Private Lost City of Salacia

[Judah Dashiell]

​

Wild Space | Nirauan

Nirauan. A planet with a mysterious and varied history. Over countless times in the 'verse it had been abandoned for one reason or another. Cities standing tall only to crumble. Scant information on starcharts. Even the University of Sanbra studied the planet extensively to find much of the history wiped away or unknown. Ancient texts and tablets were still studied to this very day, working on piecing together an alphabet for translation.

A place of mystery forgotten by time. Spacers often stopped in. Pirates set up shop every so often. Refugees often tried to set up a civilization but it never took, withering out and never coming to fruition.

During a salvage expedition explorers for Salacia Consolidated stumbled upon the planet and its ruins. From their initial research the planet was quiet and quickly a small city sprang up. The company sponsored the city, building a small duracrete and steel town to support those stopping by. It became an important stop for refueling and processing salvage, allowing crews a chance to leave the vast black landscapes and relax on a lush green planet. One could say it was thriving.

Until crews went missing. Spacers reported no traffic in the area. All communication hails went unanswered.

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

Clipped boots would echo down the corridor of the wing of the University of Selba's School of Xeno-Scientific Study. Dr. Sadie Tabitha Nova had a scowl cutting her features, the loose tendrils of silver, and dark brown hair waving with each purposeful step that brought her closer to Dean Vujen's office. She was livid.

She knew this would happen. She'd warned Patel about the oddities she'd discovered in a tome that detailed something about eclipses, planetary positions, and some sort of cycle that spanned every few years -- or decades, Sadie was still trying to figure out what the numbers were, but she knew that it was something big.

For months she'd stalked Dean Vujen's calendar and followed him from office to office, social gathering, even managed to crash his vacation on Dac to try and convince him to let her go into the field and return to Nirauan. Instead, he sent that insipid Amsa Vae, a former Jedi Archivist from one of the many iterations of Force User organizations. Hell, she could barely keep count on how many made their appearance throughout the known galaxy.

Patel had placed his faith and money on the Force and what Amsa Vae could discover on the planet -- now, three months later all communication had gone dark and among the ground crew was Derek Hawk, one of her students she'd taken under her wing. And if something happened to him, so help her she was going to have Vae's guts for garters!

Upon hearing the brisk, loud footfalls, Dean Vujen's secretary, a delightful young Nautolan who was far too pleasant for her own good, rose from her desk in an attempt to stop Sadie.

"Oh! Doctor Nova! Dean Vujan is currently not --"

"We have an appointment!" Sadie shot back, glaring silver fire at the Nautolan as if daring her to stop her. Which to be honest, she wouldn't' be able to. Doctor Nova had a bit of reputation throughout campus, and needless to say, there was a reason why most of the faculty didn't socialize with her much.

"I don't think you --"

"I just made it!" Nova called out with a tight smile and a forced grin, moving towards the door to activate the doors and swing them open. Who knew if Patel had someone in his office or not, he was about to get an earful from her.

"Vujen, you better have a good explanation for this!"

 

[Judah Dashiell]

|| Sadie Nova ||

"What do you mean vanished?"

Judah leaned forward in his chair, looking around the conference table at each person in attendance. Some shifted uncomfortably in their own seats. Others looked busy or immediately turned to their datapads. A few looked at one another, as if wondering how to proceed from this point on. Seated next to Judah was Chalu , second in command and long-time friend of his. Doing the Mon Calamarian equivalent of clearing his throat, projection on the middle of the conference room changed to Nirauan.

"Vanished. Before us is the New Nirauan Outpost, the structures refurbished by Salacia and put to use by our crews and contractors. According to reports the final communication came last quarter. Crews were scheduled to work on a site in wild space. There's been no sightings of our company owned vessels, no activity on the credcards of our employees. We are flying blind in a sense."

Judah rubbed his temple slightly. Lost. Vanished.

"We just found out?"

"Two days ago yes. Myself and a team have been tracking down the information before us."

