The moons painted the landscape with light, completed by small bugs that tumbled through the air creating mini lights that floated around creating a magical view to Zaro as they made their way to an Inn.

  The team had talked after they settled into their beds for the night. They wanted to cut their journey short and get the jump on rest and recovery after the last few days. As they were winding down, Chad mentioned there was a house for sale that they should take a look at.

  “Did some research and found some back taxes owed, we could get a deal on this one if we play our cards right." He added. "I took the liberty of contacting the city to send someone to show us the house tomorrow. Giles will meet us there in the morning.

  Everyone agreed, and Zaro had them all practice Eye of the Storm in place of sleep.

  The stars were slowly washed out of view as warm light painted Galahad's terraced streets in shades of amber and gold, crystal-infused architecture catching light like thousands of prisms showing off miniature glittering and glossing as the suns rays entangle and prism through.

  What seemed like minutes passed after they got into the groove of their meditative practice, they were up and departing the inn, and standing before a house in the city's northwestern district, near the edge of the city.

  One more block away was wild lands.

  Giles was there, he had glasses on and a round face. He wore a black robe with gold and silver accents. And his left wrist had wooden beads in it that gently clacked as he walked. Or waddled. He was quite rotund.

  Zaro stood, letting his void sense ripple through the structure. The building's bones spoke of solid craftsmanship, though years of neglect had left their mark.

  The support beams are reinforced with magic resistant metal, he noted, watching energy patterns flow through the walls. "Previous owner must have been paranoid about magical interference.” The system mentioned.

  Let's take a tour, Zaro said as Ramrod ducked through the doorway and immediately turned to the stairs as he found the basement. “Plenty of room for training in the basement”, he called out, voice echoing up through floorboards. “Perhaps we should shore up the ceiling. We don't want any accidents when things get spicy.”

  “By spicy, he means when he inevitably brings the house down on our heads”, Chad said as he adjusted his hat, examining a wall of built-in bookshelves with obvious interest. “Though I must admit, the natural crystal formations in the foundation would make excellent magical conductors.”

  Ezra stepped quietly from her position near the doorway, making the property agent jump. “Roof access is decent. Good sight lines to the market district and mining quarter. Perfect for keeping watch.” She paused, running fingers along a windowsill. “Also spotted three hidden weapon caches built into the walls. Previous owner was definitely expecting trouble.”

  The portly agent, Giles, dabbed his forehead with a handkerchief. “Yes, well, the last resident was a rather eccentric artificer. Disappeared about six months ago. Left owing quite a bit in property taxes, I'm afraid. He forced a smile. But that does mean the price is quite reasonable for a home of this size.”

  “Eccentric artificer?” Zaro repeated in his mind with befuddlement hidden in the question to the system. “Like an engineer that uses magic." The system replied.

  Zaro's void sense highlighted a complex array of runes carved into the door frames. “Those are containment wards. He was researching something. Something dangerous.”

  Zaro wanted to see how badly Giles wanted this place sold. “Ten thousand gold seems steep for a property with this much... history.”

  Giles shifted uncomfortably. “Well, the location is quite desirable, and the reinforced construction alone.”

  “And the back taxes?” Chad interrupted. “Not to mention the structural repairs needed. He gestured to a crack running along one wall. The energy saturation will require extensive cleansing before we can properly ward the building.”

  Ezra flashed back into view, having scouted the upper floors in what seemed like seconds. “Found more evidence of experiments upstairs. Scorch marks. Residual energy patterns.” She fixed her gaze on the agent with an unnervingly steady gaze. “The kind of damage that should have been disclosed upfront.”

  The agent dabbed his forehead again. “The guild has been trying to unload this property for months”, Ramrod rumbled from the doorway. “Nobody wants to touch it why?”. As he started down the stairs to the basement again.

  “Five thousand”, Zaro said firmly. We'll handle the back taxes and repairs. And ensure nothing...unfortunate spreads from those experiments.”

