Wiedergeburt

by Brandon Varnell

  “Which is what the wild geranium is for.” She was nodding as if she’d expected my answer, which she probably had. “Wild geranium is used mostly in incense and is known for its mild scent and relaxing properties.”

  “Exactly.” I nodded. “Wild geranium is a very mild plant that mellows out anything it mixes with, lessening the effects of other ingredients. Most people think that’s bad, but if you make something where the effectiveness is too strong, you might do more harm than good, especially with pill refining. Too much of a good thing and all that.”

  The water had come to a boil by now, so I grabbed the ancient cedar shavings, which were a bright brown bark. There was a whole bag of the stuff, which I didn’t hesitate to dump into the beaker of now boiling water. I set the bag down and grabbed a stirring rod. Then, stirring the water, I watched until all of the shavings had completely dissolved, turning the liquid into a shade of light tan. I shut the burner off.

  “In case you are wondering, the ancient cedar shavings are used as a catalyst to help the four-tongue clover and spira root agglomerate. These two ingredients do not mix well together on their own,” I explained before Feinrea could ask.

  “I see,” Feinrea murmured as she dipped her quill into the ink jar, tapped it against the lip, and jotted down several notes.

  As she did this, I grabbed the mortar and scraped out the yellow immortal snapdragon/wild geranium paste into a 100 mL beaker. I cleaned out the mortar and pestle next. Setting the mortar back on the table, I grabbed the four-tongue clover and ground it up, added it to the water with the ancient cedar shavings, and then repeated the process with the spira root and added that into the beaker as well. Once I added both the four-tongue clover and the spira root, I stirred it all together. Slowly but surely, the mixture in the beaker went from light tan to a slightly yellowish-green.

  “The next thing we’re doing is adding the mulberry tree milk to the paste we made from the yellow immortal snapdragon and wild geranium,” I said as I grabbed the jar containing the slightly white liquid. It was viscous, looking more like sap than pure liquid.

  “Is this being done to increase the healing properties of the mixture?” asked Feinrea.

  “No, it’s being done to further dilute the paste so I can add the Water Nymph bone marrow.” As I said this, I tipped the jar and added the mulberry tea milk, filling the 100 mL beaker to the 75 mL marker. After stirring all of it in, I grabbed the femur bone I’d taken from the Water Nymph, cut off the tip, and began scraping out the dark blue bone marrow.

  “I see!” Feinrea’s eyes shone vividly as she realized what I was doing. “Mulberry tree milk is sort of like water in that it can act as a base. The effects are mild, so anything mixed with it gets diluted, but not as much as water.”

  “Basically, yes. There’s a bit more to it than that.” As I stirred the mulberry tree milk and Water Nymph bone marrow, mixing it with the pastel-colored paste, I watched as the whole thing turned into a lighter blue color with light pink swirls mixed in. “Depending on what you are mixing with the mulberry tea milk, it can act as an enhancer, but with this combination, it simply acts as a base with stronger properties than water.”

  “Yes, that makes sense.” Feinrea was nodding along.

  The two beakers were now properly mixed, which meant it was time to finish this. I first poured the mixture with the yellow immortal snapdragon, wild geranium, Water Nymph bone marrow, and mulberry tree milk into the cauldron, then added the liquid that mixed ancient cedar shavings, four-tongue clover, and spira root. After, I grabbed the last ingredient, the slightly golden sphere of eldar sap, and dropped it into the liquid.

  “Now we just mix the whole thing…”

  I grabbed a larger stirring rod and used it to mix the ingredients. As I did, I poured some of my Spiritual Power into the liquid, causing sparks to appear from within as my Spiritual Power activated the ingredients’ properties. The liquid glowed for several seconds before dying down. When the glow disappeared, the whole thing had turned a bright golden color.

  “And now we refine it…”

  I grabbed both sides of the cauldron and channeled more Spiritual Power into it, enforcing my will over the liquid to make it change shape. The golden liquid bubbled and popped. Then it began separating into tiny bubbles, which soon hardened and turned into many small pills about the size of my thumb.

