Location: The Grand Akari Sleep-'n'-Go
Time: Morning

Built into a tall tower block the 'Grand Akari Sleep-'n'-Go' is a capsule hotel not far from the five-star luxury place that the so-called 'greatest party in the galaxy' took place.  Aside from the foyer and some maintenance areas the whole space is taken up by thousands of tiny 'rooms' barely large enough to lay down in.  Popular for its tremendously low cost the Sleep-'n'-Go's main advantage over many hotels is that the high number of oblong coffin-like rooms have been constructed with a variety of species in mind - large rooms made for Hutts stand alongside smaller ones for Wookiee-sized beings, right down to tiny capsules the right size for Squibs and, if they ever felt the need to visit, Jawas.

Importantly for one resident the rooms can be individually filled with appropriate gases needed to sustain certain species without additional life support.  Dohr Veen's capsule is a standard humanoid-sized affair with a vid screen for entertainment, a couple of small lockers, a cushioned and blanketed floor that served as the bed, and a helium and Dorin gas atmosphere.

Despite its name the Grand Akari Sleep-'n'-Go is typical of its type of hotel, if more conveniently placed than some.  Dozens of such hotels can be found across Det Akari.

Sometime late at night or early in the morning when the party was starting to slow down, Dohr decided he needed sleep. It had been at the same time a terrible, very busy and interesting day. He had a lot to digest and probably hadn't everything sorted out in his mind just yet. Jit seemed busy as ever chatting with a duo of pretty girls at the bar counter, so the Kel Dor decided not to disturb the fixer in his latest attempt to get someone to warm his bed for the rest of the night. Dohr had no doubt the slick Twi'lek would succeed, but whichever way it went, meant really nothing to him. The doctor located Vyn in the dwindling crowd and headed off to his direction while typing a goodbye message to Jit.

Dohr was brief in his words to Mr. Teckla as well since there were a number people lining up to give their thanks to the host for a party well hosted. When it was his turn, the two men exchanged compliments and wishes to meet again soon. With a final nod to the Zeltron , the doctor headed to the lifts and then outside of the hotel. He needed a place to crash since his private clinic was doubtlessly now out of bounds to all civilians, him included. Nodding again his goodbyes to the polite doorman of the five star hotel, Dohr briefly wondered if he could afford to stay there. He quickly dismissed the idea however as he currently was probably not in control of enough funds to do so. A look at the area on the datapad maps saved him the trouble of searching for a cheaper hotel however. Located just four blocks away was a capsule hotel called 'Grand Akari Sleep-'n'-Go'. It would do the trick nicely and for a price he could afford.

Some 35 minutes later, the Kel Dorian doctor had fogged the transparisteel door of the capsule with a touch of a button and waited for the atmosphere to change. There was a nice little indicator in the control pad's screen on the wall giving him the time the operation would take. It apparently took only a quarter of a minute so Dohr could've easily held his breath until the air was breathable to him. But he was paranoid enough to wait until hew saw a green light on both the capsule's system as well as that of his mask. Satisfied with the result, the doctor removed his breathing apparatus and took a long, deep breath. With a smile, he put the mask next to his pillow and undressed the robe, removed his Malaxan FWG-5 from its hidden holder and arranged them both neatly on top of his cane.

Too tired to order anything to eat, Dohr laid his head down and closed his eyes. He had no idea what tomorrow would bring in its wake, but unless Jit or one of the suspected mercenaries contacted him, he would be spending the day at the hotel - resting. His last thought, before falling into the welcoming darkness of sleep, was filled with this ornamental cane. Not the one lying beside him on the bed, but the one in the safekeeping of the Starport Customs. He would have to remember to pick it up before leaving the planet, be it with the group he'd bumped into or not, behind for good.

The night - and part of the morning - passes without particular event.  The soundproofing in the hotel is good for its type so no noises filter in to disturb the good doctor as he slumbers.  The bed is comfortable enough and while the atmosphere tastes a little tinny to Dohr it's familiar enough (and easy enough to breathe) that his stay overnight is relaxing indeed.  Dohr knows that some people in the city completely forego a larger residence and simply rent a capsule in one of these hotels on an ongoing basis.  One month of capsule rent is a great deal cheaper than rent for even a small apartment.

When he awakens it is to the sound of an alarm - just an alarm clock, nothing drastic.  A holographic message informs him that he has two messages waiting and a notice from the hotel staff that he needs to vacate the capsule by the standard check-out time in two hours or arrange for further rent.

It was a bit strange for Dohr to wake up to an alarm clock. During the last year or so either Majara or Dorank had been there to rouse him from his slumber at whatever time he had been needed for whatever reason. It had probably been the first proper full night sleep he'd gotten in a few weeks and he felt really good in the very late morning. Dohr had planned to spend a couple of hours watching the news, taking a long shower and eating a nice breakfast at a nearby cafe. But as he raised his hand to switch on the capsule's built-in screen, he noticed the holo message on his datapad notifying him of two new messages.

