I tugged at my lower lip as I reviewed my notes. The mystery of this forest and whatever was causing these problems had begun to resolve, but I still could not place a few things.

First, most animals within a certain radius of the mines were starving. I knew it was not universal or widespread because birds did not show signs, but it was bad enough to make the carnivorous and omnivorous creatures desperate.

Second, something else was causing the herbivorous creatures like deer and elk to die. It could not be starvation since they did not show those symptoms, but healthy animals did not just keel over and die.

Third, the Aether pool was likely related to some extent. Even if the food chain was disrupted, the animals within a certain radius should not be starving. The pool should eliminate that risk. So, somehow, that was no longer a viable option.

And fourth, Baron Markov's luck had turned and done so in the last few years. I had quietly asked several miners, and that bad luck was not limited to Markov, but he seemed to have the worst of them all.

Any one event alone was unremarkable. Two could be a coincidence and three beggared belief. All four, all within a few years, spoke to someone or something more than just luck.

Unfortunately, I could see only two plausible culprits so far. Hopefully, I was missing something, but of the two possibilities, only one was a master who taught classes on subtle manipulations and deception.

I tried to focus on training to fill the rest of my evening but found mixed results. My control continued to inch forward, but when I finally laid down, it was a restless night's sleep.

My next trip the following day was the least productive thus far. While my senses continued improving each day, newfound doubts slowed my progress. I feared whatever lay within the forest and wondered what threat might be killing these creatures. A predator? A blight? Could the mana itself be wasting away? The third sounded impossible, but was it?

Any attempt to push aside my doubts and fears failed, and the only eventful occurrence was an encounter towards the day's end with another feline creature, larger than the first and colored in browns and blacks.

I had hidden in the trees again, mana pulled back into a shroud, but this specimen managed to spot me just as easily as the first. It stared at my location, then let out a sharp hiss and leaped for me.

The jump fell short, but jagged claws dug into the tree bark as it yanked itself up higher. If that was the first battle I had been in, the cat might have managed to get to me in time.

As it was, I had my spear in hand and mana shield in place even as it reached my position. I jumped for the forest floor ten feet below and hit it hard, bending my knees and rolling before popping back up and into position.

The cat followed, but its jump was not nearly as intimidating as it might have been months prior. I saw its soft underbelly and drove my spear up with a shout, skewering it through the chest.

Rather than give up, the beast clawed closer. Sharped edges sliced through the air with sharp whistles, and I tried not to flinch as it drove itself deeper onto the spear in a maddened, frenzied attack. Its struggles grew weaker but ever more threatening until finally, with a shudder, it expired.

With sunset already on its way, I stared at the corpse for a long pause before focusing on the spatial pouch and retrieving a handful of cheap, spare clothes. It took precious minutes to wrap the corpse enough to protect the other contents from blood and several more to understand the pouch enough to draw items larger than its opening inside, but with that done, I made my way back.

Ultimately, I sold it for a handful of gold pieces and a smattering of information. As with the others, its stomach looked empty, its frame slim, and patches of fur were entirely missing. While not much help in solving my confusion, it was nice to have additional evidence to support a conclusion.

When I rose on the third and final day, I had already made peace with my failure. Even if I did find the pool, which seemed increasingly unlikely, I would only have hours at best to take samples and notes. I wanted days. Then again, I could always return later, but it stung my pride and impatience.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

I was debating returning to Aresford and preparing to depart the city when I felt it. The leyline beneath my feet had grown steadily more robust and distinct over the last few days, but now it shifted. The mana signature seemed to rise sharply, and I stopped before placing one hand against the dirt.

Mana seemed to pulse in time with my heartbeat, and I had to stop myself from smiling. Instead, I stood and continued on the same path, never running or rushing and constantly checking for threats. Now was not the time to throw caution to the wind, and dying because I grew careless would be embarrassing if nothing else.

After another half-hour of creeping steps, I felt it. At the edge of my senses burned a mana signature, brighter than the midday sun and westward, pulsing and rippling even in my mind's eye.

The closer I got to that bright spot, the faster my heart raced. Either I had found the pool or stumbled onto an impossibly strong, long-hidden Aether mage. I doubted some forgotten Archmagus had made his home here, which left only the obvious.

Suddenly, the ground underneath felt smooth. I stopped and peeked out from underneath my blindfold to find myself a few steps into a clearing. My heart seized, and I practically ran backward into the forest, crouching beside the trees and throwing my senses in every direction. I searched for threats, straining to my maximum range and looking for anything, large or small.

When I found nothing, I relaxed and focused on the clearing.

