Verdan returned to his estate after the meeting with Commander Griffon, Tobias and the others. The guard commander had promised a half-dozen guards for their rescue expedition, but that was all he could do. With Lieutenant Silver and his squad away hunting the bear, Griffon was reluctant to commit forces elsewhere.

Verdan understood why. The Weeping Death was playing a long-term manipulative game with them all. Even knowing that it still went against the grain for Verdan. His sense of responsibility for the fate of those bringing the goods to Hobson’s Point would be enough for him to aid Tobias, but his growing dislike for the Weeping Death didn’t hurt either.

“Boss,” one of Verdan’s new guards greeted him as he approached. The man was standing watch at the entrance to the estate and gave Verdan only a brief glance before returning to his vigil. If nothing else, these new hires were professionals through and through, something that Verdan could appreciate.

“Who’s here at the moment?” Verdan asked, curious to see what the guard knew.

“Tim and his wolf are out back training with the witch. The big guy is in the mansion with some of the others. Henry is putting on a lunch for us all,” the guard said, nodding absently towards the mansion.

“You have a problem with Gwen?” Verdan asked, keeping his tone curious, not accusing.

“Not personally, but she’s a witch,” the guard replied, shifting uncomfortably under Verdan’s gaze.

“Will it be a problem?” Verdan asked, quirking a brow at the other man.

“No, no, of course not. We were told that there was a witch here upfront. Some of the others are a little warier than I am, but as long as she keeps it under control, I can work with her.” The guard shrugged a little, spreading his palms open.

“Do they really have such a bad reputation?” Verdan asked after a moment, pleased that his new hires weren’t going to be an issue but still concerned.

“There’s a reason most of them live out on their own. A lot of them are helpful people, alchemists and the like that are real useful. They just can’t live in a large settlement.”

Verdan thanked the guard and made his way toward the mansion, finally putting together what bothered him about the bias toward witches. They were viewed as dangerous and wild, but that didn’t seem to extend to prejudice in most cases. The fear of the people he’d first rescued when he woke up made more sense now; they were trapped in a small room with a potentially deadly magic-user. In that situation, of course, they would panic.

Verdan realised now that while witches were a problem, everyone seemed aware that it wasn’t intentional. Maybe if there weren't sorcerers out there abusing their power, it would be different. Right now, however, witches were treated as more of a natural disaster; simply avoid them to stay safe.

One thing that Verdan wanted was to integrate witches back into society as best he could. Interactions like the one he’d just had reassured him that such integration was possible. It wouldn’t be easy, but Verdan was confident they could do it.

The kitchen of the mansion was quite busy when Verdan stepped inside. Elliot and the other five guards that Verdan had hired were clustered around the big table that dominated the room. Each person had a plate full of food, and Henry looked on from the business end of the room with a satisfied smile.

“Verdan, how was your meeting?” Elliot asked as he delicately sliced a sausage into portions with a knife and fork that looked tiny in his big hands.

“Productive, though somewhat concerning. We’re putting together a rescue force to go after a caravan hit by some cyth, if you’re interested in coming?” Verdan asked Elliot, unsure of what the big man would decide. Verdan had very much gotten the impression that Elliot wasn’t a fighter but a noble cause inspired all sorts of behaviour from people.

“I would be more of a detriment; I wage my war against such things with what I make, not directly,” Elliot said, a sad smile touching his face for a moment. “A shame that Cullan or Branwen aren’t here; my siblings would join you without question.” There was a hint of tension in Elliot’s frame as he spoke, with an almost apprehensive posture that was ill at odds with Elliot’s normal confidence.

“We all act in our own ways. You’ll see no pressure from me,” Verdan said, smiling as Elliot openly relaxed at his words. “As for the rest of you,” Verdan said, turning to the five guards as he continued speaking. “I won’t force you to join the rescue, but volunteers will be greatly appreciated.”

“Will we get hazard pay?” An older guard asked, a network of scars around his mouth giving him a slight slur.

“Five silvers each, though I want at least two of you to stay behind to watch the estate,” Verdan said after a quick consideration. There was a certainty of battle here, and he did need the extra blades on their side, so hazard pay seemed reasonable.

Four of the five guards immediately stated their acceptance, the fifth having a coughing fit as he tried to speak up around a mouthful of food. The others laughed at his struggles, and the unfortunate guard could only glare as he tried to clear his throat.

“The expedition leaves first thing tomorrow, with an expectation to arrive by late morning and track the cyth back to their home immediately. Get some rest and come to the workshop in the morning. I’ll be equipping you with some enhanced weaponry.” Verdan told them, watching with amusement as the four chosen guards perked up and the unlucky fifth slumped in his chair.

“You can rely on us, Boss,” the same guard spoke up again, half of his face stretching into a broad grin.

Taking his leave, Verdan set off for the rear of the workshop, where the old servant quarters were. He could hear the distant crack and rumble of lightning and thunder magic, so it was safe to say that Gwen was still nearby.

Coming into view of the impromptu area, Verdan could see that Tim and Gwen were training while Sylvie lay a short distance away and watched. The way the wolf tracked the two of them as they trained seemed to have intent behind it, but perhaps Verdan was reading too much into it.

