Portable Phoenix Forge

The essence of a phoenix has been melded with this portable forge, giving it the ability to create fire without ever using fuel. However, because of the enchanter’s limited ability, the object is incapable of reaching its full potential, limiting maximum temperatures and efficiency.

Penelope whistled when Lukas read the description out to her. “Phoenix essence? That’s rare. Rarer than a dragon. I can count on one hand the number of verifiable sightings and records.”

They’re rare on the Realm of Greater Beings, too.

“So, this guy got his hands on an Essence of Phoenix and wasted it on a forge.” Lukas sighed, shaking his head. “Imagine what this thing could’ve done paired with a weapon or upgrading a shard ability.”

“I believe it would’ve turned into something so terrifying,” Penelope said. “I’d put my money on it being a commission. Perhaps someone powerful in Iskander intends for it to be a present for a loved one high up in the Kingdom of Schwartzberg. No sane artisan would’ve taken on this project unless there was a significant amount of gold attached and they lacked the power to say no to the client.”

“Because it would make them a target for people eager to steal it?” Lukas asked.

“Not just that. Esther might’ve made it look easy, but artisanal work with essences, enchanting, and especially smithing, is dangerous. Without the right wards or spell scripts, elemental essences can easily overload. Explosions. Storms. Singularities. A good deal of the conclave’s work involves keeping such things from happening.”

“It also explains why Essence of Lightning isn’t available in the open market.”

“Lightning. Flame. Glacial. They’re dangerous and hence controlled. Guilds and organizations don’t just scoop them out because they’re greedy, but because the Union expects them to ensure inexperienced and foolish individuals without sufficient skills don’t cause a city, if not, nation-spanning disaster.” Penelope’s fingers traced the edge of the portable forge. “Essences of magical beasts are even more dangerous. They might not be as unstable, but they often have a will of their own. My master used to believe that vestiges, if not traces of the beast’s consciousness, live on in the essences. Stronger the beast and more potent their magic, the greater the remnant.”

“I imagine a phoenix is especially intelligent and magically potent.”

“Well, they’re as close as one can get to immortal for a start,” Penelope explained. “A surviving ember can regenerate into an egg and rebirth the phoenix. There are debates on the topic of whether it's the same individual or a new entity with memories of the old, but that’s not important. A reborn phoenix might have potent magic, but its new bodies are too weak to channel all of that power. Their minds also tend to be immature.”

“I’m guessing a juvenile or newly reborn phoenix went into this beauty,” Lukas said, rewrapping the portable forge and packing it away. It fit in the journals' Hidden Compartment, but forced Lukas to remove almost everything else. The caravan leader had lent him an extra chest. The Gauntlet of Guarding, extra weapons, all of his stolen metal, and small-denomination currency went into it. The portable forge was far too valuable not to store within. “I almost feel guilty keeping it. But why waste the death of something so powerful and ancient?”

It was true. He had killed a couple of phoenixes during his old life, but they weren’t newborns or juveniles. Both had made enemies of Silverspine through violence or a series of malicious acts. One was a warmonger who incinerated friend and foe. The other was a serial killer. Lukas had gone to great lengths to ensure all of their embers were contained and extinguished when putting them down.

Even though newborn phoenixes had memories of their past lives, they seemed innocent. Thanks to the transmigration, he didn’t recall his studies. However, experience had taught him that it wasn’t necessarily true that the new phoenix would walk the same path as the old version. There were no verifiable studies or evidence, but it went against one of the few self-imposed rules Lukas had: no harming of children. He, of course, couldn’t do anything about butterfly effects and tried his best not to think about them.

“Why be wasteful, indeed. The power-hungry rarely take age or innocence into consideration when plotting their big moves.” Penelope paused, studying Lukas closely as he put everything away. “I understand why you’ve been second-guessing accompanying me to the conclave. We aim to do good wherever we go, but there are some who believe the ends justify the means.”

Lukas smiled. “I know how to deal with people like that. My former employer was far worse than Mister Gray, the coven, or—”

“You’ve recovered your memories from prior to the Wyrmkin raid?” Penelope interrupted.

“Only flashes. But I know how to handle myself. However, wit and banter will only get you so far. They’re meaningless without the strength to back it all up.”

“And how is that going?”

“I’m at the starting line,” Lukas said. “All the pieces are there. My Body ability isn’t the greatest, but Shadowsteel makes up for it.”

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“A good starting shard is an incredible bonus for sure, but often the essences you pour into them can make all the difference. I bet the Essence of Steel, combined with whatever your Heart ability becomes, will more than make up for it.”

“It’s not so bad now that I can create clones with full control over Alter Metal Mass. It feels like we haven’t tapped into its true potential yet. I’m sure my opinion will change. Altering mass, playing with the laws of physics, the possibilities are endless.”

Lukas moved on from the subject, turning his attention to the rest of the loot. He hadn’t had the time to inspect it all until they were all secure in the carriage and started moving. Far too many workers, the caravan leaders, and guards had stuck around them thus far.

