The Newt and Demon

Theo wouldn’t have trusted even Zarali to instruct him on how to produce mana reliably. The system covered that for him with his water enchanting, but without a skill related to the act, it was up to him to bridge the gap. Xol’sa explained it to him. The alchemist could grab a chisel and a hammer, practicing to create the stone tablets Ziz made for him. One day he might get rather good at it, but it would never compare to what someone could do with a [Stonecutter’s Core]. With one deft smack, Ziz could create the tablets with minimal effort. But that was where the wizard advised caution. Reliance on cores to do everything often led to devastation after level 30.

“Because control is important,” Xol’sa said, summoning a pool of shimmer blue mana. “You can think of it as fuel, but without my exercises it will come out explosively.”

While the wizard’s instruction had been helpful, Theo didn’t want to tell him how he’d understood the dangers of mana. The exercises were simple enough. To practice, all he needed to do was imagine the mana drawing from his [Drogramath Alchemy Core], pulling it to the surface of his skin, and keeping it there. Xol’sa assured him the process was more complex than that, but the exercise would work well enough.

“Mastery over mana aspects takes time,” Xol’sa said, nodding. “You could understand Drogramath’s power as though it were your own breath, only to be crushed by Zaul’s. Every form has a unique flavor. Different preferences.”

If that were the case, then Drogramath’s mana was curious, ingenious, and determined. It was unyielding, yet it wanted to roam. Like the Demonic God himself, it was a contradiction. Theo was happy that Xol’sa would spend the rest of the day helping him understand that strange resource. The wizard had better things to do, but the alchemist’s interest in the topic surely fueled his support.

When Theo finally left the tower, returning through the portal without issue, he understood something about bringing mana out. It wasn’t enough for him to try without supervision, but he was happy with the progress. Tresk attended the nightly feast with him, relaying what she’d observed from Zan’sal during the day. This sent Theo’s suspicions of the woman up in smoke. She just spent time with her child, joined the other adventurers on the walls, and helped around town. The alchemist brushed his concerns away, eating the strange, spicy stir-fry that Xam had prepared. It was good, but he was distracted.

Tresk was disappointed when they entered the Dreamwalk. Theo hadn’t created the potions he promised to make, meaning that he couldn’t test them. At first she seemed angry about that fact, but softened with a grin on her face.

“You’ll just have to suffer,” Tresk said.

True to her word, his entire time in the Dreamwalk was made difficult. Theo fell into a constant state of awareness, but not paranoia. Even with the tools he had, escape became more of an option each time. He reinforced what Xol’sa taught him, and made some discoveries about his theory on constructs. The system was available in its entirety in the Dreamwalk, allowing Theo to scroll through the endless pages while he worked on his alchemy. Something stirred inside him, signifying that his [Drogramath Alchemy Core] had leveled and he immediately switched to tending a field of dream plants before finally inspecting a skill.

Alchemy and Herbalism Skill

Epic

Alchemy constructs can take many forms. They combine the power of essences with magical bindings and the natural world.

Effect:

Increases the success of creating a construct.

Constructs require less power to operate.

+1 Intelligence

Requires: Level 15 [Drogramath Herbalism] and Level 15 [Drogramath Alchemy] cores.

Theo would only gain access to 1 skill at level 15. While Zarali advised him to get [Reagent Deconstruction], he knew that was a long-term thing required to break past level 30. While he had a rocky start with constructs, they could help him now. He saw the potential in those little stone tablets, especially if he had a skill related to them. The description on the skill also gave him a hint on how to create better constructs, but he still only had theories. He spent the rest of his time in the Dreamwalk dodging assassins and tending his plants until he felt another twinge. His [Drogramath Alchemy Core], [Drogramath Herbalism Core], and his personal level all leveled up. He already planned to dump his free point into [Intelligence], and was eager for the night to end.

When the pair woke in the morning, Theo was greeted with a series of system windows.

[Drogramath Alchemy Core] receivedexperience (5%).

[Drogramath Alchemy Core] leveled up! Level 14.

[Drogramath Herbalist Core] receivedexperience (5%).

[Drogramath Herbalist Core] leveled up! Level 14.

[Governance Core] receivedexperience (0.18%).

[Governance Core] leveled up! Level 8.

[Theo Spencer] receivedexperience (1.7%).

[Theo Spencer] receivedexperience (1.7%).

[Theo Spencer] receivedexperience (2%).

[Theo Spencer] leveled up! Level 13.

[Theo Spencer] received one free point.

While he didn’t expect the [Governance Core] to level up, he wouldn’t fight it. He put his free point into [Intelligence], bringing it up to 19 with his modifiers. Once it hit 20, he’d reconsider his distribution strategy, but this was fine for now.

Theo made his offering, and went to leave the building, expecting Tresk to be close behind. She grabbed him by the arm and gave him a serious look.

“Do you have [Roc Berries]?” she asked.

“Not enough for a run,” Theo said, feeling sheepish under her gaze.

“Alright. We’re getting some before I leave you for the day. I’m not letting you slack.”

