First Reply Working The Land

[Silas Westgard]

Objective: Prepare the land for farming
Tag: (Open to GA Jedi)
Location: The Westgard Homestead, Azbrian

For the longest time, Silas had been meaning to work the land as he once did. Today was going to be that day, and he couldn't be more excited.

When Silas was young, he and his father used to do some minor farming on the homestead in regards to growing their food for cooking. One of the big ones was wheat, which always showed a good gathering each year to the climate and soil Azbrian offered. Not only that, but it also offered them exercise and time to work in peace. A healthy mind was important for Jedi, and after all that had happened in Coruscant, he was certain some needed time to loosen up. It was the least he could do considering his homestead was used as a rehabilitation for injured Jedi.

Silas couldn't lie, he also needed some time to take his mind somewhere else.

Sitting in a rocking chair on the porch, the Jedi knight rocked slowly backward and forward as he waited for the individual to get ready and meet him outside. Silas was wearing some lightweight clothes like a short sleeved shirt and jeans that reflected the weather conditions and a straw hat to keep the sun from his face. There was a good chance the weather would stay the same, but knowing Azbrian conditions could switch in the blink of an eye.​

 

[Ko Vuto]

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Objective: Prepare land for farming
Location: Azbrian, Westgard Homestead
Tag: Silas Westgard

Ko was taking his sweet ass time. He was fully ready to get to work cultivating as he was no stranger to such outdoorsy work. But he still wanted to do a little something extra before he started to get his claws dirty in the soil. With a few glasses, a sharp knife and a cutting board the blind Jedi rather casually started slicing and cutting some fruits to craft some refreshing beverages. Deftly and narrowly avoiding his fingers in the process.

Lifting the cut fruits to telekinetically squeeze their contents with a force crush. Collecting their contents and removing the seeds that were mixed into it. Soon enough he was finished after adding a few things to improve the beverages.

Eventually Ko strolled out onto the porch with a bottle in one of his hands. Sealed with a bendy straw poking through the top and into his antiox mask. In his other hand was an ice cold glass of the drink he made. Handing it over to Silas. “Hope you don’t mind me taking some initiative on some of the citrus inside.” Ko mentioned as he pulled his drink from his mask to speak. The drink was a light greenish color. The Kel Dor thought it tasted a bit off but still pleasant. He accidently made limeade rather than lemonade. A consequence of his blindness.

Ko wore some breathable long sleeve shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his biceps and some hardy work suspenders draped over his shoulders. He forwent wearing a hat, since they often weren’t all that comfortable atop his alien head. Or left his two extra sensory organs unshaded. “To be honest you never really struck me as the homesteading type.” ​

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[Silas Westgard]

Objective: Prepare the land for farming
Tag: Ko Vuto
Location: The Westgard Homestead, Azbrian

"By all means, some good juice will help us get through the work we need to do"

Grateful for the fresh drink, he took it with a nod of thanks and sipped through the straw. His head tilted slightly from the refreshing taste, forcing a smile to spread across his lips with satisfaction "You'll have to tell me the recipe once this is all said and done" Silas remarked while casually having another sip of its contents. His eyebrows lifted from the surprise of him living this kind of lifestyle, something which had been said to him a few times.

"Considering you only know me for being Jedi it isn't a big shock. Before I became a Jedi, I lived with my parents in this house for just over a decade. I work the land as we used to, the only difference is that the homestead is used to help fellow Jedi recover and rest."

Silas was more than happy to share his work and love of the land with other people, especially if they were individuals who were quite new to him. Ko Vuto was certainly a Jedi he had not had the chance to meet until now, but he heard of his name through passing conversation. He seemed like a chill person from first impressions, Silas was just curious as to what his reasons were for being here.

"It's nice to keep things from a past life alive and kicking if you get what I mean. Being a Jedi can be mentally and physically exhausting, you've got to have something you can fall back on to relax" he said with another smile and sip of his drink "I presume you're interested in farming one way or another right?"
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[Ko Vuto]

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Objective: Prepare land for farming
Location: Azbrian, Westgard Homestead
Tag: Silas Westgard

Ko continued to sip on his drink some as he listened to Silas explain some of their humble origins. The Kel Dor having formulated the idea that there was a pattern of Jedi trained by Master Noble coming from noble backgrounds themselves. Even though only Briana and Cora were the only two Jedi that fit that description it bled into his impression of the others that lineage of Jedi.

The Kel Dor nodded as Silas continued to speak about the importance of Jedi having activities to soothe and relax the mind and soul. Being a jedi was a strenuous journey after all. “I get what you mean, I have a few hobbies that I’ve carried over from Dorin…” Ko replied, which often turned into moving mediations when engaging in them. Such as tenderly caring for his bonsai tree.

