Fantasy RPG Forum - Standing Trials

Tristan did not know much about Tunawa either, having never had close contact with one, or eve really exchanged more than a handful of words with one. He knew that Tunawa were small and kind of plant-like, and that was it, pretty much. Unlike Ashling, he hadn’t needed a lot in the ways persuading to help out when he had found out about the frozen Tunawa that had been found by members of House Imair and the mysterious message though.

On the contrary, he had decided that he would offer his support right away – because he possessed something that might help solve the problem – his anti-winter potion, which had been the reason for Ashling and him meeting and falling in love (in reverse; they had gotten engaged first, because of a misunderstanding, and realized that they really liked each other later on)!

He was so optimistic that it would have some sort of effect on the frozen Tunawa that he had decided to brew a fresh batch right away rather than just mentioning it to House Imair. Fortunately, it was a relatively straight-forward potion and not very time-consuming to make at all. He made three small changes though. He didn’t use any orange sand from Scalvoris this time (because he had run out of it), and instead of wine, he decided to just use water.

He wasn’t sure if treating the frozen Tunawa with a potion that contained alcohol would be a good idea. Tunawa were so small that a few drops would probably make them dead-drunk; besides, they might have other problems besides being frozen. Giving someone who might not be entirely healthy alcohol was definitely not a good idea!

The third small change involved using pepper as an accelerator instead of some sort of obscure creature’s spinal fluid. Ashling’s being a healer had definitely rubbed off on him, and as a consequence, he tended to make sure that all the ingredients were safe for consumption nowadays.

