Chapter Nineteen - Tasting

Craig and Apollos quickly finished their brews, putting them into the capped bottles Lochlann provided. It was interesting to see the prince running the small errand, and she realized that in this room, at least, he was the junior disciple. While he had nature magic, it was the lowest of his four, with contractual being the highest, then water, then life. Most of that was good for alchemy, but he carried himself far more like a warrior politician than a mad scientist.

He honestly reminded her of the scion of a business empire, forced to symbolically learn about what their company was built on, but not really caring for it much. She imagined he was still in the room because he was a prince and she was the traveler. Putting her musings aside as she observed the three bottles, she asked the next important question: “Do you have to drink it all to be effective, or is splitting it up okay?” It wasn’t a pill, so she thought that theoretically, taking a sip would be fine. In all the books, making potions and powders was infinitely easier than trying to refine it into tiny capsules.

“It’s less effective, but that’s because you’re not getting all of the mana. Splitting it into portions is common.” Katie answered from behind her, eyes on the bottles as she asked, “Did you really use compulsion and spiritual magic in that? It’s blended together, but I can still feel the traces. What does it do? Can I try it?” She licked her lips subconsciously, drawn to the magical concoction. She supposed being able to drink something that was basically pure mana of your affinities appealed to the primal part of a person.

Noting the reaction, Jade nodded. “I forget you have both, but yes, that’s what I used. The herbs target the body, so I thought I would take a holistic approach to make the mind and spirit more alert, too.” Turning to Apollos and Craig, she asked, “I’d like to sample all of them, if that’s all right. Shall we get spoons for everyone?” She hoped they were willing to share as well.

She was stopped as she realized Apollos had already grabbed three little trays of what she could only describe as taster cups. They reminded her of what she’d seen depicted in church services for communion, or free sample cups given out at a grocery store, if they were made of glass instead of paper.

He set one in front of each of them, then uncapped his bottle without a word and poured seven little portions, taking out about half the bottle as he explained, “We frequently keep these here to test concoctions when we’re learning.”

“Makes sense.” She replied, accepting that it was a common need. It still felt a little like they were going to pass communion, but she shook those thoughts away as she poured into her own tray while Craig did the same. Sitting next to each other, the magic swirled in her sight. To mundane eyes, her green juice held an extra shimmer of purple and silver, while Apollos’ held added undertones of lime.

Reaching for Craig’s concoction first, she caught his raised eyebrow as she explained, “It’s best to see the effects of the base solution first.” Katie and Apollos silently retracted the hands stretching towards her concoction and she almost laughed. Everyone still obediently took one of the duke’s cups, and Jade took the lead in downing it.

As expected, it tasted like an expresso shot of minty tea. Her muscles tensed minutely as she felt the potion working to jolt her senses into alertness. She watched the entire process with her healing magic, noting that it put a minor strain on the body by forcing it into activity. The tiny cup left trace amounts of buildup in the cells that would have to be forced out at a later point, and she realized potion poison was a thing here.

The way the cultivation novels described it, most low-level alchemy introduced impurities into the body, and that tracked perfectly. Camille sipped at her portion curiously, but the others looked far more perfunctory. They knew the results before it even touched their tongue; after all, they’d had it plenty of times prior, and were mostly humoring her in an effort to compare properly. Despite that, Apollos tried it properly, swishing it around his mouth as she realized was his habit.

“Slightly improved potency,” he informed his teacher.

Duke Telemar nodded in agreement. “Yes, trimming the dead chaff raised the efficacy by about five percent.” Five percent didn’t seem like much in the scheme of things, and she wasn’t sure they’d consider it worth the extra effort, but at the same time…every bit helped. “Let’s see how you did.” Craig nodded to his student, who helped distribute the next mini cup to everyone while they put their discarded one back.

Pouring the liquid into her mouth, Jade closed her eyes as she concentrated on everything happening within her body. To her surprise, the concoction used up the trace amounts of toxin introduced moments before. It seemed to work similarly, but recycled the refuse into giving strength to the cells.

“What do you think?” Craig asked his prized student, and she realized this was a common occurrence between the two of them. Apollos was constantly being trained to be more and recognize his own inadequacies or failures, as well as his successes.

Frowning, Apollos replied, “The boost is even more minor. I must not have trimmed sufficiently.” She was honestly surprised the boy cared about something so very small, but this was a business of precision, and she wouldn’t be surprised if a significant portion of their time was spent making concoctions like this…over and over again. Did they ever make it in bigger batches?

