|
|
Niko ambles into the dining hall, whistling a song about bandit fish. He avoids
the Vendotron 3000, recognizing its inherent evil, and as such ends up
without a beverage. Today's meal is orange, monochromatic as Niko's choices
so often are.
An eerie chittering echoes behind you, "To loh kaaa!"
Ryoshia is sitting at the same table as Clara, munching idly on some
finger-foods.
Ryoshia takes a sip of her drink in the red can, and frowns at the bright
color. "Stupid machine," she mutters.
Niko, moving close enough to Ryoshia in his search for a table to catch her
mutter, flashes a grin to her. "I generally avoid it altogether. It really
doesn't like me." Clara's attire gets a brief, mildly startled glance, but he
extends his grin to her nonetheless.
Ryoshia glances at Niko then at Clara, before shaking her head quietly as she
takes another sip from the can.
Clara starts slightly at the at the discussion, blinking at Ryoshia's comment
and Niko's reply, finally remembering to smile at both and duck her head
almost sheepishly. "Sorry...I guess I was a few light years away. Join us?"
she asks of Niko.
Niko nods agreeably, sliding into the seat. "Looks like you've got some civvies after all, hm?" he inquires, gesturing with his fork to Clara's clothing. Ryoshia's headshake gets a mildly puzzled look, followed by a shrug.
Clara glances down at herself, as if reminded she's out of uniform, and offers
another half-smile. "Yeah, yeah I did. The boots are from when I was in
school, but I figured a girl needs more than a uniform," she explains, adding
a grin to Ryoshia. "Don't you think?"
Ryoshia nods her head. "I'm just thankfull I don't have to wear one of those
dusty gray uniforms." She flicks her cap idly. "The most you'll ever find me
wearing of those things."
Niko mutters something about red dresses, a quick, reflective grin crossing his
face. "Guess that's not practical for everday, though," he adds, spearing a
carrot and some orange pasta on his fork. Nodding to Ryoshia, he adds, "And
it looks very nice on you, ma'am."
Clara shakes her head at Niko with a faint grin. "Not exactly, no," she agrees
quietly, then nods at Ryoshia. "Caps are a wonderful thing. I'd be lost most
of the time without mine."
Ryoshia grins. "Thank you." She glances at Clara briefly then ohs. "I remember
that night."
Niko's brows twitch just a bit. "So do I," he murmurs, a quick smile crossing
his face.
Clara nods vaguely, taking a sip of her coffee, the mug nearly hiding a faint flush. "It was an...eventful night," she decides. "Easy to remember."
Ryoshia hmms as she watches the two. "The promotions weren't the only thing
then." She doesn't suggest anything else and takes another bite of her finger
food.
Niko says smoothly, with a sidelong grin to Clara, "They were a nice ending to
a very pleasant evening."
Clara goes swiftly from a flush to a slight reddening at the observation, her fingers still in her mug handle, the other hand tracing a line around her mug. "Did you ever find out who called you back on duty, Niko?"
Niko's head bobs in a brief nod. "Kaycen. I'm not sure if the Chief asked him to call me back for the whole manilla envelope thing or not. Or maybe Kaycen just took it on himself to do that. I never did get around to asking."
Clara rolls her eyes, amused. "Kaycen may still be a gentleman, but remind me
to give him a thump, eh? Although if it was on Addison's orders, I'll forgive
him."
Niko's lips quirk a bit. "Nah, I'll just be sure to get him when we go to the Monliths. He and Guido are both going. It should be... interesting."
Ryoshia blinks. "Guido?" she asks. "Interesting sounding name," she muses.
Clara bites back a laugh, nodding. "Just don't paint him too much. The poor man still needs to be able to walk when you're done with training." She grins at Ryoshia and nods. "Security men are interesting people to deserve them."
Ryoshia chuckles. "Do anything them match our dear Chief Addison?"
Niko nods to Ryoshia, his grin widening. "Interesting fellow. Y'don't want to
get on his bad side, though. Really bad idea." At Clara's words, he just
grins, radiating innocence.
Clara's grin fades a bit at the question as she shrugs. "The Chief's in a
league of his own," she decides airily, utterly untouched by the radiating
innocence. "Yes, that includes you, Casymed. Just don't ask me to attempt the
rest of your name."
Niko shakes his head to Clara. "I'm not that cruel," he assures her. "And I
know none of the rest of us match the Chief. He -has- to be the best, to
stick it out here this long."
Ryoshia gives Clara a careful look as she apperently considers something but
then doesn't act on anything. He refocuses herself on the last of her little
snack.
"I know you're not," Clara responds to Niko with a warm smile, then nods vaguely. "He's a good tracker," she decides somewhat distantly, then shakes her head as if to clear it and grins again and grins. "Busy day?"
A small, adorably cute creature zips into your general vicinity. It makes a
squealing noise, then continues on its way, quickly enough that one would
have to have been looking right at it to see it.
Niko's brows lift. "Tracker?" he inquires. He peers after the adorably cute creature, muttering something about asking Denner to work faster.
Clara follows the glance at the creature and offers sympathetically, "I've got
the only one of my staff with vet experience helping him. It's going to be
fine."
Niko nods amiably enough. "Should be, yeah. Eventually. Just gets frustrating is all." He munches on his orange stuff for a moment, then adds, "What was that you were saying, about the Chief and tracking?"
Clara glances up from her coffee, blinking in surprise, then a hint of
frustration. "Oh, nothing. It's silly really. The man thinks I can't even go
out for a walk at night and be safe. It wasn't like there weren't dozens of
people out and about."
You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.
Niko nods slowly, expression a bit puzzled. "That's odd, yeah. Huh. Well, I'm
sure he's just concerned. Or something." Hearing the chime, he reflexively
eyes his chrono.
Clara tilts her head thoughtfully, then shrugs. "I suppose. Anyway, at least I
had the morning to myself. He was right about those healthcare facilities."
She glances over, a small smile appearing. "Right about 1900? I'm supposed to
be back on duty in about an hour."
Niko nods very slowly. "1900, yeah." He pauses, then inquires, with equal lack
of speed, "Those healthcare facilities?"
