Welcome to this online fiction site! Here you can read the short stories inspired by the game "Baldur's Gate II - The Shadows of Amn." This is unofficial site and it is not associated by any means with Interplay, Bioware or TSR Inc. No material from this site can be reproduced for any commercial use and any noncommercial use must be authorized by Laufey.
Potent Potions part 1
It shouldn't be possible for a mere test paper to look smug, yet this one
definitely did. Young Edwin Odesseiron stared at the offensive piece of
parchment, his brow deeply furrowed in thought. The test concerned common
magical potions, their ingredients, preparation and traits. Edwin had tried
to study for it. He really had. He just couldn't see the use of it. Why
did a wizard need to know about boring old potions when he could cast spells?
And so the subject refused to stick in his unreceptive mind despite all
his efforts. Edwin sighed deeply and studied Question Number Three again.
This was as far as he had got after half an hour.
Describe in your own words the result of combining a potion of Clear
Thought with powdered mandrake root.
Edwin sighed again. He'd been staring at that question for quite some time
now, and the answer still refused to come to him. It certainly hadn't been
in Potent Potions Made Easy, he could swear to that. That meant it
was something his tutor had only mentioned in passing during one of the
past week's lessons, and it really didn't seem fair that Edwin was expected
to remember a thing like that. But then, his tutor had once expressed the
opinion that since life wasn't fair anyway you might as well get used to
it early on. Another deep sigh from Edwin almost toppled the ten small potion
bottles neatly arranged on his table and caused his teacher to look up.
Vadrak Dekaras, the Odesseiron house tutor, was a tall, thin man with a
habit of dressing in black. This, combined with a pair of sharp black eyes
that rarely blinked, and a rather too long nose, made him resemble nothing
so much as an ill-tempered crow. He was currently comfortably seated in
a red velvet armchair, reading some letters.
"If you choose to destroy the equipment in a fit of childish temper,
you may expect an appropriate number of points to be deducted from your
final score", he stated dryly.
"I don't see why I need to learn this anyway", Edwin sulked. "Real
wizards manage without stupid potions."
Dekaras shook his head slightly. "Thank whatever lucky star watches
over drunks, fools and small idiotic children that you made that remark
in front of me, and not my good friend Septimius, the potions specialist",
he said. "You would be surprised at how many necromantic potions contain
human components, and my friend does get rather upset at any insult to his
craft." He paused to give the wide-eyed boy a bland look. "You
have forty more minutes at your disposal", he said. "I suggest
that you not waste any more of them on idle chatter." With that he
returned to his reading.
Edwin stared at the test paper again. Perhaps he should skip ahead a bit?
The final question was a practical one. Ten small identical bottles containing
potions that needed to be identified. They were all different colours, and
the question clearly stated that he was allowed to smell them if he wanted
to. Edwin carefully studied the bottles. He could easily identify three
or four, but the others were a mystery. One of the ones he could
identify gave him an idea, however. It was a deep purple potion, smelling
faintly of lilacs. It had to be a potion of Increased Intelligence, Edwin
was sure he'd recognise that colour anywhere. Now, a potion to increase
his intelligence was bound to strengthen his memory as well, wasn't it?
If he could just manage to drink a little he should be able to remember
enough about potions to ace the test.
Dekaras was still reading, paying no apparent attention to his pupil. Edwin
carefully pulled all ten potion bottles closer, so as to confuse the issue.
Very quickly and as sneakily as he could he swallowed a small quantity of
purple potion. For a moment nothing seemed to happen. Then everything suddenly
became very, very clear. Edwin felt as if a ray of light had been turned
on inside his head, illuminating all the dark and dusty corners. He knew
everything, he was omniscient. The mysteries of all creation lay bare to
his penetrating gaze, and he could see a lot of pretty colours that hadn't
been there before as an added bonus. Confident of his triumph to come Edwin
picked up his quill and prepared to make an impression through his show
of new-found brilliance.
On the following morning Edwin was waiting in the school room bright and
early in order to savour his success. The minutes dragged by like hours,
but eventually Dekaras walked in, black cloak billowing behind him like
a thunder cloud. In addition to the usual assortment of books and scrolls
he carried a roll of parchment. It had to be the test. Dekaras nodded briefly
at the expectant boy, deposited his books on the table, and then smiled
a thin and highly unpleasant smile.
