"When are you and mom going to move?" Damien asked, looking over at his dad.
The sun stood high in the sky as their carriage traveled down the dirt highway. A winter breeze swayed the endless plains of grass in a rhythmic dance while the mountains started collecting more and more snow.
"We haven't thou- watch the road!" Garrett yelled as he pulled the reins out of Damien's hands, steering the carriage around a rut he'd almost run over.
They had been traveling close to three weeks now and were almost to Hathen. The two men sat upfront with Damien sitting on the right, where the driver was supposed to be. Kastra was laying down atop his head while the other three women, Marci, and Jasper were in the back relaxing.
"It was a small rut, calm down," Damien said casually.
"I don't know what your 'cars' were like, but that small rut could have destroyed one or both of our wheels. If that happens, you're in charge of creating and maintaining a new one until we get somewhere to fix it," Garrett replied.
"Yeah, yeah. So you haven't thought about it?" Damien asked, ignoring the situation that had almost put a hold on their trip.
He had been voluntold to steer the cart about an hour ago. At first, it had been enjoyable, but after the first thirty minutes had passed, the novelty had worn off. It was like driving a car down a straight road endlessly without music and while traveling at a running pace. He was all too glad to give up the reins.
Garrett kept his eyes on the road as he responded, "We have and haven't. Staying there was just a way to get our shop off the ground and have a family. Now that you and Alexa will both be gone... we aren't sure whether we'll stay in that town or move."
"What do you guys want to do?" Damien asked.
Damien had always assumed they would stay in that Village until they died but recently had realized that well... they'd live for over a few hundred years. Staying in a small Village until they died was something only those who didn't learn much in the way of magic did as they died much younger, so it would make sense that his parents would move. Now, it was just a matter of when they would rather than if they would.
"Well, we never really thought this far ahead to be honest..." Garrett said, scratching his head and smiling. "You and Lexi were our dream. You grew up too fast and now... Hey! Honey, what are we going to do now that the kids are moving out?" he yelled out, turning in his seat slightly and facing the partition behind them.
"Lots of sex!" she yelled back as two women began laughing at a high volume and one tried to shush them.
Damien guffawed as Garrett turned back around quickly with a blush while shaking his head and looking down. Moments later, Alexa appeared as she came out from the back and sat on the bench between them.
"They're drunk," she said with a shake of her head. "And Marci is gone, again."
"I wish we hadn't bought beer off that traveling merchant," Garrett sighed out.
Damien laughed again and grabbed the reins back as Kastra slowly came into view above him, head upside down as she leaned forward from his head to look at him.
"I have wine with me if you want to be drunk too," she suggested to him and everyone else sitting up front.
"No thanks, Kastra. Don't want to drink and drive," he replied with a smile while taking a sip of water from his canteen.
"That's a good point, Damien. I never considered how dangerous that could be," Garrett added in a serious tone while Alexa nodded.
"What about sex?" Kastra asked.
Damien spit everything out of his mouth and began coughing like a madman as Garrett started laughing like one. Alexa blushed and smiled nervously.
"Maybe talk about that l-"he started, looking up at Kastra to see her smirking at him.
'Did she just...'
Damien smiled back and rolled his eyes while Kastra displayed a satisfied grin before sitting back upright.
"So what do you want to check out when we get to the city?" Alexa asked quickly, turning her ruby red eyes to him and changing the subject.
"I was hoping we could check out some weapon shops," Damien responded, eyes glistening.
"What do you need a weapon for? You're not a Combatant," Garrett pointed out.
"Well, they'd sell staves, right? Or... wands?" Damien asked.
Garrett chuckled while Alexa groaned.
"I've told you before that you won't need either of those," she said while poking at his side.
"I just want to look! I'm curious what they'll be like," he said defensively, shooing her fingers off while twitching slightly.
In all his years here, he'd yet to hold a wand of his own. A real magic wand. It felt like something a mage or a wizard should have and he'd never even touched one, yet he knew magic. It felt... backwards, if the books he loved so much as a child were a baseline.
