After spending the night in the peaceful embrace of friends, food and the night sky looming over the Sword Oak forest, Ketsuiko brought his class to the South Residency where he led the group to the Warsmith's Shop.
Heading past the Alchemical labs into a courtyard decorated with fine masonry, and glistening copper pipes sprawled about in a fine network that resembled metallic creeping vines embracing the structures that litter the space.
"Is there any way for us to find this place? I noticed that it was nowhere to be found on the Notebook's Map." Stephen followed Ketsu.
"I am not surprised. Apparently the facilities within the Southern Residency are considered invaluable assets, so much so that there are specific members of staff whose job it is to act as Administrators of them, managing and maintaining them under the Academy' authority."
"By that logic, it must have cost the Academy an arm and a leg to build them?" Torren wondered, counting the possible cost that could have been entailed.
"While I wasn't provided an exact cost of their construction, from what the Student Council President has stated, it costs the Academy roughly 450,000 uld per facility."
"What! Is…that like yearly, or maybe monthly?"
"Not at all. It's a weekly cost estimation."
Hearing the sound of the stopping footsteps, Ketsu turned to find the stunned class members following behind Torren as they attempted to make sense of the insane cost of just one of these facilities. The concern on their face as to how much they could have been charged for using them was only set aside after he set them at ease.
"I've already incurred the cost of your access to them so try not to worry about it–"
"If it isn't too much trouble, I'd like to know more about them. I think we've taken advantage of those facilities without really knowing much about them." Shynerai said, drawing out his Notebook and setting an empty page for Ketsu to add.
"Well aren't you the studious one. All right then, you'll all receive the contents of what I say from Shynerai."
The Southern Residency was divided into four different campuses, each of which was half the size of the Glissant Central Plaza and is connected to the central park.
Marking what is known as the Lai'motiff Central Park is the largest Songspire Tree in Deep City. Not only does the blue-light glow streaming from its canopy cover the entirety of the Southern Residency, the magic that flows from its roots move through all the campuses empowering them.
The campuses are:
1. The Meurdrac Alchemical Labs.
2. The Atriadis Thaumaturgy Library.
3. The Lai'motiff Central Park.
4. The Liberer Recreational Club.
5. The L'hauter Workshops.
"So that means we are headed to the L'hauter Workshops?" They asked.
"Well, we are already here."
Passing through the Blue-vein Road from the Plaza, they came across the main gate of the L'hauter Workshops. It was there that they found the Warsmith's Workshop.
"Pardon me, We're looking for Master Reven." Ketsuiko stepped forward and called his class to follow as he entered the store.
"Master Reven huh, you'd think if he was someone that special that he would have a more impressive shop, maybe one in High City." Torren mentioned off-handedly.
"Reven Masters, was a retired War Mage who fought on the front lines of Lynheare as a Guardian, serving alongside an incredible group of warriors: The Thundering Knight, Darkness Hero. I think that he might have had the title of the Twilight Mage." Ketsu answered him as they stopped at the door.
"Seriously? Wait a minute, are you telling me a mage with a title has been working as a simple smith? Just what kind of life did he live before coming here?"
"Who the hell told you that? What are you kids doing in my shop, if you haven't noticed I'm busy, I already have customers waiting on their orders." A figure wandered into the storefront, adjusting his visor before walking over to the front shelves and pulling out a scabbard from the many that littered the displays.
While his attention remained focused on his task, another group entered the shop.
The lean-built figure walked out from the back of the shop before walking past the students, taking only enough notice of them to dismiss Torren's comment.
"Where did you come from?" Blurting out as he jumped back.
"My Workshop might not be a flashy golden palace atop High City, however, it serves me well. Sitting at the entrance of a pocket of space locked and anchored to a great many places across the First World, with me being the only one with access to these doors."
"I call it the Akashic Forgeheart, and it's the reason I've been able to make such amazing creations." The figure exclaimed with gray hair tussling across his face, prompting him to brush it out of the way before resuming his duty of polishing the scabbard.
"Its true size and location would actually shock you, so I just have the doorway and storefront here." Pointing to the doorway behind him to grant them a peek of the inner mechanisms.
"Hey Master-Master, are you here?" A lively voice entered while the sound of whispers trailed along.
"Jaret, I told you before, you need to refer to your elders with respect." Arno scolded him as they entered and were met with Reven standing nearby, knocking him across the head as they greeted him, Arno told him Jaret to remember his manners.
"Well this is a pleasant surprise. Arno my boy, it's good to see you, and you're here as well Aurelia dear, I'm happy to see you are as radiant as ever." Responding to the duo with a tone that surprised Class F who stood not too far.
"Hey old man, I'm here too–"
"Yeah, and I told you I didn't want you in my shop. Scram!"
