A Book Is Worth A Million Rumors

[Amon Torque]

Fall 8th
Amon prowled around the shop, looking in the corners, searching for things otheres may have bypassed. His hand brushed over the items gently, adding to his array of senses searching diligently for something uncommon in Sunberth, books. With formal education rare, many people knew only as much as their parents knew, which meant many were illiterate.

Sure, it meant most books were untouched and available to be taken, but it also meant that the market was small, resulting in few writers spinning tales of whim and woe. It also made learning things possible by word of mouth easier than finding the perfect book explaining it, which was exactly what Amon had been searching for days for.

It was when his hand gently brushed against the dusty binding of an old, faded brown small notebook that he became excited. He brought it into the light of the window, blowing the dust off the cover, reading the twirled ink print. It was difficult to read, the black ink a bit smeared in some places, and in others it barely contrasted with the dark brown cover. But Amon pieced it together, until he was able to read, Herbalism:Practitioners Guide. The words resulted in an giddy full toothed smile from Amon, eyes shriveling at the corners. He turned hurriedly to Calvin, approaching the grey haired man happily.

"Who knew you were hiding treasure in the midst of all the trash that fills this place up," Amon said, holding up the book. He knew that Calvin saw everything that entered his store as treasure, although half of it came from an unfortunate someones belongings that happened to be strewn in the street, with Calvin picking it up.

Calvin glanced up from his hurried scribbling on a sheet of paper, writing who knows what. He stared at the book sadly, as if it was an old family relic, "nothing is trash my boy, everything serves a purpose." Amon thought about arguing, but knew it was futile, and why fight with someone who refused to discount the same person who lived with him for a few years? Anyone who could do that could withstand any barrage of facts that would sway the normal mans opinions. So Amon simply scoffed, grinning as he held out the usual price of any ruined book, but realized he had found something much more than a ruined book. Amon gave the book to Calvin and told him he needed to get his money, running out of the shop to his nearby home.

He sighed, taking his thirty gold mizas, and putting them in the inside of his wasteband, holding them in a pouch that hung down. If someone were to steal this, he would certainly be having a lot of work to do until he could afford the book again. He covered up with his cloak to provide another layer of protection from pickpockets, a constant threat. As he walked out the door he tried to look as inconspicuous as possible, successfully doing so and giving the to Calvin, who had wide eyes at the amount of money brought to him. He snatched up the book into his arms, tucking it under his cloak.

Calvin muttered some poem from an unknown author, it talked about his favorite topic, the Valterian. Usually, this was when they discussed it thoroughly, theorizing of the exact order of events, but today, Amon was in a hurry to dissect the book carefully. Amon dismissed Calvin with a nod, thanking him, and opened the door to the harsh world outside.

[Amon Torque]

Amon decided to start immediately after leaving, finding a quiet spot in the shade to sit down. He flipped through the first pages, noticing that it jumped right into the guide. The first few pages were a list of common, basic herbs common to teh area around Sunberth. Alongside them, were a list of the effects they could be used for. It wasn't the most comprehensive list of effects, but it would aid in the days to come. He skimmed it quickly, noticing familiar terms of plants he knew, as well as new terms that caught his eye.

He flipped through the book, examining the pages with the upmost of attention. The next major discovery he made were pages of different ways to expose the unique effects herbs could have on a person. Everything from making a balm to a hot infusion. The information latched into Amon's head like a fish biting on a hook. He absorbed as much as he could, for if this book was destroyed, so were years of knowledge that he would have to discover on his own.

As Amon continued to flip through the pages, he found the aforementioned herbs paired with a description and sketch of the herbs. This may have been the best part yet, even with the black and white sketches of the most prominent details that defined the plant were smeared in several places, it was more than Amon knew before he had opened the book, and that is all the mattered.

Amon stood up, having skimmed the book successfully with a bit of trouble from the swirled handwriting. He was off to the seaside market, a place he dreaded, but knew its where he could locate some of the herbs he had found in the book.

Navigating the streets was hard, but navigating the stalls of the market was even harder, with pickpockets reaching for anything exposed, shopkeepers hustling for more profit, and hiring the necessary boats for transportation. But Amon knew how to make it through. He plastered a dark look on his face, stood up taller, demanding respect without saying so.

Amon handed one of the rafts pilots a few mizas, quickly boarding the rickety structure. He pointed over to a stall a way a way, where knew few drunken sailors would find interest in, which made it much safer. He clutched the small book under his jacket, hoping he wasn't splashed with the salty water, which might ruin the ink.

Soon they arrived at abandoned stall, with Amon getting off the raft to examine the plants and herbs available for the day and the shopkeeper grinning at the fact he had a customer.

Amon took out the field guide slowly, flipping to the back of the book, searching diligently for the drawings of the herbs. They were alphabetical, for the most part at least, with occasional slip ups. After passing a few of the pictures he found one that really did interest him, alfalfa. He skimmed over the stall, holding the page up next to his eyes as he did so.

The basket of greens with delicate purple flowers stopped his search, and he approached it hurriedly. Amon picked up one of the stems, comparing the leaves with the page. It was a close match, and Amon decided it was close enough to pay for. Holding out the necessary coin for around twenty ounces, a single gold miza. He took the whole basket off the counter, knowing how useful alfalfa could be in Sunberth.

As he searched the books front pages for the best effects, he came across a plant
called plantain, noticing it said it was common in many places, and it had antibacterial and soothing properties. It was one of the perfect plants for Amon's cause, and paired with honey and maybe cinnamon, would be an effective all around wound healer.

