Post by Charlotte on Jan 15, 2006 2:53:06 GMT -5
"Dr. Tlin...?"
Sadhric slowly glanced to his left. He was leaning back in his chair with his bootheels planted on the edge of some Very Expensive Equipment (VEE) that belonged to one Maltez Buffton.
The man who'd disturbed him eyed the VEE, and the bootheels, but chose not to fight that particular battle just now. Instead, he said, "Dr. Sewe wants you to come help recalibr--"
"I'm busy."
Sadhric was pretty sure this man's name was Yuun. Fairly sure. The guy looked like a Yuun. He was pasty and a bit on the plump side, and he wrung his hands when nervous like a cud-chewing primetime sitcom caricature. Yuuns probably did that.
For the next minute and a half, the possible-Yuun tried to say 'but you're not doing anything' without actually opening his mouth. He wrung his hands. He eyed Sadhric's relaxed posture, as if by doing so he could get Sadhric to notice it, too, and realize that he was doing a few Wrong Things just now. Doing nothing was one of them; being disrespectful of the VEE was another.
This part of Haven was chock-full of VEE, of course, and the researchers who came with the VEE as mandatory accessories--sometimes color-coordinated, maybe-but-not-guaranteed to have self-cleaning and self-maintaining features, but always present as "rustic" accents to an otherwise sterile environment. They seemed to believe that it was their collective job to make damn sure someone was putting the "oratory" in "laboratory," and as such they never shut up.
It was a problem.
Sadhric's habitual methods of cowing his "colleagues" was somewhat countered, here, by the fact that they were a self-righteous bunch who feared the Bufftons more than they feared Sadhric. They seemed to sense on some instinctive level that he could not simply flush them out an airlock when annoyed. That might have worked when the shadow of Batuus had fallen across much of the galaxy, but things were a bit more complicated now.
Yuun was still standing over him. Still wringing his hands.
"You'd better get going," Sadhric prompted, "so that I can get back to work."
"But your console isn't even on!"
"Listen, Yuun--"
"My name's Gillandri, Dr. Tl--"
"Whatever. Stop talking to me and go away right now."
The not-Yuun eventually did. His kind might not have been particularly scared of Sadhric despite his reputation, but they also didn't really know how he fit in to the VEE-accessory hierarchy, here. It left him able to put his bootheels on the consoles when he felt like it.
The truth, though, was that he probably would have gone to recalibrate whatever Sewe needed recalibrated if he hadn't actually been busy. Sewe wasn't as offensive as most VEE-accessories--he amazingly seemed to have a good head on his shoulders in general--and even though there was almost no hour in which Sadhric didn't consider himself to be at work, he might have set a few minutes aside to make himself more practically useful.
It was the nature of his current thoughts that kept him carefully posed lazily right where Haven's eyes could zero in on him if they wished.
He had, after all, become aware of the situation concerning Xaiyla Buffton. Maltez had let her be taken away... and why? Because, ironically, Maltez Buffton gave a shit about his niece.
That was where everything got complicated: Sure, there were a lot of people who probably wanted to crisp a Buffton, but the highest bounties on them came from a very well-known source, and who would have braved Haven's defenses for less than the most that was offered? So, while not certain, there was a good chance that everyone would point their fingers at the Protectorate. Couldn't go too far wrong with that. And if that was where people were looking... what might a man like Maltez Buffton do to get his niece back?
This was a recurring theme. It was his own theme, in a way. And now it was Cato's theme. That Buffton had joined the ranks was a bit of a surprise, but it probably shouldn't have been.
There were other things that should not have been a surprise. For instance: when Cato had said to him I could just give them you, he'd felt the inner twinge, because for some reason he hadn't expected such a thought to even cross the Jedi's mind. Before all of this, he'd have anticipated it, but he'd been dulled somehow over time, or by wishful thinking, or both.
I could just give them you.
Sadhric wondered not if, but how long, it would take Buffton to consider the same option. The man cared about his niece; he had no reason at all to give a damn about Sadhric; The Mechanic's presence on the project here did not even remotely guarantee success of any kind.
And suddenly Haven was seeming very large indeed. Accessories were everywhere, and many of them were armed and alert. Hours ago, it had simply been a place to be wary, that happened to house something he wanted to analyze. In an instant, it had become enemy territory. He'd gone subtly into survival mode, pulling his Lenses out of his pocket where he'd kept them and shelving the problems he'd been working on--hopefully temporarily.
I could just give them you....
