The Fool

Sometime in the Fall of Year 688

Il' Aluk, Darkon

Chapter 9

My Dearest Ingrid,

I know I promised to write every week and here it is the end of my first month of school and I have yet to put pen to parchment for more than just a few words at a time for you. In part I will claim how busy I have been getting used to the new experience of a formal college environment. Heaven knows it is far more structured than how I learned all my precursor subjects. Thankfully my self dedication there will serve me well here.

Classes are scheduled on a weekly basis by the various professors of which there are a total of twelve on staff, five of whom you know from my description of them on the board of acceptance. These classes have no standard pattern and it is up to the students to ensure that they attend the proper classes necessary to pass the tests given at the end of each month of study. Having just completed my first of these I can say that I expect the next five years to be a challenge, though not an insurmountable one as long as I keep my focus on my studies.

Please do not take that to mean that I will not be writing as frequently as I had promised you. In fact I look upon this letter as my first of many to fulfill this oath that I made to you to always be your friend and for us to stay in contact no matter where our lives might lead us.

And as my first, yet still late, submission let me start by saying a few things that I was unable to voice properly before I departed Rivalis this year. Perhaps now the distance or the ability to gather my thoughts before putting ink to parchment allows me the opportunity to get these issues out in the open. So with that let me dive right in before my determination waivers or it is time for the supper bell.

Before I forget to close this loop or fail to answer your questions from your last letter, Ernie is indeed still cooking here at the college and in quiet conversations with him I have come to realize that Sarah's ghost is still teaching him her culinary wisdom and skills. I have talked to Tess about this and we have both come to agree that Ernie has fallen in love with Sarah though he would never admit such a thing to himself much less to us. I am torn in this knowledge for I feel somewhat responsible for this and doubt any true good can come from this. Anyone who speaks of lovers coming from two completely different worlds most certainly was speaking of Ernie and Sarah. I only hope the distance between them does not cause them too much pain.

As I see it perhaps Sarah will wait for him to join her on the other side of this existence and the two will spend the next life, whatever that entails, happily together now that they have found each other. In truth I fear though that he will feel his age one day and come to regret his time wasted chasing a spirit of a perfect woman for him and find that he missed out on his chances in this life to spend with one of flesh and blood who could love him back. If that happens I worry one day yet another ghost may haunt our building as well as grieve for a life passed by.

But this speaking of death brings me right back around to what I wanted to say to you before I digressed on subjects of potentially doomed love. I want to thank you, no those words are not strong enough, but truly I can think of no others at this time. As you know the death of my father to The Crimson Death was nearly unbearable for me this spring, coming as it did almost to the same day as my mother's death had just a few years ago. Had it not been for you and your mother I do not think I would be able to actually have pulled myself together enough to attend school this year.

When people spoke to me of their best friend I always in the past thought of Eldrenn Van Dorn, whose former family home you and your mom now occupy. Eldrenn had of course been the one I had shared my adventures of youth with and who when I look back was often standing beside me in my trials, tribulations, and yet also my successes.

Add to this that Eldrenn was of course a boy like myself, and while I may not understand the logic behind such things, it seems to me that it is an expectation of society that those we name as our best friend as one who shares the same gender as we do. If this serves some higher reason I am unaware of then I accept it, but I have a feeling it is merely a holdover of parents wanting to protect their children so their sons are not seen as too feminine or their daughters too much of the tomboy.

I tell you this in my long rambling because I realize for the last few years I have been lying to myself as well as those around me when I spoke on this subject. Eldrenn was a good friend, without a doubt, but you Ingrid are truly my best friend.

I hope that this announcement shocked you. It did me to a point when I realized it but not nearly so much as when you kissed me last year as I headed off to my interview. If my words did so consider this added stress on your heart now sufficient payback for that moment then. Somehow I cannot help but think that word payback, said with affection, will remain a constant part of our joint vocabulary.

As I said I realize you are my best friend for while Eldrenn stood beside me and shared some of my more entertaining moments, you on the other hand always seem to be seeking the best for me. How many times when I was studying did you make lunch for me and even bring it to my house knowing I would forget to eat completely it if left to my own devices? This is something I cannot picture Eldrenn ever doing and in truth since mud pies were the extent of my memories on his proven cooking skills I am glad your roles were not reversed by fate.

