Log:Potential

Potential
How'd things go with Inky?
Participants Paige, Jonah Joseph	22 March, 2017 Two Harvestmen discuss potential backstabbings, potential murder, and potential problems for the Freehold.
Location Cyclone
Paige sent word to Jonah that she'd gotten back from the scouting mission he assigned to her, and that she'd like to share what she'd discovered. She suggested he come to Cyclone, since it had the back room where only Lost went, and they could have a drink while they talked. She's already there when he arrives, sitting down with a beer in her hand, another pair set on the table nearby. Jonah likely has to duck down as he comes in, but the act is rote at this point. White t-shirt, jeans, and muddied boots are the Ogre's uniform; and it looks like he won the fight with cleanliness. "Feathers," he calls out once Paige is spotted, and moves over to the other Ogre's position. "How'd things go with Inky?" Paige glances over and grins. "Hi Jonah. And things went well. We got there, did the job, came back without a scratch." Unlike, you know, that /other/ time. "I think at least one more trip out would be good, though. I think Ink Blot wants to go again, and AJ mentioned it, too. Said she was sneaky. But figured...first things first. Talk to the bossman." He nods idly while grabbing one of the chairs. He looks it over few few moments, and opts to stand after that bit of scrutiny. "Good," he flatly responds. "I'd hate for the new recruit, however shameless his associates, to die on his first outing. Same for you too, Feathers. So, what'd you and he find anyway?" Paige grins. "He was good. Hard to spot, and I knew where he was, or thereabouts. But anyway, we found these trees, but you knew about that, I think. I took to the air, he stayed on the ground. We found this turtle. A really big ass turtle, sorta circling around where the gate was. Then there was this bird. Like, a really big bird of prey. Tried to eat me." Which makes her grin for god only knows what reason. "While he was trying to eat me, Ink Blot was licking things. Think it got him high." Jonah nods along, but seems to be stuck on one little thing. "I have to ask since it bothered Knight so much. About how big was the turtle? Most I saw about my size, but it's all relative with visions. By relative I mean that scale doesn't mean a damned thing. And-" Jonah shakes his head, blank eyes narrowing on Paige. "What do you mean he was licking things?" "Your size?" Paige seems highly amused at that. She shakes her head slowly. "We could fit a lot of you into one of those things. We could damn near fit this building into it. And we weren't the first to see it either. Had a bunch of swords and stuff stuck in its shell. A dozen or two, but I didn't count, really. Bird trying to eat me and all. Though that worked in our favor," she says, shrugging and taking another sip of her beer. "And yes, licking things. I think it was part of the trees. Looked gross, but I guess bugs aren't so picky?" Jonah just stares as he tries to process all of that. He lifts a hand to cover his eyes, and then begins pinching at the bridge of his nose. "Okay. Past the recruit not knowing the general rule of not licking things you see, we have a big turtle near a gate that needs to be moved or killed along with big bird going at it. Okay. just let me know if any that's wrong. Either way, it's something we need to mobilize against, and need to put the other search on hold for the time being. Unless you have any ideas, Feathers. I'm all ears." "Well...that's the thing. The turtle /may/ not be there anymore," Paige says, and she does look a bit smug now. Just a bit. Mostly she's still cheerful. "I mean yeah, no licking shit, I'm with you there, but I told you the bird tried to eat me? Kept trying, so I led it down to the turtle. I guess it figured why go for the appetizer when the entrees on your plate, right? When we left, those two were fighting. Hell, they may still be fighting, which is why I said I wanna go back out there. To check." Jonah sighs, and mulls her words over in silence. A few moments pass before he nods. "You've got until the weekend, Feathers. By that time I'm gonna be sending Hot Stuff and any he brings to take care of it one way or another. I'll personally see what I can find, but considering how much I know about it already it's gonna be a mess to decipher." Paige cocks her head. "Hot Stuff? Who's Hot Stuff? But yeah, should be able to snag Ink Blot and/or AJ and get out there. Can't do it tomorrow, but Friday, maybe. Got a Summer thing tomorrow. Can't miss it." She smiels. "But you're right. It is going to be a hell of a mess to decipher. All I ask is if you do send someone else to take care of it, I want a feather if I'm not tapped." Jonah looks equally confused when the nick name doesn't ring a bell. "Hot Stuff. Big guy. About yea high," he lifts a hand to his chest. "Seems to always be pissed off. Lots of fire. Summer like you, too." He then shakes his head, and moves back on. "That can easily be done unless