In the Blade's Hilt |A tale from Triterra|

Chapter 44 - Eye Trouble

Jenna silently slunk into the alchemist's shop.  She crept into the back and quietly dropped the golden coins into Blue's pocket. 

"I could have sworn she was standing there" he muttered.  She casually leaned against a bit of wall that was not taken up by a shelf.

"I was" she announced to the room.  Blue wheeled around.

"Wha...?"

"Well, glad to see you're back Jenna.  Now about the matter of payment..." said Acid.

Blue smiled awkwardly as he reached deep into his pockets.

"Don't worry, I'll find a way to- Oh?"  His fingers clasped around some small pieces of metal.  He pulled out three golden coins.

"I must have missed them.  Anyway, here you go" he said as he handed the coins to Acid.

"Much obliged.  I really hate having to ask for payment but you know, it's just business" replied the alchemist.  He glanced over at Ty.

"Now we wait"

Ty had never felt such pain in his life.  It was worse than snakebites, worse than knife wounds, worse than Blue's jokes.  One minute he was blisteringly hot, the next he was freezing cold, as if he was plunged into the ocean.  He groggily opened his eyes.  Dancing after-images floated in front of him.  He was in a small room.  The walls were covered in shelves stocked with various plants, root, bones and other strange objects.

"How are you feeling?" came a voice.

Ty struggled to recognize it.  It was a higher pitch than Blue's, more feminine.

"Jenna?" he asked aloud.  Ty could practically hear her smile.

"Yes, it's me.  For a moment there I thought you- Gods above!"

"What?  What is it?" he asked in an alarmed voice.

"Ty, your eyes!  Take a look for yourself!"  She handed him a polished platter.  He looked into it.

Ty's once-green eyes were now an unusual shade of amber.  They glistened slightly as he blinked.

"Woah.  How did this happen?" he asked.

"I don't know.  Maybe Acid knows"

"Who?"

At that moment Blue walked into the room, holding what looked like a mug of tea.

"Mornin' Ty" he commented.  Ty nodded back to him.  Blue turned to face him.

"I gotta say, you sure took your sweet time waking up and TERRAN BELOW, WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOUR EYES!?" he yelled while simultaneously dropping the mug, causing it to crash to the ground.

Another man that Ty had never seen before dashed into the room.  He had short black hair and was wearing an apron.

"I heard smashing, what's going on?" he asked.

"Blue dropped his tea and something strange is going on with Ty's eyes" answered Jenna.

"Great, I just cleaned that floor.  Wait, his eyes?  Let me take a look"

He walked over to Ty and sat on a wooden chair beside him.

"Now Ty, I want you to open your eyes as wide as possible"  Ty did as he was told.

The alchemist mumbled a few times before shaking his head and turning to face everyone in the room.

"Well everyone," he said, "we have a newly infected lycanthrope in our midst"