The Potion of Life

H'Jar

H'Jar hoped that all this effort would finally pay off. It wouldn't be the first time he took on a task with the promise of a monetary reward. Several times before, he had experienced not getting paid after completing a job. Their client, Oudenhuysen, looked like a man with a lot of money. So, the money is there, the question is whether he can be trusted. Either way, they first need to find the gemstone. According to Oudenhuysen, Kurt Holger, the leader of the Schatzenheimer gang, had it. 

Now, it turns out that Kurt Holger is dead, and his body is not in the catacombs. Also, not a single gang member has mentioned anything about the gemstone. Is the gemstone even here? Yet, there's that one clue that H'Jar cannot ignore.The boss of the Valentina gang, Emilio, is found beheaded in his own bedroom. Who killed him, and why? H'Jar clings to the idea that the murder must be related to the gemstone. The chance may be slim, but H'Jar is willing to do anything to get paid this time. However, it comes at a high cost. At the moment, they are wading through water up to their knees. 

The blood trail is still visible, leading deeper into the sewers. As they progress as a group, they encounter more floating feces and urine. Just when H'Jar thinks it can't get worse, rats appear. The rats are sudden and numerous, biting everyone through their armor. For every rat H'Jar kills, two more take its place. They decide to run as a group, but the high water slows them down. When H'Jar turns around, he sees a massive horde of extremely aggressive rats behind them. They must, as a group, make their way out of these sewers as quickly as possible.

Then, out of nowhere, they stumble upon a minecart. The minecart is on rails and looks well-oiled. Without much thought, the whole group jumps into the minecart. Hugon quickly pulls down the lever that kept the minecart still. The minecart starts moving slowly, but after half a minute, the speed increases significantly. They have no idea where they are headed, but at least they are away from the rats. 

"Who placed their foot against my lower back? It's not comfortable at all," says Bjorn somewhat grumpily. 

H'Jar sees Bjorn feeling his lower back, but instead of grabbing someone's leg, there's a head in his hand. In Bjorn's hand lies the head of Emilio Valentina. Chaos erupts in the minecart. As the group explores what else is in the minecart while it moves, they find a corpse, likely Emilio's murderer. They examine his body and find the gemstone. 

H'Jar can't believe it; they have found the gemstone. Emelina quickly takes the magical box they received from Oudenhuysen and places the gemstone inside. So, Emilio did have the gemstone. However, the corpse in this cart had stolen it from him and took his head. Whatever the reason was, H'Jar doesn't care. As a group, they have the gemstone, and that's all that matters. Ten minutes later, the minecart stops at a ladder going up. As a group, they climb up and all emerge from a sewer grate. Their mission was successful; now, all they have to do is give the gemstone to Oudenhuysen and collect their reward.

When they arrive at the villa, the butler opens the door promptly upon knocking. They are led straight to Oudenhuysen's office. After a few minutes, he appears in his office, once again dressed extravagantly. 

"Show me the gemstone," says Oudenhuysen with a voice devoid of much emotion. Emelina takes the magical box from her backpack and places it on the desk. 

"Open it and see with your own eyes. We found your gemstone in the catacombs," Emelina says in the same tone as Oudenhuysen. H'Jar keeps a close eye on Oudenhuysen, seeing a huge smile appear on his face the moment he sees the gemstone. In that look, H'Jar sees immense greed, a man with many plans. A man who can now make his plans come true, thanks to the gemstone.

"How much did we agree on as a reward, 120 ducats per person, wasn't it?" After these words, the butler enters the room, carrying five small chests. When H'Jar opens his chest, he sees the agreed-upon 120 ducats inside. 

"There, you've received your reward. Now it's time for you to leave my villa. I kindly request that you don't show your faces in Uzés for the next few months. I want this matter and my involvement to remain extremely confidential. I don't need to remind you that I have the means to eliminate you very quickly." 

After this threat, Oudenhuysen leaves his office, and they are led outside by the butler as a group.In no time, they are back outside with their reward in their hands. 

"What do we do now? Do we go to another village since we are clearly not welcome in Uzés anymore?" asks Colos eagerly looking at his freshly earned ducats. 

What does a wealthy businessman like Oudenhuysen want with this gemstone, H'Jar wonders. The way Oudenhuysen looked at the gemstone does not bode well. What if it turns out that the legend about the gemstone being poisonous is true? The threat at the end does not imply anything good either. In fact, no one in the world should possess such a gemstone. A gemstone that, upon touch, would fatally poison the person. 

"I need to handle something, go on without me, I'll catch up," H'Jar hears himself say. Afterwards, he walks back to the door and slightly forces it open to get back inside. He sneaks through the rooms of Oudenhuysen's villa until he reaches the office again. He looks around carefully before walking to the desk. 

There's the magical box; H'Jar opens it and sees the gemstone inside. Without further thought, he closes the box and puts it with the gemstone in his backpack. After ensuring he leaves the villa as quickly as possible, he walks to the entrance gate of Uzés, where he sees the group waiting for him.

"What were you doing, H'Jar? What did you need to arrange?" 

"I couldn't leave the gemstone with Oudenhuysen. Did you see how he looked at that gemstone? What does a rich man need with a presumed poisonous gemstone? What would anyone want with such a gemstone, anyway? Also, that threat at the end was entirely unnecessary. I had to steal the gemstone from him; imagine if he used it to murder others. Their blood would be on our hands." 

H'Jar sees everyone looking at him in surprise. A Tuareg with compassion for his fellow beings

"Oh, H'Jar, you've spent too long with us. What do you suggest we do with this gemstone now?"

 "Bury it, Emelina. The gemstone shouldn't stay in our hands."

An hour later, the gemstone is buried. It lies deep in the forest bordering the city of Uzés. No one outside their group knows that the gemstone is there. H'Jar trusts the group and himself enough not to come back to dig it up or use it. They have made sure that a dangerous object remains out of the hands of a dangerous person while also being paid by that person. Not a bad day at all, according to H'Jar.