Heshan shrugd in response to Ohrmizd's response. "We might as well. The next adventuring party may not be as lucky against him."
He was much more excited about exploring the cave again, and he stood up for the occasion. "We must not let our search be in vain." he smiled.
"Hunt?" Haidar states the - for him - obvious.
~~~ after breakfast ~~~
With the resistance to poison the cave is just a cave with some mist. Without the boat of Nethys riding the waves it is rather dull. But there is nothing found beyond what Ohrmizd already dragged out of the cave yesterday.
"Oh, where, I was proposing to take him with us, imprisoning him in Kelmarane" then Ohrmizd looks around at the others "Until we can remove curse on him to see that is the source of his evilness"
"As about the cave, I do think this is about everything that was hidden in here" Ohrmizd points to the west "It is time to come back home"
"Oh, where, I was proposing to take him with us, imprisoning him in Kelmarane" then Ohrmizd looks around at the others "Until we can remove curse on him to see that is the source of his evilness"
"As about the cave, I do think this is about everything that was hidden in here" Ohrmizd points to the west "It is time to come back home"
"Agreed. Let us head back" - Roryx nods , after transcribing the spells to his spellbook.
"Yes, I think we have found what there is to be found here, let's return to Kelmarane. We will bring Haidar; it is possible either myself or Father Zanthus may be able to help him..."
"Sure, take the magical chain shirt Roryx" while the group makes the way back Ohrmizd smells the air of the desert "It seems we finally cleaned this place. Those coward gnolls are not getting back here"
"Perhaps now that the church has been restored and Garavel does not seem to need me anymore it has come the time for me to move on" the Keleshite, pensive, passes his right hand over his wavy hair.
With another day almost gone and the sun closing in on the horizon the group decides to leave for Kelmarane. Back in the Battle Market Haidar who is back to his human form gets thrown into a prison cell.
His eyes perked up and his head tilted towards the man in shock.
"Is that the poison talking or are you seriously considering this?"
"Ah, do not pay attention to my chatting!" Ohrmizd starts to laugh soundly and pads Manuun's and Heshan's back "Not having a clear goal like taking the gnolls out of Kelmerane is making me say random stuff"
"Why don't we head back to Father Zantus?" the Keleshite brings out the blade of the leopard "He might know what this is, and regardless, he will want to know about the destiny of this Nethys place"
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Father Zastoran is busy working in his Laboratory when the group comes to pay a visit. "Oh, you're back, that's good." He puts down what he is working on and wipes his hands on a cloth. "Want to join me for a cup of tea?" Father Zastoran offers. He collects his papers from one of the tables in the room and puts them on another one. Same for the chairs that are spread throughout the room. Once the chairs are colleted he offers "Take a seat. It'll take a few minutes for me to make the beverage."
Looking through his glassware he finds a clean flask and puts it on a tripod over a torch. Then the fills it with a casting of create water. While the water heats up he fills a tea ball with some tea from a intricately decorated box. "What have you found out there on your excursion?"
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"Thank you Father." Manuun looks forward to another cup of Father Zastorans delicious brew. "You really need to tell me where you are buying your tea. I would very much like to buy some for our home too."
While they are waiting for the infusion to finish, he tries to Think what might have been the most interesting bits about the ruin.
"As you might guess, the place was mostly deserted and we found mostly traps and monsters hounding the place. In the upper are only some walls are still standing, but in the old altar room some beautiful frescoes of Nethys might are still partially standing."
" The entry to the lower floor was opened already, so we had no trouble findig it. Down there things are not in much better shape, but we found a room with inscribed columns detailling various spells, which Roryx can probably tell more about. There is also an Altar which still contains a still functuoning conjuration spell for a guardian Cobra."
