Back Alley Potions


Solo or RP Format
Counts as 5 RP growth Points
Solo word minimum is 750, RP post minimum is 7

Magical potions are a bit of a risk in Tendaji, believe it or not. It might be because most are used to working with natural items, or that many potions don't always have their intended effects. Some of the more dubious ones have been rumored to cause scales to grow, or blindness. So if you pass by someone in a back alley saying they have a potion to help you grow two feet taller, it's often better to look the other way.

Or is it?

What would you find if you looked over at what they had to sell? Is it really all that strange? Or maybe you'll find a fun hidden gem worth taking home.

[ What might you find someone selling if you approached a back-alley potion shop? Note: Potions that change appearance with growths are event-limited and may not be purchased/used from this prompt ]


Torsten stood with his arms crossed as he stared at the ramshackle stall. The wood was worn down by both weather and hands from constantly being moved. The fabric covering the stall was faded, sunbleached blue with the underside showing the original deep azure. Only one short block of counter space was within the shelter for displaying the available products. It didn’t need much space apparently, with only nine small bottles lined up along for display. Each bottle was a different shape and held liquids of different colors.

The vendor sat on a travel chest and gestured to the spread with a sweep of his hands and a toothy grin. “I can see you aren’t taking any purchases lightly. I assure you that each bottle has only the most quality ingredients!”

Torsten pulled up a grin and walked closer. “Right you are, my good man.” He was walking around in his civilian clothes today. With his high quality garments and meticulously primed hair, he surely looked like an easy target to a shady traveling merchant. The perfect way to seek out the infamous potion seller he had been hearing more and more about as of late. There were some seriously dangerous concoctions getting out there among the flat out scams. He could ensure public safety while also getting bonus credit with the captain if he was able to catch the guy himself! “You don’t have much to choose from.”

The vendor grinned brightly. “Well, this merchandise practically sells itself. I can’t keep myself stocked for long.” He leaned forward and pointed at the bottles. “This one, for instance. If you know someone carrying some extra weight, they can take this and it will melt off within a week. And this one! It’ll make you buffer than you’d get with a month’s worth of working out..”

His brow cocked disapprovingly as he looked down at himself. Did it look like he needed a muscle building potion? Maybe he was a little on the lanky side at the moment… He shook it off and reached out to pluck up the “buff” bottle as though he were interested. The glass was a wavy design like flowing water, and the liquid within was white with gold flecks. “Well, I guess I might know someone who might be interested. What else do you have?”

The vendor tapped a gray bottle lightly. “Need help sleeping? This’ll knock you right out for a good, hearty rest. And this beauty here,” he held up a simple tube with watery silver contents, “will have people practically bending over backward to fulfill your every demand.”

Torsten’s brow cocked over further and he leaned forward as though interested. “Wait.. are you serious? I drink this and anyone will do whatever I say?” He smirked with a show of his teeth. “Got anything else strong like this?”

The merchant’s grin took on a sharp quality as he ducked his head and hunched up his shoulders in a secretive manner. “Indeed. I’m sure you could find a use for such a drink. Of course, it has its limitations. Can’t make someone cause their own physical harm and such.” His hand slid across the counter to touch a round bottle of shimmering red liquid. “This though.. If you’ve got someone playing hard to get, this’ll give you the edge you need to win them over.” The vendor smirked wider. “Plus,a fine fellow such as yourself shouldn’t be getting his hands dirty when dealing with.. undesirable folk.” He held up the heart shaped bottle. Within was a thick, syrupy liquid of deep blue color. “A couple drops of this in a cup of tea will clear anyone out of your way. Just be sure you don’t drink it yourself.”

Torsten played dumb and cocked his head. “I might know one or two buggers that could use a sip of this. How long does it last though?”

The vendor blinked a couple times and laughed with delight. “My dear boy.. There’s no coming back from what that’ll give them.” He smirked and dragged a finger across his throat. “They’ll be permanently out of your way.”

Torsten’s own grin grew as he laughed. “There’s no coming back from where you’re going, either.”

The vendor’s grin faltered with confusion. “What are you talking about?”

With a flourish, Torsten whipped a pair of wrist shackles from behind his back. “You’re under arrest for-” The whole counter was thrown in his face. He easily threw it aside and charged after the fleeing vendor.

—

Torsten burst into the tavern a few hours later with his arms up victoriously. “Drinks are on me, folks! Caught myself a baaaad boy and the streets are safe once more!” A cheer went through the crowd. It may have been for the promise of drinks, but he preferred to believe it was for his catch that day.

Another young guard who was there.waved Torsten over and laughed. “Hey, I heard you caught the potions guy. Did you keep any of the good ones for yourself or did you turn them all in like a good boy?”

Torsten snorted as he sat at the bar. “Verg, I am an honorable member of Sulburi’s most honorable guard. I uphold the law on penalty of disgrace to my family name!” With his voice lowered, he leaned over to his buddy with a smirk. “Besides, the guy threw the table with the bottles at me. Guess they weren’t that important after all.”
(( Word Count: 914 ))