Please, sir, could you spare a glass of water?

[Zook Murnig]

Caduceus wandered the streets of Radasanth, eyeing the wares put out on display all around. The area of the Bazaar to which he had come was not one that got quite so much traffic as one normally saw. Nay, he did not seek a weapon, per se.

The magician needed a cup.

And here he hoped to find one, among the stalls of fine cutlery and flatware. He looked about, waiting for a merchant to call him over; he knew perfectly well that the more desperate they were, the less he'd likely have to pay. Not that he minded paying what he was asked for, that is.

Then, he spotted a kitchenware shop, and with a grin he entered. A whole wall was dedicated to the various types of knives used in cooking, as well were the shelves piled high with plates, bowls, and cups, all tremendously beautiful. And there it was, the object of his desire. Cypress liviol, with a pale and blue-flecked coloration giving it away, was shaped into a goblet. The magician picked it up, looking over his possible purchase. As he gazed into the bowl, he spotted a small sapphire of blue embedded in the bottom. This will do nicely, indeed.

[Slayer of the Rot]

"Fuck, Bagley, when I said I needed a cup last night, you didn't have to double the merchandise." Cyril growled in the back of his throat as he crouched back down, sifting through a box of beer steins. They were enchanted to either automatically water down the liquor or ale, or drain the stein gradually depending on the inebriation of the person it was given to. A local pub was already interested in them, and the merchant was happy to sell them off.

"Do you think it was even a good idea to buy out a kitchenware shop?" The familiar asked as it's small hands worked a pen down an inventory list.

"Sure it is," the merchant grunted, lifting the box of steins to carry it behind the counter. "There's so many god damn wars going on now. Raiaera's falling, Salvar's spilling blood in the shadows, Corone is tearing itself apart. A lot of of young and older couples are eloping on a whim since they think it might be their last chance. And everyone thinks kitchenware is a good wedding gift."

Footsteps drew Cyril's attention and he set the box down with a loud thud, dusting his hands off. A robed man was looking over a particular cypress-liviol goblet, something he recognized as another piecer of kitchenware Bagley had made in their drunken search for a cup the night before.

"Interested in that, eh? It'll fill up with cold, crystal clear water twice a day at your command. Just two hunnert and fifty crowns and it's yours. I'm afraid it's a little more expensive than the other goblets here, but liviol is pretty difficult to get a hold of. And the thing is rather ornate."

[Zook Murnig]

Of course, Caduceus had known of the enchantment before the bizarre bazaar clerk even told him of it. He'd taken the time to give it a once over with his Etheric sight, and seen that there was a direct application of the creative waters of Binah placed upon the chalice. It took only a little calculation to figure about how many uses he might get out of it.

Two hundred and fifty? he thought incredulously. Living for a decade among the Tel Han monks had taught him a thing or two about enchantments, and the first of them is what they're worth. He knew for sure that something like this was only worth two hundred gold, and he wasn't about to get fleeced by an unscrupulous merchant like this strange fellow.

"That seems a bit steep," he began. "I know this isn't worth quite that much. It's only water, after all. And a few sips of it at that. Not like it's fine wine or anything."

[Slayer of the Rot]

"Er...uh, I don't know..."

"What're you, still hung over? You're fucking up prices again!" Bagley weaved the fountain pen angrily over his head as though he were a knight readying for a charge.

"It might be liviol but it's just a cup, you idiot! Do you need me to go get coffee, or something? You're barely functioning. That cup is only about one fifty. A hunnert and twenty for the liviol, twenty for the enchantment." Grimacing, Cyril stomped on the familiar, scowling as the pen waved around in the air still. Beneath his boot came a flurry of muffled curses.

"Oh! Uh, that cup? I got it mixed up with one of the ones we just got in. That one's a hunnert and fifty crowns."

[Zook Murnig]

The magician grinned. So, the monks had been making quite a profit indeed, were his thoughts as he reached for his coinpurse. Counting out the larger fifty pieces, Caduceus passed three of them to the talking bag, who could clearly be trusted more with money than this half-drunk, hung over fool.

"Thank you for your time, and for the goblet." The holy man made a sign of the Qaballistic Cross in the air. Top, bottom, right, left. "Good day to you both," he bid the strange pair as he left with his new chalice, in a hurry to never return.

[Slayer of the Rot]

"Fank 'oo," The sack murmured as it clutched the coins, and Cyril watched the robed man depart, his expression unreadable. He bent over and picked up the inventory list and the fountain pen. After staring at the clipboard for a few silent moments, he drove the pen straight through it.

"I'm getting sick of this racket," he muttered, taking his foot off Bagley. The sack stored the payment inside it's strange mouth, and stared up at Cyril.

"Yeah, yeah, calm down before ya blow a gasket. Did you fill out the papers with the pen I gave you? And clean up the mess?" The skinny blond merchant grinned wildly, but the gesture was lacking it's usual warmth.

"Yeah. I did. Now make a new inventory list."

[Zook Murnig gains the following:
-One cypress-liviol goblet with a sapphire set in the bowl. It can fill up with cool, clear water twice a day upon command.
-50 exp

And loses the following:
-150 gp]

[Witchblade]

rawr