Missteps V.2

Chapter 33 – Yeabrook

"Do we have a plan for these horses, or do we just have horses now?" Ander sounded like he had the hiccups. His whole body shook with every movement made by the mare under him. Shortly after they'd left the bandits, the group had to stop so that Carric could adjust the straps so Ander wouldn't slide off.

Iados reached down and gave the chestnut gelding a stroke on his mane. "I vote we keep them. We're making better time now than before."

"While I don't disagree, it can cost a lot to board them. Not to mention the time it takes to care for them every day." Jun advised over his shoulder.

"We've got the money for all of that sitting in the cart!" Iados gestured towards the weapons they'd confiscated. Behind his back, Carric rolled his eyes.

Jun stifled a grin. "Let's get the weapons sold before we count on them."

Once again they were on the road, headed towards Yeabrook. Except for their early morning bandit run-in, they hadn't met anyone else. They took their noonday meal huddled around a small fire close to a small copse of trees. The farther north they ventured, the more prevalent trees became. According to Carric and Iados they were nearing the Inwin Forest which was the unofficial halfway point between Esterwill and Yeabrook. By the time the sun began to set, they'd reached the outskirts.

As they set up camp just inside, Iados' voice filled the cold air. "The elves back home say that the wood here is almost as good as what they'd found back in their homeland." He informed everyone as he hammered stakes into the ground. "Over the years, the woodworker's guild have taken care not to cut down too much of the forest, and to replant as much as they take. Anyone who's not a guild member and is caught logging around here are fined. One time, this bloke cut down three trees without guild permission, and they set his boat on fire. Imagine that, setting a man's livelihood on fire just because he cut down a few trees."

"It makes sense to me." Elaine shrugged.

"Didn't you tell me that all the boats in Esterwill are made by elves? They control the ship-building guild, Ash Craven." Lia let out a pirate swear as the knot she was working on came undone.

"Ash Craven is a large part of the woodworker's guild." Iados knelt down and helped her tie it again. "I knew a guy who ordered a boat from Osthom once. He wasn't allowed to do business with any of the woodworkers in town for six months."

Elaine let out a laugh. "I can promise you that the same thing would have happened in Osthom."

The night was spent in merriment around a welcome fire. Not long after sunset they set up watches and went to bed.

Carric shared a tent with Jun and Ander. The latter two had opted for first watch, so the half-elf had the tent to himself.

As soon as he closed his eyes, he found himself in that unearthly still forest. He spared only a seconds glance around him before he strode forward down the familiar path. The trees he passed showed no sign of age, but they had to be very old to be their size. He wondered what it was like in their branches, if he could get above the tree line and look out.

Before he could act on that impulse, he reached the clearing. The willow tree still stood there, the most imposing and awe-inspiring sight within the forest. An invisible breeze whistled through its branches, as it caused the white leafed tendrils to sway.

Carric approached. He didn't feel the same pull this time. This time he was drawn to the tree purely by his own desire. As he passed through the canopy, sound once again reached his ears.

He heard the gurgle of the water as it issued from the tree roots. He heard the branches creak as they swayed. He looked up and saw the same family of squirrels chase each other around the trunk. The air moved around him, and he felt the same sense of peace and calm from nature that he'd felt at his little forest cabin.

There was only one thing missing: the woman. She was nowhere to be seen.

"Well, now what?" His voice once echoed. He frowned and walked up to the spring. He knelt down in front of it and stared into its depths. His reflection frowned up at him. Carric sighed, and collapsed down against the tree. The bark was warm along his back. "I guess I'm early."

The next couple of days was routine for the group as they settled into an easy rhythm. Carric and Lia were put on horse duty, Ander and Elaine were in charge of meals, and Kerri and Iados pitched tents and dug latrines for the night. Jun had taken to be the one to gather firewood, and scout out a perimeter at the same time. You can take the man out of the military, but there are some habits that shouldn't be broken.

At one point Iados had mentioned to Kerri his puzzlement over some of her word choices whenever she tried to inspire them in battle.

Kerri huffed. "Let's see you make up a rhyming couplet on the spot."

