He located what had disturbed him. Heading for the clearing along the road was a herd of Bedal. They jumped from tree to tree, dropping onto their prey with immobilizing poison that knocked out but kept their prey alive. Then they’d eat right through the creature as it was still conscious.
It wasn’t the only thing that Dave sensed. As Kol had trained him with elements and metals, Bob had trained him with Mana.
These Bedal were being given orders by something with Earth magic.
“Mother fuckers. I was looking for a damn lie-in,” Dave growled. He pulled on his heavy winter cloak and grabbed his bag.
“Dave?” Deia said.
“Don’t worry, babe, just taking care of nature,” Dave said.
“Okay.” Deia was still sleepy but she sounded unsure about what he had just told her.
Dave was not a morning person, and without his cup of caffeine in the morning, he was not someone to piss off. Especially if that meant pissing him off while having Deia sleeping with him and trying to attack him with flying fucking squirrels from hell.
Dave had poured more Mana into his Touch of the Land and found the Earth sprite who had fucked with his day.
“Hey you Earthy prick, how about you just fuck off!” Dave looked at the composition of the sprite.
The sprite was doused in a thick, oily substance; it tried to wipe it off, just as a lantern was conjured above it and dropped on its head.
“Nothing like napalm in the morning,” Dave muttered under his breath.
The Bedal, now with their cognition returned, stopped in mid-movement. After a few moments, they headed away from the road. There was easy prey to be had down south.
Dave muttered darkly to himself and wandered back into his tent.
“Everything good?” Deia asked sleepily.
Even Dave’s morning attitude was reduced by looking at her sleep coiffed hair and tired eyes. “Just a bit of fire bombing,” Dave said.
“You better not fart under the covers!” she threatened.
Dave shook his head and put his cloak up.
The sprite died. With a thought, Dave destroyed his conjuration; the fire disappeared from the sprite and the area. Only a pile of ash and burnt embers was left behind.
Chapter 28: Thinking About the Future
It was a few more days until they reached Cliff-Hill. They greeted those they knew and watched as another group of warbands headed out to the growing camp around Boran-al’s Citadel.
There were now two thousand Dwarves and four hundred Elven fighters. There were Player guilds scouting the area, as well as some camp hangers-on. Most had decided to stay in Cliff-Hill; it was close by and it was just getting past the midpoint of winter. Everything was coated in snow.
Dave had conjured a fire into the fireplace so when they finally got home it was toasty.
“Well, I’ll get something started for dinner and then we can go see the warband.” Dave pulled off his coat and pulled food out of the “fridge” he’d made.
“There is something that I wanted to talk to you about.” Deia wrung her hands.
“Oh?” Dave said, his head deep in the fridge.
“I was thinking about giving up my position as an Elven ranger,” Deia said, saying it as fast as possible so she couldn’t go back.
Dave paused in his rummaging and turned around. “Why?”
“I’m a Player. Even if I die, I’ll come back. I’ve served forty years as a ranger. I want to be by your side. Being a ranger will pull me away from you.” Deia stared Dave in the eye.
“I also wanted to become your fiancée.”
Dave’s eyebrow rose as he seemed to freeze for a few seconds.
“Dave?” Deia asked, thinking about poking him to make sure that he was still with her.
“Isn’t the guy supposed to say that?” Dave asked.
“Maybe on Earth. Here it’s the woman, after deeming the man worthy to father their child and support them,” Deia said.
“You want to have kids?” Dave’s eyes went wide and she imagined smoke coming out of his ears.
“Not right now!” She put her hands on her hips in frustration.
“Okay, ’cause, like, I do want to have kids, eventually, but like don’t think I’m ready for it,” Dave said.
“Be a few decades yet,” Deia agreed.
“Decades?” Dave’s head snapped up again.
“We can essentially live forever, being reborn every time we die. After the first century, time gets a lot faster,” Deia said.
Dave got that look that he was thinking of something.
Deia snapped her fingers, trying to get his attention. “Dave? Dave?”
“Oh sorry. Just, wow, I guess we’re kind of immortal.” By his look, he didn’t seem to know whether he was happy or scared by the prospect.
“Essentially. Now what do you say—will you be my mate?” Deia said.
“I have a feeling you don’t mean the British kind of mate.” Dave grinned.
“Dave!” She crossed her arms and tapped her foot, her lips pursed together to hide her grin at his antics.
“Hmm.” Dave looked up at the ceiling, moving closer to her slowly. He made thoughtful noises, showing that he was considering it deeply.
***
Dave had been blindsided by Deia’s proposal but in a certain light it made sense. He had never had this much fun with someone else and well, hell, it might only be a few months since they had got together, but he’d never been more content.
He checked out information on Emerilia engagements. They were essentially no more than two people living together to make sure that it was a right fit before they married. With Elves, engagements could last decades. It was essentially laying claim to each other and saying that they knew what they were doing and consenting to live together to test the waters further.
Dave was scared, excited, downright terrified, and running around in his skull screaming for joy.
He made it to Deia, who looked at him with that severe expression that said he better make up his damned slow dwarf mind.
