A Man Cannot Live on Herbs Alone

[Theying]

Theying had directions to a place that would soon be his place of business. Well, soon was something of a relative term. That depended entirely upon what condition the place was in. He still didn't have the best mental image of exactly how much space he had to work with. Even if the place was in prestine conditions, he would still probably have to make additions. Just having plants wasn't good enough to provide herbal goods to the community. He would also need to acquire certain equipment.

Well, there was nothing he could until he found out exactly what he had to work with. That was exactly what he intended on doing. The place wasn't central, but it was in a well-known location and the land around it had been used for growing plants before. Hopefully, it would be in good enough condition so it would be ready when the shipment of plants he sent for arrived.

Well, let's get a good look at it...

[Striker]

The vineyards once occupied a great majority of the western district, sprawling across the lands of Paxia with fresh and nutritious soil. They had been the home to some of the finest grapes throughout all the land and subsequently some of the most potent and rare wines as well. Unfortunately, though, there was little left of the vineyards as far as product was concerned. The great fires that had plagued the city had charred the surface of the land, ruining most if it and destroying the vineyards in the process. Luckily, though, there was much that was salvageable.

Theying would immediately notice that the western vicinity of ruined Paxia was less frequented than the eastern district where the hundreds of tents had been erected. This was probably because few had determined the soil to be a fine resting ground to construct their homes as the smell of burnt marble and incinerated plants was redolent in the air. For the herbalist’s purposes, however, the vastness of the vineyards would suffice nicely for his business, particularly as he would be the first to have established a business in this part of the area since Paxia’s destruction.

The herbalist’s prospective store was situated on a small plot of land on the easternmost edge of the vineyards. Rickety in appearance, it was amazing that the fully walled building remained on its ‘feet’. Its sides were heavily charred subsequent of the flames that had licked through the area, and the rooftop contained a gaping hole where a missile of some sort had come crashing through. There was, however, a long horizontal window on the east side of the wall where the original store owner had vended his wines.

As Gandan had mentioned before, there was also a reasonably sized plot of land settled behind the building; however, the area was nevertheless littered with lacerated vines and charred shapes that might have resembled grapes at one point in time.

[Theying]

The fires were a blessing for plant growers, very few things enrich and rejuvenate soil as fires do. And the fire didn't go too deep either. Should people with the right expertise find this place it should be blooming in no time, the already rich soil was as fresh as could be asked for. As far as that goes, this place was an amazing blessing.

The fact that he was the only one out here was somewhat disconcerting, however. People would have to make special trips, and while that would be worth it for the healing aid, cosmetic products, and special orders it would make it harder. He didn't want it to be all that difficult. On the up side, he was virtually guaranteed to own a landmark. Directions would be relative to his place of business while people were still establishing things. Now, if only he could find an easy way to make the place eye-catching and unique so that it would remain so far into the future, but that's something to do at some other time.

The place was actually moderately sized. Apparently, the vendor had plenty of storage which would be sufficient for his storage needs as well but it didn't quite look like there would be enough space for a lab in there, unless there was a basement. Though, there would have to be some work on the walls and roof, to shore them up. Also, he wanted to add a porch or something to the long window, and maybe put an ornament of some kind on top. Asking people to stand in the sun like that was generally not a good idea.

He went inside, looking at the internal space. It was mostly solid, if an uninspired wood color. It didn't look like much of this area would need replacement. He had heard somewhere that most wineries had cellars and basements that kept things cool and controlled, and he was quite fortunate to discover one. It had been looted of all valuables, but there was a good sized room down there. Big enough to live and work in, if necessary. The door to the cellar was not exactly obvious either. It had been highlighted by some the of the burn damage.

All in all, the building itself needed repairs, but no major additions at this time. He needed to talk to people about that, and the sooner the better. He had a shipment of herbs on the way, a rather large bumper shipment and would need this place ready to go. Due to time limitations, he had had them moved as they were, which meant that not all of it was processed. So that means that he'd need to have the lab equipment ready as well. So much he needed to have ready, and only a few brightening to do it in.

Unfortunately, that's not the only thing he had to worry about. The heart and soul of any herb shop was its garden. He left the shade of the shaken building to really give the nearby garden an in depth examination. The garden was smaller than would have liked, no bumper crops could be produced here. He would eventually have to acquire more land to expand, but his plate was quite full at the moment. While there the dead remains of another crop still in the ground, it was not a problem only a brightening's work for two people to turn that top layer of soil over and let the dead nourish the living. While those dead vines were worthless to most people, they could be worth their weight in gold to someone who grows plants.

Happy with his overview of this new property, the master herbalist began the trek back to the tent city on the East side. He needed to find a metal worker with access to his tools, a skilled carpenter, and at least four other warm bodies to get this work started as soon as possible. He needed help to give life to this business and the first spark on the Western side of town. While the pall of death still held sway over many parts of the city, any herbalist knows that a place full of death is one of the best places to kindle new life.

