An Impromptu Cure [Solo]

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy / Rested

~

It had been a full week since the Swashbuckler had thought to do something significant with his idle time, his idle time being practically almost all the time allotted to his existence. As he stared at his Pharmacist tools sitting on the table, he decided that he needed to do something, if only to kill the boredom that came with the lazy schedule he took upon himself everyday.

He guessed he should stop by some of the squares in Londinium to hear the latest news. That would be a good start. Information was important, after all.

Whether one would consider it fortune or misfortune, fate had other plans for him today. No sooner did he step out of the building he technically lived in did he hear a hacking cough coming from further down the area. At the same time, he bumped into an old man running out from somewhere he obviously did not know.

"Ouch!", cried the skinny, weathered old man as he tumbled to the ground in a heap of bag and bones, his pale white hair a stark contrast to the dark colors of the pavement.

On the other hand, the Adventurer's body was much stronger than that of the People of the Land, so all he felt was a slight bump. Yet, he felt that this was his responsibility, so he offered a hand to the unkempted, aged man.

"Thank you, Adventurer." The voice of the man was ragged; it was obvious that the old man standing before the young Adventurer had seen many hardships and gone through many trails. Or maybe he was just an old man.

"I'm sorry about that; it was my fault," the Swashbuckler began, embarrassed that even with Pathfinder, he was unable to avoid colliding with the old man. Perhaps it was time to change his subclass, it did not seem to be working out for him. "Is there anything I can do for you?" The old man seemed to be in a hurry to get something, or find someone. Helping the old man should be what he should do after making the old man fall. Those weak bones might break after having been subjected to the harsh floor.

"Well, there IS one thing you could do for me..." the wizened, skinny old man began. Gesturing to the direction of the coughing he had heard earlier, the man continued, his speech slurring as he wrestled with emotions to continue. "You see, just a few days ago, my wife of fifty years was suddenly stricken with a terrible illness. I called in the local doctor to take a look at it, but the only thing he said was that... my wife... was... going to... d-d-die in a few days."

The man gripped his shoulders hard, the iron grip showing that the old man was far from feeble. Or was this strength born out of desperation? "You are an Adventurer, right? I have heard of the wonderful things made by Adventurers. Please, do you not know of anyone who can save my wife? I have gold and I am willing to pay for any help, so long as she is made well again."

Ahhh, he got the picture. The old man's wife was gravely ill. To be honest, judging by the man's appearance, it was likely that both of them had lived to a long and ripe age. The old man loved his wife tenderly all these years, and when death was coming to claim his wife, he became desperate. Desperate to save his wife, to be able to spend just a little more time with her before they parted. It was a sad thing, indeed. He did not know whether or not he could fix the problem, but he knew he could certainly try.

Placing a hand on the old man's shoulders, he said in a clear and even tone. "I will do my best to help your wife. Tell me, what are her symptoms?"

"R-Really?! Well, when she began coughing, she and I thought it was just a regular cough that would go away over time. But then the fever came! S-She became bedridden and then I called the doctor, and then he said that her time was limited, and then I got fri-"

"Woah woah woah, slow down. Can I see your wife? I think I can get a better idea of what is plaguing her that way."

"O-Of course, sir. Right this way."

If it were up to him, inviting a stranger straight to your house with no means to protecting your goods, your family or even yourself was kind of... risky. The old man could be one of three things: Very confident the Swashbuckler will bring no harm, very foolish, or had some other means of protection unknown to the Adventurer. He did not like the third option. It was never much fun to be surprised by, say, a sword tip pressed against your neck.

He stepped inside the humble two storey abode through a sturdy wooden door and into a mess of a house. It was not that there were things strewn everywhere, though there was evidence of that to some extent. If he had to name it, he would say that it was the way the things in the house were placed that gave the house a sense of disorder. Stacking everything from books to cooking pots in places like tables and chairs was hardly a way to make one's house organized.

A dry, pained cough could be heard as he entered. The hacking coughs came from upstairs, he noted.

The man led him upstairs, to a room which held not one, but two human beings.

The first one was lying on the bed, and judging by her pained look and old age, was obviously the man's wife. The second one, on the other hand, was a young lady who was probably around the Swashbuckler's age, with long, flowing black hair which reached down to the middle of her back and a pretty face framed her soft brown eyes. She was the one who looked up as the man brought him in to see his ill wife.

"Grandfather!" The young lady spoke, rising as she did so. He could not help but notice that she wore a clean white dress which ended at her knees over what seemed to be a slim body, and Icyferno had to avert his eyes ever so slightly so as not to be noticed that he was staring. Damn, she was pretty. It had always been hard for him to talk to girls, much less pretty ones. This was likely going to get awkward very quickly.

