Steamforged Sorcery - Chapter 20 (Patreon)

With a rumble, the metal platform thudded against the sand beneath them. The three of them stepped off it and into the sweltering desert. Without saying a word, Angel grabbed his board and tossed it to the ground. Vanessa activated her skates and Cowl’s wings popped out from his back.

Cowl shot off first, kicking up a small puff of sand as his wings fluttered into motion. Angel and Vanessa followed close behind him. As they picked up speed, cold wind whipped against Angel. He let out a sigh of relief as some of the desert heat faded away.

They shot across the sand, traversing dunes and valleys for several minutes. Cowl glanced over his shoulder several times. It was impossible to tell what the Hunter was thinking with his mask in place.

“Where are we headed to next?” Angel called over the howling wind.

“Silver Sand,” Cowl called back. “Two and a half days of travel. It’s our last stretch of safe travel before we start heading towards the center of the Barren.”

“You call what we’ve done so far safe?” Vanessa asked.

“Safer than the second leg of our journey,” Cowl said. “Silver Sand is a popular trading outpost. The area around it is heavily patrolled and safe but getting and leaving the area can occasionally pose problems. It’s frequented by bandits.”

“…what about the Magistrate?” Vanessa asked weakly, clearly already knowing what the response would be.

“Couldn’t care less,” Cowl said. “The bandits in the area don’t kill anyone – they just extort them. They won’t even take all your money when they rob you.”

“Why?”

“Bad for business,” Angel replied. “I’ve never been to Silver Sands, but if everyone going there got robbed or murdered, nobody would go there. The bandits keep the amount they take limited and are probably rewarded by the Magistrate for keeping the rest of the crime away from the city.”

“Ding,” Cowl said. “It’s annoying, but just look at it like a toll to enter the city. They only ask for a few Vex most of the time. You just don’t want to be caught unable to pay their fee, or they’ll make an example out of you.”

“Lovely people,” Vanessa muttered darkly. “Magistrates shouldn’t have to rely on criminals.”

“You’re welcome to try and fix the problem once your mom passes the title onto you,” Angel said, chuckling.

“I think I will,” Vanessa said, turning her nose up at them.

The trio traveled through the rest of the day. The sun drew an arc over their heads and started to lower beyond the horizon. It set beneath the burnt orange sand. They stopped a short while later to set up camp.

After a brief dinner of jerky and water, Angel pulled the pendant out and started to fiddle with it once more. The faint moonlight made it difficult to make much of anything out, but the spotlight from Angel’s eyepiece was enough to illuminate the artifact.

Cowl and Vanessa both watched Angel as he muttered under his breath and ran his metal fingers along the device, trying to coax its purpose out.

“You’ve been working on that thing every single night,” Cowl said. “Are you even making any progress with it?”

“A decent amount, actually,” Angel replied. “It’s one of the more promising projects I’ve worked on. I think I’m very close to getting it to work.”

“What does it do?” Vanessa asked.

“Not sure. I’ll figure that out when it works,” Angel replied, sending a small spark of magic into it. The minute hand ticked back once.

“Are you sure it’s not just a defective clock?” Cowl asked, letting out a low chuckle. “It doesn’t exactly seem worth your time.”

“Every artifact is worth my time,” Angel replied. “If I can get even a hint of the Old World magic’s workings out from within it, my efforts will be well spent.”

Cowl grunted and slipped into his sleeping bag. “If you spent all that effort training, you might have been able to become a Hunter.”

“Why would I want to do that?” Angel scoffed. “I don’t mind fighting when I need to, but living to seek out monsters just sounds like suicide with extra steps. I’m more than happy delving in my catacombs, finding riches artifacts.”

“And relics,” Cowl added.

Angel’s skin prickled. He kept his eyes focused on the pendant. “Like I’d have the luck to find a relic.”

“Aren’t they just more powerful artifacts?” Vanessa asked. “My mom has one.”

“They’re more than that,” Angel replied, shifting to make himself more comfortable. “Relics are on an entirely different level. Artifacts are all man made. Lost technology from before the Great War. On the other hand, according to what little sources we still have from the early ages of man, Relics are natural. They’re magic itself.”

“And they’re incredibly powerful,” Cowl added. “They contain powers beyond anything that an artifact could do. I’ve heard of a relic that can reverse the process of aging.”

“Which is exactly why, even if I had a relic, I wouldn’t fiddle with it like I do with an artifact,” Angel said, trying not to glance down at his travel pack where the glowing red cube rested. “A mistake with an artifact fries the artifact. Mess up with a relic – who knows. If you blow yourself up, you could consider that lucky.”

“Do you have a relic?” Vanessa asked Cowl. “It sounds like something a Hunter would have. They must be useful against monsters.”

“I don’t,” Cowl said, his robotic voice crackling. “Not for lack of trying. I’ve been searching for one for a very long time. Anyone who possesses a relic is very careful to keep it hidden from the rest of the world. Unless you wield great power, you’ll paint a giant target on your back if you have one.”

“Sounds like more trouble than it’s worth,” Vanessa said.

“Only if you can’t figure out how the relic works,” Cowl replied.