Mavec

His socks were still soaked, even though his gold purse was three coins heavier. He hated the sloshing sensation in his boots as the group traveled the wide dirt road through the woods. The town they had managed to dock in was barely large enough to be considered a town. More of a rest stop than anything else. It was so small that it didn't even have a proper inn. That said, the party had voted whether to keep going or rest on the outskirts of town. Mavec had been the only one to vote to rest. He'd have liked to dry his socks over a campfire and prepare some new spells.

His book mainly contained electric spells, great against clockwork machinery and strong against flesh... but not quite as strong as fire. He'd need to ask Alvec if he could borrow his spell book sometime. That was one of the cool things about traveling with another wizard. It was easy just to trade spells. Eventually, the sun's rays started to fail to pierce the thin veil of leaves above their heads, and the group decided it was time to set up camp and bed down for the night. Mavec set himself up as close to the fire as he could. As was tradition, Alvec maintained the fire till he was ready to sleep.

Unfortunately, Bait also set himself up close to the fire and made a game out of spooking everyone as he threw small bits of black powder into the fire.

"Would you knock that off?" Mavec finally snapped.

"No, Bait test black powder. Not all black powder good. Some batches go boom, others go BOOM. Bait want to use BOOM, not boom."

"That is the dumbest thing I've heard. Why does that make sense?" Mavec asked.

"Because he's right, though I'd prefer he does this in the morning when we cook breakfast; he's upsetting Jinx and making it hard to relax," Illaria stated as she glared at Bait.

"Bait almost done; Bait ready for bedtime cheese, best cheese," He confirmed as he pulled out a chunk of some near-molded cheese and slopped it into his wide open mouth tilted to the sky.

"I take it Piccora will be keeping watch for us?" Alvec asked.

"Of course, she doesn't need to sleep," Mavec replied.

"I'll stay up late, too," Naya said.

"Bait, sleep now, watch after." With the night watch mostly figured out, those not on the lookout bedded down. Sleep was surprisingly easy for Mavec to fall into despite how strange of a world he was living in right now. Perhaps it was the general exhaustion overriding his discomfort with his current situation. He had never been fond of the idea of camping. He was much more comfortable in a house, even a modest one. Four walls he could modify seemed much better than the cluster of trees just off the beaten path. Fewer bugs and fewer animals sounded like a godsend. He couldn't wait to be back in a proper town again.

The night passed without incident. Breakfast was lackluster; dried meats, twice-baked loaves of bread, and long-lasting trail rations composed the sad meal. Thankfully, Mavec's clothing had thoroughly dried out.

The group spent some time around the campfire. The two wizards prepared their spells for the day. In some ways, Mavec envied sorcerers. They simply "knew" a spell and could cast it. Wizards like himself had to carefully select each spell they wanted access to and then prime it in their minds. In a way, it was like a far more elaborate gun loading. Each spell is a bullet stored in a bandelier with a packet of black powder. Though guns had it better, a bullet was always a bullet. Some spells were duds if you didn't encounter the right creatures or circumstances. Speaking of guns, much to Mavec's surprise, Bait was crafting some sort of alchemical cartridge for his musket.

"You know what you're doing?" He asked casually as he examined the goblin's work. His "station," a stump with various substances poured out over it, was a mess; in fact, a slug had climbed up onto it and seemed to be curiously checking out the substances. Mavec grimaced; working in such conditions was far from ideal. Bait, however, had no qualms with it or his new slug friend.

"Yes, mix saltpeter, charcoal, and stinkfur together. Careful, add water, use a stone bowl like mine, no metal, or else it go boom too soon." Mavec blinked a few times in surprise. He was... right. Well, other than calling sulfur Stinkfur.

"Alright, I'll, uh, leave you to it," Mavec said as he retreated a safe distance from the goblin working without any protective gear. It wasn't long before everyone was ready to go.

They had a long day ahead of them. At best, Archer's Market was a good two days out. That was if nothing crazy happened along the way. Around noon, the trees thinned out, and farmland and fields became visible. Some of them were plots clearly overgrown and abandoned. Others were clearly new, with small farms slowly fighting back the edge of wild growth. So much life had been lost during the Anarchy and in Ageneon's War that there were still a lot of territories classified as Throne Land. Much of it had been awarded to many loyal to the emperor, but there was still just so much that sat fallow. Mavec could only muse as to why. Surely, some people would work the land if it were given to them. Right? Maybe not; he would rather have a lovely small home in a town than live on the fringes like this.

