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Take My Sunshine Away; [GRP][P] Jacobi
Topic Started: Sat Nov 10, 2012 8:11 pm (259 Views)
Ollie
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Across the dusty plains, a svelte horse ran, its brown and white hide covering a body built for traveling across distant landscapes, whether they were its native Istan sands or the parched expanse of the Debons. Astride the steed was a figured cloaked in grey, no hint of their features visible as they rode through the bright, cloudless sky.

Well, almost cloudless.

The day grew later and later. The rider and horse stopped in a small grove of trees growing around a shallow pool. The rider dismounted, and the horse headed to the pool to slurp up mouthfuls of water. The rider moved to the edge of the dappled shade and looked up at the blue sky, carefully shielding his exposed upper face with a gloved hand.

The cloud was still there.

Ollie felt ridiculous, but when he set out across the plains, determined to make some small dent on the food monopoly that threw nearly all of Imythess into uncertainty. It was impacting Kellen hard, since so many merchants would come there this time of year to buy and transport the grain, but there was little to purchase, and the merchants weren't staying, making what should be something of a festival in Kellen into almost a ghost town. The fact that he could get a bit of coin wasn't bad, either.

However, as he rose through what would be considered a beautiful day by most, he noticed there was just one cloud hanging over Kellen. This wasn't an issue, except Ollie looked up after a few hours travel and it was still there. He changed course, narrowing in on the private plantation that was his target, and it kept pace. Now that he was stopped, waiting for nightfall, it was still there, just hanging overhead. It was ridiculous to think, but he could swear a bunch of floating water droplets was following him.

He grumbled and headed by within the grove's shade, sitting next to the pool. He kept all his clothing on, however, not taking off his boots to soak his feet or throw back his hood to air his head. There was movement there, however, and a thin, snakelike body edged out of the hood's folds, though the head and wing were far closer to a dragon than a normal reptile. It flew out, took some sips from the pool with a long, thin tongue, then settled on the horse's back, who moved on to eating the green plants growing by the pool. It was the only hint of green here.

"Must be a spring here," the man said, sighing and relaxing on his side, waiting for nightfall, and hoping that damn cloud dissipated by then.

...
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Swift
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Heberen was typically quite a wondrous place, definitely one worth entertaining in by Jacobi's standards, but no place seemed to be without its problems. It would have made him scream if he were capable of such a blatant sound,but seeing as he was utterly mute he simply shrugged it off and settled for stealing a few bags of goods from their stores. It was more than easy enough to distract the guards and steal the wares from beneath their noses, but they didn't stay fooled for too long. It was unfortunate, but the chase was on! Jacobi was weighted down by several bags of crops from the cabal. He would have laughed, he would have cheered, but he couldn't so instead he played with his hunters. They carried farm tools, they wore light leather armor, and they looked like mad beasts on the trail of their next meal. It was always so much fun for the mime and his wisp to duck and weave out of sight of their chasers, blinding them with bits of light to make dashing escapes. Simple tricks around the scattered trees and with a bit of illusion made them seem to be in many places at once. Perhaps Jacobi could have turned around and simply attacked his pursuers, but where would the fun in that be? There seemed to be no point in hurting people who were only doing their jobs, and so he continued to stay just out of reach, pacing himself for the most part and sprinting whenever they got just a bit too close with their sickle.

Of course, such a game couldn't continue on forever. Jacobi was smiling beneath his mask, but he needed to bring this game to an end eventually, he needed to get the food to their rightful owners, to the people who actually needed them. The mime gave a sharp glance to his ethereal companion who understood all too well what to do. Within a moment there seemed to be another Jacobi running beside him with the same amount of good, and in an instant he was heading off in a different way while the real one slid and took cover in a nearby grove. The sound of water filled his ears beneath his cloak, a splendid place to lie low for a bit and perhaps get a bit of water before continuing on with his self-appointed mission. The mime stayed perfectly still, waiting for the hunters to run past before springing up to his feet and stretching out his limbs. Jacobi hadn't had a good chase like that in ages, surely it would need to be something done again soon. He left the bags on the ground and continued on toward the source of water, stopping only as he noticed a figure nearby. Cloaked, shady looking, but quiet.