Iados shrugged. "I can understand why it'd be difficult, I just don't understand why you do it all."

Her jaw dropped in shock. "I'm a bard, Iados, and it's my job to inspire people with my words. To fuel the burning spirit of combat within them."

"Yeah well I don't feel very 'fueled' when I'm trying to figure out what you mean by 'give out a bleat'." He countered. "Do you think I'm a goat?"

"Ok, I admit, that wasn't one of my best." Kerri sighed and hung her head. "I tried to tailor the tune to the actual fight. Try to help while keeping it in the moment."

The akudaem stood up. "It's not your job to keep us in the moment. If we're letting our minds wander and not keeping focused on the fight we're currently in, we're pretty much asking to be killed. We don't need a play-by-play. Just inspire us to win." He turned away from Kerri and inspected their latest tent handiwork. It stood up on its own, and that was a major plus.

Kerri took a few moments to consider his words. As he walked away towards the next tent, her eyes suddenly got big and her mouth dropped open. She spent the rest of the night in her tent, surrounded by her lute, pan flute, and paper. Music and muffled words were all anyone heard from her tent that night. Iados was shoved out of Lia's tent so that even Elaine didn't disturb her.

The next day, Kerri wasn't ready to reveal what she'd been so feverishly working on.

"You'll find out soon enough." She teased with a grin.

The group finally reached Yeabrook that late afternoon. Compared to the cities of Esterwill, Silverbank, and Osthom, Yeabrook was small. It was not as small as Rocklyn, but it was not a town where people stayed and put down roots. Yeabrook had two distinct populations at any given time: the ones who visited, and the ones who actually lived there.

The main thoroughfare through town was paved with rough cobbled stone, and the cart bounced and creaked over it. The main establishments that lined the streets along the main road were inns, brothels, many taverns, and a few gaming halls. All of them were two to three stories high, while small niche stores seemed to be tucked in-between the larger establishments. All of the large storefronts proudly proclaimed themselves with large, pompous signage. Large murals had been painted over much of the open space left on the buildings. These murals directed visitors to numerous different business, or warned them away from others. The tone of the murals varied from humorous, informational, and confrontational. It was a form of marketing that was decidedly unique.

As they walked down the street, only a handful of the businesses were even open. Signs hung on the doors and windows proclaimed that many of them were closed for the season. Most of the people they passed by were town guards and construction crews. The unmistakable sounds of hammers and saws filtered out through a nearby door.

"Anyone have any idea of where to go?" Lia asked as she scanned the inn signs. None of them registered any familiarity.

Iados raised his hand. "I know a place. Follow me."

He led the group off the main thoroughfare and deeper into the bowels of the town. As they ventured farther away, the streets got smaller and turned to packed dirt and snow with bare walls.

Eventually their street emptied out into a large courtyard, this one full of people. A small ice rink sat in the middle, bordered by brightly painted wooden logs. Couples and families laughed and yelled as they slid along the ice. Some of them were on skates, others only with cloth-covered shoes. Small establishments lined the edges, with a clearly marked inn being the only two-story building. The air smelled of several baked goods as people walked around with pastries they'd purchased.

"Welcome to Off-Season Yeabrook." Iados proclaimed as he came to a halt and let his companions take in the very different atmosphere. He set off towards the inn. They tied their horses to a hitching post outside and walked in.

Inside was a dimly lit small room, with long tables and benches creating two neat rows the length of the building. A small bar was set up along the wall. One could see, and smell, the kitchen that was tucked back into a corner through an open doorway. In the back of the room was a staircase leading upstairs.

The place was hopping. It seemed as if this was the place everyone in town came for their meals. The long tables were nearly full and two teenage girls ran around the room carrying laden trays on their shoulders.

Iados headed straight to the bar as Mellow Andromeda filtered in. "I'm looking for Flyta." He told the young man behind it.

