It was a few months later that I was able to finally use the steel that I had been steadily enchanting. Realistically, Derren only gave me “free forge time” about ten percent of the time, or when I had no other tasks. Even still I had been determined to at least make the hunk of folded over steel into a usable item, to do that I needed to be certain it would retain the enchantments I had forged into the metal. It had taken many failures to get to the point I was at now.
After months and months of working it I felt the mana, I felt the connection to it. I still didn't have the [Runesmithing] skill, but that was okay. I needed to finish the product in the next few days, then I could start my next project - learning the [Runeweaving] skill. After that I just needed to make myself some gear, and help Derren make some weapons and armors. My wage was just enough for me to save up, and to occasionally purchase materials or treats for my foxes. The two were curled up near one of the work tables, they liked to come with me to the forge but it was too hot for them to hover next to me.
I bounced impatiently as the billet was being heated so I could finally forge the damascus-like steel into the gift I wanted it to be. Maya would be turning ten soon, in only a few days.
“Aye, yer steel finally ready, kid?” Derren peaked over as he quenched the sword he had been working on for a guardsman. The man's last one had worn down to the point of irreparability. I had expected Derren to whinge about him not taking care of his equipment but the smith was rather elated. He had said “Can’ make no money if’n they take cur of dey weapons. Bad etiquette is good fer business.”
“Yessir, I told ya it’d work!” I called back, eyeing it to ensure it didn’t get too hot. I had no skills for heat management, unlike Derren, but I had gotten pretty good at judging when to pull it from the forge.
“I believe it when I sees it, kid.” He was grinning though, I could tell he was just as excited by my success as I was.
“Yeah yeah, focus on your own project old man, let this young buck show you how it's done!” I confidently pulled the billet out and placed it on the anvil. My hammer rained down, sparks showering me. This would still take a while, but I had an hour yet before supper so I would use this time to its fullest. The cool winter air felt amazing whenever a breeze billowed through the open pavilion.
It took four days to forge the spearhead, but the moment I finished heat treating it I received a notification.
Your skill [Smithing] is eligible to upgrade to [Runesmithing], Would you like to upgrade?
[Smithing] is now officially [Runesmithing]
[Runesmithing]: an artform hidden and hoarded by the dwarves. Others outside of the dwarves have attempted for millenia to learn the craft on their own but few succeed. The process is difficult, tedious, and meticulous. A mishap can be catastrophic, resulting in the release of all of the mana that was pressed into the metal, but those who take their time and exercise patience and a love for their craft are able to create something magnificent. Imbue magic, runes, and intent into the material to create enchantments far more powerful than the norm.
“Oi, Lios, what’r ya spacin out fer?” Derren broke me from my stupor. I hadn’t realized it but I had stood there rereading the notification over and over, as though in disbelief. I had tried for over six months to earn this skill and I finally got it.
“I did it... Derren I got the skill.” I grinned at him, tears running up to my eyes a bit. I forced them back before inspecting the steel spearhead.
“Lemme see ‘er boy!” The older man rushed towards me, excited as I was. I saw his eyes flare, using his blacksmith’s appraisal skill. It let him see a description, value, and name of the craftsman for any blacksmith related item. Basically anything that might be created at a forge, he could appraise.
I handed him the spearhead as he looked at it. His eyes widened as he read the notice from his skill. I tapped my foot impatiently, eager to see what enchantments had actually held. I was intending to imbue it with sharpness, durability, and a lightning enchantment. This was the most difficult part, especially with the use of the Lexico language. Due to the constraints of only five runes per circle I had been forced to use three seperate cuts of metal when I had started. They all came from the same ingot but I had to separate them and begin the enchanting process on each of them separately before forge welding them together again and starting the runesmithing process. The weld was the step that had given me the most issues, followed by inserting runes and mana into the construct during the making of the damascus.
Derren whistled in appreciation. “Mighty fine work der Lios. Mighty fine. Sharpness, durability, and an elemental affinity to boot? Ya sure ya wanna give dis away? I’ll cut ya inta the profits if we c’n sell it.”
“I’m sure, I still gotta attach it to a pole anyway. Besides, tis a gift for a friend.” I took it back from him, admiring my own work. The pattern built by the folding of the metal made it look as though the speartip was constantly moving, like snakes wriggling in a pit. It was trippy, but epic looking.
