Private Golden Beginnings

[Aaaine]

Location: Gaulus; LCFO Unlisted Research Station #3
Time: 2200 Hours

It was always raining here.

Perhaps it was thematic. Some long forgotten deity looking down upon the research being done here at this station with a fury and sadness that could only be matched by the sadness and tears that fell into rain. Maybe one day, the deity would understand the work that was completed, that started here on the edge of the galaxy, would change the galaxy and how it worked forever. There was a deep belief in her soul that the work would be completed, and the balance of power would forever shift.

But to get to that point, they would first need to have a beginning. That start would happen here, on the edge of the galaxy, in a remote part of the world only visited by those that had a reason to be here. A small research station, landing pad room only enough for one shuttle at a time, and a station that stood just two stories tall. It had a complement of eight permanent members, two volunteer subjects, and enough quarters for four visitors at a time. While it certainly wasn’t cozy, it was intimate enough to force those stationed here to interact frequently enough that many of them became friends.

Friendship, however, with the volunteer subjects was much more strictly regulated and, practically, forbidden. What they had agreed to undergo would be considered inhumane by many an outsider, so the thoughts of empathy were ever present in the laboratory technicians minds. But the solution to this was two fold. Firstly, regular check ins done by Aaaine herself helped ground the researchers and remind them of their goals here. Secondly, keeping the volunteers isolated for much of the day led to decreased risk of any sort of emotional response.

It was on one of these frequent visits that Aaaine found herself on. One of the two volunteer spots for the purpose of this station had been filled after many months of checks, balances, and tests finally settled on one candidate. She was here to personally meet with the woman, begin to lay out the procedures in more detail that would befall her, and listen to any and all concerns that would inevitably come forth.

“Dr. Trea'aain'elis?” A soft voice spoke from behind her, snapping the Chiss back to reality. Turning, she was met with the sight of her personal research assistant, Esabii Minet, a Rodian. The smaller of the pair shifted, still not quite used to the pair’s relationship and her ability to interrupt the Chiss’ thought process. “S-01 has been moved to a meeting room on the second floor. You wanted me to remind you when the meeting was read to take place.”

A small smile flashed at the edges of the Chiss’ lips upon hearing Esabii’s words, giving her a curt nod. “Very well, then. Thank you for the update, Esabii.” The smile lingered for a moment longer, while the Chiss turned to the temporary desk that had been set up for her. She began to gather her materials, a simple pad and paper along with a thermos full of pipping hot tea. Once gathered, she turned back to the Rodian, motioning toward the guest quarters open door.

“Lets go change the galaxy, shall we?”

| Cadre | Serenity Qi |​

 

[Serenity Qi]

Italics = then, non-Italics = now
​

Serenity wiped her mouth. Despite the clearly green aesthetic that made her stand out everywhere she went, Serenity still bled red. That blood now coved her hand, ran from her nose and from a split in her lip. Those that were worse off were scrambling to their feet and scurrying away like the vermin they were.

”Your precious little Jedi didn’t come and save you that time ya kark snuffin’ Sithmuncher!” She called after them.

They didn’t look back. Perhaps the sight of a near-feral half-Twi’lek was more than they could stomach right now. Or perhaps it was the three blows to the groin she had given the one of them that still writhed in agony on the ground. “What’s your deal, Sere?” He said, tears dropping to the ground. All vestige of propriety had gone, and he cupped himself with both hands to protect from further blows.

”You boys just blathering on about how wonderful the Jedi are…it’s enough to make me wanna puke,” she said, foot raising to aim at his hands.

“No…no…please not again…why…just because we said some nice things about Jedi?”

“Naw,” she said, looking bored, “Tolek paid me to rough you boys up a bit…this is for being a Jedi-loverboy.”

His eyes grew wide. Her boot struck.

---

This damned fangled get was irritating Serenity to no end. Sure, it was flattering, and compressed her and pushed up there, but it was just…uncomfortable. Why she had and the other volunteer had to wear these things had been made clear, but she didn’t like to wear it.

