I’ve been had. I don’t know what I had or what that Elf wants, but I’ve most certainly been had.

That's one of the many thoughts on my mind as I walk onto the Brute’s ship with all the enthusiasm Jeremy had when he went to test my prototypes.

Man, I miss J. I hope he managed to get a new arm after his old one got vaporized.

I wouldn’t know, I got drunk two nights after it happened. I think he was getting his stump measured but I have no idea if he had the money to pay for a new arm so soon after the last one. I know for a fact that Boss won’t cover it, he wouldn’t cover my hospital bills even after he shot me! Well, shot me on accident. Supposedly.

“Ait’ Squirrel, here’s the deal.”

The Brute pulls me from my thoughts as he pulled back the cover on the circuits below the deck.

“You ‘fix’ the circuits and don’t break anything else. If you even so much as touch anything other than that circuit, I’ll throw you overboard.”

He gestured to one of those holes you poke cannons out of below deck to shoot other ships. Can my bags even fit through that? Well, unless this circuit is more complicated than an enigma machine I won’t have to worry about that.

“Then I’ll get to work.”

I set my bags down and pulled out an ink pen, some kind-of-fresh dragon’s blood, and a clean-ish rag incase I need to erase anything. Finished with my preparations, I looked at the circuit and felt my face contort in disgust on reflex.

This circuit was the worst thing I think I’ve ever seen. It was so faded I could barely see it in some places and so bold in others you’d think it was written with a paint roller. The lines -if you could call them that- were squiggly and I don’t think that there's even a single right angle in this whole mess! The line furthest on the left doesn’t even do anything! It just meanders off to the side and wastes energy! If that wasn’t bad enough the fucking plate the circuit was written on has a huge crack spider-webbing out from one of the corners!

“Hey Brute, I have to ask, who wrote this circuit?”

The Brute, who was doing fuck-all in the corner, looked up from his busy and time consuming activity of standing around.

“Dunno.”

He then promptly went back to standing around.

...okay then, I guess I’ll start from scratch.

“Hey Brute, I’ll give you twenty coins to throw this abomination of a circuit overboard.”

“Deal.”

The Brute dug the circuit out of it’s housing and tried to carry it above deck to throw it off the ship, but only got a few steps away from me before the damn thing fucking disintigrated. Okay, ‘disintegrate’ is a bit of an exaggeration, but the circuit’s in like 100 pieces on the floor.

“...I’ll deal with that later. Now those twenty coins you promised?”

“Sure, here you go.”

I toss him the coins and he smiles like he just swindled me, jokes on him I would have paid everything I had to see that abomination destroyed.

I turn back to the circuit housing to get started on the circuit. No matter their size and complexity, magical circuits are written on slabs like the one that just vaporized so they’re easy to replace. It’s technically unprofessional to write a circuit directly on the housing because the circuit could damage the housing during use, and the next time a slab is put in the circuit written on the housing will have to be erased, but I don’t have another slab and I don’t really care.

As for my circuit, I actually don’t know how to structure it.

I’ve no doubt I can write it, but I don’t know what way I should write it. I can see the inputs and outputs the previous “circuit” used and it should be fine to use those, but do they want a throttle on the gas, or just a “go” button?

Well, I’ve got a sailor right here. I’ll just ask him.

“Hey Brute, I’ve got a few questions about your ship.”

The Brute, who was counting up all the money he’s made in the last half hour, looked at me beaming with pride.

“She’s quite a beut’ isn’t she? I tell ya, there ain’t no ship in the sea that can outdo this fine-”

“Yeah yeah yeah yeah, that's not what I meant. Tell me about sailing it, like how it would accelerate and decelerate for example.”

“Oh... I knew that.”

He put the pouches of coin in his jacket pocket and pulled a stray box over to sit on.

