Second Skin Omnibus

by M Damon Baker

“You seem unimpressed by my choice, Dreya,” Stel remarked.

  “It seems fine, Stel. It’s just that it’s no different than what we’re used to.”

  “And that,” Stel replied with a smile, “is exactly why I chose it.”

  With that, Stel went off to secure our rooms for the night. He returned quickly with the keys and instructions for the rest of the day.

  “It’s still quite early, and there is much to see in the city. I suggest we use the rest of the day to explore a bit and then make an early start of it in the morning.”

  We had discussed the next leg of our journey as we traveled the road to Orlan. The area of the isthmus between the walls of Orlan and The Citadel was a no-man’s land of sorts. While the fortifications of Orlan prevented anything from crossing into Lorida, there were a few mountain passes that circumvented The Citadel’s defenses. Occasionally, some of the horrors from beyond the protected lands managed to find their way through and into the gap between the two fortresses. While the road in between was heavily patrolled by day, the gates on both sides were locked at night, sealing out travelers and monsters alike. If we wanted to avoid being forced to spend the night in that potentially hazardous area, we would have to make the journey in a single day. Not overly difficult, but it would require us to maintain a brisk pace to ensure that we arrived in time.

  “You hear that, Husband?” Broda teased. “There’ll be no ale for you tonight!”

  Khorim groaned as the rest of us chuckled at her jest.

  We parted ways, each of us intent on our individual agendas for a while, and I headed up to my room. I thought to drop off some of my weapons and gear, but then reconsidered and decided to hold on to everything instead, taking a chance on finding an opportunity to make an exchange for a potential upgrade. After making sure to mark the inn’s location on my map, I began to wander the streets of the capitol.

  Walking through the orderly streets of Orlan, I noticed once again the stark difference between the shops and merchandise available here as compared to Hasse. While Hasse certainly had its share of merchandise for the well-to-do, the streets of Orlan were practically filled with stores that seemed to specialize in only just those sorts of goods. There were jewelers, clothiers, and fine boutiques of all manner catering to every whim of the city’s wealthy and noble. Even the more mundane shops prominently displayed items tailored specifically to the tastes of the upper classes. The more I walked, the more I came to realize that, unlike Hasse, Orlan was not merely a center of commerce, but also a city of culture and high society.

  Passing the window of a weapon smith’s shop revealed a pair of fine dueling rapiers and a bejeweled dagger featured in the storefront. The adjacent armorsmith had an equally ostentatious breastplate on display. While its fine gold inlay and jewel-encrusted accents were a marvel to behold, I couldn’t help but notice that the steel it was fashioned from was almost paper-thin. I doubted the set of armor would have shielded its wearer from a bee sting, let alone a blow made in the heat of combat. I quickly realized that most of the high-end goods were more about couture than combat.

  In addition to the fancy shops, I came across theaters and art galleries for the first time. And not merely one of each, but several. There were also teahouses and fine restaurants of many varieties, each claiming to specialize in some special, exotic cuisine.

  I meandered through the streets of the city for a while, simply taking in the sights before I decided to finally get down to business. If I could, I wanted to try once more to upgrade my weapons. Hopefully, Orlan would offer better bargains than I had found in Hasse. Seeing a shop with several bows and quivers on display, I wandered inside to have a look.

  The store was absolutely an archer’s paradise—there were bows of all types on display. Longbows, shortbows, recurves, and crossbows of all descriptions decorated the shop’s walls and shelves. While I glanced at a few, the only ones I found that provided any benefit over my current weapon were prohibitively expensive. Ruling out an upgrade for my bow, I decided to limit my search to improving my ammunition instead.

