Theo would be lying if he said he was not uncomfortable with Belgar’s arrival. That possibility had lingered in his mind for quite some time. And why shouldn’t it? His understanding of the afterlife in this world was minimal. Even as he graced the heavenly realms, he couldn’t put his finger on those mechanisms. But those fanciful thoughts fell by the wayside when he considered what to do next.

No progress was made at the meeting after he arrived back at the town hall. His mind had twisted itself into knots, leaving him unable to make a decision on anything. That responsibility would fall to the administrators. It was their job.

Zarali needed to know. It was unfair to hide the facts from her. Cruel, even.

Tresk and Alex had already rushed downstairs to eat their breakfast, leaving Theo alone with his thoughts. He sat on his bed’s edge, waiting for his mind to gather.

“Anything I can help with?” Sarisa asked. She stepped into the room with a pained expression on her face.

“Is it that obvious? I met Zarali’s dead brother in my realm.”

“Oh. That’s awkward.”

“Indeed. What’s the best way to tell her?”

“Quickly.”

That was easy enough to say. But delivering the message was more complex than that. Her mind was already a swirl of conflicting emotions from Xol’sa’s partial recovery. But that came with its own worries. It was a temporary fix that didn’t cure the problem. Perhaps it would help him make a full recovery, but that wasn’t a guarantee. Now her dead brother’s soul lived in the realm of the person who stole his body. A confusing wash of emotions flooded through Theo.

“Bring her here, please.”

“Would you like me to bring you a cup of tea?”

“I would, thank you.”

Theo waited on his bed. When Sarisa returned, she handed the alchemist a teacup on a saucer. Zarali followed closely behind her, looking more worried than he’d anticipated.

“Zarali, there’s no way to put this gently. Belgar’s soul is in Tero’gal, under my protection.” Theo sipped his tea, waiting for a response.

Zarali stood as though frozen in place. Her mouth hung open as she processed the information. She stammered, messed with her hair, then let out a frustrated breath. “Really? Shouldn’t his soul have gone to Drogramath?”

That was a long story to tell. Sarisa lingered in the room’s corner while Theo went over all the information he knew. Belgar had been hiding between the realms. If that wasn’t dangerous enough, he ducked between the realm of dead gods and the spaces between, always trying to find a way back to the mortal plane. When his old body was occupied, it lit up like a beacon. When Tero’gal was formed, he hatched a plan.

“He sounds happy,” Zarali said, closing her eyes. Her hands were shaking.

Theo set his tea down, pulling his adoptive sister into a hug. “I thought about keeping the information from you. This is too much for one person to endure.”

The Priestess of Drogramath sobbed into Theo’s chest. Sarisa gave him an awkward look for only a moment, trying to avert her gaze from the moment. But Zarali needed to get it out of her system. Too much in too short a period had worn her down. After a while of crying, she started laughing.

“What’s so funny?”

“That’s Belgar. The stubborn asshole I remember.”

Theo wiped the wetness from her cheeks, shaking his head. “He’s pretty good at alchemy, too.”

“Damn. I wish there was a way to visit him. I know. Don’t get your undies in a twist. I know what happened to Xol’sa. We will not make that mistake again.”

“There might be a way. But I hope we can just set this aside for now. You can write him letters. Mortal objects persist in my realm.”

“Oh, that’s such a good idea. DId he have anything for me?” Zarali asked.

“Not really. He just wanted you to know he was there.”

The pair lingered in the bedroom for some time. Theo sipped his tea over the silence, Sarisa shifting uncomfortably in the corner. When they were done with their moment, the alchemist went downstairs to have breakfast. He wouldn’t share the information of Belgar to anyone else. That was up to Zarali to spill, not him. Instead, he enjoyed his meal as the group that lived in his house chatted.

“Theo,” Rowan said, leaning close to the alchemist to whisper. “We may need to talk with Ziz and his crews.”

Theo let out a heavy sigh. Rowan didn’t need to explain it to him. They were likely working themselves to death on the various projects. “I understand.”

