Artificers and lapidaries

Is it a castle? Edward’s first impression was it must be for defence, and he was half right. Big thick walls without windows, round corner towers and a barbican, it had all the usual features. Even so, it didn’t look like it would survive a siege. Not least because of the large open arcade that ran straight down the middle.

It was like a wide boulevard, except that instead of trees it had columns holding up a wide glass ceiling. As Edward and Kira walked along the tiled floor decorated with mock gemstones and jewellery, large crowds of people were going to and throw. They were popping in an out of luxurious stores with ornate frontages of knot patterns, Corinthian pillars and frescos. Their merchandise was sparse but were displayed like works of art, for each store was selling the finest jewellery.

Jewellers’ gaol was the informal name of the shopping district; an area of both shop fronts and workshops. The great heavy walls both protect the merchandise but also block out the sun which could interfere with the jeweller’s craft. For these shops didn’t just stock works of art, but also battle gear equipped with magic augmenting jewels.

As Edward walked people stared at him. Could they be Atlestan’s spies, he thought, and maybe not just his. There’s Galdminister, the magic school, the Keepers of the Great Hall, whatever that means, and Kira’s group the Silverhand. He wondered how many other groups there might be he didn’t know about yet.

‘It’s the manacles,’ Kira said. ‘They stand out too much.’

‘If you say so.’ That might be half of it, he thought.

‘Haglig’s an old friend. He’ll have something you can use that doesn’t attract all this attention.’

They left the shopping district, passed a large and imposing building with columns, arches and a large dome and headed towards a wide area of small shacks and courtyards. The clashing of hammers ran out from all directions as metal struck metal with heavy dull clinks. Black smoke climbed to the sky and the smell of burning and oil clung to everything. In the distance, an explosion went off.

Kira led Edward through the narrow alley that zigzagged through the workshops. ‘This is the artificers’ district.’ she said, ‘Here they craft all sorts of magical items, but they specialise especially in metalwork as well as jewel cutting and imbuing, although not the more expensive stones you find in jewellers’ gaol. Here we are.’

As she said this, they reached a particularly large compound surrounded by large walls with one sturdy metal gate for an entrance. ‘This is Haglig’s workshop. He is one of the most respected artificers in the whole city.’ Kira explained.

Another explosion rang out, this time from inside Haglig’s compound. ‘It sounds very...respectable.’ Edward responded.

‘Haglig has a special arrangement with the Huscarls of the Silverhand. He has made several pieces for me in the past. I can vouch for the quality. You can trust his work.’

Can I trust you, he thought. ‘I’ll soon find out, I’m sure.’

Haglig wasn’t what Edward had been expecting. Instead of a barrel-chested bear, shirtless and caked in sweat, he wore a kind of suit while sipping tea from a fine porcelain cup.Although, the suit wasn’t what he was used to. The trousers and leather shoes were similar, but instead of a blazer, he wore a sleeveless jerkin tied with ribbons.

‘He’s an artificer? Aren't they like blacksmiths? He looks too...clean.’ Edward said.

Kira smiled, ‘Haglig mainly works with jewels. No one is better when it comes to imbuing magic nor designing magic circles. But if you prefer the big brawny type, you’ll find plenty like that here too.’

Haglig jumped up when he saw Kira and shook her hands vigorously as they spoke. It was only then Edward noticed how tall he was. Kira must have been at least 5ft 10, but Haglig was more than a head taller. And he looked strong, despite his stretched-out look.

‘Haglig says welcome to his workshop,’ Kira said as they both turned to Edward. ‘And he hopes you won’t find it too disappointing.’

‘Disappointing isn’t the word I’d use for Mr Haglig. Please tell him thank you for the warm welcome.’

The three of them walked to one of the buildings in the corner of the courtyard. They passed by half a dozen people arguing nearby. They ignored Haglig and his guests, focusing on what looked like a horse, one that glinted in the daylight.

Inside Haglig’s workspace, the interior was as immaculate as him. Tools hung on hooks on the wall, books were neatly arranged on shelves, and display cases showed off some of his finished work. Haglig walked over to a draw in one of his cabinets, pulling out something small. He handed it to Edward.

‘What is this for?’ Edward asked. It was a necklace; he could tell that much. The design wasn’t really to Edward’s taste. Hearts weren’t really his thing. Nor were jewels for that matter, and this had two large ones: bright cyan and deep indigo. The latter looks suspiciously like the one in Atlestan’s office.

