The Newt and Demon - Book 5 Chapters 34,35,36 (Patreon)

Chapter 34

Pursued by Frog-Like Creatures

A familiar landscape spread into the distance from Theo’s vantage point. Standing on the battlements of his imagined town, he looked down to the harbor below. With little effort for his two main cores, he planned to toil the night away to hit Level 28. But it was as important to not neglect his Toru’aun core, which was now teetering on the edge of Level 20. The alchemist’s head swiveled, spotting Tresk and Alex doing combat with some imagined hydra-like dragon creature. He laughed to himself, moving down into the harbor to set up his alchemy equipment.

Theo thought about where his various projects were going, and found that he was happy with the undead scouring scheme. The most valuable potions produced by the Newt and Demon were the restoration, curative, and attribute-enhancing potions. Salire had been handling the brewing of those potions, leaving him free to work on whatever weird side-project he wanted. Then there was the uncomfortable fact that he needed another core to fill the slot he would gain at Level 30. Another demon core, perhaps? Something to pair well with his Governance Core made more sense than anything. Something he didn’t need to babysit like his other cores.

On Top of his consideration for cores, Theo wanted to pick a direction for his attribute distribution. The current plan was to use items and core bonuses to increase his Dexterity, making him more viable in combat. So far, the only viability he found in a fight was his ability to run away, or hide behind folks while he tossed warded daggers. The alchemist ran his fingers along the surface of an imagined Drogramathi Iron still, feeling the pits and marks on the surface as though it were real. He popped the lid open, fitting his grinder on top and listening to the artifice come to life.

Dexterity was a good attribute to pump. With his Intelligence at 28, he was worried about the effects that came with pushing that beyond 30. His Wisdom was only safe because the Wisdom of the Soul potion he drank, leaving him feeling vulnerable to the mind-altering effects of a higher Intelligence. He cocked his head to one side, popping the grinder off from his still and reseating the lid. After setting the temperature, he allowed his mind to drift. In an instant, the alchemist appeared where Tresk and Alex fought against the hydra.

The monster’s many heads snapped at the air, often digging deep trenches into the ground when it missed. Tresk danced around the hydra’s feet, dodging attacks expertly as Alex rained fire from above. Theo just watched at a safe distance, never interrupting his companions’ battle. Things calmed down, and the marshling approached, heaving breath and smiling to herself.

“What’s up?”

“What is it like to have Dexterity above 30?” Theo asked, seeking to sate his curiosity.

Tresk cupped her chin in her hand, narrowing her eyes. She hummed for a moment before nodding to herself. “Dexterity is hard to explain. Compared to when I was a little shrimp, it feels like my body and mind are closer together. Does that make sense?”

It didn’t, but Theo scoured Tresk’s thoughts through their connection to get a better idea of what she meant. His mind drifted, pressing up against hers. Their thoughts formed into something greater for a moment, casting off the concept of individual self for only a moment. What the marshling meant to say was that each of her muscles was linked to her mind closely. So close, that each thought of movement was rendered more as instinct rather than concentrated effort.

“You can’t control how you move as well,” Theo said. “And can only operate on instinct. You enter something of a battle trance when you fight. Got it.”

“Yeah. That’s what I meant to say.”

As expected, the negative effects of a physical attribute weren’t as bad as the mental ones. Intelligence made a person cold, and logical. Wisdom made them unable to connect with things happening in the real world, sending them spiraling down a series of ‘what if’ based on intuition. If Dexterity removed the barrier between thought and action, Strength would do something similar. That just left Vigor. Would a person get so tough that they felt invincible? It was hard to say.

Theo watched Tresk as she got back to work with Alex. They were practicing teamwork during combat, and the alchemist felt pride fill his chest as he watched the goose. She had done well learning how to work with her Nature affinity. Thorny vines sprung from the ground where a hydra stood, wrapping around its legs and holding it firm. She then immolated the creature, causing layers of the monster’s flesh to slough off in sheets. But the regenerative power of the imagined monster was great. But not great enough to overcome Tresk’s poisons.

The alchemist left the scene of the fight, heading back to his stills to work on his alchemy and warding. The rest of the night was uneventful potion grinding. As he had expected, Theo hit his various level goals before the Dreamwalk ended. Before Tresk brought them out of the dream, he placed his free point into Vigor. After hear Tresk’s difficulties with Dexterity, he didn’t want to risk anything. Without warning, the marshling dragged them all out of the dream.

Theo’s eyes snapped open. Shafts of light pierced through the hazy morning fog outside. The temperature in the room was pleasant, but the alchemist understood how brutal the heat would be outside.

“I can’t wait for the Season of Death,” Theo said, pushing himself out of bed. Tresk had already dashed downstairs, leaving him alone with Alex

“I don’t mind the heat.”

“You were born here,” Theo said, patting the goat-sized goose on the head. “How big are you going to get? Any much bigger and you’ll have to sleep outside.”

“Nooo… I want to sleep inside.”

Theo smiled at the way the goose’s feathers ruffled. She puffed herself up, flapping her wings and honking. “Then we’ll have to pry Sledge away from her eggs to make bigger door frames.”

Honk!

Head down for breakfast, Theo walked absentmindedly. His Toru’aun Mage’s Core had hit Level 20, giving him a new skill slot and a free skill to select. He sat at the table, getting his plate of food and splitting his attention. Sarisa and Rowan were checking in with him, but they went silent as the alchemist searched through his selectable abilities. Ward-style mages were meant to channel the wards, typically creating reactive fields around themselves. But Toru’aun’s speciality was enchanting items with her warding magic. The abilities aligned with her often reflected this.

