She nodded in understanding. “Instead of a wall, we use the natural surroundings to our advantage.”
“Exactly,” I said, nodding with her. “The issue is can it be done? Are there magic classes like druids or nature mages? Earth mages? I don’t know anything that could manipulate the jungle trees to alter themselves to make them livable. We can build one entrance so it can be easily guarded, set up a river around the village edge to help keep out enemies, while reducing the risk of fire.” I said in a stream of words, excited at the possibility, just letting my thoughts run free. Tabby smiled at me, happy at my enthusiasm.
“There are druids and nature mages. Earth mages as well, but they would help more with the river moving as they deal with nonliving material.” She informed me, still amused, embracing my plan. “It will still take time to teach the elves magic and find the ones able to do it. Also, there will still be issues that it doesn’t solve. Though, it does make them easier to deal with as the nanite swarms in the trees will evolve in the process. Meaning the system will love it, no doubt it will make quests and rewards for all the work.”
Her eyes were shining, looking through me, smiling, dreaming of what could be. “Yes, I think this could work. After the initial training, I doubt it would take long at all. I will have to change my teaching around. The group I’m teaching now are mostly hunters and warriors, plus five farmers. I could make a few of the farmers into nature mages, a couple of hunters druids, and a couple of the warriors into earth mages.” She halted, deep in thought.
“Sounds great. I can use the construction crew for other projects. They will be temporary but it will help to level them. If you teach them magic, could they assist in how the tree is built?” I asked, thinking that the mages themselves probably wouldn’t know how to build the trees into livable spaces that were structurally sound.
“Yes. Well, sort of. The system can alter their class abilities, making them able to work in concert with the mages to shape the trees and their surroundings. They wouldn’t be able to use the magic themselves per se but could tap into the energy used to do the work that is required. Most would learn magic in the process, letting them create more trees without the additional help of others. In fact, this isn’t a new way of doing things, it’s common practice on other worlds. I just never thought about it.”
That brought a frown to my face. Of course, it was, and here I thought I was some pioneer. Ha-ha, oh well, at least it’s a viable solution. I smiled, chuckling to myself and my hubris. “Well, sounds like we have a plan moving forward. I’m going to adjust my schedule and move other projects to the front. Goodnight, Tabby,” I said, laying back down, giving her a warm smile as I did so. My mind assessed all the work ahead of us as I drifted into my mindscape to rest.
Chapter Seventeen
I awoke the next morning, already getting used to the routine of having everyone gather at the fire pit in the mornings. Lucky was writing and sounding out his alphabet. Tonight, I would have to make some basic word flash cards for him to start learning tomorrow. His learning ability was impressive and I couldn’t complain about how seriously he was taking his training. I even picked up a learned skill for my troubles.
Instruction: The ability to pass on your knowledge to another.
Instruction(N): 12
●Novice Perk: K.I.S.S.
○K.I.S.S.: This perk allows you to explain complex ideas in easier to understand ways. Remember, keep it simple stupid!
The perk was amazing, working more on those I taught than on myself. It allowed the words I was saying to be interpreted in ways the pupil could more easily understand. Again, I was grateful for my mysterious human origins and the telepathic abilities it imparted.
With the usual crew in front of me, I asked Dawn to go get the other crafters. While I waited, I decided to get the rest of the elves moving forward with the plans I had come up with. “Aila, Tabby and I went over your team’s wall proposal.” She looked nervous at me addressing her, not sure what I would say next. I could tell they had put a lot of work into the plan, so I didn’t want to crush their spirits with negativity. “It was very well done, taking into account all of what I asked and more.” I could see the relief or her face, along with smiles from the rest of the crew at the praise. Now for the hard part.
“However,” at this, Aila frowned. “We deemed that the timeframe, as well as you not having access to proper equipment, at least in our opinion,” I paused, letting it sink in that it wasn’t a lack of anything on their part. “…makes this project out of reach for the time being.” The crew looked dejectedly at me after that statement. “Although, we are working on a work-around that will solve this issue. It will mean that your classes are going to be tweaked some. You will need to speak to Tabby to get that done.” This appeared to give them hope, and they were hanging on to my every word.
