5.17 - Purge

5.17 - Purge

Tresk groaned, rolling and falling out of her bed. Ugh. My head.

The poor marshling crawled along the ground, finding a spot in the room where the sun wasnt shining. Theo threw his legs over the edge of his bed, watching the poor creature curl into a ball. She went too hard yesterday. No matter how many times Grot beat her on the log, she kept trying. While she expected the Dreamwalk to cure her hangover, it just didnt happen.

Too bad I never found sanchrin, Theo said, finding a bucket to place near his companion. You should retreat to Terogal.

Alex honked, flapping her wings in agreement.

Good idea, Tresk groaned. Then she vanished on the spot, set to return in about five minutes.

Theo went down for breakfast, finding Xolsa and Zarali already eating. He found a seat and looked over the spread that Sarisa and Rowan had gotten from Xams tavern. She was smart enough to know that people would search for greasy food. Sausages, oil-fried pozwa eggs, and a strange hangover cure that contained mostly fire salamander egg shells. The alchemist passed on the cure, going instead for a plate filled with sausages.

Our Theo is wise enough to know, Xolsa said, jabbing his finger into the air. A leader never gets too drunk.

He has an aversion to drinking, Zarali said. She poked at the sausages on her plate. Be nice.

I was mostly interested in how far Rivers had come. Theo took a small bite of a sausage, finding the flavor to be explosive. Whisper had a secret blend of spices she wouldnt reveal to anyone, no matter how much they begged. Their new duke is doing well.

The conversation rolled on, mostly falling on pleasant topics. Both Zarali and Xolsa had seen Tresk competing in the log-rolling contest. Both agreed it was foolish to challenge a dwarf to drinking. After the conversation died, resulting in a temporary wave of silence in the dining room, Tresk thundered down the stairs. She snatched several things from the table. After shoving them down her throat, she darted out of the building without a word.

None seated at the table saw this as odd.

After chatting for a while, Theo left the manor and headed off to the lab. Salire wasnt there, which likely meant she was hung over from the night before. The alchemist rummaged through her notes down in the shop, finding that there were several orders in for restoration potions. A quick thought to his lodestone network, and his plant golems were carrying supplies upstairs for him.

Theo designated three of his stills toward the production of restoration potions. He would use the remaining seven to create [Greater Hallow the Ground] potions. He ground [Spiny Swamp Thistle Roots], [Manashrooms], and [Moss Nettle] into three stills. The golems came in part-way through the process, bringing enough supplies to bolster his emptied stocks. While the new crop of [Dragon Talon Mushrooms] werent cultivated to their fullest, they were close enough for this batch of [Suffuse Potions].

By the time Theo got most of the ingredients ground and the stills boiling, Salire stumbled into the lab. She had dark circles under her eyes, and pulled away from any source of light.

Theres a cure for hangovers, Theo said, finishing the last of his stills. He moved to the far side of the room, cranking his air conditioner to full.

Why havent you brewed it? Salire grumbled, walking like a zombie throughout the room. She was looking for something.

Id need a sample of the sanchrin plant.

Do we have any [Fire Salamander Eggs]?

Youre after that half-ogre hangover cure, arent you? Xam is serving it.

Salires hooded gaze scraped over the room, landing flatly on Theo. Be right back.

Theo laughed to himself, then double-checked his stills. They were all set on automatic runs, which wouldnt require his attention. The three restoration essences were distilling straight into barrels, while the [Refined Suffuse Essence] would go directly into the buildings storage. The alchemist once again turned his attention to the lodestone network, closing his eyes to probe the strength of his willpower. When he had first attached the network to Terogal, the connection was tenuous. But as the days rolled on, that connection grew more stable.

Time for an upgrade, Theo said, ordering his army of plant golems to the back of the lab. He assembled piles of vegetation as he waited for them.

The strength of the golems connection to Terogal had grown to a point where he was confident they could all be upgraded. He turned each [Lesser Plant Golem] into a [Plant Golem], watching with satisfaction each time they assembled themselves. The second tier golems were stronger, faster, and more intelligent thanks to their higher-level cores. While he had made no improvements to their containment core, the monster core upgrade was enough.

The alchemist returned to the lab to find Salire crunching on raw salamander eggs. He excused himself, making his way to Throks workshop. The angry marshling was there, working on one of his hover engines.

This right here, Throk said without even turning around. Is a small version of my power condenser.

Theo spotted the device. It was a small, glowing artifice packed into a Drogramathi Iron cage. He could feel it sucking ambient power in from the surrounding air. Throk didnt stop there, though. He turned, holding another device in his hands. It was a metal frame that seemed perfectly shaped to fit the alchemists mana slates.

I already tested this with a discarded mana construct of yours, Throk said, holding it out for Theo to inspect. The siphon should charge your construct, allowing your golems to operate for longer periods of time. The recharging will degrade the constructs, so theyll need to be changed weekly? I dont know.

Excellent work, Theo said, taking the artifice from Throk. I was just working on my golems.Ñ00v€l--ß1n hosted the premiere release of this chapter.

Well, theyre doing good work out in the field. Throk sighed. Folks like the wheat youre growing. And I know those copper golems have done good work in the mine.

How many of these can you produce? Theo asked.

Ill give you a trickle. Gearing up for full-scale production on my remote sprayer platform.