  Giles hesitated, then nodded quickly. “The guild will be relieved to have it in capable hands. Five thousand it is.”

  “The basement would make an excellent workshop”, Chad mused, already planning modifications. “Those crystal formations could amplify runes to complement our training significantly.”

  Ramrod emerged from below, dusting cobwebs from his shoulders. “Found a passage that connects to a tunnel. Sealed now, but could be useful.”

  Zaro ran his hand along a wall, feeling the old runic energy humming beneath the surface. “How much did you say the taxes were?”

  The agent's smile widened as he sensed a potential sale. “For guild members of your reputation, I'm sure we could arrange something quite reasonable.”

  Zaro held up a hand. “Give me a moment to contact someone”, he said to the agent. He activated his systems communication feature, reaching out to Ernesto. The connection hummed to life.

  “Hey there Ernesto”, Zaro spoke out loud. Giles seemed confused. “Got a business proposition. Sitting on a pile of gear from recent adventures. Interested?”

  The craftsman's excited reply was crisp in Zaro's mind. “Bring it all over. I'll take a look.”

  Zaro turned to his team. “Need to make a quick trip. Be right back.” He pulled out his teleport stone, vanishing in a flash. A sculpture that was on a pedestal against the wall wobbled and almost fell over from the small shockwave of magic.

  Ernesto's shop was warm as always, the forge casting dancing shadows across walls lined with weapons and armor. Zaro began pulling items from his void storage: bandit armor, corrupted miner equipment, weapons of various quality. The pile grew impressive.

  Ernesto's eyes widened as he examined each piece, his expert hands testing materials and craftsmanship. The void corruption in some pieces particularly caught his attention. “This is fascinating work”, he said, running fingers along a corrupted blade. “The energy patterns alone…” He straightened up, stroking his red beard thoughtfully. “Two thousand gold for the lot. Could make something interesting with these materials.”

  Deal, Zaro replied without hesitation.

  “Appreciate you brother E, but I gotta head out, see you soon.” Zaro said as the gold was swallowed into his void storage.

  Then he focused on Ezra's void signature and activated void convergence. The world dissolved into shadow before reforming in the house's main room.

  The agent jumped at his sudden appearance, nearly dropping his ledger. Zaro said “And for my next trick" as he touched the wooden counter top in the kitchen area and willed the coins to materialize from his void storage. Four thousand gold coins makes quite the noise. It was like winning at the old casino slots. They just kept clinking, satisfyingly.

  "4 thousand now and give me 2 months on the rest.

  Deal?” Zaro stuck his hand out at Giles.

  Ezra and Chad interrupted, “we have the last thousand now.”

  "Team America, Fuck Yeah.” Zaro said.

  By the looks on their faces they had no idea what he was talking about and just ignored him.

  Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

  Giles stared at the pile of gold, his smile growing wider by the second. “Well then”, he said, pulling out property documents. “Shall we make this official?”

  Giles spread the documents across a dusty table, pointing out where they needed to sign. The transfer of ownership went quickly, though Chad insisted on reviewing every line of the contract. Once the final signature was in place, Giles handed over a large iron key ring and hurried out, clearly relieved to be done with the property. Zaro asked Giles to connect him with a good runesmith and he received Nico's contact synced with his systems communication crystal.

  Zaro asked the system, “Do I have a communication crystal or is it just you?"

  “Both" the system replied.

  “If you focus on the physical crystal, it will appear in your hand. But you can just focus your thoughts and my integration works, like magic." The system said with a perfect dad joke delivery.

  Finally alone, the team began a proper inspection. Chad descended into the basement while Ezra went back to methodically checking each hidden cache. Zaro focused his void sense on the containment wards, trying to understand their purpose.

  A shout from upstairs drew their attention. In the master study, Ezra stood before an opened panel in the wall. Inside lay a leather-bound journal and several strange crystals that pulsed with an unusual energy. " The previous owner's research notes”, she said, leafing through the pages. “Looks like he was experimenting with crystalline enhancement and energy manipulation."