Ward Propagation and Linked Wards had done a lot to open the class up, giving Theo many options for warding objects. He scanned through his new selections, finding a few that synergized with those two abilities. After flipping through the items for a while, he paused.

“Now that is strange,” Theo said, inspecting the ability.

[Intuitive Nodes]

Tero’gal Mage Skill

Epic

Magic bound to the mortal plane draws on the relative power of Tero’gal by establishing a connection between the two nodes.

Effect:

All spells cast may be empowered by the Dreamreal of Tero’gal.

The power drawn from Tero’gal may empower a spell to: reduce mana cost, increase duration, increase potency, etc. Only one boon may be applied.

This skill can only be used once per day, resetting at midnight.

Theo understood Tero’gal was a real realm. He had been there, and other gods had recognized his place in the heavens. But seeing an ability from his own realm appear was trippy. Did that mean he and Tresk could grant people cores? He didn’t feel as though he could create cores. Putting aside the shock of seeing the ability, the alchemist considered the Intuitive Nodes skill very good. He focused on the realm of empowerment. Increasing the power of a ward’s duration was always good, but increasing the power of the effect was good too.

With his new selection slotted into his core, Theo turned his attention to the table. Both Sarisa and Rowan were staring at him as though waiting for a response to something.

“Ah. Sorry, what did you say?” Theo asked.

Rowan laughed, slamming his fist on the table. “I told you he was spacing out! He’s done that to me before.”

“He just answers stuff automatically. In his own little world,” Sarisa cooed.

Theo smiled, unable to disagree. He reflected on his increasing Intelligence score, and how that made him distant from everything. It was an unfortunate side-effect he needed to nail down. “Sorry. My mage core hit Level 20 and I got distracted.”

“Anyway… Rowan is taking the day off,” Sarisa said. “We already organized another guard from the Adventurer’s Guild to help guard you.”

“And Tresk said she could teleport to you in a moment’s notice,” Rowan added.

“That’s all quite fine,” Theo said. He removed a Potion of Limited Foresight from his inventory and drank it. “Just in case, though.”

“Just in case,” Rowan agreed.

After Rowan departed, Sarisa explained what was going on. The half-ogre guardian had taken a fancy to someone in town, and intended to ‘woo’ her. Theo groaned at the word, but he never wanted his assistants to become permanent servants to him. Days or weeks off were fine with him, so long as they organized replacements. Of course, there was no race better as a guardian than a half-ogre. The one Sarisa had hired from the guild took his job as seriously as the rest of the Broken Tuskers.

Theo headed out for his first stop of the day, making his way to the Newt and Demon. Salire was waiting for him outside, wearing a new dress for the day. She spent her free time with the merchants, it seemed, as every day she had something new and fun to wear. Sarisa stuck to the shadows while the rent-a-guard accompanied the alchemist into the building.

“So, we’re stocked on first-tier attribute potions and restoration potions,” Salire said, showing off the well-stocked shelves. “I also took the liberty to forge a few trade contracts with the merchants.”

“Good terms?” Theo asked. In reality, his interest in trade had waned over the past few weeks. Profits drawn from the mine, sawmill, and his minor stake in the quarry had been enough to keep him happy.

“Prices that would make Azrug wet his little pants,” Salire said with a wide smile.

“What are the other nations interested in?”

“You won’t be surprised. Defensive potions, restoration potions, and attribute potions. “I’m also skimming some Hallow Ground essence from our process to sell off.”

Theo nodded. Their industrial Hallow Ground production had gotten to a point where they had excess. He trusted Salire to skim as much as she needed and no more than that. “Profiteering from a global crisis? Shame.”

Salire shrugged. “If they have the coin, I’m selling. Deal with it.”

“I am really happy that you’ve taken over the shop. You have a Merchant’s Core, right?”

“Yep. Helps seal the deal.”

“Alright. Come on. Let’s see what we need to do today.”

Theo, Salire, and the rented guard went to the third floor to check their stock of essences. Since usage of the Hallow the Soil potion had diminished, they had plenty of it on hand. Until Throk got his sprayer platform working, that fact would remain. Today was a day to make something fun, though.

“We really haven’t been pushing modified potions, lately,” Theo said, nodding to the unused fermentation barrels in the room’s corner. “Do we have a section for that in the book, yet?”

“Ah, not really,” Salire said, withdrawing hand-written notes from her inventory. She consulted them, tracing her finger across the pages until she came to the section. “Just a small bit here.”

“Let’s go over how that works.”

The Hallow Ground property had always made good base potions, but Theo had never put stock in it as a modifier. Going with his theme of ‘fun’ things to do, he withdrew Swamp Truffles from a storage crate and prepared them for fermentation. Fermenting items had as much to do with the water added as the items placed inside. The alchemist went over the process of mashing the truffles, adding Enchanted Water, then applying his own mana to begin the process.

“You can use a mana siphon to power these things,” Theo said, slapping the black box that Zarali had created. “But you can add your mana manually. How is your mana control going?”

Salire held her hand up and a pool of flaming purple mana appeared. The strain of the action played plainly across her face. But she was way better at it than he was back in the day. “Getting there…”

“Now, I can sense that the truffle doesn’t want to be fermented,” Theo said, kneeling near the barrel. He could feel the process pushing back against his will. For a moment, he saw the thread of intent between himself and the barrel. With considerable effort, his mind against that thin strand. It buckled, then collapsed as the fermentation process started. “This is gonna take a while.”