"Who else was on planet that we know of?"

"Uh, a Jedi Archivist by the name of Amsa Vae and a student from University of Sanbra. Perhaps a few local spacers, currently unknown in that regard. We will have to continue to pull up records."

"What do the Sanbra people say? Are they sending a crew or is one college kid a lost cause for them?"

"Unknown, they haven't been in contact with us."

"Chalu begin assembling a small all-volunteer crew to go with me to Nirauan. All veterans if possible, you know what I'm looking for. I suggest the rest of you continue to pull from documents to find out what we can from this sector of space. I'll contact the University shortly. I doubt they will have the answers we are looking for."

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

Dean Patel Vujen's Office | University of Selba

If the Dean's office had double doors instead of automatic sensors, odds were that Sadie would have burst through them with all the dramatic flair a woman with her level of irritation could show. Instead, she made due by glaring down daggers at the Rodian in question and his companion, a Chiss researcher who worked closely with Vujen on the school's project pipeline.

"Sadie, I -" The Rodian began, well able to read the fire in the woman's eyes and the twitch at the corner of her jaw. If she had any weapons on her at the time, he'd be worried he might be shot dead at that very moment. Had he the ability to sweat, he would have done so.

Feren, on the other hand, was annoyingly pokerfaced as usual, his red eyes staring at Nova with the chilly indifference his kind were known for. That she came storming in seemed to have no effect on him, merely looking back at his datapad to continue his report.

"Don't Sadie me!" A finger came up to gesture at the Rodian's direction, and her determined stride brought her over towards the desk, the woman's thick, skirts of her calico dress belying the swiftness that she could move. One could say her taste in style was rather traditional; call it her love of bygone era designs. This particular number had a white pleated blouse with tiny pearl buttons and lace on the bodice topped off with a cameo brooch at her throat. Who still wore anything with buttons?

"I told you this would happen! Where are they? Since when have you've lost contact with the team?" it was a barrage of questions, her tongue the weapon she would spear him with today.

Feren, without even looking up from his datapad simply said, "We are presently working with Salacia Consolidated to manage the situation, Doctor Nova. We will provide information as needed and required."

That immediately drew Sadie's attention to the Chiss, her head whipping to glare at him, "Don't try and say that this isn't my concern, Feren. It was my research that started this and both of you know it!" she exclaimed, rearing her attention back to Patel with pointed emphasis.

"I will be part of the investigation team," she told him, her expression daring him to state otherwise.

"Sadie... we need experts for this."

"Are you suggesting that I am not an expert?!" the incredulous tone in her voice suggested he better be careful about what he said next.

"That is not what I am suggesting at all." The Rodian paled a few shades of green. The last thing he needed was a prob into gender discrimination... "Look, let us just discuss things with Salacia Consolidated... we can then come to a reasonable decision on --"

"Patel, I will be going." she narrowed her eyes at him, throwing him the gauntlet. "Or I will break my employment agreement and take all of my research with me."

 

[Judah Dashiell]

[[ Sadie Nova ]]

It took a day to assemble a crew to volunteer to head out for the vanished Salacia employees. Engineers, a geology crew, ex-soldiers and more had all agreed to come and lend their expertise to the search. Not knowing if there were armed pirates in the area, security and investigators were brought along. Judah had the feeling it was going to take some time to actually get to the bottom of the problem.

As it was it was going to be a long trip with plenty of time to study maps, trade routes, last communications and more. He had thoughts on what happened, most of them dark. Slavers, mass graves, disease were just a few on the top of his list.

"Anyone else joining us?"

"The university will be sending someone to meet us. Unsure who. They've been short on information with us. I just hope they don't get in our way."

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

A sharp, authoritative voice cut through the crowd at the far end of the assembling crowd. It had a slightly polished accent to it, almost Imperial, if not for the way it lacked the disagreeable arrogant countenance. No, in its stead lay the firm, if brisk, commanding presence of a professor bringing her students into line.

