Theo spewed tea on the table of his private booth. Meeting with Gael over breakfast, he’d learned the reason sailing vessels were so prevalent in the world. The cost of materials for a single, fisher-style aircraft numbered not in gold, but spiritstone. Displaying only a single engine for propulsion, and four for levitation, these crafts contained some of the rarest materials an artificer could find. Compared to their sailing cousins, they were slow, cumbersome, and expensive to operate.

“That’s why we’ve made it as sailors,” Gael said, producing a rag to wipe down his face. “We can outfit a fleet for the cost of a single airship.”

“Time to shelve that idea,” Theo said, poking at his meal. He was suddenly far less hungry.

“I didn’t mean to bring you down, Archduke,” Gael said. “That’s just the reality of it.”

“No, don’t worry. I wouldn’t want a lie,” Theo said. “How are your people doing?”

Gael sipped his tea, pausing for a long moment. “Aside from the traitors? We’re doing very well.”

“No chance them Elves are coming for you?” Tresk asked.

“None. The laws are specific about traitor houses. We fled, as is afforded to us by law, so they cannot pursue. All sins are forgiven,” Gael said.

It was a strange system, but Theo didn’t question it. House Wavecrest fled Tarantham, and the Elven Empire was happy to let them go. It would be nice to establish trade deals with the Elves. But they’d let the smoke clear. Focus their efforts on other nations more willing to trade with the alliance. While Broken Tusk had massive quantities of exports ready to go, there were simply no ships coming to get the materials.

“What are we sitting on?” Theo asked, opening his administrative interface. Alise and Gwyn had spreadsheets detailing their potential profits. Production compared against previous trade deals. “10 gold a week, and that’s us reserving materials for our town.”

The alchemist tapped his foot, cycling through the screens. He found those detailing the production of the other towns in the alliance. Compared to Broken Tusk, the numbers were dismal. Gronro had a small mine, but it wasn’t much. Rivers and Daub actually had decent food production, but the overhead listed for the trade guilds was criminal. Theo took a deep breath and let that pass.

“I have a question, Archduke,” Gael said.

“I’m listening,” Theo said, his foot tapping quicker.

“I wanted to create an Elven council of—”

“Absolutely not,” Theo said, not waiting for the man to finish.

“We just haven’t found representation in the administration,” Gael said, holding his hands out in a placating gesture. “We don’t have a say.”

“You’re refugees,” Tresk said, glaring over from Alex’s box in the corner.

Theo held up a silencing hand and nodded. “I will never allow people to split off in town. I’m not here to split you up, and ruin your culture or whatever, but your people were integrated into the citizenry of Broken Tusk for a reason.”

Gael fiddled with his tea, sensing the tension. “I feel adrift.”

“Sailing pun!” Tresk shouted. “Love it.”

“Stop being so dramatic,” Theo said. “Broken Tusk isn’t a melting pot. It’s a place for people without a home. Both the Bantari and the Half-Ogres have no cultural link to this place. Nothing that goes back over… What, 200 years?”

“About that,” Tresk said. “300 for the Half-Ogres, I think.”

“I’m not even…” Theo stopped himself. Not everyone knew he was an outworlder. “I’m not even from this world. Neither is Xol’sa. Look, why don’t you serve with the administrators?”

“With those women?” Gael asked. “I saw Alise shout at someone the other day.”

“Yeah, there’s some shouting. I’ll even grant you a lord title if you do a good job,” Theo said.

Gael brought the tea to his lips again, taking slow sips. He pursed his lips after a moment and shrugged. “What would I be doing?”

Some people felt aimless like that. They found themselves adrift, as Gael said, in the sea of Broken Tusk. They might have moved with the flow of the tide, but that didn’t mean they took part. The Elves didn’t steer that ship they found themselves on, and that came with a sense of powerlessness. Like a ship without a rudder, they drifted.

“My administration staff handles everything in town. They coordinate with the Lord Merchant, help organize defenses with my Captain of the Guard, and other minor tasks.”

“Alright,” Gael said. “I’m interested.”

