The party reached Kardia, the next town on the North Road, late that afternoon.

As had become their habit, they split up on arrival, Primus and Ceres going to find an inn and to ask around as to whether anyone had seen Olivia, and Egea and Horatio checking the party’s supplies and visiting the town’s shops to stock up on anything that they needed. The only difference was that this time the two of them were accompanied by Egea.

‘So explain to me again where it is that you are going?’ Wyvera asked them as they left a weapon shop where Egea had made some good trades and made their way across the grass of the town towards a ramshackle wooden house with a sign outside that read ‘POTIONZ’.

‘Primus is looking for his granddaughter,’ Horatio explained, ‘who lives with him because her parents died, but ran away recently, leaving only a note saying that she was going North for some unknown reason. He hired us for protection on his journey and to help him look for her.’

‘But why did she run away?’ said Wyvera.

‘Who cares?’ said Egea cheerily. ‘As long as he’s paying us well, and as long as I can make some extra coin on the side with a bit of clever trading, I really couldn’t care less!’

She reached the potions shop and pushed the door open. Horatio and Wyvera followed her in.

The shop was small and poky and stank of all sorts of unusual and unpleasant smells–burnt wood, rotten eggs, fresh manure and some others that Horatio couldn’t identify. He held his nose.

‘Ah, some customers!’ said the shopkeeper excitedly, sitting up behind his worktop. ‘Welcome!’

The shopkeeper, as was typical, was another Wolf Clanner. This one had light brown fur, a long muzzle, and bright red eyes. He wore flamboyant but tatty robes and a battered cap with a feather in it. He looked as if he was about to launch into a sales pitch for the various ointments, oddments, bottles, bags and jars of seeds and herbs and spices and liquids that sat on shelves on all the walls or were arrayed in a mess on his worktop, but all of a sudden he stopped mid-syllable and his red eyes went wide.

‘Woah!’ he said at length. ‘You guys are from Mighty Gard, aren’t you?’

Horatio put a palm to his face.

‘That’s right!’ said Egea, beaming. ‘Although actually our name’s changed to “Brave Balamb” now.’

‘Has it??’ said Horatio.

‘Yes. How did you hear about us?’ Egea asked the shopkeeper. ‘Did someone tell you about us successfully infiltrating the tetrachamber in Balamb Cave?’

The shopkeeper shook his head. ‘No, nothing like that! I heard that some people matching your description, and some others, humiliated Hector the Heartless, the most brutal and famous pimp in North Eskan, today!’

‘Wow, news travels fast,’ said Horatio.

‘Are you accepting new members?’ said the shopkeeper. ‘Can I join your band? Please?’ The Wolf Clanner was so excited that his tongue was hanging out and he was panting quietly.

A Wolf Clanner? ‘Er,’ started Horatio, ‘I’m not sure how our patron would feel about–’

‘Can you pay your own way?’ interrupted Egea.

‘Of course! I can sell my potions and mixtures on the road! I’m not interested in money–I’ve always wanted to tour with a famous band as their druggist! It’s been my dream since I was a pup!’

‘Can you fight monsters?’

‘Absolutely!’ said the shopkeeper, nodding his head enthusiastically. ‘Not only do I make healing potions, but I can also make hazardous and explosive concoctions as well! And I also know some ice magic!’

‘Er, Egea…’ said Horatio.

‘Come on you two! Let’s go and tell Primus and Ceres and introduce them to…what was your name again?’

‘Ouzo,’ said the shopkeeper.