A Feel for Eels

[Inoadar]

OOCThis is not really related to the previous linked story, but the items experimented on were gained from it linked from Here

Summer 46, 512

After finishing his confirmation assignment for the boatmen, Inoadar returned to his room at Tarsin's. Getting no indication of any messages or visitors, he slipped up to his room and opened up the strange wet bag he had stolen from the little boat at the pier. He had done his best to keep it wet, since he suspected it contained fish of some kind. many forms of sea life had poisoncrafter applications and when he saw that the bag contained eels, he proceeded to set up his portable lab.

Not all the eels looked the same. he was primarily interested in those that were considered "Ravokian" eels. They were a species found ONLY in Ravok's lake. There were clearly three different types in the bag. He didn't know if the "Ravokian" type were likely to be the more, or less, numerous. Simply being unique and indigenous did not imply dominance of their domain.

The inside of the bag was slimy and he did his best to scrape the slime off and divide it into three small portions, one each into a vial or lab dish. This would be the first task, to test the overall collection of slime for ANY effect. It would be a diluted effect, no doubt, since at best, only a third of it would contain matter that had any application, if at all.

He added water to one and set it to boil until it was dry. There was a powdery stain, which he scraped up and set aside. To the next, he added a dyed enzyme to and set it in his hand cranked centrifuge. He spun the thing to near exhaustion, but, when he stopped, there was no separation beyond the slime and the dye, there had been no reaction. he poured out the dye, as best he could, wasting only a small portion of the slime in an effort to be sure all the enzyme was removed. He repeated this action a few times with various acids and proteins until there was nothing left to work with, all with no effect.

Frustrated, he turned to his last sample. He decided to do something with it before testing the effects of the powder from the first working. Through taste, ingestion or injection, he might discover something, but by then, his last sample might have gone bad. This he simply heated to dry and then scraped the small rubbery mass onto a small screen and set in directly on the burner flame.

A little at a time, he allowed it to burn, and inhaled the vapors. There was no effect at first. Then, slowly, as the last bit was reduced to ash he began to perceive his wits sharpening. They grew more intuitive and snippets of the texts he had read came rushing back to him. How it was the mucus, not the external slime that held the properties he sought. How crafters used tobacco leaves to soak up the mucus from the eels mouth, how it not only triggered the release of the mucus, but, when dried, it was then already in a medium conducive to inhaling. Of course! It made such obvious sense! He needed to get some tobacco, right now!

[Inoadar]

He was aware that the effect he was experiencing was only a fraction of what the true effect would be. The sample had only been a third of the original amount, though in truth, he was not yet sure what amount would constitute a "dose".

Also, there was no telling yet how much of the original jelly-like substance had been actual "mucus". He would investigate that on his return. It was entirely possible that the natural, excreted slime on the external surface of the eel was the same chemical make-up as the mucus in the mouth of the eel.

Then, of course, he did not yet know which of the three types of eels present in the bag were the unique 'Ravokian' variety. So many things to check! His mind raced with preparatory agendas. Clockwork lists of steps, orders of procedure and visualized arrays of equipment flashed through his mind. He had never felt so organized. Perhaps he had actually absorbed MORE than a dose' worth. It HAD been a fairly large lump, diluted or not.

He stopped first at the two specialty shops near at hand. Tine's Exotic Goods and Odds and Ends, both located in The Docks District, but neither of them had tobacco. He continued on the Merchant's Ring, Stopping first at the Spicy Lass. Although tobacco is floral, and scented strongly, it was not to be found there. 'Oh well, it was a long shot.' he mused as he headed into the market proper.

It took over a bell, but he eventually found a merchant with items like Mint leaves and potpourri cachets, tea leaves and medicinal herbs, scented powders and cloths, everything that smelled strongly but was not food. He saw tobacco, but it was already ground. He needed undried leaves. He asked the man if he had any, and the man returned with a handful, asking three gold mizas.

Inoadar stopped in mid word, "Three GOLD? What is this? Tobacco is only five silver a pound! Those few leaves you have there are nowhere NEAR a pound. I'll give you five SILVER, and even THAT is robbery!"

