I examined the table again and the ingredients. They did appear to all be in order, except…

  “The ingredients are all in order except the water is off to the side and not first; and the label on the bottle reads ‘distilled water’ and not ‘purified water’ as noted in the text. Although I do not understand the difference.”

  I looked up at him for confirmation.

  “You are the first apprentice in many years who caught both of those intended errors. A perfect response would also have noticed that none of the measuring tools were laid out as part of preparation, but as I only asked about ingredients and you have never been in a lab before, I can discount that failure as acceptable.”

  He was a tough one. Alexander would accept perfection as the only success, and anything short of perfection was a failure in his mind. Life for his apprentices would be challenging. Although he never raised his voice, he did not strike me as the type of master who would intentionally harm his apprentice.

  But as I thought about it, the very things that his behavior might do that would challenge his apprentices' lives might just ensure that they continue to have lives.

  Back in lecture mode, he continued. “Potions consist of a base plus seven wyrds. There are always seven, and the order is always the same. In nearly all cases, the wyrds are consumed. But you will discover that certain recipes will allow for reusable wyrds. We will have three total reusable wyrds in our three potions this evening; one in this healing draft and two in the minor skill recovery potion.”

  “A batch of minor potions, if done correctly, should yield seven usable and potent potion vials when final results are divided evenly. Each standard vile is 70mm tall and has a 21mm inside diameter holding around 33mL or a little more than a fluid oz.”

  I interrupted. “Please explain what you mean by final results and being divided evenly.”

  He answered automatically without change in expression or the slightest sign of impatience. He truly did expect me to ask questions if I did not understand something. I guessed that forging ahead as if I understood would be seen as far more of a deficit than mere ignorance itself. I respected that approach and realized that many mages took the opposite view of “fake it till you make it” and to never allow others to perceive you as not already knowing an answer. Mage pride was legendary.

  “Final result is what alchemists refer to as the final product or potion. We divide up the final result into individual potion vials that must measure the correct dosage for the effects of the potion to work as desired.”

  That made sense and I could relate to some of my own metal forging work that paralleled it. Molten copper, for example, is separated into even distributions to make identical rings. True, they were often distributed into molds that made the process easier, but it was much the same kind of process.

  I decided to share that observation and ask a question.

  “When I craft rings from hand forged molten metal, I must very carefully separate them for purity and also distribute the mass evenly into molds so that material is not wasted and that unnecessary follow-on work is not required.”

  “Excellent analogy.” He remarked.

  “Do alchemists have something similar to molds that increase the speed of the process, or does that introduce an unacceptable variable into the process?” I asked.

  He stopped what he was doing and stared at me. “Your knowledge and skill are showing through. The answer is both yes and no. There are shortcuts that accomplished masters can take to increase the final result in speed or volume, or both. I find such actions to be unacceptable risks for most potions because, as you say, they introduce a new variable into the process. It might work, and it might not. The uncertainty it raises is distasteful and needlessly reckless.”

  He nodded. “I approve both your question and the implied question inside your question.”

  He turned back to the alchemist crafting station, and we began preparing a batch of Minor Healing potions.

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  Alexander explained that the common red color of the potion was due to the shredded red beets that are used, and not the single drop of blood that finishes it off. Blood of the alchemist, it appears, is often a final ingredient in potion making; it was something that I did not realize.

  “I will share many things with you verbally. If you wish to write anything down in your textbook, please do so. I will add some of my own secrets, as promised to you when we made this deal, that will differ slightly from the textbook. The textbook will deliver exactly as promised. Enhancements come with wisdom and experience. I shall show you both, record what you will.”

  He reached out and removed the bottle of distilled water and carried it back to the shelf. He returned with another bottle labeled “blessed water,” and it had a blue twist lid.

  “My first change, before we even get started, is to use blessed water. I have found that it helps to remove any residual magic, and it is half of my secret trick to provide a full healing potion rather than a random amount that could be at maximum potency but often is not. It separates me from my competitors.”

  I saw pride in his eyes. It was not the arrogant pride of a mage, but more of a secret pride in his own wit and discernment. But the pride was still there.

  I made a note in the book along the margins next to purified water in the ingredient list. I looked up and asked, “What is the second insight?”