Starforged Hammer

The hammer was forged using a shard ability capable of producing starfire, making it exceptionally durable and capable of withstanding heat from a star. The enchantments further increase the hammer’s strength and durability, and also help reduce the amount of cracks and laminations while forging, drawing out, and folding metals.

“Your smithing clones will appreciate it,” Penelope said when Lukas read out the details. “You could very well become a one-man army or business enterprise, you know? Once you have enough clones, I mean.”

“Power for wealth or wealth for power has never interested me,” Lukas replied.

“What it is do you want, then?” The sorcerer leaned, sat back in her cushioned carriage seat, arms crossed. It spanned the length of the carriage from front to back, and Lukas sat on an identical bench opposite her. They were long enough for either of them to stretch out. He guessed the vehicle was meant to house a party of four or more. Since Shae preferred sitting on top and studying the landscape, they had it all to themselves. “Do you seek power just for the sake of it? So you don’t have to answer to anyone and act and move as you please?”

“That’s what I like to claim.” He smiled, letting out a soft snort. “But it's not strictly true. You need to understand, my life before this was all about service and living on the whims of others. Now, I can finally live on my terms. Freedom and not living my life constantly looking over my shoulder or existing on the whims of others is just the beginning. It will allow me to figure out what makes me happy. Afterward, I’ll need the strength to protect whatever that is.”

“And no one can take it from you?”

“Precisely. What that something is, how I’ll find it, and what will come afterward is all beyond me. But after living as a—” Lukas caught himself before mentioning Silverspine, assassin, or spy. “—slave of ‘my betters’, I have to try. I might as well do some good while at it.”

“Doing good? That’s far too broad and a matter of perspective. For all we know, the coven was doing good in their own twisted way. What if they intended to take the slaver ring from the inside, alongside the city that allowed them to be trafficked and turned them into playthings? The Wyrmkin might see bringing back Drakan as liberation for their kind. Currently, the world sees them as barbarians and forces them to assimilate or become the enemy.”

“I understand as much,” Lukas said. “What we consider good might be bad for someone else. I suppose the point is minimizing the number of innocent lives that fall victim to whatever the more powerful are plotting. The Wyrmkin might have similar, if not more, numbers on their side, but our job is to help the people we can see. Also, if their life’s purpose is to bring about the warmongering Great Red Dragon that intends to cover the world in flames—”

“That’s not all Wyrmkin,” Penelope interrupted, lifting her long legs onto the bench and undoing her boots. “Just Drakan’s cult. The majority of Wyrmkin stick to their territories, staying far from all other intelligent races.” She rested her back against the front of the cabin and stretched out her legs. “They still refuse to assimilate or communicate with us, but that’s for good reason. Every interaction ends in bloodshed shed and it's often not their fault. Do you understand where I’m coming from?”

Lukas nodded before turning his attention to the final piece of loot.

Essence of Ambush

He didn’t know what to make of the glass sphere. It appeared empty most of the time, but occasionally a beak would appear out of nowhere and snap closed before retreating into nothing. Lukas wasn’t sure what it would do or interact with his abilities, but was keen to find out. It seemed like a decent alternative for Shade’s Mantle. Currently, he had the Essence of Dusk set aside for it, but Lukas liked having options.

A pair of clones manifested in quick succession. The first had Biomancy and high mass. It received instructions to practice facial and body transformations. The chances of gaining another rank and unlocking the mid-tier ability felt unlikely, but that didn’t feel the most important task. Lukas wanted his clones to be capable of consistently mimicking set faces and features instead of coming up with a new appearance every time he needed their services. It would allow them to have set personas capable of building trust and entering circles that took time to infiltrate.

The other was an ordinary, normal-mass mage with Spellweaver. Lukas gave it instructions to work on new spells with storm energy. More specifically, Penelope was nice enough to teach him the basics of touch spells. He didn’t just want something akin to Shocking Touch capable of stunning or frying people. Lukas hoped for a spell using sound magic, too capable of imbalancing someone’s inner ear or inflicting internal damage. Powerful, flashy spells were useful, but quiet assassination or disabling tools also had incredible value.

It was tempting to make more clones, but Lukas resisted. Four bodies made the carriage’s interior crowded enough. He worried that increasing the load further would also alert the driver. The vehicle had glass windows on the front to allow communication with the driver and another at the back attached to the door. Neither had windows, but Penelope had hung blouses over them for privacy. The guards, merchants, and the workers knew better than to peek in on the Cold Fire Sorcerer, but she refused to take risks.

Penelope had her rare texts out and sat reading them in silence. She continued to refuse his requests for access to them, claiming they were too advanced for him and that he needed to get better. She believed he was already advancing too fast without mastering the fundamentals or basic techniques, and worried that he’d fail to resist the temptation of power. Apparently, far too many mages had ended themselves or far too many other lives attempting magic they didn’t understand or lacked the necessary skills to control.

It seemed Penelope expected an argument whenever she turned him down, but Lukas didn’t push. Instead, he flipped open the journal and read all the texts he had copied. The current object of his focus was the mysteriously named concept of Shadowfire.