Undermined Medicine

[Talia Darlton]

Talia let out a low huff of frustration. This was beginning to become monotonous. Around her, the small laboratory set aside for her use in the project was humming with various instruments intended to measure and verify the effects of the compounds used on organic matter. Along with that was the everpresent annoyance that stood stiffly in front of the latest batch of test Kolto.

"Emm-four, would you mind not bumbling around my delicate equipment?" Talia said sharply, turning in her swivel chair to glare at the M4-22 Medical Research Droid that was provided on loan by the University Research Corps. The damn thing was nothing more than a glorified nag, gofer, and worst of all, spy. Not for the URC, of course, they were happy to be rid of her. No this was Dr. Kitz' personal metal nose in her business.

With her multiple degrees, Talia was a perfect choice to head the all-but-forgotten research lab. Who cared if some fresh into her doctorate specialist was put in charge? Apparently, someone had taken exception to it and had ensured that Darmon Kitz was given the position promptly after her request for transfer was approved. The man was a glorified idiot, and if Talia was just a little more paranoid she could have been convinced that the man was attempting to sabotage the development of the new medicine.

Part of that sabotage was having this droid constantly observing her progress. Either to report it as his own or to roadblock her whenever she made some sort of breakthrough. She had not decided which rankled her more, honestly. That said, she had taken steps with the past few roadblocks to avoid further issues. Those steps being to split up the stages of her research and hide them under general testing of the Kolto compounds.

The Droid jerked once, turning its photoreceptors on her. Its bland, expressionless face tilted on a swivel.

"I am sorry, Doctor Darlton, I do not understand the issue," The droid clipped out in that maddening even tone. Talia pursed her lips and rolled her eyes.

"You know exactly what the problem is, Droid," She clipped, getting to her feet and tapping the droid in the head with the tip of her pen. "Now get out, I am going on my break."

Normally, the researchers at the facility on the coast of Ahto City would keep to themselves. There were plenty of options for blowing off steam and getting sustenance within the facility itself; small as it was. Yet Talia preferred to distance herself from the others, so far they had done nothing to push the research forward as far as she could see. They were content to live on the sunny waterworld and enjoy the trappings provided to them by the University Research Corps.

Talia had bigger dreams in mind. She would not be here forever. Yet it all rested on the potential of Kolto. The true potential of the substance was something she kept very close to the chest.

Taking a taxi from the edges of town, she arrived in the main part of Ahto City. The local Selkath were more than welcoming of their offworlder guests, despite being largely underdeveloped compared to most inner rim worlds. Talia supposed most of that hospitality stemmed from a hunger for technological trade with the greater Republic. Either way, they'd come to set up numerous restaurants where an offworlder could enjoy whatever cuisine they may desire.

Today, Talia was feeling homesick.

Sitting in a single booth at the small Coruscanti restaurant, Talia adjusted her lab coat (she never went anywhere without it) and pulled her golden hair back away from the dark skin of her face. She gave a patient smile up at the waiter as she placed her order and waited...

@Relent

 

[Eisley]

The hull of the shuttle shuddered slightly as it began its descent through the Manaanian atmosphere. Eisley quietly in her seat - a middle seat between some Selkath that smelled like bad fish sticks and a Ithorian that wouldn't stop showing her pictures of his herd on his datapad - tapping her fingers idly while doing her best not to check her chrono for the millionth time.

Not owning her own ship was beginning to become quite bothersome recently, Eisley instead forced to take public transport to get anywhere. Not so bad bumming around the Smuggler's Moon but very very inconvenient when it came to conducting business. Not that it really mattered today, though. There was a strong possibility that Eisley's hopeful venture on Manaan produced nothing but wasted time. Hopefully the ride back to Nar Shaddaa wouldn't be spent disappointed.

She felt the ship land and breathed sigh of relief, her time spent as the buffer between thing one and thing two finally over. She hadn't bothered packing any clothes or anything like that so Eisley was one of the first people off the shuttle. The air on Manaan was fresher than she was used to and it caught Eisley by surprise. Something she could get used to, that was for sure.

Her stomach beginning to rumble as she walked down the street, Eisley spotted what looked like a little bistro a few meters ahead. She had a couple credits on her, enough to buy some scotch for breakfast at the very least, and shrugging her shoulders headed inside.

