Jack Grayson
Moon
- Joined
- Jan 28, 2025

A small smirk spread across his bearded lips as he raised his rifle, tentatively aiming it at the trees in front of him, trying to see if he could make out any leaves that happened to be moving anomalously. This was exactly the sort of encounter that he lived for… the kind with real danger… with real stakes… It always filled him with such a rush of adrenaline. How many times had he been in a similar situation with the East India Trading Company in their conquest of savage territories and virgin lands? Too many to count, and still the feeling only seemed to intensify with every encounter. And now in special service to the Spanish crown, exploring an even more foreign and virgin terrain, it all felt even more thrilling.
Though he was a man of British lineage, the King and Queen of Spain wanted him to lead their conquest of South America. His reputation preceded him, but just the look of him was imposing, certain to strike fear in the native populations he encountered. He was 6'3" and had a strapping build. All of his muscles were ones that he had gained from hard, strenuous work, the kind of manual labor that conquest required. He wore his beard long to help deal with the new and incessant pests he encountered on his travels, and his intense green gaze always looked as if he were searching for something.
Briggs's stated mission was to loot the jungle for its riches, for as much of its natural resources as his ship could possibly hold, to find new resources that the folks in Europe hadn't even heard about yet, but the sensation of staring death in the face, laughing, and living to tell the tale was what he was really after. The wealth that came along with that adrenaline rush was just the cherry on top of it all.
"GO ON, THEN!" He yelled at the trees. "COME ON OUT HERE AND FACE ME LIKE A MAN! STOP YOUR HIDING!"
Spanish soldiers soon surrounded him, drawing their weapons and aiming them at the trees. Captain Espinosa, the second in command, approached Edward's side. "Señor, we can easily shoot them out of the trees," he said. "Just say the word."
"No," Edward responded quickly. "That's the coward's way. We're not hunting game fowl. Whoever it is, they are probably just scouting, doing a bit of reconnaissance. In my experience with savages, it's best to meet them on the field of battle like men. They'll want to look in your eyes while they test your mettle. It's the only way they'll eventually learn to respect you. They may be brutes, but they are often noble brutes, brutes that live by a code. It's usually more than the simple law of the jungle with these folk. They want to be respected, and if we can show them that respect while also showing them how easily we can overpower them and bring them to heel, well… then our job here becomes much easier."
Just then, there was more rustling from the trees, which had apparently spooked one of the Spanish men, causing his weapon to accidentally fire into the trees with a loud BOOM!
"NO!" Edward yelled. "NO, GODDAMNIT!" He stood to face the line of men still aiming their weapons at the trees and threw up his hands . "ALTO! STOP! You only shoot when I say, entender?!" Suddenly, Edward became all too aware that his back was now facing the trees. He'd made himself vulnerable, and though the hair on the back of his neck was starting to prickle with anticipation of what would happen next, this was exactly the sort of feeling he savored.