An Odd Start To The Day

“Pepper what’s gotten into you stop?” Lafayette said, trying to pull her back before she caused any injury, even inadvertently. “Sir, I am sorry she’s not usually like this.” He turned to Kalena. “Kalena, are you okay?”

“P-p-poisoned,” she managed, her voice increasingly slurred and difficult to understand. She was hardly able to stand and looked like she’d been in some kind of a fight.

Severos whipped around to see the man and bird creature from earlier. Now the creature snapped and made noises of agitation at him as the man attended to the woman. He kept his distance.

“Merde!” Lafayette immediately swung down from the special custom-made saddle. He pulled an apple from his coat to keep Pepper distracted but the avian mount refused it, far too concerned for Kalena's well being. “Show me where,” he told her, as he examined her pupils. “Follow my nose with your eyes,” he said, moving his head back and forth. “Did someone slip the poison into your drink or was it on a blade?”

“It was… from...a Sarnian viper…” Kalena reached up weakly and pushed her thick mane of hair away from her neck to show him the tiny wound from the first dart, which was sore and felt swollen.

“Dieux bon sang,” Lafayette spat. “Sit, I’ll see what I have on me.”

Nodding, she slid down the wall into a half-sitting, half-slumping position, her head lolling. Lafayette undid several buttons of his large coat revealing he was in fact very skinny under the coat, it was filled with strange round paper globes, small glass tubes and a few ceramic pots with lids. He hurriedly checked the glass tubes one after another reading the small labels on each. Finally finding the one he wanted, he cried, “Merveilleux!” It was for Karavossian vipers, a cousin species to the Sarnian variety, but it ought to do the trick. He pulled the cork off and put a strange long device in the liquid inside. “Hold still. This will hurt,” he warned her, holding her hand with his free one.

“Pepper, Mama’s gonna be okay. Just stay calm,” he said over his shoulder before pushing down on a plunger device with the same delivery system as a poison dart with more control over the administered anti-venom.

"Excuse me," Severos said, looking the way they had come. "But did you happen to see... Anything as you came here?"

A cold chill persisted, seemingly oozing from the shadows. Severos felt out of place and confused at all of this. The chill finally abated and he relaxed a bit. He came to the realization something was watching him but the gaze was gone. It was perhaps divination magic, though the fact he sensed the dark power meant that who or whatever it was had wanted to be known or did not sufficiently hide their scrying.

He had no idea how wrong he was on both accounts and opted to slowly defuse a hostile intelligent creature that seemed to want to snap his head between its beak. "Easy, easy," he said, hands raised slightly in a calming manner.

"Easy, Pepper!" the man order fondly to his beast.

Severos reached into his mind as Pepper pawed the ground and glared. Quietly, he muttered, "Haec bestia leniret." His eyes were focused at the avian, which made the ease of the spell all the more easier. The charm washed over Pepper and he noted the beast seemed less agitated.

"I apologize for angering your mount, I had expressed curiosity on such a creature," the mage said. "But it seems I facilitated a reunion of sorts! Sirrah, perhaps she should be taken to the temple of Obad-hai. They may be able to help her further, it is up there past the raising platform," he finished with helpful pointing to a lift that stretched past the undergrowth of leaves into the upper city. As he gathered himself and prepared to depart, he added, "Though, I would like to ask you more about your companion in feathers if you are available later at the Golden Oak?"

As Severos took his leave with the reply, he sighed and stepped out onto the streets once more. It was an interesting start to the day. He started to the bazaar, hoping the horse trader was willing to deal for a mount. About the time he turned onto the ground road, an old man hobbled to him in a dark cloak. "Excuse me sir, may I speak with you for a moment? I'm looking for something, can you help?" the man asked him.

"I may be able to," Severos answered, a bit wary given the last few minutes. Still, he was willing to help.