Rayne

by Blake Severson

  “My big fool, you finally made it home,” she said with cheer.

  “Love you too, Hun,” he said as he gestured behind him. “We have some guests I want to introduce you to.”

  She took a step back, and he waved Rayne over. “This is Rayne, and if not for his brave deed of rescuing us from a bandit attack, I would have never made it home alive. To repay him, I have offered him my open alchemy apprentice position and the ability to stay here with us.”

  Greta was almost in tears as she looked at Rayne. “Oh dear, thank you so much for saving this old fool. I don’t know what I would do without him.” She ran up to him and hugged him. The woman smelled like cinnamon.

  When Greta stepped back, Gerrard continued. “This is Libby, Rayne’s sister. He refused to take my offer at first because he wouldn’t be separated from his sister, so I offered to give her a position with you at the inn.”

  When Greta’s eyes met Libby’s, they immediately started to water. “Hello, dear,” she breathed as she walked forward to take Libby’s hand. “You must have had a tough trip. Why don’t you come with me and we will find you some food?”

  Gerrard smiled at Rayne and winked to him as Greta led them to a table in the corner and had them all sit down. She hurried into the kitchen and came back with a few mugs. Rayne wasn’t sure what was in Gerrard’s mug, but based on the color, he assumed it was ale. For Rayne and Libby, she had some purple juice of some kind. A quick sip told Rayne it was grape juice, and the woman had even added a bit of sugar in it to take some of the tart out. He smiled in genuine appreciation while Libby marveled at the taste of her drink. Clean water was a luxury for them, much less a fancy drink like this. Rayne almost cried at the simple luxury, as he watched his sister devour the drink with a smile. I’m finally making some progress to fulfilling my promise to take care of her. Rayne thought with a gentle smile.

  Greta saw Libby’s delight at the drink, and her eyes grew even wetter. A soft smile filled her face as she hustled back to the kitchen. They sat and enjoyed the atmosphere of the inn for a while until Greta returned with some plates of food and sat down with them to eat. The meal looked amazing and was some kind of spicy soup, which hit the spot for Rayne. Worried his sister might not like it, he turned her way and noticed she had something different. She had a bowl of soup as well, but it didn’t have the spicy looking quality to it. Libby sipped at it and looked to be at peace. The smile on her face when she took that first bite told him everything he needed to know.

  When they finished eating, Greta had Rayne tell the story of the bandit attack, but he kept some of the worst details from the story. He didn’t want to upset Libby with a gruesome retelling. Greta also pushed him, and he was forced to tell her the reason they had left Esmere. Rayne reluctantly explained the reason the same way he had to Gerrard. He wasn’t about to tell the true story. He kept to the basics of them having to escape an abusive father.

  Greta’s resolve hardened as he told the story, and by the time he finished, he could have sworn she was going to storm off to Esmere and kill the man herself. She got a hold of her emotions and turned to Libby.

  “You will be safe here with me, dear. I promise,” she told her with a smile.

  Greta grabbed Libby by the hand again. “You’ve had a long day. Let’s get you two to bed, and we can start fresh in the morning.”

  Greta led both of them to the back of the inn and into rooms that were for staff and not customers. There were two small bedrooms that were the perfect size for them, and she left Libby to one and led Rayne to the other. Greta jumped forward and hugged him one more time while whispering, “Thank You” in Rayne’s ear again before she left.

  Gerrard came up to him and patted him on the shoulder. “Thank you for my life and now doubly so for bringing some fire back to Greta’s eyes. I thought this would be good for her, and it indeed has. May the gods help anyone who tries to do your sister any harm. I’ll come grab you in the morning, and we can get started on some work. Need to show you the ropes so you can be useful.” The man chuckled.

  Rayne nodded his head in agreement and closed his door after he made it into his new room. The room was plain, but it was clean and warm. There was a basin of water to the side that Rayne used to wash his face and hands, and then he collapsed into the bed. It wasn’t overly luxurious, but it was far better than much of what he had lived on before. Rayne fell asleep, hoping for a fresh start and a new life.

  Chapter 10

  Alchemy and Deterioration

  Rayne awoke to a light knocking on his door.

  “I’m up,” he called to the noise.

  “Come on down for breakfast, and we can get going for the morning,” Gerrard called to him from the other side of the door.

  “Be right down.”

  Rayne rolled out of bed and stretched out. That was the best sleep he’d had in a long time. It was also one of the most comfortable beds he had slept in. Being used to sleeping on the ground in between missions or in the corner of a warehouse had killed his sense of comfort. Out of habit, he strapped on his weapons and headed downstairs.

  Greta was already fussing over Libby this morning at the table while Gerrard was sitting next to her and smiling at the woman’s antics. Rayne mosied over to the table and sat down with a smile.

  “What’s on the agenda for the day?” Rayne asked while still grinning.

  “Today, I plan to teach you the basics of my Alchemy craft. With luck, we can get you some quick experience and allow you to be useful.” Gerrard told him.

  “I’m fine with that. Sounds like fun to me.” Rayne told him in a cheery tone.