Jacobi froze in place, the blank smile of his mask staring at the traveler with black eyes before Jacobi's pale hand gave a slight wave from beneath the sleeve of his cloak. Hopefully this person was a good one, hopefully there wouldn't be more running any time soon.
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Ollie
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A heartbeat approached, beating fast with exhilaration and exertion. The slowed, then paused, within the clearing. Ollie stayed still, looking up at the...he'd use the term "man" for now. The man was dressed in a cloak, several bags beneath his arms. He crouched in the brush. He stared out into the plains. Justin the horse gave him a cursory glace before turning back to his grazing. The fly dragon, who was stretched out on Justin's back, watched for quite a bit longer. The man shot up like a spring at some unknown signal, turned his white masked, grinning face toward where Ollie laid, and froze. Tense seconds passed. The man, finally, raised a white gloved hand and gave it a small, precise wave.

Dragon? Ollie thought, not wanting to vocalize quite yet. How...worried should I be?

The fins on the side of the fly dragon's head twitched, and he stared at the strange man. "Funny man," the fly dragon finally said, sharing only what it deemed Ollie needed to know. "Wants to hid. Wants to drink. Not mean."

"Hello," Ollie said slowly, rising up to sit and mimicing the strange man's wave. "If you want some water, feel free. I'm just a traveler taking a chance to rest." He couldn't help but stare at the man. He looked so...elongated, like someone had taken a man by his head and streeeeeeached....He was overly tall, impossibly thin, and the constant grin was beginning to weird him out. If it weren't for Justin's calm and the dragon's reassurance, he'd probably be running out and risking the sunshine right now.

"Cloud still there," the dragon said, his gaze now raised toward the sky. Ollie covered his eyes and looked too. There it still was, hanging stubbornly in the a sky free of its brethren. He sighed. Maybe he was just beginning to suffer from paranoia. Was that a side effect of vampirism?
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Swift
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Jacobi's wave seemed to work as a sign of peace and for that he was grateful. The man seemed ultimately uninterested and somewhat friendly despite his "dark wanderer" look. Whatever, it wasn't exactly like Jacobi was the perfect example for normal either. His cloak was as long as he was tall, but split in the front to allow him a wonderful array of movement in spite of it, and some supposedly found his mask to be particularly eerie with his black eyes peering through. The mime, now happy that he seemed to have made a new friend, slid down to the water and cupped his hands, scooping it up and giving a glance over to the man while he drank. Not interested in thievery, not interested in catching thievery, but most likely not a bad man, just shady. Jacobi didn't even bother to remove his mask as he drank, putting the cool liquid up to the smile on his mask which ended up being a bit messier than he normally would have liked, but he didn't seem to mind. Instead, he was more interested in just what the man seemed to be worried about. After getting a healthy amount to drink, the performer went over to the stranger and looked to see what had his attention. What he saw was a cloud, just sitting in the air despite the breeze that rolled its way over the Debon Plains. There was no doubt in the mime's mind that it was a magical cloud, the only question left to answer was to whose magical cloud it was. Perhaps not this man's, since he seemed more worried by its existence than comforted.

Jacobi gave a sagely nod without saying anything before returning to his scavenged crops. He still needed to get these to the proper people, and Kellan was surely not too far off. With a bag in one hand and two in the other, Jacobi approached the man and held the single bag up and gave a slight nod. Maybe this man was good, maybe he could help the mime in his self-appointed mission, both possibilities only led to potentially good results, but even better as the mute took notice of the horse nearby and switched which arm he held up, this time giving a nod to the horse. He could do a quick round of charades if it was needed to properly explain just what he was up to, and happily would if such an explanation was required.

Yes, he good-hearted mime was taking a chance to think that this man would even begin to comprehend just what was going on, but it was a chance that he was willing to take. Perhaps a bit too trusting of an individual that he just met, but Jacobi couldn't keep running around all day with a bunch of supplies. Besides, a man on a horse with a couple of bags of food might have seemed far less suspicious than a tall skinny guy with a white smiling mask running around with three bags.
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Ollie
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The "funny man," as his dragon called him, bent down and drank from the spring, sipping the water through the smiling slit in his mask. Ollie watched quietly, worried the smile would stretch on its own. It stayed fixed in place, blocking some of the water, which slopped back into the pool, but enough got through to satisfy the stranger.

The funny man paused to look up, probably curious about Ollie's constant glances. If he saw anything more than a man being daft about a harmless cloud, he didn't say. He didn't say anything at all. He kept smiling and looking through the slits in his white mask, all his features completely hidden. Ollie had no stones to throw in that department, however, but at least he knew why he was covered. The funny man was an utter mystery.

The funny man looked at Justin, but didn't approach the horse. He secured his sacks again, however, stuffed full of Ollie didn't care to know what. Instead of going on his way, though, he held out one of the sacks toward Ollie, the others kept lowered in his hand.

"Oh, what...payment?" Ollie held up his hands and shook his head. "This isn't my spring, sir, like I said. You're as free to use it as anyone. I don't need payment."