  He smirked. “We’ll get there momentarily. First, let’s make sure we have all the measuring tools that we will need as well as our wet and dry glassware, heat source, filtering cloths, and destination vials.”

  We gathered everything we needed, and Alexander provided me with seven silver metal potion vials with a red twist top. “We will pour our final result into these.” He said with another smirk.

  And we truly began.

  “Nearly all potions require magic to open the vessel and to close it.” He began. “After choosing your base liquid, I always pour 50% more volume than any recipe requires. You will then apply your first casting point.”

  I noted in my book that, in addition to a change to blessed water from purified water, I should add 50% more base liquid than the recipe demanded.

  “Why 50% more? I thought we would want to follow the recipe exactly.” I asked.

  “I like your attitude. Exactness is demanded. If you are concerned, always use the officially sanctioned guild recipe exactly. You will note a stamp and identifying number associated with all official recipes. The number refers to a guild-approved recipe that can be searched out at any guildhall in the realm. The stamp is more for show since the number is the important part.”

  He paused and said, “But this is a case where my experience wins out, and we shall deviate from the official recipe. Let me explain why, because of the concern inherent in your question. We are jumping ahead to the end, but it is another little secret that masters use and that we don’t share with apprentices or journeymen until much later. In fact, we expect our journeymen to figure it out themselves. Some never do.

  “One of the challenges of following the recipe exactly is that you may end up with slightly less final result than you intended. Humidity, overheating, and greater-than-expected absorption of dry ingredients, among other factors, can all lead to a less-than-expected final result. If you vial less final result than required, the potion could have anywhere from a weakened potency to no potency at all. It is rare that there would be any dangers associated with a less-than-potent result, but if you needed a healing potion to save a life and it failed, you can see the downside.”

  I nodded. “I understand.”

  “Good. Now, as I mentioned, potions are made of a base and seven ingredients. In fact, the seven ingredients more properly refer to seven stages of potion making. The stages consist of the five senses, the mind, and the spirit.

  “We begin with the mind, and it is important that you will your intent into the base. In this case, you must intensely will that the blessed water is meant for healing. When you have fixed this firmly in your mind, you set it in place by bestowing a casting point upon the water.”

  I understood this process well, given the same requirements in enchantments and with gem work. I focused my mind, reached out to the water, and willed it to heal. I added a casting point when I knew I had it envisioned in my mind.

  “Very good!” He exclaimed. “That was fast and confident. But you are no mere apprentice, but an accomplished patron of enchantment. I expected no less of you! This very critical aspect of the commencement of potion making is one reason alchemists and enchanters share common bonds.”

  I was beginning to sense that he knew more about me than he had earlier let on. He knew about my jewelry making, even though he offered to introduce me to a jeweler to sell my pearls. And he just let slip that he also knew about my patron status. Either Master Glimmerblade had let a few things slip, or Alexander had been checking up on me. Maybe both.

  We continued the batch, and he instructed me that just as the first casting point is spent to set the spell effects, so too must one be used to fix or seal them when complete. “We start with the mind and end with spirit.” He had instructed.

  This was also just like enchantments, and I began to see a lot in common between our guilds and why they often seemed to work well together.

  He paused me partway through the stages. “My second trick is to add a third and undocumented casting point at the halfway point when we add the ingredients for taste. While it is the expenditure of a third casting point, the result helps to ensure maximum potency. In this case, there will not be a random healing of five to ten points, but of a full ten points. But both the blessed water and the additional casting point must be used. I have discovered through much trial and error that the potion will be random unless those two steps are followed.”

  Alexander gave me a look. He had just revealed his own secrets around potion potency, or at least the potency of the healing potion.

  “I respect your teaching and will guard your secret. As an enchanter, I understand better than most such caution.”

  It was what he was looking for me to say.

  “Then let us continue. We have this batch to complete, and then we still need to complete the other two potion batches as well.”

  I noted that bit of wisdom and several more as the lessons progressed. We spent more than the three hours he promised, but he did not seem to mind. He admitted it had been a few years since he had an apprentice, and he missed the interactions, and that because of my age and knowledge, I was a more interesting and less frustrating apprentice than would otherwise be the case, given my inexperience.

  By the end of the batch of healing potions, his mantra of “Slow, complete, and low heat,” meaning slow, methodical movements, complete attention, and low heating temperature, was ingrained in me.