The Newt and Demon

Theo spent the rest of his day fiddling with the alchemy construct idea. Zarali stuck around for a while, but once Tresk returned home she departed. The Marshling spent her day patrolling the walls of Broken Tusk and seemed to have little interest in the constructs. She was always interested in things that would affect her life the most over the shortest time, and since the construct could barely hold its form she didn’t care.

“You can really do more dungeons,” Theo said as they departed for Xam’s tavern.

Today, Xam had laid all her food outside in a buffet style. Everyone was guaranteed two meals a day during the festival, which was just a perk expected by the townspeople. Theo was more than happy to provide half of the funding for the event, and the effects were plain on everyone’s faces. They were having a great time. The food tonight was a variation on Zee bread and a cheese sauce with shredded wolf meat. It was delicious, as always.

“I’ll do more dungeons when I’m sure you’re safe,” Tresk said.

Someone caught their attention, and they turned, giving their greetings and well-wishes for the end of season festival.

“I can take care of myself,” Theo said.

Tresk let out a laugh, doubling over and slapping her knobbly knees. “Yeah, right. Your [Dexterity] is so low, you couldn’t stop a one-legged Marsh Wolf.”

That much was true. [Dexterity] influenced reaction time and speed, and it was his lowest score. Going from 8 [Dexterity] to 20, which would be an acceptable number, wasn’t possible. At most, Theo could expect to get somewhere in the mid-teens with the help of gear. It also wasn’t workable for him to drink potions all the time to keep that attribute up.

“We can bridge that problem somewhat, but I don’t think I’ll need to fight,” Theo said.

“Because I’ve been shadowing you!” Tresk said, stomping her foot. “We have to figure out something that works for you.”

“If it means you go back into the dungeons, I’m alright with that,” Theo said.

Tresk grabbed him by the arm, dragging him south toward the Newt and Demon. He stumbled along, not willing to stop the Marshling when she had something in her head. When she wanted something done, there was nothing he could say to stop her. Not if she really wanted it. When they entered the lab, she began rummaging through Azrug’s many crates. The shop was large, following the footprint of the entire building except for the staircase at the back. A counter dominated the front of the store, but shelves and tables were neatly placed along most of the walls. One wall was dedicated to a row of [Dimensional Storage Crates], which was full of the shopkeeper’s equipment.

“Why does he have so many things?” Tresk grumbled, pulling items out one after the other and shaking her head. “Look at all this stuff. Yeah, we can make you a set with this.”

Theo just stood by, prepared to wear anything Tresk suggested. She found a shirt, pants, two rings, and a pair of boots, laying them out on the floor and smiling.

“Azrug might be mad,” Theo said.

“Well, you own all the stuff so he can deal with it,” Tresk said. “He has a few excellent pieces of equipment here. Right, so we’re going to make up for your lack of [Dexterity]. Put everything on and we can go over it.”

Theo’s preference for magical equipment was stuff that made his alchemy and herbalism better, which were both rare enough. He was inching closer to doing this himself, since Tresk refused to go in the dungeons by herself. The alchemist didn’t need to win a fight, he just needed to get away and in range of the towers in town. He needed to survive long enough that someone else could help him.

Theo inspected the two rings first.

[Swift Motions Ring]

[Ring]

Rare

An enchanted copper ring.

Effect:

+5 Dexterity for 10s after withdrawing something from your inventory.

[Effect Locked]

[Effect Locked]

[Dexterous Ring]

[Ring]

Rare

An enchanted silver ring, etched with designs.

Effect:

+2 Dexterity

[Effect Locked]

[Effect Locked]

It was easy to see where she was going with this. In any realistic engagement, Theo would need to withdraw things from his inventory and the [Swift Motions Ring] would give him a burst of short-lived [Dexterity]. The [Dexterous Ring] gave him a flat +2 to the stat, which put him at 10. When he slipped it over his finger, he felt his body go over that cliff. He flexed his hands, noting how the motion of his fingers felt smoother.

“You’re not stupid. We’re going to make you a potion-thrower,” Tresk said. “Stack enough [Dexterity] so you can toss a potion and get out of there.”

Theo nodded, checking a pair of cloth bracers next. He rolled the sleeves of his silk robe up, slipping them over his wrists. They were perfectly cool, as most magical items were. He inspected the bracers.

[Cloth Bracers of Tossing]

[Bracers]

Rare

Enchanted Karatan wool cloth bracers.

Effect:

Increase the accuracy of any thrown item.

[Effect Locked]

[Effect Locked]

“Makes sense,” Theo said. “My accuracy isn’t great.”

“Next.”

Theo removed his robe, discarding his old gear in favor of the new clothes.

[Shirt of the Dexterous]

[Cloth Shirt]

Rare

Scaling

Magical shirt, granting the user a bonus to dexterity.

