The Chronicles of Zaor Dreharice

Part 6: The Lazy Gorgon

          Once we left The Righteous Fly Pub we strolled about town in the rain until we found a rather decrepit building called The Lazy Gorgon. We thought that maybe there were some good pieces of loot inside. We were correct in a way, when we entered the shop the smell of fresh grown Hogrurian and dried Witch's Parsley filled the air. Various potions lined the shelves each labelled in tiny spidery scrawl. The shelves were lined with books of diverse sizes, colors and thicknesses each bearing a different symbol. 

           The shopkeeper was dressed sharply. He wore a jacket made of the finest silk, tailored to fit him specifically. His cloth shirt was also tailored to fit the large man snugly. His goatee gave him a gluttonous aura. The inside of the shop was extremely pristine which was surprising because the outside made it seem that it was in extreme disrepair. The desk was at the very back of the shop and was up a small set of stairs. The shopkeeper's demeanor was polite but somewhat foreboding when asking us why we were here. 

            We simply stated, " We need potions, both helpful and harmful." He gladly obliged, showing us which racks had the poisons and such, and which had healing salves and the sort. The first potion to catch my eye was a Phial of Blinding Light, I had never heard of this potion prior. I asked what it did and the shopkeeper replied "This potion when opened releases an orb of brilliant light, blinding all of your foes, the effect last for about 15 minutes. Great for escapes."

           Kiirion seemed interested in a Tonic of Vitality, a common potion which was known to boost your strength and awareness. She asked how much, I knew they were commonly sold for about 15 Hyria. He said that it costed 20 Hyria. This was a jump up from normal price. Kiirion bought it without hesitation. That was Kiirion's money so she could spend it how she wished. I had bought a few of the phials, it cost about 15 Hyria each, which was weird.

      We left the town and decided when we were about halfway down Blood's Flow Pass to set up camp. We built some crude shelters from the rain and made a fire. We roasted some rabbit I had caught earlier. Kiirion heard wolves and other unworldly sounds so she drank her potion. I soon after fell asleep. I awoke in the middle of the night with Kiirion's mouth directly next to my neck. Her eyes filled with bloodlust she noticed me noticing her. She immediately attempted to knock me out but I blocked her attack with my sword. I warded her off with one of my phials. I then proceeded to grab my gear and run.

    It turns out that the shopkeeper was a vampire and slipped doses of his blood into some of the potions. Kiirion had taken one of the tainted potions. The dose took surprisingly quick effect. I never returned to the town but apparently she's a legend now. Kiirion the Ruthless she's called. Either way she'll be slain by some vampire hunter. No one will be the wiser that the shopkeeper actually created her. Anyways, I ran the whole rest of the way to the next town. The next town seemed pretty gloomy from the naked eye but I found a small tavern called The Gruesome Baboon.