  I had realized the night before that I now possessed over 80 shafts tipped with arrowheads that Daile had offered to sell me for two Marks each. Selling all those arrows, even at half their value, would yield me over three Talons in coin. I realized that if I could parley the wealth created by my Quiver into just a single arrow crafted of Dwarven Steel or Khelduin, I would be able to repeat the process once again. My Quiver had the potential to essentially mint an unlimited supply of coin! Striding over to the merchant confidently, I requested to see her best arrowheads. The elven shopkeeper obliged happily, bringing forth a fairly large box from under the counter. Opening the lid, she spun the container around so that I could look over its contents.

  Inside the chest were nearly two dozen finely-crafted arrowheads. A few were simple steel, and I ignored those—while they were high-quality, I was in the market for something… more. I focused instead on the pieces crafted from the two superior metals. Since I knew that my Quiver could only duplicate non-magical arrows, and the price of the magically-enhanced ones was well beyond my means, I was able to narrow down my options to the few non-magical arrowheads that suited my purposes. Picking out a particularly vicious-looking arrowhead of Khelduin, I began the negotiations.

  “This one may be sufficient for my needs,” I said in an off-hand manner. “How much are you asking for it?”

  “You have excellent tastes,” she replied, seemingly unconvinced by my feigned casual interest. “That one itself is two Talons.”

  Two Talons—the equivalent of 250 Silver Marks for a single arrowhead. I could stay at a fine inn for the better part of a year for that sum. I would have found the price galling under different circumstances, but instead of focusing on the price, I considered the potential profit. With my Quiver, I could turn one two-Talon arrowhead into 80 of them. Of course, it would behoove me to empty all my quivers first, clearing out the old stock, as it were. Emptying out my Quiver and the spares from my backpack, I made my counteroffer.

  “I have these arrows I can part with, each with fine steel arrowheads. How about all 80 of them, plus one Talon for the arrowhead.”

  Considering the full value of the arrows, my offer was more than the two Talons the shopkeeper had quoted. I felt sure she would accept, but instead, her response caught me completely by surprise.

  “You seem like an honest woman, so I’m going to do you a favor and decline your offer.”

  “I don’t understand,” I replied once I got over my surprise. “I’m offering you more than you asked.”

  “Yes, you are,” she replied. “Unfortunately for you, I believe there’s something you aren’t aware of. Something that could wind up causing you a great deal of trouble.”

  “That quiver of yours is a very useful item,” she continued. “But it won’t do what you think it will.”

  I was completely taken aback—not only had she recognized my Quiver, but she had also clearly understood my plan to take advantage of its properties. In addition, she had obviously identified some problem with my idea, one I had not foreseen.

  “I would be grateful if you would explain it to me,” I replied sincerely.

  She motioned for me to have a seat before she started her explanation.

  “I am familiar with the enchantments on your quiver; I even sold one once, many years ago. While it will duplicate arrows such as these,” she said as she motioned to the pile of shafts I had placed on the counter, “it cannot duplicate magically-enhanced arrows.”

  I nodded at her description of the Quiver, as it had already been revealed to me that this was the case.

  “What you fail to realize is that both Khelduin and Dwarven Steel bear enchantments. Khelduin comes by its magical nature intrinsically, while Dwarven Steel gains its magical properties through the unique forging process it undergoes.”

  “But, looking at them, I don’t detect any trace of magic!” I protested.

  �
��No, you probably wouldn’t,” she replied. “Admittedly, the magic is faint, conferring no powerful benefits beyond the enhanced characteristics of the metals, but it is enough to prevent your quiver from permanently replicating them.”

  My dreams of creating unlimited funds were dashed by her words, then I seized upon something she had said.

  “Wait, it can’t permanently replicate them?” I asked. “What does that mean?”

  “So, you were paying attention. Good!” She replied with a smile.

  “Your quiver cannot replicate these arrowheads, but it can temporarily duplicate them,” she clarified. “It will create copies, and those copies will exist as long as they are kept inside the quiver, and for a short time outside of it as well. However, if they are removed from the quiver for an extended period, the arrows will simply cease to exist.”

