As they once again entered Zogmar’s workshop, Justin got the distinct sense they were wearing on the potions master’s nerves. Zogmar downright scowled when Justin informed him that the Queen had ordered him to provide some basic potions.
In the end, Zogmar relented, albeit reluctantly. He reached under his workbench, pulling out a weathered leather satchel filled with vials. About a dozen potions were inside, half of them tinted a faint green, while the rest glowed a soft pink.
“Good luck,” Zogmar muttered as he handed over the satchel. “The pink ones are for general healing, while the green ones are antidotes. They should work on the basic poisons Glamshara likes to use, but if she’s using anything more complicated, they might not work.”
Justin picked up one vial, inspecting it. Etched into the bottom of each vial was a small “Z,” clearly a mark Zogmar used to denote ownership of the glassware.
“I want those back when you’re done,” Zogmar said, his voice sharp. “Good glassware is scarce down here.”
“Thanks,” Justin said, giving a nod of appreciation.
“Be careful,” Zogmar added, leaning forward and locking eyes with Justin, his dark orbs gleaming with intensity. “Glamshara’s wily, especially with her words. You’ve seen that by now. The more time you give her to talk, the more likely she’ll sway things in her favor. Don’t let her get in your head.”
Justin studied Zogmar carefully, noting the potions master’s tone. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
Zogmar smiled slightly, though it was more of a tight-lipped smirk. “Good luck. You’ll need it.”
Then, as if remembering something, Zogmar turned back to his workbench and retrieved a small blowgun, offering it to the group. “I know you weren’t keen on using this before, but if you can get the antidote into Grashuk, it’ll go a long way toward leveling the playing field. He may even switch sides once he realizes how Glamshara has been playing him.”
“I’ll take that,” Kargan said, taking the blowgun from Zogmar’s hands. “We used these sometimes in the clan halls back home. Shouldn’t be too hard.”
Zogmar nodded approvingly. “Very well.” His expression softened as he added. “Go find justice.”
With that, Zogmar turned back to his alchemy work, dismissing them.
“Come on,” Borgruk said. “We’ve got our work cut out for us.”
As they left Zogmar’s workshop, Justin couldn’t shake the sense of incompleteness that lingered within him. He had hoped solving the mystery would bring him some form of satisfaction, but it left a hollow feeling. There were still too many missing pieces nagging him.
They had yet to fully confirm the love potion theory. And a few of the Queen’s words had sown seeds of doubt in his mind. What if the love potion wasn’t even involved? What if Grashuk had been behind it all, orchestrating events for his own gain? Or worse, what if they had misjudged Zildur and dismissed her role too quickly? Maybe the fork had been placed there by her and Justin has simply misread her face. Perhaps they’d overlooked someone else entirely—Halkra, or another member of the tribe they hadn’t met.
And most of all, if Glamshara wasn’t making the antidote for the Shadow’s Kiss, what was she doing with that Heart of the Moonflower?
It felt as if the mystery was far more complicated than the Vault had initially suggested, or they had missed a crucial, obvious piece of evidence.
The greatest deceptions are found in the smallest of details.
All Justin could think was, they better be getting an epic piece of loot for solving this one.
The walk through the dark stone passage seemed quicker this time, though it might have been the growing tension making the time pass unnoticed.
But about halfway through, the strange sound of clicking echoed down the corridor, reverberating off the ancient walls.
Justin signaled for the group to halt, listening intently. The sound grew louder, more distinct. It was coming toward them.
Suddenly, a strange piece of machinery skittered into view from the shadows, what had to be a dwarven construct. It was a mechanical contraption shaped like a spider, about as tall as Justin’s head. Its legs, long and razor-sharp, clanged against the stone floor as it moved toward them. Its round body gleamed like dull metal, almost resembling a tin can with a metallic head. The construct’s eight legs stabbed downward in swift, deadly strikes, and a pair of glowing red eyes fixed on the party.
“Go for the legs!” Borgruk called out.
As in response to the goblin’s voice, the construct sprung into action. Bohemond charged forward, shield raised, using some sort of bashing skill to drive it back, despite its size. The clang of metal-on-metal echoed through the hallway as the construct’s legs scraped across the surface, sparks flying.
“Surround it!” Justin shouted, stepping to the side.
