Beach Day

[Joseph Meier]

17th of Saun,

Joseph settled down on the beach again, rolling his head back on his shoulders and letting the sun bathe his face. He always enjoyed the sun. He spent so much time in the darkness that he relished in the light. He was still pale, but he was sure with time and exposure he would be a nicer color soon enough. He'd even taken his blanket to the beach this time, and stripped off his shirt. Scars, thick and netted like he'd been chained to the bars of a wild animal cage, criss-crossed his back and shoulders. Some of them striped his knuckles, rough scrapes on his hips and thick ligature scars on his throat. Joseph stretched out his legs, his shoes off. One foot was bare, wiggling happily in the sand. The other was strapped to an iron cage, and looked malformed. He didn't mind. No one was here on the beach, no one would see him. He figured he could roll his pant legs down before anything came amiss.

He was content here, in peace and quiet and light. Of course he wasn't alone. He was never alone, not anymore. He rested for a little bit, napping in the sun. A half hour later he was up, happily bathing in the sun while his hands worked on a piece of driftwood. A short, sharp little knife whose worn handle looked like it had spent many an hour in his palm, carved away little curls of wood. He worked quietly, thinking. His Harvester was there, in the back of his mind, bored. It struck him that little pleasantries like this didn't mean much to the creature. Ari and Oav always wanted to move. They wanted to destroy, to discover, to figure out. They were curious. Joseph wasn't so eager to leap into this world. He'd spent so much time in cruelty...he wanted to spend sometime adjusting. Living in the light. Eating well.

He looked at the little caricature he'd made. It wasn't good. Decent, but not good. He sighed and spent a few minutes trying to sharpen up Oav's features. The Harvesters were difficult to capture.
'Why are you carving us?'
'You see me every day.'
'It's not very good.'
'No, not good.'


Joseph sighed and tossed the carving a few feet away. "I don't need artistic feedback from a monster." he grumbled, running a hand over his face. "We can do something soon."

[Devin]

On the 17th of Saun Devin decided to take some time off from his job (that consisted of flaunting his wealth and his looks, seducing worshippers and adoring fans and occasionally stealing something) and head to the beach. It was hot – no, it was beyond hot. It was so hot that one ought to invent a new word in order to describe the temperatures, and he was sweating in a very unappealing manner that would most likely displease his chosen Immortal and that he thus needed to do something about. There was no better way to cool off a little than to jump right into the ocean and swim a bit!

Once he had arrived on the beach, he dumped his things (a sunshade, a basket with food and drinks and a blanket) on the ground and began to strip. He couldn’t wait to finally get out of his clothes. First, he kicked off his shoes, and then he pulled his fine violet shirt that was the exact shade of his eyes over his head. He was just about to take his pants off as well when he noticed that he was not alone. He stopped for a moment and looked at the man that sat on the beach, carving, and then he shrugged his shoulders and finished taking his pants off so that he stood there in nothing but a pair of very short violet shorts, ran towards the surf, past Joseph – and stopped abruptly as he noticed something.

Or rather, a couple of somethings. The man was short, more than a foot shorter than him which made him almost absurdly short, he was covered in scars, and he had a most peculiar device on his leg. Since Devin considered tact to be overrated, he positioned himself right in front of Joseph, smiled brilliantly, pointed at said device and wanted to know, “Why do you have a cage on your leg? Is your leg possessed? Are you trying to keep it from hurting you? I once heard a story about a man whose hand was possessed and constantly tried to choke him. He ended up hacking it off with an axe. Have you ever thought about hacking your leg off? I’m not suggesting that you should do it because being possessed can occasionally be fun as well, but if you decide to do it, I can procure a really nice prosthetic for you!”

“I can procure a lot of things for you!”

[Joseph Meier]

Joseph noticed the noises a little down the way from himself and watched the other man. Unlike Joseph he'd actually come prepared. He had more than just a blanket. He had a shade, he had food and drink, he even had a damn shade for himself. That, really, was the proper way to visit the ocean. In complete comfort. Joseph had just taken it for granted that he might have to suffer a bit of hunger, thirst, or sunburn in exchange for being near the water and basking in the light. He had to admit watching the other man strip down was distracting as well. What he would give to run around like that with reckless abandon. He had to sit down to take his pants off, or risk falling over and having near-blackouts from the pain his leg would punish him with. That...and the little violet shorts standing out against the beige and blue around them were utterly distracting. His cheeks reddened a bit and he turned his attention back to his carving. He'd spend a little more time here, then focus on where he was going to stay.

There were little paf-paf noises in the sand as the other ran toward the water. Another pang of jealousy hit Joseph. Running, and swimming. Gods, to swim. To immerse himself in that cool salty water and let the icy fingers massage all of the pain out of his leg. He wasn't a fool, though. Death waited in those seductive waters for a man like him. Light, skinny, and with a leg that might as well have been an anchor. He was so lost in his little moments of jealousy that he just now noticed the other was staring at him. Or more specifically, at the thing preventing him from swimming. Anger surged, hot and heavy in his throat. He yanked his leg away from the other man and hurriedly pulled down his pant leg. The harassment of being caught out as a cripple didn't compare to the nasty look he was giving the other. Joseph wasn't particularly intimidating in a physical way, but he'd perfected his glare. He knew just how to communicate pointed 'fuck off' looks.

