Msaka spent nearly half an hour in conversation with Shakra, learning much of the magical locales in the region. Wary of revealing his intent, he didn't probe overly much about the tritons. Nevertheless, he was able to confirm their presence around the southwestern island of Skyros. He also learned that Shakra was Kreesha's son, which didn't please him at all; it virtually guaranteed that she'd learn of anything unusual he became involved in in Silmaria.

He was uncertain about what to make of the other two archwizards whom Shakra mentioned as living in or frequenting the region. While the name Erasmus wasn't one he had heard much about, Erana was another matter. She had created the Pool of Peace in Msaka's homeland, and that was far from being her only accomplishment. While Shakra claimed that neither were heavily involved in the daily life of the city, Msaka suspected they both watched over the region to some degree. While he was safe enough from direct scrying, he still hoped that neither would end up taking an interest in his activities.

The news from Tarna didn't lighten his mood either. Shakra has been informed that the crocs were becoming more and more aggressive and appearing in larrger groups than they normally were wont to. Such waves of attacks had happened a few times in the past, often resulting in significant bloodshed before their numbers were thinned enough to put an end to their threat. There was a significant difference this time; they seemed to be acting in a far more organized fashion than they had ever been known to. The jungle in particular had become quite perilous to navigate alone, and the savanna near the river wasn't very safe either. Whilst the liontaur was uncertain, he speculated that some outside force was organizing the creatures, their actions were far too well organized for such primitive creatures.

Msaka suspected that his people would have less difficulty in the jungle than the liontaur was suggesting; those who weren't from the jungle almost always found it more difficult and dangerous to venture through than those who'd lived there their whole lives. Still, Shakra had confirmed the rumors he'd heard elsewhere, and Msaka wasn't prepared to ignore the very real difficulties the crocs' activities would pose.

He finally arranged to be notified once the liontaur had deciphered the Culinary Wizard's tomes, even going so far as to pay in advance to be given access to a few spells of his choosing should they prove to be worthwhile. While it was entirely possible that the spellbooks would prove to contain nothing useful to him, he felt it worth the risk.

His business complete, he bid the liontaur farewell and left the shop. The doors swung shut behind him as he stepped back into the open air of the town square, which had become quite a bit more crowded than when he'd first arrived. Threading his way through the throng of townsfolk, Msaka managed to avoid any collisions as he crossed the noisy marketplace to the stairway which led further up the hill.

Upon reaching the top, he was granted a sweeping view of the city's lower terraces and docks, with the bright blue waters of the bay stretching into the distance beyond them. To the southwest, the southern peninsula of the island stretched out along the sea's flank, whilst the bizarre looking artificial island to the city's southeast provided an opposing, if smaller, boundary. The sea breeze wafted up the hillside, ruffling his fur ever so slightly as he reflected upon the tranquility of the scene. It was unlike anything he'd have had the chance to see in his homeland.

Sighing softly, he pulled himself away from the view and turned his attention to the hilltop. Scanning the structures which towered over the open space near the stairway, he quickly recognized the Hall of Kings to his left. The ship's captain had described it during the voyage, though it was more impressive to behold in person. To his right lay a number of large residences, their size and splendid appearances clearly marking them as belonging to people who were both wealthy and unafraid to show it.

The city's huge, circular arena rose on the far side of the estates, with a trail continuing past it to the stream which cascaded over the hill's edge to the marketplace below. A small bridge spanned the stream, and a circular, pillared structure was barely visible on the far side. Msaka gazed at the odd spinning cone mounted atop the pillars for a long moment. The captain had warned him that the place was some sort of portal leading to the home Erasmus the archmage, which marked it as a location he'd rather avoid for the time being.

More inviting was the wide, flat boulder visible around the side of the arena building, though still comfortably distant from the spinning hat. Feeling in the mood to sit and relax for a while, Msaka crossed the square, and with a quick hop, landed atop it.

Turning about to give himself a good view of anything that might happen in the area, he settled cross-legged onto the stone surface, shifting about until he found a comfortable position. Together, the sun and cool sea breeze were rather relaxing, and he soon found himself lost in idle contemplation.

Unbidden, an odd inspiration suddenly came to him, sparked by something Shakra had said in their discussion of the so-called Culinary Wizardry. He brought his thoughts back into focus as he pondered pursuing the idea. The spell he had in mind would certainly be unconventional, but it might just provide him with an unexpected edge the next time a conflict occurred - and he was quite certain that there would be more of that before his task was done.

He gazed across the hilltop, rubbing his hands together in preparation for the magical manipulations that he was about to undertake. "There's nothing else to do while I wait for that liontaur anyway," he thought. "So I should have enough time. Now, how to shape the energies..."