Liquid metal bubbled in specially made vats around the room's edges, the heat causing the strips and panels of leather to sway and move as they hung from the ceiling. Bert took a specific size of cog from one of the many shelves arrayed above his crafting table and fitted it in place before reaching out with a tendril of mana.

Liquid Sky-metal flowed into an orb and hovered over the table before settling and flowing into place, cooling as it did so. He checked everything worked as he intended and then stored the piece in his bracer.

Bert cracked his neck and pulled a hammer from the toolkit. It took Shaper’s Will to soften the black metal of the automatons enough to shape. He spent the next half hour hammering the item into shape, binding it to the leather before moving on. A screen lowered in front of him, showing one of the orcs, complete with measurements, courtesy of the Waystation.

Bert smiled and went back to work.

When had they gotten so big? Bert wondered as he worked on a tricky bit of plate. He could remember the first few weeks, just him, Bell, and Bud. Now, they were almost twenty-strong, and they still seemed to be attracting more. From one pixie, they now had three. One skeleton had become two. Not to mention six orcs, a human-turned Plant Fae, a Gaint Sloth Bear, a dwarf, one vampire, two assassins, and Death’s own daughter.

It was great, it was terrific… it was a bitch to make gear for.

“Upcycle!” Bert said tiredly, watching the blue glow fix the various mistakes he made. “How are we doing now?” He asked, eyes turning to the screen above him.

“All major components completed! I can create copies that are resized and adapted from here on. Would you like to do weapons next?”

“Yeah, let’s get started.” Bert shook his shoulders to release the tension as the blue glow rose around him again.

“Is it really worth all this just to prove a point?”

“We needed to upgrade our gear anyway,” Bert smiled, “Proving a point is just a nice bonus.” He took the small anvil and enlarged it before starting to beat the metal. The dark metal resisted. Even as he pressed on it with Shaper’s Will, it fought back. It felt… strange.

Each metal felt different, he had found. Iron was slow, sluggish, and solid, while steel seemed to flow like a river, aching to form an edge. Sky Metal was a sponge, drinking in mana with a nearly unquenchable thirst. This metal, however, was a mountain, solid and immovable. It fought mana, refusing to let it enter, fighting every step.

Even the hammer seemed to slow as if hitting a cushion, before striking. It also seemed to refuse to accept light. Never once had it reflected the mana lights around him. And no amount of polishing made it shine. It was almost as if it was permanently in a shadow.

“Shade-Steel,” Bert said finally. “I think I’ll call it Shade-Steel.” He reached for his cup, finding it empty. A rune glowed above it, and it filled with water.

“Show off!”

Bert laughed, spraying a mouthful of water over his work.

Three more days passed before he was done. Bert put his head down on the table and closed his eyes.

“Did you make me something nice?” Bell asked, her voice a purr in his ear.

Bert blinked and opened his eyes. She was straddling him, smiling down in that peculiar pixie way, and she was naked.

“Now that’s a nice way to wake up in the morning,” Bert smiled, his mind fuzzy.

“Stop changing the subject, mister!” Bell said, leaning down and running her hands over his chest. “Did you make me something?”

“Of course,” Bert said happily, “Several things, in fact.”

The next hour or so disappeared as Bell showed how much she appreciated his efforts.

“How did I get to bed?” Bert asked. “I fell asleep in my workshop.”

“Way Way, let me know to come get you,” Bell shrugged, “Now, where are my new toys?”

Bert laughed and summoned it from his bracer.

Bell squealed at the black metal plates covering the dark leather. He had designed it based on the tactical outfits of a modern military from Earth, but it ended up looking a little different.

Okay, a lot different.

Shining steel cogs and gears covered the shoulder pads, belt, and bracers. The wearer could power hidden turn runes to enlarge the shoulders, tighten or loosen the belt, or fire hidden projectiles from the bracers. The other suits he had made included hidden storage rings in the bracers. Everyone would have storage to spare from now on. Bell pulled on the outfit, finding the clip for her Ringer, with a matching one for the enlarged version on her back, between the small, armored opening for her wings.

“How do I look?” Bell asked.

“Amazing!” Bert said with a dry mouth. How was he supposed to concentrate when she looked like that? “Have you checked the storage on the belt yet?”

Bell frowned, feeding mana into the belt.

Watching her eyes open wider and wider was one of the best moments of his life.

“Ho-How many?” She asked, summoning a single jet-black knife from the storage. It had a double-edged blade with a long, thin handle.

“Uhh, let me see…” Bert grinned. “I think I stopped at around seventy.”

Bell placed a hand on her chest, eyes brimming with tears as a rapidly growing cloud of knives hung around her.

“I think this is the happiest moment of my life!” She gulped.

============

After breakfast, Bert went from person to person, visiting each of the Waystationers in turn to give them their new gear. The orcs also got their own custom weapon. Watching Tru’nal stroke the new greatsword like a mother holding a baby was probably one of the most disturbing moments of his life, at least until he got to Wendy and Scruff.