The Dreamwalk last night was a time for reflection for Theo, but it was also a time to practice the brewing techniques taught by Belgar. Creating grain alcohol was easy enough. It followed many standard alchemical practices that made the process simple. Mash the Zee, use a standard fermentation process, then distill it down. The night was something of a breakthrough.

Theo’s cores experienced widespread level-ups. His [Drogramath Alchemy Core] hit level 24, while his [Drogramath Herbalist Core] hit 23. The [Governance Core] went to level 29, and his [Toru’aun Mage’s Core] was 7. When his personal level hit 23 from all the activity, he slapped a point into [Intelligence]. He felt aimless with his attribute distribution lately, spreading his selections out over the various stats. Generalization wasn’t a bad thing, though.

“Time to have a word with Ziz‌,” Theo said, excusing himself from the table.

“Don’t worry!” Tresk shouted after Theo. “I’ll watch the goose today!”

Theo made his way out of the manor, feeling Sarisa following closely behind him. He circled around the road in front of his house, spotting the mostly completed temple. Ziz and his boys were working like insane people, setting blocks into place even at this early hour. There were at least 20 people working on the project, all part of the man’s expanded projects groups.

“Ziz!” Theo shouted. The Half-Ogre was perched atop a wall, laying stones like his life depended on it. “Wanna come down here?”

“Not really!”

Theo scowled up at the stubborn man. The workers had erected temporary scaffolding on the temple’s side. The alchemist climbed them, refusing to let Ziz get away with this. They were going to burn themselves out before they even got to the other projects. He grumbled the entire way up, standing at the structure’s top and looking down at his town. He’d never seen it from this angle.

“You guys are going a little nuts with this, huh?” Theo asked, grabbing the side of the stone structure when the scaffold swayed in the wind.

“Theo, come on!” Ziz said, withdrawing a marble block from his inventory and setting it in place. A flash of light later, and the stone was set in place with expert precision. “Did your assistants rat me out? We’re resting! I swear!”

Ziz was tweaking like he’d just injected [Moss Nettle] directly into his heart. But he didn’t look that bad. Theo doubted he was taking [Stamina Potions] every day. The man would be dead on his feet if that was the case. There was just an underlying mania with the way he spoke. Like a man who had too much work and not enough time.

“Are you sure?” Theo asked.

“Yeah, Theo. I have a team of 60 workers now. We’re working in shifts.”

“What about you?”

“Yeah, I work more shifts than the other people, but I’m sleeping. Don’t come down on me for being a badass stoneworker.”

Theo glowered for a moment, but relented. Ziz was a focused guy. While the alchemist’s mind wandered from one thing to the other at break-neck speed, the Half-Ogre locked in a problem and never let go. But he also knew himself.

“Alright, are you sure?” Theo asked.

Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.

Ziz gave him a knowing smile. “Yes, dad.”

Theo rolled his shoulders. The Zarali thing had really gotten to him. This wasn’t the person he was trying to be. “Check this out.”

Theo withdrew a [Retreat Potion] from his inventory. One infused with the [Refined Elemental Wind] modifier. “Screw this, I’m out,” he said, downing the potion.

A blast of wind shook the scaffolding as the alchemist was thrown back. Ziz let out a shout of surprise as Theo soared over the town. Once the [Retreat] effect expired, [Featherfall] took its place. All of his momentum was removed, allowing him to glide gracefully to the ground. After a few awkward moments of falling in slow-motion, his feet hit the ground somewhere behind the Newt and Demon. He dusted himself off and made his way to his lab.

Along the way he thought about the progress Ziz had made. They were working quickly on the project, and would likely be done in a few days. The only thing that seemed to be a problem was the roof, but Sledge would sort that out. That angry Marshling hadn’t come calling in a while, so she must have been happy with how things were going.