“Very interesting,” Salire said, scribbling some notes. “Anything interesting we can work on while it does its thing?”

“We could tour the new Herbalist’s Workshop,” Theo said with a shrug. “That might be fun.”

Salire clapped her hands. “Oh! I saw it earlier!”

Theo smiled, leading the way out of the lab. The guard insisted on going first, holding his hand out while he cleared the road outside. With a sharp nod, the dutiful half-ogre ranged out onto the street, spear in hand and a scowl on his face.

“He takes his job seriously,” Salire said as they crossed the scant few feet between the lab and the workshop.

“That’s not a bad thing,” Theo said, opening the door. He was pushed back by the guard, who rushed inside as though there was something to fight.

While they waited for the guard to clear the area, several frog-like creatures had gathered near Salire’s feet. She sighed, withdrawing the sprayer from her inventory and putting it on. After squirting them in the face, they retreated.

“How long is that supposed to last?” Theo asked.

“Bilgrob said it should have been over by now,” she grumbled. “But it isn’t.”

Theo split his attention as he gave a tour of his workshop. He gave Salire a friendly tour, but fell into his own thoughts as he did so. That side-effect from the ogre priest should have been over by now. When the tour was done, he had the idea to ask Sulvan for help. Instead of finding the Priest of Glantheir himself, the alchemist sent Sarisa off to find him before heading back to the lab. All three members of the group hung out in the shop-level of the building.

“Here we are,” Sarisa said, leading the way with Sulvan close behind.

“What is the issue?” Sulvan said, a kind smile playing across his face. That expression made Theo shiver, if only for a moment.

Salire explained the problem. The priest nodded along, then came to kneel by the half-ogre. Before being regressed and accepted by Glantheir, Sulvan would have towered over the woman. Now he was a head shorter than her, with a bit less muscle. He held his hands out, allowing the pure mana of the elven god to flow into his palms. After a moment, he shook his head.

“This is beyond my skill to heal,” Sulvan said. “But it is called Spit’s Reverberation. The power of the hex is equal to the power of the healing magic he used.”

“And Bilgrob reversed damage inflicted by Drogramath,” Theo said, blowing out a breath. “You can see what the illness is called? Any other information?”

“The duration is set to twenty years,” Sulvan said, clicking his tongue.

“What!?” Salire shouted. “I’m going to be chased by frogs for twenty years?”

“Frog-like creatures,” Theo corrected.

Salire glared.

“You don’t have a way to reverse hexes, alchemist?” Sulvan asked.

Theo went through his mental list of cures. He hadn’t even considered reversing Salire’s condition. The only thing he could think of was a potion he had created to cure Tresk. The Lesser Potion of Purification removed one affliction instance from the drinker. His intuition said that it didn’t include hexes, but higher-tier versions might.

“Maybe… it depends on how the purification potion scales.”

“Worth a shot,” Salire grumbled.

The Cure Ailment property was incredibly common in the swamp. It came from Ogre Cypress Bark, which was absurdly easy to come by. There were piles of it at the sawmill, cast off from the sawing process. If that didn’t work, they could go through each of their existing reagents to find something that might cure the hex. Theo’s mind was dragged back to reality when the guard, Sarisa, and Sulvan sprung to their feet. The sound of bells rang in the distance.

“What now?” Theo asked, opening his administration interface. Within moments, Gael was issuing orders directly to the Aarok. “Ah. Kuzan’s delegation is here.”

Chapter 35

High Commander

The bells ceased their clattering. An alliance-wide message popped into everyone’s vision. Gael’s calming words listed a series of protocols that needed to be followed as the fleet from Tarantham approached. Despite his words of warning, each rail gun that could gain line-of-sight was trained on the ships bobbing in the distance. Theo rushed to the piers outside of the harbor, dashing up the steps to meet with the leader of House Wavecrest.

“They were faster than I expected,” Gael said, nodding to the bay.

Ten ships rested in the bay, swaying with the motion of the waves. Each was far more impressive than anything Broken Tusk had produced. Each displayed deck cannons that looked suspiciously like Throk’s guns. Theo took in a sharp breath, calming himself and stifling an urge to act. Gael’s instructions were simple. The ships would anchor and send a smaller ship to negotiate.

“Are you sure about this?” Theo asked.

“I’m certain,” Gael said with a nod. “As a sign of respect, they will dock out here. We’ll perform the negotiations right down there.”

Despite the elf’s calming words, the adventuring army was out in force. Theo watched the map of the town fill with tactical orders, lining everyone up for a counter-assault if that were to come. Even the newly minted fighters from Rivers and Daub were taking part. All the alchemist could do was watch and wait. It took a while for the fleet to launch a smaller craft. When they did, it zipped across the harbor, propelled by some unseen magic.

Theo and Gael descended the steps, standing out on the pier to greet the representatives. Only two figures stood aboard the rowboat. The first was a man who reminded the alchemist too much of Fenian. He wore a black cuirass over an ornate padded gambeson. Matching black cuisses guarded his thighs while engraved greaves and sabatons protected his shins and feet. With a matching black full-visored black helmet tucked under his arm, he jumped from the boat, to the pier and bowed. The woman accompanying him remained in the boat, wearing less impressive robes but brimming with magical potential.

