Prepping to go didnt take all that much real effort, as I didnt have a whole lot to take, and Master Fred basically lived on the move. A few texts to the First Light, and they promised to have soone here to live in the house for as long as needed.
I boxed up all the extra clothes and things respectfully but quickly, Prestidigitation being ideal for such things. Master Fred indicated how much I could bring along for a change of clothes for different situations, but a Combat Mages uniform, once I removed the extra belts with their dangerous loads, was actually fairly stylish if worn appropriately, and the white-trimd black style certainly flattered .
The list of stuff I wanted actually took a little longer, because that list was not small. I did not expect a great deal of it to materialize, and that was fine. My Ring and Staff were going to slowly and continually improve, and were the greatest sinks of this. But there was just a whole lotta other stuff needed to shore up defenses and special situations that were ant to be accumulated over ti.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, more than a few pieces of equipnt were completely unknown to Master Fred, which ant they obviously couldnt be made.
It also ant details of their construction were definitely worth sothing. And since Id managed to pick up Create Wondrous Item, things like a Swarmkiller Clasp could be detailed out for others to make.
The main thing was that they had to have the appropriate spells available, and I couldnt properly teach a spell or effect until I was a Five. So annoying...
So, it was often a request for Energized materials, or appropriately Crafted raw materials.
Things like a usable Masspack, a lotus-style Disk with a weight limit of at least a ton, a Compressible Alchemy Lab kit, and similar stuff. Also, I could ask for specific tals and gemstones I could Energize myself to specific Low Magic effects.
They dont know what Noqual was. Force E-Iron was generally found in teorites. They were astounded when I described it and its characteristics, because they had so on hand and had no idea how to use it.
Describing the process of forging it and using it in various applications was worth a couple goldweight all by itself. Ard with that knowledge, Heavenbound Hall could start gathering up samples of the stuff to use.
I was sure just casually explaining what a mysterious tal was, could do, and how to make it to that erased any hesitation they had about loaning items or goods.
When I hit Five, I was going to be plenty Deep, and the world was going to change.
They wanted to know what I intended to make with all the gold they were going to send my way. I delineated the Bracers and Amulet I intended to make, and probably dropped their jaws that such was even possible.
Of course, I couldnt actually make most of that at this point, but ti was a thing.
They agreed to have my basic requests ready for by the ti I got to Detroit in the end. I think they were privately salivating to see whatever information they could get out of , and hoping I would just stay there and feed them data.
Unfortunately for them, you didnt get Naming Karma by standing around, and I wasnt going to wait around months just so I could finally power up Clavus and Einz the normal way. It didnt take much to exceed the limits of my current six Ranks in Spellcraft, after all...
--------
Whizzing down the shadowy turnpike towards Pittsburgh, I reflected that a multi-Pact Warlock hanging with was basically a license to print Karma, especially one with a floating City Pact. He would literally never run out of things to do, and I gave him definite instruction to insure we got Naming Karma every day.
While we could easily get to Detroit in a day, there was no chance sothing wasnt going to want the Senior Warlock riding by to do a little sothing for it.
Sure enough, he turned off the Turnpike, Ward-riding smoothly up over the rail, and ca down smoothly on a parallel road.
Smirking to myself, I asked, Whats up?
PLAGUE OUTBREAK ON THE SOUTH END OF THE CITY.
I thought that over. Heavenbound were damage healers, potentially, but not disease healers. Sothing spreading disease? I inquired, thinking of the many possible vectors. So much shit out there could spread disease.
One part of my wish list was a jewel I could enchant up to a Phylactery of Health for just that reason... especially with undead around.
CITY SAYS THERES AN ALIEN UNDEAD HERE.
Well, that got my interest. Unfortunately, there were literally dozens of undead who could spread disease, since they were anything but susceptible to disease themselves. Anything from ghouls to huecuvas to mummies to gaki...
Does the city have a location? I asked.
GENERAL. Sleipner was still moving, of course. He wasnt Primary to a City, so he didnt have the link with the city that would allow more zeroing, and the city probably didnt have a Citybound advanced enough to do the sa.
Which disease?
He couldnt answer that, so he popped up his Vaccine, dialed the local hospital, and handed it to .
Hello, this is rcy Hospital, Olanna speaking. How may I help you?
Good morning, this is Traveler. Im currently with a Citybound Warlock. Weve been notified by Pittsburgh of a disease being spread by an unnatural creature and are hunting for it. In the interest of identifying it, could you tell what disease is being spread?
Oh. Oh. Wait, Traveler? From The Human Tongue?!
I can hear that youve watched it, I smiled.
Yes! Oh, right... its plague, the bubonic plague.
Whiiiiirrrrr, click. That did narrow things down... Olanna, can you confirm if the victims have rat bites?
Her voice dropped. I havent heard of any, Traveler.
Thank you, Olanna. That should be enough for us to find the culprit!
A pleasure to help, Traveler! Go get em!
I very much intend to! I handed his phone back to him, he turned it right side over again, I just sighed, and he put it away.
YOU HAVE A TYPE?, he asked.
Taking into account they are not natives... were looking for a Vylstrigoi, or a Shuyi-gaki. A shuyi-gaki is ratlike and spreads the plague through them. The city would probably notice the increased rat activity, and so would the local wererat clans, if there are so around here.
THERE ARE, he verified instantly.
So, were looking at a vylstrigoi, which is a corrupt nosferatu-bloodline vampire that spreads disease just with its aura.
SLEIPNER CAN HEAL US IF WE ARE INFECTED, Master Fred wrote calmly, which was a big relief. Big black pus sores would slow down, and I had things to do.
Vylstrigoi are tomb-bound. One popping up here should be literally impossible unless it established a tomb for itself and died here. Im thinking a servant of Skulos looking to beco undead. A tomb in this day and age would be pretty well hidden.
He considered that for a few monts. THE ONES TO ASK WOULD BE THE GHOULS. THERE IS A GHOUL SAGE IN CHARGE OF THE PAUPERS END, BY NA OF GILLCRUKX. He punched his phone a few more tis, and handed it to again. I was amused despite myself.
Paupers End, how may I help you? a sibilant voice picked up on the other end, in English.
, I replied in Necrus, and earned a startled pause from the other end. Now, I added for emphasis.
, the being answered, also in Necrus, and there was a hum and click.
, an urbane, yet hollow voice on the other end answered on speaker phone. How may I be of assistance to the Heavenbound? I had to smile at the sneer.
, I replied calmly.
ca back a near purr and hiss.
There was a sibilant hiss from the other end. Ghouls didnt need to breathe, even Leng ghouls, so it was purely an affection.
There was a long thirty seconds of silence on the other end of the phone. he asked on the other end.
Said person smiled slightly at the words.
Oh, was his tone incredibly wary now...
, I confird.
, ca the sigh from the other end.
I laughed politely.
Reviews
All reviews (0)