Chapter 122: Enchanting Exclusivity

“Get your sorry ass to a gemcutter and enchanter,” the gruff Bultrong of the weapon’s smithy cursed at Lucia. “Glass is too delicate for my mitts.”

“Ok,” Lucia nodded, picking up the piece on the countertop. “Might need repairs. Ammunition.”

“What’s my name?” the man asked, glaring at the Thrundol.

“Erm…” Lucia stopped. Had she forgotten his name? How long had these two known each other?

Ann watched as Lucia’s eyes flicked back and forth, desperately trying to remember.

“Gruff?”

“Close enough," the man sighed. “Griff. One of these days you’ll get it. Do you even know your new friends’ names?”

“Kat, Bren, Ann, Ros,” Lucia rattled off.

“Rosalyn,” Rosalyn corrected her. “I like my name as it is, thank you.”

“Betcha don’t know their last names,” Griff pressed.

“I… know Kat is Farragher, and Bren is, um, Hidera?”

“Hedera,” Bren chimed in.

“One and a half. Girl, spend more time on connections and you might make something more of yourself,” Griff sighed. “Come back after the enchanter’s done and I’ll get the sight fitted proper.” Griff waved them off like a bunch of teenagers loitering.

“How long have you known him?” Ann asked as they gathered outside.

“Four years? I think. Yes. That many winters,” Lucia nodded.

“Gonna take that long tae learn our names?” Kat teased.

“Know important ones,” Lucia shrugged. “Sorry, Rosalyn.”

“It’s fine. Only my parents get to shorten my name, though,” Rosalyn said. “So, we need to get to a gemcutter or enchanter or both?”

“Yes,” Bren said. “I know the area. It is not very far. I wonder if the travelling craftsmen have set up shop as well.”

“Sorry, sirs and madames,” the polite Inlon said with a bow. “I’m afraid my time is fully booked. Most enchanters are in high demand, I must warn you. The military and other mercenaries keep us quite busy. Scheduled commissions are the norm, and those can be months out.”

“Fine,” Kat huffed. She’d begrudgingly brought her status up, but the answer remained the same. “Is there anyone who just does cutting? Pretty sure we can figure out the enchanting with Wendyl.”

“Maybe a bit more,” Ann leered.

Kat gave her a withering look, then returned to the enchanter. “So? Anyone?”

“Well, Afric might be able to. He’s kept his schedule open. You can find him down the street with old Catherine. Now, I must return to work. Good day!” the man waved, then hopped off his stool behind the counter and walked into the back of the store.

Not long after, Ann knocked at the door of the shop actually called “Old Catherine’s”. It was brightly painted in a style she could only compare to an old lady painting a birdhouse. It clashed in several places, hideously against the more reasonable buildings beside it, but that made it stick out even more. She pushed open the door, ringing a bell above their heads.

“Oh, hello dearies!” A wizened Thrundol greeted them with a creaking voice. “What can Old Catherine do for you? Oh, such a beautiful bunch you are. Especially you in the back. My, you look a bit like me when I was your age,” Catherine said, grinning at Lucia, her smile missing several teeth.

“Thank you, honoured elder,” Lucia bowed in uncharacteristic reverence. She didn’t say more, but her gaze was respectful as she regarded Old Catherine.

“We are actually here for Afric. Is he in?” Bren asked.

“Ah, you’re in luck. Let me go fetch him. He just got back from a date,” Catherine said, giving them all a sly wink. She heaved her slightly overweight form from her chair and made her way to a set of stairs to the second level. Her back was noticeably hunched, age having taken its toll, and she kept a hand on the wall to steady herself. As she went, a small white and black cat rubbed against her ankles, always careful not to get underfoot. “Careful, Pepp. I’ll be fine. Go say hello to the lovely folk.”

Dutifully, Pepp meowed at her, then pranced across the floor to greet the group. He was a haughty little cat, and basked in the attention offered. His legs were shorter than they should be, and his tail didn’t curl like most cats, but he seemed happy. It took a couple of minutes for him to warm up to Ann, and he had to thoroughly smell her hand before he allowed any petting to happen. Everyone else got immediate access.

Footsteps on the stairs forced everyone to stop paying attention to the precocious feline. Afric slowly helped Catherine back down the stairs before settling her back into her chair. Pepp hopped back into her lap, happily purring as he curled into a ball.

“Hello all. I am not so blind as to not recognise the third princess,” Afric said with a bow. “Cathy here says you were looking for me? What brings you my way?”

