The healing had sapped most of my immediate energy. Shaking, I turned the steaks, checking that each was cooked thoroughly. While I was fairly certain that the kids would prefer at least slightly bloody meat, I had no idea what kinds of parasites existed here, or if any did. The last thing I wanted was to have any of us be sick with no way to heal us. I may have wound up in a new place with new power, but I had no idea how to be responsible with its use.
Once the steaks were finished, I set them on a nearby rock to cool in the cold air. I cautioned the kids to wait, lest they burn their mouths. I scraped out more marrow, and sliced a rather fatty piece of meat for myself, and two of the loin slices for Blainaut.
Blainaut. He was a mystery to me. On the one hand, I couldn’t fault him overmuch for his views, as that was likely all he’d ever known and been taught. You can’t go after an option you don’t know is there, right? In many ways, he seemed a decent man. Ambitious, goal-oriented, somewhat fatalistic, personable; hell, he was even likable if I could overlook the one glaring fault. But, I couldn’t. His views on personhood were repugnant to me, and I had to force myself to keep him around. Killing him outright was out of the question. One cannot learn if one dies. Hopefully, he would be able to learn enough in the next few days to maybe broker a peaceful solution with the lizardfolk. I had my doubts, but I certainly wasn’t going to beat him over the head with my reasoning. That would be counterproductive. Oddly enough, I wanted him to live. I wanted to see him learn and grow, and maybe start a spark of a change in attitude. Pipe dream? Perhaps, but a worthy one.
The steaks finished, and I set the other pieces on another nearby rock to cool. The boys had already dug into theirs, and were chattering happily a few yards away. I knew I’d lose them eventually, but seeing them happy for the time I had them was so uplifting that I couldn’t help but want this moment to never end. But it must. Like all things, it must.
After a few minutes, I called Blainaut over, as I didn’t have the energy to take them over to him. I could barely restrain myself as I tore into my steak, juice dripping down my bearded face. In this manner, the five of us ate in relative comfort. I cooked a few more steaks for later, and eventually cleaned and put away the camp stove. I had just about formulated a spell to preserve the meat, and I thought it was time to test it out. Blainaut had decided to watch.
Somewhat energized, I turned to the strips I had salted earlier. Much of the moisture had been drawn out already. I pulled one to the side, and concentrated on it, saying “Dehydrate.” The piece shivered as the liquid poured out of it onto the grass, leaving a very dry, rather salty piece of meat. I picked it up, examined it, and took a tentative bite. While not chewy in any sense of the word, it was edible, and would likely resist rot and decay for quite some time. It was rather easy to tear into smaller strips, so I could consider this a success. The moisture coming out was another problem. If I could purify it, we would have some water without me having to use magic. Another resource issue I was going to have to face sooner rather than later.
“Blainaut, I have some questions and some concerns. I’m hoping you could answer them for me.” I rested my elbow on my knee, and my chin in my hand.
“I will certainly try.” His face was unreadable. He was watching either the horizon or the boys playing in the meadow.
“I do not know this world at all. Hell, I’ve only been here for less than two days, and it seems I’m making a mess. I don’t know where potable water is, I don’t know the creatures, I don’t know the people, and I don’t know what I’m going to do next. In all the games I used to play, I was always a spellcaster of some kind, and magic is something I’ve always dreamed of having, although now that I do, I’m not sure I want to keep using it; especially with the obvious toll it's taking on my body. Can I do amazing things and previously unheard-of feats with it? Yes, absolutely. Could it also kill me? Also, yes.” I sighed, watching the three brothers chase each other. “Can you help me with this, Blainaut? I’m out of my depth, and I’ll take advice from damn near anywhere.”
He sat there, a look of shock on his face. “You truly are from another world, aren’t you?” I nodded somberly, and he continued. “I had honestly figured you from the Western continent based on your clothing and actions. Although, on closer inspection, your clothing is of materials I’ve never seen before, and your gear is well, to put it bluntly, utterly alien to anything I’ve ever even heard of, and I have the resources of the Guild to draw upon.” He sighed, looking down at his hands. “You are definitely not from here, Ivor. I think I fully understand that now. Your attitudes toward what I’ve always known as simply the order of the world, coupled with your clothing and speech patterns, and your simple brazen disregard for safety make it absolutely certain. That Dire Bear is a prime example. As is your continual spellcasting.” He looked around, trying to see any landmarks, “I think there is a river about three leagues to the West where we can take our fill. And, if memory serves, it will lead us to the territory of the lizardfolk. However, we will go through a couple of villages. I have no coin, nor do I have any items of value to trade. You could get something for this meat, but it wouldn’t do for anyone to see you pull it from your bag. We would need to construct a cart of some sorts to haul it in for at least an hour. That skin will fetch a princely sum. One that only our king would be able to afford.” He rubbed the back of his neck, stretching for a moment. “And people are people. Everywhere I’ve ever been, people are usually the same. A different set of clothes, perhaps, but essentially the same. Your size will stand out almost everywhere. You are only as tall as most women, but more broad than any man I’ve ever met, with the exception of most blacksmiths. What did you do as a career in your home world?”
I looked at my hands for a moment, and then up at the sky. The sun was starting to dip, and I figured it wise to set up camp again, just as I had before. I still had to deal with the meat. “I will answer that in a bit. I have to put away this meat somehow. I think I’ve got it figured out, but I’m going to need to cast more spells.” I sighed, not happy with the necessity.
