Berries Are Intoxicating

[Benjamin Atlas]

The amount of filth on Coruscant never ceased to amaze him...well at least in the lower levels. The teen smiled as he pulled on his hoodie and pulled up his mask. The teen had been sitting in his apartment healing his wounds from a previous battle, his last contract had burned him good and lured him into a trap. Luckily his telum was spared it could have been bad to have to sit in his apartment for a week, with no credits. The Rapax had grown accustomed to eating fresh prey, he hated having to save their meat for consumption later.

Now that his burns healed he had walked to his apartment door. Upon opening it, the smell of Coruscant hit his nose, he heard conversations of people walking by. The teen had learned to block out the excess noises that were not important to him. He began to walk out of the building and onto the upper Coruscant levels. Benjamin kept his cool as he smelled each person that passed by, each person had a different smell. One person smelt like berries, the smell was intoxicating. The Rapax began to walk faster.

Soon he would reach a empty diner. Upon entering, a single worked would greet him.

"Hello sir, is there any way I could help you tonight." He asked as he leaned over the counter. The teen smiled, the man behind the counter smelled of cherries. But his smell was quickly drowned out by the smell of grease. The Rapax nodded before stepping towards the man, his eyes would glow red. His first instinct was to kill the man, the apex predator held back as he stuffed his hands in his pockets.

"Actually you could. I need to get transport to-" The teen paused and the man looked at him.

"To?" The man would ask.

"It doesn't matter, find me a transport." The teen growled as his telum threatened to flare and shoot out, he held more restraint.

He sat at the counter and waited.

The man walked away. From the back of the kitchen the man yelled.

"Anything you want to eat?"

"Not unless you're on the menu." He would say softly as he looked around.
[member="Jamie Pyne"]

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Coruscant was the biggest, most urbanized planet Jamie had ever set eyes on. Growing up on Naboo she had been an isolated youth, enjoying the rural atmosphere of the rolling plains and marshy swamps, as well as the modest cities, including the crown jewel of Theed. Even a city three times the size of her own home paled in comparison to even a district of Coruscant. The planet was entirely encapsulated by towering structures and skycars as far as the eye could see and even beyond. It was all a bit overwhelming to the young woman.

How anyone gets around here I will never know.

The blonde shuffled her way into a small diner near the financial district of the sector. With her backpack slung over her right shoulder, thumb wrapped around at the top she scanned for an open seat. The small bell attached to the door jingled as it closed with a simple thud. Notably there was nobody at the counter, so the Jedi in training sauntered over to a spot next to a rather unpleasant looking man who looked to be relatively the same height, perhaps an inch or two taller, and slightly heavier than she. Piercing crimson eyes and snowy white hair were a bit of a put off, and so she cast her glance away immediately after their eyes caught one another and a brief smile was offered.

Dropping the pack slightly from shoulder to hand Jamie placed the bag on the floor between her feet as she propped up into the bar height chair and pulled a menu from the small tray just an arms length away, peering down while she waited for the absent wait staff to reappear so that she could order some small sandwich before catching the supply freighter at the spaceport to head to Ryloth to distribute medical and food supplies to a recently devastated village hit by a notorious pirate gang.

[member="Benjamin Atlas"]

 

[Benjamin Atlas]

The Rapax head the bell on the door ring, it was an annoying sound the teen gripped the table, suddenly the smell of Rominaria flowers filled his nose, the smell became stronger as footsteps approached. A woman sat next to him, they shared a glance, it was only for a shirt second. It was enough to intrigue the Rapax, for she said nothing, only a small smile would flash on her face.

The smell of baby powder filled his nose. the cause was that of the Rominaria flower...native to Naboo... This made Benji cough a bit. He glanced over to the woman and was about to say something when the one diner worked reappeared from the kitchen, the smell of berries filled his nose again.

"I'm sorry Mr..." The man trailed off.

"That's not of your concern...." The Rapax said softly, his red eyes keeping their gaze on the man.

"Well anyway, I won't be able to find you a transport if I don't know where you are going." He said as he looked over to the woman.

"How may I help you ma'am?" The human would ask.

Ben growled softly before looking over to the woman.

"Is there a reason you traveled from Naboo to get here...a place that is vast compared to that planet?" The Rapax asked as his crimson eyes gazed into her own eyes.

The smell of baby powder filled his nostrils, even through his mask. He remembered visiting Theed when he was younger, the royal gardens were quite a sight to behold.

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie had seen a number of folks that would fall into the category of rough around the edges during her travels. Some notable locations for those types had been on Bespin, Bastion, and a handful of trade stations. Coruscant would seem to be one more planet to add to that list of oddities. The man sitting beside her looked relatively close in age, though his temper seemed to teeter between controlled and enraged at any given moment. Even in the few seconds she'd been sitting, his words were already enough to put her at unease.

"I--" She started, before her words were interrupted by the man siting beside her. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat to look at him, setting down the menu and withholding her request to the waiter. Her hand pushed back a few lingering strands of hair behind her ear, followed by a small twitch of her nose. "I find it interesting that you know where I was born, despite having sat next to me for less than a minute." She offered that same, warm smile again. She was used to people picking out that she was nobility, given the way she carried herself, her manner of speech, and even the way she both ate and drank sometimes gave her away.