“Greetings, Archduke Theo Spencer. Lord Administrator Gaeleithia Wavecrest.”

Gael bowed at the waist, and Theo followed suit. “A pleasure,” the elf said, eyes glued to the pier below.

After both parties had risen to their full height, the armored elf continued. “I am High Commander Elmonteir Northwind. Serving as Mouth of the Emperor for this encounter.”

The elf flicked a gauntleted hand through his hair, sending the perfectly groomed strands of raven black over his shoulder. Elves really had a flair for the dramatic.

“In this capacity, I serve as the Mouth of the Alliance,” Gael said, bowing slightly.

Elmon smiled, holding his arms open as though he was expected a hug. Theo’s brows knit together when Gael opened his arms, hugging the man as though they were family.

“I didn’t think you’d get out,” Elmon said, nodding to Theo. “I’m guessing this one had something to do with it.”

“Among others,” Gael said, breaking off from the hug.

“I never approved of the purging of House Wavecrest.” Elmon shook his head, his face darkening. “The fleet hasn’t been the same since.”

Gael responded in the Tarantham tongue. Theo’s knowledge of the language wasn’t enough to understand the idiom, but Elmon laughed in response. He noticed the confusion on the alchemist’s face. “It means that the past is behind us. You’re lucky to have him, archduke. Many wars have been started because outsiders don’t understand our ways.”

Theo composed himself. It was easy to remember back to a time when he had to bite his tongue to save his skin. This was no different. He could poke the bear of Tarantham now, but his people would suffer. They couldn’t hold their own against the empire. Instead, he bowed slightly. “He has been invaluable.”

“Indeed, he has,” Elmon said, clapping a hand over Gael’s shoulder. Theo could sense the nervousness in his friend’s body. “Let’s get to it, shall we? The empire is always interested in raw materials. Our spies have informed us you have discovered nodes of demon metals. You’ve even made them into alloys.”

“We have,” Gael said with a nod.

“The empire is ready to offer a trade deal for those resources. As well as rights to dock civilian airships in your port.”

Theo shared a look with Gael. “The archduke would like to make a statement.”

Elmon smiled, rolling his shoulders. A Wisdom of the Soul message popped up, informing Theo that the High Commander didn’t like this breach of protocol. “What is it?”

“We’re expecting an unfriendly visitor,” Theo said, gesturing vaguely northward. “The entire alliance is a no-fly zone. We have a no-questions-asked shoot-first policy at the moment.”

“Ah, you’re worried about the city flying to destroy your alliance, aren’t you?” Elmon asked, laughing. “May we continue, Gael?”

“Yes, High Commander.”

“All civilian airships from Tarantham emit a signal. This signal cannot be copied. The empire would provide you with one, allowing you to know the exact position of our airborne civilian fleet. We’re also willing to provide you with tactical information, assuming you’re willing to send me home with a parting gift.”

Theo nodded to Gael. He would dump all the raw materials in town on those ships for some more information.

“We agree,” Gael said. “The Alliance will provide you with a thousand of each resource before you depart. Stones are in block form, approximately 10 units. Metals are in bar form, approximately 3 units. And lumber is in square board form, approximately 50 units.”

“Excellent,” Elmon said, clapping a hand over Gael’s shoulder. “Our spies have been watching your progress, archduke. The method used to fly the city is an art performed by Dark Core Smiths. They are an abomination. Our spies in Qavell have reported something interesting. They are unaware that you have developed anti-magical shots.”

“Will our current strategy work?” Gael asked.

“Only if you aim at the right place,” Elmon said, withdrawing a sheet of parchment from nowhere. On it was drawn the image of a city and an inverted mountain below it. Red circles were drawn here and there, detailing the places to fire Theo’s anti-magic shots. “A gift from the emperor. But… There is a problem aboard that flying city. Something our spies cannot get a handle on.”

Theo bit his tongue.

“What information do you have?” Gael asked.

“A being we’re not familiar with is controlling the crowned prince. Ah, I suppose he’s the king now that his father is dead. We lost contact with a spy when he got too close to the entity.” He withdrew another sheet of parchment from his inventory, handing it over. “This is the full report. Redacted, of course.”

“The alliance wishes to increase our donation to the empire,” Gael said, taking the sheet from Elmon. “Generously.”

Elmon bowed. He withdrew two items from his inventory. An ornate silver artifice, and a communication crystal. He handed them to Gael. “Please handle the loading of materials, Gael. My people are tired from the journey.”

Without another word, Elmon jumped back into the small boat. In a flash of magic, it soared across the water. Back to the fleet. Gael breathed out a steady breath, sweat visibly accumulating on his forehead. “I’m getting too old, Theo.”

“Was that good? Did we do well?”

“We made out like bandits,” Gael said, finally smiling a genuine smile. “When the empire is generous to foreign nations, it means they want what they have. Kuzan doesn’t colonize, so he relies on trade.”

Theo had too many questions to ask. The entire thing was strange. He had viewed Tarantham as enemies for a while now. Especially since Fenian rescued House Wavecrest. But the elven protocols trumped feelings. Since the members of the house escaped the empire, they were protected by law. The alchemist rattled off questions and Gael answered them.

Tarantham didn’t send their airship fleet for jobs like this. While they could reach anywhere in the world in a matter of a week, they still maintained a sea-borne navy. The donation that they just made was a gesture of good faith. The tradition of giving away something for free was started a long time ago and was based on a system of tributes in the empire. If Gael offered nothing to the empire, they would have seen it as an insult. Finally, the spies.

