“Well, I am not sure if boots like those allow you to make a statement like that. I personally don’t mind a little dramatic flair when appropriate, but boots that fog as you walk are a bold choice.” Jack saw Brandt eye him up and down like a mean girl as he turned his head at the comment.
“Could Montarg not afford to get you any other equipment? I feel they are a little out of place with the rest of your attire,” Brandt continued.
Jack felt a little taken aback. He had not expected a critique on his non-existent fashion sense, but it was better than outrage. He, however, had no retort; he agreed completely. The boots were cool, but he was only wearing them because Monty told him to be prepared not to go back for a while. They gave him his one form of potential escape, so he had them on. The constantly misting fur pooling at his feet was a little bit extra and in no way matched his current casual crewmate look.
“Well, Monty’s financial situation or lack thereof is none of my business, I would say. I am not that big of a leech; this is something recently acquired.” Realising his mistake almost immediately, he tried not to let it show. Jack had always been told he was an oversharer; all he could do now was act as if the information was not important to him and move on.
“I was hoping to actually get something else while I was here if the opportunity presented itself. That, or at least a chance to learn a little more about how imbued items work; it is very interesting to me.”
Brandt smiled while Monty stared at Jack.
“Monty?” Brandt asked as he looked over at Monty and Turrel.
“Yes, our Jack has a problem with remembering proper methods of address and when to use them. Overseer.” Monty smiled.
“I see. ‘Monty’s’ financial situation is well known to be… less than ideal; that was just a friendly joke. Although I am a little more interested in how you came into possession of those boots now, however. Do you mind if I have a look at them, Jack? I am a bit of a Magitech aficionado, if you will,” Brandt asked, holding a hand out toward Jack.
“Sure, I would be happy to let you have a look. Could we maybe do it when we get somewhere a little cooler? It’s pretty hot and I have delicate feet.” Jack could see they still had at least three flights of stairs before they reached the main level; it was hundreds of metres away after that as well.
Letting out a sigh only through his nostrils, Brandt continued.
“A short attention span it would seem as well. Fine, when we get to my residence would be acceptable. I will have to insist, however, that from now on you ensure that you use my title of Overseer when addressing me. I have staff that will take much more offence than I will.”
Shit, they literally just told me. Jack was more than a little socially inept, but he made sure he committed it to memory this time.
“My bad, I won’t do it again, Overseer.”
A single chuckle came from one of the three men, but Jack couldn't be sure who.
“As far as Magitech is concerned, however, I do not think you will find much here of high craftsmanship. I can help arrange some introductions if you have time, however. Montarg doesn't appreciate it as much as he should because he can’t use it. I do not share that defect.” Brandt pulled a metal rod out from his belt strap and held it before him.
“As a show of good faith, however, I am happy to show you one of my pieces while we walk. It is more of an outdoors sort of piece anyway.” Holding the rod out so Jack could see it, he wanted to reach out and touch it but assumed that might be rude.
The rod itself appeared deceptively simple. It was about a metre long, looking like a small twig in Brandt's massive hands. Slightly thicker than his thumb and was made of a polished silver material, there were hundreds of tiny etchings over its surface. So small that Jack struggled to see them until the light reflected off the polished surface.
Jack had no idea what it might do or how to react. Brandt could have been showing him Excalibur or some priceless artefact, but it just looked like a metal rod to Jack.
“That looks interesting. I am sorry, Overseer. I have no idea what it is, what it does, or what the etiquette here is.” Jack opted for being honest and respectful. It was no secret at this point he knew less than was expected of him.
“Hahaha. Do not worry, Jack. Touch it and acknowledge the details; I doubt you could use this right now anyway,” Brandt replied. Still, he was holding the rod with a very tight grip, only leaving the top half for Jack to touch.
Jack reached out and tentatively touched the end of the rod; it felt smoother than he expected. He felt that tingle at the back of his mind again. Reaching out, he let it flow into him.
[Rod of Malleable Mass]
[Master Craft] - [Reinforcement Essence x2][Flow Essence]
This item has been forged by a Master Craftsman utilising Essence from multiple riftspawn equipment.
When infused with Earth mana, the Rod generates additional mass along its length. This mass remains malleable to the wielder's will, allowing for rapid changes in shape, length, thickness and balance.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
[Enhancements]
- [Control] - [Masterwork] : This Item has been tuned to provide a massive increase to the level of control granted to the wielder to fine tune the strength of the additional mass.
- [Resonance] - [Masterwork] : This Item has been enhanced to grant the wielder the ability to channel a pulse of mana through the Rod to apply a vibration to the additional mass.
- [Frequency Lock] - [Masterwork] : This item has been restricted. It may only be charged with mana from the Metal frequency. All other effects receive a massive increase in efficiency.
Jack blinked rapidly as the information pushed itself into his mind. This was one of the longer messages he had received and left him thoroughly confused by a lot of the references. Tuning, enhancement, restrictions, and refined restrictions. His boots just did a thing and that was it.
Just as his mind started to process what the rod might actually be capable of, he noticed the way Brandt had been holding it. The tip of the rod was pointed directly at Jack’s stomach, and as he glanced between it and Brandt, he saw that same dangerous smile from earlier.
Jack felt a tiny but rapid pulse of mana from Brandt, and then he felt something crash into his stomach as he folded over, spluttering on the floor. Winded, he gasped for air as he saw the rod retracting into itself after driving the wind from his lungs.