"Could one of you wizards explain to me why Archer's Market and Sha-Laial sound so different?" Illaria asked, breaking Mavec out of his thoughts.

"Easy, Old Imperial and New Imperial. Archer's Market was clearly built after Ageneon won the war," Alvec supplied.

"It's also probably Archer's Market because Agenenon is an arcane archer of some renown," Mavec said.

"Are the old names going out of fashion?" Naya asked.

"Probably. It would fit with Ageneon's general outlook on forging a new path forward," Alvec agreed.

"Ok, but what about all the different prefixes?" Naya asked. "What is the difference between a Sha and an Ac?" Naya asked.

"Size mostly," Mavec replied. "Sha's are cities. Ac's are truly massive cities. I only remember two of them off the top of my head. Ac-Rilir is the capital, and Ac-Azziza is the empire's largest port city."

"Lom is the smallest rough equitable to the word hamlet, with Enc being a village. Jy and Ot represent towns," Alvec added.

The conversation on the road was cut short as a strange noise caught the group's attention. They had finally come up upon a farmhouse on the right. Whirling gears and a busted open gate made him anxious about what was just out of sight.

"Guys, wait," He whispered with urgency. "Listen." The group did as he asked and exchanged quick glances. "Yeah, not sure what that is. Can anyone sneak up there?" Mavec asked.

"Bait go," he crept up to the gate without waiting for anyone else to volunteer. Mavec winced; it was hard to imagine Bait as anything other than loud. Much to his surprise, though, the small goblin was, in fact, as quiet as a mouse as he crept to the gate. He stood there a moment before he crept back to the group. "Ok. Three big machines. They going clank clank clank. Trying to break into the house. Someone in the windows shooting arrows at them. Bait think they tiny human."

"Can you tell us more about what they look like?" Mavec asked.

"Like mean bug, six legs, two arms, and a tail," he said while miming a pinching motion. That wasn't good. Clockwork had been used extensively during the wars. The type Bait had described was one such model. It may have acted on old commands or guidance if it had been reactivated. It was absolutely a threat, and if Bait was right that a child was at risk... well... I guess there wasn't anyone better suited to save the day. Mavec glanced at Alvec.

"We're going in? Right?"

"Just as soon as we get all our spells up and ready," He replied as he wrapped himself in the familiar field of protective energy. The group drew their weapons and rushed to the gate. Bait had been correct; there were three of them. He had failed to provide adequate information about what the constructs were actually armed with. A quick glance at them revealed a lot to Mavec. These were old; they had clearly been around and functioning since the war. Perhaps they had lain dormant for years. Maybe someone had unwittingly reactivated one of them, and it had gone on to activate its brethren. The tails worried Mavec the most; it was a nonstandard design. They usually were equipped with some sort of ranged projectile or whiplike weapon. These ones were outfitted with some kind of fire dispersal system.

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"They're vulnerable to electricity," Mavec reminded the group. "Those tails look like some sort of flamethrower to me," Mavec stated.

"Good, this will be my kind of fight," Alvec replied.

Bait leveled his gun and pulled the trigger, and nothing happened. He let out a frustrated cry as he tried removing the jammed material. "Gun, why no BOOM?" A small, slender figure appeared in the window, clumsily balanced a crossbow too giant for their body on the windowsill, and shot down at the clockwork. The bolt connected but bounced off from the creature's armor. Echo and Naya targeted the one furthest in. A strategy that Mavec was growing to appreciate. Naya uttered a word Mavec wasn't familiar with, and Echo's collar, crafted by none other than Alvec, flared to life with a green light that quickly spread over the wolf. He grew dramatically, doubling in size. Echo towered over the mechanical creature as he clamped his large jaws into the machine. Naya whipped both blades into its restricted arms. Her scimitars also shimmered with some strange magical energy; each impact seemed to slice deeper than her small swords should have.

