ULTRAMagic Interlude BC - Chapter 22
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Corentin’s humble home was right across the street from Barna’s. The royal blacksmith’s son could have gone anywhere in The Iron City, but the house he had picked was perfect for his needs. It was a typical, three story house connected to a large warehouse on the side. The dwelling was one of many buildings that were built when the city was first formed, so it was somewhat unclear what the setup was originally intended for. Corentin speculated that there must have been a smith or a group of craftsmen who wanted to be close to their work. Whatever the case, all of it was just fine for him.
Prior to Kresimira moving in, the somewhat modest dwelling was fairly plain and uninteresting. Corentin was not really one for decorating, but Kresimira certainly was. In two weeks she had made the place start to look like a family had lived there. With all of the paintings, plants, and new furniture coming in, Corentin had gone about making accommodations for a future child. Vlastimir and Ekaterina were impressed as he showed them around. All of it looked incredibly cozy.
“As you can see right there, that’s the indoor entrance to the warehouse,” Corentin pointed out. “I’m probably going to keep it locked most of the time and just go in through the outdoor entrance. I don’t want our kid wandering in there.”
“A good idea, assuming he’s not born super durable, but still…” Vlastimir assessed.
“Or her,” Ekaterina added.
Corentin chuckled as he opened the doors. “Truth be told, I have no idea how they’re going to turn out.”
A wave of slightly chilly air hit the three as they stepped into the warehouse. The ceiling was 30 feet tall, with a second floor used for books and deskwork. The ground floor was littered with all sorts of projects in varying degrees of completion. Many of these were separated by partitions and dividers. Multiple furnaces and anvils could be found along the walls, with appropriate tools nearby. A lot of it was dirty, but that was expected given the bags of coal and crates everywhere. As Corentin led his guests to a set of metal stairs, they noticed a robotic head and lower arm sitting around. Each was appropriate in size for Maximus.
“Hey, wait a second,” Vlastimir said, pausing the trip upstairs. “Those look familiar…”
Corentin smiled. “Yup, those are some of the components that served as prototypes for my boy. I wasn’t going to create two of him, but I did need to test some things before I committed to them. Turns out that The War Machine of Old was a lot more complicated than I initially thought…”
“Understatement of the century I presume?”
“HA, yeah, you could say that.”
“Do they work?” Ekaterina inquired. “Like, can they actually move and what-not?”
“Yes, but they need to be hooked up to that machine you see next to them” Corentin answered as he led the two upstairs. “And in case you’re wondering, no, Maximus can’t equip them. They function on the same principles as him, but are a completely different build.”
Looking down from the second floor was a neat experience, seeing all the projects from above. Over at the far left corner was an alchemical lab that stretched to the opposite right corner. Vlastimir took a moment to look at the various vials, beakers, ovens, crucibles, tools, and drawers. All of it looked like a typical chemistry lab to him. This was until he found a glass case on Corentin’s main desk. Inside was a shiny, blood-red gemstone. Noticing him in awe of it, Corentin put his hand on Vlastimir’s shoulder.
“Yup, that’s my Philosopher’s Stone.”
“Incredible…”
Corentin then took a seat at his desk. “I’m surprised I managed to make one considering it was during the break up, but hey, sometimes you don’t know your own strength.” He then got out some paper, pens, and a sample-taking kit.
Ekaterina marveled at the stone, then looked at Corentin. “Say, Corentin? Could you… um… could you make me a gem that looks like that? I think it’s very pretty.”
He scooted on his desk chair over to a wooden display case and lifted the door for a second. “Sure, I don’t see why not. Let’s get this done first though,” Corentin said as he returned to his workspace.
“Of course… So what are we doing exactly?”
“I'm naturally aware of what’s going on at the end of the week and that you two will probably be departing for your home realm for a bit. Since I don’t know when you two will be back, I’d like to get a sample of your aberrant abilities, if you’re okay with that.”
