Chapter 26: Potential Prototypes

The good thing about working with a small team was that they were always in communication with one another, and everyone saw the progress pile up. The hard part was it was just them, working on every tedious task in turns. They often had to take breaks while another of them worked on a part. Occasionally Wil wondered about the extra people he swore Cloverton would send, but their absence was a relief.

The other problem was a lack of progress toward exploiting leylines. There were advancements and victories. A week in, Wil had managed to link the two smaller leylines into a bigger, stronger one. The unified leyline was stronger than the two smaller ones had been combined, and now ran the length of the property.

Although it was bigger and stronger, they were no closer to making it power the small devices they’d prepared. Which led Bram and Darlene to focus on alternatives. A week after the merging of the leyline, they all gathered in Bram’s cellar for a presentation.

“This,” said Darlene, as she stood behind a covered table, “is what we’ve been working on. And by we, I mean mostly Bram, with me logging things and suggesting different approaches based on his notes and Wil’s books.”

“We’re delighted to show what we have,” Bram said beside her. Like usual, he looked like an over excited, overly large child. He had yet to do one of his little dances, however. “Even if we somehow can’t accomplish our goal, this should still be a great addition to the hallowed halls of major discoveries.”

“If we somehow can’t accomplish our goal, then I might end up disappearing forever,” Wil joked. No one laughed.

“What have you got for us?” Thomas asked, after the ensuing silence lingered long enough to grow awkward.

Darlene nudged Bram and ripped the cover from the table, revealing a handful of knickknacks and gadgets. The most notable of them was the metal box with an emerald green glow coming off the top, but there were also a couple of minor spellboxes and one small chest with runic configurations covering the surface, and an odd metal dial on the side.

“Fantastic,” said Wil. “What are they and how do they work?”

Bram held up the first spellbox. “This one is pretty simple, and kind of based on wands anyway. When activated, it projects an illusion. This other one plays a song. Simple stuff, right? I spent a lot of time really looking up runic configurations and how they work, and after my brain melted, it gave me a few ideas. If runes are words of power, then configurations are like sentences, right? That’s how you described it to me, once.”

Thomas made a sound. “That’s a simplified version of it, but not a bad way of putting it. Configurations are linked runes that come together to do certain effects based on the shape of the greater rune the configuration spells out. It is as much about the collective as it is the individual. Which is why so much trial and error goes into finding the best configurations.”

“Wait,” said Darlene, leaning against the table for support. At six and a half months along, standing was more of a strain and tiring than it had been. “If that’s a configuration, what’s an array?”

Wil answered this one. “Arrays aren’t as intricate, but often have more power and…weight, for lack of a better way of putting it. If a configuration is a detailed sentence, an array is like shouting a single word, or a short sentence. It’s talking about what you’re going to talk about to make it more clear.” He stood and picked up one of the spell boxes. He pointed to the symbols carved into the wood.

“If you take a look here, the arrays along the border are simple but effective runes for things like ‘containment’, ‘sound, and…A complicated, modular rune that measures things. And then the more delicate, intricate configurations in the center of each side talk about things like conditions and specifics.”

He closed the lid on the box and poured a bit of magic in it. “Open this.”

Darlene took it and examined it closer. She popped the lid open, and from the box came an uncomfortably loud moo. Rolling her eyes, she looked at Bram.

“What!? It was simple.” Bram laughed and took it from her. “Well, not really, but it works! And there’s a million different conditions or ways we change the illusion.”

“Works normally, yes,” said Thomas. He was always good at keeping them on track. “What about with the leyline? What have you done to aid in that? Curious, not accusing.”

Wil sat back down. Darlene looked irritated at the question, but Bram cleared his throat. “We’re getting to that. But first, look at this.” He pushed the small chest to the front. “Just an ordinary chest, right?”

“It’s obviously not, but go on,” said Thomas. Wil laughed, and Bram took a second to compose himself before continuing.

“We were talking about heating and cooling for the seasons, right? Well this is my first attempt at making an ice box…without the ice!” Bram framed the box with his hands and wiggled his fingers while mimicking the sound of an excited audience.

“That’d definitely be useful,” said Wil. “That’s bound to be a lot more complicated than an illusion box. Don’t feel bad if it takes a couple of iterations to work.”

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Darlene jabbed a finger in his direction. “Hey! No being pessimistic in the middle of our presentation. Poke holes in it later, after we’re done.”

“Can we test it out, then? Show us how it works.” Thomas looked more interested in this one. “We already can do something similar with magic by tying a spell to runes and renewing the spell every so often. How is this different?”

Bram ran a finger along the dial. “So, you have all the necessary runic configurations to detail out not just cold, but temperature variation. So if we were to tweak it, it could also run hot. But in this case, we take this dial…” he twisted it, and both the dial and a ring of metal around it rotated.

Wil and Thomas both leaned in closer to inspect it.

“Oh,” said Thomas. “Rotating modular runes. That’s more complex than I was expecting from you.”

