Private Lost City of Salacia

[Judah Dashiell]

Sadie Nova

"Bit frightening. My immediate conclusion then is to suspect my crews dead."

Horrific implications if this was the case. Encountering life more advanced then their own did not seem as if it would bode well - what was stopping this advanced life from taking over small sectors? He didn't like the idea of such beings being drunk on power or low on resources, it meant they would come sniffing elsewhere.

"Perimeter sensor, motion detection and the such. I can get someone smarter than myself to check the records and it would be useful while we are out there. Can't be too - "

Judah was cut off by the voices and he looked up, apparently being flagged down already. He waved back in greeting and carefully pushed the wires back into the sensor, shutting the door. He was interested to see what the workers had found - information or a survivor? Electrical equipment was corroded and he wouldn't be surprised the ability to communicate nil.

"Excuse me Doctor Nova,looks as if I am being summoned."

 

[Sadie Nova]

Judah Dashiell

"Well, try not to get too morbid. There have been instances where ancient prison technology was discovered and the archeology crew accidentally found themselves in an oubliette." the woman replied, squinting her eyes at the pair of Salacia employees as they came over.

Wonder what was going on?

Sadie made a gesture with her hands as if indicating that he was free to do what he wanted to do. Of course, that didn't stop her from being nosy. As the Salacia employees came to a stop in front of them, Sadie would cross her arms over her chest. They both waited.

"Sensors have indicated a noticeable surge of power about eight klicks north from here, near the mountain ridgeline. We are planning to send a crew to investigate."

Sadie gave a frown, "Thirteen klicks north? There were no archeological digs planned that far north."

 

[Judah Dashiell]

"Thirteen klicks is further out then any Salacia settlement or building as well. This village is our only presence authorized by the company. Doesn't mean someone couldn't have gotten an itch to act on their own but I would expect a building closer to what is here. From what you've said about the sensors and what Doctor Nova has said about the digs this seems unusual."

Judah looked at the horizon where the power surge had been found.

"Only thing to do is to go check it out. Lets go."

 

[Sadie Nova]

Judah Dashiell

"I will gather my team," Sadie replied upon hearing Judah mention checking the location out. "At the very least Seis and Mise can join me in accompanying you." notice that she did not wait for an invitation; she merely inserted herself into the situation. If Judah had any qualms about it, now would be the best time to voice them.

Would be interesting to see the end results.

As it was, Salacia's employees were not the only ones searching for someone. The familiar, tall, blue, and stoic body of the constant pain in the ass Chiss, Feren was not far. That he'd come himself with other university workers meant he likely had something up his ass regarding the situation.

"Doctor Nova." the deep baritone of his voice only served to irritate Sadie. Pasting a smile on her face she replied. "Feren." a pause. "What are you doing here?"

"Next time be sure to provide to the workers your location should you step away from the party." he told her, his red eyes staring down at her listlessly, before curtly turning towards Judah. "Mr. Dashiel, pardon our interruption."

 

[Judah Dashiell]

[[ Sadie Nova ]]

Now Judah wasn't the type to go alpha male. He was comfortable in his manhood and maleness enough to not push for displays of hypothetical phallus measuring contests. However Feren tended to rub him the wrong way - there was something about the Chiss he didn't trust. Personally Judah suspected the man knew more about the situation with the missing University student more than he let on - why would a department head travel this far out? Unlike himself, Feren was only missing two people - not the hundreds like Salacia was.

"I was speaking to Doctor Nova about starting an endowment for the archaeological department in addition to a scholarship fund for children from agricultural worlds. However, considering your behavior towards her innocent attendance issue I'm wondering if the credits should be placed in a rival University's coffers. If you treat your colleague in such a manner I abhor what the young scholars must endure."

Ocean blue eyes met red, shoulders square.

"Let this be the last time you concern yourself with the whereabouts of Doctor Nova whilst in my company."

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

Needless to say, it was a way to throw the proverbial gauntlet down. Certainly wasn't something Sadie was expecting; from Judah none the less. To be sure, Sadie didn't need a white knight to come to her defense, but there was something provocative about the manner by which Judah gave Feren that tongue lashing.