"What the hell, are you still hung up on about my last visit?"
"It's not just the last visit, it's every damn visit!"
"I told you when you enter, you're supposed to remember your manners. Apologies Master Reven, the Student Council President had him sit out of his Student General duties until the maintenance on his wares were done, and as you can see he's been a little unruly." Arno knocked his friend into the ground, this time, sending him into the nearby displays where he met Shynerai and his classmates.
"Oh it's you guys, how's it going?" He said, covered in the various items that littered the shelf above.
"Arno my boy, why you insist on dragging around that delinquent is beyond me, but I'm glad he isn't influencing either of you." Reven sighed before returning with the scabbard to behind the counter, as he brought out a waddled cloth to the front.
"You managed to finish it, Master?" Aurelia asked while trying to help Jaret to his feet.
"The materials were hard to come by dear but I always deliver, your SoulArms and Mystic Arcs are all good as new, or I guess you could better than ever."
"Great!" Jaret yelled as he stood up.
"Reider, you be silent over there. For you, my dear, your Cloudjumper Raiment and Blackbreath Arms are ready, though I made a few tweaks so the trigger might be a little jumpy but I'm sure you'll get the hang of it." Retrieving the scarf that was wrapped around the firearms and placing them on the counter.
"Aww, thank you, Master Reven, they look great." Her eyes sparkled as she was enthralled by the changes made to her guns.
"For you my boy, it was probably the least pain to deal with. I wouldn't expect any less of one so diligent, even your SoulArm is in prime condition. While I'll tell you the same thing as always, be careful with it, the Sword of Damocles isn't something that brings me much pleasure to see you carrying around, though there are few I'd be so willing to trust with it." Pulling out the shimmering longsword from the cloth and placing it in the scabbard.
"I will Master, though I do wish you wouldn't worry so much."
"And for you, here!" Pulling the last item from beneath the cloth and tossing it to Jaret.
"Hey, are you trying to stab me? Oh...nice work old man, it looks brand new."
"DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW LONG IT TOOK TO GET IT IN THAT CONDITION? IT'S A SHORT SPEAR NOT A CHEW TOY, I MEAN SERIOUSLY WHOSE MOUTH WAS IT IN?" The old man's frustration boiled over as he raged against him.
"Eh...it was probably the wolves, manticore, gargoyles, giant snakes, little snakes, medium-sized snakes...there were a lot of snakes."
"Just...watch this one, or else I'm seriously going to consider putting a ban against taking any requests from the Student Council, I don't even care about the uld." Sighing as he waved them off and called to the silent group, seeking their attention as a distraction
"Thanks, Master-Master, next time I see you I'll make you my Celosia–" Jaret teased.
"Do you want me to kill you with your own spear?"
"N–no sir, I'll be quiet sir." Jaret held his tongue after seeing the fire in his eyes.
"Master Reven! My name is Ketsuiko, Captain of Class 1F. I had an appointment to meet with you two weeks ago."
"Oh yes, I remember. I thought you just wandered into my shop to cause me trouble. I already know what to do, one moment." The old man calmed down as he pulled out a hard-covered book and opened it. Revealing most of the pages to be filled with illustrations and writings, he asked for a moment as he sought a blank page.
"Ah, here we go, there's seven of you, so seven empty canvases." Reven pulled out seven blank pages and handed them to each of the confused students, asking that they simply hold onto it tightly and he would handle the rest.
Where they held the page, he pricked a finger, drawing blood and leeching it into the page.
"I know you kids, it should close up real quick." Returning to the counter with the book as he waited. Before long, the pages they each held burned up turning it ash, until the ash disappeared only for the book to puff out a cloud of smoke. Wading through it, he turns to the newly appeared pages.
"Let's see...alright. You want me to perform three calibrations for your magic-based SoulArms, two maintenance checks, that shouldn't be an issue and then we have one balancing issue that needs fixing."
"All right, hand them over and we can get started–hang on, hang on, you, White-hair, where's yours, your SoulArm, your data sheet is blank."
"Sir, I don't have one..."
"...but you went through the exams, and the Configuration...how did you?"
"I know I said the same thing, the kid really doesn't have one, it's kind of weird." Jaret chimed in.
"Eh...alright, it's a little different but I guess I'll have to put you down for a commission. What kind of SoulArm are you looking for?" The old man tried to align his thoughts.
"He seems to handle himself quite well in hand to hand and close quarters combat." Ketsu added.
"Oh a brawler eh, well then white-hair, have a look around my shop and tell me if you find something you like while I help out your friends."
Shynerai nodded before moving between the displays cataloging gleaming blades, sparkling ores, detailed and ornately decorated armors and relics that littered the shop.