“Bah, ye c’n use dat walnut stave ova der,” He scowled as he pointed towards it. It was near the rest of the wood, and had sat there for a long while before I even showed up to start working at his forge. “Tomorra I have ya star’ runecrafting a few billets. We c’n try a mix metal, and mayhaps I’ll trust ya’s with orichalcrum or somethin fancy next weck. Good job kiddo.” He ruffled my hair, sometimes I forgot I was still a kid. Though, my budding hormones sometimes made it difficult to forget. My voice wasn’t quite cracking yet but I knew it was only a matter of time.
Two days later, my friend showed up for some training. I grinned, I had wrapped the spear up and had it laying near the well when she arrived. I had scribed a durability enchantment to the shaft of the spear.
“Maya! I have something for you!” I called out as she rounded the corner of my house. Sky rushed towards her, she loved Maya. The fox yipped joyously as though they had been apart for a decade, when it had only been a day. Somehow Maya gave Sky the best bellyrubs, or something. I couldn’t tell what the fox thought just yet.
“For me? Lios you know you didn’t have to get me anything.” The girl beamed at me, her eyes gleaming. She was halfway to the well. I jogged to beat her there before picking up the long package.
“Of course I did, as your teacher, why shouldn't I get you a gift on this most momentous day?” I tried to say it stoically, attempting to exude the energy of a tenured professor.
She laughed at me. “Oh why thank you Mr. Lios, how great a mentor you are to buy me a gift for my birthday!” She reached out towards it and I happily handed it over. Luka ran towards us from the house, he often played in the garden. I scooped him up as Sky continued to harass Maya for belly rubs, flopping in front of her and rolling onto her back. I groaned, noticing her white and silver fur filling with dirt. Luka was no better, the boy loooved to burrow. It was a requirement for me to wash them both before letting them inside.
I watched as Maya gingerly unwrapped the spear, starting from the base of the handle. She wound up sitting, her back against the well, as she did. She gasped at seeing the polished dark walnut stave that made up the shaft. Her careful unwrapping went to the wayside, and she ripped the rest of the cloth off with gusto. The speartip was covered with a leather sheath, to prevent it from cutting the cloth I had wrapped it with. I trembled with anticipation as she pulled the sheath off. She was silent, staring at the spear with her mouth open. She closed it, looked like she wanted to say something, then closed it again.
Finally she seemed to gather her thoughts. “Lios... this is too much. Way too much. How could you afford this?” She put the sheath back on, looking like she was on the verge of tears.
The spear was, truly, artistic. I had no doubts that in the dwarven lands something like this would be commonplace, but here in arborton, in the middle of human territory, weapons like this were pretty rare. It was still nothing compared to what a duo of smiths and enchanters could create, at least if they were experts in their fields, but for it to have been created by an apprentice was impressive in itself. My smile widened, I felt a hint of pride at her reaction to it.
My mother came out, walking towards us. I hadn’t let her or father look at the spear after I finished it, insisting that Maya would be the first.
“It cost me a total of three silvers, I made it. I will not take it back.” I glared at her playfully.
“Happy birthday Maya! Did you already open your gift from Lios?” My mom stopped near the well, looking down at Maya who was still trying to wrap her head around the spear.
“T thank you, Miss Elaine. I did... Can you tell him it's too much? I can't accept this Lios.” She was tearing up, I could see her frowning. “I really cant accept it. You know it’s worth more than the silver...”
“Well, let me see it, then I’ll decide if it's too much.” My mom was staring at the spear.
Maya stood up and unsheathed it, gazing at the patterned blade with wonder. My mother couldn't hold back her surprise and inspected it.
“Lios, you made this?” She asked me, a sternness in her voice.
I rolled my eyes, knowing she was looking at the spear. “Yes mother, Derren can attest.”
“You're not... propositioning little Maya are you?” She turned to face me, blushing a little bit, but not near as much as Maya, whose face lit up like a fireplace.
“What no, this is just a gift between friends!” I looked between the two of them, my own blush rising to my face. I hadn’t even thought about that, traditionally it was rare to give gifts to those of the opposite gender -especially fancy or expensive ones- unless you were proposing to them.
