down the hall with the suspicion as she entered her cabin backwards, too preoccupied with watching her back to notice there was something in her own room that she most definitely did not leave there.
When the door finally shut in her face, Morgo turned around—only to be met with the image of something sprawled ridiculously over the coverlet of her bed. Morgo stared, gray eyes wide as her eyebrows hiked all the way up to her hairline. It seemed she’d found her mysterious passenger.
Some manner of creature, dressed in bright clothes with golden-green skin was fast asleep on her bed, braided hair sticking up in all directions. It was what looked to be female, but seeing as the thing was planted face-down onto her pillow, Morgo couldn’t be sure.
So, like any sane person, Morgo carefully reached into her crate of belongings and found her folded cortosis staff and extended it to its full size, the electrostaff end pointed at the creature’s head. And with her other hand, Morgo bent down and gripped the coverlet the green creature slept on, braced herself, and pulled.
The green-girl tumbled unceremoniously off the edge of the bed and Morgo grimaced slightly at the sound of a skull, a knee and two elbows hitting the ground simultaneously.
The strange girl gave a muffled, low groan as her mouth was partially smushed by the metal floor. She resituated for a more comfortable sleeping experience on the floor. Apparently it involved sticking her butt up in the air.
Ready to stun the green girl if necessary (and ignoring her rather comical position), Morgo stepped forward, looking down her nose at the female, still face down. Eyeing her warily, it was then that Morgo remembered Thane had mentioned that a young girl was a part of the Red Raptor crew. Perhaps this thing was the one he called ‘Bería’.
“I usually need a name before I let anyone into my bed.” Morgo said pleasantly, as if she hadn’t just pulled this girl onto the floor like a bag of dirty laundry, “Mind telling me yours?”
"Mmmmrrmmmmpphh," Berry groaned again before flopping over onto her side to face the weird lady. Her eyes were still shut as she pouted in the direction of the voice. "Dis is MY bed!!!" Although as her senses were coming back online her gill-less nose, sensitive to all things remotely edible, there was something...oceany in the air. Her nose twitched as her eyes were still closed, but her brain faintly wondered if it was edible.
Morgo arched an eyebrow, "I'm afraid this bed is mine." She replied flatly, "Open your eyes and take a look yourself. You're creasing the lovely chiffon of a sari I wore yesterday under your weight." Morgo's expression was slightly pained, "Do get off." And jabbing the end of her cortosis staff into the girl's back, Morgo zapped her on low power.
Berry groaned and flipped over onto her back and off the sari. Her eyes opened a sliver and she glanced at the tall lady. "Mmmrmph. Are you Velos? You look funny." She lifted her head to peer. "Hey, you're that weird lady with the moon eyes on those floating screens the car flew past. Why are you here in my room??" She scratched her head and looked around the room that was definitely not hers.
Her face had been in the news? Morgo narrowed her eyes, contemplating the new development before filing it away for later—focusing on the conversation at hand. The girl had called her Velos, strange child. In her days, Morgo had been called many things, but a god of Velusia with moon-eyes was a first.
"Yes, girl, I am your god." She declared flatly, "And I demand that you leave this room."
Berry's face screwed into a pout as looked suspiciously at the woman. "Nu-uuuuh, Moon Velos can't leave Velusia so you're not reaaaalll..." She sat up and rubbed her eyes with the back of her fist, then blinked slowly as she looked around. Yeah, definitely not her room. "Hey, why are you here?"
Morgo blinked, "I am here because this is my room." And tilting her head slightly, Morgo's expression was unamused, "Why are you here."
Berry's eyes widened in annoyance. "I'm here because...!" She glanced away, frowning deeply to herself as she murmured, "I'm here because...I'm worried about someone. About all of them." She looked around and yawned. "And yeah this is your room but why are you on this ship??" Her brows lowered slightly in a more sleepy than threatening look she gave to the strange lady. "Are you here to take Pale Guy away because...he was naughty because...I don't think you should because... he's not very nic..." She trailed off as her eyelids slowly began to close.