Salire was working with customers, so Theo made his way upstairs. Belgar had helped make some alcohol for third tier brewing, but there was a problem with that. Each run of the new medium needed to be specific to the property he was trying to extract. That added a layer of complication to the alchemical process. Now he needed to store vast amounts of liquids in his lab. For now, the rows of [Dimensional Storage Crates] would have to do.

Theo got working on creating a few [Unbound Enchanted Dilutions] to match his most popular potions. If the alcohol-making process was just a little different, he could save some time. Unfortunately, the property needed to be introduced before it was turned into a grain spirit. The alchemist dedicated three barrels for now, each destined to create about 200 units of the dilution. He introduced a single drop of [Refined Healing Essence], [Refined Stamina Essence], and [Refined Mana Essence] to each barrel, then prepared the mash.

“Making something with Zee?” Salire asked, entering the lab with a smile on her face.

“We’ve had a development,” Theo said, preparing the grinder. He prepared his mash as he explained the situation with Belgar. Salire nodded along as he told the story.

“That’s weird. Alchemy advice from a dead Dronon. The Dronon who used to be in that body. Too weird for me, man.”

“Right. Just take notes on the process, it’s pretty simple.”

Salire did as she was told, but this hardly applied to her. It would take her a while to work herself up to this level. That assumed Drogramath would even grant her a core. It was best not to worry about that. The worst case scenario had her leveling up a crappy un-aligned core, but they wouldn’t worry about that now. She was so excited about the idea that the alchemist wouldn’t stop her hopeful banter. Instead, they brewed potions.

There were a few orders that came in, and they were easy enough to make. As always, it was the standard fare. Fenian shouted from the first floor at one point, so Salire went to check it out. When she returned, she relayed the message. “He’s bored.”

“Tell him to wait, we’re almost done,” Theo said, kicking off their last reaction of the day. The alcohol would take time to ferment, even in the magically enchanted barrels. But he didn’t go down when the process was done. He waited an impolite amount of time to let the Elf stew.

Heading downstairs, Theo found Fenian inspecting the potions on the wall. “Finally,” he said, turning his wheelchair to greet the alchemist.

“Hey, Fenian,” Theo said, holding his hand out. “Give me some [Monster Cores].”

Fenian scoffed. “Excuse me? Just give them to you? What do you think this is, a charity?”

“Come on, man. I’ll pay for them.”

“What are you going to use them for?”

“I’m upgrading the town. Come on, I’m bored.”

“Am I boring?” Salire asked, looking slightly hurt.

“No, you’re not boring. I just have the mind of a magpie.”

Fenian and Salire nodded at the same time. “That’s true.”

The trader always had a good supply of high-level monster cores. With the town sitting at level 20, it wouldn’t take many cores to bring it up to 25. Despite recent expenses, both Theo and the town were flush with cash. Any time he had a little money, he burned it as fast as possible. With most of the town’s needs met, that had been a hard thing to do. They negotiated a price for more [Monster Cores] than the town needed, draining some of the alchemist’s gold away.

Theo checked the town’s finances as they walked to the monolith. Fenian rolled, of course, but the screen told a different story than one of high gold reserves. Ziz’s crew was expensive. While he provided the stone for almost nothing, it wasn’t free. Compared to the prices the stoneworker got from the northern stone traders, he was losing a lot of money. But he made up for it in the fees he charged to keep his crews working night and day.

The alchemist silently inserted 50 gold into the town’s treasury after they approached the monolith.

“The town is about ready to burst.” Fenian pressed his palm against the black stone and nodded. “You won’t be a town anymore.”

“Then we just need people.” Theo inserted cores into the stone like he was feeding a vending machine. “I have the sense that we can upgrade to 25 without more people, but 30 is off limits.”

“Good. Feed the town, my dear alchemist.”

Theo was already doing it. Fenian didn’t need to be weird about it, but here we was. Baby arm flapping in the wind like it wasn’t strange. “You know, I never realized how much spending thousands of years in a heavenly realm would mess with your mind.”

“Bah, that wasn’t the problem. Not really.”

[Broken Tusk] has advanced to level 21!

