Jun 06 22:58:11 108 PA - A Bone to Pick
From Chronicles
Jun 06 22:58:11 108 PA.
LOSK'S FARM
The small farmhouse looks well maintained. The walls of the farmhouse look like they have been painted recently and the surrounding fields look like they are well maintained. Chickens wonder around scratching at the ground looking for food. Out on porch sits a dwarf in a large chair. Next to him is a laser rifle. He is watching the livestock with half an eye while he sips on some iced tea.
Gabriel comes down the road looking rather naked for being outside the city. No armor, and just one vibro-sword across his back. Nevertheless, if his whistling is indicative of his mood, he's feeling good. He turns on to the farm's private road, and calls up ahead of himself politely. "Hello! I heard that you have a pest problem? Name's Gabriel. Gabriel Blaze. Thought I might have a look around?"
The dwarf looks up at the approaching man. He gives Gabriel a nod of his head in return. "Hello there. You from the city?" He asks as he stands up from where he was sitting and then leans against the rail of his porch. "Well I have been having problems with little buggers raiding my live stock and what not. They are about 3 feet tall. They look like they are made of bones or something. Nasty little buggers."
"Well, I just came from the city, yes. But I'm not actually from the city. You are Mr. Losk, then? Okay." Gabriel looks out over the crops and chickens. "Grew up in a place kind of like this. Not nearly as big though, Mr. Losk. Never had had a problem with bags of bones, though. What kind of livestock do you keep sir?"
"Mostly chickens and goats. I have a few cows as well. Those things have been raiding the chicken coops and the goat pens. I fire shots at them when I can catch them and they usually run off." Losk says with a shrug of his shoulders. "So you think you can take them out?"
Gabriel considers, and wanders over to the chickens, watching them scurry away, as chickens do. "I hope that I can help you out, Mr. Losk. I'll need to look around though. Just the smaller things? Chickens and goats, never going after the cows? Easily startled?" He stands up on his toes to look to where the goats are quartered.
"They seem like fairly cowardly little buggers. I keep the cows in the barn at night so it would be harder for them to get at them." Losk says with another shrug of his shoulders. "You can look around if you want. I don't know where the things home is."
"I'll take a look around, Mr. Losk," Gabriel adds both professionally and congenially. "The goats and chickens, do they get penned and cooped at night? Or actually, do these 'bag of bones' attack at any time of day, whether they're out or not?" He pokes his eyes around, looking for anything unusual, like tracks in the immediate area.
"They attack at night. The chickens get put in the coop and the goats get put in their pen. However both those are outside. You can look around all you want." Losk says before he turns around and sits down in his chair.
Gabriel turns and holds out a hand. "I'm sorry to grill you, but these creatures - the pests - do they move... fast? Slow? Do they make a giveaway noise? Any idea how many of them come at once?" He pauses then asks, "Do they take your livestock, or do they eat it on the spot? Finally, I suppose.. if you've seen them, do they seem smart, like individuals working together, or smart like a pack of dogs working together?"
"They are pretty fast and pretty quiet. I usually spot two or three." Losk says as he takes his seat and picks up a glass of iced tea. "What the fuck does it matter? Kill them. That is what you are supposed to do. I don't know what the fuck they are they are killing my livestock. So take them out."
The older fellow is less than put off by the dwarf's pissyness. "Just doing my job, Mr. Losk. I'll be able to kill them much better if I know exactly what they are that needs killing." Gabriel waves off toward the goat's area. "I'll just be taking a look around." Upon reaching the goat pen, he'll look for any signs such as unusual footprints, claw marks in wood... blood stained spots where a goat met its demise.
Not exactly being the kind of guy to possess a lot of outdoorsy training, Gabriel still decides to take a walk along the perimeter, on the off chance that he'll see something, or at least see a possible area that little evil critters might be coming from. A bunch of trees, a hole in the ground. Gabriel's an urban jungle fellow these days after that time travel knocked his wilderness abilities out of his head. Not having seen anything - not a big surprise - Gabriel will simply stop to make pleasantries with Losk before returning to the city before night falls.
Losk nods at Gabriel as he comes back from looking around. "So you find anything?" The dwarf asks as he lights a pipe and starts puffing on it. The smell of burning marijuana drifts through the air.
The man doesn't seem entirely pleased at the marijuana scent, but doesn't comment on it. "I found a little. I'm going to get back to the city and grab a friend of mine who can help out. She does a lot of wilderness work, give me a better trail to follow. Plus, next time I'll bring something more frightening than a sword." Gabriel smiles. "Is there anything else you can tell me about them, before I head off?" He wips his eye gently at the sweet scent in the air.
"Alright but please hurry. Me and my boys haven't been getting a lot of sleep keeping watch all night. I'll pay you well so you need not worry." Losk says around a puff of smoke. "They are pretty cowardly. You take a shot at them and they run off pretty quickly. I just hope they don't breed and we see a lot more."
"Well sir, I'll do my best. Things are usually better done sooner than later. I hope to be back tomorrow. Before I leave," Gabriel's already walking out, "How big of a pack to they come in? If you've been able to see."
"I told you before lad. I usually see two or three of them when I catch them. I don't know if they have a nest or if there are more of them." Losk says with a shrug of his shoulders and a shake of his head.
Gabriel has just about reached the genuine north-south road before he turns to call back, "Have you ever hit one of 'em?"
"Sure most days I hit them, but then they scamper off real quickly. Costing me some credits recharging my e-clips." Losk says with a scowl.
"Yeah, little bastard creatures all over costing good folks money. Thanks for the information, Mr. Losk, I'll be back very soon." As he starts to walk north, Gabriel turns and waves back with the sage information, "Remember, better to lose some goats than to get yourself hurt or killed trying to stop it. I'll be back tomorrow." He's then once more whistling to himself, walking north toward Kingsdale.
"Hey these buggers are killing off my livelihood. They are killing me." Losk calls back out to Gabriel. "Hope to see you back soon."
