Weavespinner

by James Galloway

  "Uh, nothing fancy, your honor," he said. "I don't like frilly things. Just plain old shirts and trousers will be fine."

  "Plain can be challenging sometimes," he said, clicking his teeth in an eerie manner. "I can make them in the same style as the clothes you're wearing. It this alright with you?"

  "Uh, fine."

  "Very good. Is cost an issue here, Keeper?"

  "Not really," she said. "But I don't think we need anything made of dragonhide."

  "Not quite that exotic, but I do have access to some Selani fiber cloth. It's rather expensive, but it makes very rugged clothing."

  "That sounds fine to me," Jenna smiled. "I think five sets would be good. And could you make a couple of cloaks?"

  "I'd be delighted to do so, Keeper," he said with a nod.

  "Then we're done?"

  "I would say so, Keeper," he nodded.

  "Don't you need to measure him?" Ulger asked.

  "I've already done so, good Knight," Cassiter said mildly. "When he came in. I can guarantee his clothes will fit perfectly."

  "Well, I'm not paying for them, so I guess I don't have much say," he said with a grin. "Then again, it doesn't sound like you've reached a price."

  "It's very simple, good Knight. I charge twenty percent more than it costs for me to buy the materials. Flat rate, whether it takes me an hour or a tenday to finish the order. I find haggling to be very tiring and a waste of time."

  "How do we know what that was?"

  "For those who don't do regular business with me, they receive a bill," he said calmly. "My regulars know they won't be cheated."

  "Cass is the best tailor in Suld, Ulger," Jenna said, a bit accusingly. "He's never cheated me on a contract. He made almost all the clothes I own."

  "Well, that's alright then," Ulger grinned. "Though the idea of an honest Wikuni seems a bit far-fetched."

  "Not all of us are money-grubbing cheats, sir Knight," Cassiter said calmly.

  "I think we'd better go, before Ulger here says something we'll regret," Darvon grunted.

  "I'm not offended, Lord General," Cassiter said mildly. "Most Wikuni merchants are money-grubbing cheats. I don't make excuses for my people."

  "Well, you're better than most of them," Darvon said with a slight smile. "And I'm surprised you know who I am."

  "I have eyes, my Lord General. Your breastplate denotes your rank."

  "Not many know that," he said in an impressed manner.

  "It's not hard to find out," he shrugged. "If one is willing to take the time to learn, anyway. I'll have the clothes sent to the Tower, Keeper. Shall I drop them off at the gate?"

  "I'll make arrangements. Send me the bill when you're done."

  He nodded. "Then if you'll pardon me, I have a customer waiting for me on the fitting stand. Holding her arms up with about fifty pins threatening to jab her in many different places. I should really get back to her."

  "We'll see ourselves out, Cass. Thank you."

  "Any time, Keeper," he said with a nod.

  They plunged back out into the crowd, and it was slow going once again. Tarrin didn't feel very comfortable with all those people surrounding him, shouting and calling to Jenna, but his sister wasn't trying to extend the situation. She had the Knights get them back to the carriage, and once inside, the footmen tending it got the carriage out of the crowded square.

  Tarrin though they were going back to the Tower, but he found out that he was mistaken. They moved deeper into Suld, to the edge of the wall near the harbor on the south side, and once again they got out. This time there were no throngs of adoring citizens, for they were in what looked to be an area of craftsmen rather than merchants. The carriage stopped before a silversmith's shop, from the looks of it, with all the silver plates and goblets hanging and standing behind a window protected by a very heavy set of iron bars to prevent a thief from simply breaking the window and making off with the display pieces. Jenna told the two Knights to wait in the carriage, then got out and beckoned him to follow her. She entered the shop, and Tarrin was a little curious as to why the Knights were told to wait in the carriage. What was more, he was curious why they obeyed her. They weren't supposed to let Sorcerers go off on their own...but then again, Darvon had said that Jenna was completely safe in Suld. Maybe they were only going to be a moment, and the Knights had a hard enough time climbing in and out of the carriage in their heavy armor. It was a very large shop, from the look of it, with many different pieces of both silver and gold sitting on shelves behind a long counter that separated the long, rather narrow display room. Two armed men wearing chain jacks stood near the door, guards to protect the merchandise, and both nodded to Jenna as she led Tarrin inside. "Is he in?" she asked immediately.