Clara climbs to her feet to head over for a refill, nodding reasonably as she returns. "Mm-hmm. The free clinics down below. I went to check them out this morning." She shakes her head slowly, looking troubled. "Sad, sad places."
Niko takes a moment or three to eat, chewing methodically. "Ah. You went
Underground, hm?" He looks up briefly, a hint of concern in his gaze. "Are
you all right?"
Clara blows across the top of her mug to cool the coffee, nodding. "Of course I did. I thought I said that last night? Ah, well, no matter." She blinks at the concern, nonplussed. "I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"
Niko shakes his head fractionally. "Uh, no reason, I guess." He turns to his food with gusto, picking out the bits of butternut squash and munching them.
Clara watches you eat for a moment speculatively, then tilts her head
curiously. "Is something wrong?" she asks quietly, dropping her voice to not
carry to nearby tables.
Niko shakes his head, glancing up from the food with a half-smile. "Of course
not."
Clara ahs softly and nods, then looks away towards the diplomats drifting in
and out the main doors, hands folding about her mug for warmth. "Still on
duty?"
Niko shakes his head once more. "I was hungry," he admits, lips quirking faintly. "I figured that coming down in uniform and risking getting accosted by someone with a complaint was worth getting food soonest."
Clara can't help but laugh at that, nodding down at her mug. "I can understand
that, certainly. I think this is the first meal I've had down here where
someone hasn't stopped to ask for advice on one of a thousand different
ailments."
Niko grins rather crookedly. "See, it's useful to go around out of uniform from time to time. Gives you some of that time somewhat to youself."
Riley arrives from the Central Atrium.
Riley has arrived.
Clara shakes her head ruefully, amused. "I never really thought about it. I
guess I just figured it was the lab coat, but I still get the same thing even
in fatigues," she says, laughing quietly.
Riley must have run out of stashed chocolate bars, as he heads to the vending
machine to coax one and a soda out of the recalcitrant Vendotron. With an
armload of folders he wends his way through the vening crowd, looking for a
table.
Niko nods his agreement, expression one of vague amusement. Catching sight of
Riley's unmistakable figure, he lifts the hand not holding a fork in an
attempt to catch the Chief's attention. He, it may be noted, has a plate
still half-full of orange food, and no beverage.
Clara glances up as Niko lifts his hand to see who he's hailing and is quiet for an instant before pulling up a grin and lifting her mug in greeting. "Hey, Chief...over here. We've got a few empty places at the table."
Catching both wave and called greeting, Riley makes his way over to the table. Sliding into a seat he nods his thanks, "I appreciate it. You'd think I'd learn to come down here when it's -less- crowded, eh?"
Niko shakes his head, with a faint grin. "Nah, got to get some excitement
somehow," he murmurs.
"Don't know. Would you?" Clara counters, smirking slightly. "It's an adventure,
definitely. Unfortunately we all change shift right along with everyone else.
You'd think they'd be gracious enough to alter their schedules, but...no
dice."
Riley's brows lift, offering Niko an amused glance. "True, I simply don't get
enough excitement as it is. I have to go to great lengths to keep from
becoming bored." He tears open the candy bar, "Is it shift change then?" He
pauses, glancing at his chrono, "Yikes, it is."
Niko nods to Riley's question, even as he answers it for himself. "Been working
too hard," he murmurs, before inquiring, "Did Anya tell you about our, uh,
musical friends on the fourth floor?"
Clara makes a face, but doesn't comment on the time, merely lifting curious brows to Niko's question. "On the fourth floor? What're they up to?"
Riley breaks the chocolate bar in half, rummaging through the pile of folders,
"Musical friends?"
Niko chuckles quietly. "Yeah, guess not, then. It's how some of our, uh, more
creative diplomats are thinking on solving the Denner situation." Glancing at
Clara, he adds, "I hear they want to recruit you for the percussion section.
If you agree, bring earplugs."
"I've already got someone on the problem, though," Clara protests, baffled,
then nearly gapes. "Percussion section? They want me to -play-? Saints add
preservatives," she breathes, rolling her eyes.
Comprehension dawns on Riley with a thump, "Ohh, that, yeah she told me that. I was highly disturbed. To heck with the Denners, what's it going to do to us?"
Niko nods very seriously to Clara. "For the record, -I- didn't tell them that
you play. I haven't a clue how they found that out, but it wasn't I." He nods
at Riley, with a grimace. "But we can't really tell them not to do it." He
pauses a beat. "Well, -I- can't, at least."
You hear a soft purring noise from... somewhere. Maybe there's a Zaeltan stuck in a wall. But if there is, Riley didn't put it there.
Clara lifts a hand to rub at the back of her neck under her hair, for once not pulled up, and shakes her head with bemusement. "Preposterous. It's going to drive the entire Complex bats, is what it's going to do, Chief."
Riley flips through a sheaf of papers until he gets to the set he wants.
Pulling a pen down from behind his ear he sets to doing paperwork and
munching on his chocolate bar. "I could try," he muses. "Smack them all with
citations for disturbing the peace. I just hafta hope they don't get the
Council to turn em over."
Niko nods his agreement, flickering a small smile to Clara. "As long as we can
hold them off til Denner and whoever it is Clara's got helping him to come up
with their solution... I mean, if the Denners are -gone-, they can't play
music to get rid of them, after all."
Clara just looks generally worried, and takes another long drink from her mug.
Coffee makes it all better. "Did anyone tell you -why- they think this is
going to help, Niko?"
Riley scoops up the paperwork again, tucking the half-eaten chocolate bar in a
pocket. The still un-opened soda gets juggled in with the sheaf of folders.
"I'll go cite a few folks, send some warnings at some others. Wake the fourth
floor up a bit."
Niko gestures vaguely with the hand holding the fork. "They didn't say. I
asked, but I was just informed, very seriously, that it would help, and that
was all I needed to know." Riley's comment gets a quick look, and an equally
quick nod. He ventures, "Need a hand, Chief?"
Clara glances at her own chrono as she makes a flustered noise. "I'd like to
know the scientific rationale behind it," she decides, amused. "Or at least
what they might pass off as scientific." She glances up at Riley, eyes
flickering to the chocolate bar being slipped away, but doesn't comment for
once. "Enjoy yourself, boss."
