58
It was another two weeks before Milo felt comfortable enough to return to the Workshop. He’d been interviewed by more people who called themselves representatives of the Mage Court.
He was sure one of the old men who sat in on one meeting was even an actual member of the Court.
The old man had asked Milo to retake the test to check his mana levels.
Milo had no reason to say no, and the old mage had lost interest after it was confirmed he had almost no mana in his blood.
“So, it’s true,” the old man said at the end of the meeting. “You’re a boy with a sharp brain, but no real magical talent.”
“I’m not sure if that’s an insult or not,” Milo returned.
“A little of both,” the old man said with a mischievous grin. “It’s a pity your mana capacity is so weak. We could use some smart lads like you. New blood is lacking.”
When the meetings were over, he had to deal with the looks and questions from other students. Cerena had plenty.
“I’m not sure what I can tell you,” he said more often than not. “The Mage Court told me not to say too much.”
Thankfully, Ket was around to herd the students away when it got too cluttered around him.
“Off ya go, kids,” she’d growl. “This ain’t a zoo.”
As Milo entered the Workshop again, he felt a lifting of his heart as the familiar smells of burnt metal and grease filled his nostrils.
“It’s good to be home,” he said as Click and Clack raced out of nowhere and zoomed around his feet. He reached down and gently patted each of his two spider golems. “It’s good to see you, too.”
The first thing he did was go to his workbench.
He stood over it and patted it with a smile. He couldn’t wait to get back to work. This time, he would try to understand the blueprints more. Try to work out what he was doing. Decipher the dwarven mind.
If that was possible.
As far as he could gather, and judging by Tania and Selma, they were a race of lonely old perverts.
He wasn’t sure he wanted to decipher them that much.
“Milo?”
The soft voice appeared almost from nowhere, making him jump.
“Damn it,” he growled. “Make some noise before creeping up on me like that! It’s bad enough when Tania does it.”
“I’m sorry,” Fulka said. “I was waiting for you, that’s all. But I wasn’t sure it was you, so I kept my camouflage on.”
“That’s alright.” He grabbed at his chest and shook his head. “I should’ve called out to you. How are you doing? Is everything okay?”
Fulka gave a shake of her arm. “I think something is rattling in here. It might be a little loose.”
“Alright. I’ll have a look later today.” Then he gave her a steady look. “Everything went fine?”
“It was as you said.” She pointed to the trophy room. “I put it in there. I weren’t too sure what you wanted to do with it.”
Inside the trophy room, he found the large machine core the Mage Court was now hunting for. Their search had spread out around the town, and they were hunting Fulka with obsessive desperation.
Her face was on posters all over the place.
So was Fergus’ father’s.
Milo had a feeling the Mage Court was happy with that. There seemed to be a deep resentment that went two ways between the court and the Paddstones. Milo wondered what had caused it.
He lifted the core in his hands.
It was heavy. Dwarven metal was light, but the gem itself was heavy. A ruby, he thought. As big as his fist. Even with his feeble power, he could tell there was a lot of mana in it. The staff to use the core was resting against the wall in the corner.
He could put it together.
Maybe even use it.
But that didn’t interest him all that much. What interested him was the thing’s relationship to the Prime.
“Fed? Is there somewhere we can slot this?”
Affirmative, Milo. The Keep’s Machine Core Station has been rerouted and is now positioned directly against the Security Room.
“It’s what?” He glanced at Fulka. “Rerouted?”
The Keep is capable of moving some rooms for security purposes, Milo, Fed rumbled coolly. The Machine Core Station is one such. It has been made accessible to you as you currently possess the Prime’s Machine Core.”
Milo cradled the core in his arms as he moved to the Security Room. Fulka scuttled along behind him.
“You did very well,” he said. “Really well.”
“I tried,” she said, sounding relieved. “It was real hard listening to him rant against ya, though. Sometimes I just wanted to bop him in the teeth.”
