Lurona city [southern shores of Fuminao Legacy Kingdom], local time [1793.12.22]
The pilot blinked and stared at him strangely. Ghrughah chortled softly.
“He’s not from the Union. No need to be wary,” the giant said in a laughing tone. “Ghrughah the Greater Omni-Blacksmith and Biologist in training,” he introduced himself officially, giving a small nod to their host.
The man straightened himself. “Maslin Arennte kazotalo Tellervo.” He didn’t offer a nod, but put his right hand flat on his chest, in the place a heart should be.
‘Should’ was a keyword in this case.
Interesting, Zeph thought after processing what he just heard. He introduced himself as a part of his race ancestor’s name… Are they really stemming from the heir family-line? Shouldn’t they have more wealth then, though?
His thoughts were interrupted by a rude glare from Arenn. “Ah, yes. I am Zeph Einar tabitalo. Umm—”
“-Te Tellervo?” Zeph’s companion interjected, noticing another issue. The end of his chosen name indicated he was also the direct descendant, which shouldn’t be possible. “Were you expelled from your house, or are you really from the main lineage and it’s just a coincidence?”
The man smiled mischievously but also, for the first time, sincerely. “It’s both. Let’s not waste time, my sister is waiting in the secured room.” He turned around on his heel and marched deeper into the complex.
The duo didn’t have a choice but to follow, while the man’s technicians stayed behind to organize the transport of the crates.
They passed the construction sides and went up the metal stairs. The platform offered an unobstructed view of the whole hall, grabbing their attention. Their host decided to entertain them a little and slowed down, giving them an ample time to look around.
The platform spanned the whole length of the back wall, providing access to a mesh of catwalks, weaving around heavy lifting devices similar to overhead hoists, just much bulkier and complex in structure. Hooks and ropes were hanging from the ceiling in, seemingly, random places. Of course, pipes were everywhere, dominating every surface that didn’t have other purposes.
Everything was made from either steel of some kind or the bronze-like metal so often used in systems and machinery handling Mana.
Looking down, he spied a few workstations dedicated to enchanting. They looked quite different from his and P’pfel’s laboratory-like setups – only a few tools were made from glass and everything was larger. A lot of ceramic parts were involved.
Besides that, and among the multitude of bulky equipment set all around, he could only recognize the ‘welding stations’. Instead of using high-temperature flame or electric arc, those enchanted tools compressed and directed Magicules, mostly of Heat and Liquid types. By oversaturating metal parts with them, even a beginner would have an easy time forge welding them together. Especially because of any Skills that could assist in the process.
Of course, if someone managed to gain access to a specialized high-Tiered Skill that could imitate the process, the tool would be useless for them. Well, at least when it comes to certain groups of materials. Not to even mention people like Ghrughah, who could just manipulate the material after saturating it with his Magicules. But those were the domains of Specialists. They required either a full dedication to one’s Profession and craft, or long years of developing Soul contaminations and training external Mana manipulation all the way up to the Advanced levels.
Or an intrinsic Mana manipulation ability and a vast knowledge of Skill/Spell structures, but let’s not talk about the outliers. Technically, everything could be done manually, but this was the lowest stratum.
Ghrughah hummed loudly. Zeph stopped and looked back, as did Arennte. The giant was standing still, looking intently at a certain group of technicians below. They were working on an enormous Mana jet engine in the corner of the hall.
“La-Arennte, we may have a problem,” he declared out of nowhere, looking in their direction. “I hope you are prepared for repercussions in case of the negotiations’ downfall?”
Zeph glanced back at the man. He paled visibly. What is it again?!
“I may have an idea of what you are talking about, Ghrughah-jiji,” the man started slowly, regaining his confidence. “But isn’t that beyond the point of this meeting?”
The Blacksmith scowled, deforming his Veil slightly to inform Zeph. Aisha was the one who taught them how to communicate outside of verbal and non-verbal signs. Veil ‘gestures’ were harder to notice and understand, taking into account that the subconscious manipulation was happening all the time. It was basically an advanced version of coded signals.
