He talked Orikori through the newest notes as they were transferred from Arz’s pocket notebook into the tome. Orikori had his own notes, which were generally abbreviated versions of Arz’s that could be passed to the Guild.

  It bothered Arz less than he had expected. The Guild was afraid of alchemy, even though they had all of Arz’s notes. They would need to personally observe him creating the potions before they ever attempted them by themselves. And based on what he knew, they wouldn’t be coming up with anything original anytime soon.

  And now that he had an appointment, he had sent Orikori out to do his writing elsewhere. THe scribe hadn’t even hesitated in scooping everything up and waddling out with an armful of papers and writing utensils.

  Arz dragged his cushioned chair from the window, slowly sliding it across the floor, roughly bumping it down the stairs, and only stopping once he reached the door. He made a show of sitting down, crossing his legs, and smiling, rather annoyingly, at the door.

  His posture was pristine, even bordering on arrogance. Body nguage sometimes said more than words did, and Arz intended to dispy quite a show with his body.

  Three swift knocks hammered on the freshly-repaired door.

  “Oh, come in,” Arz said.

  The door opened slowly as Jarath leaned into look at what y before him. Arz grinned upon seeing the Wizard roll his eyes.

  “Do I have you down in my calendar?” Arz asked.

  “Can we not py any of these games today?” Jarath closed the door behind him.

  “You know—”

  “Arz,” Jarath interrupted. “I know you like to make a show out of things, but I feel that isn’t necessary. It’s just us.”

  “And Sal.”

  The eel swam in the tubes nearby.

  “Yes. Sal. How long have you had the eel?”

  “Oh, uh, a while.” Arz watched Sal swim into a container nearby. When nobody paid him any attention, he turned back and swam through the tubes again.

  “A very bizarre creature.” Jarath walked past Arz, not even paying him any more attention.

  Arz scrambled to his feet and hurried to get between the old man and the long table of ingredients. “Whoa, calm down.”

  “What do you think I’m going to do? What happened to you? I—” Jarath pressed his lips together, realizing what he had said.

  Arz’s face turned to stone, but his eyes tried boring a hole through Jarath’s head.

  “We miss Ziyra everyday. I cannot imagine how you feel, Arz. I misspoke. I apologize.” Jarath scrunched his face, obviously trying to push back some tears.

  Arz had passed that point. He didn’t struggle with it anymore. People said it took time, but he didn’t have any.

  “What have you found?” Jarath asked, working to recompose himself.

  Arz tried to shake himself out, but he found a stiffness to his movements. Was it anger? Frustration? No, it was something different. He loudly cleared his throat.

  “I have only found five portal recipes so far, but I believe these are other pnets, other worlds in our same universe. I went to two other pnets with some people I met. We traveled through space in what they called a ship. Corpith the astrologer helped me realize the other pces I have been are likely nearby pnets, while the st ones I went to were so far from Earth, the people had never heard of us before.”

  “Corpith was helpful?” Jarath asked, surprised.

  “He was an astrologist.”

  The Wizard chuckled quietly. “I thought you would find it amusing.”

  “Well.” Arz sighed. “I did.”

  Jarath approached the table and carefully grabbed a jar of purple paste. “Is this . . .”

  “Purple paste made from the leaves of the Storm Tree, as I call it.”

  “I read some of Orikori’s notes. Have you found recipes for anything else? From what he wrote, it sounds as though you rely heavily on rare ingredients.”

  “Alright, it’s not my fault that cinnamon is somehow great for alchemy.” Arz scrunched his face.

  “That’s not the ingredient I was talking about.”

  “Orikori only saw one portal recipe and it was pretty simple. It isn’t a good indication of how much work some of them have taken to create. Yes, I like shining moonstone, but that’s because it works well with portals.”

  “Expin it to me.”

  Arz heaved a sigh. He didn’t want to go through any hoops, but Jarath was fully funding him. He had already agreed. It was as good of a time to show off as anything else.

  “So, when the moon shines on moonstone ore—”

  “Arz,” Jarath blurted, interrupting.