  “If I correctly interpreted your plan when you sought to purchase just a single arrowhead, any attempt to sell the duplicates would result in a very unhappy buyer—one who would definitely seek recompense, at a minimum.”

  She was right. Had I sold the arrows created by my Quiver, they would have vanished after only a short amount of time. The buyer would undoubtedly claim fraud, and I would be facing severe legal consequences, to say the least.

  “I assure you I had no idea that was the case,” I answered, somewhat embarrassed by my ignorance. “I didn’t realize that the limitations of the Quiver would apply in such a way.”

  “No, I could tell that you did not,” she said. “As I said before, you seem honest. I only wanted to prevent you from causing yourself unintentional harm.”

  “I cannot thank you enough,” I replied sincerely. “Clearly, I need to rethink my options.”

  “Well,” the merchant countered, “there’s nothing wrong with buying one and letting your quiver fill itself for you. They will certainly last long enough to use in a fight and even be recovered after. The only flaw with your original idea was creating more arrows than the quiver can hold.”

  She was right—the idea of purchasing an entire quiver-full of Khelduin arrows for the price of one was still a good one, it was only my dream of turning the Quiver into my own personal mint that was dead. Thinking ahead and considering a few possibilities, I had only one more question.

  “What would happen if I lost the original arrow?”

  “Ahh, very insightful of you. I see you understand now,” she said.

  “Your quiver relies on having at least one real arrow to create its duplicates. If it only has the temporary copies, it will not be able to create any more from them. This is not an issue with your old arrows, as the quiver was able to create actual versions of those. However, with Khelduin or Dwarven Steel, the duplicates are not truly real. Should you lose the original, your quiver will no longer be able to create any more duplicates. The ones it already made would continue to exist, according to their limitations, but it would unable to create new ones to replace any losses.”

  I thought about what she said for a few moments before coming up with a potential solution. The merchant had been very helpful and forthcoming, so I sought her opinion as well.

  “I think I will purchase the arrowhead, at your full price,” I offered. “I will secure it in the Quiver so that I won’t draw it by mistake. In addition, I’m going to buy three additional ones. Not only in case something happens to the original, but also because you have been so helpful.”

  “That is a very fine plan,” she replied with a broad smile. “And also, a very generous demonstration of your appreciation.”

  I paid the full eight Talons for the arrowheads, and I also left her with over 20 arrows tipped with the fine steel heads. I needed to get rid of them anyway to empty out my main Quiver, and to secure one of the spare Khelduin arrows safely in each one of my back-up quivers. It also seemed to be a decent additional gesture of my appreciation for her help. In return, the elven merchant insisted on providing me with suitably matched shafts for my new acquisitions.

  I left the shop promising to return if I was ever in need of additional equipment. The merchant simply smiled and offered a friendly wave in response. I wondered just how much a role my high Charisma had played in the exchange as opposed to the merchant’s inherent good nature, but was grateful for the outcome either way.

  My plan had been to look for an upgrade for at least one of my swords as well, but the depletion of my funds from the purchase of the four arrowheads made that goal unrealistic. Instead, I returned to simply meandering through the streets, practicing my Identify Person skill and casting Enhanced Sight as I traveled through the city. Finally, when dusk drew near and I began to grow tired, I made my way slowly through the streets and back to the King’s Rest.

  When I arrived, my friends were already gathered in the common room, enjoying a meal and some drinks. I joined them at their table and as I sat down, I pointedly glanced from Khorim’s face to the mug he was holding in his hands.

  “Don’t say it,” he grumbled roughly. I thought I detected a hint of a plea for mercy in his tone as well.

  Broda had been mocking him relentlessly for days, so I decided, uncharacteristically, to let him off easy.

  “I wouldn’t dream of doing any such thing, master dwarf.”

  Khorim coughed slightly at my comment while Broda flashed me a quick smile, and we let the matter pass. I ordered a meal and a drink, and together we passed the rest of the evening in light-hearted conversation before retiring for the night.