A third party is involved? He looked around once more. The workers were just hired force, they had to be. He doubted the pilots did a background check for all of them, seeing their financial situation. Who knows? Maybe they even allowed for a certain level of spying in exchange for the information they are getting. Like a primitive trade exhibition. That would make a lot of sense. But we are bringing more than just an innovation or a simple technological upgrade… We cannot proceed without making sure the knowledge won’t leak…
“We will need to talk about it in… more detail, I’m afraid. Let’s proceed,” Zeph declared, earning himself a hesitant nod from their host. Discussing such topics in the open was out of the question.
Ghrughah rumbled in confirmation and unhurriedly caught up with them. Arennte guided them along the platform to one of the doors set in the back wall. There was no sign suggesting they were any different from others they walked past, just a plain number painted on the old, wooden surface.
Zeph guessed it wasn’t their original destination, as the interior looked more like the twins’ living quarters. The lavish hallway, decorated with paintings of aerostats and technical drawings of their parts, had a homely feel to it. The giant had to hunker down a little to not hit the chandeliers on the way.
Zeph’s suspicions were quickly confirmed when Arennte opened double doors to the living room.
A tall Ljósálfar woman was laying leisurely on a big sofa, reading a book. She looked up lazily, her eyes unfocused, just as Ghrughah was squeezing through the door.
“Oya? Did I miscalculate?” she asked lethargically, closing her book. “I thought you would make for a better host for those bright, scientific minds than me. But not even five minutes have passed?” Arennte’s act crumbled under her curious gaze, he slumped visibly and grimaced, but he didn’t answer.
She put her feet down and slowly sat up straight. She was wearing a simple long dress in dark green, subtly decorated with golden trimming. Her vivid, sandy blond hair weaved down in unkept streaks to settle all around her on the sofa. Its color supplemented her suntanned complexion.
Despite the striking differences, her face was almost identical to Arennte’s. Were it not for his physique and stronger jawline, Zeph would have had trouble determining his sex.
“La-Ghrughah, La-Einar, I’m Tasmine Raennte kazotalo Tellervo,” she introduced herself in a sing-song voice and with a goofy smile. “Don’t you just stand there,” she admonished sluggishly. “Please, sit down. What seems to be the issue?” She indicated the armchairs and another sofa with her hand, waving it carelessly around. Her mannerism radiated warmth but she seemed so distrait that it was almost comical in comparison.
“My pleasure. We require closed negotiations before the presentation,” Ghrughah explained in his rumbling voice, closing the doors behind him.
“Nice to meet you, too,” Zeph said. “I believe we may have a small misunderstanding going on.”
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“Ah, security concerns?” she asked, looking at Arennte who nodded slightly. “Let’s prepare the room,” she declared, now more focused.
While Raennte took out a black plate from a stand by the sofa and started to change some settings, Arennte walked to the nearby wall and after fiddling with it for a moment, uncovered a hidden control panel with toggle switches. He set three of them up and the connection to Zeph’s transfer amulet winked out.
He turned to them and said succinctly. “Feel free to use your own means, either.” Then walked off to an armchair. To their mirth, the guy had become much less expressive. It also seemed he didn’t like to talk much, contradicting the first impression he gave them.
Zeph and Ghrughah exchanged glances and followed suit. The giant sat on the sofa, the only furniture able to contain his bulk, and took out a few enchanted contraptions from a small pack secured to his belt. This time, Zeph didn’t have to do anything – the Blacksmith was geared much better for securing their environment. As such, he just made himself comfortable in an armchair and waited.
A few Spells later, the giant nodded to himself and declared. “All clear.”
“Great!” Raennte exclaimed drowsily. “So?” she asked, tilting her head.
“The technology we wanted to showcase is a new take on flying altogether. It cannot leak just yet,” Zeph started, before Ghrughah took the reins.
“The team working at station seven, what can you tell me about them?”
The twins looked at each other, then shrugged.
“They work for one of the major groups that traded with us and are responsible for constructing that company’s prototypes and models. Parts of the construction process are kept secret, so their presence is necessary,” Arennte explained.