Unfortunately it didn't seem to deter the other. "What...in the hell..." Joseph summoned up a growl. "...do you think it is? It's a brace, you blithering idiot. It lets me walk. I'm not about to chop it off. I don't need any more pitying looks from morons like yourself. If you dare treat me like a beggar, I'll put this knife in your eye. Or do something worse." Now that he actually knew how to do something worse, the idea that his threat might have meaning was comforting. So many people underestimated him. Well, with the Harvester that would stop entirely. "Why are you bugging me? Go swim. Since you can." He could have kicked himself for the sour bitterness that entered his tone. Joseph had nothing if not his pride. He never wanted people to pity him. He never wanted to appear weak. He'd grown up in a hailstorm of violence and abuse; that sort of behavior could get someone killed. Or draw unnecessary attention.

"Speech"

[Devin]

As Joseph gave him a nasty look, Devin’s smile widened even more, if such a thing was at all possible. He instantly plopped down next to the man, as if he had just invited him to sit with him rather than trying to make him go away, yelping slightly as he did so because the sand was hot and burnt his bare skin in a most unpleasant fashion. He’d just found something interesting, something that was just as interesting as the ocean that extended seemingly endlessly in front of him and tempted him with its cool waves.

“You know that I’ve already seen your leg, right?” he asked and raised an eyebrow. “So there’s no point in covering it now. You might as well be comfortable. I know that the thing on your leg is a brace, by the way, but braces are boring. Possessed legs are much more exciting. As for pity”, he continued. “I’m afraid that you won’t be getting any from me. I’m not good at pitying people, and I won’t treat you like a beggar either. I don’t care how crippled you are, and I won’t give you any money just because you have a bad leg.”

He flashed him another brilliant smile, took a deep breath and eyed the knife in Joseph’s hand with interest for a moment before he proclaimed, “I’m afraid that I have to decline that offer. I’d like to keep my eyes even though they’ve mutated. They used to be brown before that adventure in the Sweetwine Woods, you know? As for going swimming, do you know that you can swim without legs?” he asked.

“You really only need your arms. Back when I lived in Andaris, I knew a girl that was paralyzed from the waist down. She was one of the fastest swimmers I knew. I even tried it myself once. It’s surprisingly easy. I’d suggest that you take the brace off beforehand though. It looks like it weighs a fair bit, and you don’t need it in the water anyway.”

He eyed Joseph’s leg appraisingly for a moment before he asked, his eyes shimmering brightly with curiosity, “So how did you become a cripple? Were you born that way, or did you have an accident?”

“I can do something worse as well, by the way”, he added, remembering Joseph’s threat that he found rather fascinating, to be honest. “I’ll tell you what it is if you tell me as well!”

[Joseph Meier]

Great. His hostility seemed to be having the opposite affect, but....he appreciated the words. He never liked people who pitied him, either for his height, his weight, or his leg. He lifted his chin and regarded Devin. He still didn't like that even when both of them were sitting, the other man was taller than he was. Joseph was two inches under five feet, and he'd never forgive the rotten corpse that had prevented him from growing those last two inches. He threw his chin sharply to the left, popping his slender neck. "Good. I hate men who pity me." he said. He returned to his carving, flicking away little curls of wood as he tried to bring out Oav's face in the driftwood. It was difficult getting those hollow eye sockets just right, and the strange mouth that looked too large for his small, sharp teeth. They weren't pointed, but rather like chisels themselves; flat with sharp edges. It was hard. He had to dig the blade of the knife in just so, and flick away the little chunk of wood without splintering it. Like felling the worlds smallest tree.

Of course, the other was still talking. He eyed him. "I can't swim." he said sharply. "And I don't take the brace off." He could take it off, but he was afraid of the consequences. Without the iron cage keeping his leg straight, the muscles got confused. Spasms would curl up his calves and seize his knee and thigh. If it got bad enough it would go up his spine. "I don't feel like drowning...no matter how hot it is. What, you'd teach me?" he snorted incredulously at the idea. Him flailing around in salt water looking utterly ridiculous. Then drowning.

He fixed Devin with a look when the other man asked. "I was adopted by a carver when my parents died. Whenever I tried to get out of the basement, he'd grab my ankle, hold my thigh still....and he'd twist. Said he liked the sound of bones grinding together. If I chipped off a piece of a carving...twist. If I ate too much...twist. I shattered a tool on hardwood once. That time there wasn't much left to move." he said coldly. "If you believe him yes...accidents. Had a lot of them. Funny, always seemed to end up with my foot being caught in something."

