The Baron’s personal physician, a Doctor Harold Yeets, was a second son of an unlanded noble family. He had moved from his family’s homelands, the Kingdom of Ridgewern, down to try and find a prestigious position. He had been hired on as the Baron’s physician because he had neglected to hire an accredited one before he had lost his leg. Harold had managed the crisis well, saving much of his leg. Harold still remembered how the very day he cleared the Baron to go out riding again, he had rushed off to a slap-and-dash spring hunt.

When he was told the Baron had bartered his way into a prosthetic eye, he had started preparing himself to talk the Baron through the process of reacclimating himself to depth perception, and the half colored vision it would give him. He was going to ensure the old fool didn’t rush off and hurt himself this time. The Baron had taken responsibility as he had been fully intending to rush off before he could be caught, but he suspected the same desperate desire to return to his life before would possess him as soon as he regained his second eye.

“It’s already ready, milord? I was told it should be done soon, but this is a bit too soon, no?”

“The Soulsteel made a copy of its own eyes. Mage Cole says he’s never seen anything like it.”

“What tests have you done?”

“I did a mana consumption test, and a capacity test.”

“We don’t have anyone else around with a missing eye, I suppose.”

“Come now Harold, Everyone here has been trying so desperately to stop me just popping it in. Hurry up and get the socket cleaned. If you make me wait much longer, I’ll not be able to resist.”

Harold had rushed to get to this point, but he was now taking his time. Lifting the upper eyelid out of the way, he started to insert the new prosthetic. The rear of the replacement was a complex array of light mana, and he had to ensure the nerves would meet cleanly with it, without obstruction. The procedure didn’t require any anesthetics or magics, beyond a thorough Cleanse Wound. After he set the eye into its new home, he started cleaning his tools and putting most of them away.

“Keep the eye closed and wait until you can make out the manalight through your eyelid. Artificial Eyes are often very sensitive when first implanted, and we don’t want to stress it.”

“It should compensate for changes in brightness faster than a natural eye, but it will take some getting used to before it will be as easy to keep it focused on anything moving.”

“I am starting to see the glow now.”

“Take your other hand off your good eye, give it a couple seconds, and then try looking around.”

“...”

“Well? Can it see color? It seems you can already control it just fine.”

“It’s crystal clear. Better than my other eye, and yes. I can see colors.”

“Are the yellows coming through properly? The design follows a different principle from other Colored Artificial Vision.”

“Yes. They seem just as vibrant as I remember them. Why?”

“I was concerned they might bleed over into the greens and blues, but the filter is doing its job remarkably well.”

“That settles it then, you can leave any time you’re ready.”

“Thank you Baron Rawphor.”

“I’ll be expecting your return this spring. I hope you manage something even more remarkable by then.”

~~~

Keith preferred it when he got to forge more metal, but Natasha’s staff called mostly for wood, with only an intricate metal Enchantment Anchor. He was now shaping the hazel wood into a staff, as he’d rushed through the anchor on the first day. When he’d tested it, it had spun around perfectly on its tip, like a top that couldn’t fall over. When it started to slow down, he would give it a slap and watch as it gained speed while fighting to righten itself.

He hadn’t been much of an idea man but he’d got a number of artifices he’d want to try sticking it in, but he agreed with Natasha on first sticking it to one of the Old Mage’s many failed flying contraptions and seeing if it could manage to make one usable. The hazel wood was both aesthetic and strong, the default for non-critical mana artifice. The Anchor was mostly copper, as while the work was especially complex, it didn’t need to channel a massive amount of mana. The design Natasha had shown skipped the use of the mana bead normally for ensuring consistent power, instead relying on the Anchor’s natural capacity. It would also let him treat the hazel wood as mana agnostic, so that it could serve as a focus. As the cane would only slightly sip the user’s mana unless stressed by extraordinary circumstances, like trying to use it to cling to a wall. He was just getting the fit perfect, and aligning the pegs to hold the anchor in place inside the cane when he heard a knock on his workshop’s door.

“Come in.”

“Good morning Keith, how’s it going?”

“Well. Have you picked out which deathtrap you’re gonna try and fix up?”

“I already know which one I want to start with, and I have the reworked pendulum here for you.”

“Oh, you picked one of the short ones then? Trying to fit the pendulum in sideways?”

“Yes. It’s got to be a lot larger to anchor a mana structure that isn’t overlapping it, and the lower I keep it the more stable it should be.”

“Okay. The cane just needs sanding and polishing now. I’ll be done by lunch.”

“Can you bring it to Master Archibald when you come for lunch?”

“The earliest the varnish will be finished drying would be around dinner time .”

“Dinner it is. Will you start on the new one today?”

“You two never let me have any rest. I’ve not had a day off in the past month.”

“Yes you have. I thought dwarves were supposed to be honest?”

“Well, I thought humans were supposed to be gullible.”

If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

~~~

After dropping the adventure’s off, Tom had headed straight for the market square. Trish and Parn were drinking from a public trough, and he was trying to sell off his surplus. He had managed to sell most of what he’d wanted to, a blacksmith had taken almost the entirety of his iron, and had bought about half his leather for a new bellows. The rest of his goods were finished products that were always in surplus here at the Redoubt.

