After three days of studying in the dwarven library, I had a reasonable grasp on their way of shaping Astral Power to perform their magic, with quite a bit of material to study. More time would have been helpful but, at the end of the day, I was glad that I had been allowed the opportunity in the first place. During the evenings, I had explored my Hallow further, trying to better understand the mechanics of transferring into the Hallow, both for Lenore and myself.

In the meantime, while I had been busy, the others had enjoyed some well-deserved down-time, lying in the sun during the day and enjoying the fact that I had an actual kitchen to work in during the evening. They had been given a tour of the local area, seeing the dwarven lifestyle in action, not that there was a lot to see. The simple fact that they couldn’t easily use the dwarven tunnels meant that they could visit a few farms and fields in the local area but nothing terribly interesting. Mostly, they relaxed, recharging for our journey ahead.

And yesterday, after I returned from my last day in the library, there had been a message waiting at our quarters, sent by the dwarven crafters who, somehow, had managed to finish the items they had promised us. Soon after we were sitting breakfast and were sitting out, me in the shade, using my Ice-Magic to create a cooling mist around me, the others basking in the morning sun, the dwarven crafters arrived.

“Greetings, esteemed guests. As promised by our Thane, we have laboured tirelessly to craft your items. And, without bragging, I can tell you that what we have made will not shame the name of the dwarves, for they are marvelous indeed. But, without further ado, let me show you what we have created.” the burly, well-groomed dwarf who apparently had turned himself into their speaker, exclaimed, after they had lined themselves up in front of you. I could see that the others were a little bewildered at the presentation, while I felt rather amused by the dwarven antics. We returned the greetings but it quickly became clear that they had a specific mode of presentation in mind and were about to be dissuaded from it.

“Warun, why don’t you begin?” the burly presenter, whose name I still didn’t know, asked.

“Certainly. My apprentices and I laboured throughout the night, sewing and embroidering a cloak fit for such a splendid stalker as the Lady Adrastea. Not only will the cloak help her blend into the shadows, making her hard to see, but it will also protect her from the elements, keeping her warm in the cold and keeping her cool in the heat. I am certain that she will use it to great effect, especially when teaming up with young Rai.” the dwarf explained, displaying a curiously smooth looking, dull-black piece of leather.

Adra stepped forward, picking it up and unfolded it, letting it play over her hands. It was quite obvious that the piece was incredibly soft for leather and when she unfolded it, its form was on full display, a hooded, black leather-cloak, with a silver closure at the front, allowing it to be worn comfortably. After a moment of shaking it out, Adra wrapped it around her shoulder, making sure that it sat correctly on her shoulder, even putting on the hood. I could see that even without shadows around her, the light didn’t seem to fully reflect off her, allowing her to blend into the background, not really standing out.

“There’s more to it, I think.” Lenore muttered in my mind and when we worked together to stretch our magical senses, there was a subtle, cleverly hidden, mind-magic effect, making her seem unimportant and easy to ignore. It seemed to be carried by the light reflected off the cloak and unless one was closely looking for it, noticing the effect was nigh impossible. I made a mental note to study that effect closely, maybe learning how to do it on my own. A manipulation so subtle that you didn’t even notice you were manipulated, that was what I wanted for my mind magic.

“You did your words justice, I have to admit. It is an awesome piece of gear.” Adra told the dwarves, giving them a bow of respect before looking over to Rai.

“Rai, could you shroud me?” she asked and Rai stepped forward, muttering something under his breath and a cloud of shadows appeared around her. The shadows themselves were easily discernible in the daylight but within them, it was difficult to make out where Adra was. Rai spread the shadows further, letting it wash over us and Adra managed to get quite close, before I managed to spot her. She lined back up with us and Rai let the shadows drop, bringing a smile to my face.

“Now, the next piece of gear is for young Rai. Please, step forward to receive it.” the burly master of ceremonies said, a smile on his face.

Rai stepped forward and another dwarf came forward, carrying a pair of tan leather boots.

“You told us that you are able to blend into the shadows without any extraordinary gear. But what about the sound of your steps? These boots will help you with that, muffling your steps, making it hard to hear you. In addition, they will let you walk further and faster, strengthening your legs.” the dwarf explained and Rai received his boots. He let his hands move over their smooth lines before thanking the dwarves and stepped back to us, without instantly putting them on.

“Lady Sigmir, your weapon is next. Let Brundra show you what she managed to forge, using your Lok’nar as a base. I think she did a marvelous job, preserving its form but strengthening its essence. I hope you will agree that it honours your father while serving you well in the future.” the master of ceremonies explained, gesturing to the solid-looking female dwarf, who had brought a large object with her, wrapped into a piece of cloth. Now she stepped forward, meeting Sigmir in the middle, with that object held up, ready to be taken up.

Sigmir reached out, pulling away the cloth and her Lok’nar became visible, the sun reflecting off the gleaming metal. Little had changed with Sigmir’s weapon, at least judging from a few steps away, without a detailed examination, but I could see some differences. Originally, the Lok’nar had been a rough appearance, making it look a little crude and simple but now, those lines had been smoothed out, changing little in the impression of deadliness but making it seem more civilised, if such a weapon could ever look that way.

But the most important thing was Sigmir’s impression of the weapon, who was currently balancing it in her hand, handling the massive weapon with gentle, careful hands.