"Young Master Odesseiron", he said, his voice soft as the hiss
of a dagger unsheathed. "I believe some congratulations are in order."
"Er - really?” Edwin asked, nervously trying to meet his tutor's gaze
and succeeding about as well as a tiny bunny rabbit trying to outstare a
snake.
"Indeed. I must say I have never had the pleasure of reading of anything
quite like this - creation - of yours. Very original. It kept me amused
for quite some time." With that Dekaras threw the parchment down on
the table in front of the by now trembling boy, who unrolled it to stare
at the hideousness contained therein.
Every single question had been answered, and not briefly either. On the
contrary, every blank spot on the paper had been filled in. That was the
good news. The bad news was that all the writing consisted of a single sentence,
repeated over and over again. Edwin could recognise his own handwriting,
even though he had no conscious memory of writing this. He felt pretty sure
he ought to remember answering every question with the statement that All
Work and no Play makes Eddie a Sad Boy.
At the very bottom of the page Dekaras had scrawled his comment with the
particularly glaring red ink that Edwin was privately convinced had been
manufactured from the heart's blood of previous unfortunate students. A
creative effort, it read, but had you been paying proper attention
in class you would have remembered that Intelligence potion smells of liquorice,
whereas a purple potion smelling of lilacs is clearly a potion of Confusion.
Such a tiny mistake, and yet so fatal.
"I sincerely hope", Dekaras said in an ominous voice, "that
you intend to do some serious studying before retaking this test. I do not
enjoy correcting papers over and over again, you know. It annoys me. You
don't want me annoyed, do you?" He was standing right next to Edwin
by now, towering over him like some terrible spectre of doom.
"No, Teacher Dekaras!” Edwin squeaked and tried to shrink further down
in his chair.
"Good. You show some small amount of common sense at last, contrary
to yesterday's ridiculous display. Only an insane wizard or a very stupid
one ever uses magic without first making absolutely sure that he knows exactly
what it does. Mistakes are frequently lethal. Now, I am a bit uncertain
as to which part insults me the most. That you think I would place a means
of cheating at your disposal, or that having done so I would fail to notice
you using it." The tutor's smile turned even more sinister. "Try
that little stunt again and Eddie will be a very Sad Boy indeed", he
said. "Turn to page 127."
Edwin did so and gulped.
"Precisely. And would you know, that poor unfortunate fellow thought
it was safe to try out unidentified potions on himself. He does look a bit
surprised, wouldn't you say? Though I assume that does in part derive from
the donkey's head situated where his own used to be."
The rest of the lesson passed in a hideous blur. Edwin spent most of the
morning being forced to listen to gruesome tales of wizards who dabbled
in magic too advanced for them and came to horrible and messy ends as a
result. He had a feeling he wouldn't want much to eat for lunch. After giving
him a cruel and inhuman amount of extra homework in addition to the test
he had to retake Dekaras eventually let him go, handing him the ten potion
bottles as he did so.
"Perhaps some samples will aid you in your quest for knowledge",
he said. "Do not think I'll go easy on you next time though. I expect
you to take full advantage of this opportunity for further studies, and
the difficulty of the test will be raised accordingly. We do want to keep
this a challenge, don't we? You have three days. I would have made it two
but for the fact of the party your parents are planning tomorrow, which
I expect will keep you busy for a day or so." With those cheerful parting
words the teacher shooed the by now pale and sweating boy out the door.
Edwin knew that his parents entertained frequently. He failed to understand
why they used that particular word, though, since they never seemed to enjoy
it very much themselves. There were usually a lot of strange adults around
who talked too loud and laughed too often, all of them likely to either
trip over a small boy by mistake or embarrass him by telling him how much
he'd grown since last they saw him. Edwin was perfectly aware that he grew.
He just couldn't see the sense in making a lot of fuss about it. It wasn't
as if it was something that required a lot of effort on his part, after
all. No, parties were not for him. And this particular one was supposed
to be a very big event. His parents had been discussing it for weeks, fussing
over who to invite and who not to, seating arrangements, decorations and
similar boring things. Edwin thought it was probably going to be extremely
dull. Hopefully it would be enough if he made a brief appearance and then
hid in his room with some large samples of the different desserts.