"She's right though, Damien. There is really no reason for you to have one. Humans only use wands because they help with casting speeds of spells, or remove the need to use a spell in the first place if someone is adept enough at their magic. You don't even use spells to alter the ambient mana, so you won't need one. It would just be an ornament."
"Then I'll just buy the cheapest one and pretend like I'm using it," he asserted. "Forever," he finished in a mumble.
He'd saved some money lately doing odd requests for the Association in the Village's Dungeon over the past year with his mom. He didn't have a ton of it, but he did have enough for a wand, and he'd damn well buy one if he had the opportunity, if only as a souvenir.
Alexa shook her head and laughed while Garrett smiled in his direction.
"I'll intrude on your date then. I've been meaning to visit a magic shop to check out the quality of the works so I'll be able to point out which wands are of good quality for you," his dad stated, smirking as Alexa nudged him with her shoulder while blushing slightly.
"It's not a-"
"Three- sorry, four-person date it is then," Damien interrupted with a grin, receiving a light smack on his head as he misspoke.
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"Should be just ahead."
Garrett led them down the city streets in the direction of the shop they'd been recommended. It wasn't too crowded, just another ordinary day to the citizens of Hathen city.
They'd dropped Vanessa and Emily off back at their Inn, the two too intoxicated to do much else than collapse onto the bed in a fit of giggles, and headed out into the town to explore. Marci had returned and disappeared again at some point, citing the need to terrorize the Villagers and plunder. It was a relief that she wouldn't be terrorizing them.
Every time he'd visited this town Damien saw something new. Sometimes he was excited about the discovery; sometimes, he was disappointed. Last year he'd seen his first female Elf and nearly jumped out of the carriage to get a better look at the young woman.
Today though, he was disappointed.
"Is that a uh, member of a bunny race?" he whispered to Kastra from behind his dad and Alexa.
"They prefer the term Kreels, but essentially, yes. Why?" she responded.
He sighed. A dream come true had turned into a bit of a nightmare.
"They just... look weirder than I imagined," he said.
Looking to the right of them just ahead, a large man walked. Two white ears extended from his head, a fluffy tail popped out the back of his pants, and white fur covered his body from head to toe, but that's where the cute resemblance died off. Razor-sharp claws extended from the man's large feet and hands, looking to able to shred through any kind of armor or bone without resistance. When he'd seen the goliath turn around to look over his shoulder briefly, he'd been gifted with not the sight of a cute button nose or two buck teeth, but instead, the absence of a nose and daggers for teeth, meant for rending flesh rather than lettuce. He'd caught his eye and the man had smiled, but that only served to showcase his other meat shredders and... it was just very disorienting and reminded him of a certain killer bunny scene from an old movie, except more morbid.
"They probably think you look strange," she responded.
'Well, that's fair.'
Just because he thought something looked weird didn't mean it was. It was his opinion. Who was he to say they had a terrifying appearance with their violently shaped eyes and sunken faces.
Damien made a mental note to never fight against one of their kind in the future.
Their walk continued until Garrett eventually stopped outside a large, upscale looking shop. Glancing upward, Damien read the name carved into a golden plaque above the door.
Kramer's Krafts
"Looks promising. Paying that barmaid for info worked out," Garrett said, opening the shop door and stepping inside as a bell rang out above him.
Damien shrugged and followed him into the store. When he stepped in, his body was immediately wrapped by a cozy warmth and the smell of a fireplace.
"Welcome, Welcome. Come in, shut the door. It's damn chilly outside," a man called out to them from a desk near the entrance, not looking up from the parchment he was busily scribbling on.
The gentleman looked to be about six feet tall and wore glasses. He was Elven.
"Look at whatever you like. If you break something, you've purchased it. If you have any questions, find a store attendant or come get myself and I'll be happy to assist you."
Like a record player stuck on repeat, the man said those words. He didn't sound all that sincere, but perhaps that's just how this shop was run.
"My boy is looking for your wands, could you point us in the direction of them?" Garrett asked.