  A pyful smile spread on Arz’s face. “This,” Arz said as he withdrew a purple vial from his belt, “is an important part of the return portal. These are liquified Storm Tree leaves. This will open a portal directly behind my lectern. The Storm Tree is a weird tree that grows specifically in the Storm Realm, as I had called it, or Gcirith, which is what the slimes knew it as.”

  “I still cannot imagine the slimes.”

  “It’s difficult to expin them properly.” Arz picked up a jar of purple paste. “Paste is good in most situations, but I need the leaves actually liquified for the return potion recipe. I haven’t yet discerned what makes the leaves so useful in a portal. I have formed portals without it, but that relied strongly on red oil, which also isn’t the easiest ingredient to come by.”

  Jarath grabbed the small vial of red oil from the table. “You are certainly low on this. If you had to make a guess now, what would you say causes the portal to form?”

  “They are basically tears in reality from what I’ve seen, so some part of the red oil, purple paste, or even the gray fluid from the time bubbles must have the ability to manipute part of reality itself. Now, how it does that or which part of each ingredient pys a role is entirely unknown to me, but I am confident I can figure it out given enough time to study and experiment.”

  Arz walked past the old man and grabbed a small vial of shining moonstone ore. It was his second to st premeasured vial. The rger container barely had anymore in it. “I’ll need more shining moonstone ore.” He turned to Jarath, who had looked up to continue watching. “Not regur. Shining.”

  “I understand, Arz. I’ll see what we are able to do. You know that is difficult to gather, and very expensive to buy.”

  “There’s a great spot to harvest it south of here. If I show the Guild, will someone mine it for me on full moons?”

  “Absolutely.” Jarath had his own notebook out. “Where is it?”

  Arz tsked. “I won’t be giving my secrets away just yet, old man.” He paced around the table, tapping the ingredients to make a mental list of everything he had, everything he needed, and everything he wanted. “I’ll need a florist, a geologist, and some people who are just willing to go about and fetch things.”

  Jarath took a seat in a wooden chair near the table. “Give us a list of ingredients and locations. We will see what we can do. What is necessary about a florist?”

  “Flower petals have a lot of uses.” Arz picked up a rose petal. “From what I can tell, all flowers from Earth are basically identical, at least in terms of alchemy. A tulip is no different than a rose or a daffodil.” Arz flicked the petal away.

  “Will a florist in town do?”

  “I need someone who is willing to do some science with their flowers. I want to bring some stuff from other worlds and try to grow it here. That might be disastrous, but if a florist who knows a few things is helping out, I think it has potential to go much better. Don’t you?”

  “I suppose.” Jarath leaned over the table, gently touching the different containers. “I figured precision was an important part of alchemy, yet I see your containers of moonstone are uneven, and you say all flowers are the same when we know that isn’t true.”

  “Precision? Sure, sometimes. Other times, it’s more about the overall combination. Cinnamon and purple paste. Root acid and time fluids. Things like that. You know what I mean?”

  Jarath stared bnkly.

  “We’ll pretend that you agreed. So, a combination of any amount will start the reaction, then you can fine tune the measurements if required. When I was on Doumenus hiding from the AZ–32s, I kind of just mixed shit together until something worked.” Arz scratched his face. “That’s not really true. I did know what I was doing for the most part, but panic guided me toward some improvisation and I was just testing some things that I had only recently encountered.”

  “The bck fire and the gray liquid?” Jarath asked.

  Arz leaned against the wall, pying with the cork in a vial. “How much of the notes have you already read?”

  “All of it.” Jarath smiled warmly. “I must admit, it reads like a story. You have had a grander adventure than I ever expected. Tragedy shapes our lives, and while we all wish it hadn’t happened, you have tried to make the most of it.”

  Arz stared for a moment. He scratched his face again, then picked up his red oil. “See this?”

  Jarath’s face hardened. “Yes, Arz.”

  “That darkfire oil I wrote about is like red oil, but burning. As far as things I’ve discovered, it has to be at the top of the list of the most valuable. What I really need is a team to escort me back to Doumenus that can protect me from the AZ-32 robots.”

