««« 22
»»»Something's up with that cat, is it a familiar?
Is the cat a Familiar? You suppose it's possible, though that would make the old man a pretty serious criminal. Unlicensed spellcraft tends to stir up the hornets nest here in the Exemplarate. You know it's been a few generations since there was a full-blown Inquisition, but if illegal spellcraft were happening here in Dossent, it could make things turn very ugly. The kind of ugly that ends in a lot of dead people.
Not a pleasant thought. You take a quick stock of what you can remember about Familiars.
> MAGICK LORE CHECK: 12 (5+7)
You recall one of the fables you heard during your childhood, about a young Warlock who lived long ago. This was in the days before the Exemplarate came into power, when Daemons still roamed the land, and Magick was practiced openly. The young Warlock was studying the invisible currents of the Astral, from which spells draw the power to change the world, when he discovered a wispy spirit of smoke and light drifting through it. The astral spirit told him that it envied creatures of flesh and blood such as he, and wished it could live and die as they did.
The Warlock struck a bargain with this spirit. If it would share the energies of the Astral with him, he would in turn give the spirit a physical form to experience life with. The Warlock created a ritual that allowed the spirit to enter the body of a snake. Together, the snake and spirit became the first Familiar; an animal with the intelligence and supernatural powers of the spirit. However, the Familiar had also inherited the treacherous and spiteful personality of the snake. Since it had no need for the Warlock once the ritual was complete, it killed him with its venom, rather than live its days serving him.
There was probably a lesson tacked onto the end there, but you don't really remember that part. However, you do remember your teacher saying that some Exemplar or other revised fables like these, to warn people of the dangers of spellcraft. If that's the case, the original might have had a different ending anyway.
Some stories make Familiars out to be monsters with blazing eyes and terrible strength, while others say they're indistinguishable from regular animals except for in how they act. In either case, other animals won't have anything to do with them.
As far as you know, there's really no good way of telling if this cat is a Familiar or not. Even so, there's no reason to suspect someone is dabbling in the occult, just because they're a scholar, and have a pet. Besides, Magick is all blood and otherworldly energies and ritual incantations, while Alchemy is all formulas and ingredients and such. They're two very different things.
Do you like him? His name is Mouser. And a great lot of good the name did him too... he's useless for keeping vermin out of the archives. Seems he just wants to make friends with them.I think we need an Alchemy primer. Ask how much Alchemy for Dummies (a reference for the rest of us!) is.
Five tindertwigs, and five pre-packaged poultices with wraps for wounds, along with needle and thread for stitches if possible. All contained neatly in a bundle so as to fit in a single inventory space called, wait for it...
MED KIT. Also the twigs are a separate bundle.
Tell him how you're looking for a bit of work and ask him if he's got any errands he'd like you to run.
Speaking of names, what did you say yours was again?
Actually, I'm not sure I ever introduced myself. I'm Maja. Well, Maja, I noticed you looking over the shelves for a while there. Have you decided what you wanted, or do you have any questions? Well, a lot of these things look interesting, and pretty useful. I've always been curious about alchemy, and I'd love to pick up a book on the subject, or maybe attend one of your lectures some time. Though I certainly appreciate your enthusiasm, to be honest, I don't have the patience to teach beginners anymore. My students all have extensive alchemical backgrounds, and are dealing with advanced principals. Books, on the other hand, would be a good place to start. I'd suggest "Finrick's Fundamentals," which should be enough to get you started with separating out reactive vapours, solids, and liquids from various reagents, and crafting some simple volatiles and curatives on your own. I'll get a copy for you in a moment, but was there anything else you were looking for? I also wanted to put together a simple Medical Kit. You know, bandages and poultices for wounds, a needle and thread, maybe a few tindertwigs for cauterization or cleaning the needle. Just something for the road. I think Melody can put together something for you. So you're a traveler, and not from around here then? That does explain the hat.
Pffhahaha! ...by which I mean it looks like it's designed for keeping the sun off while on the road. Are you a pilgrim then? A bard? A hero or a heretic? What's brought you here to our little port? A pilgrim, I guess. I don't know how long I'll be staying here. It all depends on... things. But right now I'm just looking for work. Friendly, medically-trained, and looking for work? If you're quick on your feet, that girl gamboling around on the shelves might be out of a job.
Sadly, I think I'm the only one left in the land that's still willing to look after you... though perhaps The Grand Circle could set you up in a nice manor house in the north, with a full staff of servants. Might take a bit of grovelling and backside-kissing though. Hah! I'm sure Kynes and his lapdogs would like that too. Set me up with a cell where I can wither up and blow away, while he publishes all my works in his name! Such is the cost of being rid of me, I'm afraid. Well, let's not write off our friend just yet, he may surprise us. What do you say? Of course, if washing piss out of my bedsheets twice a week isn't your idea of gainful employment, I can think of one other thing you could help me with. Er... what did you have in mind? It involves moving a large quantity of explosives from one place to another. Very... explosive explosives. It shouldn't be dangerous, but the risk is there. Think it over. The compensation should be adequate, if you're interested. Speaking of compensation, that Medical Kit is going to cost you 10 Silver, and "Finrick's Fundamentals" is a steal at just 15. And I'll even throw in a lack of jibes regarding your wardrobe absolutely free.
Great. It seems you're too short on coins to get both items. You're not sure how you feel about this job offer either. What to do?
>
That may have been the best thing I've read all week, I knew there was a reason I loved this adventure.
Thanks for saying so! I'm having a lot of fun finally putting this together, so I'm glad you're getting a kick out of it too.
Author
Topic: [ISG] Blunderbuss: Nuts to the fuzz, let's go all Nancy Drew on this Biz! (Read 139484 times)