“Monitoring equipment built in,” they had said.

”Prevented traitorous volunteers from sneaking anything in on their person,” they had reckoned.

Whatever their reason, wearing a blue-green single-seamed figure-hugging breath-constricting…Serenity caught a look in the mirror. “But I do like what it does to my…”

She was finding herself far too attractive in something that was way too uncomfortable. This was unacceptable. As was being locked in this boring room between training and testing sessions. When she had agreed to take part in a risky weapons program, she had imagined a little more weapon and less program.

She fidgeted, this time with the cups that held her chest in place. She had been working on the wires underneath, fraying the ends with the hopes of pulling them out. Two things were about to be accomplished, relaxing the fit of her get-up, and giving her a tool to work with. Finally, her finger felt something not fabric. She picked and pulled, before finally getting purchase on the wire and pulling it forth. One half of her chest relaxed into the fabric a lot more. It was partialy freeing. Her eyes lit up, but it was more for the tool that she now held in her hand. She looked past the wire, and the locked terminal next to her door came into focus.

A smirk formed across her lips. “Finally.”

---

He was choking. He clawed at her hands. Surprisingly, he was able to pull Serenity’s grip from his throat and weasel away. “You are stronger than you look, ‘grats,” she said, before offering him an elbow to the face.

”OW!”

”You said you wanted to talk…so I guess I can spare a minute…start yappin’ stringbean,” she said, before pushing some green wisps of hair away for her face.

”Seriously…you live up to your reputation,” said the skinny Pantoran.

Serenity thought he looked like the runt of his family, or at least from a family of runts. However, she had to admit that the blue skin was kinda fetching. “Get to your point, string…or you walk home with your thing in a sling.”

“We heard rumours about your disposition to those…more blessed…shall we say…”

”Who is we?”

”I have come to offer you…a New Way…”

---

She beamed. The panel had finally started separating from the wall. Fingers squeezed into the gap and she began to tug. She could feel the rough serrations of unfinished metal on the other side, the side that fingers should never touch. One wrong move could slice her fingertips open, but she persisted. So long as she pulled towards herself, and didn’t run her fingers along the edge, she would be fine.

BZZZZZT.

It happened too fast. The door buzzer chimed. She pulled her fingers out. “Arh!” She said quietly. Then she spun around to press her back against the panel in order to cover her handy work. She could feel her fingertips throbbing. She had cu them. Frak.

She folded her hands behind her back, and pointed her fingertips upwards. Even as the door slid open, she could feel that her hands were already filling with the warm ick of blood. If it wasn’t already, it would soon be coating the white floors of her prison cell turned accomodation.

She turned her head towards the door, where he company would be entering any moment. She smiled, warmly, putting on some of that charm she had drilled into her while in the possession of a far too handsy Hutt.

”Why…hello there…come to visit little old me?”

Aaaine

 

[Aaaine]

Location: Gaulus; LCFO Unlisted Research Station #3
Time: 2210 Hours

Their time heading to the volunteer quarters of the research station was not a long one. It was, of course, a small station. The journey did include a quick stop at the security quarters, where a small number of red coats sat around a table on break in between patrols. Thankfully, among that group was Aaaine’s personal guard, Alecari. Upon seeing the pair enter into the break room, he quickly shoved in the last of whatever he was eating before standing to address the Doctor and her assistant.

“Have some need of me? Or have you just come to join us for lunch?” The dark skinned man grinned lightly toward the Chiss, knowing full well that work was calling due to the fact that he hadn’t actually ever seen Aaaine take a break. His words brought the smallest of smiles from Aaaine, nodding toward the man’s service weapon laying against his bunk. “Bring your blaster. We’re going to visit one of our volunteers.”