"That's ground tobacco, sir. Much of that is already ruptured and partially shredded during harvest. These are pristine leaves, sir. Look at the shape, the integrity of the midrib and veins, the fullness of the blades, the deep extent of the veins, no insect damage or discoloration. You can plainly see that the petioles are not bruised, guaranteeing an unimpeded flow for rich flavor."

"Uldr's Breath! I'm not looking for 'award winning' leaves. I'm just looking for some plain, old tobacco. Don't give your petching salesman routine!" Inoadar snapped back.

The vendor was clearly offended by Inoadar's lack of appreciation for the quality of his tobacco. "I do not KEEP flawed leaves, sir. I grind them as I detect them among my stock, they deserve no better! These leaves are intended for fine smoking pleasure. Hand rolled cigars! I will not sell them to be used as you claim to intend. Just buy the ground tobacco if you want 'plain old tobacco', it's still very good quality. certainly good enough for the likes of you."

Inoadar actually stammered in indignation. "The likes of me?' Why you overbearing PIG! I ought to-..." he stopped as he noticed an Ebonstryfe guard beginning to notice their raised voices. This was the last thing he needed, he didn't know if he had ever been connected, even remotely, to the deaths of that squad of initiates a couple weeks ago.

Then it occurred to him that the opposite approach was what was needed. The guard's eyes narrowed, was there a description? Had that old couple realized his ruse and reported him. 'I KNEW I should have killed them!' he cursed to himself.

The guard was looking at a paper in his hand and checking him out. It was time to act. But not to run, or to attack. This guard would be expecting one of those two things if this man before him was the same man on the paper. So he did the last thing the guard would expect of a suspect...

"Guard! Thank Rhysol you're here!" he called loudly, waving and motioning the guard over. He flung his finger accusingly at the vendor, whose mouth dropped open, stunned. "This merchant is trying to CHEAT me!"

An argument ensued, which Inoadar frequently brought to the brink of blows, gladly paying the price of a few cuffs and backhands in exchange for the guard stuffing the paper back in his cloak, convinced that this idiot could not possibly be a rebel agent.

In less than a chime, the guard had had enough and demanded the two combatants compromise. A price of 1 gold was enforced for the few leaves. The merchant being warned not to overprice his goods and Inoadar being warned to shut his petching mouth and leave now or suffer incarceration for Disturbing the Peace.

Inoadar feigned infuriated frustration, but submitted to the guards' demand and left, a grin finding his face a block later as he returned to his room.

[Inoadar]

He rushed up to his equipment and began separating the eels by species as best he could tell. One type was very colorful and, while not dismissing it entirely, he assumed it to be a species of salt water origin, since they tended to be more colorful. The remaining two were a striped two-tone brown and a solid black. Somehow, the darker it was, the more it seemed likely to him to be the native Ravokian variety.

He started with working the outside of the eels, pressing and squeezing, slowly getting the sheen of coating on the things' skin to build up and collect, which he scraped off, keeping the different species' coating separated. Then he rolled three tobacco leaves loosely and twisted one gently into the mouths of one of each type.

After a few chimes, he pulled them out slowly, they came out wet, leaving strings of mucus trailing behind. He gathered this up, alternating between monitoring the drying of the mucus, the collecting of more, the scraping up of the dried mucus, and breaking it down into crusty, powdery lumps. He made sure to keep all that he processed separated by species.

Trying them out, it was easy to tell which of the two was the Ravokian species. The boost to his focused frame of mind was purer and stronger than what he had enjoyed previously that evening. The other two types of eels provided no benefit whatsoever, so he disposed of them. He wondered briefly how only one type of eel indigenous to a single body of water could be unique in providing this property, but shrugged it off. What is, is.

In celebration, he got out the tobacco leaves containing the effective mucus, now dried, and lit it up, leaning back to relax and think up new ways to twist money and information from the populace of Ravok. Slowly, a wicked grin consumed his features...

'So many ideas...Rhysol have mercy on their gullible souls...'

[Inoadar]

He spent the next day browsing through the shops along the docks, confirming his perception of an only partially filled need. This did NOT included his only partially filled need for rent money at Tarsin's. But, with luck, he could settle that as well.

