Zahara

She was a scholar and a drifter with a particular fascination for all things space-related.

The urge to explore everything from Astronomy to Zoological Phenomena of Subeta's six-planet system had been planted in her brain at a very young age. Her mother (a scientist of some small fame working for SAI) had given her a book about the five recently discovered planets ringing Subeta Proper. She'd daydreamed constantly about what it would be like to surf the waters of Azure or watch the two moons rise over Dibbala or slide around and around the rings of Mesaa.

Her mother had named her Zahara, after a word she'd seen in an ancient text left by one of the humans who frequently visited Subeta. The name Zahara primarily meant "flower" or "blossom," with related meanings including "shining," "brilliant," and "radiant". In a similar way, she'd given her gorgeous minion the name of Mystère - "mystery".

Mystère, the small female Aurora Pegasus, looked out for her. She was the voice of reason when Zahara wanted to go chasing some rumor of a new astronomical oddity at 3:00 A.M. She saw to it that no matter what corner of the galaxy they ended up in, she always remembered to eat at least three times a day and brush her teeth before bed. She coordinated with zahara's loyal assistant who kept shop back on Subeta Proper, documenting the giant files of notes she uploaded and submitting her application for continued funding to Subeta University once every six months. Zahara truly appreciated the leading ladies in her life and would even occasionally remember to buy her assistant flowers.

(Though after an incident involving a carnivorous carnation cluster from Knotta, Mystère was pretty good at steering him toward Subeta Proper florists...not ones he just happened to notice on a random Atebus street corner.)

Her current obsession is the study of matter that has been transformed after its journey through a black hole. It's a sketchy area of research...not many are actually bold enough to come to the brink of instant death for the collection of a few particles. Last month, it was the volume of light given off based on the age of a star and next month...who knows? She will research a topic to exhaustion but once she reaches the limitations of time, space and possibility, Zahara moves on. She simply has to be doing something at all times. Her hands, mind and body all need to be active or she starts to feel a little crazy.

Zahara feels the same way about living arrangements. The longest she ever lived in one place was when she rented a condo on Atebus for two months. Her typical accommodations are at a local hotel with good reviews, room service and all the little luxuries life requires for one to truly relax and unwind at the end of the day. Especially when one spends a great deal of time cramped into the cabin of a one-person space ship.

Her current hotel is a rather upscale place on the eastern side of Lapidarian. The prosperous mines there have attracted a small crowd of semi-permanent dwellers that like to bring their families up for the weekend to enjoy the thrill of a space trip. There are giant glass sculptures in the lobby that look like a moving mobile of Subeta's solar system and the swimming pool is so big, it rivals Veta Lake.

Zahara sighs as the warm water falls over his fur like gentle rain. Mystère has to remind him to shampoo all of his fur (especially behind his ears). They order the sampler platter to share and watch Hikei Hour while they're waiting for the food to arrive.

Mystère always gets tired after she eats. Zahara smiles fondly down at her sleeping companion, turning the TV volume to the lowest setting and propping open her laptop. She viewed no less than three new clusters of non-matter (as he's taken to calling it) all in the course of one day of travel. A real breakthrough! Zahara hastily types up the many thoughts and notes that are floating in her head and immediately forwards them on. If she gives herself the chance to actually edit her notes, her fur will be as gray as the ashes of Darkside before she's satisfied enough to let another pair of eyes view the mess that are her thoughts on paper.

Zahara's assistant is excellent at making her gibberish sound intelligible, thank goodness.

Her work done for the day, she winds down by browsing some of her favorite research sites, casually on the lookout for that next burning question that will start her on the path to a new corner of space and a new adventure.