The Elf sighed and looked up from the paper he'd been scribbling on and opened his mouth to respond but was interrupted before he could even begin.
"Welcome!! Come come, ignore him, boring fellow. Wands eh? I'll bring ya to em! Names Kramer. Follow, follow."
Damien watched his father nod before he turned and started walking off, as did Alexa, while he stood confused at what was happening. He'd seen no one, only heard the gruff voice interrupting the Elven man. He shrugged and followed after Alexa when Kastra, who'd moved to his right shoulder, poked his cheek and pointed down in front of the two.
"Ah," he exclaimed, a bit embarrassed.
There on the floor was a small green man-creature, about two and a half feet tall. 'Kramer' had webbed hands and no eyes or hair, but moved about with the same speed and surety as if he had them both. He was quite a sight to watch, to Damien. Just a little humanoid running about the shelves and aisles of the store with more agility than Damien himself had while missing his primary sense.
Suddenly, the small man disappeared.
"Bit rude to stare," a gruff voice said from Damien's left, loudly and close by as a warm breath tickled Damien's neck.
"Ohshit," Damien gasped, body jumping against his will as he fell backward into a wall of armors.
He took a large breath to help cool his nerves.
"Goddammit," he muttered. "Please don't do that."
"Gods," Kastra whispered in his ear, reminding him to maintain his appearances.
Damien always had trouble using the correct expressions. It was hard to break a habit that was so ingrained into his mind.
The man had appeared floating in the air directly next to his left shoulder and he'd barely managed not to scream like a little girl, instead choosing to curse.
"Bahahahahahahaaa! Tell me ye saw that!" Kramer laughed, smacking his knee as he fell over onto the ground and began rolling. "Never seen a Changeling before, ehehe, boy? Hahahahaha, ya got yeself a discount for that ya did, actin like ya saw a Hellial," He continued, still rolling about on the floor by Damien's feet while showcasing razer sharp teeth each time he cackled.
Damien was starting to be concerned about the multiple races he came across having sharp teeth. Luckily, the Fae seemed to be able to have either normal ones or daggers, so Kastra wasn't all that terrifying, but the other ones...
Damien said nothing as he sat against the wall, catching his breath and looking at the little man. He thought to apologize, but the thought disappeared as quickly as it had come as he saw the look of glee spread across the Changeling's face. Looking around the room, Garrett and Alexa were both smiling like buffoons as they did their best not to laugh out loud, while Kastra sat on his shoulder, impassive as ever.
'At least she's on my side,' he thought, happy she wasn't impressed by the display.
Had that happened when she'd first come into their lives, the Fae most likely would have attacked Kramer.
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
Eventually, the Changeling stopped laughing and crawled back to his feet.
"Sorry about that, ehe, boy ye just, ahaha, ya were staring so hard I decided to have a little fun. Not a fan of jump scares aye?" he said to Damien, offering his hand to help him up.
Damien looked to Kramer's hand and slowly reached his out, grabbing the webbed hand. It felt oddly cool, but same as a Human hand in all other regards. He wondered why he'd taken the man's hand, thinking he wouldn't be able to actually help him stand with that stature, when the Changeling almost ripped his arm out of its socket, jerking all six feet of him back upright.
Kramer let go of Damien's hand as he stood, rolling his shoulder and looking down at the small man. Perhaps he should apologize after that display of strength.
"Sorry f-"
"Bygones, boy. Bygones. Rude to stare but ye didn't know and ah gotta see somethin' great outta it hahaha," He said, sticking out his hand once again, this time for a handshake. "Names Kramer."
Damien was about to bend over to shake his hand when stopped, wondering if he was supposed to get on a knee or bend over to shake a shorter person's hand. He'd never been in this situation before, and the surprise of everything was making him nervous.
"Ah, just bend over, what do I look like a fricken nancy? I'm sure as hell not comin' up there," Kramer said loudly up to him.
"Damien," he said as he leaned over and shook the short man's hand.
No one spoke for a few seconds afterward and Damien scratched the back of his head.
"I'm uh, looking for wands," he said eventually.