Riley shakes his head lightly, tucking his chair back beneath the table. "Nah,
I can get em' Nick." He offers a brief wave, weaving through the group back
out to the Atrium.
Riley heads towards the Central Atrium.
Riley has left.
Niko looks after Riley, then, with a small shrug, applies himself to the rest
of his meal. "I don't know that they even have a rationale even for
themselves."
Clara shakes her head with a grimace, although her eyes dance with amusement.
"I'll just bet they don't. Ah well...if worse comes to worse, like you said.
Ear plugs." She glances at her chrono finally and wrinkles her nose as she
rises. "I've got to get changed and get up to Medbay, though. Take care of
you, eh?"
Niko nods affably. "You, too. Don't work too hard, eh?"
"Me? Never," Clara scoffs good naturedly and scoops up her mug to deposit it in
a recycler before heading out.
You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.
Clara heads towards the Central Atrium.
Clara has left.
[Big snip.]
2FLOOR> Zooooooom! It's the paperwork fairy! No, it's roller derby waiting to
happen! No! It's Riley On Wheels! Having hauled a pair of inline skates out
of the closet, Riley is weaving at an alarming rate through passerby,
carrying a sheaf of paperwork.
Poorly Lit Hallway
This hall is particularly uninteresting. It's rather vague, and quite dingy.
The walls are a gunmetal gray in color and the lighting overhead is of the
fluorescent variety. Approximately half the bulbs have burned out or are
flickering out of existence. It's some kind of access corridor by the
markings. One end of it wends its way to the elevator lobby. The other ends
in a dingy stairway, obviously as poorly maintained as the hallway. Sound is
oddly muffled here; even speech seems dimmed.
Obvious exits:
Dingy Stairway Elevator Lobby
You walk towards the Second Floor Elevator Lounge.
Second Floor Elevator Lounge
Despite being one of the major hubs of activity in the Complex, few people linger here. While there are usually people present, usually they are on their way to someplace else. The lobby is nice enough, with broad tapestries hung on richly paneled walls, and floors of veined black marble; but it is simply too busy for most people to stop and chat in. The occasional tasteful potted plant lurks in the corners, and large mirrors are hung near the elevators for passing lobbyists to check their appearances before descending to the main level. Corridors lead to the northeast and southwest.
Contents:
Riley
Obvious exits:
Elevator General Housing Library Security Maintenance Medical
You walk here from the Poorly Lit Hallway.
You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.
Niko comes to a startled halt as Riley whizzes by, literally boggling. So
stunned is he that he doesn't even look at his watch when he hears the chime.
"Uh... Chief?"
The AntiChrist on Wheels. That has a certain flair to it. But then there's a certain flair to six foot eight inches of be-uniformed fluffhead on skates. Hearing himself addressed Riley forces a slight turn, literally squeaking to a halt on the black marble. "Hey Nick, it's a good look for you. What's up?"
Niko shakes his head, a slow grin crossing his face. "Not a lot. You skate?" Oo, look, a clue. "That's great." Ooh, and he rhymes, too.
Riley grins amiably, "I used to. It occured to me to be a better way to deliver
all this finished paperwork rather than hike all over. I have one more stop
to make..." Pushing off again to zoom at a slightly more sedate pace he
turns, skating backwards long enough to address Niko, "It's efficent, eh?"
Turning back forward, which is a good thing for crowd safety, he makes a wide
turn into medbay.
Riley heads towards the Medical Bay.
Riley has left.
You head towards the Medical Bay.
Medical Bay
Even the circulation of air can't quite keep the antiseptic smell from this
room. Immaculately clean, the tiles of the floor are the same pristine white
as the walls. Gadgets and gizmos abound. The highest medical technology
available for all the races that might conceivably come to the station are
present. A pair of beds near the door provide places for emergent cases,
their bioscan devices ready for monitoring. Door lead to rooms for surgery,
short-term care, and long-term care. (OOC note: To set your room doing, try
'I'm <doing>'.)
Contents:
Niko, standing by the door.
Riley, standing by the door.
Clara, standing by the door.
Obvious Exits:
Chief's Office Elevator Lounge
You arrive from the Second Floor Elevator Lounge.
Niko decides to follow, what the heck, he's a flunky. "Efficient," he agrees, "And -fun-. Heck, I'd deliver paperwork, if I could do it that way," He lifts a hand in greeting to Clara and whoever else might be here.
Clara is crouched down at the base of a large bit of equipment, finally back in
uniform with a magnifying headset on as she tinkers with its innards. At the
sound of wheels, she glances back, lets out yelp of dismay, and instantly
flips up the lenses to her forehead. "Great golden grommets," she breathes,
green eyes wide.
From black marble to white tile, the Complex is a sea of surfaces just marvelous for wheels. Riley chuckles ruefully as he zooms in, "Maybe I should issue these then. Get somebody else to do the ridiculous message running. Bringing one skate up to actually use its brake he stops sharply an armslength from Clara, offering her the folder. "For your files, nothing to have to fill out. See, I'm the good paperwork fairy this time."
Niko leans against the wall next to the door, watching with an amused grin.
"How dashing," he quips. Like Captain Kirk, if the Captain ever rollerbladed.
Now Riley just needs lots of asterisks, a rug, and all the girls. "Y'know, I
don't -need- skates to run messages, Chief. I'd do it anyway. Skates'd just
make it more fun."
Clara straightens slowly, tugging the headset off of her head and taking the
folder with utter bemusement as she peers up a few good more inches than
normal with a completely boggled expression. "Thank you? Ah, thank you, yes."
She clears her throat and glances down at the skates warily. "Just don't
crash in to any equipment?" At Niko's comment, she splutters back at him,
finally giving way to laughter. "That's it! All Security men are certifiably
bonkers!"
Riley has some misplaced commas, wall to wall carpeting, and um, well none of the girls instead. Still, he does get some good entrances. "Yeah, but you weren't on duty Nick." He grins down at Clara, offering a very formal hand over heart bow that's quite at odds with the fact that he's standing here in wheeled footgear. "I think I can endeavor not to collide with anything vital."
