Lights erupted in the starry night sky, crackles dazzling the residents as they watched various colors blast into existence. “Oohs” and “ahs” emanate from the gathered crowds chewing on meats and desserts they held in their hands, only illuminated by the flashes of light in the heavens. Lamp posts across the streets had dimmed to allow the spectacle to reflect brighter in one's eyes. Kaboom! Bam! Crackle! The booms reached their ears like an enormous drum hit at a distance, echoing in the night.

With Sebastian leading the way, Shani followed closely to him until they reached the center of town. The stalls they had seen as they entered the city had migrated to the square filled with potential customers, announcing aloud their products. By the hand, Sebastian pulled Shani to where they had seen the stage being set up before entering the greenhouse. Each row was gradually being filled up by trickling in audience members from all sides. As they stepped onto the wooden steps of the bleachers, he saw a spot for both of them near the top row. After scooching between people, they reached the empty seats and sat down, letting go of one another’s hands. Sebastian needed a distraction from how Camila had been acting, and the only idea that popped into his head had been this. “Hopefully Shani doesn’t mind me dragging her with me.”

Sitting next to Sebastian, Shani tangled her hands together as she looked straight ahead of her. Struggling to calm down by distracting herself with the movements all around her, she wondered if it was even okay to like Sebastian. Her hands slowly warmed up to the point where they were sweating. “He seems to already be in a relationship with Camila, so maybe I shouldn’t -”

“Hey, I’m sorry for pulling you all this way. I just needed to get away from there fast.” Sebastian grew a slight frown, unsure of what to say to her since they had just met. He might be okay at talking with people he already knew, but with new people, it seemed as if there was a wall he couldn’t overcome easily without the help of others around him.

“Don’t worry, I understand. B-Besides, this is nice, we can get to know each other.” Shani’s eyes widened, beating herself about it in her head, “Why did I just say that?! That makes it sound that I want to know all about him! I should just say it was a joke and -”

Sebastian’s eyebrows shot up and turned to her, “That sounds like a good idea!” “Hopefully with this, I can ignore that horrible, anxious feeling in my chest.” Coming up with questions, he sat up straight, “So, how many years have you been using those sabers you carry around with you? I tried dual wielding once, but I don’t have the flow.”

Relieved he didn’t take it the wrong way, Shani smiled as she answered, “Since I was a child. I had to learn to defend myself for various reasons. M-My grandfather -” Taken aback from the sharp pain as though a knife had stabbed her heart, she flinched. Not wanting to make Sebastian worry, she continued, “- my grandfather is the one who taught me. These swords I just bought not too long ago since t-the ones given to me were no longer suited for my height. What about you? And where did you get that katana? I-I’ve only seen it sheathed, but from the handle alone I can tell it’s out of this world!”

“Truthfully, I found this katana in an abandoned shed in the forest last week. Before this, I used a boken for the longest time, really got my arms in shape from it too.” Sebastian flexed his right arm, showing her he wasn’t lying, and laughed.

“I-I see…” A slight blush overcame her. Without thinking, she blurted out, “H-Hey, can I feel -”

“Welcome one and all to our performance tonight! We hope we didn’t keep you waiting for too long!” Down on the ground level, a young man dressed in a vermillion tunic and black slacks spoke out using an unusual device.

The odd roaring voice made Sebastian turn to where it came from, noticing it was a gadget he hadn’t seen before. It was a handheld metal cone device that when spoken into; it amplified the sound going into it. “If Nia were here, this would amaze her!”

Thanking the gods for the interruption, Shani nervously smiled and nodded, “Y-Yeah, I bet she would be.”

The audience applauded with crowds of children scattered throughout the seats using noisemakers. The man continued, feeling every word he yelled with his free hand showing the intensity, “Tonight we will reenact the story of how Northwich was saved by Namazzi followed by its downfall.” Once again the audience clapped excitedly, pausing only when the man held up his hand into the air. “Now, let the story commence.”