You sure you dont want to come? Theo asked, packing a few last-minute things away into his inventory.

Im certain, Salire said, laughing nervously. Someone has to watch the stills. Right?

Theo only nodded his response. Maybe it was time to upgrade the lab again. But more alchemy equipment didnt mean more potions. The lab was at its capacity based on supply, rather than production. It didnt take long for Alise to sign off on the trip to Gronro-Dir. Everyone in town had been worried about the town, although they didnt express it. That problem was a shadow hanging over everyone.

Ready? Theo asked, waiting and watching the shadows. Moments later, Rowan and Sarisa emerged. They nodded in unison.

Im coming, too, Alex said from afar. Theo could sense her circling overhead.

Can you keep up?

Well see.

The journey to Gronro-Dir would have taken days, if not weeks, on foot. Throks absurdly fast tram made the trip possible in an hour or two, depending on factors the marshling wouldnt explain. Theo reflected on the lack of fixed rail systems in this world as he made his way to the platform. He would put money on the fact that Bantein and Partopour had something similar, if not another transportation system entirely. Tarantham seemed too stuffy to embrace such things, though.

Theo and his assistants climbed into the train car, strapping themselves in with a surly-looking dwarf. The attendant at the station waited for the all-clear, then sent the cart hurtling down the track. Opening ones eyes and looking directly forward was a recipe for disaster. The alchemist kept his eyes shut tight as the landscape whipped by, preventing his eyeballs from drying out in an instant. No conversation could occur during the trip. The passengers listened to the sound of wind rushing by, and the occasional hum of the cart as it shot up a hill.

When the tram finally pulled into the Gronro station, all passengers disembarked on shaking legs. Theo felt the oppressive presence of the necromantic energy swirling around him in an instant. The guards near the main gate looked pale, almost sickly. Even the sky above glowed with an eerie green hue. Grot waved at the group from the gates, a smile painting his face.

Welcome, archduke! he shouted, seemingly unaffected by the foul air. Theo felt sick to his stomach.

Duke Stormfist, Theo said, bowing his head slightly. Sorry for the unannounced visit. I wanted to see the stain of Balkor myself.

Look around. Grots face darkened slightly. The mountain itself screams in agony.

Gronro was at a considerably higher elevation compared to both Rivers and Broken Tusk. Nestled between two mountain ranges, the town had been the ideal spot to stop the undeads advancement. Grot had held Murder Passage the entire time, never losing a soldier during the fight. But now the people were flagging. Balkor had left behind a befoulment that would continue unless they intervened.

Off to the wall, Theo muttered, clapping his hand on Grots shoulder as he went. Is everyone holding up?

Only just. Were taking it in shifts. Folks get sick. They run down to the Tusk to get some rest, then return when theyre ready.

I dont envy your position. Theo watched a group of slumped soldiers as they passed. Whatever this sickness was, it ran deep. The alchemist paused as they passed by the towns monolith. That doesnt look like Broken Tusks monolith.

No, the one in your town is weird, Grot said, standing next to the root-like structure of his monolith. Broken Tusks crystalline monolith looked as though it could be made of onyx, or obsidian. The one here in Gronro appeared more like a tangle of roots, formed into the shape of a pillar with little blue fruiting crystals on the knotted surface.

The towns seed core felt weaker than Broken Tusks version. With what little magical sense he had, Theo reached out and felt the composition of the seed core. It wasnt low-leveled. A Level 20 seed core town should have flooded his weak senses with an errant will. But there was almost nothing behind the town. If he tried, the alchemist could pierce through the things will and dominate it. That wouldnt bring anything, positive or negative.

Strange, Theo said, moving off from the towns center.

The northern walls were completely abandoned. Theo and his assistants ascended the battlements, peering over the edge to the endless expanse of undeath. Piles of skeletons created mounds almost as tall as the walls in the distance. The narrow bridge had been cleared, but the ravines below must have been filled with Balkors leavings. Everything was soaked in the necromantic energy. Even the stones beneath their feet.

Im worried the energy is going to soak into your town seed core, Theo said.

If it hasnt already, Grot laughed, regaining some of his humor.

The alchemist withdrew a barrel of his [Greater Hallow the Soil] potion in a barrel. He produced a flask, dipping it into the solution and splashing it on the ground. The effect was immediate and violent. Light soaked into the stones, washing across half of the northern wall to scour it clean. In a flash, all those on the wall breathed in fresh air. The color returned to Grots face.

Thats something else, the dwarf said, kneeling to inspect the stones.

Theo thought back to his experiments in Rivers. He used the same amount of potion to cover the same amount of area, gaining the same result. This meant that the potion didnt care how foul the ground was. If it was only slightly tainted, or corrupted absolutely it would clear it away.

We can cover the entire town today. Then some of the corruption outside of the northern gate, Theo said, licking his lips. Despite his expectations for fortitude, his stomach was twisting in on itself. Being so close to the corruption made him want to vomit. I might have something else, too.

Sarisa, Rowan, and Grot all grabbed flasks and joined with the alchemist. The purged Balkor from Gronro over the course of hours. Those pale-faced soldiers in the town regained their composure the moment the town was cleared.

It worked. Theo breathed a sigh of relief.

Grot slapped him hard on the back, laughing. Was there ever any doubt?

Theo declined to answer, turning his attention to the area north of town.