Even more so you were there for me when my father died. Somehow instinctually you seemed to know when I needed to be alone or when I needed someone to talk to. You even realized those times in between where I needed to feel another's presence but was not of the desire to converse. That is a rare skill you contain and I am very thankful that it was available to me in my time of grief and need.

I fear writing this lest your mother get the wrong impression but when you would come and find me crying and comfort me by holding me tight and resting my head on your chest as you stroked my hair and I fell asleep are moments in my life I will always treasure. I am gad that at the lowest point of my life there was someone I could show myself and what I was feeling to. I am even more joyful that of all this land this person was you.

I beg you do not take advantage of me through this moment of insight and compassion. Specifically I will inform you that your mother has orders to notify me immediately if you receive any gentlemen callers whom she does not fully trust the intentions of. I am only a day of travel from you and I still know how to load and shoot that crossbow Ingrid so do not make me come back there for any such foolishness!

So with this pleasantry out of the way and off my chest let me now turn to how my first month here at school has gone. If you assumed, as I did, that my days of adventures and ghost hunting are past then I think you need to reevaluate this belief as much as I was forced to.

This recent event started for me innocently enough when I went to the school library to see Tess and to purchase some of the texts we students were expected to learn in the coming months. Tess said she had put copies aside for me so I would not have to buy them, but in truth I think if I am going to become a successful doctor it is probably wise for me to start a medical library of my own to refer to when I establish my practice. While of course the college would frown on this as a challenge to their authority, by having these books I might also be able to apprentice some dedicated local students as well who cannot afford to attend this school but still make fine practitioners of the medical arts. Can adding more doctors to our world be a bad thing now that we are finally seeing the end of the Crimson Death scourge after nearly a year of it ravaging our country. While I do not fault the clerics who I believed saved both of our lives, along with those of your mother when we learned of my father's infection, we all know that they are a rarer breed even than doctors so it is foolish to hope they will always be available when people need them.

Anyway as I was saying I had just bought this month's books, at a reduced rate because Tess refused to take any more from me, and was walking back out of the library when a small furry animal darted out of the bushes and charged toward me. The creature was perhaps a foot and a half tall and covered in fur, looking like half a halfling in size and shape except of course most halflings we know tend to be round about the waist and this creature was more sleek and streamlined in proportion to a human.

I might have thought the creature a wild beast except it was dressed in human looking clothing, at least partially. It wore a red and gold vest on its chest and a round circular hat with a tassel on top of it. Even looking so domesticated the creature did not speak so much as it literally screeched at me as it leapt from the bushes making me drop my sack of books and defend myself from what I took to be its attack.

This, however, seemed to be the exact reaction it was seeking for instead of attacking me the creature scooted by, grabbing my sack of books in the process and dashed off before I full realized the incident had been the prelude to a robbery not an assault. I shouted in outrage but this only spurred the creature to greater speeds as I began to give active pursuit.

Considering the size of the creature that could weigh not even twenty pounds compared to the weight of the sack of books and other of my personal items that must be half that weight at least, I was surprised to see I could not gain on the creature as it fled and that my best efforts at speed were only good enough to keep me apace of it. As I have indicated in previous stories of the university, the other students and faculty were quick to offer aide in the sense of numerous screams at seeing the creatures and more than a few good cheers split evenly between me and the creature.

Thankfully this animal did not take to the trees for I likely would have lost it in the thick canopy of leaves. The creature seemed split by this path as well for it often started to scamper up the trunk of a tree only to reconsider and jump back to the ground. I of course did not complain for it allowed me the potential to keep the beast in my sight and gain slightly at these seeming moments of indecision that it showed.

While I have stated that my chase of this creature was without local assistance beyond cheers and jeers from the others on the campus, this is not completely true. As we raced past one individual the beast nearly tripped this gentleman who upon noting its obvious theft took up the pursuit of this strange creature as well and he continued to do so even when I passed him in my own chase.

I will admit I began to feel winded after a while for the pursuit did not seem to be coming to an end any time soon and were it not for the fact that I could be expelled from class if I did not have the necessary courseware I might have given in to the inevitability that I was unlikely to catch up to this creature. It was only by me imagining the smug look on Master Professor Gunther's face as I was facing such discipline measures that allowed me to keep running after the little furry creature.