A smile spread across his face as he put his arms around her. She was tense and Dave could see the worry in her expression; she was trying to hide it with anger but Dave knew her better than that.
“Oson’Deia, will you do me the honor of looking after this halfling?”
Her angry façade broke as her lower lip trembled, showing her true emotions as tears filled her eyes.
“No! No damned waterworks!” he complained.
She laughed. Tears fell down her face as she held his face and kissed him. “Yes, yes I’ll try to keep you out of trouble.” She pulled back, their foreheads touching.
“Good, ’cause I’m intending to get us into a bunch of trouble!” He smiled.
She laughed as Dave picked her up and laid her on the bed.
They made slow and passionate love, taking the time to revel in each other’s bodies.
***
Dave walked into the guard barracks along the southern gate that led to Omal. He waved to a few people here and there, a great big grin plastered to his face like a damned idiot.
“What the hell have you been sniffing over in Kufo’tel?” Max demanded as he made it into the bunks where Lox’s warband was living.
“Looks as stunned as Gurren did after going out with that Air chick who had a thing for lightning,” Lox grumbled from his bunk.
“Hey! I didn’t know she would get that damned sparky!” Gurren clapped Dave on the shoulder in greeting as he entered the bunk room. “I should find out where her cave is,” he muttered, making Dave laugh as he waggled his bushy eyebrows.
“How was the famous Oson’Mal? He roast you good and proper?” Tounk asked.
“Well, he’s a pretty interesting dude. Good with flames and all that,” Dave said. looking around for someone. “Where’s Joko?”
“She’s off sparring with those Players. Seems someone told them that she trained you. We’re making some good gold on
the side training them up,” Lox said.
“Better make us good when you go fighting. Thinking of making a training academy,” Tounk said.
“Really?” Dave said, seeing the serious faces and nods. “Well, there’s certainly a need for it, especially for Evolving Players. There aren’t many people who are willing to train Players in the proper way to fight. Might make sense having them prove that they are interested and willing to take your instructions,” Dave said.
“We’ve gone through that, even got Wender and a few higher level Dwarves interested. We’re going into battle with this lot, might as well see that they know how to act and react on the battlefield. Also, those Stone Raiders aren’t a bad bunch,” Lox said.
“Downright nuts and they can hold their beer! Especially that Dwayne fellow.” Max clearly approved.
“Hrmm, maybe I should talk to them again. The first time, Josh tried to nail me with a knife,” Dave said. It was hard for him to admit it but he seemed to have become a bit negative toward Players. Now that he knew that their actions had real consequences, what they thought of as fun would make Dave’s blood boil.
“How is that armor going?” Tounk asked. All of them listened, clearly interested. Dave had spent a lot of time on it and being in their position, things like weapons and armor were naturally rather interesting.
“It’s going to take some time, but I’ll get there,” Dave promised. “Though I have another announcement.” Dave cleared his throat and stood a bit proper.
“Looks like you just shoved a broom handle in yer arse,” Lox said.
The Dwarves laughed as Dave shook his head.
“Well, what is it?” Tounk demanded.
“Deia and I are engaged.”
“’Bout damned time!” Lox barked.
“You sure you’re still useful? I did see you try to break a tree with your balls,” Max added.
“Wasn’t a broom—was the hangman’s noose around his neck!” Gurren laughed.
“So when are we drinking?” Tounk threw in.
For a while, they threw barbs back and forth. Dave might be a halfling, but he gave back as good as he got!
Chapter 29: Starting Off On the Right Foot
Kol stood up from his chair and waved Dave to take his place and his tools.
“Are you sure?” Dave asked.
Kol cuffed him.
“Right.” Dave rubbed his head where he got hit.
Kol grunted at Dave’s words.
Dave might look like a giant dwarf but his work was precise and accurate. Kol looked at the sheets that he had completed already. The armor Dave was making—Kol had never seen anything like it and he never thought he might see something like it the rest of his life.
Wafer-thin ebony sheets were rolled and pressed. Then Kol had carved runes into them with Dave’s guidance. Dave had worked with his steel exterior to form the dragon scales to the larger overlapping plates.
It would create a suit of armor that would blunt blows, while also leaving the user mobile with their arms and legs. The wearer would feel all of the hit, so they’d need to be strong and fast at the same time. On the outside, it didn’t look all that remarkable, just well done steel armor.
Dave engraved his runes into the ebony sheet. He had been practicing with the ebony before he left for Kufo’tel; now, Kol thought it time to get him working on it completely. All of the steel parts had been made so there was only ebony, silver, and the soul gem layers.
Kol was coming to a hard decision. If Dave completed his work on ebony, then there was only stone, malachite, gold and Mithril remaining. He didn’t have any doubts that Dave would be able to master the materials easily. It was time that he moved onto the next stage.
Kol left Dave to work on the sheets. Even if the man messed up here and there, Dave would do it all, before smelting it down and retrying it. Kol had faith that although it might take Dave time, he would get a handle of the ebony.
It would probably level up faster than his main steel projects. With the ebony, he wasn’t just smelting it and beating it into form. He would have to come to understand the ebony in order to make the most powerful runes and do the careful engraving needed on the ebony sheets.