  "Aye, my Lady," one of the men replied. The man reached beside him and pulled a rope hanging from the ceiling, and Tarrin realized it was a bellpull when the bell rang behind the door behind the counter. Tarrin spent the time looking at the display pieces, goblets and plates, statues of people and things, even a very impressively detailed one of what he thought was an Aeradalla, with her wings outstretched. He thought it was one, since the statue matched the descriptions he'd heard of them. All of the work was very detailed, very exacting. Tarrin realized they were in the shop of a master silver and goldsmith.

  That master came through the door, and Tarrin wasn't entirely surprised. The man was a Dal, a short, stocky, heavy-set fellow with a bald pate and enormous hands. He was wearing a burned, scarred leather apron over a doublet and heavy leather trousers, to protect him from the sparks and bits of hot metal. Dals were very good at metalsmithing, and some of the best smiths and metalworkers in the world were Dal. He figured it was in their blood or something.

  "I've been waiting for ye, yer Ladyship," he said with a rough voice, damaged from years of breathing in the smoke from his forge.

  "It's ready, then?" she asked immediately.

  "Aye. I'll fetch it for ye."

  "What's ready?" Tarrin asked, looking at the two very large guards, noticing that their armor was very, very well made. Light yet strong, and kept in immaculate condition.

  "Oh, just a little present I wanted to give you later," she replied with a smile. "But since you lost everything, I guess it'll be a good way to start rebuilding."

  "What is it?"

  "They, and you'll see," she said with a smile.

  The man scurried off into his forge for only a moment, then returned with a fairly large towel or cloth or something. Tarrin realized that whatever it was that Jenna had gotten was wrapped in the cloth. The cloth bundle was about four spans long or so and very thick, and just about anything could be inside it. The Dal set it on the counter and stepped back, obviously waiting for Jenna to inspect the merchandise.

  "Well? Go ahead, Tarrin," Jenna smiled. "After all, they belong to you."

  A little curious, Tarrin approached the bundle, seeing that it was folded in such a way that would allow him to reveal what was inside without having to pick it up. He grabbed the cloth and peeled it back, then peeled back the inner fold, and looked down at what was inside in both surprise and amazement.

  There were three things within the bundle. The first was a sword, an absolutely magnificent slightly curved sword whose pommel and hilt were worked to resemble a dragon. Tarrin looked very closely at that hilt, and he realized that Sapphire had been the model for the hilt. He recognized the general shape of the head, which served as the pommel. Tarrin picked up the sword and unsheathed it, and saw that it was sharpened only along one edge. The blade was very thin and almost unnaturally light, and drawing the entire weapon revealed that it had a chisel-style tip instead of a point. This was no thrusting sword, it was designed to slash. And the edge looked sharp enough to be able to slice through armor.

  "It was based on the sword you used as a Were-cat," Jenna explained with bright eyes. "Just a little smaller, so you can use it as you are."

  Tarrin resheathed it,and looked at the other two objects. Th
ey looked like wristguards or bracers, but were long enough to be forearm greaves for armor. They were elaborately decorated with several different etched designs. He saw Sapphire again in those designs, as well as Allia's Selani silhouette, and an Aeradalla, and Keritanima's silhouette as well--the tail gave her away--and swirling roses and vines. And on the top of each of them was an etched form of the amulet he wore around his neck, the shaeram. Tarrin reached down and picked one up, and its touch made his fingers tingle strangely. The metal was blackish in color and almost ridiculously light, but somehow he could tell that its strength was without equal. Just the touch on them told him that. And there was something more...an energy that seemed to infuse them, something that made his fingers tingle and feel hot.

  "Go ahead," she urged. "Put them on."

  Tarrin turned the one he was holding and put his hand through it, and he jumped in fright when the thing shrunk down to fit his arm! He grabbed at it to rip it off, but Jenna put her hand over his and laughed. "I'm sorry, I forgot," she told him. "It was supposed to do that."