  With a tough day ahead of us, I quickly made myself ready for bed. Once I’d laid out my gear so that I could put it back on easily in the morning, I slipped into bed and wasted no time falling asleep.

  3

  We got together early the next morning in the common room and shared a quick breakfast before heading for the city gates. There was little time to waste if we were going to make the long trek to The Citadel before the gates would close at dusk. Not wanting to spend the night trapped in the no-man’s land under threat of attack, no one objected to the brisk pace Stel set on our way out of the city. Walking through the crowded streets, I was taken by surprise when a voice called out my name.

  “Dreya! Is that you?” I heard someone shout.

  My mind instantly returned to thoughts of my time spent being hunted, relentlessly pursued by the Bloody Hearts. I could only presume that Lukas had been less successful than he had believed in eliminating Jorum’s thugs or rescinding the bounty that had been placed on my head. Drawing a dagger behind my back, I turned to face the unknown threat. But before I could do anything, I was quickly overwhelmed, completely defenseless against the unanticipated assault.

  Wrapping me up me in a fierce hug, Jessah had caught me completely by surprise.

  “I knew it was you!” She exclaimed, squeezing me tightly in her embrace. “I’m so glad to see you!”

  Recovering from my initial shock, I returned her hug with equal enthusiasm. I found myself overjoyed to see that she had gotten herself all the way here, and instantly wanted to know how she was doing.

  “I’m so happy to see you too, Jessah,” I replied when she finally loosened her grip on me. “I hope things are going better for you, now that you’re here.”

  “Yes, they are,” Jessah replied, suddenly seeming a bit self-conscious. It was then that I noticed the other young woman who was accompanying her. Realizing the connection between the two, Jessah’s reason for discomfort became clear.

  “That is very good to hear, Jessah,” I said in response. Then softer, so that only she could hear, I added, “And I’m glad to see you’ve found someone to share that happiness with as well.”

  A look of relief washed over Jessah’s face, and she made a hasty introduction. Her companion, Irisse, had been the one to get Jessah a job when she first arrived in Orlan, and the two had been together ever since. As Jessah finished the short tale of her time in the capitol, I heard a soft cough over my shoulder. Apparently, that was Khorim’s way of reminding me that we had a sch
edule to keep.

  “That uncouth sound you hear is my friend’s subtle reminder to me that we are in a bit of a hurry right now,” I told Jessah. “I truly would love to spend some time talking with you and getting to know Irisse as well, but we really do have to be going.”

  “I understand,” Jessah replied warmly. “Just promise that if you are ever back in Orlan, you’ll stop by and say hello.”

  “Now that I know where to find you, I certainly will,” I answered happily.

  I hugged her once more and wished them both well before we set off again for the city gates. Once we passed through the city’s massive gates and were clear of the crowded streets, Stel picked up the pace and headed towards the opening in the fortifications that would take us into the no-man’s land.

  As we approached, the steep walls and impressive towers of the Kingdom’s protective wall grew into an imposing sight. The high stone wall and its watchful towers began to loom over us, casting dark shadows across our path. As foreboding as the sight was for us, I could only imagine how daunting the image would be for any enemy attempting to attack those walls from the opposite side.

  Reaching the gateway, we were directed to the lone, narrow passage through the wall. Dual portcullises were raised, allowing us entry to the tunnel created through the fortification. Passing through, I was struck by the impressive number of arrow slits and murder holes that would allow the defenders to relentlessly attack anyone trapped inside the tunnel when those portcullises were closed.

  Of course, any such attackers would have to first breach the outer gates, which, in addition to their own set of dual portcullises, also had a thick, metal-clad gate protecting it.

  Only a massive army could even attempt to breach these defenses. The Kingdom had clearly taken no chances and risked no shortcuts to ensure that it was well-sealed off from the hazards that roamed freely on the mainland. And this fortification was only the Kingdom’s backup defense—there was still The Citadel I had yet to see.