by R. A. Mejia
I did not have much time to admire the doors since, as we approached, they opened by themselves and revealed stairs that led down into a room 50 by 50 feet and thirty feet tall. It was larger than the building above it in every respect and grander than anything I’d yet seen. The walls were covered in dark wooden paneling, and the floor was covered in a deep red carpet that muffled even my heavy metal steps. Fine, intricately carved seats with lush red velvet cushions were lined up along all the walls, going down six rows deep, and the room looked like it could accommodate hundreds of people.
We came to a halt in the center of the room, and I looked up at the long desks four rows up in front of me. There were five old gnomes seated four rows up who had more wrinkles than I had bolts in my body. Their white hair was trimmed to a few inches, which only highlighted several of their balding heads, and they were garbed in white robes trimmed with gold. Professor Gnominsky was on the far right, and he nodded at me as I looked toward him.
The oldest gnome had a bristly white mustache and was seated in the center of the group of five, in the largest chair in the room. He looked down at me with intelligent eyes and said, “Thank you for joining us”--he glanced down at the notes on his desk--“Repair. You are the Metalman that the Gnomish Research Institute of Divitiae revived?”
“Yes,” I answered.
“Do you know why you have been brought before this illustrious council today?”
“I don’t even know what this council is. I only recognize one of you.” I turned and gave the room another look and added, “Though, this is one swanky-looking place.”
The gnome’s brow furrowed, and he scowled. “This is not a ‘swanky’ room. It was once the meeting place for the largest assembly of gnomes in this region, and the matters discussed here by gnome inventors, researchers, and warriors changed the course of the Dungeon Wars.” He looked around sadly at the empty seats before he continued, “Now, it is empty and used for administrative decisions and matters related to the Council of Research for the Institutes located not only in this city but also those spread throughout the country of Alberith.”
“And I’m one of those issues?” I asked
“Indeed, you are. It has been brought to our attention that you have made a request for a large amount of ochrium, a rare and expensive material. It was then brought to the council that such a request is not unusual for you and that you’ve been given a great deal of iron already and have requested an equal amount of steel. You also require a substantial regular amount of materials to repair yourself.”
“That’s all true. I requested the ochrium for a mechanical companion that I’m able to create thanks to my Artificer class and Inventor specialization. The iron was used to upgrade my armor plating, and the steel was requested to upgrade it further. I do not heal like everyone else, but need to repair myself instead. So, yes, I do require materials to fix myself when damaged. However, I don’t see what any of that has to do with you or anyone else. If you don’t want to give me the materials, that’s fine. I just won’t be able to share the Metalman research for those projects. It's your loss.”
“That is not why you are here, Repair,” Professor Gnominsky quickly said.
“Then why am I here?” I asked, feeling exasperated.
“You are here to evaluate your worthiness to compete in The Ultimate Research Warrior Competition, machine,” a new voice said.
I turned towards the sound and saw Gnomerad step out from behind a carefully hidden wooden door that blended in perfectly with the wooden paneling. He walked down the steps to my left and joined me and my guards on the open floor in the center of the room. “I have made an official complaint to the council about your being appointed as this research institute’s representative in the competition, and this council was gathered to judge your fitness.”
“Yes, that is the reason for your appearance here,” the gnome in the center said. “I am Doctor Gnomerson Gnogniton the Third, and I am the acting head researcher for all of Alberith. I coordinate all funding for the many Institutes that our illustrious gnomish people operate in this country. With me are four other heads of research, and together, we will rule on whether you should be allowed to represent this institute when so much research funding is on the line.” He pointed down at Gnomerad and said, “This well-respected golemist will be arguing against you and”--he pointed to another gnome that I’d not noticed just coming down the steps to my right--“this gnome has volunteered to argue for you.”
The red-haired Tognomey stumbled on the last step and nearly fell, but he caught himself and then nodded before turning to the council. “Thank you for allowing me to be here today and for allowing the subject of the issue to attend too, your honor. I fully intend to prove that Repair is our best shot at winning the Ultimate Research Warrior Competition.”
Gnomerad pounded his fist and quickly said, “And I intend to prove that he is not the best candidate. Not only that, but I will once and for all prove that it was sheer lunacy to waste so much money on reviving this machine and that continued spending on him is irresponsible.”
There it was. This council was formed to judge my worthiness. "What happens if I'm not found worthy?" I asked the gnome in the high chair then added a belated "Your honor" at his frown.
"If we find you unworthy, we will appoint a new division to represent the Institute. Your status as property of the Institute will remain unchanged, and you will continue to provide information about the lost Metalman race."
