Ms. Elsie Brown leaned in close to the paper taped to the counter. “I gotta admit, the flier does look nice.”

James watched the appraisal. “Eh, it was just thrown together with a basic word processor. The hardest part was coming up with all the fine print.”

Elsie leaned in closer. “We reserve the right to cancel the auction and refund any collected money for any reason, including but not limited to failure to meet reserve price, participant manipulation, or other malfeasance?”

“Exactly. Gives us an out in case we need it. You never know what some people will try to do for books like these.” James leaned back on his stool, reaching out to pick up a paperback novel. I was curled up on the floor next to him. “I’ve put these up in several places in town, and even asked for some help getting them online. If all goes well, we might have a busy month.”

“Gee, I still don’t know about all this. Well, I guess we’ll just have to see what happens.” Elsie picked up her own book, sitting on the other stool behind the counter.

For the first two hours, however, what happened was nothing at all. One customer came in during that entire morning, and they were surprised about the flier. “Oh, ‘Mages of Terra’? Is that some new game on Kickstarter?”

James smiled. “Ah, it’s been around for some time, it just has… a very small following, probably. We happened to have one of the books, and we’re hoping to see it go to a collector that will value it. And who knows, maybe we can get more, if this goes well? Once we know collectors, we could buy books they want to get rid of, and we can find them new homes.”

“But, like, you only have the one? You don’t have the core book? I play a lot of Dungeons and Dragons online.”

“Unfortunately, this is the only book we have. Fans used to sometimes write their own books by hand, you probably can’t even find them online. Are you interested in registering a bid? Highest bid at the end of the month gets to buy the book, and we’ll call you if you’ve been outbid.”

“Nah, man, without the core book, it’s not really any use to me, yeah?” The customer didn’t look happy about the sales attempt.

“Hm, I suppose not. Well, if you change your mind, we’re doing this all month. We do hope to find someone who can make use of it, though.”

Elsie watched the exchange silently, though once it was over, she was able to help the customer find a book from the regular shelves. He seemed happy as he left with some new reading material.

“Well, not the best start, eh? Still, wasn’t a total loss.” Elsie regarded her employee with a teasing grin.

“Yes, but the month is young. If there are people who are interested, they will come. They can’t possibly pass this up.”

“I still don’t really know what it is they’d be passing up… I couldn’t find a single mention of this ‘Mages of Terra’ online, you know? Was it really that rare?”

“You saw the book yourself. It’s handwritten, possibly by a fan. That’s how almost every one of these books are. You saw my own book, it’s the same story.” James patted the satchel bag under the counter with his spellbook inside. His Mages’ Guild badge was nestled inside the bag itself, since he was in Earth clothes today. And if his trap did bring someone intended, he wanted to avoid giving himself away too early.

“Yeah, I guess… It’s just weird, it’s like there’s this whole other world that I’m only getting a peek into, and I don’t know what any of it means.”

James chuckled. “Isn’t any fandom like that? Human interest is fractal, you can always dig deeper into something that catches your attention.”

It wasn’t until two days later that an encounter of note happened, related to the auction. A man wearing expensive-looking clothes gingerly stepped in, as if expecting the very dust in the air to eat away his suit like a flock of moth-piranha hybrids. “You there, are you responsible for this?” The man tapped a finger against the flier taped to the counter. I was in my usual spot, ready to warn if I sensed someone with actively flowing magic. Mr. High and Mighty didn’t have any, at least not right now.

James tried not to show any sign of being upset at the rude tone. “Well, the store is holding the auction, I’m just an employee. Are you interested in putting down a bid?”

“Possibly. I’d need to… inspect the book in question.” The man looked down his nose at both Elsie and James.

“Ah, sadly, it’s currently being held in a secure location. It’s a delicate item, we can’t risk it being damaged before it’s sold, you see.”

Elsie nodded. “That’s right, it’s a very rare collector’s item, don’tcha know.”

The man scoffed, but sighed. “Very well, I shall put down a bid for… five hundred dollars.” He glared intently, taking note of Elsie’s surprise, and James’ lack thereof.