The man looked up from the drink he was pouring. "Ma's in the kitchen. She won't be able to talk till after the dinner rush." One of the girls rushed over. She quickly deposited her dirty dishes into a wooden tub just behind the bar. The bartender turned towards her and barked. "Alvina, drinks are up!" Iados stepped out of her way as the girl hastily loaded the drinks on a tray and headed off. The man addressed Iados again. "Sit down, order some food, and I'll let Ma know to come see you when she gets a chance."

Iados grinned. "Tell her Iados says 'hi'." The young man nodded, then turned his attention to another customer as they approached the bar.

The rest of the group had managed to carve out a portion of table for themselves. Iados joined them as they finished peeling off layers of unneeded clothing. With all the bodies in the room, the chill of the outside was merely a memory.

Shomma found herself tucked in between their legs under the table.

"How'd you know about this place?" Kerri asked with a raised voice.

"The woman who owns this place is my mom's best friend." Iados called back. "They were in the military together."

One of the girls, a blonde with a kerchief holding back her hair bustled up to them.

"Hello!" She had a harried but warm smile on her face. "We've got a potato stew or the Earl Sandwich available tonight."

"What's on the 'Earl Sandwich'?" Ander asked.

"Tomato, deer meat, and a house dressing." She rattled off.

Ander didn't look convinced. "I'll take the stew."

The girl took everyone's food and drink orders and bustled off. It only took ten minutes for their orders to arrive. They mostly ate in silence as they listened to the conversations around them. The clientele was mostly men and mostly humans. There were a few dwarves and other halflings sprinkled into the mix.

From the conversations, it seemed that almost all of them worked in construction. Complaints about how the 'Summer People' left some of the inn rooms completely trashed were frequent. Apparently one of the inns had changed hands at the end of the last season, and the new owner was in the process of having the whole building gutted and redone. They were adamant that the redesign be done by spring, but the general consensus was that he was going to be sorely disappointed.

"He wants to lay down that good dark hickory wood from Stonepine everywhere." A burly bearded man said in between bites of his Earl Sandwich. "We told him we only had enough of it to cover maybe half of the floor space, if no mistakes were done. He would not let up. I finally got him to pay me upfront for the cost of the extra wood, plus an extra two hundred gold just to transport it."

"That amount will just barely pay the fee to get the wood over the bridge." Grumbled a dwarf across from him. "Ordered a few wagons of stone, and the damn patrol charged me nearly as much as the stones themselves cost."

"What gives them the right to even charge a fee?" This time it was a woman with smears of dirt across her freckled face.

"What are they talking about?" Kerri asked.

"They're talking about Quikain Bridge." Ander took a loud slurp of his stew. It was a very hearty stew, and reminded him of the kind of stew his mother used to make. "It's the only way across The Divide to Pryria."

Elaine swallowed the bite of her sandwich. "Who does the bridge belong to, Marblebrooke or Pryria?"

"Neither." Jun answered. His bowl was already empty. "When construction first started on the bridge, neither kingdom's territory officially stretched that far. A large chuck of The Divide used to belong to a kingdom named Skonia.

"Wow, aren't you the history buff." Lia teased over her ale mug.

Jun shook his head with a smile. "Not me, one of my commanding officers. He used to pass the time while we were marching or on patrol lecturing us on different historical facts. What's really amazing, is that they built it without magic."

"I call bullshit." Iados learned forward. "The Divide is nearly thirty miles wide. There's no way they built it without magic."

Ander shook his head. "It's true. Quikain Steelhent was firmly against magic. Story goes that she lost a lot of her family when The Divide was created. She and her team spent nearly thirty years building the bridge, all so they could see what family they had left on the other side." "Couldn't they just have easily climbed down the side of The Divide, crossed the river at the bottom, and then climbed back up? It didn't look that hard when I crossed the bridge." Lia nibbled on a piece of tomato. She was surprised that tomato was even still on the menu this late in the year. Though by the taste and smell of it, it wouldn't have lasted much longer.

This time Jun shook his head. "Nope, too dangerous. Wheeler said originally The Divide was only fifteen miles, but whatever had caused it had done so much damage to the surrounding rock that it widened by another ten miles within the first fifteen years."