With the lights out from the streetlamps, two spotlights directed at the ground came to life, pointing at the hand-drawn houses and hills moved in to set the stage. “Long before our town was part of the kingdom, our defenseless and struggling Northwich felt the wrath of Vukan, the fire dragon, the reincarnation of flames.” On queue, a puppeted crimson molten dragon made of cloth swooped on the audience as kids and adults alike attempted to touch the flying creation.

Curious about how they managed to do so, Sebastian peered above the puppet and saw a rope with other strings attached to it. Hidden away in the trees, they had moved a wooden crane between the trunks with puppeteers controlling the dragon, “Ah, I see.” Sebastian murmured, grinning at the ingenuity.

“It rained fire on our weak homes and struggling crops, setting ablaze most of what had been built. Was it not for our protector, Namazzi, manifestation of the Water, this town would not exist, extinguishing the flames with its waters, saving us from certain doom.” Actors ran from the “flying” dragon that was shooting out phony fire made from bundled up scarlet fabric.

This trick left Sebastian puzzled, “Okay, I have no idea how they are doing that.”

A lapis twin-headed sea serpent, made from the same material as the red dragon, appeared from the left, spouting out water from its mouths and dousing the “flames” out. “Both the serpent and people worked together to drive the crazed beast away from our small town. Since then, we have appreciated it every year for what it did to help us, even after the incident that occurred some years later.” The actors picked up pitchforks from behind the houses, shoving them forward at the red dragon with the sea serpent shooting out more water. The forged Vukan retreated behind the trees to where the crane had been set up and the actors cheered along with kids. “One day, our savior Namazzi became hysterical as well, destroying the prison at the heart of Lake Basa, bringing everyone down in it. It later came after the town, creating mudslides with its water shot out from its mouth onto our hills.” Shooting water from its mouth like a hose, it aimed at the houses and hills that looked to be created of cardboard with the actors fleeing. For added excitement, the serpent turned to the crowd and sprayed water at them too, with all the kids yelling with enjoyment.

A splash of water managed to drench one side of Shani’s face and head as she turned away from it. Noticing her kanga got wet, she quickly pulled on the fabric a couple of times so the cloth wouldn’t stick to her. Once she was sure it was okay, she smiled, “Kids m-must love this.”

“We had no idea on what to do until a hooded outsider suggested we kill Namazzi for the sake of our lives.” “Namazzi” exited the scene with the actors playing the townsfolk gathered as a hooded man walked towards the center of the stage with the spotlights on him. “Your town has taken much damage from your protector. With a heavy heart I say this; to continue living here, Namazzi must be let go.” Unable to see the man’s face, the voice spoke deeply to express the seriousness of the situation.

The speaker asked rhetorically, “The idea was so simple, but how could it be done? The man continued -”

“You will not be able to kill it with normal weapons, you will need a pair of specialized blades.”

“No such things existed in our possession, so one asked -”

One of the female actresses questioned, “From where would we get such weapons?”

Once more the hooded man spoke, “Leave it to me, I will create your weapons, but I will need a blacksmithing station to work at.”

A citizen actor approached the man and questioned him, “And what would make your weapons any better than the ones we make here by our most skilled smith?”

Taking out two ingots from under his dark cloak, “I will be using a special steel not known to this land. A metal that can be highly bent and return to its normal shape mixed with Obliriumite, but this will not be easy. This will take a few days to complete, so you will all need to come up with a plan to keep Namazzi away from town.”

The cast members portraying the townsfolk gathered and spoke aloud amongst each other so the crowd could listen in, “There must be a way to keep it away from us while he works, otherwise everything we have worked for will perish. Any suggestions?”

“I got it! What if everyone in town got together and pushed Northwich somewhere-”

A loud WHACK erupted as a lady slapped the man upside the head, “Shut it you old geezer, this is why we don’t invite you to gatherings!”

The audience roared in laughter, all the while the performers stayed in their place until everyone settled down. As silence dawned, the play continued with another speaking as they stroked their chin, “Hmm… what if we made small boats and loaded them with fish to distract Namazzi? They’d be unmanned and we would push them away from our docks so it looks like people are on them.”

“That doesn’t sound like a bad idea. If we have no better plan, then we will go with that one.”