  Ramrod's voice echoed up from below. “Ye need to see this!” In the basement, Chad had discovered a false wall. Behind it, remnants of a small laboratory and elaborate runic arrays embedded in the walls.

  “The room was magically reinforced with runes that erased the energy signature, effectively making it invisible to magical detection, unless you are highly skilled.” Chad said while pointing at himself with his right thumb.

  He placed his hands on the basement floor, earth magic flowing through his fingers. The stone rippled like water. "I'm not the most adept with earth magic, but the little bit that I know will allow me to expand this significantly, after all, it's just earth movement, nothing advanced." , he said, eyes glowing with power. “Create separate training areas, maybe a proper workshop.” He paused as the ground shifted beneath them, the basement growing larger by the moment.

  Zaro thought to the system to contact the runesmith. He focused and a communication crystal formed in his hand, which then connected with Nico, one of Galahad's most respected runesmiths. The crystal pulsed as the connection established.

  “Nico here", the man answered. His voice had signs of stress.

  "Nico, Zaro here, how quickly can you get to the old artificer's place in the northwest district? We need containment runes, support arrays, and whatever else you'd recommend for a training facility.” Zaro spoke as if he had done this more than just this once.

  "I just finished up some work around the corner from you, I'll be right there.” Nico said and the line went silent.

  "I guess they don't say goodbye here?” Zaro said to the crystal as it vanished in a flash of dull blue light.

  The basement continued to grow as Chad worked, new chambers taking shape. One for combat training, another for magical research, a secure vault for storing dangerous artifacts. Ramrod examined the expanding walls with approval. “This might actually survive Lily.”

  Above them, Ezra had begun cataloging the weapon caches and planning additional security measures. “The previous owner was paranoid, but not entirely wrong about needing defenses. We should add our own wards to the existing ones.” She communicated with void whisper to the group.

  "On it, Nico is on his way, he's the rune guy”. Zaro replied.

  He stood in what would become their main gathering room, watching his team transform the house into something uniquely theirs. The energy hummed through the walls, no longer feeling ominous but full of potential.

  Nico arrived within the hour. His leather apron was covered in chalk dust with etching tools hanging from numerous pockets. He studied the basement walls intently, running his fingers across the existing runic arrays.

  "These old configurations are interesting. The previous owner knew what they were doing with structural support. But we can make it better." Nico pulled out a piece of chalk and sketched a complex pattern on the wall. “The base runes connect through these intersection points. When we add the reinforcement runes along these lines it creates a lattice pattern that spreads through the whole building.”

  Zaro watched the pattern take shape. “And the training area?”

  Nico sketched another pattern, this one flowing in curved lines. “Been developing something new. The containment arrays link to these absorption runes. Instead of wasting the energy from your practice sessions, we catch it. The runes convert the discharge and store it in the crystal formations.”

  “Like a battery”, Zaro said.

  “Better.” Nico drew more flowing lines across the wall. “These channels create a field throughout the house. The stored power transfers wirelessly to power the heating runes and light crystals. Even the defensive wards can draw from it. The system sustains itself, especially with the extra amount of energy it can absorb from your team during training.”

  “How hard would it be to learn the basics?” Zaro asked. “Something simple to start with.”

  "The basics of what?” Nico asked.

  "Rune Crafting.” Zaro replied.

  "That depends if you have the gift or not my boy.”

  Nico replied as he nodded and cleared a space on the wall. " The foundations of rune smithing start with understanding flow. He drew three simple lines that curved to meet each other. Energy always seeks balance. The runes guide it into the patterns we want. Try copying this basic stabilization rune.”

  [System Alert]

  “You know you have skill points, and you could invest in Rune Smithing.

  Just say yes and I'll take care of it for you.”

  Zaro thought “Yes.”

  Rune Smithing Level 1 Acquired. 3 skill points spent.

