Whatever The Day Brings

[Ilias Nytrau]

Continued from here.

Most of the night had been spent doing a bit of research work, interrupted by delivery of a hot soup and nerf sandwich by Ming Whah's, as Mu had suggested. The day had been for the most part, a physically inactive one, and as such, he required little sustenance to finish the day out. Tonight he would take three hours of sleep, and wake at approximately five a.m. for a hearty breakfast. If anything, breakfast was always his largest meal, and the size of his plate tapered off through the day. There was usually a good portion of meat, as well as fruit, grain, dairy and water for the morning meal. Lots of water. Remaining hydrated was key. Always, just in case.

- 0500 hours -

Ilias had slept comfortably alone on the simply furnished craft, the most complex of which was the examination chamber, which got plenty of use with material cure research. It was properly outfitted as a medical response room as well. There was enough room for several other passengers, and previous students of his had traveled with him on the craft, while any other crew that he might bring along for trips were assigned to their own craft. The trip to Bespin had not been a research trip, therefore bringing accompianment was unnecessary. The doctor had the entire craft to himself. Ilias awoke, and made short of freshening up for the day. Light khaki pants and a long-sleeved t-shirt, followed by his favourite casual jacket. He would spend most of the morning after breakfast communicating with the various areas of his workforce, keeping track of their progress, and advising course of action for the next steps in one or two highly important research areas that were being eyed closely by investors. He had not left the Oa since his return to it in late evening the previous night.

"Yes, thank you, Jess. Mr. Hydliff will be most pleased with that interim result. Well done. Yes, yes. Very well then, on with your work. I will be looking in on you more closely in the a couple days. Goodbye."

The dark-eyed head of artificial tissue research, Jessica Terns, was beaming as she said her farewell, and closed the protected com line. Jefsran Ollisen's praises were well-founded when he gave them, though they were not overly obvious. For the most part, he wasn't a very excitable man, always well composed. As the doctor swiveled in his seat and removed his reading glasses (which were purely for show, part of his long-lived facade), a small 'Good Morning' sounded up the ramp, which he had just opened, intent on enjoying the morning air before Jess had called.

Miss Mu must be here. Very good. He reached out a touch. Yes, it is her.

It was a short frame after 0900 hours...about 0923.

"Come in, please do. I have just finished checking in with my staff."

[Mu Satach]

She could smell the left over fragrance from her morning routine lingering around her. She didn't know the name of the cleanser. She'd been killing time in an open air market on a mid-rim planet along the Perlemian trade route some years ago. Her protocol droid had overheard an off hand comment she made to the seller about liking the way it smelled. TC-18 had been stocking her fresher with it ever since.

She breathed deeply, taking in the scent. It was a distinct and subtle aroma that reminded her of vast sunlight fields of green and gold with small white iridescent flowers. She closed her eyes, in her mind her hand reached out to touch the flowers they retreated from her hand and faded out of existence leaving only darkness.

Her eyes snapped open at the sound of a ramp activating. <i>It seems the Dr. is in.</i>

"Good Morning." she called out and stretched her head from side to side. A satisfying crack of her neck caused her to smile.

At the Dr.'s invitation, her booted heels struck the ramp with a rhythmic thud as she ascended the entry way of the <i>Oa</i>. Her hand reached up and pulled her long semi damp hair out of her way. As she did the back side of her black leather jacket pulled up a bit revealing a glint of silver tucked away at the small of her back. Afterwards her hand dropped and rested casually on the butt of her blaster strapped to her thigh. It was an older model, but dependable. They were the two items she never felt fully dressed without, and in Cloud City it wasn't such a bad habit.

She hadn't slept much, but was wide awake. She had spent most of the night trying not to conjecture what she would or could be doing this day. After several hours of counting the specks on her ceiling she climbed up to an open air platform above her loft and worked on her katas through out the night until the clouds burst forth with the early morning glow.

And now, here she was aboard this man's ship. A man she barely knew, a man she was trusting, a man she dared to hope would show her how to pull back the dark shroud that had consumed her life.

She paused at the top of the ramp. Her eyes sharply focused in on the man across from her. <i>Well,</i> she took a breath, <i>here goes nothing.</i>

"I hope you had a pleasant night."

[Ilias Nytrau]

"Pleasant enough." He breathed, almost in a sigh. "I had a delightful and idle little conversation with one of my staff over his new daughter first thing this morning. Fresh life is still one of the few things that brings me wonder."

He folded the prescriptionless, lightly tinted glasses onto the work surface, and strode to a nondescript chest that was shoved in a darkened corner. Carefully, the lid was propped open, and from the old box, a well-worn brown leather satchel was removed. In that satchel, in a small pocket, there was something to be retrieved. An old photo, it looked to be. Dog-eared corners, a crease or two running through it - it was apparent this item was quite dear to the doctor. His soft thumbs traced the creases, rubbed over the corners as he stared intently at the photo, a definite wistfulness, a rememberance, creasing his own face, briefly making him appear much older than his visible age.

"Bear with me, a moment...." He glanced to Mu, not hiding his expression. The elder then returned to this routine, one he had practiced for some years now.

Give me patience, that I may show kindness to the harshest bitterness. Give me strength, to walk as a righteous man, though I am undeserving. Give me sight, that I may see that which is unseen. Give me listening ears, and an open mind, that I may hear all there is to hear, this day.

