Michael Manning - The Archmage unbound

I chuckled a bit, “That is a risk I’m willing to take.”

The next day was quiet and I spent the majority of my morning working on the armor. Over the past month I had gained a lot of confidence in manipulating metal and working with my hands had always given me a sense of peace. These days it also gave me a feeling of connection to my father. I felt a bit like a cheat though, if he could have seen me now what would he have thought? Using spells I could work metal in ways that he could never have imagined. Much of the skill he gained in a lifetime of crafting involved finding ways to get around the limitations and difficulties of working iron. I was able to completely circumvent many of those limitations with nothing more than my will and some carefully chosen words.

He would have teased me about it, I thought to myself. Deep down I knew it was true… he’d have poked fun and then told me to use whatever tool came to hand. The vision of the final product was what was most important and if that was poorly conceived it wouldn’t matter how many advantages I had… the final result would still be junk.

If anything my background in a traditional smithy had taught me to understand iron in a way that no amount of magic could have ever done. That understanding was even more valuable now that I had the ability and the resources to exploit that knowledge effectively.

I can make a suit like this, tailored to an individual, in roughly two weeks, I calculated. Another two days to finish the enchantments and I’m looking at about sixteen days to equip each of my ‘knights’. Even with my advantages it would still take a considerable amount of time to prepare for what I had in mind. And I haven’t added in the time required for their weapons, I added mentally.

Dorian’s advice had been invaluable concerning the weapons though. Based on his own experience wearing the armor I had already enchanted for him before the recent war he seemed to feel that a great sword would be a better weapon. Dorian had told me two days before, “The sword you enchanted cut through everything I put it against, and the armor was enough to stop any normal sword, but I found my shield to be an impediment. If I’d had a longer blade and two good hands free to use it I could have felled the enemy like wheat before the scythe.”

He had also suggested I leave the weapons to a normal smith to produce. I could purchase them far more easily and enchant them afterward, saving myself a lot of time. The main reason I was doing the actual crafting of the armor was because it was simply impossible to get this sort of armor made anywhere outside of the capital itself and even there it was a year’s wait to get a set made.

That didn’t suit my needs at all. I wanted enough to arm twenty men within a year. I had seen the effect a few men could make in the last war. Dorian in particular had made all the difference. I had been unconscious for nearly an hour while I was healing Penny, and he had held the breech in the wall almost singlehandedly. Not that I would have said that aloud, many men had died next to him that day. Yet he had been the one that they couldn’t put down.

With a lion’s heart and armor that no arrow or sword could pierce he had refused to surrender to exhaustion. The sword he had carried cut through men and armor with equal ease. After the dust had settled I couldn’t help but wonder what might have been possible if we had had more men similarly equipped.

Of course the man inside the armor had been a primary factor, I wasn’t blind to that fact, and there were few to equal Dorian in combat. Still it had been much on my mind since that day, particularly given the continuing threat from the shiggreth. I knew they were out there, but I didn’t know when or where they would strike again and I was only one man. Someone encased in enchanted armor would be virtually immune to their touch, and given the right weapons he would be able to give them cause for fear.

That was really the heart of it. Since I had become the Count Cameron I had assumed responsibility for a large number of people, and I couldn’t be everywhere. As far as I knew I was the only living wizard left, and the shiggreth could multiply almost without limit. I needed help… powerful help. If no other wizards were available then I would have to create the next best thing.

Dorian had shown me, in his actions against the shiggreth and again during the war with Gododdin, what a well-trained man with superior weaponry could do. Naturally I would have to be selective, and those chosen would have to be carefully trained, but I had a friend I could trust for that task.

Still, Dorian had had one particular weakness, as his fight against the shiggreth had shown… the limitation of mortal strength. If he had possessed the sort of resources that an Anath’Meridum was able to draw upon he would not have been overwhelmed by the press of numbers. My time with Penny as my pact-bearer had shown me just how terrible a warrior could become if they had strength that went far beyond the norm.

I had no intention of renewing my bond with anyone though, much less twenty some ones. I would find another solution. I just wasn’t sure how… yet. Shaking my head I focused my attention once more. It wouldn’t do to be distracted in the middle of my work.

The next several days flew by and I could no longer put off my trip to Albamarl. I didn’t want to give King Edward too much time to brew over my message, and he’d surely received it by now. It was time to pay him a visit.

I had told Penny of my plans several days before and I let her know that today was the day after we finished our breakfast. She was still rather nervous about it, but she had conceded the necessity. “I wish you’d let me come with you,” she said again.

“Absolutely not, you’re not an Anath’Meridum anymore and more importantly you’re with child, we have too much to lose now,” I reminded her.

“No need to be mean about it,” she complained. “Consider my point of view, if we lost you now what would that mean for me and your child?”

I winced, it always came back to that, and in truth she was right. Still we had discussed it already; I didn’t see a better alternative for securing the future for our family… and our people. “I’m sorry love. You know I’d choose a safer path if I thought there was one,” I replied.

“So you admit there might be a better way,” she said. She was quick to catch on.

“I’d be lying if I pretended to have all the answers. What is true is that I don’t know of a better way,” I said honestly.

She ran her hand across my chest, feeling the fabric of my tunic. “I’d feel better if you at least wore mail. Any fool with a dagger could put a hole in your back.”

“That would make my task more difficult. I’m actually trying to be sneaky, besides I don’t need armor to keep me safe,” as I spoke I made my shield flash with light for just a moment. My skill with mundane uses of magic had gotten much greater.

“That didn’t do you much good when the shiggreth grabbed you,” she noted. It was not only a reminder of my vulnerability but also a reminder of the fact that she had been the one to save my bacon that night.

I grimaced. “There shouldn’t be any shiggreth to worry about during this little adventure and if there are… I’ve prepared a new strategy.”

She was cynical, “such as?”

“I can’t show you here. It might damage the room,” I said evading the question as best I could.

The look on her face was wistful and a bit sad at the same time. “One of these days you’re going to find out you’re not as smart as you thought and I’m going to have to pay the price.”

I laughed, “Did you have another vision?”