The narrator came into place and spoke out to the crowd, “Minutes passed speaking until they decided on using the boats like proposed. With that, they set quickly the arrangements and brought the stranger to a forge so he may begin his work.” Two backstage workers swiftly brought in a replica of an old-fashioned forge and tools to the heart of the stage in front of the hooded man. “With no time to waste, the man fired up the ingots, hammered them, cut them, and bent the hot metals to correct their shape.” As the instructions were being told, the actor playing the stranger followed them by exaggerating his arm motions as he did so. “All the while, our citizens worked hard as well, building small boats made from old wood and filled them with what fish they had. Once one boat was built, they set it off into the water and began working on another as quickly as possible.” Small prop boats were brought onto the stage with stuffed cloths in the shape of fish in them as the actors picked up hammers and began “building” the crafts. “With hard work and dedication, the plan had worked. Throughout the days, no sight of Namazzi had been spotted and at the end of the fifth day, the last touches were made on the swords; heat treatment, sharpening, and polishing to make them shine. The outsider brought the blades to the working town folk to show his work.” Holding up the prop weapons, so all could see, the speaker continued, “Their black leather handles wrapped around perfectly below the short, thick, rising crossguards. A blue tint reflected off of the blades themselves that had been slightly curved near the top. Their silver pummels depicted the two heads Namazzi possessed, wrapped around each other, looking in opposite directions. These were the Tsunami Blades.”

“I must s-say, those swords look beautifully made.” Shani stared at the blades being held up, imagining their weight and how their leather must feel for grip.

“With these swords now complete, the rest is up to your town and I must go.” With that, the hooded stranger left the scene, leaving the swords laying on a table.

The other cast members surrounded the surface which they lay upon to discuss, “So, who will be the one to take up these blades and slay Namazzi for the future of our town?” In sync, all that encircled the table stepped back from the weapons. “Then what was the point of all of this?! Are we just going to let our town be destroyed?” Out of anger, the man kicked a nearby plank of wood with a grunt on his way off the stage while the rest followed him.

Returning from the shadows, the speaker advanced the story, “With no one willing to pick up the mantle, the blades were left on the table without possession.” The stagehands rolled the light background on wheels and replaced it with a dark, gloomy night. Running away, the backstage crew shut off the lighting, leaving the crowd watching intently to try to make out what was in the darkness. A few seconds passed with no action until someone wearing all black creeped out from the void, slowly making their way to the table and snatching the blades without a sound. The lights gradually illuminated back to reveal what had happened with the actors returning to notice, “As dawn approached on a foggy day, the citizens exited their homes to realize the swords were missing. They searched high and low for the weapons -” Following what was being said, the whole cast pretended to look everywhere on stage, “- but had no luck. That is, until a guard alerted the folk.”

A woman dressed in armor ran toward the actors as she faked huffed and puffed, “Everyone!” The guard came to a pause, hunching forward and arching her back as she held it to imitate having back pain, “Everyone, I just noticed a small boat in the water, riding off with the missing blades!”

Another small prop boat was brought in, this time someone was in it, but was covered by cardboard cutouts of fog, unable to see their face or what they were wearing. “Does anyone know who that is? I can not tell from this distance and the thick fog is coating them up!” With their hands, the actors peered at the boat moving away from them.

Once more, the narrator took the stage towards the audience, “After that, days passed with no sign of the person who had left and surprisingly, no attack came from Namazzi. Whoever they were, they had done what had to be done, and for that, we celebrate both the warrior and Namazzi, our guardians of the lake. The end.”

The audience rose from their seats, clapping and cheering with kids spinning their noisemakers. All the actors and backstage crew came out one last time to hold hands and take a bow with a smile, waving to their fans and families. Flower petals flu onto the stage along with a rainbow of confetti, blanketing the floor like a multi-colored carpet. Joining the celebration were the two mythical beasts, parading all over the air and ground.

Both Sebastian and Shani stood with the rest of the people to show that they too enjoyed the presentation. After a while, everyone began to leave their seats and continue with the nightly festival. With the play concluded, Sebastian thought it best to look at what else there might be to see with Shani following behind.