“To be quite honest, process of elimination,” Bren admitted. “We have visited several establishments, and all seem to be booked at the moment.”

“Well, it’s lucky that I’m in town then,” Afric laughed. He was a good-looking man. Human, around six feet tall with long black hair pulled back in a ponytail. Freckles dotted his pale cheeks, and he wore a pair of large glasses that magnified his golden eyes. He wore a simple white shirt and dark pants, and wrung his hands as he spoke. “What’s the project?”

“This,” Lucia said curtly, pulling out the piece of glass she’d been given. “Was thinking scope. Long ranged. Fit on this.” Lucia placed Fillianore on the counter for Afric to inspect.

“Well, a gem cutter isn’t really the best person to be working with glass. Normally, I would advise you to seek out a glassworker and have them melt it down, then form it properly. Seems like a waste of materials for me to file it down. Is that not an option?” Afric asked as he turned the hunk of glass over in his hands, eyes fixed on the facets as it sparkled. “Though, I don’t think I’ve seen rough cut glass like this before. Looks like it just came out of the ground like that, which isn’t normal at all. Where did you get this?”

“Seed.”

“Interesting. Most of the glass I’ve seen harvested came from windows, then is brought back as shards to be re-made. You didn’t happen to drop this in a kiln or something, did you?” Afric winked at Lucia, then returned to the glass. “It has a similar structure to a crystal, now that I’m looking at it closer.”

“Can it work?” Lucia asked.

“Patience, patience,” Afric chided her, pulling out a small magnifying lens and holding it up to his eye. “Hmm, yes, subtle, but significant differences from normal glass. This was… grown? I don’t even know how that’s possible. It was found in a Seed, though. Impossibilities are common in those realms. Fantastic, yes. I will be able to make two lenses from this. Do you need enchantments?”

“Prefer. Yes,” Lucia nodded.

“Well, I’ll make sure the structure is sound enough to hold up to the process. I don’t personally know any enchanters that would accept a commission at the moment, however.”

“Is fine. Have one,” Lucia said, taking Fillianore back. “Need more?”

“Well, a name would be nice,” Afric laughed.

“Lucia,” Lucia paused. “Lucia Simorgh.”

“Well, Lucia, I’ll get to work on this fascinating project. I was in the city to help make a lens anyway, so this is hilariously up my alley. Do you need it anytime soon?”

“Not sure. Probably not. When it’s done. Don’t rush,” Lucia nodded.

“I’ll have a friend send a message when it’s finished. Anything else I can help you all with?” Afric asked, addressing the rest of the room.

“Um, so, I’m from… not here, and I’ve got a question or two on how gems and enchanting works,” Ann said, moving closer to the counter.

Afric’s eyes wandered over her. He was intent, perceptive, but not leering. “Quite an unusual beauty. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Vulhardrin quite like you. Where from?”

“Pretty far north. There’s a tribe of us that survives up there. Honestly, I didn’t know I was weird until I came further south.”

“Ah, isolated pockets of people do happen. Well, as for your question, gemcraft and enchanting can go hand in hand. Gems can be used as insets and facets in armour or just about anything. If the equipment is properly constructed to interface with the gem and channel its properties, the entire structure will take on the enchantment. That is something a smith, leatherworker, or tailor is best consulted about. Gems themselves come in all shapes and sizes. Each has a strength and a weakness. Take this sapphire,” Afric said, pulling out a glittering blue, uncut gem. “This piece of crystal can be cut into any shape imaginable, but it prefers certain faceted structures. We need to follow the natural growth of the gemstone to best preserve the structural integrity. When an enchanter works with the processed material, it puts a strain on the internal structures. Chips and cracks are disastrous. Thus, gemcutters, or whatever you wish to call my profession, are skilled at preserving and reinforcing the gems through how they are cut.”

“I think I get it?” Ann did not get much of it. She knew what a cut gem looked like from ads and jewelry, but not the intricacies of how they were made. Afric was going over her head. Cut gems being stronger did make sense, though.

“I see your confusion,” Afric laughed.

“It’s interesting, though. Kinda like wood carving where you have to take the grain into consideration,” Rosalyn said.

