Quest - His Emerald Eyes

Bradwynne found himself at the beach in Dunnstads one day. This place was where he had met a foeman worthy of his steel, and he was revisiting the place to know how he managed to meditate in heavy rain while the storms were raging around him. He opted to do the same thing, but as sky was clear and the waves were calm, he would never know how would it feel. Maybe someday he would chance upon a storm to meditate here like that man. He had meditated in extreme situations, once he had even meditated while the snowstorm was raging upon Vintergard, and so he wanted to know if he could manage to meditate here out in a storm. But knowing it would be futile to do it this time, he decided to just return to the city proper. Fall was still far away, and so he could not expect storms here.

Maybe while he was still here, he should try out some delicacies within the place. He had heard that the seafood here tasted very good, and so maybe he should try them. There were a number of restaurants and bars in this area, and so he had to try them all, or maybe ask somebody in what establishment was the best seafood dish served. But as Bradwynne was quite attracted to food, maybe he would try them all. After all, he had quite a good amount of money from his hunts and missions, and it would not hurt that much if he spent a good amount on food. Of course he had eaten prior to playing the game, and so it should not affect his appetite for later. And so he decided on trying every dish that Dunnstads could offer.

As he was trying to search in which restaurant should he start his eating frenzy, he felt something or someone bumping towards his body. As he looked at the person who bumped onto him, he saw that it was just an elderly man. Maybe his eyesight was dimming and so he did not notice the 5'11" person bumping on him. But suddenly he felt odd. He then stared again at the old man, his ice-blue eyes meeting the emerald eyes of the man. He could not put a finger into it, but as he stared at the old man, he felt something suspicious. The old man mumbled an apology before moving towards the direction opposite Bradwynne, and Bradwynne could not help but stare at the old man There was really something odd about that old man, but he could not put a finger on it. A hunch was telling him to tail the old man, and so Bradwynne decided to forego the eating spree for the moment and tail the old man. He could not tell what, but the old man was really suspicious.

Thrown die:

1

 

Bradwynne tried to tail the old man, but as the number of people started to thicken in this busy road, he could not find the man as he disappeared within the sea of people. Bradwynne tried to discern where the man was by taking note of the direction where he went, but he could not see anything. It would seem like he had knew he was being tailed, and so he moved towards the place where there are many people so that he could hide himself by blending in. Sighing that he had lost the person, Bradwynne decided to go back to the street where there are a huge number of restaurants and bars, when suddenly he heard someone shouting that someone had stole her purse. Hearing that, he wanted to try to aid the person, when suddenly someone grabbed him by his shoulder so tight that he felt as if his shoulder bones were cracking. The man accused him of being too shifty and so the main culprit behind the stealing of the purse. He tried to deny the accusation hurled upon him, when a third person tried to search his body, and voila! the purse was found within the back left pocket of his trousers. He had no idea how and why the purse was found in his possession, and although he was thankful the purse went back to his rightful owner, everyone in the village gazed upon him with the intent to rip him into pieces. At this point he wanted to draw his katana, but he could not. He knew that these people were all good people and just acted on what they see was wrong. He could not bring himself to hurt them much less kill them, as his reputation of being a good man was in jeopardy if he did that. However his reputation was tarnished in this place, and so it meant no seafood dinners in this place however he wanted to. Being unable to hurt these people, he allowed himself to be shoved into the corner as the mob started to increase. But from the corner of his eye he saw the man that he was tailing. He just winked and smiled at him as he was being surrounded by the mob.

So that was his plan all along. To tarnish his reputation among the people in order for him not to be tailed. And he succeeded in turning public opinion against him. For however great was his reputation, if it got tarnished, it would never go away.

Bradwynne, being outplayed by this nasty scheme, had no choice but to applaud the genius of this person. But as if he would let himself be torn apart by this mob at his instigation. By all means, he would make him answer for what he had done, and although he might not get his reputation back, it would be only honor that would be important for him. He then started to get his rosary and mutter some magic phrases as if he was praying for justice to be shown to the mob. For if he saw that this chant would fail, he had to do something drastic to make that man answer to his misdeeds. His reputation was tarnished in this village anyway.

Action: Use White Magic to blind temporarily the mob while he scurries away to a safe place, but still eyeing the man.
Contingency: If the roll fails, he would have to fight using his katana. He would ensure though that the mob would just be incapacitated and not dead.

