The retired rune master was curious when I bought his entire supply of blank stones and rods, but gold was gold. He also had some books on runes that were displayed, but seeing my robes, and after a couple of questions, which I was able to answer thanks to Starla, he showed me into the back room with different volumes.

  “The ones out front are for citizens who fancy themselves mystics.” He explained. “We do not share deep knowledge of runes with the uninitiated.”

  As I browsed and we chatted, I mentioned my recent visit with Grandmaster Sage Thaddeus Aurelius Harper. And that opened up an entirely new line of conversion where I admitted that my work was in defense of Keelwell and our plans to try and defeat the goblin horde.

  “And so you are engraving arrowheads with exploding runes?” He asked.

  “Yes, it seemed that given their overwhelming numbers, mere arrows just would not work.”

  “You are using silver arrowheads?” He asked.

  “We are,” I admitted.

  “I had thought as much. As an enchanter, you would be aware of such things.” He looked me deep in the eyes. “Perhaps you could ask the apprentice to step into the main store and watch for customers.”

  He gave me a significant look.

  “Sar, could you please keep an eye out for customers and-”

  “Yes, I get it. The mages want to talk out of earshot of the apprentice.” She shook her head and departed.

  The Rune master raised his eyebrows. I explained, “She is my tour guide and worth every platinum she is costing me.”

  He smiled. “She is from the fountain?”

  “Yes, that was how she first got me. But she is very bright and has great promise.” I said.

  “Thanks, Gwydion!” She said from the other room.

  “Further away!” I called back.

  She murmured some more until I could not hear her.

  The Rune Master took a rune stick from a cup near the doorway and broke it. “We cannot now be overheard.”

  “Let me continue my discussion about the silver arrowheads.” He began. “While using pure metals may be true for your guild’s enchantments, it is unnecessary for rune magic.”

  “How do you mean?” I asked.

  “There is little doubt that a silver arrow with an etched rune would produce the largest area of effect possible. However, it is not proportional to the effort needed to make it or its rarity because of the time and expense. In fact, you could gently carve or even charcoal inscribe the rune on the arrows themselves for a very similar effect.”

  “Then we do not need to use the silver arrowheads?” I asked.

  “If your targets require silver to strike, then yes, of course. But if they are just targets, then no.” He replied.

  “This could drastically increase our number of producible arrows,” I said in surprise.

  He nodded. “It is not something we speak about often, and only among ourselves. Written runes can smudge and wear off. They must still be infused with casting points, but they could simply be wiped away or explode unexpectedly in the rain or with age. Engraved and carved runes are far more stable but do take more time to produce.”

  “Is there an ink, paint, or other substance that works best?” I inquired, following his train of thought.

  He stared at me again. “For a friend of the grandmaster’s in such need, I will share that blood is the most powerful ink that can be used. But there are magical inks that, once scribed, cannot be unwritten and are far easier to use than blood. They are expensive but are known to all sages. There is a shop not far from here that supplies the sage and scholar guilds. I could write you a letter of introduction if you like.”

  “Thank you, master, this knowledge may save thousands of lives,” I said with sincere emotion.

  “Be judicious in how you share it. And, if you add one drop of the blood of the rune master who activates the rune’s powers to the magical ink, you may just possibly decrease the cost of casting more powerful runes. It is something that I learned by accident, and I have not shared it with any but the grandmaster who said he would explore it further.”

  “Do you have any ideas other than exploding runes that could be used against an army of a hundred thousand goblins?”

  “It does appear dire for your city.” He thought for a few more moments. “In for a copper, in for a gold. Do you have a blank book that I might borrow?”

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  “As a matter of fact, I have quite a few. I stopped there before coming into your shop.”

  “How fortunate. I only wish I had time to truly copy the book for you. But I can sketch some meaningful suggestions.”

  “What book is this, master?”

  “It is a book my own master started, and I added to, which focuses on the Runes of Warfare. He grew up in the north, where rune magic was more alive and practiced by many beyond just the masters. Up there, fights and skirmishes with goblin bands and far more dangerous creatures were a way of life. In this book, there are scores of creative ways to use Runes in ambushes, defense, against larger numbers, in day or night. It is the work of two lifetimes and a lifestyle far different from that experienced in cities.

  “Master, with your permission, the grandmaster gifted me with a few Single Use Spell rings to make a True Copy. I could use it on your book if you allowed it.”

  He stood still for a long minute, either weighing the risks or lost in memories, I could not tell which.

  “I will allow it.” He said, finally.

  “Thank you, master. Would you inscribe my copy with your thoughts before I depart?”

  “I will.” He replied.

  The master went into his private rooms and came back with a battered and beat-up brown leather tome. I chose a rich brown leather volume of similar make, although with more pages.

  “You must write your own story to add a third generation to this work. If you survive the battle, I would like the chance to read it and talk with you about your choice of runes and how they fared.”

  “I would like that, too, master,” I said quietly. “Is there anything I can do for you?”

  “Do you have any more of your Single Use Rings?”

  “I do. How many would you like?”

  “Three will suffice. Are they of different metals?” He asked.

  “Yes, I have some for all levels, copper, silver, gold, and platinum,” I replied.

  “Then please give me two gold and one platinum.”

