Chapter 4

Metal suit

While I fly back home, I try to remember everything I have learned about the Vault. I know where the entry is, have a rough idea of how to enter it and am almost certain that when it locked, an exclusion barrier is deployed to protect it.

What worries me greatly though, is how much time has passed since the flood. The evolution of the Krok, the unknown species, the size of their city… all of this is indicative of a long, very long time.

Will its content still be safe after this long?

I land on the roof of the building leading to the vault and it almost entirely covered in silt. There used to be only a few floors above ground, but it ran deep and the vault itself was at the very bottom.

I try Scrying but something gets in the way, not dirt like when I was in my room, but something magical.

I try my new sense, magic vision, but nothing works, it is like there is a wall of darkness in front of me.

It has to be an exclusion barrier; I know no other spell with such a powerful effect… but it makes no sense: the spell simply consumes too much to have lasted this long. Really, whoever designed the lock must have been a genius among geniuses.

Nevertheless, these are the facts, the barrier is still running and I can detect the locking enchanted tool far down – fifty metres or more.

Digging it out myself is not an option, it would take me years. For a very short moment, I consider blowing my way down with attack spells, but quickly reject the idea as there is no telling what kind of security measures there are.

Worst case scenario, I could break the lock or the key.

If I had a lot of greater golems, I could use them to clear the way, but I do not and it is unlikely I will find the resources to craft a sufficient number anytime soon… not that they would be good diggers in the first place, after all, they can only do what they are taught.

Still, given enough time and dozens of them, I could make them dig a giant hole.

“I need the metal is in the vault, but to access it, I need the large supply of crystal that happens to also be in the vault.”

It’s a shame, but it was expected, if I had really believed I could access the deposit of my kind’s knowledge I would have attempted to do so a long time ago. Direction, the Imp’s village then.

One hour-and-a-half later, I land in a tree far from the settlement and hide my presence with every known spell… it has already proven not to be enough but what else can I do?

Using farsight, I quickly find a small stone house with a chimney. Some brutes detect my spell and look nervously around but I do not mind: there is nothing they can do about it.

Inside, I find some coal – wood coal I think – some black sand and a small nugget of refined iron and a lot of archaic blacksmithing equipment.

It proves my theory, but gives no indication as to where they have found their iron. Furthermore, there is not enough for me to take from them... not that I would want to in the first place

It is not all bad though, the fact there is no ore left means they will have to restock soon.

Before going, I took a few large salt gems with me; they seem pure and large enough to enchant but… it is salt: this has never been the most reliable material.

Truthfully, this is only when you have lost everything that you realized how convenient your former life used to be.

It is already night time, and no one has visited the forge even once.

I give a look at my failed attempts down the tree and decide to go look for some quartz.

I know where to find some, there used to be a deposit we all visited when we were young and wanted to experiment with spells the adult would not give us crystal for… which sadly, means it is very unlikely I will find anything bigger than my inside thumb.

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I cannot say my search was very productive, none of my discoveries were big enough to contain even one-quarter of the greater golem spell but they are of good quality and might fit some useful simple ones.

I fly back to the imp village and find an unusually muscular Imp in the forge. I watch him light the furnace and pour black sand inside. This strikes me as odd, as I am certain the imps do not use glass.

Even for me, whose only job is watching, the process seems long and arduous, but I have to admit it is interesting to see what people can come up with when they cannot use magic.

With pliers, the goblin picks up a dirty clump of molten sand then starts hammering on it until only a small nugget of iron is left.

It might be exaggerated to call this iron as it still contains a lot of impurities, but I have already stopped caring: I think I know where black sand comes from!

If I remember well, the stream traversing this village comes from a lake nestled in a crater. The extinct volcano used to be a good source of hematite until we exhausted it during my time.

Who would have thought that the black sand covering the place was also iron? It seems that scarcity drives creativity.

Next stop, the old volcano.

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I do not have the tools, but this is not a problem some magic and creativity cannot solve.

I first conjure a clay golem to act as my pot and centrifuge, and a fire elemental to be my heat source.

Truthfully, I do not know much about metal and all of it comes is second-hand knowledge. Thankfully, I am not constrained by time and quality: as long as it looks the part and covers my body then it is good enough.

Even with the bar so low, it is not a walk in the park. Try after try, I mess up and end up with black and brittle steel. This is not much of a problem because I can always re-smelt it but doing the same mistake over and over again without knowing why gets annoying pretty fast.

Many tries and a lot less coal later, the color and strength are about right, albeit for a bluish tint that persisted since earlier tries.

I do not mind the color. In fact, I would say it looks a lot better that way.

Next, though, is the difficult part: giving the metal the right shape. It would have been easier if I had enough metal to make a construct out of the stuff, but as it stands I only have enough to make it a millimetre thick, maybe less.

First, I conjure a temporary construct out of clay, solidify it with fire then dispel the spell. Next, is to shave the excess part until it is about my size. Finally, I shape the still malleable steel over the mold and quickly cool it.

As one would expect, this crude method results in lumps here and there, but I smooth them over. Removing the mold

Ah… It is the right size and shape, but it is in a single piece and full of clay… How can I wear it like that?

After cutting the suit in smaller parts and disintegrating the clay, I stumble upon the second problem: the metal does not bend. I should have known, but I was too focused on getting the shape right.

With construct, the spell ensures the integrity and allows the materials to bend in unnatural ways so... is there a way to apply the same effect there?

The only thing that comes to mind is softening the joints, but a quick test shows how unrealistic and unsightly the whole concept is.

Firstly, it consumes too much mana.

Secondly, the articulations will not survive that kind of treatment for long.

Finally, the way the metal deforms when I move looks unnatural and almost disgusting.

And then, there is also the fact that I can see my bones through the cuts!

If I remember correctly, the Krok had cloth of metal rings linking the various parts of their suits, but this kind of detailed work is beyond me.

I should have never gone with a full metal suit in the first place… I should have copied the scout armor, the one in metal-reinforced leather.

Even so, it would be a waste to destroy my suit after all the work I have done on it…

I know, I will use leather and sinew for the joints! Yes, that should do well hiding my skeleton, and I could also use it for padding the interior so my movements look less unnatural!

That is decided! When night comes, I will go hunt some wyvern. Unlike metal, I am proficient with leather.

As the night is still a few hours away, I make myself some tools of murder in imitation of the one the Kroks were carrying. Too many travelers were equipped with them for it not to be suspicious if I went around without one.