The Newt and Demon - Chapter 4.49 - Dragon's Breath

Theo drummed his fingers on the table in his new lab. His night in the Dreamwalk resulted in predictable outcomes. The dragon was too strong for them to beat, and he doubted Tresk intended for it to be defeated. After a light breakfast, he came to the lab to inspect the new area and read his daily administration reports. While Ziz’s progress on the tower was predictable, there was an interesting note about Throk.

The Marshling artificer had been working hard on Theo’s new weapons. He had finished the base model and was testing it today. The alchemist expected to look out the window, spotting a fleet of airships descending on his town at any moment. But it was peaceful for now. The only thing that broke his concentration was the opening of the lab door.

“Oh. Didn’t expect you here so early,” Salire said. “This lab is too empty.”

The pair shared pleasantries then got to work on estimating the capacity of the new lab. With the area only dedicated to stills, their production capacity would go through the roof. Theo was now looking down the limitations of manpower, rather than equipment. He still needed to commission some new fancy stills from Throk, but that guy was so busy. He also had to consider an additional difficulty to get over. State mandated alchemy runs.

Gronro-Dir had done well with their supply of anti-undead potions, but they required a restock today. While the lab had a fair supply of the essence, it was best not to be caught with one’s pants down. With the golems working around the cock, the alchemist had more than enough [Swamp Truffles] stored to make a big run. He drummed his fingers on the table without end, Wisdom of the Soul messages popping up here and there. It offered ideas for the best way to make the runs, and estimated quantities for Gronro’s current stock.

“Right,” Theo said, interrupting whatever Salire was saying. He cleared his throat. “Sorry. I’m going to work with some dangerous materials. Sarisa? Ah, there you are. Lurking in the shadows as usual. Could you ask Thim to construct ten [Custom Drogramathi Iron Artifice Stills]? Thank you—we’ll pay when the order is completed.”

Salire let out a long whistle. “That’s a lot of stills.”

“Right away.” Sarisa was gone in moments, rushing down the stairs. Rowan was still somewhere nearby. Lurking like his sister always did.

“Now, I have something interesting to show you.”

Theo withdrew a [Dragon Apple] from his inventory. He held it gingerly in his hand, snatching it back when Salire went to reach out for it. It was shaped like an apple from Earth, but was covered in a thin layer of scales like a dragon. The thing weighed far more than it should have. The alchemist inspected the spirit fruit.

[Dragon Apple]

[Spirit Fruit]

Mythic

The favored food of dragons older than time itself, these fruits are said to increase the strength of whoever eats them.

Properties:

[????] [????] [????]

“I’ve never seen a mythic item,” Salire said, her eyes locked on the apple. “Can’t I just touch it.”

“Without [Unstable Material Handling], it would likely explode.”

“Oh. No touching, then.”

Even in Theo’s hands, the thing felt like it was going to burst at any moment. He returned it to his inventory while he thought about his next course of action. Eating the fruit would be the fastest way to get a property unlocked. He could also use his [Reagent Deconstruction] ability, but the Wisdom of the Soul message popped up. It warned against using his ability on the fruit. The conceptual weight of the fruit was too much for his level to carry. The result would be devastating.

Then there was the problem of eating the fruit. Even with his ability, digging his teeth into the thing might set it off. Cutting it with a knife that wasn’t perfectly imbued with alchemically neutral properties would also result in an explosion. Theo and Salire talked about this for a while, concluding that Khahar wouldn’t have given the seeds if he wasn’t meant to use them. He brought the apple out again, plucking a petal from the side. It revealed the wet fruit beneath, glistening in the morning light. To his surprise, his [Drogramath Alchemy Core] sang when he held the petal. It was a reagent.

[Dragon Apple Petals]

[Alchemy Ingredient]

Epic

Petals from a Dragon Apple. These are said to have been used by the ancient priests of the dragon order during ceremonies.

Properties:

[????] [????] [????]

“So, we need to peel them before we process them. The petals are a reagent,” Theo said, handing the item over to Salire. She held her hands up as though he was trying to shove wet garbage into her hands. “It should be safe to handle for you.”

Reluctantly, she took the petal and rolled it over. “No properties unlocked for me. Nothing new there.”

Theo nodded, removing all the petals from the fruit. He was left with a red, wet piece of fruit in his hands. The juice that touched his skin sent a fiery feeling climbing up his arm. As he searched around, he couldn’t find a better place for the item to rest while it was out of his inventory. Everything else might have been too reactive. Instead of thinking about the problem too much, he held the fragrant fruit up to his face. After only a moment of hesitation, he took a bite.

The [Dragon Apple] tasted like nothing else Theo had in his life. It was like every kind of apple all at the same time. There was a certain spice to the flavor that had him questioning whether it wasn’t cinnamon. He chewed, then swallowed. Two independent system messages popped up.

[Property Discovered]!

Eating the [Dragon Apple] has revealed the property: [Dragon’s Breath]

[Spirit Fruit Consumed]!