“The helm of the ship would turn the rudder and motor and the pedal on the starboard side of the helm would make the engine below roar as I floored it. With a push of a button I would have all the cannons at my command and the sails would raise and lower the same way. I tell ya Squirrel, those cannons have saved my ass a hundred times over and a hundred times again! Back in my early days aboard this fortress of a ship I found myself caught between three gunships all lookin’ fer me head…”

The Brute began telling long tales of his past adventures on this ship. I don’t think any of them are true, but it made for good entertainment while I worked on the circuit.

Using the relatively intact inputs and outputs, all I really had to do was connect them. The ignition starts the engines below the deck, the pedal revs the engines, the buttons lining the helm would raise and lower the sails, and aim and fire the cannons but you still had to have someone load them.

I used my dragons blood because it was all I had, but the circuit should last a while on account of that. Not to mention I took great care drawing the lines and the accompanying symbols. The shape of the circuit was just a few lines running parallel to each other crossing at necessary points with a few redundant connections here and there. If this guy’s stories were anything to go by he would need something a little more robust than the magnificently fragile complexity of the train’s circuit.

Speaking of his stories, I was getting kind of interested in the one he was telling.

“Alright, the circuit’s mostly done, all that's left is to wait for the blood to dry. So you grabbed the First Mate’s hand and broke his knee, then what?”

“What else than throw him overboard? After the damn pirate was dealt with I turned towards the traitorous Captain. ‘Return the treasure you or I’ll send ya to the Reef!’ I shouted as I kicked the mast with all my might. Now the mast of a Kingdom made ship is nothing if not sturdy, but thanks to all the cannon-fire it snapped like a dry twig. It was just me and him, alone in the middle of the ocean on a crippled vessel, and only one man was going to see tomorrow. So with all me-”

“What do you mean by the ‘Reef’?”

“Don’t ya know it’s bad luck to interrupt a story at its climax? But to answer yer question, old legends say that a couple centuries ago, some sailors were stuck on a reef in the middle of nowhere and desperate to get home. Nothing special about that, but one of ‘em got the brilliant idea to make a deal with Arkigit.”

“Arkigit? Like, the god?”

“Aye, the one and only. I’ve no clue how they got him to listen to their pleadin’ but whatever they did worked. After they got the god’s attention they struck an accord with him. The actual terms of the accord vary between tellings but they got safe passage home for some sort of compensation. Unfortunately, sailors aren’t known for paying debts, whether they didn’t intend to pay or couldn’t pay didn’t matter. They didn’t pay. So Arkigit dragged them back out to sea and cursed them to stay bound to that reef until…”

“...untilllllll…”

I egged him on, trying to get him to finish his story. Dealings with gods and the consequences of scamming them was information that I figured was a little more relevant to me than the average person, considering my overall situation. That, and I wanted to finish this small tangent to get back to the main story. I wanted to see how the mutiny turned out.

“Well that's where the story ends, until.”

Now that’s just confusing.

“What do you mean that's where the story ends? Until what?”

“Until Arkigit decides to let them go? No one knows for sure, as everyone involved is assumably still on that reef.”

“Then how’d the story spread?”

“I think Arkigit spread it himself but I’ve truthfully no idea. Anyways, telling someone you’ll ‘send ‘em to the Reef’ is basically saying they’re a cheatin’, backstabbing liar who deserves to die.”

The Orc stood up from the box he’d been sitting on for the last while and looked at the circuit. After a minute of inspecting it, he closed the cover of the circuit and turned to me.

“I’ve no idea what this circuit does, but it looks finished. Ya think it’ll work?”

“Of course it’ll work, I wrote it. So you kicked the mast and it fell over, what happened next?”

“Like I said before, it’s bad luck to interrupt a story at its climax. Now come on, that Elf is waiting on the dock and I’d rather not be dragged to the Reef.”

“Oh.”

I was too engrossed in the stories and completely forgot about her. Shit.

I grabbed my things and followed the Orc above deck. The Orc gestured to the Elf who was waiting on the docks with three more bags then I remember her having, and walked up to the helm of the ship. I heaved a heavy sigh and marched over to the Elf on the docks.

“For something like repairing a ship, you’re done awfully quickly, did you not fix it?”