  "It changed its size!" he exclaimed. "It's magic!"

  "It is magic," she said seriously. "Now put the other one on."

  A little disturbed by that surprise, Tarrin warily picked up the other one, and then reluctantly slid his hand through it. When it was in place, it too shrunk down. And when it did, Tarrin felt the strangest tingle roll through his body.

  "Good, they work," she said with a mysterious smile. "Very good work, Ardon," she nodded to the smith.

  "All was done to yer specifications, yer Ladyship," he said in his rough voice.

  "I see your reputation is well deserved." She reached into a pocket in her skirt, and handed the smith a small piece of paper that was within it. "There you are, Ardon. Thank you very much."

  "Any time, yer Ladyship," he said with a wave of his hand. "I should be thanking ye to trust me to handle such a job."

  "I needed the best, goodman. Skill knows no political boundaries."

  "All in all, I still thank ye. When word got around that the Tower had consigned me for a job, the customers that left because I'm Dal came back. Ye saved me business, yer Ladyship. I can't thank ye enough for that."

  "Then I'm happy I could help out," she said with a smile. "Good day to you."

  "If ye need me hammer, it's yers, yer Ladyship. Half price."

  "I'll remember that," she said with a light laugh.

  Tarrin was a little disoriented when they left the shop and got back into the carriage, where the two Knights were still waiting. What did the two metal bracers do? Why did he feel that strange tingle when he put them on? They were magical, he knew that, but what kind of magic did they possess, and why did the smith have to work on them?

  "I know, you're full of questions," Jenna smiled as they climbed back in and sat down. Tarrin had his new sword on his lap, and that too was a little strange. Jenna knew that he didn't like swords very much. Why had she had one made for him? His staff was stored safely in the elsewhere, and even though he wasn't entirely sure how he was supposed to get it out, he was sure he could do it if he really needed to do it. After all, Dolanna taught him how put things in there, he was sure that it worked more or less the same for getting things out. "Did you feel something when you put on the bracers?"

  "Yes, it was like a cold tingle," he answered.

  "Then it worked," she sighed. "I was afraid that they might not."

  "What are they? What was that tingle?"

  "They're magical devices, brother. As you are now, you're rather vulnerable when compared to the kinds of people or things that may try to attack you for what you're carrying. Mother showed me how to make those bracers. They're going to help protect you."

  "But what do they do?"

  "They do two things, Tarrin. The first is a defensive magic that surrounds you, like a phantom suit of armor. That's what that tingle was you felt. Your skin is as strong as steel, and if someone hit you in the head with a rock, you'd barely feel it. Given who you are and the fact that I doubt we could get you into a suit of armor, we figured that giving you the same protection without making it apparent would be a good idea."

  Tarrin was intrigued and amazed by that statement. The bracers were like a suit of magic armor? He didn't feel any different, and didn't feel heavy or anything. Curious, he unsheathed his sword enough to expose the edge, and was about to see if it could cut him, but Jenna laid a hand over his to stay him. "I wouldn't do that if I were you," she cautioned. "The sword will make you think that the bracers are phony."

  "What do you mean?"

  "The sword was enchanted as well. It can cut through virtually anything, and the blade is made of Adamantite, which means that I don't think there's anything you could do to it to break it. That sword will go right through the magical defense of the bracers, so testing the bracers with it is not a good idea," she winked.

  Tarrin looked at the sword in awe. It could cut through anything? Well, she said almost anything. It didn't seem that sharp, and it didn't really feel magical, not like the bracers did.

  Or did it?

  Tarrin held the hilt firmly in his hand and tried to feel the sword. He closed his eyes and tried to really feel it, to feel past what his fingers sensed, to reach beyond to where those ghostly images of strings were, always just on the edge of his vision but never intruding to the point where they interfered. He ignored that most of the time, but now he wanted to look into it, he wanted to feel what was on that other side.

