Chapter 2 Dialogue 2
After spending a bit of time nearby the brig, ensuring that no-one else will be by any time soon, Jasiri eventually leaves the ship, heading back out to continue helping with the excavations. He stomps up to the site, his usual cheery demeanor hidden beneath a furrowed brow and an air of frustration. As he meets up with Hazel and the kobolds, he’s quick to grab a shovel and begin attacking the mountain. It wouldn’t be difficult to see the additional force behind each heave.
After a few minutes, he begins to slow. Jasiri lets out a deep sigh.
Jasiri: “Ms. Vandorin? I’m not sure i’ve heard your opinion on the matter. What do you believe should be done with Tobias?”
Hazel watches the Kobolds smiling and cheering as they blow up another section of rock. There’s a hint of a smile at the corners of her lips but watching her, it’s hard to tell what’s truly going through her mind. Her eyes shift to the horizon beyond and watches it until the sounds of Jasiri’s thumping paws approach.
Her eyes shift over, still unmoving from her previous spot and watches him slam his shovel into the earth. She studies him, watching his behavior and body language. When he speaks, her eyes immediately shift away in embarrassment. She swallows hard, hearing his voice but she crosses her arms and turns towards him. Her eyes don’t meet his but he can tell she’s listening. When he says Tobias’s name, her eyes flicker upward to meet his. Again, studying his face to try and find the reasoning of this interaction.
Hazel shrugs
Hazel: “I don’t truly know… My views on this man are quite minimal and from what I’ve seen he’s just trying to survive. Sure, his actions are cruel and perhaps irrational…”
She trails off, directing her attention back to the setting sun.
H: “But Excalibur had said something… Back in town,”
she pauses, biting her lip for a moment,
H: “he is a person too…”
Another explosion sounds from behind her and bits of rock roll by her feet. There’s another pause and a darkened expression forms on her face. She turns to face him, a horrifying darkness lingering in her eyes.
H: “But I also do not believe in our justice system…. So, I believe I’m not the person to ask this question to.”
J: “Justice aside. The man is a thief, and unconscionably careless for the people he was meant to protect.”
He takes another deep sigh. The words frustrate him, and he tries to center himself, poorly.
J: “Regardless of what the laws say, what do you believe should happen to a man like that?”
Hazel blinks, her face emotionless H: “I suppose I already answered your question… I do not believe in our justice system. He was a part of it… No?”
She watches him, a coldness forming over her as a breeze blows across the cliffside
H: “Should we decide to turn him in, should we decide to kill him, I care not for that man’s fate.”
Hazel watches him
H: “You’re asking me this question because something happened in there… Didn’t it?”
Jasiri pauses for a moment shifting his eyes away from Hazel for the first time since asking his question, turning them to the shovel. He stabs it deep into the ground.
J: “Yes, something happened. The Hunters were here to kill Tobias. Torren, Excalibur, Schmead… They opened the door for them to do it.”
He begins to pry a large boulder with the end of the shovel, putting his weight behind it to try and wrest it from the earth.
J: “If I hadn’t intervened, the man charged to our care, the unarmed man mind you, would be dead and bleeding now.”
Hazel cocks her head to the side
H: “I do not believe they would have allowed the man to die. Excalibur tries to see the good in people. Schmead is afraid of violence. Torren though…”
She pauses to think of her words carefully
H: “Torren believes in communicating one’s feelings and feels they shouldn’t be bottled up. Maybe he wanted to give the hunters that chance? Though… I could be wrong about it all, I’ve only just met them two days ago.”
She looks off to the side, watching the Kobolds cheer as they begin to set another charge of dynamite. A small smile forms in the corners of her face again.
J: “I don’t believe Excalibur and Schmead were fully aware of the situation until it had escalated. Still, they had to have known that bringing the hunters here, to Tobias, wasn’t a good idea… They were either naïve or silent, concerning traits for new allies. I believe them them both to be remorseful… Torren however…”
She doesn’t turn to face him when she speaks, but a small softness to her voice returns H: “May I ask your opinion on something?”
Jasiri strains against the shovel; the boulder is either too heavy or quite stuck. Still, he tries.
J: “Of course. Please, ask away.”
Hazel ignores Jasiri’s struggles with the rocks as she remains fixated on the Kobolds.
H: “What do you think of them?”
She tilts her head slightly, indicating to the Kobolds.
Another explosion sets off and her floor length braided hair blows behind her. She turns, curiously towards him for his answer.