"Careful with that!" Dr. Sadie Nova exclaimed, the woman rushing to gesture a directive towards a Wookiee university crew member. Her peppered hair was in a thick braid that lay just over her left shoulder. She wore a tan button-up shirt and a tan pair of breaches made more for rugged comfort than for fashion. She had a large, wide-brimed, bantha leather hat that'd seen better days, the well-worn scuff marks a telling tale of its many adventures.

The scene held all the hilarity of a comedy strip, with the shorter woman squaring her shoulders and chiding the Wookiee regarding his haphazard handling of a crate marked as 'fragile'. He'd sat it down far too briskly, enough for the delicate instruments inside to potentially shatter. In response, the woman brought her hands to her hips and said, "This is sensitive equipment! You must not jostle it so lest it is liable to break what is inside."

The Wookiee gave a "Garrraahhhh" growl in response, explaining that he was doing his best but without more help, moving the crates would move slowly. He was only intending to quickly get everything into place.

"Well, then, gather the others to assist you," she answered in turn, gesturing with her right hand. Darting around, she spotted a human male with a blond mop of hair and a Salacia Consolidated patch on his shoulder.

"You there! Come over and assist us with this!"

 

[Judah Dashiell]

Sadie Nova

It had been a monumental task to pull together a volunteer crew on such short notice. Even more monumental was now collecting all the little things that would make their expedition a successful one. Food and dry goods, fuel and spare parts, equipment were all in crates and containers being pushed onto large research freighters. It was a bustling center of activity joined by the University folks - Judah didn't expect to see so many of them. It appeared they had gathered an entire team rather than a handful of employees as expected.

Speaking of employees, his seemed to be dropping like flies. They were on a tight timetable for everything to be loaded and away. Judah began to wander around the hangar, observing who was doing what. As he rounded a corner a University vessel was being loaded - by Salacia employees. While he didnt oppose the using of employees to help the University load up, it was putting his own operations behind.

A woman in breeches(women still wore those?) and worn bantha-leather hat seemed to be directing the fray. If he had to guess it was also the woman who was currently borrowing a good number of workers from his operation. Confident strides towards the mystery woman, a scowl on his face. Who was she to be taking over an entire operation without asking first.

He was close now, hearing her direct where crates should go into the belly of the ship.

"Excuse me, Miss. You're in charge here? I'm going to need my workers back. Salacia has more to load and I'm afraid if we don't get out on schedule it will throw off our entire rescue and search grid. Coordinating with teams across the 'verse hasn't been easy so I assume you can appreciate the timetable we are working on."

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

To be honest, under normal circumstances, Sadie would have been a bit more polite.

However, these were not normal circumstances. The woman already had a bee in her bonnet regarding the entire matter with the original excavation crew, the way the project turned to chaos, and now the investigative and rescue team efforts. Honestly, if blasted Patel had let her do her job in the first place and given her the green light to head the original team, they wouldn't be in this mess, to begin with.

A glower cut her expression, her attention still on the Wookiee and the small group of Salacia employees she'd enlisted on behalf of making sure all of her materials attended to that she missed the inquisitive query from a man to her right.

"Now, you'll need to take these crates and place them orderly like in the cargo hold. Make sure you take a good stock of where they are set," the professor explained to the Salacia employees, only to catch the way the crew straightened at another's approach. Turning her dark head towards Judah's direction, Sadie gave a slight frown that pinched into one of mild irritation. Was this the Salacia foreman out to take her commandeered employee? Likely.

As it was, ambled her way with an easy-going assured pace, with peppered hair that slightly curled over his temples and ears. He had blue eyes, tanned, weathered skin that showed his age - and that he'd aged well, the blasted luck of men - and a thick scruff of hair along his jawline of a maintained beard. Seeing as he was wearing typical spacer clothing and some well worn Salacia Consolidated patches, she figured him to be some sort of supervisor.

