Furrowing my brow, I stared down at the four piles of charred plant matter. After hours of searching through my books, I finally managed to identify the plants as Mint, Halrdan, Quare, and Sarasar. The guild had discovered the remnants of four plants in a bronze bowl inside one of the many caves we searched, while looking for signs of the fire drakes we had come to hunt.

Yet, after days of searching, we found no signs of the creatures, and even the Scorchers, which were said to inhabit the caves, were nowhere to be found. Instead, we found evidence of a large group having been in the area before our arrival, along with several bronze bowls containing burnt plants. It was clear that we weren't the only ones interested in hunting fire drakes to increase our supply of firestones.

The sound of footsteps and the low growl of Leo, who lay at my feet, alerted me to Corvus's approach moments before the lion Bakeneko shoved aside the tent flap and entered with a scowl.

“Well?” The commander demanded, ignoring my Leosaur's futile attempts to roar in disapproval of the lion intruding on what the cub considered his territory.

"Hello, Kadia," I said sarcastically, crossing my arms over my chest as I glared at the lion, whose scowl deepened. "I've come to see if you've made any progress in identifying the plants that were being burned in the caves."

He stared at me for a long moment before turning his attention to the cub, who was still yowling at him from under the workbench. Corvus then let out a loud roar, sending Leo scampering past the canvas wall that divided the workspace from the living quarters.

"If you're going to act like a petulant child instead of the commander you are, then you can leave," I informed him coldly, turning away and refocusing on the items laid out on my workbench.

The tent was silent for several moments before Corvus let out a loud sigh and walked over to a chair. He sat with his elbows resting on the bench and his face buried in his hands, looking utterly defeated.

I glanced over at him, raising an eyebrow.

Corvus heaved a deep sigh and combed his messy golden locks with his fingers. “We have scouted all the surrounding areas and only found one juvenile fire drake. We searched over a hundred caves and only found one!”

“So we wait for them to revive,” I replied, not understanding why he was so angry. “There’s no point in getting worked up over someone clearing the area out before us. We were about to do exactly what they’ve just done.” While I was disappointed the fire drakes had been wiped out before we arrived, they would respawn so it wasn’t that big of an issue.

”Drake replenishment occurs in a three-week period and it usually takes a few extra days for them to reach full maturity. Hunting juvenile or recently hatched drakes is not recommended, as they won't form the fire stones until they reach adulthood. It will be over a month before we can hunt any of these creatures.”

I sighed, starting to understand why he was so put out. “Then I guess we’ll have to move onto hunting the Hydra and circle back to the Fire drakes afterwards.”

“We found some scraps of burnt cloth that appear to be a cloak, and the coloring and crest suggest it belongs to the Primordial Brotherhood. They left Sēkrit two weeks before us, leaving only a small group at their stolen encampment.” Corvus said, a muscle ticking in his clenched jaw.

"Do you suspect they knew we were going to be hunting the fire drakes and came here to purposely clear the area before we arrived?" I suggested standing from my chair and moving to a side table where a few cups were sitting.

I grabbed two clay cups and set one down in front of Corvus, then poured a generous amount of cat's tongue-infused vodka into it, before pouring some into my own cup. He didn't respond to my question at first; instead, he downed the contents of his cup in one smooth motion before holding it out for me to refill.

“It’s obvious they did it to provoke us.” Corvus said, staring down into his cup with a scowl. “Otherwise, why travel to Sēkrit only to leave soon after to hunt the fire drakes? Why not hunt first, then move on to Sēkrit to get a foothold in the newly forming dungeon settlement? We used to be respected and even feared. If it was known that our guild was hunting, no one would dare intrude on our chosen hunting grounds - but now look at us.” He sneered, slamming his cup down. “We’re a laughing stock."

“It will be like that again,” I said as I refilled his cup. “Look at how much the guild has already achieved in the year since leaving Avalon to start anew here. Yes, we lost a lot when the guild moved to Kaledon, but we can and will, rebuild.”

“I know that, of course I know that, it’s just-”

“You miss being the big bad lion everyone scampered away from in fear.” I said, biting my lip to hold in a laugh as he nodded his head. “The great lion of Eternia, whose mighty roar could send an entire battlefield of foes retreating in terror.”

Corvus laughed a bit before letting out a deep sigh. "Though I'm happy with what my life has become since moving from Avalon to Kaledon, I still feel some sense of loss for what we left behind."

“There's nothing stopping you from having it all again,” I told him, eliciting an eye roll in response.

Corvus mockingly picked up the jug of vodka to pour himself another drink, only to realize it had been completely emptied. “Tell that to our illustrious leader. He’s so focused on fortifying our position and resources, that he forgets we also need to rebuild our reputation.”

“He is thinking about the future, to our goals beyond this continent.” I reminded him.

“That's all well and good, but the barrier is yet to fall. We need to focus on the present just as much as what is to come. If we keep ignoring the Brotherhood's transgressions, we’ll be seen as weak.”