Niko nods agreeably to Clara. "Yup, else we wouldn't be in Security."
Flickering a grin to Riley, he says, "They could've kept, huh? Though I guess
it'd be more fair to let you have the fun."
Clara has a skeleton named McCoy? Just don't ask her to drink a mint julip. She does a slightly puzzled double-take at Niko's appearance, then shakes her head and snickers, striding over to a desk to deposit both headset and folder. "Well, Mr. Wheel-o-rama, it's certainly creative." She grins over at Niko wryly. "Maybe you should get some for the next time you guard grass?"
Niko grins brightly at Clara, apparently not noticing that double-take. "Grand
idea. I could skate around the atrium. I've not drawn that joyous duty yet,
though I'm sure that'll change."
Riley straightens, chuckling. Wheeling at a sedate pace in the general direction of the door he nods to Niko, "I don't get a chance to scandalize people very often. You two and Kya both looked like I'd hit you with boards." He chuckles, "Nah, grass gaurding involves standing still."
Niko mock-sighs at Riley's news. "Ah, well. I could entertain the poor folks
guarding grass?"
Clara folds her arms and leans back against the front edge of the desk, grinning broadly at both men and shaking her head. "Just when you think you've seen it all. Not quite the pope on roller skates, but close enough for horseshoes and hand grenades. It's ten times worse at micromagnification."
There's another of those squeaks of wheels on flooring as Riley comes to a
halt, looking a bit bemused. "Close enough to the Pope on skates? In Peesh's
name, I'm not that much a fogey am I?"
Niko eyes the floor for scuffmarks, then lifts his gaze to Riley, with a soft snort. "Hardly. You're not a fogey at all, despite the... kids at Zimmies."
Clara swallows a laugh, almost coughing at the question. "Ah, no. Definably,
no. It was a figure of speech boss, not a comparison to His Holiness, sorry."
She flashes a grin at Niko, wrinkling her nose. "Poor cadets and native kids.
Beaten by grownups?"
Riley looks decidedly relieved, "Folks have a tendency to forget I'm just a
person too, even if I do sign the checks." He pushes off again, once again
doorwards.
Riley heads towards the Second Floor Elevator Lounge.
Riley has left.
Niko looks after Riley, even peering into the hall for a moment. "Do we do
that?" he inquires, looking troubled.
An eerie chittering echoes behind you, "To loh kaaa!"
Clara rolls her eyes and shakes her head, smirking as the door hisses shut
behind beskated Chief. "Libera me de ore leonis," she mutters with amusement.
"No, we don't. Besides, I'm willing to bet he even has a signature machine to
roll out the checks."
Niko attempts to puzzle out the quote. "Free you from gold lions?" he
ventures. "I guess he looks kind of like a lion, if the mane had been dipped
in chocolate." He still doesn't look quite convinced, adding quietly, "He's
the Chief, whether he signs the checks or not."
Clara's grin brightens, eyes dancing at the translation. "Close enough. Deliver
us from the mouth of the lion, actually. I don't know how to say 'Paperwork
Fairy' in Latin, though." Her brows quirk up as she nods once. "Yes, he is.
Inline skates and all." She nods at your shirt curiously. "Been working on
sigmacrafts?"
You hear a soft purring noise from... somewhere. Maybe there's a Zaeltan stuck in a wall. But if there is, Riley didn't put it there.
Niko ahs quietly at the actual translation, murmuring a quiet phrase in his
native language. "Sig... uh, no." He peers at the wall. "See, those skates
are good, could use 'em to take out Denners."
Clara bends one knee to balance a foot against the front panel of the desk,
leaning straightened arms on her thigh. "Gives a whole new meaning to the
term road rage, I suppose. Been a busy evening?"
Niko tips a hand back and forth, then gently raps on the wall, attempting to
elicit another Denner-sound. "Uh, sort of. Depends on your point of view. How
about you?"
Clara sheers away from the subject of where you've been at the reaction, and
twists slightly to hook her magnification headset on one finger and spin it
around lightly there. "Maintenance on the myocardial resonator. It needed
recalibrating."
Niko turns away from the wall, brows lifting. "Want me to clear out, then? I can keep myself occupied. Just followed the Chief, flunky and all."
Clara chuckles and pushes away from the desk, heading over to nudge the panel
on the machine shut with one booted toe. "Nah, I was just finishing up a
double check on it when you guys came zooming in. It's a quiet night so far.
One broken arm, a yearly exam, and a poisoning."
Niko ahs softly. "Hope you're not too bored," he ventures. "Was the poisoning
intentional, or not?"
"Hmm? Oh, intentional. We reported it to Security as soon as the fellow was
stablized, although he was singularly unhelpful." Clara turns back, lifting
an arm to rest an elbow on the top of the machine. "Are you all right?" she
asks, voice lowering.
Niko inquires, brows lifting, "Why wouldn't I be?" Shoulders lifting briefly,
he adds, "It's been a day, that's all."
You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.
Clara watches you for a moment longer expressionlessly, then shrugs vaguely. "This is true," she agrees mildly, for once rather at a loss for words.
You hear a soft purring noise from... somewhere. Maybe there's a Zaeltan stuck in a wall. But if there is, Riley didn't put it there.
Niko lets the silence remain for a moment, then shakes his head fractionally. "Are you on duty, still?" His gaze snaps back to the wall, then he shakes his head again, dismissing the critter with a flick of his hands.
Clara nods slowly, not moving from her station relaxed against the large machine. "For another couple hours, yeah. I switched shifts tonight so Cooper could take his wife out for their anniversary. Why?"
Niko shakes his head. "No reason. Just wondering. Never mind." Man of the
two-word sentences, that's Niko. He bends down to tie that wayward shoelace
again, doubleknotting it for good measure.
Clara exhales a long sigh, lifting a hand to scrub at her face. "Niko, there is
something obviously going through that curly head of yours, and if you don't
want to tell me, that's okay." She stuffs her hand into her pocket. "But if
you do, I'm a good listener."
A small, adorably cute creature zips into your general vicinity. It makes a
squealing noise, then continues on its way, quickly enough that one would
have to have been looking right at it to see it.