“I believe the changes will suit you well. I have done my best to keep the general feel of your weapon the same, not changing its balance, only improving what the weapon already was. I have sharpened the edges, smoothing out some nicks and notches, while improving the integration of the silver, mixing some mithril in to improve the effects. It will be exceptionally destructive to undead, even allowing you to cut those without substance. And finally, the biggest change is one you will need to learn and master. If you channel Astral Power into it, you can increase the weight of one of its heads, allowing you to strike with the force of a landslide, shattering all defenses. You will have to learn how to use that ability in combat but I have no doubt that you will master it and use it to earth-shaking effect.” the burly dwarven lady explained, while Sigmir carefully started to swing the weapon, a pensive look on her face. After a few moments, I could feel some power gather in her hands and a glimpse through Lenore’s eyes allowed me to see that one of the heads was glowing with power. When Sigmir swung the weapon again, I could feel the air move, even a few steps away and saw Sigmir stumble, trying to control the heavier weapon. Her pensive look remained while she thanked the dwarves and stepped back to our line.

“And finally, the work that I have crafted for you, Lady Morgana, a unique piece that I take great pride in. I hope it will serve you well on your travels, as you make your name echo over the world of Mundus.” the master of ceremonies exclaimed. It was my signal and, with a curious smile on my face, I stepped forward. The items for the others seemed to be of excellent quality, making me excited what they had come up with for me.

The dwarf was given a folded piece of grey, almost white fabric from an assistant and stepped forward, presenting it to me with both hands. I could feel a light sensation of magic from it and when I reached out, I could feel that it was surrounded by a chill air.

“This fabric is something we rarely use for clothes, due to its special properties. We mainly use it to make aprons for our smiths and metal-workers, those who have to handle metal straight out of the forge, those who work our furnaces. It is refined from the silk of a particular type of spider called Ice-Web Spiders and I think you can already guess why. Thanks to the refinement, it keeps the property that makes the spiders so dangerous, their webs reduce the temperature in their lairs, even beyond the surroundings, making those venturing into them slow and sluggish. It will help to keep you cool, especially if you supply it with some Astral Power. In addition, the silk conducts Astral Power easily, allowing you to gather power from your surroundings easily, especially with the supplemental effect we have woven into it.” the dwarf explained while I let the soft and supple cloth run through my hands. It felt wonderful, making me wonder how it would feel against my skin. The chill was pleasant, not truly cold just cool enough to be comfortable. Judging by the fact that they were making work-aprons out of it, I had high expectations for its sturdiness, the biggest concern I had regarding clothing.

I also realised that I had been given two pieces of clothing, a long-sleeved tunic and a pair of soft pants, both made from the same cloth. Given that they were my items, I decided Inspecting them was allowed and did just that, the results making me smile with joy, despite the sudden and radical shift my style of clothing was about to undergo.

Ice-Web TunicRarity Rare Type Upper-Body WearBase Protection4 against Piercing DamageBase Protection4 against Slashing DamageBase Protection2 against Blunt Damage Special EffectChilling Weave– Reduces the ambient temperature, this effect can be increased by supplying Astral Power.Special Effect Astral Channel - Astral Power flows easily through the strands of this fabric, increasing Astral Power Regeneration by five percent. Set-Piece When the Ice-Web Tunic is worn together with the Ice-Web Pants, their individual effects are increased. This tunic was woven from the silk of Ice-Web Spiders, preserving its chilling effect. Those who can withstand the cold can use it to increase the amount of Astral Power they can gather from their environment.

Ice-Web PantsRarity Rare Type Lower-Body WearBase Protection4 against Piercing DamageBase Protection4 against Slashing DamageBase Protection2 against Blunt Damage Special EffectChilling Weave– Reduces the ambient temperature, this effect can be increased by supplying Astral Power.Special Effect Astral Channel - Astral Power flows easily through the strands of this fabric, increasing Astral Power Regeneration by five percent. Set-Piece When the Ice-Web Pants are worn together with the Ice-Web Tunic, their individual effects are increased. This pair of pants was woven from the silk of Ice-Web Spiders, preserving its chilling effect. Those who can withstand the cold can use it to increase the amount of Astral Power they can gather from their environment.

I couldn’t wait to try on my new clothes and with a wide grin on my face, I thanked the dwarves who had made them, making them beam with pride.

“There is a little more.” Warun, the dwarf who had crafted Lenore’s cloak, said, stepping forward as he spoke, a pair of cream-coloured, light leather-boots in hand.

“We have no doubt that your boots are well-made but, to be honest, they simply don’t fit with your new clothes. Please, take these boots, they will serve you well:” he put them forward and I took them, looking them over. They were clearly made to go with the Ice-Web clothes, but subtly different. Inspecting them made me understand that the dwarves had been truly good to me.

Icewalker BootsRarity RareType Lower-Body WearBase Protection5 against Piercing DamageBase Protection5 against Slashing DamageBase Protection2 against Blunt Damage Special EffectIcewalker– You can walk across snow and frozen surfaces as if they were solid, dry ground.Special Effect Longstrider- Exhaustion caused by walking is reduced by half. A pair of boots crafted to allow long journeys, especially across rough terrain.

“I…” I tried to speak, only to feel my throat close up a little, choked by emotions. The dwarves had given me a lot more than they had owed me, for reasons I didn’t quite understand. After clearing my throat, I tried again, thanking the dwarves effusily, promising that i would go and try my new clothes on, so they could see their craft in action, so to speak.