Upon seeing Alecari nod, Aaaine started toward the door, not yet waiting to see if he would follow. There was little doubt in her mind that now that he had a direction, Alecari would be quick be behind the two scientists. It was Esabii that turned to watch him pack up momentarily before hiring to catch up with the Chiss. In a hushed tone, one that she assumed the man would be unable to hear, she looked up to address Aaaine. “Are we sure that we need Alecari with us? Security, especially one with a blaster, could interfere with us getting truthful answers. People get nervous around weapons, after all.”

They continued to walk, Aaaine giving the Rodian a small nod of acknowledgement of her concerns. She wasn’t wrong about the nervousness that might come from having security for a meeting like this. “I hear and understand your concerns, my dear. However, knowing what little we do about this volunteers..past, I would feel much safer knowing Alecari is nearby.” No other words came from the doctor, signifying the end of the conversation. Esabii had learned to read the Chiss by this point, starting to understand when to start and end conversations, and push on points she wanted to make. This wasn’t one of those times.

By the time the duo made it volunteer quarters, with the security surrounding them turning it more into a cell, Alecari had caught up to them. “Want me to go in with you two? I’ve heard this one can be a..handfull.” His question made Aaaine pause at the security reader, pondering the results of his question would bring. It would provide more security, but Esabii’s concerns rang true in her mind as well. After a momentary pause, she continued to plug in the security, answering him over her shoulder. “Stay outside. We shall call you if needed…and you will know if we need you.”

Security credentials plugged in, the door slid open with a hiss, dark red eyes scanning the room until she saw the green haired woman standing pressed up against the wall. A cocked eyebrow in her direction was her reward for the odd behavior, but no other mention of it was made other than a shrug. “Ms. Qi,” She started, headed toward the center of the room where a table with three chairs sat bolted to the floor. “I’m glad to see you up and about, moving. Keeping yourself active during this time period is a big part of making sure that you stay in tip top shape.”

Aaaine took a seat on one side of the table, with Esabii taking the seat next to her shortly after. She took a few moments to open her holotablet, establish a few tabs, then looked up to where Serenity was standing near the side of the room. “Ms. Qi, if you’d please join us, we have a few forms we’d like to look over with you, as well as a couple of short questions. If you’d please.” She motioned to the chair across from the pair of researchers, clearly expecting the green haired woman to comply.

| Serenity Qi | Cadre |​

 

[Serenity Qi]

Multiple scenarios played out in Serenity’s mind. Most of them left her looking like an utter fool. As such, she found the route of frankness to be the most likely to score her an win in this scenario, even if it were a minor victory.

”Now look here…I was busy trying to break out of this unpadded psych cell…when you up and scared me half to death,” she said, before withdrawing her hands from behind her back in unison with the last few words.

Blood spilled onto the floor with a few specks splashing over her bare feet. She shrugged with a smile.

”Oops,” she said.

She was already at the table, the blood leaving a trail across the floor with regular drops.

“Now that the Loth-cat is out of the bag…could I maybe get some medical attention?”

Aaaine

 

[Aaaine]

Location: Gaulus; LCFO Unlisted Research Station #3
Time: 2210 Hours

The gasp that came from her aid was far more than an reaction that shown on either the face or the body movement of the Chiss scientist. As opposed to her reaction, Esabii had brought her hands up to cover her mouth so no more noises of surprise would manage to escape. Aaaine’s gaze shifted for a moment to look over at the Rodian, shooting a raised eyebrow in her direction before moving back to look disappointingly at the test subject.

“Well now. Isn’t that a disappointing little attempt. Esabii, if you’d please clean our subject up, I’ll begin with the questions while you do so.” It took just a moment for the research assistant to gather herself, shooting the head scientist a nod while the Chiss started to shift through the datapad laid out in front of her. Esabii quickly moved out the room, passing by Alecari who shot her the same raised eyebrow as Aaaine had given earlier. “Something go wrong?” She shook her head as she grabbed the medical bag, quickly turning and heading back into the cell. “Nothing we can’t handle Alecari. Call you if we need you.”