"Down there are also various hidden rooms where we found a few Survivors from earlier expleditions. Unfortunately most of them were driven insane by the Fumes of Nethys which permeate that rooms. We had to kill a few of them , but we also found a man who claims to be a former Falcon Emir from Osirion. Unfortunately he is not only driven mad, but also bitten by a were-creature so he was very dangerous. Still we managed to subdue him ad brought him with us to see if you and us together can heal the man."
"There is a shop in Katapesh that sells spices, herbs and tea. It's called The White Elephant. I'll write a letter where I hope to persuade Sir Karim to send someone here every now and then to sell a selection of his goods in Kelmarane. I bought a lot of tea before we left, but it won't last forever. If you want to buy some too, this helps my case." Zastoran explains.
To the report of the recursion he has some additional questions. "Monsters you say? Are they all gone now? Would it be safe for me to visit the place?"
"Still functioning magic, impressive..."
"A lycanthrope? I've heard about those, but I've never seen one. A wolf? But I don't think I can help that man. I only heard rumors about some poisonous flowers that could heal a creature freshly bitten. But a fully turned were creature would need a miracle to be healed. It would still be interesting to examine this Emir."
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"The White Elephant? I have heard of this shop. Never been there myself buts in famous in the city. I will write them as soon as I get to it and document my interest in their wares." Manuun is migthy proud that he might belong to the customers of such a place which was way out of his league back when he lived in Katapesh.
Then he returns to the questions of Father Zastoran.
"Some of the giant spiders got away and might return to check if we were gone, and there is this business of the altar conjuring up snakers whenever somebody gets near it. But I am sure a minor escort is enough by know and some of us probably want to go back too."Manuun remakrs looking at Roryx. "There were also some wooden animated Sphinxes, but I think they were thoroughly destroyed when they attacked us and I hope they won't get up again."
"As for the lycanthrophe, Omari and Ohrmizd have brought him into the holding cells below for now. I am sure we can visit him after we finished the tea."
Ohrmizd smells the cup of tea before taking a sip "Mmmm... yes, Man is right. This is remarkable!"
"And the sphinxes! Tell him about the sphinxes too Man" the Keleshite reinforces the story with excitement.
"There is a pervasive serpent that appears at the altar, but otherwise is clean. If you wish I can bring you there Father Zastoran" Ohrmizd swings in front an imaginary scimitar "Mmm... what is this poisonous flower and where can we find it? I would like to give this Emir a second chance"
"I'd appreciate an escort there." Zastoran replies.
"Wooden sphinxes you say? That's something..."
"The flowers were something-wolf I believe. But I can't remember the full name. And even if I could, I have no clue where to find it. I'm not into plants."
"There is only one plant I root for, especially the dried leaves, and I leave it to the experts to collect them."
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Omari has been quiet, enjoying his tea, but he interjects "You many be no expert on plants, Father Zastoran, but Erastil's faith includes farmers. I am from the hunting side of things, but I will talk to my congregants, in particular Gabina, and see what their herblore holds. If we can cure this man of his curse, we should."
Putting his cup down, he adds "The other thing that I am not sure Manuun realized is that the Fumes of Nethys enhance spells cast within them , and they seep endlessly into the lower levels of the temple. It is clear they are spouting from some source deep within the earth; when Manuun tried to block the spouts, it increased the flow at the other outlets, until his blockages burst."
"We will need to be protected by magic first if we are to go past the fog. But this time we will be prepared for whatever stands in our way." he grins.
"To delve ever deeper into the unknown of magic ha sdriven many men crazy. I guess to thrive in the Breath of Nethys is not for the weak of mind." Zastorran muses.
"What effects did you experience when confronted with it?"
Ohrmizd nods satisfied "That would be great if you could find about the plant Omari. Thanks a lot"
"The fumes made you more powerful? The fumes confused us slowly. That is a bit of drastic, to lose your head in exchange for a bit of power" the man takes a long sip of tea "I am not the more orthodox of Sarenrae's followers, but it seems unmoral and dangerous to make such a deal"
"There is another thing Father Zastoran" Ohrmizd pushes the blade of the leopard over the table to the man "The Emir had this. Do you recognize its manufacture? Do you know about its history or powers?"