“They are also skilled spies, sent by the aforementioned group, with an order to non-invasively gather information from other teams and our overall work,” Raennte added.
“So you knew?” the Blacksmith said accusingly. “This organization is infamous around Production District for overstepping their bounds. I am surprised you agreed to make a deal with them. Nothing good will come from it,” he declared grumpily, shaking his bald head.
“The circumstances were what they were,” she said vaguely. “But, I thought we were quite clear that we are accepting only cooperation proposals involving devices meant to be freely available on the market? If you prepared anything different, La-Zora should have talked you out of the idea of coming here.” The disappointment in her voice hurt Zeph.
“But you didn’t mention that it will be a free-for-all buffet, too,” he said angrily, more irritated with the spying practices permeating their culture than with the duo before him. Seeing their discomfort, he took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. “That’s why I said it’s a misunderstanding. We don’t want to keep the technology under wraps. Especially because it’s easy to imitate. We will even make the related calculation books public to make sure no one tries to live-test the idea without proper knowledge. The risk of deaths isn’t small.”
That assured the pilots enough for them to relax, but he could almost see the question marks hanging above their heads. If it was to be released to the public, why all the secrecy?
“The prototype isn’t finished or tested properly. It’s a completely new take on the flying technology,” Ghrughah declared with pride.
His words changed the atmosphere completely. The pilots’ eyes opened wide and they leaned closer, eagerness emanating from their faces. They kept quiet, but it was obvious it was exactly what they were looking for in Lurona.
“Also, we need money. There is no way we would allow other companies to take the lead when we are the ones placing the foundation stones,” Zeph finished.
“We wanted to propose a partnership with you under our Guild’s Aeroplanning and Ingeniators Department,” the giant added. “After the presentation and if you were interested. La-Gewong praised you to the high heavens, after all. But seeing this…” Ghrughah was lost for words and Zeph could relate. Their business plan wasn’t bad, but from the point of view of their Guild, only expletives came to mind.
“I am very sorry,” Raennte said seriously, bowing deeply when still sitting. Seeing that, her brother lowered his head slightly as well. “I never expected for such an opportunity to come knocking on our doors,” she said, straightening up. Her eyes still looked downwards in shame and sadness, though. “We thought it would be easier in this city, but it seems politics don’t change much, wherever you go…”
Arennte’s eyes hardened. “That is, if what you are trying to sell here is worth considering. Make no mistake, if not for the Priestess’s word, we wouldn’t be so accommodating.” Some of his prideful façade returned.
“And what about you?” the Blacksmith asked in return. “I may have a name in the city and we have her recommendation, but you two reek of politics,” the Blacksmith crossed his arms. They showed their cards already, so it was only natural for them to return the favor.
They looked at each other, hesitation visible in their eyes. A silent quarrel took place, as visible through their changing expressions. After a moment, they reached some kind of agreement and Arennte sighed with resignation. He spoke first.
“It’s too early to disclose any details to you two… But we, indeed, owe you a favor now…”
Raennte interjected at that moment. “It’s old news, though. I expect that some people already have an idea about our background,” she looked up, measuring them with her gaze. “We would be grateful if you didn’t spread the information, though.” She didn’t even wait for confirmation before continuing, ignoring her brother’s glare. “We severed the Bonds with our family, and descended from the Álfahreiðrið continent.”
Now, that is a dialect that doesn’t make sense. I need that ma—but before he could finish the thought, Zeph was forcefully brought back to reality by Ghrughah’s astonished voice.
“Isn’t Ao'uubehigg a fourth stratum continent?” he exclaimed with wide eyes. It was the first time the giant showed such shock, which worried Zeph.
“This doesn’t matter,” Arennte grudgingly followed with an explanation. “We were kids when that happened. We are no stronger than the people here. Barely more knowledgeable.”
“Why did you even come down?! The technology—” the giant started speaking fervently.