The beast turned a corner around one of the buildings, instead of staying out in the open or near the trees like it had seemed to prefer so far and I lost it from sight for the few seconds that it took me to make this turn as well. Already I feared it had perhaps hidden somewhere or turned more corners and I would have to admit defeat, but in truth as I rounded this same spot I found it had stopped before someone and that now my bag of goods was being rummaged by what could only be a Vistani, based upon his dress. He also looked to be a man of about my own age. The strange creature sat on his shoulder looking at me and it appeared at least to be slightly winded as well which gave me a little satisfaction of my own at least.

Before I could speak I was overcome by a fit of coughing that drew the gypsy as well as his pet's attention fully to me as I tried to recover from this fit by resting my palms on my knees. I was pleased I was not forced to my knees though I was almost bent over double.

"I believe my friend here is trying to say that the bag in your hands and its contents belongs to him." The voice speaking was somewhat familiar to me though the accent escaped me for the moment. A deadly clicking sound accompanied this statement not all that unlike the one of a crossbow being readied.

I turned my head to the side and saw my current assistance was being rendered by the second man in the chase. During the pursuit I had not taken the opportunity to look closely at him, but now here with a free second to do so I recognized him as Harmon Ruscheider, one of the other students selected for this year's entry class in the College of Medicine. This made him a classmate of mine.

To this point I had only acknowledged Harmon's presence when forced to do so such as in a laboratory class where I needed to borrow something from his work table or when he had done something similar. This is not to indicate I had anything against him or he held me in disregard, only that we both were still getting used to these new demands so socializing was a luxury we had little time for.

So you can get an image of him Ingrid, Harmon is three years older than I am and slightly taller by about three inches or so. While you might think this makes him nearly a giant, knowing as I do that he comes from Lamordia where all those I met seemed much taller on my trip to that land he does not strike me as such.

In fairness I was still a boy when last I went to that land so seeing others tower over me at that age is hardly a unique experience. I might remind you that you yourself stood half an inch taller than me until this summer when my late growth spurt allowed me to finally surpass you by two inches. You may not understand this but the fact that you were taller than me always seemed disconcerting until this year, like nature was out of balance. Now being able to look just slightly downward into your eyes instead of upward like I did in previous years seems more comforting I suppose to my manly ego. It is one of those silly things I have to contend with I guess now knowing that my best friend is a girl, I am sorry, I should say in honest a young woman.

To finish my description Harmon is a well dressed young man with polite mannerisms and demeanor who undoubtedly comes from more money than I myself do. Even so he does not carry the swagger of the aristocracy that so many of our Darkon noble born tend to. He has a quick mind as well and constantly seeks to unwrap more and more layers about life than our professors are ready to discuss in our classroom lectures or in some cases can prove they even understand themselves. And he is also constantly in the library when not in class, though he spends much of his time in the medical floor rather than the general knowledge areas whereas I continue to split my efforts between both of course.

Harmon held an odd metal and wood object in his hand, obviously a weapon of some sort, which he kept trained upon the Vistani man and which had been responsible for the odd clicking sound I had heard a moment earlier. He calls this item a wheel lock pistol and it shoots a projectile of lead with sufficient force to pierce most armor types. I find this intriguing though can not attest to its truth on penetration.

The Vistani seemed to know what the weapon was for he made no sudden movements but instead slowly turned around to face us both, I was starting to be able to at least stand as my coughing fit had reached it end thankfully. The owner of the thieving beast placed on his face that charming smile all Vistani seem to be able to don as simply as we can a cloak before he spoke.

"My friends I assure you I meant no crime here today." He said simply. "I merely opened this sack to see if I might ascertain whose possessions my foolish pet monkey must have stolen. I assure you that nothing is missing." He held the bag up as an offering while the 'monkey' which I assume was the name for the type of creature on his shoulder continued to stare or make that more accurately glare at me.

"Then you will have no objection to standing there very still while my friend Rudolph ensures that all his property is still within the bag?" Harmon replied keeping the weapon focused on his target.

The gypsy's eyes flashed at this threat but nodded. "If such is your wish to prove my honesty then by all means I shall do so."

I strode forward two steps and took the sack from the Vistani who winked at me of all things as I stepped back to open it and rummage through my belongings. In truth I only wanted to ensure my books were still there, which by a quick count I knew they were. Also inside was my lunch of fruit, cheese, and bread, which I now figured may have been the actual reason the monkey had stolen my bag, and two of the vials of holy water I still had remaining from last year's adventure with the guide medium.