Milo smiled. “It doesn’t matter now. We’ve got the core. Now maybe the Prime will give us access to whatever else we need.”
Entering the Security Room it was clear the room had changed. For starters, where there used to be a clean wall, there was now a door. The door had a small crystal panel beside it.
“Do I need a key?”
Negative, Milo. Biological resonance is sufficient.
“I don’t know what that is,” Milo said. “But alright.”
He put a hand on the panel and the machinery within the door clunked as it started to slowly slide open to reveal a small room lit by mage lights. They looked old. Two of them flickered, clearly losing mana. And one wasn’t working.
There was nothing in the room except a large square block which looked to be made of stone, though there were strips of copper forming intricate patterns on all sides. A few small gems, mostly quartz, also studded the copper here and there.
Dwarven runes were etched around the base, and they were thrumming lightly as mana glowed within them. Like all the other runes in the Keep.
Stepping up to the cube which was about hip-high, he leaned out and gently placed the core into a slot which looked made for it.
The core clicked into place.
Then a steady hum began to permeate the room. The cube vibrated slightly. He had a feeling there was an incredible amount of power suddenly coursing through the cube.
Where it went, he didn’t know.
But a gentle feminine voice suddenly spoke, the sound coming from all around.
Initiating Prime Core Activation Sequence.
Activation Sequence Initiated.
Please Hold.
Milo glanced at Fulka, who was looking around as though trying to find the source of the voice. Eventually, she shrugged at him.
He shrugged back.
Activation Sequence Complete.
Greetings, Engineer Milo.
He waved to the air in front of him. “Umm. Hello.”
You have many questions.
“I do.”
I have few answers.
“Oh.” He sighed. “That’s disappointing.”
If you gain access, I can answer most of your questions.
“Haven’t I just done that?”
You have activated the Prime by providing power to the circuits. As power is restored, the Keep will begin to activate. More functions will become available to you. However, to access these functions, you must be granted full access.
“Okay. Makes sense. How do I do that?”
The Makers, who you call dwarves, perished. Instructions were left to provide access to a suitable candidate engineer. Access to the Workshop was required to test your ability to read blueprints and assemble basic constructs.
To grant further access, you must be able to fulfill further functions without assistance from the Workshop’s systems.
“I’m not sure what you mean.”
The Workshop has activated a translation matrix which has made the process of transferring information simple. This should have provided you a suitable foundation on which to grow.
The Makers foresaw the possibility that one such as yourself would access their systems, but they were afraid you would not possess the cultural understandings necessary to complete their work.
“Cultural understanding?” He pursed his lips. “You mean, like understanding why the golems are so flirty?”
In a manner of speaking, yes.
“What do I need to do?”
You have been monitored, Milo Mooney. Your path since you entered the Keep, which your people call the Academy, has been followed.
Your first instinct was correct.
“My first…?” He trailed off, remembering. “Language. You want me to learn the dwarven language?”
That is correct. If you understand the language, then texts can be provided.
Some constructs are dangerous, Milo. It is not safe to hand them over until you have a full understanding of what makes them dangerous.
“I think the golems I’ve made are fairly dangerous enough,” he said drily.
With respect, they are toys.
“Hmm.” He ran his fingers through his hair. “I guess I’m going to be busy for a while, then.”
Some assistance can be provided. Some direction given.
But effort must be made so understanding is complete.
“I understand.”
Good luck, Milo Mooney.
“Part of this learning won’t involve traps, will it? Like, if I get something wrong, you’re not going to chop me up into pieces with a saw, are you?”
That would be unlikely.
“That’s not a no.”
It is not.
“Right. So, be careful is what you’re saying.” Then Milo turned to Fulka and smiled at her. “Well. I suppose we need to give you a new face and a name if you’re going to be the fourth member of our team.”
“Really?” She clapped her hands together and let out a chirp of joy. “Can I choose it myself?”
“Sure,” he said. “Why not?”