Illaria and Alvec engaged the target in the center of the wagon lot. It swung hard at Illaria with a buzzing saw. She managed to parry the spinning blade up and dodge beneath it. Just as she thought she was in the clear, its tail flared to life, and a jet of flame arched out from it. Alvec threw himself in the way yet again, pushing Illaria out of the flame's path. He let out a blood-curdling scream, and the fire clung to him, charring his flesh in seconds, leaving only a burning dead husk on the ground. Mavec fought back the urge to vomit as bile flooded his mouth. There was no way; he couldn't possibly be dead. This wasn't real. He looked closer, and the illusion broke. The husk had no horns. A feeling of relief washed over him. There was no way the fire could burn away his horns faster than his flesh. Skin and muscle would char away far before any bone. This had to be an illusion.

Alvec appeared in sight again behind the creature, his right hand sheathed in electricity, which he slammed into the flame-spewing tail. The ruddy red cloak shimmered with red and yellow light. Illaria seized upon the momentary distraction as the electricity made the device unstable. She sunk her wakizashi through its skull plate and brought it down. Piccora and Mavec focused on the only one not currently engaged in combat with the group. The one closest to the house. Mavec stayed back, and Piccora rushed forward. Mavec focused intently and pushed the electricity gathering in his hands through Piccora. Her petite body slammed into the much larger beasts, and it recoiled in pain as the electricity worked its way through its circuits and gears.

Bait finally cleared the jam and reloaded his double-barreled musket. He enthusiastically leveled his gun at the one nearest the house. Piccora was small enough of a target that even the goblin could shoot over her head without risking her life. He squeezed both triggers, and his gun thundered. The two lead spheres slammed into the construct, punching sizable holes through it. Oil leaked from it as it staggered around before collapsing into a heap.

Naya and Echo were still fighting; both had been hit, but both seemed in good spirits despite it. Naya spun wildly and struck it with both blades. Her twin scimitars eviscerated its neck joint and brought it to the ground for the last time. A few moments passed while the party evaluated the situation. They seemed to be down for good, and there didn't look to be any more of them on their way. Slowly, the party began to put away their weapons. After about half a minute, the magic on Echo wore off, and he reverted in size. The wolf tilted his head back and forth a few times in confusion and excitement as he limped over to Naya.

She pulled out two glass bottles, both containing a cherry red liquid. "Bottoms up," She said before she uncorked it and drank one herself. Her wounds slowly closed. She popped the cork out of the second one and motioned for Echo to hold his mouth open before she poured the liquid into his mouth. "Good boy," She said as she massaged his throat. His wounds also began to stitch themselves up.

Illaria walked up to the door and knocked a few times. "Hello there, are you alright? Is anyone injured?"

"Be right there," came a child's voice from the second floor.

"While you guys check on them, I'm going to see what I can salvage. These parts might be precious, if not to me, then to an academy," Mavec said before walking over to the first ruined model and pulling out his tools. Hammers, wrenches, screwdrivers, all applied with fanatical glee as he began to strip them of anything useful.

Moments later, the door swung open slowly, revealing a girl no older than eight who struggled to hold up a crossbow as tall as she was. "I warn you, I'm a good shot with this if you're robbers," She said. She attempted to pat the weapon's side, which nearly made her drop it. She had short brown hair and a face full of freckles. Her eyes were a soft brown.

"I assure you, we were just passing along when we saw you were in trouble. Is there anyone else home with you?" Illaria asked as she tried to peek around the young girl.

"No. Mom and Pa went into Archer's Market to sell some produce. They took my dumb brothers with them, too. They should be back tomorrow by mid-day," She stated cheerfully. Illaria frowned and glanced at Naya, who returned the look.

"Gee, it's getting awfully late already. We wouldn't want to be traveling the roads at night, either. Do you think that we might be able to stay the night?"

"I don't know you; Mom and Pa wouldn't want me having strangers stay over," She said.

"I'm Illaria, and these are my companions." She introduced everyone by name and told the girl a little about each of them, focusing specifically on the animals. "And you might be?"

"I'm Mel. Pa fought in the war. He told me to break this out if there was trouble while he was gone. I'm a good shot."

"We saw you were doing a fine job. So what do you say? Could you let us stay the night?" Illaria asked again.

"I'll let you play fetch with Echo!" Naya bribed.

