“Where did I go wrong?” I asked Zosimos as we gazed down at the swirling cloudy mixture in the bowl.

The light foot potion, which was meant to make a person feel lighter and move faster, had zero effect on me when I tested it, aside from making me gag from the taste.

Caw, caw.

It’s so strange talking to a bird, even stranger that he knows what I’m saying. Hopping across the bench to where I’d left the plants and fungi book, Zosimos used his beak to flip through the pages while I watched on silently.

Larnurma… The flowers of this shrub secrete an oily substance which attracts bees, birds and small animals. Larnurma is often found growing near the viper vine, and these two plants are observed to have a symbiotic coexistence. When prey are lured close by the Larnurma flowers, the viper vine attacks with a corrosive poison. As the prey animal breaks down into the soil, it provides both the viper vine and Larnurma plant nutrients to fuel their growth. The Larnurma flowers grow in mountainous regions and the flower oil is prized by the Tengu tribes who use it to speed their flight.

“They left out an ingredient? I know Noctus said recipes are hoarded and kept secret, but if you’re selling a recipe, it should be complete.” I muttered angrily as I stared down at the page in the book.

Caw.

“Did they think no one would find out? Surely I’m not the only alchemist who bought the recipe. Others will know it doesn’t work.”

Clicking my tongue in annoyance, I filled two vials with the failed potion, then carried the remainder over to the barrel I was using as a rubbish bin and poured the contents in. The remnants of various experiments, creature parts, and plant scrap were all tossed in the barrel.

“I really should find somewhere to properly dispose of all this,” I mused as I put the lid back on the barrel to contain the smell from the plants which were starting to break down.

“Zosimos, I’m leaving for a few hours. You can either stay here or go out for the night, I need to lock up so the shutters have to be closed.” I told the crow as I started putting my materials away in the storage room.

Caw.

Jumping up from the bench with a flap of his wings, Zosimos flew out the window.

“What, not even a goodbye?” I grumbled, shaking my head at my own stupidity. It's a crow Kadia, a really smart crow, but still a crow.

Lab secure, I headed down to the forge, walking past an oblivious Markion who was hammering away at something with intense concentration. Arriving at the guild hall, I quickly made my way upstairs to shower and change before returning to the ground floor. Darius was already waiting at the main doors when I arrived, talking with the guards who I recognized as Duncan and Marvin, the same human and satyr pair who’d been stationed at the door the first day I came to the guild hall.

“Kadia, ready to head out?” Darius greeted, ending his conversation with the pair as I approached.

“Yes, though before we leave, I’d like to talk to you and Noctus if he is around.” I told the guild leader who raised a questioning brow.

“I believe he is in the office talking with Dravern and Helvern. What is it you need to discuss?” Darius queried, inclining his head to the door at the far side of the hall.

“My research, it’s best discussed in the office.” I explained, causing him to stiffen and flick his gaze to the nearby guards who’d made no attempts to hide their eavesdropping.

“Let’s move to the office so we can discuss your concerns,” the guild leader suggested, waving a hand to direct me towards the office.

Two minutes later I was seated in the guild’s administrative office with Darius, Noctus and a pair of men who’d been introduced as Dravern and Helvern. Both of the Tengu had brown hair and eyes, which matched the large pair of brown feathered wings folded along their backs.

“Are you sure that you made it properly?” Noctus asked, peering into the clay vial.

“Yes, I followed the instructions exactly. I made it twice just to be sure, and Zosimos clearly indicated that it needs a component from the Larnurma plant.” I told him, a little offended he thought I was so incapable that I couldn’t even follow a recipe.

“The tengu clans use oil from the Larnurma flowers which grow near the nesting grounds to massage into their skin. They say it hastens flight.” Helvern interjected, looking up from the vial he and his brother were inspecting.

“Which is why I suspect it is the oil which should be used in the potion.” I added, watching as Noctus gulped down the contents of the vial he held.

“Anything?” Darius asked, getting a head shake in response.

“It doesn’t even taste like it, the light foot potion has a sweet flowery taste, this tastes like dirt.”

“Why would the whisper guild risk their reputation over something like this? If it gets out they’re selling dodgy information, it’s over for them.” Dravern commented, offering the vial he held to Noctus when the vampire gestured for it.