Niko, still hunkered down over his shoe, looks up for a moment. "Yeah, you are," he agrees, suddenly looking rather tired. "Could we go into your office?" He even ignores that adorably cute creature, but that's okay. Zamfir and some panpipes descend from the heavens, and bore it to death.
Clara ignores the pipes from heaven. Anything less than a tent peg doesn't
warrant alarm in Medical. "Sure," she offers gently. "Come on back." She
heads back for her office, waiting at the door.
Clara walks towards the Chief Aleron's Office.
Clara has left.
You walk towards the Chief Aleron's Office.
Chief Aleron's Office
Bright and airy, this fair sized office is far from pretentious, but instead useful. A large wooden desk faces the doorway, a pair of pointillism paintings in soft pastels flanking either side of the wall behind it. A second desk adjoins to the first, branching back from one side, upon which a terminal and keyboard rest. A pair of fairly comfortable chairs face the desk for visitors, wooden with soothing sand colored upholstery. On one side of the door is a simple brass coatrack, and on the other a bit farther down the wall is a full sized synthetic human skeleton. Along the right hand wall, a low couch covered in brown velour looks frighteningly comfortable, graphic print depictions of Stilvani and Edreeni internal anatomy framed neatly above it. Across the room is a single bioscan bed, much like the ones outside, just as the easily cleaned white tile flooring is unchanged.
Contents:
Clara
Obvious exits:
Medical Bay
You walk here from the Medical Bay.
Clara pauses just inside the door to unbutton and pull off her lab coat and
hang it up at the coatrack, then gestures at room. "The couch or the desk?
Whatever's more comfortable for you."
Niko inquires, with a faint grin, "Can I just wander around? Feeling a bit
restless and all."
Clara returns the smile warmly and nods. "Of course you can," she assures,
heading over to perch on the corner of the desk comfortably. "The whole point
is for you to be as comfortable as possible."
Niko prowls around the room a bit, eventually moving up to McCoy in a gesture that almost looks to be the start of a dance. He apparently recognizes that, as a sheepish grin flits across his face. "Okay," he says finally, ignoring a sudden, niggling suspicion. "Well, see, I thought a lot last night about what the Chief said about Underground, and then what you said this afternoon, so I figured I might as well go check it out for myself."
Clara folds her arms, listening with an air of complete attention as she nods.
"Aaah, that explains the clothes, then. Go on..."
Niko says lightly, "The Chief was right. It's, uh, somewhat different when the
uniform isn't keeping people away." He takes McCoy's left hand, lightly
bending the first finger. "There was a little girl, Losi's age, maybe a
little younger. She wasn't quite this thin. Pretty close, though." His
gesture to McCoy clarifies his comparison. He shakes his head slowly.
"Mathraki... we weren't -rich- there, but we got by. People helped each
other."
Clara peers down at the floor soberly, then nods once. "Yeah. Yeah, I saw that
in the clinics I visited," she agrees quietly, then swallows heavily and
looks back up. "It's a difficult situation to understand if you've never been
faced with it."
Niko quite obviously -hasn't- been faced with the situation. "How can this
exist?" he asks quietly. "How can this exist -here-? 'The heart of the
Alliance', but those people..." He shakes his head, finally moving to sit on
the couch. Actually, it's more of a sprawl. "You're right. I don't
understand. And part of me is glad I don't."
Clara slips off the desk to head over and sit on the other side of the couch,
turning to face you seriously. "It can exist -anywhere-, and I wish so much
that it didn't. But everywhere you go, someone is going to be poor. And most
people aren't going to care," she adds gently. "It's not right, and it's
horrifying, but it's reality."
Niko shakes his head once more, raking both hands through his hair. "It's
reality," he agrees. "Yeah. I don't know, I prefer the rose-colored glasses."
He passes a hand across his face, then inquires, "Is the clinic down there
that bad?"
Clara leans back into the corner of the couch, pulling in her knees to her
chest to wrap her arms around them and stare across the room. "Yes. I guess I
can be thankful it's sanitary, but there's no doctors. Just a few nurses and
a doctor that comes around three times a week. The equipment is positively
primitive."
Niko sinks a bit lower into the couch, a faint smile crossing his face.
"Primitive is better than nothing, though. right?" He hesitates a moment,
then asks, "Are you going to try to help?"
Clara glances up at the question, almost surprised by it. "Of course I am," she
replies simply. "I took an oath to help anyone who was suffering. And if I
can do it by running through grant proposals to get them decent equipment and
maybe a doctor on staff, then I will."
Niko says quickly, "I didn't mean to imply... that is..." He shakes his head,
inquiring instead, "Can I... is there anything I can do to help with that? I
know I don't have medical training beyond basic first aid or anything like
that..." He trails off again, rather lamely, concluding softly, "I just keep
seeing Losi in that little girl."
Clara unfolds her legs and leans forward to rest a hand on your forearm,
searching your eyes. "You do help them, Niko. Everytime you help apprehend a
criminal, investigate a robbery, or even just walk through there in uniform,
you keep some little girl safer than she was without you there. We all help
in our own way."
Niko shakes his head, an expression of frustration flickering across his face. "That isn't enough," he says simply. "It'll still be -there-. I know the Chief says it's necessary--" He shakes his head, face giving away the rest for him: he disagrees, despite his unwillingness to say so.
"It's always going to be there," Clara replies softly, leaning back again, eyes sorrowful. "If Addison closed down the Underground, where would those people go? It's a necessary niche in society...but not a pleasant one. You can't make it go away. You can only do your part to help make it more bearable."
You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.
Niko shifts his gaze to yours. "Why is it necessary?" he inquires quietly.
"Life shouldn't be 'more bearable', not for anybody." He gets to his feet,
then, crossing to McCoy once more. "No... never mind," he says, rest an arm
on the skeleton's shoulder and offering a faint smile over his shoulder. "I
don't think you're going to be able to explain--or, rather I won't be able to
understand your explanation."
Clara's lips quirk in a small, apologetic smile as she follows you with her
eyes. "I can't explain, actually. I'm not an athropologist. I deal with the
human soul on an individual basis...not en masse." She shakes her head
slowly. "I agree with you in principle, if that helps? If I didn't, I
wouldn't be a doctor."