  Taking one out, I showed it to Feinrea. The pill was a light golden color, but there were swirls of a pastel blue and pink within it.

  “So, this is the Blood-Replenishing Pill,” Feinrea murmured in a fascinated tone.

  “Yes.” I dropped the pill into her outstretched hand.

  “You made so many at once.” She bit her lip and stared from the pill in her hand to the ones still in the cauldron. “I didn’t think you could do such a thing.”

  “What I just did was called Mass Pill Refinement, and it’s generally not something you want a beginner doing,” I admitted. “It’s what could be considered an intermediate technique, but I figured I would make several for you right now. You can use them as a measuring stick to compare with the pills your alchemists make.”

  “Good idea,” Feinrea admitted.

  “Now.” I gestured toward the alchemy set with a smile. “Since you’ve seen me do it, I want you to try your hand at refining one. I’ve brought a lot of ingredients, so we shouldn’t run out of them before you can learn how to refine this pill.”

  “I’ll certainly do my best not to disappoint you,” Feinrea said as she moved gracefully over to the alchemist set and began working.

  I watched her work with the eyes of a One-Horned Lightning Eagle.

  Chapter 5

  Battlements

  I spent about two hours with Feinrea, instructing her on how to refine the Blood-Replenishing Pill. While that seemed like a long time to create a single pill, the fact that she could refine one in just two hours after seeing me refine it once impressed me. It had taken me about two weeks to refine one that met the stringent standards of the person who taught me.

  Once I was satisfied with her performance, I left the Alchemist Association. My next destination was the northern Nevarian Spiritualist barracks.

  The Alchemist Association was located close to the Merchant’s District, which was in the western quarters, so the journey was pretty far. I decided to take a carriage. It took me about one hour to reach the barracks. After hopping out of the carriage and paying the driver, I walked up to the young woman wearing the armor of a Nevarian Spiritualist who was guarding the front gate. She looked at me in surprise, but I didn’t give her a chance to speak.

  “Is Commander Dante present? I would like to speak with him.”

  The woman needed a moment to restart her brain as she gawked at me, wide-eyed like she couldn’t believe I was standing before her. I wondered if she knew who I was and that was the reason she couldn’t speak, or if she was just surprised some random person would ask to speak with Dante. I got my answer a second later.

  “Y-yes, Commander Dante is present. Shall I escort you to him, Master Eryk?”

  Master? Since when did people start calling me master? Regardless of the reason, the important thing was that she was willing to take me to Dante.

  “Yes, please.”

  The woman bowed toward me, and then led me past the gate surrounding the headquarters and through the front door. I followed her as she walked to the by-now-familiar door of the commander’s office. She knocked once.

  “Commander Dante? Master Eryk is here to see you.”

  “Send him in,” a voice came from the other side.

  “You may go in.” The Nevarian Spiritualist held the door open for me. I thanked her as I walked into the room, then she shut the door behind me.

  Dante was alone today as he sat behind his desk, reading what appeared to be a report written on faded parchment. He looked up as I walked toward the desk. Setting the parchment down on the table’s surface, he smiled at me.

  �
�It seems you had quite the adventure with my sons and daughter,” he said in a breezy voice. I wasn’t fooled.

  I shrugged. “It was a bit more hectic than I assumed it would be at the beginning, but matters evened out soon after, and we were able to complete our quest with relative ease.”

  “I heard.” Dante leaned back in his chair and blew out a deep breath. “I received a report from Mykkel telling me about everything that happened… including the attack by the Giant Svart. I am still having trouble believing there was a B-Rank Demon Beast so close to Nevaria. Giant Svarts live on Devil’s Mountain, which is located about a hundred kilometers into the Demon Beast Mountain Range. There shouldn’t have been one so close.”

  “It is unusual,” I admitted with a shrug. “But it could just be an anomaly.”

  “Do you really believe that?” asked Dante.

  “Not really. No.”