Thrown die:

52

 

Fortunately, he would not have to tarnish his reputation with the inhabitants of this village any further, as he had managed to call an angel this time to blind the whole mob and to evade all the hands that were trying to grasp him as he escaped the mob and went towards a quite hidden alleyway. He then saw the old man walk away from the scene as if nothing happened, and, as he was feeling quite angry for what he had done to him, tailed the old man by quickly crossing the alleyway, moving left towards the next alleyway, and then right towards the same street where he saw the old man move away, and he then moved quite fast until he was just near the old man tailing him. Fortunately this time the man did not notice him as he followed him all the way, and the bustling market buildings were changing to the dingy edifices of the slums as he tailed the man, who was busy taking out money from the numerous pouches that he carried, presumably stolen from a lot more people. As he saw the man greedily counting the money that he had got from the numerous pouches, and then looked at the slums that he presumed where the old man lived, he could not help but feel for the person. To be sure, although he was a skilled pickpocket, he was still an old man. Maybe no one had wanted to hire the man for a job because of his age, and he could not hunt because of the effects of his age such that he could be torn by beasts anytime soon when his ailments from being old would strike him, and so this kind of crime was the only way to help him fill his needs. But before his sympathy was aroused, he remembered what the old man did to him, and he seemed so very skilled in the trade. Maybe he was part of some crime ring, or maybe he was a leader of that crime ring. To be sure that his sympathy would not go to someone who did not deserve it, he continued to tail the old man, until he had reached his place. To be sure he wanted for the old man to admit what he had done to him so that his reputation would be restored, but he had to know all about this old man first. Maybe he would uncover something more important, larger than this situation of the old man. All that he wanted to know anyway was why he was picking the pockets of other people. Was it for his personal sustenance, or was it for a nefarious purpose? Bradwynne had all kinds of questions popping in his head as he would try to continue tailing the old man to know the real score about the old man's intentions in stealing from a lot of people.

 

Hidden: Cue music

Bradwynne continued to tail the old man. His motivation to steal from others was still lingering in his mind, why does he need money to the point that he had to hoodwink a person who was trying to bring him to justice, or as he was feeling right now, trying to understand him? To be sure, he wanted to help the old man in his situation, stop him from stealing any further. He would try to give some sustenance to the old man enough to live it off, maybe even conceptualize something that would generate money for the old man with little effort. He had quite a small number of days remaining in him, and he did not want for him to spend it all contemplating about his sins. Unlike the bandits that he had murdered before, at least this man had a chance, and he would offer that chance. As much as possible, if a person could change his ways, he would offer an out to him. And despite everything that the old man did to him, ruining his reputation, and whatever standing in the crime organization he was in, he would offer this chance to change his ways, and he would help him do that. That reputation loss was expected for Bradwynne anyway. Even if he does good, there should be misunderstandings on the way. And so, if he could not regain that reputation, he would have to live with it.

Bradwynne's earnest efforts to tail the old man led to a small dingy room (?) within the slums of the village. Bradwynne sighed in relief. At least his offer to help would go to the right hands, or this should be a high chance. He saw as he opened the door and entered the room. Quickly, Bradwynne moved closer to the door without the old man noticing, and what he saw was heart-wrenching. There was another person in the room, and it was a sickly small boy, and as Bradwynne noticed, he had those same emerald eyes as the old man. Bradwynne knew that it was hard for an old man to get his sustenance, hence he understood why the old man had to steal, but to think that he was doing it also for this sick boy right here, which might be his grandson... Bradwynne felt something warm streaming from his face. He had to do something, and really drastic. The boy needs medical attention, and the old man might have needed more sustenance to support the two of them. Quickly drying away the tears streaming from his face, he eagerly listened to the conversation between these two people. Maybe there were more problems with this small household, something that he could help them with. Sometimes he thought about the mob that had surrounded him. They meant to apprehend him because they thought he stole something, but what had they done for this old man here? Did not they know that this old man needed help with his household, and they let the situation escalate such that this man had to steal to save the life of this sick boy right here? Although the old man had wronged him, Bradwynne knew that it was for a drastic reason, and now he was willing to forgive the old man for what he did. He was willing to help this small household in any way he can, and so, as he wiped the tears off his face, he listened on to their conversation, so that he could make out a better angle on what he could do to help. He went as far as to do a slight peek, so that he could monitor the condition of the boy, to know what was his sickness was. After all he was a physician, and had quite a good amount of experience treating other people in this world.