The day of the party dawned, bright and beautiful, and for once in his life
Edwin got up early without threats, pleas or arguments. He hoped to be able
to do some early revising before the guests started arriving. Unfortunately
his father, who insisted that he come help pick out the entertainers, distracted
him. Even more unfortunately, Galen Odesseiron's taste in entertainment
wasn't the best. An hours-long parade of inept illusionists, clumsy clowns
and tone-death tenors were paraded before the miserable boy. In the end
he managed to choose the Fire-eating Fops over the Juggling Jokers and he
was finally allowed to escape.
By now there was an hour before the guests were due to arrive, and Edwin
still hadn't got any closer to his goal. He sat in his room, staring desperately
at the ten little bottles. And then he had an idea. A brilliant idea, a
work of pure genius. Suppose he tried out some of the other potions on himself?
That would at least help him describe their properties and effects, making
the next test that much easier. Now, which potion to try first? He didn't
want to risk hurting himself, the Confusion potion had been bad enough,
and he certainly didn't want to get caught in the act, considering his tutor's
opinions on magical experiments.
Edwin paused to consider a bottle of purplish-blue potion. An Invisibility
potion! Perfect. That one was safe and harmless, and should allow him to
have some fun. Before he had time to change his mind, Edwin tilted his head
back and swallowed the entire contents of the bottle. The potion didn't
taste bad at all, a bit like strawberries actually. And then he saw the
potion bottle. It was still a shimmering blue, but now he saw it through
his suddenly transparent hand. Edwin gaped in amazement as he watched himself
disappear, inch by inch. After a minute or so the bottle seemed to be floating
freely in mid air. Getting the lid back on was a bit tricky since he couldn't
see his own hands, but he managed eventually. Then he stuffed the bottle
in the small wooden box where he kept the rest, tucked the box carefully
inside his tunic and was very relieved to see that it too disappeared from
sight.
Now for some fun! Edwin moved towards the door, tripped over his own feet
and almost fell before he managed to catch hold of the doorframe. Walking
was more difficult than usual since he couldn't see his own feet and only
had a vague idea of where they were. He tried walking with his eyes closed,
and found that worked fine since he could still feel his legs. Eventually
he could open his eyes again, as long as he paid attention to what he was
doing.
Careful to make as few sounds as possible Edwin crept along the hallways
of the
Below a narrow staircase in the slaves' quarters one of the upstairs maids,
a willowy and pretty brunette by the name of Lynette, had arranged a secret
tryst with her current paramour, one of the stable boys.
"Oh, my love", Lynette cooed, closing her eyes and pouting, "I
cannot resist you. Let our love flower freely! Come, give me your sweet
kiss!" She puckered her lips in anticipation and was much surprised
to hear him exclaim "Yuck!" in a very disgusted tone of voice.
Lynette was pretty and petite, and overly fond of sneakily reading her mistress's
romance novels, but she had a wicked right hook. The unfortunate stable
boy slid gently down the wall into unconsciousness, a surprised look on
his face. Lynette daintily rubbed her aching knuckles. "Brute!” she
huffed and walked off, unaware of the rapid patter of small feet hurrying
in the opposite direction.
Edwin didn't stop until he'd reached the more luxurious rooms inhabited
by his family. He promised himself not to make another silly mistake like
that. It wouldn't do to get caught. Eager to catch his breath he slipped
into the first room he came to, which turned out to be the Small Yellow
Parlour. One of his mother's favourite rooms, it had soft golden couches,
beautiful gold threaded curtains and a myriad of small, rickety but valuable
tables covered with ornaments. There were priceless china plates and tall
crystal vases, swans with ludicrously elongated necks, wide-eyed porcelain
dogs in unnatural colours and hideous geometric shapes, ornaments from hidden
dimensions beyond the ken of mere mortals. The afternoon sun filtered in
through the tall windows and tiny motes of dust danced about in the sunbeams
like cavorting pixies.
Edwin knew he wasn't supposed to be in here by himself, there were far too
many expensive things for him to break. He turned to leave, but before he
could do so he heard the door open behind him and felt his heart leap into
his throat before he remembered his current invisible state.
Elvira Odesseiron swept into the room, dark eyes flashing angrily, raven
locks artfully piled on top of her head. Her dark red robe managed to cling
in all the right places, yet at the same time remained formal and impressive.