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Zastoran grabs the blade and takes a closer look. An embossed image of a ferocious Katapeshi leopard adorns the weapon’s hilt, while strange shadowy patterns writhe across its damascened blade, even in strong light.
Speaking some magical words he looks deeper into it. Raising his brow he puts it down and gets up to fetch a few things. A glass, a bottle of wine and a feather.
Back at the table, he pours some wine into the glass, stirs it with the feather and speaks more magical words. "Well, THAT is interesting." Father Zastoran states, his eyes wide. "I hope you haven't used that blade."
"It is a vicious blade. A thing I'd never use. And this one make you and your enemy look like clawed by a leopard. But if you land a perfect strike, it might curse you with lycanthropy."
"That might explain the state of the Emir. Sounds a lot like a backhanded gift." Zastoran leans back and drinks the wine in the glass.
"That is most interesting" Ohrmizd observes attentively at the Father steps and feather work "That certainly explains about the leopard curse... I guess the Emir will be happy to know the reasons of his curse and it might help him explain who betrayed him"
"Once more, thanks for your help Father Zastoran" the Keleshite performs a small nod of deference.
"So what do you think others? Shall we have a talk with Garavel and see what the town transpires after this time we have been out?"
"Well, then it was a good thing that I do not use blades..." Heshan nodded in reply.
To Ohrmizd, he scratched his head. "I supposed we should talk to him. Too bad the most valuable things we could find were some magic tablets and a sword most people cannot even use."
"Yes, that explains how Haidar ended up cursed. A question, Father, would destroying the blade break the curse on Haidar?"
"I don't think it is a special bond that holds up the curse. If someone curses you, you have to remove the curse. Killing the one cursing you won't help. I think it's the same here, but it's not like I know a lot about that." Zastoran tells.
"I know a couple unmoral traders or two back at Katapesh that deserve we sell them this kind of stuff and suffer the curse within" Ohrmizd comments "Perhaps Almah and the Packmasters would have a use themselves for something like this"
If there are no other missions or impeding dangers, Ohrmizd will come back to his everyday at Kelmerane.
Omari's tone becomes harder as he speaks: "Well, there is no immediate point in destroying it then. However, I would not approve of selling it to some trader, immoral or not, who will simply sell it on to some other potential victim. Not to mention an immoral trader is much less of a community hazard than a wereleopard that is eating people. Perhaps we could find a collector who would buy the damned blade knowing what it is."
***
After the meeting, Omari will consult with Gabina and the others, and see what they know about curing lycanthropy through herbs.
"You could try to remove the curse before you sell it. If it is worth the hassle." Zastoran suggests.
Gabina is shocked when Omari brings the news about who they found. "A lycanthrope, here? Those are dangerous evil creatures. And even if some good is left in it - it is a tremendously hard affliction to cure. The curse has to be magically removed, by a very experienced caster of divine magic! There are maybe one or two clerics of Erastil in all of Katapesh who would be able to do that."
"You could try to remove the curse before you sell it. If it is worth the hassle." Zastoran suggests.
Gabina is shocked when Omari brings the news about who they found. "A lycanthrope, here? Those are dangerous evil creatures. And even if some good is left in it - it is a tremendously hard affliction to cure. The curse has to be magically removed, by a very experienced caster of divine magic! There are maybe one or two clerics of Erastil in all of Katapesh who would be able to do that."
"I do not know if there is some good left in this man, but I am hesitant to condemn a man cursed by magic. We will see what can be done. Also, Father Zastoran mentioned there was a plant that could be used to cure lycanthropy, he said "The flowers were something-wolf I believe. But I can't remember the full name." Herb lore is not an uncommon skill among Erastil's faithful. Is there one among out congregants who might be able to help?"