  I did so and primed each one for use. I bowed and said, “May these serve you well. I thank you again for your help, Master.” And I turned to leave with Sar.

  “Wait a moment. The rings are not for me, but for you.”

  I turned back around in surprise. He cast three rune master spells, carving multiple runes in the air with his finger. I would not dare to attempt such complex rune magic, but for him, it seemed natural.

  He removed the ring, put on the next, and repeated the process until all three were cast.

  He then waved, handed me a brief note of introduction along with the name of the shop, which Sarah piped up that she knew, and he wished me well, returning to the back of his shop, alone.

  When we got outside, Sar asked, “What are the spells? What do the different metals mean?”

  I tried each ring on, starting with the two gold rings and ending with the platinum. I removed one of my other rings to do so.

  “You sure like rings.” She said, noticing one on each of my fingers.

  I answered her second question first. “Each pure metal represents and aligns with mage spell levels. Copper represents levels one and two.”

  “Elementalists refer to our levels as Elements. What are yours called?” She asked excitedly.

  “Did you want answers to your other questions, or are you merely asking to be polite?” I inquired.

  She settled down. “Yes, my masters often say I ask questions without listening for the answer and that sometimes, there are deeper answers within a single answer, and if I did not quietly contemplate them, I might miss both.”

  “That is wise advice.” I agreed.

  “Then how about you give me the surface answers and I’ll contemplate them later?”

  I laughed and continued. “Silver is used against many creatures that can only be harmed by that metal and also for third and fourth element spells.”

  “I bet gold is for the fifth and sixth element, and platinum must be for the seventh element spells.” She said excitedly.

  “You are correct. And while I will not say what the spells are that he granted me, I will say that one is a powerful defensive spell, one is meant offensively against enemies, and the third is for a very special circumstance that I may find myself or someone I care about in the future.

  “And in answer to your other question, enchanter levels are known as Arcana.”

  “Ooh. Your name is cooler. Ours is kind of lame.

  We had been standing outside the rune master’s shop talking for some time. And since I just had a stroke of good luck, it was only fair that I ended up with the bad catching me unawares.

  “Journeyman Istari!” A voice called out.

  My hand twitched, and I nearly summoned my war staff.

  Sar and I turned to see the two older enchanter apprentices stalking toward me self-importantly.

  Sar disappeared behind my back. I did not blame her. They were far larger, and one still had a twig stuck in his hair from earlier.

  The taller of the two reached into his robe and withdrew a parchment that had been rolled up and was slightly wrinkled from where it had been shoved inside a robe pocket.

  “You are summoned to the guildmaster for a special meeting in the park near the hall in less than one hour’s time.”

  He moved toward me, and the other apprentice shifted his stance. I’ll never know if he had intended it as a threat, or just to get a better view, or if he actually did have some motive behind his actions. But at that moment, the same two young boy elementalist apprentices appeared behind them and blasted them again with the drying spells.

  Both of the older boys toppled to the ground, dust getting kicked up furiously around them. Several people nearby yelled and dashed in all directions.

  “Up!” Sarah yelled.

  And both boys pointed their spells into the air as she popped around my side and doused them all with a fair rendition of a bathing charm, complete with suds.

  “Down!” She yelled, and the boys got rolled around in the muddied and sudsy street.

  “Enough!” I summoned and struck my staff against the stone street, a loud crack echoing around the block that made everyone jump.

  The boys were furious and looked up at me, glaring down at them, my staff glowing intensely, all fifteen gemstones sparkling in the light.

  People on the street grabbed their kids and moved away backwards.

  “Apprentices, enough foolishness. Depart or I’ll have words with your masters.” I said, my voice being augmented somehow by my staff.

  They looked up wide-eyed at me.

  “Now,” I said quietly but with an expression that could not be mistaken as anything other than anger.

  And they jumped to their feet and ran away in the opposite direction. I felt bad intimidating them, but there was something of a bully in their behavior, much like their master, who sent them after me.

  I watched them go, and looking at the two madly grinning elementalist boy apprentices nearby, I said to Sarah, “I thought you said you needed girls?”

  She rolled her eyes again. “To get you to where you are going, yes. To buy at a price so you are not cheated, yes. But for creating trouble and chaos? Boys every time.” She pointed at me. “Pay them. Double.”

  “Yes, Lady Sar,” I said and gave each two platinum pieces.

  Sarah said to the boys, “Blend again. I doubt we’ll see them back, but keep an eye out for yellow.”

  The two disappeared into the crowd that had given us all a wide berth. Several of those around were still chuckling over the dusting that the two apprentices had gotten with comments like, “Don’t mess with mages,” or “the little one sure got the big ones, good.”

  Sar picked up the letter they were carrying and wiped some of the mud and suds off it. She read it and then burnt it with a twist of her hand. “Oops.” She said, “I guess there was no way to verify if the guildmaster actually had summoned you back to the oddly abandoned and lonely park.”

  “He wouldn’t have asked that,” I said.

  “The writing looked like kids, and there was no seal. All guild summons of mages require a guild seal.”

  “How do you know that?” I asked.

  She pointed at herself with her thumb.

  “I know, I know. Brains.” I said.

  She rolled her eyes. “I was going to say, ‘Senior Elementalist Apprentice’,” she said, “but ‘brains’ works, too.”