The man jiggled the bag again, but added a nod toward Justin this time around. Ollie's bewildered expression turned a bit more serious.

"My horse isn't for sale, either," he said, standing up. "Sorry, sir, and I have business elsewhere, so I can't take you anywhere. Best I can do is point you to Heberen. That's the closest town to here." He crossed his arms. There was no need to point out that Heberen was his intended destination. Hopefully, this clown would just explain what he wanted or go about his way. If he decided to get violent over getting a ride, he'd discover how unfortunate a target he'd chosen.
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Swift
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Jacobi dropped the single bag from his hand to cover his mask with his palm. It didn't seem as if this stranger before him was too particularly intuitive when it came to non-verbal messages. It may have made things just a bit more difficult, but this was part of the reason that he had decided to become a mime. The primary reason for his chosen profession was simply because it was a lot of fun. The celestial tilted his head back and dropped the other two bags as he took a moment to think, when he figured out what would surely be the best way to translate his thoughts to words he practically jumped with joy.

First, the mime reached into one of the bags to pull out an ear of corn, looking it over a bit curiously. Honestly, he had no idea what was in the bags specifically, but all that really mattered in the end was that they were edible and nutritious. Jacobi shrugged and flipped it into the air before he stood tall and caught it, pointing it with his free hand and then to the three bags. Surely this would come across as meaning something rather obvious. After the quick demonstration of the prop he was going to use for this little show, not that he typically used visible props, he slipped it into a sleeve and turned to the side before dropping on his knees. All of a sudden he was begging to an invisible man, a man which quickly became visible as Jacobi traded roles and slipped the ear back into one hand while seeming to silently demand money with the other. The mute would stop for a moment to point to himself, indicating his current character, and then to the village that was choosing to withhold food.

Once more Jacobi would drop the ground and the corn would be missing as he held out his hands, indicating that he had nothing of value to give to his other character. When he stood back up, rather than retrieving the corn from his sleeve and standing in the second place, he would take one in between both and somewhat off to the side, looking to the two currently unoccupied roles with a bit of curiosity before making the corn reappear from his sleeve as if he were taking it from the greedy role, pretending to punch said role in the invisible face, and then give the corn to the groveling character who then silently thanked him.

After the show was over, his blank face would turn to the other, strange, hooded man and cock to the side just a bit, wondering if any of the show had gotten through to him. After another moment he would then point to the man, then to the bags, then to the horse before pretending to ride the horse and not towards a guard whose role he also took for a moment before continuing on as the rider. To Jacobi it all made perfect sense, unfortunately the spectator favorite was usually his one-sided combat routines.
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Ollie
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Ollie stayed silent through most of the performance, or so he came to think of it. He balked a bit when the man pulled out a full ear of corn from one of his sacks. "Wait, where did you-" The man didn't stop there, though, going on to pantomime someone begging money from another man, or at least Ollie thought it was meant to be two people. The funny man was playing all the roles that came to his head. Or, no, the first man was begging, but the second man, this one visibly holding the corn, was demanding money from the first.

Ollie's interpretive skills went on like this, guessing and second guessing what in the world the funny man was trying to tell him without actually telling him. At the end, Ollie still said nothing, but he thought furiously to the only other being that might have a solid idea about what that was all about.

So...he stole this food...and now he wants my help getting away and taking it...somewhere else?

"Think so, yah," his fly dragon said.

And he doesn't just say this aloud because...?

"Don't think he wanna," his dragon shrugged.

Ollie shrugged, held in a sigh, and refocused on the, he suddenly realized, mime. One who was far too deep in his role. "Okay....so you stole this, and you want to take it...where? Kellen? And you want a ride over?" Ollie stood quietly as though in thought, but he knew what he was going to do long before he walked over to Justin and hopped up onto him. "Well, that's what I was going to do myself. Assuming you aren't going to stab me in the back, climb up."
Edited by Ollie, Thu Dec 6, 2012 11:49 pm.
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Swift
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Yes! Once more, through the power of art and interpretive dance. . . Wait, was Jacobi doing interpretive dance to explain things this time or was it just a semi-normal show? He paused for a moment to consider what he had just done, delving into the deepest parts of his mind to discuss with himself the ways of which his display could have been interpreted. To him, it was one of those things that could normally be used to waste time, but he had to remind himself that whatever his display could be known as was ultimately unimportant in light of current events. He needed to get the food he managed to collect to the people who needed them, rather than the people who could afford them. It was unfortunate that he could not afford the time to reallocate towards his introspection but it couldn't be helped, the hungering people could.