Theo nodded, being led by the arm to go eat breakfast. They ate quickly, not wasting before heading to the hills to the south, still within the walls of the town. The [Roc Berries] grew there, and were tart, almost chalky berries that had the important [Retreat] property. It would have been better to cultivate the berries to get better potions at the end, but this would do for his testing. Tresk wasn’t happy with him promising to brew a potion based on the [Retreat] property and followed him back into the lab. To his surprise, Sledge and Throk were leaving when they arrived.

“What are you doing here, dad?” Tresk asked, eying her father suspiciously.

“Zarali hired me,” he said, shrugging. “Hope it was sanctioned.”

Throk was a gruff old Marshling, shorter than Tresk with pale brown skin. He was a cornerstone to Broken Tusk’s operation. After a moment of silence, he spoke again.

“Theo, do you have a moment?” Throk asked.

“To the lab, dad,” Tresk said, refusing to leave Theo’s side.

Sledge departed there, wanting nothing of Tresk’s ire, and the group went up to the lab. Theo noticed the work Zarali hired him to do immediately after entering the room. All 3 of his stills had new attachments. A thick pipe ran in a loop to the ground where a new artifice stood. It was much like a smaller still and had an output at the bottom that looped again, running over the table and into a new series of condenser coils. This wasn’t exactly what Theo had imagined, but he could see the logic in the design.

“There’s them bubbling plates on the top,” Throk said, pointing at the thick tube coming from the top of the stills. “I wanted to call them agitators, but Zarali insisted. Then, we have vapor condensers at the bottom. Basically, small pressure vessels with refuse releases on the side.”

“Did she pay you?” Theo asked, moving into inspect the new artifices. A system prompt popped for both new attachments.

[Custom Copper Bubble Plate]

[Alchemy Equipment]

Rare

Created By: Throk

Achieves in-line redistillation effects without loss of essence.

Effects:

Increases the quality of resulting essence by 1 grade, up to excellent.

[Custom Vapor Pressure Tank]

[Alchemy Equipment]

Rare

Created By: Throk

Refines essences in vapor form through extreme pressure.

“I’m all paid up,” Throk said, laughing.

Both were amazing. The bubble plate just increased the purity of the final essence, which Theo would need going into level 20. But the vapor tank was amazing. He didn’t need to run out to the back yard to dump his essence in the massive pressure tanks. According to Zarali, the vapor needed less pressure to be refined, but he wouldn’t take her word for it. He removed the lid of his [Drogramath Still], an action made more awkward by the bubble plates, set his grinder on top and ground 200 units of [Roc Berries] inside.

Throk and Tresk caught up, which amounted to a screaming match in the lab about Tresk’s future. Theo ignored them, dumping his [Enchanted Water] inside and setting the still to work. Their argument grew more intense, but the alchemist went out back to check his plants. To his surprise, the pressure vessels were gone, which was fine with him. He could feel Tresk’s feelings as he clipped back his plants, pulling weeds and making sure they were watered. She wasn’t mad at her father, this was just how they communicated. As he finished gather his plants, he felt a wave of love fill his heart. They must have gotten to the core of the issue, and as he entered the lab again they were hugging.

“How many [Monster Cores] do I have left?” Theo asked.

“We’re having a moment,” Tresk growled.

Theo bought 200 high-level monster cores the last time his favorite trader was in town, but he’d spent most of them. He found them in his [Dimensional Storage Crate] and returned them to his inventory, intent on increasing the size of his greenhouse while Throk and Tresk were having their moment. Of the 200 he bought, there were only 30 left. He went down to the greenhouse and fed motes inside, watching as it grew in size with each level. Every new level for a building gave it more size, maybe 5 halms in whatever direction, but multiples of 5 gave it a new skill. The [Alchemical Garden] hit 15 very quickly, and the options were not incredibly impressive. The system usually listed 3 selections, but only 1 was typically good. He selected the best one.

[Rapid Growth]

Consume latent energy to increase the speed that plants grow within the greenhouse.

That would be absurd. The plants already grew to maturity within a day, but the other options were increased fertilization of the earth and a weed killer. Neither option seemed good, so [Rapid Growth] was the best. He kept feed cores until he was down to a handful. Fortunately, the level 30 cores went a long way and he got the greenhouse to level 20. It was more than twice the original size, large enough to hold a horde of plants. A single new option appeared, and it was clearly the only one worth selecting.

[Untamed Cultivation]

Increasing the ceiling for how high a plant can be cultivated to 200%.

“That changes everything,” Theo said, snorting a laugh.

Cultivation did a few things for reagents. The most important thing, if you asked Zarali, was that it increased the purity of the final essence. Theo’s main concern with cultivation was how it affected the size of the reagent. For every 10 percent of cultivation, a plant would gain at least a unit in size. A [Spiny Swamp Thistle Root] at 100% cultivation was 12 units, which was enough to make 12 potions. He could only imagine that a 200% cultivated root would produce 24 units. It also gave him a clear path for something he wanted to do in the future, which was the hybridization of reagents. But that was a task for another time.