James pulled out a registration form and a pen, asking him to fill out a name and phone number, along with the bid amount. At the bottom was a signature, with a block of text stating that he was agreeing to purchase the item for the listed price if he won the auction, as well as a repeat of the disclaimer on the flier. “Here you are. While it’s currently the high bid, I’m not sure if it will remain that way for long. You may want to think about increasing it.”

The pen scribbled along the paper, the man raising his eyes at the comment. “Is that so? And who else has been bidding on it?”

James simply smiled. “Obviously, I cannot reveal any information about other customers. You wouldn’t want me sharing information about you, would you?”

A severe scowl met the statement. “Sharing information? Do you not know who I am?”

“You haven’t filled out the form yet, so no, I’m afraid I don’t.”

“I am THE Horace Augustine.” With a hand dramatically on his chest, he waited to get the fawning adoration and praise for existing he believed he deserved. When that didn’t happen, he glared at the two.

James simply smiled politely. Elsie had a thoughtful look. “I feel like I’ve heard that name… somewhere?”

Horace nearly turned red in the face. “Of course you have! My grandfather, the original Horace Augustine, is responsible for this town being… anything worth living in! He built the castles, he built this town, he gave it a reason to exist!”

Elsie’s face brightened. “The castle guy! Oh, I remember doing a tour back when they did those! It’s a shame they stopped, it was nice, you know?”

James continued to smile politely. “You know, I did kind of wonder about those. They look nice, but I don’t know about them being the only reason for the town to be here.”

Elsie spoke up, trying to remember facts from something she was told years ago. “Oh, he owned some big company around here, I think it’s still around, but I don’t remember the name of it? But he did a lot of building and stuff and he liked castles, so around the 60s and 70s, he had a bunch of castle-looking buildings made. I think?”

Horace slammed a fist on the counter, forgetting it still held the pen, which snapped the tip against the paper. “You make it sound like he was… some… forgettable eccentric man! He was great, and I… I am the rightful heir to his legacy!”

“You’re making a mess. Luckily, we have more pens and more forms, if you still want to put a bid in, Mr… I’m afraid I didn’t catch the name, could you repeat it?” James gave a polite smile again.

The man looked down at his hand, now covered in ink, and looked disgusted. Pulling out a handkerchief, he tried to wipe the ink as best he could, but the embarrassment made him mutter a thanks as he requested a replacement form, this time filling it out without incident.

“Very well, Mr. Augustine. Best of luck with the auction, would you like to pick out anything else while you’re here, sir?” James smiled and placed the form under the counter for safety.

“Ugh, from here? No thank you, my only interest is in that book.” Horace continued to rub the handkerchief on his hand, worried about getting the ink on his clothes. “Where did you acquire it anyway, uh… you?” James wasn’t particularly old enough or otherwise distinctive enough to really bring to mind any descriptor to add, and apparently it was too awkward to just say “man”.

“Oh, it’s not mine. Ms. Brown has owned it for quite some time, it was just my idea to try to auction it and see what happened.” James smiled sweetly.

“Your idea…? What made you rea–believe the book to be so valuable, anyway?” The man’s eyes narrowed.

“Hm? Well, it looks quite… unique, does it not? I think it might even be hand-written. It could very well be a one-of-a-kind book, quite the conversation piece regardless of contents.”

“Yes, speaking of those contents… You say it is some sort of game?” His tone had the same energy as two wolves, circling each other and looking for some sort of weakness.

“Well, not directly. In fact, it doesn’t have any rules or instructions or anything. Not exactly. No, it’s written from the perspective of a mage detailing ways to use magic. Why, you’d almost think it was real, with how certain the author sounds. The runes almost come alive from the page, so clear and detailed. I included a sample page on the flier, but obviously I couldn’t just include the whole thing.” James’ words had a level of confidence that didn’t show any openings for the stumbling opponent.

“Ah, yes, that… I saw that, yes. So you… read the book yourself?”

“If I had the funds, I would be tempted to buy it myself. But I don’t need it, really, so it’s better to see it go to a collector who would.”

Horace’s eyes widened at that, and James wondered if he had slipped after all. But if so, Horace didn’t say anything. “Well, do call me if I’m outbid. Had I known it was here, I would have bought it years ago.”

