After getting a couple of cases of Red Wizard whiskey from one of the merchants, Ozzy took a look at his list.

stone bricks,mop bucket6 mixing barrelsbarrel of soy sauceassorted spices (50 lbs.)one whole heap each of:  onions  garlic  black peppercornsbrown sugar or honeytwo whole heaps of tomatoeshot peppers of the sort not eaten by humansa root cellarHe'd found the bulk of the items on the list and was only missing the peppers and honey.

Honey, he was told he could get from a farm a half-mile to the South.

The family kept a dozen hives and brought honey and combs to the keep now and then to sell.

None of the merchants had hot peppers and said it would take weeks to ship them from the far south.

He asked around the keep.

The Legion had outposts everywhere, and the soldiers were good sources of information.

One of the soldiers at the front gate stroked his chin, thought for a moment, and then pointed at a small trail heading west into the forest.

"This is just a guess, but you might try the old dwarf that lives off that way a few miles.

He does some panning in the river for gold and has a coal mine and a farm somewhere out that way.

He comes to town once or twice a year.

Picks up a bunch of the stuff you were shopping for today.

He talks a little about cooking, but what he calls food, we call flaming catapult ammunition.

Three recruits tried his chili once, and it put them in the infirmary for a week.

He laughed and said those were his 'baby-mild peppers' in the chili."Ozzy figured it was worth a try, but he needed to get his wagonload of supplies home.

If he slaughtered cows late into the night, he could get most of the next day's work in and make another trip to the keep to go pepper hunting.

Billy was fine with that plan.

As long as his regular work got done, Billy didn't mind him putting in extra hours to research something new to cook and possibly sell.

The path looked pretty narrow.

He purchased a large backpack in case he needed to carry anything back.

He was immediately glad he'd decided to leave the wagon.

The pathway started as a single-lane road but soon came to a small stone bridge and continued on the other side as a very narrow path.

The bridge itself was interesting.

The stones were so tightly laid that he didn't think mortar was used.

Whoever made it knew his business.

The path was packed clay, hard enough that he doubted any greenery could get a foothold.

He moved along at a good pace as it wound through the trees and up into the low hills.

Coming out on top of a hill, he had a good view of what he assumed was the dwarf's house.

It was built in the middle of a large meadow with a fast-moving stream running.

A waterwheel provided power to another building and pumped water into an irrigation system.

Both buildings were surrounded by a huge garden.

Water from the stream was pumped into a raised stone canal, which fed irrigation ditches that reached every bit of the farm.

It was a nifty setup that saved a lot of time.

He'd have to mention it to Billy.

A low rock wall surrounded the entire area of roughly four acres.

The pathway he was on eventually made its way to a stone archway set in the wall and then up to the house.

Ozzy headed down that way, moving at a slow walk.

He'd just gotten to the archway when the smell hit him.

Pungent and strong, his eyes started to water, and it felt like any exposed skin was burning.

Through blurry eyes, he tried to look at the crops.

An astounding amount of them were peppers.

Long, short, thick, fat, bright red, and every other color, they were growing in nice compact rows.

As the wind shifted and blew their aroma towards him, the burning on his skin got worse.

He took a few steps back and made sure not to wipe his eyes.

This was chemical warfare!The door of the house opened, and a figure moved out.

The short and stocky figure was obviously a dwarf.

They wore a set of black cloth pants and a full-sleeved shirt with a hood.

Leather gloves, goggles, and a red bushy beard left little skin showing.

He held a cocked crossbow that was pointed toward the Butcher.

"You look halfway peaceable, so I won't shoot first.

But be careful of my garden, you crush one of the plants and you'll die screaming.

They're just a wee bit potent this time of year.

What are you doing out here?"Ozzy raised both hands.

"Just came to talk and maybe trade or buy some peppers."The dwarf shook his head from side to side.

"Not selling any peppers.

You're after my seeds, just like the last few fellows.

Now git before I put a bolt through your eye.""I don't care about the seeds.