They looked at each other and thought about it. “Um sure, Corentin,” Ekaterina replied.
Vlastimir chuckled. “As long as you can contain my blood. It’s something else…”
Corentin started with Ekaterina since he assumed that would be the easiest. It turned out that her ribbons were quite strong, resisting his knives and scissors. The solution was one of his guillotine paper cutters, enhanced with his magic. Corentin cut off a 12 inch strip, chopped it in half, then divided the second piece into one inch long fragments. To Ekaterina, it initially felt like trimming a nail. Interestingly the magnetic force vanished from the samples once they were cut off.
Vlastimir’s blood was a bit tricky. Getting a needle into his skin was next to impossible. After several failed attempts, Vlastimir had an idea. Turning his left index finger into a blade, he gently ran it down his right arm. This opened up the skin enough to let some blood through, but not enough to actually hurt him. Corentin used a fresh syringe to collect six milliliters of blood, three of which were each put into their own vial. Vlastimir then changed his finger back to normal and used it to close the wound.
“Now behave yourselves, alright?” he said to the vials.
Corentin looked at Vlastimir, then to the blood. “Okay then… Before we have some lunch, Ekaterina, what kind of gemstone would you like me to alter?”
“Oh, right, that. Do you have quartz?”
Opening up the case, Corentin retrieved a large crystal and set it down on a workbench. He then got out a can of powdered red dye and scooped some out with a tablespoon. This was poured over the quartz, followed by him drawing a seal with some chalk around it. Corentin held his hand over it, causing electricity to arc from his palm. The gemstone glowed brightly for a moment, then settled down. What sat before them was a beautiful, translucent red crystal that was not too light and not too dark.
Ekaterina loved it as she held it up in the light, thanking him profusely. After all the samples were squared away, Corentin took his guests back to the house for some lunch. He figured it was the least he could do, especially since he had to draw blood from Vlastimir. It did feel a little awkward given how long he had known the two, but Corentin vowed to thoroughly study what he had been given. His curiosity always managed to get the best of him after all.
As they all ate, Kresimira entered the dining room in a hurry. She was looking vastly more upbeat from a month prior, as her hair was tamed and her dress was shaped into more of a blouse combined with an ankle length skirt. “Corentin, Dear? There was a slight hiccup at the tower…”
“What’s the matter?” He asked after swallowing his food.
“Well as you know, we decided to do some more mapping of The Crimson Library today. Just as we entered, a couple of the bookshelves in the B wing collapsed. Is it alright if some of the royal alchemists used your workshop to repair them?”
“Absolutely. The outdoor entrance is unlocked and the tools should be good to go. Have them come to me if any of them need sharpening or if any help is needed in general. Of course I may go oversee them regardless…”
“Thank you, dear.” Kresimira then noticed their guests. “Vlastimir, Ekaterina! Good, just the two I was looking for. So about today: We’re going to have to postpone our plans until tomorrow.”
“Oh, okay,” Ekaterina replied. “I take it all of this is more involved than normal?”
“That, and the fact that I’m helping Englehart implement a guidance system. Figured we might as well since we’re there.”
Corentin took a sip of his drink. “About time I say. Speaking of that, I would’ve sent a ravager or two to go look for you back when you got lost… the only issue is that the ravagers like to roughhouse. Speaking of which, I really need to find something for them to do now that they’re back…”
Kresimira was going to make a comment on the matter of the library, but held her tongue. “Fair enough. There are some rather priceless tomes and artifacts in that library… Anyways, Ekaterina; my further apologies, but my friends are also busy today.”
“I see. Well alright then. Is there anything we can do to help?”
“Oh no, it’s fine. It’s fairly boring at this point given that it’s just me retracing my steps. Speaking of which, I need to get back to them. Turns out I mapped out more of the library than I initially thought.”
The three resumed eating as Kresimira departed. A thought then occurred to Vlastimir. “Just how deep is that library?”
