Wizards have not drawn watch posts. Neither have the police people among our number. The military is not trusting us. The looted potions have healed our wounded. The leutenant has left the unused potions in our care apparently believing that it takes a wizard to properly handle them.

P: How are your eyes?

T: Amazing. The night is gone, but I can tell what color is from light and which from my ability. And it is not light amplification at all. I have no issues with the flares. I have simply overcome the need for light.

P: That really makes no sense considering how sight works.

T: I am afraid our understanding of the fundamentals of the universe was radically incomplete.

--

The peace has lasted until three quarters of the way to dawn. A giant violet tortoise is ponderously making its way towards our position.

LJ: Fire a conventional warning shot.

Bang. An arc of lightning connects the tortoise to a vehicle. At the same time the monster is changing course. The leutnant is letting it go.

LJ: We are being overtaken by that. Neumann, break camp.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

--

We have been shedding vehicles all along the way and are arriving with half our initial equipment. But we have reached the Elbe. Carstens is meeting us. This is deeply unfair. Some people who don’t deserve them are getting way too much helicopter service.

MC: We are depending on shipments. River and canal shipment are efficient in terms of cost and manpower. Unfortunately our canals and rivers, more so the canals, quite often traverse thinly populated areas. We have the Rhine covered, but Elbe only a bit south of Hamburg

U: Yes, so … ?

MC: We can put heavy weapons onto a river barge, but we still cannot face multiple category 3 monsters.

U: But a slow moving vehicle uses detection rituals most efficiently.

MC: True, this is a test cruise, precisely we have little redundancy, we must be sure this works. In addition if we have two wizards who do not need to worry about moving anything including themselves we can do lootings of higher categories.

T: Why is that important.

MC: Well, let me say that we have discovered that there are higher rituals, which require individuals with more essences to perform. If you get more essences, use them

--

His favourite spy joined Major Carstens in a meeting room.

S: Did they buy it?

C: Partially. They are not ready to dismiss the explanation.

S: Even better.

C: Better?

S: Sure, the more unsure they are the more they’ll jump at an offer of certainty.

C: And if they simply give up?

S: As far as we can tell, essence abilities are somewhat addictive

C: I see … Well, this is war. Do we have the coins necessary?

S: That is something we both do not have the clearance for.