“Yeah!” said Bram. “I got the idea off of Wil’s Thunderhawk and some sleds he made. Getting it just right will still take some time, but as you can see, each rune is a specified temperature. Sort of specified. The runes we’re using for settings are things like ‘rain’, but a very specific type of chilly rain. Or ‘snow’ and ‘blizzard’ for our coldest setting. We do have one setting for ‘gentle sunlight’ to compare and contrast.”

Wil wasn’t as surprised about this one. Bram had bounced ideas for it off of him the entire time. It made the futile days tapping the leyline more enjoyable, and now Wil got to share in the excitement. “Good job,” he said to Bram.

“I really don’t mean to be raining on the parade all the time, but that’s if it works.” Thomas turned to address them all, his lip curled in restrained frustration. “They’re great ideas, and I’m willing to bet these will be viable products once we’ve ironed out all the issues. But what does it have to do with the leyline? Is that what the final object is?”

Darlene took a deep breath like she did when someone tested her patience. “Yes,” she said, slowly exhaling. “This is a battery. But not just any battery. According to Wil’s books, faricite can be used to help fuel long-term enchantments, right?”

“Yes,” said Thomas. “Faricite batteries are already a thing.”

“What about ones you can reuse? Ones that get recharged by the leyline with less strain on the wizard focusing the magic?” Darlene’s smile was as smug as it was justified.

“Go on,” said Wil, as if he hadn’t helped rehearse it. “How are we going to make it easier to recharge?”

Bram took off his glasses and cleaned them on his shirt. The cellar was always dusty, but mostly he did it when he needed to think. Like the act of cleaning his glasses would make him see more clearly on every level. “I believe that for now, we can use a specific runic configuration to always be seeking to draw in magic. Using runes for ‘hunger’, ‘feeding’, and ‘power’, as well as ones for ‘gift’, ‘exhale’, and ‘touch’.”

Thomas’ eyes lit up. “Those are borderline contradictory, but…depending on the array you use and the specific configurations…That could work. Wait, you're saying that it can power things up by touching them?”

Without saying a word, Darlene held up one of the spellboxes. She closed the box and set it on top of the battery. It stayed there for a few seconds before she opened the lid. It mooed loudly for all to hear.

Wil’s heart soared. They didn’t know if it would be reusable yet, but this alone was an astounding discovery. Thomas staggered back a step, then collapsed into his seat. Darlene laughed at him.

“That good enough for you, Tommy?” Darlene grinned, standing tall with her hands on her lower back. “Surprised a couple of nulls managed to make it work?”

“I’d never call you a null,” Thomas protested.

Darlene grasped the still mooing box. She lifted the chest and stuck it inside, then moved the battery over to the icebox. “Care to do the honors, Bram?”

Bram, sensing the tense mood, said nothing but twisted the dial. Metal on metal spun around until the rune for ‘blizzard’ completed. Then he leaned against the box and they waited.

“Seriously,” said Thomas. “I don’t like that term. You two have done a great job, and I’m sorry if I’ve said anything unintentionally insulting.”

Wil stepped in. “Look, things are tense, and we’re all still adjusting to each other.” He winced at how that sounded. He wasn’t fooling anyone. Thomas didn’t fit in as well, but he was trying. That had to count for something, right? “The most important thing is we have not only a potential success, but a direction.”

Darlene nodded and muttered an apology under her breath. “Do us the honors, Bram. Let’s see what happens when Harper Valley’s smartest man puts his mind to something.”

Bram turned the dial back to neutral, then opened the chest. He reached for the spellbox, then jerked back with a yelp.

“I think we do have a success,” said Darlene. “So here’s one more for you, Thomas. If this battery…or the next one, let’s be honest, it could take a few tries. If this battery works, I want to stick it in a car.”

Thomas chuckled. “That’s Ferrovani’s next move. He’s going to put in batteries so that wizards can drive without taxing themselves. This…This would not only put more cars in the hands of people, but it would also make for safer driving, if all the sensory spells and similar work for non-magical people.

“Honestly, you two have done an incredible job.” He didn’t sound shocked so much as surprised. His normally smooth, collected face twisted into discomfort. “And all the while Wil and I have only made one breakthrough of our own. We’ve only got eight more weeks until we have to be ready, and we’re off to an incredible start. And as Ferrovani’s apprentice, I think I’ll be able to help with that, if you’ll let me.”

“That could work,” said Darlene. “If you can watch your mouth. You did get me a car. Now I want one that isn’t as loud, smelly, or rough to drive.”

“That could be arranged,” said Wil. A huge weight he didn’t realize had been there lifted from his shoulders. “Then all that remains is seeing if we can drain the battery, then refill it. And then…Bram, how about you and I work more on your modular heating?”

This time, Bram did do a little tippy-tap on the ground. “Yes! I have so many ideas I want to try out!”

Wil loved it. If this mission had taught him anything, it was that he wasn’t nearly as creative or observant as he thought he was. Thomas obviously knew more about enchanting than Wil did, and Darlene was cunning, but Bram surprised him. Runes could be tricky, with a single word having sometimes ten different symbols, all representing a different meaning. He had difficulty with them, but Bram proved to be a natural.

“Then we’ll try them all,” said Wil. “Good job, team. We’ve got this!”