“A Compendium of Secrets” Pre-Orders are Open

Only one in every hundred men could claim to be Master Alchemist. Their place of importance allowed them beautiful villas and the greatest wealth the Empire could offer. This was the only Alchemist Andrei had ever heard of living on a scenic hillside far from the accolades of the Empire. The mountainous range in Laveska had an ominous quality to it. Danger felt as if it were waiting around every corner. He trekked down the road, side-by-side with a grizzled old man dressed in traveling gear far too new to belong to any seasoned traveler. He must have purchased them just for this journey. He felt he couldn’t trust him.

  Despite coming from different roads, they were headed to the same place. Andrei had to wonder what qualifications this companion had for such an important position. He didn’t look like the sort of man who would make a good Alchemist. All the better for him since it was a difficult occupation to keep. He supposed the man thought the same of him; Andrei did not look the part of an alchemist in training. He looked built for more manual labor with a mesomorph frame and powerful arms. The faintest hint of boyish features he never outgrew in his cheeks and messy, dirty blonde hair. He liked to believe he had just enough smarts and looks to get by well enough.

“Master Malthus has his Alchemist's college on the side of the cliff. Keep following the road. You can’t miss it.”

Their only guide had been some thirty miles back. It was the closest village in the area as far as they could tell and home to a single, tired-looking shopkeeper. How right he had been.  

“It doesn’t look like any Alchemists College I have ever seen,” the man beside him muttered, and Andrei was starting to feel glad he wasn’t making this journey alone. 

“It must be the true gifts of an alchemist, false advertising,” Andrei said back, and both men chuckled despite their anxieties. There was nothing for miles and miles except a dark fortress covered in what appeared to be palisades jutting out like a hedgehog from all around it.

Andrei felt dread the closer they walked towards the Alchemists' College. It could have been a castle or a war barracks in its original construction. Falling apart and in ruination, the building looked abandoned save for the man waiting for them at the door.

The garb of the alchemist apprentices was plain. Only distinct with features of a short, dirty, dove-shaped hood covering his eyes and nose. The skin around his mouth sagged and warbled while he spoke. “Andrei of Laveska, and Commander Cristian Lazarov?” the man croaked from behind a wide smile of shining yellow teeth. 

They both shared their papers, handing their identifications on a parchment with a familial seal just below and a letter of recommendation to the man. Around them, the field of flowers and the busyness of bees were a stark contrast to the gloomy building. Clustered in powder white puffs of petals, they reflected off the sunlight like snow and gave a brightness to the castle.

He folded up the documents, slipping them quickly into a pocket hidden in one of his sleeves. 

“Late,” was all he had to say, and he began to waddle towards the building. His hands lay over a protruding stomach, clinging the robes tightly in unflattering places, spindly hands covered in gloves used his stomach as a hand rest with a dirty smock just beneath. He expected them to follow from the look of it, and they did as they were soundlessly bid. Andrei dreamt of a hot meal and a bed to rest his tired legs, but they were led into a large winding storeroom. Shelves and shelves filled the rooms like a labyrinth of different sterilized smells and fragrant herbs. 

Written for “A Compendium of Secrets”, proceeds from sales will go to Indie Author Connect. An organization that helps independent authors with limited resources publish their books.