The doctor got up onto a seated position and reached out for the datapad. He made a quick mental note the customary notice from the hotel before opening Dorank's message. It was a real surprise to him to even receive one from his former assistant. Dohr had already thought he would never see or hear from the Zabrak again. Jit's subject-line screamed urgency and importance, but if it really was, the fixer would've already called instead of sending a message. It could wait.

Having seen Dorank's message, Dohr called the hotel's recepetion making a reservation for another night in case he would need it and also booked a refreshing unit for some… well.. refreshment. He probably could've found a free one had he gone looking, but the Kel Dor wanted one with an atmospheric replicator and a tub. He knew he had to pay a little extra, but it was well worth it. As soon as he located the refresher on the hotel map, Dohr dressed up, slid the gun into its hidden holster, grabbed his gear, put on the mask and headed out. He would check out Jit's urgent message while enjoying a hot bath.

The message contains no video information.

"Uh, Doc?  Yeah.  It's Dorank.  Look, I wanted to say thanks for everything.  I don't just mean getting outta here, I mean the whole thing.  All the time we worked together.  I learnt a lot.  Gonna make sure I put it to good use.  I'm across the globe now, looking for a place over here to work, I've found a few promising opportunities but - anyway.  That's boring stuff.  I just wanted to say thanks.

"So... thanks.  Take care, Doc.  Dorank out."

Finding a bath proves easy.  Finding a vacant one proves impossible.  The lower levels of the Sleep-'n'-Go, where all the refreshers are, are a hive of activity.  One of the staff is directing people to a bath-house down the street.

"Yes sir, it's quite a place," the pretty pink Twi'lek says to an angry-looking Bothan, "private rooms and plenty of space.  It only opened last week."  She hands him a clear, flexible piece of plastic about the size of a business card with an implanted chip ready for scanning into a normal datapad.  Dohr's seen this before - kind of a cross between a business card and a flier.  He takes it and grumbles, mollified, moving off.

"Thank you sir," the Twi'lek says with the brittle, overly-bright cheerfulness of a customer service person doing her job - and doing it well -  whether she hates it or not.  Then she spies Dohr and turns to him.  "Hello, sir!  Looking for a bath?  We're full up at the moment but if you don't mind heading down the street..."  She leaves the statement hanging, holding out another card.

Dohr watched the frustrated Bothan leave and then moved to talk with the Twi'lek girl. Before he had any time to say anything, the receptionist took the initiative and offered him the same solution as she had to the previous customer. The Kel Dor eyed the girl from behind his goggles for a second or two, he then looked down at himself and made a show of quickly inspecting his clothes for stains. He then turned back to the pink-skinned lady and smiled behind the breather. "Is it really that obvious?" He knew the joke was bad, but Dohr wasn't really looking forward to heading outside for his bath.

The doctor gave the receptionist a second or two to recover from his bad line and accepted the card from her with a nod. "Very well. Just give me the directions, please." But before the girl had time to answer, he had another thought and continued: "Oh and if you would be so kind and recommend a nice cafeteria or restaurant nearby, I would really appreciate it."

He'd planned to postpone reading Jit's message until he was relaxing in a warm bath with a glass of Aldreraanian gold leaf tea in hand. But since that would be delayed at least a little, Dohr felt he should read check it out now instead. He limped to the side to a more private corner and opened the message.

"Directions in the flier, sir, just scan it into your pad," the Twi'lek answers brightly, "and if you want a good café there's the Noon-Day Moon diner not far away.  It's a fine diner place, not a greasy cantina, you know how they like to put on a show about serving food but the best you'll get is half a plate of grease that tastes like everything else there - stale beer and g-strings."  She taps on her datapad and it prints out a strip of plastic with directions and a scan-code for his pad.

She waves politely as he moves off and goes back to handing out fliers.

Off in the corner Dohr finds Jit's message and plays it.  Again there's no visual but the voice is definitely the information broker's.

"My good friend doctor Veen!  I'm terribly sorry to do this to you but I have had a thing or three pop up, disgruntled people, you know how it can be.  If you don't then you're certainly luckier than I am!  So I shall need to disappear for a little while.  Please don't be mad!  Anyway, that group that I was going to introduce you to, I'm afraid you'll need to make the connection on your own.  Take care!"

Jit's message wasn't something Dohr wanted to hear, but being honest to himself he wasn't too surprised. The fixer wasn't really the most stable and trustworthy of people and it wasn't even the first time it had happened even if on the previous occasion the stakes hadn't been quite so high. Walking towards the bathing establishment, Dohr thought about it more and as he reached the door of the place, he'd came to a different conclusion: He was surprised after all. From what Jit had said about the deal he was after, there was a LOT of money changing hands and the Twi'lek would do everything in his power to get his green hands on his cut. No… The only thing that would make Jitt'quin 'Shak even consider giving up such a deal was a real threat to his physical integrity or a bigger deal! The fact that Jit had even bothered to let him know said he wasn't afraid for his life. No, he was after either bigger or easier money. Then again the "disgruntled people" could mean there were some people at his tail after all.
Whatever the case, it wasn't really his problem. Dohr cared, but the Twi'lek was pretty much telling him to keep away. The doctor hadn't sensed any hidden messages or anything wrong in Jit's voice, but then again the digitalization of a voice tended to suck away a huge portion of any emotion in any case. Stepping in, the Kel Dor walked to the end of the queue at the bathhouse's reception. It was a difficult choice for him to make even if the two of had never been true friends. Part of Dohr wanted to be 100% sure of Jit's safety, but a larger part of him - a gut feeling really - said he shouldn't worry about the Twi'lek. The man was like a Corellian Dire-cat, he always landed on his feet no matter how far he fell. Nodding to himself, Dohr Veen moved to the girl behind the counter and paid for two hours of peace in a private room. Jit will be ok.