“Well then... I'd hate to see what your proposal gift would look like. Maya, this is yours. It would be impolite to return it.” Her tone was soft when talking to the girl.
My mother walked away, leaving Maya and I in silence. I was halfway wishing that she’d stay to save us from the awkwardness but she did not. Maya’s face was still scarlett, and mine I was sure wasn't much better. Damn youthful hormones.
From there the years passed pretty quickly. I was able to gain the [Runeweaving] skill just before my twelfth birthday, after successfully making a pair of self cleaning and repairing pants that gradually absorbed mana from the world. They were simple, flowy pants. Flexible and light. Not long after I made a similarly enchanted tunic, it was around this time I was wishing I could learn different runes, I was losing versatility. Complexity was needed for some better enchantments, these would do for now but when I went to the larger cities my enchantments would seem quaint.
It was my thirteenth birthday when my parents got me a new runecraft book titled “Promens Guide to the Frith Runewrit”. This new language was much more complex, geared towards enchantments but could be used for spells as well. I was unable to create a new runedance with them for a while, as it took some time to study and master each of the over five hundred runes in the tome. This book only contained about a fifth of the runes of Frith, but each took its own page with a description on their uses and what happens when specific runes crack or malfunction.
Even after a year and a half I was incapable of making a new runedance with Frith runes, I was still in the process of making a useful spell with the runes. I was close, very close, and was using the Lexico runes to create a beginning rune to gather mana. The goal was to supplement my lack of knowledge with something I was more familiar with. It didn’t help that I was attempting to write a more complex spell, one that would give me a burst of speed and power as well as blowing people away from me. I intended it as a way to close a gap or run away.
I was stood at the forge, working on my latest personal project. While I hadn’t mastered the runes enough to cast during combat I had figured out a series of enchantments that could all be added to the same weapon. I was in the process of adding the final runes to the billet, next would be the actual crafting portion. Over the years I had gone out on a few hunts with my father and the foxes, who had grown to their full size a few years past.
I was now level forty-one, though during that time I had only gained one new skill, [Runesight]. This skill was similar to my [Mana Sense], though rather than letting me simply feel the mana around me, it gave all runes a peculiar glow depending on what they did. A single enchantment would glow one color, but individual runes varied. Otherwise, my [Fox Raising] skill had become [Fox Friend]. I found it interesting that it wasn't in Latin like the class had been.
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I finished hammering down on the alloyed metal, a combination of three ingots that I wanted to make up my weapon. It was nearing the time when I would depart on my journey, I wanted to leave by my fifteenth birthday and that was only in around six months or so. I had already finished my armor, after much deliberation, and after being lectured by Derren about the inefficiency and lack of protection leather armor would provide, I designed something closer to what a roman footsoldier would wear. My version of the ‘Lorica Segmantata was crafted using the extra bits of mana steel that I bought from Derren at wholesale. Unfortunately, unlike with my sword, I couldn’t afford the extra metals to create an alloy so I instead settled for a set of armor using the highly enchantable steel. It cost a pretty penny, at least two months of wages, but in the end it was well worth it. The layered steel bands and plates kept the armor flexible enough and the rough tunic I typically wore underneath kept it from chaffing. I wound up using the wolf pelt to give it a trim at the collar, arms, and around the waist. That, alongside some grieves and bracers kept me able to move freely while maintaining some solid defense. It took a fair amount of manipulating but I was able to enchant the armor to self repair from minor dings and dents, and to clean itself. On top of that went my standard durability enchantment. This was relatively simple, if not tedious, to do considering my familiarity with the runes.
“Oy, Lios, did ya ‘ear? Der’s a group o’ adventu’re’s stay’n at da tavern. Werent ye waitin for some?” Derren called out from his side of the forge.
Two other hammers were clanging against anvils, one helping him and the other a new apprentice who was practicing making knives. I gingerly placed my billet back into the forge so I could start shaping the metal. It was combination of Mana Steel -made from iron from a mine near a mana spring so it was able to absorb extra magic, and would make enchantments hold longer and stronger-, Orichalcrum -a blueish green ore that was both durable and held onto magic nearly as long as mithril-, and quicksilver. The quicksilver had the lowest melting point but was able to imbue items with the ability to shift and change at the whim of the owner, assuming the correct runes were crafted into it. The alloy was tough to work with, I had to be careful not to overheat it else the quicksilver could be lost and I would be forced to restart, which I had already done thrice.