“For now, I’m going to assign you a different task. You horrible excuses for soldiers don’t have a barracks to call home.” I said with a smile. “It’s time to change that. I want a viable design for a barracks that can house one hundred soldiers. With rooms for one command NCO, one commander, and an office for each. I want the plans to include a separate area for latrines, a chow area, and training/marshaling grounds. I need them handed to me as soon as possible, today if it can be done.” I looked at Aila.
She nodded her head, “This should be much simpler than a giant wall, Great Rho. We will have it ready for you by lunch.” She told me confidently.
“Oh, and don’t worry, you’ll have lots of help in acquiring everything you need to get the actual building work done. Isn’t that right, maggots?” I yelled, turning to the formation of elven soldiers in training on my left.
“Yes, sir,” they replied as one. Good, they’re learning quickly. “That’s all for now, Aila” I said, directing my attention to the crafters assembled to my right. “All right, you lot, how are things progressing with you? Hold on one minute.” I held my hand up to the crafters, as I addressed Lucky, “Lucky, lead the troops through morning exercises. I’ll join you before drills.” Snapping off a salute with a ‘yes, sir’, he stopped what he was doing, taking command of the elven formation and leading the troops on a run. That left me free to deal with the crafters. “Okay, sorry about that,” I apologized, turning my attention back to the crafters. “So, how are you guys doing?”
Dawn spoke first, “I’ve been working much the same as I used to, but with the system’s help, it is easier and the results are of a higher quality.” She gestured to her dress, which after I stopped gritting my teeth at the poor girl’s voice, noticed was a good quality when I examined it. The dress was simple leather, dyed green and looked to be soft and supple to a surprising degree. It was nothing super fancy but compared to the rags the rest of the elves were wearing it was like a queen’s gown.
“Very nice, Dawn, great work,” I praised while giving her two thumbs up. A gesture that only made her cock her head in wonder at me. Ignoring her unasked question, I kept going. “Please keep it up. Do you need anything?” I asked. She shook her head, so I sent her on her way. “Okay, Sayer, tell me the good news on the bed situation.” I grinned at the carpenter, hoping my days of sleeping on the ground were soon to be over.
“Rho, I have two bed frames completed. I’m just looking for ideas for materials for the mattresses. I was hoping you would have some thoughts.” He stood looking at me expectantly.
I pondered the question for a minute, not really having a clue what primitive mattresses were made from. But I did have a few ideas. “How about stuffing the center of the mattress with some dried grass from the grasslands, or hay if your farmers grow any? Then place feathers on top of the grass, finally, use animal hide with soft fur for the outside. Hopefully, with the system’s help, it won’t wear out super-fast.” I added, as much to Sayer as to myself. “What do you think?” I inquired, seeing a look of satisfaction on his face.
“I think I see the picture you’re painting, Rho. I believe i
t will work, and once the system recognizes it, it should last a long time. For pillows,” he pronounced the word haltingly, not being familiar with it yet. “Just feathers on the inside, I think.” I nodded, giving a goofy grin, almost drooling as I thought about sleeping in an actual bed.
“Alright then, Sayer, if you don’t need anything else, come see me at lunchtime, we’ll get a crew together to collect the supplies you need. In the meantime, if you can get some elves to help you gather what you can safely,” I stressed the word. “Please do.” He bowed his head before going about his task.
“Well, Melkor, how about you?” I queried, putting my arm on his shoulder. “Have you found any metal to work with?”
“Yes, Great Rho. Although, I’m not able to work much with it as I have no forge or anvil. I’ve tried to smelt it but haven’t had any success yet.” He confessed looking down, his shoulders slumping at the admission.
I beamed at him, “let me see what metals you have. This evening, I’m also going to try teaching you a few techniques that might help. Have you been working on your fire magic?” Blacksmiths had class abilities to work with fire magic. It was how they were able to work with metal alloys that had ridiculously high melting points. And not die in the process, I mused. I also noticed that the elves were very quick to learn magic. Lucas and Lucky getting in contact with their nanites the night before spoke volumes on that subject.