Theo worked the details out with the Elf. Gael’s heart was in the right place, but segmenting the Elves into another class within town was a dangerous move. How quickly would they split off after making that decision? Did the alchemist have the right to prevent something like that from happening? None of that mattered. It was his town, and his nation. He’d run it however he saw fit. The only evidence needed for his effective leadership was the growth of the town. Sure, he was cheating with the power of Drogramath, but that didn’t matter. It was his.

“I’ll report to Alise,” Gael said.

“Yeah. Earn your title,” Tresk said. “Speaking of, I still don’t have a title.”

The alchemist glared at his companion. He knew that wasn’t important to her, but she still asked. There wasn’t a good title to give the Marshling, though. She never took part in politics, or any large-scale projects. Tresk was an excellent adventurer, but that didn’t warrant a title.

“You’ll earn a title when you do something worth giving a title,” Theo said. “Also, yes. Gael, please keep Gwyn and Alise off my back. I’d like to get some things done today.”

Theo enjoyed his breakfast, even after dealing with Gael. When the Elf departed, the pair settled on who was watching Alex that day. Tresk wanted to delve the dungeons today, having scheduled some work with Xol’sa to ‘tune’ them. The alchemist didn’t know what that meant, but he didn’t care either. The wizard’s experiments on the dungeons seemed fruitful, and there hadn’t been a wave in a while. That was a good sign, or a bad one. Time between waves often influenced their strength.

Zarali was working in her enchanting lab. When the alchemist entered, he found her inscribing something on a plank of wood. The same Drogramathi script she used to tell the story of her people, however imagined they were.

“Brother, nice of you to stop by. I have a commission from the fisherman,” she said.

Settling in on a chair, Theo sat to watch the priestess work. She wasn’t certain that the Ogre Cypress wood worked the same way on a boat as it did on his fermentation barrels. He’d forgotten she was such a cautious person, and enjoyed watching as she tried a few enchantments. The power condenser hummed in the room’s corner, focusing Drogramath’s energy to produce glowing purple runes on the length of wood.

“I can almost understand those,” Theo said, kneeling near the enchantments to inspect them.

“I’ve been trying to forget that you’ve taken a core from Toru’aun,” she said, tutting. “Why didn’t you take a mage core from Lord Drogramath?”

“Does he even offer mage-style cores?” Theo asked. “Two of his cores in my chest is enough.”

“Well, we should work on your spells.”

“Xol’sa has been helping me.”

“Dronon magic is different,” Zarali said. She moved to the far side of the room and turned the power condenser off.

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Toru’aun’s magic was a lot different than what Theo had expected. A strange brand of chanting that even Xol’sa didn’t expect. The alchemist would have been upset about learning Axpashi for no reason, but he’d be lying if he said it wasn’t fun.

“How about a display?” Zarali asked, breaking Theo from his thoughts.

With a shrug, Theo found a length of unused wood. With a sharp breath, he held his hand out and chanted the [Lesser Reveal] spell. He got it in 2 tries this time, leaving behind the reactive ward as an inscription of shifting color. Zarali came over to inspect his work, nodding with appreciation.

“They seem like neighbors, don’t they?”

“What?” Theo asked, thinking for a moment. “Oh. Wards and enchantments. Yeah, I thought they were the same thing for a while.”

“But this is completely reactive,” Zarali said. “And it doesn’t require a power source? Interesting.”

Theo found his way back to the chair to relax. “I thought you’d come asking about it sooner.”

Zarali offered him a weak shrug. “I thought about it. Figured you’d want some time alone with the new core.”

“Well, I got that skill you were hounding me about. [Reagent Deconstruction],” Theo said.

“Oh,” Zarali said, leaning in. “Now that is a skill worth talking about. Come. I’ll instruct you on Belgar’s techniques.”

They departed the enchantment lab, bound for the alchemy lab. After a brief chat with Salire about incoming orders, Theo led his adoptive sister into his lab. His desire to remove the bedroom from the building and building somewhere else for him to sleep was still burning in his mind. The lab was feeling more cramped by the day, but it would require some modifications from the town’s [Fabricator].