Nodding, the teacher patted the boy on the shoulder. “Remember that any progress is still advancing in the right direction. It’s better to take a small step than none at all.” Okay. She might be coming to like the earnest educator. He did, however, take this moment to reprimand his other pupils. “It seems the rest of you need a lesson in patience and perseverance. Look at your stations.”

Sheepish glances cast at places left abandoned, the leaves half cut and bleeding potency. Tao was the first to bow to his teacher. “I apologize for wasting precious ingredients, professor. It won’t happen again.” He didn’t make excuses or point out that they’d all been distracted by Jade, that he’d felt threatened enough to slip into the shadows during the process. Just a simple acknowledgement and promise to do better from the quiet man.

Katie quickly followed the example of her cousin and bowed to the duke. “I’m sorry too.” She looked to her cousin for approval and he nodded, so she smiled and said, “We’ll regrow replacements tonight.”

Craig nodded, because that was an acceptable recompense. It reminded her of some psychology studies. You couldn’t just say you were sorry, you had to actually change your behavior and make recompense.

It still made her feel bad because truthfully it had been her fault it happened…but at the same time, Apollos still finished, despite being the one who exposed her. He’d been no less intimidated by her, or maybe she’d lost her edge by the time she addressed him. Doubtful, but possible.

That was when Duke Telemar turned to Lochlann, raising a brow at the prince, who had also abandoned his studies, but showed little remorse. “The ingredients likely would’ve been a waste in my hands, regardless.” He replied honestly, solidifying her theory that he was only there because of her.

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Shaking his head, Craig replied mirthfully, “Not at all. It would have demonstrated the reduced efficacy when someone inept tries to do even basic alchemy.” Ooooh. Burn.

Jade looked from prince to advisor, but Lochlann just rolled his eyes, unashamed as he drawled, “Well I’m sure I can still throw it in, if you want.”

The professor actually gave it a moment’s thought. “Actually, yes. All four of you should finish now.”

“Now?” Katie’s voice was strained as she looked at the only potion she hadn’t been able to taste.

“Yes, I think having to wait is a suitable punishment.” His eyes twinkled as the poor girl groaned, then turned and walked back to her station to immediately finish her brew. Her experience with Craig must have told her that arguing was futile.

Jade looked at Cami, who hadn’t been reprimanded or apologized, but was told to finish her station, too. Grinning, she looked unabashed as she turned back to her spot. Without the proper affinities or training, her attempt would likely be the worst, but the duke was correct in that it would be a good benchmark for learning how those without much magic might manage.

Meanwhile, she delighted in tormenting them as she turned back to Apollos and Craig, who were watching with amusement before she gestured to the boy’s brew. “So, an interesting note about the difference. While the duke’s added a small amount of toxin to the system, yours cleared some out and used it as fuel. Was that a directed side effect, or did you just pump healing magic in?”

“Ah right, you’re a healer too.” Apollos nodded before shaking his head. “I forget because you do so many things. That is purposeful. When you frequently utilize alchemy products, potion poisoning is enough of a problem that most who have healing magic tend to direct theirs to consume the waste that builds up so it doesn’t cause further problems. It was discovered by Caleb Vines, a brilliant healer and alchemist about fifty years ago.”

She nodded, pleased with this discovery. It was the equivalent of consuming meridian cleansers or some nonsense like that. Just interspersing one of Apollos’ potions with some of the others would be enough to fix the problem, usually. It also meant there was an easy way to increase how many you could take if you were downing them in an emergency situation.

“That’s very helpful.” Her words carried honest admiration, and she was happy to have proof that innovations were still being made without traveler help. For a while there, she’d been extremely concerned about the stagnation. She still was, but less so. Letting out a small huff to get rid of those thoughts, she gestured to her potion. “Shall we see how mine goes, then?”

She picked up the thimblefull of liquid and downed it first, wanting to show them it was safe. When you were messing with spirit and compulsion, there would understandably be some concerns. Well, not for Apollos, whose actions followed her by a fraction of a second.

If Craig also took the potion, she wasn’t aware, because her very being snapped to attention. Every cell stood at the ready, and it felt a bit like she’d been mildly electrocuted. The rush of energy, even from that small amount, felt like she would stay awake for hours at peak condition. The toxins were burned in the process, consumed by the overpowering effects of AWAKE.

Wiggling her body as she opened her eyes, she let out a rush of air as she exclaimed softly, “Whew. That’s a rush.” She could feel Willow echoing back, and realized some of her emotions were bleeding through the bond. The little queen moved positions, moving through some of the restless energy mere proximity was giving her. She’d have to consider the implications of that later, but she thought it was probably because their bonds were connected to her soul.