"Right! Right. Sorry. Ye took my hand twice now. Bit of a surprise that, Humans usually too scared to touch a Changeling. Yer an interesting one. Come, come. I've gotta big selection," the green man stated, turning about and leading them further into the expansive shop.
They passed around two dozen other customers, most in groups of five or six, as they followed him. Eventually, they came upon a wall that was covered almost completely in short wands, all different from the one next to them. Some were stone, some were wood, some were a wood that looked like stone, and some on the far left even looked like they might be alive.
"I'm going to look around, you two let me know when you've found something," Garrett said with a wave as he disappeared back in the direction they'd come.
"So, here they are!" Kramer said. "Looking for anything in particular?"
Damien shook his head as he stared up at the vast number of choices before him.
"How are you supposed to pick one? Or does it choose you?" he asked in a whimsical voice.
"What?" Alexa said as she looked at him skeptically.
"I second the ladies question. Ye be a bit weird, lad. Ya just reach up and grab one that ye want," Kramer said with a tilt of his head.
"There's nothing to do with compatibility?" Damien asked, hopefully.
"Oh definitely," Kramer stated, causing Damien to smile expectantly. "If you have a hand, you're compatible. If not, you're not.|
Damien's face lost all hope and fell in that moment. He no longer wanted to buy a wand that badly anymore. It had lost its magic with their words. Perhaps he should have kept his question to himself.
'Still, it would be nice to experiment with one, if only to see what they do,' he thought.
"Just a cheaper one I suppose," he sighed out.
"How much ya got to spend?" the Changeling asked.
Damien wondered if he should be truthful or not, wary of being scammed, but eventually realized he didn't care all that much. He'd have ways of making money at the Academy from what Alexa had explained.
"I have about one gold coin in silvers."
"Good, good. Thought ye'd tell me ye had one silver. Right, anything ta the right of this marker here," Kramer said, moving over and sweeping his hand over the furthest right quarter of the wall, "are ya options. Cheapest are the furthest right while the rest be up ta gold."
Even with the reduction of choices, he still had over fifty to choose from and Damien wasn't exactly dejected over losing the option of buying a moving wand.
He looked at Alexa for help.
"Pick whatever you want," she said with a chuckle "You're the one who wants it as a souvenir, not for magic, remember? Don't ask me."
"You know me best though and I still want it to be practical," he responded.
"Get this one," she said, walking up to the wall and pulling a white one, looking like bone covered in intricate tribal carvings down.
"Why?" he asked.
"Cause it's your favorite color," she responded with a shrug.
"That's... no that's not a good enough reason. What does it do? Wha-"
"All the wands have a description by em. Read it. I'll be around if ye need any help," Kramer said, seeming bored as he disappeared into a nearby shelf.
"...Changelings are creepy," Damien said to Alexa after a few moments.
"They just enjoy scaring people. I'm surprised you didn't know about them with all the knowledge you claim to have," she said with a smirk.
"I've read of them, just... not specifics like that..." he mumbled, turning back to the wall.
Reading over the descriptions, he found nothing he truly wanted. Most allowed the caster to manipulate mana into a structured form easier, while some helped with specific elements. All were labeled with what tier dungeon the shard inside them was pulled from and the ones Damien could choose from were either tier one or two, with a sharp increase in price between them. They also all had the name of the maker, the year it was made, and whether or not the creator had communed with Alteration. Apparently, they were who created wands, yet he'd never seen his dad work on one.
Alexa patiently waited behind him while Kastra flew to her shoulder to make small talk while he milled about. He followed the wall all the way to the right until he bumped into another wall showcasing staffs, a bin set in the corner of the two. Looking down, there were swords and staves set in the bin, none displayed in any remarkable fashion, but all looking beautifully crafted and cared for.
"What's this?" he mumbled.
"Glad ya asked! These are my- oy you alright son?" Kramer said from his left while coming out of the wall of wands, causing Damien to jump again and trip over his legs.
"Please for the love of god stop doing that," he said as Alexa held a hand out with a smile to help him stand, mouthing the word 'Gods' while he took it.
