Orion watched as Gizmo was happily chewed on by a Flytrap Hydra. Two of the three teethed mouths were chomping down unimpeded, the third not enjoying itself so much as Gizmo’s little retractable buzz-saw whirred on the inside of its mouth.

Shadow appeared behind it, cutting across all three of the creature’s necks with his Vicious Blow. Three heads fell to the floor, and the body went limp, every vine connected to a head severed in a single stroke of the warrior’s new blade.

Orion checked his map once more, seeing that they were almost at the border out of the Eclipse Forest. They were making fantastic time, knowing that they had less than three days before thing would go sideways in Valbrand. They didn’t have a timer or related quest, but when what was essentially the god of this world “highly recommends” you be there before a certain time, you should probably do so.

The sun was getting low in the sky and the darkness was slowly leeching back into the forest as night approached. They continued walking, reaching the edge of the trees just as the last of the sun’s rays were disappearing over the horizon.

“Should we set up camp, or continue traveling?” Shadow asked.

“Let’s camp inside the forest.” Orion looked out over the open grasslands that separated the Eclipse Forest from the other tree-line. “We’re making good time, and I’d rather camp among enemies we know. Anything could jump us out there.”

They set up camp methodically, everyone keen to work on their professions for a few hours before they went to sleep for the night. Before long, Shadow was cooking away behind his stove as the rest of the party set up their areas.

Orion’s nerves were frayed, and a deep exhaustion hung over him. He didn’t want to think about past events any longer; he knew they were impacting his will. He settled for converting the Stim Leaf concentrate into another Bountiful Potion of Miraculous Healing—anything new seemed like too much of an effort.

Arika packed up before she even began and sat down by the fire without a word. Orion knew how she felt, just as Honeypot and Shadow likely did. No one made any advancements—except for Honeypot, naturally.

Orion emerged from his state of focus when he completed his own potion to find Honeypot giggling and murmuring to himself under his breath. He’d made his own campfire, and was cooking skewered sections of fish.

“What is it?” Orion asked.

“Oh, thank god you’re back,” Arika said. “He leveled something up and he’s been laughing like that for five minutes. We can’t get him to stop or respond.”

“Honeypot?” Orion walked over, placing his hand on his friend’s shoulder. “What is it?”

Honeypot turned and looked at Orion. He smiled, then turned back to the cooking skewers, his creepy little giggle rolling out again. Thinking he might be under the effect of something nefarious, Orion went to pull out a healing potion.

“It’s evil,” Honeypot murmured, “pure evil.”

“What is, Honeypot? Are you okay? Did something get you?”

“What?” Honeypot looked at him, eyes clearing. “Oh, no, don’t be ridiculous. I’m the bringer of evil, not a victim of it. Check this out.” Honeypot handed Orion one of the skewers.

Orion inspected Honeypot’s creation.

Bony Blood Treat

Common

This treat gives off a pungent aroma, causing most creatures to avoid it. Any creature unfortunate enough to eat this ‘treat’ will receive a concentrated dose of the venom of the Bony Blood Fish. Hallucinations and paralysis are likely for large creatures, small creatures may die after ingestion. Also inflicts a bleed effect.

“Holy shit…” Orion said, handing the treat back carefully.

“I know, right? Arika, check this out.”

Honeypot threw one to Arika, who happily stepped out of the way of the spinning skewer-of-sorrow. She inspected it on the ground, and Orion watched as her face went through the full range of emotions.

“I’m conflicted,” she said. “You are sick in the head, yet singularly gifted at what you do.”

“Thank you. I agree on both counts.” Honeypot walked over and picked the skewer up, handing it to Shadow.

“Jesus…” Shadow handed the skewer back to Honeypot after inspecting it. “Why did you even try making a treat out of those?”

“Why did man step foot on the moon? As those before me, I am a slave to greatness. Can any man deny the spark of inspiration when the urge hits?”

Though Honeypot was doing his best to project his usual flippancy, Orion could see the strain in his eyes of forcing the smile he gave.