“Yes, somewhat. The grain of a crystal is harder to find, but it’s the same principle. So, each gem type has its own properties as well. Garnets are best for offensive enchantments. They take well to force multipliers of a physical variety. Emeralds are similar but on the magical side. That is common with these things, the dichotomy. Neither take well to defensive enchantments. Sapphires and diamonds, due to their natural hardness, take incredibly well to defensive enchantments. I could go on, but I see I’m losing everyone but you two,” Afric gestured at Rosalyn and Bren. “Talk to your enchanter. They’ll have a contract with a supplier in the city and will figure all of this out for you.”

“Thanks,” Ann said, a bit sheepish. It was interesting, but her mind wandered. Every time Afric spoke, it reminded her of her chemistry teacher back in secondary school. She loved the guy, and his lessons were interesting, but she could not make any of it stick in her head. “I’ll definitely ask her about it. So, uh, anyone else?”

No one stepped up.

“Then we’ll get going. Thanks for your time,” Ann said.

“Like I said, I’ll send word via a friend, Lucia,” Afric called as they walked out. “Voltid bless you all!”

They made their way out, working their way through the streets.

“Sooo, gonna ask her?” Ann teased Kat.

Kat huffed and looked elsewhere. “Maybe,” she mumbled under her breath.

Ann grinned wolfishly, then nudged Rosalyn, who looked up. The Druid’s eyes widened, then narrowed slyly as she realised what was happening.

Bren just shook his head.

Wendyl’s shop, as always, was open. “Afternoon. Welcome to Wendyl’s. What can I do you for?” the bored voice of the Inlon woman called from behind the counter.

“Need some enchantments from our favourite enchanter,” Ann called back, leaning over the glass casing holding several of Wendyl’s pieces.

She found Wendyl sprawled in a nest of cushions with a book in hand as she lazily flipped through the pages. Her pink hair was normally pretty messy, but today it was in shambles, and bags under her crimson eyes spoke of a rough night before. She wore loose-fitting clothes and had a steaming cup of something on the floor just within reach of her smaller arms.

“Rough night?” Ann asked.

“Oh, shit, hi!” Wendyl exclaimed, scrambling and almost knocking her drink over. “Sorry, yeah. It was a really late one. Another lewd party. I swear. I make so much money at these things, but I pay for it in sleep.” Wendyl groaned as she stood up, carrying her cup as she climbed a set of stairs to a platform that let her look over the counter. “Brought the whole crew today. Nice. Guess I’ll spare you the whole sales pitch from last time, since that clearly didn’t go great. What’s the deal? Need armour or weapon enchants? Utility? Can do pretty much anything with some research.”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself,” Ann said with a sly wink. “Anyway, that’s mostly Lucia today.”

“Need enchantment for scope,” Lucia explained. “Durability. Protection from scratching. Maybe cleaning? Not sure.”

“Hmm, ok. Self cleaning, make it tougher and resistant to abrasion and cutting. That’s two enchants. What’re the dimensions of these lenses?”

Lucia held her hands out, approximating the size.

“Yeah, that’s easy. What’re they made of?”

“Glass. Maybe tougher glass,” Lucia explained. “Found in Seed.”

“Ooh, cool. If you’ve got someone cutting that into a lens, that’ll be fun to work with. They know you want it enchanted?”

“Yes.”

“Cool. That handles that. I’ll wait for them to come in. Got nothing else to do lately, besides myself.”

“Why’s tha’?” Kat asked. “The other people we went tae today said they were booked out fer months.”

“Cause so much of it is boring,” Wendyl sighed, leaning on the counter as she spoke to Kat. Her baggy shirt draped enough to show everyone in the room that she was not wearing anything else under the outfit, and her petite breasts were on full display. Grinning, the Indol winked at Kat, then stood back up. “No, seriously. It’s all ‘make my armour invincible, make my sword on fire, blah blah blah,’” she said in a deep voice as she mocked customers. “It’s why I work on that other kind of enchantment so much. Not standard. Usually custom. It gets my brain working, and I love a challenge. I have to keep the lights on, though, so I do it when I need to.”

“You definitely already have a reputation,” Rosalyn said. “Not even for the, um, side projects. No, just the enchanting stuff. Wasn’t there someone who talked about her, Ann?”

“Yeah. Said to snatch you up,” Ann grinned, letting the implication sit there.

Wendyl looked at her, then at Kat, who’d started blushing, then back. “Literally?”

“I mean, if you want to,” Ann said, extending her claws. “We could oblige.”

“Now don’t threaten me with a good time,” Wendyl grinned, then yawned widely. “Sorry. Still fucking exhausted. This isn’t helping either,” she said, glaring at her cup of what smelled like tea.