"No, Galen", she said. "You are being hasty again. I told
you, we will be far better served by keeping our own counsel as long as
possible."
"But dearest", her husband protested, "think of the possibilities."
Galen Odesseiron was a skinny, twitchy man, with a constant excited gleam
in his eyes. The stately red wizard robe he was wearing looked as if it
had been thrown on top of his gangly frame.
"I said no!” Elvira snapped. "We will not move until we know for
sure which way the wind is blowing." She seated herself on one of the
yellow couches, careful not to wrinkle her robe. Edwin decided to take this
opportunity to slip out of the room. Hardly had he begun to move in the
direction of the door however, before he almost tripped over his tutor's
black boots. As usual he hadn't heard or seen Dekaras enter the room. Edwin
hastily shrank back against the far wall, hoping against hope that his teacher
wasn't aware of him either. So far it seemed that way.
"Master", Dekaras said curtly. "Mistress. You wished to see
"Yes", Elvira said, inclining her head. "What news have you?"
Dekaras didn't answer immediately. Instead he prowled around the room, checking
the door and windows, the fireplace and all possible hiding places. Edwin
froze into immobility, holding his breath whenever his tutor came uncomfortably
close. Eventually Dekaras ceased his circling, but it was obvious from the
dark look on his face that he wasn't satisfied.
"Something is wrong", he stated flatly. "I am sure of it.
Are you quite certain the wards have been set in place as I specified?"
"Yes", Elvira said a little impatiently. "Nobody can spy
on us from without, what is said will go no further than this room. Apart
from that the entire house and the gardens are warded against hostile magic.
Any aggressive spell cast tonight will set off the alarm, and that goes
for wandwork and other magical items as well."
"Quite so, old boy", Galen laughed. "Spit it out, would you?
What of Szass Tam?" Edwin watched with some trepidation as his mother's
face paled with sudden fury.
"You idiot!", she hissed. "We do not mention that
name! For once in your life, think before you speak!"
As for Dekaras, the way his face became devoid of all expression spoke louder
than any words. "The Mistress makes a valid point", he carefully
stated. "That particular name is dangerous, not in itself, but should
the wrong people hear it. This room may be warded, but any spell can be
broken given enough skill. Be that as it may, both factions still wish for
your support, or so my sources tell me. Of course, it is actually the support
of the Tharchion of Surthay that is the main prize in this particular contest.
I am certain I need not remind you of the importance of the border city."
"No", Elvira said thoughtfully. "You need not. So, they hope
for Galen to influence his brother Homen, do they?" She tapped her
fingers against the golden cushions.
"So it seems."
"And what are your suggestions? Should we support one of the factions,
and if so which one? Or should we remain neutral?"
"There is danger either way", Dekaras said. He was once again
pacing back and forth, and every time he approached the corner where Edwin
was hiding the boy had the dubious pleasure of feeling that his teacher
was staring straight through him. "You can stall for a time, but they
will press the issue. Eventually you will have to choose a side, and then
the other will become your enemy. Both are highly dangerous. I cannot say
yet who will prevail."
"Then we must dangle the bait in front of both their noses", Elvira
stated. "We must gather what information we can before we are forced
into an alliance not of our choosing."
"As you wish. In the meantime, I require some instructions for the
evening. Do you wish for me to remain unseen to watch your guests from a
distance, or blatantly visible to remind them of the frailty of the human
condition?"
Elvira thought about this for a moment. "Visible, I think", she
said. "If the danger is that great, then perhaps we should try to intimidate
the emissaries just a little. Right, Galen?"
"Sorry, dear", Galen Odesseiron said in a dreamy voice. "I
was just thinking about Surthay. They do have some lovely food there, do
you know. I particularly remember this one course of lightly grilled mushrooms…"
"Galen dear", Elvira said in a scathing tone. "I hardly want
to discuss mushrooms. It's bad enough that I'm apparently married to one.
Now let us go greet our guests." With that she rose and sailed out
of the room, Galen trailing after her. Dekaras remained behind for a moment,
still watching the room suspiciously. His long nose almost seemed to be
sniffing the air for traces of possible intruders and Edwin had to fight
a violent urge to cough. Eventually the tutor left, however, and the sole
remaining occupant of the room was a very pensive invisible boy.
