Cat With a Raygun

That evening Melanie was in a funk. “Well, I discovered a class that really appeals to me, but I can't choose it.”

“Why not?” Joe asked.

“Because its primary attributes are Toughness and Intelligence. I can make the Intelligence requirement with that elixir Eleanor has, but I got my stats checked out by a healer today and my Toughness isn't high enough.”

“Aren't there Toughness Elixirs?”

“Eleanor says there are, but she has been unable to find the primary ingredient for them. The odds of any of it coming in in time before my birthday are slim to none.”

Joe went to talk to Eleanor about it.

“Oh, yes, it's quite sad. We'd need Steelwood Sap, but I checked around, none of the alchemists in town have any.”

“Is that all you need? Come with me.”

Joe led Eleanor to his room and the steelwood chest he had made more than a month ago. Inside were 10 flasks of steelwood sap he had harvested at the same time as the chest from a steelwood tree that had fallen across the road.

“Will this be enough?”

Eleanor was flabbergasted. “Where did--? How did--? Yes, this will be plenty. I can make elixirs for all of us as more Toughness never hurt anyone.” Eleanor spied the flexible bone bow at the bottom of the chest. “What is that?” she asked as she Inspected the bow.

“You know, I felt rather useless sitting in the wagon the whole trip here, but long before I became an Alchemist I was a Scout. Like many of my people I was really good with a bow. With a bow like that I can help fight monsters even from in the wagon.”

Joe pondered it for a moment. “Yes, that's a great idea. I was saving that bow for someone back home, another Scout like you, but we'll likely have to face those Giant Hawks again, the birds I harvested the bow from, so having someone who can shoot them down will be a lifesaver. I got torn up rather badly every time I faced one. We kill more and I can make more bows. It'll all work out.”

Eleanor and Joe went to tell Melanie the good news about the Toughness Elixir.

“So I'll really be able to become an Arcane Knight?” Melanie asked full of hope.

“You sure will. Any thought as to your profession?” Joe asked.

“Well the Arcane Knight has a lot of dependence on their armor and weapons, so I think a Smith might be good so I can handle that myself.”

“That sounds like a great choice,” Joe assured her. “You don't happen to know how to read Dwarven, do you?”

Melanie shook her head, “No, why do you ask?”

“Because our town used to have a smith, but he died years ago leaving behind a trove of books and scrolls about smithing, but they're all written in his native language. No worries, we'll get you a primer before we leave town. Reading will be a good skill to pick up anyway for both your class and your profession to improve your Intelligence. We'll stay an extra day or two to make sure you unlock the Smithing skill so you won't lose the opportunity if other skills pop up on the journey back to my town.”

The plan for the next day was that Tess and Kerras would take funds from the town's supply and start to source supplies from Ferric's list, Malcolm would continue his construction job with Gymmie's assistance, Melanie would go get fitted for her first set of armor and pick out a weapon, Eleanor would get started on the Toughness Elixirs, and Joe would continue to watch Davis work. The day after that was similar, except that Melanie joined Tess and Kerras.

Over the next few days Joe watched Davis work the sheets of steel into different parts as they took shape into pieces of armor. The joints were especially interesting to watch, like the way Davis made each individual finger for the gauntlets. Before Davis finished any piece of the armor he would carve a narrow groove into inside surface of it, branching out through the whole armor piece and extending to the ends. Davis finally took the ingot of magisteel and pulled it into a thin wire the same width as the grooves he had carved.

Davis took a mallet and gently tapped the wire snugly into place, then he took a heated rod and melted the magisteel wire into place. The parts where the armor connected to other parts had overlapping magisteel wire, so the “current” of magic would be uninterrupted when it's active. Finally, Davis lined the armor with padding and leather so it would be comfortable to wear. Six days of Imbue Metallic Object finally coalesced into a complete magical matrix and Joe watched as it left Davis and entered the armor,glowing brighter along the circuits of magisteel wire.

Joe heard the familiar chime in his mind and he believed that he had finally learned Imbue Metallic Object having seen it used from beginning to end, but now that Davis was done and paying attention to something other than the armor Joe wouldn't be able to check.

Joe Inspected the new armor now that it was complete.

Steel Plate Armor of Magic Invulnerability (Legendary). This metal armor has been worked into a stronger material due to the skill of the smith producing it. It bears a magical enchantment that protects the wearer from harmful effects created by manachlorian energies. As it absorbs the energies from the negated attacks it uses that energy to strengthen itself making the armor even harder to damage.

“Wow, Davis, that armor is extraordinary. People will be trying to outbid one another for it,” Joe remarked.

“They sure will. I'll probably advertise it next week, but for now I'm spent. But I really have to thank you for selling me that metal. Look.”

Davis summoned his Guidebook and flipped to a page and showed it to Joe as the words began to appear in Joe's view.

Smith profession levels to 24!

Smith profession levels to 25!

New profession enhancements available.

“You got two levels from that armor?”

“Yes, as I said, it was the best thing I ever made. I'm going to choose Enchanted Smith as my new profession, it will give me more effectiveness to creating magic weapons and armors.”

“Thanks for letting me watch the whole process. I've never made armor before, so seeing the way you shaped and connected all the joints, especially in the fingers, was really helpful.”

“I know every smith wants magisteel, but if you ever find any more and are up this way, I'd appreciate first refusal.”

“If I ever do find any more, yes, I'll think of you, though not sure how often I'd be coming this way,” Joe provisionally promised the Enchanted Smith.

After saying goodbye to Davis and heading back to the rented house they shared, Joe was able to put the final finishing touches on the design he'd been tinkering with for a while. He had originally planned on making wires out of copper or even gold, but there was no way they'd be able to handle the amount of electricity his Lightning Jolt could handle even at the low level of 5. Magisteel wire, however, was a different thing altogether.

Joe redesigned the circuitry for his proposed design. Instead of simply being circuits made out of magisteel wires, Joe felt inspired to design the circuits to match the patterns of manachlorian flows he had seen and sensed during his trip. When he put the final touches on his schematic, he got a notification.

Schematic Drafting skill unlocked! +1 to Intelligence.

Schematic Drafting (Level 1). This skill allows you to accurately sketch out the plans for a new creation using whatever medium you desire. The plans must include the dimensions, materials, and purpose of the design. Higher levels let you complete the designs even faster and intuit details from proposed function, even if you're not familiar with how to achieve that functionality.

Key Attribute: Intelligence.

Joe also found that just watching the different techniques Davis had used in his armor creation he had gained two levels in Smithing. He also did indeed learn the spell Davis had been using the last week.

Imbue Metallic Object (Level 1). This spell is used to permanently enchant an object made up of at least 50% metal with a magical effect. The spell must be used the during the entire creation of the object or it will fail. Breaks of no longer than 10 hours can be taken or the magical matrix formed by the spell will fail. Non-metallic parts need not be created while this spell is active or even created by the caster, although the more the spell is active during the creation process, the stronger the result will be.

Stamina cost: 10 stamina per minute

Mana cost: The caster's entire mana pool, including everything that would refill while the spell is active.

That stamina cost didn't seem like much, but considering the amount of time it could take to make something, that is a steep cost. Fortunately Joe's Meditation skill would help with that, no matter how long it takes to make something.

And speaking of making something, now that his schematic was complete, Joe just needed to finally learn Glassblowing and he'd be ready. Well, almost. Joe coped over the wooden handle from his design to another sheet and gave it to Malcolm, asking if he could have it ready in a couple of days. Malcolm assured him that it would be ready by the next day, as it was quite simple and wouldn't take much time away from his other project.

Joe was quite excited about what the coming week would bring him.