“Deep,” Corentin answered. “We haven’t even found the end of it yet. It’s firmly believed that it was created by The Scholar of Old. And a little bit of trivia on the tower itself: It’s not native to The Iron City. The legends say that the Mage, Scholar, and Hexer created it during the prime of the primordials as a repository for their collective knowledge. Supposedly they left it here for the Primordial Hunters and their descendants. Personally I would have loved to have gotten Leif’s insight on it…”
“Why not go ask Vex about it?” Vlastimir pointed out. “He’s over at Blood’s place as we speak.”
“Yeah, and Deimos is… well, he’s at the Magician’s Labyrinth, but still,” Ekaterina added. “Why not go ask them about it?”
Corentin rested his head on his hand and pondered the idea. “Huh, why didn’t I think of that sooner? I mean, Deimos is incredibly busy at the moment… but Vex? You have a point…”
“I’m sure he can take a break from the utter madness that is Blood’s training to help you out,” Vlastimir stated, certain of himself.
“Well I guess it wouldn’t hurt to pop on over there, see how Blood’s doing and what-not…”
After finishing their food and thanking Corentin, Vlastimir and Ekaterina returned to The Singing Storm Tower. Things were just as busy as when they had left earlier in the day. Both of them were curious to know how things with The Crimson Library were going, so they swung by there on the way to their quarters. Englehart, Radovan, and Kresimira were directing the stewards who were going about and checking on things. As the duke stepped away to assist someone, Englehart had noticed the couple.
“Hello Vlastimir, Ekaterina. What are you two up to?”
“Greetings, your majesty,” Ekaterina replied. “We’re just seeing how things are going. No one’s gotten lost, have they?”
The king laughed. “Thankfully no. Aside from some bookshelves collapsing, things have been fine…”
“I told Eustorgio we should’ve replaced the shelves in B wing…” a voice called out from high up. It was Vexation, bringing some books down.
“Eustorgio?” Englehart questioned.
“Oh, sorry. That’s Deimos’ original name.” He then noticed Ekaterina. “Oh, Eka! Perfect timing. Give me one second…” Vex quickly climbed up another ladder and scooted it over to a high up shelf. Once he had what he needed, he got down and presented an old, dusty book to her.
“What’s this?” she asked as she inspected the worn out cover.
“It’s my old grimoire that I used when I was a neophyte. I think you should check it out. Consider it an apology for how hard I was on you back in the Dark Grand City. What good is my advice if you don’t know what direction to take, aye?”
“Oh, thank you…”
“Very thoughtful of you, Vexation,” Englehart complimented. “Say, you wouldn’t mind helping us out here when you get the chance, would you?”
“Not at all, your majesty… actually, I probably could right now since I want Blood to do a little studying with these books… I’ll be back in a moment.”
Kresimira stepped over as he left, dusting her hands off. “Oh my, this should be interesting. It’s quite the honor to have one of the creators of the tower help us out with it.”
Vlastimir had scurried up the ladder Vexation had used and began looking through the shelf. “Kresimira, you should go get Corentin. He mentioned wanting to ask Vex about the tower itself.”
She nodded, but was also a little concerned over Vlastimir’s rummaging. “A good point, Vlastimir. If you all will pardon me for a minute, I’ll go fetch him right now.”
“Very good,” Englehart replied. He then noticed Vlastimir coming down with a stack of books and going to set them on a table. “My boy, you have a library card for those books?”
Vlastimir froze, his face invoking that of a deer caught in a pair of headlights. “Wait, what?!”
Englehart laughed again. “I’m just messing with you, lad. Still, bring those over here so we can note what you’re borrowing and where they came from.”
Ekaterina giggled. “Don’t forget to note my book while you’re at it.” She then went over and gave Vlastimir a light kiss on the cheek to soothe his nerves.