The main ingredient had stayed the same though – fine chili powder, to make the drinker feel warm inside, and the binder was honey, just like before. It would also render the potion at least somewhat tasty, and hopefully neutralize some of the spiciness on top of it.

~~~

Tristan really enjoyed working with Ashling – they had been a great team during the potions tournament (they had made it to the final round, and he had even won), but he had left the decision as to whether she would take part in this here to her. For that reason, he was especially happy when she had decided to give it a try.

Since he had been held up by an unexpected customer, Tristan arrived at House Imair a little later than his fiancée. He had packed a few things that might come in handy into a bag, besides the freshly brewed anti-winter potion that he had filled into glass vials, and he was dressed elegantly, in a light blue tunic and a matching cloak, among other things. Even though he was in exile, he was still a duke, and he saw no reason to hide that.

With that thought in mind, the thrice marked “Immortal worshipping fool” (Vri, Vhalar and Zanik, although he didn’t shout it from the rooftops) who had been involved in the controversial spirit potion research project the cycle before (and gotten his embla around the same time), approached the longhouse.

When he saw Ashling standing there and waiting for him, a warm smile spread across his face. Seeing her tended to have that kind of effect on him. A moment later, he walked over to her and offered her his arm so that they could enter House Imair together.

“I’m sorry that I’m late”, he apologized. “I made some fresh anti-winter potion. If it makes people feel warm inside, it might also help unfreeze the Tunawa”, he told her before he abruptly broke off as something had just occurred to him. “Do you think that people who are frozen are still capable of swallowing? If worse comes to worst, we can probably use the potion like a salve and rub it into their skin though”, he decided.

“I’m glad that you changed your mind. They asked for alchemists and gardeners, but a healer will definitely come in handy in my opinion, nevertheless. Who knows what kind of shape the Tunawa will be in when they wake up? They might need medical attention”, he continued. He didn’t know much about Tunawa, apart from the fact that they were tiny, but he doubted that being frozen and thawed again left anybody unaffected.

“Anyway, shall we go in?” he asked and briefly turned around, to see if anybody else had arrived in the meantime, before he face her again. He had to admit, he was a bit worried. He wasn’t worried that they would fail to wake the Tunawa up – he was almost as good an alchemist as Padraig Augustin now. He was just worried about their message.

What would they say?

Just like his lovely grey-skinned fiancée, Tristan was just a little bit worried about the food shortages and the lost harvest. He had dealt with a civil war, terrible shadow beasts and an even more terrible plague among other things, but he had always had enough to eat before, so this was a new experience. Besides that, his heart went out to the people of Melrath who had to deal with food and alcohol rationing (which seemed to be a huge problem for some). He didn’t wonder if they would have to go foraging in Myrkvior forest though. He was in the process of coming up with a solution – a possible solution, at least.

“I’ve been thinking about something”, he remarked while they waited outside, in case someone else would arrive. His tone of voice was soft because he wasn’t sure if he wanted to be overheard and because he didn’t know how long it would take to get everything in place. “I have some money. I could make a donation to the Circle so that they can procure food for Melrath. There is little food in Melrath at the moment, but if we imported it from abroad … do you think the people of Melrath would be okay with that?” he wanted to know. That was his biggest worry. In the arc that he had been living in Melrath, he had learned that its inhabitants could be a little xenophobic.

There was also a second solution that he had in mind – Ship Biscuits for everyone (although they probably tasted worse than his stale old cat-speech potion) – but he didn’t have the opportunity to talk about it for it was just then that a very tall man arrived. To be honest, he had been hoping that more people would come. He didn’t mind working alone, but if there were more people, the chance of them waking the Tunawa up – and deciphering their message, which was important as well - would increase.

And what more, the man was not just any random Melrathi, he was an Aesir. Just like Ashling, he saw that as a good sign. It couldn’t hurt to have the support of the priesthood!

He waited until Ashling and Jasper had greeted each other before he stepped forward and extended a hand as well. His hand sported black nails. They were not just a fashion statement, but the mark of the Immortal Vri. Most people didn’t know though. “I’m pleased to meet you, Jasper”, he said in a very polite tone of voice and inclined his head respectfully – because a member of the priesthood deserved to be treated with nothing but the utmost respect in his opinion. “The help of an Aesir would be most appreciated. I’m Tristan Venora, Ashling’s fiancé. I’m an alchemist and gardener”, he explained.

“I invented a warming potion, the anti-winter potion”, he added, figuring that Jasper might be interested in that. He didn’t say that in order to brag about his accomplishments – although the anti-winter potion had gained some popularity in late 719 – but so that Jasper would know that he actually had something useful to offer, something that might help and that the situation wasn’t hopeless. Together, they would without a doubt be able to accomplish something. First, they needed to actually see the frozen Tunawa though!

“Shall we go in?” he asked Ashling and Jasper.

In his homeland, the kingdom of Rynmere, Tristan was the equivalent of a jarl, and he had been friends with the king before said king had decided to burn mages alive, among other things, but it seemed wrong to him to go first when a member of the Aesir, a member of the priesthood that was held in the highest regard, in almost sacred esteem, in fact, was with them. For that reason, he told the other man in a respectful tone of voice,

“After you.”

When Jasper mentioned that he had a flame-based spirit companion, Tristan’s eyes widened, much like the Aesir’s eyes had widened before, and then he smiled, because that sounded exceptionally useful. And what more, Jasper gave him the impression of being a very friendly and polite person. The young duke couldn’t help but immediately like him, and unlike the guards, he wasn’t intimidated by his size at all. He never felt intimidated by someone just because they were physically impressive. He’d only start getting a little scared if the physically impressive person also started being physically aggressive!

He followed Jasper into the longhouse, walking a step or two behind Ashling and him, as was appropriate. When the Aesir introduced them to the guard, the alchemist who had only recently become a citizen, extended a hand for the man to shake as well before he walked further into the house in order to meet with Seneschal Vigo. The man strutted, Tristan decided. There was no better word to describe the way that he moved, as if he wanted the whole world to know how important and powerful and such he was.

Unlike Jasper, Tristan did not have a problem with the Seneschal’s behaviour though. He had seen people like him before, back when he had been a Duke in Rynmere, but he would never draw conclusions about someone because of a brief first impression. There was, almost always, more about a person. Everyone had different layers. Vigo might very well a loyal servant of his Jarl, and a caring husband (provided that he was married).

With that thought in mind, Tristan politely extended a hand towards the man who reminded him so much of a Rynmeran lord and introduced himself and the lovely grey-skinned woman that stood next to him, “Tristan Venora, and this is my fiancée, Ashling Grayhawk.” Having said that, he fell silent again and waited for Vigo to take them to the Tunawa, nodding briefly when Ashling let him know that she thought it would be a good idea if he offered to donate money. Just like her, he didn’t want to embarrass the Seneschal. It would be a good idea if they discussed that idea more later on.

When Vigo explained that the Tunawa had been given everything that one of their kind might like to have, Tristan who had taken his cloak off and deposited it on a nearby chair because it was quite warm in the house listened quietly and attentively. He wasn’t sure why they had tried water – water alone would not thaw something, unless it was warm water – but he figured that they had their reasons. The people of House Imair were definitely not incompetent. With that thought in mind, he approached the three Tunawa, after he had made sure that Seneschal Vigo was alright with him doing so now.

He immediately noticed that the poor little things looked scared. They literally looked as if they were frozen in terror. The biggest one was about the size of his daughter’s biggest doll, and the rest of them were smaller. He simply stood there for a moment and observed them, and noticed how beautiful they were, and how different from each other, and then he began to speak in a very soft and gentle tone of voice, as if he were worried that speaking too loudly in front of the poor Tunawa might scare them even more.

“Can your spirit companion’s ability be extended to all three Tunawa at the same time, Your Holiness? If it is not too strong, it might be beneficial to keep it active while Ashling and I try to help the Tunawa with our potions and our medicine as it could be used to strengthen the effect – provided that your spirit companion is willing”, he added, since the spirit was a being of its own and not just a tool to be used at will. As far as he was concerned, Jasper’s companion should be asked for his or her opinion.

“I think that each of us should pick one Tunawa. I’m worried about what will happen if we use too many things on one of them at the same time. They look so small and fragile. We need something potent to wake them up, but too much might have negative effects”, he said to Ashling, still in the same soft tone of voice as before and looked at her and then at Jasper, waiting for what the two of them had to say.

~~~

Provided that none of them had a problem with his plan, Tristan would approach the middle-sized Tunawa, the one with slick white bark and regarded the little being for a moment, in order to see if there was anything unusual about it, besides the fact that it was frozen. He knelt down next to the little being and murmured soft words as he produced his potion, that he was here to help, that they were safe now, that everything was alright. He talked to them as if he were talking to a sick person. He always tended to assume that someone could hear them, even if they appeared to be unconscious, just in case.

First of all, he carefully put a few small drops of his anti-winter potion on the Tunawa’s lips, using an eyedropper, to see if they were cable of swallowing, or if it had some sort of other effect. Normally, frozen people most likely couldn’t swallow, but since there might be some sort of magic involved, things might be different here. If it turned out that the Tunawa could not swallow, he would put on a pair of gloves. Since members of House Imair had taken the Tunawa inside, he didn’t think that touching them with his bare fingers would have any negative effects, but it would be better not to take any chances.

The potion was probably more efficient when you drank it, but even external application might have some sort of effect. Chili, which was one of the ingredients, had warming properties. For that reason, he rubbed a bit of potion into the Tunawa’s skin, or what they had instead of skin, very carefully, so as to not accidentally break the tiny creature. While he did that, he observed it closely, to see if there were any signs of thawing.