Welcome to the Good Life ((closed))

[Herald]

[Reader discretion advised]

Gabriel had seen many beautiful days in his nineteen years of life, but he had never before been truly moved by the huge expanse of soft blue above him as he was today. Equally impressive, the ocean that sprawled off the eastern coast of Corone caught the rays of the sun and playfully tossed them back in a dazzling array of flashy winks, but Gabriel didn’t notice as he continued to admire a trio of circling birds that soared on the coastal winds. Gabe also failed to notice the trees that lined the dirt road his wagon trundled along, and the gentle snort that came from one of the two horses pulling that wagon. He did notice, however, when his brother Raphael elbowed him sharply in the ribs.

“Ow! What?” Gabriel stopped staring at the sky long enough to fix his brother with an annoyed glare. Raphael grinned good-naturedly back at his older brother, the same grin that won over more hearts than even he realized. Raphael was only a year younger then his brother, and taller by about a hair. He shared his brother’s lean build and quick mind, but had a more outgoing personality, the kind of personality that wouldn’t hesitate to interrupt the philosophical musings of anyone sitting beside him in a wagon with a swift elbow to the gut.

“Well, I was just thinking, we got a few hours before we get to Jadet, and we got plenty of Magnificence between us. What if I was to let you hold the reins while I hopped in back to roll a ‘rette?” Raphael held up a small leather pouch for his brother’s inspection, but Gabriel didn’t need to open it to know what was inside. Doubtless it contained some dried leaves of Magol’s plant, more commonly known as Magnificence.

Gabriel shivered as he anticipated the high that smoking Magnificence always brought him. It was a state of complete relaxation, where all your mundane troubles just drifted away with the curling smoke. In recent months he had become particularly obsessed with achieving that feeling, which is part of the reason he was on his way to Jadet to begin with.

The only answer Gabriel offered was a brief smile and an outstretched hand grasping at the reins. Raphael laughed, and wasted no time as he set to work crushing the dried leaves in the back of the wagon.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Gabriel leaned back, taking all the smoke deep into his lungs, then blew it up into a swirling cloud that lingered for just a few seconds before dissipating on the breeze. Raphael tossed the remaining stub of the otherwise-depleted cigarette to the wilderness and settled in to enjoy the ride. Gabe glanced around as that familiar light-headed feeling began to sink in and was startled by how vivid the colors were. Vibrant shades of green emanated life from the leaves, while the sky seemed to spill over into the ocean with every flavor of blue imaginable. The motions of the water became absolutely mesmeric, inviting and forbidding all at the same time. As the horses continued their trot southward, Gabe was struck by the power evident with every ripple of their muscles, and became absolutely fascinated by the way their manes flipped back and forth, side to side, with each rhythmic step. The trio of birds he had watched previously were long gone, but a dozen or so seagulls played tag with the waves in the distance while a chorus of unseen birds thrilled the woods to his right with cheerful melodies.

As he let all these sensations sink in, Gabe let out a contented sigh. “This is the good life...” he murmured softly to no one in particular.

“Hell yes,” Raphael jumped on the thought as if it was a completely original idea. “I wish life could always be like this. Travelling, you know, and the pretty skies, adventures, live off the land, birds, ocean...wow. The ocean is huge. I wonder if fish ever look at the land and wonder about people.” Raphael regarded the ocean carefully, as though afraid it would pronounce some sort of judgment on him.

Gabe started to laugh, then stopped as all the implications of what his brother said began to really sink in. It wouldn’t be difficult at all for the two of them to strike out on their own, make their own way in the world. Of course he would feel guilty about leaving his family...wait, why should he feel guilty? It would just be two less mouths to feed, he reasoned. Besides, they could leave their family with some gold, and if they were successful, no one in their family would ever have to work again. Gabe imagined himself being named royalty in some exotic kingdom as a reward for his epic, heroic deeds. Why not?

“Why not, indeed!” he said aloud. Gabe was startled by the amount of force he put into those three simple words, and the way they seemed to make his idle musings into a reality. A wild plan was already forming in his mind, a plan that could make the two brothers rich travelers with hardly a care in the world.

“Raph?” Gabe looked over at his brother, who seemed to be engaged in a staring contest with the ocean.

“The ocean can be so cruel,” Raphael responded passionately as he tore his gaze away to look at his brother. “Yeah?”

“You know how we’re supposed to sell these fish and smuggle some Magnificence into Jadet?”

“Yeah. I remember that.”

“Well, what if we took it all for ourselves? We could steal the Magnificence and be adventurers instead!” His own excitement took him by surprise once again.

Raphael seemed to consider the question thoroughly before responding. “Yes!” He grinned and then added, almost as an afterthought, “I hate fish.”

Gabe laughed nervously, wondering if such a monumental, life-changing decision could have truly been made so easily. Raphael appeared to have already forgotten the entire conversation and was once again glaring at the ocean with unmasked malice. Neither spoke another word as they continued to enjoy the ride and the high, and neither noticed how dark clouds began gathering in the distance, over Jadet.

[Herald]

After another two hours of travel, the pair approached the sprawling fields that served as a grazing pasture for the ranch at the top of the hill. Now that the effects of the drug had all but worn off, the rapidly darkening sky had begun to affect their collective mood, and neither spoke as they reached the ranch house that was their meeting point.