Someone was hovering behind him again. "Dr. Tlin--"
I'm busy....
Sadhric slowly glanced to his left. He was leaning back in his chair with his bootheels planted on the edge of some Very Expensive Equipment (VEE) that belonged to one Maltez Buffton.
The man who'd disturbed him eyed the VEE, and the bootheels, but chose not to fight that particular battle just now. Instead, he said, "Dr. Sewe wants you to come help recalibr--"
"I'm busy."
Sadhric was pretty sure this man's name was Yuun. Fairly sure. The guy looked like a Yuun. He was pasty and a bit on the plump side, and he wrung his hands when nervous like a cud-chewing primetime sitcom caricature. Yuuns probably did that.
For the next minute and a half, the possible-Yuun tried to say 'but you're not doing anything' without actually opening his mouth. He wrung his hands. He eyed Sadhric's relaxed posture, as if by doing so he could get Sadhric to notice it, too, and realize that he was doing a few Wrong Things just now. Doing nothing was one of them; being disrespectful of the VEE was another.
This part of Haven was chock-full of VEE, of course, and the researchers who came with the VEE as mandatory accessories--sometimes color-coordinated, maybe-but-not-guaranteed to have self-cleaning and self-maintaining features, but always present as "rustic" accents to an otherwise sterile environment. They seemed to believe that it was their collective job to make damn sure someone was putting the "oratory" in "laboratory," and as such they never shut up.
It was a problem.
Sadhric's habitual methods of cowing his "colleagues" was somewhat countered, here, by the fact that they were a self-righteous bunch who feared the Bufftons more than they feared Sadhric. They seemed to sense on some instinctive level that he could not simply flush them out an airlock when annoyed. That might have worked when the shadow of Batuus had fallen across much of the galaxy, but things were a bit more complicated now.
Yuun was still standing over him. Still wringing his hands.
"You'd better get going," Sadhric prompted, "so that I can get back to work."
"But your console isn't even on!"
"Listen, Yuun--"
"My name's Gillandri, Dr. Tl--"
"Whatever. Stop talking to me and go away right now."
The not-Yuun eventually did. His kind might not have been particularly scared of Sadhric despite his reputation, but they also didn't really know how he fit in to the VEE-accessory hierarchy, here. It left him able to put his bootheels on the consoles when he felt like it.
The truth, though, was that he probably would have gone to recalibrate whatever Sewe needed recalibrated if he hadn't actually been busy. Sewe wasn't as offensive as most VEE-accessories--he amazingly seemed to have a good head on his shoulders in general--and even though there was almost no hour in which Sadhric didn't consider himself to be at work, he might have set a few minutes aside to make himself more practically useful.
It was the nature of his current thoughts that kept him carefully posed lazily right where Haven's eyes could zero in on him if they wished.
He had, after all, become aware of the situation concerning Xaiyla Buffton. Maltez had let her be taken away... and why? Because, ironically, Maltez Buffton gave a shit about his niece.
That was where everything got complicated: Sure, there were a lot of people who probably wanted to crisp a Buffton, but the highest bounties on them came from a very well-known source, and who would have braved Haven's defenses for less than the most that was offered? So, while not certain, there was a good chance that everyone would point their fingers at the Protectorate. Couldn't go too far wrong with that. And if that was where people were looking... what might a man like Maltez Buffton do to get his niece back?
This was a recurring theme. It was his own theme, in a way. And now it was Cato's theme. That Buffton had joined the ranks was a bit of a surprise, but it probably shouldn't have been.
There were other things that should not have been a surprise. For instance: when Cato had said to him I could just give them you, he'd felt the inner twinge, because for some reason he hadn't expected such a thought to even cross the Jedi's mind. Before all of this, he'd have anticipated it, but he'd been dulled somehow over time, or by wishful thinking, or both.
I could just give them you.
Sadhric wondered not if, but how long, it would take Buffton to consider the same option. The man cared about his niece; he had no reason at all to give a damn about Sadhric; The Mechanic's presence on the project here did not even remotely guarantee success of any kind.
And suddenly Haven was seeming very large indeed. Accessories were everywhere, and many of them were armed and alert. Hours ago, it had simply been a place to be wary, that happened to house something he wanted to analyze. In an instant, it had become enemy territory. He'd gone subtly into survival mode, pulling his Lenses out of his pocket where he'd kept them and shelving the problems he'd been working on--hopefully temporarily.
I could just give them you....
Someone was hovering behind him again. "Dr. Tlin--"
I'm busy....