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You say "Hiya, it's Niko. You busy?" into the communit. [to Clara]
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Hmm? *yawn* Not a bit. Got off shift
n'hour ago. What's up?" in Clara's voice.
You say "I didn't wake you, did I? Sorry. I've just finally gotten around to
shooting that spiked coffee, and was wondering if you were interested in the
results." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "*chuckle* Just napping. Making sure
that stubborn brother of yours gets a little shuteye in. I'm very interested
in the results, actually. What's the deal with the coffee after the jolt?" in
Clara's voice.
You say "He's sleeping? *pause* Okay, I don't see any horsemen." He rattles off
an explanation involving much talk of delta-G and delta-H, and other
obnoxious thermodynamics, concluding, "Long story short, the energy from the
tangler blast just gave the reaction a little more... juice, energy, whatever
you want to call it. I'm afraid a detailed kinetics analysis is a little
beyond me, though." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "*snicker* Hey, he's had a busy couple months." She pauses to listen to the various chemical information, then huhs softly. "Nah, that's okay. If you can ship off that information to my terminal in my office, I can pick up the anatomical testing and analysis from there. Code Charlie-Tango-876-Hotel." in Clara's voice.
You say "Check, I'll fire it off once we're done talking." There's a muffled
snicker. "I think I scared people when I was doing the actual
tangling--including my newest sister. But it was far too much fun. Hey, got
time for another question?" into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and announces "You scared Corian? Evil man,
she's a sweet person. Remind me to not give you a lollipop next time you come
in for an exam. But sure, fire away. What else y'got on your mind?" in
Clara's voice.
You say "No -lollipop-? Cruel, unusual... I didn't -mean- to scare her." He
mumbles something about not -really- having a look of unholy glee while he
was shooting the coffee. "As for the 'what else', Ela seems to think that
there should be a reason I keep breaking myself--even though I haven't,
lately. Something about genetic tendencies and bone friability. I told her
I'd ask you about it--" Even though, from his voice, he doesn't think it's
likely, "--so I'm asking." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and announces "*pause* I haven't seen any signs of diseases that would cause that, or even genetic predispositions. Then again, I haven't been looking specifically for that either. Would you like me to do a scan? I'll need fresh genetic information from you." in Clara's voice.
You say "*maybe a little amused* What, does it go bad? Sure, that sounds good,
though. It'll make her happy, no skin off my nose--unless you've changed the
procedure, somehow." into the communit.
You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Oh, sure. Didn't you know? Now we machete off either your nose or a limb. We need -lots- of genetic material.' Fortunately, she's unable to repress a snicker at that, obviously joking. "Yes, it deteriorates, even in cryo. But a plain ol' everyday blood sample will do. We can grab one tomorrow when I'm back on duty and I'll take it back to my lab-o-rah-to-ree for evil experiments." in Clara's voice.
You say "Sounds like a plan. I'll still be around tomorrow, so that suits, thanks. And I can tell Ela I finally asked." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Still be around tomorrow? Won't you
be after that?" in Clara's voice.
You say "What? Oh... just for a day. Ela and I managed to get the same day off,
so we're going to flee the Complex." And he sounds decidedly thrilled with
this fact, and more than a little anticipatory. "Just for a day, though, then
we'll be back."" into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "That's wonderful! Heck, I'm jealous as
all getout. Where are you taking her? I mean, if it's not impolite for me to
ask." in Clara's voice.
You say "Not at all impolite, though I'd rather you don't tell her. I'm having
a little too much fun with the whole surprise aspect of it all, see. And
we're not actually going far, there's just a spot out near the lake, perfect
for spending a night under the stars. Well, in a tent, of course, thanks to
Kayce." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "You are a sneaky, clever, and
incredibly smart cookie.' Yes, she does sound delighted with your plans. 'You
spoil that woman rotten, you hear? Don't forget stuff to make s'mores. If you
need more camping equipment, let me know? I still have most of mine from
Cannerton." in Clara's voice.