Zarali seemed surprised that Theo had understood the method for breaking essences and reagents down. She expected to present a revelation about primal essences. Instead, she was surprised that he’d figured out how to use those primals for his magic. It was a path she hadn’t expected, but that was no surprise. There was no one living that held both Toru’aun’s cores and Drogramath’s cores. A dangerous fact, if not for the backing of Tero’gal. Core combinations could be dangerous, if one wasn’t careful.

“We should go through the list, then,” Zarali said, placing her hands on her hips and huffing. Theo had stolen her thunder. “At your level, you should get at least the third property. And the second and third for those you haven’t eaten.”

There were many reagents on that list. The task of listing the reagents he needed to check was daunting, let alone using his mana reserves to discover those properties. With a [Mage’s Bane] flower on the table, Zarali guided him through the process of discovering the third property. It wasn’t much different than his attempts to break materials down. He focused on the skill, and his intent to find the next property, allowing his mana to flow over the flower. The deconstruction sent plumes of black smoke into the air, flashing a notification in his vision.

[Property Discovered]!

Deconstructing the [Mage’s Bane] has revealed the property: [Mana Seep]

“That was easy enough,” Theo said. “But it took some mana.”

“Right. You’re meant to do this over time, although you can drink a potion if you need,” Zarali said, clapping her hands. “Let’s get going. There’s a big pile of reagents to get to.”

[Roc Berries] were a useful reagent. They provided the [Retreat] property, which was something Theo wanted to use to escape combat. When he was attacked by the Zagmon assassins, it was useless. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t worth producing potions made from the berry, so he deconstructed one. The smoke rose, and it revealed the [Wind Shell] property. Theo dismissed the notification and sat down, a headrush sending his vision fuzzy.

“You still need to get used to using your mana,” Zarali said, tutting.

“I’m fine,” Theo said, holding his head. He had only used about 25% of his mana, so the sensation was unexplained.

After some light conversation, the alchemist was ready to get back at it. His mana had regenerated slightly on its own, but hadn’t recovered the lost percentage. It was enough to continue, though. The [Widow Lily] had been a particularly annoying reagent to deal with. As it was poisonous, he couldn’t eat it to discover the property. When the gout of smoke shot from the reagent, reducing it to ashes that floated away at the slightest disturbance, the alchemist nodded with approval. The poisonous flower had two more properties, [Maim] and [Devour].

No additional information came with the names of the properties. Theo and Zarali were left to speculate. Alex put in the occasional honk, and an even rarer chirp when she felt the need. But the alchemist took another break, recovering his senses once again before pushing forward.

[Spiny Swamp Thistle Root] was Theo’s favorite reagent. It was easy to work with, and produced powerful healing potions. The reagent was native to the region, and grew in abundance even before his arrival in the town. The smoke that rose from the root was tinged with reds, giving it the appearance of an evil cloud. [Reagent Deconstructed] revealed the third property on the root to be [Flourish].

It was time to rest, yet again.

“I could have all this done in my realm,” Theo said. “But it’s more fun out here.”

“I’d like to learn more about your realm,” Zarali said.

Theo forgot that he hadn’t spoken to her about it much. She’d been distant for a few days, likely busy with whatever enchanter works he was doing. There was little to say about Tero’gal that she couldn’t figure out on her own. Like the god she worshiped, he had a private pocket of space that he could retreat to. Unlike Drogramath, his realm didn’t come with the same level of power.

“I know it will work out,” Zarali said, placing a comforting hand on Theo’s shoulder.

She mistook his silence for pensive contemplation. He wasn’t worried about any of that junk, he was thinking about the best ways to exploit his realm. In the past, he’d responded negatively when she pushed him to embrace Drogramath. But these were different times, even if it had only been weeks. The comfort of Tero’gal spread through him like a wildfire, now. It wreathed him in self-assured comfort, banishing away any malicious thought. The Tara’hek bond had bloomed from love, and was nourished in the goals that Theo and Tresk shared. It would only continue to grow in power.

“I have a feeling it will,” Theo said.