Unable to keep his mind off the play, he remembered that their group would have to venture tomorrow into the lake. While passing through the crowds full of joy, Sebastian’s mood turned worrisome as he turned to Shani who was walking by his side, “What do you think; could that story be true?”

“To be honest, I’m not s-sure. If it is real, then let’s hope nothing happens.” Shani thought to herself for a moment and smiled, “Even if it was, there’s n-nothing to worry about since Namazzi hasn’t been seen since then. I think everything will be alright.”

Arriving at the nick of time, Aiden had reached the enchanter on the other side of town, getting ready to close the shop for the night. The building the owner had acquired was similar to the surrounding constructions, however, this structure drew attention using small violet tinted light bulbs, outlining the doorway into the shop. At the top of the doorframe, a single glass orb flickered periodically with short bursts of electrical discharge, causing brief buzzing sounds. Plastered all over the windows was a thick coat of purple paint, covering the whole surface beside the middle, which had an orange rune in the carving of an upside-down “A” with its middle stick crossing the others. The purple pigment was just thick enough so the light inside could peek through it while the orange was much thinner, allowing more light to seep through. Hanging near the glass hung a wooden sign sticking out toward the street that read “Os’s” in cursive.

Walking out the door came out a middle-aged man with short dirty blonde hair to the right side of his head, a rolled-up purple tunic with a brown leather belt around his waist, and a cinder hemp apron. His dark leather shoes tapped on the rock flooring as he turned off the lights around the doorframe using a switch that was hidden behind the door. Hearing someone approach, the man turned around and saw Aiden making his way to him, “Ahh there you are, I’ve been waiting for you! You came just in time, I was beginning to close shop for the day.”

“Aye, sorry aboot that, Osmir. Ah took a nap 'n' time flu by quickly. Do ye have th' order ah asked o' ye a few weeks ago?” Aiden stretched his arms back, coming into contact with the war hammer he carried on his back.

“That I do! It’s been finished for a few days now. Do you have the Obliriumite with the essence in it?”

Taking out a small chunk of Obliriumite from his pocket, Aiden placed it into Osmir’s hand who began to inspect it, “This giant beetle pat up a good rammy 'n' its exoskeleton was pure solid to crack! Not to mention th' stench of years of dung it hud collected.”

“I believe you, customers had told me about this creature -” Observing the rock between his fingers more, Osmir nodded with a grin, “- and they weren’t kidding, this is a fine essence you have brought to me! I wish I could have been there to see the insect myself! How big was it? Was it bigger than a man?” Excitedly, he shook his head, “No never mind that now, let’s merge this with the weapon! Come, come!”

Both men entered through the doorway to enter a large apricot and iris-colored room filled with weapons hanging on every wall. A large wooden counter stood in the middle of the room with two glass displays on either side, showing off daggers and smaller arms. Each one had a small piece of paper tied to them with white yarn, detailing what enchantment they had and their price. Aiden took a look at a few as Osmir walked behind the desk; a spear with the enchantment of “Return” cost one hundred gold coins, a dagger with “Poison” was fifty, and a claymore with “Shock” had the price of ninety.

“Wow, how do ye git all o' these enchantments?” Aiden studied the claymore, awed by the gleam of the blade.

Snickering, Osmir placed the Obliriumite onto the surface of the counter, “I buy them off of merchants that pass by through town and most frequently from travelers that wish to sell them. Although, I only buy the best ones so my goods are of the highest quality. Now -” With some trouble, Osmir took out a covered war hammer from under the desk and with a thump, landed on the dark brown counter, “- let’s get to work. It won’t take long.”

Osmir had wrapped the war hammer in a white linen cloth to protect it from the dust, and as Osmir removed it, the silver metal of the weapon shone into Aiden’s eyes. At the principal of the box-like hammer was its head, which comprised two faces with sharp points on every corner, each stretching forward like crowns. Above the head rested a four-sided spear blade so sharp that even touching it might cut your finger like butter. Holding the weapon in its place were two metallic plates connecting them to the purpleheart wood handle punctured by five thick nails along the middle on either side, wrapped in black leather at the end. Between the center of the two top nails, a hole the size of the Obliriumite Aiden had just given to Osmir was present with four talon-like spikes sticking outward on each edge of the circle. Overall, the hammer’s head length stretched to the same length as Aiden’s forearm and hand with the height up to his elbow.