You say "Why thank you--such kind words, coming from a sneaky evil medical type." And he sounds equally thrilled. "I think we're set as far as camping gear goes--most of Security knows what's going on, see, and they're being incredibly helpful. But stuff for s'mores, yeah, I can't forget that. As for spoiling her... I will surely do my best." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "I'm sure you will. This really is a
splendid idea Niko. Have you given her that poem yet, or will this be the
occassion for that?" in Clara's voice.
You say "This is the occasion, yeah. I just hope it'll work." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "Work? It's make her a mushy puddle, is
what it'll do. That armor'll gain about ten coats of Brasso instantly.
*snicker*" in Clara's voice.
You say "*laugh* That's not quite the effect I'm going for--and Kaycen will be
displeased if we have to clean out his tent after--but I think that'll be
close enough." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Oh, sure. Not to mention Brasso
stinks to high heaven. I'd drag the head honcho off for a day of something
similar if I didn't think we'd both get zinged massively by the powers that
be, but that's okay." in Clara's voice.
You say "Maybe when--if--things settle down just a bit? Y'all higher-ups
deserve a vacation as much as the little people do. More so, in fact." into
the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and announces "*raspberry sound* I'm -not- a
higher up, silly. I only rank you by one grade, for that matter. They just
keep me around to do paperwork. But, yeah, you're right. The said higher-up
in question definitely needs a vacation. One not medically enforced." in
Clara's voice.
You say "Hey, you're CMO, and you're certainly here for more than paperwork." There's a pause. "Speaking of other stuff you do well, have you been telling Corian things about me? Or maybe other folks? She asked me about breaking things, and was asking about you, as well. Rather odd." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Huh? I don't...think so? Huh. I
can't really remember discussing you with her. If I did, I'm sure it was
complementary. Maybe Riley said something? I mean, it would be logical to
connect you being broken with my name, since I'd be the one to fix said
breaks." in Clara's voice.
You say "Yeah, I guess. It was just a little odd is all. No big deal, I guess.
She seemed nice enough." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "I may have said something, but I really don't remember if I did, Niko. I tend not to discuss my patients unless I have a good reason to. What did she say?" in Clara's voice.
You say "I don't quite remember. Something about you and subtlety? It wasn't
anything negative," he hastens to add. "It just struck me as odd--made me
wonder why she wanted to know." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and announces "*chuckle* Okay, now that doesn't
surprise me. The one time I really had a chance to talk to her, I'm afraid
subtlety wasn't my strong point. Valentine came along and was
being...obnoxious. I exploded and stalked off. I'm afraid I may have made a
bad impression." in Clara's voice.
You say "Well, she mentioned that she enjoyed chatting with you, so maybe not." There's a muffled snicker. "Heck, I was shooting -coffee-, and didn't make a bad impression on her. I think it takes a lot." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "*snicker* This is true. I mean, she
-did- halfway grow up with Riley. Plus I've found that practially the entire
Edreeni race is phenomenally hard to faze. I enjoyed chatting with her as
well. Either that or she's decided the lot of us are utter loons and is just
riding the waves of madness." in Clara's voice.
You say "*pause* Wait. Wait! You mean we're -not- loons? Then what the heck are
we doing -here-?" into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Sssshhh! We're not supposed to tell
anyone! How do you think you loonybirds got stuck with the resident shrink
being as crazy as a bedbug? Uh-oh...does Ela know? She seems pretty sane..."
in Clara's voice.
You say "She's probably suspected. But, see, she's an Evil Diplomat, so it all
works out." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Ela's evil? Are you sure? She doesn't
seem evil to -me-. She's no more evil than I am, at least.' Gosh, she sounds
innocent when she says that." in Clara's voice.
You say "*muffled acking* If she's as evil as -you- are, I'm in big trouble."
There's a laugh, then he adds, "She said she's evil, so I guess she is.
That'll make Riley happy, at least. He won't have to rearrange his
worldview." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "His worldview?' Yes, she is now giving
the snoozing man in question rather odd looks. 'Riley expected Ela to be
evil? Or would his world view need rearranging if I weren't?" in Clara's
voice.
You say "He didn't -expect- Ela to be different, I guess, but, well, she -does-
live on the fourth floor and all. Y'know, the whole fluffy diplomat
mentality. *snicker* I can't call them that any more, lest she give me a
look." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "*snicker* I daresay I'd give someone
the look if they called me a fluffy too. And it's almost accurate for me. At
least she doesn't have a tail to be trapped in elevators? And you don't have
to rescue her from trees..." in Clara's voice.