The Elf’s concern was addressed by the roar of an engine behind me, I gesture to the functioning ship with a smug face.The Elf immediately smiles, as if incredibly relieved.

“Maybe I won’t die after all.”

Did I hear that correctly?

“Excuse me? Did you say that you might die? Does that mean my life is in danger by association?”

The Elf smooths out her expression and smiles the soft smile of a used car salesman.

“Oh no, that was just a figure of speech Elves such as myself use from time to time. Pay no mind to it. Now come along, my Mistress has been expecting me for quite a while now.”

After making sure I didn’t forget anything, the suspicious Elf lead me back to the bar that I spent the night in. She opens the door to the joint sheepishly, peeking inside and scanning the place as if looking for someone.

“Hey is someone trying to kill you? You seem really tense.”

“No no no no. What a ridiculous question.”

The Elf wrote off my concern, grabbed by the arm, and walked inside with a soldier’s resolve. As I passed the Barkeep, he gave me a deep look of pity but said nothing. We ascended the stairs and stopped in front of the first door on the left. It was eerily silent.

I can guess that the Princess Second is behind this door. I have no idea who she is, or what she’s like, but all I can really hope for is that she doesn’t know that I’m a Second. The Elf seems to have brought me here for my talent at writing magic circuits, but I can’t help but feel like there's an ulterior motive. I’d try running, but honestly, I don’t think I could get away.

The Elf slowly raised her hand, took a deep breath… and knocked on the door.

“Mistress, I’ve returned from my outing.”

*THUNK*

The tip of a dagger penetrated the door right where the Elf knocked on it.

“Alice… it has been quite a while since you left. Surely it doesn’t take so long to get lunch, well I suppose it would dinner now right?”

Another dagger pierced the door, closer to the Elf’s (who I assume is Alice) face. I don’t know how to properly describe the voice I just heard. It sounded like it came from a little girl who’s been possessed by a demon. It had rage, patience, sarcasm, apathy, bloodlust, and aggression all rolled into a single emotion that I am unqualified to accurately name or describe.

But one thing was for sure.

That voice was out for blood.

“M-Mistress I got a little sidetracked on my way to get lunch. I know you’re always looking for new personnel and I found someone who I think could be a great addition to your backing.”

Alice was pale as a ghost and sweating buckets, but her voice barely wavered.

“While she is a little young, she has shown unrivaled competence in the field of magical circuitry and I’m confident she can out-do many if not most of the engineers at the castle. I think it would be a great shame to let someone like that go, so I delayed my schedule slightly to see if she could perform maintenance on a large cargo ship.”

Alice paused, waiting to see if what she said had quelled the beast at all.

“And did this potential hire perform well?”

While the voice seemed no less agitated, it sounded slightly interested.

“She fixed the ship in a little less than an hour.”

“And how much matincence was required and performed?”

“Ahhhh…”

Alice looked to me with pleading eyes. Now that I think about it, she never asked about that. She just knew that the ship was damaged and that I fixed it. For all this demonic voice knows, I just threw a zip-tie on it and called it a day.

I gave a sigh and spoke for the flustered Elf, whether it was out of pity or out of self preservation I’ve no idea.

“The main circuit of the ship was in terrible condition. The slab it was written on crumbled apart after I removed it. I had to redo the whole thing.”

There was a brief pause.

“Alice said you did this in a little under an hour, correct?”

“I have no idea how long I was working on the thing, so I’d take her word for it.”

I still haven’t made any sort of timepiece so I wouldn’t know what time it was anyway. It’s not for a lack of trying though, I just didn’t have good enough materials. I mean, I only had the griffin’s measly hoard to work with.

“Alice also mentioned that you were young. While the word ‘young’ may have different meaning for an elf, you do sound quite young so I’m a little interested. How old are you?”

Umm, I don’t see how this question is relevant.

Not thinking about it too much, mostly because I don’t want to keep this demonic voice waiting, I gave an honest reply.

“Nine years old. Well, closer to ten at this point.”

There was another pause.