With a small wave of her hand gesturing him to come forward, she invited him, "Yes, yes, well, you are no the only one on a timetable, and we are almost done." she replied assuredly with that distinct accent of hers.

"Actually, come here," Sadie immediately instructed, taking charge again in an attempt also to commandeer Judah to the endeavor, much to the shock, amusement, and mild uneasiness of the Salacia employees surrounding them. Not that situational awareness was Sadie's best virtue when she was focused on a particular task. It was her no-nonsense nature that saw that things needed to be done, and well, her tasks were a little more important right now.

"If you could take that end of that crate, then we can finish this up faster, " she told him, gesturing to guide him to the specific crate Sadie selected for him to move. From under that wide, bantha leather brim, those gray eyes would stare at Judah expectantly, the woman very much accustomed to having her way when it came to giving directions and having them done. She had almost two decades of working in education and having to deal with higher-level education administration to expect otherwise.

 

[Judah Dashiell]

The obstacle holding up progress was right in front of him wearing a wide-brimmed bantha leather hat. The woman was tall, hair streaked with white as if trying to defy the dark brown tendrils that snuck out from the woman's hairstyle. Her clothes? Quite interesting to say the least - Outer Rim style but a posh,clipped educated accent. An enigma to be sure.

Judah was about to introduce himself, figuring it was the next logical step in the grand scheme of things. That was until he was being ordered around. Typically he wouldn't mind being bossed around by a woman, a bit of flirting and veiled references were always welcome. However, the woman in front of him was being quite serious. No humor or mirth in her voice. Clipped and business-like, he understood the tone very well. Feeling the eyes of Salacia Consolidated employees on him there was only one path forward - help with the crate.

He honestly didn't mind. What was grating on his nerves was the taking over. Rather than make a scene he was letting the woman fall on her own - probably wise to do with so many in attendance. He wasn't the fly off the handle boss type either way.

"Of course, where are my manners. You can let go of the crate though Miss, I can handle this on my own."

Judah squatted down a bit and grabbed both handles, picking the crate up with a small grunt. Had to remember to use his legs to handle the load. Heavy but then again he was also trying to show off a bit. Beautiful woman coupled with a crowd of others didn't always make for the best decisions upon reflection. Half-way up the ramp he mentally reminded himself to ensure muscle rub was packed in his bag for the trip.

Sadie Nova

 

[Sadie Nova]

"Oh, good, well done!" thee praise was genuine, if somewhat dogmatic. In Sadie's mind, they had to get everything onto the ship as quickly as possible. That blasted Patel didn't provide enough support for the matter, something about funding and the university, and there were not enough sponsors. It was all a bunch of hogwash, and she blatantly told him that he was the one that got them into this situation, to begin with by not listening to her in the first place.

Not that telling him so made much of a difference. He did his best to placate Sadie and nudged her off to help support the project. Patel wasn't about to risk losing her research, and abiding by her whims this time meant that she would be out of his hair, and Sadie would get to do what she wanted to in the first place.

Also, this meant Sadie wouldn't be around to yell at him as much; she was already stressing him out.

Meanwhile, Sadie busied herself with admiring how everyone was doing what she had instructed them to do, and it was going along swimmingly. Nevermind the rather obvious side glances, and murmurs at the rugged, older foreman took the crate and went up the ramp.

"OH! Let me show you where," the Professor immediately called out, rushing up the ramp with that purposeful stride that managed to highlight the curves underneath those breaches.

She managed to step ahead of Judah, gesturing with a lightly tanned hand to follow her inside. It was already a rather hot, humid day, and there were little beads of sweat forming along her brow and temples. A flick of her fingers shoved wayward strands of silver and brown off her eyes, and with that clipped, posh accent, gave a grateful smile and pointed towards the section of the cargo hold the crate Judah held would be sat at.

"Right here," looking rather pleased with herself.