Dare I say, a turn on? Yes, yes it was.

It took the near entirety of Dr. Nova's concentration and well-educated upbringing to not let a smug expression seep over her features. None the less, even she couldn't help the noticeable upward twitch at the corner of her mouth.

Ooh, would you look at that Feren? Whatever, will you do about that?

The Chiss, of course, would remain stoic. However, there was a noticeable tick along his jawline. He was not happy. Not happy at all.

"My apologies, Mr. Dashiell. It was not my intent to insult. We are merely concerned about Dr. Nova's safety. " He replied, although his words held a faint edge. Twin pairs of red eyes swung over to Sadie, and she merely gave him a genial smile.

"We hope this will not deter your support to the university," he added.

 

[Judah Dashiell]

Safety? More like total control.

Still he plastered on a fake smile. Judah hated playing the bossy-arrogant-rich guy type but had to admit playing the part was necessary at times. This, in his humble opinion, was one of those times. The two Salacia employees who had hailed him down looked between each other, silent and unsure of what to do next. Edge off or gently remind their boss about the power surge several klicks away. Lucky for them, Judah was speaking once again.

"Safety is paramount." A pause. "My support will be evaluated over the next several weeks. There's no need to rush any backing just yet - we are in search of missing lives after all. The team had just informed me of unusual power surges North of here. Do you care to join us? Plenty of room on the transports for more. You may find the trip beneficial in a report back to the University."

Turning to the two employees, he offered a genuine smile.

"Shall we get underway? Probably best to do so while we have good daylight."

 

[Sadie Nova]

It would be a lie to say that Sadie didn't feel particularly self-satisfied at the verbal thrashing Feren received from Judah. Oh no, she practically radiated approval, unable to contain her satisfied smile.

"It would be beneficial for the university to accompany. Let me ensure that my team is ready." Sadie promptly added before Feran decided to toss in his own ideas. This way, if he were to refute them, it would risk Judah's ire more.

A nerve would twitch along the Chiss's jawline, but reading the situation, he gave an incline of his head. "Of course. " a pause, then looking from Judah to Sadie, he decided to add, "Please report to me prior to departure so as to review safety precautions and your plan."

 

[Judah Dashiell]

Report to him? Judah hoped Feren wasn't speaking to himself. Last he had checked he still owned Salacia Consolidated and therefore only reported to himself - well, and the board of directors. Gaze flicked between Sadie and Feren and wondered what had gone on there. Both were too new to one another to ask such a question and thus wouldn't be getting answers soon. Still, he could speculate.

"Salacia is most likely ready to depart, we will be waiting at the vessel. Doctor Nova, Feren."

Judah turned and left with the two employees, crunching through tall grass towards a swift vessel waiting in the short distance. If he squinted he could see security milling around the outside, checking weapons. It appeared someone sounded the alarm so to speak, taking the power surge as a sign of life or activity that would need to be dealt with.

 

[Sadie Nova]

"Thank you, Mr. Dashiell, for the assistance. I will have my team ready as soon as possible." Sadie would reply to Judah, only to turn toward Feran. She knew that his comments about reporting were intended for her and not for the owner of Salacia Consolidated. The man could not handle not being in control of every single facet. Well, at least that was Sadie's assumption. Having Feren provide any indication of what he was thinking or feeling was as likely as the Gree returning and explaining all of their secrets.

"You'll have my report Feren, but there is little time to waste," she told him, already making he way to walk past him and head back towards the University ship.

For once Feren held his tongue, but there was a darkening in his crimson eyes that would indicate he wasn't done yet.

 

[Judah Dashiell]

[[ Sadie Nova ]]

"I appreciate the urgency, Doctor Nova. Mister Feren, I assume we will have time to discuss this on the trip north the ongoings at the University?"

Again, the no nonsense tone of voice was in play. It was tiring if he was being perfectly honest and hoped Feren would bring himself in line within a day or so. Judah didn't see a point in this useless exercise between the two of them and still suspected there was more than met the eye about the Chiss and Doctor Nova. He assumed something academic, someone slighted for a promotion or lead on a research paper. Or perhaps it was two control freaks fighting out for dominance.