Occasionally she was picked out because of her native accent, however she hadn't said a word to this man prior. "I shall make you a deal. I'll answer your question if you divulge how you came to know where I'm from?"

Her head turned momentarily to the man that had addressed her previously, relaying to him her request. "A glass of water and a Shaak and Cheese sandwich, please."

[member="Benjamin Atlas"]

 

[Benjamin Atlas]

Benjamin waited for the woman to speak, she was obviously uneasy, this made Benji smile. Yet the scent of baby powder still filled his nose. Looking back towards the door, he would notice all the people passing by. They were just cattle...that's what father had called them, and they'd never amount amount to anything. The teen turned his attention back to the woman as she spoke.

She had been intrigued that Benji had known that she was from Naboo before she even spoke. This made the teen laugh just a bit. But he didn't respond right away, he wasn't a beast...well not fully. He let her speak. She had been there less than a minute, surprisingly she said that she'd answer his question if he answered her question. The teen pulled his mask down and looked deep into her eyes, his face suddenly showing a faint smile.

She ordered water and a sandwich, he nearly gagged at the thought of eating food, how repulsive...he was in a diner after all. The teen sighed as he agreed to the woman's terms. He had pulled down his hood to better show his pale skin. He would suggest before starting.

"The smell of the Rominaria Flower lingers on your skin...you've obviously spent a lot of time in Theed for those flowers are native to that planet. Even if you have not been to Naboo in a while, the smell will stick to you like your very own." He smiled as he looked towards the ceiling.

"Of course it's just my keen sense of smell" he winked his red eyes glowing.

"Or were you asking a more specific question?"

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"Well, aren't you ever the knowledgeable one in both plant and fragrance. I wonder though, is that familiarity of Naboo simply happenstance? Or are you well traveled as well?"

The fact that he recognized her birthplace simply by the scent of plant life was rather interesting to the young woman. Not many every day spacers visited Naboo for much other than a stop-over for refueling, let alone spent enough time to recognize the scent of a local plant as it drifted through the air of a diner, clinging to the aura of a patron.

"As for your question, Coruscant, until recently, has been the seat of the One Sith empire, repressed for years upon years, suffering under the weight of tyranny and oppression. After the liberation of the planet by the Alliance, pockets of resistance still remain and stir up trouble for the locals, torching buildings, murdering innocents. Some areas of the lower sectors are in worse shape than others. Some are still homeless and are in need of shelter."

She paused as the waiter returned with her food and water, placing it front of her before asking if she'd need anything else. The blonde quickly shook her head no and lipped the words No Thank You, before the man turned away. Shifting in her seat she took a small, quick bite before turning back to the man beside her. "Fortunately I was able to gather about a dozen temporary shelters, as well as medical supplies and food from home to distribute to those folks."

[member="Benjamin Atlas"]

 

[Benjamin Atlas]

The teen listened as the woman spoke, each word sounded, the woman asked if he was well traveled. The question made him smile. He tilted his head before gazing to the woman.

"Well I do get out a lot...my job often causes me to move around." The Rapax said as he continued to listen to woman as she spoke about what brought her to Coruscant. She spoke about how the One Sith had been the main power on the planet, but after they were defeated by the Galactic Alliance...burned houses...entire families murdered. Many homeless.

The teen watched as the waiter had brought back her food and water. Looking at the Shaak and Cheese, the boy would gag slightly before composing himself again. He then moved his gaze from the food back to the woman.

She continued to speak about the things she had gathered to help the people who have been affected. The teen looked towards the kitchen

He then cleared his throat.

"Very fortunate..." He would start as he looked down at the counter.

He then decided to continue.

"Why help those worthless beggars...they do nothing but sit in filth all day." He said with venom in his voice. The teen had not really cared for the people of lower Coruscant, they were often his bosses...he hated them. He smiled as he began his next sentence.

"Why help anyone but yourself?" He said coldly
[member="Jamie Pyne"]

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie's face reeled back at the sharpness to his words. He was clearly the type that took no interest in those beneath himself.

"Not everyone is born with fortune smiling upon them. Sometimes all people need to do great things is a little help to begin." She shook her head, "Helping others does help myself. It makes the galaxy a better place. A brighter place. A place where compassion and empathy for others can be shared. Perhaps in a few years those who are helped can then in turn help others."

She took another bite of her food, setting down the sandwich and wiping her hands on the napkin.

"If all you look for is the benefit in the moment, you risk throwing away an even greater reward in the future."

For as long as she could remember her family had been humanitarians, traveling from world to world in order to restore some measure of peace or prosperity to suffering people, whether due to war, famine, or disaster. They, as did Jamie, believed that people were generally good and kind, that evil was something that took root only when all other avenues were left abandoned. "People may not always recall the good you do for them every moment of the day, but they will never forget the wrongs you do."

[member="Benjamin Atlas"]