"What stops people nowadays from finding other ways around The Divide?" Kerri asked.

"Sea monsters." A grizzled voice said from behind her. They all turned to look. An older gray-headed man sat there hunched over his soup.

Kerri's eyebrow arched. "Sea monsters? Really?"

"The Tri-Sea is full of them." The man chuckled. "Currents pull the creatures in from all the neighboring seas and dumps them in the Tri-Sea. Over the years they've trickled down The Divide, some making their home in its depths. The wizards of Sageburrow pay good money for sea monster parts."

"There's a better payday for you if you keep them alive." Iados added with a grin.

The old man's eyebrow raised. "You've been hunting, have you? Where you honest, or on the take?"

Iados grinned. "There's no fun in being honest."

This time the man gave a howl of laughter that earned him a few dirty glares from the people surrounding him. "You still in the game?"

"Nah, got out of it. Got too dangerous. I'm on a straight and narrow kick now." Iados gestured to his group.

The man sighed heavily and took a large gulp out of his tankard. "I wish I'd stayed on the take longer than I did."

"Why'd you leave?" Iados twisted fully around in his seat now, his elbows rested on the table behind him.

"My wife got pregnant and I allowed an old friend of mine to bully me into giving up the life." He shook his head. "That was the one thing Eldon was very firm on."

Iados's eyes got wide. "Was this Eldon a gnome? Captain of The Howling King?"

He nodded. "You know him?"

"He was my captain." The akudaem answered with a dour look. Silence fell between the two men. Lia held her breath as she waited to see what would happen next. Iados had spent a lot of time in Orbris's library looking for that strange woman.

"Word is that he and his crew disappeared." The man's tone was low now, his eyes fixed on Iados.

"Disappeared isn't the right word." Iados returned the stare. The two men held eye contact for another minute. Finally the old man shook his head.

"I have more questions, but this isn't the place for it." He picked up his bowl and quickly gulped down the last of his stew. "Come see me tomorrow. I'm doing some work at Madame Lari's on the main thoroughfare." The old man stood up. "Name's Edlin by the way."

"Iados."

Edlin nodded and left.

"You used to hunt sea monsters?" Kerri asked incredulously as the akudaem twisted back around laughing.

"It was actually more of a group effort." Iados spent the next hour regaling them all as the patrons slowly filtered out of the room.

Soon enough a heavy-set woman bustled out towards them, wiping the sweat from her face with a towel. "I was told someone here wanted to speak to me?"

Iados raised his hand. "That'd be me, good to see you Flyta."

Flyta's mouth fell open. "Iados, is that you? Last time I saw you were a teenager!" She hurried closer. Iados stood up and the two of them embraced. "Have you talked to your mother lately? Do you know what's going on in Esterwill?"

He nodded grimly. "We just came from there actually."

Her eyes widened. "And you managed to leave?"

"We've got a few tricks." Iados grinned. "How are you doing? I see business is doing well."

Flyta scoffed. "We're practically the only decent place open during the Off-Season. I decided a long time ago that I wanted nothing to do with the Summer People."

Iados gestured for Flyta to sit, and he followed. "Mom mentioned that you still vacationed in Esterwill."

She waved it off. "It's a working vacation if anything. I take the girls with me, and we work in the fields. I worked out a deal so that we get a percentage of everything we harvest. Then, we bring our percentages back to Yeabrook and sell them to the good folk of this town."

"What happens to this building while you're gone?" Elaine asked.

"My brother and son run it as a 'local's only' tavern. Gives the townsfolk a place to run away too after dealing with The Summer people all day." She clapped her hands. "Now, did you call me out purely to talk?"

Iados reached up and sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "I was hoping you had room for us. We just got into town, and I for one am really tired of sleeping in a tent."

"I've got room aplenty for you and your friends." She smiled at all of them. "I've only got four rooms, but you all are welcome to them. It's getting pretty late so we can deal with payment and such in the morning."

"We do have some horses and a cart." Jun spoke up. "Is there a stable nearby we can use?"

She tapped her chin. "The stables a few blocks south of here should have room. I'll get Hardwin to show you the way." She whistled at the young man behind the bar.