Kargan rushed forward, casting Sacrificial Armor on Bohemond, while Borgruk came in from the left side. He swung his scimitar in, aiming for the construct’s vulnerable joints. The sword connected with a loud crunch, severing one of the metallic legs. The construct staggered slightly, but it quickly adjusted, stabbing downward with another leg.
Justin came in from the other side. Like Borgruk, he focused on the exposed joint, finding his Cane of Valoria quite effective at the task. The creature hissed hot steam, turning its red-eyed gaze toward Justin.
“No, you don’t!” Bohemond charged, ramming into the side of the construct with his shield, throwing it out of balance.
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The creature scuttled back, its legs scrambling for purchase, but Justin seized the moment. He darted forward, jabbing his cane into the vulnerable seam between the body and one of the remaining legs. With a sharp twist, he wrenched the leg free, sparks flying as the construct let out a metallic screech.
Borgruk moved in for the kill, his scimitar raised high above his head. He brought it down with a brutal strike, cleaving the “head” part of the construct clean off. The red lights in its eyes flickered and dimmed. The metallic spider collapsed to the ground in a heap of shattered gears and twisted metal.
Panting slightly, Kargan stepped back. “That thing was fast.”
“Too fast for comfort,” Bohemond grunted, wiping sweat from his brow.
Justin studied the ruined construct for a moment. This dwarven creation didn’t seem to be too difficult for their party to deal with alone, but if they ever gathered in large numbers, it could be deadly. He hoped that wouldn’t happen.
“Let’s keep moving,” Justin said. “We’re almost there.”
The party regrouped and continued down the corridor. Within five minutes, they reached the collapsed doorway where rubble blocked part of the entrance. Bohemond paused, examining his right hand with a curious expression.
“Strange,” he muttered. “I was burned here by that steam, but now it’s mostly healed.” He glanced at Kargan. “Was this your doing? I don't remember you healing me.”
The orc was quiet for a moment before finally answering. “In a way.”
“Explain,” Bohemond said, raising an eyebrow.
Kargan sighed. “It’s my new party skill, Vital Flow. It allows all my party members to heal naturally at a rate based on my Endurance attribute. My Endurance is edified to 18 right now, including my gear bonuses, so everyone’s healing at 18% of the rate I naturally heal.”
“That’s an awesome skill!” Justin said, clearly impressed.
“I cast it at the start of the battle,” Kargan continued. “It’ll last the whole day.”
Bohemond looked at Kargan thoughtfully. “Well, it’s useful. I’ll give you that much.”
That was probably the closest thing to a compliment they could hope for from Bohemond, but it was progress. It seemed like the knight was finally respecting Kargan’s abilities.
Justin opened the satchel of potions. “Speaking of healing, it looks like there are enough potions in here for each of us to have one healing potion and one antidote, with a few in reserve.”
He divided the supplies among the group.
“So, what’s the plan?” Bohemond asked, hefting his shield. “Are we going to arrest them, or are we going in for the kill?”
“The most important thing is securing the Heart of the Moonflower,” Justin said. “Glamshara will have it. We saw her working with it, after all. Let me do the talking.”
“Remember what Zogmar said,” Bohemond warned. “If you let her talk too long, she’ll twist your brain into knots.”
“I can manage,” Justin replied confidently. “If it comes to blows, Bohemond’s our tank. Kargan will handle healing. That leaves Borgruk and I to go straight for Grashuk. He’ll be defending Glamshara while she shoots off those darts of hers. If we bring him down fast, she’ll be defenseless. Kargan can try to land a dart in. Seems he's a victim of this as much as everyone else.”
Borgruk shook his head. “I can’t believe I may be attacking the Warlord, but Grizshara gave her orders.”
“Let’s try to talk first, but if they attack, don’t hold back,” Justin said firmly.
“We’d better get moving,” Bohemond said, already climbing the rubble. “The more we talk, the more time they have to prepare.”
“What if they’ve set traps?” Kargan asked. “They’ve had plenty of time.”
“We’ll just have to keep our eyes peeled,” Borgruk said. “If I see anything, I’ll shout it out. Goblins see well in the dark, even better than orcs.”
With that, they climbed over the rubble, allowing Borgruk to take the lead. On the other side, it was eerily quiet, but the light from Glamshara’s lab flickered ahead, casting a glow around the corner of the large chamber before them. Unlike last time, there were no old ghosts waiting for them.