You say "No, she's not a Zaeltan. Good thing, too! Those claws are evil." No, he's not thinking that. Okay -now- he is. It's been six minutes. There's an odd little sound that really can't be described, and then he just concludes, "I'm perfectly happy with her the way she is. Yeah."" into the communit.
You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.
Your communit crackles to life and says "*strangled laughter, plus an
inarticulate mutter about fangs* Which is as it should be." Of course, she
says this as soon as she can stop laughing. "Cohabitation would be a real
pain if you had to go saving her from trees on a regular basis. *snicker*" in
Clara's voice.
You say "Yeah. Yeah, and explaining her to gigia--hoo, boy. That would just be
bad." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Would be something I'd hope you'd
record. Or at least get a picture of. Fortunately she's a very pretty human,
so you've no worries." in Clara's voice.
You say "And she's Hellenic, which will please gigia--though, of course, that doesn't matter all that much in the grand scheme of things." There's a pause, then a vaguely nervous, "I just hope it all goes well." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "Goes well?' She sounds vaguely
suspicious, but also highly approving. "Niko Casymed, just what do you have
planned, sir? Although, whatever it is, I'm sure that it should go
swimmingly." in Clara's voice.
You say "What? Oh... I thought I'd told you, sorry." There's a brief pause. "I'm going to ask Ela to marry me. I -think- she'll say yes--otherwise I wouldn't be asking--but there's still that little part of me that keeps popping up with 'what if?'s. Very annoying." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "You...marry...that's -spectacular-! Oh, Niko, that's just the most wonderful thing! Oh, she'll need a thwap on the noggin if she says anything but that! And no, silly, you didn't tell me. But I still think it's a splendid idea. *happy sigh*" in Clara's voice.
You say "*sheepish* Sorry. I forgot everybody doesn't know Hellenic
traditions--matter of fact, it's only exurb that does it, so I'm not really
sure -why- I didn't realize I'd be the only one that knows. But you know
-now-. But please don't tell her, all right? I really do want it to be a
surprise." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and announces "The only exurb that gets married?
Really? Huh. Well, I guess I don't have room to talk. My mother never got
married, and I'm in her footsteps. But you can count on me, my friend. I
won't say a word, not one. Have you gotten her an engagement ring? Or is that
not a custom on Hellas?" in Clara's voice.
You say "*muffled snicker* Uh, no, folks get married all over Hellas, but the tradition I'm talking about is only done in the rural parts--the exurb. See, traditionally the person doing the asking--usually the man--makes a gift for his intended. Can't ever -buy- one, because the significance is that if he's willing to put time and effort in on the gift, then he's willing to put that same effort in on the marriage. And I've got a ring, yes--it was gigia's. It's beautiful, I really hope she likes it." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Ooooh, the poem. Oh, that's a -lovely- tradition. Actually, that wouldn't be a bad tradition to nudge into other societies. Fantastic sentiment behind it. *another happy sigh* I'm sure she'll love it. Oh, Niko, I can't even begin to tell you how happy I am for you. I do hope she says yes. I know she will, but I'll keep my fingers crossed and think happy thoughts." in Clara's voice.
You say "The poem, yup--I've always liked that tradition, too. And I'm glad
you're happy. I sure am, but it's kind of nice to spread around the
happiness, y'know? Share the wealth. Kya seemed pleased, too." into the
communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "*instant chilliness* How nice for
her." Her voice warms quickly again into friendly cheer. "Good think the boss
is asleep, or I'd obscenely cheerful at him and he'd try to hide." in Clara's
voice.
You say "What? Did I say something wrong?" Yup, he noticed that chilliness. He
sounds decidedly uncertain. "And, uh, making Riley hide would be bad, yeah."
into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and announces "*sigh* No, Niko. You didn't. I'm
just not particularly pleased with Private Frondeur at the moment. Let's just
say it'd be best if I crossed neither her nor Valentine's path for quite some
time." in Clara's voice.
