"Standing on Leisen Road, inside Milliks Triangle, The Cave <of Zukic> just lagged behind the top earners but was easily the most famous herbalists in the Cities. Its facade was dominated by two huge wooden hands flanking the door, palms outstretched and fingers pointing to the sky. The hands were mainly white but the fingertips were each painted a different colour. Kenner guessed this to be a reference to the "magic fingers" of a herbalist; after years of preparing herbs a practitioner's hands become indelibly stained a rainbow of hues by various berries and potions. Gilded letters bearing the name of The Cave of Zukic, the script so curvaceous as to be almost illegible, were cast into the palms of the hands. Beneath the banner were more letters, this time written in the Elven language. If translated they would doubtless read something as revelational as "Licensed retailers of herbs".
"On stepping inside, the first noticeable feature was an incredibly dense aroma of incense. Burners hung from every available space on the walls, and if lingering for too long a person might need something to cure nausea as well as their original malady. Anything which masks the bouquet of herbs, which can sometimes smell like nectar and sometimes like dung, is advisable. This, though, wasn't the only reason why incense was burnt. The shop was designed to appear intensely eldritch to anyone who had never seen inside an Academy of Magic property. The building looked to be several hundred years old, all flagstoned floors and creaking roof beams. (Externally The Cave of Zukic looked a suspiciously modern construction but never mind). Rows of tall display cabinets stood in sloping lines, turning the shop floor into a series of narrow, winding walkways. A few of the cabinets were paradoxically boarded over; the others were lamplit and revealed displays of herbs which varied from evil-looking berries to huge, bulbous fruits. The windows of the Cave were permanently shuttered. Aside from the cabinets, light came from several large fireplaces and from red-lensed lanterns in the rafters which were strategically placed to illuminate hanging collections of stuffed jungle animals. The lines of cabinets were sporadically broken by the counters of the sales assistants. Zukic seemed to exclusively recruit seedy and unhealthy middle-aged men, though in fairness the lighting conditions hardly enhanced their attractiveness. Each had clearly been instructed to insert phrases like "A herb which draws directly from the mystical powers of the Gods" as many times as possible into conversations. Each also had some sort of prop beside them, usually tripods holding beakers full of bubbling liquid or a cauldron full of noxious sludge. Occasionally one of the men would perform some useful function such as sprinkling dust onto a fire to make it flare up a bright purple.
"Kenner grimly followed his charge through the passageways. He noticed without surprise that the Cave was as busy as ever, and that all the customers were contributing to the charade by pretending to be overawed by the ambience. Calli twitched aside a curtain at the rear of the shop and called out. After a few seconds Zukic himself pushed through the curtain. Even Kenner had to admit that he struck an impressive figure. Zukic stood at least six and a half feet tall, with an upright stance, powerful shoulders and an overhanging belly. His chief facial features were an epic black beard which reached down to his chest and a pair of thick, fierce eyebrows; underneath all the hair a few patches of wrinkled skin were just visible. His dress was basically an imitation of classical wizard's garb, a long, black baggy robe decorated with yellow suns and a heavy belt which held mysterious tools. Zukic' sleeves were rolled up to reveal that his "magic fingers" marks stretched almost up to his elbows. It was only when Zukic started to speak that Kenner felt his respect shrivel. In a rich booming voice the herbalist mentioned glorious meetings by moonlight and called Calli a blessed envoy of karma. He bustled her away into a corner, and Kenner caught references to forbidden knowledge and upsetting cosmic balances, none delivered with any apparent irony. It was clear that Zukic was a natural performer. Kenner felt the only places where natural performers were safe were on the stage or running stalls at carnivals. They did enough damage when they entered politics, Torgu knows, and herbalism was hardly a safer forum.
"After a long discussion Calli was released and returned to Kenner with a slightly dazed expression. Together they watched Zukic waddle off down his shop, waving his arms and bellowing absurd statements at random. From time to time he sneaked up behind customers and boomed out dire warnings concerning the great power of the herbs they were buying. After jumping ten feet in the air the customers would gravely admit to Zukic they knew the risks involved, and giggled in delight when his back was turned. Zukic then helped one of his assistants sell a herb to a young man. The herbalist closed his eyes and breathed deeply while his hands hovered over a bubbling red cordial. He chanted some obscure words in a voice loud enough to set the jungle animals rattling. Finally he opened the man's mouth and ladled the liquid in with a long spoon."
(from A Shining Light)