"Sorry sorry, I didn't mean ta scare ya that time though, just wanted ta help, ma boy," Kramer said with a not-at-all apologetic smile.
After a moment to allow his heart to settle, Damien looked back at the man.
"Well, what are they?"
"Failed projects!" Kramer exclaimed with pride in his voice. "Each and every one of em. This a staff that can elongate up to ten feet. Not sure why I made it. This is a sword that can shoot its blade from its hilt! Can't go very far though... None use magic!"
"How did you make them do those things without magic?" Alexa asked in an intrigued voice.
"Trade secret," he said with a wink.
"What about this?" Damien said, pulling a sword out from the pile.
It was pure white in color with a black lines running along the length of it in swirls. It was a bit longer than the other swords he'd seen and had a series of lines cutting across it, unnoticeable unless you looked very closely, which he was doing. It was a gorgeously decorated sword so he couldn't help but examine it closely. The blade was lighter than he'd expected it to be, as well.
"Ah, forgot that was in here... none use magic, except that one!" Kramer laughed, scratching the side of his head." Don't be forgettin er sis now."
Kramer pulled a second blade out that was identical in shape but black in color, with white swirls instead running along it.
"Made these a while back on commission for a nobles son. Said he had a neat idea. Pure Moonstone, took me a while to make. Son gave up on handling them a week in and returned em. His dad let me keep the commission money, too. Not a bad family."
Damien held the sword in his hand and looked down at it with wonder.
"What do they do?" Alexa asked, seemingly as drawn in by the intricate coloration as he was.
With a flick of Kramer's wrist, once again showcasing more strength than his small frame should hold, the man whipped the sword over his head and toward the other end of the aisle. As the sword descended in an arc, Damien heard a click and watched the tip of the blade shoot past the wands to the other side of the shop, the rest elongating and following behind it for about twenty feet.
Damien's mouth dropped open as his peripherals caught Alexa doing the same, both amazed by the serpentine-like strike they'd just witnessed.
"Ye have to use metal manipulation ta get er back to her normal shape, but it ain't hard. Takes a few seconds for most I let try. Makes er impractical," the Changeling said as the sword coiled back into place in a second. "Bit brittle too, all the movin pieces. Shame they're useless, rather thought these were beautiful."
"Like a whip of metal," Alexa whispered.
"How did ya get -ehem- how did you get it to do that?" Damien asked.
"Just gotta send a bit of mana into the hilt to unlock er," he said, motioning towards the white sword in Damien's right hand. "Careful though, they're sharp. Weapons, after all."
Damien did as he was instructed and found the switch after a few seconds, the blade slowly falling out of its usual form, drawn by gravity to the ground in front of him. The moment he stopped his mana, it stopped extending. Willing his mana into the blade, he struggled but eventually managed to get it back to its stationary form. It was hard to get it to retract on itself without damaging all the internal pieces he felt, like solving a metal puzzle.
"Did good, didn't expect ya could get it back in at all," the Changeling said with a smile.
Damien glanced down at the blade and considered the possibilities they held. Sure, they'd be unwieldy for most and a waste of time but for him... for him specifically...
"I want them," Damien declared, almost demanding.
"Funny, but ya can't have em. Wouldn't want ya-"
"I can use them, though. Not right now too well, but I can later. They'd be perfect. Please," Damien said, desire in his eyes as he stared the small man down.
"I... why do ye want em so bad, boy?" Kramer asked after a few moments.
"They're gorgeous and I can put them to use, I swear it," he responded. "They won't just sit here collecting dust."
Kramer examined his face for a bit and smiled mischievously.
"Fine. Prove you can handle em, and they're yours for the gold coin ya got. Just extend the blade down that way without flicking it about. If ye can get er all the way out, they're yours."
Damien nodded and focused on the task. Not exactly the easiest. He knew how he'd want to do it in the future, but for now, he'd try with earth manipulation.
