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 Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2023 1:50 pm
Quote: 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 ]
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Posted: Fri Mar 03, 2023 2:03 pm
Zhan wasn't sure this was much of a punishment.
Following his disobedience in Matori, the captain had promised a handful of unsavory tasks designed to prove his loyalty. But this...
"Pick up my order from Suru," he muttered. Unless it was a cart full of unmentionables that he was meant to carry openly through town, he doubted this would be a very difficult or humiliating job at all. Surprising, considering how passive aggressive the captain was proving to be. If there was one good thing that had come of all of this, it was that Estellaina was doing well. She had wanted to come ashore, but her injuries made that uncomfortable at the moment. He wondered if he should bring her a souvenir, but ultimately decided against it. If someone had tried the same with him, it would have stung. It wouldn't do to have her avoiding him, not when there was nowhere for her to go. Suru's cart was situated in a questionable alley, devoid of any touristy activities and gifts anyway. It was lacking in most everything else as well. Finding something interesting to bring back would take time he didn't want to spend. What this place did have was a disgusting odor and a layer of grime underfoot that had him questioning his choice of footwear. Maybe this was a punishment after all.
The air grew cooler the farther he went, and Zhan slowed when he saw a sunburst painted on the side of a deep blue cart. An Oban man stood in front of it, the lines of his body tense with frustration. His clothing was inexpensive and plain, but his bearing suggested that he was accustomed to much fancier outfits. Zhan prided himself on his acting when necessary, but he couldn't help wondering if the more perceptive of his marks saw him this way. He maintained his distance so as not to get involved, hearing the words "late" and "payment" and "trade" before the customer huffed and flung the hem of his cloak over his shoulder in a petulant arc.
"I'll return in seven nights," the man hissed, tapping his finger against the top of the cart. "I will receive what I paid for." He turned and pushed past Zhan on his way out of the alley, hissing something about Belrean upstarts as he went.
Zhan smirked a little, stepping up to the cart. "Suru?"
"Mm." The hybrid's squinty glare was focused so singularly on his face that he felt like he was about to be scolded. She didn't say anything more until he spoke again.
"I am here for Volarik's order." It felt strange to leave off the 'captain', but he wasn't feeling very subordinate today.
"Ah." Her attention shifted from scrutiny to curiosity before she crouched to dig through the back of her cart. "Had a bit of a disagreement with the captain?" She stood, sliding a box across the cart top toward him. "What'd you do?"
Zhan answered with silence. Was this something Volarik did often? He couldn't remember any specific instances when people had been assigned stupid chores after going against orders, but clearly there had been some. Maybe? He was going to have to ask around. Eventually he stood tall and said, "Your cooperation has been noted. I will inform the captain upon my return to the ship." Volarik's title came more naturally this time, any emotions he might have felt overshadowed by duty. Zhan turned and fled... gracefully... not unlike the Oban who had been here before, though he silently hoped he looked more put together. He felt ridiculous and out of the loop, and it wasn't the first time.
He was a few blocks from the pier before he began to slow, glaring down at the box in his arms. It was crafted from a dark wood with silver hardware, and he briefly considered transferring its contents to an inferior container before handing it off. He dismissed the thought almost instantly. The captain probably knew how her delivery would be packaged and, more importantly, he would not be so petty. But the option remained to see what was inside. Leaning the box against a stout stone wall, Zhan carefully cracked it open and ducked to peek inside.
Seven potion bottles rested on a plush layer of fabric, each labeled with Suru's sunburst. He longed to take one, the piratey part of his brain demanding loot for his trouble, but he instead committed them to memory—the palm-sized bulbs of glass, the pearly blue liquid swirling inside, their waxed corks. Once they had been forgotten, tucked away in a dark corner of Volarik's vault, he would claim one and discover what it did for himself. He could be patient.
Zhan closed the box once more and tucked it under his arm, briskly strolling back toward the ship.
[ 808 words ]
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