For a short while Edwin stayed motionless, trying to comprehend what he
had overheard. There was still a lot he didn't understand, but obviously
something very dangerous was going on, something he wasn't supposed to know
about.
But that's not right, Edwin thought. If there are bad people out
to hurt us, then I want to help. I bet I could do something if they only
let me.
Wait a minute. Perhaps there was something he could do after all,
with or without permission. He was still invisible, wasn't he? And if there
were going to be bad people present at the party someone should keep an
eye on them. If he should happen to find out about something important his
parents were bound to be very grateful, and if he didn't he needn't tell
anyone. A plan with no drawbacks, worthy of a Great Wizard.
A few hours later Edwin had decided that maybe the plan had one or two drawbacks
after all. In order to get something to eat he had to be very quick and
sneak the food off the plates before it was spotted floating through the
air. He gulped it down as quickly as he could and saved another honey-coated
apple for later. Apart from that he also had to be on constant guard in
order not to get bumped into or stepped upon. Mainly he kept to the walls
and tried to eavesdrop whenever he passed near a group of conversing partygoers.
There were quite a few of those.
The great reception hall was packed nearly to bursting, with a lot of people
drifting around the lower floor and the gardens now that dinner was over.
Many were Red Wizards of course, but in the sea of red robes there were
also quite a few richly dressed merchants, and some people who looked like
foreigners. The constant din of chattering voices had grown steadily louder
as the evening progressed and glasses were filled and refilled. Edwin was
beginning to despair of ever hearing anything useful. From time to time
he caught sight of his teacher. Dekaras slipped back and forth through the
crowd like a hunting shark, a starkly black figure amongst the multicoloured
throng. Not everyone noticed his passing, but more often than not Edwin
saw the crowd part uneasily to let him through. In his wake heads turned
and whispers followed him like a steady undercurrent through the human sea.
Edwin wondered about that. Why should adults and Red Wizards at that, look
so apprehensive at the mere sight of his tutor? It wasn't as if he was going
to assign them any extra homework.
Edwin shrugged. He couldn't figure this particular mystery out, but it probably
wasn't very important anyway. He was just about to give up and go to bed
when he heard something. A voice, a deep and booming voice that he was pretty
sure he recognised. It was trying to whisper and failing miserably.
"Have you delivered the proposal?” it said.
"Yes", another, younger voice answered. "But we should not
speak of that here."
"Let's go to the garden then. Too much hot air in here anyway."
The conversation by itself didn't mean much. It was the sight of the two
wizards speaking that attracted Edwin's attention. The younger one was thin
and rather weedy looking with a scraggly brown beard. He seemed to consist
of roughly ninety percent Adam's apple and the rest was equal parts elbows
and knees. The older wizard, the one with the deep voice looked more powerful.
He was tall and broad-shouldered, with hard eyes and a jutting jaw. On his
shaven head the tattoo of a lion gleamed in the flickering light of hundreds
of candles. Edwin recognised that tattoo, as well as the man wearing it.
Rory "the Roarer" Ravonar was a Red Wizard of some repute. A man
of considerable wealth and influence he wasn't on very friendly terms with
the Odesseiron family. Edwin had met him once before and developed an instant
loathing for the man. It surprised him that his parents had invited Ravonar,
but then adults frequently did strange things, like insisting on using a
fork to eat dessert when a spoon was ever so much more useful. Or insisting
on fixed bedtimes. Some things were just too weird to understand. Anyway,
it could pay off to eavesdrop on the two wizards.
Edwin followed Ravonar and his hapless colleague through the milling crowd,
careful not to lose sight of them among all the other red robes, and was
just in time to see them disappear into the dark garden. He followed as
quickly as he dared, remembering to stay on the lawn and avoid the paths
lest the gravel crunch beneath his feet. The wizards went inside the small
gazebo at the far end of the garden and then stopped. Edwin crouched behind
a bush and waited. Invisible or not, it felt much better to have at least
a little cover. He had no spells to cast, and no wand. After a moment's
thought he pulled out his box of potion bottles. At least it was better
than nothing.
"Well, Horter?", Rory Ravonar asked. "How did the Odesseirons
react to our superior's proposal?"
"Diplomatically", the young wizard said, his protruding Adam's
apple nervously bobbing up and down as he spoke. "If it were only him
we had to deal with things would be much easier. He is easily impressed.
