Elly rubbed her chin at the problem in front of her. Helbram stood right behind the Weaver, holding a piece of metal that was broken off from one of the fallen Shells. At its tip was a small bead of light, placed there by Elly herself so Helbram could hold it for her. His height meant that he was able to hold it over her so she could see into the innards of the box they opened. Further investigation had revealed a panel that was near flush with the wall in the room with all the tables and chairs. Elly had managed to decipher and undo the Saputan seal that was placed over it, which allowed them to pop the panel off of the wall. This revealed an inner box that held a series of Saputan runes linked together to form a circuit, but she could only see traces of Aether within them.
“Remind me again why I need to hold this,” Helbram said, “would it not make more sense to light the interior instead?”
“Because the circuit here is damaged.” Elly reached inside and ran her fingers along a gash that had been carved through the runes. “While a simple light spell might not do anything, there is always the chance that Aether from it could bleed into the circuit, causing some interference at best.”
“And at worst?”
“It creates some sort of reaction and gives us a rather unpleasant zap. Saputan magitech is still full of unknown variables, after all.” She looked back at him with a coy look in her eye. “Given the breadth of knowledge you have shown so far, I thought you’d be aware of that.
Helbram shrugged. “I do have to let you be the expert sometimes, you know.”
Elly snorted. “But of course, I expect no less from such a humble sort. Now get closer, I need a bit more light.”
He obeyed and stepped in, keeping the light high and held just at the edge of where the panel had been removed. Elly could feel his presence just behind her, making her very aware of just how tall he was, and how much warmer it was near him.
She closed her eyes and focused. Now was not the time for random fixations.
“I am assuming that scratch has something to do with this?” Helbram asked.
The Weaver tapped the parts of the circuit that were above and below the rune. Energy had been infused into her fingers, just enough to pulse through a few inches of the runes before dissipating. Said pulsed stopped the moment that they reached the scratch, from above or below. “You assume correctly. It’s essentially cutting off most of the power from reaching this part of the ship.”
“So you would need to repair the runes to restore power.”
“Theoretically, yes. We have no idea how intact the ship’s engine still is, so fixing it may not do anything.”
“Have you any better ideas?”
“No, so we might as well give this a shot while Kali chips away at the next code.”
She fished into robes and produced a pair of gloves, a thin dagger, and a small chipping hammer from them. Tools similar to the ones that Jahora used, but hers had never been used for artificery. They had, however, seen many a ruin in her use, and their purpose always remained the same. She slipped on the gloves and, carefully, placed the tip of her dagger against the top of the gash, and began to hammer in a scratch that was the start of a series of Saputan runes.
“Quite dexterous with that,” Helbram observed, “I may have to ask for your assistance with my gear whenever Jahora is busy.”
“Given that she has been teaching Aria more and more, I’m sure she would not mind such an arrangement.” Elly brushed away some of the metal bits at the edges of the runes, then continued.
‘Though she could do to slow down a bit,” Helbram mused, “The poor girl always looks like she has smoke coming out of her ears when she’s done.”
“That is due to her own eagerness. She looks about the same when I’m finished teaching her.”
“I am sure part of that also has to deal with your constant teasing.”
“It builds character.” She finished tapping out another rune.
“An Agatha Toulec teaching, no doubt.”
“Yes, but my family as well. They were none too shy at poking fun.”
“I can imagine your father would be quite versed in a number of insults. Bards tend to be quite witty.” Helbram tilted his head from side to side. “Most of them, at least."
“My father would not be the head of a troupe if he did not have a silvered tongue, now would he?” Elly said with a hint of pride.
“No he would not. If only he were here to give Logan some advice on how to speak to his own daughter…”
“I’m not even sure if he could help. Kali’s ire is… bitter.
“Obessive would be the better word.”
“What makes you say that?”
“She spent five months trying to decipher a lock, five months fixated on just that task, that she didn’t even look around to check for a panel like this. All because she didn’t want to speak to Xanchil, who her father is employed by.”
“...fair. What is more perplexing is that I have not the foggiest of what could have even occurred between the two.”
“Something that Logan finds easier to bear, on the surface at least.”
Elly stopped with her hammering and examined her work to make sure she made no mistakes. To her relief, there wasn’t. She looked back at Helbram, almost flinching when she remembered how close he was. “You don’t believe that he is at fault? He is hindering his daughter.”
