The Apothecary at the Last Bridge Part 1

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Nobody visited Elara Venn’s apothecary by accident. The shop stood beyond the Last Bridge, where the mountain road narrowed until travellers had to walk single file and clouds sometimes passed beneath their boots. If someone reached her door, Elara assumed they needed something ordinary medicine could not provide. On Tuesday morning, the first customer was an old traveller named Bram. He carried a pack large enough for a younger man and a map large enough for a smaller country. Beside him stood a rabbit in a green cloak. Behind them waited a small red-furred creature with a backpack. “We need this,” Bram said, spreading his map across a barrel. A circle had been drawn around a mountain that did not appear on any of Elara’s maps. “That mountain isn’t there.” – “It was yesterday.” Elara looked toward the distant peaks. “Mountains rarely move overnight.” The rabbit raised one paw. “This one does.” Elara stared at him. “You talk.” – “Only when necessary.” The small red traveller climbed onto a rock. “He considers almost everything necessary.” Elara smiled and examined the map again. A thin line led from the Last Bridge toward the missing mountain, but halfway there it simply stopped. Beside it someone had written: DO NOT FOLLOW AFTER SUNSET. “Naturally,” Elara said, “you followed it after sunset.” Bram coughed. “Only briefly.” – “How briefly?” – “Until the road disappeared.” Elara went inside and returned with a tiny blue bottle. The liquid inside glowed like a piece of summer sky. “Three drops on the ground where the road ends.” Bram reached for it. Elara held on. “Three. Not four.” – “What happens with four?” The rabbit stepped backward. “I dislike questions whose answers make people step backward.” Elara released the bottle. “Four drops show every road that has ever existed there.” Bram frowned. “That sounds useful.” – “Until you try choosing one.” Before he could reply, someone approached along the path. A short figure in a dark hood stopped beside the shop, carrying a small metal cage. It appeared empty. Elara’s smile vanished. “What is in there?” The stranger looked down at the cage. “Nothing.” The rabbit’s ears rose. “Something just moved.” – “Nothing can move.” – “That,” said the rabbit, “is exactly the sort of sentence I dislike.” Elara crouched beside the cage. There was no animal inside, yet one of the tiny doors trembled as though something pressed against it. “Where did you find this?” – “On the road that vanished.” Bram slowly folded his map. Elara looked from the cage to the blue bottle in his hand. “Give that back.” – “Why?” – “Because you are no longer looking for a road.” The stranger placed the cage on the ground. A soft sound came from inside. Not a growl or cry. It sounded like wings beating very far away. Everyone looked toward the mountains. Above the distant peaks, several dragons circled between the clouds. One suddenly changed direction. Then another.