Damien lifted his right arm and held it out, releasing the lock on the sword with his mana. Horizontally, it did not fall to the floor or extend, instead staying in its rigid dormant form. Slowly, the blade extended out, his mana controlling it. The further it got, the harder it became to extend as the weight, internal parts, and fine manipulation grew in difficulty exponentially. Ten feet in, the sword began to droop and Damien's face developed a sweat. At eleven feet, it dropped to the ground and he let out a breath he'd been holding.
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"Good try, boy. But no go. Ye got amazing talent to get it that far but are shite at metal manipulation. Ya wasted so much mana I thought I'd drown in it," Kramer said. "Never seen a Human as young as you with that much mana to waste. Bummer, too. Thought ye had it in ya. Wind er up and put er back. She'll have a home someday, hell maybe with you if ya come back to try-"
"Swear you won't tell anyone what you see if I succeed," the boy said in a pressing tone.
Kramer looked at the young man's eyes, surprised in his sudden switch in demeanor. He'd been pleasant, if typical, of a youth, yet now he held the intelligence and gaze of a grown man.
It was too abrupt.
"Come again, lad?"
"Swear to the God of Truth you won't speak of it if I succeed," Damien said, shocking Kramer.
You never asked someone to swear to that God. It was the same as suicide if they went against their word. The only people who swore by the God of Truth were those that served the Emperor himself; anyone else just used simple mind magic to find out if one was lying.
Kramer did his best to not be offended by the young boy.
"Look, I like ya, but ye need ta watch wha-"
"You said I'm interesting. I can show you something you've never seen before in your life, nor something you'll ever see again," he said.
Kramer stopped himself from berating the young man and stood there, considering his words and the boy himself. Handsome, yes, but as ordinary a Human as they come, if not a bit strange. His eyes certainly told an interesting tale, but it was nothing to write home about. Not a noble, not a knight, he looked like a simple Village kid on vacation.
Looking beyond the young man is where the intrigue came from. The two women he was with were as confounding as it got. A Fae and a Celestial. A well mannered Fae, and a Celestial that tolerated Humans so much it seemed she may even like the boy. Both held the same color in their eyes as he did as well, signifying some kind of connection between the three. Also, both seemed a bit concerned at the boy's words, yet not doubting what he'd said.
'Strange... Interesting!'
Kramer smiled wide.
"Swear what ye show me will be interesting and ye have a deal," he said back with a wide grin, showcasing his mandibles.
Human's hated it when he did that.
"Sir I think-"
Without hesitation, the boy interrupted the Celestial who'd stepped forward at Kramer's demand.
"I swear to the God of Truth I will show you something that most of the world would consider interesting," the young man responded.
'Interesting choice of words.'
The important part in these deals was to word things correctly, which the boy seemed to be aware of, using an... interesting way to formulate his statement, but either way he'd definitely covered what Kramer had wanted him to.
"Then I swear upon the God of Truth I'll not mention in any way what yer bout ta show me outside yerself and whom ye consider family, nor will I hurt ye for it," Kramer said, throwing the man a bone while he felt an invisible weight settle upon his body and disappear.
He could have left it at speaking and gone about writing his findings out to anyone he'd wanted, but he liked the boy, so he hadn't. Instead, Kramer had helped him and shown he'd meant no harm for the price of allowing for questions to at least be asked afterward if it truly was as intriguing as promised.
Damien nodded to his statement and Kramer led him deeper into the shop to his work area before stopping.
"Right, this is as private as it gets. Go ahead," Kramer said, wondering why the Celestial took a few steps back.
The air around them changed the instant he'd finished speaking. His skin began prickling and the boy's hair began to lift as small amounts of lightning magic shifted around him. Lackluster at first, the lightning strengthened and began to arc from his body with loud cracking sounds in a manner that was terrifying to Kramer, instinctively backing up as he stared on in shock. In his hundred years of life he'd never once seen that particular magic act like that.