“How come she gets two suits!” Scruff asked as Wendy added the armored gauntlets and shoulder pads to the other pieces, now reinforcing her bone suit.

“Because I’m the best, obviously,” Wendy teased.

“Oh, I have something special for you as well,” Bert promised, summoning the backpack he created. Wood covered in Shade-Steel plates hid a series of compartments, each of which was storage.

“Oh great, I get to carry a fancy chest around,” Scruff rolled her eyes. She tried it on and then paused, feeling the backpack with her mana.

Vines erupted from her shoulders, pulling items from the field around her and shoving them into the chest, more and more living plants disappearing inside as she grinned wider and wider.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“I’ll never be caught without soil or seeds again!” She crowed, running over to Bert and hugging him. Dozens of vines and creepers hugged and patted him, giving him the feeling of thousands of things crawling all over him.

He tried not to scream and hid his sigh of relief until he got around the corner before a whole-body shiver overtook him.

After sending a beaming Gavin off with a new set of armor and an axe that could extend and contract as needed, thanks to some clever gearing, Bert turned to Slothy.

“Hey there, girl,” He said, patting her head and scratching her behind the ears. “I made you a set of armor as well. Do you want it?”

Slothy huffed and shook her head.

“Sure?” He asked.

She chuffed and nuzzled against him. Bert smiled and hugged the colossal head before putting the various armored plates and straps against the wall. Just in case. By the time he was done, Slothy was asleep again.

Bert headed through the corridors until he came to the distillery. A faint blur in the air paused before the wall of complicated tubes and boilers. Dee appeared dazed, her hair wild and unkempt. Gleaming red eyes fixed on him.

“What?” She asked, her voice hoarse.

“I made you some new gear,” Bert offered, hanging the hooded bodysuit on the wall next to him. He showed her the twin daggers in the bracers.

“I don’t tend to waste blood,” She said, her eyes already drawing back to the machinery behind her. “But thank you.” The blur resumed as clouds of pink vapor filled the air.

“Have fun,” Bert said, turning to go.

“Fun?” Dee appeared in front of him, close enough to send him reeling backward in shock. “This is not fun! This is a whole new world!” She had a crazed look in her eyes.

“Good luck?” Bert tried.

“Thank you,” Dee said, vanishing again.

Bert hurried away, fighting the urge to cover his neck.

His final visit was to Bud and Tim. Bud took his new gear with a wide smile, nodding in satisfaction as he pulled it on without effort, but it took both of them to wrestle the little gnork skeleton free of his scavenged Sky Metal armor. Tim hissed and wriggled, sending fireballs in all directions and keening as the armor dropped away.

Then Bert summoned the pieces for the new gear.

Tim stopped struggling once the new bits were fastened, staring at his new gear with wide eyes.

“Mine?” He clacked his teeth.

“Yours,” Bert confirmed.

Tim ran for his old armor, sweeping all of it into his storage, and then scrambled out the door.

“He means thank you,” Bud frowned after his wayward charge.

“No problem,” Bert said, feeling better now his people were all geared up. “What do you think of April, by the way?”

Bud laughed.

“What?” Bert asked.

“You pick up strays like others pick up treasure,” Bud grinned. “And I just won a bet.”

Bert grumbled but had to admit Bud was right. Why did he keep doing this?

“Speaking of strays, what were those creatures that came back with you two?” Bert asked, “And where did they go?”

“Ahh, about that,” Bud rubbed the back of his skull. “She adopted them, and they are… everywhere.”

“Are they friendly?” Bert asked.

“Not at all,” Bud laughed. “But they don’t attack people. They have moved into her cave, but they crawl all over the train during the day.” He looked away and mumbled.

“What was that?” Bert asked, unable to stop the smile from creeping across his face.

“The Waystation made them their own crawlways,” Bud said reluctantly. “I don’t know why, so don’t ask me!”

“Way Way?” Bert asked, turning to look at a panel on the wall.

“They are adorable!”

“They are staying.”

“Well, I guess that is that,” Bert sighed.

===========

“I need to know what else needs to be done,” Bert told the assembled Guilds.

“What do you mean?” Sonny asked with a lazy smile on his face.

“To complete the camp,” Bert said. “Other than a wall, what do you need?”

“I’m confused,” Abby said, “Why the sudden hurry?”

“Because we are leaving soon,” Bert said simply.

“What?” Sonny frowned. “Why?”

Bert ignored him, looking at the bleary-eyed McRae. It was the first time the man had come out of his room in days, and the smell of booze was still strong on him.

“All we need is the wall,” McRae grumbled finally. “Or some other form of defense.”

“How the fuck would you know?” Sonny yelled. “You drunken old sod!”

“We would also need supplies, a source of heat, guards, a water supply, and much more besides!” Abby protested.