Ko let out a soft chuckle under his mask as Silas asked about the fellow Jedi's own interest in farming. “You presume correctly. I spent much of my teens in the Agricultural Corps, mainly on Nubia. So I assure you I'm no dabbler or dilettante.” He explained, sharing some of his own history with working the land. “But I imagine your operation here is far less industrial in scale.” Silas’s homestead didn’t seem like the kind of place meant to produce large quantities of food. But also wasn’t as small as something like a personal garden that he’d picture someone like Corazona von Ascania delicately tending to.

The homestead here seemed like a good balance. “So Mr. Westgard, what kind of work do you have planned for today?” Ko asked in eager and ready tone.​

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[Silas Westgard]

Objective: Prepare the land for farming
Tag: Ko Vuto
Location: The Westgard Homestead, Azbrian

Silas was pleased to hear that Ko had his own way to wind down and relax in his spare time. Everyone had their fix, it was just a matter of finding and keeping at it.

"Ah, so a man of experience? I'm sure you'll feel right at home" Silas responded, his feet slowly touching the floor to stand back up while at the same time leaving the spare hat behind "Your thoughts are correct. Other than the old speeder we have in the barn we don't have any machines or droids to help. For the most part, we will be doing it the old fashioned way" he said with a smirk just before the familiar sound of an empty cup indicate their pre drinking had come to an end.

"Well, if you'll follow me I'll show you"

Giving him a brief smile, he finally stepped off the porch and walked toward the old barn "We will be planting corn in preparation for the dry season. In a week, Azbrian will start getting constant sunlight for a whole month. There will be downpours now and then, but it won't be as unpredictable as it normally is" Silas explained as they began to walk past two gravestones to the right, words deeply etched into its stone.

"As I mentioned earlier we don't use machines, so I hope you're ready to pull up your sleeves and get your hands dirty."
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[Ko Vuto]

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Objective: Prepare land for farming
Location: Azbrian, Westgard Homestead
Tag: Silas Westgard

Listening to Silas Ko raised a brow over his goggles as he listened to the young man. “Oh, yep, that certainly sounds old fashioned… Do you even plan to use vibro-hoes or are we going more old-fashioned than that?” Ko asked curiously, it wouldn’t be an issue for him if everything done was purely manual. He was just interested in how “old fashioned” Silas was with his farming.

He followed closely behind and listened more to what was in store for them. How they’d be planting grain, specifically corn, today. His blind observations took note of the pair of stones as they walked by. The deep words offering enough texture that even he could read it if he choose to.

Ko let out a chuckle at the mention of getting his hands dirty. “Heh, I ain’t worried about getting unkempt from working in the dirt. I don’t think anything is gonna top some of the jobs I did in the agricultural corps. I doubt anyone could midwife a dozen nerfs overnight and come out of it spotless.” Ko replied with an assured tone. Just glad to be here for a bit and away from the misery back at the capital. Although part of him felt a pang of guilt for spending some of his time here and not where the action was.​

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[Silas Westgard]

Objective: Prepare the land for farming
Tag: Ko Vuto
Location: The Westgard Homestead, Azbrian

"Vibro-hoes? ha, one of those haven't been on this land since being built" he said with a smirk "We'll be using some proper old fashioned steel hoes, as well as something else which will greatly aid with preparing the field for planting" Silas explained as they grew closer to the barn. If Ko had looked carefully, he'd notice the name of two people on the stone, both with the same second name as Silas.

"That's what I like to hear, this will be far easier for you then" Silas said with a small chuckle before stopping next to the large barn doors "When we go in things are still a little bit messy. You're not bad with an overwhelming amount of dust right?" the knight asked rhetorically, his hands pressing forwards to finally let them into the barn. Inside there was a wide range of things to take in. Compared to what he said, the inside was actually well organised. In front of them an antique speeder bike stood proudly, one that seemed to be well looked after and loved. Everything else however was quite dusty.

"Barns are impossible to keep clean, mind the mess"

Walking through to the back, he stopped next to an old plough that looked like it had a few stories to tell.

"For the most part this old boy will help us. It will just require the two of us to give it a good push"
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[Ko Vuto]

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Objective: Prepare land for farming
Location: Azbrian, Westgard Homestead
Tag: Silas Westgard

“Goodness, sounds like you keep things pretty spartan around here.” Ko knew of some agrarian societies that were like that. Worked with very manual tools. They were plentiful around the cosmos but hardly the kind he spent his days working with. Where Ko used to work, it was on planets that regularly shipped several mighty dunes worth of grain off-world for others around the stars. Not just to feed themselves.