‘It’s a device to help reduce your magic power,’ Kira translated. ‘The midnight stone goes over your heart, which makes it harder for mana to travel in your body. All your spells will be weaker with that, although it’s not quite complete yet.’

Haglig handled deftly a small piece of metal that had been dangling from the neckless via a short chain. As Edward stared, he saw that it was shaped like a miniature sword complete with handguard, fuller and even a small garnet pommel.

‘For the device to work, you need to place that sword between the two jewels,’ Kira explained on behalf of Haglig. ‘The second jewel is a mana crystal, and it counteracts the effect of the midnight stone. The miniature sword is made of iron and reflects the mana, and when it is placed between the two like so.’

Haglig had carefully slotted the sword between the stones in the heart as Kira spoke, ‘The midnight stone will suppress your magic. Shall we try it.'

Haglig led them to a small brick forge in the corner of the room. The bricks had all manner of circle designs etched into the surface, some simple lines, some geometric shapes and some looked like ancient runes. Haglig put his hand on one of the circles. It and all the lines and circles surrounding the forge lit up orange and a small fire ignited inside the hearth. Kira then tried and a flame three times larger and much hotter burst out of the small opening.

Haglig gestured for Edward to try. He slipped of the manacles that had been suppressing his magic and moved towards the forage, but before he could touch the circle, Kira grabbed his hand. ‘Maybe you should just use one finger.’

‘If you say so.’ Edward put his index finger on the circle. Flames burst out the forge opening, alternating from a yellow to blue colour. Haglig had to leap backwards. He whispered something under his breath as he glared at Edward. So that was his power, Edward thought.

‘Now put on the necklace and try it.’ Kira said. ‘And make sure the sword is properly attached.’

Edward put on the necklace, checking the sword was slotted in the groove, and touched the magic circle with his finger.

A mild red and orange flame partially filled the forge. The flame was steadier too, as its edges gently fluttered. With this, Edward thought, there shouldn’t be any more accidents while he learns to control his magic.

‘Here take this as well.’ Kira said as Haglig passed over a small wooden box, no more than 10cm long.

The wood was black and lacquered. Stars covered the surface, thousands of blue dots that sparkled as they caught the light. Edward opened it. Inside a piece of black cloth was folded neatly.

‘It’s a midnight blindfold.’ Kira said. ‘Same principle as the necklace, except it should stop you powers completely.’

The blindfold was a dark navy. Edward ran his hand over the midnight stones sown into the cloth. Each one was surrounded by sunbursts of silver. He unfolded the blindfold and slipped it on.

Kira gently led him back to the forge. Edward could feel her hand’s rough and calloused skin as she placed his on the circle. ‘You will have to take my word for it, but there’s no flame.’ Kira said. ‘These should work.’

Haglig explained the finer points of using the neckless as they made their way outside and towards the gate of his compound. The small group of artificers had stopped arguing. The youngest artificer was tinkering with the horse. Now that they were closer, Edward could see it was made of bronze and covered in magic circles.

As the young artificer shuffled his weight, he pressed down on a small cyan stone. He cried out and tried to pull the stone back up, but he wasn’t quick enough. The horse's legs were already flexing and extending, propelling it forwards.

Edward watched it swing forwards, heading like a bullet towards a workshop on the other side on the courtyard. The group shouted and tried to catch it, but the metal horse was too fast and soon it would crash into the workshop. Except, a woman from nowhere had blocked its path.

He was about to shout out, when he noticed it was Kira. How she got there so quickly, he didn’t know. She had been standing right next to him a moment earlier. The horse rammed straight into her, but stopped dead, Kira’s hands squeezed tight on both sides of its neck. The legs kept swinging back and forth, slowly digging into the ground.

Kira leaned back, raising her hands above her head and lifting the horse off the ground, its legs still furiously kicking. She then bent her whole body to the left, throwing the horse down onto its side with a thud. She held it firmly there until one of the artificers was able to pull out one of the stones.

Haglig stood next to Edward, arms crossed with a satisfied smile. It wasn’t hard for Edward to imagine what he was thinking.

Once all the artificers had thanked Kira and shook her hands, she walked back over to Edward. ‘Erm,’ he asked. ‘Can all people in this world lift a life-size horse made out of metal?’

‘Body augmentation magic comes quite easily to me. I had lots of practice.’ Kira said, rubbing the back of her neck. ‘Back home I used to break boulders and chop wood with it every day.’

That explains her rough hands, Edward thought. This isn’t a woman to mess with, but she is a good ally to have around. I have to find out more about her.