Niko nods, running one finger along McCoy's ribs. "Yes," he says finally. "That
helps." He offers a faint smile, then returns to the couch once more. "Thank
you."
Clara inclines her head in acknowledgement. "You're welcome," she replies quietly, leaning sideways against the back of the couch. "I'm sorry you had to realize this," she adds. "Losing the rose glasses...it's painful."
Niko nods, after a moment. "Yes. But I suppose it has to happen sometime." He
summons a smile. "Hey, I had twenty-one... almost twenty-two years. Not bad,
huh?"
Clara returns the smile wistfully, nodding. "Not bad at all, no. Particularly not for someone in our line of work. Think you're going to be okay now?"
Niko nods, after a moment. "Yeah, I think so. Don't think I'm going to write home about it, though." He shakes his head, with a faint smile.
Clara exhales a portion of a small laugh, nodding. "There's some things you
just can't write home about. My family still doesn't understand it in the
slightest. Well...Mother does, but the rest don't." She tilts her head
seriously. "I'll warn you now...it's worse in combat. The civilians
there...well. Never mind all that. Is this what was bothering you at dinner
tonight?"
Niko shakes his head. "I'd not gone down at that point. I was--" He hesitates, then says it. "I was worried about you going there. Before you say anything, I -know- you can take care of yourself, but some of the people down there are... less than pleasant. So I worried. That's all."
Clara exhales a slow breath, leaning back and thinking this over. After a
moment, she nods simply. "Thank you. I appreciate your concern...but you're
right. I can take care of myself...but there's a reason I didn't tell anyone
in Security where I was going. It's easier for a woman to move around by
herself than escorted."
Niko doesn't say anything for a moment, see, sometimes he -thinks- before he
speaks. "I suppose so," he agrees. "And you'll note that I didn't offer to
escort you--figured maybe you'd ask if you wanted that." After a fractional
pause, he adds, speaking slowly and carefully, so much that that accent
almost vanishes, "I wouldn't mind being in the general area, though, if you
go down there again. Just in case. Only if you think it'd be appropriate,
though."
Clara's lips curve in a faint smile, tilting her head slightly to regard you.
"We'll see," she offers. "I do know the importance of having someone guard
your flank, though. I think it just depends how and when I go. I'm sort of
glad now that I didn't go last night."
Niko's head bobs in an emphatic nod. "Somehow, I get the idea that it'd be even
less pleasant down there at night." Yeah, he's not being careful any more,
his speech is back to normal. "Some of the reports that come in..." He shakes
his head, saying only, "Not pretty."
Clara grimaces, dropping her gaze to her hands in her lap. "Yeah, I can guess. I try to be on hand for some of the worse injuries that result, but most of the victims never make it up here, or don't even report for medical care. Or can't." She glances back up. "You guys have a hard job."
Niko nods his agreement, though he seems compelled to admit, "I've not really
seen much of that end of it. The few times that I've worked the late shift,
it's been quiet. And I don't mind saying that I'm extremely grateful for
that."
Clara smiles vaguely, shaking her head. "You've got plenty of time to see all sorts of nastiness. Enjoy the quiet while you can, definitely."
Niko nods very slowly. "I am. Don't worry. Even though I complain about
watching the monitor from time to time, I'd pick that over more...
interesting... work any day of the week."
Clara can't help but let out a low chuckle at that. "I still want a vidscreen in here, except not to monitor the grounds. I never get time for holos anymore, although I guess it's not so bad." She glances up with a small smile. "You sound like you've regained a little equilibrium."
Niko nods, a quick smile crossing his face. "I have, yes," he replies,
gratitude working its way through his tone. "Thank you. Chalk one more on the
list of things for me to make up to you."
Clara's brows quirk up in surprised amusement. "There's a list? I didn't
realize there was anything in the queue even."
Niko nods quite seriously, despite that curve of his lips. His own brows twitching in sympathetic amusement, he says, "I'd better get to work, too, or I'll be backlogged so far that I'll never catch up."
Clara shakes her head in bemused laughter, taken aback. "I can't imagine what
you'd have to catch up on, Niko. You don't owe me anything, really. This kind
of thing is something I'd do for a patient." She pauses, then tilts her head
to smile at you. "In this case, it's something I did for a friend. No return
required."
Niko goes rather still at the use of the dreaded p-word, then relaxes once more
at the addition, smile broadening a bit. "I don't mind the debt, though," he
says, a hint of banter in his voice. "And I can use it as an excuse to carry
you back to the Fruvous or something, so both of us can remember that there's
more to Linnae than all this."
Clara chuckles quietly, wrinkling her nose at you. "I'd let me walk, if I were you. I'm not exactly the tiniest and most delicate of women. Save your back, y'know?" She leans her head against the wall, sighing contentedly. "It -was- nice to forget work for an evening. I really enjoyed that. Thank you."
Niko dismisses your comment about your size with a shake of his head, then smiles at your latter statement. "You're welcome, but you were there, too. It was both of us--well, and the music--that made the evening so enjoyable."
"The music was fantastic, definitely," Clara agrees, gaze going somewhat distant as she pulls up the relavent memories. "A little louder than I remember, but then again, it might just be that I'm older now."
Niko doesn't mention that he found the music's volume at just about the right
level, nor does he mention that, well, he's about six years younger than you
are. Instead of either of those things, he instead says lightly, "We could do
something else next time, if you'd rather."
You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.
Clara is entirely and dismayingly well aware of the age difference, much to her chagrin, but smiles in return, amused. "That depends. Did you want it to be a situation where I wear a uniform or that dress again?"
Oh, that gets a big smile. "Need you ask?" Niko inquires. "That dress... most
definitely. It makes you look even more beautiful. I would very much enjoy
seeing you in it again."
Clara glances to the side in the effort, failed, to hide a laugh. "I'd
completely forgotten the effect of a dress. Well, one like that at least. If
you liked it, I'll wear it again," she decides quietly, casting a somewhat
shy smile back at you.
Niko returns the smile with one rather less shy, and warmly approving. "Good.
