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Alea Iacta Story Hour: A Mythic Rome Campaign (Baby Announcement: 8/17)
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<blockquote data-quote="Orichalcum" data-source="post: 2963632" data-attributes="member: 3722"><p><strong>Alea Iacta XI: Romantic Comedy Chp. VII: The Outraged Alchemist</strong></p><p></p><p>GM Note: As you might guess, this was a sort of chaotic session, with everyone splitting up to go investigate their own particular things. I'm trying to keep the story straight as much as I can, but there are some time jumps involved.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p>Cornelia and Lucretius returned with their news to the villa. Armed with a name, Marcus began making discreet inquiries among his physician contacts. He regretted again that he had no chance, as of yet, to try and introduce himself to the Imperial Doctor, the famous Galinus, but in any case this seemed more like a matter for the ordinary Greek, Jewish, and Egyptian medical practitioners and midwives who lived along the lower Esquiline Hill. After a few inquiries, he was able to find the shop of a doctor who admitted that Sulpicius Galba the alchemist-merchant was one of his patients.</p><p></p><p>"What was the nature of his problem?" Marcus asked.</p><p>"Well, a few things. I mean, originally, of course, he was massively burned over about two-thirds of his body. The priests at the Temple of Mercury took care of the permanent damage - apparently he's a regular donor, and the burns had somehow occurred while he was an innocent bystander at the temple - but there was still considerable loss of sensation, which is dreadful for someone who uses their hands - and his humors needed to be readjusted. I prescribed a strict regimen of cold herbal baths and purges."</p><p></p><p>"Did you prescribe anything else?"</p><p></p><p>"Well, Galba kept complaining of nightmares and flashbacks to the incident. He couldn't sleep, and that night a few months ago when there were all the fires all around Roma - he nearly killed himself from terror. So I consulted my texts, and gave him a small amount of quicksilver, to take diluted in wine with his evening meal. The variable nature of quicksilver seems to calm restless minds; he said he had very vivid dreams, but no more nightmares."</p><p></p><p>"Where did you get the quicksilver?"</p><p></p><p>"From the Temple of Mercury, naturally - they make it for their rituals and so on, I understand. Besides, under the circumstances they gave me a discount. Galba may have gone directly there if he wanted any more - he certainly complained about my prices enough."</p><p></p><p>"Thank you; it's very much appreciated," Marcus takes the hint and pays the doctor a hefty "consulting fee," before returning back to us. We decide to pay Galba himself a visit directly that evening at his shop, once Heilyn and Llyr have returned.</p><p></p><p>***</p><p>Meanwhile, Heilyn, polymorphed into the shape of a nondescript Roman craftsman and Llyr, dressed as his usual insouciant self, hang out quietly on the Via Ferra until they can spot one of the neighboring smith's senior apprentices heading to a local taverna for the noon meal. They sit down near him, order some fried fish, and engage him in some casual conversation before coming to the point.</p><p></p><p>"So, was your smithy involved in that big explosion I heard about a few weeks ago?" Llyr asks casually.</p><p></p><p>"Oh yeah, we got three days off! With pay!" the apprentice responds, fairly enthusiastically.</p><p></p><p>"Because your injuries were so bad?" Heilyn asks sympathetically.</p><p></p><p>"No...the master had already given us that morning off, and then after the explosion, he sent messages saying not to worry about coming back to work until after market day."</p><p></p><p>"He had already given you that morning off? How lucky!"</p><p></p><p>"Yes; normally even in this heat it's hard enough to get the major festivals off, but he just told us, "off to the baths with you!" and when your master gives you extra time..."</p><p></p><p>"You don't say no," Heilyn and Llyr chorused.</p><p></p><p>"So how bad did the damage look when you came back?" Heilyn inquires.</p><p></p><p>"Oh, by then it had all been cleared up. We got straight back to work...and I think the master's been working us doubly hard ever since, to make up for the vacation days."</p><p></p><p>"Isn't that always the way?" Heilyn shrugs. They find out the name of the man's master - Arpinos - and decide to ambush him directly on his way to the baths that evening.