Elsie nodded, still excited at the idea of so much money for something so simple as a book. “Oh certainly! While you’re here, you sure you don’t want to pick up anything else? I’ve got a pretty wide selection of fantasy.”

“What I’m interested in, woman, is not fantasy.” He rolled his eyes dismissively, turning to leave, waving his ink-stained hand in parting.

With the door closed, the sound of the bell fading into silence, Elsie sat confused. “But he wants a book about magic? How is that not fantasy?”

“Perhaps he wants to collect it and resell it, not read it himself.” James stared at the door intently, replaying every word of the conversation with careful consideration.

“Are all you collector types so… unpleasant, though?”

James gave a soft chuckle, hoping to break the tension. “Goodness, I hope not. He certainly seems to think he’s better than everyone else, even though he openly admits to being named Horace.”

“Hah! Maybe. But five hundred? Why on Earth would he be willing to pay that much for this silly book?” She shook her head, as if wanting to make sure such insanity didn’t infect her.

“I suspect he’d consider it a steal at five thousand, if I’m being honest. Five million might be pushing it, might not.”

The shopkeeper nearly fell off her stool at that thought, eyes so wide they looked like they were in danger of falling out. “What in the world…? There’s… there’s no way! And I’ve been sitting on this all these years…?”

“To the right collector, you never know. All it takes is one with more money than sense, and this guy certainly has so little sense, it seems.” James smirked as he leaned back against the wall. I sat up so I could nose at his hand to ask to be petted.

“You got me there. Still, just… Wow.”

Three days after the encounter between Tola and Horace Augustine, Ro and Mandy invited Cheryl to get lunch together. The idea had been to get lunch at the mall food court and then visit any stores they had a whim to, but that was thrown into shambles as they pulled into the parking lot only to see that people were fleeing.

“Like, what’s going on here?” Ro tried to follow the crowd back to the origin of their flight, but they were coming from around the corner, so Cheryl drove in that direction.

“I think it’s… that!” Cheryl stopped the car once the source of the panic became visible. There, a large green-skinned figure was going on a rampage, smashing fists onto the roofs of cars or straining to flip them.

“Ohmigawd! It’s, like… an ogre or something? Here?” Ro’s eyes were wide with shock.

Mandy was similarly shocked, but her natural snark took over. “Maybe it’s an orc?”

“Whatever it is, it’s dangerous and it’s violent. We gotta do something!” Cheryl parked the car next to a small “island” median with a pair of decorative knee-high boulders and stepped out, reaching into her purse and pulling out the lightning wand Tola had confiscated from Jared after their first meeting. Since he had his own magic, he had given it to her for protection, and trained her in how to use it.

Ro and Mandy followed, a grim expression on Ro’s face and a worried one on Mandy’s. “I guess it’s time to see how good I’ve gotten with this magic stuff.”

Mandy looked at the two like they’d lost their minds. “You’re really thinking about going up against that thing? What about… I don’t know, calling that Tola guy while we get out of here?”

Cheryl shook her head. “There’s no telling how long it’d take him to get here. And besides, he’d probably say it’s a fight he doesn’t want to pick. We’re here now, we can stop anyone from getting hurt.”

“Yeah, that’s fine for you two, but what am I supposed to do? Either of you got a sword or something?”

Ro took a step forward. “Like, I dunno. Stay back? Call Tola and get him here while we fight? Don’t get near him, I don’t want you to get hurt.”

The creature, nearly ten feet tall, let out a bellowing roar when it saw the three girls that weren’t fleeing. “Hamfist CRUSH puny humans!” For emphasis, he slammed his foot on the ground, sending a tremor through the earth that the others could feel.

Ro took a moment to concentrate. This was so different, compared to the quiet practice at home, and she struggled to keep her mind from panicking as the creature loomed and started to step closer. She brought to mind the images of the runes, one by one, placing each one next to each other. Start. Amplify. Fire. Projection. End. With the runes making a path from one hand to the other, she had a small flame in the air between them, and when she thrust her palms forward, it sent a gout of flame forward in the monster’s direction.

Cheryl gripped her lightning wand in determination. When the beast lurched to the side, awkwardly stumbling out of the way of the unexpected flame, she raised the wand and focused, letting out a focusing shout as a bolt of crackling energy launched from the tip and struck the ogre in the chest. That sent him stumbling backwards and landing on his rear, another shockwave shaking the ground.

