Lux was grateful when the wagon finally lurched to a halt, the clattering wagon had rattled his teeth along the short trip. He scrambled from the back, slapping dust off his pants, and blinked at the building before him.

  It was a large structure of earthen clay with enormous wooden double doors. Green vines crept eagerly up its sides, so thick the outer layer was more green than brown. Only the roof, doors, and scattered windows were left bare and exposed.

  A field stretched out nearby, the ground crowded with dark purple stems that danced a slow, lazy dance in the breeze. Here and there, ice-blue petals flashed like tiny cold flames among the purple. All around the building, rows of lush fruit trees stood at solemn attention, each heavy with fruit, and workers moved up and down the lines, their baskets rapidly filling.

  From the open doors of the winery, a chorus of clattering glass and industrious machines spilled out, louder than Lux anticipated. The change floored him. Last time he’d visited, the place was just an empty shell. The fields had been nothing but green grass.

  His heart gave a sudden, eager jump. He could hardly wait for a look inside. With wide eyes, practically bugging from his skull, he crossed the threshold.

  Inside was a world transformed. Towering machinery commanded the centre, a conveyor belt marching fruit along as it shook and tumbled down the line. The fruit vanished into the gaping mouths of various contraptions, and then, like magic, poured out as vivid liquid into waiting tanks.

  Lux counted tanks lined up along the wall. They looked shiny and new, not a scratch could be seen on the polished surface. His gaze snagged on the very last one. Another conveyor belt stretched from it, shuttling glass bottles beneath a spout.

  Purple liquid plinked into each bottle, and after filling, the bottles clattered down the line and slipped away into the next room.

  Lux was so entranced by the spectacle that he didn’t notice a figure creeping up behind him. “Lux! I’m so sorry!” Twiggs’ familiar voice stabbed through the trance, and Lux spun, startled.

  “Twiggs! I’m happy you are back to normal, you scared me.” Relief stole through him, so sharp he nearly forgot the machines. “Twiggs you are a hero! I’m sure you know that by now though.” Lux rushed to praise Twiggs, he didn’t want him dwelling on the guards’ deaths.

  Twiggs flushed, cheeks going a bit green at the edges, “I wouldn’t say hero. The captives were wearing those collars, remember? If they hadn’t, my magic probably would have just attacked them. The collars told my magic they weren’t a threat.”

  “When I transform, I lose the ability to pick out friends from enemies. But we have a strong bond, so I’ll never attack you. Even out of my mind.” Twiggs puffed his chest, grinning so wide his whole face practically glowed. “We are great friends Lux!”

  The grin was blinding. “Yeah, I’m glad we are good friends too,” Lux agreed. It really seemed like Twiggs wasn’t weighed down by what happened to the guards. Lux finally let himself breathe, shoving the memory deep and out of sight.

  But the machinery was calling to him again, and he bit his lip, craning his neck. “So, the winery is up and running! What sort of wine are you making?”

  “We aren’t making any fruit wine yet, only Ice wine! Azura and I worked our butts to get the winery up and running while you were knocked out. Come see the finished stuff, it’s in the next room!” Twiggs didn’t even wait, just darted around the machinery to a big door.

  Lux felt a shock ripple through his veins, he was practically vibrating. The Ice wine was real, in production! He rushed after Twiggs, but something in the corner snagged his gaze. He stopped and pointed.

  “What’s all that stuff?” Lux gestured at the mess of glass beakers and swirling liquids on a workbench.

  Twiggs paused and followed Lux’s finger. “That’s Azura’s stuff. He turns the Ice breath flowers into liquid, so it can go in the wine. Never touch Azura’s things or he’ll go ballistic.”

  Twiggs rolled his eyes, “Alchemists are nuts. You touch a single vial and suddenly it’s a catastrophe.” That sounded like personal experience, so Lux made a mental note, hands off Azura’s table.

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  “Don’t worry about it, come see the Ice wine!” Twiggs called, waving Lux onward.

  The next room was nearly clogged with crates of glass bottles. A worker loaded finished bottles from the conveyor belt into wooden boxes. Twiggs swooped onto an open crate and handed Lux a bottle.

  Lux reached out, his hand only slightly unsteady. The bottle was clear, the label purple and gold, “Ice wine” leaping out at him in bold letters. He held the bottle up, and caught how the liquid shimmered inside, flecks of light swirling in the wine like tiny stars.

  His breath fluttered. In his palm was Silver City’s future fortune. He nearly burst out laughing. “Twiggs, can I try it?” The hunger to taste magic, to feel it in his veins, was all-consuming. He wanted to tear the cork out and gulp it down right that instant.

  “For the real effect, it’s supposed to age for a week.” Twiggs squinted at him. “But even now, you’ll notice something.”

