The Master Falls...
The Never Ending Quest - Episode 9395
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Belboz the Fell grew increasingly tense as he purified the poultice he had
mixed using the crucible. Astra of Aquilaria and Aethir MacFionn watched
in silence, not voicing their nervousness since the last outburst had
nearly caused the necromancer to botch the cure. Astra particularly would
not risk speaking, as she desperately wanted to rid herself of the
curse. Simon the Anchorite lay nearby in a cot, sleeping, still drained from his experience in the forest. It was nearing dusk, and Belboz had been working since midday. He was weary, and he feared his hands were beginning to slip, but he pressed on. The poultice had to be completed in rapid succession. If the ingredients were left too long at any point in the procedure, they might lose their potency, or worse still, become volatile. With trepidation, he poured the poultice into two vials and pressed wax seals atop them, the final step. Sighing with relief, the necromancer turned to his erstwhile audience. "Now, you may speak. Astra, I suggest that if you have any questions for me, voice them now. If you are to take your dose of the poultice, you will likely sleep from the moment you take it, if not through the next day." "Okay. I need to know, though, is there any way your scrying can find Andrea?" "To be honest, I'm not sure. Her powers, I don't completely understand them. I can try, but it will take a prolonged ritual. I can't just use my scrying pool casually, as I am accustomed to." Astra nodded at this. "I...I suppose I'm ready, then." "Very well," Belboz said, turning to Aethir, "tie her down to the empty cot. I don't know how violently she may react to the cure, as it's quite painful." The legendary warrior nodded soberly at this, as the warrior woman acceded to the necromancer's instructions, lying down on the cot and allowing Aethir to secure her. Slowly, carefully, Belboz unstoppered one of the vials and poured it down Astra's throat. The warrior woman gasped as the thick liquid burned like a brand all the way down. Almost immediately, she broke into a cold sweat. Aethir MacFionn watched anxiously. Suddenly, his eyes widened in horror as he saw massive amounts of hair sprout from Astra's body! Aethir turned to Belboz, panic in his eyes. "What's happening? She's changing!" "This is supposed to happen. All the cure does is bring the beast to the fore and give the victim a chance to confront it. The infectee has to want to fight it, and has to ultimately best it." They both looked on as the warrior woman became increasingly bestial, snarling and straining at her bonds. Her teeth were already fangs, and pointed, twitching ears poked from a sprawling wild auburn mane, streaked with wolfish grey. Clawed hands clutched at the air as her wrists tugged at the rope. A loud snapping noise rang out in the necromancer's hut as Astra tore free, growling loudly at Aethir and Belboz. Once again, she had fully become a wolf-woman, and panting heavily, she breathed in deeply, sharply intaking air. Slowly she raised her lips, following this with a long wolf's howl which filled even stolid Aethir with fear. Then, surprisingly, Astra slumped back onto the cot, unconscious and reverting to her human form. "Does...does this mean she's cured?" "No way of knowing, old friend. The only reason she collapsed was the soporific effect of the poultice kicking in. She'll wake up normally enough, but we won't know if she successfully defeated the beast until the next full moon. However, with the moon gibbous and still waxing, we'll get our answer in a matter of days..." Lord Frederigo D'Honaire watched as they draped a blanket over Astra's comatose form, smiling inwardly. This had turned out better than he had expected. Even if they managed to find Andrea, the cure wouldn't work on her, because she was so close to the beast that the two halves of her nature were close to merging. What's more, this was one more person he wouldn't have to worry about waking as he performed the foul deed tonight, and he had such an excellent plan... Lady Andrea Croix, clad as a peasant, found herself in a most curious cave, her host a horribly scarred and blind madman. He sat, perfectly still, upon a rock inscribed with strange symbols and nigh incomprehensible rantings. The young noblewoman could not tell if he was asleep or awake, but given the past few hours with him, she didn't want to take a chance. Before he had lapsed into silence, he had raved about many things to her, of traveling to the land where the snow never melts and of finding the lost grove which holds her destiny. He spoke of White Witches and weird sisters. None of it had made sense, but she noted an eerie similarity between the madman's muttering and the dreams she had experienced. The cavern seemed a grotesque parody of a young wizard's apprentice's abode, books strewn about, some freshly written in. One corner was adorned by what she assumed was an organ reading, shewing the future from a sacrificed animal. All this chaos, yet the placement seemed almost...intentional. What's more, she still didn't know how the man managed to write while blind... Astra awoke as a cold cloth was pressed on her forehead the following morning. Oddly enough, she had remembered nothing following the moment the fiery liquid was poured down her throat. Aethir MacFionn was standing over her, but she could tell somehow that the lines which furrowed his face were not out of worry for her, but for another. "Astra, there's something you should know. Belboz...is dead." "Dead, but how?" "He... he didn't want me to risk being harmed by uniting with the third piece. He tried it himself. It was too much for just one man..." Astra got up quickly, draping the cloak about herself as she went over to where the necromancer's body lay. She saw the proof of Aethir's words as she looked at the corpse. He was burned nearly beyond recognition, but in his charred hands he clutched two objects... ...Aethir's amulet and the third piece...
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The Traveler
5/12/2000 4:09:01 PM
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