“Raaaugh! Damn, that stung! You– Humans wanna play rough? Hamfist play rough!” He was on his feet almost instantly, charging forward. Ro and Cheryl dove to the sides, but poor Mandy had frozen in place. Luckily, she’d been far enough back that she wasn’t the target of that lunge.

Reacting quickly, she popped a canister of mace from a belt-mounted holder, and sprayed it into the creature’s eyes, sending him stumbling backwards with a roar. “Ha HA! I don’t have a sword, but I’ve got mace!” The other two scrambled to their feet.

The ogre’s arms swung blindly, the other hand rubbing at his eyes, trying to clear enough to see. Ro, having had a bit more time, fell back on the other spell she had practiced, the more complex spell letting her command one of the boulders to rise into the air and fling itself at Hamfist. It wasn’t a direct hit, but it knocked him off balance enough to drive him back further.

“Rrrgh! Humans…! What you… Too rough, you gotta knock it off!” Blinking, he seemed to have gotten the rest of the chemical irritant out of his eyes, glaring angrily at the three girls.

Mandy was the first to speak up. “Too rough? Are you…? You think this is some sort of game? We’re stopping a monster from rampaging, from killing, and you’re upset we’re ‘too rough’? What happened to ‘Hamfist crush puny humans’?”

Reaching down, Hamfist picked up the rock that had been thrown at him, hurling it back with a frustrated howl. When it hit, the old pavement cracked, the impact making Mandy stumble, preventing her from getting away before it bounced and rolled into her leg with force, a sickening crack filling the air just before her shriek of pain. She avoided being pinned, but her leg was broken as she pulled herself along the parking lot.

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

“Mandy! Like, that’s it, buddy! Now you’ve gone too far! I mean, like, you were already too far, but now you’re WAY too far!” She had seen a spell in Tola’s book, one he had mentioned but never taught. With her photographic memory, she had recreated it, matching the runes to the individual ones she’d been taught, and practiced it on her own. The first time she embedded a two-foot long spear of ice into a tree trunk, she realized why he hadn’t covered it. But her best friend was hurt, so she wanted a weapon. Start. Ice. Press and Harden. Sharpen. Branch and repeat. Projection. End.

Cheryl raised her wand and that made Hamfist hesitate before charging, the two girls standing bravely in front of the downed third. He saw the glowing runes of the magic, but this time spears of ice formed in the air instead of flame. Then they shot through the air. The first missed, flying to the side. He fell backwards, the second spear sailing inches over his head. The third flew lower, but he rolled enough that it only sliced a chunk out of his arm instead of impaling his chest. Blood sprayed onto the pavement baking in the hot sun.

All this magic had started taking its toll on Ro. She’d been practicing, but this was still more magic than she’d used at once even on her best day. She gasped for breath as spots danced in her vision, forcing herself back into the moment and chasing them away.

Hamfist screamed and grabbed at his wounded arm, eyes wide as he scooted backwards. “What–! No! Stop! C’mon, stupid thing… Give me more!” His bloodied hand reached under the crude oversized tunic he wore, fishing out a large amulet with a glowing emerald in the center. Smacking it like one would a remote with faint batteries, he frantically tried to get it to do whatever it was supposed to.

Cheryl didn’t give him that chance. Another bolt of lightning shot from the wand, through the amulet, and into his chest. The force of it sent him rolling back, enough force that his back hit the pavement, his feet went into the air, and he was flipped around to land face down some feet away. He struggled to his feet, but a look of horror crossed his face when he saw the stone in the center of his amulet had shattered from the strike.

“Screw this! Boss Man is gonna be so pissed you’re breaking script! TONY, WE GO!” Turning tail to run, a pickup truck in the parking lot roared to life, Hamfist jumping into the back of it, and then it peeled out of the parking lot and sped off, around the building.

Cheryl took a step towards him, but then looked back at the exhausted Ro and the injured Mandy, and gave up the futile chase. Rushing over, she knelt down by Mandy. “Are you alert, can you talk to me? Where does it hurt?”

Ro came next, kneeling at Mandy’s other side. “Like, oh gosh, Mandy…!”