“I often find that a practical demonstration helps to reinforce certain messages. For someone with such a distinct lack of respect and etiquette, you are much too trusting,” Overseer Brandt said, reaching out his hand to help Jack to his feet.
Jack, managing to get his breathing under control, looked past the man for a second as he tried to catch Monty or Turrel's eyes. He saw Monty nod for a second, his fists clenched.
Jack reached out and accepted the hand offered to him, getting gingerly to his feet and looking down at the spot where he had been struck. There was no mark on his shirt, but he could feel a massive bruise on his stomach forming; it was much thicker than the rod currently appeared.
“Thank you, Overseer. I apologise for any disrespect I may have indirectly shown. I assure you it was out of ignorance and not intentional at all,” Jack replied, putting on his best celebrity apology impersonation.
Brandt smiled at him again but it never showed signs of reaching his eyes.
“I accept your apology, Jack. I am a man who is not often asked to wait, so my temper flares occasionally. What do you think of my rod, however? Quite impressive, isn't it?” As he spoke of the rod the smile on his face turned genuine; it was obvious he was very proud of his rod.
Jack struggled to hold in his joke, knowing now was the time to suck it up and compliment another man on how impressive his rod was.
“Yes, Overseer. I have to be honest, I don’t understand some of the details about the rod, but it is impressive. Would it be too much if I asked you to explain what a tuning or restriction was?” He had many other questions he wanted to ask: how much mass could be added? How heavy was it? Did it balance itself? Could he control where the vibration occurred? He decided it was probably best to tread lightly as he felt a stab of pain from the newly forming bruise.
Waving them all on towards their destination again, Brandt replied almost eagerly. It was the first time since meeting the man that Jack could say he seemed like a normal person; he obviously really did have a fascination for Magitech.
“Of course not, I admit you may have found the one topic I would not mind talking on in detail.” He glanced at Monty and Turrel.
“And I daresay I might be better placed to do so than both of your mentors. One of which has no need of them because they actively make him weaker, and the other, as you have seen, is more able to summon weapons of mass destruction in the air without assistance.” Waving his rod around he turned to Jack once more.
“For those of us that do not have the talent of genius or a self-imposed deficit, well, Magitech often becomes an integral part of our lives. Magitech is the common name for items that have been infused with Origin Essence. Technology that enhances, facilitates, or focuses magic. Not all things that carry out those functions are Magitech, however; most of the technology on Lord Montarg's vessel that you have seen is simply technology that is powered by mana. It has no Essence involved. Other than a few exceptions that is, like the transporter and engine etc.” Brandt motioned with his hand as he continued.
Jack found his deep voice very engaging and almost tripped down a set of stairs as he was listening; as he stumbled, pain shot through his chest. He might have broken a rib. He bit his lip and held in the grunt; Monty could heal him soon. It was probably not a good idea to interrupt Brandt right now.
“Magitech comes in two varieties. It is either generated from Riftspawn by some process we are unaware of, or it is crafted by people who have chosen to specialise in a very specific field and likely have some affiliation with the Centre. I do not have time to explain the nuances here, but generally speaking, unless you are looking at a masterwork piece, a generated item will likely have a stronger effect as it is able to utilise the Essence in a more efficient manner.”
They made their way down the final staircase while Brandt was discussing this; Monty and Turrel were whispering slightly off to the right. As they had been getting closer and closer to the residence and the portal, the heat had started to dissipate slightly.
Unlike the other portal, he was much closer to this one and he could feel the mana seeping through into the area. Physical ice and snow were also flowing through, mostly melting or turning to steam outside a small area around the foot of the portal. They were about a hundred metres away from it at the moment, but no one other than himself seemed to be staring at it.
Jack had been looking around while Brandt was talking, and the space around them was strangely empty of people the closer to the portal they came. Now that they were on the same level, he could see that the peaked tents were much larger than he expected, and underneath were hundreds of stalls and scattered buildings. All empty.
“The quality of crafters and their abilities vary greatly, like with any artist. At a basic level, however, they are able to make modifications to generated pieces of equipment. Things like ‘Tuning’ a specific part of the item's function. For example, they might be able to reduce the amount of mist that your boots generate or enhance it slightly. Still with me?” Brandt said.
Jack nodded along, keeping up so far.
“An enhancement, on the other hand, is more complicated. It generally involves adding a secondary ability or function to a piece of Magitech and requires the infusion of additional Essence normally….” Brandt stopped abruptly at the same moment that Jack felt a massive pulse from the portal that sent a cold flush through his body.
A large area surrounding the portal lit up, bathed in bright lights with flashing red in each corner. A loud siren sounded, and as Jack turned to look at the portal that was now only fifty metres away, he was expecting another Yeti. Instead, what burst through looked like a massive, giant ball of snow.
Brandt immediately pulled out his rod and smiled at Jack with what seemed like genuine enthusiasm. Monty and Turrel, however, both raced over and took up positions in front of Jack.
“Let him watch. I have been itching to stretch my muscles after seeing your demonstration earlier, Master Turrel. Jack, I can give you a much more practical demonstration now. This is a Tier 3 Riftspawn and an extremely dangerous variety, I might add. Elementals can be quite tricky to deal with.”
Brandt turned towards the creature, holding his rod in between his two strong hands. He channelled mana into it, and it extended, growing in length and thickness until it was three times its original size.
“Now for some fun,” Overseer Brandt said as he stepped towards the area, waving away a number of people who had appeared out of buildings on the edge of the lights.
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