He returned to the only shop that he considered significant in this endeavor. One he had entered before, feigning only a 'tourist' interest. Now he returned, powdered eel mucus in hand, a small portion still absorbed into tobacco, a sample. A proposition for the proprietor of Black Tar's Alchemical Services.

The front of this building looked more like it was the back of a building facing the next block, but he knew the shades of grey outside would open upon shades of flickering green inside. The smell of percolating concoctions greeted his nose, acrid and earthy, burnt and sweet, all at the same time.

He stood by the glass cases, awaiting the voice from beyond the beaded curtain. When it came, it was not the usual greeting, The warning to 'take care about touching', the directive to 'place coins in the bronze dish', the statement of there being 'worse things than death.'

"So, not the tourist you would have me believe, then. What do you truly want?" The voice grated in a congestive rasp.

"I did not truly expect to deceive you, It serves us both for your intuition to serve you so well. I have something I wish to sell you." He stepped forward, placing the tobacco in a dish, and stepped back. "This is a...product...not currently on your list. I trust you have your own pipe."

There was a pause and Inoadar became aware of a pair of very large men standing just beyond the outside door. The voice hissed a warning, "Shed any doubts you may have regarding your fate, should this...product...affect me ill."

Inoadar leaned casually and confidently against one of the cabinets, ignoring the men outside. Before long the voice piped in, "Impressive, but I do not seek to expand my inventory at this time."

"I had not believed you would, at this time. But perhaps, in the future, having gained the knowledge to produce it, you might." Inoadar replied.

"So it is the process you wish to sell. How can I know if your sample was not the result of an accident, and your process is, in fact, worthless?" The voice held promise of suffering to come should this come to pass.

"First, I do not wish to found floating in the canal. Second, the asking price is not so much in the form of coin, as courtesy. Though I do not deny I should like to see some small remuneration for my efforts." Inoadar's voice held no trace of concern.

There was another pause, "So, you are staying in town. You wish my goodwill...Why would that matter, unless...you plan to open your own shop?...I see...and precisely what items will you be in competition with me for?"

"As few as possible, perhaps three, maybe four items of...medicinal...effect. I will also be learning to craft antidotes. As far as alchemy goes, I will be having none of it. I will, rather, be making...equipment...available. Equipment of the variety to...help citizens take matters into their own hands...where the law may fail to accommodate them." Inoadar had no that doubt the owner of the voice would know what he meant.

"Such provisions as those do not compete with me at all. So you wish only that there be no resentment of the minor competition of a few poisons? An offer of such a recipe in exchange for such a small concern is generous to an almost suspicious degree."

"In truth, I had hoped we might establish a service of referrals considering the similarity in the uses of our respective inventories." Inoadar figuratively crossed his fingers.

"Ahhh. So in exchange for your offer, you would cash in on my established reputation to bring you an occasional client that might otherwise pass you by." Inoadar nodded, not bothering to repeat the obvious. After a pause, the voice reached a verdict of sorts. "I will consider your offer. Leave the remaining sample for testing. You will be paid for it. Whether I refuse or accept, I will do you the courtesy of informing you. Where do I reach you?"

"Tarsin's Boarding House, the name will be 'Trovelle". he bowed, knowing any further discussion would simply be wasting the man's time. As he left, one of the two men handed him a coin purse. It was not particularly heavy, but the rims were gold.

[Verilian]

Inoadar +2 Poison +1 Subterfuge You Question My Logic? : XP explanation goes here. Lores: Ravokian Eel Mucus sharpens wits, How to recognize fine tobbaco, How to create Intellect Mist, How to identify Ravokian Eels Expenses: -1 gold mizas (for the tobacco) Loot: 30 Gold Mizas, 1 belt pouch Notes: Hmm.. okay, so for future reference, if you ever meet want to try to actually meet the owner of the Black Tar, you'll need me for that. Anyway, great job, and keep up the good work! Also, I went ahead and awarded you this thread, that way you can get your gold now and fix your CS. Notice As per the request of the Founders, threads cannot be graded unless your CS is up to date. This means you need to add threads to your thread list when you make new threads, keep your skills up to date, ledger, living expenses, ect. If you aren't up to date, you'll get a PM from me before i grade your thread. If you are up to date, disregard this notice.