I wake up slowly; it isn’t that I am reluctant to get up, it’s more that I don’t want to wake the two snoozing beside me. At some point in the night, Misty has changed position and is now curled up part on my shoulder, part tucked into my neck. Her soft purring breaths are a comfort after the recent events.

The other sleeping form is Elara, who has rolled over and is now snuggled close to me. Her arm is across my chest, her leg over mine.

‘It feels nice but,’ I consider how best to extract myself. ‘I really need the bathroom.’

As I start to shift and slide out, she opens sleepy eyes, then moves a little to free me. Glancing at the window, I see it’s still before sunrise. ‘Damn beer before bed waking me up,’ I growl.

I get done and climb back into bed. ‘Another hour or so.’ I roll onto my side, and Misty gives me a huffy look before prancing over to get comfortable once more. Elara rolls into my back and throws an arm back over me. I am just drifting off when I feel the soft touch of lips gently kiss the back of my neck.

Donna serves breakfast to us as we sit in the common room with Jake and Merl, who had come in shortly after we came downstairs.

“I thought I might join you for some of Donna’s bacon,” he had said.

The conversation is a vivid dissection of last night’s events.

“I need to go see Paolo later,” I tell them. “We still need to finish getting to the bottom of all this mess so it doesn’t happen again.”

Vita comes down and pulls up a chair to join us. We soon catch her up with the conversation so far.

“I need to see Paolo as well,” she says. “So if it’s alright, I will join you when you go.”

“Of course, I also have some things I need you to look at when you are up to it.”

We finish eating and then head up with Vita in tow.

“So, what do you have for me to look at?” she asks as we get into the room.

I indicate the chest.

“I believe much of the contents fall into your line of work, so I would really appreciate it if you could help us figure out what is what,” I say as I open the lid.

She raises her eyebrows at the myriad vials, bottles, and other assorted goods within.

“This man was either an accomplished alchemist himself or else spent a lot of money to stock this.” She begins to pluck bottles and vials from the racks, studying each, swirling the contents, looking carefully at them through the light of the window, before carefully easing the stoppers and giving a cautious sniff.

One or two even lead her to put a small drop on her finger and taste it with the tip of her tongue.

As I watch her work, I notice Elara observing closely, almost buzzing with a dozen questions, held in check to avoid disturbing Vita’s careful study.

At last, she looks up from where she is sitting on the floor beside the chest.

“So, what do you want to know?” She shakes her head at the chest. “To be honest, there are some things in here I would need to thoroughly investigate, to figure out what you have.”

“The basics first.” She indicates a collection of six bottles containing a clear liquid, perhaps a half-pint in each. “This is pure water. Pure water is a highly refined water infused with mana, and it’s used to dilute and create potions. These alone would set you back three silver a bottle to buy.”

I let out a low whistle.

“Indeed, alchemy is not a cheap activity to practice,” she says seriously. Indicating some other half-pint bottles, she describes them as various acids and alkalis, all solutions for distilling ingredients to extract the essential elements from the base material.

“If you want to get the best from something to make a potent potion or poultice, then you need to be able to extract these elements. Of course, you can just crush up a herb and slap it on, and it will have an effect of sorts, but the properly prepared product is what you really need.”

I think of my mashed-up feldspar from when I first wound up here. ‘Medicine man you sure were not my old chum,’ I smile at the memory.

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The rest of the racks are full of much smaller vials, many containing just a sip or two. The final tally gives us five healing potions, one being very strong and able to deal with truly life-threatening situations, three vigour potions which she tells me would refresh a tired body back to full ability. There are also two potions to increase strength to the point of being able to carry far more for a period, though she doesn’t know how long and guesses at maybe an hour. That leaves seven vials that she can’t recognise and would need more research.

“Are either of you intending to start learning alchemy?” she asks us.

I shake my head. Although I have learned some basic herbalism, alchemy isn’t in my plans for now.

“I am interested in it at some point,” Elara says. “But I need to concentrate on my nature magic first. Once I am proficient, then it may be something I branch into as I could then make the herbs so much better and stronger.” She looks at the array before us with a hint of regret.

“In that case, if you want to consider it, I can offer you a potion pouch that can safely hold up to twenty potions and a collection of pastes and powders.” She rummages through the collection of ingredients again, doing a quick tally. “Plus, twenty-one gold and six silver for the chest and the remaining contents. You keep as many of the potions already made as you want, and I will throw in a couple of pots of feldspar paste as well.”

I look at Elara. ‘Is that a good deal? I sure don’t want to have to lug that damned chest around with us.’

“You have a better idea of the value of this sort of thing than I do,” I tell her.