I clenched my fists at the mention of me being their property. If I didn't win that competition, the gnomes wouldn’t forgive me the tens of thousands of gold they’d spent excavating, transporting, and repairing the Metalman frame they’d bound my soul to. I’d be forced to remain in their debt and wouldn’t be given the chance to become a free citizen until I worked off the debt in some other way. It would take years to pay the gnomes back. No, I'd just have to convince the council I was the best candidate.
The lead gnome banged his gavel and he said, "Let us begin the examination. Researcher Gnomerad, you will begin."
Gnomerad ran his hand through his greasy black hair and smiled obsequiously at the old gnomes looking down at us. "Thank you, your honor. Great gnomes, I stand before you today, a humble researcher and golemist, to convince you that this machine has been nothing but a drain of resources and funds that would have been better spent elsewhere. I was against spending over twenty-five thousand gold coins and a year's labor in effecting repairs to this unit all in the vain hope that it could provide us with some insight into the history of the Metalman, a long-dead and almost forgotten race of servants.
"I will admit that he has furnished quite a few bits of information about his class and a few insights into some of what his body is capable of, but every story he's told us about the Metalmen has so far gone completely uncorroborated. For all we know, he's made up entirely every story in an attempt to forestall the day we realized he was not worth the expenditure of more resources. Of which he has cost us much."
Gnomerad pulled out a stack of papers from his jacket pocket and waved them at the watching gnomes. "I have here a list of expenses that this machine has incurred: bounties to find an ancient Metalman site, funds to outfit an expedition there, burial costs for the search teams who did not return, materials to repair, and a full year to research and manufacture the parts needed to bring his internal structures back into working order, specialists that tried without success to restore life to the frame, and, finally, the spiritualist that bound the stray soul into the frame--a risky experiment in its own right."
"Those are just the costs of bringing this machine to life. He's cost us hundreds of gold since then in damages to the buildings, materials to repair himself, and more to upgrade his body. All so that he can risk our investment by fighting monsters and carousing with untrustworthy goblins.
"When we tried to mitigate the risk to our investment, the machine lied to us, further damaged the Institute when he escaped, a
nd even attacked our guards and researchers when they tried to bring him back.
“And, now, he has the gall to ask for even more expensive materials like ochrium and steel for further upgrades which he claims will help him in The Ultimate Research Warrior Competition--something he has no chance of winning. My gods, he's only just reached level 5. How can he hope to even qualify for the competition when the minimum level is eight, and most other groups will be entering people of at least level ten?"
Everyone on the gnome council except Professor Gnominsky started to murmur and nod at this last statement. The professor simply shook his head in disagreement but remained silent.
Gnomerad lit up at the response from the council and continued, “I, therefore, put it to the council to not only choose another more prepared and worthy group to represent us at the competition but also to amend the agreement with the machine so that he is more formally recognized as our property and whose earned income should be devoted to recovering the costs associated with his revival. He should also be more closely supervised and controlled to prevent the risk of his loss and our investment.”
Two of the five on the gnome council clapped enthusiastically at the end of the speech, but the other three clapped politely. Doctor Gnomerson raised a hand for silence and said, “Thank you for that thorough and compelling argument for your view, Researcher Gnomerad.” He turned to Tognomey and said, “You may now speak on behalf of the subject.”
Tognomey bowed to the council from the waist and started, “I thank this council for its time, and I am grateful that, in its wisdom, it has waited to make a decision till after hearing all evidence and recommendations.” His eyes lingered for only a moment on the two gnomes that had clapped enthusiastically after Gnomerad’s speech before continuing. “I have had the honor of leading the Metalman revival project, the one fully approved by this council on its research merits and potential for new discoveries.
"As my illustrious college has pointed out, the project was approved to discover information about the history, technology, and reason for the downfall of the Metalman race. I argue that, in the single month that Repair has been revived, that he has more than fulfilled our purpose and justified the council’s faith in the project despite its expense. We’ve not only learned about the physical makeup of the Metalmen, but also their ability to adapt and upgrade themselves based on their needs. In addition, Repair has access to the original memories of the host frame and has given us first hand accounts of its life, including our first glimpses into who the creators of the Metalmen were. This has been an invaluable source of knowledge for our historians. Based on only the proven technology, the cost of the project has been worthwhile. Why, the deconstruction tool alone, once we master its principles, will let us leapfrog every other researcher on the continent in the area of mineral and material extraction--not to mention the Fabrication technology that allowed the Metalmen to create objects, weapons, armor, and anything else they needed in hours and not days or weeks.