</p><p></p><p>"Master Arpinos?" Llyr calls out.</p><p></p><p>"Yes?" a burly, Northern Italian or Gallic man answers, stopping in his tracks.</p><p></p><p>"Could we talk with you a minute? It's about a legal matter."</p><p></p><p>"I don't know...I need to get to the baths..." Arpinos hesitates.</p><p></p><p>"Look," Heilyn says, intimidatingly. "We have no desire to prosecute you, but we have evidence that you had prior knowledge of the Via Ferra explosion, and we are trying to track down the real culprits."</p><p></p><p>Arpinos blanches and then draws them quickly into a small side alley. "What do you mean?"</p><p></p><p>"You dismissed all your workers for the day, several hours before the explosion, unexpectedly. Clearly you knew it was going to happen. How?" Llyr demands.</p><p></p><p>Under the stern glares of Llyr and Heilyn, the smith wilts. "Look, I didn't do anybody any harm. The night before, I got a note from a priest at the Temple of Vulcan. It advised me to avoid my smithy the next day, for fear of danger and evil spirits. Well, I'm a gods-fearing man. And indeed, the priests must have foreseen the future, for that very day there was the explosion!"</p><p></p><p>"Do you know if anybody else received messages?" Llyr asks.</p><p></p><p>"Yes, I talked to a few of my fellow smiths, and they too had been contacted by Ragnar - that's the priest, he's a Gaul. Former smith himself."</p><p></p><p>"Do you know if the Master of Naxos was given a message?" Heilyn queries.</p><p></p><p>"That lunatic? I doubt it - the temple of Vulcan considers him a heretic, I think! I mean, have you heard he's trying to make a lightning bolt? It's like claiming to be Vulcan himself!"</p><p></p><p>"So no one was actually injured in your smithy from the explosion, and you had time to prepare and store materials safely?" Heilyn says.</p><p></p><p>"Well, yes...but still! Unsafe practices - no reason why I shouldn't profit from an example being set against reckless carelessness like that."</p><p></p><p>"Did you think of filing the lawsuit, then?"</p><p></p><p>"No, this nice young lawyer Gnaeus Tertius Publicola came around that evening, when we returned to the shop after the explosion, and pointed out how dangerous the whole incident had been, and how much of a profit I could make and teach that Naxian a lesson at the same time."</p><p></p><p>"That's an awfully quick response," Llyr comments.</p><p></p><p>"It's one of the reasons I was impressed with him. I think he arrived faster than the vigiles!" Arpinos says. </p><p></p><p>Ruminating on all this news, Heilyn and Llyr return to compare notes with the rest of us, and prepare to confront Galba directly.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Orichalcum, post: 2963632, member: 3722"] [b]Alea Iacta XI: Romantic Comedy Chp. VII: The Outraged Alchemist[/b] GM Note: As you might guess, this was a sort of chaotic session, with everyone splitting up to go investigate their own particular things. I'm trying to keep the story straight as much as I can, but there are some time jumps involved. *** Cornelia and Lucretius returned with their news to the villa. Armed with a name, Marcus began making discreet inquiries among his physician contacts. He regretted again that he had no chance, as of yet, to try and introduce himself to the Imperial Doctor, the famous Galinus, but in any case this seemed more like a matter for the ordinary Greek, Jewish, and Egyptian medical practitioners and midwives who lived along the lower Esquiline Hill. After a few inquiries, he was able to find the shop of a doctor who admitted that Sulpicius Galba the alchemist-merchant was one of his patients. "What was the nature of his problem?" Marcus asked. "Well, a few things. I mean, originally, of course, he was massively burned over about two-thirds of his body. The priests at the Temple of Mercury took care of the permanent damage - apparently he's a regular donor, and the burns had somehow occurred while he was an innocent bystander at the temple - but there was still considerable loss of sensation, which is dreadful for someone who uses their hands - and his humors needed to be readjusted. I prescribed a strict regimen of cold herbal baths and purges." "Did you prescribe anything else?" "Well, Galba kept complaining of nightmares and flashbacks to the incident. He couldn't sleep, and that night a few months ago when there were all the fires all around Roma - he nearly killed himself from terror. So I consulted my texts, and gave him a small amount of quicksilver, to take diluted in wine with his evening meal. The variable nature of quicksilver seems to calm restless