Next: Chapter 23
ULTRAMagic Alternate © 2022 William Ford II (ChaoticTempleKnight)
Master Post - Patreon
Corentin’s humble home was right across the street from Barna’s. The royal blacksmith’s son could have gone anywhere in The Iron City, but the house he had picked was perfect for his needs. It was a typical, three story house connected to a large warehouse on the side. The dwelling was one of many buildings that were built when the city was first formed, so it was somewhat unclear what the setup was originally intended for. Corentin speculated that there must have been a smith or a group of craftsmen who wanted to be close to their work. Whatever the case, all of it was just fine for him.
Prior to Kresimira moving in, the somewhat modest dwelling was fairly plain and uninteresting. Corentin was not really one for decorating, but Kresimira certainly was. In two weeks she had made the place start to look like a family had lived there. With all of the paintings, plants, and new furniture coming in, Corentin had gone about making accommodations for a future child. Vlastimir and Ekaterina were impressed as he showed them around. All of it looked incredibly cozy.
“As you can see right there, that’s the indoor entrance to the warehouse,” Corentin pointed out. “I’m probably going to keep it locked most of the time and just go in through the outdoor entrance. I don’t want our kid wandering in there.”
“A good idea, assuming he’s not born super durable, but still…” Vlastimir assessed.
“Or her,” Ekaterina added.
Corentin chuckled as he opened the doors. “Truth be told, I have no idea how they’re going to turn out.”
A wave of slightly chilly air hit the three as they stepped into the warehouse. The ceiling was 30 feet tall, with a second floor used for books and deskwork. The ground floor was littered with all sorts of projects in varying degrees of completion. Many of these were separated by partitions and dividers. Multiple furnaces and anvils could be found along the walls, with appropriate tools nearby. A lot of it was dirty, but that was expected given the bags of coal and crates everywhere. As Corentin led his guests to a set of metal stairs, they noticed a robotic head and lower arm sitting around. Each was appropriate in size for Maximus.
“Hey, wait a second,” Vlastimir said, pausing the trip upstairs. “Those look familiar…”
Corentin smiled. “Yup, those are some of the components that served as prototypes for my boy. I wasn’t going to create two of him, but I did need to test some things before I committed to them. Turns out that The War Machine of Old was a lot more complicated than I initially thought…”
“Understatement of the century I presume?”
“HA, yeah, you could say that.”
“Do they work?” Ekaterina inquired. “Like, can they actually move and what-not?”
“Yes, but they need to be hooked up to that machine you see next to them” Corentin answered as he led the two upstairs. “And in case you’re wondering, no, Maximus can’t equip them. They function on the same principles as him, but are a completely different build.”
Looking down from the second floor was a neat experience, seeing all the projects from above. Over at the far left corner was an alchemical lab that stretched to the opposite right corner. Vlastimir took a moment to look at the various vials, beakers, ovens, crucibles, tools, and drawers. All of it looked like a typical chemistry lab to him. This was until he found a glass case on Corentin’s main desk. Inside was a shiny, blood-red gemstone. Noticing him in awe of it, Corentin put his hand on Vlastimir’s shoulder.
“Yup, that’s my Philosopher’s Stone.”
“Incredible…”
Corentin then took a seat at his desk. “I’m surprised I managed to make one considering it was during the break up, but hey, sometimes you don’t know your own strength.” He then got out some paper, pens, and a sample-taking kit.
Ekaterina marveled at the stone, then looked at Corentin. “Say, Corentin? Could you… um… could you make me a gem that looks like that? I think it’s very pretty.”
He scooted on his desk chair over to a wooden display case and lifted the door for a second. “Sure, I don’t see why not. Let’s get this done first though,” Corentin said as he returned to his workspace.
“Of course… So what are we doing exactly?”
“I'm naturally aware of what’s going on at the end of the week and that you two will probably be departing for your home realm for a bit. Since I don’t know when you two will be back, I’d like to get a sample of your aberrant abilities, if you’re okay with that.”