“Why don’t you come on inside, this sort of conversation should be done face to face after all.”

I looked to Alice and she looked relieved, as if she just avoided capital punishment. She noticed my gaze and turned to me with a look of pity, but quickly fixed her expression and opened the door and gestured me to enter the gates of hell.

Caboose, I know I don’t pray to you often, and when I do I always cuss you out, but please, please help me. Because otherwise I’ll cuss you out in person.

Alice opened the door and I got my first look at this potential hire. She was short for someone her age. The girl had pink hair that went down to her shoulders that reminded me of the pink found on Peony flowers. While she was wearing nothing but animal pelts, it seems that she, or whoever made them, took great care in making them tasteful, because unlike many of the natives up north who wear animal pelts to stave off the cold, she didn’t look like an uneducated barbarian. Although she had more bags that I thought she would.

The girl walked inside and quickly sat down on a chair while Alice closed the door and stood behind her. On her way in, she gave a quick glance to the Captain, who was quivering in the corner of the room sitting quietly. Although she’s past her prime, the Captain still has her use. She seems quite hung up on that dead lover of hers though.

It’s been over five years, let him go already.

As the pink-haired girl sits down, she eyes my form, and I watch her eyes intently. They move from my knives which I’ve been playing with while waiting for Alice, to my dress, to my wings, to my necklace, then quickly moves to my face.

She didn’t seem interested in my necklace at all…

I had a hunch that this girl was a Second based on her age and how proficient Alice says she is in magical engineering. Speaking from personal experience, when a Second sees either their gem or another’s gem for the first time, their gaze is trapped by it, simply because they know what it is. They have to know what it is.

Perhaps she’s seen my necklace before…

I doubt it. I’ve never seen this girl before, not even in passing. Although you can never be too careful, I’d hate to recruit an enemy into my ranks. I gesture to my necklace.

“Have you ever seen this before?”

The girl nervously looked at my necklace for a few seconds, as if trying to think of something to say.

“I’ve seen the Royal Crest before your Majesty, but if your talking about the gem it’s carved into, I don’t think I’ve ever seen a blue like that before.”

I sat back into my chair. I guess she isn’t a Second after all.

“What’s your name?”

“My name is Julie. No surname.”

“Just Julie? Surely you have a father?”

“He’s dead.”

“You don’t intend to honor his memory?”

Julie frowned.

“...I don’t see how this question is relevant.”

“I say it’s relevant, so answer it.”

Julie paused for a moment before answering.

“...My father has been dead most my life and my mother died the day I was born. I have very little memory of them to honor.”

Based on her sad expression and how she can’t look me in the eye, this seems to be quite the touchy subject for Julie. I’ll have to keep that in mind. Regardless of her family situation, I’m interested in her talents.

“So Julie, tell me a little about yourself. You must be quite talented to write a ship’s main circuit in under an hour.”

“I’m confident I’m the best you’ll find when it comes to magic circuits. I’ve been working with them for most of my life and almost all of my bags are filled with my research and prototypes. Although I’m terrible when it comes to using magic myself.”

She puffed out her chest with a craftsman’s pride when she boasted about her field of choice, but calmed down when she spoke of her apparent lack of skill when it came to casting spells.

“And how bad is ‘terrible’? Are you worse than compared to what you’ve seen, or have you never cast a spell in your life?”

I added that last part as a joke to lighten the tense mood. Everyone’s cast a spell at some point in their lives, even toddlers have cast spells by accident.

“Never cast a spell before. I don’t have an ounce of magic in me.”

“””What?”””

Alice, the Captain, and I all say that at the same time. Julie just said something completely unbelievable with a straight face.

“You-You’ve never cast a spell before? Truely?”

“Yep. Believe me it isn’t for a lack of trying, but I just can’t do it. It kinda sucks, but even if I could use magic I’d probably spend all my time making magic circuits anyway, so it really isn’t that big of a loss for me.”