Thank you. I look forward to that day with much anticipation." He pauses a
moment, as if calculating, then shakes his head, a flicker of disappointment
crossing his face. "No, I guess it -would- be better to wait til I get back
from the Monoliths. Guido's been telling horror stories," he adds, expression
faintly amused.
"Horror stories?" Clara repeats, eyes widening in faint dismay. "What in the
world has that silly man been saying?"
Niko shakes his head, still looking more amused than anything else. "Nothing
worth repeating. He's exaggerating, anyway, if Kaycen's response can be
believed." Mimicking the older man, he adds, accent mostly disappearing,
"Relax, slick, Guido's just having a little fun."
Clara snickers, pulling her legs back in again to sit tailor fashion. "I do
adore Kaycen. He makes me think that's what a father would be like."
Absently, she glances at her chrono, blinking in surprised before she grins.
"Well, goodness. I got off shift twenty minutes ago. Shame on you for making
me lose track of time," she teases.
Niko puts the back of his hand to his head, then laughs. "My humblest apologies." He never does sound humble when he says that, though. "I'll try not to distract you again, Clara. Promise. And Kaycen's a good guy, yeah. Very reliable, I just wonder if he's got a sense of humor, sometimes."
Clara gives you a patently frustrated look. "Never? Well, bother. I may as well
go flirt with Kramer, for that matter, then," she huffs before a case of
laughter overtakes her. "I'm sure he does, really. Down deep. Really deep.
Okay, maybe not."
Niko looks just a bit startled for a moment, then relaxes into sheepish laughter. "I'll keep looking for it. Ooh, or you could -pun- him." He stifles a snicker. "Poor Kaycen. It'd be amusing for us, at least, watching him."
Clara smirks in return, trying to look innocent. "True, true. I mean, the
beauty of a pun is most certainly in the 'oy' of the beholder," she comments
blandly, then starts to spring to her feet before any couch cushions can be
hurled at her.
Niko does not throw any couch cushions, though he looks sorely tempted, caught as he is between groan and snicker. "That," he decides, "Was horrible. If you and Aspasia ever get in the same room, the rest of us will just have to flee. She doesn't pun," he hastens to add, "But she collects bad jokes."
Clara beams affably, returning to the couch upon seeing it's safe. "Does she now? See, that's just a wonderful hobby. The book the pilots-trainees got me at the Academy was about as painfully bad as it gets. I do adore that book."
Niko shakes his head very slowly. "You -say- that, but you didn't have to
endure endless jokes when she was six." He grins, then, unable to keep from
asking, "What book? Her birthday's coming up soon, and I should likely send
something."
You hear a soft purring noise from... somewhere. Maybe there's a Zaeltan stuck in a wall. But if there is, Riley didn't put it there.
Clara snickers cheerfully, finally unbending enough to unfasten the collar button of her uniform coat and shaking her head. "I didn't have to endure -anyone- at six except myself. '1,001 Example of Bad Galactic Humor'," she supplies. "By Zaphod Brox. I think they found my copy in the Java Quarter."
Niko repeats the title and author under his breath in an apparent attempt to
put it to memory. "I'll have to take a look, see if I can find it. Her
year-mates would hate me, but, hey." He grins roguishly. "That's what big
brothers live for."
"Ah hah!" Clara exclaims, eyes dancing. "I -knew- having siblings was an evil
thing! I'll bet you're a terror too, aren't you?" she accuses with a broad
grin.
Niko's brows lift, his expression both surprised and amused. "I was," he admits. "Gotten out of the habit of it. And of -course- having siblings is evil. It's also wonderful. Depends on what day it is, and who you ask."
Clara leans back in the corner of the couch and folds her arms, grinning. "I'll
just bet. And how long do we have to wait before the real Niko emerges to
terrorize us all here?" she queries, wrinkling her nose. "Just so I can have
the buckets of paint waiting, of course."
Niko shakes his head, expression wryly amused. "Sorry, Clara. That's not likely to happen. That's just got too much potential to get out of hand."
Clara sighs in mock-dismay, shaking her head. "Ah well. I suppose we'll live with the disappointment." She quirks a brow then. "Either that or we'll have to torture it out of you. Let's see...tickling usually works. Threatening great evil in yearly physicals. That sort of thing."
Niko's brows arch slowly, a quick grin crossing his face. "I thought you already promised to be nice to me when it comes time for my physical. Since you're not going to have to hunt me down and all." He doesn't comment on tickling, perhaps in an attempt to change the topic.
Clara blinks, then manages to look put out. "Well, bother...there goes the evil
vicious medic status right out the window. Oh, wait...it's Addison who calls
me that. Well, with good reason, I suppose." She leans her head against the
wall to look up at the ceiling innocently. "I guess we'll have to resort to
tickling."
Niko blinks several times. Okay, that didn't work at all as he planned. "I
would just like it known that I don't want to be held responsible for what
would happen if you tried to tickle me," he says, a quick grin crossing his
face as, apparently, he finds humor in the topic.
Clara consider this for a moment, lips twitching thoughtfully. "I guess you have a point. You're a sight bigger than I am, and most of the other doctors are asleep right now, so I'd have to wait till morning for treatment." She offers a sincerely apologetic look. "Oh, well. Some other time, maybe."
An eerie chittering echoes behind you, "To loh kaaa!"
Niko says quickly, "I wouldn't hurt you, Clara." He pauses a beat. "Well, not
intentionally, anyway." Noting the apology, he looks just a bit puzzled, but
doesn't voice his inquiry.
Clara flashes a grin at you, her tone fond. "I know you wouldn't," she replies,
voice dropping slightly. "You're one of the few gentlemen around nowadays.
Thank you."
Niko smiles in response to that. "You're welcome, but my mother and my
grandmother would be the proper people to thank. My sisters helped, but Mom
and Gigia are the ones who really did the work."
Clara shakes her head slowly, a hint of gentle amusement coloring her tone.
"They may have provided the guidance, but you're the one still carrying out
the attitude. I'd say you easily get as much credit for it as they do at this
point."
