Jace woke to shouting.

“I’m just saying you could have helped. I nearly died out there, and you just stood by and watched! We are supposed to be on the same team.”

“I am an artist, not a beast of war. I wouldst not expect a butcher as thou art to comprehend.”

“What about your golem? Or do you just use him to scare people?”

“Not as frightening as thy bedchamber, I wager. Adam requires sure footing to commence battle. He is not a mountain goat.”

Jace ran out into the hall and saw whom he expected. The rogue and crafter were ten feet from each other, screaming. Draya and Snowy stood by silently. “Quiet!” Jace cried. “Both of you shut up.”

Jace said it with such force that the game required the NPCs to obey. He knew he wouldn’t get an unbiased report from either of them and turned instead to Draya, who had a hand over her mouth. Jace could see the mirth in her eyes. He was glad someone found their constant bickering amusing. “What happened?”

The young mage cleared her throat and swallowed any laughter. “We found the mountain, but with the dragon now dead, other residents weren’t scared away as before, and there was a group of ogres we had to deal with.”

Jace looked concerned, but a quick check of his group saw they were all at full health. Draya and Snowy had some healing ability, but not enough to bring Esther back from “nearly dying,” as the rogue had claimed in her shouting match with Gromphy. Of course, the vampire had unique ways of healing herself too.

“Oh, don’t worry,” Draya continued when she saw the concerned look on the orc’s face. “Esther handled them all just fine. She was quite amazing, actually. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Jace smiled. Draya hadn’t had a chance to witness Esther in action yet. This would have been her first exposure to the unique fighting style.

“Amazing?” Gromphy hadn’t been as impressed. “She seduced the beasts, madeth them her slaves, then feasted on them. Hardly a gentle way to square.”

“I charmed them, enthralled them, and killed them,” Esther bit back.

“Tis what I said.”

“Enough,” Jacen said.

“I saved our asses up there!” Esther continued, not heading her leader.

“Perhaps thine backside wouldn’t be in such constant peril if thee but concealed it more.”

“I said enough!” Jace shouted. The two were perilously close on either side of him. “Back up, both of you!” They each took several steps away. Jace turned to Draya again. “Did you fight?”

She winced. “I tried, but I hurt Snowy.”

Jace looked at the winter wolf and saw she didn’t hold any ill will toward the mage still learning to control the dragon fire inside her. It was good to have a diverse RPG party, but his companions were so opposite that they threatened each other’s safety. “But you found the dragon?” Jace asked.

“Oh, yes,” Draya said. “It was right where we left it. Gromphy cast some kind of dismemberment spell, and all the scales, horns, teeth, and other parts separated, and we could collect them. Well, Esther could. Most of the body parts were too heavy for us to lift, but they all fit inside Gromphy’s box. He had to cast the spell a few times, but eventually, we had everything.”

Jace had never heard of a spell like that, but it sounded reasonable. Even if you just killed a deer for meat, the game shouldn’t make you spend an hour cleaning it. It would benefit crafters that needed to harvest specific components of their kill. “And you made it down the mountain, okay? Nobody saw you?”

Draya cocked her head at that question, unaware they were supposed to be stealthy. It had probably been close to dawn at that point, and while Jace didn’t need them to move in secret, the Magisterium had made it clear that they wanted the dragon’s body destroyed so poachers wouldn’t come looking. He had burned a few bridges with that academy, but there was no reason to make it worse. He turned to the level 20 crafter, who was probably more aware of his surroundings.

“Did anyone see you come down the mountain?”

“Nary a soul,” Gromphy responded.

“Oh, you weren’t paying attention,” Esther scorned. “You were looking up my skirt half the time, you perverted imp.”

Gromphy laughed. “I assure thee, mine fair mistress, I hast no interest in what lies beneath thy knickers, and mine eyes are by far the least offensive thing that’s been betwixt thy forks.”

Esther drew her blades and leaped at the goblin. He was ready with his priestly hold spell, and Esther cast her web simultaneously. She didn’t have a stun spell for a level 20 character memorized. The magic attacks passed each other in the air beside Jace’s head and struck their intended targets. Since they were in the same party, they both automatically failed, but not critically. Esther froze, her rapiers falling to the ground while a magical webbing secured Gromphy’s legs. The goblin still had full range of upper body motion and prepared to cast Dispel to remove the encumbrance, but Jace stopped him.

“Hold!” he said. “I’ve had enough of you two!” Esther couldn’t move, and because of the level difference, she would be still for a while, so Jace turned exclusively to the goblin. Much of the crafter’s bravado was gone in the face of the angry orc. “Back off her,” he growled. “I want no more of this pointless bickering. Esther is a beautiful, deadly, complex woman of inestimable value to me. You must get over your problem with her, whatever it is.”

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Draya wasn’t laughing anymore and took a step back. Trixna had finished with the gnomes before the group’s arrival, and she poked her head out of her quarters to watch.

“I plead thy pardon, sir,” Gromphy started, uncomfortable under all the attention. “But thy discernment is not so dissimilar to mine own. How can thee sayeth such things? True beauty is a heavenly vestment of chastity, virtue, and honor. Lady Draeklynn doth wear it well, but the garment resides not in yond demoness’ wardrobe. Its layers art too many for her debauched taste.”

“I would pray you to look deeper, foolish goblin,” Jace said, knowing that calling a prideful character with 24 wisdom a fool would cut deep. “She was once an angel, as you describe, but she has fallen – fallen far, farther than most. Now she is trying to dig herself out of an immeasurable hole, and she doesn’t need the likes of you heaping dirt upon her head.”

Jace was right that Gromphy could see and understand other’s character sheets, but he hadn’t studied Esther’s before making up his mind. He had seen the vampire skills and the occupation and stopped there. Now he took the time to look further and saw that what Jace said was true. She had been an angel. “I knew not,” he admitted.