“They wouldn’t,” Noctus replied, rolling the vial he took from Dravern between his fingers. “Either they don’t know the recipe is fake, which I find odd since they should have verified the recipe first, or the broker who is selling it decided to make some extra gold by selling unverified information on the side and is using the guild’s name to do it.”

“Kadia,” Darius instructed. “I need you to write down the information on the Larnurma flower and I’ll need the original recipe back, so make a copy to keep. Helvern you said this flower is located near your tribe? Can you bring some back to the guild for Kadia to test? I want confirmation that the Larnurma flower oil is the correct missing ingredient.”

The guild leader looked at the two Tengu who nodded in agreement.

“I don’t think Van would sell a fake recipe, he values his reputation and gold too much.” Noctus chimed in, rubbing his chin. “I will contact him directly, see what he has to say.”

“Do that,” the guild leader ordered. “Take the recipe with you, and the second vial as proof. It has the whisper guild seal marking it as verified information, so let them test it themselves. If they deny the recipe is fake, demand they test it in front of you to prove it.”

“Here, I already have it copied in my notes.” I said, holding out the recipe to Noctus.

Nodding, the vampire stood and after taking the recipe he disappeared in a swirl of shadow.

“We’ll head out as well, the sooner we leave the sooner we can return with the flower.” Helvern declared, rising from the backless chair he was sitting on.

“If possible, would you also be able to bring back some viper vines? Alive if you can, I would like to milk them for their poison. The book says the poison can only be extracted when they are alive.” I asked, looking at the two winged men hopefully.

“We can give it a shot, I’ll try to dig up the Larnurma plant with roots intact as well.” Helvern agreed before leaving with his brother.

“Kadia, I need to ask that you don’t mention this to anyone. Not until we know what is going on,” Darius told me.

“I understand, I won’t discuss it with anyone.” I promised him as we stood and headed for the door.

“I don’t believe Van is behind this, as Noctus said, he cares too much for his guild's reputation to sell unverified information. He’s no fool, and he won’t take this issue lightly. I almost pity whoever is behind this, Van can be a savage bastard when crossed.” The guild leader said with a chuckle as he held open the door for me to proceed him into the hall.

As Darius and I walked through the market seeking out the meat skewer stall, I gazed at all the items being sold by the different vendors, searching with my Alchemic insight for anything glowing gold.

As I scanned the street, a bright, dazzling light shone from a stall halfway down and grew brighter as we approached. Birds, mice, rats, lizards, wing-eared rabbits, cats, puppies and even a tortoise were crammed into cages that looked far too small to hold any of them. The noise made by the animals was chaotic, but the few customers nearby didn’t seem to mind.

“Welcome, customer.” The stall owner coaxed, showing off the cage containing gray furred puppies to a pretty, blond elven woman. “Interested in finding yourself an animal companion this evening? We just got some new wolf pups in. These are Almer mountain gray wolves, they make fabulous pets and battle companions.”

“Jonas, let's get a puppy. Look at how cute they are.” The blond elf pleaded, clutching at a dark-haired man's arm.

“How much for the gray wolf pups?” The man with the elf asked, pulling a pouch from his belt.

“Two hundred gold,” chimed the stall owner, causing the man to stiffen and go wide eyed.

“Two hundred gold for a dog? Are you insane? What’s stopping me from just going up to the Almer mountains and getting one for myself.” The man sneered, and I nodded in silent agreement with his words.

It seemed like a lot of money to pay for a pet that could be gotten in the wild.

“If you think it is easy to defeat a pack of gray wolves who are defending cubs, then by all means, go ahead. You cannot simply tame a grown wolf, one must raise and train it from young.” The man selling the animals said, waving his hands at the cages.

These are all babies. I looked closer at the cages. Not a single one of the animals was fully grown.

As I looked at the caged animals, one in particular caught my eye, as the glowing light surrounding it pulsed five times before fading. Unlike the other animals in cages made of metal bars, these creatures were in a rectangle glass tank, and considering the cost of glass, this made it stand out even more.

Focusing on the glass tank, I saw the light again pulse five times. Out of all the animals here, this strange-looking creature, which looked like someone had crossbred a gecko with a scorpion, was the most alchemically useful. The gecko-styled body was a dark gray that changed to a bright glowing orange towards the tail which curled over the lizard's back and ended in a curved stinger.

“What are those?” I asked Darius, as the stall owner was busy bartering with the blond elf girl and her male friend.