They crept forward cautiously, but when they reached the lab, they found it completely empty. Justin immediately sensed a trap, as Kargan had suggested. He already knew Glamshara’s level—12—so if she tried to ambush them, his Gentleman’s Rebuff would activate, since it would defend against attackers up to Level 12.
Kargan also set up a Ward of Aegis, offering the group some protection while they investigated the lab.
“Search for anything that might serve as further evidence,” Justin said. “We need to close this out quickly.”
They had only been searching for a couple of minutes when Borgruk paused at what seemed to be Glamshara’s primary workstation. “What’s this?”
Justin turned to look, to find Borgruk’s hand brushing against a thick, dusty tome sitting on the alchemy table. The book’s cover was adorned with dwarven runes, and a small illustration of a vial. It was clearly an alchemical text.
“Can you read dwarven?” Justin asked.
“No,” Borgruk replied. “But I remember seeing this book. When we first got to the excavation, I picked it up. Zogmar scolded me for touching it.”
“Scolded you?” Bohemond asked.
“Yeah,” Borgruk said. “He’s like that, as you’ve seen. Told me not to touch priceless artifacts. He took the book and put it in his satchel. So, it’s strange to see it here.”
“Maybe there was a second copy?” Kargan suggested.
Justin felt a chill run down his spine. “Let me see that.”
Borgruk handed over the tome. Justin flipped through the worn pages. Most of it was written in dwarven, but there were illustrations of ingredients and potions. One potion, in particular, stood out. Scrawled around its margins were many notes, written in Goblinese. It was clear, neat script.
“That’s Glamshara’s handwriting,” Borgruk said.
Justin read the notes carefully. “The Everlasting Draught,” he said, eyes narrowing. “A potion meant to grant eternal life.” He glanced at Borgruk. “You mentioned Glamshara said the dwarves were messing with things beyond their understanding, trying to achieve eternal life with alchemy.”
“Yeah,” Borgruk nodded. “Zogmar actually came up with the theory, but Glamshara was the one who really latched onto it. She’s always had an interest in the so-called Legendary Draughts. The Everlasting Draught was supposed to be one of them.”
“Legendary Draughts?”
“Extremely powerful potions that would confer an amazing benefit to the one who ingested it,” Borgruk clarified. “That’s what I gathered from their conversation, anyway.”
Justin’s suspicion deepened. “So, this book has a recipe for this Everlasting Draught. Did Zogmar get the idea from this book? If he put in his satchel, then what’s it doing down here?”
“Maybe she stole it from him,” Bohemond said. “Fits her character.”
Justin wasn’t so sure. It was a wrinkle, an added complication, and he couldn’t figure out how it fit in just yet. He looked closer at the recipe for the Everlasting Draught. “Seems there are six ingredients: Sunstone Dust, Abyssal Essence, Thandoran Moss, Veldorian Firebloom, Shard of Zephyron…and Heart of the Moonflower.”
Kargan grunted. “Well, we know what she was using the Heart of the Moonflower for, at least. Definitely not the antidote for Shadow’s Kiss.”
“Some of those ingredients are incredibly rare,” Borgruk said. “Thandoran Moss, Veldorian Firebloom, and Shard of Zephyron are things I’ve never even heard of before.”
The names tickled at Justin’s memory. He recalled a conversation with Eldrin and Lila way back at the Moonlit Alehouse. When he’d revealed he was from another world, Eldrin had mentioned some other planets. Among them were Veldoria, Solanis, and Zephyron, and the names of the ingredients recalled those words. Could these ingredients originate from entirely different planets of his universe?
Justin wasn’t sure how travel between worlds was even possible, but something told him he was on the right track.
“All these incredibly rare ingredients…were they all in this lab?” Justin asked.
“Maybe,” Borgruk shrugged. “Seems to me like Glamshara was trying to make the Everlasting Draught instead of saving Nyrissa.”
Their conversation was cut short when Kargan’s ward sizzled with the impact of a hostile attack. The group spun around to see Grashuk and Glamshara standing in the doorway, ready for battle.
“Step away from my table,” Glamshara hissed, her voice cold and threatening. “Or the next dart goes between your eyes.”