something happens to it like immolation or getting knocked into the water." A shrug follows. "But don't already have feathers, Feathers?" "Oh, yeah, AJ mentioned him earlier. Don't think I've met him," Paige says, shaking her head. "And yes, I have /my/ feathers, but these are really freaking big feathers," she points out with a grin. "But cool, sounds like that's pretty much settled." She takes another sip while she studies him, clearly mulling something over in her head. "Alright, alright. I'll make sure you get as many feathers as they can get." Jonah shakes his head, and briefly rubs at the base of his horns. "Now I got a question for you, and it's nothing official or anything like that. What's this I've heard about a bunch of fights going on around here?" Paige cocks her head, arching a brow. "It's a bar. Fights happen. And I can't be here every second of every day that the bar's open. Beyond that, they're all humans fighting. Beyond /that/...hell, no one died or got maimed. It drew business into the bar. I'll probably a lot of Summers dropping in here, actually. So really, I don't mind so long as they don't cause too much damage and the police don't get involved. And I'm okay to stop a bit of a bar fight between two humans." Nevermind that a lot of them probably outweigh her by a good hundred pounds or more. "Why do you ask, though?" She takes another drink, finishing her beer and sitting it aside before she stretches her legs out on the couch. "And I've got a question, unrelated. What do you need? For the Harvestmen, I mean. What are you just dying will drop into your lap?" Beat. "Other than a beaten and humble Yorik?" His hands are lifted in innocence, revealing those scarred palms before he drops them back down to his side. Since the chairs don't pass his usual inspection he moves to lean against the wall. "Here about something crazy, and it gets you wondering. I've never seen this place in a vision, and never thought to look here." A slight shrug follows. "I've no intention of stopping nor interfering with anything going on here, but I'll admit I'm not too fond of all the drinking." And there's the Sun in him. "As to what I want, and outside of a place for us? It's not something I think about, to tell the truth. I do wish we had someone versed in craftsmanship suited to our more martial affairs, but at present I'll take what I can get for now." "Not everyone is approving of drinking. But then, I think everyone does something someone else disapproves of," Paige says, shrugging a little. She's quiet for a moment, before she nods. "So a hollow to call our own and a hedgespinner blacksmith, basically? I'm helping with the former, but I don't know I'd be any good with the latter. I'll keep an eye out though, and if I hear of anyone, I'll let you know." She grins. "One more question. You think girls are pansies or something?" she asks, but there's no sense that she's offended or being serious, but there does seem to be a purpose to the question. Jonah nods along until that next question comes. There's no offense taken by the Ogre, although the question does earn a slight rise of his brow. "No, but I used to. When I came back to this world things were different. The first women I was with, like me," he looks up briefly, in essence pointing to his horns, "broke both of my wrists, cut off my horns, and put me in my place immediately. This is because I told her a woman's place was in the kitchen. While I was later nursed back to health I got a true rundown on the state the world, and the truth I ignored in my more mortal affairs in my youth." He shrugs, "Some people are pansies, some people can rip your still-beating heart out. You never know until you're on your knees, and staring at a hole in your chest." "I...sorta can't say that I blame her for going at you if you told her that," Paige admits, though it's with a wry smile. "Even before I was taken I didn't figure men and women had different roles, but we won't get into that, really. I am sorry about the horns though. And the wrists." Her head tilts. "I just asked because all of your lieutenants are men. Not that there are that many women in the Harvestmen, it just struck me earlier when I was talking to AJ." "Circumstance and timing." He then points to his eyes, "And it's not as if I can see who'll step up nor when all the time. If I did there's no telling as I'd prefer to get folks as old as I am, and look to be living thrice as long. However, I can't completely predict something like that. So it's who's around, best for the job, and doesn't look to be out for their own glory." Beat. "Not counting Yoric, but he got that job the same time I got promoted, and then he got passed over for me. Then again for Stones." "Yeah, well, can't say I'm going to argue with him getting passed over," Paige says, shaking her head. "I'm not gonna say he's not good in a fight, because I'm sure he is. But leading isn't about ego and he seems to be /all/ ego. And he wants your job bad. Real bad. I'd watch your back around him. I