I just need peppers for my barb-b-que pit.

Strip the seeds and sell me the hulls for all I care." After a bit of consideration, the dwarf nodded.

"No promises.

Come on up to the house, tell me what you're cooking, and have a bowl of red.

Maybe we can work something out.

But you even look at me cross-eyed, and you'll be out back pulling weeds until you die."Ozzy just nodded that he understood.

He took a deep breath, squinted, and quickly approached the house.

The dwarf held the door for him and closed it tight after entering.

The inside of the house was well-built and quite cozy.

The woodwork of the cabinets and table gleamed.

A large black stove had a couple of copper pots cooking on it, and more hung from the walls.

Well-oiled tools hung in various places.

Ozzy moved in and took a seat at the table.

The dwarf tossed back his hood and took off his goggles.

The crossbow was hung on the wall, and he moved to the stove.

A copper ladle filled two large clay bowls with food that he placed before Ozzy and his spot at the other end of the table.

The smell coming from the bowl was rich and threatening.

It looked like chili.

A clay spoon and a large mug of beer joined each of the bubbling bowls.

"Eat up and tell me what you think."Ozzy took a large bite.

It was indeed chili.

Ground meat, tomatoes, garlic...a lot of garlic.

Other spices were there, too, but the heat from the peppers was overwhelming.

It started slow, with just a hint of pain on his tongue, and then it was like his whole mouth exploded.

Tears poured down his eyes, and it was all he could do to take a sip of beer.

The beer didn't help a whole lot.

The dwarf was laughing.

"Just keep shoveling it down.

That pain is just the peppers getting acquainted with your taste buds." Or making war on them, Ozzy thought.

He shoveled down another couple of huge bites, nearly finishing the bowl.

It hit his stomach, and the pain moved to other parts of his body.

He knew why the bastard used clay spoons and crockery; wood would be burning at this point and metal dissolving.

He grabbed the tankard and finished the beer in one gulp.

The burning that started at his lips and went to his gut intensified.

He was sweating profusely, and his heart was beating faster.

The dwarf took down a large bottle full of pink liquid and poured it into two large shot glasses.

He handed one to Ozzy.

"Here, a little strawberry surprise will take the sting off of things.

Bottoms up." He downed his own shot glass and slammed it down on the table upside-down.

The glass felt cool in Ozzy's hand, like the promise of salvation.

He downed the glass and slammed it down to match the dwarf.

Then he choked and felt his heart stop.

It missed one beat, then a second, and finally remembered its job.

"Shit, what the hell was that?" He was gasping, and pounding his chest, things were getting dizzy.

The dwarf smiled.

"Old family recipe.

190 proof corn alcohol with ghost pepper extract added for flavor."...." Strawberries?..."HA! Surprise! No strawberries."Ozzy sprawled in his chair and swore that smoke was coming from his mouth.

Probably his insides burning up.

It hurt to move at all, and he was exhausted.

The dwarf came over and took his pulse.

"Damn, son, you're running fast but strong as a horse.

Maybe you do want these for Bar-b-que.

That should have killed you dead." He stuck out his hand, and Ozzy shook it.

"Welcome to the humble home of Makken Peppersmith of Clan FireEater.

"Ozzy could only croak out, "I'm Ozzy."If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author.

Report it.

[You have lived through the traditional greeting ritual among members of the FireEater Clan.

Granted, you cried like a runt kobold with his tail cut off, but at least you're still breathing.

You have gained the skill: Fire Eater.

This is a Primary Skill governed by CON.You have gained +50 CON experienceYou have gained +50 experience in Fire EaterYou gained a smidgeon of respect from Makken Peppersmith.]

You have lived through the traditional greeting ritual among members of the FireEater Clan.

Granted, you cried like a runt kobold with his tail cut off, but at least you're still breathing.

You have gained the skill: Fire Eater.

This is a Primary Skill governed by CON.You have gained +50 CON experienceYou have gained +50 experience in Fire EaterYou gained a smidgeon of respect from Makken Peppersmith.