You say "Her -and- Valentine? That's kind of a disturbing combination. Anything
I can do to help?" into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "*snort* Keep the two as far apart as possible? I'm utterly convinced that Valentine woman is corrupting Kyara, who is merrily following her down the path to destruction. Problem is, given her status as Riley's ward, it'd be his destruction, not hers." in Clara's voice.
You say "*long pause* Is she aware of this? Not to speek ill of her--" Which means he's going to do just that, "--but Kyara seems like sometimes she can't quite manage to see past the end of her nose." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and announces "I...*sigh* I'm far to angry to
actually be rational about it. Kyara reminds me of myself at about
seventeen...except that I had a drill instructor to pound sense into me." in
Clara's voice.
You say "That's what she could use, really. *wry laugh* We're all too nice
around here." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Tell me about it. Except that I know full well how to be just as military as it gets, and I intend to be with her for quite some time. If nothing else but to keep from picking her up and knocking her silly. I mean, I know I was opinionated and had a superiority complex, but at least I -learned- from my mistakes." in Clara's voice.
You say "Picking her up can be very satisfying. *pause* Well, yeah, but it also sounds like you had help, neh? Sometimes young folks need a kick or two to get 'em moving in the right direction." Of course, he's only a year younger than Kyara. "Well. Maybe it'll help." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and announces "*voice low* Oh, I can kick. Thing is, she's not my ward to kick. Ah, well. Enough about that. A slow temper, I've not. Is Ela off at work at the moment?" in Clara's voice.
You say "No, she's stuck in a meeting. We managed to catch a bit of time
together earlier, though, between training and meetings and guarding that
evil grass. Couldn't even rollerskate. *quiet, amused hmph* I'm going out
tomorrow morning, though, bright and early, so I can practice a bit more."
into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Hey, not a bad idea! Less people
about to run into at least. You have been using the padding, right?" in
Clara's voice.
You say "Uh. Well, no, I haven't." There's a pause. Explanation. He's got one of those in here somewhere.... aha! "It's harder to move around when I'm wearing it, see. Kind of restrictive." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Uh-huh. Tell it to the peanut gallery, mister." Still, she doesn't sound all that surprised. "Just be careful, at least? I know I tell you this all the time, but keeping you folk from getting hurt in the first place is part of my job." in Clara's voice.
You say "Clara, I've had the things for three months and haven't gotten anything beyond a few bruises. I'll be fine, no big deal. But thanks for your concern," he adds, sounding quite sincere. "I do appreciate it. Goodness knows I'd rather be in the appropriate number of pieces." into the communit.
You faintly hear a chime mark the hour.
Your communit crackles to life and says "*laugh* So would Ela, for that matter,
I'd guess." in Clara's voice.
You say "Yup. She's made that very, very clear. *some mumble involving the word
'mom'*" into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Oooh, she'd tell your mother? I knew I liked that girl for some reason. Is she from that little town that you grew up in too? Ela, that is. I figured your mother is." in Clara's voice.
You say "*muffled snicker* No, she's -acting- like my mother, only I'm not
allowed to say that, as it gets me in trouble. And she's from the
mainurb--Hellas City, I think." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Aaah. Know that feeling, definitely. Still, you two do speak the same language, so that has to be comforting. I swear Riley surprised about ten years out of me when he rattled off some French at me, even if it wasn't my dialect." in Clara's voice.
You say "It really is wonderful to not have to worry about Standard, yeah--though I'm pretty comfortable with it by now. *pause* And Riley speaks Hellenic, too--a very little bit, with an... interesting accent, but it was still pretty weird. Guess it makes sense, though. I mean, Corian's a linguist and all, maybe Riley's got the same knack." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "I wouldn't be surprised, actually. He
said he learned French pretty much from old movies. I can understand him, but
I don't think he understands me very well since I don't speak Parisian. I
wonder if their mother is good with languages? I'll have to ask him sometime.
Or her." in Clara's voice.
You say "Yeah, you should. It'd be interesting to know. I'm sure either of them
would tell you, after all--not really an odd question, considering." into the
communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Might make an interesting grounds
for a study, actually, to see if the capacity for linguistics is hereditary
or environmental. I'm lousy at learning languages, but my grandfather's a
crack translator, for example." in Clara's voice.