 

[Judah Dashiell]

Gaze fell appreciatively on the breeches-clad backside of the mystery woman in charge. He wondered if this was how she got various people roped into her web, showing off curves in her subtle clothing by changing the gait of her walk. She had found a spot where she had wanted the crate, as if anywhere else in the cargo hold simply would not do. Perhaps it was something important but he doubted it was anything beyond some type of equipment. Equipment Salacia was most likely already bringing in double.

Crate was set down carefully and he straightened, wiping sweat from his temple. Dark blue eyes took her in once again as she inspected the placement of his cargo . Sarcastic comment on his placement started to bubble up but he tamped it down. He didn't know the mystery woman well enough without it coming off as unusually cruel or even odd at this point.

Dark blue gaze took her in once again, this time trying to be a bit more observant of the woman's accessories. Bit of an enigma this one. Clearly used to being in charge and getting her way. Judah figured she was a Department Head or Dean or perhaps on some sort of panel that frequently saw dissertations. Definitely used to tearing the innocent apart limb from limb.

Which made what he was about to say all the more dangerous.

"After we return - if we return - would you like to go on a date? There's a restaurant on Coruscant that I can secure the chef's table at any time, I think you would enjoy it, the menu has a bit of a history lesson with it."

Sadie Nova

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

Well, upon my word...

If there ever was a way of suddenly attracting Sadie's immediate and entire focus, it was with that casual query that Judah found himself under the startled scrutiny of Dr. Sadie Tabitha Nova.

"I beg your pardon?" the well-spoken, the tilt of her voice conveying mild astonishment, body straightening to her full height. Sadie gave a couple of blinks, the query had automatically fallen from her mouth. The odds of any other sapient asking her out on a date were nil to none unless it had something to do with a project, research, or attempt to weasel her way into a field deployment.

The would-be Forman had undoubtedly found a way to silence the Selba professor momentarily, her piercing grey gaze locking into the man's azure orbs to search for some hint that he was trying to pull a fast one on her. Oh, for sure, he was joking?

However, the expression and a few tells she could discern indicated that he was not joking.

Cue the sudden flush of heat on her cheeks. Oh, for goodness sake at your age! she chided herself. When was the last time she went on a date? Eight years ago with that borrish blind date through holo-harmony? She'd immediately deleted her profile at the end of it.

Not that she didn't feel complimented by the matter -- it is just that she'd commandeered him for work, and they were all working towards a greater goal of a search mission.

"I.. well." there was a certain amount of polished fluster in the matter that her hands came together and her fingers interlocked. It was almost adorable if such a word could be described to a woman at her age and profession.

"Forgive me, who are y--" She began as if the remembrance of propriety suddenly came to her. However, behind Judah, that annoying cold-blooded Feren made his appearance. Red eyes, blue skin, proper stick up his ass, the Chiss could stand out anywhere. Her expression immediately switched to one of deadpan aggression. Not directed at Judah, though, but over his shoulder at the Chiss.

"What are you doing here?" she immediately called out, clipped tone and no-nonsense attitude once again rearing its head as if she were priming for a fight. Not that it mattered to Feren, who was staring at his datapad without a single telling expression, bringing his attention to Sadie and then to Judah.

"I must ensure the manifest is complete, Doctor Nova." a small curt nod was then given to Judah.

"I was not aware that you would join the mission, Mr. Dashiell." Feran began, "A pleasure. I see you must have met Dr. Nova, she will be assisting the university project team."

Dashiell? Dashiell who? The feeling of being out of the loop was an annoying sensation. Both of her hands came to rest on her hip.

 

[Judah Dashiell]

Judah knew the timing of asking someone on a date was quite poor. However, being the age he was, striking while the iron was hot so to speak was important. He could easily miss another opportunity to be alone and ask or simply talk himself out of being a bit more forward than he usually was. He regretted putting her on the spot and wasn't looking for an immediate answer - lucky for her they were interrupted.

"Of course Mr.Feran. Having such a large group of my employees missing is concerning for all of us at Salacia Consolidated. The fact that not even one of the vessels has resurfaced makes this particularly concerning. I am sure you and Dr.Nova are equally concerned about your missing university staff."

