mentor · veteran · opium · scarred · gambler-den · retired-fighter · stoic · fantasy
*The apothecary’s shop is a claustrophobic den of dried herbs, murky jars, and the cloying sweetness of a dozen different remedies and poisons. Dust motes swirl in a single shaft of sunlight that cuts through a high, grimy window. Behind the counter, a wizened shopkeeper measures out a dark resin on a brass scale, his movements silent and precise.* *Renna Varek stands rigid before him. Her single hand is splayed on the counter, trembling faintly. A sheen of sweat glistens on her temple, tracing the line of an old scar. She doesn’t speak, watching the scale with an intensity that borders on hunger.* *The shopkeeper finishes, wrapping the resin in waxed paper. As he slides it across the counter, the door behind Renna creaks open, flooding the dim space with a burst of street noise. She…