The meeting was, as usual, blessedly short. The familiar contact (whose name they still didn’t know) recognized them on sight and quickly loaded a dozen leather bags into the back of the wagon, wrinkling his nose in distaste every time he came in contact with some of the salted fish that was destined for some tavern in Jadet.

“Straight to Jocko at the docks. He’ll give you your usual cut.” He spoke with a mildly accented voice that suggested a foreign heritage, but neither Gabriel nor Raphael had ever been able to place it.

Gabriel gently shook the reins to urge on the horses, and the wagon lurched forward once more. Raphael regarded his brother out of the corner of his eye, speaking only when the ranch was safely receding into the distance.

“You’re sure we can do this?” He seemed calm, but Gabriel knew the anticipation was gnawing at his gut like a caged rat trying to break free, because that was exactly how he felt, too.

“Of course. See how easy that was? Just play along when we get into the city. We don’t need to go see Jocko. He just gave us a full load of Magnificence, we can easily sell it ourselves. And keep some on the side, too. You know, for us.” He smiled in what he hoped was a reassuring manner as a stiff wind blew his shoulder-length brown hair into his face.

The walls of Jadet loomed closer and closer, but the more Gabriel thought about it, the more he was convinced that not only was it a good idea, it was the right thing to do.

[Herald]

“Where’n the hells are those idiots?!” Spittle flew from his enraged mouth as he shouted at the cringing thugs in front of him. His scarred face, frightening enough on a regular basis, was truly fearsome as it contorted in wrath. Jocko once warned someone that they wouldn’t like him when he was angry. He was right.

Scars and tattoos covered his body, ranging from his shirtless, muscular torso to the top of his bald head. Several earrings adorned his left ear, and it was certain he used to have at least as many in his right, but he had lost it as the penalty for thievery in a certain, far-off city.

Paralyzed, perhaps by fear, or maybe by the drugs, no one in the room moved. Making a visible effort to control his overwhelming rage, he stood from the simple wooden chair that served practically as his throne. Towering over his pitifully few subjects, the self-proclaimed “Emperor” allowed his hands to clench into fists. He extended one trembling finger towards the nearest thug, a brutish looking man who could have easily been the child of an ogre.

“Find them.” His voice became more terrifying when he spoke in a near-whisper. All activity in the small, subterranean cavern ceased. Everyone was frozen, transfixed, as though they were painted onto a rocky canvas as part of a sinister tableau. Nok, the thug who had been singled out, began stammering a reply. Jocko’s eyes flashed, but the dim-witted goon didn’t seem to notice. Someone fought back a gulp. Jocko’s left eye twitched, and everyone winced.

“NOW!” Jocko exploded at his minion. Several people ducked. Nok started to stumble over an apology, then thought better of it and scrambled away with all the haste his bulky form could muster.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

If it hadn’t been raining, if the clouds hadn’t darkened the sky early, Gabriel would have been able to enjoy the glory of the setting sun over Concordia. As it was, he was granted a view of a gloomy grey sky that seemed to encompass everything in a dull blanket of bleakness. The normally-busy streets were nearly deserted. None of the merchants shouted to advertise their wares, if only because there was no one to sell them to. A few of the shops had even closed when the rain picked up in intensity and threatened to become a full-on storm instead of a simple shower.

Gabriel glanced back the wagon. The horses weren’t thrilled to be out in the middle of the road while it was raining so hard, but Raphael managed to soothe them easily enough. The wind never tired of playing with Gabriel’s hair, but Gabriel had long since lost the will to continually brush it out of his face, allowing it to wave about unhindered. He turned back the shop in front of him, and through the tangled curtain of his own dark hair in front of his eyes, he was able to read the sign. Or rather, he would have been, if anything was written on it.

This is the place. Hopefully we can get this over with quickly. The door creaked a welcome and a warning as he fought to open it against yet another sudden gust of freezing wet air. An old man materialized behind the counter, his wide smile revealing a full set of wooden teeth. He spoke no greeting, but nodded genially towards his potential customer.

“Magnificent day we’re having, isn’t it?” Gabriel watched the man closely to see his reaction. This shop had the interesting reputation of selling just about anything that was unavailable elsewhere, especially anything illegal. Like Magnificence, for example.

The old man’s eyes widened ever so slightly, but it was enough for Gabe to confirm he was in the right place. It was time to speak freely.

“Listen, I’ve got ten good pouches, filled with prime plant. I need to get rid of them. Two hundred gold each.” Gabriel produced a pouch from under his cloak, and as soon as he pulled the string to open it, the pungent scent filled the room.

The old man raised his eyebrows quizzically. “May Ah?” he wheezed, motioning towards the pouch. Gabriel put it down and slid it across the counter to his eagerly waiting hands. He wasted no time in dipping his fingers inside to test it’s quality. He wasn’t disappointed in it’s dry, slightly sticky texture or the deep shade of green.

“‘Sgood. Ah c’n givyeh five ‘undred for ‘em.”

“Each?”

“Alt’gether. Yeh sed yeh needa git rid of ‘em, righ', sonneh?”

Disappointed, Gabriel had little choice but to accept the unreasonably meager sum. He handed over nine more bags, gladdened only by the thought that he and Raphael had thought to put aside two of the pouches for their own use. No longer able to tolerate the musty shop, Gabe hurried back out into the rain, thinking only that after selling the rest of the fish in the wagon, he would be free to make his own way in the world.