Derp had completed the quest and was returning for her reward. The door of the shop jingled behind her as it closed. The proprietress was standing in front of her, concealed almost entirely in her alchemist robes and anxiously awaiting Derp's return.

Derp handed over the bag of amethysts she had mined from a cave. Tallia offered her a small coin purse in return, as per their agreement.

"I'm so glad you were able to get these," Tallia said as she lifted one of the translucent violet stones in her fingers. "Perhaps I'll have some more use for you in the future, Elf."

"Yeah, whatever," Derp said indifferently. With an almost stingy zeal, she untied the small rope around the coin purse so she could check all of her earnings. Tallia watched her from under her hood with a hidden ominous smile.

The potion capsule exploded as soon the purse was opened. Smoke billowed out of the bag and swept over Derp's face. She wobbled off her feet and landed flat on her back. Drowsy and confused, she found herself unable to move a single muscle below her neck.

"Wha… what was that?" She struggled to say as her vocal cords relaxed.

Tallia pulled away her hood as she knelt over Derp, revealing all of her beguiling Sorceress-like looks for the first time.

"Just something to keep you calm while I remove a few things you won't be needing anymore, my dear."

Tallia wrapped both of her hands around the neck of Derp's tunic and easily tore the fabric down the center, uncovering a V-shaped portion of skin on the Elf's chest.

The alchemist reached into her robe and retrieved a long obsidian dagger. Derp's eyes grew wide with terror.

"What did I tell you I needed these crystals for? My sculptures, was it?" Tallia asked as she laid a single amethyst close to Derp's head. "I'm afraid I've deceived you."

Tallia held the dagger up to the store's candlelight, clicking her long, polished nails against the blade to test its sharpness.

"I need amethysts for my experiments in creating high-functioning undead. Their special chemical composition should allow them to resonate enough magic to reanimate the deceased and control all of their major body functions." Her eyes shifted intently toward Derp. "And I think I just found my first test subject."

The Elf tried to either resist or beg for mercy, but nothing would come out of her mouth. Tallia reached through her braided hair and tenderly brushed her cheek.

"Don't worry, my dear," she said in a soothing voice. "You're the best candidate for this job. If all my algorithms are correct, the natural magic in your Elven blood will reinforce the amethyst if it's not efficient enough on its own. Whatever I learn from you will help me make my other thralls even stronger."

Derp frantically shook her head with what little strength she could gather. If this was going to be the end of her, she would rather be dead than undead.

Tallia's polished black lips curled into a smirk.

"Well, then. Let's get on with carving this little goose, shall we?"

Derp was forced to watch as the dagger slowly descended. The tip reached just below her clavicle and dug inward. The potion that kept her silent and still did nothing to dull her pain.

A Fighter went to Tallia's Alchemy Emporium for supplies. There was no one in the show room and the counter was unattended, so he stepped into the storage area hoping to find the owner.

Tallia's shelves were lined with clear glass jars holding every sort of rare arcane ingredient. There was an uprooted mandrake floating in one jar. Beside that was a severed dragon's tongue. The next jar was preserving an extracted heart labeled with a small emblem of a female Elf, hand drawn with loving care.

Something moved in shadows of the store. A short, almost imp-like being came into the light and glanced at the Fighter with a curious expression. Her skin had an unnatural dark complexion. Her body was completely bare and displayed a rather athletic physique. A piece of amethyst protruded just above her breasts and glowed the same otherworldly color as her eyes. Her light silver hair was tied in braids over her pointed ears. She was an undead, but she acted remarkably tame for her kind and there wasn't a hint of rot on her. Her appearance was as alluring as it was chilling.

"Customer…" The zombie said in a soft, soulless voice.

Tallia appeared from behind a black curtain. She glanced toward the Fighter, then toward the undead girl, and finally back toward the Fighter.

"Oh, don't let her frighten you," the master alchemist said. "This lovely creature is just an assistant I brewed up for myself. Gathering the ingredients wasn't very hard." The last thing she said came out in a slightly humored tone.

The Fighter cast a suspicious look for a few seconds, but then shrugged and let go of his doubts.

"Looks like you did a great job," he complemented.

Tallia gave her undead helper a friendly nod.

"That will be all, Derp. You can go back to tending the amethysts."

The zombie silently walked away and faded into to a dark room behind the rows of shelves. Tallia offered her attention back to the Fighter.

"Now, what may Lady Tallia help you with?" She fluttered her long eyelashes innocently as she asked.