Verdan felt somewhat conflicted about the changes happening to Rocky, but he could no longer put off investigating it. He’d seen the independent action a few times, but what Magnus had reported was too much. Tactical usage of the Legion was not an issue, and in fact was somewhat expected from the intent that Verdan used for the spell.
No, the problem was that Rocky had improved. He wasn’t a person, he was a construct given animation by Verdan’s magic. There should be no way for him to improve or change unless the spell did.
Verdan had certainly not adjusted the spell, so something that he thought to be true must be wrong. He’d prefer to go to Commander Silver, to start pushing back against everything that was happening in the city, but this was more important.
Rocky represented a potentially dangerous anomaly at the moment, and Verdan needed to understand. Without certainty, he couldn’t rely on Rocky, or even trust that he wouldn’t accidentally hurt someone.
Mentally calling the construct to him, Verdan waited anxiously until he heard the familiar rhythmic footsteps and Rocky came into view. His ceramic armour had a few more scratches than before, but otherwise he was untouched save for a few flowers tucked into some of the seams of his armour.
“Tokens of gratitude from some of the children. Your creation went out of its way to rescue and protect them from any vindictive attempts to hurt them,” Keeper Norstan said, seeming to appear out of nowhere as he stepped up next to Verdan. The Keeper’s rheumy eyes peered at Verdan intently before he turned to Rocky. “I might not have the best vision anymore, but I see some of the markings on his armour, markings that I recognise.”
“I have stolen nothing from the Clans, if that is your concern,” Verdan said stiffly.
“I pity the poor fool who looks upon such a powerful creation of magic and thinks that it could possibly be stolen from the ritualised work we do.” The Keeper chuckled to himself with a raspy laugh before coughing into his fist. “Avoid getting old, Wizard. It isn’t as pleasant as it seems.”
“I’m sure it isn’t,” Verdan said, eyeing the other man for a moment before continuing. “Why not heal yourself?”
“It would be a waste of what little power we can draw upon,” Keeper Norstan said, waving aside Verdan’s concern. “If I can manage, I will do so without healing.”
“My healing doesn’t require the magic of the gods,” Verdan said, torn between being impressed at the Cleric’s resilience and exasperated at his stubbornness. “I offer it freely.”
The Keeper was silent for a few long moments before he barked out a short, mocking laugh. “Such is the pride of old men, I suppose. Very well, Wizard. I will accept your healing and offer my sincere thanks.”
Verdan nodded and placed a hand on the other man’s shoulder as he drew up the Aether in his staff. “Grym iacha nercreth.”
A wave of fortifying and healing Aether swept through the old Kranjir, drawing a shocked gasp from him. There wasn’t much in the way of an immediately visible difference, but Verdan could see a difference in how he moved. It was amazing what pain someone could learn to live with, to the point that they barely even noticed it until it was gone.
“I hope that you will see that keeping yourself healthy will allow you to do more for your cause,” Verdan said, mentally commanding Rocky to follow as he bid goodbye to the Keeper. “I must return to my estate now and work on Rocky.”
The Keeper blinked several time in quick succession before focusing on Verdan with a sharp gaze. “I don’t mean to intrude, but would you be willing to let me watch? The idea is fascinating.”
“I suppose there is no harm in that,” Verdan said after a moment of thought. The Keeper was a Cleric, after all, and an active one at that. Govannon had sent him here to help, so some trust seemed reasonable. “All I ask is that you refrain from touching anything you don’t understand.”
“Of course,” the Keeper said, his eyes gleaming as he hurried to catch up. Distantly, Verdan saw the two Gallowan shieldguards trailing along behind him. Neither seemed to have any issues with what was happening and were content to follow the Keeper’s lead.
-**-
Once they were back at the Crea estate, Verdan found a secluded section of the courtyard and created two stone stools before casting a few wards around the area. Nothing too powerful, but enough to keep anyone from interfering or listening in without him knowing. Not that he expected it, but the Keeper seemed fascinated with both Rocky and the materials he was made of. If more questions were asked, Verdan didn’t want the answers going anywhere.
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With all that done, Verdan was forced to actually tackle the problem before him. He’d spent the walk back thinking of how to do this, and the solution he’d come up with felt almost childish, but was the best he could do.
Shaping a series of cups out of stone and a collection of different shapes, Verdan arranged them in a grid before having Rocky come over and sit opposite him. The ground shook slightly as the heavy construct sat down, mirroring Verdan’s cross-legged posture.