  Basic rune creation and modification now available

  Energy flow detection enhanced

  Simple maintenance and repair unlocked

  Brevity slowed time enough that when his eyes tinted with a purple glow briefly it was almost not noticeable as the skills became understood due to the system.

  Zaro copied the pattern carefully, his enhanced understanding helping him see how the energy would move through the lines. The chalk felt natural in his hand as he recreated each curve.

  “Good instincts”, Nico said. “You already grasp the flow. Practice that one until it becomes muscle memory. Then we can move on to power conversion runes, I've seen some smiths draw the runes with their mana, but I like chalk. I magically charge it and it gives me a stable line every time. When you use your mana, any emotional imbalance gets imbued in the rune. That could become a huge problem, best to avoid it.”

  Nico gathered his sketches and tools after explaining the last few patterns.

  “Let me work up an estimate for the materials and labor.”

  Zaro kept tracing the runes he say in his mind and focused on commiting them to memory, the feel of the creation and activation. Several minutes went by when he finally checked in on Nico.

  “So what are you thinking?” Zaro asked.

  Nico glanced up from his notes. “Actually. I was thinking maybe we could work something out. A trade.” He tucked his chalk back into his apron pocket.

  “My girl Maya went missing three days ago. Nobody at the market has seen her. She runs a crystal stall in the eastern quarter. Always comes home before dark but... He trailed off.”

  Zaro studied the runesmith. “Tell me more.”

  “She mentioned some strange customers last week. People asking about resonance crystals. Not the normal kind. The sort that can hold specific energy patterns. I checked her shop but everything seemed normal. Too normal maybe.”

  “You take care of us and we will take care of you.

  When can you start the renovation work?” Zaro said

  “Tomorrow morning. I can get the foundation runes laid while you look into things. Maya knows her crystals. Smart about who she deals with. Something about this feels wrong.”

  “We will find her, Zaro said. Did she have a business partner or anything?”

  “No, but her stall is in the eastern corner of the market.” He replied.

  “Thanks, That's a lead.” Said Zaro.

  “How long do you need to get wrapped up here?”

  “The initial setup will take about four days. That should give you time to...his voice went quiet. To find something.”

  “Ezra, we'll need your tracking skills, let's head out.

  We can stop at the guild before we hit the market.” Zaro used void whisper reflexively.

  Ezra was at his side in seconds.

  “Fuck, she is fast” Zaro thought.

  “I've been itching for a walk, ready when you are." Ezra said while checking her swords edge and seating it in its sheath with a click.

  Zaro and Ezra left their base, the new runes still settling into the walls behind them.

  The morning air was crisp as they made their way through the streets toward the guild hall.

  Zaro's new rune smithing knowledge had him studying the street markers with fresh interest.

  Inside the guild hall, they found Jerry Caldwell or The Alchemist, at his usual post.

  The guild master's safari hat was slightly askew as he looked up from his ledger, blue eyes sharp beneath blond hair. Despite his marathoner's build, there was no mistaking the experience in his stance or the quality of his dark green leather armor.

  The Alchemist looked up from his ledger, clearly impressed. “One day? The mayor budgeted this as a ten-day operation.” He shook his head with a slight smile. “Well, the agreement was double pay for hazard work, so that's 800 gold per person over ten days. Total of 8,000 gold. If you guys are this good at clearing corruption, the King is going to call on you soon. And word travels fast.”

  He hefted a heavy sack onto the counter as he was speaking. Zaro noticed he didn't struggle at all when he handled it.

  “Guild's already taken their half, so here's your 4,000 gold as agreed.” His pen scratched across the ledger before he slid over a smaller cloth bag. “And this is a special bonus from the mining company. Your work saved them a fortune in survey work.” Zaro touched both bags and an unseen shadow hand pulled them into his void storage. His system inventory showed 5,000 gold coins added to inventory.