Continuing his search as nothing seemed to appeal to him, he eventually came to a stop when his eye caught the silver glint of something buried beneath a rack of discarded arms.
As he dusted off the wooden case, his hands ran over the engravings meant to title the display,
'The Marks of Lynheare's Greatest Protectors Lie Within'
'Astral the Thundering Knight, Reven the Twilight Mage, Shadow the Darkness Hero'
"Is that...Is that father and...uncle Shadow?"
"Hey! What are you doing back there, white-hair? Why is that pile of scrap all over the floor?" The old man stumbled to Erai's side of the store and took the boy by his ear, reminding him not to touch the displays and not to leave weapons lying around on the shop floor, but Shynerai's thoughts were far too occupied to hear him.
Turning to the Warsmith as he dragged him along, he asked if he knew the men named on that display, pointing to its shadowed corner bearing the display. The old man stopped and took a moment before asking the young boy why that mattered.
"They were probably some Guardians from a faraway land, would be surprised if most of you never heard of them...they seemed like the kind to keep to themselves." He tried to answer in an off-handed tone.
'I mean uncle never struck me as a Lynhearian, is that how the duke knew where to find us?' The young man mumbled to himself with his eyes never turning away from the case.
"Huh, you said something White-hair? Don't tell me you haven't found something to your liking, I've got an entire store...you must have found something that caught your eye among those dusty relics." The old man sat him on a creaky chair as he dug through his front desk.
"No sir. I think that might be my father's...I think that sword belongs to him."
"That wouldn't be possible, that would mean your–"
"Shynerai Astrapordt, my–my father was Astral, but he never told me he was from Lynheare." They exchanged a deep stare while Reven stood in silence, shocked by his words.
"By FAE Breath! You're Eliza's boy. I can't believe how much you've grown." Doing a double-take after removing his visor and standing much closer to him, as he lifted his bangs for a close look to his eyes, moving onto his strange ears before he could even refuse, finally ruffling through the Daumier's snow-white hair, letting out a sigh before stepping back.
"I hardly recognized you. I can't believe Astral trained you to become a Guardian, your father and mother raised you well white-hair–eh, Shynerai." A look of excitement filled his old bones as he stood up with shining passion that filled the store.
While the rest of his class grew even more curious, the usually jovial Jaret stood silent, with a look of focus and his companions quickly took notice.
"Jaret!" Arno snapped him out of his trance as he called out to him, asking him if he was alright though all he did was brush aside his concern, shifting the topic to the hit he took from him earlier.
However while Arno apologized and Aurelia scolded him for his behavior, his gaze wandered back to the young man.
As the uproarious nature of the store continued, Shynerai wandered towards the display case, with the reflection of emerald light gleaming off the case. Vaceris approached him asking if he knew about his father being a Guardian but found the faint sound of trembling coming from him as she spoke.
"I didn't think I would find something like this, I knew, but he always spoke about it as it happened so long ago, and now I'm holding it, his SoulArm." The trembles moved out his voice and into his being as the case was littered with sparkling teardrops. Only after noticing the tears did she move to embrace him, easing his tightening grip on the case.
Though not with a look of despair, a look of relief and a hint of joy came from his strained smile.
'Now, you can watch me keep my promise, father, to help others, and to keep my family safe.'
"Thanks, Vaceris, but I'll be alright." Realizing that she moved without thinking to comfort him, she stepped aside with a sudden huff, apologizing for her behavior. Though he put her at ease, thanking her for her kindness, noting how different she was from her past.
"If you're Astral's boy then the man you called uncle must be...Shadow?" Reven asked the boy, who quickly wiped away his tears, and turned to him with the case in hand, nodding at the answer.
"So they're still around, I didn't think I would hear that guy's name again but I'm glad to see he's still doing alright, as much as it pains me to say–"
"Uncle is fine, but mother and father...they, they aren't–"
"They…oh dear. I'm sorry to hear that my boy, I had no idea..." The sight of the same passion from before visibly dimmed.
"But if you wouldn't mind, could I ask a few things?" The old man pulled out another chair and put it beside the creaky one, calling Shynerai to sit beside him.
Reven tried to learn as much as possible while Erai tried to answer as much as he could, with Reven even going as far to discuss his relation to Shadow, and almost growing pale at the sound of him having a daughter, alongside taking care of him:
"Shadow has a child? I wouldn't have nearly as much as I needed to pay your father for that bet." He chuckled as they went on.
Ketsu called his classmates to join him as he started speaking to the Student Generals,
"Shynerai seems quite busy at the moment."
"Ah, I see. A user of Atash. Still, I would have thought Shadow had gotten you a weapon at the very least. The world is a dangerous place for someone so young, especially one in your chosen field." The old man was taken back by Shadow's incompetence.