The town had been founded by the first Duke Drake after he was granted the land for having saved the King of Ridgewern’s life during the First Calamity. It had become independent when the previous King's three brothers had all tried to usurp the throne, and while the second and third brother both failed, the oldest brother and original heir had achieved partial success in the Petty Kingdom of Cordillera’s Gap.

The rest of the Kingdom or Ridgewern was returned to the King’s designated heir, the now reigning Queen Edith Ridgewern. She had put political pressure on both Duke Drake and Cordillera’s Gap, but so far both had kept their newfound independence. Most peddlers would try and strike it rich by running the Gap, but unlike them Tom hadn’t made a loss in his many years of trading. He might not see quite the profits they did, but he made more consistent money without having to risk his whole livelihood going tumbling down the valley.

“Keith my friend, what are you doing about the town? You’re out of luck if you’re looking for metal, I’m out.”

“I’m actually looking for wood. You’ve got any Beech?”

“I don’t bring high volume cargo like that. It would never fit.”

“You’re right, I suppose. Got any recommendations?”

Keith was holding a Golden Drake, the newly minted currency of The Drake. Upon handing it over, Tom gave him the best advice he could.

“I know Henry has some beech he’s already got stowed away for winter. If you try and buy it right now, he’ll probably give you a hard time. If I go back and tell him someone was looking for beech wood, he’ll be out here tomorrow basically trying to give it away.”

“I appreciate it Tom, but when the mages have a plan, they don’t mind spending the extra coin. Where are you all bedding down this year?”

“At the ShadeTree’s stables. Same as last year.”

“All right, may fortunes find you. We’ll catch up on my next day off.”

“Hah, as if.”

~~~

Tommen was ecstatic when it turned into what he could only call a Fire Tortoise. It far surpassed his expectations of a waddling furnace. It seemed optimized for travel, especially when the roof could rotate to funnel the smoke in different directions. People would want to get their hands on mundane versions of this for travel. That is assuming one could be made lighter, as iron or steel would weigh at least twice what the Soulsteel did.

The packing was done, and the footman had run off to get a stagecoach ready. Master Cole had said they couldn’t quite run the horses flat out, but they would be at the capital by dinner on the second day. Tommen was excited to show the sketches he had made to Natasha, as while he’d sent her the designs for the Pendulum of Better Balance, anything he sent now wouldn’t make it before he did. Once the three of them were on the carriage, neither he nor Cole could get the Soulsteel to sit with them.

“I don’t think it likes being pet.”

“It’s breaking my heart too, Tommen.”

“But why did it put up with you petting it longer than it did me?”

“I don’t know. I think it was focused on what it was gonna turn into now that we weren’t stopping.”

Tommen had always wanted a dog, but Master Cole had forbidden him to keep one while living in the Baron’s castle. He’d been filling the void by going down to the Kennels, but now he was leaving them behind and the Soulsteel hated it when he treated it like one. He had to find a way to convince Master Archibald to let him get one while he was staying in the Ducal Estate, and then Master Cole would be forced to let him bring it home with him.

~~~

I had started with my giga-gecko form, and evolved it into a giant turtle. I then raised my shell and put a brazier under it, like a covered hearth. I even added a smoke stack on top that would prevent anything from falling inside. The gap I left above the brazier’s edge was enough to throw a medium sized log through, and the bottom of my shell served as an ashpan. There were fresh air intakes that I tried to partially preheat by channeling it through the ashes, but this form now prohibited lungs, so I had to hope my stubby chimney would induce even a small draft naturally.

When the apprentice returned from whatever he had been packing, I got his attention. After going over to the dwindling firewood rack I started shifting into a mobile fire gazebo. He seemed quite excited that I had brought his idea to life.

In less than an hour, we were away on a fancy carriage that had actual suspension, unlike the ride me and the party that found me had taken. It was also drawn by four horses, instead of two. As we got aboard, it was snowing lightly. It must be pretty late in the year. Me, the wizard, and the kid all climbed inside. I couldn’t fit as a fire gazebo, so I swapped back into a labrador. The seats’ cushions were far better than the floor, as with them, the carriage almost started to feel like it wasn’t going top speed over barely maintained roads.

I had chosen poorly when I picked what side to lay on, as not more than five minutes into the ride the kid started petting me again. However, when I jumped down and swapped sides, the wizard started in too. I was stuck now, I had to choose to either turn into something that wouldn’t invite petting or suffer on the floor. I was pretty full on mana so I chose the former option, and I swapped back over to the kid and sat down as armor.

I just sort of stared out of the window and watched the road go by. From what I could remember, we had taken a different road out than I had originally taken in, so we likely weren’t headed back to the forest. The surroundings were mostly pastures ringed with trees. I saw a lot of sheep, pigs, and cows. I only saw a few chicken coups.

When I saw a black dot appear in the sky, I became concerned. I pointed it out to the wizard, and his face turned into a frown. He banged twice on the little sliding window behind the kid’s head, and the driver stopped the carriage. I got down carefully, as the steps were high on the uneven road, and before the kid could trip I picked him up and set him on the ground.

As the dot got closer, I started to make out what must have been a cow, and what exactly was carrying it. I should have been expecting this from such a fantastical world.