The morning was a chaotic mess as the people who had slept walked into the hilltop campsite started waking up. Illaria greeted them all and referred them to speak with Mavec, Alvec, and Sarbie. They were each debriefed on what had happened and informed that the group was actively investigating this phenomenon but that we knew frustratingly little about it. Sarbie’s presence did seem to put people far more at ease. The corpses of the lizards had been left where they fell, which helped to lend credence to the story being told to them. Few questioned what had transpired, at least not out loud, as they could all see Echo’s dire-wolf like build prowling around the campsite. The golden charm hanging from his collar seemed too small now for him, and yet people accepted that he was in fact an animal companion despite his above average size.
The journey back to their village wasn’t a particularly long one; it was about mid-morning by the time the group arrived. With nowhere near the food stock to feed the entire village, the group had departed on an empty stomach, agreeing to accept a meal as payment for the protection they offered. It was a small reward for risking their lives, but it was one they were all more than grateful to accept. They found themselves in a quiet and quaint home of two local merchants who ran the general store, joined by the lockmaster. After everyone got a good plate full of food, an older farmer knocked on the door and let himself in.
“Damn it Tarneef I think we have a problem. The cows got loose while we were out. Tracked um a little ways, think they headed on up the hill where those damn spinny-men live.”
“Spinny men?” Naya asked, confused.
“Yeah. No one's gotten close to them since they have weapons and brandish them threateningly if anyone gets near. One of the kids swore they were machines under the clothing, but he’s either wrong or bluffing,” the man said.
“Huh, if he were right, those might be external gyroscopes... we are in the Tsuhomma downs right now,” Mavec said. Obviously, he wanted to stay here and check this out. If this was connected to Alusai, who knows what new avenues could be unlocked by studying his designs? And yet... it would have to wait. Alusai’s secrets were still going to be here. Illaria’s parents... they might not be. They were in the clutches of a wicked man. She needed revenge or to rescue her parents far more than Mavec needed to know about Alusai.
“The spinny men are something of a local legend. If you ask a different villager, you’ll get a different myth about them. Some people say they’re constructs. Others claim they are ghosts from the war that haven’t been able to pass on. Some claim they are a strange clan of foreigners stranded here in the wars. Truth is they might not even exist.”
“I wouldn’t go so far as to say that Lochmaster. Too many tales of things with spinning heads living in these hills. You can’t just be dismissing that,” Illaria said.
“We should go help rescue the cows,” Naya stated.
“We’ve already eaten up so much of your time; we couldn’t ask you to do us any more favors,” The lochmaster insisted.
“It would help the people here; surely we can spare a day?” Sarbie asked.
“Cows make cheese; Bait save Cows.”
“How much danger are they in, really?” Alvec asked.
“Shouldn’t be too much. It might take me a day or two, but I should be able to get most of them back safely.” The lochmaster assured them.
“We’re going to be at a tie then.” Mavec said, “Because I’m voting we get back to the sea. Illaria's business is more pressing than rescuing some cows. Especially if someone else here thinks they can be recovered safely without our help.”
“I’m also voting we get moving, now that I’m sold on this farmer's whole livelihood not being decimated,” Alvec said. “We just can’t leave the matter of Crowley and the devils alone. If the banners aren’t mobilizing already, we’re going to be their warning bell. The sooner we get there, the better.”
“Think of the poor cows, Alvec. They’re in danger,” Naya said.
“Yeah, it's unfortunate, but we really can’t just chill here solving small problems while bigger ones mount,” Alvec said.
“I see your point...” Sarbie said as she reconsidered her opinion. “We should head to the sea,” she said a bit defeatedly. As much as I think it's a good thing to help, I don’t think it's the right thing in the face of everything else. Though helping rescue some lost cows sounds a lot more pleasant than our actual mission.”
“We appreciate the desire to help, and we extend our thanks again for the help you’ve already provided. I don’t think I’d have been able to protect anyone on my own.”
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The group packed up and headed off towards the sea once more. Naya road on Echo muttering about how easy it would have been to just fetch the cows. The road eventually led to a small stream, which two robed figures stood over with large buckets.
Their heads spun around rapidly; as the party got closer, it was clear to Mavec that he was staring at humanoid clockwork. This sort of clockwork wasn’t prevalent in the empire. Other designs proved more valuable on the battlefield and in specialized work. The external gyroscopes cemented these constructs as abnormal by modern Artificy standards.
“Guys, guys, slow down. Maybe we can avoid a fight if we just stay far enough back. I’d prefer to leave as many of these things intact for when we return; Because we will return here as soon as we’ve rescued Illaria’s parents. Or avenged them. Depending upon how much of a lying sack of shit Crowley is.”
