There was apparently a world of difference between dissecting a monster and butchering a cow and one that I hadn’t fully appreciated until I saw how two burly mercenaries hacked into a mess of vines with axes, daggers and even what looked to be metal wires as Cronceet stood over the corpse scanning it with spells that were beyond me. Next to me stood June, who was watching the whole process with academic interest. The massive creature weighing more than all the animals of my village put together was sliced and diced separating the vines, the roots and the heads as well as harvesting all the leaves and flowers that came off of the monster.

“Do you think that sap would be a good base,” I said as I paged through my book of potions. Most potions consisted of a base, an exciter and a core ingredient along other ingredients depending on the complexity.

“If you want the potion to explode,” Cronceet replied sardonically. “Just use water as a base or maybe milk depending on the recipe.”

“Distilled or salt,” I replied flicking through the pages towards the section on bases.

“Generally distilled,” Cronceet said. “What are you thinking of making in the first place?”

“Low light potion,” I admitted getting a look of thought from the older wizard.

“Hmm, could work,” Cronceet said after a bit of thought. “Maybe take milk, dip a copper coin into it for about half an hour under heat until the copper dissolves and then mush up a few leaves before adding it to the mixture. Let the paste cool and then apply to your eyes when you need to see in the dark.”

“The book recommends adding one part river mud to two parts crushed leaves,” I admitted. “Although it also does state that Red Honey would be a better base for the potion.”

“That’s genuinely more geared towards goblins,” Cronceet said. “I agree with the river mud, but you have to make sure the exciter is strong enough to hold against the natural dampening effect of the mud. Substitute Red Honey for simple milk. Remember the core is the crushed vines so that is the part that has to be saturated in your Element.”

“Understood,” I said looking at the simplest recipe I had found so far. “Hey what’s the potion market like.”

“A dozen of those with certified quality will sell for about ten silvers in a regulated market,” Cronceet said. “The army can never get enough of them. You know how Goblins have much better night vision then we do. In addition I have heard of some hunters that will occasionally pick up one or two to help them with their hunts. It’s really the most basic you can start with, the kind of thing that you see students make when practicing.”

“Well that’s what I’m doing,” I admitted. “Have you had much experience in potion creation?”

“Not my field,” Cronceet said. “I knew a few people who specialised if you still don’t have your heart set on Elasarin.”

“I’m afraid I still do,” I admitted immediately.

“Good, good,” Cronceet said nodding his head. “Then I hope you can accompany June for a bit.”

“What,” I said at the same time as my fellow apprentice. She had been quiet for most of the time we were here so I decided to let her have the conversation.

“What do you mean accompany me,” June said. “I’m still staying here with you.”

“I really, really don’t think you should,” Concreet said, his voice severe. “June I’m deadly serious this time. We are camping very, very close to a dragon and if that creature comes over to our little camp we’re all fucked. I barely escaped last time and that was only because it wasn’t actively tracking us down. I doubt that I will be that lucky again.”

“Then you come also,” June said plaintively. “It’s not as if you’re being hired by Aardhilt or have some obligation towards Answerh.”

“Unfortunately I do have reasons,” Cronceet said flatly. “Not least is that I can provide some help to the refugees and likely save a few lives. There are other complicated yet good reasons why I can’t leave. Unfortunately it relates to state secrets.”

“The dragon’s searching for something isn’t it,” I said getting a look from Cronceet. “That’s why it came in the first place and why Aardhilt is so reluctant to leave. Do you think it might eventually threaten the humans to try and find it?”

“The dragon most likely already knows where it is,” Cronceet said confirming my theory in a sentence. “Dragon senses are unreasonably good. The issue is that the item is likely buried underground and I’ve heard unconfirmed rumours that dragons are weakened underground. It’s just a hunch for now but it makes sense if that is the case.”

“Really?” I asked at the same time June made her own expression of disbelief. It seemed odd for such a powerful creature to have such a weakness but it made sense. Nothing was all-powerful after all.

“Can we use that weakness against it,” June said immediately shaking her head as if she knew just how impossible the question was. Cronceet didn’t answer instead matching her shaking head before he pulled out a coin pouch on his pocket… and pulled out two full packs from there. Even as my eyes went wide at the casual display of a magic item he tossed a pack at June and me in one throw in a quite amazing display of dexterity. It was my own pack apparently. I stored everything besides my notes and potions book back in this bag as I intended for this to be a one day job. Apparently Cronceet had different plans.