“Of course they have spies,” Gael said, practically rolling his eyes. “Just be happy they have spies in Qavell. Look at this.”

The document was written in the Tarantham Script. Theo could pick up a few things, but Gael had to translate for him. It detailed a dark entity that had taken residence in Qavell. Whatever it was, it had made a pact with the king before he died. After Karasan’s death, that pact passed down to Prince Hanan.

“Heavenly origin?” Theo asked, gawking at Gael. “Certainly not.”

“They wouldn’t have written it down if they didn’t believe it.”

That might have been good, though. Any god operating directly on the mortal plane was at a disadvantage. Theo could think of a few ways to kill it with no preparation. That brought a more concerning concept, though. Hanan wasn’t agreeable to Qavell’s direction. He seemed to want nothing to do with the Southlands Alliance and was eager to shake off the mantle his father had put upon him. So long as the information provided by the elves was good, there was a chance at peace with Qavell.

“If you’ll excuse me,” Gael said, gesturing to the approaching ship. “I have a ship to load.”

Theo nodded, watching as Gael dashed off to help organize the materials. The ship that sailed to the harbor was interesting. It was like the ships that Laedria Wavecrest, the shipwright, had constructed. The most notable difference was the way it sat in the water. The alchemist noticed how it rode atop the waves, most of the hull not sinking beneath. Aboard the ship were many elves, all adorned in glittering armor. It was hard not to gawk. After he had his fill, the alchemist went to get debriefed by Alise and Gwyn back at the town hall.

“How was it?” Tresk asked, sending her thoughts into Theo’s mind.

He gave her the executive summary of the events, which had her thoroughly bored. Apparently, the army was expecting an exchange of fire. But everything had gone the way Gael said it would.

“That’s a good thing,” Theo said, shaking his head. “Be grateful we’re not dead. I’m pretty sure the empire could flatten us if they wanted to.”

“Bah! You’re right, but I can still complain!”

Theo entered the town hall and all heads turned to him. Administrators and citizens alike all stood as though expecting some good news. The alchemist gave them the thumbs up, then headed upstairs to the reserved meeting room. Alise stood at the back of the room, biting her nails. Her head swiveled to him as he entered. Gwyn was lounging in a chair, feet kicked up on the table. She didn’t seem to care what was going on, which he approved of.

“Tell me it went well,” Alise begged. “Gael hasn’t updated his report, yet.”

“It went swimmingly.”

“Really?” Gwyn asked, raising an eyebrow. “Thought we’d be dead by now.”

Theo gave a report of what had happened, including the information they had gained. He could live without the trade deal, but the imperial spies were top-notch. There was actionable information in those reports. The alliance was no longer waiting around for whatever drifted over the mountains. They knew what it was, and how to bring it down.

“I’m not happy about this ‘dark entity,’” Alise said, pacing nervously. “It’s another wolf in the ass!”

“I’ve never heard that idiom,” Theo said with a nod. That was a good one.

“How many wolves do you have in your ass, Alise?” Gwyn asked, a sly smile playing across her face.

“At least three!”

Once Alise had time to digest the information, she calmed down. The woman had a tendency to get worked up over things like this, but she eventually saw how valuable the exchange was. After that, she firmly joined ‘team Tarantham’ and began singing their praises. Theo wasn’t so sure about the empire and what they wanted, but they had made good on their promises so far. Well, it was the promises of Gael that had proven to be true.

In time, Aarok and Luras entered the makeshift war room to give their thoughts. The fleet from Tarantham was still loading materials onto their ships. Porters from Broken Tusk were loading their inventories up and carrying it to the dimensional storage on the ships. Once they were loaded up, they left without another word. Gael came into the meeting room, finding an empty chair and collapsing into it.

“I need a vacation,” he said, placing the airship detection artifice on the table.

“You did great,” Alise said, clapping. “Without you, we would have started a war with the empire.”

“Seriously,” Aarok said. “Take a week off if you need it, Gael. You deserve it.”

“I just need to take a breath,” the haggard elf said, dabbing his brow with a blue length of cloth. “I knew Elmonteir back in the day. Could almost have called him a friend. They sent him because they knew I was handling the negotiations.”

“Were your houses close?” Theo asked.

Gael shrugged. “Not that close.”

Theo sat, listening to Gael tell old stories about him and an old friend. Something lingered in his mind that he couldn’t force out. Not just the approaching city, or the dark being aboard. It wasn’t anything that Elmon said, it was something he didn’t say. There was no mention of the rogue elf, Fenian Southblade. They would have known him from his original name, not the adopted surname of Feintleaf. The delegation didn’t provide information on the missing elf, nor did they ask about him. Which meant they knew everything they wanted to know about the man.

While the others chatted, the alchemist withdrew his communication crystal and squeezed it. He felt the familiar sensation of haptic buzzing in his mind as the magical items connected. A few moments later, Fenian’s voice filled his mind.

“You have the worst timing, don’t you?” Fenian’s voice was hushed.

“Just checking in. We had a delegation from Tarantham visit town.”

“Ah. That’s good information. Which company?”

“No idea. Some guy named Elmonteir Northwind.”

“So, the Northwind Company. Perfect! How many ships?”

“Ten.”

“Excellent intelligence, my dear alchemist. Here’s a progress report… I’m making my way to the coast. Assumed a new identity and scrounged up some coin. I’ll be on the sea in a few days, heading home.”