“Really? Do ya know ‘ow long they’re stayin?” I had started to speak like Derren a bit, I supposed being near someone for that long might influence your speech like that.
“Eh, not ye’. They only jus came inta town. Oy ya bloody twit, hold it steady now, no no’ like dat,'' Derren started to berate his apprentice. I did not miss those days, the last two or so years I had worked basically by myself. When the two new guys came in, a pair of twins who wanted to be smiths, I had helped Derren train them on occasion but mostly he had them help him.
I spent the last hour and a half or so of my shift shaping out the blade to my sword. With the runesmithing out of the way the rest would only take a few days to finish, given I typically could only work on my own projects for about two hours a day. As the sun began to set I gingerly placed my unfinished weapon on a rack, cleaned up my work area, and pulled Luka and Sky from their nap on the pile of leather sitting on a table. Sky took her place as my scarf, she had gotten big but still enjoyed the perch. Luka made me carry him, he loved to be held despite acting aloof with people more often than not. I snuggled him affectionately as I walked towards the tavern rather than my home.
Adventurers were rare in Arborton, though we got more of them than other towns our size as there was a road from Arborton to the capital and one to Arwin, the country on the other side of the Deepbloom forest. The main reason was that small towns and villages couldn't afford to take on adventurers or even bounty hunter guilds. We were still able to post quest requests but more often than not the folk in our town had to band together to take care of them. There were a few groups of adventurers who took to wandering and took on quests in the guards stead.
I listened to the sound of the townsfolk wandering through the streets near us. Luka was starting to grow restless so I let him down but Sky stayed on my shoulders. I smiled as a small child pointed in wonder at the foxes, and waved to her and her mother. The Tavern was only a few minutes from Derrens, so I made it there quickly. I sighed nervously as I stood before the door, this was a huge moment. They could say no to my request, and if they did I’d likely be forced to depart on my own for Port Airos after my birthday. I didn’t mind that option either, but I was a touch directionally challenged and I don't think my [He Who Wanders] skill would help my case. The skill had only leveled up twice since I got it, once when I was out hunting a boar with my father and stumbled on a giant spider nest, which we quickly killed thanks to my sword dance of spreading flames, and the other when he had taken me deeper into the woods during one of his missions to clear a threat in the forest. We had camped out overnight, gotten slightly lost, and it was only when we returned home while we thought we were aimlessly wandering that my skill leveled. I think it was because it had directed me towards my goal, despite not guiding me to anything resembling a path.
I cringed as the door squeaked, for some reason in my mind I imagined the tavern growing silent and everyone turning to glare at me. That didn’t happen. I saw the place was at around sixty percent capacity, many people often came here after work especially the arborists. The lumberjacks and those that worked at the sawmill I knew came here at least three nights a week. I stepped into the hazy tavern, a number of patrons had no qualms about smoking inside. I wrinkled my nose at the smell of smoke. I wasn’t sure if it was similar to marijuana or tobacco, the smell was different, but I didn’t think I was inclined to find out. I started walking into the room, glancing about to see if I could find the adventurers.
I gulped as I spotted them, instead of approaching them I stepped up to the bar and as I did, distracted by my thoughts, a hand clasped over my shoulder. I glanced over it to see Calimax behind me.
“Lios, yer pa lettin you drink already? Me thinks you're too young.” The older man grinned at me. “I'll keep it a secret for ya if ya buy me a pint.”
I rolled my eyes, no way was this grown man attempting to swindle a fourteen year old for a few copper. Ignoring him, I leaned over the bartop. “Aye, could I get something non-alcoholic? And whatever this glout wants.” I pointed a finger at my fathers coworker who gleefully accepted a mug.
“What ya here for anyway kid?” Calimax asked after receiving his pint of ale and taking a sip.
“I came to talk to them,” I said, pointing to the table in the corner. I sighed again and looked at Max, having to crane my neck a bit. “Think they’d let me join em?”
“What, when they leave? Maybe if you paid em... I dunno, adventurers are weird. Cant be normal in that profession.”
