Task Name: Somebody Poisoned The Watering Hole
Tier: 1
NPC or PC: NPC
Location: Crescent Island | South Blue
Crew, Team, or Personal: Personal
Description: After informing the villagers of what you've seen, they begin debating over whether or not they should send warriors to deal with the strange men, or if they should just hunker down to defend themselves and wait for the trouble to blow over. While the fools bicker, go take matters into your own hands and locate the hideout of the men pouring chemicals into the watering holes. Wait for them to leave before sneaking in and setting their remaining supply of chemicals ablaze to ensure they can't be used again.
Enemy Details: N/A
Boss: N/A

Tensions were high within the village as a heated verbal clash began on the subject of what to do about the strange men dumping liquids into the jungle waters. Seiju simply wanted to trade for some wine and be off, back to his secluded hut where he could forget the world under the weight of an ocean of booze. But there wasn't going to be any trading going on while this crisis was being discussed. Some of the young men were convinced that these men planned on attacking the village. They shouted to their peers that it was the wise choice to bolster defenses and prepare for the incoming threat. The older and more experienced warriors spoke down this idea as cowardice and suggested they strike out to murder the men that dared to hurt the balance of their home. Things seemed to be split down the middle and after a few minutes they all turned to the village elder to break the tie.

The shriveled old man cleared his throat and wobbled into the center of the gathered villagers. Stopping with a cough, the man looked to both sides of the argument with weary eyes. He seemed to be unsure of what path to take and eventually stated that they would consult the gods for an answer. There was some protesting from the younger generation, but the older generation agreed and everyone set to task preparing a sacrificial feast for a ritual that would be held that evening.

Seiju just wanted a good drink. Was that so much to ask? But it wasn't going to happen any time soon if the villagers really wasted time asking the gods how to fix a problem that was started by man. The elderly swordsman decided to take matters into his own hands once again. "Should have just taken them out when I saw them..." Seiju said aloud chastising himself for having been too lazy to fight earlier when he first laid eyes on the men dumping toxins into the water. "You coming?" He'd ask to Damocles if he was still around while waltzing off into the jungle once more.

OOC: Apologies for the late reply

Damocles had accompanied the old man back to his village, but he didn't pay much thought to what had been the topic of discussion concerning the village people. Instead he went to a restaurant. The owner had looked at him funnily and asked what he wanted, to which he responded he would eat anything but seafood. Promptly hearing the news, the chef began to cook and the Marine just slouched down waiting for his meal to be served. Meanwhile, he saw how a woman with dark hair walked by and came to his side. She had been of good figure, but wasn't much of an interest for Damocles's mind. Yet what happened to her did interest him. After drinking a glass of water she had ordered, the striking woman dropped down to the floor and began to choke. She gasped out for air and thrashed around. Before his meal was even served, Damocles jumped to action and rushed to her side. He wouldn't allow some civilian to die out on his watch. So he did what was slightly the more controversial of paths and poked a hole down on her throat with a small dagger he had strapped to his leg. He then saw how color returned to her face and she began to breath in and out steadily.

After checking out if she was alright, Damocles asked for the glass of water and attempted to see if their was something wrong with it. Much to his surprise, he could smell some off odor from it. It was pungent and strong, but not deadly on it's own. This clearly meant he had to learn what would eb the problem of the source. Therefore, after standing up, Damocles told the people at the restaurant to not drink the water, a prospect that many inside saw as some sort of an understanding. Meanwhile, the cook returned to him with the Marine's meal ready to be served and prepared. Sadly, he wouldn't have time to eat for by the time he sat back down on the chair, the old man called to him, somewhat making Damocles feel a bit frustrated by the lack of food he had on his stomach.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" began Damocles as he walked away from the restaurant and dragged on. It seemed the were going back to the jungle for the old man delved back to the verdurous place. A prospect that Damocles wasn't too fond off...considering his current state.

((It's a tribal village of primitive people. I'm not sure they would have restaurants.  o.o ))

Hearing the young man's tone as he sounded somewhat unenthusiastic to head out into the jungle again, Seiju belittled his troubles with a waving gesture as if to sweep them away. "The village will be holding a feast tonight one way or another. You can eat when we get back." He said, guessing that the source of Damocles' concerns were that he was being pulled away from an eatery by the old man. "If you want to be upset with someone you can blame me. I shouldn't have been so quick to avoid a conflict." Seiju said as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. Had it been the old him of even 20 years ago, Seiju would have rushed in and confronted those men the moment he spotted them polluting the watering hole. Had age really chipped away at his heart to craft a cold and bitter old man? Seiju reflected on this and questioned his identity as they returned to the watering hole which would have made for a somewhat quiet journey unless Damocles felt the need to strike up some conversation.

Either way, once they arrived back at the watering hole the men were already gone, but tracks they left behind were evident. Seiju didn't need to be a skilled huntsman in order to know that they had come from the north. "It looks like we've got a bit more walking to do. Hang in there kid." Seiju said sympathetically before trudging on deeper into the jungle following the trail the strange men had left behind.

