Part 50: Discovering Local Customs

Chapter 3: Discovering Local Customs


Well then. Excuse me, mister guard, but do you know what just happened?
It ain’t my job to talk to humans.
Well pardon me for being inquisitive!
I’ll talk to ya!
Ugh.


Thank you for being helpful, sir.
Yep! I’m Tabaka Sim Rish, and I’m pleased to meet ya! What’s your name?
I am Nike von Slartibartfast, prince of Shapeir.
Hot damn! A real life prince? We get some through here every once in a while, but they never decide to stop and talk to me! Hot damn!
Would it trouble you to not faun all over the human, Tabaka?
You’re just jealous ‘cause now you ain’t the one talking to a prince!
Excuse me? Tabaka, would you mind telling me a little about the council?
Huh? Oh sure, sure. So the Council of Judgment, which sits behind the door I guard, is made up of six lionesses, and they make all the big decisions for Tarna. King Rajah sits in on the meetings and can make his opinion known, but he doesn’t get to vote. He’s also got a private chamber which old Killjoy over there guards.
So King Rajah doesn’t do any of the lawmaking?
Why would he? He just leads us in times of war. Not that there’s been much war these days.
Huh. So what can you tell me about the city itself?
Well, there’s a west side and an east side, and then there’s three plateaus. The workers live on the lower plateau. The better class merchants live upon the middle plateau. The ruling classes live upon the upper plateau. Liontaurs live on the middle and upper plateaus on the eastern section of Tarna. Humans live on the middle and lower plateaus in the western section of the city. A human such as yourself oughtta know that humans are not welcome on the east side.
Wait, so if the king lives on this plateau, then where do those stairs behind you go?
Those go up to the temple of Sekhmet. She is the patron of all the liontaurs, as well as Tarna as a whole.
*Ankhs himself*
Thanks for the social studies lesson, Tabaka, but I think I’ll get going now.
Oh yeah, don’t forget to check out the laws of the land; they’re posted in the Welcome Inn.
I’ll do that.


But first, I believe I’d like to see what Sekhmet looks like.


*You enter into a huge hall, dominated by what must be a statue of Sekhmet. The air is smoky, and filled with the odor of strange spices. You feel as if someone or something is watching you.*

Fascinating. And all these carved reliefs…looks like the liontaurs have had a very mixed history.


And you, you must be the statue of Sekhmet herself. I wonder what they sacrifice to you? Everything looks far too clean to be the typical animal sacrifices.


How dare a human defile the sanctity of the temple of Sekhmet! Begone!
Well excuse me, but there was hardly any guards or priests present to bar me from entry! Is a man not allowed to fulfill his curiosity?
No he is most certainly not! Now leave this temple before the Goddess Sekhmet herself smites you for this blasphemy!




Human, Doer, Changer of Worlds, Releaser of Darkness, thou hast not yet been judged, and a future cannot yet be weighed. Yet thou hast already created a future for Weal or Woe. Should it be Woe, then the towers of Tarna will fall, and the blood of my liontaur people will flood the savanna. For the Darkness before us rises from the Darkness behind you, and you must confront that Darkness. Yet more I cannot see, until you are judged. Leave us now, and return with the Gem of the Guardian. You shall then be weighed and judged, and a future can be seen. When you have been judged, we will reveal a future for you to make, or unmake.


I don’t know how you managed to gain the great goddess’s attention, but if you ever come here again without that gem, I will flay your skin off myself!

She won't really, but I liked the line too much.


You’re just jealous because this is my third prophecy.



I wonder if Rakeesh is still busy?


Ah, in here alone, are we?


Yes, Rakeesh is still talking with his brother.
You might have told me you were a council member.
I wasn’t exactly expecting you to get in trouble on your first day.
Blame that thief, not me. I was just doing my civic duty. Why did you guys just let him walk out of the chamber, anyway?
He was stripped of his honor, wasn’t he?
So?
Honor is very important to liontaurs. Most liontaurs would rather die than be considered without honor. You know, Rakeesh intends to pledge his honor to bring peace. If war does occur, he can never again enter Tarna. You realize, don’t you, how special Rakeesh is? The only ruler of Tarna to walk away from the throne, the only liontaur to become a paladin? You and I are both very lucky to know him.
The only one? But you just said honor is everything to a liontaur.
Honor means different things to a liontaur and a paladin. Liontaurs are born with honor and gain it in combat, but Rakeesh became a paladin through his actions and beliefs. It is difficult at times, being lifemate to a paladin. A paladin tends to travel wherever he is needed. It is so seldom Rakeesh and I have a chance to be together.
I see. But while he’s still busy, I wonder if you could explain the channeling spell you mentioned before?
Heh. My people have a saying, “curiosity haunts a human.” It certainly seems true in your case. Very well, if you wish to learn more about magic, you and I shall perform a ritual together. This ritual is that of the magic staff. A magic staff is both a container and an amplifier of the magic user’s spells. It is a thing of magic and does not really exist in this world, so the wizard must summon the magic staff for each use. The ritual to create your magic staff shall take place here in my ritual chamber. However, before we can perform the ceremony, you must first return here with some magical wood.
And where can I get some magic wood?
Find a magical tree. It shouldn’t be too hard to find something special in the jungle.
If you say so. Goodbye for now, Kreesha.