“It is not our job to supply everything,” Bert said flatly. “We came to buy the supply train a couple of weeks; that was it.”

“Let’s talk about this!” Sonny said, a smooth smile on his face. “We can maybe find a few more bits of loot to pay for a longer stay.”

“Unreal,” April rolled her eyes.

“Shut up, bag girl,” Sonny said with a growl, “No one asked you.”

“More junk, huh?” Bert chuckled. “While the vault I built is so full you can hardly move in there.”

“How do you know?” Sonny asked, his eyes narrowed. “Done a little search, have we?”

“I don’t have to,” Bert rolled his eyes, “It’s on Waystation land; I can sense every inch of it.” He smiled coldly, “And what’s in it.”

Sonny blanched a little but recovered smoothly.

“So there is a bunch of stuff, it’s nothing worth very much,” He hedged. “We gave the best stuff to you.”

“Really?” Bert said with a carefully blank face, “Shall I list it all?”

April sniggered as Sonny scowled.

Building the wall was a simple process, made all the easier by Scruff. Her vines wound together under her attention, pushing up through the frozen ground and snow to form a solid wall of living plants.

The cold and snow had no effect on the vines, which closed slowly as the Waystation rolled out of the camp. They stopped outside the wall, facing across the valley at the approaching wagons. It would still take the wagon train a few hours to reach them.

Bert headed out with Lily and Gavin for one last look at the strange giant succulents while they waited. There was just something about those peculiar plants…

“Hello again!” He called cheerfully as he approached the stalk he had first spoken to. “We are about to head out in a few hours. Just wanted to say goodbye.”

“He’s talking to the fucking plant again,” Gavin whispered to Lily, who was riding on his shoulder in her pixie form.

“I know,” Lily said, “The weird bit is I’m half waiting for it to talk back.”

“Yer both crazy,” Gavin shook his head, “Plants don’t talk, ya ken?”

Bert ignored the comments from the peanut gallery and placed a gentle hand on the pale green flesh. There was a faint tremble, but otherwise, it seemed happy enough. He leaned closer, placing an ear against the thick stalk to listen.

Thump, thump, thump, thump…

“Ah, that’s a bit weird,” Bert said, backing away a bit. “This plant has a heartbeat.”

“Dinnae be silly!” Gavin laughed, confidently striding over and placing an ear against the stalk. “Ye Gods!” He scrambled back, hiding slightly behind Bert. “We’ll just be leaving now, aye?”

“One second,” Bert said, activating sense mana. “I want to….” The words died in his mouth as he watched. The flow of mana in the area was strong, but that wasn’t a surprise with the ruins and all that happened. What took his breath away was the sight of the mana being filtered before his very eyes. High above them, that strange flared top was cutting through the mana flows like a sail. Where it passed through those strange holes in the sail, it changed. Certain colors of mana were captured and funneled down into the plant itself. The colors brightened as the mana flowed down before being rereleased into the environment via those strange fan clusters.

The filtered mana was brighter and cleaner. It took him a long time to realize what was happening… a long-forgotten conversation came back to him. Bell had talked about how the mana accumulated essence as it moved through the worlds, and without Fae, the essence slowed and choked the mana.

Looking at the strange plants, Bert knew without a doubt that the Fae were no longer the only creatures that cleaned mana in this world.

“Uuh, you okay there, biggun?” Gavin asked.

“Do you know what these plants do?” Bert asked. “They clean mana and eat the essence… it’s…”

“Is that right, aye?” Gavin said gently. “That’s nice. The plants with the heartbeat are cleaning, aye.” He started to gently pull on Bert’s arm. “Let’s just get back to the Waystation for a nice rest, eh lad?”

“I’m serious,” Bert insisted.

“Aye!” Gavin said, “Nae bother! You be serious… let’s just go, aye?”

“Well, well, well…” Sonny stepped into the clearing, a half dozen Delvers Guild with him, “What do we have here?”

“Hmm?” Bert dragged his eyes away from the amazing plant. “Just having a last look at these plants before we head out.” He felt his eyes being dragged back to the plant almost immediately. There was something about it…

“About that,” Sonny said. “I’m afraid we will have to have a little talk about something first.”

“What?” Bert asked, distracted.

“That armor of yours,” Sonny insisted. “Can’t help but notice the quality.” He smiled. “Where could we get something like that?”

“You can’t,” Bert shrugged, “I made it.”

“Well, you’ll just have to make us some then,” Sonny said, the smile leaving his face. “Before you go.”

“If we let you go,” One of the others sniggered.

Bert sighed.

“Let’s not do this,” Bert said, canceling the mana sense and looking directly at Sonny for the first time. “I scraped you lot out of that ruin, remember?”

“So what?” One of the others spat. “ Seven of us, two of you… seems like good odds to me,”

Bert heard the sound of Gavin drawing his axe.

“Get 'em!” Sonny yelled.