  They ate heartily and made small talk at the table. He noticed his sister was smiling more than normal but still didn’t speak much. They finished their meal and made ready to go. Rayne and Gerrard were making their way out the door when Rayne stopped for a moment. He motioned for Gerrard to give him a minute and then walked over to his sister to hug her.

  “Stick with Greta, and she will keep you safe while I am gone. Do your best to help her with anything she needs, okay?” He asked her softly.

  She nodded yes, and he walked over to Greta.

  “Libby is a good girl but has had a very rough life. She doesn’t have many skills, but she has always wanted to belong somewhere. Reassure her you are here to help her, and she will be the best worker you have ever had,” Rayne told her quietly.

  Her eyes darkened with sadness for a moment, and she nodded resolutely. Rayne gave her a quick hug. “Thank You.” He turned and made his way back to the entrance and over to Gerrard.

  “Now, we are good to go.” He told the man firmly.

  Gerrard said nothing and merely nodded his assent. They made their way down the street and back to Gerrard’s shop. As soon as they entered, Rayne marveled at the assortment of ingredients spread around the place. There were shelves of more things than he could possibly identify. If not for the small labels on each container, he would have no idea what they were. There were a few he had heard of in his trade as a thief, but he had never seen the plants themselves.

  The shelves toward the back of the shop contained all manner of alembics and portable burner plates. There was an assortment of jars and vials all over that appeared to be immaculately clean. All were neatly arranged together in groups of similar items.

  One more person was working in the shop. She was a young woman close to his age. She had raven black hair and a darker complexion to her skin than he was used to seeing. She was almost a mocha color and had piercing green eyes. Her hair was cut at an angle that caused the front to fall to her shoulders up by her face but gradually rose as it went toward the back of her head.

  “Rayne, this is Christina. Christina, this is Rayne. She is my senior apprentice and will soon have enough knowledge to venture out on her own with no need of my help,” Gerrard said with a fatherly smile.

  Rayne was awed by her beauty as he looked on her face. It took him a moment to realize he was gawking and to
actually speak.

  “It is a pleasure to meet you, Christina. I look forward to working with you.” He told her.

  Gerrard chuckled and made his way to the back of the store while motioning for Rayne to follow him. Rayne quickly turned and headed his way so he wouldn’t get caught up on Christina’s face again. They walked into a room in the back that had minimal lighting and took a seat.

  “All right, first things first. Can you read?” he asked seriously.

  “Yes, I can.” He told him quickly. Rayne saw Gerrard let out a sigh of relief.

  “Good, this would be a painful process if you couldn’t. That is one of the hardest parts of finding apprentices.”

  Gerrard walked over to the wall and grabbed two jars full of unknown ingredients. He walked back to the table and laid the jars in front of Rayne. There was an odd wire rack that looked like a book with grated metal pages. Gerrard showed Rayne the method of flattening the leaves and flowers that were in the jars he had brought down. He explained to him why they were doing it.

  “These plants need to be dried out to get the maximum effectiveness. We use these specially designed wire racks to lay these plants on and ensure they stay as flat as possible. Once we have filled all the layers of a single rack, we place it in the drying box. You light a tiny fire in the small metal box on the edge of the drying case to keep heat inside the box to speed up the drying time. I want you to work on getting these leaves and flowers properly laid out in the wire cases against the wall and start getting them dried out. There are only two drying boxes for the cages, so make sure you rotate them quickly as needed. With this method, it only takes two hours for these plants to completely dry. When complete, put the flowers in one jar and the leaves in another. Be sure to use fresh jars for the dried plants and do not place them in the jars that had the original plants.” Gerrard explained.

  Rayne nodded along as Gerrard gave him directions. His attention to detail was fantastic with his thief training, so he easily grasped the instructions for the task. Gerrard nodded at him and left the room. Without wasting time, Rayne got to work.

  The work was tedious, but Rayne didn’t mind it at all. There was a sense of calm to sitting in the room and laying leaves out flat on metal grates. He had to ensure the edges didn’t curl and that they were perfectly flat and not creased anywhere. He also had to do the same for the flowers. The petals needed to be as flat as possible, because a twist or bend in them would cause them to dry unevenly.

  He finished one wire rack and tossed it in the drying box. Checking the little compartment that Gerrard had told him about showed him the flame wasn’t lit. There were some small wood chips and tinder in a crate next to the drying boxes, so he packed the small compartment with them and found some firesteel to light it.

  With one box down, he kept up the pace and moved to the next metal rack. This one went slightly faster as he got used to the process, and before long, it was in the other drying box. Another metal rack came off the shelf, and Rayne continued to work. This one got set to the side as he finished it because the first two hadn’t had enough time to dry out. Herbs filled another wire cage, and he replaced the cage in the first drying box.

  Rayne pulled the cage out of the box, set it on the ground, and placed one of his finished cages in the box. He checked the small firebox on it and saw it was still smoldering. The wire rack was carried to his prep table, and he looked around. On a shelf in the back of the room were clean bottles, and he grabbed two of them. The process of removing them from the cage was relatively easy. He tried to keep the dried items as intact as possible, but some would crumble as he placed them in the jars. Rayne was sure it didn’t matter, so he kept pushing forward. When this cage was emptied, he finally noticed two notifications he had ignored.