Turning to see who he now knew as Dr.Nova with her hands on her hips, he smirked a bit. Clearly there was more between Feran and Dr.Nova than first met the eye. Judah didn't suspect ex-lovers but there was a rivalry in there. Perhaps they were coworkers in the same department. Feran beat her out for a position or mere office politics. It would have been a question for a date but since he didn't get an answer it would be a subject for another time hopefully.

"I need to take my employees back and finish loading so we can be underway. It was a pleasure to meet you Dr.Nova. Excuse me Mr.Feran."

As he descended down the ramp there was a quick scattering of those who were trying to watch and see what was going on with the cargo crate and their boss mistaken as foreman. For the rest of the loading it seemed no one wanted to meet his gaze, some nods in his general direction. He had just became the gossip for the duration of the trip.

Sadie Nova

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

One moment, did he say my employees?

A mental tick-tock of dawning realization swept across the university's professor's face, her features punctuated with a wave of mortification. Oh, it wasn't that Sadie wasn't well aware that she had procured Salacia employees for her own interests -- but it was quite another factor when it appeared that the owner of the company came searching for his missing workers and she somehow managed to shanghai him into working as well.

And then asked her for a date!?!

The frustration she felt at Feren was overpowered by the sense of sheer scandalous impropriety. I didn't even introduce myself! No, she went straight to being her authoritative self and making him do what she wanted. Not to mention, the sudden sweep of curious and pointed glances as Mr. Dashiell went descending down the map.

Sadie opened her mouth to say something, only to close it. She closed her eyes, her face twisting in lingering embarrassment as she gave a mental curse, "Damnit!"

Snapping her eyes back open, Sadie's jaw would tighten in determination. A glance at Feren and she also began making her way across the cargo hold and down the ramp, "Feren, we will talk later." she managed to clip out in that well-spoken tone. It insinuated that there was likely a heated conversation, as she was not expecting the Chiss to be here. He better not join the project, she thought to herself, jogging down the ramp to try to catch up to Judah.

"Mr. Dashiell!" her voice called out, her accent highlighting the 'ash' in his surname with distinct inflection. She made a wave of her right hand, gesturing as if to stop him from leaving.

 

[Judah Dashiell]

Work had already resumed as he strode away from the university vessel. Small datapad was in hand as the real foreman went over the specifications for the equipment requested and delivered. Some type of foodstuff had been replaced with a less palatable type but it was the backup foodstuffs in case they became stranded on planet. Small in the grand scheme of things.

"This looks good. Get with Wodar and lets start doing roll call. Make sure we have everyone, I'd like to leave within the next hour. We should be in a good position to do so, looks like we have everything we need."

Handing the datapad back, Judah slowed as the foreman left, turning around to see Dr. Nova waving her hand. He wasn't quite sure why she was keen on stopping him - they both were headed in the same direction he assumed. He also didn't expect a reply about his earlier inquiry which was fine, he could be patient now that the question hung in the air.

"Can I help you again Dr.Nova?"


Sadie Nova

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

Honestly, Sadie had only reacted on instinct in following Judah. Her purposeful stride slowed to a halt until she was a few feet in front of the owner of Salacia Consolidated. A sheepish smile and an upward lift of the brim of her hat revealed her features more, the sun's rays tracing along the smooth line of her jaw and chin.

"Ah, you will have to forgive me. I forgot my manners." she began, extending her hand out towards him. "This is an important project and I admit I have the tendency to become rather focused minded," Sadie explained.

Now that she was standing in front of him, Sadie took the liberty of taking a few seconds to get a good look at him and his accessories. He carried himself in a confidant manner and now it made a little more sense why he'd suggest that he could get a chef's table on Coruscant.

Not that she'd accepted any date of course -- but, just doing the formalities that's all. At least that is what she told herself.

"Doctor Sadie Nova, Professor of Xeno-geoarchaeology at the University of Selba." Sadie realized that she had a reputation of coming off strong and rather authoritarian, so it was likely that his first impression of her wasn't the best.