I do not know what possessed me to carry these things today, and in truth I had not remembered even packing them. The five I had from last year, my remaining three after using one to free Ernie the cook, along with the two Chanella had given me back saying she had no use for them and could always get her hands on more here at the college if she did, I had unpacked and placed on a shelf in my room. I did remember thinking at the time perhaps I should keep one with me at all times like Gypsy had suggested since they were a potent weapon to have in my line of work. Obviously I had taken her warning to heart and packed two without thinking more about it.

Harmon's gaze had never waivered as I had done this quick inventory and seeing how tense this situation still was I decided to get us all to relax a bit. I pulled an apple from the sack. "It is okay Harmon there is nothing missing." I said seeing both he and the Vistani loosen up slowly at this news. I tossed the apple to the gypsy who caught it without a thought but with a queer look in his eye.

"I think this is what your monkey was after." I said smiling

He looked at the apple and then laughed. "Ah yes, that must be it." He nodded.

"He still stole your good Rudolph." Harmon said. "Is it not normal that we should turn him in to the authorities?"

The Vistani seemed to pale at this idea and I could see he was planning a possible path of flight were I to agree. Other than a long and tiring run no real harm had been done to me to warrant such action so I did not see a valid cause for a crime committed by an animal anyway. Furthermore knowing the interest some parties here locally have in the comings and goings of the Vistani, and not wanting to be associated directly I decided overlooking this singular issue was the far wiser course of action.

"That will not be necessary Harmon." I said. "It was merely a misunderstanding and a chance meeting."

"As you state good sir." The Vistani said agreeable to not make the situation any worse.

"Besides Harmon we have just enough time to get to our anatomy class." I reminded him. "Professor Gunther is not one who likes to hear stories and excuses, trust me on this."

"It will be as you say then Rudolph." He put his weapon away and I bid the Vistani to depart with a gentle flick of my hand.

"May you always be recognized for your generosity and wisdom Rudolph Van Richten." The gypsy spoke his thanks before walking off. He was gone from my sight before I realized he knew my entire name which I was certain I or Harmon had never spoken.

Harmon and I talked good naturedly as we walked back to our next class. I learned he was from the city of Ludendorf in Lamordia, a town slightly bigger than our home village of Rivalis. We chatted and warmed up to one another over those extended moments as we walked to class and decided then that it was foolish for us to study alone when we could become partners and help each other study.

I hope Ingrid you do not think he can in any way replace you for while he has a brilliant mind for medical theory and sees possibilities far beyond any that I can come up with in our discussions, he does not share that spark you have for enjoying life as it is. Were I to hand him a flower like I did to you before we left he would never see its beauty as you did but instead seek to dissect it and understand its functions on the basest of levels. It makes me wonder if he chose this career in medicine to help others or instead to ferret out the secrets known only to the gods themselves?

I hope I did not sour you on him for as I reread this I can see where I might. Please understand that I sense he is a good man. Like myself he has been there every week like all the students helping to treat victims of The Crimson Death without so much as a single complaint that this work is beneath him like so many others of my class have whispered. I only fear that his quest and hunger for knowledge may become too much for his mere mortal body to contain one day.

We arrived at class to which I was greeted by Master Professor Gunther's haughty and disapproving stare which had by now become a fairly regular occurrence for me so I took no further offense at it. This look turned to one of slight surprise as Harmon came in upon my heels finishing out a discussion we had obviously been having for some time on our way here. Thankfully we were not the last to arrive so we did not face the veiled barbs he sent to the recipient of that particular honor.

Being the first day of this class Professor Gunter explained that our purpose for this semester was to dissect the human body cadaver we would be provided in the medical laboratory following a detailed long series of steps that would take us the next two months of class time at least. Before you worry of what is to follow I will assure you that I will not go into any disturbing details on this subject for I understand how gentle your sensibilities and demeanor for such things are.

I will say thankfully that the college maintains a means of keeping these bodies preserved during these warm months for I fear no one would ever actually finish the task steps they were assigned if it were otherwise. The potential smell alone would see to that.

For the next two months Professor Gunter also explained that our class of twelve would have to work in pairs, one performing a step described in the checklist while the other recording their observations. These tasks would rotate between the pair every class so that each literally got their hands dirty so to speak.

The professor further explained that he himself had determined who the partners would be though what basis he used he did not care to explain. As I said for the most part I was disappointed with the attitudes I had so far seen displayed by the majority of my classmates who were almost to a man (which includes the women) snobbish members of the noble class.

