Riva hadn’t noticed at first but she did now. The glow of Azim’s eyes had changed from their sunlit, amber orange to a silver, almost heavenly white.
She had no idea how. The android had been correct in its assumption. He had no connection to the magic of their universe because he had no soul to connect it to. This was evident from the bottle he had thrown. She had noticed, along with everyone else, that the spell bottle did not activate, which might as well have been impossible. Only she knew why that would be. So why now? Why was this naive little robot now casting spells of magicraft like a conductor performing his magnum opus?
Something about his movements was off as well. It was as if she could see someone else enacting his movements for him. It was both majestic and unnerving.
“Wowwee, look at you…” the hawkling raider mocked. “You think you’re so big and strong just because you took out those two imbeciles?! Who the hell even are you?”
“My name is Azim,” the empowered robot stated while drawing a circle in the air, aiming towards the hawkling. “Thanks… to her.”
A bizarre pattern of light manifested within the bounds of the circle, and, as the android finished speaking, shot out a giant sword with an elegant, gold hilt. The huge blade whistled through the air toward its target. “Who…?” the young brat began. “HER?!”
As the young brat spoke, she held Riva out in front of her, leaving the woman face-to-face with the incoming claymore. Before it was too late, Riva grabbed two of the fingers holding her neck and snapped them apart from the rest of the hawkling’s hand. “Ow!” the raider screamed, letting go of Riva.
The woman screamed as she fell, unsure of what to do after that stunt. As the hawkling regained composure, she remembered the beast of a sword coming straight for her. She brushed her hands over each other and stretched them apart. “Cold Screen!” she chanted.
In an instant, a widely stretched wall of ice appeared at an angle below the hawkling, leaving the large blade to come crashing right into it. The girl held her arms apart, trying to hold back the sword, but could see the screen starting to crack. She panicked. Another Cold Screen was cast behind the first, only a moment before the sword broke through. The first wall was shattered, but the second was still holding… for now.
Meanwhile, Azim took advantage of the distraction. The second Riva began her descent, he sprang into action. The metal anomaly used some sort of retrieval spell to manifest one of the teleporting raider’s daggers to his hand, before throwing it toward the ground below the other two. With a snap of his fingers, he now stood where he had thrown the dagger, the fierce weapon in hand. A second later, the brave fabric seller landed in the android’s arms safe and sound. Riva looked up at her new robotic friend. “What is going on, Azim?” the woman asked nervously. “I thought we discovered you couldn’t do… all this? Where did it come from?”
Setting her down, Azim responded, “I am not sure, but I have no doubt we will find out soon. Oh, and by the way, that was rather bold of you.”
The woman chuckled. Their reunion was interrupted by more of the bratty hawkling’s screams. “Hey, you! I don’t believe any of what you got going on. What you’re pulling off, the kind of magic you’re throwing around, there’s no shot you had this tucked away and you were just saving it! You did all that you did without any spells or anything… just to come out swinging like this! I don’t buy it!”
She didn’t get it. She just didn’t get it. The young hawkling had been running this crew for the past 4 years. Normally one wouldn’t go for their boss being a 14-year-old, but with the kind of magic she had, most people got off that high horse real quick. Even as early as 4 years ago, her base magic level was 10, with level 14 Ice Magic. Sure, in the grand scheme of things, with all the adventurers, wizards, and monsters out there, it wasn’t all that. But out here in the countryside, in the middle of nowhere? She might as well have been a legend. Most people in the surrounding towns weren’t any higher than base level 6. There just wasn’t much need for magic when living a simple life out here. The most magic one might ever need would be to enchant the crops or summon water or fire for any certain task, all of which would be done with level 3 magic or lower. So when she came strolling into town with her band of goons and her level 14 ice magic, even the town next door might as well have been keeling over.
But this guy?! She couldn’t contain her anger. It was no exaggeration to say that his spells put him at base level 20… at least! So why the hell was he here?! Was she just being made a fool of?!
Instead of responding, Azim simply let out another extraordinary attack. Looking up at his adversary, the robot swiped his left hand from right to left in front of him, creating a long yellow screen. “Weapons Shop Window,” the android chanted, swinging his hand back across where it had just come from.
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As the metal man did so, dozens and dozens of weapons of various sizes and shapes came flying out of the yellow screen towards the hawkling. The girl reacted quickly, casting a Snow Dome around herself to block the incoming onslaught of swords, knives, and spears. The dome held out until the shower of blades finally stopped… barely. The hawkling burst out of the snow with a vengeance. “Oh, so you like overwhelming flurries of crap? Well here…” the raider sniveled, raising her arms above her head. “Have one yourself!”
Bringing down her hands, the hawkling brought forth a rushing storm of hail and snow from a cloud above her. Azim, in all that he was feeling, was ready. Still, without an ounce of effort, the robot raised a hand and chanted, “Iron Denfendum”. As he did so, a giant circular shield appeared above him and Riva. The shield was charcoal gray, with beautifully intricate carvings on its topside. Its edges were thicker than the rest of it and shined along the sides with a look of pristine quality. It was a shield made for giants, but would be used for something much more impressive.
As the ice and snow came crashing down onto the shield, Azim’s stance never wavered. He did not, for even a moment, flinch at the oncoming pressure against his defense. Once his shield was used to the force of the freezing assault, the robot retaliated. He flicked his hand upward and launched the giant shield up toward the hawkling, pushing against the hailstorm with minimal resistance.