Vanadinite: An ore containing the transition metal vanadium. Used to greatly enhance the strength on steel by way of the alloy ferrovanadium. Also known as adamantine.
Iron Ore: ore that contains iron. Used to create a variety of tools and alloys.
Melkor showed me the metals he had access to. It was quite a good find! I let the excitement shine through my smiling face. Adamantine was just easier to say than ferrovanadium. Still, now I know where another mythical metal name comes from. It was used back on Earth to make some of the best steel tools, surgical knives, and other high-stress parts. Hell, it was even mixed with titanium and aluminum for jet engines and spacecraft parts. “I have access to my fire magic, Great Rho but haven’t had a chance to use it.” Melkor admitted, bringing me back to the conversation.
“That’s good, Melkor. Collect as much metal as you can, then join Lucky and Lucas when they come to learn magic with me during story time.”
“Great Rho,” he bowed his head, leaving to do as I had asked. That just left Celeste. “So, Celeste, everything going well with you, do you need anything?” I asked the average looking female elf while flashing my most charming smile.
“No great one,” Her voice was silky smooth, sultry in a way that didn’t match the rest of her appearance. “Though, with the lady’s help, I think I’ll have something wondrous to share with everyone very soon,” she stopped talking, not going into detail on just what she was working on.
“Well, okay then, good luck with what you’re working on.” She smiled back at me, bowing as she turned to leave. This time I tried hard to be friendly to the elf knowing that I had been rather rude when we had first met.
The rest of the day went by very quickly. At least it felt that way. I trained the troops, taking command from Lucky, leading them in weapons drills and fighting in formations. Once more, Maximus joined us after basic classes had finished. After lunch, I took the time to discuss the plans for the barracks that Aila had brought to me. Which were great, no changes needed, I thought. Happy that I didn’t need to give the construction crew any more criticism.
The construction crew was delighted to hear my praise, and I sent half the group of soldiers off to help them build. I chose a spot for the barracks toward the grassland side of the clearing, closest to the wereboar threat against the village. That way, they should be closer to the piggies when they attacked, not to mention better able to defend against them before civilians got in the way, hopefully. Lucky and I accompanied the remaining troops to gather grass for mattresses. I wasn’t sure what the farmers grew, nor did I want to take food out of elves’ mouths just for my comfort. So, we, well, really, I decided to just go into the grasslands to find what we could. It made for quite the trip back, with everyone carrying long, awkward stacks of grass. It might not have weighed much, but after an hour-long trek. everyone was struggling. The good news was that tonight would be the last night of sleeping on the ground, for me and Tabby at least. Well, rank does have its privileges.
Chapter Eighteen
Two nights later, during story time, I met with the three elves in our usual spot—the fire outside my yurt. The training ground that the troops had made was still destined to be used by trainees but was abandoned for now. We all shared a quick meal in relative silence before I started their magical training for the night. It had taken just two days to get the three elves to contact their nanites and feel comfortable with the well inside them, letting them access the energy manipulated when using magic. It astonished me how fast they had mastered it, but here we were.
“Alright,” I said, getting to my feet, stepping forward as I turned to face them, my back to the fire. “You guys have done the hard, boring part, accessing your ‘magic’,” I confirmed, using air quotes when I said magic, which none of them understood, making me chuckle harder. “Now we do the fun stuff.” I grinned with a mischievous glint in my eye. “Lucky, you and Melkor are going to watch me. This will help you understand one of my core powers. One I received two skills in, allowing me to make spells based on it, as long as my skill level will permit it, but we will get into that later.” I waved it off, unsure I was explaining it right, once again, grateful for the novice instructor perk. “Melkor, this will hopefully get your blacksmith class altered, or at least make it so that you can use your fire magic in a similar fashion.” I addressed the third elf, “Lucas, I have no idea what magic you have, so I’m not sure if this will help you,” I informed him with a shrug. “So, please feel free to practice on your own, watch me, or go and see Tabby for more help.” He bowed his head before heading off to practice on his own.