I knew they looked down upon me as a mere village peasant who did not understand and agree to the station in life he had been born into. I will spare you the colorful vernacular that accompanied such statement. I had resigned myself to doing what was required, which likely meant nearly all the work, with my noble partner when Professor Gunther announced that I would be teamed up with Harmon.

Before you smile in joy understand that I realize fully Master Gunther had simply hoped to put all his troublesome eggs in one basket and thereby keep a closer watch on us rather than having to divide his attentions. Our little shared encounter with the monkey had thrown an unforeseen wrench into this plan for him but it was too late to change.

I am happy to note that Harmon seemed as pleased by this choice as I myself was, even after recognizing instead of doing all the work I would now likely have to pull back on his reins in order to just do my fair share. But on the opposite side of that particular coin I certainly would not need to worry that we would fall behind in our activities and thereby be unprepared for the surprise tests that Professor Gunther was famous for administering. If anything the rest of the class would have to keep up with us.

Partners assigned Gunther went into a long explanation about the first phase of our activities to be performed upon our cadavers. The Master Professor was quite vocal in his description of what we would be accomplishing, far more so than I had ever heard him speak, and I saw immediately his reason for this was to challenge each and every one of us to the level of our dedication to our studies.

I will say as his discussion went along I felt a slight queasiness from his descriptions but many of the others were turning white and one young man even passed out and had to be revived by his female partner. All the while Professor Gunther continued his ever repetitive tirades about the lower quality of students seeking to become doctors these days. The only one unaffected by this talk was Harmon who actually had the audacity to ask some rather pointed questions that caused the Master Professor to stumble in his own thoughts for a moment. Harmon confided in me later that this had actually been his intent behind asking these questions.

Given the time for our fainting victim to recover his wits, Doctor Gunther led our class down into the sublevels of the college to the rather chilly room where we were introduced to our cadavers for the first time. This was enough for one student to threaten to quit and the fainter to catch a few more winks on the cold stone floor beside his assigned table.

"Come on Rudolph let's not give the old man the satisfaction." Harmon said picking up a sharpened scalpel and indicating that I should read the procedures we were to follow and make the appropriate notations on the drawings we had been provided.

I nodded back, put down my book bag and picked up my own papers and stylus for my portion of the remainder of the day's expected events. Perhaps it was this example we set, or perhaps it was Professor Gunther's scowl but soon the rest of the class was similarly armed and prepared, awaiting only the command of our instructor to begin the tasks laid out before us. The Master Professor looked away from our tables as he strode to the private, and heated, small office next to this room and without looking back he simply called over his shoulders to us. "Student you may begin. I will check up on your progress in a half an hour and expect to see significant progression." With that he pulled the door closed behind him and slid the bolt closed with a rather dramatic click as if to say we were not to disturb him for the next thirty minutes and now were truly reliant solely upon ourselves.

While the students had shown their preparation and courage in front of Professor Gunther now faced with his absence none seemed quite so willing to be the first to begin this particular exercise. The exception to this was of course Harmon, though out of a devilish streak I think he purposely delayed his own first step to see if anyone else would take up this challenge. When he saw all eyes were focused upon him he was satisfied and placed his single edged scalpel at the central base of the neck just above where the collar bones come together. With a smile of complete enjoyment he poked the sharpened blade into the dead flesh and drew a line perhaps an inch in length.

Suddenly to our surprise our cadaver took issue with this activity. Let me state there was no doubt the body before us was indeed deceased so we had not accidentally injured a sleeping cleaning man or something equally regrettable. But as you know here in our land being dead does not always mean being at rest.

The zombie's, for that is what I assumed it was, arms leapt out from the table, one catching me unaware due to my reading and striking me fully in the chest, sending my body tumbling over another thankfully unoccupied table to land in a heap on the floor beyond that one. The creature's other arm caught Harmon only a glancing blow since his eyes had been focused on the body and was able to acknowledge its movement and at least attempt to react defensively in time. He was pushed around and up against another table as well but managed to keep his footing.

At this point the creature sat up on the table, its red eyes glowing in evil light and began to scan around the room. The other half score of our fellow students began to scream for help and in horror, with the notable exception of our fainter who passed out on top of his female cadaver in a rather unsightly showing.