  “I still don’t quite understand what a robot is.” The old man frowned at the ingredients table. “Will the guards you requested be enough?”

  “I think so. Isilhorn has already seen a monster, so he won’t be that surprised when he sees a metal man. If I can get one of the weapons from an AZ-32, we might have an opportunity to unlock some Ricarun technology, whatever that may be. Those looping cities are likely made intentionally, but I couldn’t even begin to guess how they were made or why they were made. Not until I get a better, safer, closer look. Plus that darkfire oil would really help us.”

  “You don’t need to convince me, Arz. Do you think this is best?”

  “Absolutely. The downside would be the danger in the adventure. I know the robots will attack and portaling out of Doumenus is significantly more difficult than it has been anywhere else. I won’t be able to make a new portal until I can harvest the materials I’m there to get. It kind of puts us in a difficult, yet beneficial position.” Arz started separating piles on the table into things he could bring, things he could make before he left, and things he wouldn’t need. Somehow, a few ingredients made it into all three piles.

  “I need something to fight,” Arz said without much thought as he sorted. “Muskets would do nothing to a robot. They have ones that shoot faster. And they shoot light. Big beams of light. What is a little musket ball going to do?”

  “You have a table full of ingredients. Make something.” Jarath put his hands on the table, gently bumping some ingredients. “This is what you’re good at, Arz. Be creative. Find a solution and bring the guards with you.”

  Arz nodded. Jarath was right. He could find a solution on his own. Sparkstones disrupted the robots enough that he had a little time to act. If they were made of metal, they could be melted. A few simple ideas fshed through his mind, causing him to grin.

  “I see ideas already forming,” Jarath said. “Visit the Guild when you return. I will pass along what I have learned. You should not have any doubts from the other Wizards the next time you visit.”

  “Thank you,” Arz said with surprising sincerity. Surprising to himself.

  Jarath remained sitting, smiling, watching with interest as Arz checked, shook, and generally sorted through his more chaotic side of the ingredients table. Arz wondered what exactly the old man was paying attention to. When they used to work closer together, it was primarily focused on looking at and deciphering maps from other parts of the world and deciding where Arz would go next in his endless search for new items and materials. Seeing Arz now had to be weird, but seeing the old man so calm and happy was just as odd to Arz.

  “How soon can we leave?” Arz asked.

  “We haven’t even spoken to the guards yet. It will be a few days to assemble a squad and for them to prepare. I will pass it along to Higgrion so he may find the people you need.”

  Arz made a face.

  “I will ensure the message is passed on swiftly.”

  “I just don’t expect him to really rush.”

  “Then trust me, Arz. I know your hatred runs deep, but I am trying my best. Having you work with us is beyond my wildest dreams, even if you aren’t fully willing to comply.” Jarath stood and gently grabbed Arz’s shoulder. “I am excited to see what you accomplish. I will always wish you the best.” He squeezed, then csped his hands behind his back and walked to the door.

  “Any other requests before I leave you to your work?”

  Arz sorted through the list in his mind. “The fl—”

  “A florist and a guard squad picked by Isilhorn. I remember.”

  Arz just nodded. His mind felt sluggish. Frozen even.

  Jarath waved, walked out, and closed the door, leaving Arz alone in the study. Alone, other than Sal, of course.

  “Huh,” Arz said. “What do you think, Sal?”

  The eel, as expected, did not respond.

  “As far as professional meetings go, that felt mostly productive. And not entirely hostile. In fact, I might’ve been the more hostile one.”

  Sal looked at him.

  “You’re right. I was absolutely the more hostile one, but that isn’t the point. Stop pushing the bme onto me when I’m trying to push it on to someone else.”

  The eel swam away without a word.

  “I thought so.” Arz exhaled heavily and looked around the empty study. “I should probably go find Orikori. The little d might get lost. But . . .” He sighed, and turned his full attention back to the table.

  Silence was uncomfortable, but had no control over when ideas formed. Orikori could end up in some old wench’s house being force fed some cookies, but that was a potential danger they were both going to have to live with until Arz finished.