Effect:

+2 Dexterity

[Pants of the Dexterous]

[Cloth Pants]

Rare

Scaling

Magical pants, granting the user a bonus to dexterity.

Effect:

+2 Dexterity

“I have a pair of each of those,” Tresk said. “Amazing that Azrug hasn’t sold them, they’re absurd. Scaling gear is good, but I’ve only seen it with one or two effects.”

That put Theo to 14 [Dexterity]. He never wanted to stack gear to raise his attributes, but this made the most sense. They could burden him with magical items to make up for his horrible attributes while he put his free points into the ones that mattered to him. Both the pants and shirt were made of some material that hardly mattered. Magical items felt mostly the same, smooth like silk and cool as a night’s breeze. As Theo put his robe back on, he appreciated how nice they felt.

“Boots,” Tresk said, pointing at a pair of boots.

Theo put the boots on before inspecting the pair.

[Boots of Swiftness]

[Leather Boots]

Rare

Enchanted leather boots.

Effect:

+2 Dexterity

[Effect Locked]

[Effect Locked]

“Hooray, you’re geared for war,” Tresk said flatly. “When you take something out of your inventory, you’re going to be at 21 [Dexterity]. That puts you in a realm to compete with me.”

“We could get more [Dexterity],” Theo said with a shrug. “So I can just sit at 20 at all times.”

“Maybe, but the system won’t let you wear two necklaces,” Tresk said, scratching her chin. She looked him up and down, pointing at the feathered hat on his head. “We could replace the hat, but I think it’s pretty good.”

Theo inspected his hat.

[Plume of Defiance]

[Cloth Hat]

Epic

Scaling

Hat granted to the alchemist with the determination to defend his home.

Effect:

During a siege, all potions used by defenders will be 1.25 times more effective.

+2 Vigor

The +2 [Vigor] was too nice to get rid of, and his necklace was also too valuable to remove. It was the necklace given by Sulvan Flametouched, providing him the highest amount of [Strength]. He would need to be happy with the 16 [Dexterity].

“Alright, now let’s go to sleep,” Tresk said, suddenly sounding much more comfortable. He could feel the ease at which she spoke, something about the spiky edges of her personality fading away.

Theo could claim he wasn’t tired, but that wasn’t true. Even if his stamina wasn’t dropping low, he was mentally tired. Not lingering on the edge of collapse, but tired enough to look forward to the Dreamwalk, even if Tresk intended to drill him in combat. They retreated upstairs a short time after the sun dipped below the horizon, pressed their foreheads together to get their Tara’hek experience, then drifted off into the Dreamwalk.

Tresk arrived first. Theo could tell because when he arrived, he was standing in the Newt and Demon’s lab. He figured out what her plan was quickly enough, and mentally filled his inventory with potions and bombs. His inventory was always empty when he arrived in the Dreamwalk. It only took a few moments for the shadows in the corners of the room to stir. The Marshling might have been a stealth specialist, but her subtlety was often lacking.

Theo withdrew a modified [Basic Freezebomb] from his inventory, and waited only a few heartbeats. That was enough time for the 2 assassins Tresk had spawned to jump from the corners of the room, driving at him with daggers flashing. He felt his limbs before he commanded them, his [Dexterity] now sitting at 21 since he took the bomb from his inventory. It shattered against the face of the first assassin, sending him stumbling back. Threads of ice surrounded the man, shooting off to ensnare the next one and then the alchemist fled the lab, taking the steps with deft precision until he was on the hard, cobbled road.

The bomb he’d used had the [Web] modifier, and he inspected it.

[Basic Freezebomb]

[Web]

[Bomb] [Modified Bomb]

Common

Created by: Belgar

Grade: Great Quality

Shatter against a surface to release ice that roots the target.

Effect:

Tendrils of ice shoot from the affected target, applying a weaker version of this effect to 5 adjacent enemies.

The [Web] modifier was one of his best. It multiplied the effects of a potion, usually connecting them with a web. After a moment, Tresk appeared at his side with a wide smile.

“The [Dexterity] paid off,” she said, waving her hand. Theo knew she was dismissing the creatures she created. “Let’s prove a point. Take the equipment off and try to run that again.”

It wasn’t worth running the exercise again. Theo knew he couldn’t outpace those assassins without the extra movement speed, especially that provided by withdrawing items from his inventory. But he obeyed, allowing the Marshling to prove her point. That’s when Theo learned something about combat in this world. He planned to overpower the two assassins, relying on his high [Strength] attribute to get them, but they were too slippery. Everytime he went to grab one, they simply dodged out of the way, keeping a safe distance from his powerful grasp. They eventually overwhelmed him, killing him with a painless death.

“I summoned level 30 assassins,” Tresk said, nodding. “You don’t have to be faster than them, just fast enough.”