[Striker]

The western vineyards, which would eventually become the nesting grounds for Theying’s herbs, would prove a suitable plot of land to grow various plants and other materials. Its soil was rather fresh despite the throes of the ravaging fire, and the herbalist would discover that there was more than enough space for many different kinds of props. The building itself was in reasonable condition considering that it had survived through the combined forces of a great fire and a war, but it had nevertheless remained strong through the tests of time.

The venture to the eastern district would prove uneventful to the herbalist. No guards or sentries obstructed his way and there were very few sightings of commoners along the naturally constructed path of gravel. As he crossed through center Paxia and into the residential district, he would immediately be greeted by the sight of an encampment of tents scattered across the area in a haphazard manner. Dozens of people milled about the vicinity, tending to their makeshift homes or chasing after troublesome children. For the most part, though, the proximity was raggedy regardless of the reasonable amount of space that had been cleared.

If the herbalist was to find workers and tools, this was certainly the place to inquire for them. Rumors had circulated that a shipment of machinery and equipment had arrived from Archadoon in the aftermath of the war, though wherever these might have wound up was beyond most people’s knowledge. There was, however, no shortage of people here in the residential district. Most of the populace stood outside their tents, either conversing with nearby neighbors or simply adjusting the poles that they had used to erect their insecure homes.

As far as carpenters went, the Paxians had always been a heavily mercantile-comprised people. Gifted in countless ways where trade skills were concerned, there was bound to be a carpenter dwelling amongst the refugees. Unfortunately, finding individuals who possessed such skills would be difficult without personal investigation as no carpentry shops had been seen in over an era now since the orcish invasion.

[Theying]

The master herbalist found himself in a tent city, full of poeple. Survivors and refugees mostly, but even a decimated city had those he was searching for. The kind of equipment that he was looking for were quite common mostly pots and strainers were household goods but the grinders and pestle would be less common, but useful for a wide vareity of skills from healing to alchemy. One of the beautiful thing about Herbalism is that there were almost no unique equipment and very few expensive things to acquire.

The young man approached one of the more diverse looking groups clustered around something or other, he didn't want to get caught within just one extended family. "Excuse me," the master herbalist began to the group in general. "But, would any of you know where I could find a carpender? I would also like to hire some people to fix this place up." The master herbalist decided that he would leave the lab equipment for later.

[Striker]

With the arrival of the Moonstar family leading as examples, altruism had generally been awakened throughout the city. Whereas families had once seldom interacted before the war, they had discovered themselves in dire need of one another, a codependency that had enabled them to survive throughout the grueling winter. Subsequently, most of the populace entertained a willing propensity to cooperate with each other –even with those who were relatively new to the city.

“Julius was apprenticing before the war…” answered one man, a middle-aged fellow who met Theying halfway. Shrugging his broad shoulders, he jabbed a dirty finger towards a cluster of tents on the outskirts of the encampment. “Ever since his shop was destroyed, though, he’s been grumbling about a pain in his leg that has been keeping him from working.”

The civilian shrugged again, “You can find him in that small tent to the side over there…”

If Theying were to follow the man’s direction, he would see a rudimentary blue tent amongst a flock of others like it –though different in hue.

[Theying]

"Thanks, I'll look him up," the master herbalist replied, and made a beeline to the place indicated. He had some unrealistic hopes at getting some kind of zen master of wood, but Theying was one person who favored reality over fantasy.

Theying stopped outside the flap of the tent, not wanting to intrude. He called inside, "Excuse me, but I was told that I could find a carpenter here. I was hoping that I could hire you for something."

[Adamnen]

Even a short-legged Katta with a bad sense of direction could find the western vineyard. One would have to be blind to miss it. Adamnen wasn't. Fortunate for him, too. He doubted he would enjoy a long meander about the city looking for the place as he'd done with his house. Hovel, rather. Ruin, now.

But some time digging in rubble had presented its prize. And well worth even a many-hour search it would have been.

Examining the place from a distance, he noted it was in relatively fine repair. It had a long window, open, and the Katta could imagine the line forming there to get their herbal needs satisfied. He could also imagine himself behind that window, dispensing them.

I'll probably need a stool or something to stand on.

Adamnen chuckled to himself. Many people found a short Katta amusing, the object of the jokes included. He didn't care for the recycling of all the old halfling jokes, so much. They were never funny. Not to a height sympathizer.

Taking a peek inside, he could easily imagine its potential. Not that he knew much about herbs or their preparation. Yet. It came to him rather suddenly that Theying was nowhere to be found.

Oh well.

With a shrug, Adamnen went outside. He sat in the shade of the building, awaiting Theying's return. In the meantime, he pulled out a book the human had given him. A list of herbs. Nothing deep but it was a start. He flipped it open to a random page and began to read.

[Striker]

A ruffle of surprise could be heard inside the petite blue tent as the herbalist arrived outside. “Come on in…” a deep voice called.

If Theying were to enter, he would immediately be greeted by the sight of a young man perched upon a seat of furs. Likewise, his figure was covered beneath a small blanket and his right leg was propped on a small stool situated a short distance in front of his cozy chair.