“What about the conscription?” June asked and I nodded. Despite my feelings about the situation I couldn’t deny that they had the law, and by that I mean men and weapons, on their side.

“If anybody asks I gave you instructions to track down Blue and speak with her,” Cronceet said seriously. “As the person in charge of both of your training I have the authority to do that. They can take it up with me if they have a problem.” For a brief moment the lazy, casual attitude was dropped and I got a glimpse of the fury that he was hiding within. I didn’t envy whichever person had to confront him about that.

“We’ll be escorting you till we get to Vanerock,” Boris said gesturing towards himself with his thumb. Vanerock was a town about seven days travel from Answerh, but I hadn’t done much research on the topic.

“Should we go try and talk to Blue?” I asked. To be honest I just really wanted to see what a tier nine wizard would be like. Although I should probably work on my own magic before I worry about others. Concreet had shown me just how powerful a wizard could be and he was apparently far weaker than Blue.

“No,” Cronceet said. “I doubt you would manage to get in contact with her in the first place. Even if you did there is no way that you would be able to convince her to do anything. Frankly even if we currently did have a king in charge she might not do anything. Her patriotism runs very shallow.”

“Really,” I said. The thought of a wizard having the authority and power even to defy a king was amazing. I wanted that someday.

“Really,” Cronceet said. “Ettram has too few strong wizards that the entire kingdom has neither the latitude nor ability to rein her in.”

“Where should I go after Vanerock,” June said speaking up yet sounding lost as she did so. “Should I return to your place or my family or back to the academy.”

“Go wherever you want,” Cronceet said before throwing a bronze badge. “I hereby recognize you as a wizard of the Ettram Kingdom under the Stellar Empire. Do you swear to do all that stuff that you promised you would do when you joined the academy, only more serious now as you have some official capacity.” Despite his casual drawl there was a proud look on his face as he looked down at his former apprentice.

“I do,” June said. “But only if they make sense,” she continued smiling and I was somewhat shocked to see tears from her normally stoic demeanour. Wiping her face she launched herself forward catching Concreet in a hug that the older wizard awkwardly returned. The moment dragged on a bit too long before June let him go.

“Hurry up with the packing boys,” Cronceet said turning his head away. “I don’t pay you by the hour.” Ignoring his own delegation he summoned a dozen hands that quickly sorted through the piles of stuff into different bags. I tried to keep up with the motion but he was unbelievably fast. A pile of leaves, flowers, sap and even some of the head of the creature were placed in a cloth sack that was then given to me and I stuffed it into my pack causing the container to bulge.

“Well, be seeing you,” I said to Cronceet stepping forward with my hand outstretched.

“That would be the ideal would it not,” he said. “If the dragon simply left after a few more days and I’m worrying about nothing.” He spoke calmly but at his words I suddenly got a flash of the camp razed to the ground leaving only ash and bones; that was what the man was envisioning.

“Here,” he said and I felt another impressive burst of magic from my Detect Magic. Did I cast that subconsciously? I had been getting much better at that spell lately. After a few words the spell concluded and I felt something settle deep inside of me. “That should render you undetectable by magic means for at least three days. There are some people in the forest that entered a while after us. They should be here in another cycle you should hurry.

“Goodbye master,” June said.

“Goodbye Cronceet,” I joined in.

“Cheers boss,” the two mercenaries echoed, almost in sync before Boris gave a jaunty wave before he turned and left in the direction. “Come on we know how to slip past the few patrols. Let’s get out of this dragon-infested hellhole.”

There words were unreasonably harsh but I didn’t feel the need to correct them and I followed them hearing June follow me after just a few breaths of time; and overtook me in another breath. I had to put an extra bit of energy in my step just to keep up with the new wizard who explicitly wasn’t looking back. We walked in silence for almost a cycle before June spoke up.

“I never wanted to come to this place,” June said. “I thought Answerh was too close to the border. I was worried that there may be border raids or monsters infiltrating towns. I didn’t expect a dragon.”

