"At first glance, it doesn't seem harmless. The bark had already been given a preliminary test. There are no glaring issues with in regards to poison. It is not sharp, so it can't really physically harm people. As in draw blood, for that matter, but there were some people who got excited and touched the stalk with their bare skin. A few of them ended up getting sick. Not all of them, and nothing too serious at all, but since it regards magic, we can't take anything too lightly," Inspector Nilan explained. Kerii completely agreed. Even a simple spell could have disastrous consequences if improperly used. Honestly, if a mage powerful enough accidentally miscast a nature-based spell, Kerii could totally see something like this happening. Obviously though, they hadn't caught the culprit, or else Inspector Nilan wouldn't be needing the help of a mage.
"So, what do you want me to do?" Kerii asked, wondering what on Earthland she could possibly do with this behemoth of a tree. "You could cut it down," Inspector Nilan replied. "I'm not sure if I heard you right. Did you just suggest that I cut it down? That giant tree?" He looked at her like she had four heads. "Well, of course! How else are we supposed to get the samples we need. I don't suppose you could climb that thing. Besides, look. We've already got a lot of it started," he reasoned, gesturing to the hack marks in the trunk of the tree, or stalk, or whatever the heck it was. "Okay," she sighed. There wasn't any arguing with this man. "Just make sure everyone's out of the way."
The trunk wasn't that thick. It was actually quite slender for a plant so tall. She was surprised that it didn't simply bend over due to its height, but then again, it was imbued with magic in some way. After Inspector Nilan and his men ushered the citizens well out of the plant's vicinity, Kerii got to work cutting it down. It took a while, and made her arms ache. It would be a lot faster if she had a magic that could adequately perform offensive spells, but that simply was not the nature of it. Eventually, the tree was cut down. The mage took a vial and filled it with the sap that began to ooze out of the fallen vines. If it was anything that was making the people of Orchidia sick, Kerii was willing to bet that it was this.
With the sample in hand, she went back to Inspector Nilan. She gave it to him, and in exchange, he gave her the promised reward. "Depending on the results from the analysis, I may ask for someone's help again, so be on the lookout," he advised. It was almost needless to say. Kerii already anticipated that this bit of mayhem was far from over. Although something like this could plausibly be accidental, something so intricate was almost guaranteed to be purposefully done. But the real question... was why.
WC: 507+505=1012/1000