Mandy’s face was a rictus of pain, looking up at the other two. “I’m… nnnh, I’m f-fine, it’s just… my leg… It hurts real bad, I think it’s broken, it’s not supposed to bend like that…”

Cheryl carefully probed it with her hands, nodding. Reaching down to just above her ankle, she gave a squeeze. “But you can feel this?”

Mandy nodded, panting as the pain made her struggle to keep from screaming. “Yeah, hurts.”

“That’s a good sign. Let’s call an ambulance, and get help. Ro, can you call 911? I’ll keep an eye on Mandy. It’s not the same as a dog, but a broken leg’s a broken leg, I can make sure she’s okay while we wait for the ambulance.”

Ro nodded, her face pale. Being given a direction cut through the shock and fear, and got her to pull out her phone and dial.

Mandy grimaced as Cheryl continued to probe, to assess the injury. “Hey, we won, at least. Bright side?”

Cheryl smiled, as Ro was talking with the emergency dispatcher and couldn’t be there to reassure her. “Yeah, bright side. Don’t worry, you’ll be fine. That was too close, though. Next time, we do your plan, we run.”

Mandy smiled back, but didn’t bother with words, since they were too much of a hassle with the heavy breathing. Minutes later, the ambulance arrived, and Cheryl and Ro drove to the hospital after it.

“I’m sorry, you guys fought a…? I… Rrgh, I can’t talk right now, I’m at work. I’ll try to take off, if Elsie will let me.” Hanging up the phone, James looked at his employer, who was watching intently. “Hey, uh, so my friend and her friends, um… They had a bit of an incident. It’s pretty slow here, is it all right if I go visit them at the hospital?”

“Oh dearie! Are they all right?” The mention of the hospital caused her to switch from eager curiosity to concern.

“I think so, Cheryl said one of them has a broken leg. Pretty sure she said Mandy, but there’s… There’s a lot going on, I want to get there so I can get the whole story.”

Elsie looked at the store. True to his word, the place had been mostly dead. There hadn’t even been another bid on the book since Mr. Augustine, though the fliers did seem to attract some new customers and even get some of them to pick out novels that weren’t being auctioned. “Yeah, sure, you run along now. You be sure to tell me all about it, won’tcha?”

“Yeah, I will. Thanks, Elsie. Princess, let’s go.” He picked up his satchel and I stood up to follow him. With a city this small, we were able to arrive at the hospital following the phone’s GPS in only twenty minutes or so. However, we were stopped as soon as we entered.

“You can’t bring a dog in here, sir.” The person at the information desk looked angry that they even had to say it.

“Oh, ah… Shoot. Right. Um, where can she wait for me, then?” Master awkwardly glanced down at me, and I looked back up at him.

“Wait? You can’t have a dog in here. This is a hospital. Leave her in your car, or at home. Why did you even bring it with you?”

“Well, she goes everywhere I go, I didn’t even think about it. And we walked here, I don’t own a car. Look, just… Can she wait here in the lobby? She’s very well behaved, I swear.”

I gave a soft whine. I didn’t like the idea of being separated, but I liked even less the reminder of the problems I caused just being here.

“I don’t care how well behaved it is, you can’t have a dog in a hospital!”

Luckily for us, Cheryl had just entered the lobby, and with her was a doctor. “There you are. I had a feeling you’d have Princess with you, so I asked the doctor about dogs visiting.”

Said doctor nodded. “This is the dog? It has all its vaccines, it’s house-trained, and it won’t start barking at strangers?”

The information desk woman seemed upset at being overruled, but at least she didn’t have to argue anymore. Master nodded at the questions. “Yes, she’s incredibly intelligent and trained. Thank you so much. I didn’t mean to make a fuss, I just literally didn’t realize it would be an issue. I’m so used to her following me, she never causes any problems.”

“It’s all right, you don’t have to apologize. We’ve recently been adding a pet visitor policy, we just have to make sure to protect the other patients as well. As long as you stay with me, I can guide you through the halls and let you through.” The doctor smiled as he opened the hallway doors. “This way, please.”