Exhaustion creeped in by the moment, grinding Theo’s motivation to get all his reagents down to nothingness. He managed two more reagents before calling it quits. The [Moss Nettle] produced the [Stamina Burst] property. It seemed similar to the second property on the reagent, [Stamina Surge], but the alchemist had a feeling it was different in application. The last reagent he processed for the day was a [Manashroom], which revealed the [Distortion] property. That one seemed impossible to guess at, so he didn’t attempt it.

Coming to rest in a chair, sweat beading on his forehead, Theo found his stamina and mana drained to almost empty. He ate a [Mana Pill], watching as it restored most of his mana, and then rested. It wouldn’t be wise to consume anything to increase his stamina. That often had consequences, such as an inability to sleep and the jitters. Instead, he talked with Zarali about the future of the town and her work.

“I’ve got faith,” Zarali said once mention of the undead was brought up.

“I don’t think Drogramath cares about the undead.”

“Not in him. In Gronro,” Zarali said. “They’ve done an incredible job holding the line, so far.”

“And we get to sit here, not a worry in the world.”

“Don’t be so pessimistic,” Zarali said, glaring. “Your people are supporting them with supplies. More than just your potions. They’re well-compensated for their work.”

That was true enough. Gronro-Dir could become the force they’d always wanted to be, something like an army of mercenaries. Aarok was already taking them around the dungeons to train them up. Banu’s ever-growing farm would feed them well enough, especially with the Guild’s harvesting of the wolf meat. There might be a day when the fishers even provided something worth note.

“We’re working on weapons designed for the undead,” Theo said.”Artifices that shoot potions. Like a stream of water.”

“Clever. Who came up with that?”

“Throk.”

“Of course. That Marshling is devious,” Zarali said. “Saw him toying with some explosives the other day. Out in the swamp. Suspiciously, I thought I detected a potion in the air after the explosion.”

A comforting silence washed over the room for a long moment. Theo’s mind lingered. “How is Xol’sa?”

“Do you want the truth? Of course you do, you’re not a pessimist. You’re a masochist. He’s declining,” Zarali said.

Theo tapped his foot on the wooden floor, his eyes going unfocused. He was right to fear a soul-slaying by a god, and was surprised that Zarali wasn’t as scared as he was. She could have been hiding it, though. A knock at the door brought him out of his stupor. Sledge didn’t wait for an invitation. She barged in with a wide smile, hands on her hips, to strike a heroic pose.

“Guess who figured out how that synergy crap works?” she asked.

Theo stood, gathering all the reagents he could think of testing along with both [Stamina Potions] and [Mana Potions]. With his inventory packed full, he regarded the Marshling with the best smile he could muster. He tucked Alex under his arm and stretched his will through the realms.

“Give me five minutes,” Theo said, pulling Alex with him through the realms. “Then we’ll get to work.”

Passing through darkness, Theo saw that the Bridge was in a much better state. He lingered for only a moment before falling onto the soft ground of Tero’gal. In an instant, the power of that realm flooded through his body. His mana and stamina crawled to full quicker than it would have on the mortal plane. The fear for his friend washed away in an instant.

The alchemist set the remaining reagents out as Alex ran over to the spring-fed pond. An icy wind blew through Tero’gal, sending a dulled chill up Theo’s spine. Benton stepped through, holding his arms wide and shouting with excitement.

“My favorite neighbor!” the bear-person yelled.

“My favorite lord of death!” Theo shouted back, laughing.

“Have you ever seen a god of death so cuddly?” Benton asked, folding his arms. “I think not. How’s it going? I sense urgency in your realm.”

Theo nodded, turning his attention to the remaining reagents on his table. “I need to cure a friend. Got hit with a soul-slaying magical attack from a god.”

“Which one?”

“Hard to say,” Theo said.

“Gonna use alchemy to fix it?”

Theo turned his attention away from the reagents and stared at the Toora god. “Unless you have a priest in the south of Iaredin that can cure it.”

“Nope. I got good herb-lore, though.”

“Excellent. Let’s get to work.”