Theo paused for a long moment, smiling to himself. Fenian had never called Broken Tusk ‘home’ before. “Maybe you could hijack a civilian airship.”

“Too dangerous. They’ll hunt me down if I do that. They’re less likely to miss a single-masted boat, though. Ah! Damn! Gotta go.”

Fenian cut the connection off. The brief conversation left Theo feeling happier than before. There was a lot of bad that came with that elf, but the alchemist needed to believe in the cause. Perhaps that was just a lie he told himself to gloss over what could be war crimes. But Balkor’s undead were coming no matter what. And without the Demon God of Necromancy in his realm, those creatures would still bang against the Southland Alliance’s door.

“Theo?” Aarok asked.

Theo blinked, returning the communication crystal to his inventory. All eyes in the room were locked on him. “Huh?”

“We were talking about throwing a party,” Alise said, shaking her head. “Are you paying attention?”

“I am now that you said ‘party.’”

Chapter 36

The Holy Modifier

A group of elves had produced a series of drums, varying in size. They beat a steady rhythm near a blazing bonfire, joined all around by the citizens of the alliance. Theo watched the festivities as they spread from the town’s square. It took little for Broken Tuskers to celebrate and he was happy to see the elven refugees joining in. The normally stuffy, protocol-driven peoples from Tarantham were coming out of their shell. While it had taken time, the first wave of those migrants had integrated fully.

Gael’s name was on everyone’s lips. Perhaps it was just the elf following a series of rules, but the result of the negotiations had sent his name to a place of honor. Theo felt the sterile thoughts creeping into his mind, driven by his increased Intelligence. A spark of warmth battered the icy ideas away, drawn out of his chest by the Tara’hek bond. He pushed away everything else, desperate to focus on the celebration at hand.

“Come dance with me,” Tresk said, emerging from the shadows.

Theo held a hand up, shaking his head. “Not again.”

“You. Woman in the shadows,” Tresk said, jabbing her finger at nothing. “Dance with me.”

Sarisa emerged from her own gloomy shadow, a smile playing across her face. “Let’s do it.”

No one had taught Broken Tuskers how to dance. Theo winced as he watched whatever it was that Tresk and Sarisa were performing. He sipped his cup of Rivers mead, allowing the warmth to spread from his belly. The edges of his nerves dulled as Salire took a seat next to him. While she didn’t say a word for quite a while, her presence was comforting. Of all the things he had helped build in the town, her rise as a Drogramath Alchemist had been impressive.

“That Hallow Ground modifier finished fermenting,” she said after a stretching silence.

“I almost forgot about it.”

“It might make a new weapon for the undead.”

Theo nodded in response, taking another sip of his mead. He never really loved the mead. This batch wasn’t as good as the last one he had tried. Something like sour honey mixed with watered beer. He suspected that’s exactly what it is. After another long silence, another came to sit on the log the alchemist was resting on.

“What a day,” Alran said, groaning into a seated position on the log. “I didn’t think anyone still had spies in Qavell. Leave it to the elves, huh?”

“I’ll drink to that,” Theo said, toasting his spymaster. “Do you think the empire is being honest? With their promises, that is.”

“Yeah. They write their contracts in blood. So long as we follow it to the letter, we’re good.”

“Shouldn’t you be partying, Theo?” Salire asked, blowing out a frustrated breath. “It's all work with you.”

“You brought up the essence modifier,” Theo said, wagging a disapproving finger at her.

“Yeah… but alchemy is fun. Politics are boring.”

She wasn’t wrong. Theo liked to shuffle the boring parts of managing the alliance to his administrators, leaving him free to do as he pleased. His mind and desire drifted away from the celebrations, landing squarely on his lab and the experiments within. The alchemist rose, nodding to his budding student as they departed from the party.

“There’s a problem with modifiers,” Theo said, leading the way south toward the lab. “You can use a first-tier modifier with a second-tier potion, but you run the risk of blowing yourself up.”

“As with everything in alchemy,” Salire nodded.

Theo let silence fall between them as he thought and walked. The third floor of the lab was cast in bright sunshine, driven by the mid-afternoon sun outside. He took a deep breath, inhaling the scent of stale ingredients and failed experiments. That acrid scent smelled more like home than anything he could imagine. Salire had understood the assignment and ran off to assemble a selection of first-tier potions to start their experiments. He waited expectantly for her to return, and she withdrew a notebook with the intent on writing his waxing ideas.

“Creating second-tier modifiers is more about mana control than anything.” Theo gestured to the fermentation barrels. “The purity of the fermentation determines how well it runs through the stills. We can’t rely on high-quality ingredients to make up for our lack of skill.”

Salire wrote that down.

“To make a first-tier modifier, we just run the fermented liquid through the stills. How do we make second- and third-tier modifiers?”

“Same process as regular essences?” Salire asked.

Theo nodded. “I’ve only ever made second-tier modifiers, and I’m worried about how it will bind to the enchanted dilution.”

Salire nodded, scribbling her notes. “That’s why you’re worried about the purity of the modifier essence. It might not bind.”

“Exactly.”

Theo transferred the contents of the fermentation barrel to a still, adding a catalyst and setting the heat. The unrefined, fermented modifier juice seemed temperamental. As a property, Hallow Ground seemed unwilling to become a modifier. But between the level of the building, the alchemist’s growing willpower, and the quality of the equipment within the lab it couldn’t resist.