She saw that Craig was holding his little cup, but hadn’t yet drank it, waiting for her and Apollos to finish assessing first. She didn’t blame him for his caution, but he’d relaxed as the boy blinked rapidly, bouncing in place as the words spilled from his lips, rapid fire. “I feel like I could give the rooda a run for their money in a race. Or stay up all night concocting. I need to do something.” His eyes flitted around the room and he finally settled on the two used cauldrons, grabbing them and hurrying over to the sink so he could scrub them vigorously.

Craig looked a little torn. He obviously wanted to try the potion, but his body wasn’t as spry as his little apprentice. Eventually, curiosity won the war of his emotions and he threw back the potion, taking a deep breath in as he felt it course through his body. Unlike Apollos, he didn’t seem to feel the need to expend the surge of energy, but his back straightened as he stood a little taller.

He smiled at her as it finished zinging through his body, tipping his head to her. “That is quite potent. I can see what you meant about it being a rounded approach. My very being thrums with acute clarity.” He paused, then added, “Your version seems best used quite sparingly. If so little can cause such a great effect, I fear that someone ignorant downing the whole thing might suffer.”

“Keep away from the children. Noted.” Her voice was half-joking, but she actually put the bottle away in her ring. She would make more later and distribute it to Ashanna, Derrick, Stephen, and Eric. Maybe dilute it a bit more with the warning to use it sparingly.

By now, the stragglers had completed their cutting and come back over to finish their brew. Camille was using her water magic in place of nature, so she had no need for Craig to summon some for her. Lochlann managed on his own too, but the teacher filled the pots for Tao and Katie as they got to work heating and stirring. Katie kept sending impatient glances at the sample cups, her desire to consume becoming even greater after hearing them talk about it.

Apollos quietly rejoined them with more sample trays, still practically vibrating and he moved between them, nudging Lochlann and Camille a little to stir more consistently for better results. He was like a mini teacher tornado, bouncing back and forth, which the royals took in amused stride.

“Ah, finally done!” Katie called out as she lifted her liquid, pouring it into the waiting samples and bottling the rest. With a gleeful smile, she asked Craig, “Can I taste hers now?”

Unfortunately for her, his smirk was a bit evil as he reprimanded her softly, “No, I think you all should try what you’ve created first.”

Katie groaned, but then nodded and said, “Fine. I’ll start with mine then, I guess. Bottoms up!” She grabbed one of her cups and downed it, while Apollos retreated from his tutoring to take one as well. Jade and Craig shared a glance before picking it up too. She hadn’t done anything fancy with it, which was immediately apparent. The effects were far more muted than anything else had been, and it was sludgier. With her own potion still running her system, it was hard to tell, but the toxins were easy to trace. It left nearly five times as much as Craig’s had.

She’d need to purge that later. She paused, unsure of what to say before Apollos jumped in with his brutal honesty. “The worst thing I’ve seen you make in a long time. Less than half the normal efficacy and far more toxins.” He sent the professor a glance after glancing in a little bit of despair at the remaining three boiling pots and said, “I think I’m going to go make a neutralizer.”

“Lovely. I’d like to see how that’s done.” Jade interjected immediately, and they shared a knowing look. The thought of testing three more terrible potions held zero appeal. Her taste buds screamed in disapproval. She would still do it, but wanted the undo recipe he was thinking of.

“Sure, this way.” He led them back to his station as he pulled out a purple flower that looked like a mix between clover and thistle. “This is slithymir, known for its powerful detoxification properties. Next he pulled out a bright yellow and blue flower that looked like a dandelion went to a neon party. “The fiathli is a favorite remedy for common poisons, breaking them down. They can often be found in even the most inhabitable areas, and while eating them straight loses a lot of the efficacy, it’ll still work in a pinch.”

“May I?” She asked, and sent a pulse of nature magic through them to learn their structure when he nodded. Curiously, she plucked a few of the tiny petals from each and placed them one after another in her tongue, memorizing the taste.

“Interesting. All right. So what’s next?” Once she was satisfied she could recreate the flowers on her own, she urged him to continue. She’d still get the seeds, then she’d grow it and get more seeds, then she’d start messing with them. Detoxification seemed like a possibility that would help. She’d for sure be growing some variants near Oakley.

“So, we need to process by cutting here…” He began the explanation as she listened attentively, not wanting to miss any potential steps or skills he was utilizing.