She seated herself, small table caddy corner to the door. A vantage point, something her dad had taught her. Keep your back to the wall and you wouldn't end up with a knife in it, he used to tell her. She never forgot that. The waiter saw to her promptly and Eisley greeted him with a smile, shaking her head at the offer of a menu.

"Corellian Whiskey straight," she said idly, clicking her tongue once before deciding on something else. "Dry toast."

Leaning back in her seat as the waiter made off with her order, Eisley scanned the room. Nothing seemed to stand out until, ah yes. That was interesting. A lab coat. Unusual attire for a restaurant. The gears of Eisley's mind began turning as the waiter came back with her whiskey and toast. Taking the glass and leaving the food, the young Epicanthix made her way over to the Doctor's table, an inviting smile creasing her lips.

"You look like you could use some company. Care if I join you?"

@Vinny

 

[Talia Darlton]

The little bistro had proven, time and time again, to be nothing more than a Selkathian knock off of proper Coruscanti food. Admittedly they did not possess the same foodstuffs and ingredients that those from the more civilized part of space had in easy supply. Even so, the food was still surprisingly good-as long as you got past that fishy aftertaste-and was enough to satisfy a craving. She eased herself further into her seat as the food settled in her stomach, her eyes darting up to meet with the waiter that had just paused at her right. She ordered an after dinner drink and contented herself with a small packet of private notes she had taken on the experiment before her departure.

"You look like you could use some company. Care if I join you?" Came the uninvited intrusion into her carefully organized thoughts. She glanced up from where she sat and was positively stunned. An epicanthix, here? She could not believe what she was looking at. But those eyes, that hair, it had to be. She pursed her lips and gave her a considering look, hiding her surprise.

"I'm not opposed," She admitted with a smile, pulling her left hand out of her pocket. She had started doing it again as soon as she laid eyes on the woman before her.

The woman sat down just as the waiter returned with a tall, handled glass. The cup was filled to just an inch beneath the brim with a light brown liquid that smelled faintly of caff, some manner of creme, and hard liquor. Talia reached out and ran her finger over the coffee, it was a staple drink from wildspace and the outer rim. Not as popular as she insisted it should be in the core worlds. She took it up and gave it a gentle sip, letting the warmth fill every inch of her body before she finally gave her uninvited guest her undivided attention.

"Not much here but the fishing trade and grumpy Selkath, what brings you to Ahto City?" She asked, genuinely curious. The fact was there were only three types of offworlders that ended up here on Manaan. Criminals, Fish Traders, and Diplomats. The Epicanthix certainly did not strike her as the latter two and she was far too... something... to be just an ordinary criminal. It was not like she was prying too far either, honest conversation with the person that had just-technically rudely-interrupted her after dinner reading. Talia would pinch herself later; Curiosity was going to get her killed one of these days.

@Relent[/QUOTE]

 

[Eisley]

The smile that had been creeping in the corners of Eisley's mouth blossomed into full bloom at the Doctor's approval of her joining the table. Sliding into the seat opposite Talia, Eisley pulled a coaster towards her on the table and sat down her glass. Her caramel eyes met Talia's stormy grays and held there for maybe a half second too long, Eisley sensing that there was much more to this person than she initially thought.

Unsure of what her intuition was telling her, Eisley decided to answer the Doctor's questions even though it was quite obvious she was fishing for more than her words were asking. Language games were something that separated the average Cartel mook from the rising stars and Eisley loved to play. So the answers would come, but not before Eisley made some observations and perhaps asked some of her own.

"A funny question from someone wearing a lab coat," she said coyly, pulling a cigarette from her jacket pocket. It didn't occur to Eisley that smoking in restaurants might not be something you could do on Manaan, but her experience came from Nar Shadda. You could smoke anywhere you wanted there, and if someone tried to stop you then well, you took care of that yourself. "And I doubt someone as beautiful as you is out here researching the latest and greatest in fishing techniques."

Eisley paused for a moment, both to let her statement hang and to take a sip of her drink. She idly lit her cigarette, a thin trail of smoke streaming up to a plume above her head. A keen nose would detect hints of something sharp like menthol but tapered by something sweet, like chocolate.

"But for me? Well, I'm just here for the sights." Her eyes surveyed Talia again - predatory, like a snake before the bite. "And opportunities, but that's the same no matter where I go."

Eisley smiled again and smoked her cigarette, curious to see what her new friend had to say.

@Vinny