“On the surface, I would call his actions to be a betrayal of what it means to be a father, but I have made plenty of mistakes on just assumptions and immediate impressions. There is most likely something else driving him. Men do tend to harbor secrets quite deep, and those can be most illuminating to their actions.”
“Or to their knowledge. You still haven’t told any of us how you know so much about Saputan ruins.”
Helbram snorted. “I have approximate knowledge of many things, which is hardly anything to rely on. It has been a few years since I last touched anything related to our skyborne ancients.”
“So, you didn’t learn it from your grandfather, but while you were out traveling?”
“Clever deduction,” Helbram admitted. She expected a smile and some recounting of a previous adventure, but while his lips did quirk up, his eyes grew distant. “An old flame was highly invested in studying the Saputans, and I just happened to be fortunate enough to be by her side in her early travels.”
“Oh…my ap… I didn’t mean to bring up such memories.”
“You are fine. You could not have known.” He peered into the box. “How is the progress looking?”
“Almost done, thankfully, as sturdy as Skysteel can be, it’s not scratchproof, otherwise this would be a headache and a half,” she resumed chipping runes into the box, too quickly, too eager to move the conversation from the previous topic. Muscle memory kept the runes she scratched from being erratic, but she completed the circuit far faster than she intended.
A flash of light surged from the newly connected runes and blinded her. No force came from the release of energy, but she stumbled back in surprise and hit something solid. When her vision cleared, she saw that the something was Helbram, who looked down at her. It took a while longer for her to realize that he had her cradled in his arms.
“You alright?” He asked.
“...yes,” Elly answered. She regained her footing and Helbram let her stand on her own. She rubbed her arm absentmindedly and looked everywhere except his face. “Sorry, I should have paid more attention.”
“No harm, no foul.” Helbram waved his hand in front of his face. “Though I will be seeing spots for a while yet, let us hope restoring that circuit did so-”
He stopped speaking when the runes along the walls began to fill with a soft, pale light. The dark, nearly black sheen that the ship’s interior had before was in reality more the color of stone under the newfound illumination. She could see the light fill the other rooms through the open doorways, and with this glow, the interior of the ship turned out to be far more spacious than they had felt before. Her eyes darted to the tubes from before and, thankfully, they remained sealed. The markings along their colors were filled with light, but they showed no signs of opening on their own.
Helbram, however, had his attention turned towards one of the raised pedestals in the room. His eyes were narrowed and lip twisted.
“Something wrong?” Elly asked.
“Hm? Oh, I just saw a projection flicker over the pedestals for a moment. It was too quick for me to tell what exactly showed up, but something was there.”
Ely walked over to the pedestal and attuned her eyes to look at the Aether around it. There was more lightning-aspected power radiating from it, and she could clearly see the energy flowing through its “circuits”, but even as she experimentally tapped the runes that were on the rim of the pedestal, nothing happened.
This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“Looks like there isn’t enough power to make it turn on fully,” Elly concluded, “A shame, but we may have only succeeded in turning the lights on.”
“The lack of power would mean that the ship’s energy source is faulty somehow, correct?” Helbram asked.
“Possibly, but it could also be that my repair is only a half measure. Some scratchings would be a pale imitation of a properly engraved circuit.”
“You sell yourself too short.” Helbram tapped his fingers together. “Though, one has to wonder, why was a gash made in that box and then sealed?”
“That… is a good question. It may be related to all the sealed doors as well. It must be related to some sort of lockdown, and perhaps someone purposely damaged the circuit to seal everything down further. What could have forced them into that decision, I couldn’t tell you.”
“Well, Leaf has sensed nothing out of the ordinary, so far, but we should be cautious all the same.” He motioned towards the door. “Shall we? We should see if this power has given Kali some more insight.”
Elly sighed. “Given her grumbling before? I… I should stay silent rather than cast further judgement.”
“I will not, she is going to be all smiles, of course, and will be the light of our day.”
The Weaver made her way towards the door. “She would have to be, to balance the dullness I’m hearing.”
Helbram smirked. “I have no idea what you are talking about.”
They made their way back to the sealed door, and, to neither of their surprise, Kali remained hunched over one of the pedestals and kept tapping away at it. Soft pulses of light blinked in front of her, punctuated by flares of red that made her fingers clench so hard on the edges of the pedestal that Elly believed for a moment that she might dent the metal. Helbram turned to her with a knowing, dull look to match his earlier words, but said nothing further.
Elly approached and cleared her throat.