By this time I was shaking myself back into full consciousness, ignoring the pain of both the blow and my awkward fall as I tried to find my feet and rise back up. I grabbed another pair of scalpels from the tray but their two inch blades looked foolishly inadequate for the creature that had now found its own feet and stood with only a bare table separating the two of us.

Due to our positioning the zombie stood between the rest of the class and the doorway that led to the stairs. The option for me to run was available, but that would leave Harmon and the rest of my class to face the creature and I am certain my conscience would not allow for that type of action. Instead I thought to stay and offer what assistance I might no matter how little that was even if only to distract.

The other students, with the exception of Harmon and of course the fainter, had instead ran for the office door where Professor Gunther had gone, but in their haste and panic as they beat on the door calling for his aid or safety none seemed to recall the door to this particular room opened outward. As they begged, pleaded, cajoled, and even offered bribes to be let in, they were in fact blocking their own rescue by gathering and pushing upon the door those behind pinning those in front in their panic.

The creature reached for me and I sliced its open hands with the scalpel in my grip. Unfortunately as I feared the blade was a poor substitute for a real weapon in that its small size turned in my grip as it encountered flesh and was nearly pulled from my hand because of its slick handle. In exchange the blade did almost no damage other than parting flesh that oozed dark thick black blood nearly severing the pinky of the left hand which did nothing at all to actually phase the creature.

"Rudolph move to your left!" Harmon called out and without thinking I took two steps quickly in that direction but saw that the zombie was intending to follow me. However this sidestep on my part opened up Harmon to a clear line of fire with his wheel lock pistol which he now pulled the trigger on while aiming at the center of the zombie's back.

A loud retort, made louder still by the enclosed confines of this room, announced the shot to the rest of us just as the pistol's kick told him it had fired. Its one inch or so diameter ball of lead sped free from the barrel too fast for anyone to see, especially since the weapon also emitted a blinding flash and a short burst of flame as well.

The ball struck right between the shoulder blades a little left of center for Harmon was aiming for the creature's heart. His aim was nearly perfect, seeing as the creature's attention had been focused on me so it made no move to defend itself. The ball travelled through dead flesh, tore a hole through the zombie's heart and burst forth from its chest in a splatter of gore than made me glad that I was still moving further away.

Unfortunately the full extent of the shot did only slightly more damage in total than my scalpel had since the undead do not require their hearts. The true worth of the shot had been to stagger the creature and force it to lose its balance and fall on its face as I came around the table. It even had slightly scorched its skin around where the projectile had entered the body but that too did not look at all debilitating. The surprised look on Harmon's face told me he had not only expected his weapon to do more but that he also was now realizing the stories he had heard about this land of Darkon were not just ones told to scare unwary travelers.

Fire I knew was a good choice for a zombie but as I looked around the room I cursed our luck and the college's efficiency. Instead of open flame sources such as torches and lamps the school had installed glowing crystals produced by students of the College of Magic or perhaps the College of Theology. This made sense since the chemicals used in anatomy class had occasionally bad results if exposed to flames. By taking this action though this thoughtfulness by the college was denying me the most useful common weapon at my disposal.

I looked to Harmon who was reloading his weapon, or at least trying to and realized quickly that this was going to be minimal help to us at best. Instead I slid over the very table the zombie had been laying upon, spun around and landed on my feet at the distant short end. Then taking this side of the table in my hands I aimed the other short end of it at the creature as it stood up and pushed forward slamming the edge into its body and folding its torso back on top of the table.

My intent was to pin the creature against the wall and hopefully allow for us all to escape but in the process I tripped over my bag of books I had put down and had to release the table to catch myself as I fell.

"Harmon!"

He turned to look at me and immediately realized my plan and before the creature could escape around the edge of the table once more he helped me as well lending his strength to mine as we pushed the creature back. As we strained against the creature's strength I realized this was a temporary measure at best and called for the others to flee. True to form of a panic situation none actually did, instead they continued to beat upon the other door and shriek for help that could not come.

"What about the chemicals in the room?" Harmon asked looking around at the various jars and such filled with liquids. "Can any of them melt this creature?"

"No." I said but then had a thought. "But if you can hold it here for a few moments by yourself…" I did not actually look to see if he accepted this idea but instead leapt away from the table listening to him grunt as he battled strength to strength now alone against this zombie.

I ripped open my pack and pulled free the two vials of holy water, which thankfully I had not broken when I tripped over the bag. With my hands full I pulled the sealing cork on each loose with my teeth and as Harmon continued to struggle I began to splash the contents of the water on the creature's body, hoping it would affect the corporeal undead as well as I had see it do to the incorporeal.