I guess I can stop by here before getting my money changed.


The Apothecary

Oh. Oh my.
Oh, hi. You must be the Prince of Shapeir people are talking about. Wow, I’ve never met a real prince before. Welcome to my apothecary, Prince; have a seat if you’re staying for a while.


So. Shower often?
No way, man, scented baths are the path to true cleanliness. My name is Salim Nafs, which means Healthy Soul in Arabic. In numerology, I am an eight. I am also a Libra.
What does any of that mean?
Numerology is the study of the magic of numbers, and eight is nice and well rounded. Libra is the sign of the scales, so I’m pretty well balanced. What can I get for you today?
Oh right, you’re still the druggist. So what do you have?
This is the place to purchase pills and potions. I call it Salim’s Holistic Health and Happiness Eclectic Energy Emporium, but you can call it an apothecary. I carry crystals and promote peace and pyramid power. I see by your aura that you’re a hero, so I’ll sell you the things heroes need.
My aura? What the hell are you looking at?
Your aura, um, the psychic rainbow of your soul that radiates around you. Your aura is particularly auspicious, you know.
_{Might be from that goddess a little bit ago.} So what’s your basic “hero” set?
One pill makes you better, one pill makes you well, and the ones that give you mana are the other ones I sell. Just ask Salim, I’m sure you’ll find them swell.
Wait, so health, stamina, and mana pills, then?
Nah, no stamina pills, just poison cure. If you want stamina, make sure you exercise regularly and eat plenty of fruits and veggies.
That sucks. What about potions?
I’m really a lot more into pills than potions. Tarna doesn’t have a recycling center for potions bottles, I’m afraid. They’re a little behind the times, you know.
Okay. Still, do you have anything in the way of a dispel potion? They keep coming up for me.
I dunno, let me look it up.


*flip* *flip* *flip*

Hey, check this out in the pharmacopia. Wow, man! I’ve already got most of this stuff. There’s the bee’s knees and the ibis’s eyelashes and a clear amethyst crystal. Out of sight. So, like all I need now is some water from the Pool of Peace, a gift from the Heart of the World, and…oh, yuck! The fruit of a venomous vine. That really shouldn’t be too much of a problem for a hero like you, should it?
Maybe. Can you give me some more info on that stuff?
Sure thing, man. So the water is really special. Really, really special, if you know where I’m coming from. It kind of gives you a peaceful, easy feeling. Oh, it comes from the Pool of Peace, a really cool place, a real wet nirvana in the savanna. It also says here in my handbook that the Heart of the World is somewhere near here in the jungle. When you find a place that’s so full of magic your karma rises, then you’ll know where to look for the gift. I think the venomous vines grow in the savanna somewhere southeast of Tarna. Near some rocks, I think. Just don’t get stuck, man. The fruit grows on these venomous vines, like that’s how it got its name, the fruit of the venomous vine.
I think I’ve got all that.
Oh yeah, and while you’re out, could you also pick up the feather of a honey bird? I use them to make healing pills, but I’m almost out.
Are they very hard to find?
Not really, but you gotta get the feather nonviolently, alright? If the feather is from an ex-avian, then the pill is a dud.
I’ll see what I can do. Oh yeah, there’s something I almost forgot to ask you. What’s with all the plants everywhere?
Plants are like people—they love to share their hopes, their dreams, their finest feelings with you. Have you hugged a tree today?
Well, not TODAY I suppose, but—
Boogie with the baobab and polka with the palm, mambo with the mango, and fandango with the fronds. I have these really neat dreams about dancing with a tree.
Oh?
I dream I’m in this, like, desert place with, like, golden sand and stuff. I’m dancing with this tree, you know, and, it like, changes. Suddenly, this tree’s like a woman, and like she’s beautiful. It’s really magical.
That’s funny, I actually know a tree like that. Back in Shapeir I met a woman who had been turned into a tree by a djinni, and I helped restore her soul (in the process of getting another dispel potion, coincidentally). She’s still a tree for all my help, and Aziza even mentioned that it would take someone else to turn her back into a human completely. Her name was Julanar, and I think you two would get along quite well if you ever met.
How cosmic. The girl of my dreams is real! I’m so thrilled to hear it. I’ll leave for Shapeir on the next caravan there!


Whoa. Well, don’t let me interrupt your celebration. I’ll just be heading out now.