Her fellow scholar started, and cut a stare back at her. The rings around her eyes had grown darker since the previous day, and it had given her a permanent glare behind her spectacles. The Weaver remained unflinching, and Kali slowed realized how she must have looked before mumbling something and rubbing her eyes.
“Have you made any progress?” Elly asked.
Kali shook her head and opened her own notebook, which had scrawled combinations of Saputan runes etched up and down the pages. The writing of them was erratic, and all of them were crossed out like she used an ink coated dagger instead of a pen, but Elly could see that the combination required seven different runes.
“I’ve gone through… how many have I gone through?” Kali flipped through her pages. “Doesn’t matter, but I’m getting close to it, I know it.”
“Based on what?” Helbram asked.
“Based on-” she shook her head, “I just know, alright?!”
“Perhaps you should take a rest,” Elly walked over and pointed at a few combinations. “You have already repeated yourself multiple times today. An addled mind is not going to carry you far. If you would give me your notebook, I can take over for a bit.”
Kali’s eye twitched, but she blinked rapidly to get that under control. “You’re right, I’m feeling lightheaded anyhow.” She handed Elly her notes and walked back.
“Fear not,” Helbram said, “You have a student of Agatha Toulec in your presence, I am sure you will both make steady progress together.”
Both Elly and Kali froze at the mention of Elly’s mentor.
“Agatha… Toulec?” Kali said, her eyes widening, “The Stormcaller?!”
Helbram didn’t appear to be surprised by that title, but when he saw Elly’s wide eyes, his lips pressed thin in regret and he said nothing further.
Elly sighed as she felt a stone form at the pit of her stomach. “Yes, I have been her student for many years.”
She expected further questions; many younger scholars always asked her what it was like to be under Agatha’s tutelage, but to Elly’s surprise, that’s not what followed.
Narrowed eyes and almost sneer scrunched up Kali’s face. It was only for a moment, but Elly could sense a distinct bitterness to that flash, before the scholar’s face relaxed like nothing happened. “Interesting… I’m going to sit for a bit.”
She wandered towards the edge of the room and sat down, staring off towards nothing.
Elly turned away slowly and made her way to the pedestal. Helbram was not far behind.
“Sorry,” he muttered, “I should have asked before I mentioned her.”
“You’re fine,” Elly muttered back, “I should have said something.” She flipped Kali’s notebook to the most recent page and pulled out her pencil, trying to ignore that look she’d been given. And the sudden anxiousness that she felt. “I’m… more surprised that you weren’t shocked by her title. Many know Stormcaller, but not Toulec.”
“Remember that I did spend some time in Orelia,” Helbram said, “That and she did subdue a Dungeon Core while we were trapped by it. It was very easy to put the pieces together.” He spoke in a light tone, clearly trying to brighten things, but Elly still felt uneasy.
She tapped a combination into the pedestal and felt the stone in her stomach grow heavier when it flashed red. “...why didn’t you bring it up?”
Helbram leaned against the door. “Because you did not, either. It was your business to share, and I should have been more careful with my words.”
“You couldn’t have known what I was thinking, the fault is on me for not communicating that.”
“Is there a reason that you are remiss to bring it up?” Helbram asked.
Elly looked back at Kali, who was still staring off into space. “When you are the student of one of Orelia’s most powerful Mages, and one of their most prolific scholars of the Ancients, certain expectations are to be had.” She input another failed combination and grit her teeth at the flash of red, brighter now with the influx of power through the ship. “I… would rather operate outside of those expectations, if at all possible.”
Helbram nodded. “In the future, I shall be sure to keep mum. We will have to let the others know as well.”
“Thank you for understanding.”
Little else was said as she spent some more time inputting combinations. Each of them resulted in a failure, and the constant pulse of red that accompanied each other wore on her patience far more than she thought it would. Then again, that could have been due to that stone that still pulled her gut down.
“There has to be something to make this easier!” She hissed after yet another failed combination. “Lockpicking the damned thing would make more sense at this point.”
“Could we do that?” Helbram asked.
She tapped the pedestal, briefly entertaining that thought. It wouldn’t be lockpicking in the literal sense, but maybe she could trying something with-
“A ‘key’ from the Saputans does not work like we know,” Kali said from her far side of the room, “Even with the configuration it shows, the moment that it is slotted in, it shuffles yet again to trigger the correct combination of runes. This is done purely through magical signalling, there are no pins to shift or anything else like that.” She didn’t look at Elly, but her voice was clearly directed at her. “You would think the student of the Stormcaller would remember that.”