Jace didn’t feel he needed to push it further and changed topics. “I need a death potion to kill a level 20 character.”

This ran in the face of what Gromphy assumed of his leader. “What kind? Mage? Fighter? Priest? Pray tell their Magic Defense?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Jace said. “He will be a member of my party and will fail the save whatever it is.”

Gromphy swallowed hard. “Tis me, sir?”

Jace smiled at the fear that spread through the goblin’s face. Jace chose not to answer the question. “Can you make it?”

“What kind of potion?” the crafter asked, still curious if he was to make a suicide drought for himself.

“He drinks it; he dies. I don’t care — poison, Death Spell, Level Drain, acid that burns him from within. I want no struggle or pain. I’m not an expert. That’s what you are for.”

“The venom of a shade salamander,” Gromphy said. “With it, I can brew what thee asketh.”

“Gracie?” Jace asked. “Can you find one of those for me?”

{On it, boss.}

“Can you give me its scent?” Jace asked the goblin. “You can create ingredients from mana, correct?”

“If it be true I could maketh a salamander from magic, I wouldn’t . . .” he paused in the middle of his sarcastic response, understanding Jace wasn’t asking for the whole animal. He thought for a while. “Tis too much mana. I possess it not.”

“Craft me a wand that will let me cast the dismemberment spell you used on the dragon. Craft mana with the excess and give me a drop of the salamander’s scent. Surely that is not too hard.”

Gromphy nodded and removed his massive chest from his inventory. He was still stuck in the web but didn’t want to waste mana on freeing himself. He didn’t need his legs to craft. He searched through the chest for a few moments and found a 13-inch spike of hardened steel and a ceramic petri dish. He placed the shallow bowl on the edge of the open chest, held the metal firmly, and half closed his eyes. Magic swirled around him as the new wand took shape in seconds. Soon, it resembled a sharp scalpel with a leather-wrapped grip. After the crafting session, the goblin glowed with energy, set the wand aside, and picked up the small dish. He poured all the mana he had generated and whatever was left in his pool into the ceramic vessel. The result was a tiny droplet of moisture that evaporated almost instantly.

{That took almost 1,000 mana,} Gracie said. {Rare ingredients aren’t easy to fake.}

Gromphy looked drained and limply handed the petri dish to Jace. The orc took it, looking at the tiny spot of residue left over from whatever had been created. The crafter wasn’t up for talking right now, so Jace assumed it was what he wanted and turned to summon Snowy. He held the dish out to the wolf to smell, and she recoiled at the odor.

she communicated.

Jace nodded.

she said.

Jace already understood that, but he needed it and hoped the beast wouldn’t be too dangerous. He turned back to the goblin, who was busy drinking a potion to help restore some of his mana. “You have everything you need to make my bow and arrows?”

“The items,” he started, still panting heavily and finding it hard to talk, “presented in mine old lab,” Gromphy continued, motioning to Esther, “I need them.”

Jace nodded and turned to his rogue. Esther was still frozen, but he thought she should have heard everything that was said. As party leader, he could take anything from his group whenever he wanted, but he usually liked to ask first. He didn’t want to wait for the spell to end, took the items from her, including the level 50 crystal, and transferred them to the goblin, hoping he wouldn’t regret it. Gromphy, in turn, offered Jace a few empty vials. “For the Salamander venom and blood. Ensure thee harvests everything.” After that, he did dispel the web, picked up his trunk, and scampered off to his new workshop.

Jace turned to Draya now. “You need to get to school.” He saw Trixna loitering in her doorway and beckoned the orc over. “Can you please cast a Restoration spell on her?”

“It has been a long night,” Trixna said. “I am exhausted. Will you come into my room to-”

“I’m sorry, Trixna,” Jace cur her off. “Not today.”

{Not ever,} Gracie added for him. {I don’t think you will be able to reject her forever.}

Jace would deal with his horny homemaker later. “Can you cast the spell?” he asked. “I will not ask any more of you today.”

She nodded and restored Draya as if she had gotten a full night’s rest. Her dragon abilities were reset as well. The spell could only be cast once between actual rests. “Thank you,” he said to Trixna, meeting her gaze and letting her know he meant it. She faked a smile back and returned to her room.

That left Draya standing there expectantly. “With all that’s going on, you want me to go to school? I want to help.”

“You will,” Jace said, putting a hand on her shoulder. “But the next thing I have to do won’t involve you. I need you for the rescue attempt this afternoon, and you are always sharpest after a full day of classes.” The redhead nodded reluctantly, hugged Jace, and then ran to her room to get her books. She would probably leave out the window.

That left Esther.

Jace was impressed by the length of the spell, but they weren’t in combat mode right now, so one round was about six minutes. Eventually, it ended, and Esther stumbled forward into Jace’s arms, her weapons still on the ground.

“I’m going to kill him!” she said through gritted teeth, allowing Jace to restrain her. She could easily grapple her way out of his embrace but knew it was a bad idea.

“I know you are,” he said, surprising the woman and giving her pause. “And then he will wake up right here in this cavern. What do you think it will achieve?”

Esther, of course, hadn’t thought it through.

“He will be upset that you embarrassed him, so he will leave an acid bomb in your bed. Or he will fashion snakes to slither out of your bathtub. Or he will craft a potion that covers your body with hair. It won’t end, and it won’t achieve anything.”

Esther stopped struggling, and Jace let her go. “I need you and Snowy to come with me. Just like old times.”

She had heard everything Jace and Gromphy had said. “IS the potion for the goblin?”

Jace shrugged. “Maybe.”

Esther smiled. “I’m in.”