Carric, Lia, and Jun went with Hardwin to stow the horses, while the rest of them moved into the rooms upstairs. It was easily decided that Lia and Iados would share a room, as would Kerri and Elaine. Ander tried to make an argument for him having a room to himself, but that argument was quickly stifled when Kerri whispered into his ear. The halfling's face turned red and Carric was given the extra room.

That night as Carric fell asleep, he felt the now-familiar pull of the bewitched forest. This time, his journey to the dream came in flashes. It was as if he was phasing in and out, only catching glimpses every time. He stopped just outside the snowy canopy. Through the leaves he could just barely make out the woman. She was speaking to him, but he heard no noise. The tendrils parted, and he saw her face clearly for a second. Worry was etched onto her features. She tried to tell him something, but he couldn't hear her. She didn't seem panicked, just worried and frustrated as it became clear she couldn't reach him. He could only shrug as whatever tenuous connection held him there finally broke, and he fell into a dreamless sleep.

Ander was the first to awaken the next morning. Groggily he rolled out of bed, slipped his shoes on, maneuvered around Jun's legs as they stuck out the end of the bed, and made it to the wash bin. He splashed cold water on his face.

It was still dark outside, and through the window he could make out just the faintest traces of light on the horizon. The icy crystals that clung to the window sparkled in the much more prominent moon light. With a yawn he left the room and shuffled down the stairs and into the kitchen. The kitchen was small, but he'd learned that every kitchen is practically the same. They've all got an oven, a work table covered in weird stains, a bucket that you learn not to peer too closely at, and a small box or tin that's full of a 'family secret' herb that usually ended up being parsley.

Yes, he'd spent his fair time in kitchens.

He took a few minutes to acclimate himself to this one. He identified what he could in the clay jars on the shelves and examined the oven to make sure it worked. After he felt better about being able to maneuver in the unfamiliar space, he set about setting the fire in the fireplace and getting the oven hot with coals. As the flames crackled to life, he turned towards the main attraction.

For the past three months in Esterwill, Ander had worked in a bakery. He earned money that was supposed to fund their adventures. Unfortunately Jun's good-hearted nature got the best of him, and instead the money was used to help support the akudaems of the town. Thankfully Elaine had saved Jun and Ander's portion of the money from the owlbear pelts. It wasn't much, but it meant the group wasn't starting from nothing.

He pulled a small stool to the work table and got busy. Angrily he combined eggs, flour, water, and a few other spices he'd found in a large bowl.

They were three, almost four months into their new careers and so far all he'd done was hang out with the Tribe (which was a lot of fun), almost get killed by a freaking minotaur (considerably less fun), and bake bread. The first two he understood were perks and dangers of his new profession. The third, well, it wasn't new. He'd been baking bread since he was old enough to form a fist.

He shoved his fists into the dough ball he'd created and started to pour his frustrations out as he kneaded.

Add to all of that the fact that he hadn't heard from Shenir at all since they'd parted ways in Dayur. He was used to not hearing from her for weeks while she traveled, but it'd never been three months before. The rational part of his brain told him that he was overreacting. That it was winter and that made post especially slow. The irrational part told him something was wrong.

Ander set the bread in a bowl, covered it with a cloth, and set it on the floor next to the fire. While that proved, he had a filling to make.

He set some jerky to rehydrate in the pot over the stove. While that boiled, he minced parsley and garlic, cut up a few vegetables fished from a barrel, and grated some cheese. When that was done, he fished out the jerky, cut it into small cubes, and added it to the mixture he'd created. He fished out a pan and quickly heated it all up. He set the mixture aside and returned to his dough that had doubled in size. He punched it down, then set to rolling it thin on the work table.

He smirked as he wondered what his Master would say if he saw Ander now. Out of his Master's three apprentices, Ander was the best potion maker between all of them. It helped that potion making was practically cooking, though it was a lot more stringent on component and measurements.

Not many mages at the Circle were allowed to have three apprentices. Usually a mage was only allowed one, or two if the right argument could be made. Ander had been his Master's first apprentice, but that didn't mean he was the best.