Ko followed Silas closely behind towards the barn. “Dust? Nah, this mask works as a great respirator on top of keeping out toxins.” He replied, one of his claws tapping on his antiox mask as he did so. Ko found it Ironic how a gas responsible for so much life in the galaxy was horribly toxic to Kel Dors like himself.

Stepping into the barn with him he observed the speeder bike through The Force. “Nice bike, I always believe that if someone knows how to ride a swoop, then there’s nowhere on a planet that’s off limits.” Then Ko observed the plough, which contrasted from the speeder that he could only assume was in good condition given his blindness.

The Kel Dor then let out a soft laugh before commenting. “At this point I’m just imagining you’re too cheap to even get an ox or similar beast of burden to help ya out. Or too proud.” Ko Jested. He could understand the pleasure in doing it yourself however. Similar to exercise, or taking on a challenge. There was something satisfying about getting difficult things done. ​

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[Silas Westgard]

Objective: Prepare the land for farming
Tag: Ko Vuto
Location: The Westgard Homestead, Azbrian

"Azbrian has always been kind of like that come to think of it. Many farmers can't afford the overpriced machines used for farming and stick to the old ways, which believe it or not still provide them high quantities of harvest" he explained to Ko as they examined the vast amount of tools that were neatly on display. Some of them could have been decades old, maybe even more come to think of it. They were made to last and do the job for as long as the owner needed.

"The dust wouldn't kill you, it would give you a nasty sneeze though" At one point or another Silas just accepted the sneezing flurry that would appear at some point the longer they stayed.

"Ah yes, once you own a speeder there's no getting rid of it. It has been in my family for a while and still runs like the day we brought it. You're also right, I can't count the amount of times I've been on joyrides around the green plains of Azbrian. Maybe I can show you that later if you're up for it" he said with a smirk, knowing it would be a good way to wind down after dragging the plough through the dirt.

"We've never really had any animals on the homestead in all honesty. The focus has always been on crops due to how good the soil is down here, to the point where people would double their price to get some hands on Azbrian potatoes" At the same time, he went over to the plough and used the force to grab hold of it, slowly forcing it to hover above the ground as he began walking backward to the entrance.

"We will obviously be growing wheat which can be used for all sorts of things. If I remember correctly, Valery Noble and Kahlil Noble wanted a bag for their baking as well as Corazona von Ascania who I think is doing the same thing. I'll also be keeping one and you'll be sent one if you wish to have one. The rest will be saved for any Jedi who wishes to use it"

Silas had a game plan from the early stages, if he was going to further help Jedi food was also a good way of giving back to the Jedi who took him in "If you don't mind, help me take this outside to the gate. Dragging this along the ground will destroy the lawn, and seeing her in such a condition is heartbreaking."​

 

[Ko Vuto]

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Objective: Prepare land for farming
Location: Azbrian, Westgard Homestead
Tag: Silas Westgard

“If by old ways you mean the ancient ways then yeah I can see it.” Ko commented amusingly. “But yeah, sneezing can be a real pain. I’ll spare you the details of how it is for me.” Ko replied, subtly suggesting how terrible it can be to do so with a mask like his. But needless to say he learned the fine art of silent sneezing, which traded the mess for a bit of discomfort and pain.

“Since I lost my eyes riding speeders has been a pretty different experience. More exhilarating not being able to perceive what’s very far in front of you. But you also miss out on a lot of the nice sightseeing.” So what he lacked in pretty vistas he gained in thrills. His blindness made every world more abyssal in scope.

“Caring for animals can be a rewarding experience, but also a heck of a lot more work too. Personally I wouldn’t really recommend it. You’d probably need to hire a number of reliable farm hands, or start farming full time to take care of them.” Ko answered before listening to how Silas wanted to grow some wheat to give to a few other members of the NJO. “I’m sure I’d appreciate that, although I don’t do a lot of baking myself, most of my culinary skills go towards foods that can be consumed through a straw.”

With that said Ko went over to help get the plough out safely and without damaging anything. Silas was clearly a man who took pride in his property so he’d hold up the other end of the tool. Quickly he held his arm out past them to give the barn door a gentle telekinetic push to keep it open for them as they hoisted the plough outside. "I imagine you put a lot of care into all this, wanting quality crops I imagine you forgo overusing abilities like plant surge." For Ko using the ability in moderation could be a tremendous help. But overuse can horribly stress out the plants and ruin the soil.​

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