With that, we were able to follow along, as the sharp scent of cleaning agents stung my nose. After an elevator ride, we soon found ourselves entering a room, Ro and Mandy greeting us happily. Well, greeting Master, at least. But I was used to being something of an accessory, something along for the ride. Besides, with the doctor there, I couldn’t really speak up or be talked to directly.

There was an awkward tension in the air, though if the doctor noticed it, he must have assumed it was related to him being in the room. Most likely, he thought the others were waiting until he left to yell at the girl with the broken leg for doing whatever led to the injury. He didn’t have details. He did his duty, checking to see if Mandy needed anything, and then left, promising that a nurse would be in to administer more pain medication soon.

Once the room was clear and it was only the five of us, we were free to talk. Tola was first. “You said you fought an… ogre?”

My eyes were wide, sitting up. “Ogre? What? How did… Did it come from Terra?”

Mandy looked at Ro who looked at Cheryl who looked at Tola. The three girls started trying to talk all at once, before stopping and trying to figure out who should talk. Mandy was first to cede. “Don’t look at me, all this stuff is over my head.”

Tola looked over at Ro next. “Oh, like, I dunno? He didn’t really say anything about where he came from, all he’d say was ‘Hamfist crush puny human.’”

Cheryl shrugged. “He was smashing cars, people were screaming and running… Though, if he was going to ‘crush puny humans’, he… didn’t really attack any, that we could tell? There wasn’t anyone injured except for Mandy.” She furrowed her brow in thought.

At the mention, Mandy winced as she tried to shift her position in the hospital bed. The sight prompted Tola to pull out a small plastic bottle. “Ah, yes, I brought you something. After the whole incident with Jared, I looked into getting what I’d need to make some of these. It was quite a chore, but I was able to make a few.”

Cheryl raised an eyebrow at the sight. “What exactly did you make? She’s going to be on painkillers, that shouldn’t be mixed with alcohol…”

Raising a hand, Tola shook his head. “No alcohol. It’s a healing potion. It’s been longer than I like after the injury, but it should help knit the worst of the damage.”

“Like, a real life magic potion? For real?”

I flicked my tail lightly. “You had a magic duel with an ogre and you’re skeptical about potions?”

Tola chuckled a little. “I know it doesn’t really look the part. Glass bottles with cork stoppers are a little more niche on Earth, I used what was handy.”

Mandy shrugged and held out a hand. “Screw it, gimme.”

“Like, you sure?” Ro put a hand on Mandy’s shoulder.

“Yeah, he knows what he’s doing. Right?”

Tola handed the potion to the girl. “I’ve made plenty of these on Terra, but this is my first batch made with Earth ingredients. We’re pretty sure the plants are close enough to work the same. Princess says it has the right smell and feel.”

Unscrewing the cap, Mandy drank the contents, with an unpleasant face. “Blech, it’s like drinking syrupy perfume.”

“They are brewed for effect rather than flavor, I’m afraid. We’ll have to hope for the best. Potions are best used immediately, it’s more difficult for them to affect injuries that have had time to set.” Seeing a questioning look from Ro, he sighed softly. “Just trust me on it, there’s a whole complicated mess when it comes to the soul and the body. When your body starts healing an injury, it stops being ‘different’ enough for the magic to affect. There are dedicated houses of healing on Terra, with mages who understand healing magic much better than I do, who could help one recover from older injuries. I just know some basic potion recipes from an introductory tome on alchemy.”

Mandy handed the empty bottle back to Tola, biting her lip at the flush of warmth that spread through her body. But at least the leg was hurting less.

Tola gestured to the three women. “You were saying something about ‘crushing puny humans’? But he was only doing property damage?”

Mandy spoke up next. “Yeah, he was pretty weird. He said something about a ‘Boss Man’ and ‘going off script’, too… I think there’s something more to it that we stumbled on.”

Tola pinched the bridge of his nose. “Okay, okay, start at the beginning, and tell me everything. I need to hear this.”

The retelling was interrupted by the arrival of the nurse, who tried to join the conversation by saying she has a son that plays video games too. Cindy and Ro politely made up details about a multiplayer game until she left, and then went back to telling the actual story.

When it was over, silence hung heavily in the air. Finally, I asked the question that the girls had simply assumed. “Are… are there even ogres on Terra?”