  Arz took three of the potions and pced them in vial holders. They were nearly full already, but he had to test something. The vial of red oil was still in his belt, so he took it off and filled each return potion to the top, leaving barely enough room for a cork. He topped them off and shook. The red oil mixed easily into the mixture, turning it pink.

  Red oil was a difficult material to obtain primarily because of its location inside caves that were always near va, usually inside volcanoes. If he lived closer to a volcano, he would have constant access to red oil, and likely a general fear for his life and the impending eruption. Since he was not in that unique position, he instead had to spend enormous time or money on the red oil.

  And yet, he just used it all. But for good reason.

  Red oil had unique properties. It mixed with just about anything. Based on how red oil worked, it should strengthen his portals. Either leaving them open for longer, making them generally bigger, or forcing them open in pces where they resist, such as Doumenus.

  He took two pink return potions and two normal and put them in his belt. It didn’t hurt to over prepare.

  “Oh, Sal. I am about to bankrupt myself.” Arz squatted at the edge of the table. He held up his st two vials holding Drops of Heaven. Each one could buy a house. The gss holding the Drops was also special. It was heat-resistant. Any other container would likely melt when holding one.

  Arz sighed as he picked up the st of his silverwater. “I’m using everything expensive just to test it,” he mumbled to himself. He had a variety of things to hold containers around the study. It helped ensure he wouldn’t spill something. There were plenty of times where he elected to not use those and free hand everything instead.

  This was not one of those times. Arz took every precaution. Not only did he want to avoid spilling. He also didn’t want to burn down the whole tower just because he was zy.

  He very slowly poured the silverwater into one Drop of Heaven. It sizzled as soon as the first drops entered and fred brightly.

  Arz paused and watched. The silverwater continued burning until it was molten. A smirk spread across his face as he poured the rest of the silverwater in. He pced the heat-resistant cork back on top and watched as a vial of va formed.

  Orikori entered the study just as Arz finished the second va potion. He frowned. Potion wasn’t the right word. It was just two ingredients. Something very hot and something made of metal. He shrugged and picked them up, and immediately dropped them. Luckily, the gss didn’t break. It was as hot as a pan on the stove. Arz pulled his sleeve down until he could use it like a little glove to pce the vials on two little holders in his belt. He didn’t need them superheating the other ingredients or potions he had in the pockets. These needed to be kept separate.

  “Master Kurana,” Orikori said. His eyes lit up as he saw the glowing va vials on Arz’s belt. “I see you made something new.” His notebook was out with a pen hovering over the paper in the blink of an eye.

  “It’s only a Drop of Heaven and silverwater. Easily the most expensive thing I have made, but also the simplest.”

  “What is the intended use?”

  “To melt a man made of metal.”

  Orikori looked up from the notebook.

  “Did Jarath find you?” Arz asked.

  “Yes, si—” Orikori scribbled a note. “Yes, Arz. He said you are hoping to leave on an adventure soon.”

  “Ha.” Arz rolled his eyes. “As always, the old man got things wrong. I will be traveling to Doumenus. And hopefully sooner than soon.”

  Orikori scrunched his face as he continued writing. “Sooner than soon?”

  “Do you really need me to expin that?”

  “No, I suppose not, sir.”

  “Arz.”

  Orikori nodded. After writing, he finally looked up. “Doumenus is the nd where cities are trapped in time and metal men called robots walk around with the intention of killing any intruders.” He paused, checked his notes, and looked back up. “Correct?”

  “Well, when you say it like that, it makes it sound a lot more boring than it actually is.”

  “I said it how you wrote it.” Orikori strode to the lectern and opened it, rereading the section he had just quoted.

  “Maybe it’s just the way you’re reading it.” Arz tossed some food into Sal’s tank before walking to the bed. He fell onto it and sighed, then remembered he had molten metal on his belt and carefully removed it. “I need a nap. After you write your notes, do what you wish.”

  “Yes, sir,” Orikori said.

  Arz groaned, but couldn’t be bothered to sit up.