 

Bradwynne watched on as the boy related about the book he had finished reading. As Bradwynne remembered, everything was set in the medieval to early Renaissance period, and as he had noticed in the daily life of the residents, rare were the people who actually learned how to read, let alone have a book. For his age at this point in time, the boy sure was smart, and as Bradwynne remembered what the old man did to him, sure he had some intelligent blood in him, if the presumption that the two were a grandparent-grandson duo was correct. As he was relating the contents the book that he had read to the old man, Bradwynne smiled. The fond moments when he had did that same thing, reading a story he had finished reading, to his grandmother, he had remembered all of them. That grandmother, the mother of his mother, had already died when he had started junior high in the GAMP, and he was very sad when she died, to the point that he stayed in his room for two days without eating anything or going to school. What had bothered him though was the constant sniffing and coughing of the boy. If everything he thought was right, he was suffering from a serious lung problem, something of a killer if the period of the game was to be discussed. The old man was right in saving some of his hard-stolen money to call for a doctor, since if he was to be asked, urgent medical help was needed. The kid was suffering from pneumonia if all symptoms were considered. He had to remove all the phlegm from his system in order for him to survive, and this kid dying, Bradwynne presumed, was bad for the future. This kid could be easily be a trailblazer in his time, and there was a lot of possibilities. It would be such a shame if this kid would pass away early, and pneumonia was certainly a killer. But he had to confirm the case, if it was pneumonia it should be quite easy for him to cure if everything was to be considered. But if it was more serious... Bradwynne might need the help of that person who the old man had mentioned.

But before he would dare to appear himself, the kid had noticed him peeking.from the door, and told the old man about it. Damn it, looks like I'm screwed, Bradwynne thought to himself. But instead of attacking him, the old man seemed more defensive. Bradwynne, seeing that situation, took the opportunity to appear. Seeing the whole situation, Bradwynne was very much willing to forgive the old man and help him and the child. As the old man asked if he was here for his revenge, and moved to settle everything in a duel where the child would not see them, Bradwynne's eyes started to burst into tears. How could he kill this old man, after all that he saw? He was doing everything, even steal, just to save that little kid over there. He saw that all of the money that he stole went into that jar, allotted for that someone who could heal the child. If he killed this man over here, the child would probably die from his sickness and hunger. And that Bradwynne did not want. The kid had a future, and the old man did his all for the kid to survive and reach for his dreams. Would Bradwynne kill the old man just to get his revenge from almost being mobbed? He could manage to escape there. If what happened to him in Astorea before would be his gauge, reputation could be easily lost, and he could live with it. This matter with the old man and his kid was more important.

In a pained voice, Bradwynne said, "After all that I saw right here, would I intend to kill somebody who just did everything that was needed for the sake of his child?" He then took his sheathed katana and unstrapped it from his belt, and then dropped it. "Screw that revenge, I forgive you! Now how much more do you need for you to send the child to someone who could heal him? No, I am a doctor and priest myself..." Well the priest part was quite a lie, but he had his rosary, so that should pass, maybe. "Maybe I could help that man heal the child! Well I would not charge you for it, so feel free to use me as you see fit to help that child! And I think that child needed treatment immediately, if I am correct the child had a problem with his lungs!" He would not intend to say that the old man was a thief, to protect the child's respect for his old man.

 

"So another 50 pieces right?" Bradwynne then stared at the jar, and then at the old man again. He then got his purse from his coat pocket, which looked quite heavy from a good number of coins. He then counted out 50 pieces and gave it to the old man. "Well this should go to a better place than I intended. If I manage to diagnose, and in turn, heal the child, use the money anywhere you need to. Better food, supplies for your travel to your real home. You are Yladians right? Should be hard living in Falderen even when the leadership had changed." The situation with the Yladians had triggered the forming of Astorea, he had heard, and the eventual war between Astorea and Falderen. Just because a group of players decided that Yladians were just victims of a more sinister foe in the north, and decided to oppose the will of the former King Theo. Bradwynne had always believed they had done the right thing, and he was saddened at the actions of King Theo who did not believe those group of men, and decided to attack Astorea, that bastion of freedom. That Falderen misunderstanding still continued to this day, and that's why this old man was living like this right now.