Carefully ensuring that none of his knowledge was passing through the spell to Rocky, Verdan lifted each cup to show the shape beneath before asking Rocky to point out specific ones.
Keeper Norstan shifted in the background but said nothing as Rocky got each question correct, pointing silently with one huge finger at the cup in question. Unfortunately, he was too good for Verdan to be able to really track changes, so he started jumbling up the cups and then asking.
At first, Rocky got the answer wrong consistently, but by repeating the process of showing and then jumbling, Verdan saw him improve. It wasn’t fast, not by any means, but it was there.
Ignoring his pounding heart, Verdan pushed on until Rocky got it right three times in a row. Now for the hard part.
“There is no consciousness borne of a spell,” Verdan said, hesitating for a moment more before reaching out and unravelling the spell that animated Rocky. Taking a deep breath, he pulled together the Aether he needed and slowly cast the spell once more, reanimating the construct.
Verdan peered at the expressionless visage of his creation for a long moment before going through the process of showing the shapes and then jumbling up the order. “Okay, Rocky. Point to the cup with the triangle.”
Without pause, the construct lifted one hand and pointed to the correct cup.
Verdan cleared his throat and did it again, and then a third time, with Rocky getting the answer correct each time.
“I don’t understand,” Verdan said eventually, shaking his head and running a hand through his hair. “This doesn’t make sense.”
“I admit that this wasn’t what I was expecting,” Keeper Norstan said, drumming his fingers on one leg before leaning forward. “I saw your expression when your apprentice described the construct improving. That is what you are testing, yes?”
“That’s correct, though I won’t bore you with a full explanation of why it is a problem.”
“Hmm, and you built this construct and gave it life?” The Keeper asked, nodding to himself as Verdan confirmed that was the case. “In that case, is this important?”
“Very much so, I need to understand this.” Verdan turned to see the Keeper fish out a piece of silvery metal that hung on a chain around his neck. “What are you doing?”
“Returning the favour,” Keeper Norstan said, grinning at Verdan’s confused expression. “Govannon is the God of Crafts and Will. This is a creation of yours, so I will bless you with understanding. Unless you would object?”
“No, please do,” Verdan said, intrigued by what the Keeper had in mind. “If there’s an easier solution here, I’m all for it.”
The piece of metal began to glow softly with golden light as the Keeper crossed to Verdan and laid a hand on his shoulder. “Govannon guide your thoughts and temper your passion with clarity.”
A hint of a smell that reminded Verdan of mountains and forests swirled around them with a sudden gust of wind. For a moment, nothing happened, and then Verdan inhaled and it was as though he was breathing for the first time.
Something more than air entered his lungs, spreading through his body in an instant and leaving a lingering feeling of vitality and focus. Govannon gave no answers, only the support needed for them.
Unwilling to waste this moment, Verdan closed his eyes and considered the problem, running over everything he knew from start to end. Rocky was changing, there was no denying that, and he was carrying that change between spells, so it couldn’t be something in the construction of him.
That left Verdan’s intent as the spell itself was the same, which was the conclusion he’d already come to.
Now, though, Verdan realised that his intent wasn’t the problem. It was the spell. More specifically, it was the Words he was using. The way he’d been taught how to cast spells was to use a firm and precise intent where possible. In the absence of that intent, more specific Words of Power could shoulder the burden of shaping the magic to come. Longer form spells, like his Aether constructs, were formed with a predetermined purpose, so never grew beyond that.
The spell he used for Rocky failed to adhere to that method, though he hadn’t realised it at the time. His intent was for Rocky to be his champion. A protector and warrior in equal measure. The spell reflected that with his use of Daur, the Word for champion.
Of course Rocky was changing, the spell was constantly being given additional Aether from the Sigils within the construct’s body. That Aether helped maintain Rocky, but it also helped shape him into the champion that Verdan needed. When commanding the Legion, Verdan needed Rocky to become a better commander, and so he had. The spell was horrifically open-ended by the terms of what he’d learned in his youth.
Even now, Verdan had needed Rocky to become better at the tests so that he could understand what was happening. He doubted such a subtle change would normally happen, but with Verdan focusing on it so closely, the spell would have focused its effects.
By the time the Keeper was sitting down once more, Verdan understood it all. He knew what had happened, and more importantly, he knew that there was no threat here. Rocky was learning and growing, but he was doing so with Verdan’s understanding as a foundation.