Morgo considered what the girl had said, trying to translate her childlike gibberish into something intelligible. She had mentioned that ‘Pale Guy’ had been ‘naughty’, that Bería was ‘worried’ about him. Toying with her side braid, Morgo absently flexed her toes.
Pale Guy? If this girl really was Bería, then the only one she could be referencing was Thane….who really was rather pale, now that Morgo thought about it. Morgo raised her cortosis staff and retracted its length, no longer wary of the girl but intrigued. Morgo stepped back and studied the green-girl closely as she would a specimen.
Thane had mentioned that Bería was quite strong in the Force. Given how he’d more or less adopted the girl, it wasn’t too far a stretch to believe that this girl and Thane had Force bonded, somehow. If they had, it stood to reason that if one of them felt something strongly, the other would feel it as well—at least echoes of it. And if the Force-bond was particularly strong, a disturbance could even influence the other’s mood and action. Cut a hand off and the other side of the Force bond might just feel it. Fascinating stuff, this was. .
Of course, it could just be that she was worried about Thane when she saw him on the news like anyone else. But maybe not. Maybe not...
Thane had defended Morgo in the Galaxies Opera House and had been angered to the point that he’d Force Choked Merik, her treacherous colleague. Perhaps that was what Bería had felt, those violent tremors across the city. In a light it certainly had been ‘naughty’ of Thane. It certainly wasn’t within the law for him to do so.
“No I’m not here to take… Pale Guy away.” Morgo assured, feeling strange using Bería’s vernacular, but it was probably what the girl would understand best. Kneeling to the green-girl’s level, Morgo gently shook her shoulder to keep the dark-haired girl’s eyes open, keen on learning more about this Force-bond with Thane.
“You felt it, didn’t you?” she asked, eyes narrowed slightly, utterly intrigued, “You felt Thane’s anger yesterday night when he did some naughty things, didn’t you, Bería?”
Berry pouted in irritation, crossing her arms. "Yeah, I feel it all the time and it's ANNOYING, especially at night when I'm trying to sleep and then all I hear is—" She pitched her voice low and made some gruff sounds. "—and then he gets so worked up and I'm like—" Her eyes widened. " 'JUST CALM DOWN!' "
Her chest heaved slightly as she drew in breaths, recovering from her mini rant. Her head tilted. "Well, I would have said it but I was too busy eating or being bored."
So they did have a Force bond after all. The side of Morgo’s lips quirked up, amused by Bería’s impassioned speech about putting up with the constant feedback the Force bond was sending her, from Thane. The man was a brooder, no doubt about it, and that someone so wild and unbound like Bería would be bonded to someone like Thane boggled the mind. It was times like this she rejoiced that she was no Force-sensitive.
"Well then," Morgo said, gray eyes glinting, "You must learn to shield. Just as Thane and all other Jedi shield their minds through the Force...from the Force. I hear it can get rather hairy if you keep yourself open to everyone and everything of the Force, all at once. Like a subspace transceiver tuned into every system in the galaxy." Morgo shrugged, "At the moment, it sounds like its not a problem for you, but if you grow stronger and more sensitive to the Force, it might." Morgo paused, eyeing Bería, "At the very least, you might be able to tune out the majority of Thane's more...negative emotions."
Perhaps Thane himself would teach Bería how to shield properly, if the girl cared to learn.
Berry nodded with a grim frown on her face. "Yeah, I gotta learn to get stronger. But I'm not gonna stop listening." Her frown grew stubborn. "If I can't handle it then what happens happens. But hey, you're distracting me!" She pointed a finger at the lady. "Why are you here if you're not gonna take Thane away? Huh?"
Morgo smiled to herself. Sharp girl, if a bit scattered. She wasn't going to explain that shielding didn't mean completely shutting everything out, more like filtering and learning to focus, actually...but Thane could take care of that. Bería was his stray, after all.
"You want to know why I'm here?" Morgo asked levelly, "I'm here because Thane saved me yesterday night from those who wanted to arrest me." Morgo raised an eyebrow at Berry, "He stopped them and brought me here for my safety. So now I'll be the acting physician on this ship, for as long as Thane sees fit to keep me."