  I knew more about the Demon Beast Mountain Range than even Dante did, having spent several years living there after the cloaked woman who’d rescued me died. I’d explored even the regions where A and S-Rank Demon Beasts lived. That was why I knew a Giant Svart showing up near the beginning forest just a few kilometers from Nevaria was highly unusual—no, it was something that shouldn’t have been possible.

  But then again, the Demon Beast Invasion should not have been possible either.

  “Demon Beasts, especially the stronger ones that are B-Rank and above, like to create territories, and they rarely ever leave those territories.” Dante tapped his finger against the desk, creating a staccato rhythm. “This is part of the reason our Spiritualists are able to delve so deeply into the Demon Beast Mountain Range without running the risk of dying. The Nevarian Spiritualists have extensively researched this matter and created maps that detail where all the known Demon Beast territories are. For one to appear out of the blue like that is…”

  “It may be that something unusual is going on in the Demon Beast Mountain Range, and that is causing the Demon Beasts to become restless,” I finished after he trailed off in thought. “But I don’t believe thinking about it is going to get us anywhere right now. If this is a matter of great importance, then maybe you should consider sending people to investigate. In either case, that isn’t what I’ve come here for.”

  Dante threw his head back and laughed at my blasé attitude. “I suppose that is true. Sorry. I went off on a tangent there.” He calmed down and leaned forward on his desk to pin me with a look. “So, what did you come here for?”

  “A few reasons. First…”

  Reaching into my pouch, I pulled out a folded-up sheet of parchment, unfolded it, and set the parchment on the desk in front of Dante. He glanced at the parchment briefly, looked away, and then doubled back when his brain seemed to finally process the contents. As he gawked, I smiled and explained what he was seeing.

  “This is called a ballista, though it has also been referred to as a bolt thrower. It’s a weapon that launches projectiles at distant targets. However, it can also be used to shoot at flying Demon Beasts—provided someone has the skills to use it.”

  I reached over and tapped a finger against what was a blueprint for the ballista. Dante followed my finger as I pointed out specific parts of the weapon.

  “This uses two levers with torsion springs. The springs consist of several loops of twisted skeins. The ballista itself is made of wood and held together with iron plates around the frame and iron nails in the stand. See this slider at the top? That’s where bolts are loaded and shot out. The winches and claw at the back are used to ratchet the bowstring into an armed firing position.”

  It felt like Dante wasn’t really listening to my explanation as he stared at the ballista blueprint, but I kept going anyway.

  “Our forces right now rely entirely on our Spiritualists to fight against the Demon Beasts, which is fine in most circumstances, but if something were to happen where our city was attacked en masse, it would be a good idea to have people who aren’t Spiritualists trained in how to use these so they can provide support by taking out airborne Demon Beasts. Of course, these weapons are also great if we ever find ourselves under siege.”

  More or less finished with my presentation of this first weapon, I took a step back and waited as Dante continued studying the ballista. I glanced around the room. A few maps were hanging from the walls. Some were more detailed than others. It looked like most of them were of Nevaria, but there were a few incomplete maps of the Demon Beast Mountain Range.

  Finally, Dante blew out a breath and spoke. “I was wondering what you wanted to speak to me about, but to think it was something like this…” He trailed off as a wry grin twisted his lips. “I certainly won’t lie and say this doesn’t interest me. Just from hearing you talk about them, I can see how these weapons would be an advantage to have.”

  “Why do I sense a ‘but’ in those words?” I asked.

  Dante laughed again. “But I will need to speak with Hilda, Rainer, and Valence before any decision can be made on whether we can implement them into our forces or not.”

  “I figured as much.” Dante was technically the vice commander of the Nevarian Spiritualists alongside Rainer, who dealt primarily with the logistical side of things. In fact, I probably should have been presenting this idea to Rainer since he had a better handle on their budget. “Should I present this idea to Empress Hilda as well?”

  “Naw.” With a shake of his head, Dante dismissed my offer and grinned. “I think I can do that much at least. You’ve already shown me this amazing device, and I can definitely see how it would be useful.”

