“Alturus, a continent way out by the edge of the Starry Sea.” Caeden looked at the head smith, puzzled. He had expected reluctant acknowledgment of his skills, not…whatever this was.

“Where did you learn that resonance technique?” The man practically demanded.

“My uncle taught it to me. It's a family technique.” Caeden had never seen another resonance technique in person, so he wasn’t sure what the head smith was so surprised about. Was it good, was it bad? Obviously, he had passed the test, so the awe could be from seeing an excellent technique or surprise that he succeeded with such a poor technique.

“It must be one of the ancient lineages.” The head smith shook his head. “Either way, welcome to Forge One; I’m head smith Micheal Durnbolt. Just call me Mike.” He offered out his hand to shake.

Caeden took it. No reason not to accept a peace offering, even if he had been kind of a dick. They both went to the effort of trying to crush each other's hands, as was customary. Caeden lost out, but not by much. Obviously, neither of them used infusion to enhance their strength. That would be dishonest. “I’m Caeden. I’m assuming I passed the test?”

“Ha! Yeah, you got me good, kiddo. Wasn’t expecting someone as young as you to have such solid knowledge, resonance technique, and judgment. It was smart, picking obsidian copper. Your ether balance was damn near perfect, though I think you got more earth ether in there than the ideal.” Mike was now all smiles, immediately talking shop. Apparently, his personality was very hot and cold. You were either a friend or an enemy, no middle ground. Caeden had managed to slip into friend territory.

“Yeah, I figured as much. I was trying to minimize the Null Iron interference. I don’t think I lost too much power out of the infusion.” Caeden lifted one of the knives, turning to look at it from multiple angles. “I at least ended up with a solid even distribution. No imperfections or variance of significant size.”

“May I?” Mike held out a hand. Caeden offered him the knife hilt first. To Caeden’s surprise, he pulled a pair of jewelers glasses, with the magnifying lenses, out of his apron. Then the head smith started looking over the knife in much the same way Caeden had. “Hmm. Yes, you have the distribution down pat. No signs of ether variance. I’m impressed. This is more than just an effective resonance technique. Your application is easily above intermediate grade. How old are you?”

“Eighteen.”

“Hmm. How long have you been operating as an ethersmith in a professional capacity?” Mike was now looking at him, not the knife.

“I have been under contract with the Dromar family for three years as an independent ethersmith.” Caeden wasn]t sure where this was going.

“Remarkable. Truly remarkable. I hope you understand, you are way beyond your years in both skill and knowledge. Most smiths your age are barely above novice, if that. I can’t even properly judge your rank off of this piece; it's too close to perfect.” Mike shook his head. “What's your maximum CI?”

“I don’t really know.” Caeden shrugged. “The highest piece I ever made was a 500 CI longsword with a dual wave and steel repulsion infusion. Major water aspect. It was my graduation piece. Out on the continents, making a high CI work is a waste of time since no one will buy it, so I’ve never tried anything higher.”

“Well, 500 already puts you firmly in the advanced rank. These knives are only around 100. Any reason you kept it so low?” Mike had a sly look on his face that made Caeden feel like this was an extension of the test.

“Of course. Unfamiliar smithy with unfamiliar equipment and an anvil that didn’t want to play nice with my infusion. Aiming for my maximum would be asking for trouble.” Caeden gestured toward the anvil, “I’ve never worked on a Null Iron anvil before, but damn is that interference annoying. I would love to have a go at it with a project that actually has me using its higher resilience. Honestly, most of my projects have been on the smaller side.”

“I’d love to see it! “ Mike reached over and slapped Caeden on the shoulder. “Well, you have full run of the Central Academy smithy as a fully accredited intermediate rank ethersmith. Show me a piece at 500 CI, and I’ll bump you up to advanced. Now, as a student, all your materials and ether are subsidized by the school.” Mike sighed and shook his head, “I just realized that you’re going to bend us over a barrel on that one. Most students who take up ethersmithing during their cycle here won't get past novice rank. The rule about subsidizing your projects is supposed to get you started, not let a full-fledged smith play around. Damn.”

“I’d say I’m sorry, but I’m really not,” Caeden shrugged, smiling. He couldn’t manage to feel bad about letting the government foot the bill for all the equipment he would be making. “I assume that applies to those knives as well?”

“Yup,” Mike handed back the one he held, “Now, you’re free to sell that or use it how you like, obviously. Also, the school will buy it at a competitive rate. In fact, anything you make, the school will buy. Don’t expect the best deals in the world, but they’re fair.”

‘Thanks. I think I’ll hold on to them for now. Maybe my friends will use them.” Caeden felt an idea spark in the back of his mind. A devious, brutally unfair idea that was so mean he couldn’t help but love it. He looked at Lily. He needed some insight to refine his new plan. “I think my time here is almost up, so we’ll get going.”

“Feel free to head out, but don’t worry about time anymore. This is your smithy now. Use it whenever you want.” Mike smiled. Another crushing handshake, and Lily and Caeden were heading out of the Central smithy. Caeden had the knives tucked into his robes. He used Sharp to steal their edge so that they wouldn’t cut right through his clothes. Another convenience he wished he had years ago.

“Lily, I had an interesting idea.” Caeden started.

“Yeah? That was really cool to watch.” Lily cuddled a still sleeping Snowball. The baby bear hadn’t stirred the whole time they were in the smithy. Caeden had noticed in his periphery that Lily was using Ice to avoid the heat, though she was thoughtful enough to keep her own personal climate contained so that it didn’t interfere with any of the smiths. “I’m surprised you’re that skilled.”