“Ye pure outdid yerself Os, she looks fine fur battle!” Aiden marveled at the weapon, tracing the edges of the weapon, feeling excitement build up as he smiled.

Chuckling under his breath, Osmir shook his head with a sigh, “You’re much too kind. To be honest, that blade at the top gave me some trouble, so I had to get help from the town smith. I’m still learning the path of forging, so any specific order costs me trouble. Though I am more than willing to learn.”

Picking up the Obliriumite next to the weapon, Osmir placed it in the hole on the head. Realizing that his pliers were not on the table, he opened a drawer next to him to retrieve them. Subsequently, using his tool, Osmir enclosed the talons onto the stone, hugging it tightly so it would not fall off. As soon as the final talon was bent inward, a surge of azure sparks enveloped the war hammer, like a wave for a few seconds, ending at the handle. A small rune slowly manifested onto one of the top plates on the handle as if it were being burned. The symbol that appeared somewhat resembled an “S”, but only composed of three lines.

“There, your weapon is complete. From what I studied in the Obliriumite you collected, you should have enhanced power and strength when wielding the war hammer. Picking it up and swinging should be no problem now during battles.”

Aiden placed his hand onto the grip and clutched it. He could feel a strange sensation throughout his body, causing goosebumps to race all over his skin. It lasted only a moment and once it was over, Aiden lifted the war hammer with ease, “Wow, you’re right, tis as heavy as a one-handed sword.” Putting the hammer down, Aiden lifted his head to Osmir who had been appreciating his work, “So, th' cost would have bin one-hundred-fifty, bit since we cam to an agreement lest time, it’ll only be sixty, plus th' hammer that ah have on mah back noo, correct?”

“That is right! That weapon you have will give you a discount only because I should be able to enchant it easily, then it should fetch a good price.” Osmir’s eyes gleamed at the weapon on Aiden’s back, “Besides -” Putting away his pliers, he continued, “- you were the one who made the suggestion.”

“That I did.” With some hesitation, Aiden removed the weapon from his back and looked at it for one more time, “Well good friend, we had a go run. I know you’ll be in excellent hands soon.” With that, Aiden handed the weapon to Osmir across the counter. Reaching to his waist underneath his tunic, he unhooked a small linen bag that jingled with the sound of coins, planting it next to his old weapon.

Picking both the hammer and the coins up, Osmir nodded with a smile, “Splendid! Thank you for your patronage. Please come again! It was a learning experience creating that hammer.”

After putting the hammer where the other was once across his back, Aiden left the building with a wave and goodbye, satisfied with the transaction. The chilly night breeze brushed against him as fireworks ignited in the sky and the streets hustled with people gazing up at them. Aiden continued onward on the street he was on, heading left to look at what he may encounter. It did not take long for him to reach a large pointed white structure that had a few groups of folk in presence of the round entrance. The construction had many windows throughout its walls and a few on the pointed roof. All the people held small candles in their hands and a small square amulet hanging off a thin gold chain.

Intrigued by the sight, Aiden ventured forward to see what he would witness. As luck may have it, among the crowd he spotted Sebastian and Shani doing the same as he was from another street. He attempted calling out to them, but the number of voices trampled over his shout, so he made his way to them, squeezing and pushing through. Finally, Sebastian noticed him with surprised eyes and raised his hand to indicate he was there with Shani waving politely at Aiden.

Reaching both of them, Aiden wiped off a drop of sweat running down his forehead, “Oof, thare sure ur a lot o' people oot here. Whit do ye suppose is happening?”

“Well -” Shani looked at the entrance through the gaps of people’s heads that stood ahead of her, “- I think they are g-going to hold mass. Besides that, we don’t know anything-”

Interrupting Shani, a loud voice boomed above all others, “People of Northwich, we thank you so much for coming tonight, but unfortunately mass will have to be canceled.”