Enjoying the bath, Dohr recorded a reply to his former assistant. "Thank you for sending me a message, Dorank. I am pleased to hear everything is good with you. And I thank you for your kind words, they really warmed my heart and mean a lot to me. But it is in fact I who should be offering my thanks to you. Without you and… .. .. Without you and Majara, I would never have been able to do my work so well. I probably would not have been able to practice my trade properly at all. Your help, your professional attitude and excellent skills have been invaluable. I am sorry we had to part ways, but I am even more sorry that I did not have the time to give you the reference you deserve. Therefore I have added a few words of the 18 months we worked together in an attached file… But that is all I am afraid. Take care of yourself and live a great life, Dorank. Thank you and may the Force be with you!"

Before sending the message, Dohr spend a good part of an hour writing about Dorank's work at his clinic. He thought it well through and changed his wordings many times until he was satisfied. The doctor made sure his former assistant got the reviews he deserved. It made him chuckle. Back at home he would've hired a nurse with such credentials without a second thought. Dorank had really been that good.

Two hours to the minute after he'd entered the bath-room, a refreshed Dohr Veen stepped out on the street again. He knew exactly what he was going to do, but before he called Mr. Teckla, he needed some breakfast and more tea. With the directions uploaded on his pad, finding Noon-day Moon was really trivial. The cafe was expensive enough to ensure there were always free tables available, so Dohr picked one with some privacy and a good view at the entrance. He then ordered breakfast and fished out his comms unit. He only hoped the Zeltron was already awake, but suspected his worry was in vain. The man hadn't felt like someone who slept late.

Dohr took a sip of his tea and called Vyn Teckla.

Heigren answered on the third ring.  "Hello.  Teckla here."

"Ah. Mr. Teckla. Dohr Veen here. I really hope I am not interrupting anything or did not wake you up by calling so early. If I did, please accept my most sincere apologies." After Heigren response, Dohr continued: "First of all, let me once more thank you for the fabulous party you provided last night. I had surprisingly good time for someone who usually does not enjoy festivities too much."

There was a break to allow the Kel Dor to move into another subject comfortably. "But that is not the sole reason why I am eating up your precious time… I heard something this morning that made me consider again what you said last night about your group looking for people to hire." Dohr Veen did not like to lie and was terrible at it, so he didn't even try to now. "My… hmm… I believe associate is the best word for it as I do not consider him a friend and neither does he me… Jitt'quin 'Shak has informed me of some inconvenience that will inhibit his possibilities to carry on trading with your leader. I have no closer details on this hindrance, but I got the impression it has nothing to do with you and yours."

The doctor made an effort to clear his throat, but even he knew it probably sounded a bit weird coming out through the voice amplifier. "So with the risk of sounding desperate, which I do not consider myself being at the moment, I have decided to take you up on your offer should it still be valid of course. I would be very much interested in having a serious talk with you and your leader and companions about a possibility of me joining your… enterprise."
This message was lightly edited by the GM at 11:04, Thu 05 Dec 2013.

"Of course, of course.  In fact we were just talking about you.  Shame about  Jit.  When are you free over the next few days for an interview?"
This message was last edited by the player at 02:49, Sun 08 Dec 2013.

"In one hour? I am not far away at the moment, so yes, I believe I can make it. Thank you." Dohr put down his comms unit and had a look around without really looking at anything. He hadn't signed any papers yet, but it felt like he was one step closer to leaving Det Akari behind. Soon it would be just another planet on the long list of places he'd been to in the last ten or so years. He knew he was getting ahead of things, but couldn't help it. There wasn't much he would miss on Akari. With Majara dead and Dorank apparently well off, there was no one else he would worry about later on. Jit would manage. He always had.

The doctor finished his breakfast/brunch in peace as he really was in no hurry. Dohr hated being late from agreed meetings however, so he made sure he had enough time to walk to the hotel. He paid for the food and tea, picked up his bag and cane and headed outside. Already it seemed the day had the makings of a better day than the previous one in the air. The Kel Dorian risked a little smile behind his mask started limping towards the hotel.

Signs of low-level unrest are obvious to Dohr as he makes his way through the street.  He has spent a fair percentage of his time in recent months working the Claws so he knows gang trouble when he sees it; the sight of more than the usual amount of gang colours outside the Claws bodes badly for the city.  Still, there's no outright violence so Dohr is fairly sure things could be a hell of a lot worse.

The crowds - not to mention his limp - slow him down.  He knows he's not going to be late, though, so what's the rush?  In time he sees the hotel rising up before him, grand and delightful.

[[ Scene End; stand by for new scene ]]