Before the young raider could counter, Azim chanted once more. “Fly Trap.”
Instantly, the engraved markings along the front of the giant shield flowed towards its edges. Having drained from the shield’s center, the slivers of metal ran up the edges of the shield and stuck upwards, creating teeth-like structures around the entire rim. The shield started to fold in on itself, with the iron “teeth” clamping together as well. As the iron fly trap reached its target, it slammed shut, trapping the hawkling inside. And then it was over.
The giant mass of metal made its way back to the ground with a loud ‘thud’. With no other raiders to deal with and no more of a threat to himself or Riva, Azim felt the power within him evaporate. Riva watched as his eyes returned to their normal orange. Out of curiosity, he tried to move one of the swords on the ground but couldn’t. Whatever power he had been bestowed had left him. At least for the time being.
With his magic washing away, so did his constructs. The folded shield disappeared and all that remained was the young hawkling, seemingly defeated. However, as the two companions got back in their carriage and strode off, they noticed that the girl was no longer where she had been moments ago. Azim seemed cautious that the young raider was planning a surprise attack, surveying the surrounding area for her presence, but Riva eased his mind. “Do you see that puff of smoke floating above where you dropped her? That’s a Return Spell. That brat likely had a location marked in case she needed to make a quick retreat, and sent herself back to her little save point when we weren’t looking. I don’t think we have to worry about her anymore.”
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A little over half an hour of much-needed relaxing travel and the two companions had finally arrived at the next town, Tuften. “I’m glad I met you on my way here, hun’, and not on the route to my next stop,” Riva remarked. “Tuften is just as quiet as where I was coming from, Speels. But over there feels a lot more barren. Even though the two are about the same size, Speels just isn’t as cozy as Tuften. Nothing but Corn Moth farmers over there. At least this town’s got some heart. You’ll see, dear.”
Riva was right. The town was small. From Azim’s calculations, there seemed to be about only 10 buildings in the whole area, all of which were just houses. Definitely a town of farmers. The latter, however, appeared untrue to the robot. There were a fair amount of people walking about the town or working, but nobody seemed particularly happy. In fact, they appeared concerned. There were no children around, as if they were being hidden inside, and the doors to every building were shut. The aura of coziness that the woman had mentioned seemed as if it had been ripped from this town. “This is weird, Azim,” Riva whispered. “Normally, the town would all be at work. It’s strange to see them this worn down.”
However, when some of the townsfolk first noticed Azim and Riva approaching, the entire mood got even worse. Tension filled the air faster than poisonous gas, and even some of the passersby rushed inside. At first, Riva assumed it was at the sight of Azim, whose unfamiliar look might have been unsettling. Or worse, if they thought he was some sort of monster, they might have also thought she was a witch who had him under her control. Though she quickly realized the town was not in the slightest bit worried about who Azim was, specifically. It was honestly likely they did not pay much attention to the details of the strangers at all. What mattered and what had scared them, she pieced together, was the presence of strangers in the first place.
Normally, it wouldn’t be a big deal for her to come by. After all, she had been here a couple times, the last trip not too long ago. It was possible they didn’t remember her right away and were just cautious, but that wasn’t it. The raiders that Azim had fought had come from this way. They had come from this town. The townsfolk had just dealt with a group of raiders, who likely looted and stole from the lot of them. Now only an hour later, there were two new strangers, who, for all the townsfolk knew, were here to do the same thing.
“Who are you? Have you come to take from us?” A man yelled. Another chimed in, “Yeah! We just dealt with raiders like you. We’re still picking up the pieces!”
“We are not raiders, we are simple travelers,” Riva responded calmly. “I am a merchant, I was here only 2 weeks ago. Please know we are of no danger to you. I am only here looking to sell my textiles.”
“And what about him? He looks dangerous!” A woman cried out.
Before Riva could respond, Azim stepped off the carriage, petting Riva’s horse as he walked forward. “You were attacked?”
“Yeah, by raiders!” Another man replied. “They went down that trail you two just came from. What, did you not see ‘em or something?”
“I see…” Azim stated calmly. “Well, I think you would benefit from knowing that I dispatched those people. They were not good people and attacked my new companion Riva. I stopped them from hurting her anymore. I can guarantee that they will not be coming back to befall any more harm to you or your town.”
The gathered crowd stood stunned. They weren’t sure if they could believe him. What was weirder, this stranger who had told them all this wasn’t moving. He simply stood there, stiff, with no visible mouth moving, and making no gestures as he spoke. He was expressionless. And yet, none of them could find themselves in disbelief of this metal mystery man. “R-Really?” one of the women in the crowd asked. “Y-You really took care of them? They won’t be coming back?”
“I did. And they will not be.”
Again, the crowd found themselves unable to think ill of the strange figure before them. Something about the unfamiliar figure’s demeanor seemed genuine and harmless. In spite of their worry and broken-up community, the few residents of the town that had greeted them slowly warmed up to them. One by one, they crowded the carriage, thanking the mysterious, metal man, as well as his companion, the textile seller. Riva was unsure what to make of the situation, but quickly made the most of it. Before the warm greeting was over, she managed to sell 9 spools of cotton, 5 spools of yarn, and 2 rolls of leather.