Joseph flicked the carving away. It spun into the sand a few inches above the surf. A few trills, and the water grabbed it and pulled it meekly under the waves. "I've been advised to be quiet about what exactly I can do." he added. "Why are you bothering a cripple on a beach anyway? The birds will be after your food before long."

"Speech"

[Devin]

“So, what are you making?” Devin asked and looked at the piece of wood in Joseph’s hands intently, furrowing his brow as he did so because he had never seen a creature like that before. “Is it a monster? I haven’t met any monsters yet, but I ran into a bunch of undead guys on Immortal’s Tongue. They wanted to kill me, but I killed them first, and when they were … well, when they were really, really dead, they turned into some sort of disgusting gloop. I took some of that gloop home with me. You could probably make some really cool stuff with it!” he proclaimed – which wasn’t true at all. Devin hadn’t killed the undead guys. He had run from them because they had been much stronger than he was, and they had dropped dead because his companion Kura had killed the man who had controlled them, but running from the bad guys didn’t make for a good story so Devin had decided to change it.

“Why don’t you take the brace off?” Devin wanted to know and leaned forward in order to take a closer look at the thing. “Don’t you need to wash your leg sometime?” he asked, wondering if Joseph’s leg was covered with grime under the metal. Did he sleep with his brace on as well? He had never tried sleeping with a metal cage on his leg before, but it seemed pretty uncomfortable. Maybe Joseph liked being uncomfortable though?

“Sure”, he replied and grinned as Joseph asked if he could teach him because he really wanted to see him in the water and because he was in a comparatively favourable mood that trial.

As Joseph told him what had happened to his leg, he frowned, and then he frowned some more and asked, “Why didn’t you run away or just kill him? I wouldn’t have stayed with such a sadist.” He paused for a moment as Joseph flicked his carving away, and then he complained, “Hey, why did you throw it away? It was good. As for the birds being after my food, I like birds. I have a bird myself, a parrot. He cusses a lot”, he informed Joseph quite happily as if he hadn’t noticed the man’s attempt to make him leave and momentarily looked at his stuff that was lying a few metres from them, in the sand. “Do you want anything, by the way? I have sandwiches! They are probably melting by now, but they should still taste good!”

“I don’t talk about what I do all that much either”, he informed Joseph. He was talking about the fact that he occasionally conned people or stole from them of course. “Unfortunately people aren’t as accepting as they claim to be, so I usually only mention my other job. I’m a priest, you know? I even have a shrine of my own!”

[Joseph Meier]

"And I'm the King of the Sea." Joseph snorted to the wild story about the living dead. "I'd wager you'd never seen a necromancer in your life let alone faced off against one. They're not exactly common." Joseph really did doubt the man's blithering but there tended to be a grain of truth to stories like that. Was there a necromancer somewhere around Scalvoris? If so, he was probably dead. A somewhat grim reminder of what he'd become if he didn't learn to master his own magic and control it. He didn't have long to ruminate. The other man was leaning in for a closer look at his leg. He glared at him.

"If I didn't need it all the time, I wouldn't be wearing it to the beach." he said archly. "I take it off to wash! I'm not filthy." Was that really what people thought? That cripples just happily dealt with their lot in life and wore around metal braces like the one on his leg without ever washing? What a damn fool stood in front of him. He couldn't deny the other was getting him to talk, at least. Joseph typically didn't like conversation even in a good mood, and this was probably the longest one he'd had in quite a while. He ran his hand through his hair and looked at the other. The offer to let Devin teach him had been entirely a joke. This man had just wandered past the implication and was staring at him with that big grin on his face. Whatever hostility or venom Joseph threw at him, the other just seemed to...let it slide off. Most people got offended and let Joseph claw in deeper, driving them away. He ignored the probing about his home. He hadn't been able to leave...a boy didn't need his legs to carve.

"Fine." he said simply. "There are Mer in those waters. You don't happen to have a weapon with you? I don't fancy drowning."

He shrugged after the little carving swept away in the waters. "It wasn't as good as I wanted it to be....you're a priest? You?" He couldn't help but cock an eyebrow at that little claim. This one couldn't possibly be a priest. His only experiences with them had been stony old men who moaned about the afterlife. This exuberant man in front of him didn't recall a priest to mind in the slightest. "What of?" he asked. It was his turn to be curious, and more than a little skeptical. It had to be a lie.

"Speech"

[Pegasus]

Intervention

Hi!

This intervention applies to the PC Joseph. As a veteran player you are well aware of the rules, which include NOT posting IC until you have submitted your PC for approval. Literally, your pc has gone up for approval now despite the age of this thread.

Therefore, this thread is LOCKED and NEGATED. The rules apply to all players.


Devin You have been awarded 15 XP
Knowledge Awarded to Devin:
Endurance: Walking across hot sand
Endurance: Enduring the Saun heat
Etiquette: Tact is overrated sometimes
Etiquette: Offering to share your food with someone
Logistics: What you need for a trial at the beach
Storytelling: Sometimes the truth just doesn't make for a good story
Swimming: You can swim by just using your arms
Swimming: Remove braces and other heavy things before swimming