Julius was rather young. His face was covered in dark bristle and it was clear that he hadn’t shaved for many months. His hair was black and long and tied into a pony tail behind him. Nevertheless, despite his unkempt appearance, he wore the noticeably muscular physique of a man of his craft. “Yes…I’m a carpenter, or was rather, before that roof fell on my leg. It hasn’t been the same since…”

Tilting his head against the headrest of the chair, Julius laughed, “But what did you have in mind? Maybe I can still help? By the way, I’m Julius, and you are…?”

[Theying]

Theying ducked into the tent. He was quite interested in getting everything establish, the sooner the better. The young corpenter looked like he had given up on some things, but the master herbalist couldn't tell what that may be.

"I am Theying, master herbalist," the visitor said. "I recently acquired a shop out near the old vineyards, but it has some holes in it. I would also like to make some additions to the place. I was hoping that you might be able to use your skills to help. But, let me take a look at that leg, maybe I can help."

[Striker]

A frown spread across the carpenter’s face as he glanced self-consciously to his leg. There had been a time when he would have risen to the occasion, offering his adept skills to help rebuild the city that he had come to love. Unfortunately, though, his ability to do so had been heavily diminished when his leg had been wounded. If only he could get off his blasted –but comfortable- chair…

“I’d love to help you, Theying. I’ve been…wanting to help ever since the orcs came. It’s just that I haven’t been very mobile exactly, and I need not explain the importance of that.” Julius remarked with a faint smile.

At Theying’s offer to assess the damage, the human’s mood brightened considerably. Paxia had been without a thaumaturgist or doctor in many cycles –at least one of commendable caliber.

Perhaps an herbalist might be able to help…

Julius’s leg, as Theying would discover, was not broken. He was able to bend and move it, but it was evident that he labored with every attempt.

“It aches every time that I move…sort of like a burning sensation in my thigh.” the carpenter explained.

[Theying]

Theying was a herbalist, but his knowledge of healing and anatomy was still fairly basic. He could do great things, but only if he knew what going on there. Also, once the things set there really wasn't anything he could do. The three skills of Thaum, healing, and herbalism were related but they worked in fundamentally different ways. Thaum was using magic to heal, healing was the process of figuring out exactly what was wrong and fixing it using hands-on approaches, and herbalism was all about modifying the body's natural processes to bring about a desired effect.

"Well, I can't do anything specific until I know exactly what is wrong," the young man said, thinking quite hard about the problem. "I could give you something that would get rid of the pain, but I can't do that in good conscience until I know what's causing the pain. I could brew something that would help mend muscles, or maybe the things the connect bones with things, but they all have potentially dangerous side effects if I guess wrong. Do you know anything more specific, or could tell me about someone who does?"

It was really a shame. Theying knew just enough healing to do first aid, but this in depth diagnosis was beyond his training. People often confuse healing and herbalism because they work well together, but the presence of one cannot make up for the absence of the other.

[Roland Moonstar]

Adamnen
Roland sidled up to the katta that was standing in front of Theying's new store. He didn't know the man, so he introduced himself. "Serale, I'm Roland Moonstar, Lord Protector of Paxia. I'm doing the rounds of the city today, trying to get an accurate assessment of how everyone is currently doing.

Is this your garden and vineyard?" He peered at Adamnen's book, then glanced left and right. "Have you had any problems? Orcs? Marauders? Are you getting enough to eat and sleep?" He then pointed at Theying's place. "How's business? Are you doing all right? Making a profit? Any problems, please go see Gena'ra or Adelyn: we want to make sure that all business weather the storm of the first few cycles of reconstruction, when crowns will be most scarce."

[Adamnen]

Lost in the pages of herbs, the katta was quite startled at the sudden Serale. He stood as the human spoke, though he wasn't anywhere near face-to-face with the tall human. He had to crane his neck and take a small step back to get a good look.

"Serale, no this isn't my property. It belongs to Theying, he is setting up an herb shop here. I hope to become his employee, here in Paxia. I chanced to meet him earlier, 'tis still my first day here. Thus far the only problem has been my house... hovel rather. My father's inheritance was rather slim. Did manage to find something of value in the ruin, though."

[Striker]

“There hasn’t been a healer around Paxia since the invasion…at least none that I know of..” Julius grimly admitted, dispelling all hopes of ever receiving a full diagnosis. Sighing and leaning his head back against the headrest of his chair, the weary carpenter rubbed his elevated leg as if in a vain attempt to alleviate the pain of his internal wound.

“It’s not broken.” Julius elucidated, shaking his head firmly to emphasize his conviction. “When the roof collapsed, I dove away. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to clear the rubble entirely.” Shrugging helplessly, Julius glanced to the entrance of his tent. It was clear from the longing in his eyes that he was tired of being sit-ridden. He was a carpenter, after all, and he knew that there were others out there who needed him.

“It was much worse before. My thigh was swollen and discolored, but after a few weeks it went away. There’s still an ache, though, every time that I bend my leg. If you could stir up something to help the pain I’d be very much indebted to you. It’s terrible being in here when everyone else is outside working so hard.”