His Master was a powerful mage who had a long history with the Circle, but he wasn't the most sociable of people. He had a reputation for ignoring certain rules, and doing whatever suited him. Even so he'd rubbed elbows with enough of the Elite to have serious clout. After all, it wasn't the Elite's rules he'd snubbed.

He'd plucked Ander right out of his parent's store, after having been a regular customer since Ander was eight. A few years later, his Master had shown up in the middle of the night with a boy slung over his shoulder. Derick became the second apprentice. Ten years ago, Derick and Ander were almost mugged after they'd made a wrong turn in a bad part of Sageburrow. A girl had come to their rescue, and to thank her they'd invited her back to the Tower for a meal. Master didn't let her leave, and Xiladdic became the third.

Each of them excelled at different areas of study, something that Ander strongly believed was what his Master wanted. While Ander was the best at potion-making, he also had a flair for the spectacle of evocation magic. Xiladdic was the strongest researcher. Her favorite subject was transmutation and the ability to modify matter and energy. Derick was more skilled in magic that required a gentle touch. He specialized in protection and illusion magic. Out of all the apprentices, Derick was the furthest along in his studies. The running joke between the three of them, was that Derick was in charge of protecting everyone from Ander's flashy magic, while Xiladdic was in charge of clean-up.

Ander laughed softly to himself as he carefully pinched the seam of the now mixture-filled dough balls. He lightly scoured the tops, brushed an egg wash on them, and moved them to the oven.

The three apprentices had been each other's family. Unlike some of the other mages in the Circle, their Master didn't make harsh demands or stipulations of his pupils. He encouraged the three of them to test limits and to try out new magic. The three of them had always chalked it up to their Master's propensity for skirting the rules.

Not that it'd been all fun and games. Ander even had to admit that he might have needed a bit more reining in. At one point, he'd found himself at rock bottom with a gambling addiction that'd cost him his spellbook. It was Shenir who'd found him sitting in the cold outside a club with a bruised lip and no book.

For three months she checked in on him every day. Far too many times she'd physically picked him up and carried him away from whatever he was gambling on that day. Horse races, fighting matches, apprentice duels, anything that he could put money on. Every time he'd placed another bet, he'd told himself that it was all to buy back his spellbook.

Looking back, he should have just come clean to his Master, but ever since Xiladdic had disappeared a couple of years before then, tensions had run high. Derick had taken to traveling with different military contingents. He said he was searching for Xi, but Ander knew he was just getting away from their Master.

Their Master was an accomplished Diviner. He was The Person you came to if you wanted an accurate reading of the future, or someone's location. Yet, he couldn't find Xiladdic. For the past few years, their Master had become more focused than Derick or Ander had ever seen him as he searched for Xi. Finally, Ander choose to leave their Master's side as well. He hated seeing his Master like that. A friend of his had originally been given the settlement job, but Ander had traded favors and taken it instead.

While his bread baked, Ander cleaned up his mess.

"What are you doing here?"

Startled, Ander nearly dropped the bowl he was holding. Standing in the doorway was their hostess Flyta, hands on hip and mouth agape.

"Just cooking some hand pies." He stammered as he white-knuckled the bowl.

Flyta huffed. "I could put that together." The heavy-set woman bustled in and moved over to the oven. "You handled the bread well."

"My parents owned a small bakery as part of their store." Ander wondered how long the woman had been watching him. "Not to mention that I worked in a bakery in Esterwill for the past few months."

"Who'd you work for?" Flyta took the bowl from Ander's hand that had held the stuffing mixture. She swiped the inside with her finger and tasted it.

"Beiro."

"Never heard of him." Flyta cast a critical eye over Ander. "Is bread all you can make?"

Ander shook his head. "I know how to make pasta. It's one of my Master's favorite food groups."

Flyta grinned. "Can't say I've had too much pasta in my life. Around here it's mostly soups, stews, and pretty much the gambit of things you can put between two pieces of bread."