“I’ve been trying to figure out how to define ‘will,’” Theo said, double-checking the latch atop the still. He had decided on what willpower was in this world, but it was important to test his student. As much of a mockery of the system that was. “What do you think it is?”

Salire looked up from her notes, a flash of fear spreading across her face. That expression devolved into confusion and she clicked her tongue. “Tenacity?”

“That was my first thought. ‘Strength of will.’ Then I observed something about alchemy. Specifically when starting the stills on a batch. How do we know which property the still will extract?”

“Intent.”

“My thought is that willpower is manifested intent.”

Theo and Salire retreated to a corner in the room. She took a seat while he clicked the knob on the air conditioner, flooding the room with a wash of cold air.

“So why do you and Tresk have so much intent?”

“I haven’t figured that one out yet. The obvious answer is that we hold a realm. Khahar did some crazy stuff because he held a pseudo-realm. Kept his mind in check, no matter how high he got. Teleported some guys to the moon.”

“Did he actually teleport them, though? Or did he… jump to the moon?”

Theo shook his head. “That’s above my paygrade.”

Theo and Salire went back-and-forth on the topic of willpower, and the extent of Khahar’s powers on the mortal realm. It didn’t take long for the topic to shift to the report given to them by the Tarantham high commander. It should have been impossible for any god to act directly on the mortal plane. Yet Theo trusted what Elmonteir Northwind had told him. The still bubbled away as the pair discussed the topic, coming to a simple conclusion. Khahar had organized things in a way that allowed the alchemist to achieve a Mortal Dreamrealm. Then he cut everyone else off.

“But what if someone else was grandfathered into the scheme?” Theo asked.

“Could be,” Salire said, nodding with excitement. “But you’re confident you could beat a god?”

Theo had to think hard about that one. He could likely banish a god, unless the god had some trick up their sleeve. “I think we’re going to have our asses saved by Fenian again.”

“Why?”

Theo cleared his throat. His eyes lingered over the lab, dragging to the spot where the flask had filled to the top. The still was done running and they could begin their experimentation. But this was too interesting not to entertain.

“Khahar ascended the Throne of the Arbiter. Fenian ascended the Throne of the Herald,” Theo withdrew a copper coin from his inventory, flicking it over to Salire. “Two sides of the same coin. If Khahar is in charge of the heavens, what does that leave for Fenian?”

“The mortal realm,” Salire said, nodding as her face brightened with recognition. “How many times is Fenian going to save our butts?”

“A few more until Tresk and I ascend,” Theo said, pushing himself to a standing position.

“What?” Salire asked, jumping up from her chair. “You will not leave Broken Tusk, will you?”

Theo shrugged. “I doubt it. Tresk said she had a foot on the steps to her throne. But I don’t feel like I’m on the same continent.”

“Just don’t leave us. Alright?”

Theo paused. No one in the alliance was ready for what he wanted to do. “Never.”

Salire smiled. Any hit of worry drained from her face as she bounded over to the full flask. Her expression shifted, then went slightly sour. Her pale orange half-ogre complexion went slightly paler. “What…”

Theo inspected the modifier.

[Refined Holy]

[Essence Modifier] [Refined Essence Modifier]

Legendary

Created by: Theo Spencer

Grade: Excellent Quality

Alignment:

Drogramath (Minor Bond)

Alignment Effects:

Resulting modifier will be more effective.

High chance to add an additional modifier to the resulting potion.

Potency of the modifier increased

200 units (liquid)

A refined modifier essence. Add to a complete potion to add the “holy” modifier. Holy is the essence of life and divinity. It is the direct opposite of death.

Taking a step back, Theo narrowed his eyes on the essence. He had learned about elemental properties, especially in concern to attributes. But he had seen nothing mentioning ‘holy’ or ‘death’ elements. After collecting herself, Salire withdrew her notebook again and scribbled away.

“This is interesting,” Theo said, leaning close to inspect the essence. It was a swirl of pale gold with flecks of intense silver within. Holy Ground had always manifested with a sheen of silver, and it was interesting to see the pure form of it represented with gold. “Life and divinity… Now what does that mean?”

“Should we even touch it?” Salire asked.

Theo shrugged. “I’m something of a divine myself.”

The flask felt warm from the brewing process, but that warmth spread up the alchemist’s arm and into his chest. He was reminded of all the times he had stood before gods and the power they radiated.

“We gotta make potions with it. Right? I mean, come on!”

Theo agreed and moved over to the table of potions Salire had prepared. He let his intuition take the lead, identifying a few potions he thought it would work with. Holy alignment meant the potion would bind well with anything that supported life. The alchemist wrapped his mind around the concept, trying to find a new way to make a weapon. But every path it took led him to see the supportive nature of the Refined Holy essence modifier.

“Let’s hit the standard stuff first,” Theo said, pulling a Healing Potion forward. Salire prepared a vial to accommodate the extra unit of liquid, setting one of her ornate flat-bottomed vials nearby.

“Let’s do it!” Salire shouted.

Theo tipped the flask of Refined Holy into the empty vial, then added the correct amount of Healing Potion. The mixture reacted calmly, mixing together in a swirl of gold and pink. It pulsed with more golden light, filling the already bright room with holy radiance. It calmed down. Both Theo and Salire leaned in to inspect the resulting potion.

[Healing Potion]

[Holy]

[Potion] [Modified Potion]

Epic

Created by: Theo Spencer

Grade: Excellent Quality

Alignment:

Drogramath (Minor Bond)

A healing potion. Drink to restore health.