“Was stagnant for decades!” Arennte shouted, interrupting him and startling both of his guests with the sudden outburst. “Do you think we didn’t have access to the knowledge? We were a part of the main family! We learned everything there was to learn about the aero-technology by the age of eight! Our—” a light tap on his head startled him. His head spun to the side, his eyes a death glare.
“Now, now, my brother. Take a few deep breaths…” his sister said, placing a hand on his shoulder to put him back on his seat. “You are out of balance… You promised to be careful.”
As Zeph stared at them, he started to understand. The main reason they ended up in Lurona. Their goal. But also, that the ‘younger’ brother was in a difficult situation.
“Willpower-disturbed…” he whispered to himself, but evidently everyone could hear him. Raennte scowled while his brother tried hard to regain his cool, panting heavily. The Blacksmith looked perturbed.
“We gave out more than we should have,” the sister said coldly. “Let’s end thi—”
“We don’t have a problem with his state,” Zeph suddenly declared, stopping her. “He wouldn’t be the first one in our group.”
He locked his eyes with Raennte, giving her a steel gaze. The blacksmith kept silent, observing them like an arbiter. “Moreover, I can relate to what he just said.”
A moment of awkward silence ensued. The people in the room trying to evaluate each other and the information revealed.
Gru had enough of this. A loud rumbling reverberated in the room.
Zeph’s cheeks warmed up.
“Umm… It’s not…”
After a second of silence, the two men chuckled and Raennte smiled with mirth.
“I will make something to eat. Meanwhile, why don’t you discuss the technical details?” she asked lightly.
~~~
“At least you prepared the engine according to the specifications,” Ghrughah commented grumpily, looking at the setup.
They were in a chamber reserved for the presentation. It was a separate room, but not exactly separated from the hall – the doors at the back wall were the only curtain between them and possible spies. Thankfully, the twins kicked off everyone besides the hired bodyguards, and Kwan’s coachmen kept an eye on them. For the higher-ups of the organizations they dealt with, it could mean that they broke the unspoken agreement, for which Zeph was grateful. This display of trust meant a lot to him.
“You make it sound like we are scammers, Ghrughah-jiji,” Arennte stated flatly. “We don’t even need technicians to set it up. Don’t underestimate our knowledge.”
Indeed, Raennte was in the middle of setting up the wind tunnel. She was the last person Zeph expected to do the work, but, evidently, the twins wanted to showcase their skills. And it was obvious that Arennte was responsible for the technical part of aerostat functionality.
If even the crew leader was able to do so, who would argue?
The sister in question trotted to them after screwing down the last translucent, plastic panel.
“That was quite easy for a blueprint,” she said confidently. “So, what now?”
Zeph looked up to meet the Blacksmith’s eyes. The man nodded in response.
“Now,” he started, “we need some time alone.”
The twins groaned, but they had no power here. If they wanted to see their prototype, they would have to give them time to prepare.
~~~
The next hour was spent on assembling the ‘toy plane’. It was a marvel and a legacy of Ghrughah’s skills and Skills. The prop had an adjustable shape, be it for the wings or the main body. Everything was built from plates set like scales of a fish, but more elongated. The framework underneath was modifiable, allowing the shape-shifting of the overall structure within its bounds.
Of course, the Blacksmith was responsible for changing the shape – there were no mechanisms inside the framework itself. An additional security measure of the project, if one wanted to look at it that way.
The tunnel was primitive in comparison, if overly big. A jet engine of low efficiency, due to lack of the forward speed increasing the air pressure, would push the air and Mana into a funnel. The decreased area of flux would speed up the flow of both, imitating the high-speed fight.
The technical problem they found wasn’t in the aerodynamics themselves, but in the fact that the density of air and lifting force changed depending on the Mana density in the area. Which meant the standard shape of a wing—an Earth’s plane wing—would fail more often than not.
The dynamically adjusted form was created in the process. It was still a prototype, though – not fully mechanized or functional.
After assembling the prototype, they called up the twins. Raennte made big eyes seeing the contraption.
But for reasons much different from what Zeph predicted.
“Isn’t it.. a bird’s wing?” she asked doubtfully, looking at Zeph.