Jacobi nodded his head eagerly, a determined expression hidden beneath the otherwise deceivingly joyous expression of his white mask. This stranger was willing to help, or at least said that he was, and for the performer that was more than enough of a reason to trust him. As the man invited him to do, the mime moved swiftly and onto the back of the horse, putting his own back against that of the owner's so that he could keep watch behind them for any signs of determined mercenaries willing to earn their pay.

Of course, the point behind mercenary work always seemed to elude the strange celestial being. While he told himself, metaphorically of course as he was mute, that it was understandable as it took all types to allow the world to continue turning, he didn't exactly comprehend the point of actually going through things you had already been paid to do. Maybe it wasn't that, maybe these particular mercenaries were too dumb to both maintain a reputation while simultaneously demanding a majority of their payment for services up front. Maybe they simply did not have the same morale values that the mime did and therefore saw no problem in earning their keep at the end of the deal after being sure to prove their competency in combat throughout the fulfillment of their contracts or handshake agreements. Jacobi almost wished that he could ask the very same men which had chosen to pursue him for conducting an act that he thought was a worthy exception to the typical laws of man, but seeing as he was mute he clearly could not.

Ah, yes, the thoughts and constant questioning flowed back to the street performer with ease, bringing a content smile to his face that revealed itself to the sun as he removed his mask, revealing an equally pale face beneath it with black orbs for seeing. Jacobi had been asked before if his face was painted that way, but it was simply the skin tone he had been granted for as long as he could remember, though he would change his strange skin in a heartbeat for the ability to speak if he could.
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Ollie
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Ollie sighed. His habits of conversation weren't going to do any good here. It wasn't as though the man behind him could answer. Besides, he knew that he and the masked man were at least of the same mind of what to do with the grain. If he didn't want to go to Kellen, he could get a ride once they got there. As it was, the stranger mounted up behind him, facing backwards on Justin so they sat back to back, and Ollie started off, starting Justin at a slow walk and taking it up to a medium trot. They had a ways to go, and there was no reason in Ollie's eyes to push Justin now.

"He think a lot," his fly dragon said during the awkward whistling of the wind rushing past. "Think he...wanna give away grain. Help people. Lots of thoughts. Kellen good, he think,"

Ollie nodded, feeling the fly dragon move from his soldiers to the top of his head. He didn't know what the beast was doing up there, but if he wanted to enjoy the breeze, Ollie wasn't about to argue. He focused on the horizon, keeping his hood low to prevent stray rays from striking his eyes.

The fly dragon, pulling its wings kept close for balance and to prevent the wind from blowing it away. It slithered its way from Ollie's hood to masked man's, lowering its head to stare into the eyeholes.

"Jacobi, hi" the fly dragon said, knowing Ollie's own secretive nature made introducing himself necessary. "Don't be scared. Ollie won't say, but I tell him what you wanna tell him, if you want. Can tell what you wanna say. Thought you should know. You seem lonely." The dragon quickly moved back to circle around Ollie's head and watch the plains, quietly noticing the distant specks of another set of riders in the distance. They were still far away, so he didn't mention their presence aloud. It'd be best to wait and ensure they were the same men that Jacobi remembered chasing him off.

Above them, drifting lazily on a breeze, the cloud followed.
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Swift
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The world, Chaon, was magic in and of itself as far as the ultimately simplistic performer cared to take note of it. No matter what, it constantly brought pure amazement to him, with any extreme. Greed, good, evil, generosity, it was all simply amazing to him for the mime saw everything through very simple, black eyes. he had been chased by the greedy, hired by the greedier. They were not necessarily evil nor were they particularly good in any notable sense. The same went for the mercenaries, for there was no telling just what went on in their heads, what drove them to sell their services in such a manner or by what thoughts passed their head as they fulfilled their contracts. Jacobi would give a silent sigh as he watched the world fall away from his position on the back of the horse he was lucky enough to get to ride. With the help of a stranger, Ollie as he was apparently known, the mime could do some good and take the supplies to the people who needed them. As far as he was concerned, this was an act of good, an act which he believed to better the lives of those who were without.

The mime quietly drummed his gloved fingers on his mask as it rested upon his leg. Behind the small group there were no hostilities, nobody looking to ransack or retrieve the very goods which he had claimed in the names of the less fortunate. Perhaps there truly were times of good, but Jacobi was too old and knew the world far too well to believe that any good deed would go unpunished, that any kind act would simply be allowed to happen without something coming along to shake things up. He smiled to himself at this realization and counted the seconds for just a few moments until something would surely go wrong. As far as he was concerned, it was the surprise waiting around the metaphorical corner.