Ander smirked. "How about this, I'll make you a bowl for lunch, and you comp our rooms from last night. Deal?"

Flyta tapped her chin before she nodded. "It's a deal. The kitchen will be yours after the lunch rush, and you can make the pasta then." The two of them shook hands.

By mid-morning everyone had assembled downstairs. They each munched happily on a hand pie, as did Flyta and her children.

"So, what's the plan?" Iados's voice was muffled as he talked around his pie. "Are we continuing on?"

"I wouldn't advise it." Flyta sat a table close by, a basket of peas in front of her. Her daughters sat close by and shelled as well. "I stopped and talked to a friend of mine this morning, one who specializes in reading the weather. She says we're due for some more fickle weather, probably for the rest of the year. I'd suggest staying in town till the new year."

Ander groaned and dropped his head onto the table.

Jun's eyebrow went up at the audible thud it made. "Something wrong?"

The halfling turned his head towards the berserker. "When I suggested starting an adventuring party, I was not picturing month after month of downtime."

"What did you picture?" Carric asked.

"More dungeon-crawling and fighting I expect." Iados pulled a toothpick out of his pocket. "I went through the same thing after I joined up with the pirates." He pointed the thin sliver of wood at the halfling. "We can't put our lives in danger every day."

Ander sighed heavily. "I know, it's just that I don't have anything exciting to put in my reports to the Recovery Department. I also haven't learned a new spell in months. How am I supposed to grow as a wizard without new spells?"

"What about that scroll we found back at the settlement? Did you ever figure it out?" Lia took a large bite of the hand pie. It was tasty, but the jerky was a bit chewy.

The wizard waved her off. "It's a high-level illusion spell."

"See, put that in that your spellbook." Iados grinned, confident he'd just solved the problem.

Ander glowered at him. "I can't, it's too high-level."

"Spells have levels?" This time it was Kerri. "I knew that some spells were more powerful than others, but I didn't know there were actual levels."

The halfling shrugged. "The 'levels' are what the Circle uses. It's a good system to use when you have a bunch of students and apprentices running around. It's a way to gauge progress mostly, and it's not a perfect system."

Carric whistled. "Wow, the Circle does not mess around."

"So, it's just the Circle that uses that system?" Kerri stuffed the last of her pie into her mouth.

Iados shook his head. "Some of the more prominent magic vendors have adapted it too, at least those that do business with Circle members."

Lia scowled. "It's not used in Stonepine. You can't just assign arbitrary rankings to magic. We're taught that the strength of a spell is dependent upon the strength of the wielder."

Ander rolled his eyes. "No offense Lia, but you're a druid. You have a completely different magical base than I do."

"Excuse me," Lia's eyes went wide. "I'm pretty sure that you and I gather our magic from the same source."

"How so?" Ander titled in head in confusion. "You look to nature for your magic."

"And where does your come from?" She asked, the same look of confusion on her own face.

"From study." He said like it was obvious. "I study magical texts, and learn how to coax and conjure magic through arcane rituals."

"You pull your magic from words written on a page?" Lia frowned. "I was taught that all magic comes from a single source. From the world at large. That magic permeates the air, the earth, even our own bodies."

Kerri nodded. "That's how Xayoe and my father explained it to me. They said that we're surrounded by the power of the oldest and grandest melody." She propped her head on her hand.

Ander drained the last of his drink. "When I said 'magical base', I wasn't talking power source. You're right in that we all pull from the magic that surrounds our world. That's the first thing we're taught at the Circle. However, the second thing we're taught, is that there are different ways to actually use and connect to it." He pointed at Kerri. "You look at magic like it's a piece of sheet of music. You called it a melody even. You use sounds and emotion and rhythm to bring life to your magic. Lia, you're a druid, meaning that you look to nature to pull from when you cast a spell. As a wizard, I use my tomes and incantations to access my magic. My magic isn't as ingrained in my being as yours."

He looked around as he tried to figure out a way to explain it better. "It's as if I'm a cook, throwing together different ingredients to create a new spell or recipe. We're always looking for new recipes to try out. Different techniques that we've never seen."