Such high morals of those people and yet they continue the misunderstanding. Bradwynne was disgusted with all of them.

"Yeah I've heard all of that cursed knife-ears crap. Mostly that had triggered a war between my country and this country, and I believe in the ideals of my country. You see, I hail from Vintergard, formerly Dormont, one of the veterans of the late war. Bradwynne Lambert, Sword Priest of Astorea, at your service." He then moved towards the boy, and then took something hollow like a flute from his coat. (It is a monaural stethoscope if you would ask.) "An apparatus for hearing the mechanisms of the body, like heartbeats and breathing patterns. I would need to hear how the boy breathes." Well he had hoped to hear the breathing patterns of a child. If not, he would have to fork out more pieces of gold for both the child to be healed by a more capable man than he does, and recuperate enough to stay healthy.

Thrown die:

11

 

As he was expecting, the child could not even breathe as he tried to detect a breathing pattern. The lungs were so blocked that he needed medical attention very quickly. Although his first diagnosis was pneumonia that had gone untreated, he had misgivings. It could be easily another sickness, he thought, something common within Terrasphere but not within the real world. Anyway, since he had productive cough, the best line of action was to remove all the phlegm within his system, also the first line of action with pneumonia. Second, as he does that, he needed to stay hydrated. Third, he needs to have a good nutrition. Fourth, as his condition could be contagious, the old man needed extra care with how he would try to care for the kid while Bradwynne was logged out.

He then said to the old man. "I presume his lungs was too congested for him to breathe much. Fortunately, I see that it was because he was producing too much noxious phlegm, and although that should be scary to hear, of course it should be treatable. All that is needed is to let him cough and spit out that phlegm, except when he should be sleeping. If he should rest, he should rest. If he could move around, I say that he should play in the sun. If you should follow my instructions while I am away, it should take a fortnight to a month before your child should be healed, but I will try with my divine powers to lessen the number of days. But I leave two words of caution before I leave to get the materials I should need for a month of treatment at the most. One, if your child had some serious problems with the food or anything I listed in my instructions, feel free to disregard it. Second, the condition that your child has might be too noxious so as to also affect you. So I would suggest that you eat good amounts of food, especially fruits and vegetables. If you see that you have a cough that produces phlegm while your child is recovering, you have to follow the instructions listed, and the same period of time or until you are free of cough." He then took a quill pen, a bottle of ink, and a roll of parchment from the pouch of his belt, and then started scribbling on the nearby table.

Hidden: Prescription

1. Prepare a covered spitoon where the child should spit on. When the spitoon is full, the contents should be buried in a place quite far from the village.
2. An hour before breakfast, an hour before lunch, and an hour before supper, prepare a small pot of boiling water and let the child inhale the steam, for a tenth of an hour. This would improve his breathing.
3. After breakfast and lunch, crush a clove of garlic and place it on a tablespoon of honey. Give it to the child to eat. The concoction should soften the phlegm in his lungs to release them.
5. Before the child goes to bed to sleep, add a tablespoon of honey to a warm cup of milk and let the child drink it.
6. If the child complains of a weakness to cough, massage the back of his chest, so as for him to cough some more.
7. All meals should fill the child, and should include a bowl of hot soup. If the child could tolerate spicy foods, add cayenne peppers, which could soften some of the phlegm. Fruits and vegetables are also advised.
8. Whenever possible, let the child play in the sun.
9. The child should cough if he feels like coughing. That should dislodge some of the phlegm in order to remove it from his body.

He then counted out another 50 coins, and then left it with the parchment. He then moved towards the child, held the crucifix of the rosary, and started to chant as if he was praying.

"Angels of this world, I beseech you. This child in front of me needed healing, and I trust your hands to remove all the afflictions on his body. So I pray."

A light suddenly dawned upon the child, which should relieve him of some parts of his disease, if not healing him completely. He then turned his back towards the old man, and then said, "I need to journey to another nearby village to procure my needed materials, and while I am away, follow the instructions that I wrote, and I will give you more gold to follow those instructions. If you think you are not convinced with my instructions, feel free to consult the person who you had trusted before. Well then, I'll take my leave. The gods and the angels willing, we see each other again." He then took his katana and left the room, and left the village, towards a nearby village, so that he could buy the things he needed for the treatment of the child.