  Excitement surged. Lux’s heart banged in his chest, rattling his ribs. He clawed at the cork, but it refused to budge. He gritted his teeth, frustration mounting. But then Twiggs laughed, took the bottle, and with a twiddle of his fingers, the cork wobbled free.

  Twiggs handed it back. “Try it outside, so you don’t blow up the equipment.”

  Lux bolted, barely containing his laughter. The moment his foot touched open air, he raised the bottle and drank deep. It was shockingly cold, almost burning, and instantly his throat rebelled, coughing the chill back up.

  Before he could recover, a strange chill radiated through his body. Then came the pressure, building, throbbing, cresting into pain. Lux groaned, doubled over. “Don’t keep it in, let it out!” Twiggs’ hand landed on his back with a whack.

  Lux stumbled, splayed out a palm, and just like that, the pressure gathered and shot outwards. Ice exploded over the ground at his feet, coating everything in a frozen sheen. He stared, dumbfounded, but the pressure mounted again, demanding release.

  For five gruelling minutes, Lux did nothing but channel the energy out, like a leaking barrel that refused to empty. Ice sprawled everywhere, slick and treacherous. “Magic is exhausting,” he wheezed, rubbing his head. “If I don’t let it out, I’ll blow up! It hurts!”

  Twiggs nearly fell over laughing. “That’s because you’re human. Humans don’t have any way to process magic. It just piles up until you get rid of it.” He crunched over the frozen patch, jammed the cork back into the bottle, and handed it over.

  “Remember, it’ll only get stronger the longer it ages. Be careful next time.” Twiggs shot him a serious look. Lux nodded, cradling the bottle. He fumbled for his pouch, only to remember Silver had taken it.

  “Twiggs, do you have my pouch?” He eyed the man’s belt. There was an extra bag, Twiggs unclipped it and tossed it over. “Thanks, it’s awkward not having it,” Lux said, stowing the wine and ledger safely away.

  His eyes went to the chaos of ice coating the yard. He met Twiggs’ gaze. “How soon can we sell the Ice wine?”

  Twiggs’ smile was so huge it nearly made Lux dizzy. “As soon as it’s bottled!” Twiggs looked smug, especially as Lux struggled to process the answer. “We just need to arrange an auction house.”

  Twiggs ticked off on his fingers, “Right now, we can make a hundred bottles a day. Once we buy aging barrels, we can start regular fruit wine too, the winery manager already has a buyer lined up.”

  Lux frowned, thinking of the endless field of flowers, the numbers didn’t add up. “Why just a hundred bottles? The fields looks like they could make thousands.”

  Twiggs stared at Lux like he had two heads. “A hundred is massive! Most places manage a hundred bottles a year. You’ve never seen the Frozen North Glacial Bees, they’re monsters. Most people can’t get a single flower from the field without dying from the bees’ attacks.”

  He scowled, “But our real problem is, the bees are lazy. They only pollinate about a hundred flowers a day, and only pollinated flowers work for Ice wine! We’re stuck at the bees’ pace.”

  Lux’s mind spun. The wine was even rarer than he’d thought. He could practically hear his bank balance growing fatter. He wanted to leave immediately and clear his debts. “When can we go to sell it?”

  Twiggs sobered. “We have to wait three days. Magenta’s still wrecked from the city raid. She overdid it moving the security ward, and then when all the survivors showed up, she had to pour even more magic into getting them back to Silver City. It took her days to transport so many people.”

  Twiggs looked pained at the memory. “Honestly, I’m not sure she’ll even help. She was furious at being worked like a ‘Pigbull’, those were her words. Even Silver struggled to calm her down. But it’s not safe to transport the Ice wine by caravan, we don’t want anyone tracing it back here. Could cause a disaster.”

  He kicked at the ground, face determined. “We’ve got three days to convince Magenta to help. That’s plenty of time.” Lux crossed his fingers, hoping it was enough. “How goes the farm, Twiggs?”

  Twiggs brightened up instantly. “We can harvest twenty acres tomorrow. But that’s our limit for now, not enough hands, and if we planted more it’d just rot. Violet was supposed to hire more workers…but it never happened.” Lux guessed he knew why.

  He didn’t bother hiding the truth from Twiggs, and quickly filled him in. Twiggs’ jaw dropped. “What! She put the mining rites up as collateral? Is she nuts?” He looked genuinely panicked, then a slow grin crept across his face. “Well, at least now we know how to get Magenta to help us.”

  “Are the mining rites important to her?” Lux asked, relieved, it was better than having to bribe Magenta with something bizarre, like a date.

  “Of course, anything Silver cares about, so does Magenta!” Twiggs grinned. That tracked with Lux’s memory of Magenta’s obsession. Finally, things seemed to be lining up again.

  Lux chatted with Twiggs a bit more, then excused himself to go find Constance. He was burning to see her blueprints for the canteen, bathhouse, and park taking shape in the heart of the temporary apartments.