(OOC: Just go with it. Eating establishment...local cook...banquet hall)

Damocles kept dragging his feet along the jungle trail with hard stoned footsteps. He was literally starving out. His insides growled out and the usually energetic Marine was less-than enthusiastic about the whole ordeal. Still, he wasn't one for complaining or quoting on a good, hard job. Despite his will to go on, their was little Damocles did to actually have a good conversation with the elder, something he was not exactly prone on doing given his love of talking to interesting figures. To the young man this old, tough being was quite intriguing. He reeked of alcohol and looked les than exuberant, but had an aura of ancient wisdom that could only be described as intriguing. For now he would rather follow the old man to see if he would be more inclined to be either a decent ally or troublesome burden.

Eventually, the two reached an interesting point. While Seiju investigated the area, Damocles sat back on an old stump and yawned. Afterwards, he stretched and groaned upon doing so, feeling a rush of titivating energy rush through his brawny form. However, for goodness's sake he would not get up from his 'comfortable' stump unless it was necessary, which soon came to be as the other called him up. A slight groan came out of his lips, but Damocles still didn't say a single sentence concerning his state. Despite this he did look around and noticed some weird pigmentation about some plants.

"Pardon me" began Damocles. "But aren't plants supposed to mostly green or at least you know...alive?" rhetorically asked Damocles who pointed at a rather large patch of withered and dried plants which seemed to be near the top thirties or so in terms of quantity. He was hesitant about grabbing the plant, but decided that it wasn't poisonous to the touch and proceeded to yank one plant out and hand it over to Seiju "Seems like whatever is going around not only affects animals but also plants. Maybe it has deadly effects on the island's flora." concluded the Marine who saw how the plant crumbled away into dust that soon flew away. "Whatever it is I don't like the looks of it one bit. I propose that we handle this matter thoroughly. Who knows what side-effects such disturbance could wrought forth." said Damocles as he continued to move forward.

OOC: I took some liberties concerning the virus. I hope you don't mind.

((It's not really a virus, that was just the villager's assumption. It's simply chemical poisoning, but the plants nearby the watering hole being affected is fine. Doesn't bother me.))

"There are all kinds of plants out there, assume all are mostly green and you're bound to be mistake-"

Seiju began to spout of with rolling eyes as he slowly turned to face Damocles. His tone oozing a sense of impatience towards the question. However, when he laid eyes upon the plans the young man had been referring to it shut the old crank up in the middle of his sentence. "Fair point, that certainly doesn't look to be natural." Seiju frowned a distasteful look before glancing at the nearby watering hole. "I don't care about the men responsible, but we need to dispose of whatever it was they were dumping into the water supply. If it is affecting both beast and plant alike, then it is only a matter of time before the contamination reaches the human populace..." Seiju was mostly muttering to himself, but it would be loud enough for Damocles to hear if he strained to listen in on the old man's words.

Closing his eyes for a moment Seiju thought about how it would be a terrible loss if the villagers who made the sweet wine he loved or the fruits used to create it were lost due to these outsiders. It was a disturbing thing to ponder but even that was not enough to drive the old man into seeking harm upon the men responsible. Having heard Damocles' words on how they should deal with the issue "thoroughly" Seiju shook his head and opened his eyes looking down the direction of the tracks that he'd spotted before. Speaking in a clear voice this time, Seiju gave his disagreements to that idea. "There's no need to let things get out of hand. It'll be best if no one gets hurt. Getting rid of those chemicals should be enough...you got anything that goes boom?" Seiju would wait for a response but regardless would suggest the proceed onward before the sun decided they were taking too long.

Once the two men started on the trail again, the old man posed another question for Damocles. "So where did you learn the sword? That weapon of yours isn't the type any man can go swinging around with control. If I had to guess I'd say you were self taught, but I'm curious if that is truly the case."

Being ignored was never a pleasant thing so Seiju had an understandable frown upon his face as he found Damocles rather unresponsive to his questions. The young man seemed lost in thought, overly focused on something. With a sigh, Seiju couldn't help but forgive the kid as he knew the look well. It had found a place on his own visage numerous times when he was a young man contemplating the depths of swordsmanship. Perhaps the questions about the origin of Damocles' skills and teachings had drudged up some memories of the past that couldn't be ignored. The scolding the old man was about to dish out was placed on hold as he tried to scan the warrior marine's equipment for anything of useful. Spotting a flint tied to Damo's belt, Seiju reached out and plucked it from it's strap as he assured the boy that he'd return it.

"I'm gonna borrow this. Head back to the village. I'll be back before dark."

With a turn of the heel Seiju left the marine there just like that and forged onwards to follow the tracks left behind by his prey. It would not take much more than an hour to find the trail leading Seiju to a small burrowed out hillside that was serving as a campsite of sorts. The same men from before were gathered around talking among themselves as they grabbed another barrel of the mystery liquid. Seiju watched silently from the brush keeping hidden as the men took their time hoisting the barrel and heading out in the direction of another watering hole. The old man knew that he would have to fight the men if he engaged them now, so he decided to let them distribute the pollutant they were carrying off. In exchange, Seiju would ensure none remained left upon their return.

Once the coast was clear and none remained at the camp, Seiju emerged from the tree line and opened the lids on each of the six remaining barrels. Even up close, he couldn't identify the exact concoction but the fumes were pungent. Hoping it was flammable, Seiju used the flint to shower the surface of the liquid with sparks. Luck was on his side as the chemicals lit aflame immediately starting up a healthy blaze. Smirking to himself, the swordsman spirited away from the location returning to the village where he could inform them that no more chemical dumping would occur.