  Congratulations, you have learned Herbalism for a 100 experience bonus.

  Congratulations, you have reached level 2 in Herbalism. Increases the chance of identifying a plant by 3%. About time you learned something new.

  It was rewarding to not only gain a new skill but also to level it. He knew Gerrard said he would be his apprentice in Alchemy, but Rayne was sure that required the Herbalism skill to be effective. What good would you be as an alchemist if you couldn’t determine the uses of plants? Rayne thought to himself.

  He continued the work until midday when Gerrard came back in. The man was thoroughly pleased with Rayne’s progress, and Rayne had even got four full racks done, and he was up to level 3 in Herbalism.

  “Great work this morning. You may be a natural at this,” the man said.

  “Thank you. It is rewarding work if I am being honest. I have always been a stickler for details.”

  “Then we have found your calling. Let’s grab a quick bite to eat, and we will come back,” Gerrard told him.

  Gerrard, Rayne, and Christina made their way down the street to the inn. Rayne had been so busy with the events of yesterday that he had not noticed the name on the door. The Honey Hole identified the place, and Rayne wasn’t sure where that name came from. In his experience, a name like that suggested this place may cater to a specific crowd of men with certain needs, but he couldn’t imagine that would be the case after meeting Gerrard and Greta. That was a story he would have to get to the bottom of one day.

  They all entered and ate a quick lunch. It was primarily just sandwiches that consisted of some chopped up stew meat on bread. The best part of the meal was some thinly sliced potatoes that Greta had cooked in a skillet with some old bacon grease. They had a great salty crisp to them, and Rayne quickly fell in love. Time was not to be wasted though, and they made their way back to the shop.

  He spent the afternoon with a book, to Rayne’s profound disappointment. It was a basic primer for Alchemy and had information in it that Gerrard deemed a fundamental baseline for anyone serious about the craft. While Rayne could read, he wasn’t a big fan of reading books. He wasn’t about to back down from a challenge, though. If Gerrard was sure it was essential, then he would get through this thing.

  This schedule continued for a week. They would eat at the inn when waking up. He would work on drying ingredients in the mornings, followed by lunch at the inn. In the afternoon, he worked his way through the original book as well as two other smaller volumes. In the evening, they would retire to the inn and have dinner with Greta and his sister.

  Libby seemed thrilled, and Greta let him know his sister had been doing a fantastic job in the inn. Rayne was happy that Libby seemed delighted. He had even spotted her talking more often, but typically only with Greta. She was still a little shy, but she was opening up.

  Rayne’s head swam with ideas of how to make his new Alchemy profession work for him when he resumed his mission for the Shadows of the Flame. The different potions and tinctures would be invaluable in some of his tasks. He hadn’t started building a network yet but hoped to start work on it soon. He needed to know the lay of the city to begin discovering who the actual players were in the power struggle here.

  After a week of the same schedule, they changed it around. Most of the day remained the same, but the afternoon activity changed. Instead of reading the books on Alchemy, he got to work with Gerrard on Alchemy. The man showed him the basics of preparing some of the more common plants for medicinal treatments. The first was a clotting cream that would prevent bleeding. Rayne could easily see the benefit of that one.

  His mornings drying the plants had brought him up to level 6 in Herbalism. He had even taken a skill called Advanced Identify. Every point he invested in this skill would teach him one more common use for a plant than his base skill allowed. Sometimes it was something as simple as identifying the plant as a spice for dishes, while for others, it would specify he could use them in specific Alchemy potions. It was the perfect complement for the Alchemy craft, so he had invested both of his points in it so far.

  This smart decision also earned him some favor with Gerrard. Rayne found out it was a talent that Gerrard had not been offered but had d
eeply wished for himself. Gerrard told him it was a sign that this was his true calling to have a talent that specialized show up in the first tier.

  After making his first Staunching Salve, he received the Alchemy skill. It was an immense relief to have a real profession that could be profitable, even if he had a long road ahead of him. The work continued as he churned out more and more of the salve.

  The following mornings were the same, but the afternoons would have him learning a different potion. There were so many it was hard to remember them all. Burn Salve, Itching Cream, Sun Protection Cream, and many more were shown to him over the subsequent days.

  After a couple of weeks of this new process, they shifted his entire day around. His morning changed from drying out plants to learning to suspend them in liquids to preserve them. Some plants could not be dried out, or they would lose their potency, so he had to learn the art of properly balancing each type of plant with what it needed. Some were as simple as suspending them in a solution of water. Others were much more complicated and required specific balances of water, salts, and sometimes even odd things like wax or fats. There were many combinations, but Rayne picked them up as quickly as Gerrard showed them to him. After his work shifted to the preservation methods, his afternoon work also changed. Instead of doing creams, his work evolved to potions. He learned how to make some of the more common ones first.

  Pesticide Potion, Herbicide, and even a Fire Suppression potion were taught to him. The last one was especially interesting since it was a tiny vial that, upon contact with fire, would expand into this white fluffy substance that covered a large area and would suffocate a fire quickly. It was also easy to wash off with water once the fire was out.