“If by spark of inspiration,” Arika said, “you mean using a deadly fish as the sole ingredient in what amounts to a dog biscuit, I’d say pretty much everyone could, and should deny, the urge.”

“That urge jumped me to Apprentice five in Animal Nutrition, thank-you-very-much.” Honeypot patted a small, leather pouch which he had been placing the treats into. “Just you wait and see, these puppies are gonna do some serious damage.”

“… have you not been listening?” Arika shook her head. “That’s exactly what I’m worried about.”

Honeypot simply smiled in response, seeming a little more genuine, then placed more of the fish onto the fire.

***

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

The next day was absent any difficulty or encounters, much to the dismay of Gizmo and the delight of Orion. A few hours into their trip, Orion felt a pressure building up inside of him. He felt a moment of anxiety that was quickly washed away as the euphoria of advancement washed over him.

“Oh, great. He levels up just from walking,” Honeypot said.

You have successfully advanced from Journeyman 5 to Journeyman 6 in Alchemy. Congratulations!

Orion smiled, knowing full well that the alchemical operation might be underway back in Valbrand. He’d hoped Carl found some adventurers to teach the recipe of his potion to.

I wonder how many he’s found, if that’s what caused the advancement…

It was possible that the advancement was just Carl back in town, crafting as many potions as he could before the monsters arrived. Thinking of things back in Valbrand, his thoughts wandered toward’s the author of the diary, and what they had to do with the creation of monsters.

Orion pulled out the small book, reading entries as a means of distraction as they traveled back to town. The entries were all extremely vague, constantly writing of ‘the plan,’ and referring to themselves in plural, but without actually saying any specifics.

It was clear that the author, and whoever worked with him, had betrayed the group in charge of running the experiments. There was neither motive nor explanation stated, but the group in charge must have been powerful for them to seem so fearful of getting caught.

As he was reading a passage, something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. He looked up to see a bush outlined by a vague shine—his Vegetative Vision skill had kicked in. Approaching, he realized it was actually a vine growing over the bush. The leaves of the vine were stretching out—blocking the filtered sunlight from reaching the host plant it was smothering. There were bright-red seedpods sporadically growing from the green vine.

Orion poked one of the seedpods on a whim, and it erupted, shooting seeds out in every direction like a little plant-grenade. Leaning down, he looked at another seedpod, carefully analyzing it. He reached down and plucked it carefully.

You have advanced Vegetative Vision from level 3 to level 4. Congratulations!

You have advanced Vegetative Vision from level 4 to level 5. Congratulations!

You have advanced from Apprentice 5 to Apprentice 6 in Herbalism. Congratulations!

Smiling at the advancements and accompanying rush of euphoria, he checked the new item he’d harvested.

Propulsion Pod

Rare

Grown on the Propulsion Plant, these seedpods explode if something even looks at them funny. The explosion result in the seeds being spread far and wide, the hard-to-propagate plant relying on sheer numbers to ensure its seeds can find the perfect conditions to grow. The pods can be used in alchemical concoctions to add an explosive effect.

Hint hint, moron.

Orion ignored the snarky comment from the System, happy to have another ingredient to combine in his cauldron and play with. The moment he read the description, a recipe jumped to the forefront of his mind—one that he would have to try to make as soon as possible. He systematically picked every Propulsion Pod from the plant, leaving only green leaves and glossy vine in his wake. After what must have been only five minutes of harvesting, he had gathered thirty-four of the little pods—also receiving another welcome message.

You have advanced from Apprentice 6 to Apprentice 7 in Herbalism. Congratulations!

Another few hours of travel later, the light of the day started to retreat once more. Orion checked his map to see their progress. They’d made it over halfway back to town, and after a short discussion, they agreed to set up camp before night fell. They should be able to make it back to town before midday tomorrow, allowing plenty of time to find their bearings before the Creator’s deadline.

Besides, Orion was feeling inspired to create something with the Propulsion Pods… something diabolical that he believed would put his Bloodmoon Dust to shame. He’d hoped the Bloodmoon Dust had been more efficacious, and with the addition of the new ingredient, he thought it just might be.

