“Fascinating.” Raya touched the wall with her fingertips, tracing a spider web of cracks. “It’s like the tower was shattered and it healed back right away.”
“Do you suggest it’s alive?” Quintus arched his brow.
“In a way, perhaps.”
“Are you all mad?” Lykomedes made a wide gesture with his healthy arm. “All this, and you argue about the walls?”
All things considered, Nua thought, they got over the ride in the elevator pretty fast. They were unfazed by the sight of the glass mirror and they paid no second thoughts to an uneasy feeling in their stomachs that the carriage, without a doubt, was causing. Working as mercenaries, they had to live through experiences that prepared them for surprises. That, and they were familiar with the more mundane, muscle-powered elevators. Until a few weeks ago, Nua’s life was confined to the Bottoms, but the upper districts of the Overlord’s Mercy had them, and so did the other cities. Or at least, so she was guessing. Her own experience was still very limited.
Guiding them to the carriage, she tried acting as calm as a seasoned adventurer and it worked until she saw her full reflection for the second time in her life.
She was still thin and short, her features adolescent despite her age. The changes to her body were subtle. Over an inch in height, some fat padding where it mattered, and a bit of new muscle. It’s not like she could undergo a whole transformation over several weeks. But there was also a glow to her eyes, and not in a supernatural way; she carried herself with more confidence, with her back straightened and a spring in her step. Her hair had grown since Hala gave her a haircut, stopping her from making an impression of a convict. She was also wearing proper clothes, boots and all. Although they weren't exactly clean after the misadventure in the ruins, they didn’t suggest that dirt was her permanent companion. She wasn’t looking at an impoverished street kid anymore. There was a whole new person peeking through. This person was still undecided about what to become, as she was too small for a mercenary, too bold for a servant, and perhaps, not ruthless enough to be a real thief as she had planned (Nua threw a quick glance at Zaina). All of a sudden, though, she had the strangest feeling that she was, perhaps, closer to the scout she was pretending to be than she had thought.
It made her proud, but also utterly confused, and only now she was taking in the surroundings. Somehow, despite the unfamiliarity with ancient contraptions, she could tell that they were in a workshop of sorts. The place exuded the same air of an efficiently organized space as Hala’s workroom, with fixed benches, shelves, and a deep metal basin on the side that Auntie would gladly use for dyeing fabric or starching clothes. The difference was in the materials – no worn-out wood, just odd bright metal alloys that could exist forever, eerie glowing runes on the walls, and, of course, all the equipment that now littered the floor.
The chamber was partly emptied before the facility shut down, so no random spools of copper wire, small tools, or crystals were lying about, like in Anki’s ritual chamber. But there was plenty of larger machines of unknown providence, toppled over and thoroughly cracked. Their wiring was still in place, more or less exposed, and Nua’s scrapper instincts screamed at the sight. Anki already told her which parts were made of True Silver, and now she could see it up close.
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“It’s a scrapyard, that’s what it is,” she said. “A very, very rich one. Let’s get to work. I can help, I have some experience.”
“I concur,” said Lykomedes. Oswald didn’t waste time; he was already squatting by a large crystal embedded in wiring, prying the metal parts off.
“Wait, wait!” Raya hurried into the chamber. “Hold off until I give you all clear. If they leak poison, I’ll be the first to notice. Just as well, show me everything that doesn’t look broken. These artifacts are priceless! They’re much more than the sum of their parts.”
Nua dived under a bench, pretending she found her first loot. She took the magic lamp that she kept in her pocket since getting out of the Overlord’s Mercy, and finally, she put it to use.
“This is mine,” she declared.
The priestess gazed at her with horror. “Watch out! The light could be poisonous.”
“Look with your Sight,” Nua crawled back up. “It’s just a lamp.”
Raya focused.
“Yes, you’re right,” she nodded at last. “I know these from my High Priestess’ chambers. It’s not the antique revelation I am looking for, but it’s a neat find. Get me one if you see another.”
Armed with the magic light, Nua could get into the nooks and crannies hidden in the shadows, unlit by the glowing runes or inconvenient to reach with oil lamps. Her goal was to find enough interesting objects to keep the priestess happy and squirrel away the PAD that waited for her in another room. If it really was the best finding in the complex, she was unlikely to get it as her share otherwise. Raya had Sight almost as sharp as her own, and she was more experienced to boot.
If that failed, well, there were plenty of precious metals to go around. She was already thinking of asking Hessa about the introduction of a new musushu to their small herd, and how many snacks it would require to bribe Shadow into accepting it.
“Hey, Anki,” she nudged the king. “She wants wonders, not just a pouch full of aureii. Did you find something she could have and get off my tail?”
“And not fall prey to the Guild of Barbarians later on?” quipped Anki. “They seem terribly jealous of the competition.”
“Oh come on. She’s a priestess of One. A healer. She could hide plenty of forbidden secrets with that cover.”
The blue spirit floated towards the wall.
“A healer, you’re saying,” he muttered. “Unlikely she could transport a whole regenerative tank with her if we ever find an undamaged one. But I think she will appreciate this little trinket. I can see that the glass broke, so just take the contents.”
There was a small niche built into the wall just near the door at the handle’s level, which was an odd place to keep equipment. Silver runes surrounded it, and the glass that used to cover the niche was shattered by the earthquake. With everything else so durable that it lasted for a thousand years, Nua guessed that it was on purpose. The object was oval, with a smooth, metallic white surface and a series of red symbols on it. Sorcerous, no doubt. There was a kernel of red-tinted ether, firmly lodged inside, and it gave a faint impression of calm that she came to associate with Raya’s craft.
“It’s a healing device,” Anki explained. “There should be more of them in the other chambers. For us, it was common safety equipment, something to be used by the general public. It won’t cure cancer. But for the injuries and poisons, it can make a difference between life and death in seconds. These runes are instructions. Even with the broken emegir they know these days, she could...”
“Hey, Raya! Not sure what I found, but it smells like you.”
The priestess turned.
“What do you have… OH MY ACTUAL FREAKING GOD. Do you even realize what that is?”
“Common equipment, huh, Anki? Any chance it is on the market already, rare and expensive as hells?”
Aloud, she answered, “An artifact? It was in the wall on purpose, so I guess there will be one per chamber. Now I think I want one of these, too.”
“OH MY F…” Raya’s cheeks were positively red. “Ahem. You’re right. Hurry, all of you. We must have them all.”