As the explosion shakes the ground, Jasiri loses his footing. His full weight falls onto the shovel, snapping the handle. For a brief moment there’s a terrible fury in his eyes; he reaches around the boulder, digging claws against the stone, ripping it out of the ground angrily, tossing it down the mountain behind him. As it tumbles, he realizes what he’s done. The anger subsides. He looks back in the direction of Hazel, but not quite at her, ashamed of his outburst.
J: “I’m sorry… The Kobolds? They… They seem fine?”
Hazel’s eyes lazily look down at the broken shovel then back to Jasiri, a strangeness forming on her face as if the shovel was a sign of his wrong answer.
H: “They’re thieves. They hurt people. They take what they want. They do as they need to survive.”
She turns her body to face Jasiri again.
H: “They told us they had no choice. They had nowhere to go and when the one person who took care of them disappeared, they were lost…”
Her voice breaks at the last word, clearly Lavender being a sensitive topic but she holds her shoulders high.
H: “Do you believe they should be deemed to death? Do you believe they should be deemed to be subjected to the Justice system?”
*Boomspear calls her name, smiling and waving to get her attention. She turns, the darkness immediately fading and she nods in approval of their work. He laughs, then turns back to the next crate of dynamite. *
Hazel lowers her head
H: “We’re all alone… Tobias included. He lost his parents as the Kobolds lost theirs… They are left with nothing else and they do what they believe is right in order to continue living in this world…”
She swallows, clearly hiding her personal experiences
H: “I think… We’ve all made decisions and choices that could put us in chains. But does that mean we are unredeemable?”
Jasiri is left speechless. He watches the happy Kobolds, considering Hazel’s words carefully. She’s right. He’s reminded of an old friend.
J: “I… I don’t believe anyone is unredeemable. Of course they shouldn’t be put to death… They should have their chance to make it right…
Jasiri’s eyes widen, coming to the realization. For the first time in a few hours a grin creeps across his face.
J: “…a chance that you’ve ensured they have, with us, aboard the ship.”
He chuckles. How wonderfully clever this strange girl is. He pauses for a moment to think about what this might mean for Tobias.
J: “So… Are you of the opinion then that we should simply let Tobias go? Set him free so that he can start over?”
Hazel blinks H: “I do not wish to have someone of the justice system on our ship. Do what you wish, but I will not be comfortable if he is with us.”
She watches his smile, his reaction, and a lightness come to his face
H: “Was.. This the answer you wanted from me?”
Jasiri laughs
J: “It certainly wasn’t the answer I was expecting. The only answer I wanted, Ms. Vandorin, was how you truly felt. You’ve made that clear, and made a few things clearer for me in the process.”
He pauses, watching the Kobolds. Boomspear ignites the next batch of explosives, and for the first time Jasiri doesn’t flinch at the explosion. His smile grows watching them enjoy the controlled chaos of it all. Perhaps there’s something to that.
J: “I do agree with you. I too would be uncomfortable with Tobias among us. There’s a difference between doing what one needs to survive, and doing something as pre-meditated as he had planned with the wolves. Still… perhaps this whole experience would be the push he needs to set things right. A second chance.”
Jasiri looks down at the hole that he pulled the boulder from. He glances down the mountain to where it tumbled briefly, then back to the hole.
J: “I suppose that’s all any of us could ask for. A chance to see our mistakes, and strive to do better. To grab a new shovel and keep on digging.”
He looks to Hazel, any hint of anger gone as he eyes her with a curious grin. He begins to wonder how or why this strange girl came to be so wise. The thought is interrupted by another; an old friend again. The grin widens.
J: “Was that the answer you wanted from me, Ms. Vandorin?”
Hazel continues to study him and observe him as he explains himself. There’s a longer break between her response than the previous pauses she’s taken but eventually she nods.
“There will always be available .. Shovels.”
She smiles, though it’s a little awkward with her attempt at being cheeky.
Hazel lifts an elongated estranged clawed hand and turns back to her work, slashing rocks away in a single swing. Indicating she is clearly done talking on the subject of Tobias.
Jasiri nods, still smiling.
J: “On that note, I suppose I’ll go grab one. Back in a moment!”
He begins to step away, stopping after a few feet.
J: “Thank you, Ms. Vandorin. Your insights are… appreciated. This has been enlightening. Truly… Back in a moment.”
Jasiri makes his way down the site, off to fetch a new tool. As he walks, he thinks about how to proceed with Tobias. How to proceed with Torren. About second chances. Arriving back the supplies, Jasiri looks back up at the dig site, back up at the Kobolds, back up to where the ship will rise out of the ground any day now.
And he grabs a shovel.