He knew the wolf was far from normal, but he hadn’t quite put his finger on just how intelligent it was yet. The problem that Verdan faced now was what to do about the wolf prior to their expedition; he was certain that she would follow Tim into the fight. He was reluctant to do any surgical work to remove the collar, but he didn’t want to put it off any further.

Verdan had the rest of the day to get things done, and he needed at least a few hours to put temporary enchantments on the weapons for the guard and then actively meditate to recover the expended Aether. That did leave a few hours for Verdan to work with, but he didn’t have the tools or a suitable location.

Turning to the matter at hand, Verdan paid attention to the training going on in front of him. It was a simple exercise, if a little more dangerous than Verdan would have expected.

Tim and Gwen were running a basic scenario again and again. Tim would head a short distance away and then charge in, dodging blasts of lightning that Gwen sent his way as he went. Gwen hadn’t mastered a defence yet, but she swapped over to a different aspect of storms as Tim closed in, buffeting him with strong gusts of wind and rain.

Tim reacted to the change with practised ease, making Verdan wonder just how much time these two had spent training together. It was good to see and was precisely what they needed right now.

There was an art to fighting back against magic-users when you had no magic yourself. It was mainly around reading the intent and correctly predicting your opponent's actions, key skills for any warrior.

“Hey, Boss, didn’t see you there,” Tim called out as they finished their latest bout, ending with Tim touching Gwen with his blade.

“Looks like you’ve been having a good training session. How has it been going?” Verdan asked, walking over to them as he spoke.

“Pretty well,” Tim said with a half-shrug. “I’m getting better at dodging, and Gwen is getting better control. There were a few accidents at first, but we got past that.”

“I’m much better than I was,” Gwen added proudly, giving Verdan an almost defiant look as she lifted her chin and squared her shoulders.

“Really?” Verdan said, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth as he moved so that there was a clear line between him and Gwen. “Show me. Ast.” Verdan conjured a half-dome shield to protect him, gesturing for Gwen to go ahead.

“Okay, okay, okay,” Gwen muttered to herself, taking a deep breath as she turned to Verdan and threw a hand out. Crackling arcs of blue-white energy coursed down her arm, momentarily building in her palm before blasting out at Verdan’s shield.

Verdan felt the impact of the blast on his shield and immediately fed more Aether in, keeping it stable despite the strong impact. Gwen hadn’t been lying; she really had been practising.

There were two metrics to measuring the strength of a witch from what Verdan remembered, their efficiency with what they drew in and the raw amount of what they could draw.

Gwen had drawn enough Aether from the surroundings to power a decent mid-range spell, but her efficiency wasn’t great. The actual strength of the impact was above that of the blades of air that Verdan favoured, but she used a lot more to get that strength. Still, in a short battle, she would be able to hold her own, and witches could recover quickly.

“Very good, you’re improving nicely,” Verdan said, dismissing his shield absently as he continued toward the two of them. “How do you feel about putting that practice to good use?”

“Are we heading out?” Tim asked, perking up a little at Verdan’s words, while Gwen bit her lip and frowned.

“I am, and you are welcome to come with me, but you’re equally welcome to stay here if you don’t feel up to it,” Verdan said gently, talking mostly to Gwen but including Tim in the offer to not go.

“I’m in. What’re we doing?” Tim said, almost buzzing with energy as he bounced on his heels.

“I’ll brief everyone later on. We’re heading out first thing tomorrow, so get your things ready and rest up,” Verdan said to Tim, motioning with his head for Tim to head back to the mansion as he came to a final decision. “Head into the city, see if you can get a sleeping draught and a surgical kit. I’m going to try and help Sylvie this afternoon.”

“Thanks, Verdan. I knew you'd come through for us,” Tim said, giving Verdan a grin before rushing off toward the city, Sylvie running over to join him. Verdan could hear Tim muttering his shopping list under his breath as he went. Hopefully, he would get everything Verdan needed.

“What about you, Gwen?” Verdan said in a soft voice, looking back at the witch to see if she had made a decision.

“I’ll think about it. I’m not sure if I’m ready,” Gwen said, looking down at her palms as she clenched her hands into fists with a crackle of sparks. “I’ve gained a lot of strength, but my control is only just enough to make sure that Tim is safe when we practice. If I came with you, I’d be more of a problem than anything.”

“I see. I remember feeling like that when I first learned large-scale battle magic, the kind that could kill your own people as easily as the enemy if your control slipped for even a moment,” Verdan said, his eyes dark as he recalled a more desperate time. He empathised with Gwen, and that made him giving her the option to stay back even more important. He’d never had that choice, and he’d made a few mistakes that weighed heavily on his soul.

“That’s hard to imagine; your magic seems so tightly controlled,” Gwen said with a shake of her head, gesturing to the arm he’d used to project the shield a few moments earlier.

“Yes, but it wasn’t always that way. Power will come with time, but the control you have to work for.”

“I understand, thanks,” Gwen said, nodding her head a few times thoughtfully as he kept her eyes on her closed fists.

“When this is done, I’ll see if I can help you with some exercises I learned. In the meantime, though, I have an errand to run,” Verdan said, excusing himself from the distracted witch and making his way toward the workshop. He would have some time before Tim returned; he may as well use that to start adding some temporary enchantments to the spare weapons Kai had bought him.