“As a response to the accusation that Repair acted with undue haste when he risked himself recently, I argue that his actions, though ill-advised, show just the kind of attitude that we desperately need for our designated champion for the competition. He acted with deliberate thought and care toward a goal and without letting others dissuade him persevered in his endeavor despite the odds against his success. Not only did he overcome a monster that was thought beyond his ability to handle solo, he even overcame an obstinate gnome pursuer over ten levels above him. That is the kind of determination and clever resourcefulness we want from our champion: one that represents the gnome ethos to persevere and think our way through problems. Where would we be without that ingenuity?” He gestured to the room around him. “Why, in this very room, our people out-thought and out-strategized the dark forces that threatened to win the Dungeon Wars with their greater numbers and dark magic.
“Repair represents all those values and has the capacity to fulfill all of the goals laid before him. Why, in just a few weeks, he’s gone from level one to level five without only minor material assistance from the Institute. He’s unlocked technology that will revolutionize every aspect of life in this city and we control it all. Gnomes will master the same technology as the Metalmen. Can you imagine what he will accomplish and unlock when he’s level ten or twenty? Repair is not only worthy of being our champion, but he is worthy of being considered our ally. I put forth to this council that Repair not only continue to be our designated champion for The Ultimate Research Warrior Competition but that he also be given full access to any resource that he requires to prepare and unlock any Metalman technology, including ochrium, palladium, adamantine, mithril, and anything else. We, as a group, will only benefit by further supporting him. Thank you.”
There was no enthusiastic clapping from any of the council, but there was a small smile on Professor Gnominsky’s face. Doctor Gnomerson raised a hand for silence and said, “Thank you both for your statements and recommendations. You have been the closest to the project and the actions of the Metalman. We will talk and return with our decision.” Doctor Gnomerson rose, and the rest of the council did the same and followed him as he exited through another hidden door behind the ornate chairs.
It seemed like an eternity passed as I stood there, surrounded by guards, and waited for five small gnomes to determine my future. It made me angry, and it seemed utterly unfair that they had such power over my life. It only highlighted the rights that I did not have as long as I was the Institute’s property and not a free citizen. This group of gnomes could decide to forgive my debt to them and make me an equal to every other person in the city by helping me get citizenship, or they could decide to take me apart to study my inner mechanism and no one in the city would blink. To them, I was an object that was owned wholly by the Institute, which had the right to do what they wanted with their property.
Niala Applebrush would not even make eye contact with me. Instead, she kept her eyes forward and her hand on the sword at her waist, ever vigilant. I wondered what was going on in her mind. Was she worried for me? Did she feel conflicted about what she’d heard, or did she think that everything that was happening was perfectly normal? Perhaps it was normal for her. She was a warrior and must have been given unpleasant tasks to perform. I felt bad for her in a way and decided then that, no matter the decision of the council, I would not hold any hard feelings towards her. She was just doing a job.
However, the same could not be said for Gnomerad. I looked over at him and saw him watching me with an arrogant sneer. I’d known he had opposed me as a waste of coin, and even though I’d seen firsthand his disdain for my existence when he tried to capture me after I ran away, I never would have guessed just how far he’d go to sabotage my chances at freedom. Perhaps he felt that I’d humiliated him when I’d dropped him and his level seventeen golem into a mine pit, but I’d only done it to gain myself time to save my friend’s life. It was clear to me now that the gnome was my enemy. What else would you call someone that actively sought out sanctions against you, tried to eliminate your best chance to pay back the debt that would free you, and tried to keep you classified as property to control your existence? I shook my head in disgust at Gnomerad’s behavior.
When I considered the other gnome in this trial, Tognomey, I was less sure of where he lay. He’d volunteered to defend my position as the Institute’s champion and made a very flattering case for my usefulness. But was that pragmatism on his part, or did he actually believe that I deserved to be a free citizen? I mean, he was the head of the project that spent so much to repair this frame and bind my soul to it. Wouldn’t it be a black mark against him if the council decided that it was a waste of money and cut off funding for the project? Wouldn’t his reputation be boosted if his project won the massive amount of research funds from the competition? I couldn’t forget that he had sided with Gnomerad not that long ago when the Institute had tried to prevent me from going back into the dungeon to get the plant t
hat would save Greebo. They’d considered it too great a risk to their investment. No, Tognomey could not be classified as a friend, but perhaps he could be considered a pragmatic ally in the right circumstances. After all, he seemed to have hitched his wagon to my success. So, there was something there that I could use later when I needed to.
My thoughts about the three closest gnomes in my life were interrupted as the doors behind the council chairs opened, and the five gnomes retook their seats. Doctor Gnomerson Gnogniton the Third looked down at me with an expressionless visage and said, “We, the council of the Gnomish Research Institute, have decided that you, the Metalman Repair, will be given the opportunity to prove yourself worthy of being the champion for our illustrious Institute.”