Meanwhile, Shynerai's attention was brought back to the case in his hands.
"Master Reven, could I have it? My father's–"
"Ehh...I'm sorry kid, but I can't let you have that." Shutting him down before he could finish.
"I haven't seen what you can do but I'm pretty sure that if I let you run around with that sword, it would just slow you down, or worse blow you apart. Either way, I don't think you could handle it."
"But...I don't want to lose a piece of my family, how can I prove myself worthy of it? I'm willing to do whatever it takes to have this sword?" Shynerai answered, with a steely expression and a look of determination in his eyes.
"It's not that simple, with everything you told me it's even harder. Using a Dead SoulArm is dangerous, the Soul fragment might lash out against anyone that isn't its master."
"If you aren't strong enough it might kill you, and I'll be damned if I was the reason Astral's boy ended up in the dirt."
"The bond of blood could help, and them sharing a similar nature might allow him to use the same SoulArm." Stephen added, before getting reeled in by Torren, reminding him that he should stay out of it.
"That doesn't change the fact that you might be too weak to handle its power–"
"Then teach me! You fought alongside my father and uncle. Hell, you have his sword, if anyone can show me it's you." Shynerai jumped in.
But Reven still hesitated, even going as far as to try and pawn off his many eye-catching items and relics, thinking his stubbornness would run into an equally hard-headed figure as the young man remained steadfast.
"Master Reven, just a chance, let me show you that I'm worthy of my father's legacy."
The room fell silent, while they waited on the smith's response.
"Nyrch's Silver Tooth! You are certainly your father's son, neither you nor he would take no for an answer....and I can exactly send you home without arming you. I know your dad wouldn't forgive me, let alone Shadow.
"Look, son, I can't give you that sword, but I can give you a chance to show me what you got."
"I'll do it." He answered without a moment of hesitation.
"Hold on, it might mean having to do this around this place, that won't always be swordsmanship, can you handle that?" He nodded.
"Alright, then I hope you're feeling up to doing it now. Jaret, get over here. I want you to size this kid up for me."
"Ketsu, is that wise?" Stephen questioned Reven's desire to have Erai and Jaret brawl, though before he could answer the rest of the group was already pointing to the pair heading outside in excitement. Following behind was the Warsmith bearing a myriad of arms and weapons.
"One of these has got to be a fit, after that we'll see what we can set you up with."
"But I thought I was doing this for the sword?" He asked amidst his excitable chanting with Jaret.
"If we find the sword to be a better fit for you, then I'll see if I can forge that talent into something that would make Astral proud."
'Though I should probably be asking Shadow on this, second to only Astral, he's the one with a gift for the blade...perhaps he left something lying that could help' The old pondered as they got the courtyard out in front of the South Residency.
Planting the weapons on the ground, he donned his curious visor and ordered the pair to have at it, before tossing a metal cub at Erai.
"Let's start you off with something simple, son." A smirk appeared on his face as he watched the boy catch it and with a firm grip as he prepared himself against a lofty Jaret.
"Let me know if you need a break kid because it's been a while since I had the chance to stretch the old wings, I might accidentally take your head off if you don't give me a sign." He tried to tease him but found the words dismissed by Shynerai's steely gaze.
"Alright, that's what I'm talking about kid." Finally feeling the urge to put up a guard.
The rest of his classmates joined Aurelia and Arno as they stepped out of the store.
Walking out of the building, the orange hue showered the ornate brickwork of the scene.
"So this is just going to happen? I don't really feel like getting between the two idiots." Vaceris sighed as they approached the courtyard, standing beside the intrigued Reven.
"I'm sorry about this, we'll be sure to reel Jaret in if he takes things too far, right Arno." Dragging the unsuspecting Student General into his friend's troubles, though Arno would always find it difficult to say no to Aurelia, giving her a reluctant nod as he turned his sights back to the chaos of an erupting brawl, taking barely a moment to start.
"Thank you, Aurelia, though I can't deny that Erai seems to be having a little too much fun. Guess we'll have to reel in ours as well." Vaceris took notice of the gleaming light of his emerald eyes, shining with an expression of joy, she couldn't help but smile with a sense of relief.
'He looks a lot better…I guess he's probably feeling better too.' While keeping that final thought to herself, the old man bent over to grab a large battle ax, grasping it tightly before tossing it into the battle.
Within a flash, the cub wielded by Erai was mangle by a single strike from Jaret....who took to avoiding Erai's initial blows.
"Switch out kid, try that on for size." Shouting at the white-haired young man. Stepping back and arming himself once more, he again jumped into the fray of battle.
"Hmm, I'll pass on the club." The old man remarked subtly as he watched on.