Msaka banged his fist against the panel in frustration.

The trip across the water had proceeded smoothly enough, but upon arriving at the island he'd been confronted by what seemed to be some kind of strange guardian spirit that was bound into the door mechanism. It hadn't taken him too long to figure out how to communicate with it, but that had been the least of his troubles. Like every guardian spirit of legend, the thing had done nothing but pose obscure questions and riddles to him through the glass panel which it used to communicate.

Most of those questions made no sense at all, or were clearly little more than an attempt to get him to flatter the inhabitants of the island who had bound it there, perhaps in an attempt to win its release. A few haphazard guesses had been rewarded by partial turns of the huge wheel which sealed the main entry, but the temperamental spirit would swiftly turn it back again following an unsuccessful guess, and the questions had begun to repeat.

"I've wasted enough time with this," Msaka muttered as he turned away from the spirit's flickering green words and surveyed the building a second time. There were other entrances visible amidst the structure's upper levels; perhaps one of them would prove to be less heavily defended.

A quick scan for magical energies gave no indication that the area had any wards against spellcasting, so he stalked across to the base of the nearest wall and raised his arms outward, willing his power to come forth. It responded to his call, and his spell of levitation swiftly carried him upward.

He drew level with one of the upper ledges and pulled himself forward onto it, allowing his spell to lapse. He was rewarded with a much clearer view of the island and its surroundings from his new, higher perch, although the only thing that really interested him was the open doorway nearby. Clearly, the inhabitants hadn't expected the approach of anyone magical, as no guardians seemed to defend the entry, nor did a second scan of the area reveal any magical protections around it.

Msaka set that thought aside and venture to the doorway, using one hand to shield his eyes from the sunlight that was streaming down upon him from behind as he peered through the yawning opening into the large, dimly lit chamber beyond. A strange, musty scent that was laced with the odor of arcane chemicals wafted from the depths of its interior as he surveyed the place. He had thought that the island's exterior looked strange indeed, and it seemed that whoever had designed the place had seen fit to follow suit with its interior appearance as well.

The walls of the high-ceilinged hall that formed the bulk of the island's interior were adorned with numerous charts, graphs, alchemical instruments, and other odd devices which Msaka didn't recognize. The open expanse of floor on the lower level was dominated by a large table and work area that was cluttered with even more paraphernalia, and held but a single occupant, an older man with stringy white hair who was garbed in a stained white overcoat. The man's expression was at once bemused and distracted, although he hadn't yet sensed Msaka's arrival.

Msaka observed him silently for a few moments, watching as he labored with a large glass apparatus that was filled with bubbling liquid. Eventually the scientist seemed satisfied with the results of his efforts. He retrieved a cup from the desk and drew a small quantity of the liquid into it before returning to the desk and seating himself. Then he frowned and muttered something to himself before rising again and searching through a large cupboard that had been set into the wall nearby.

Msaka found himself curious about the potion that the scientist had obviously made, and crept silently to the edge of the narrow walkway that comprised the upper level. He peered down at the desk, then along the ledge, looking for whatever stairs or ladder led below. He saw only some sort of platform at the base of the wall, but that was of little help to him at the moment. He briefly considered levitating down, but he wasn't entirely certain how the scientist would regard that. The drop didn't seem to be that far, though, and there was easily enough space amidst the equipment to land safely, provided that he was careful...

One small hop carried him over the edge without any trouble, and he touched down a moment later, landing lightly on his feet. The sound of his arrival caught the scientist by surprise, though, and the man whirled around, fumbling with a paper-wrapped bundle that he'd been busy retrieving from the cupboard. For a few comical moments, the bundle danced in the startled researcher's fingers, but the levity was short lived as both the scholar's wits and his package were quickly brought under control.

"Good heavens! I haven't received a shock like that since the last time I made a MESS!" the white-haired gentleman exclaimed, causing Msaka's amused smile to turn into an expression of puzzlement. "A mess?" he wondered aloud. A quick glance around the room failed to reveal any spills, stains, or other disorderly catastrophes, so it couldn't have been a recent event.

"Yes, I had quite a lively time with it," the scholar replied genially. Only then did he take note of Msaka's appearance. "That's the worst case of tarring and feathering I've ever seen!" he exclaimed, then peered more closely at the leopardman. "Only it seems that they used fur instead of feathers. Never mind, I have just the thing!"

The scientist quickly turned back to the cabinet and retrieved a large blue bottle from within. He held it out to Msaka, clearly pleased with himself. "Just rub some of this over your skin and it'll all wash clean away! Another wonderful advance brought to you by modern science!" The last word was spoken with unusual emphasis, though Msaka could see no good reason why it should have been.

"I... err... I'm fine just as I am," Msaka replied in as polite a tone as he could muster. The thought of anointing himself with an unknown liquid - magical or not - wasn't the least bit appealing to him, never mind one that had been fashioned by as accident-prone an individual as the scientist had apparently just admitted to being. He quickly changed the subject. "I just came to find out what you knew about the..." He paused for a moment, uncertain as to how much he should say. "Local aquatic life."

The scientist's eyes lit up. "Aha! Such a fascinating subject. Unfortunately, my two best assistants here in Silmaria decided to elope together. They would have greatly expanded the scope of my inquiries, given their tremendous resilience and resistance to troublesome things like drowning! At least, once I had applied the processes that my predecessors here had developed to them. Ahem."

"But where was I?" the eccentric fellow continued. "There are many fascinating species in the local seas. Plants and animals can be found in abundance, as well as some other creatures that are significantly more difficult to classify. Did you have anything specific in mind?"

Msaka considered his response carefully, still uncertain as to how much he should reveal of his purpose. The scientist seemed harmless enough, but speaking too freely on the subject would risk word getting back to the wrong people in the city, and that could make things tricky. On the other hand, the scientist was clearly the type of person who appreciated research....

"Actually," Msaka ventured, "I've was hoping to study some of the local creatures. I've also heard about an undersea civilization of people who are called tritons. From what I've heard of them, they'd be quite knowledgeable about sea life. I don't suppose you have any ideas on how I could contact them? Being able to breathe underwater seems to be the biggest obstacle to meeting with them, and I was hoping you might have something here," he glanced around at the peculiar devices which crowded the room. "That would help me continue my... research."

The excited gleam that appeared in the scientist's eyes was a clear indication that he'd taken the right approach.