You say "Hey, yeah! Goodness knows you don't have enough to do here, after all.
*<- teasing tone* Seriously, though, it does sound interesting. This'd be the
place to do it, too, as many multi-lingual people as there must be." into the
communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "*snicker* Gotta have -something- to
do in my spare time. I've taken a couple lessons from the drummer at the
Fruvous, by the way. You were right, he was more than willing. And a few
choice things about women in uniform that I threatened to bop him on the head
with a cymbal for, and then we both cracke up laughing. So, thank you. It was
a wonderful idea." in Clara's voice.
You say "*pause* Wow, that was a long time ago, wasn't it? And you're welcome,
of course. Glad you're having fun. I managed to catch a show a while back,
and got a chance to talk to them after--they really are phenomenally nice
guys, huh?" into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and announces "*quiet laugh* Yeah, it was a long time ago. But that was a fun night," she decides somewhat nostalgically. "And they really are...at least the two I've had a chance to talk to. I'll have to make sure the newest class of cadets grows up knowing all about the Fruvous. Acadmey just wouldn't be the same without it." in Clara's voice.
Your communit crackles to life and says "*snicker* You heard about that? Most
definitely, yes. I can't believe they were dense enough to even attempt the
Underground. We were always threatened vile things if we looked crosseyed at
one of those alleyways." in Clara's voice.
You say "I heard about it, yup. *snicker* Or parts of it, at least. The bit
about the pocket." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and announces "Who knew a man could keep so much
-stuff- in his pockets? But having one's rank about is a handy thing, I'd
think. Thank goodness for being a lowly rank and people not glacing twice if
it's on your collar." in Clara's voice.
You say "You're not even kidding. *laugh* I still get flashbacks to that
evening he loaned me his jacket--with the pips, no less. Talk about lots of
weird looks." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Seriously. *snicker* But, he makes a
good admiral, so he's earned them." Her tone is excessively fond. "Then
again, I sure didn't know his rank back then. He keeps it hidden pretty
well." in Clara's voice.
You say "Yeah. He could be arrogant about it--goodness knows he's got the
right--but he isn't. Makes it a lot easier to work with him that he's laid
back about it, that's for sure." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Or if he were paternal about it, yeah." She sounds terribly amused. "General Conley...he's the head of Fleet Medical. I swear the man treats me and every doctor under forty as if we were recalcitrant children. But it's amusing." in Clara's voice.
You say "*muffled laugh* I can guess it is, I suppose. Kayce is kind of like
that, only in a good way." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and announces "*snicker* Isn't that the truth? Except with Kaycen, I have this nearly irrepressible urge to just go give him the biggest hug and ask him to read me a story. Which would probably make him turn bright red and go find paperwork to do." in Clara's voice.
You say "*snicker* Ah... you might be surprised. I hear he's a wonder with
Addie. *pause* Uh, should I ask why he brings out this urge?" into the
communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "*helpless laughter* Niko, it was a
metaphor. I don't really. He reminds me a little of my great-grandfather is
all, only lots younger." in Clara's voice.
You say "Oh... -oh-. A metaphor. That's a good thing, yeah. And it's even
better that he's younger. Kaycen's old enough to be my father, sure, but it'd
still be kind of tough for him to be your grat-grandfather." into the
communit.
Your communit crackles to life and blares "Oh, yeah definitely. Especially since my great-grandfather is well into his eleventh decade. A sweet man, but about as old as any full-human gets." in Clara's voice.
You say "Wow. That's some longevity." into the communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "Is it? Do people on Hellas not live
that long? Huh. Maybe it's genetic, then. Grandmother's a good fifteen years
younger than he is, and lots meaner. Whups...could you excuse me, Niko? Mail
just came in, and I've got something from the Regulus system I'd like to look
over." in Clara's voice.
You say "Sure, no problem. And I'll get that data to you, and come pester you
sometime tomorrow about the vampire stuff. Have a nice evening." into the
communit.
Your communit crackles to life and says "You too, Niko. Give Ela my best, and
enjoy yourself. Aleron out." in Clara's voice.