Thankfully with each splash of water the flesh of the creature began to smoke like it was afire. While it thrashed in obvious pain by the time the second vial was nearly empty it had given up all struggles and was no longer moving. Hoping this was not some elaborate ploy on its part I came within range of its arms long enough to pour the last through the hole in its back made by Harmon and onto its heart. The creature's final shudders ended immediately and it lay still in death as it should.

Once we were sure it was dead Harmon clasped me on the shoulder and laughed as we turned to the still panicked and distraught members of our class, at least those who had not fainted, who were now staring with gaping mouths at the two of us. Only then could I hear Professor Gunther on the other side of the door ordering everyone there to step back away so he could finally get the portal open.

He emerged with a peculiar look upon his face seeing so many students in near shock and the two he least enjoyed in this class smiling over our victory. He tried to restore some semblance of order and was successful only to a point. He failed when one student declared that he was dropping out of the school and that his family would not longer be paying. This was matched a moment later when the fainter woke up and declared he no longer was interested in becoming a doctor either.

In this moment I gained complete respect for my lab partner. Not only had he helped me defeat a zombie but then to further intimidate the other students who had been snidely looking down upon us he motioned for me to walk over to another body still lying on the table. "Professor Gunther I assume this one is now free since the students have dropped out?" His words were rhetorical and for entertainment purposes.

"Rudolph if you are ready to begin again." He said to me as he picked up his scalpel and I my book and quill.

"Any time you are Harmon." I replied.

Then without anyone being ready Harmon drove the knife deep into the corpse's chest and stepped back. When it did not move he turned once more to me. "Well Rudolph step one is complete, this cadaver is actually dead." He laughed aloud causing the fainter to lose consciousness one more time in response.

So Ingrid this is how I spent the most entertaining period here during my first month of college. Harmon and I have become study partners beyond just our lab work and often take our meals together as well. I have introduced him to Tess and Chanella as well as telling him some of the more interesting stories from my past.

What I find humorous is that while Harmon helped me destroy a zombie, he looks at me skeptically when I speak of ghostly dead, even going so far as to challenge me to accompany him this summer back to Lamordia to show him the fisherman ghost I had met within his own country. I wonder what he would think of Sarah the cook were I to break my word to Ernie and tell people about the help she provides him.

Oh one other strange event now that I am reminded of it. When I returned to my room after the battle with the zombie I found all five of my flasks of holy water still full and sitting on the very shelf where I had recalled putting them. This has almost left me questioning my sanity.

The only two explanations that I can come up to for this are either Gypsy gave two of her flasks back to me after last year's adventure and I have completely forgotten this or the Vistani man who had been looking into my book sack placed added them himself.

The second seems to me to be the most disturbing for it seems to indicate that the whole encounter with the monkey was a planned event on his part in order to ensure I had these items when the zombie attacked. This speaks to their ability to see the future at a minimum which I am certain that College of Theology would take issue with. And even were it so why then not simply warn me of the zombie's presence instead of going through some elaborate scheme to arm me and take the chance I might inadvertently break these vials, which I almost did, or even forget about them, which I also almost did. No this answer makes no sense.

But the alternative that I actually had seven vials instead of five makes me wonder if perhaps I am not as focused in details of my life as I thought I was. These types of mistakes could be ruinous to my patients if I forget simple details such as their medicines. In this way I almost have to hope that the Vistani option is the correct one.

You have such a wonderful ability to see through such confusion to the very heart of such matters so perhaps you can tell me where I have gone wrong in my deductions.

With that it is time to close for now as I have promised to meet Harmon, Tess, and Chanella for dinner. It is supposedly something wonderful that Sarah has been teaching Ernie to cook all week and I dare not miss it or face the wrath of my friends.

I hope this note finds you as carefree and happy as I always remember you being when I think of our time together just a few short weeks ago. Do not forget my warning about the crossbow and feel free to inform any dates who are less than genteel with you that such a threat does indeed lie above their heads. I hope you have time to write me as well and send it back with Tess's merchant friend in his bi-weekly deliveries.

I miss you my friend, being there just sitting beside you and enjoying your presence. It is I realize now the only times in my life I have ever felt whole. May this thought bring you a smile.

Your Eternal Friend

Rudolph