As I exited the room I was shaken, What I had seen in there had thrown everything I ever knew about everything. Irdu handles the paperwork not me, I had never seen so much in my life. The attractive thing about adventuring is that its free from responsibility, no production quotas, no paperwork just you, your weapon and the only thing that mattered at the end of the day was how many monsters you had killed and the monster parts you brought back. Let me just say in Stonedrift that is not true. You have paperwork within paperwork, what monsters did you kill? where did you encounter them? Oh, your party took damage please fill in this injury form. You hand that in and BAM another load of paperwork asking for details about each encounter, you forget a detail and BAM new form about why you forgot the detail it took almost three hours to get out of there and just before I’m leaving BAM taxation, please fill in twenty billion forms. But eventually, I made it out of the adventuring hall. And into the bustling market, the market square was large and jammed packed. Carts moved down the middle of the street. In every corner, a tent had been set up with someone selling something. Vibrant cloth, fish, wool, swords, there was even a man pushing around a cart selling “meat of the day” which judging by the colour of it was almost certainly rat just like it was yesterday and every day before that. The most notable aspect of this was the smell, spices mixed with fish, manure, and a thousand other smells. My first destination was a few blocks away after weaving in between stall carts, people as I dodged my way past panhandlers and beggars I made it to my destination, a small little shack set in between two massive timber buildings the front side completely open the walls were lined with glass bottles and thousands of little plants, a small sign hung over the whole affair simply saying MIKE’S ALCHEMY. As I walked up to the building, I saw mike hunched in a corner over a small little pot, stinging constantly. The man was ancient dripping with age, his every movement seem to crack, and he always looked like a strong gust of wind would be the end of him, but despite his appearance, Mike was the best alchemist I knew.

“What is it you want youngling,” asked Mike

“I got something to sell you old man” I responded

“Pah better not be any more spider eyes, I have enough of those to last me a decade”

“Not today no” I answered as I reached into my bag. “We ended up fighting a Giant Zombie, I managed to gain a reasonably intact brain”

“Huh let's see it then,” said Mike

As I set the jar down onto the table, Mike turned around, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a pair of spectacles

“Hmmm .... yes, this is sufficient" So what do you want in return, Gold or potions?” asked Mike

“It depends on what you have in stock” I responded

“For this? I'll give you two health potions, and four hundred gold. I do however have something you might be interested in” said Mike

As he moved over to a small barrel to the side of the shop I had not previously noticed.

“This is a barrel of Alchemical fire, I made it for one of those bloody traveller guilds. They never paid. So, to cut my losses I'll give it to you for two hundred gold” said Mike

“So, two health potions, two hundred gold and a barrel of Alchemical fire? Throw in a stamina potion and you've got a deal” I responded

“Deal”

Mike said as he reached out his hand after I shook his hand he turned way reaching under a small bench and pulling out three potions. He then reached into his coin purse and pulled out two platinum coins handing them over to me.

“Good to do business with you, young Arthur”

As I exited the building, I made my way towards the Temple, Licu was injured that is where they would be. As I made my way towards the Temple of the Three gods, I saw the three statues dominating the entrance, to the left Malus god of order, to the right Astrave god of chaos, and in the centre a small statue half the size of the others a small statue to the god Nevermore god of death. They say Malus made the ground, the plants the flowers and all sentient life, Astrave made the animals, the monsters and the seas. Malus gives us the system to fight the monsters to all his children. As for Nevermore, no one knows what he created, it is said he only destroys. As I entered into the temple, I quickly ducked into the side passage heading towards the infirmary

As I enter into the infirmary I quickly spotted my companions, they were standing over a hospital bed, Waruan was hugging his wife, gently rocking Irdu back and forward, Tor-ron was sitting slumped in a chair, looking well I suppose they only way I can describe it as is tired, as if all his many years had caught up with him at once. As I moved forward closer towards the bed, I finally was Licu, he was pale, way to the pale, for a second, I thought that he was dead, but his chest was rising and falling, he was taking slow shallow breaths. As I walked forward I saw his other side and understood what had gone so wrong. His left arm was missing cut off below the elbow. As I walked up Waruan looked up from his crying wife, I looked him in the eyes as slowly he shook his head. As I walked up, I sat down in the chair not saying a word. In the distance, loud bells were ringing. I would later find out they were the town guards alert bells, but at the time I just sat there not saying a word for hours.