Catalina had been firing more than 200 bullets a day. She knew her weapon well. Given enough time, she would be a master at it. She loved her weapons, and especially her guns. She had deep-set respect for Barda, bordering on reverence, as he was the creator of Tina and Trudy.
She hated going against him, but she understood her commander's orders. The people needed something to believe in, and this was it.
When she shot her weapon, it felt weird. Unlike the previous times when she had fired the normal kind of bullet, this one felt rushed, as though it was in a hurry to get where it was going. Next came a loud boom as 2 holes were formed on the capsule, the entry and exit wounds.
Seeing the 2 holes and the subsequent deflating of the capsule, many people cheered, and why wouldn't they? This capsule had withstood attacks from hundreds of arrows and bullets yet all it took was one shot from this new kind of weapon to tear through it like tofu.
Many had seen the fight with the sun-worm. Their newfound faith in guns had been quashed when not a single bullet penetrated the monster's thick outer layer. With this weapon there was hope.
Moreover, this demonstration also served as a form of assurance to the soldiers. The material used was sturdy enough to withstand the assault of the arrows that would no doubt rain on them. In contrast, it would serve as a form of protection against this onslaught.
Invented mostly to be used for tires, Poly-paraphenylene terephthalamide, branded Kevlar, later came to be widely used in body armor. After several millennia of innovativeness, humanity had found ways of making slim but extremely tough and hardy armor.
Barda had been able to re-invent the kevlar fabric and use it to make the superstructure. However, given the size, it had cost Barda more than 20 gallons of crude oil, and by now, he was running out.
To penetrate it, Barda had had to use Ordinance-tipped .50 caliber round with bunker-busting payload. These were not easy to make, and Barda had a limited supply of tungsten. He had been using steel and lead to make the practice bullets, which should function similarly, but were less expensive.
As it turned out, arming 10,000 soldiers was not something easily done. The materials were running dry, and it was only a matter of time before they had no more left to work with. This made may people wonder if maybe he had bitten off more than he could handle. After all, Crane city was the only source.
The man himself did not seem perturbed as he went to the workshop. Just as he was about to lock himself in the workshop again, Commander Greer came over.
"The court is assembled, and you are being summoned,"
"Must be important, if you are personally escorting me," Barda said as he locked the workshop. There were some secrets in there he didn't want anyone knowing just yet.
"I wanted to do this," The commander began and then regarded Barda. Meeting his gaze he said, "You are amazingly brilliant, that's how you can make all these magnificent things. I advise you today to use that brilliance at court."
Barda understood where the commander was coming from. Thinking about it, Barda remembered that he was mentally the commander's agemate, no wonder they got along well. However, Barda had had a chance to get a new lease of life. A chance at eternal youth...
[Personality Matrix is advised that Aging protocols were initiated at first contact with society.]
Barda tripped on some stone.
***
"I admit, you are impressive," The King of Fulah said. "Therefore I make this concession. If you do away with this stupid gambit, I will not require you to marry anyone. Moreover, The city of Fulah will provide you with the materials you require to finish your inventions."
When Barda walked into the court, he found that only the monarchs were present. This time, it seemed the King of Fulah did not want an audience as he swallowed some of his pride.
After witnessing Barda's creations, he now believed that the boy could pull it off. However, there was that one little thing, materials. Even he knew the state of things in Steel Street, it was no secret.
He remembered how he and the King of Tristan had agreed that they were fortunate indeed to have a son and a daughter of the same age. The coming together of Fulah and Tristan had been talked about for centuries, and now with the 2 being so perfectly matched, there seemed to be no other option.
Both had joked that their grandchild would rule over both cities as one Kingdom, and they wished to see that it happened. He was not so willing to let go of this chance. For him, Tristan was a goldmine and right now she was being harassed by some foreigner. If he was going to help her, he needed reparations.
Barda eyed each of the Kings and Queen present in the room before his eyes rested on the King of Fulah. The truth was, he did command a lot of wealth, which made him pompous.
"And if I refuse?"
"Are you stupid boy ..."
"LEAVE US!" The king had begun, but the Queen interrupted.
"What is wrong with you?" The Queen demanded once everyone had left.
"I wonder too," Barda replied. At this point, the Queen broke down in tears. All the regality and Queenliness was shed and right now all he saw was a broken woman, unable to contain herself. Her tears were flowing like a spring.
"Do you not see how much pressure I am under? Why are you making things so difficult for me?"
"I just made a bet, what is difficult there?"
Lady Maara pulled out a dagger and made to attack Barda, but she froze at his next words:
"Just like the sun rises in the east, and sets in the west,
So does my love for you remain unchangingly steadfast.
No matter how far you are from me,
Your memory remains in my heart,
and the flames of our passion, the embers of our love,
are stoked daily in my heart,
never extinguished."
"Where did you hear that?"
"You mean where did I read that?"
"How dare you read my private documents?"
"So you are not denying it?"
"You had no right!" The Queen was furious, however, she understood his rage. She was connecting the dots now. Ever since that note, he had been distant. She didn't know he had read it, and she hated the fact that she had to conceal it from him.
"The note came from Lord Branton,"
"So now the traitor is your romantic fling?"
"Will you just shut up and listen!" Barda calmed down.
"It is code, an extract from a book we both read as children. He was warning me that the enemies were coming. I have not seen the book here but if I will get you a title as soon as you retake Tristan."
"Oh," In truth, Barda did not expect such an answer, and it made so much sense. He wondered why he hadn't thought of that.
"Really, Oh is all you have to say?" She asked.
"Well, I didn't expect you'd say that," Barda replied honestly.
"That aside, what are you planning to do about the materials? Without the Fulah King, we lack a proper partner." She prodded. Having seen him refuse the Fulah King, she was sure he had some plan up his sleeve.
"You and the Fulah King are much alike, disregarding the small in favor of the mighty. As for me, I thrive on enabling the little guy to squash the mighty," Barda began.
"Is that what we are to you?"
"Like it or not, Tristan is the little guy in this war. However, you little guys are big guys to cities like Retoa, which only want to mine their oil in peace. The Fulah King insists they stop their mining operation since they are draining their oil. Given Fulah is 10 times the size of Retoa, they had to comply, but they never shut down their mines.
Don't forget about King Frios of Sarata city, one of the largest producers of sulfur. They face huge opposition from Kumasi city, which has sided with Gumina. Then there is King Demio of Mazaria, they run the copper-belt mines. They face severe opposition from the king of Reuze, our enemy."
"What did you do?"
"I negotiated with the allies you disregarded, and since I had your approval, they were willing to play ball."
"What does that mean?"
"That means that the first round of supplies should be arriving any minute now from Chivas city. Tomorrow, there are a few more coming in. In essence, we are not running out any time soon."