Misty strolls over and rubs up against Vita, getting the desired pets from the bonesetter.

‘Trust,’ she tells me.

At the same time, Elara nods her agreement. “It’s a fair price, Del, more than fair to be frank.”

I take a moment, looking at the chest, its contents somewhat spread around us.

‘That money will come in very handy; I doubt the city is as reasonable in cost as a small village.’

I offer Vita my hand. “It looks like you have a deal, Vita. Now let's get this packed back away and go see Paolo.”

A little later, as we cross the village square, we get lots of waves and greetings from the villagers. All of the mistrust and dark looks we had noticed before are conspicuous in their absence. ‘I wonder why that is,’ I can’t help but reflect on. ‘Seems they don’t have an issue with elves anymore.’

I see a small shape come charging up towards us, and Naomi barrels into Elara’s arms in a great big hug.

“Mummy told me you got the Night Man,” she exclaims excitedly.

“And we couldn’t have done it without you,” Elara laughs as she hugs the girl back. “Now you run along; we have to go see the elder.”

Squirming a bit, Naomi jumps down and runs off.

“Nate, Nate, I know where you are hiding,” her voice rings out as she disappears around a corner.

“I bet she is cheating,” Elara chuckles, watching her run off.

Paolo’s office is a bustle of activity, with Paolo in an animated discussion with one of his aides. On seeing us, he immediately disengages and comes across, hand outstretched in greeting.

Grasping hands firmly, he bids us an enthusiastic welcome, giving Elara a quick hug and then holding both of Vita’s hands as he looks her up and down.

“You look much better than when we parted last night, my dear woman. How are you feeling?”

“I have been better, Elder,” she responds, “and will be so again.”

“Excellent,” Paolo enthuses. “Now, come this way; we have much to talk about.”

We are ushered through the room and into his office. Closing the door behind us, he indicates some chairs around a low coffee table.

“Sit, sit.” He pulls a cord, and a young face peeks into the room. “Can you get us a pot of tea and some biscuits, please, Sara.” As her face disappears, he explains, “I have given Emily a couple of days off to recover, so she is staying with her brother for now.”

“Are the others all managing to get back on their feet?” I ask him.

“Breeda will need some time; if you could look in on her, I would be grateful,” he says to Vita. “The lads were all raring to get back to work and check on what had happened while they were gone. I think the tavern will be full tonight.”

‘A rowdy mix of tall tales, adventures, and relief, no doubt. Sounds like a blast.’ I agree; tonight will be one for letting the hair down and getting drunk.

“Do you yet have any idea what it was all about?” he asks us, getting down to business.

My face serious, I nod in affirmation.

“I found some sort of journal, though I can’t read it.” I pull the leather-bound book out of my pack.

“May I?” Vita asks, holding out her hand. I pass it to her, and she opens it and starts to carefully go through it.

I then pull out the letter I had also found and read it out loud.

Ishmael,

In the cavern of ‘Ithnor’ complete the circle and initiate the Rite of Krator.

Find suitable conduits and be ready to complete the process on the new moon of Shoole.

The heaving will come early this time.

They will not be ready.

C

As I finish reading, I see that Vita is staring at me, the journal lying in her lap. Paolo is pale, his eyes flitting about.

“What in all the demons’ hells…” he splutters. “Vita, do you know of these things? What does it mean?”

“I know little of these things,” she admits sadly. “I would imagine that the cavern of ‘Ithnor’ is the name of the place where you rescued us.”

“The Rite of Krator must be what he was preparing for, and the new moon of Shoole is in two days,” Elara adds.

“Bringing in the heaving at least twenty years ahead of when it's expected would have been a disaster,” concludes Paolo.

"We are indeed in your debt,” he says, looking towards Elara and me. “If you hadn’t turned up, I doubt we would ever have got to the bottom of things in time.”

I notice that Vita, after giving me a look of silent agreement with the elder’s words, has gone back to looking at the journal.

[Quest completed: experience gained. Renown gained in Village of Stonebridge.]

“Most of this I can’t read.” Her tone is resigned. “Mages use a different sort of arcane to alchemists.”

‘I guess you all like to protect your secrets.’

She continues flipping through the pages. “From the layout, it’s a spell book of some type.”

She reaches the centre. On one side is a large arcane symbol, the other covered in indecipherable script.

Her gasp is loud in the room and makes me jump.

“What is it?” I ask, leaning forward.

She points at the symbol, her head shaking as if to negate what she sees.

“This sign, I know it.” I don’t think I had ever heard such distaste in her voice before.

“It is the mark of Zelore.”