Ilias' pale green eyes slid shut a moment, his rate of breath slow. In this time, the one time that he was ever fully open to the Force, he sought direction. The ebb and flow of the Force, existence, the universe... It drifted through his conciousness much like a lazy stream. This short meditation was at most times all he would allow himself, for the sake of utmost discretion. And almost as soon as it had begun, it was over. Eyes still closed, the photo was returned to its place, and for a minute longer, his strong hands rested on the satchel. The eyes, they opened.

"If you are hoping to accomplish even the slightest magnitude of what your soul desires, even such short meditations will be of aid." A deep, calm voice rumbled out of his mouth.

Ilias picked up the satchel, placing it back in the chest, before closing and coding the chest. After, he fetched a light jacket, that ended just after his bottom, and slid his arms into it. Along the way to head off the ship, he attended to securing the premesis, finally stopping at the top of the ramp to be almost face to face, a little to the side of, with the woman that stood there. He stared past her, down the ramp, his hands resting in the pockets of the open jacket. No material weapons, concealed or otherwise, were on his person. His face once again showed no sign of age beyond the visible years.

"Never underestimate anyone or anything. Ever."

His head turned, resting the pale eyes on her face. He was fairly positive that someone who operated as she did in such a place as Cloud City would have at least the slightest clue that things are not always as they appear. With that, the 6'10" man stepped lightly down the ramp.

This day could prove to be interesting.

[Mu Satach]

She stood a little straighter as he stepped up next to her. Tilting her head upwards she looked at his face, or rather the underside of his chin. She had been watching him intently through out his act of remembrance and silence.

Her tongue hurt just a bit from where she had bitten back a smart alec quip regarding the meditation. <i>Sitting around doing nothing isn't really my style Doc.</i> She recognized that he had chosen to allow her to see a portion of the pain he carried within, and as she was his guest in his home, acidic remarks were not only uncalled for but would be in extremely poor taste considering she had been the one who asked to be taught. One shouldn't reject the first lesson the teacher gives.

As she examined the pores of his skin, another thought stole its way into her consciousness. <i>I haven't stood this close to someone since...</i> she didn't allow herself to finish the thought. Instead she followed him down the ramp.

"Sound advice," she doubled her pace to keep up with is long legs. "naturally that includes you. Just so you know."

She caught up with him at the base of the ramp and looked about the busy port docks, "So, what do you fancy? High stakes gambling? A tour of a processing plant? Local artistic endeavors? There's a few art galleries on the upper levels and then there's the folk art found along the market streets. I hear there's a classical trio in from the core on a peace tour. Course, I tend to go for the local musicians I find working around the markets. But..." She stopped babbling, shrugged her shoulders and smiled.

[Ilias Nytrau]

That list of waries should include him, without a doubt. Mu Satach was following him on blind faith, a well-constructed memory, a snifter that he was something else entirely than the surface allowed one to see. He has little doubt that her leaping desicion had some basis in his more widely known pursuits as an accomplished physician and researcher. That was practically a given. Holding one hand over his eyes to allow them to see through the blaring morning sun, Ilias thought.

Many persons, many things...they hide here. Looking for themselves, looking for others.

The hand, his right hand, came down and felt into the open jacket, reaching into an inner pocket. The doctor removed an unembellished pair of sunglasses. With a flick of the hand, the arms swung out and in placing, went past his ears, resting on his nose. All the while he listened attentively as his newfound acquaintance and fresh student babbled on, beginning to stumble over her own words. A mild smile lightened his lensed face, as he watched her. When she stopped and shrugged, looking ever the slightest bit sheepish, a corner of his mouth turned further upward.

"I have relatively few hobbies or time to indulge in amusements as of late. I was thinking, perhaps, that you could lead wherever you felt we should go. I am not picky."

It was, to say, the blind leading the blind...in a manner of speaking. Always fun.

[Mu Satach]

"OOoooookaay," she slid her hands down into the back pockets of her black leather pants and leaned back a bit. The wind blew her hair around a bit and she looked around the docks.

<i>I'm an over worked doctor who doesn't get to do much outside of work. I'm respected, well known and have seen it all. I haven't had "free" time in so long I haven't a clue what to do with myself.</i>

A cheesy announcer voice rang through her head, <i>"Dr. Jefsran Ollisan you've just earned a vacation! What will you do now?"</i> An image of Ollisan smiling brightly turned towards her and shouted with glee, <i>"I'm heading to Ugnaught Land!"</i>

Her face scrunched together and she hoped her companion believed it was from the bright sun. "Hmmm..." she watched a ship rise and take off. Her eyes followed its path while she ran through the possibilities in her mind, "well..." the ship blasted off through the clouds past the spires of near by buildings.

Suddenly her left eyebrow jerked upwards. An idea clicked. Something she had thought of doing since she came to the City over a year and a half ago but never found the time to do. Sliding her eyes sideways she asked, "How are you at climbing?"

[Ilias Nytrau]

"Well enough. I get my my share of exercise daily, and some extra with offworld research. Some of my students in the past have thought me to be quite mad with some of the escapades I have pulled. Mostly because they themselves were rather out of shape. It would be a shame to venture to any planet and not investigate some of what it has to offer."

The thought caused him a mild chuckle. Cloud city was brimming with activity at this time of day, and all times of day, in one form or another.

There must be billions of things to do here. He thought. Glancing suddenly down at her again, he realized rather sheepishly, that he had not really answered her question. And that he tended to ramble a fair bit when he actually allowed himself to relax.

"Ah, climbing...Yes. The question would be, of course, whether I would be keeping up with you, or perhaps...you would be keeping up with me." The tone of his voice displayed a slight mischeviousness that he had not allowed himself the luxury of in quite a long time, and had not acted on in even longer than that. It felt good to be able to allow even that sliver of pleasure.