"It's too bad we can't just, you know, hunt down the brotherhood and take their stones for ourselves.” I mused, twirling a strand of hair around a finger. “We could also flood the market with something cheaper and easier to attain than Firestones, thus making the cost of Firestones plummet. But, that will take a lot of time to achieve- months, maybe even years.”

“And what would this cheaper, and easier-to-attain item be?” Corvus asked, looking interested.

“Our dear patron gifted me another loot box recently. It was a transmutation circle called the Undying Fire Array.” I informed him, pulling out the rolled scroll from my belt pouch. "A fire wisp core is used as the catalytic agent and the flame persists for about a month before the core disintegrates. Submerging the core in water suppresses the fire, and it will reignite again when removed from the water without having to re-engage with the circle. So the cores can be sold, and transported in jars of water. Two cores can produce the same heat as one firestone at full burn.”

“So why are we farming fire drakes?” Corvus demanded, looking frustrated. “How long have you had this?”

“We are hunting fire drakes for the red powder I can make with the firestones and for the other useful components they have, such as their hide. I seem to recall you wanted new boots.” I reminded him, eyeing the scuffed red scaled boots he wore. “I got the loot box while we were traveling through the tunnels four- no- three days ago. Kip suggested this morning that it might be a suitable alternative to firestones.”

"Kip. So this was his idea; that makes more sense. " Corvus muttered, nodding his head.

I scowled at him for the insinuation that I couldn’t come up with such a plan.

Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

Corvus rubbed a hand over his chin, looking thoughtful. "What's stopping someone from copying the circle and making their own cores?"

I shrugged. “Nothing, aside from them needing a transmutation amulet to activate it. The circle requires a mixture of fire and air-attuned mana. We figure it will take a while for people to work out that it isn't an enchantment.” I paused for a moment before continuing. “As they progress, I will also grant the circle to my direct disciples who are transmuters. It's better to have more people making cores if we want to flood the market; with only Roswyn, Kip, and yourself working on cores, we wouldn't be able to keep up with demand.”

“We’ll need to start collecting more wisp cores.” Corvus said, rolling his cup between his palms. “Though, personally I'm not interested in spending my days slaving away making these cores. Noctus will be upset about the lost profits, but I don't think trying to maintain a monopoly is a good idea. Wisps are easy to farm, but adding the circles is much harder.”

"Eh," I shrugged. "It depends if you cheat when drawing the circle or not." I said offhandedly, digging through my bags to see if I had any more infused vodka.

“You said there were no shortcuts when drawing circles,” Corvus accused.

I grinned in response and said, “Didn’t you know that you can stamp circles? Once you’ve created the stamp just ink it up and away you go!”

“What the fuck! I’ve been repeatedly drawing circles for days; why didn't you tell me this earlier?” He demanded, slamming his hand onto the table with a loud thud.

“I didn't know until I caught Roswyn stamping paper to make her transmutation packets. Poor Kip almost cried when he saw. Apparently, you can also hot brand them into leather; she's quite industrious.” I told him, smiling as I recalled Roswyn’s excited chatter as she spoke about her discovery. “I've assigned her the task of finding a way to easily get the circles onto a round object. They need to be carved, but if she can get an outline stamped on correctly, it will be much faster.”

"If we have a stamped outline, we can outsource the carving. Maybe you shouldn't give away the circle," Corvus said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"I'll let the guild decide how to deal with the sale and manufacturing of the cores they produce. But regardless of that, I will be giving the circle to my disciples, as it is my duty as high priestess to guide and teach." I told him with a smile full of false sincerity.

“You’re so full of shit,” Corvus scoffed, setting his cup down on the table as he stood. “We both know you benefit from your direct disciples' efforts.”

I laughed, nodding in agreement as I walked with him to the tent's exit. He wasn’t wrong, I did gain a little bit of mana each time one of my direct disciples progressed in one of the disciplines. It wasn't much- I could gain more mana by stomping on a rat, but it was better than nothing.

With Corvus gone, Leo came bounding out of hiding and spent a good ten minutes circling the areas the other lion had been in, intent on re-marking his territory.

“If I smell even a whiff of pee, you're spending the night outside,” I warned the cub as I cleared away the cups and empty jug of vodka.

Returning to my workbench, I laughed as I saw the piles of plants and realized I hadn't told Corvus what I'd discovered. It served him right for being so rude and not asking me politely to tell him about my findings.

Not long after Corvus left, Rainy entered the tent, looking weary as she trudged towards the curtained off section of the room. Her face was flush and damp with sweat, her hair in disarray as the petals of pink blossoms that were woven into it had started wilting.

Despite looking unkempt, she was still rather pretty beneath all the grime. "Tough shift?" I asked, as I heard the rustle of clothing from behind the curtain and the splashing of water.