They looked at each other and thought about it. “Um sure, Corentin,” Ekaterina replied.
Vlastimir chuckled. “As long as you can contain my blood. It’s something else…”
Corentin started with Ekaterina since he assumed that would be the easiest. It turned out that her ribbons were quite strong, resisting his knives and scissors. The solution was one of his guillotine paper cutters, enhanced with his magic. Corentin cut off a 12 inch strip, chopped it in half, then divided the second piece into one inch long fragments. To Ekaterina, it initially felt like trimming a nail. Interestingly the magnetic force vanished from the samples once they were cut off.
Vlastimir’s blood was a bit tricky. Getting a needle into his skin was next to impossible. After several failed attempts, Vlastimir had an idea. Turning his left index finger into a blade, he gently ran it down his right arm. This opened up the skin enough to let some blood through, but not enough to actually hurt him. Corentin used a fresh syringe to collect six milliliters of blood, three of which were each put into their own vial. Vlastimir then changed his finger back to normal and used it to close the wound.
“Now behave yourselves, alright?” he said to the vials.
Corentin looked at Vlastimir, then to the blood. “Okay then… Before we have some lunch, Ekaterina, what kind of gemstone would you like me to alter?”
“Oh, right, that. Do you have quartz?”
Opening up the case, Corentin retrieved a large crystal and set it down on a workbench. He then got out a can of powdered red dye and scooped some out with a tablespoon. This was poured over the quartz, followed by him drawing a seal with some chalk around it. Corentin held his hand over it, causing electricity to arc from his palm. The gemstone glowed brightly for a moment, then settled down. What sat before them was a beautiful, translucent red crystal that was not too light and not too dark.
Ekaterina loved it as she held it up in the light, thanking him profusely. After all the samples were squared away, Corentin took his guests back to the house for some lunch. He figured it was the least he could do, especially since he had to draw blood from Vlastimir. It did feel a little awkward given how long he had known the two, but Corentin vowed to thoroughly study what he had been given. His curiosity always managed to get the best of him after all.
As they all ate, Kresimira entered the dining room in a hurry. She was looking vastly more upbeat from a month prior, as her hair was tamed and her dress was shaped into more of a blouse combined with an ankle length skirt. “Corentin, Dear? There was a slight hiccup at the tower…”
“What’s the matter?” He asked after swallowing his food.
“Well as you know, we decided to do some more mapping of The Crimson Library today. Just as we entered, a couple of the bookshelves in the B wing collapsed. Is it alright if some of the royal alchemists used your workshop to repair them?”
“Absolutely. The outdoor entrance is unlocked and the tools should be good to go. Have them come to me if any of them need sharpening or if any help is needed in general. Of course I may go oversee them regardless…”
“Thank you, dear.” Kresimira then noticed their guests. “Vlastimir, Ekaterina! Good, just the two I was looking for. So about today: We’re going to have to postpone our plans until tomorrow.”
“Oh, okay,” Ekaterina replied. “I take it all of this is more involved than normal?”
“That, and the fact that I’m helping Englehart implement a guidance system. Figured we might as well since we’re there.”
Corentin took a sip of his drink. “About time I say. Speaking of that, I would’ve sent a ravager or two to go look for you back when you got lost… the only issue is that the ravagers like to roughhouse. Speaking of which, I really need to find something for them to do now that they’re back…”
Kresimira was going to make a comment on the matter of the library, but held her tongue. “Fair enough. There are some rather priceless tomes and artifacts in that library… Anyways, Ekaterina; my further apologies, but my friends are also busy today.”
“I see. Well alright then. Is there anything we can do to help?”
“Oh no, it’s fine. It’s fairly boring at this point given that it’s just me retracing my steps. Speaking of which, I need to get back to them. Turns out I mapped out more of the library than I initially thought.”
The three resumed eating as Kresimira departed. A thought then occurred to Vlastimir. “Just how deep is that library?”