Morgo dropped her retracted cortosis staff back into the small box, the stave being no bigger than a lightsaber hilt at this size. Morgo took advantage of the fact that Beria was on the floor and straightened her bed, tucking in the coverlet. And stepping around the green-girl, the tall woman picked up her rumpled sari and refolded it neatly.
Berry frowned deeply at Morgo, finally giving her a real look. The lady was as slender as a pretty silver kelp leaf, and had eyes just as glinting. Moon eyes were smart eyes—controlling the tide and waters around her. But...there was no water magic around her, actually. More like a...whirlpool with no bottom. Berry smiled amusedly and stood. "Well, if Thrane thinks you're okay, then you're okay." She flapped a hand at the possibility that Morgo wasn't. "And if you aren't then whatever! I got more things to worry about then you... since he's...such a h-h-h-aaaaaandful..."
She yawned, the air from her lungs not the only thing to escape. Her eyelids grew heavy, and she blinked slowly. "I'got more 'mport'nt things l'ke f'nding food..." She trudged to the door.
Morgo too had more important things to do than this, like getting to the markets and restocking the Medical Bay. But therein laid a problem. Morgo's attempted arrest the other night and Thane's theatrics had drawn a crowd...and apparently a camera or two, if Bería was to be believed. If what the girl reported was true, then Morgo's face was all over Coruscant's 'Breaking News', along with Thane's. There was no way she could show her face in Coruscant the day after without someone calling CoruSec on her. And even if she did hide her face, a tall woman with pale eyes buying enough high-end medicines and supplies for a small clinic would be conspicuous enough to set off red flags with anyone who had half a brain.
Unless... unless...
Morgo turned and looked at the green-girl, studying her closely. Her bright green, woven sea-grass tunic was rumpled, as was her dark hair, which stuck out in five different directions. And like a piece of sea-grass herself, the girl's movements and manner were loose and limp, like a noodle. Combine that with her green-golden skin and the stream-of-consciousness way she ran her loud, uncensored mouth, Bería was certainly and head turner in the most bizarre way. In her mind, Morgo hatched a plan, a plan so crazy it just might work.
"You want to find food, Bería? I know where to find food." she said with a smooth voice, not even trying to be subtle. The art would be lost on the poor girl.
Berry's lips jutted out in a mighty pout, made even poutier because she had become quite fussy from her lack of sleep. "Hey! Don't call me that—only my grandpa can. I'm Berry!"
"Alright, 'Berry' it is." Morgo conceded, but looked straight into her eyes—brown meeting gray, "But you do want food, don't you?" She offered temptingly.
Morgo knew how people thought. She knew how they saw her. Morgo herself was not an inconspicuous woman. She was quite tall and slender, with a damsel in distress face. People noticed her, whether she liked it or not. If she went alone wearing the unremarkable clothes she had, people would have nothing to look at but her face. They’d remember her eyes, the slope of her eyebrows, her tall nose, and the shape of her mouth. And if those same people were pressed to describe and identify her to CoruSec, Morgo would be in trouble.
But....if Morgo brought Bería along to the Merchant's Quarter of Coruscant, Morgo's very own bull in a china shop when it came to being loud and conspicuous, perhaps no one would really take heed of a tall slender woman quietly buying medical supplies. Not when they had this monkey on their hands.
Berry's pout, however, disappeared as soon as her brain registered the offer being made to her. "Huh?" She blinked slowly, frowning in thought. "Food? Where? Do I have to pay money? I have some but I gotta save it up for...food."
"If you come with me ..." Morgo said slyly, pressing a hand to her chest, "...You won't have to pay."
The part-Aquar beamed as much as she could to the lady despite her sleepiness. It was like a hazy shot of light, with a fog of sleep to shine through. "Reeeaaalllyy?" Her eyes closed from sleepiness and the force of her grin. "Thaaaanks.....!" She nodded and turned and walked out. "Lezzgo!"
TBC
Berry
▬Mind Trick Increased
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