That stone grew heavier. She already knew what Kali said, so why hadn’t she dismissed her earlier idea immediately?
Helbram looked at the runes on the pedestal, his face blank. Too blank. “Are you aware that Free Script was derived from Saputan runic script?” He asked.
Kali looked at him then, brow furrowed. “No? What does that-”
“The structure is very similar,” Helbram continued, “remove the lines connecting the circles here and instead let the incomplete shapes crash together, and you have something that is quite alike to Free Script. Given that this magical language is often to form contracts with otherworldly beings, it can be believed that, prior to the use of Egos, the Saputans made contracts with minor spirits to power their Shells and machinery instead.”
“I don’t see how that has anything to do with our problem.”
“Maybe it does, maybe it does not.” He met Kali’s eyes, his face stone. “But you would think that a scholar of Saputan expertise would remember such a simple fact, would they not?”
Kali started to respond, but fell silent under Helbram’s stare. She looked away and stood up. “I should get some air.”
She walked out of the room with hurried steps.
Elly turned to Helbram, ready to say something, but he spoke first.
“I did not act because I thought you could not, Elly,” he said, “I did so because I wanted to.”
She felt a warmth build in her cheeks. “I appreciate it.”
“Consider it an additional apology for loose lips.” The smile returned to his face. “Now, clearly you weren’t meaning to ‘pick’ the lock, but you did look like you were having an idea.”
Elly started to input more codes, more out of a way to keep her fingers occupied as she thought. “I was thinking that there had to be a way to refine this process. What we are doing may guarantee success eventually, but it is severely inefficient, and in truth this is hardly the most complicated lock the Saputans have. Even in crashed ruins, we have found combinations that had up twenty runes total, and those even repeated. Figuring those out in our lifetime by doing what we are now is… foolhardy at best, and though we may be able to scratch Skysteel, breaking through it is another matter entirely.”
“It cannot be stronger than Core Steel, could it?”
“It isn’t, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t resilient all on its own. So physical force would not avail us much, and we’d rather not have Master Awoken or Fifteenth Circle Mages blowing them open either. That could cause untold damage or trigger self destruction countermeasures much like the archives in Goldshire.”
“Yes, Ruhians and Saputans alike are over dramatic in that regard…” Helbram said with annoyance. “Have you any ideas about how to make this process simpler?”
“From a scholar’s perspective, no, but perhaps that is the wrong lens to be looking at this from.” She input another combination, but the flash of red did not bother this time. She was too busy thinking. “Jahora’s skill as an artificer could be of some help here, and your point about Free Script may actually have some merit, but I’ll have to discuss the details with her, later.”
Helbram crossed his arms. “Later? Would it not be better to address this now?”
“I need some time to think, and you never know,” another flash of red brushed her face, “we could get lucky.”
“So long as you are not doing it out of guilt.”
“You don’t need to worry about that. I do need to speak with her, but I’ll save that for tonight.” She inputted a few more combinations in silence. “You don’t have to stay here, you know.”
“You can never be too sure, and to be honest, a situation like this is a bit nostalgic,” Helbram admitted.
“You mean with your old flame?”
He nodded.
“What was her name?” she winced as the question slipped out without her thinking. “If you don’t mind me asking.”
“...Ophelia.”
Elly ran through the list of names she knew from Orelia, and when her thoughts settled on the one person that went by that name, her eyes widened. “You don’t mean… Ophelia Estalis, do you?”
“I do.”
“The one who discovered and translated the journal of Emanelin Sofina? That one?”
“Well, it was far before that particular discovery.” Helbram rubbed his chin. “Before any notable discovery, really. Most of the ruins we explored had been stripped bare before, but she always did have a knack for finding things other people missed. It was just us then, a Mage and a younger man who fancied himself a bodyguard.” He smiled. “She had a bit of a sharp tongue on her, but she was always kind when it mattered most… she helped bring me out of a darkness that still claws at me some days.” He closed his eyes. “She was always passionate about her work, and I could not help but be caught up in it as well. I was fortunate, for her patience with me could be compared to the thickest and tallest of candles.”
“I see… what happened?”
Helbram opened his eyes. The distant air from before returned. “That is the thing about candles. No matter how large, how big or how long… they all eventually burn out in the end.”
Author's Note: Surprisingly, not a lot I got to say about this one. Wanted to fit some character exposition as well as show a "struggle" with the current predicament, and here we are.
As always, let me know what you think!
Till next update! Have a wonderful time ^_^
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