  “I’m glad you think so… because I have several more devices that I would like to show you.”

  “Wait. What?!” Dante stood, practically leaping to his feet, and slammed his hands flat against the desk. His expression made me grin. “You have more?! Really?”

  Nodding, I took out several more sheets of folded parchment and began showing each one to Dante. The first I showed him was an idea to have several watchtowers built in key locations around Nevaria. There were the blueprints for the watchtower, which would have a ballista built on a rotating platform that had a full 360-degree rotational range. I also had a map where I circled the areas where having a watchtower would prove most beneficial. My goal was to have these watchtowers built at five hundred meters apart, which was the maximum range for the ballista.

  I also presented a blueprint for a smaller ballista, which could be installed on top of the ramparts and used to spray suppressive fire on any rampaging Demon Beasts that attacked Nevaria from the ground. They were a lot like crossbows, but about three times bigger. The bolts also had more penetrating power and range than a crossbow did.

  “What makes both of these ballistae really great weapons is that the bolts can be infused with an element,” I finished my presentation. “Say you’ve got a Spiritualist with the lightning element. He or she can infuse that element into the bolt by transcribing runes onto the surface to increase its penetrating power. If someone with the fire element transcribes runes onto it, the bolt will explode upon contact. If they have a lightning element, the bolts penetrating power can increase several-fold. Of course, having a Spiritualist use the ballista isn’t necessary. Once the runes are transcribed, anyone can fire them and get the same effect. This is the biggest benefit of these weapons.”

  By the time I was done, Dante looked like someone had struck him in the throat with a rabbit punch. He was staring at me like I was an S-Rank Demon Beast. I wasn’t sure I appreciated that look, but then he took a slow breath, held it… and chuckled. It was weak, like he was having trouble believing what I was saying.

  “You really are something else. You know that?” he asked.

  “I’m not sure what you mean by that.” I frowned.

  “I mean you’re an impressive kid.” Dante rubbed his smooth-shaven chin. “This is something that has the potential to turn the tide of battle if Nevaria is ever attacked. Of course, the chances of that happening a
re small, but it isn’t impossible. These could definitely help us out.” After staring at the blueprints for several seconds longer, he grabbed them, rolled them up, and tied them together with a leather band. “I will present these to Hilda when I get home today. I’m sure she’ll be interested in them.”

  “Very well.” I accepted his words with a nod.

  “Was that all you came here for?” asked Dante. “You just wanted to present these to me?”

  I was about to say yes, but then I remembered something and shook my head. “There was also something I wanted to ask you.”

  “And what’s that?” asked Dante.

  “Do you know anybody who goes by the name Hagen or Skygge?”

  Dante leaned back and crossed his arms, eyes narrowing in sudden concentration. “I don’t know anyone named Skygge, but I know of a Hagen. That’s a fairly common name. However, I assume you are asking about a person of great power who is named Hagen.”

  “That’s correct.” I couldn’t imagine someone who didn’t have a high standing within Nevaria being able to keep a woman like Dyr secret for so long.

  “The only Hagen I can think of who fits that description is the head of the Leucht Family. Hagen Leucht.” Dante uncrossed his arms and grinned upon seeing the way my face twitched. “Does that answer your question?”

  “I believe it does,” I said.

  “Is there a reason you asked me about him?”

  His question made me pause, hesitate, as I debated whether or not telling him about Dyr would be beneficial, but I had no reason to hide what happened. Earland, Geirolf, and Mykkel also knew about Dyr. It wasn’t like telling their third father would do any harm. That was why I explained how I had met a woman named Dyr in the Demon Beast Mountain Range, and how she had mentioned living with two people called Hagen and Skygge.

  The frown that appeared on Dante’s face at the start of my explanation had grown larger by the end. “I don’t know anything about a Skygge, but Hagen doesn’t have any daughters. He only has one son, Grant, and you already know what happened to him. This Dyr could be talking about a different Hagen.”