The Open Stacks (Ali)

[Professor Mors]

Sa’ato entertained another period of grueling silence, his gaze unwavering and unchanging as he gathered his thoughts. Admittedly, he had not received quite the answer he expected. Existential weakness encapsulated far more than a sentient's fears. All the same, it was better to have a jumping off point rather than no clear curriculum at all. “Very well”, the Neti spoke at last, “It would seem our first lesson is clear then”. Holding up a finger to encourage patience, the professor rifled through the pockets obscured within his cloak. After a few moments, his long digits curled back into view, with a round blue bulb situated where an average being’s palm ought to be.

“There are two genus of nyxya dates that exist on Barab I”, Sa’ato explained, not that an explanation would make this sudden act less befuddling, “Those that grow in the lowlands are a feature of the local kandak diet”. Without warning, the pointed ends of the Neti’s tendrils lanced straight down into the azure bud, utterly crushing it to bits. “Interestingly”, the professor prattled on, “The other variant, which grows by the planet’s boiling lakes, is known to absorb various natural gasses from its surroundings-”. Pausing, the professor delicately summoned the Force down to his hand, and began to spin the powdery remains of the nyxya polyp about with his thoughts (Alter Flow).

Not giving Aliclair even a moment to digest this strange line of discussion, Sa’ato brought the full weight of his mind, and his essence in the Force, to bear directly at the young woman. Following the sudden spike of psychic threads, the airborne powder splashed gently and comprehensively across the youth’s face. “The local Barabel have found this particular plant matter to have a rather soporific effect”, the Neti revealed at last, watching attentively to see how quickly his new charge would succumb to the impending waves of drowsiness, “But fear not Child, this is no grand deception on my part”.

In the interest of hastening the youth’s slumber, Sa’ato flicked his fingers toward the various lamps in the subterranean cavity, and began to steadily dim lighting (Darkness). All the while, he remained focused on the hybrid, his voice seemingly traveling further and further away as he offered one final comment, “Yes, you need not despair- not yet. We are only just beginning…”

[Aliclair Austjor]

The silence began to stab at Aliclair. Had she said something wrong? Her eyebrows furrowed slightly, into a curious-worried look. Her eyes wavered from the Professor for a second to see which section of the library would interest her first other than the book presented to her but then he began to speak again and her attention snapped back to him, following a blink as a lesson had been put into place without her knowledge. Slightly tilting her head, she scanned the Neti.

It was until he pulled out a plant bulb. The hair on the back of her neck stood and her facial features shifted (danger sense). Slowly, her limbs shifted as he spoke. She got to her feet and placed the chair she'd seated on between the two, her breathing slowly becoming shaky. Despite her calculations, the spores of whatever he released still reached her as she tried to make a run for it. The effects almost instant; fast enough to make her stumble and fall. Ali let out a brief hiss in frustration as she snorted and shook her head, desperately trying to clean her face to no avail. Trembling hands places on the ground before her body felt heavy. Leaning back against the catacomb walls, she flashed Sa'ato a glare with her luminescent opalescent eyes, a bright teal glistening briefly in the dark as she felt herself succumb, and as she shut her eyes, she slipped into unconsciousness.