"That would be wolfsbane. But that can only help to cure a freshly contracted lycanthropy cought by being bitten, within a few days. I don't know if it helps with a magically aquired case and it doesn't help any if the curse stuck for a long time." Gabina tells.
"I am sure even cursed, there will be someone interested in buying this blade, if we are interested in selling it" - Roryx shrugs - "There is not reason not to disclose everything to potential buyers - if they want to buy it still, why not?"
"Now... if one of us wants to wield it, that is a different matter altogether. We could do what it takes to uncurse it" - he adds.
"As for Haidar... I am with Omari on this" - the half-orc presses on - "We discovered him in his current situation, we brought him back, so we can try to help him"
"Say, didn't he say that there was an item in the temple that could help cure him? We should ask him how to find it."
"Say, didn't he say that there was an item in the temple that could help cure him? We should ask him how to find it."
"No Heshan, not an item; he believes the fumes will cure him or at least teach him to control the curse... I suspect this is a hallucination." Omari looks away from Heshan asks Roryx "The real question is can we safely imprison him without getting a bunch of your guards killed when the beast-curse takes him? If we cannot, the only thing I could see would be letting him return to the temple, and even that, I would want some confirmation that he is not hunting travellers ..."
"A lycanthrope is as dangerous as a strong specimen of the animal they can turn into. If the prison cell is good enough to hold the individuum, it should be fine. Have the guards keep their distance when they bring food and if it's a cell with bars, build some rails, that no one walks into the reach of the wereperson that the bars allow." Gabina explains.
"A werecreature that is born with the curse is master over it. With an afflicted werecreature it is the other way around. He might not even be aware of what he does on his full moon rampages. In no way can he be trusted in these times. Putting him back into the cave with the responsibility to not kill humanoids is a burden he can't carry."
"I guess we have our answer Omari - I will just need to find a suitable cell"
"But I do agree with Manuum - we can have another word with him - I have no issues with letting him know exactly what our plans are"
"Yes. That makes more sense," he nodded quickly.
"And I agree too. It is not as if he could talk to anyone else to aid him in his cell."
"Well, let's then reinforce the cell and hold him there then" Ohrmizd nods appreciating the idea.
The Keleshite will do just that and help bringing the materials and performing the work necessary during the following days.
The man will hold his eyes open looking for possible spies and other people that might bring evilness to the growing community.
When Ohrmizd comes to the cell he finds Haleen sitting in front of it chatting with Haidar.
Ohrmizd comes along and silently sits behind the woman while she talks with Haidar. If she stops to turn to him, he succinctly asks "So... what do you think? What should we do about him in your opinion?"
"It's a pour soul. His former life taken from him by a curse. And not only his old life. He also has no chance to start a new one. It's sad."
"Well, if we did find our way out of the dirty into a new life, I am confident he can too" Ohrmizd taps the table and changes his stare from Haleen to Haidar "He just needs a small push from us"
Then with a smile "And so... do you still sleep in your room in the Battle Market? Sharing room with Man is fun but he has tendency to read until late. I would prefer a room mate with other interests before sleeping"
"The room is cheap and I'm used to it. And until Haidar moved in I had to whole tract to myself."
"I thought you have a big house now? And still no room of your own?" Haleen wonders. "But there are more rooms here, if it's not quiet enough in your house. I wonder how long though. It's getting ever more crowded in the battle market. Not long and it will be sprawling with life day and night."
Roryx leaves Ohrmizd and Haleen to their chat, and addresses Haidar - "We will try to help as we can, in removing your curse" - he nods - "Until then you will stay here, confined - for your own good, and that of others"
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Overhearing Ohrmizds efforts with Haleen Manuun thinks to himself: 'Didn't know we still share a room, but best of luck with that desert rose. Although I doubt she will stay lng after she hears you snoring afterwards", before joining Roryx at Haidars cell.
"You said you were an Emir of Iqep before you came to that place of Nethys? Do you remeber how long ago this was? And why you came here? Were you looking for something or running away?"