“Ouch, scathing much?” Caeden shot Lily a smile.

“You know what I meant.” Lily rolled her eyes. “Now tell me about your idea.”

“I was just as surprised as you. I didn't realize how weird I was, I guess. Unc never said anything to me about it.” Caeden nodded, “So, it occurs to me that we are pretty outmanned by your brother and his friends, as well as under-equipped. We’ve got one week before his restraining order ends, and he really starts making trouble.”

“Ugh, don’t remind me. I’m not looking forward to seeing his stupid face.” Lily wrinkled her nose in disgust. “What about it?”

“I was thinking, we could solve both problems in one shot. How many of our classmates do you think are looking for good infused equipment after ranking day? They would surely appreciate some help, don’t you think?” Caeden couldn’t help grinning evilly.

“Oh? Oh!” Lily’s expression shifted from a moment of confusion, to surprise, to a grin matching Caeden’s. “That’s evil. I love it! How many weapons do you think you can make in a day?”

“Well, that depends on how you want to handle this. If we do generic pieces like what I just made, I can make a dozen a day; just bulk infuse them. If we do higher CI pieces or specific requests, the time gets worse.” Caeden explained.

“Hmm, we should talk to the other two first. Our own equipment is a priority, but this is a great idea. Thank you, Caeden.” Lily’s sincerity struck him.

“I’m not sure I agree with your plans, Lily, but we’re friends. That means a lot to me. I’ll back you up, all the way.” Caeden responded with sincerity of his own.

“Same. You, Erik, and Cat are my first real friends. I won’t get us in trouble we can’t handle, I promise. I just refuse to sit on my hands and wait. I won’t” Lily sounded almost apologetic.

“I know. I trust you to make smart decisions. I was just too deep in my own head last night to pull it out of my ass. Sorry, again. I was rude and dismissive.” Caeden found himself apologizing all over again.

“I know. I think I overreacted two. Let’s just call it even. Now come on, I’m hungry.” Lily smiled a genuine, happy smile before darting ahead of him on the way back to the Core Seat. “Plus, we have planning to do.”

{}

The planning in question happened after the crew had met up for supper. They gathered in the cafeteria, and while they ate, Lily and Caeden took turns walking the other two through their new idea. It was simple enough. Trade infused weapons made by Caeden to students who were lacking. That meant basically all the continentals and a chunk of the non-family islanders. They estimated almost half the school was unarmed. Only a few would have high-quality weapons and armor like the family members would.

“So we get them to back us up, and they get weapons? That’s it?” Erik asked through a mouthful of popcorn.

“Well, not necessarily.” Lily took a sip of her tea, “We were thinking of turning it into a faction in its own right. The Councilors seem to be making their own groups out of the families and a few select islanders. It leaves a large portion of the student population in the wind. If we consolidate that into a group of its own and clue them in on how the school works, arm them, and provide them with a support network of fellow students…” Lily trailed off.

“That’s devious.” Cat clapped her hands, pointing at Lily, “I love it! We beat them at their own game by spoiling their advantage.”

“That’s not entirely true.” Caeden put down his sandwich. “Sure, their knowledge is a big help, but we know they have something else up their sleeve that lets them increase their IP at a significantly higher rate than us. Until we know what that is, we can’t even begin to replicate it. So they’ll still have that.”

“Boo, we can still kick their asses. The problem is the weapons anyway.” Erik waved a buttery hand back and forth.

“Says the guy who refuses to use a weapon.” Caeden shot back.

“Hey man, I’m a doctor. I can’t go around with a big sword or whatever. It messes with my aesthetics.”

“Your aesthetics will get you killed,” Caeden warned.

“I’ll manage, thanks.” Erik ignored his concern.

“So, this is the plan?” Cat took another bite of her ice cream sundae. Cat had a massive sweet tooth.

“It’s what we have so far. Caeden is going to make our equipment before we start recruiting, but after that, we’ll start looking for people we think we can trust to serve as a base and work outwards from there.” Lily nodded. “It will take time, but it’ll be helpful later on when the pressure from the Seats increases. And,” Lily sighed, “When my brother starts making trouble again.”

“Well, I’m in. Sounds fun.” Cat smiled.

“Me too! I want to be the group doctor!” Erik yelled, drawing several people to look at them, “Can I be the doctor?”

“I don't think we need to worry about anything like group rolls yet. It's not even a real organization yet.” Caeden tried to reign in his roommate’s enthusiasm.

“Oh, you’re right.” Erik nodded seriously, “I got ahead of myself.”

“Just a bit.” Caeden smiled, pleased that he had gotten through to Erik for once.

“Of course. We need a name first!” Erik smiled, “I vote we call it Erik’s Salvation Army of Saving People! No, wait, that’s too long. Erik’s Army! Too violent. Erik’s Salvation? That just sounds like they’re saving me. This is hard.” Erik pouted.

“Why do they all have your name in it?” Cat frowned. “Obviously, they should be named after me. Cat’s Peon Army. Maybe Cat’s Servant Armada. Yeah, I like that. It has a nice ring to it.”

“Why do I feel like we lost before we even started?” Caeden muttered to the only other sensible person at the table.

“The good part is, neither of them will be in charge,” Lily pointed out.

“Yeah, I’m glad you’re leading things,” Caden admitted.

“Me? It was your idea!” Lily protested.

“Yeah, but it's for your safety!”

“I don’t want to be in charge!”

“Me neither!”

“I could-” Erik jumped in.

“NO!”