Chapter 13 - Manifest Mastersmith

Fenres and Quin ran down a trail in what seemed like the middle of nowhere. Lush, violet-colored plants surrounded them. 

It was fortunate that no one was around, as the two crossing over thirty kilometers in a span of ten minutes would have surely raised some eyebrows. Quin didn’t have many opportunities to test his physical prowess, so this was a nice change of pace for him.

“You feeling tired yet, Quin?” asked Fenres, not slowing down a step.

“Me? Never better,” said Quin with a grin.

After a while, they reached a run-down shack. The sound of metal striking metal could be heard from the outside.

There were no signs at the front of the small, decrepit building, and there was a rectangular gap in the wall in place of a door.

Fenres walked in and Quin slowly followed behind him.

The floor was made of dirt, and there was very little in terms of household furniture, save for an old mattress layed out directly on the ground and some pantries. All other objects in the shack were racks for holding pots, pans, weapons and the like. 

Smithing was an art that had fallen out of practice to the point that it couldn’t even be called dying anymore, so Quin was curious as to how the owner of this place made their living.

“Haven’t you heard of knocking?” asked an old, tired voice from the dark corner of the shack where faint red sparks could be seen in unison with the rhythmic sounds of clashing metal.

“Hahaha,” Fenres laughed, “I would have, but you still don’t seem to have a door.”

“Oh… I guess you’re right,” said the old voice.

The sparks stopped, and a muscular old woman crept out of the shadows. She held a pristine hammer in her hand. She wasn’t wearing much except for old, baggy shorts, and wrappings around her chest. She was around one-hundred-eighty centimeters tall. Both her tail and her ears were drooping.

“Aren’t I always?” asked Fenres.

“Heh,” she chuckled, “C’mere, Fenres, you rascal,” she dropped her hammer to the floor and opened her arms wide. The hammer glowed red for a brief moment as it hit the ground.

“It’s good to see you, Botats,” said Fenres as he entered her embrace.

They hugged for a few moments, then Botats released Fenres. She firmly patted his shoulder a couple of times.

“You’re putting on some muscle, aren’t ya?” she asked.

“Eheh, a little,” replied Fenres, bashfully.

“And you must be Quin, right?”

“Uh, yeah, that’s me,” Quin replied with a shaky voice.

“It’s nice to meetcha, Quin. I’m Botats,” she extended her hand, “Put ‘er here.”

Quin looked at her hand and wondered if what Behine had said about handshakes had any truth to it at all. He firmly took her hand with confidence.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Botats.”

After a few good shakes, she released Quin’s hand.

“So… you’re here to get a Manifest made, are ya? How long has it been since you’ve brought someone new here, Fenres?”

“Last one was Teek about four years ago,” said Fenres.

“That right? Man, time really does fly!” she exclaimed, “But ya know, Quin, makin’ Manifests isn’t cheap. It’ll cost ya.”

“Huh?” he looked to Fenres who nodded in confirmation.

“I thought I told you to bring your wallet,” said Fenres.

Quin looked back at Botats and gulped, “H-how much?”

“Well, if you were bringing in your own Maelsteel, it’d be a bit less, but between that and the labor, it’ll get ya up to around two-hundred-thousand Mass.”

“No way!” Quin sputtered.

Two-hundred-thousand Mass was enough for someone to live on more than comfortably for their entire life. Quin’s starship, which he spent everything he could earn on repairing, only cost around twenty-thousand when it was brand new.

“Bahaha! I’m just pulling your leg,” laughed Botats.

Quin sighed with relief.

“Don’t worry Quin,” giggled Fenres, “The Ranger Corps will cover the costs.”

“That’s goo- wait so the part about the price wasn’t a lie?”

“Righto,” said Botats, “So ya better be grateful. Fenres put in a real good word on your behalf.”

“No need for that,” said Fenres, “It’d be a waste to not put him on the right path immediately. The kid’s talented. Now if only he could say some wise words every now and then.”

“Yeah,” she said, “You told me all about that. What kinda Human can’t give ya a poem on the spot?”

“Right?”

Botats stretched her arms out, “Alright. Let’s get down to business.”