Effect:

Instantly restores 175 Health and applies Holy Resonance.

Holy Resonance activates the next time the imbiber’s health drops below 50%. When this condition triggers, the drinker will restore the same amount of health as when the potion was first drunk.

“Two potions. One bottle,” Salire said, nodding with approval. “That’s just good.”

It was an excellent potion. Far better than Theo could have imagined from something so simple. There was absolutely no time-limit described by the system, so he assumed the effect would last forever. The system had a way of taking everything literally with their descriptions, so the alchemist had no reason to think that wasn’t the case.

“People in town are going to go nuts for this one,” Theo said, pushing the vial to the side. “Which one next? Stamina or Mana?”

Salire bit her lip, then nodded to the mana potion.

“Mana it is. Here we go.”

Salire pushed an empty vial forward and Theo added one unit of Refined Holy. He then tipped the entire Mana Potion inside, tapping the glass vials against one another to get every last drop. The reaction was similar to the Health Potion, swirling peacefully until the gold and blue hand merged together. Bands of gold swirled through the final potion, moving as though stirred by some unknown hand. The pair leaned in for inspection.

[Mana Potion]

[Holy]

[Potion] [Modified Potion]

Epic

Created by: Theo Spencer

Grade: Excellent Quality

Alignment:

Drogramath (Minor Bond)

A healing potion. Drink to restore health.

Effect:

Instantly restores 180 Mana and applies Holy Resonance.

Holy Resonance activates the next time the imbiber’s mana drops below 50%. When this condition triggers, the drinker will restore the same amount of mana as when the potion was first drunk.

“That is awesome, but just the same thing,” Theo said.

“I’m guessing the Stamina Potion would do the same thing.” Salire wrote the results in her notes, but seemed quite pleased with the modifier effect. “Boring! Let’s move on to something more interesting.”

Salire slid a Hallow Ground Potion forward. This potion created a banishment circle around the drinker, which would destroy any undead that stepped inside. Taking a potion and modifier derived from the same property typically had great results. Theo pulled the potion toward him, mixing it with the modifier essence and watching the reaction. The silver of the potion mingled with the gold of the modifier, swirling together with more intensity than the other examples. Less violent than most reactions, the interaction between the two was still notable for its intensity.

“Lively one,” Salire said, getting closer to observe the reaction. When it calmed down, they both inspected the result.

[Hallow Ground Potion]

[Holy]

[Potion] [Modified Potion]

Epic

Created by: Theo Spencer

Alignment:

Drogramath (Minor Bond)

Grade: Excellent Quality

Drink to create a zone of denial.

Effect:

Imbiber creates a fifty pace circle around themselves with the [Holy Ground] effect. Undead, ghost, etc creatures may cross into the circle, but will be afflicted with the Holy Judgment effect.

If the imbiber of this potion is aligned with a deity, the souls of the dead will be sent to that realm to await judgment. The afflicted shell will be destroyed.

“Oh, damn,” Salire said, stepping away from the potion. “What does that mean?”

Theo had an idea on how to use this, but he wasn’t sure about ripping the souls away from the undead and sending them to his realm. He wasn’t eager to entertain people who had been trapped in their mortal shells for however long Balkor had bound them. It was a potion that required conversation with heavenly beings. Those that would answer his questions without being silenced by Khahar, that is.

“Next one,” Theo said, leaving the table and rummaging through his storage crates. The lab always had some Potions of Purification sitting around. Just in case someone from the town got sick.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Salire asked, bouncing excitedly.

Theo returned to the experimentation table, adding the potion to an empty vial. He poured the appropriate amount of modifier essence in and watched the reaction. It was as calm as the restoration potions, only swirling in the vial and producing minimal fumes in the air. Something about the scent and sight of the gold-white potion gave the alchemist hope. He and Salire leaned in, inspecting their newest creation.

[Potion of Purification]

[Holy]

[Potion] [Modified Potion]

Epic

Created by: Theo Spencer

Alignment:

Drogramath (Minor Bond)

Grade: Excellent Quality

Imbibing this potion will remove most common ailments. Only one effect can be removed at a time. This potion is imbued with holy power, expanding which ailments can be cured to include poisons, physical damage-over-time effects, hexes, curses, etc.

Effect:

Removes most afflictions from the drinker. Can only remove one effect per potion drunk

“Hex,” Salire breathed, hands trembling as she reached out for the potion.

Theo couldn’t suppress the smile that spread across his face. It was obvious from when they started working with the Holy modifier. It enhanced all supportive potions, including curative ones. Their base Potion of Purification didn’t cover the wide range of affliction types required to remove the hex. But the Holy modifier took care of that. He also noted the other interesting affliction types it cured, including curses. This would be helpful later, no doubt.

“Can I?” Salire asked.

“That was the whole point,” Theo said, gesturing to the potion.

“Time to live a frog-free life,” Salire said, downing the potion in one gulp. She winced, then shrugged. “Tastes like nothing. And… Oh! I got a system message! Spit’s Reverberation is gone!”

“Hooray!”

Salire pulled Theo into a tight hug. She had been plagued by the frogs for so long that he didn’t blame her for reacting so strongly. With the strength of a half-ogre, she squeezed him. The pair remained there for some time before she pushed away, the corners of her eyes wet.

“Okay,” Salire said, removing the sprayer from her inventory and setting it to the side. “Now I want to party.”