Everyone in the crowd looked upon the man that looked to be standing on a chair so everyone could see him. A commotion erupted as people complained, “You can’t do this! Every year one is held at night!”

“Now, now, please listen; our priest is not well. We wish for you to understand that without him, we cannot carry on mass.”

“Then call another priest for tonight!”

“Yeah!”

The man continued, trying to speak above the arguing, “There are no other priests at the moment that we can call, we hope you can forgive us.”

More squabbles emanated throughout the gathering, making hearing what each person said troublesome. Thinking of what they should do, Sebastian made a gesture to the other two to follow him. Cutting through everyone, eventually the three were able to reach an area far enough from the complaining. The trio hunched down with their hands on their knees, catching their breath from all the pushing they had to do to get there. As Shani stood back up straight, she knocked over a mannequin dressed in colorful clothing. With a gasp, she quickly picked it up to make it look as though nothing had happened.

“Ah haha, it’s quite alright dear, it’s not the first time it’s been knocked down tonight.” A lady wearing fancy clothing from head to toe sat on a chair next to a large door, displaying tunics, dresses, and multiple variants of hats, even an assortment of jewelry. The woman wore a long wine-hued dress draped over an alabaster layer beneath. Making sure her tightly braided hair wrapped around her head didn’t come undone, she softly patted it into place. The light from the inside of the building bounced off her face, matted from the cakey makeup she had on as her eyeliner rose next to her temples to create exaggerated wings.

“I-I am so sorry, I didn’t see it in front of me.” Shani stuttered from embarrassment, feeling guilty for dirtying up the display.

Catching wind of what was happening, Sebastian and Aiden looked to see the woman sitting and Shani apologizing. Sebastian stood back straight and walked until he was next to Shani, “Please excuse us, we mean you no ill intent. It was an accident.”

Hearing them apologize, the lady laughed, “As I said, it’s alright. At least you dared to acknowledge that it was a mishap. Everyone who had knocked it over before just strolled away like it was nothing, leaving me to pick it up every time.” Finishing her laughter, she finally took a good look at Shani and her feeble attire. Unable to put the thought aside, she quickly stood up and expressed worryingly, “My poor dear, what on earth happened to your clothes? They’re all raggedy and torn!”

Glancing down at what she was wearing, Shani’s cheeks felt hot, flustered by her pointing it out, “O-Oh don’t worry, I’ve been in many conflicts and these are my only clothes s-so it was bound to happen. It’s nothing to fret about.”

“But my dear -” The lady scanned her from top to bottom, “- it must be very uncomfortable to always wear them!” Making up her mind, she walked on over to Shani and grabbed her hand, “Come with me, we’re going to choose an outfit for you.”

Attempting to protest, Shani’s eyes widen while slightly pulling back on her arm, “R-Really, you don’t have to! I wouldn’t even have any money to pay you!”

“Oh, don’t worry, this is my welcoming gift to kind travelers such as yourself, and call me Elizabeth. Now -” Searching through her stacks of clothes, Elizabeth tapped on her chin while still pulling on Shani’s hand, “- I should have something your size. You are taller than most young women around here, but that should not be a problem.”

With a baffled look, Sebastian glanced over at Aiden, silently questioning if they should rescue Shani. As if Aiden read his mind, he responded, “She doesn’t seem to not need our hulp from th' looks o' it, she kin handle it.” Aiden let out a small snicker under his beard, knowing full well everything was fine.

It wasn’t long before the two returned from their outfitting escapade and Shani appeared with her new clothes on, holding her arm and looking down, reluctant to be seen. Her new tank top’s straps fit well around her shoulders with a wide “V” collar ending below her collarbone. Scattered all around, large suns in diverse stains of red and yellow filled her top, accompanied by the sphere of blue with blotches of white. As she stepped forward to the pair just standing there surprised, her new brown slacks waved freely with every footstep she took, clacking on the stone below with brown strapped sandals. A bracelet made up of large black beads that emanated an admiral blue from their cracks had been fitted nicely around her wrist, complementing her apparel.