Theo had time to think as he worked in his garden. He could hear the voices of Tresk and Throk from the lab upstairs, deciding to give them a moment before he intruded. Only when their voices died down did he go upstairs, finding his companion smiling there and her father moving to leave. Theo stopped him at the door, dragging him back into the lab.

“Can you make me something, Throk?” Theo asked.

“I’m always making you stuff, Theo,” Throk said, giving him a flat look.

“I’ve been thinking,” Theo said, withdrawing a [Seed Core House] from his inventory. He set it down on the table.

“That’s always dangerous,” Throk said, laughing nervously.

A seed core was the base of all core buildings. They grew magically, fed by monster cores, but the design seemed genius to Theo. It typically had a metal cage containing some seed in the center. With the example on the table, it was an iron mesh cage surrounding a swirling mote of energy that looked like a mix between wood and fire.

“How much do you know about seed cores?” Theo asked.

“Nothing,” Throk and Tresk said at the same time.

“Same here,” Theo said, poking the small sphere. Without waiting for anyone’s approval, he produced a vial of essence from his inventory and dripped it on the seed core. He gained a shout of concern from Tresk and Throk. His companion ripped the bottle of essence from his hand and cast him a glare.

“Trying to kill us?” she asked.

“They’re alchemically neutral,” Theo said, shrugging.

“Because they’re magic, you dolt,” Throk said.

“Maybe,” Theo said, shrugging. “I need you to make me a few cages. Like this. I prefer something with a clasp, so I can put stuff inside.”

Throk narrowed his eyes at the alchemist. “What are you planning? Going to make seed cores?”

“No,” Theo said, waving him off. “I just had an idea, based on a skill I can get next level.”

Throk grumbled, but nodded. “I can do that? Copper? Of course. Well, I’m leaving before you blow me up.”

Throk departed, not wanting an explanation from Theo, but Tresk remained. The still was done refining the essence and she wanted him to create a potion before he left. She was also interested in his explanation on the seed core, which he returned to his inventory. Theo withdrew a sample of his new essence for inspection.

[Refined Retreat Essence]

[Essence]

Uncommon

Created by: Belgar

Grade: Excellent Quality

Alignment:

Drogramath (Middling Bond)

Alignment Effects:

Resulting potions will be more effective.

Chance to consume half of required essence during brewing.

1 units (liquid)

Concentrated, refined essence of retreat.

It wasn’t anything unexpected, but the Theo could feel that it would make a standard potion. He transferred the essence to his inventory and generated a single flat-bottomed vial to brew his potion in while explaining his idea about the metal cages.

“Xol’sa gave me a hint about the constructs, although I don’t know if he knew exactly what he was saying,” Theo said, pulling a vial from his [Glassware Artifice]. “He said to use a living medium, but that’s not what he meant.”

Theo mixed the potion with ease, but his mind itched to consult his Basic Drogramath Alchemy book. The mysterious book was written in code that could only be understood once he unlocked skills. He knew that the knowledge he wanted was not there, or that it was still encoded until he unlocked the skill. The potion swirled in the vial, bubbling for a moment before turning a pale green color. He inspected it before Tresk responded to his comment.

[Retreat Potion]

[Potion]

Uncommon

Created by: Belgar

Grade: Excellent Quality

Alignment:

Drogramath (Middling Bond)

One second after drinking, the imbiber will be propelled backwards. Distance depends on the quality of the potion.

Effect:

[Retreat] on self.

“So, your plan is to make a seed core?” Tresk asked, following him as he left the lab.

“A mock seed core, maybe,” Theo said. “It makes sense, though. A metal cage on the outside to contain everything, a middle part that holds the magic. I’m just missing something. I need the skill.”

They were out on the cobbled roads of Broken Tusk after chatting for a moment with Azrug. The shopkeeper was irate about some missing stock, but relaxed when he learned that Theo had taken it.

“Ready?” Theo asked, facing his back toward the south.

“For what?” Tresk asked.

Theo downed the [Retreat Potion] without hesitation. The difference between tier 1 potions and tier 2 potions was massive. If he had brewed the first tier, he would have gone back a bit, but nothing spectacular. With the stronger tier of potion, he was thrown back with absurd force after one second. His feet scraped against the cobbles, but he tracked the fall of the terrain and suppressed a shout of surprise. With his increased [Dexterity], he even maintained his footing when he finally came to a stop. The potion had thrown him from the lab, all the way past Perg’s tannery in an instant. Tresk came running down the street, shouting her excitement.

“Now that is a potion for running away!” she shouted, pumping her fist in the air.

Theo let out a steadying breath. He didn’t want to admit it to his companion, but the experience was equal parts exciting and nauseating. Tresk celebrated for a while longer and made him promise to brew at least one more of the potions before departing. After she departed, he was left with a different feeling. Brewing the potion took half the time it normally did, thanks to Throk’s additions to the stills. When the alchemist finally made his way back up the road, a familiar buzzing came from his mind. At first, he thought it was from the communication crystal given to him by the kingdom of Qavell. But it was the trader, Fenian. He squeezed it in his hand, establishing a telepathic link.

My dear alchemist, Fenian said, his smile bleeding into his voice. Care to make me a few potions?

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