__________________________

Higher-paid mercenaries loathed it when they had to do extra work for no notable bonus. They were the ones who were paid up front in case their employers decided to try and give them a raw deal in the end. They were the veterans of the contracts and they were the ones who had brought their own steeds to track down any possible thieves or self-appointed heroes who tried to mess with their contracts. They were also greatly annoyed for the guards of the warehouse where the crates, barrels and bags of all sorts of food were kept were utterly inept at their simple duties. They waited, not even bothering to try to hide either their handheld crossbows or their sheer boredom with having to wait on the path for anything resembling a. . .

"How did the boys describe the thief, again?"
"A mime. They were robbed by a mime, of all things."
"Right so white paint, stripey shirt? Nothing more?"
"We can assume that he'll be the only one with several bags of grains, walking into the village."
"Chase after a damn shadow, I suppose we can't be sure what they saw."
The two mercenaries were weathered, but not even middle-aged. Like any rough and tough sort they were covered with visible facial scars and light steel armor. They were equipped for agility, for quick reaction and quicker shots. Ultimately they didn't care about the grains or the thief, but they were men of their word if nothing else. They had both taken a contract with a very simple job, and that was to defend the grains from any thieves. Where the others failed, they would be sure not to.
Edited by Swift, Sat Jan 5, 2013 5:55 am.
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Ollie
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"Kellen's ahead," Ollie said, the first thing he said for few hours of steady riding they've done. He could have ridden them there much faster, but there was no evident pursuit, no emergency forcing them toward the village faster, and no urgency on the mime's part, and Ollie wasn't going to force Justin into an extended gallop simply for speed's sake.

The fly dragon sat curled atop Ollie's hooded head as a breathing headband, its wings spread slightly for better sunbathing. After his offer to Jacobi, the man hadn't even responded, instead continuing to weave his complicated thoughts. The dragon wondered if he even heard the reptile in that crowded mind. If he hadn't, he wasn't going to bother repeating himself. He'd content himself with another lazy daylight ride, instead.

"Is there anywhere special you want to go, by the way?" Ollie asked, turning slightly to at least catch sight of the back of the mime's head. "Or should I just drop you off on the outskirts?"
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Swift
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The rhythmic beat of the horse's hooves beneath the mime helped him clear his mind as the seconds withered away, his mind emptied of worry or work made him feel almost weightless even though he remained planted on the rump of the equine. He was lucky, he knew it, but he also knew that he had to be ready, loose, quick. The questioning of the hooded man stole Jacobi from his trance. The trip was almost over, Kellan had more than enough people who could take the food to the appropriate people which meant that the mute entertainer could soon return to another rather foolish attempt to steal for the greater good as he perceived it. The Celestial being look forward, grasping Ollie's left shoulder with his right hand for balance while he looked on ahead. Dirt, village, grass, clouds, sky. Most of what his black eyes saw were nothing out of the ordinary for a normal Kellan day and oh how Jacobi wished he could have believed that. He gave a bit of a reserved smile as he looked ahead for, as was expected, were two lightly armored men on brown horses that were clearly watching for any such as Jacobi, for any foolish enough to actually try using the main roads to deliver ill-gotten goods.

Not knowing if his short-term traveling companion saw the two or not, Jacobi brought two fingers just inches away from the rider's eyes and then pointed towards the mercenaries just up ahead. Hopefully his ally would be smart enough to realize that they weren't just lazy guards, otherwise things could turn rather horribly in a short amount of time.

Jacobi slid from the back of the horse, landing nimbly on the ground as he began to check the packs, making sure that any brands on the linen sacks were turned over. Luckily the same men who were so greedy and selfish as to actually hoard their supplies weren't smart enough to brand both sides of the bags. Who knew, perhaps the mercenaries didn't care enough to actually check both sides, but one thing they would surely be looking for would be a mime. Strangely enough there weren't many mines in Imythess, which really helped Jacobi stand out like a sore thumb. What a bittersweet gift and curse, to be so unique yet so hunted. If Jacobi could have laughed then he would have, but seeing as how he was mute he simply gave a light shake of his head before slipping his pale white mask back on and signaling to Ollie to continue riding on.

The entertainer realized fully that he didn't have the best of luck, but he didn't know his stranger. Hopefully the mercenary guards would see the mime and begin chasing after him, allowing the goods to be delivered safely to Kellan. It was a long shot, that much was certain, but Jacobi was a mime! And any mime couldn't tell anybody that any problem could always be surpassed with a bit of imagination!
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