minds; he said he had very vivid dreams, but no more nightmares." "Where did you get the quicksilver?" "From the Temple of Mercury, naturally - they make it for their rituals and so on, I understand. Besides, under the circumstances they gave me a discount. Galba may have gone directly there if he wanted any more - he certainly complained about my prices enough." "Thank you; it's very much appreciated," Marcus takes the hint and pays the doctor a hefty "consulting fee," before returning back to us. We decide to pay Galba himself a visit directly that evening at his shop, once Heilyn and Llyr have returned. *** Meanwhile, Heilyn, polymorphed into the shape of a nondescript Roman craftsman and Llyr, dressed as his usual insouciant self, hang out quietly on the Via Ferra until they can spot one of the neighboring smith's senior apprentices heading to a local taverna for the noon meal. They sit down near him, order some fried fish, and engage him in some casual conversation before coming to the point. "So, was your smithy involved in that big explosion I heard about a few weeks ago?" Llyr asks casually. "Oh yeah, we got three days off! With pay!" the apprentice responds, fairly enthusiastically. "Because your injuries were so bad?" Heilyn asks sympathetically. "No...the master had already given us that morning off, and then after the explosion, he sent messages saying not to worry about coming back to work until after market day." "He had already given you that morning off? How lucky!" "Yes; normally even in this heat it's hard enough to get the major festivals off, but he just told us, "off to the baths with you!" and when your master gives you extra time..." "You don't say no," Heilyn and Llyr chorused. "So how bad did the damage look when you came back?" Heilyn inquires. "Oh, by then it had all been cleared up. We got straight back to work...and I think the master's been working us doubly hard ever since, to make up for the vacation days." "Isn't that always the way?" Heilyn shrugs. They find out the name of the man's master - Arpinos - and decide to ambush him directly on his way to the baths that evening. "Master Arpinos?" Llyr calls out. "Yes?" a burly, Northern Italian or Gallic man answers, stopping in his tracks. "Could we talk with you a minute? It's about a legal matter." "I don't know...I need to get to the baths..." Arpinos hesitates. "Look," Heilyn says, intimidatingly. "We have no desire to prosecute you, but we have evidence that you had prior knowledge of the Via Ferra explosion, and we are trying to track down the real culprits." Arpinos blanches and then draws them quickly into a small side alley. "What do you mean?" "You dismissed all your workers for the day, several hours before the explosion, unexpectedly. Clearly you knew it was going to happen. How?" Llyr demands. Under the stern glares of Llyr and Heilyn, the smith wilts. "Look, I didn't do anybody any harm. The night before, I got a note from a priest at the Temple of Vulcan. It advised me to avoid my smithy the next day, for fear of danger and evil spirits. Well, I'm a gods-fearing man. And indeed, the priests must have foreseen the future, for that very day there was the explosion!" "Do you know if anybody else received messages?" Llyr asks. "Yes, I talked to a few of my fellow smiths, and they too had been contacted by Ragnar - that's the priest, he's a Gaul. Former smith himself." "Do you know if the Master of Naxos was given a message?" Heilyn queries. "That lunatic? I doubt it - the temple of Vulcan considers him a heretic, I think! I mean, have you heard he's trying to make a lightning bolt? It's like claiming to be Vulcan himself!" "So no one was actually injured in your smithy from the explosion, and you had time to prepare and store materials safely?" Heilyn says. "Well, yes...but still! Unsafe practices - no reason why I shouldn't profit from an example being set against reckless carelessness like that." "Did you think of filing the lawsuit, then?" "No, this nice young lawyer Gnaeus Tertius Publicola came around that evening, when we returned to the shop after the explosion, and pointed out how dangerous the whole incident had been, and how much of a profit I could make and teach that Naxian a lesson at the same time." "That's an awfully quick response," Llyr comments. "It's one of the reasons I was impressed with him. I think he arrived faster than the vigiles!" Arpinos says. Ruminating on all this news, Heilyn and Llyr return to compare notes with the rest of us, and prepare to confront Galba directly. [/QUOTE]
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