“If I may?” I nodded, and he continued “Remember that you don’t have to spend all your energy with each spell. Learn to put just enough energy into it to make it work, and your reserves will last longer. From what I saw in your first spells, it was like watching someone use a sledgehammer to drive a finishing nail. I can understand your passion, truly. Control yourself, and you can turn that sledgehammer into a needle. Fine enough to slip into the cracks to achieve your desired results, but only just enough force to pierce.” I nodded thoughtfully, digesting these words. “From what I remember from my short time at the Academy, your wording matters greatly. It isn’t so much what you say, but how it is said, along with the intent and desire behind it. We don’t have much in the way of information as regards the Ancient Tongue, but we do know those things, at least. I tell you this out of pure self-preservation. I’ve seen people violently explode from miswording a spell, and having it feed back into themselves.” The look he gave me brokered no nonsense, and I nodded thoughtfully.
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“Well. In that case, I think it prudent to discuss my ideas regarding the storage of the meat.” Blainaut nodded, gesturing for me to continue. “I figured that by sealing it in a vacuum, I’d be able to preserve it for a few days, but it needs to be chilled, or even frozen. The energy needed to freeze this much meat would be incredible.”
Blainaut nodded, adding “Some of our best mages in the kingdom have been working on a method to do just that. We have had no success, however. The person who figures it out will stand to be rich beyond his wildest dreams.”
I cocked my head to the side, asking “What about time magic? Has anyone ever attempted that?”
Blainaut scratched his cheek thoughtfully, “Not that I can recall. I don’t think any of the Ancient Tongue regarding time was ever unearthed. I don’t know what would happen, though. There are spells for removing poison, but I don’t think that would help in this case. Without smoke or salt, I don’t know that we can save this much meat. Drying it the way you did is an option, but that would take a few more hours of preparation, and I don’t know how much more magic.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I’m sorry I can’t be of more help.”
I sighed, still worrying the problem through, “It’s okay. Worth the asking. I’ll think of something.”
I reached into my bag and pulled out my backpack of supplies. There had to be something in here I could use. I pulled out my notebook and pencil. Perhaps I could sketch something I could make? I thought for a moment, and started to design a drying rack. I dug back into the pack, and withdrew the twine I kept in there. A useful thing, a ball of twine. The materials were all around me, and it would just be a matter of connecting and reinforcing them somehow. A source of gentle heat, plus a light breeze would work. Could I use the rock trick again? I figured it was worth a shot. I had plenty of food I could gorge myself on, if need be.
I trotted over to the old, dead oak, and gathered up an armful of the cast off limbs laying about, and returned to the pile of meat. I worked on forming the shapes I needed in the drying rack, and arranged and tied the wood as best I could. Best to work with what I had, right? Do as much of the heavy lifting by hand, and use as little magic as possible. Once I had the rack built in sections as much as I could, I focused on the framework, and Fused it together. I didn’t feel much drain with that, so I continued. I made a lattice out of smaller twigs and branches, and Fused that to the frame where it was needed. Pulling out a pair of stones, I cupped one and said “Gentle breeze.” Wind strong enough to ruffle my shirt began to emanate from one side of the stone, and I set it down. Picking up the other one, I cupped it and said “Heat.” Immediately, the rock grew almost unbearably warm, and I dropped it. It didn’t seem to be catching anything on fire, so it was probably safe. I would definitely destroy this one.
I figured I could make an air blade, and use it to cut through the meat, and to my surprise, I found that it did the job nicely and used almost no energy. In this way, I was able to thinly slice the meat. I used several Hands of Air to arrange it all on the rack in record time.
I ripped up some earth, and fashioned a box-like holder for both of the stones. If I could make this work, I would have a makeshift dehydrator. I fitted the heat stone and the wind stone in their respective places, and Fused it all. I started feeling hungry again, so I ate another steak, and pulled a bundle of the hickory wood and the cast iron skillet from my bag. If I added some smoke, it would have more flavor and be more desirable. This might work. I Duplicated the bundle twice, took hold of the two new bundles and spoke “Shred.” and was left with two piles of wood chips that might well be enough to last the night. I was still feeling okay, so I set the skillet onto the stone holder, and covered the bottom with wood chips. I cast a Dome of Air over the drying rack, and watched as the space filled with smoke. Releasing it, I reconsidered using air, and went ahead and made a box out of earth, complete with a chimney. I ate a third steak, and nodded at my contraption. It seemed I’d made a forced-air smoker.
Blainaut had been watching me with interest for the entire time. “How in the world did you come up with all that? I recognized a drying rack, but the rest is, well, odd. What is it?”
I stood up slowly, brushing the dirt off my hands, and wiping the sweat from my brow. “This is a forced-air smoker. That stone on the bottom blows a breeze through the box, and the stone above it heats the skillet, which in turn chars the wood, causing it to smoke. And there we have it. A forced-air smoker. The meat will probably be done by morning, as thin as it is.” I looked over to where the boys were playing, and called them over. “Hey guys, it’s getting dark. I think we should settle in for the night. Come on back.” They all ran over, eyeing the new contraption.
“What’s this thing, Mr. Ivor? It looks weird.” claimed Ahte-tan.
Ahte-ukum simply sat next to it and sighed. “Waaaaarrrrmmmm….”
I laughed and said “Well, if I’m right, this will solve our food problems for the trip, plus maybe even get us some money. Let's get back to the fire pit, okay?” Kneeling down at the back of the smoker, I touched the ground and spoke a Dome of Concealment into being. Standing up, I retrieved the bundle of wood, then I started walking back to the pit, and placed the wood next to it, Duplicating it twice. “That should hold us.”
I started the fire, and took a seat. The boys all clambered up onto me. I guessed I was warm enough. I took hold of the chair, and whispered “Strengthen.” hoping to keep a collapse at bay. Blainaut took his seat, and waited patiently.
“Okay. I think I’ve gotten us into relative safety for the evening. Blainaut, you asked about my life in the other world, and I think now is as good a time as any to tell it.” I took a moment and then launched into the story of how I got here.