By the time the rodian returned, Aaaine had herself situated. Esabii placed the medbag down next to where Serenity had sat, opening it up to snap on a pair of gloves to keep herself clean. While she took out a cleaning pad and started to attend to the wound, Aaaine’s crimson eyes found themselves staring into the emerald ones of the test subject. “Ms. Qi..” She started, glancing down at the datapad in front of her before looking back up. “You’ve been with us for three weeks now. Outside of the occasional disagreement with the security staff, you haven’t been much trouble.”

Esabii had finished cleaning the wound to her satisfaction, and began to use a small device to stitch the gash near the top of Serenity’s palm. Aaaine continued, glancing down between the datapad and the research assistant turned medic every so often. “Why try this today? In the spirit of honesty. Did you just see an opportunity? Or has this been something you’ve been planning on for a while now.” The stitching tool would sting, something that Esabii had very little sympathy for Serenity for. What she had done was stupid, reckless, and it was up to her, something that plenty of freedoms would be revoked for even attempting. But it was not up to her. Instead, she put effort and energy into fixing this flight risk of patient.

| Serenity Qi | ​

 

[Serenity Qi]

Serenity's emerald lips tightened into a grim line, each prick of the needle sending a jolt of discomfort through her fingertips. She shot the Rodian intermittent glares that spoke volumes of her frustration. If her verdant gaze were lasers, they would have burned through the alien's skull without hesitation. "Pah," she spat, the thread pulling particularly harshly at one point.

Refocusing on the Chiss woman, Serenity fought to push aside the pain and the unsettling sensation of the stitches. "Well, now, Bluey... if I may say so, you possess quite remarkable eyes," she remarked with a playful wink, "never encountered a Chiss before... do all of your kind boast backlit sapphires for peepers?"

Before the scientist could offer any response, Serenity flashed a mischievous grin. "You did ask for honesty... didn't you?"

"Ow," she winced, nearly jerking her hand away from the Rodian's ministrations.

"I grew impatient," she confessed with a resigned sigh, "I grew tired of waiting. Promised a grand weapon, and all I've received thus far is the wire I managed to extract from his confoundingly snug attire we're forced to wear."

Aaaine

 

[Aaaine]

Location: Gaulus; LCFO Unlisted Research Station #3
Time: 2211 Hours

The little comment about her eyes caught the scientist off guard momentarily. Her scarlet red eyes glanced upward from the datapad, a hairless eyebrow raising in turn as she studied the test subject in front of her. The smallest hints of a smile peaked through the chilly demeanor upon being cut off once again, quite enjoying this little game that Serenity seemingly had begun to play.

She definitely seemed quite bored. Perhaps it was time to give her a little something to do. “So because you grew bored of waiting, you decided to try to break out of your cell and do…what exactly? What were you planning on doing the moment you had opened up the door and were free to roam the halls how you pleased?” There was a hint of sarcasm, incredulousness in her voice that only slightly tinted at the end of her words. Despite the cold look that stayed plastered on her face, one that equally mirrored the color of her skin, it seemed as though she was plenty willing to play the game of her subject.

Esabii, for her part, let out a slight huff. She gripped Serenity’s hand a bit tighter, glaring up at her momentarily with those star filled eyes. “Quit your moving, for a moment, please. I’m almost finished and you can go right back to hurting yourself.” True to her word, as the Chiss began to load up something on her holotab, the Rodian finished with the stitching of the wound and began to wrap Serenity’s hand with a clean cloth.

“Let’s do a few things to cure that boredom of yours, then, shall we?” Aaaine spoke again, sharp enough to grab Serenity’s attention fully. A lithe hand slid the datapad over the seated test subject. On the screen, it had the function of what looked to be a children’s memory game. Bright colored boxes, corresponding with flashing, strange symbols that popped on and off the screen. With a snap of her fingers, the screen flashed once, then projected the screen into a 3d space in front of Serenity. “A quick game for you. It’ll help test your hand eye coordination and set a baseline for the day. Match the symbols as they appear to the boxes.” As Serenity would play, the game would continually get faster and faster until it was practically impossible to keep up.

| Serenity Qi |​