Eridium

NOTE: Eridium's magic and spells are only loosely based on real magic and are not intended to offend real life practitioners.

Trigger warnings for blood and animal death.

You approach the lair near the Lightning Farm with some trepidation. The air here is heavy with ozone, but that's not why you're nervous.

After dodging a few lightning strikes (sorry about that, we do farm the stuff here after all) you finally arrive at your destination. It looks like a normal Lightning lair door sitting in the side of a cliff, but you're not interested in the lair itself. Your eyes wander to the side where there is another, smaller wooden door. Outside this smaller door are some odd decorations, especially for a Lightning lair. Small animal skulls, driftwood and bones are arranged in various ways and a wooden sign proclaims something in runes you can't read.

Suddenly the door opens with a gentle creak. Behind the door is a curtain made of strings of beads and small shells, and from behind this curtain steps a large Mulberry-hued Guardian. His apparel consists mainly of skulls and bones that jangle as he moves.

"Ah, bienvenue, my friend!" he says with a grin. "You are here to buy something, yes? I have good price on snakes today! You will like it!"

Your nerves haven't exactly settled, but this is the Guardian you've come to see and he seems friendly enough. He gestures for you to follow him back inside and you do so after taking one last look at the decorations.

Once inside the macabre decor continues. The whole room is roughly hewn from stone and its layout largely consists of pieces of dead animals - some are bones and some sit pickled in jars upon crudely-hewn wooden shelves. At the back of the room are cages and tanks containing live animals and you can't help but wonder if they take umbrage with the theme. There is no electrical lighting in here (which is very odd in the Shifting Expanse), only candles.

The Guardian waits patiently for you to decide on what you require, his beady cyan eyes gleaming in the candle light. In the background the animals still alive grunt and growl quietly.

You soon decide on what you need. Those snakes sounded pretty good!

"Ah, the snakes! Good choice, my friend!"

The Guardian reaches a large paw into a tank and it emerges clutching a few unfortunate snakes.

"How would you like them? Snakes can be many things! I use them in the dark magic mostly. One popular spell is you take fur or scale or feather from dragon you don't like, tie it to the snake, kill snake and then bury it. Is good for bring sickness, very popular in Plague! Very popular!"

He allows the snakes to roam freely over his paw and leg as he speaks. One of them begins to investigate his beard but he appears not to mind.

"Snakes can be good magic too. I can do work with fertility. Can also predict when spring will come sometimes! Very popular in Nature! Yes!"

The snake investigating the Guardian's beard is now moving up towards his face. Again, the large dragon is unfazed and continues talking.

"Or can provide custom spell. Very good, good price!"

As you watch the snake explore the Guardian's face and horns you speak of your desire for a fertility spell. Your mate has had a run of one-egg nests and it is causing her some distress, you explain.

With the decision made, the Guardian removes the snake from his face firmly but carefully and places it on a table. He then reaches over and places the other snakes back in their tank.

"I will make good fertility spell for you! Some dragons, they do not like this part. You can look away, I am not minding!"

You are not sure what the Guardian is referring to, but it's soon made clear as he swiftly and cleanly kills the snake he placed on the table. It's not a pleasant view, but you've faced worse in the Coliseum.

"Fresh killed is best for fertility," the large dragon explains as he begins draining some of the blood from the reptile. He then decants this blood into a metal dish. Opening a few drawers under his table he takes what appears to be some crushed dried plants and sprinkles these into the blood. He spins the bowl anti-clockwise and then pours the mixture into a glass vial. Satisfied, he then turns back to the dead snake and delicately extracts its skull. He waves his paw over the skull while gently chanting under his breath. He then takes the skull and threads a string through it to make a necklace with the addition of some small beads.

"We are done, my friend!"

He looks back to you, the grin on his face returning, and hands you the vial of blood and the necklace.

"Have your mate wear the necklace when you are getting back to your lair. When your breeding cooldown ends next, have them drink the blood in this vial. I hope they are carnivore, otherwise might have problem! No refund if Tundra!"

He chuckles to himself at that last comment. You hand over some treasure and carefully place your enchanted items in your travel bag. Bidding the Guardian farewell you exit the shop and take flight back to your lair.