Tola pursed his lips in thought. “I… actually don’t know. Maybe? There’s so much about Terra that I don’t know, after all. We didn’t get a chance to do much travelling, and I didn’t actually study at a Terra school or anything…”

“Well, like, where else could he be from? There aren’t ogres on Earth.” Mandy made a “There you go” gesture indicating she agreed with Ro’s assessment.

“Yes, but there’s magic on Earth, and at least one person in town outside this room who knows about it.” Tola scowled. “I think it’s time I try to talk to Jared again.”

The mention of Jared got a reaction from Ro. “Oh! Um, so, like, I totally meant to say this, but… Jared, like, called me a while ago? He said he wanted to talk to you, but like, I was totally busy and it just… slipped my mind? Oopsie?” She smiled sheepishly, in what she hoped was a disarmingly cute way.

“It… slipped your mind.” Tola sighed heavily.

“Hey! Like, I was totally gonna say it? We were supposed to meet this weekend for more magic junk, I’m sure I’d have remembered to say it then!”

Tola gave a silent stare for a moment. “Well, did he say what he wanted to talk about?”

“He said he’s ready to help.”

“Well, that’s actually a huge relief. That makes this conversation much easier. Let’s do this.” With that, he got his phone out and dialed, getting the number from Ro.

“Hello? Who is this?” Jared’s voice came from the speaker of the phone.

“Funny, from one hospital room to another. Hello, Jared. Is this a good time to talk?” Tola didn’t want to say too much, just in case.

Thankfully, his voice was burned into Jared’s mind well enough that there was no question who was calling. “Oh! Oh, yeah, um, I’m alone in here. I’m supposed to be going in for more surgery tomorrow, but today’s free.”

Tola winced a little, at the reminder of the consequences for losing his temper, even if he wasn’t the one suffering them. “Ah, yeah, I’m really sorry about that. I… I shouldn’t have done that to you.”

“Hey, it’s fine, I… I shouldn’t have… let things go to my head like I did.”

Tola awkwardly tried to change the subject. “I would’ve called sooner, but I just now got your message. What’s going on?”

“I… I know who has your book. It’s… it’s my… Well, I guess ex-Master. Though he told me if I actually quit, he’d probably kill me, so he thinks I’m still his Apprentice? I’m actually… kinda really scared, you know?” His voice was on the edge of breaking.

“Hey, you do what you gotta do. You don’t have to tell me anything you don’t want to, or that’s going to put you in danger.” Tola did his best to be reassuring.

“Thanks. …Look, I… I messed up. Maybe really bad. I… I told him about you. Not everything, but he didn’t know the bookstore had a new employee. And I think he suspects you. He might be coming for you.”

“The man who has my book? Your… employer?”

“Yeah. Hoo, Boss Man is so pissed off, just knowing there’s magic around that he doesn’t control has him really riled up… But… But I can’t… say his name. If he found out I told you… Well, I’d be lucky if I get out of that with a matched pair of arms.”

“I think… I might have a good idea who that is, anyway.” Tola said grimly.

“Oh, crap, he didn’t already…? Did you… You didn’t kill him or something, did you?”

“What? No! But I had someone come into the store who… He knew the book we’re auctioning is magic, I’m pretty certain. And he’s incredibly full of himself.”

Mandy spoke up. “You said Boss Man. That’s the same thing Hamfist said.”

“Hamfist? That’s the name of Eric’s D&D character!” Jared blurted out in shock.

“This Eric. He play an ogre, orc kind of character? And have a friend named Tony?”

“Yeah… He loaned me some of the money to buy the book from Ro. I told him I’d pay him back once… once Boss Man paid me back, but he never did. Told me that keeping me on as an Apprentice was payment enough.”

Cheryl scoffed. “Typical. Guys in power just screw you over because they can.”

Jared sighed. “Yeah. Well, I just want out of all this. I almost got myself killed being an idiot. Magic is cool to know, but I don’t want to end up like him. I want to be like you, Mr. Mage, sir. …I, uh, I just realized I don’t know your name.”

“It’s Tola. And… I’m flattered. Just keep yourself safe, and remember what we talked about, and I’m sure you’ll be fine.”