Theo nodded. He felt himself falling into a familiar rhythm. On Earth, he did minimal hand-to-hand combat, but he was still trained. This reminded him of his work back then, part of those horrid death-squads. Berlin flashed in his mind again, but he pushed it away. He wasn’t ready to confront that fully. But other memories came back. He was cornered in an alleyway, forced to fight his way out. Instead of killing his opponents, he would often send them off balance and run away. He explained it to Tresk, knowing that she was the only person he could trust with his grief.

“Well, that’s a good start,” Tresk said with a nod. “Fighting is a lot about what Attributes you have, but equal parts about what you know.”

Theo couldn’t help but smile at the woman. He’d been responsible for more lives ended than she could ever understand, but the undertone of her message was clear. This wasn’t Earth. He couldn’t run away and order a tactical strike on an area. The knowledge translated. He had to run away and get his many towers to fire on the target, or rely on a potion to take care of the problem.

“Let me show you something,” Theo said, producing a [Reveal Construct] with a thought. He couldn’t make anything he hadn’t already created, forcing to give her an example with the useless thing. “Go stealth, please. And don’t move, I won’t be able to track you.”

Tresk obeyed, vanishing from sight. Theo didn’t trust his mana usage outside of the Dreamwalk, but in here it was safe. He activated the stone with a drip of fiery, purple mana then tossed it in her general direction. The stone shattered in the air, but not before the field passed through where the Marshling was standing. She looked shocked, her eyes darting around as though he’d performed some horrible act.

“What was that?” Tresk asked.

Theo produced another for her to inspect. She took the stone, rolling it over in her hands. “This kinda sucks.”

“Yeah, but think of the principle,” Theo said.

Tresk tilted her head to the side, bringing the stone close to her face and furrowing her wet little brow. “How?”

“Imagine that, but bigger,” Theo said. He couldn’t replicate an example for her. She’d just have to take his word for it.

“How much bigger?” Tresk asked.

“I always think about the extremes,” Theo said. “Imagine a field as large as Broken Tusk. Now imagine that it can absorb other properties from my essences. A field that cures diseases, sets enemies on fire, blocks magic. The applications are endless.”

“Is this still alchemy?” Tresk asked. “Seems like magic to me. And don’t think this gets you out of running drills.”

“I think it consumes either the essence, the medium, or both after use,” Theo said, shrugging. He ignored her comments about the drills. “This still counts as alchemy, although alchemy is kinda magic if you think about it.”

Tresk narrows his eyes at him. “You’re already far enough away from the Qavelli alchemists. You really wanna just go all out like that?”

“I do,” Theo said. The alchemist swiped his hand, changing the scene. They were standing by the river, near the bridge outside of the eastern wall of town. “That’s the plan for the whole town. Now, send more assassins after me.”

Theo equipped his gear again, but Tresk refused to summon them immediately. She told him to go about his work and she’d insert the attack whenever she thought his guard was down, running off to train on her own for the time being. He shrugged it off, happy enough to know that at least he couldn’t get hurt for real here. The alchemist spent his time working with his mana and going over his brewing process. While he wanted to test Zarali’s idea for an in-line refinement process, he couldn’t get the Dreamwalk to allow him. He felt a gentle buzz in his mind every time he did, rejecting the concept wholesale.

There were few improvements he could make to his process while in the Dreamwalk, and his practice came down to just repeating the steps he knew until it was second nature. Theo could experiment with temperatures, making a catalog in his mind for all the reagents and the best temperatures for the run. Common ingredients were the easiest to work with, but he found cultivated reagents became more difficult. They required more attention than their un-cultivated counterparts, but he made a mental note of those.

Tresk’s attack came when Theo least expected it. He could still hear her battle raging in the distance when four assassins came from nowhere. His tactic from last time didn’t work, and he was quickly overwhelmed by the sudden press of daggers that seemed to fly from everywhere. The Marshling stood in the distance, tutting.

“You fell for the distraction,” Tresk said. “You need to be focused at all times.”

Theo just smiled, watching as the Marshling vanished. No amount of preparedness training would help him here. He needed an advantage that he could keep in his inventory at all times, and the constructs would help with that. The alchemist took part in Tresk’s drills, never expecting to overcome whatever gaggle of assassins she sent after him as he practiced his alchemy. To his surprise, he got better at evading them. The concept that he could be overtaken at any moment had him keep a mental finger on the trigger of his inventory, ready to open it and throw a modified [Freezebomb] at the closest attacker.

Tresk seemed happy enough with his progress, but the painless sensation of being killed by the fake assassins wasn’t pleasant. He spent the rest of the night in that cycle of alchemy and defense. While he didn’t elevate himself to the high standards of his companion, he got slightly better. It was like awakening old memories that wanted to stay dormant, bubbling them to the surface and scooping off the useful stuff. By the end, he was ready to see the light of the real world. To practice real alchemy, which would fuel his advancement.

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