She went to the back of the shack and lifted up a heavy-looking box. She set it down in front of Quin, and began pulling the objects inside of it out and placing them on a cloth.

“Take a seat, Quin,” she said.

Quin sat down on the dirt and got a closer look at the objects. The room was dimly lit, so it was hard to tell, but upon further inspection it became clear that these were lumps of raw Maelsteel. The value of these large chunks of precious ore was beyond Quin’s comprehension.

She finished laying the ores out, “Take your pick.”

“Huh?” asked Quin, “What for?”

“What else would it be for? Your Manifest.”

“If you’re worried about the size, Quin, rest assured, Maelsteel contracts and expands quite a lot,” said Fenres, “That’s how Seil’s is so much bigger than these little clumps.”

“Just pick whatever one catches your fancy,” said Botats, “It’s part of the process, ya know?”

“Alright, sure,” he stared at the ores for a while, “Hmm…”

Quin bobbed his head around in thought for a while, before he got interrupted.

“It’s not that hard, Quin, just pick one,” said Fenres.

“Huh?” Quin perked his head up, “So it doesn’t really matter?”

“Shh!” Botats hushed them, “Trade secret.”

“Alright, then,” he pointed to the one third to the left, “That one.”

“Gah! That really ruins the fun,” said Botats.

She picked up the chunk of ore that Quin pointed to. It was around fifteen centimeters across. Its shape was jagged, and what little light that was in the room glistened off of it beautifully.

“Good pick, yeah,” she said as she held the ore out to Quin, “Now I want you to rest your hand on it.”

“Okay…” Quin gently placed his palm on top of the ore with it still in her hand, “Now what?”

“Now, dump all the energy you can into this thing.”

“How?” asked Quin.

“Same way that you moved your aura to reinforce your body during Seil’s training,” said Fenres.

“That sounds impossible.”

“Just try to imagine that there Maelsteel as an extension of your hand.”

“You’re telling me you didn’t even train him this far?” asked Botats.

“It’s only been a couple of weeks. We’re kind of strapped for time.”

“Okay, I’ll try it,” said Quin.

He closed his eyes. As he concentrated, his aura swirled around within his body like a delicate whirlpool. It grew more and more intense as he slowly but surely moved the storm of energy toward his right hand. It stopped moving by the time it had gathered in his hand, and he began envisioning his hand melting into the Maelsteel in front of him. He put more focus into it, and the aura grew infinitely close to leaving his palm.

“Ha!” he yelled out as he released his energy all at once.

It flowed out of his palm and into the Maelsteel directly below it. A storm of light filled the room as the ore attempted to digest it all.

“Hot hot! Ouch!” Botats panicked, pulling the ore back away from Quin.

The Arima radiation streamed into the Maelsteel little-by-little, and after some time, it subsided completely. 

The ore gave off a faint glow, and it almost appeared to have a heartbeat.

Botats was gasping for air, gripping the metal tightly. She gathered herself and grinned widely, “This will be fun.”

Quin and Fenres exchanged a look.

“Space. I need space. Get out,” she said as she scrambled toward her anvil, picking up her hammer on the way.

“Right now?” Quin asked.

“Right now! I’ll have it done in three to seven days!”

“Three to seven?” asked Fenres, “It’s normally only two!”

“Out!”

“Okay, okay,” he said.

Both Fenres and Quin scurried out of the shack and began walking back the direction that they came from.

“That’s a shame, I wanted to see how they were made,” said Quin.

“Even worse yet, three to seven days is too long! What kind of estimate is that?”

“Right! The pit fight’s in four, isn’t it? Will I be alright without a Manifest?”

“Hmm… in terms of raw power, you’re a good amount better than me. At the very least, it shouldn’t be a problem for you to keep yourself safe. I might have to tweak the plans for it a little, though.”

“That shouldn’t be too bad, then.”

“Ashur told you the way to the arena, right?”

“Yeah, but weren’t you gonna drop me off?”

“I gotta take care of some business. Call me if you get lost,” said Fenres as he leaped into the brush. He was out of sight in an instant.

“Hey. Wait!” Quin yelled out, only to give up on trying to get through to him.

“Guess I’m on my own, then,” said Quin.

He began walking toward his destination.