“A painful way to die,” he grumbled, looking at the tank. “They’re called scorchers and are found in the deserts near Valonia. Scorchers will attack in two different ways, the first is by stinging you, which feels like you have molten lava running through your veins. A few seconds after being stung your veins will blacken against your skin, then your entire body blackens and after that, cracks will form in the hardened, black skin showing glowing fire from within- then you die. The entire time, you feel like you’re being burnt alive.”

“That sounds, er, painful.” I murmured, turning back to the tank of innocent looking scorpion geckos, who I’d previously thought were kind of cute.

“The second way they attack is by curling their tail down in front of their mouths with the stinger coated in venom. The scorcher then spits out a gas which ignites on contact with the venom, they can shoot a stream of fire up to one meter and maintain it for several seconds. One alone isn’t much of an issue, but they are rarely alone. Hundreds of them can occupy a single cave, and they typically share caves with fire drakes, so not only do you have to worry about the big fire breathing lizard, but a shit ton of mini ones.”

“If they are so dangerous, why are they being sold as pets?” I queried, gazing at the tank, which was teasing me with its golden light.

“Not pets my dear customer- food.” The stall owner informed me, coming over with a beaming smile after having successfully sold one of the gray wolf pups. “Scorchers are a favored meal of steel-winged eagles.”

“I see,” I murmured, glancing over at the bird the man gestured to, which had only one flicker of gold and a dim one at that.

“How much are the scorchers?” I asked the seller.

“Scorcher eggs are not easily attained by my dear customer, as such they are one silver each.”

“How many are there; do you have any unhatched eggs?”

“Twenty-three, and no, I do not have any eggs as these are the last lot to hatch.”

“I’ll take them all, and the tank as well.” I told the man, ignoring the sharp intake of breath from the guild leader beside me.

“The tank? The tank is not for sale, ah, but as you are buying the scorchers as a whole and thus I will not need to catch them from the tank, I shall sell it to you for fifty gold.”

“Thirty two gold for the tank and scorchers,” I told the man, crossing my arms over my chest.

“Deal.” A gruff voice called as a stocky dwarf approached the stall, jabbing the man who I’d been speaking with in the stomach when he opened his mouth to protest.

“I ain’t getting stung by those damned things again. If this lady wants them, she can have them.” He told the man, who nodded meekly.

The dwarf must be his boss. I pulled out my pouch and paid for the scorchers.

“Here, take these as well.” The dwarf said, handing me a long-handled pair of tongs and a pair of thick gloves that would cover my arms up to the wrist. “We won't be needing them, as I’m not planning on dealing with scorchers anymore. These are too young to be breathing fire, but they’re much more venomous than the adults. You’ll be dead in seconds.”

“Thank you, sir,” I said, putting the tongs and gloves away into my satchel before picking up the glass tank.

The lid of the tank was thin mesh, which folded down over the sides and had been strapped down with two leather straps at either end.

Peering down at the scorchers in the tank, I admired their bright tails, absentmindedly wondering if they’d grow back if I cut them off.

“You won’t be able to take those into the bank, or the auction house.” Darius informed me, giving the tank a cautious look.

“I was hoping we could stop by the guild hall to drop them off, we still have half an hour until the auction.” I told him, and he nodded, leading the way through the crowds which parted before us like a wave when they saw the contents of the tank.

“What exactly are you planning to do with those?”

“Well, I’m not sure, but according to my alchemic insight they have five alchemic components. That was my first reason for buying them, and the second was what you said about them being around the fire drakes. I thought I might see if I could make an antidote or a repellent. I don’t have the scientific equipment to create an anti-venom, but I can at least try to find something.”

“A repellent or cure would be nice,” Darius muttered with a glance at the tank.

“Have you been killed by them before?” I asked, guessing that he had from his reactions.

“Twice, and each time was agony. The first time I let the poison run its course, as we didn’t know what would happen at that time. The second, I had Markion kill me so I wouldn’t have to suffer the pain. That’s how most people deal with a scorcher sting. Luckily, they can’t pierce through thick leather, so stings can mostly be avoided, except when they drop down on you from the ceiling. Scorchers are why fire stones are hard to attain, killing a fire drake on their own isn’t so bad, it’s these little fuckers getting into the mix that makes it deadly.”

“Then I guess I know what I’ll be focusing most of my attention on over the next week.” I muttered, tightening my hold on the tank of tiny, but deadly, geckos.