“Answerh isn’t that close to the border,” I said shrugging at that. “My village is right up against the Cracks. You can take a fast day’s walk and cross into Indrax.”

“Really?” June asked and I nodded seeing that the conversation was doing something to take her mind off of the situation.

“Yeah, some of the villagers used to meet them at the border and barter,” I admitted. “The baron in charge knew but I think he encouraged it or something. He probably did his own trading on the sly.”

“Is it true that Indraxians have grey skin?” June asked and I half-nodded half-shook my head.

“It’s some kind of powder they apply,” I said. “Don’t know what its purpose is though. The Cracks are strange.”

“Occasionally monsters of great power crawl up through the Cracks,” another voice said and I whirled to see Myrrah sitting on a branch watching the four of us. “Don’t panic,” she said as the two mercenaries drew their weapons and June and I prepared spells. “I’m not going to go against Cronkie’s wish. Hell if I didn’t have a contract I would have fucked off long ago.”

“Thank you,” I said. “But then why are you here?” She obviously went out of her way to look for us and if it wasn’t on behalf of Lord Aardhilt then she should have her own reasons.

“I want you to deliver a letter,” she said pulling out a letter from within the folds of her green robe. “Another two days past Vanerock lays a small little village called Ambleheid; it grows a shit ton of corn. I have an aunt in that village. I want you to give her this letter for me.”

She flicks the letter towards me and I stumble forward barely managing to catch it out of the air. That was a pretty poor throw, doesn’t she have a cantrip or something that would have put it in my hands more easily. The forest floor is still wet and muddy after all.

“Why are you asking me?” I questioned even as I slid the envelope inside my pack. “Don’t you know June better?”

“I barely know either of you; but it looks like June just became a wizard so her prices should be higher,” Myrrah said casually.

“Wait, how did you know that?” June asked. “Did Ma-Concreet tell you already?”

“Just good guessing,” Myrrah replied instantly shrugging her shoulders. “Wizards can be lazy, indifferent, bloodthirsty, conceited, candid or dozens of different traits but you will never find a stupid wizard. Stop looking so smug,” she said pointing at me. “You’re still a few big steps to become a wizard.”

“I will get their one day though,” I said confidently.

“Or you’ll die,” Myrrah said crushing my words ruthlessly. “Try die after you get that letter to my aunt. Her name is Ferink. Anna Ferink. It shouldn’t be that hard to locate her in a small village like that. She has a farm where she grows corn.”

“Who doesn’t in this part of the country,” I said shrugging. “We mainly had rye, oats and barley. It’s the soil near the Cracks, it’s not the greatest,” I admitted getting weird looks from the people next to me. “You were the one who brought up farming,” I said coughing into my fist as I tried to defend myself. “I am a farm boy after all.”

“Good diction for a farm boy,” Myrrah said shaking her head. “Anyway you’ve got me off topic. Here,” she said reaching into her robe once again and launching something at me. I leapt up my hand to catch it only for it to curve in the worst way and hit me in my face knocking me down. Oh, I see. It wasn’t that she was a poor throw but that she was deliberately throwing to screw me over. That was actually pretty funny.

“Nice,” I said removing the object from my face and noticing that it was a slim black book. My pants were already ruined by this point so I simply opened up the book and browsed through the first few pages, before my eyes widened and I started flicking through more and more pages.

“It’s my training notes from when I was an apprentice,” the woman said shrugging. “Strangely enough I’m stronger now than my master ever reached. That is pretty funny actually,” she chuckled. “I’ve never really taken an apprentice and I don’t really intend to take one in future. Otherwise I probably would have given that to them. It’s nothing crazy,” she said scratching beneath her face mask and I got a flash of dark skin before the face mask went down. “I think that there is one tier 2 spell but it’s still nothing big.”

“Thank you,” I said with sincere gratitude. “I will deliver the letter as soon as possible.”

“Good, you should be on your way,” Myrrah said nodding before her image rippled and faded from view. In the next breath there was a thumping sound and a slight movement in the ground and nothing else. I sent out a quick Detect Magic but besides a slight ripple from her previous spot I wasn’t able to feel anything. I wonder if there is a better detect spell in this book.

“Well,” I said opening up the book and starting to read. “Let’s continue.” And without looking at my companions I continued walking.