A sword was more impressive than engraving, but engraving was a fine art; adding in that the engravings were magical runes, they had to be perfect.
Kol looked over the smithies with his gift. He could feel the Mana flowing through the portable smithy that the other smithies had grown from. It was still no match to the magical smithies of Mithsia, but they were powerful. Players were paying good gold to have their weapons redone. Many of them got their weapons back in a higher state than before.
As the Player’s weapons leveled up, the portable smithy grew stronger from the magic that moved through it, whether it be a Dwarf’s natural power, or the power of the Player’s weapons.
The Golden Sabres elite had brought their weapons; the power of their artifacts could only be repaired by master smiths, so Kol was dealing with them. His workflow was through the roof, but instead of going to his anvil, he headed out of the smithy and toward the warclan’s headquarters.
It took him some time to get there. The guards let him in after he showed the necklace he wore with the eight materials, showing him as a master smith.
Wender, who was running the headquarters, bowed as he entered. “Kol, why are you here?” Wender asked.
“I have need to use the mirror,” Kol said.
“May I ask why?” Wender asked.
“To see if a new master will be allowed to forge their path,” Kol said.
Wender’s eyebrows rose. “It is at your disposal, Master Smith.” Wender saluted and bowed. He opened a closet and pulled off a fake panel, showing a communication mirror before he moved out of the office.
He pressed the right runes and connected to the various other mirrors across Emerilia. While the Humans, Orcs, Elves, and other minor races had a lot of fights among themselves and one another, they mostly left the Dwarves out of it.
Dwarves were a great resource to have in one’s country. They could perform miracles with Earth and Dark magic. They could mine and refine more material than any other race and their tools were the best.
There was also the fact that Dwarves were a balancing race on Emerilia. When Kol had showed Dave the Dwarven shield, he had showed him one of the greatest strengths of the Dwarves. For the most part, they could argue like you couldn’t believe, but working in the mines had brought them together in a way few other races did.
Their warbands were not only respected but feared. When a Dwarven lord deemed it so, their mountain would rumble, unleashing their warclans. They forged forward, their machines following. If you attacked the Dwarves, you must be prepared to lose your city.
An attack against one Dwarf was against all. Being the balancer of the races had led to them keeping a number of secrets. One of them being of the master smiths. They weren’t simply trained; they were judged. The power of a master smith was no small thing. Armed with Mithril armor, the wearer could become immensely powerful. Kol was one of a few hundred master smiths in all of Emerilia.
His Mirror of Communication registered a connection. Kol pressed his hand to it. The room around him disappeared and he found himself at the head of a long table. Other smiths popped into existence; the table grew as more smiths appeared. Not all were here but a good many would answer the call.
The smiths all sat at the same table, neither above nor below one another.
There were, of course, arguments but for the most part it was friendly rivalries. Metal working was as much an art as it was a science to them. They understood metal on an elemental level; forms and higher practices gained esteem among peers, making them compete to make the best of the best and show their skill.
After a few minutes, Kol rose. It took a few moments for the Dwarves to look at him. Their traits and hairstyles came from all of the clans; each of the mountains was represented here.
&
nbsp; “I, Kol, Master Smith of Cliff-Hill, desire to take an apprentice.” Kol’s voice moved through the room like an elemental force.
Tension filled the room.
“I have his proof.” Kol remembered the shield that Dave had crafted, down to the notches on the edge where the metals had been bound together.
In the mirror, he was able to create an image, a copy but it could not return to the physical world. The shield was duplicated, landing in front of the Dwarves.
They didn’t need tools as they looked, touched, and understood the shield.
“He is halfling, born of Players but a person of Emerilia,” Kol said.
“He is a Player? With this kind of power?” One of the master smiths looked at the shield and then Kol. “If he increases, what is to say what he will do?”
“With or without us, he will find his way,” Kol said.
“What have you told him?” another smith hissed.
“I have taught him the way of fire and metal. He is a builder, a creator from the Player’s realm.” Kol looked around the table. “He has already surpassed my talents.”
There was a ripple down the table.
“This shield is made from Elven, human, orc, and the Affinities themselves runes. While strange, it is merely a combination of many,” another dwarf said, rebutting Kol.
“He is not merely a builder of armor; he has become an expert of Magical Circuits. With time, I expect him to reach the level of master. As an enchanter, he is only rivaled by those of the old ways. I do not come to request he become a master. He will do that himself, damn stubborn bastard. I ask for him because with him being a master, he might pass his knowledge on and we might provide counsel to him.”
“You make it seem like a formality instead of an action,” an older dwarf said, his voice gruff as he stroked his beard.
“He is a crafter the likes of which I have not seen before. He has trained as a Dwarven shield bearer and an Elven ranger. His ideas and perspective—they are something only seen within Players. Yet this one has become one of the land; he has lifted his veil and devoted his abilities to the purpose of strengthening himself through craft. He made that shield for proof. He didn’t see anything special about the runes; he just refined them as he knew.”
The Trapped Mind Project (Emerilia Book 1) Page 41