“Then what was the problem? Why are you acting so silly?”

Fenian let out a breath, then shrugged. Zarali wasn’t the only one in town struggling with their emotions. Tensions were running high. It was likely the calm that had settled in over Broken Tusk. “I saw a mirror image of myself in the king. We’re more alike than I previously thought. You have to understand that time doesn’t mean the same thing over there as it does here…”

Theo knew that all too well. He shoved another core into the monolith and nodded. Time could slip away from him in the realms. Hours could pass in a blink if one’s mind were to slip.

“Especially in someone else’s realm.” Fenian nodded his head at Theo.

[Broken Tusk] has advanced to level 22!

“We got to talking. Between our epic battles. I learned more about him and the other way around. Anyway, I decided to stop brooding so much!”

“Well, I’m glad,” Theo said.

[Broken Tusk] has advanced to level 23!

“Now help me shove cores into this town, I have an upgrade I want to take.”

Fenian and Salire helped jam cores into the town until it hit level 25. There were a few interesting upgrades he could pick from, but there was one that had lingered in the alchemist’s mind for some time. Now that Ziz and his crew were building hand-built things it seemed to be the perfect time. He inspected the upgrade before selecting it.

[Dynamic Incorporation]

Using a [Fabricator], you can incorporate hand-made buildings into your town. These buildings will act as seed core buildings, but they function at a much lower level.

“Oh, that’s a nice one.”

If Fenian was pleased, Theo was pleased. But there was no way of knowing what they needed to do with Sledge to get the buildings to work properly. This would result in some experimentation with an angry Marshling. Notably, the town hadn’t become something other than a ‘Massive Town’, even after hitting level 25. The alchemist inspected the town before moving on for the day.

[Massive Town]

Name: Broken Tusk

Owner: Theo Spencer

Leader: Archduke Theo Spencer

Faction: [Southlands Alliance]

Level: 25 (1.83%)

Core Buildings:

Alchemy Lab

Greenhouses (x6)

Mycology Cave (x2)

Blacksmith

Artificer’s Workshop

Large Farm

Small Farm

Windmill

Quarry

Stonecutter

House (x398)

Manor

Tannery

Tavern

Adventurer’s Guild

Hotsprings

Sawmill

Mine

Smelter

Enchanter

Ranch

Townhall

Butcher

Weaver

Defensive Emplacements:

Chain Lightning (x12)

Frost Cone (x7)

Fireball (x10)

Firebolt (x25)

Upgrades:

[Stone Walls and Gates]

[Stone Roads]

[Defensive Emplacements]

[Synergistics]

[Dynamic Incorporation]

Effects:

[Troll Slaying]

[Coordinated Fire]

Current Resources:

Timber: 50,243

Stone Blocks: 10,011

Metal: 9,123

Motes: 15,500

The window that popped up was unwieldy. At this point it had several pages that Theo had to tab through, making it a horrible experience. The group discussed the new upgrade there by the monolith. It was nice seeing people walk past them, going about their lives without fanfare. Things were settling down into a comfortable pace. Fenian went off after a time, wheeling himself along the cobbled path. Salire had the shop to attend to. Potions to sell and all that. She’d also check the fermentation barrels while the alchemist faced down the dragon.

Sledge’s people seemed to be just as busy as Ziz and his crew. The only difference was that they didn’t need to be this busy. Lumber production was crucial to the town’s success, but she took her job too seriously. When she wasn’t working on [Fabricator] jobs, she was cracking the whip at the sawmill.

“Hide!” Sledge shouted after spotting Theo coming down the road.

“Someone else has to say ‘hide’, Sledge,” Theo shouted back. “Otherwise I know you’re there. I have something fun for you to do.”

Theo approached the sawmill, spotting the Marshling hiding behind a stack of logs. “How fun?” she asked, not removing herself from her hiding spot.

“Well, you’re going to turn a normal building into a seed core building.”

Sledge popped up. “Alright. Let’s go.”