"I'll see you shortly."

A curt nod to both before he began his trip back down with the two Salacia employees who were oddly silent beyond sharing looks between one another. Grass crunched beneath their feet for some time before Judah spoke again.

"Make sure we have extra security on hand. Don't want to have more of us disappear or die out in the middle of nowhere."

 

[Sadie Nova]

[[ Judah Dashiell ]]

Was it too soon to continue smiling rather smugly? Likely so, but darn it, it felt good to see Feren get told and unable to say some dry, emotionless quip in turn. The Chiss was already a frigid, stoic pole, but even she could pick up on subtle ticks that hadn't been there before. Did Judah manage to find ways to make the man tick?

Perhaps. It was enough to draw Sadie's interest and if it weren't for the fact that she had some serious questions and investment in finding her student and the rest of the university crew, she just might have drawn up a chair just to see what else would happen next.

Either way, there was little time to spare. Taking point, Sadie made short work of rounding up a group of four other university assistants and crew. It took fifteen minutes, but by then, Sadie returned with a leather satchel on her back, that well-worn leather hat perched upon her head, and a datapad in tow.

" Right. We should be able to take an airspeeder, " she relayed only to give a frown, "Up to a point. There seems to be thick undergrowth for at least a third of the course towards the location, meaning we will have to hike through tricky terrain instead of a drop off."

 

[Judah Dashiell]

[[ Sadie Nova ]]

The Salacia 'camp' was the two vessels set up in a small 'L' shape, security having decided it was best for any attacks - those working on one side of the ship had their backs protected so to speak. Two airspeeders and one two-person speeder were being loaded up. Judah, security and a few people in engineering were planning on heading out with the University crew. Preparations were just finishing up when Doctor Nova and four university assistants were reaching their camp.

"I wasn't aware you knew the terrain so well."

Judah's brows furrowed, wondering if Doctor Nova had just been thorough in her research or if she had been to the planet prior on non-University business. It didn't matter personally but they needed every piece of information at this point.

"Let's go then. We're ready."

Fifteen minutes later they were flying over the landscape, security leading the way in the two-person speeder, scouting out for threats as those in the larger airspeeders followed shortly behind. Wind whipped his longer hair and Judah silently wished for curled hair once again - it seemed once he had turned fully gray his hair had turned more wavy. A small inconvenience compared to what else was going on in the 'verse.

He remained silent, hand on the butt of his blaster just in case. The fact there were power surges made him uneasy - it meant someone was messing with them in his mind.

 

[Sadie Nova]

[[ Judah Dashiell ]]

" Depends on what you mean by thorough," Sadie admitted, her lips twisting in equally in amusement and annoyance. " My initial proposal included my participation in surveying the planet. I did enough preliminary research regarding comparing what I'd found on other sites with this one to give credence to my theories." a sidelong glance of gray eyes went drifting towards the direction where the Chiss had left.

"The university had other ideas." there was a distance twitch at the corner of her right eye. It was clear that this was a rather sore spot for the professor. Indeed, the university instead had gone with a former Jedi Archivist instead of using Sadie would continue to grate on her nerves. Their foolishness resulted in the entire initial research crew's disappearance.

By the time they were on their way, Sadie had settled in beside Judah - only appropriate of course, as she told herself. While the CEO had a hand to his blaster in the event they would need it, Sadie's own smaller Westar was secure right at her hip. Sure, she was an intellectual, but that didn't mean that she was naive or an idiot. There were still several unknowns. While there was no visible wildlife, who knew what else they would find.

Turning towards Judah, and doing her best to wrangle her own peppered hair behind her ears, she called out over the noise of the airspeeder, "So tell me Mr. Dashiell. Is this your first time trapezing around ancient ruins or are you a more experienced venture?"

 

[Judah Dashiell]

[[ Sadie Nova ]]

Sharp blue eyes took in the odd,passing landscape for threats. It was a bit of a blanket statement in his mind though. What did threats look like out here? What qualified as unusual? Clearly he was used to the clear threats such as getting shot at or explosives or even a hostile takeover. These were things that were tangible for him. If he was reading between the lines on some of the overheard conversations, forces here were a little other worldly for his liking. Judah was always skeptical of such things - sure it may exist but it wasn't a world for him. The less he thought of it the better.