Sebastian took notice that apart from every piece she had just acquired, the same kanga remained on her head. Attempting not to sound rude, he asked uncertainly, “Is your kanga special? I see you changed everything, which in my opinion you look amazing, but you didn’t change your headpiece.”

Semi bashful from his compliment, Shani smiled brightly, “T-Thank you, and yes, this was the last present my grandfather gave to me when I was young.” Placing her hand delicately on her head, she softly sighed happily, though her tainted expression hinted sadness as her eyes closed for a moment.

Before Sebastian could get a word in, Elizabeth took over, “I do hope you like your new clothes. I was experimenting when making these from an inspiration I obtained long ago in my travels to other lands in my younger years. Also -” She pointed with one of her long fingers to the bracelet, “- please think of that as a present from one new friend to another.” Picking up Shani’s hand with her pale palms, she came close to Shani’s ear and whispered, “And don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.” She smiled and hugged her tightly.

“Thank you so m-much for everything you have done.” Shani returned the tight embrace happily.

Before departing from the tailor, Sebastian thought up a good idea, staring at the jewelry before him, “Excuse me, how much is one of those bracelets?” Specifically pointing to a red and yellow one with diamond shapes dangling from a small display that seemed to be made of knitted yarn.

Looking at where he was pointing, Elizabeth’s eyes brightened, “Ah those, I made them from dyed horsehair, something I picked up how to do in my adventures. Normally the price of one is two silver coins, but for you, I’ll make it one.”

Shortly after withdrawing from the store, Sebastian felt puzzled by the interaction that had just occurred between the two women. He leaned into Shani as the group continued on their way, “What did she whisper to you just as you were leaving?”

“O-Oh, it was nothing.” Shani only smiled as she kept moving forward through the dense amount of people.

The night went on with the three of them spectating smaller events than the play, tasting an assortment of local foods, and now and then the fireworks that would light up brilliantly. Once they felt their bodies get heavy, they suggested it was time to return to The Gargle to rest. Before entering the room, Sebastian knocked to make sure Nia was presentable. After receiving the okay, they all entered the space to witness Nia dead center of the room holding up the book she had been reading with her hand stretched in front of her, as if she was reaching for something. Sebastian had seen Nia be weird on many occasions, but this certainly took the enchilada.

“What in the world are you doing?” Sebastian made sure he enunciated the word “world” to let Nia know how ridiculous she looked right now with the stink of sweat now tickling his nose.

Still having her arm up, Nia turned her head to them by the door, “Okay, so this isn’t as crazy as you might think it is.”

“Are you sure about that? You’re looking pretty crazy to me.” Entering the room along with the other two who seemed to be as weirded out as Sebastian, he closed the door behind them.

“No, no, just listen -” Undoing her stance, Nia strode to the confused three, “- so, this book I’m reading has some really… interesting information to say the least.” Lifting the scarlet book up to them, Nia opened it to a certain page containing blocks of text in small writing, “The text is a bit lengthy so I’ll summarize; it says that with enough knowledge of the elements, there is a way to manipulate, change, or even create them from thin air in some cases. But -” Closing the book, she threw it on to the bed nearest to her, “- it’s not working for some reason. Maybe I’m not as smart as I thought or I’m missing something… or this is a dumb book.”

Shani slowly walked over to the book on the sheets and picked it up. Opening it back up, she quickly skimmed through a few of its pages, her eyes becoming narrower as her eyebrows scrunched, “Where did you find this?” Her voice somewhat deepened without a single stutter, coldly intimidating. The smile she wore so much turned to a frown while she intently flipped through further pages.

Taken aback, Nia blinked rapidly in shock as she turned to Shani, “We found it in an old shack hidden in the woods the other week. Why, is there something wrong?”

“What else did you find in this shack?”

Nia cocked her head back from the rapid question to her inquiry, “Well, we found that katana right there -” She pointed to the weapon hanging on Sebastian’s side in its dark sheath, “- besides that, nothing else. But, are you going to answer -”

Glancing at the blade from afar, Nia’s words faded inside Shani’s mind, deep in thought, looking back and forth at the weapon and book. Breaking her train of thought from Nia constantly calling out to her, she turned her head back to her, putting the book down, “Everything is fine.”