Trees ringed the sixty-foot circle, each burning with Aether denser than almost anything I had sensed before today. I had trouble telling them apart, in fact, and noted the faint green hue to their typically brown bark and the impossible size and width of their trunks. But strangely, they had no leaves, even though magical trees should continue to sprout during the winter.

Roots and branches seemed to lean away from the clearing in an unnatural formation that created a nearly perfect circle. Frosty dirt led down a steep incline, and strangely, even snow seemed by some silent agreement not to fall even though it flurried at the mines. The air had a sweet aroma and was warm enough to border on comfortable.

A part of my mind noted all of that, cataloging it and resolving to investigate each further, but the lion's share of my attention fell onto the corpses.

Dozens lay in varying states of decay across the clearing. I could see another dire boar, several wolves, a deer or two, a bear, two horses, a half-dozen dogs or cats, some rodents, and many other specimens too mangled to recognize without closer examination. Deep slices and grooves marred their flanks, limbs looked twisted or torn off outright, throats had been ripped open, chunks of meat bitten off, and blood turned the dirt a deep, brown, and red.

Thankfully, the cold managed to stave off the decay and rot, but I still felt bile rise in the back of my throat. Any hopes that the disruption was natural vanished, and I felt sweat trickle down my back as I scanned the clearing again, trying to find anything.

Something had massacred these creatures and done so for sport or sabotage, not food. No regular beast would kill so many and leave them intact like this.

When my second search failed, I finally focused on my prize.

The pool dominated the clearing, thirty feet in diameter and glowing blinding green. Pale jade ribbons rose from the surface, and emerald mists drifted in the midday winds. I brushed the pool once before pulling back my senses with a wince.

If the trees had been glaring, this was blinding. It shone in my mind's eye with the light of a setting sun and roared like crashing waves, not so much uncomfortable as it was painful. I had never sensed something as dense and potent before and felt a shiver entirely unrelated to the cold run down my back.

I wanted to sprint forward and collect as much water as possible into the dozen empty vials within my pack. Caution warred with that impulse, but another survey of the clearing won that battle. Speed was crucial; the sooner I finished, the sooner I could return home safely.

First, I would retrieve my samples and make my retreat. Then, back in civilization, I could test one, take notes on the process, and start forming hypotheses. I wanted Simon to take a look and see if he could replicate the pool's effects in a controlled setting, but at its heart, this endeavor was to make me stronger.

The pool glowed painfully bright up close, so I was forced to squint and half-turn as I submerged one open vial. The water burned and bubbled against my bare skin, Aether almost dense enough to be dangerous to the touch. I could feel it sear away dirt and grime, and I dipped my free hand underwater. Green droplets fell from my fingertips, sending motes dancing as they plunked back down with steady drips.

When I retrieved my first sample and corked it, a thought occurred to me. Not all mages of the same element displayed the same shade, though there were general trends. Shallow though it was, I had come to appreciate the green color of my mana and felt relief that-

The mana under my feet shifted, subtle enough that I might have missed it several days ago. Instead, I stood and spun, pulling energy from my core to wrap a shield in place. My eyes scanned the edges of the clearing, looking over unmoving corpses before pushing further out to catch a sign of any spellcraft.

The shadows now appeared foreboding, the wind rustled like knives, and I would swear I saw the glint of fangs, eyes, or sharpened blades in the underbrush, but no attack came. I caught no hint of gathered mana nor the sound of charging feet.

I slowly retrieved my spear from my pack, placing the vial within before walking up the incline and onto level ground. If something was about to attack, it was best to do it on stable, open land where I could move and fight.

Again, mana twisted and pulled, sharper this time but still weak overall. I focused, trying to follow it but the signature blended with the ley line beneath my feet and the pool steps away. Only an Archmagus could force those to move, and whatever was working magic was no Archmagus.

I wiped sweaty palms on my pants and settled into a stance, feeling my shield drain a steady trickle from my core as I rotated, trying to find the hostile mage.

It could be Flynn Sion looking to eliminate the competition, though such a move seemed too reckless. Or some base thief thought this clearing was too valuable to share and was willing to defend it with their lives.

I felt mana pulse and move for a third time, and this time, I caught it. Though weak, I latched onto the faint movement and followed it. As I did so, a chill ran down my spine as something so obvious occurred to me.

It had seemed there was no mana signature within the clearing, but I had been wrong. There was one, dense and blinding, and I realized now that it had blinded me in multiple ways. After all, how could anyone differentiate two separate mana signatures if they overlapped so closely?

My feet felt leaden as I turned towards the pool. I felt hope kindle within my chest for a moment as it remained placid and still.

Then, the surface began to bubble.