Taste Test

Louie looked at the small bottle of pale amber liquid dubiously. Lex looked back, raising one eyebrow as a silent dare. Louie shook his head, a look of apprehension on his face.


“Are you sure this is gonna work?” Lou asked as he took the stopper out of the bottle. Lex had been pressed for both time and money, so both the stopper and bottle were cheap plastic. Still, it did look enough like an authentic magic potion that he was content. Product presentation was everything. Almost everything; his Egyptian Elixir of Health also happened to taste quite a bit like cream soda. The boys had served as his taste testers and they liked this one the best, though Lex had thought the brandy flavored one better.

“Yes, yes. Of course it will work,” Lex said dismissively. “You are both my friend and my valued business partner. I would never give you something that might make you truly ill.”

“So what is it supposed to do, exactly?” Gil asked, sniffing carefully at his own bottle of elixir. Lex grinned, enjoying the chance to show off his medical and brewing prowess.

“It’s a potion that will give a temporary boost to your immune system. I put it in a base of flavored sugar to ensure your body would have enough fuel to power the magic, though you will likely feel the urge to eat quite soon.”

“Why?” Gil asked dubiously.

“Because the beauty of my Egyptian Elixir of Health is that it relies only on your own body’s ability to heal itself. The elixir simply boosts that ability to a much more rapid pace. But since your healing will rely on your own body’s resources, it will burn your own body’s stores of energy.”

“Meaning this stuff’s going to leave us drained if we don’t got somethin’ to eat?” Louie asked, sounding less dubious. Lex nodded once, smiling.

“I don’t know,” Gil said. “I saw an episode of Star Trek once where these scientists messed with the healing abilities of some kids and it made their immune systems go wonky and start killing people…”

“Gil, this is not a television drama,” Lex said with a sigh. “The elixir is not going to make your immune system into a seek-and-destroy weapon. It will only cause you to heal at an accelerated pace.”

“Well, it sounds like it’s worth a shot,” Louie said. He took a cautious first sip, smacked his lips, and then grinned. “Hey! This stuff’s not bad!”

Lex grinned as he watched his friends down their elixirs. This could be the beginning of a very beautiful thing. If the best chef in town and the mayor of Talbot’s Peak were both willing to give his elixir a try, then getting others to try it was in the bag. Even Marissa wouldn’t be able to stop him now!