exsilium | 02

Entry tags:

02 | Video

[ Baaa Baa-aa-aaaaaa Baaaaaaaaaaa! ]

I say, hello, hel-looooo! I have a question for you all--

[ The grime-smeared face of Xerxes Break appears onscreen. His white hair is discolored with dust and stuck together. There's a semicircular wound under his right cheekbone, and the shoulder of his jacket looks chewed. Despite all of this, he seems terribly pleased with himself. ]

Does anyone here have qualifications in animal husbandry?

[ More angry bleating and a yelp! Break turns. Visible in the background is another (also dirty and disheveled) man, desperately fending off a sheep. It’s not going at all according to plan; with a single headbutt he’s out of the camera’s line of sight, followed by a thud and worrisome tinkling noises. ]

Why, Gilbert. I think she likes you! ♥

[ Moving right along... ]

Anyway - yes. I'm looking specifically for people with experience or interest in shepherding, as well as shearing, spinning, knitting, cheese-making--

[ Another CRASH! and a voice yelling, “Break, look out!" ]

--and hand-to-hand combat! Kindly respond to this post, or apply in person to the botanical gar--

[ Break’s face suddenly disappears. The last image visible onscreen is… this. ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Tempest remains quiet, as much as she wants to laugh. But no, startling the sheep would be bad, and he's being adorable about it]

[He takes the quiet as a good sign, and there's a soft shuffling as he takes a step closer.]

Sheep...um. They can't really understand me, can they-?

[He gets his answer a second later as one of them bleats out its victory cry and charges him with a vengeance. A yelp, thump and the audio cuts temporarily.]

. . . oh dear.

[A few minutes later he's at least managed to get outside and collapse onto the ground away from the sheep.]

Like I said! It's impossible!

[Wheeze...]

I did not expect them to react that way . . . it seemed as though it was working.

It was a trick! They're smarter than normal sheep!

[It's been half a week with very little sleep and a lot of walking, this makes perfect sense to him at this moment.]

. . . you sound a bit . . .

Well, it could be possible. Who knows what is possible in this place.

[He takes a deep breath before replying, trying to sound less ridiculous this time.]

We weren't even sure what we'd find. Or rather, Break wasn't sure what we'd find.

. . . were you actually looking for sheep?

We were looking for any animals we could find. We had to return with something to make the trip worth it.

I see . . . at least the trip was somewhat successful?

I guess you could call it successful.

[A sigh.]

But we're still not sure if animals from the Outlands are safe to breed or eat at all. At least the wool is probably fine.

[there's a pause. A very, very long pause]

I could see if I could find out.

You could? How?

By asking them.

[she could be joking, but she actually does sound serious]

[Ah.]

Y-you weren't kidding before...?

As much as I was teasing, no. It was a serious suggestion.

I do not know if they speak this language, but I've another I could try.

[At this point, he's willing to try anything.]

If I hold the tablet up towards them, do you think you could try to talk to them that way?

Ah . . . hm. It would appear I am coming to where you are, instead. Your partner in crime's doing.

Oh. [He sounds a little surprised that Break extended the invitation before he had a chance.]

In that case...thank you for your help. We'll see you soon.

Of course. I shall be there as soon as I can.

[Break had said there were maps. She couldn't find any maps, even if they existed in the stupid tablet whatever-the-hell-it-was.

What Break wasn't counting on was, he said the magic word: "garden".

It took . . . a lot of concentrating. She'd been surrounded by forests and nature for all her life, so having to look for it, to extend her senses and try to find it, was something she'd never had to do before. And navigating through a maze of streets while doing it? She ought to set that smiling asshole on fire.

But no, she could be nice, at least for the other man's sake.

So here she was, finally arriving in front of the botanical gardens, a bit out of breath because of the rain and it doing a number on her, and well. Being a bit worked up and having no outlet to deal with it. Yet]

She ought to set that smiling asshole on fire.

GET IN LINE

I PLAN TO

[By this point Break has fled the scene. Gilbert only protested his departure halfheartedly; as angry as he is to be stuck with a room full of sheep, Break needs the rest more than him, and besides, help is on the way. A woman who claims to know how to speak to these sheep and a man offering help in taking them elsewhere. All he can do in the interim is sit and question his life choices until they get here.

Gil is standing under an overhang at the corner of the gardens near the main street, hands in his pockets. He's not sure what either of these voices on the other end of the tablet look like in person, but that had been necessary to keep his filthy, chewed-on body out of view of the camera. He's tried to fix his hair, but there's no fixing the holes in his jacket. When she approaches, he stands up a little straighter just in case she's the one he's supposed to be greeting.]

[the young woman approaching is a tall, skinny thing; the cloak, now soaked from her making her way there, doesn't do anything to hide that, nor do the outdated clothes underneath. The hood still hides her for the most part, though she fixes it a bit when she spots Gilbert, at least to make her face more visible.

She regards him for a moment, slowing her pace. His general, ah, "disheveled" appearance immediately gives away that he's the one she's looking for, though . . . well. The idiot must've fled.

She sighs a bit, then hurries over to him, shoulders hunched under the rain]

You are the one I spoke to through the device, yes?

voice

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voice --> action

NOT HERE

WIMP

action

action