  Zaro said, “I'd thank you if it wasn't us that provided you and the guild with 4 thousand gold for nothing. Consider this a favor from us. The first one is on the house. However, we do need information about a missing person. Crystal merchant named Maya, eastern market district. Her husband Nico says she's been gone three days.”

  The Alchemist's eyes sharpened with recognition, and he set down his quill. The afternoon light streaming through the stained glass windows cast colored shadows across his weathered face.

  “The guild AND I, appreciate your fairness and support. Missing person you say, Maya, the crystal specialist, right? Small shop near the fountain?” He adjusted his safari hat, pushing it back as he thought. “Haven't heard anything specific, but I can put the word out.”

  “Three days”, Zaro said.

  Jerry nodded, making another note in his ledger. The scratch of his quill filled the silence. “I'll have our people keep an eye out. Strange for a merchant to just disappear like that. Especially one with her connections.” He looked up at them, his expression careful. “The crystal trade isn't exactly simple business these days.”

  Before turning to leave, Zaro paused. “Your communication crystal contact?”

  The Alchemist pulled a small crystal from his vest pocket, holding it out. A blue notification flickered in Zaro's vision, but he pulled his crystal out for appearances.

  [New Contact Request]

  The Alchemist wishes to connect via communication crystal.

  Accept?

  Zaro thought, confirm, and his contact list updated. Three names now glowed in his system menu: Ernesto, Nico and Jerry “The Alchemist”.

  Zaro and Ezra turned to leave as they noticed the late afternoon sun, which cast long shadows through the hall's high windows, and somewhere in the distance, the city's bell tower began to toll the hour. A few other guild members moved about their business, but kept their distance, you could never be too careful as an adventurer.

  The market square buzzed with afternoon activity, merchants calling their wares as Zaro and Ezra approached Maya's stall. The fountain's spray created a fine mist in the air, catching the sunlight.

  The smell was floral somehow, Zaro took a deep breath and enjoyed the freshness of the smells and the warmth of the sun on his skin.

  The crystal shop stall stood quiet, its windows dark. A simple closed sign hung on the door. The walls were 6 feet tall and there was no roof, only what looked like a plastic tarp that kept the place dry and shaded. It was just a square of space in the market.

  Zaro activated his void sense, the world shifting to shades of grey and purple. Ezra did the same beside him, her heightened perception scanning the area. The residual traces of a struggle emerged like ghostly ribbons, scuff marks on the floor, a toppled display case carefully set right, and the lingering echo of panic and anger, shown with bright reds and yellows in the air and on the display and door.

  Near the back counter, partially hidden behind a display of common healing crystals, Zaro spotted a small ornate box. The cobra emblem on its surface seemed to glare at them, fangs bared in silent threat.

  Analyze told him everything he needed to know about the crystal inside. A forgery. Poor to medium quality treated glass with trace magical residue. Someone had tried to simulate natural crystal formation, even adding artificial inclusions.

  Ezra leaned in close, her voice low. “A fake crystal in Maya's shop? Everything I've read about her was that she was known for having the highest quality specimens in the eastern district not to mention what Nico and The Alchemist said.”

  Zaro focused on The Alchemist's contact in his system menu. Opening communication.

  “AL, we found something at Maya's shop. Signs of struggle and a crystal with a cobra mark. Fake one.”

  The response came quickly, Jerry's voice tense in Zaro's mind. “The Cobra Collective. Bad business. They started as small time forgers, selling fake crystals to unsuspecting merchants. Now they're running bigger operations. Mages and thieves working together, using magic to pull off complex heists. Been causing trouble in three cities now.”

  A pause, then Jerry continued. “If they left their mark in Maya's shop, she either crossed them somehow or they wanted something she had. Real crystals can hold a lot of power. And Maya's stock was always top quality.”

  Ezra watched Zaro's face as he received the information, waiting. When he finished, he briefed her and she glanced back at the cobra marked box. “If they took her, we need to move fast.” Zaro said.

  “It’s time to cut the grass low. We're going snake hunting.” Zaro said.