Chapter 210: Telana Corrada: A tragedy of her own making
Telana Corrada was a woman who hated “chances” and “uncertainty”.
An unusual trait to in her line of work, that of an apothecary where’s one concoctions always had a chance of not going right, but it was this trait that allowed her to be so successful.
Since the first day she could pick up a mortar and pestle in the soon-to-be Corrada household, Telana showed great aptitude in both the arts of identification and medicine making.
She made sure to track every possible variance in preparation and ground it down to a a fine edge so that none of it can go awry, ensuring that whatever medicine she made would have the highest possible chance of working.
Combined with her natural compatibility with the formula [Nine Poisons Fairy Guidance], Telana was poised to take over the family business and propel it to new heights once her mother, the owner of the business, handed her the rights. Everything would become “perfect”.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t meant to be…unless she made it so…
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Interior: Apothecary Shop
Scene: A middle aged woman is making medicine while her daughter assists. There is a strange tension in the air between the two, the kind of tension that only occurs when an argument has been repeated more times than once. The woman seems to pay it no mind, but the daughter looks slightly more affected by it. In fact, she looks to be the source.
Woman: Hey, can you get the-.
*CRASH! SHATTER!*
Unprompted, the young lady threw down her own mortar and pestle alongside several jars of herbs in an angry outburst.
The woman looked annoyed at the tantrum, but she didn’t do anything to reprimand other than sigh deeply.
Young Lady: Why aren’t you handing the family business to me?!
Woman: We’ve been over this already for the sixth time!
Young Lady: Because it doesn’t make any sense! You want to just sell it, give up everything we have here and move to someplace random?!
Woman: Not random, the capital! The queen gave us an opportunity and I thought it would make the a good change of pace.
Young Lady: Bullshit!
Woman, banging her hand on the table: Oi! In case you haven’t notice, ever since the other clans moved into town, something’s been bubbling under the surface. I’m not sure what’s going to happen in the future, but I know damn sure that if we stick around something bad will happen!
Young Lady: Then why not remove the factors to prevent it?!
Woman: Because doing so may cause it happen! Just…please, listen and trust me, okay?
The Young Lady had more to say about the situation but stopped herself. Instead, she turned to leave the room. Once she made herself pass the exiting doorway’s frame however, the front door opened. An old man with a serious face entered the room.
Young Lady hiding behind the door frame: Wait…I know that guy…
Old man addressing Woman: It’s good to see you again.
Woman, clearly not liking this man but showing common courtesy: What do you want, black dog?
Old Man: I heard that the clan of…foreigners can here to get some medicine from you?
Woman: Everyone comes to me for medicine, what of it?
Old Man: Well…how would you feel about cementing a glorious future for you and your family?
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Telana Corrada was a woman focus and ruthlessness.
After her mother met a horrible accident while doing her nightly herb gathering, many had assumed the daughter would takeover and keep it running as usual. Instead, she brought it to newer and greater heights than ever before.
Not many outsiders understood how or why, but the Corrada’s medicine making business exponentially soared a few weeks after Telana established herself as matriarch. However, those in the eknow would realize that some of the herbs in the medicine drawer were suddenly a lot less helpful and a lot more…dangerous.
The sheer amount of people suddenly dying of unexplained illnesses here and there and of poisonings was probably unrelated.
Regardless, with their newfound wealth, the Corradas had propelled themselves from a middle class clan to one of the major powers of Stone Claw.
All according to plan…well…it was.
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As the years went by, Telana eventually had a beautiful daughter by the name of Gianna. She wasn’t entirely sure who the father was, but as far as she was concerned, she would make sure she would have the “perfect” life, want of nothing, and more powerful than the gods themselves.
For the first dozen or so years, this is what happened. She taughter her everything in regards to medicine making, plants, posions, the ways to extract the hidden powers locked within them and to make it her own. For all intents and purposes, a “perfect” successor.
But then, her daughter grew up.
While she was still loyal to her, loving as mother and daughter could be, her beloved Gianna made a questionable choice that could throw everything she had planned for her utterly moot and possibly even bring destroy her reputation.
She fell in love with the First Young Master of the Zhen Clan, Zhen Hai.
She couldn’t understand what she saw in the youth, not at all.
He was loud, brutish, wild, a man who would use a hammer where a flyswatter would suffice. But for some inexplicable reason, her precious daughter was attracted to this brute.
Many times she had mused on the idea of posioning the lad and be done with, cry at his funeral and pretend he never existed. But she didn’t, because at this point in time, she couldn’t predict her daughter’s behavior.
Would she be able to move on?
Would she find out?
Would she sever their ties and swear revenge for the sake of some dumb foreign brat?
This “uncertainty” plagued Telana’s mind, so much so that she became a touch more erratic in her more modern days. She had hoped that at some point the two lovers would break it off, but no, the kept up this affair in secret, causing her no end in grief.
However, one day as she mulled over this “uncertainty”, a letter came from an…old friend.
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My dear friend Telana,
I hope this letter finds you in good health and in good spirits.
In the upcoming weeks, my father, the Grand Elder of the Wolfe Family, will be returning to Stone Claw City to make a special announcement.
As is appropriate for such grand occasions though, I humbly request your help in acquiring some gifts for my father.
I have heard that there is a special medicine that could be used to drug even the largest of sea creatures, whole schools of them even, and I just know my father would enjoy a seafood feast.
Would you be able to provide such a medicine?
Sincerely,
Jacob Wolfe.
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“Well Telana? What say you?,” Harold asked his old co-conspirator as he and Zhen Shi stared daggers at each other.
Telana took a deep breath before getting up from her seat and…leaving for the door.
“I have no bad blood with either of you lot, feel free to hack it out amongst yourselves. The winner will get free medical care,” she cooly lied.
Regardless of whatever goodwill was made between the Corradas and Wolfes, Tellana knew better than to play a game where she couldn’t win.