“Can I have the storage rings with all the alchemy ingredients, Honeypot?” Orion requested.

“Sure.” Honeypot handed them over, watching Orion with curiosity as he started pulling things out of the rings.

A somber mood hung over the camp, riddled with memories and regrets as they were, and Orion did his best to brush it aside.

Assembling all the ingredients, he looked down at his workstation, mentally preparing himself for the task to come. There were three main components to what he had planned: Bony Blood Fish, Moon Dust, and Propulsion Pods. As well as the three main ingredients, he’d removed dozens of binding and filler compounds from the rings that he’d previously seen in Carl’s underground lab. He knew that with the addition of the Propulsion Pods, this could potentially be a volatile creation, so he made sure to have everything possible on hand to maximize the chance of success—and minimize the chance of turning himself into red-mist.

Focusing his will, he could feel somewhat of a resonance between the ingredients. He smiled, knowing that this could work.

No, it’s not just a chance that this will work—I will make this work.

Taking a deep breath, he began placing the ingredients into his heated cauldron.

***

Honeypot watched on in awe as Orion began trying to create something new. There was a singular focus in his friend’s body, like a man possessed. He liked Orion, but even he, his best-friend and right-hand man, had to admit that their glorious leader was a bit clumsy at times. The Orion before him was nothing of the sort.

This Orion moved with swift, decisive motions, preparing different ingredients—sometimes two at a time, one in each hand. He adjusted the temperature on his cauldron with darting movements as required. It wasn’t like the other night when Orion had been creating the powder that they used on the Queen of the Forest…. this version of Orion was a different beast entirely.

“He really is something else,” Shadow said from beside Honeypot, startling him.

“Ahh!” Honeypot yelped. Seeing Shadow and Arika both standing there amused, he corrected himself. “Ah, indeed, is what I meant to say. He truly is something special—it’s hypnotizing.”

“Hypnotizing enough to let the great-sleuth Honeypot get snuck up on by a six-foot-something warrior in plate armor?” Arika asked with a grin.

“Precisely.” Honeypot nodded. “I don’t know about you guys, but I still feel like a thrice-cooked steak. I’m struggling to understand how he can focus right now.”

The others nodded, both averting their eyes.

They focused back on Orion, who hesitated for a moment before taking a tiny pinch of the dust they’d looted from the moths, sprinkling it evenly over the now-bubbling mixture, the circular motion of his hand moving over the cauldron with almost-mechanical precision. He then stirred, making what seemed like chaotic movements with a large glass stirring-rod.

“I am truly proud to call him my Daddy,” Gizmo said. “According to the calculations I have run, with the ingredients used so far, there is only one likely result: the potion created will cause much pain and or death.”

“So it’s an offensive potion?” Shadow asked, stirring sauce in a large, metallic bowl. “How does that work?”

“While it might technically be a potion,” Honeypot said, “I think this creation is gonna be much more diabolical than a potion you drink.”

Arika cocked her head. “What makes you say that?”

Honeypot shrugged. “A hunch based on the ingredients so far. When he picked those pod things earlier, some went boom. We’ll just have to wait and see.”

***

Orion could feel the strands coming together. With each stir, each heat adjustment, and each pinch of stabilizing ingredient, the mixture was getting molded into what he desired. He didn’t even know the names of half the ingredients he was adding at this stage, but he knew they were exactly what was needed.

A chunk of that pink crystal, three leaves of that herb, a pinch of that white, chalky powder. Everything he added was slowly building toward what he had pictured in his mind. He held fast to that idea—that image of deadly purpose and intent—and that was what he poured all of his will into.

Feeling it slowly approaching the conclusion, he set down the glass stirrer, making sure he wiped the instrument clean of the mixture. He put both of his hands above the cauldron, making his will manifest. His will was as strong as iron, yet flexible enough to not shatter if it hit a metaphorical wall.

He sent it pouring into the cauldron.