“Well, wish me luck, and quit extorting kids for ale.” I teased the man as I stood from my stool, the bartender had given me a mug of juice that I suspected was nearing its expiration date. I timidly walked over to the adventurers, analyzing each of them.
The first I saw was facing away from me, towards the table. She looked small, young, at least from this angle. The one to her right, however, was huge. Taller than my father and more muscular than Derren, the man was a mountain and a monster. He was wearing a tight chain shirt, it glittered and I was sure it was made from an irregular metal to give it the flexibility of fabric. At his side was a greatsword, leaning against the table. It was hard to tell, but I felt a small power coming from it. I activated my runesight, and was immediately inundated with the glow of magic and runes. The glow was present on all of them, on most of their gear. They were decked out in enchantments, which made me even more nervous. That meant they were strong. Upon activating it the woman facing away from me turned, and my heart stopped for a moment.
Her eyes were bright, vivid red. Her skin was pale, and her hair dark and black. And by god she was beautiful. She smiled at me, her ruby lips twisting up gently. She was wearing a pale pink tunic that must have cost a fortune, dyes were expensive, and a black skirt. I stopped for a moment, my face flushing with embarrassment as I felt the warmth of teenage hormones flow through me. I continued my slow walk towards them. The last two stopped their conversation as the woman turned.
The one at the far end of the table, the one I could see the least, was another woman. She was dressed in what looked like classic mage robes, flowing fabric cascading around her. She was blonde I could see, but her eyes were shielded to me by her hood. She tilted her head as I approached and I could tell she was staring at Sky, Luka was just out of her sight being on the ground. I smiled a little bit, my friends were great conversation starters.
The last of the group leaned back in his chair, his muscles rippling. He was in a tan sleeveless jerkin, with plain trousers. His clothes were the only ones without runes etched into them, but instead his hands were covered with them, rings and bracelets adorning his fingers and wrist. He had a sword resting beside him too, a gorgeous weapon with silver hilt and an ivory handle. The pommel gleamed with a small gem, I recognized it as a lumina stone, a type of magical gem that could store mana for emergencies. This man was covered in tattoos, each seeming to depict a different monster. Scars adorned both his and the large man's bodies.
I stopped in front of them but before I could say anything the pale girl with red eyes spoke up. “Can I pet them? Oh my gods, by the divines or whatever they are sooooo cute.” She giggled and held a hand out for Luka, who looked at me for a moment as I nodded. He went up to sniff her hand.
The other woman pulled down her hood, her blonde hair shimmering in the candlelight of the tavern, and I saw she had green eyes. “I wouldn't mind petting them either,” she stated matter of factly, a touch of pink on her cheeks.
I smiled a bit, and coerced Sky to come down from my shoulder as I passed her to the large man to pass to the woman “Her name is Sky, you can hold her if you want.” The man grinned wide as he took the fox and rather than handing her over he flipped Sky on her back and started giving her belly rubs. The woman pouted, but apparently they were great scritches as Sky playfully wiggled around, nomming lightly on the man's hand.
“I apologize for disturbing your time off... I have a request.” I glanced around at each of them.
The sleeveless man cocked his head. “A request? We’re all ears. M’name is Adrien. You?” His eyes flicked between me and Sky, luka was under the table getting pets from the scary girl.
“My name is Alexilios-”
“Ye should pull up a chair, kid.” The big guy interjected and looked behind me at the empty table. I glanced back and stole a chair, sliding between him and the girl playing with Luka.
“My name is Lios and uhm. I was hoping to uhm-”
“For the sake of the divines spit it out.” His voice was like gravel, deep and intimidating.
“Elric, give the boy his time. And give me that damn fox.” The blond woman slapped his arm.
“No way, Liana. This lil fucker is waay too cute to go to you pigheads.” Elric beamed as Sky started wriggling in his lap and nibbling at his fingers, chattering a little bit. It was now playtime. I couldn’t help but let out a light chortle at their banter.
“Liana, Elric, shh. Let the kid talk. Now Lios, what were you saying?” Adrien stopped the bickering from going too far but I still heard Liana say “He started it,” under her breath.
I couldn't help it, I laughed a little bit. My nerves were vanishing due to their antics, I think in my head I had set expectations for them to be terrifying powerful people, but they were, after all, still people.
