Christopher curiously followed Orello, wondering what the man had in mind. He took another look at his surroundings. The workshop did feel very chaotic and disorganized. Everyone was working hard, but they all seemed to work on wildly different projects and constructs. It felt like he was in some kind of research facility, and he expected that he was not all that far from the mark.

This construct that Orello had referred to was behind the workshop. It was somewhat shielded by the Lumen outer wall, and the workshop itself. They stopped in front of a large and thick circular metal platform, which looked to have a diameter of around three meters. Some holes were visible in regular intervals across the platform. He could not really guess what the construct was supposed to do, but judging by its size it should be something significant.

Orello clarified. “Our Soul Mages had some trouble properly powering up this device in our last few tests, but since you are Master five in Soul Heat, I am curious what you can do. It is somewhat dangerous if you stand too close so please imbue this metal strip that is connected to the metal within the device. Please imbue all of your Soul Force”

He was certainly curious about the purpose of the device. He had to admit that the metal strip connected to the device was pretty smart, his infusion should still work if the strip was truly part of the platform.

“What is the purpose of this device, and is it safe to imbue all of my Soul Heat into the strip?”

“Now telling you that would just ruin the fun, and please just imbue all of your Soul Force this one time, based on our last tests that should be quite safe. I am curious about the degree with which you can power the device.”

Hmm, should he really use all of his Soul Force? The most he had ever used was fifty percent on the Soul Alarm with disastrous results, and he had gotten a lot more efficient since then. He could not help but feel like it was safer to hold back a little, but he also did not want to disappoint them in his abilities.”

“Are you sure that it might not be dangerous to overload the device with too much Soul Heat? I don’t want anyone to get hurt” He realized this might sound a little arrogant, but he really was worried.

“Hmm, I really doubt you can manage to overload this thing, but I suppose I can order everyone to keep their distance if that makes you feel better.”

The device was already placed somewhat out of the way of people, but Orello ordered the few others to take some cover. Unfortunately, the command did make a lot of people curious and they now focused their attention on the imminent experiment. Christopher now realized that it would be kind of embarrassing if his efforts did not produce any effect so he decided to use all of his Soul Force, everyone was now safely behind cover, himself included.

Feeling very nervous about the mysterious device, he nevertheless started imbuing all of his Soul Heat. Done infusing after only two seconds, the entire metal strip turned bright red. He assumed that some metal part inside the platform would now mirror the bright red color because the outside did not change in appearance. He looked at the construct, curious what would happen.

A segment of metal immediately started spinning on the three-meter-wide platform, clearly, some pressure was building inside the device. The pressure just kept building for a few seconds and Orello managed to quickly shout “Get Down” to the spectators. Once the pressure reached a critical level, something beneath the holes in the platform suddenly seemed to shutter open.

The effect was downright scary. A massive beam of hot air visibly shot upwards out of the platform, and it managed to reach a ridiculous height, he was pretty sure that the effect should be visible from quite some distance away. The worst however was the shockwave of air that pushed outward as a byproduct, which reverberated down into his bones. It made him think of the displacement of air that could be felt when he had watched a rocket launch on Earth. The heat beam did not make a sound but the wind sure did. The Sternel wall and the workshop took most of the force, and he heard something shatter within the workshop. The Redbeak birds had also not enjoyed the Force Push, they had flown away in startling numbers.

The aftermath of the effect was quite hectic since it had drawn the attention of quite a few people in the vicinity of the workshop. Orello suddenly burst out laughing, while startled workers came to check up on what had happened. Christopher suddenly garnered quite a lot of attention. At some point, even the City Guard came to check on the disturbance, but they seemed to be somewhat familiar with the antics of the Lumen Constructors.

Orello finally spoke to him. “Avalla above, I had not really entertained the possibility of this kind of result. The only successful test we ran needed the Soul Heat of three Soul Mages, and that had not produced something this explosive. Clearly, your Soul Heat effect is very potent.”

'Good God.' The evidence was mounting that his Soul Heat was clearly something else entirely, he really needed to get to grips with both the potential and danger of using his Soul Heat. Christopher was just glad that nobody had gotten hurt. He did feel bad about some of the damage, but Orello seemed to think it no big deal.

“I was going to hire you anyway since there is so much work lately with the looming attack, but it looks like we can get some more use out of you than some simple carry and fetch work.”

Christopher almost laughed, apparently, he would have gotten the job even without his license. Not that he regretted his efforts, he had learned a lot after all.

“Please I am glad to help with the defense of Lumen in any way that I can. I am otherwise occupied in the early hours of the day with combat training, but I am available to work the other hours of the day.”

“That is fine, glad to have you with us. You can hash out the details of your contract with Jaro, let me guide you to his office.”

The contract took a bit of time to nail down, but he was ultimately pretty satisfied with the result. He made his prior obligations clear and told Jaro the hours that he was available to work. He would be earning the same starting wage as that of any Soul Mage in the employ at the Lumen Constructors, which was a stunning one silver and sixteen bronze for only four hours of work a day. Apparently, there would even be a bonus due to the high workload with the imminent attack.

In return, he was expected to show up with a full Soul Force reserve, which he could manage if he did not burn through it all during the morning training. Considering that his daily expenses only amounted to twelve bronze coins, this would leave him with a stunning amount of extra money to spend. Between Soul Heat infusions he would do other work around the workshop, while also receiving some training with the tools and craftsmanship of the workers. He was able to immediately start working to make himself familiar with the tasks he would have to perform.

He was placed under a neglectful supervisor who gave him a rundown on some of his tasks. He would mainly use his Soul Heat to help with tests on new constructs and experiments. Most workers were able to infuse their own tools with Soul Heat, but he might be called upon to assist from time to time with this as well. Other than that, he would alternate between mostly grunt work and some training. His supervisor had to admit that there was not much time to train new hires due to the hectic circumstances. They were busier than ever preparing the defense of the City in case of an attack. Christopher did not mind all that much, he was just glad that he had found something that would not only further train his Soul Force but also increase his knowledge in Soul Devices and constructs.

He kept being introduced to new tasks by the supervisor, who pretty much just dumped him with others, and let them sort out the details. This was somewhat painfully awkward at times, and some of them were frustrated with having to take care of a complete beginner. He certainly was not doing well at his tasks; they probably would have worked faster without his help. Still, he left every task knowing a little more, and he could only hope that he would become more useful with time, it was only his first day after all. His Soul Heat infusions were certainly appreciated. It was a good thing that he had started getting somewhat in shape with all the training since otherwise, he would have collapsed from the work before the end of the day.

This day had certainly been productive, and with his new job, he was now fully able to take care of his own. On his way back from working all day he even rewarded himself by buying a delicious drink that was cooled with Soul Frost. It was an orange fruit drink that had a peculiar but delicious taste. He felt content with his lot as he watched the bustle of city life pass him by.