Logs:We Will Rock You

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We Will Rock You
Dramatis Personae

Brent (NPC), Kaliko (NPC), and Joachim. James as GM.

5 July, 2008


Joachim meets some people, some weird stuff happens. Must be Tuesday.

Location

Honolulu

Plot(s)

Plot:The Happy (Eco) Warriors


It's a lovely summer day in Honolulu, and since it's tourist season, there are plenty of people around. It seems that there's a little artisan fair or something like that that's been set up on one of the non-major streets, where people are selling jewelry, food, art...all the things that one usually sells at one of those things. It's pretty low-key, though -- well, after all, it //is// Hawaii. Hawaii is often low-key. But it's even more low-key than some other things, so maybe it's an impromptu thing.

Joachim had come for the simple fact that large groups of people seemed to attract him. Maybe it was a worry for their safety, maybe it was because he enjoyed being surrounded by the throngs of life. Maybe... it meant that there was something really delicious in the offing and they were lined up for a try. Certainly that last one was what brought him to the artisan market today. He was already happily chewing on a deep fried hot dog as he strolled about. Tossing the quickly emptied wrapper into a bin, he started looking about curiously, moving more towards the jewelry section, though any food stand was investigated with interest.

He was dressed comfortably, a pair of jeans and a loose grey t-shirt.

Oh, there are plenty of delicious things to eat, Joachim. Deep fried hot dogs, deep fried Oreos, deep fried deep fry batter...well, maybe not that last one. But a lot of good stuff.

There's also, though, a group of people on the corner of the street, and they have clipboards in their hands. One of them is holding a sign that reads *STOP THE MADNESS*. It isn't that clear, but luckily -- or unluckily -- one of the guys turns and sees Joachim. "Sign our petition to stop so-called 'eco-tourism' hikes in the forest reserve?" he asks -- or sort of asks. He's already handing Joachim the clipboard. "They leave garbage and disturb the habitat."


Joachim paused, allowing the clipboard to bump into his broad chest several times before he inserted a hand between it and himself. "Uh... really? I mean... yes litter is bad. But the reserve is curated isn't it? And the animals are well taken care of." He shook his head. "Sorry... I'm not sure science bares out your conclusions man." He gave him a pat on the shoulder. "But hey! GOod for you for getting involved right? Have a nice day." He made to pass theman.


The guy is clearly annoyed that Joachim has come back with this, and he lets out a scoff. "Maybe, but people still leave stuff there," he says. "When Hawaii is one big pile of litter, then it'll be too late!" He lets Joachim pass, but he does raise his voice a little bit.

There's a hippie-ish guy who's standing next to him, also holding a clipboard. "Yeah, man," he says after Joachim. "Think about, like, the forests. Tramping through there, ruining all the auras, getting the chakras out of alignment. It's just bad news, man." He doesn't make a move to stop Joachim either, though, and they turn away, probably to accost someone else.


Joachim looked to the man and shrugged. "The only thing that can bump someone's aura or chakras out of alignment is internal strife. Not external stimulus. If you're going to play at philosophy, think on it a bit more carefully would you?"


That's what you think, man," the burned-out looking guy says, shaking his head again, as though he's disappointed. "There are auras all around us. You just have to be in tune with nature, man." And then he sees a cute girl walk by, and he forgets all about Joachim. "Sign the petition?" he asks her, with more of a suave tone. Or what he probably thinks is suave. In tune with nature, indeed.

The other petition guy doesn't talk to Joachim anymore, and so he's free to continue on his way. That is, until the ground seems to shift under his feet, as though it's his own private earthquake, since no one else around him seems to be reeling.


Joachim shrugged as the man took off, his footsteps suddenly growing unsteady as he walked. He brough his foot down on the ground and stood, easily stabilizing himself and taking a deep breath, his eyes looking this way and that. It was apparently not so much the quake itself as it's implications that disturbed him, as he noted that no one else seemed to have been bothered. Eyes narrowing, he scanned the crowd, frowning as he saw nothing.


Joachim does not notice anything out of the ordinary, besides the fact that he just nearly fell over because the ground shook a little bit. That's probably out of the ordinary. No one even really seems to be looking at him. It's certainly odd. Maybe you're losing it, Joachim?

However, a few seconds later, he //does// see something. A little piece of rock suddenly juts out of the sidewalk right in front of him under his feet. It was definitely not there before.


It was enough of an obstacle to cause Joachim to stumble slightly, though he caught his balance easily. He frowned, looking down at it and rubbing his fingers along the suddenly jagged surface. He grunted, digging deeper into his mystical senses.


Well, the little rise in the sidewalk definitely wasn't there before. And yes, there is the residual feeling of magic there. It may be fading quickly, but he's caught it just before it dissipates completely. Now there's just a bump in the otherwise smooth sidewalk that anyone could trip over now, not just Joachim.


Frowning, Joachim righted himself, looking back towards where the protesters were. He'd seen no one though and looked back down to the rock with a grunt. "Someone's feeling pushy... I wonder why..."


The protestors don't seem to be paying attention to Joachim anymore. They have started a chant, though. "Stop...the...madness!" they cry. "Stop...the...madness!" Most people who pass them give them very strange looks, and some laugh outright. Not many people are signing, certainly, but they don't seem to care. They just keep on with that they're doing, and you have to give it to them -- they aren't going away. Annoyingly.


Joachim sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Shit... a mystery to figure out. I look terrible in a goddamn ascot." Still he grinned slightly, looking to the protesters. "Hmm..." He nodded and walked back towards them, heading for the guy with the clipboard. He gave him a tap on the shoulder. "Hey man. Too late to change my mind? You guys got a mailing list or something?"


The guy with the clipboard turns around, and he looks a little surprised for a second, before he nods once, and his expression clears as though he should of expected it. Clearly Joachim would want to be on his mailing list! //Obviously//. "Of course," he says, and he hands Joachim the clipboard. "Just put it down there at the bottom and I'll add you. We'll keep you up to date on all our action items."


Joachim nodded, bobbing his pen. "Sick. Sweet." He jotted down his information, a false name though everything else the same. "It's not like I don't care... I just like to do all the research first you know? Make an informed opinion. But I figure... maybe I'm only getting half the story right?" He shrugged. "You guys have like... a zine or a webt site? SOmething I can subscribe to? I prefer to stay on top of things..."


"Oh, of course," the clipboard guy says with an understanding nod. The hippie guy is still chatting up that girl that he'd seen before, and she looks vaguely like she's rather be somewhere else, but is being polite. "We do. Just go to savehawaiifighttourism.org." A little on the nose, but hey. At least it makes sense and is easy to remember. "There's a bulletin you can get, and all the information is on there, too. You'll be horrified."


Joachim nodded again, returning the pen and clipboard. "Great great. Perfect site address. Can't forget it." He gave the guy a nod. "Yeah... I bet I will be. It can be pretty terrible right?" He smiled and gave the guy a pat on the shoulder. "You just keep fighting this fight though man. And I'll take a good long look at all that stuff. Thanks."


"Thank you," the guy says, and he smiles. "We sure will. This is my home and I'm tired of seeing it destroyed by the tourism blight." He nods to Joachim, and adds, "Hopefully we'll see you out at some events." With that, he turns away to try and get some more signatures.

It may be worth noting that when Joachim continues on, there are no more weird rock projections or personal earthquakes to avoid. Of course, maybe it's just a coincidence.