“Yeah, but, uh… If you, like, do end up fighting Boss Man? And if you win? Would you, uh, want an apprentice?”

Tola pinched the bridge of his nose again. “I’m not qualified to be a teacher, I’m barely a graduate of the Guild, and even then it’s more like I got lucky and taught myself enough to get that far. I really should actually take classes and everything, learn properly…”

“Holy crap, there’s a GUILD?” Jared’s voice was a hushed whisper.

The smack of Tola’s palm hitting his face was followed by a low groan. “It’s… far too long a story to get into. Look, I appreciate the warning, but I’m not sure how much good it does me.”

“Yeah… I don’t know how you’re gonna get the book from him without fighting him. And if you don’t fight him, he’s gonna come after you, I bet.” With that, the call ended.

Cheryl gave a smug grin. “Guess you’re gonna have to pick that fight after all, huh?”

Tola sighed heavily. “You seem way too happy about that.”

In a secluded, unassuming building across town, a young man named Eric met with the stern Horace Augustine. Horace wasn’t actually that much older than Eric, but he wouldn’t admit to any sort of similarities to someone like that.

“I’m very displeased with you, Eric. How could you botch such a simple job so completely?” He glared at the heavy-set jock.

“Hey, it’s not my fault. You sent some girls who couldn’t stick to the script!” Though he didn’t have green skin, there was still quite a strong resemblance between Eric and Hamfist.

“What girls? I didn’t send anyone, I was supposed to arrive myself! You were supposed to wait until I was in position!” Horace began pacing from frustration.

“Yeah, I was kinda wondering about that? But, like, you’re the only one who knows magic, I thought. Well, you and Jared, but he’s not here.”

With that, Horace stopped cold. “Magic?”

“Yeah, Boss Man. They almost killed me!” Eric lifted his sleeve, showing off the bandage wrapped around his arm. “I had to get a bunch of stitches, if one of those ice thingies had actually hit me somewhere else, I’d be dead!”

Horace waved dismissively at the arm. “Yes, yes. But you’re telling me that there’s… what, a group of witches? Using magic? But I thought for sure it was the bookstore man. Argh, this makes no SENSE! What is going ON in this town?”

“Well, one of them used mace, I think. It really burned. But yeah, one used some kinda lightning rod, one used a bunch of spells.”

“Lightning… rod? Like a wand? You’re sure of this?”

“Yeah! Damn thing broke that necklace you gave me!” Eric fished out the necklace from his pocket and held it up. “You can fix it, right?”

“No, I can’t fix it! That was a priceless artifact, that cost an incredible fortune and effort to obtain! This wand, though… Was it a length of wood, with metal caps on the end? Dark, like blackened oak?”

“Uh, I dunno about all that. I didn’t really see it that well, I was kinda getting my rear end handed to me. It was three on one! They threw a rock at me!”

If Horace even heard him, he gave no indication. Instead, he stroked his chin in thought. “Jared. That little… What could he possibly be thinking? I might have to pay him another visit, and if I don’t like the answers he has to give, I’m going to be very upset.”

Eric rubbed at his injured arm tenderly. “What does Jared have to do with this?”

“Because, you oaf, you were bested by someone who had the lightning wand I gave to Jared! Which means he’s behind your defeat in some way. Which means… we might have a traitor in our operation!”

“Oh, crap, really? What are we going to do?”

“We? You say that like I can trust you to do anything. You’re lucky I don’t kill you for getting that amulet destroyed! You go and sit and think about your failure, I’ll call you if I have an idea for how to use you. In the mean time, I need to make plans. Luckily, I have this.” Mr. Augustine held up the leather-bound book with the crystal on the cover. “My hunch is that it all comes down to this. Mark my words, a demon has come to Ida Grove. If I can’t establish myself as the town savior by ‘defeating’ a monster, I’ll just have to do it for real. A demon is even better than an ogre, after all. I just have to figure out how I’m going to do it, and how I’m going to turn this to my advantage.”

“Woah, you serious, Boss?”

“Yes. Make no mistake, whoever this demon is, they are going to regret standing in the way of me gaining control of this town. And with the power I’ve been gaining, perhaps the entire state. Or even the world!” Horace’s maniacal laughter echoed through the small building.