  It was there. He could feel it now. It was an exceptionally powerful enchantment, but it had been actively concealed so as not to give away the true nature of the weapon. It was almost like an army hiding in the fog, a tremendous force hiding behind a veil of ambiguity. The weaving was crisp, exacting, detailed, and it was absolutely flawless. It had Jenna's hands all over it. He recognized the style of that weaving almost immediately. It was the same style of concealing weave that been in the amulets back on Sha'Kari, but had been modified to conceal the active weave hidden within the sword.

  For the briefest fleeting of moments, close to the Weave, Tarrin almost felt like another person. He could feel something close to him, and he could feel the power of the Weave all around him, very strong, almost alluring in its enticing closeness. An entire lifetime of forgotten memories seemed tantalizingly close to him in that fleeting sensation, but they were like a cloud. Sharp and detailed from a distance, but hazy and indistinct the closer one got to them.

  Tarrin nearly felt like his eyes were going to pop as a shockwave of pain roared through his mind. He had remembered! It was just a flash, but it was the most detailed flash of memory he had yet to experience! He absolutely knew that Jenna had made the magic in the sword and the bracers, and for that one fleeting moment, he could feel the closeness of the Weave, could sense its power, almost beckoning to him. Tarrin flopped back in his seat and put a hand to his forehead, but he had a big smile. "Jenna, I remembered!" he said excitedly. "I wanted to see if there really was a magic spell in the sword, and for a short moment, remembered something!"

  "What did you remember?" she asked quickly.

  "I recognized the style of weaving used on the sword, and I remembered that the concealing weave in the sword was based on the ones in the amulets back in Sha'Kari. I have no idea what half of that means, but I remembered it!"

  "You did? That's wonderful!" Jenna said happily, clapping her hands and then hugging him. "Kimmie said that you'd possibly have more detailed flashes of insight over time. I see she wasn't wrong!"

  "I hope it happens again, but next time without the headache," he said, rubbing his temple delicately.

  Jenna laughed. "She said the headaches would be part of the remembering," she warned him. "But it's good to see that you are getting back some of it, even if it is in bits and pieces. I hope that means that Phandebrass' potion is going to work perfectly."

  "Well, I hope so," he said. "You said that the bracers do two things. What's the other?"
/>   She grinned. "You're like a child with a new toy," she teased.

  "I just don't want to sneeze and blow something up by accident," he warned.

  Jenna laughed richly. "Well, I guess I can see that," she winked. "I wouldn't want you going around knocking down walls. The repair bills would be ghastly." She chuckled with him, then put her hand on the bracer. "They don't blow things up, but their second function is a weapon," she told him seriously. "I made them so you'll never be unarmed. Mother told me to name them the Cat's Claws, and I think that tells you what they do."

  Tarrin looked down at the two black metal bracers. "Claws come out of them?" he asked. "From where?"

  "It's a bit more involved than that," she said. "Let me show you." Jenna reached down and put her hand over one of the bracers, and he felt something strange happen. She had done something to them, and he realized that she had triggered them with her magic.

  Tarrin had had his hand out to look at the bracer, and he was amazed at what he saw. The metal of the bracer seemed to turn liquid, and it flowed over the back of his hand. It felt strangely warm as it did so, very quickly, like a black shadow racing down his hand, over his knuckles, and over his fingers. The metal encased the back of his hand and fingers and when it reached his fingertips, it kept going out, extending over his fingertips and forming very long, slightly curved and hooked metal claws. But where a cat's claw was thick, these metal claws were as thin as dagger blades, sharp only on the inside curve, and ending in a very wicked looking point. They were extending a good span over his fingertips, and they had almost no apparent weight.

  "And that," Jenna said with a smile, "is why they're called the Cat's Claws."

  Tarrin stared at the weapon merged with his hand in awe. He had full flexibility in his hand, as the liquid-seeming metal moved with his hand. It didn't even pull at the hairs on his fingers. The metal was like a part of his skin, moving just as easily, and was not uncomfortable in the slightest. The metal only covered the back of his hand, leaving his palm clear. The four individual claws reaching out over his fingers seemed attached to the tips, moving with them. He turned his hand over and very slowly and carefull closed his hand, watching the claws fold over with his fingertips until the four inside edges were just barely touching the heel of his hand.