Pulling a log in front of the others, I faced away from the fire and had them move their own logs a bit farther back from me. Holding out my hand in front of Melkor, I asked for a sample of both types of ore. After he handed me a few pieces of each, I began. “Lucky, I want you to focus on the ions and how their different aspects work together in this process.” I paused as the instruction perk worked to translate the complex concept for him. “Melkor, I want you to focus only on the metal and the heat produced for the process to work.”
Taking a couple of chunks of iron in my right hand, a few vanadium pieces in my left, I proceeded to use my mystic weaponsmithing to show them how to magically manipulate metal. Doing much the same as Tabby did to teach me. “Lucky, pay attention to how the ions create electricity, generating heat, then try to see the different ions working to maintain the heat, as well as the shape and placement of the metal. Melkor, focus more on the heat, how the metal flows, how the impurities are worked out. How the metal grains and crystal structure is formed. The electricity creates a magnetic field. The light given off by the heat produced is used to energize more ions, together with the light being used to regulate the heat in the metal.” I explained as the iron ore melted. The slag dripped to the ground as the metal formed a glowing, flowing ball of molten iron. I held my left hand up, repeating the process. The difference in energy and heat required was obvious between the two metals. I had picked a ratio of about three quarters iron and one quarter vanadium. Needing some carbon to turn the iron to steel, I plunged the ball of iron into the fire. I let the iron absorb the carbon, lifting it occasionally to purify it and make certain the process was even and working properly. This came more from instinct given to me by my crafting skill than actual knowledge. I had no knowledge of the process in either of my previous lifetimes.
“Melkor, pay attention!” Although he was but, I wanted to emphasize the point I was about to make. My outburst startled him into looking up at me before going back to focus on the
metal floating in and out of the fire. “By adding carbon iron is turned into steel, making the metal much stronger than ordinary iron. Now, the ratio of carbon to iron is one you will have to toy with to get the best results. You’re the blacksmith, so I’ll leave it to you to figure out. This will also be true for the ratio of vanadium to steel, but if I remember correctly, for weapons—well, knives—the ratio is three parts steel and one part vanadium.” I paused to check my spell slots.
Spell Slots: 25/36
I still had plenty of time, so I continued. “I’m sure you have noticed that the two metals require different temperatures to melt. Honestly, Melkor,” I commented, turning back from the fire with both balls of molten metal swirling in my hands, pleased with the carbon content in the iron.
“At first, you will probably only be able to work on one metal at a time, and it may be some time before you can work with vanadium. Hell, it might be some time before you can work with steel. I just don’t know how the blacksmith class works.” I admitted as I kept the metal moving. The fire behind me started to die as most of the fuel had been spent to get my carbon. Still, the light from the metal orbs provided plenty of illumination to see in the dying light of the evening.
Pushing the two orbs together, I watched them deform as they tried to merge. Somehow, it reminded me of an old show I had watched over three millennia ago. The program portrayed the Earth being hit by an asteroid that broke apart, forming the Moon. Though that wasn’t what reminded me of the show. What I was watching made me remember the close-up of the impact site, how the molten Earth dimpled, engulfing the smaller asteroid before the explosion tore it all apart.
I felt a strong, opposing pressure at the point where the two spheres met, knowing instinctively that if I were careless it too would explode. To the death of us all, no doubt. Concentrating harder, I focused on making the bigger steel orb encircle the smaller vanadium core, while at the same time pulling the vanadium apart from the center to mix it in with the steel. Peeling it like a banana, I folded the metal into itself over and over while increasing the heat. It drained my spell slots much faster than normal, but I doubted I was just doing the mystic weaponsmithing that I was originally taught. I was down to fifteen spell slots using ten in just the few minutes it took to combine the two metals. Giving me just thirty minutes to complete my demonstration if I was lucky.
G.E.S.S.: Genetically Engineered Super Soldier Page 14