He bought ten ounces of this, seeing it was more expensive than the alfalfa. He dropped another gold miza on the counter, and took his ferry back to shore, pockets empty and arms full. It took a while before he reached home, for he stopped by to show Calvin his finds and to boast about his newfound knowledge. And finally fill Calvin's need for a good chat of course.

[Amon Torque]

The minute Amon got home, he hung half of the alfalfa and half of plantain up to dry by the hearth. He gathered his supplies, including a hunk beeswax essential to his next move, creating a balm. Amon began to read the guides basic instructions on the balm, taking it into account with what he already knew.

The words passed into his head as he read, with Amon trying to take them into account. Making a balm from herbs is not difficult, with the proper preparations. You need a metal pot, preferably iron, a hunk of beeswax, herbs dried or fresh, a heat source, water, and safflower oil. Amon mentally checked off his materials one by one, making sure everything was properly prepared.

He read on to the next step, taking care not to tear the fragile pages as he turned them, pour as much of the herbs as you wish to use into the pot, pouring just enough water to coat over them . Amon followed the steps loosely, knowing that he would have to find the perfect amounts of everything later as time went on and he became more adept to using herbs successfully. He put in around four ounces of plantain and two ounces of alfalfa into the pot, splashing water in bit by bit until it rose just above the herbs.

The next step read allow the water to boil, which Amon followed. Seeing as though there was quite a bit water, it took around five minutes to boil even in the heat of the hearths flames. He let it simmer for the same amount if time it took to start boiling, before reading ahead to the next instruction, remove herbal matter. Amon pondered the best way to do this, and after several ideas went through his head, he realized that it would be simple. Amon took his knife out, cutting a large piece of fabric from his worn out apron, just big enough to cover the pot.

He removed the pot from the hearth, placing the cloth over the top of the pot, putting a jar out next to it. He tilted the pot, allowing the boiling water to flow through the cloth freely, snagging the plantain and alfalfa stems and leaves in the cloth but still filling the jar as Amon poured. The first jar filled up, and Amon swiftly began to pour into he next jar, only getting halfway before the liquid coming from the pot became a trickle, and then nothing at all.

Amon turned back to the book for guidance of what to do, reading slowly and carefully, dispose of used herbs, add safflower oil to the pot and pour the herbal water back in, simmer until liquid stops bubbling. Amon took the cloth off the top of the pot, using it to scrub the herb fragments out of the pot, then leaving it on his table for cleaning later. He poured the herbal water back into the pot, along with all of his safflower oil, using the whole pint of the light yellow oil.

He set the pot back into the hearth carefully, for he knew oil and fire did not go well together. Amon allowed the mixture to begin to simmer, making sure not to be close to the hot bubbling mess, as to try not to get a burn when one of the larger bubbles popped.

Amon skimmed the beginning of the book again, awaiting the water to be boiled out of the oil, yet it would leave behind the positive effects of the plant. He marked several of the herbs that seemed the most powerful and helpful yet still common, he would only be able to get them if they were cheap. He had ten had minutes to read before the steam stopped coming from the pot and only the oil was left, yet it went by fast.

The next step of the book told him to add beeswax piece by piece, allowing it to melt into the mixture and thicken it into the consistency he wanted, a balm that was just thick enough to hold its shape when laid over a wound, but thin enough to rub onto skin and scoop out of its jar. Amon cut chunk after chunk off his brick of wax, throwing it in, letting it melt, stirring, and repeating the same steps. After a few chunks were in the pot, and it seemed perfectly thick, he read the next step.

Allow balm to cool slightly, adding in any extra ingredients of your choosing. Then proceed to scoop the balm into jar, seal them tight and store in a dark place. Amon took the pot out of the hearth and closed the manual. He looked through his jars, selecting one and bringing it over to the large pot. He unsealed the jar, looking at the golden treat hidden inside, honey. According to his mother, honey was natures gift to people. It helped everything from cleaning wounds to adding that extra sweetness to the days when you need it.

He took his eating spoon out, taking a heaping scoop of the honey, carefully lifting it through the air and pouring it into his warm balm. He stirred it thoroughly before adding one more, and then taking a bit for himself. He deserved after all, creating his first balm by himself. Now his only step left was to transfer the barely warm spreadable liquid into the empty jars next to him. And that, of course, was easy, taking him only minutes.

[Avarice]

Amon

Skill	Points
Detection	+1
Observation	+1
Navigation	+1
Herbalism	+2
Cooking	+1
.	.
.	.

Lore

Location: Calvin's Solutions

The Joy of Making a Discovery

Nothing is Trash, Everything Serves a Purpose

Browsing a New Book

Herbalism: Identifying Alfalfa

Herbalism: Identifying Plantain

Recipe: Balm of Beeswax, Safflower Oil, and Alfalfa

Stuff?
Consequences, Injuries, Expenses, and More!

• Herbalism: Practitioner's GuideAs an average book, this will only afford its owner a collection of basic sketches and descriptions of Sunberth's local herbs. The recipes found within are few in number and revolve around the most basic applications of herbalism, such as balms. All listed herbs are common, all listed recipes are of L1 level.
  .
• Expenses: Book Purchase (-30 gm), Raft Fare (-6 cm), Herbs Purchase (-2 gm)
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• Alfalfa (20 oz)
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• Plantain (10 oz)

Comments

A minor note: You are lacking beeswax in your ledger. As such, you'll need to obtain it during your herb purchases in order to utilize in your balm. Please make adjustments accordingly.

Otherwise, you're good to go. If you have any questions regarding this grade, please do not hesitate to ask. Be absolutely certain to record all of this thread's expenses in your ledger. Furthermore, please edit your post in the request thread to reflect your having received a grade. Thank you.