Niko chuckles quietly, head bobbing as he acknowledges that. "Well... thank you. I suppose I can share the credit--or blame, however it's phrased. I'll be sure to pass on what you said, though--if you don't mind?"
You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.
Clara waves a hand magnamanously, inclining her head. "Not in the slightest,"
she assures. "Although I can see it now...'Dear Mom, there's this lady doctor
with a horrid sense of humor who thinks I'm a gentleman,'" she recites,
grinning. "I'm teasing you, of course."
Niko stifles a laugh, though a rather sheepish expression crosses his face.
"Uh, no. I don't think that's what I'd say."
Clara gasps, resting a hand over her heart. "Even worse? Alas, I am forlorn,"
she dramatizes, then offers a smile. "Sorry...I'll stop teasing. I guess I
just get silly after a long day."
Niko shakes his head. "You're allowed," he reassures, with a quick smile. He
adds, perhaps a bit slowly, "I just... well, let's just say that your name
would not be unfamiliar to the folks back home." He ducks his head a bit. "I
hope you don't mind."
Clara's eyes widen in green surprise, brows lowering. "Mind? Of course I don't
mind," she replies quietly. "I'm surprised, though. Should I ask what you've
said about me, or would you rather not say?"
Niko's expression suddenly becomes a bit mischievous. "I don't mind in the
slightest. I'll tell you exactly what I said." Then, naturally, he jabbers a
bit in Hellenic, what an obnoxious guy. He ducks, as if anticipating his own
thwap from a cushion, then relents. "That we've talked quite a bit, and, that
we finally went out, and how much I enjoyed myself." He looks as if he's
going to add something else, then hesitates.
Clara does indeed sit forward to tug a cushion out from beneath her with full intentions of whapping you upside the head, but pauses as it makes it to her lap and just stares with a faint half smile. "You said that?" she says softly. "But...it sounds like there's a 'but' in there."
Niko shakes his head. "No but," he says, with a sudden, rather nervous smile.
"I did say that, though, yes. I... I just don't want to embarrass you, that's
all. I also said I thought you were a very special lady, and that I saw the
potential for something really great, provided I don't make too many
mistakes."
Clara stares again for a long moment, color flooding her face unbidden before she finally does drop her eyes, although the smile on her face indicates anything other than dismay. "Oh. Oh, I see." After another moment of quiet, she adds in a quiet voice, "Thank you. That...I appreciate that."
Niko blinks at you for a moment, then makes an odd sound, suspiciously like a stifled laugh. Well, that or he's somehow swallowed a chicken. "You're most welcome," he says finally. "And here I was wondering if I'd be able to get the words out. I -am- sorry. I really should've said them to -you-, before I wrote about you, but... well, they were worried whether I'd be happy here. I want them to know that I am, and seeing as how you're part of that and all..."
Better than swallowing a Denner? Clara peeks back up at the sound, alarmed at
first although her expression softens considerably at the explanation.
"No...no, it's all right. Sometimes it's difficult to communicate your direct
thoughts to the person you've had them about. It's important for your family
to know you're happy and not worry about you, too."
Niko nods his agreement, a flicker of relief crossing his face. "Good. Thank you. I do appreciate that you understand that." Of course, he doesn't specify which 'that' he means, the communication issue or those pertaining to his fmaily, but something about his manner suggests a little of both.
Clara shrugs slightly, still fairly well folded in on herself with her arms about her knees. "It's human nature...both are, I mean." She sighs slightly and glances up at you finally. "You're leaving for the Monoliths...tomorrow?"
Niko shakes his head. "Not til the eleventh." Never mind the date he gave the last time we discussed this, his player's really bad at converting times. And even this may be off. "A few more days yet," he adds, with a quick smile. "I might be a bit more busy, though. I wanted to try and clear out what paperwork I can do, so there's less slack to pick up when I'm gone."
Clara ahs softly, finally letting her legs fall to one side as she leans
against the wall to regard you. "That's not a bad idea at all. I know the
budget reports are going to eat my time alive for the next week or so.
I'm...glad we got to talk tonight, then."
Niko nods at that, the smile crossing his face warm despite the fact that it's quickly replaced by a more pensive look. "Yes. So am I." He offers a hand, adding softly, "Sounds like maybe I should clear out now, though, hm? It's starting to reach an insane hour, and we both have to work in the morning."
Clara reaches out to take the offered hand, slowly climbing to her feet. "It's
long since reached an insane hour, but I don't mind. I'll likely head up
after not too long myself," she adds, glancing briefly at her desk. "Close
down shop here and all."
Niko nods his agreement. He doesn't say anything for a few moments, gaze intent on your face. Then, with a sudden, quicksilver smile, he says, "Just in case I don't get a chance to tell you before I head off to the Monoliths, I'll miss you. And I -will- take care and come back in one piece."
Clara returns the gaze the entire time, a touch of merriment lighting there at the words. "I'll miss you too. And you'd -better- come back in one piece. I don't want to spend our second date in the operating room."
Niko releases your hand, his own lifting almost instinctively towards your cheek before he stops the motion. "Don't worry about that," he says, with a short laugh. "As capable as I'm sure you are, I'm just going to avoid that possibility altogether. The music wasn't -that- loud, after all."
Clara laughs as well, shaking her head. "Matter of opinion." She glances down for a moment, noting, "You don't have to be afraid to touch me, you know. I won't break," in an extremely quiet voice, then clears her throat.
Niko's smile is a bit uncertain. "Well, yes, I know that," he agrees. "I just
don't want to... push."
Clara thinks this over, then nods slowly and reaches forward to squeeze your
hand lightly. "I can understand that," she supplies quietly. "Well. Either
way, you look about ready to drop on your feet, I have to admit. Why don't
you get some sleep?"
Niko glances down towards one foot, lips quirking just a bit. "Sleep. What an excellent idea." He finally does complete that gesture, fingertips lightly brushing against your cheek, then smiles. "Good night, Clara. Sleep well." That smile still very much present, he turns for the door.
"Goodnight," Clara replies quietly, returning the smile even at your touch as
she turns to watch you go. "Sleep well...and watch out for the critters," she
calls.
Niko chuckles quietly, murmuring something best left unheard about music and Denners, and takes his leave.