~

Word count: 1115
Total word count (Pharmacist): 1672.5
Notes: Part 1 of 2

[Icyferno]

Status: Healthy / Rested

~

"Who is this?" she said, gesturing to the awkward Adventurer who had no idea what to say at this stage. "Umm..." he began.

Fortunately for him, the old man interceded for him. "This is an Adventurer, my granddaughter. He's going to try and help your grandmother." That was much better, so he simply nodded in response and moved forward to examine the ill.

At a glance, he could immediately tell that the frail old woman was on the brink of death. He knew not what kind of disease had visited the woman, but that was past the point of contention. He was not an experienced doctor, so for a moment, he faltered, unsure of what steps he should take next. Potions for treating common illnesses were easily available in many local pharmaceutical stalls which dotted the city of Londinium, so it was unlikely that the man had not already tried to give some medicine to her. But just to be sure, he had to ask.

“Excuse me, but has she taken any other medicine before? I need to know which ones were ineffective.”

“A-Ahh, the medicine from the stall a little south of the Golden Square and the stall a five minutes’ walk from here did not help her condition.”

So it means that medicine made by the People of the Land were ineffective in curing her. It might explain why he had turned to him for help. Though it was purely coincidence that they met.

He rummaged in his pack for a moment, then brought out a Medicinal Formulae. "Here, try this. See if it helps." The potion was of a low level: Understandably, it would not have much effect, but what he wanted to see was if there was any effect at all, or if he was simply wasting his time with this line of potions. The old man fed it to his wife, who groaned and, after a few minutes, showed no improvement, so he concluded that he needed to try another method, taking out a stronger potion for confirmation, he repeated the process. This time, however, she seemed to have a less painful cough, and her breathing seemed to be more stable.

Leaving three more of said potion next to the old woman's bed, he announced, "I'll need to go and prepare something strong enough to help her. In the meantime, since it has some effect, you should let her drink that should her condition worsen."

Leaving the house behind, he returned to his base, contemplating what he needed to do at this point in time. There was little branching in terms of medicinal potions; he was likely going to have to come up with some potion on the spot with what he had on hand, by no guide, no recipe, just knowledge of his craft. This was certainly going to be difficult, and he did not know if he was up to the challenge. Well, there was only one way to find out, was there not? He just had to try and make sure he did not come up with a potion to kill the old woman.

The first thing he had to think about was the ingredients he was going to use. Granted, he did not exactly have a wide variety of herbs with healing properties on hand, so he was going to have to make do with it since he was worried that the old woman would not make it if he spent a few hours making a trip down to the local herbal shops. From the short span of time he was there, she seemed to be at death's door. She might not even last an hour without the potions he had left behind to combat the disease that was plaguing her.

He picked up a few at random. As long as they were of a good level, he felt that they could help her. The ingredients may have cost a lot, but then he was not one of those poorer Adventurers. As a matter of fact, he had found a good spot in a more quiet corner of Londinium, and he had already purchased the zone to a small home. After this last request, he may well be moving over there permanently. Sure, he had some sentiments for leaving behind the one thing he could almost call home, but then it was never truly his home, for it was too exposed for the likes of an introvert like him. It was better to leave this building behind.

The process of constucting this impromptu potion was similar to that of the Medicinal Formulae, with a few twists in terms of ingredients. Most of the healing herbs had been replaced with ones meant to deal with illness. In about twenty minutes, or what seemed like eternity to him, he swirled the potion experimentally and looked at it. It should be ready. Now to test whether it works.

He returned to the house, and noticed that everything he had left behind had been used up. Was she given everything all at once, or as he instructed? That was something he wanted to ask. But in any case, the old woman was still breathing, so he supposed it was not too big of a concern.

Without a word to the family, he tipped the potion and fed it to the old woman, carefully watching her for any symptoms while her family looked on. After she finished the potion, her breathing calmed, and the hacking cough was gone. It seems she was cured, or at least partially cured.

As her family rushed to thank him, he blurted out, "You might still want to see an expert on this, I don't know if she is fully recovered, or if the symptoms are only held back temporarily." Nodding, the family thanked him profusely.

He quickly escaped so as to avoid payment; that was not why he helped them, after all. They would only remember a Pharmacist who provided relief to an ailing family member that vanished like the wind once the deed was done.

~

Word count: 1016
Total word count (Pharmacist): 1672.5 + 1524 = 3196.5
Notes: Part 2 of 2