You have eaten a portion of a spirit fruit. Your natural strength has increased slightly. You may only eat one whole spirit fruit per day.

Theo relayed the messages to Salire, stroking his chin as he thought about it. He couldn’t speak on the quality of the property, but maybe that wasn’t the point. Maybe he was just supposed to eat one of these fruits every day. By his estimation, the spirit plants he had in Tero’gal were enough for him to have one each day. When he considered creating a farm of the fruits in his realm, a Wisdom of the Soul message popped up.

[Wisdom of the Soul]

The conceptual weight of the spirit fruits is great. After holding the fruit, you realized the connection those fruit trees have with the world. It would be impossible to house more than a few trees in Tero’gal. Additional conceptual weight would crush the realm, marking it as a bad idea.

“Guess this is my private reserve.”

Theo estimated that there were close to two units of fruit left. He considered the idea that he could make little baby stills for such small runs. Until he could get that done, he’d need to use his best equipment to process the fruit. Instead of running it through the grinder, he mashed it up by hand. When the pieces fell into the purple-black of the still, he winced. But nothing happened. The pulverized red fruit rested without issue. The alchemist breathed a sigh of relief. Salire had run for the door.

“Oh. Guess we’re fine. Hah. I knew we’d be fine.”

“Sure you did,” Theo said, preparing some [Enchanted Water] for a tier 2 batch. Without some [Dragon’s Breath Essence], he was stuck creating an inferior product.

“How are we going to do this?” Salire asked, watching as Theo introduced the water to the mix.

“Carefully. Manual controls on the heat. I’ll let my Wisdom of the Soul guide me if I need. Make sure we have clean glassware on hand. I don’t wanna be caught with my pants down.”

Salire nodded, scurrying around the lab to get things ready. They had moved the [Glassware Artifice] upstairs, so the assistant generated a few fresh flasks in different shapes. Theo doubted the shape mattered, but it wasn’t a bad idea. Depending on how reactive the essence was, it was possible he’d need to shove it in his inventory as quick as he could.

“Could you take notes?” Theo asked, snapping the lid closed before crouching near the control panel. “I need to focus.”

With a notebook in hand, she prepared to scribble everything down. Theo held the knob to the heat control, ready to turn it to the lowest setting. His Wisdom of the Soul popped up immediately, claiming there was a risk of an explosion. The alchemist made sure Salire took that down in her notes before he considered what just happened.

“Dragons? High heat?” Theo asked, focusing on that idea. His Wisdom of the Soul notification didn’t appear this time. “Alright. Here we go.”

The black knob on the side of the still clicked through its heating stages, settling on the highest option. The room was immediately bathed in a sweltering heat that defied the muggy conditions outside. Theo desperately wanted to crank his air conditioner up all the way, but stayed crouched by the still. The contents within bubbled, then sizzled. He remained there, waiting for something else to happen. No messages came, and none of his experience told him what to do here.

Theo had expected this batch to be more challenging. But the key was to keep the heat on as high as possible for the entire run. It only took a few minutes for the mash to boil down to nothing, sending the vapor through the various tubes to be condensed into a refined essence. Two units of bright red essence dripped into the holding flask. It shimmered with a mix of glowing oranges and reds. The alchemist cut the heat to the still. Another Wisdom of the Soul message popped up when he went to pop the lid. It was safer to let the scraps cool down.

“[Refined Dragon’s Breath Essence],” Salire said, keeping her distance from the essence. “A mythic quality essence. “That’s an achievement, right?”

Theo nodded as he observed the essence. It didn’t like being in the second tier form. The liquid was almost willful in that way, putting off waves of displeasure. Before it could do anything else, he stowed it away in his inventory. But his short time with the essence revealed much. It would create a drinkable potion, like many other essences, but was offensive, not defensive.

“This will make an interesting potion.” Theo gathered the things he needed to brew. [Enchanted Water], [Drogramathi Iron Shavings], and one of Salire’s new fancy vials.

The alchemist withdrew his flask of essence. Only long enough to drip a unit of the liquid into the vial before returning it to his inventory. The essence swirled on its own, colors shifting in thick bands. He could feel the heat coming off of it, rolling in waves that matched the shifting colors. Carefully dropping in a single shaving of iron, he waited. While the essence bubbled slightly, it seemed to have no other negative effects. He introduced the [Enchanted Water] next. When a Wisdom of the Soul message popped up with a warning, he grabbed his assistant by the shoulder and forced her to the ground.

A plume of fire erupted from the vial. If not for the magical vents above their heads, the entire lab would have been engulfed in flames. The fire ranged for only a moment, but the heat it put off was intense.

“Are we alive?” Salire asked once the deafening rush of flames had died.

Theo stamped out small fires in the lab, nodding. “For now.”

A completed second tier potion rested on the table. It shifted the same reds and oranges as the raw essence, but no longer put off such a menacing aura. Theo approached it with caution, placing the glass stopper on the vial before inspecting it.