“Try this,” Ann said, offering her mug.

Wendyl watched, then did a double take as the cup filled with steaming coffee. “What in the Hells is that? Where did you get that? Who made it?”

“A God,” Ann answered calmly.

Wendyl snatched the cup and drank the entire thing in one go, then watched in fascination as it refilled. “And it does that infinitely? Does it ever run out? Where does it come from? I don’t even see any etching for enchantments.”

“You know, I thought the coffee would wake you up more than the mug,” Ann chuckled.

“I’m sure it will, but that’s a shock to the system. I need to study this. Can I?”

“No,” Ann refused. “I’m getting back into my caffeine addiction, and you’re not taking that away from me.

“Damnit. Fine. What do I have to do to get my hands on that?”

“Well, we could reconsider yer offer from earlier,” Kat mentioned offhandedly. “Plus, pretty sure we’re gonna be gettin’ way stranger shite than tha’.”

“You’re serious?” Wendyl asked. “Wait, wait, which parts are we talking about? I was making a lot of offers really fast back then.”

Ann stepped back. She wanted Kat to make the decision since she’d been the one to refuse last time. Rosalyn stepped up next to the princess, holding her hand comfortingly.

“Kinda all o’ it? Exclusivity, an’, er, well,” Kat faltered, her blush spreading. She couldn’t even look Wendyl in the eye.

Ann could see her faltering, nerves bubbling up. Lover’s Intuition was telling her Kat was on that edge, but couldn’t quite bring herself to say the words. Taking a gamble, she used Stoke the Flames and pushed against Kat’s nervousness. Not enough to change anything she wouldn’t do, but enough to let her girlfriend speak her mind.

“Maybe sharin’ the bed sometimes,” Kat mumbled. She immediately buried her face in her hands as she spoke.

Wendyl, for her part, went slack jawed. “No kidding?”

“No kidding,” Kat said, her voice tense as she tried to force confidence. “We, erm, had a talk, an’ I think I can deal wit’ tha’.”

“Hey, tall and muscly. I don’t want to be where I’m not welcome. Doesn’t sound like this’ll be a full-time thing, yeah?”

“Right,” Kat nodded. “Just for fun. If it gets tae be more, we can talk about it then, but I think I’ve got me hands full.”

Wendyl grinned.

Ann watched the entire exchange with a bit of smugness. Getting Kat to embrace the part of her that called for more was fun. While Kat was talking, she turned and found Bren and Lucia at the far end of the shop, looking pointedly at a couple contraptions. I need to work on them, too, she thought. They’re already syncing up on reactions to some stuff. Am I a bad influence? Nah, they’re cute. Ann chuckled to herself, then returned to the ongoing negotiations.

“I want a stipend for my research. Enough to keep my shop open and then some for my own wants and needs,” Wendyl asked. “The priority on what you bring back is obvious, but needs to be mentioned.”

“Done,” Kat nodded. “The crown already has that deal wit’ a few people. Can get that signed afore the day is done.”

“Huh, thought there’d be some haggling on that part,” Wendyl blinked.

“Ye, on the other hand, need tae swear complete discretion. Shite’s goin’ on wit’ our group that’s not fer anyone else tae hear. The only exception tae this is me parents. Illdall protect me, I still need tae tell ‘em about the latest shite.”

“What kind of stuff are we talking about?” Wendyl asked, clearly off put by the demand.

“Nothin’ dangerous tae ye, just better not spoken tae the rest o’ the world. We can tell ye once ye’ve sworn.”

“I can confirm. It won’t hurt you. It’s interesting too,” Rosalyn said. “Not sure if it’ll be anything that helps you with enchanting or work, but it’s weird that it’s happening in the first place.”

Wendyl cocked a pink eyebrow, then nodded. “Yeah, sure. Need it written?”

“We’ll ‘ave the contract drawn up an’ delivered later. Need yer word now.”

“Then sure. You’ve got my word I will keep anything you tell me in confidence a secret from everyone. Even my own dad won’t know about it unless you tell me it’s ok.” Wendyl extended a hand, which Kat took and shook once. “Cool, so what’s the big deal?”

“Well, if ye’re gonna be in bed wit’ us sometimes, we can’t really hide it.” Kat turned, raising the hair covering her neck.

“Ho-ly shit,” Wendyl gasped.

“Aye.”

“Oh, I just made the most interesting deal of my life,” Wendyl said with a massive, pointy-toothed grin. “When do we start?”