"So wizards are basically magic junkies chasing after their next fix." Carric summed up.

Ander sighed heavily. "The cook analogy works better. We all more or less all want the 'new and shiny' magic."

"What about Elaine?" Kerri pointed the cleric who'd been silently eating her pie.

"My power comes from my deity, she's in charge of deciding what kind of spells I'm allowed, and how powerful." Elaine finished off her pie. "If we truly are stuck in Yeabrook for the rest of the month, then we'll need lodging."

"You're welcome to stay here. 5 silver a day for each room. An extra 20 silver a day will get in-house meals for all you." Flyta offered. "I'll let you have one of the rooms for free if Ander will make those hand pies for me."

"That's not too bad." Jun rubbed his chin. "It's going to cost less to board us than it will the horses."

"When we took them to the stables last night, they said it was five silver a day, per horse." Lia explained. "We've got seven horses, so that's 35 silver a day." Lia screwed her eyes up in thought. "Actually, stabling the horses will be pretty much the same as us staying here."

"We could just bed down with the horses." Carric suggested.

Kerri rolled her eyes. "If we've got the money, I think we should stick with actual beds. Besides, I'm sure we could sell one of the horses if we needed to."

"It's only about thirteen days till the end of the year, I'm sure it'll be fine." Jun smiled, though most of the others didn't share his enthusiasm. Just like Ander, they were ready to adventure.

For the next week the group fell into a routine.

Everyday Ander made hand pies that were wrapped up and sold to the construction crews. Every couple of days he'd demonstrate a new pasta dish for Flyta, and a couple of times it was served at dinner.

Kerri bought a sketchbook and drew out some of the more memorable scenes from their adventures so far. Some of them included lyrics for eventual use. Everyone was impressed with the skill she showed, and everyone had their own details to add or comments to make. Ander made a point to show that his feet were actually very proportional to his body, not gigantic. At night, she'd perform in the village square for tips.

Elaine focused on filling vials she'd gotten from the church with healing potions. She'd learned the basics of creating the potion while working with the church, but she'd never actually attempted to make them herself. After a week of work, she managed to get three that seemed correct, and not just gelatinous goop.

Elaine wasn't the only one who spent a lot of time in their room. Iados also secluded himself away, but for a different reason. He used this time to practice his lock-picking skills with the tools that Peblin had given him. A few times, he'd gone out with Lia who would act as a lookout while he tried to open the locks on some of the closed businesses.

When Lia wasn't acting as lookout for Iados, she was usually found with Jun.

Jun used this downtime to work on group safety. For a couple of hours every day, he gathered the group for training. This training mostly focused on weapon use. He stressed the importance of making sure that everyone had some skill with using everyone else's weapons. The main person affected by this was Ander.

"These hands are not made for swinging a sword, they're made for slinging spells!" Ander complained loudly one night after a day of literally swinging a sword. "Besides, I can't concentrate on spells if I'm concentrating on not cutting myself."

Jun sighed and rubbed his eyes. "You need more than just a dagger on you, what if the enemy gets in close."

"Then I'll just light them up." Ander rolled his eyes. "Jun, my spells are my weapons."

"What if we enter an area where you can't use magic?" Carric sat on the ground watching them, Shomma in his lap. The weasel had nearly doubled in size, and now occupied Carric's entire lap. "Are you going to just hide behind us while we risk our lives?"

Ander bit his lip. "Of course not," He said after a moment's pause. "I guess I could try something ranged, but small." In the end Ander found himself outfitted with a new sling and a handful of pebbles.

When they weren't training, Jun and Lia tried to come up strategies that could be used in the field, and possible code words, just for fun. They weren't sure how successful these strategies would be, but with the possible missions Ander had been suggesting they wanted to be ready.

As for Carric, he spent his mornings and afternoons drifting between training with the team and training with Shomma. She'd already mastered the basic commands of 'sit', 'stay', and 'bite the ear', and was now working on more directional based instructions. The training was slow-glowing, as Shomma kept getting pulled in by the tavern staff to be used as a garbage disposal, much to Carric's chagrin.