Board Thread:Roleplaying/@comment-25828117-20191018075609/@comment-25828117-20191019195803

The ship soon reached the open seas and the crew unfurled the other sails, making the Flashing Blade pick up speed.

If everything went well they would reach the Summerset Isles in early Frost Fall.

"Almost three weeks..."

"That's how long I've had to shut down that part of the mine!" The man yelled. His voice was like sandpaper on gravel.

"Quite a lucrative part that, might I add. All because of this red... stone?" Ruby would be to dignified a word, implying some sort of wealth. This thing was more of a hassle if anything.

Relund Guildrock was obviously not a man of patience; he would argue that he had endured his fair share of it in life already. Now, he was rich. Ungodly rich. The Guildrock family had stepped into the void the Silver-Bloods had left in the Reach while they were licking their wounds and had lost their stomach for ruthlessness. If you ever thought the Silver-Bloods were ever bad, you should see the Guildrocks.

They would do what no other house, no matter how cut-throat, dared to do. Coming from almost nothing they did not live the pampered lifestyle a lot of the offspring from successful families had.

No. They only knew business, and blood.

"It is a most delicate substance, sir." The mage, Adova Symaro warned in her silvery voice. She was perhaps the perfect match for a Guildrock contract. Expelled from the college of Winterhold because of her 'unnatural sciences', this woman had few moral scruples that would keep her from attaining success.

"Delicate..." Relund grunted mockingly.

"It is a damn stone. A stone that cannot be broken down or smelted no matter what you do to it!"

Symaro was patient with his flippancy.

"You do understand what I mean... The potent mutagenic magic that causes the deformations to any who touches it with exposed skin. Well, we must be delicate in handling it."

The industrialist waved a dismissive hand.

"Yes! Yes!" But fat luck it's given me so far. It's burning a large hole into my profit margins! There's Wars going on! Wars! And I can't forge any weapons! Because of this damn stone holding up production!"

Adova had to suppress a slight smirk at the man's rant.

"...And when I asked you to analyze and assess the situation I didn't expect you to be tossing my work force to the wall, to see what sticks!"

Relund was referring to Adova's experiments of course.

The first few cases of mutation had been out of a controlled environment, but they were useful in deciding the catalyst for the deformations and hysteria; namely the stone itself. Once it was secured with the knowledge that avoiding skin contact allowed one to hold it, she had brought in test subjects into the chamber where it was kept to more carefully analyze the transformation process. These subjects were usually useless workers who couldn't reach their quotas.

The effects seemed to radiate from the point of contact. The veins pop with a red glow and the subject will start to convulse violently, become rabid and uncontrolled. Then the eyes turn completely red and subsequently, shards of seemingly the same composition like the stone start to pierce the skin in random patterns. When left alive for long enough the transformed have become extremely powerful both physically and magically. Sadly they are far too unfocused for the magic talent to properly develop. The stones that grow from the host's body have the same effects as the catalyst stone that was dug up nearly three weeks ago.

"Science is a process of elimination, sir." Adova smiled knowingly.

"Well, I could eliminate your contract right now, but I'm giving you one more week, one more week to turn this into something beneficial before I reopen that part of the mine and have you pack your bags."

"I'll get right on it, sir."

10th of Hearthfire

Khenarthi Roost lay on the horizon that morning. They wouldn't stop there but the island could most definitely be admired with a spyglass or some such invention.

Especially with this beautiful weather out.