The machines, however, moved with a shocking amount of speed and grace forward, brandishing scimitars and electricity charging up in their gyroscopes. “Sarosa, damn it! I was really hoping we could avoid this,” he said as he leapt to the ground, tracing runes in the air before him. While they looked to be gathering electricity, he couldn’t at a glance find anything to suggest that they were any less weak to it than any other clockwork they’d encountered. Perhaps some sort of lightning rod, or maybe enchantments to ward against electricity, would make sense, but thus far, no model had contained anything quite like it. He took the shot, wincing as he did so. These were possibly priceless inventions of Alusai, and he would just wreck them. If it weren’t for the fact they were advancing on the party, he wouldn’t dream of attacking them.
The blast of lightning struck hard, clearly injuring the clockwork as it advanced upon them. Naya and Echo rushed forward, the wolf enlarging enough that he now dwarfed the humanoid clockwork. He bit down, injuring the one in front handily before Naya leaped down moments later to bury her blades into its back as it attempted to stand up.
Illaria brought the wagon to a stop and hopped off, dashing past Naya and Echo towards the second one. Her sword flew out blazing, igniting briefly with a shimmer of golden-red light as she slapped the blade against the side of the creature's head. It released the charge of electricity into the water harmlessly before she struck again, slashing at its chest. Her sword bit surprisingly deep into the metal. It was the first time she had used this blade to both parry and riposte since Alvec finished the enchantments on it. It practically sang through the air, its sharpness now enforced by magical might. Not only that, but the subtle flash of golden red light fit Illaria all too well. He’d done good by her, alright.
Bait, riding shotgun, aimed his double-barrelled musket past Illaria. He pulled the trigger, and two bullets roared to life out of the barrel of the gun. They found their marks blasting off gears and cogs as they passed through its body. It, too, crumbled to the ground. Alvec hopped out from the wagon, ready to join the fight, only to see that the fight was already over.
“You think these were Alusai’s?” Alvec asked. “Shouldn’t they have given us more resistance?” he asked.
“Let me get a closer look,” Mavec said as he approached one of them and tore its clothing off. The fight had been easy, but there were a few explanations for it that didn’t involve assuming the party was just that good. Despite the scimitars and the electric attack, it was pretty clear to Mavec that this wasn't designed to be a combat model. It was built without any defensive plating, nor could he find any evidence that it was made for speed or stealth. This model looked like it was designed exclusively for general labor. A tool is only as good as its purpose. A hammer isn’t interchangeable with a screwdriver. Sure, you could try, but the results wouldn’t be impressive. Perhaps that was partially the point, though. Something like this, even using Alusai’s signature move with the external gyroscope, wouldn’t raise too much suspicion.
Suppose he had large plated constructs built for combat. In that case, he’d raise the suspicion of all artificers who came across it. Even a tiny combat-worthy construct might cause further investigation. If staying hidden was the goal deploying these weak units, well-designed as they were, might not cause any real issues. Examining them further, it was clear that these were old models. However, they had been maintained well. There looked to be a gap in service at some point, but it had been repaired. Perhaps these units had gone rogue for a while? Clockwork could end up winding each other and expressing a version of self-awareness.
“The results?” Alvec asked as he caught up with Mavec.
“Can’t be sure, to be honest. It could have been, but it could have been so many other people.” Mavec confirmed.
“So it's inconclusive.”
“I’m leaning towards a hesitant yes. It certainly means we should return here as soon as we can. Between you and me, I’d vote to stay, but let's be honest, there won’t be any convincing Illaria, so we’ll just have to get a move on.”
“Anything else of note?” Alvec asked.
“Someone's been maintaining them. Too bad we can’t stick around to find out who.”
“We can’t, but is there anything you could leave behind?”
“Ah the poppets... I could leave them. Hold on a second.” Mavec ran back to the cart and returned with two child-sized humanoid constructs.
Naya frowned and cocked her head at him. “Have you always had those?” She asked.
“No, I built them when we were in Sha-Laial. They aren’t as sturdy as Piccora so they’ve mostly been for show.” Mavec said.
“And where were they in the cart?” She asked.
“Under the beds? Where else could I store them in there?” Mavec replied before turning his attention to his two small constructs. “OK, here are your orders. When someone comes to collect these, watch which way they go, and when we come back, show us.” Mavec said as he set them on the ground and waited for Naya to help camouflage them. She let out a reluctant sigh and helped cover them up with local flora to make them less noticeable.
“Suppose there isn’t much else to do,” Mavec said, nodding.
“Aye, we’ve still got plenty of daylight left ahead of us,” Illaria stated. Mavec got back onto the wagon and watched wistfully as they pulled away. He’d be back here someday soon. He promised himself that.