Thomas downed another mug of mead as he celebrated his score. With how careful he had been there was no way the clochdreki would know who had taken the mushrooms from his tent. This was by far one of his finest heists. If only his betting was going nearly as well. “Why do I even come to this tent if I always leave with nothing?” Thomas grumbled to himself. As a new man sat down across from him, Thomas set out 2 copper coins and began shaking the dice in his cup.  

“I hope you’re ready to lose,” The man drunkenly stammered placing his own money in the center. He was dressed in the loose white clothing common among the desert folk. Thomas couldn’t see the man’s face due to a wooden mask shaped like a snake that denoted the man as one of many traveling snake charmers.  

After the first throw each man chose a few dice to roll again but it was clear from his choices that the snake charmer wasn’t thinking straight probably due to his alcohol intake. After a few rounds the pair were now up to betting three dozen copper coins when the stranger cursed at his leather purse.  

“Listen boy, I don’t seem to have any coins but what if I pay with something a bit more peculiar,” The man said patting himself down until he produced a small vial of amber liquid. “This is yellow back venom, in small doses applied to the skin it can smooth any wrinkle. However, don’t let it get into any cuts or it could be lethal. I think a vial this size should be worth at least 50 copper.” 

“Fine I’ll accept it but after this round we’re done,” Thomas agreed preparing to throw his dice. As had happened with the previous rounds Thomas easily won before walking off while inspecting the strange liquid.   

“Elder, does the moon have a mind?” Lachlann asked his teacher as they walked among the festival tents.  

“What kind of question is that?” The old man grumbled back, “You know the stories almost as well as I do at this point. The moon is where the souls of the dead gather. It hasn’t had anyone controlling it since Fuaraceann split himself to guide the races to prosperity. Why do you ask?” 

“I just thought I felt a... presence,” Lachlann sheepishly answered grabbing a bauble to look at from a tent in order to avoid eye contact.  

“Maybe you’ve been blessed by Lykos and he’s trying to guide you,” Elder Topapa stroked his beard in thought,” Afterall he is an aspect of Fuaraceann. Did you receive a vision during your coming of age?” 

“You could say I saw a vision. I definitely saw something but perhaps that was a dream.” Lachlann paused in thought before finishing. “It was of me as the next elder, healing the sick and guiding people towards Lykos.” Lachlann felt a twinge of guilt lying to the elder. He was sure that the elder would caution him against experimenting with magic. However, no matter how hard he tried Lachlann couldn’t stop himself from following his vision of creating a baby fire drake. All he needed was a lizard egg to imbue with fire. 

“That’s a good sign. The village always need help and I’m getting too old.” Topapa patted Lachlann on the shoulder. “Perhaps it’s time I start teaching you a little magic.”  

Deirdre walked among the festival tents. Unfortunately, Alfar had to go back home to do chores, but she still had time to kill. She went in to every tent browsing various wares and performances. After a few tents with little to speak of she noticed a tent that appeared to be completely vacant of patrons. The tent was made of shimmering grey fabric that seemed to dance with the wind. Inside there was a plethora of round glass ornaments handing from the top. There were two merchants inside who were arguing as she entered.  

One merchant was dressed in the robes and turban of the sultanate that covered his face while the other wore a cloak made of the same fabric as the tent with a silver mask covering his face. As Deirdre took a step into the tent the pair stopped arguing and turned their attention to her.  

“Hello dear patron I am the mystic knight, “ The silver masked man said with an overdramatic bow,” and this is...” 

“The Snakemancer.” The other merchant finished.  

“Snakemancer?” The mystic knight chuckled as he chided in a snooty tone, “What kind of name is Snakemancer?” 

“Well I can influence snakes so it seemed obvious. Originally, I was going to call myself aspmancer but you can understand why I didn’t.” The snakemancer replied. Now that the two conversed Deirdre found them to be an even odder couple. The mystic knight talked as though her were a fine gentleman while the other talked with the gruff accent of a commoner.  

“Why not just call yourself venommancer?” 

“Oh, that’s good I like it. You can call me Venommancer,” The venommancer said with an excited dramatic flair.  

“Pardon my companions moronic musings and delight in the wonders of a true performer.” The mystic knight waved his hand and hundreds of tiny stars spawned in his wake. The stars quickly disappeared just like how they had formed. 

“That looks impressive but can your illusions do this?” The Venommancer waved his hand in a similar fashion but this time a snake appeared from his sleeve slowly exiting so its head ended at the same spot it began. The snake then moved its body to spell the word “clap”. Following the que Deirdre began to applaud.  

“It's time to determine once and for all the best. Miss patron if you wouldn’t mind watching each of us perform and then judging who is proficient and who is problematic.” The mystic knight proposed. 

“Sure as long as I get a free show.” Deirdre answered. 

“Just for you, donations will not be mand-” “Winners first.” The venommancer interrupted his friend, shoving his out of the way as he placed three vases in the center of the tent. The performer whistled and all of a sudden snakes began to jump from vase to vase. Deirdre was curious as to how snakes jump but the vases hid their movements. Two rings were then placed between the vases and without fail the snakes passed through them. The rings were then lit ablaze and after several snakes passed through them two snakes spit out venom and managed to douse one ring each. Two other snakes proceeded to land on the rings and wrapped their bodies in circles balanced on rings. The snakes then began to jump in synchronous pairs each snake going through a separate ring. Then the snakes dismounted and 6 snakes stood up out of the vases and took a bow with their tamer. Deirdre once again applauded the snakes.  

“A meagre display at best,” The mystic knight stated walking to center stage.” Now my audience look into my eyes and be transported.” As soon as she looked into the man’s eyes, Deirdre was in a place she had never seen before. She stood in a wide shallow reflective pool surrounded by tall coniferous trees shaking with the wind. The sky above was a violet swirl of stars behind a full moon much larger than normal. Standing across from her was Alfar dressed in shining plate male with no helm. His hair was longer than normal and his eyes brightly reflected the moon. He held a sword in one hand and a shield in the other.  

Deirdre blushed and looked down noticing she held Scaleripper in her hand and wore a set of thick leather armor. With a bright smile she ran towards her lover and swung her blade with all her strength, only to have it blocked by his shield. The two continued sparring for what seemed like hours. Deirdre felt her heart pound with excitement as no matter how hard she tried; she could not gain the upper hand. Their fight ended when she noticed an opening and rushed forward touching the tip of her blade to his throat, but she felt his blade touch the side of hers. Throwing down her weapon she embraced him and locked lips. As the kiss began the scene faded back to the tent.  

As Deirdre caught her breath, she ignored her pounding chest and declared, “The mystic is the winner.” As a response the venommancer cursed and the winner cheered.  

“As a reward for having such exquisite taste,” The mystic knight moved one hand over the other and dangled a small amulet in front of her. ”here is a moon charm. Wear this and Furacean will always know where to guide you to your destiny.”  

Deirdre accepted the amulet and thanked them for the show before she left. The amulet was a small crescent moon wrapped around a clear white crystal. To remember the strange duo she put the amulet around her neck hoping for just a bit of good luck.