But she is shrewd and will not act until she is certain it's in her own
best interest."
Edwin anxiously bit his lip as he realised that the two men were speaking
about his parents. Should he go get help? But no, he'd need to hear more
before he could actually accuse the two wizards of anything.
"Besides", Horter went on, "they keep their damnable advisor
close at all times. The assassin, you know. The one that poses as a tutor
of all things."
"Oh, I know", Rory Ravonar said. He sounded as if he had just
accidentally bitten into a lemon, and if he registered the startled intake
of breath from the bushes he attributed it to a sudden gust of wind. "We
had a little run-in not so long ago."
"Yes sir, I heard about that. Something about a monkey, wasn't it?"
Horter didn't even have time to scream, much less cast a spell, before his
thin throat was clenched tightly by a meaty fist.
"You will never mention that monkey in my presence again", the
Roarer growled, his face inches from the other man's bulging eyes. "Do
you understand that, apprentice?"
Horter nodded desperately, then started to take quick, wheezing breaths
as the grip relaxed.
"Good. As for Dekaras, he is a clever man and a very dangerous assassin,
but even he cannot be in two places at once."
"I wouldn't bet on that", Horter shuddered and rubbed his aching
throat. "I've heard these stories…"
"And that is all they are. Stories. He probably spreads half
of them around himself. There will be ways to get around him, and if the
Odesseirons refuse to listen to reason, then that is exactly what we shall
have to do. The Master wants them to help tilt the political power of Surthay
in his favour, but the example of their untimely deaths will be almost as
useful as their support."
SMACK! Small pieces of apple slowly dribbled down the Roarer's face leaving
sticky trails of honey in their wake. From within the bushes a shrill voice
called out.
"Don't you dare hurt my family or you'll be sorry, you big mean troll!"
Edwin glared defiantly at the two stunned wizards, fists clenched. Then
he noticed them staring back at him. Judging from the looks on their faces
he was very much visible. "Oops", Edwin breathed, then turned
to run.
"After him!” Rory Ravonar commanded. "Don't let him reach the
house!" Edwin ran as fast as he could, but his legs couldn't match
Horter's longer strides and the apprentice wizard was rapidly gaining on
him. "No spells!” he heard Ravonar yell. "That will set off the
ward spells!"
As he ran Edwin cursed himself for not remembering that the invisibility
potion was bound to wear off as soon as he attacked anyone. Apparently even
the throwing of an apple counted, even if it could hardly be considered
a lethal weapon. Horter would catch up with him any moment now. Edwin just
had time to fumble his box of potions open and grab two of them. One of
them he hurriedly swallowed, the other he kept hidden in the palm of his
hand. Then the apprentice wizard was on him and Edwin felt himself swept
off the ground.
"Ha!" Horter panted. "I've got you now you little weasel!
Spy on us, would you? We've got ways of dealing with spies…" Before
he could complete the sentence Edwin belched. A foot-long jet of flame burst
forth from his open mouth and caused Horter to shy back, dropping his prisoner.
From somewhere in the distance a bell started ringing and the faint sounds
of talking and laughter from the Mansion momentarily stopped. Edwin tried
to get off the ground, only to find himself staring at a pair of extravagant
red and pointed boots.
"Going somewhere?” Rory Ravonar asked coldly before he picked the struggling
boy up by the scruff of the neck and clamped a hand across his mouth. "Oh,
for Myrkul's sake, Horter. Put it out!" The younger wizard was batting
hysterically at his face. Luckily enough for him his beard had narrowly
avoided catching fire, but the ends were lightly singed and still smoking.
"Not bad", Ravonar grudgingly admitted. "A potion of Firebreath
to set off the wards, eh? Not bad at all. Not good enough though. You're
coming with us, boy. Your parents may have had warning by now that something's
happened, but they won't know exactly what and by the time they find out
you're missing it will be too late."
"MMPPH!” Edwin protested. He was very much afraid, but he knew he had
to do something and he still held one more trump. Groaning as loudly as
he could he managed to distract the two grown wizards enough that they didn't
notice him tip the contents of the second potion bottle out over their boots.
He only hoped it would be enough.
Please email the author with all your questions and comments
Last
modified on February 9, 2003
Copyright © 2003 by Laufey. All rights reserved.