[Dragon’s Breath Potion]

[Potion]

Mythic

Created by: Theo Spencer

Alignment:

Drogramath (Middling Bond)

Grade: Excellent Quality

Drink to produce Dragon’s Fire.

Effect:

For five seconds after consuming this potion, the imbiber will produce Dragon’s Fire from their mouth. This fire can be directed in whatever direction the imbiber is facing. This effect cannot be cut short, it must run its course.

“Come on,” Theo said, groaning. “How am I not gonna go test this out?”

A figure emerged from the shadows. Rowan placed his hand on Theo’s shoulder. “Are we going somewhere?”

The alchemist tapped his chin, thinking about the best place to test the potion. The ocean made the most sense. He had a feeling that Tresk had been underselling the dragons in their dreams. Combined with how temperamental the essence was, the effect that this potion produced was likely devastating.

“Either the bay or somewhere without plants. I don’t wanna start a forest fire.”

“The sea it is,” Rowan said, turning around to exit. Theo and Salire followed him.

Hey, what are you up to? Tresk asked. She must have sensed the excitement he felt.

Nowhere. Just made a fun alchemy discovery.

One that requires you to leave town? Yeah, I’m watching you buddy.

I have Rowan with me. I’m fine.

Uh-huh. I’m shadowing you now, pal. Bet you don’t know where I am—what are you doing? Put the reveal construct away—I get it!

A bubble of reveal popped up, removing Tresk’s stealth. She was crouched around the back of the Newt and Demon, hiding between two [Lesser Plant Golems]. It was easy to find her. Alex was nearby, honking and eating bugs from the ground. Instead of complaining about it more, the Marshling joined the procession to the bay.

It was nice to take a trip out to the water. Not only to test out the potion, but to see the progress Ziz and his men had made. They were almost done with the causeway-things leading to the towers. But they must have been running low on the freezing solution he had given them. That was a problem for another day. The alchemist didn’t want to deal with a monster wave from the [River Dungeon]. They found a stretch of beach far from the workers.

The waves rolled up the sandy shore, creating a soothing sound that gave Theo pause. He withdrew the [Dragon’s Breath Potion] from his inventory and held it for a long moment. It felt more dangerous than anything he had made in the past, but Wisdom of the Soul had some advice for him. Based on the description and a bit of logic, he knew the fire would spew from his mouth. Once his companions were far enough away, he prepared to quaff the potion.

“Ready?” Theo asked.

“Let’s go!”

Theo tipped his head back, the fiery potion sliding down his throat. It was like drinking liquid fire. The sensation of burning went all the way down until it settled somewhere between his mouth and his stomach. Then something built in his throat, rushing upward intending to escape no matter the cost. The alchemist opened his mouth, eyes going wide.

A bar of red-orange fire escaped his mouth, cutting through the air like a white-hot blade from a blacksmith’s forge. It was devilishly hard to control, but Theo angled it down toward the water. Steam rose in great clouds, Ziz’s workers shouting in horror. The alchemist dragged the Dragon’s Breath, slicing through a barrier island in the distance. It caught fire immediately.

After the five seconds was up, Theo looked down at himself. His new clothes were on fire.

“Stop, drop, and roll!” Tresk shouted, shoving Theo to the ground.

The ocean swirled where it had been struck with the Dragon’s Fire. So much water had been boiled at once that there were eddies of strange currents flowing through the bay. Ziz was angrily stomping down his causeway, no doubt coming to give the alchemist a piece of his mind. He was approaching them by the time Tresk extinguished the flames.

“What in the hells was that?” Ziz asked.

“Dragon’s Fire,” Tresk said, wiggling her eyebrows.

“I took notes on the reaction!” Salire said with excitement. “That was destructive!”

“I almost pissed my pants,” Rowan said, wiping the sweat from his brow. “What was that potion?”

“Another mysterious gift from Khahar,” Theo said. He sorted through his thoughts on the matter, listening as everyone chattered about the new potion.

This potion fell firmly in the ‘weapons of mass destruction’ category. Worse than that fact, he felt like crap. The potion had drained something vital from him, tapping into something deeper than attributes. His Health had gone down a little from the fire, but the biggest hit was his Stamina. Using the Dragon’s Fire had removed nearly all of it, forcing him to pop a [Stamina Potion]. Without the boost, he would have fallen asleep right there on the beach.

Theo worked with Salire to amend her notes of the process. A crowd of workers had gathered, all chatting about the alchemist who spat Dragon’s Fire. The dangers of using the potion were clear. It did damage to the user, and anyone around them with the intense heat. That was a last-resort weapon for a truly desperate person. If used in a forested area, the damage would be extensive.

“So, we’ll just mark that as ‘dangerous’, right?” Salire asked, nodding happily. “Glad we don’t have to go through that process again.”

He didn’t have the heart to tell her they had other spirit fruits to test.