The boy held out his arm as the lightning snaked its way from all across his body to it, rotating in circles before it funneled into the size of a finger and licked its way onto Eira, the name Kramer had originally given the white blade. The undulating serpent of lightning moved slowly, leashed by the boy's will as it extended out onto the blade, occasionally zapping to different pieces of it. Eventually, it reached the end of the blade and the sword began to branch into the open air, away from the blade at the same crawling pace.
Steadily, Eira began to expand outward, following the lightning magic as if drawn to it.
'Two, three feet... Is he just putting on a show and extending it with meta-'
A white flash blinded him slightly as the sound of the heaven's lightning erupted around the room, causing Kramer to jump back unintentionally and silencing his thoughts. The energy had shot forward with a loud snap and the blade followed it out, hovering in the air at its fully extended length of twenty-five feet.
Kramer had known the swords went further than he'd shown, but couldn't hold them up so far away from his body at further lengths. He'd only successfully managed to get it out twenty-two feet and five inches, using twenty feet as a good demonstration length to shock people, yet now the blade hung freely in the air as if it were simply hung on display.
The lightning continued to spiral around the extended blade as it began moving in a wave-like S pattern through the air. It did this for a few seconds and then coiled around the boy like an Imoogi Dragon, protective and deadly, before it retracted all at once, almost instantly.
The tension in Kramer's heart settled, fearing the boy was being ripped apart when it had uncoiled itself, and the room went back to normal. The slight buzzing sound that had been present disappeared and Kramer's eyes slowly re-adjusted to the normal lighting.
"It went further than I thought," the young- no, the man said as he stared down at his new blade, though he didn't know it yet.
Kramer was ecstatic he'd made the deal.
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Damien watched on as Kramer wrapped the two swords, sheaths, and one of the more expensive second-tier wands he'd thrown in for free while chatting with his father.
The Changeling had asked more than a few questions that Damien hadn't answered and a few that he had after his display. Enchanting the man with words he couldn't possibly understand and a second demonstration of electromagnetism was of no consequence.
It had felt as if the sword had been an extension of his mana. He couldn't move it up or down very much while it was shortened and horizontal or he'd risk breaking it, but it played almost limitlessly side to side. Once he'd extended it fully it had even gained around six feet of play up and down, allowing him to fully wrap it around his body.
Electromagnetism.
A concept he'd practiced with a little since coming to this world, but not as much as he would be after this encounter. Just moving his mana in a spiral pattern with the current behind it was enough to generate a magnetic pull on the sword, allowing him to move it however his electricity flowed. Should a day come when he was close to running out of mana, these swords would be a deadly last bastion of defense.
He'd kept the voltage low during the display to prevent the swords from heating up too immensely, but had allowed some uncontrolled electricity to arc loudly from his body and the tip of the blade. The Changeling, Kramer, had asked for a show after all, and he'd make sure there was one. He had put a condition in the promise he'd made to all but make sure he'd fulfill it, knowing those on Earth would be amazed, but he wanted to make sure just in case.
Kramer had turned out to be more trustworthy than Damien had thought initially. He had been listening to the words Kramer used to make the agreement and would have forced him to alter it had he only promised spoken words, yet the Changeling had made sure to include written words along with a promise of integrity. Contracts with the Fae and movies in his past taught him to be a stickler about wording when dealing with people.
He'd have to shop here again when he had money.
Kramer handed the packages off to Damien and Alexa. Damien smiled to the man as they turned to leave.
"Thanks for everything Mr. Kramer," Damien said with a nod, turning back.
"No trouble at all ma boy, didn't expect ta ever see... well, that. Worth every copper," the Changeling smiled back.
"Well, I appreciate it. We'll go back first dad, don't stay here too late."
"I won't, I just want to talk with Mr. Kramer here a bit more."
"Please, call me Fletch," the Changeling said, smiling wide while offering his father a seat.
"Fletch then. We'll finish up before the day ends, promise," Garrett said with a smile.
Damien knew that smile. He'd be here for a while, it seemed. Maybe Fletch would help his dad with one or two pieces of his work.
Damien smiled back to his father before walking out of the store with Alexa on his left, Kastra on his left shoulder, and Eira and Kiara in his arms.