Rainy let out an exasperated sigh. "You don't know the half of it. Those fools left a mess for me to sort out," she said, as I heard her vigorously scrubbing at her hands and arms. "They're supposed to shovel the manure and till it into the dirt, not just leave it in piles."

She emerged from behind the curtain, still wearing a frown. She'd changed out of her work clothes, and was now wearing a tight fitting maroon dress with loose off-shoulder sleeves and a light brown leather bodice to match.

"It's not just about shoveling manure," Rainy said unenthusiastically. "There are so many other things that need doing for the fodder to grow properly in this environment. It's draining to supplement the growth in sand." She slumped into a chair and sank back against the cushions, seemingly too exhausted to move another inch.

I handed her a cup of cold water, and she gave me a grateful smile. "Thanks," she said, before taking a long sip from the cup. "Did you have any luck identifying the plants the guild found?"

"Some," I replied. "I think I've identified most of them."

Rainy's expression changed from weary to intrigued in an instant. She sat up straight and leaned forward eagerly. "What have you found?" she asked.

I smiled, pleased with her reaction. I spent the next few minutes explaining to her what I had found out, and she listened intently taking in every word. When I finished talking, she nodded thoughtfully. "Do you think the combination of these plants are what killed the scorchers?"

I furrowed my brow thoughtfully. "It's a possibility," I said. "But we'll need more evidence to prove it. I have contacted Helvara and Sadie, passing on the information. They will be conducting a test using one of Scorch and Sting's offspring."

Rainy nodded, her eyes thoughtful. As I was about to say something else, we were interrupted by a loud thump and a shout from outside the tent.

"Foxy! Foxy." The flap of the tent opened and Pia rushed in, her face flushed with excitement. "They found them!"

"The fire drakes?" Rainy asked, her eyes widening in surprise.

"No! The brotherhood!" Pia exclaimed. "They found them! We're going to attack! The guild leader is calling everyone together."

Rainy and I exchanged a look of surprise.

"Well," I said, getting up from my seat. "I guess we'd better go see what this is all about."

Rainy nodded, still looking a bit stunned by the news. We made our way out of the tent and hurried towards where everyone was gathering.

-

After six hours of sneaking around in my fox form, utilizing my transmutation ability to tunnel below the enemy camp and strategically placing several surprises around their base, I watched on from a concealed location high on the canyon wall as one by one they began to take effect.

First came a blinding light that spread from the edges of the encampment until nothing could be seen but its intense glow. Then came an ear-splitting blast that sent shockwaves through the air and tremors through the canyon.

As the ringing in my ears faded, I heard the commotion coming from below. The brotherhood was clearly in disarray; no doubt their minds were spinning with confusion and dread at what was happening.

Little did they know, this was only the beginning.

Moments later, their confusion turned to terror as dozens of Eternia guild members descended on them from above, using ropes to rappel over the edge of the canyon and onto their unsuspecting enemies. Even more rode in on horseback, brandishing weapons and shouting battle cries that echoed through the canyon.

There was no way for our adversaries to defend against such an attack coming from two directions at once. It was clear who would emerge victorious.

I spotted my brother Markion in the fray. His axe glinting in the sun as it cut through armor and flesh alike. Corvus fought nearby, his sword slashing down enemy after enemy with devastating effect. And in the distance, I saw Victoria leading our team, using her tower shields to plow through ranks of enemies with ease.

The fight didn't last long, the brotherhood were unable to recover from the surprise attack and the Eternia guild emerged victorious. Now it was time to raid.

Swiftly scavenging the camp, we recovered the firestones and collected a plethora of other treasured loot. Our spoils included weapons and armor, mana crystals, as well as several magical items which Darius generously distributed among the guild fighters.

"You know they're going to retaliate, right?" I said, examining the pile of firestones with a smile.

"Let them," Corvus replied, looking over at Darius who gave a nod. "We're Eternia, we must protect our people and take a stand when necessary." He adjusted his gloves, and reached down to pick up a firestone. "This will be our warning," he said, holding up the firestone.

"They overstepped, knowingly over hunting in a zone we were known to be traveling to." Darius said, folding his arms over his chest. "Corvus is right that we need to send a reminder that Eternia is not to be trifled with. We couldn't let them get away with this, not if we want to keep our guildsmen safe."

"This is a good way to send a message," I said, feeling my heart quickening with excitement.

"It is," Corvus replied, giving me a wicked smile. He looked over the destroyed camp with an air of satisfaction. "And if they're stupid enough to ignore it, we'll destroy their entire guild."

Darius sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Guild wars are resource and time consuming," he said. "But I agree that it's something we need to do." He looked over at Corvus. "It's your show, Corvus. I will leave the issue of dealing with the Brotherhood in your hands."

Corvus smiled and nodded, looking pleased. Eternia had given a reminder to our enemies today and I knew Corvus would make sure it was heard loud and clear throughout the continent. The Brotherhood had paid for their transgressions, and victory never tasted so sweet.