Then again he had asked her out on a date.

Unless he had been joking about that?

 

[Judah Dashiell]

"No problem. I think all of us are focused on getting to the bottom of the situation. I think usual conventional formalities being forgotten are the least of our worries at this point."

Hand took hers, giving a small squeeze in greeting. The woman had a rather impressive title and it was as she expected - a doctor in her field and Professor for the University. Quite used to getting her way and commanding a group of students was second nature at this point, most likely the reason why it was so natural to control a situation.

"Judah Dashiell, CEO and owner of Salacia Consolidated and Sedna Mining Corporation. Pleased to meet you Doctor."

He flashed a brilliant smile, releasing her hand from his grip. Mirth danced in his eyes.

"So can I help you move any more crates?"

Sadie Nova

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

An amused chuckle came bubbling from Sadie's mouth at the sassy quip regarding crates. Arching one dark brow, she curled her tongue back to the roof of her mouth, clucking it with a distinct, "Tch," as if to indicate, oh, I see what you did there, Mr. Dashiell. Fair play.

Fair play.

Sadie at least had the courtesy of giving a sheepish grin that would mirror the twinkle in Judah's ocean blue gaze.

"Well, if you are offering, I am sure I can come up with some manner of manual labor throughout the trip," she added in that well-mannered accent of hers, giving his hand a firm shake. Oh, she didn't miss the slight squeeze he gave her. Nor would he miss the way her fingers lingered before pulling away.

Oh goodness, he is actually flirting! The thought was a rather titillating revelation. So maybe he wasn't joking about the date.

She wasn't a fresh-faced college student, but she felt complimented none the less. One had to admit, it gave a rush of self-confidence at the rather point-blank query for a date right out of the blue. As if she still had it.

Again, eight years since her last date, so this was definitely an ego booster.

"However, as you so decidedly pointed out, we both have objectives for this particular rescue mission. I have undoubtedly taken advantage of everybody I came across, including your employees," Sadie admitted apologetically. Her head gave a slight cant to the right, provoking stray strands of chestnut and silver alongside her right temple and the corner of her eye. Her hand automatically came up to sweep and tuck them away behind the shell of her ear, knuckles brushing along the leather brim of her hat.

"My apologies. I admit I have a tendency to become tunnel-visioned when it comes to my projects and their completion." her apology was genuine and to the point. No sense in beating around the bush. She must have made some sort of good impression already to make him decide to ask her on a date without even knowing her name and after commandeering his staff without a by-your-leave.

 

[Judah Dashiell]

"Maintaining a certain level of physical activity on such a long outbound flight is important."

A bit of bold flirting but he did just ask the woman out on a date. It seemed he was on the right track or at the very least hadn't offended her - fingers lingered against his hand as she finally drew away. As much as he preferred to see if he was imagining her flirting back or if she was just being generous, their time was currently limited due to the scope and nature of the assignment at hand.

"No harm done, nothing malicious occurred. Very small in the grand scheme of things at the moment."

The older man flashed a boyish grin.

"Speaking of grand scheme, I'm sure we'll be underway soon on separate vessels. Can I trust in an answer to my previous question by the time we land?"

Sadie Nova

 

[Sadie Nova]

|| Judah Dashiell ||

Sadie wasn't sure what to make of this. Indeed, no one had ever been this bold at the University or the Agri and Geological conventions she'd participated before.

With a slight cock of her hip to the right, the Doctor crossed her arms just under her breasts, narrowing her eyes in scrutiny at the Salacia owner. The pink hue across her cheeks highlighted the warm cream of her skin. She hadn't been on any particular field projects in more than a year, so her typical tan had faded. Something that would likely be rectified in this specific mission.

"Can I trust its validity?" she quipped back, staring up from under the brim of her hat, asking outright for clarification. Well, she was never one to mince words. Best to get it all out and not leave any measure of doubt.