"I guess you could stay in the barn," Mel said as she nodded in agreement. "I can make you guys dinner for helping out too!" She said gleefully, the excitement of entertaining guests getting to her. The group settled in, claiming the cleanest section of the barn to bed down in while Mel cooked. It was evident by the fact that the barn was empty that Mel's family weren't shepherds or herders. The barn looked to have only two stalls that were likely used for the horses to pull their carts into town. A fact Alvec was glad for, as it meant that much of the barn was clear and dry.

Alvec and Mavec kept to themselves; they spent their evening working on their respective projects. The book continued to elude Alvec's attempts to crack its code, leaving only a few possibilities of what style of cipher the original owner of this journal was using. It had to be a book cipher. Were he a diviner, perhaps he could have found a way to brute force the code with magic. Divination was outside of his purview. He'd neglected two other schools to learn how to use abjuration better. Divination and Enchantment were the schools he had not invested his time in. He had gone back and forth on whether to avoid Necromancy, but ultimately, animating the dead seemed less objectionable than bending the living to one's will with magic. Either way, it left him no easy answer to the questions in front of him.

Mavec had assembled several modestly rust-free gears that were still in working condition. The fight had done a number to the machines, but time had taken a more significant toll on them. Many of the rubber gaskets and seals were worn beyond being salvageable. Some of the rubber literally cracked and flaked at his mere touch. It was a wonder they had managed to walk and fight as well as they had. No doubt, it is a testament to the designer of this particular model. While there was no assurance that it was Alusai, there was no doubt that he was the leading influence on the world of Artificy and clocksmithing. Still, after he'd scrapped all three constructs, he'd found a decent amount of salvageable gears. Most of them were too large to be useful for Piccora. Still, they could likely be sold to the academy in Sha-Laial or used on a larger project. Not that he had any in mind; Piccora's impressiveness was partially her scale. She was one of the smallest functional clockwork creations he had seen.

Illaria sang a few sea shanties, drowning out Bait's noise as he continued to work on his double-barreled musket, which had betrayed him in the last fight. There had to be a better way to make the alchemical cartridges. That or maybe some magic could be added to his gun. Bait no understand how to do that, but it sounded cool. Maybe gun could shoot fire and bullets! Fire is good, bullets are good, fire and bullets is great. Bait resolved to ask Wizards later. Bait try once, but both wizards busy. Not taking questions right now said the horny one. Not horny wizard just threw a wrench at him and told him to come back later.

Naya and Echo made good on their promise to play with Mel. Several rousing games of fetch, followed by some playful wrestling. The pair went inside to prepare dinner when everyone was good and tired. This farmhouse felt a lot like home for Naya. A strange feeling she struggled to properly sort even in her mind, let alone speak. Homesick for a place that barely existed anymore. Stuck someplace between grieving and hoping that there might be some way to save her family. Someday, she'd have an answer, but for now, the carrots and potatoes would have to bear the brunt of her frustrations. It was a rough chop, but she took her time to cut them down into small pieces so they would cook quickly. Mel had opted for a simple stew. Something she was sure she couldn't mess up.

When it was finished, the group gathered in the small kitchen meant for a family and not a group of adventurers. The furniture and utensils were all solid in construction and very plain. It was easy to see that every bit of this house was lived in. Mel's parents were clearly not wealthy, even if they were landowners. Likely, her father must have come into the land through his military service. It was a simple meal but a hearty one. Mel was a good kid, if a little talkative. She told them stories about living on the farm, her neighbors, and her siblings. "These machines, you ever see any others like this come around here?" Mavec asked.

"Oh yeah, last year Pa and our neighbor Risbore killed one. Ol, Ris put a pitchfork through its skull after my father put a few bolts into its body," said Mel

"Any idea where they came from?" The thought that there could be more made Mavec feel better about sleeping in the barn. He wouldn't want to be caught unaware on the roads, nor would he like to leave a kid alone with constructs wandering the countryside.

"Pa thinks they might be coming from the Auraman manor. It's abandoned. They followed the tracks for a half day, and he said he thought it was leading off in that direction," Mel said.

The conversations slowly switched to other, more mundane things. Before long, with full bellies and a warm, dry space to sleep, everyone laid down for the night.