I can’t believe this. Even in my previous life I’ve never heard of something like this. I’ve heard of stories where people have an incredibly small amount of magic in them, but never to the point where they can’t even cast a weak spell. It’s like being born with no eyes, five hands, and two mouths. Just... impossible. And yet this girl just said it with a straight face and declared that even if she had magic it wouldn’t change her life all that much.

“Alice… if you don’t mind, would you please give Julie here a basic test.”

“Of course Mistress.”

Alice extended her hand and placed it onto of Julie’s peony pink head. Alice was to perform a basic test on one’s magic capacity. She would push her magic energy into Julie and try to measure how much resistance there is. The more resistance, the more magic you have. Although this test is incredibly crude and hardly precise, it’s useful for getting a basic idea of how much magic you have.

As Alice performed the test, her calm expression which she maintains almost at all times changes into one of disbelief.

“Mistress, I… I can’t find any magic in this girl. It’s like she’s never had any for decades.”

I look to Julie just in time to catch her roll her eyes. I honestly don’t know how to react to this. This girl has no magic. I can’t even begin to think of all the potential drawbacks that could have. From daily life to work, I can’t imagine life without magic. Not to mention the fact that I plan on fighting five other people like me to the death. As ruthless as I am, can I really involve a girl like this in a conflict like mine? But, can I really let someone so good at magic circuitry go? If she could fix a ship in an hour, then what kinds of weapons could she make me? Rather, could she make weapons at all? Even if she can’t, someone of her talent should be put to use.

“Julie… you said you’re unrivalled at writing magic circuits, correct?”

“Yep. The best. I guarantee it.”

“...Would you be fine with designing weapons?”

Unexpectedly, Julie’s eyes lit up at that offer.

“Would I be fine making weapons? Of course! I’ve got a few in my bags!”

She shot up from her seat and practically tore her bag open. After tossing a few items aside and pulled out a strange looking dagger and an energy crystal. The dagger had inscriptions plastered all over the blade, making it useless as a cutting edge, and the handle had a stick of some kind tied at a 90 degree angle, making a grip that reminded me of a crossbow. The lines and inscriptions on the dagger all converged at the point of the dagger.

Julie peeled back the leather covering the back-half of the dagger and tucked the energy crystal under it. Once that was done she brandished her strange dagger and looked up excitedly.

“Alright, now all I need is a target.”

She looked around the room for a bit before Alice spoke up and conjured a small square barrier floating a foot above the unoccupied bed.

“Would something like this do for your demonstration?”

Alice clearly had no idea what the small girl was doing, but she still tried to be helpful. A trait I quite admire.

“That’ll work perfectly!”

Julie moved away from the bed and brought the butt of the dagger in front of her face. As I and everyone else watched on in confusion, Julie pulled a shoddily crafted trigger fashioned to her dagger. Immediately after that pull, the inscriptions on the dagger lit up and rushed towards the tip of the blade. As it moved along the blade, the energy flowing through the lines seemed to build as if increasing in strength. When the energy reached the end of the dagger it crescendoed and burst from the dagger and shot towards the barrier like an arrow. The red blast of energy looked almost like a burning sun as it impacted with Alice’s barrier. A loud *CRACK* echoed throughout the room and as red light flashed briefly and filled the room.

When all was said and done, Alice’s barrier looked as if it took a strong punch. It’s previous smooth surface had a crater-like indent with spider web cracks spreading out from where the arrow hit.

Julie blew on her dagger, dispersing the small amount of smoke coming from it. She looked around the room and saw our shocked faces and clearly took great pride in it.

“So, shall we discuss my salary?”

I had been dissatisfied with the engineers in the castle’s employ and even more disappointed with the uninspired weapons they would craft. While they weren’t unusable, they weren't something that left me floored. They didn’t make me feel like I would lose a fight if I didn’t have one. They didn’t make me glad they were on my side.

I have never seen a ranged weapon of any kind leave a dent on Alice’s barriers, and if her shaken expression is anything to go by, I don’t think she has either. If I were to have Julie make my weapons, then that would be one advantage that I would have over the other Seconds.

And it’s an advantage I will gladly take.

“Name your price.”