Somewhere, in a non-specific town, in a non-particular tavern... sat a very strange creature. It was obvious this creature was not hostile, as his demeanor was that of one that was very calm and collected. He was a shardmind, a seldom heard of creature, sporting a red, crystaline body and his left arm being simply gigantic. Seriously, he could probably crush a child's head in that hand if he wanted to. But he wasn't the violent type, though he was more than capable of defending himself. However, violence was only the answer when reasoning was out of the question. He sported beige robes, which covered most of his body, leaving his arms and face, which had no mouth to speak of, free for all to see. As Rubicon sat in his chair, reading over a large book, he glanced up to notice one of the barmaids eyeing him inquisitively. He slowly set the book down, his head turning to look up at her as he spoke into her mind. "Can I help you, miss?"
The young woman, who had short brown hair and was wearing an apron over her dress while holding a tray to her chest, was a tad awestruck, amazed at the sudden voice in her head. She looked around nervously with a whimper, then noticed the strange crystal-man staring up at her. "Um... er... y-you'll have to excuse me sir, I've just... never seen something like you before! And... and was that you-" "Who spoke into your mind as I am doing right now? Yes, that was me." He nodded, then tilted his head slightly. "Would you like to know more about me?" "Oh, I really shouldn't be dawdling, I'm still working..." "Then have a seat", the shardmind spoke into her mind, prompting her to sit. She grimaced, but didn't want to take the chance of upsetting him in the event he could do something awful. As she went to sit in the chair beside him, the sharmind panicked. "Wait, NOT THERE!" he shouted into her mind, just as she sat in something wet. She yelped, standing up again and looking down. "W-what did I just sit in!?" At first she saw nothing, then she squinted slightly as the strange man picked up what looked like a jiggling, translucent block. "You sat on my friend here. Thankfully, he's not hurt." The jiggling mass simply gurgled a response to his friend. The barmaid blinked. "What... what's THAT thing!?" The shardmind then looked up to her. "Oh, this? This is my familiar, Cubert. When I first came to this realm, from the Astral Sea, I sought to create a familiar to aid myself in whatever tasks were needed of me. Upon much research, I came upon the most majestic, the most amazing creature ever: the gelatinous cube." As he said this, he motioned to his small friend, which gurgled and bubbled excitedly. The barmaid was dumbstruck. "You're... you're joking, right?" "Why would I joke? Do you not grasp at how amazing this is? The gelatinous cube is simplistic in design, yet by many is considered to be a deadly creature. It's very look lures prey into a false sense of security before it devours it, digesting it with it's acidic body."
The barmaid was starting to regret even paying attention to the shardmind, but still curious, she proceeded to sit again, this time not sitting in something wet. However, for some reason, the seat felt cool... "So, do you have a name?" "Ah, questions! I love questions! People who ask questions are ones who seek knowledge! As for my name, I am Rubicon." "Rubicon... because you're like a ruby, right?" "What? No, I'm just Rubicon. Then again...", he trailed off as he pondered to himself, examining his hands, nodding. "I suppose I AM quite ruby-like, am I not?" The barmaid could do nothing but put her hand over her face. "And do you have a name, miss?" The girl looked up again. "Oh, um, my name's Catherine.", she said quietly, resting her hands in her lap. "Catherine... three syllables, commonly used name for females of the human variety. Lovely name.", he said as he started spouting off various facts. Catherine decided to ask another question before he became lost in his own world. "Um, so you said you were from the Astral Sea? What is it like?" He smiled slightly. "Oh, the Astral Sea? Yes, yes, it is quite beautiful. However, like everywhere else, it has it's... imperfections." Catherine frowned, tilting her head slightly. "Oh... well, I guess not everything is perfect... so why are you here? How long ago did you come here?" Rubicon actually had to think about this one for a second. "Hmmm... I've been here for... quite some time. At least five years, yes. I don't remember exactly, but that is because I'v been so focused on my purpose." Before the barmaid could ask, she saw the tiny cube jiggling on the table. She slowly reached a hand out, glancing up at him. "You're worried if touching a small one such as him would burn your finger, correct?" She nods. Rubicon gently pokes Cubert. "Since he is so small, his acid is weak. You would have to be a newborn for it to effect you in any way, and even then it would be minor." With that, Catherine gave it a gentle poke, finding it's body to tickle her finger with it's weak acid. The cube jiggled, burbling a bit, and she smiled. She then proceeded to continue poking it, the gurgling growing in volume, until Rubicon slammed his large fist on the table. "STOP THAT." She jumped, staring at him wide eyed. Rubicon quickly calmed down, patting the cube. "He hates people repeatedly poking him. Forgive me, we shardminds tend to not always have a firm grasp on our emotions.", he said non-chalantly.