Fingers tapped on the blaster, turning his head to Doctor Nova as she started to speak. Her turn of phrase made him smile a bit - curious if she was flirting or he was reading too much into the situation. Most likely reading too much into the situation, he hadn't spoken to many women on a more personal,conversational level in some time. Especially not ones that were single and somewhat interested in the jumble of words leaving his mouth from time to time.

"I don't quite seek out ruins, no. I think there was a time during my stint in the Republic we camped out at some. Couldn't tell you more than that. Most of my adventures are staring down into rock quarry pits or a complete mess of ships. Abandoned space stations. Without having to watch over Makai constantly I've been visiting more exotic locations lately."

Another scan of the landscape.

"Been anywhere interesting recently? Besides here."

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

"Were you enlisted with the Republic?" A dark brow would arch in query, intrigue coloring her gray eyes a molten silver hue. Another tidbit of information regarding the Salacia CEO's history. She'd done her best to try and avoid holonet stalking him too much, but as it was, there was precious little. Well... precious little if one does not count the gossip tabloids during his youth.

As for Judah's inquiry, "As for my own travels," her lips would quirk in wry distaste, "No. The university placed strict covenants on where I am able to travel the past two years. My time was spent in the classroom and the university lab rather than archeological sites." a consequence of the board's decisions -- and perhaps her rather vehement views.

 

[Judah Dashiell]

[[ Sadie Nova ]]

"I was. Young, thought it was the best way off Saleucami. I was a horrible soldier, horrible pilot. Too busy trying to impress girls, hitting up bars and clubs at every free opportunity."

Coruscant had been something interesting for his teenage self. It has also gotten him into a great deal of trouble during the Clockwork Rebellion as well. Judah had been an easy target, a dumb backwater farmkid without a lick of streetsmarts. That was a lifetime ago though and he hadn't look much back since then, especially since Makai had been born. Wasn't much free time to reflect on his poor choices with a Tadpole running around.

"Sounds boring - not even on your free time?"

Judah leaned in closer, grin on his face. He was taking the chance to tease Doctor Nova about her current situation. His first instinct was to ask more but he assumed if she wanted to speak on the subject she would have - teasing was the next best option.

"Doctor, it sounds like you're on probation."

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

Trying to impress girls? Hitting the bars and clubs? That arching brow rose higher. The thought of Dashiell hitting up the Coruscanti bars and clubs was not a sort of image she'd expec--

The scent of cedar, citrus, and mint would waft over Sadie briefly, the open air of the airspeeder and its brisk drive barely letting the masculine aromas tickle her senses. While certainly, Judah wasn't intruding Sadie's personal space, the tilt of his head and the slight incline towards her direction would paint a rather different, if titillating picture.

Is he flirting again?

The internal musing was quickly banished with a sudden grappling of wit. "That depends on one's definition, Mister Dashiell. Probation requires supervision subject to a period of good behavior..." a distinct ladylike snort would escape, "While the university board may seek to constrain me to a particular subject matter -- my behavior -- is subject to debate."

There was a distinct crinkle at the corner of her eyes, briefly flashing silver in scandalous intrigue. "Vacation, of course, is my purview. However, one galactic war after another certainly has made it difficult to plan any travel."

 

[Judah Dashiell]

[[ Sadie Nova ]]

Eyebrow raised and his lips quirked in amusement once again as she spoke about being constrained by the University. The driver of the speeder leaned back slightly, warning them they were approaching the site indicated on the map. Judah quickly acknowledged the man, thanking him before turning back to the good Doctor.

"So you're a bad girl?"

That definitely was flirting. A good natured grin was on his face once again, still leaning in a bit towards Doctor Nova so he didn't have to continuously shout over the noise of wind and speeder engines.

"Indeed the galactic wars do make it difficult. Even if you can get somewhere often times a person may be stuck for an unknown period of time if something breaks off nearby. Not exactly ideal when clients are waiting to speak to you in person. Its been tricky to go anywhere, let alone a vacation. Reminds me I should probably round up the offspring and take one."