I took a deep breath, steeling myself so I wouldn't stammer this time. “I would like to request to join you all at least until you next reach a city with an adventurer’s guild.”
My pronouncement paused the two playing with my pets. Adrien looked me over carefully. The unnamed woman beside me straightened up and stared at me, it seemed like she was looking for something. Liana blinked a couple times, and Elric opened his mouth to say something then stopped himself.
“You want to... join us? You want us to escort you?” Adrien asked and I saw his eyes flash. “So you're a swordsman? Where is your sword?”
“Wait... how did you know?” I was shocked that he could tell, it must be a type of appraisal skill. It wasn’t often one had a skill that allowed them to see a description of other people.
“Do you have the coin to hire us?” Elric resumed petting and playing with Sky just before Liana, taking advantage of his distraction, stole her from his grasp. He whipped to face her his question forgotten.
“I well... I don't have much coin but I can earn it on the way. I’ll repay you before we get to the city, I swear.” I felt my heart drop a little bit, my purse only held the equivalent of two gold pieces, and a few extra silver. “But I’m a smith and enchanter too, so I can keep your gear in tiptop shape.” I tried to grin charismatically at them.
“Let me get this straight, you want to join us but cant pay? You'll ,what, be our errand boy until we reach the city?” This time it was the girl who’s name I still didn't know. Her voice was soft, light. I wasn't sure what it was but something about her made me tremble. I couldn't tell if it was hormones or something magical.
“That and as Adrien said I’m a swordsman, I can help with the requests you take. Or at least take on smaller requests while you guys deal with larger ones.” I looked at each of them in turn, though Liana was snuggling Sky and paying no attention to me. I felt she was squeezing her too hard but I knew if that were the case Sky would bite her. Maya often got too excited and squeezed the foxes.
“That begs the question, where’s ya sword?” Elric asked, his voice commanding attention.
“It’s at the forge, I need at least two more days to finish it... assuming you’re all in town long enough for that.”
“Did you bring the foxes to convince us?” Liana spoke up as she released an exasperated Sky to the floor.
“Not necessarily, they would be coming with me though.”
“Oy, can we get another round o’er here?” Adrien suddenly called the barmaid who was delivering some drinks to another table. “Listen, kid, without coin it's a long shot. Even with the prospect o’ treatin our gear. The way I see it, ye aint even level fifty yet are you? Though you feel pretty powerful for your level. Come by tomorrow. Bring a sword. Even if it's not your preferred. We have to discuss this one as a group.”
“Sure, thank you guys for hearing me out.” I turned towards the one whose name I didn't yet know. “May I ask for your name? I heard all the others.”
“Just my name?” there was a knowing twinkle in her eyes and I couldn't help chuckling a bit nervously. She was a little predatory, and I most certainly did not have issues or a type. “It's Amelia. A pleasure, I'm sure.”
“It is. Luka, Sky it's time to go home!” I stood up and bowed towards them. “If you need weapons or armor please come visit the smithy in the middle of town, Derrens the smith there and I work in the afternoons.” I started towards the door before turning around for a moment. “Adrien, Liana, Elric, and Amelia, I look forward to our meeting tomorrow.”
I didn't wait for a reply, instead walking out quickly. I noticed Calimax followed me out as well, he walked just behind me for a few moments before speaking up. “Lios, do your parents know you plan to leave?”
“Yeah... though I told them I'd leave after I turned fifteen. I’ve just grown impatient, think they’d forgive me?” I turned to look at him over my shoulder. He was swaying a bit. I waited for him to catch up before helping him walk, one of his arms taking Skys spot over my shoulders. He wasn't as heavy as I expected him to be.
“I c’n wal fine kid.” His words slurred a bit, he wasn't trashed by any means, but that didn't mean I couldn't escort him to his house.
“Yeah, I know but let me do this anyway.” I smiled at him and walked with him for a bit, until we reached his door. We chatted mostly idly, it seemed he had something he wanted to say. When he stepped into his house he looked back at me.
“Thanks, Lios, you're a good kid. You should tell yer parents tonight.” Then he closed the door. I caught a sad look in his eyes.
“See ya, Max, get some rest.” I called out before rushing back home. At this point I was around an hour and a half past supper and I knew my mother would likely be furious. It wasn’t often that I was late.