“Deep,” Corentin answered. “We haven’t even found the end of it yet. It’s firmly believed that it was created by The Scholar of Old. And a little bit of trivia on the tower itself: It’s not native to The Iron City. The legends say that the Mage, Scholar, and Hexer created it during the prime of the primordials as a repository for their collective knowledge. Supposedly they left it here for the Primordial Hunters and their descendants. Personally I would have loved to have gotten Leif’s insight on it…”
“Why not go ask Vex about it?” Vlastimir pointed out. “He’s over at Blood’s place as we speak.”
“Yeah, and Deimos is… well, he’s at the Magician’s Labyrinth, but still,” Ekaterina added. “Why not go ask them about it?”
Corentin rested his head on his hand and pondered the idea. “Huh, why didn’t I think of that sooner? I mean, Deimos is incredibly busy at the moment… but Vex? You have a point…”
“I’m sure he can take a break from the utter madness that is Blood’s training to help you out,” Vlastimir stated, certain of himself.
“Well I guess it wouldn’t hurt to pop on over there, see how Blood’s doing and what-not…”
After finishing their food and thanking Corentin, Vlastimir and Ekaterina returned to The Singing Storm Tower. Things were just as busy as when they had left earlier in the day. Both of them were curious to know how things with The Crimson Library were going, so they swung by there on the way to their quarters. Englehart, Radovan, and Kresimira were directing the stewards who were going about and checking on things. As the duke stepped away to assist someone, Englehart had noticed the couple.
“Hello Vlastimir, Ekaterina. What are you two up to?”
“Greetings, your majesty,” Ekaterina replied. “We’re just seeing how things are going. No one’s gotten lost, have they?”
The king laughed. “Thankfully no. Aside from some bookshelves collapsing, things have been fine…”
“I told Eustorgio we should’ve replaced the shelves in B wing…” a voice called out from high up. It was Vexation, bringing some books down.
“Eustorgio?” Englehart questioned.
“Oh, sorry. That’s Deimos’ original name.” He then noticed Ekaterina. “Oh, Eka! Perfect timing. Give me one second…” Vex quickly climbed up another ladder and scooted it over to a high up shelf. Once he had what he needed, he got down and presented an old, dusty book to her.
“What’s this?” she asked as she inspected the worn out cover.
“It’s my old grimoire that I used when I was a neophyte. I think you should check it out. Consider it an apology for how hard I was on you back in the Dark Grand City. What good is my advice if you don’t know what direction to take, aye?”
“Oh, thank you…”
“Very thoughtful of you, Vexation,” Englehart complimented. “Say, you wouldn’t mind helping us out here when you get the chance, would you?”
“Not at all, your majesty… actually, I probably could right now since I want Blood to do a little studying with these books… I’ll be back in a moment.”
Kresimira stepped over as he left, dusting her hands off. “Oh my, this should be interesting. It’s quite the honor to have one of the creators of the tower help us out with it.”
Vlastimir had scurried up the ladder Vexation had used and began looking through the shelf. “Kresimira, you should go get Corentin. He mentioned wanting to ask Vex about the tower itself.”
She nodded, but was also a little concerned over Vlastimir’s rummaging. “A good point, Vlastimir. If you all will pardon me for a minute, I’ll go fetch him right now.”
“Very good,” Englehart replied. He then noticed Vlastimir coming down with a stack of books and going to set them on a table. “My boy, you have a library card for those books?”
Vlastimir froze, his face invoking that of a deer caught in a pair of headlights. “Wait, what?!”
Englehart laughed again. “I’m just messing with you, lad. Still, bring those over here so we can note what you’re borrowing and where they came from.”
Ekaterina giggled. “Don’t forget to note my book while you’re at it.” She then went over and gave Vlastimir a light kiss on the cheek to soothe his nerves.
Next: Chapter 23
ULTRAMagic Alternate © 2022 William Ford II (ChaoticTempleKnight)
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