The room was silent for a brief moment before Catherine spoke up again. "So, um, what was this purpose you mentioned?" "OH!", Rubicon replied excitedly. "My purpose! Yes, I am to gather as much power as possible, to send it back to the Living Gate, to refuel it." Catherine swallowed hard. "Gather power? Like... like find magic relics, take their power and use it to wrought chaos upon us all?" "Well, I COULD do that... but I believe that knowledge is a greater source of power." At the mention of this, Catherine let out a sigh of relief, slumping in her chair slightly. "You see, I believe that knowledge is the greatest power of all. It's used in practically everything." Catherine sat up again, giving him a rather inquisitive look. "How so exactly?" "Well... a warrior needs to know how to wield a sword, does he not? Or you need to know how to wait tables correctly or a blacksmith needs to know what is needed to forge a new set of armor? Or how a man knows how to insert his-" "Ah, yes, yes, you have a very good point!", Catherine said with a heavy blush on her face as she interrupted him before Rubicon went into greater detail.
At this point, two ruffians stepped into the bar, laughing and saying rather lewd jokes to one another. Catherine sank into her seat somewhat, a nervous look on her face. "Oh gods, not them again..." Upon hearing her say this, Rubicon turned to look at the men who just entered. "Are they friends of yours." "Shh! You'll draw attention to me!" Unfortunately for her, it was quite too late. The two men staggered over to her, already smelling of ale. "Well, if it ain't our old friend, Cathy! Say, Cathy, how's about that kiss you owe me?", he says as he puckers up. Only to get a tray in his face. Catherine scowled at him. "For the last time, I wouldn't be caught dead with either of you!" The second one grabbed her arm, pulling out a dagger. "Then maybe dead is what we should make you.", he sneered. Catherine bit her bottom lip, looking to the sharp instrument he drew. The first one, rubbing his reddened face, looked to Rubicon now. "What the crap is this bloody thing? Say, Jack! Think we could break this guy down and sell him? I bet we'd make a fortune!" Upon hearing that last bit about becoming filthy rich, Jack tossed Catherine aside and moved over toward Rubicon, examining him. "Aye, I bet we'd get five, maybe six hundred gold a pound from him!" Rubicon sighed, speaking into the minds of whoever was listening. "Oh dear... speaking of knowledge, I know I'm about to do something dreadful. Forgive me." He raised one of his hands and waved one of his fingers, a spark of arcane energy shooting out behind him.
A portal now formed where the arcane bolt landed, and out from the hole stepped out a muscular looking warrior covered in non-lethal flames (at least, non-lethal enough not to set the place on fire), brandishing an axe. The two men slowly glanced up at the new guest, both looking on in awe and terror. "Efreet, if you would, please dispatch these two, but don't kill them." Without a word, the flaming warrior grabbed both of them by the front of their shorts, and proceeded to simply toss them out onto the street. The ruffians then scrambled to their feet, running for the hills. Catherine sat on the ground in amazement as Efreet simply bowed his head towards Rubicon, then re-entered the portal, closing when he was through it. "W-w-w-w-w-what was that!?" Rubicon opened his book again, acting as if nothing happened. "A summon, a trusted companion, nothing more." Catherine slowly stood up, unsure of what to make of this whole situation. Many of the customers inside the tavern were took shocked to speak. "Uh... I should get back to work.", Catherine stated matter of factly as she went back to work. Rubicon glanced up, raising a hand to stop her. "Oh, but miss-" She was already gone, unaware of the snickering that was heard as she walked by a few customers. "Oh dear... I didn't get a chance to tell her Cubert ate through the back of her dress earlier... Oh well, I'm sure she'll find out soon enough." He shrugged, going back to his tome, studying it intently.
Cubert gurgled.
Mon Mar 22, 2010 12:07 pm