wouldn't be surprised if he arranged an 'accident'-" and yes, she does the airquotes- "so he could step up, step into your very large shoes." Beat. "And just so you know, he does that, he's dead. I'll tolerate a hell of a lot, and you know I'm super easy going, but disloyalty like that? Complete lack of tolerance." "He does care about the ladies and gents under him, but that's about it. You are right on his fighting. He's good enough to get me one good time before I can actually get a hold of his throat." Jonah clears his throat, and straightens up just a bit. "But those were just sparring matches. However, I wouldn't put it past him to kill me if given the justification, and if I do something that justifies it I'd rather he live, Feathers. He'd never attack me out in the open, nor Stones. He as much to lose himself, too." "I'm not saying that I'd kill him if like, you did something that got half of us killed and he went after you. I could understand that. But if he makes sure you get offed so he can be the boss?" Paige shakes her head slowly. "That's not someone who deserves to lead, the Harvestmen or anyone else, and if he'd do that to you, he'd do it to someone else." She smiles, just a touch. "I don't kill just to kill, Jonah. And I don't kill without a damn good reason. Life's too precious for that." Jonah lifts a finger as he corrects, "He has to kill both me and Stones. Stones is my Second, and if I go he takes the mantle. Which also means he picks his Second, and if Stones doesn't take Yoric then he stays where he's at." He shrugs, expression as stoic as ever. "Killing is killing, and as lost as we are too our emotions there's always one reason or another. I don't concern myself with good or bad if I can avoid it. It's what serves the Freehold, and what doesn't. If my death serves it, then there's no problem with it. If Yoric's demise does, then so be it. I won't deny that it would warm my heart, but that's between you and I." "That's a point," Paige agrees with a nod. "He would, and it would be tough to take both of you out before another second can be named. But I dsagree on all killing being equal, Jonah," she says, shaking her head slowly. "The person who kills because they can, because they enjoy it, for no other reason? Is entirely different from the person who kills to keep from being killed, or to save a loved one. You can't tell me that those two deaths are really equal." She draws in a slow breath. "But I do understand what you mean about the freehold. Especially after what AJ told me earlier. That visiting freehold? Or, well, the people visiting from the other one? One of them said something about there's something bad here, which is why there hasn't been a freehold before. Bad...and us being here could stir it up or wake it up or something. So we need to be strong and unified. I really hope Yoric can manage unified." "I'll leave most of that stuff to the Wayhouse, and do as asked by the Council and new Queen." Jonah shrugs, and then nods to Paige. "I trust you to do what's right by the Freehold either way. The only worry I have for those Soundless is that they cross a boundary that isn't just the borderlands of the Frehold. As for their words? I can't say. I've seen nothing more horrific than the lives we already lead currently, and those goes double for us in the Harvestmen. However, if the Watchers or I see anything I'll make sure we're all prepared. One way or another." "We've all been through a lot. All of us. And no, it's not done. But there's always something worse out there," Paige murmurs softly, her brow furrowing, and she taps the tip of a talon lightly on the arm of the couch. "But still, figured you should know about that. AJ probably can tell you a little more since she actually talked to the guy. Marty, I think she said his name was. She also said he was a dick who called us thieves or something," she says, rolling her eyes and shrugging. Jonah shrugs in response to the new info, although that last bit does earn a brief, ghost of a smile. "Thief, hmm? A title to be had, then. However, I'll talk to Red as soon as I can. If not this weekend, I'll see when's best. I know she works at Cyclops' bar so it shouldn't be too difficult a task." "Nah, she's pretty easy to find," Paige agrees with a smile. "And I'll try and round her up, go check out the turtlezilla versus birdzilla fight, let you know by this weekend. Thanks for dropping by, by the way. I'm sure you've got a lot on your plate. but if there's anything I can do, lemme know, okay?" Jonah nods in agreement. "It's all nothing I can't handle, or I'd be dead by now." With that affirmation out of the way he pushes himself from his former resting place on the wall, and makes for the door. "And make sure not to get yourself killed while you're out there." Paige grins at that last comment. "Haven't died yet, so my track record's pretty good. But I'll take care of myself. And you do the same. And let me know if you hear anything else on the whole big bad we might get riled up, will you?"