Dallion slid his fingers along the blade of the golden harpsisword. His improved senses made him aware of the fine craftsmanship that had gone into its forging. It was as if his fingers were sliding along air. And still, it didnt feel like his harpsisword. There was sothing inalienably foreign about it, even if he couldnt determine exactly what.
Go ahead. The general waved his hand. Test it if you want, but you only get two tries when you start for real.
Two tries hardly enough for such a task. On the other hand, Dallion had nothing to lose if he failed, and so much to gain if successful. Carefully, he pulled each of the strings. The tones were perfect, although different from the ones his weapon made. In a way it was simplerwhoever had made this had focused on copying the full octave. That ant, though, that matching a vibration would follow a different thod. Everything that Dallion had learned so far had pretty much gone to waste.
Why two tries? Dallion asked.
Everyone deserves a second chance. No matter the circumstances.
A sound philosophy, which didnt make things much easier at present. From experience Dallion knew that if he didnt make it the first ti, hed need at least ten more tis to get it right. It was the sa in video gassucceed on the first go, or ragequit after a dozen failures, then succeed after cooling down.
Can I try it out on an object before I go for it? Dallion asked in hope.
Smart move. The general clapped. That shows you really know how to use a harpsisword. The answer is no. You either go all out or not at all.
What if I use my first attempt on the object, then?
Hmm.
You said I have two goes, so even if I fail, I get a second try. I just want to have my first try on sothing other than you.
I guess you caught . The general nodded to one of the furies. The guard reached out and summoned a small jade vase. Let up the ante, then. This vase costs about a hundred gold in the real world. If youre confident enough in your abilities, Ill let you have your first try on it. However, should you fail in your second attempt, youll owe ten gold if you break it, which is ten percent of its standard price. The mans eyes narrowed. Of course, if the vase remains unhard, you wont owe anything at all.
It was obvious that the general was playing mind gas, or to be more precise, he didnt want to be outdone by clever logic. For a mont Dallion thought that he had been clever, but as he quickly found out, there was no outsmarting soone with money and influence who wanted to end up on top. Or maybe there was.
Sure, Dallion replied. There was a small loophole that the general had left open. At no point did Dallion say he would want to break the item during his practice trial. All that had been assud.
Music, Dallion thought.
As with the to in the ring library, a single tone ca from the iteman unbreakable calm surrounding it. With this harpsisword, that ant playing two notes simultaneously. The fingers of his left hand still stung a bit each ti he touched the strings, but it was nowhere as bad as it could have been.
How to change an emotion. Nil hadnt explained the process in detail, and Dallion hadnt read so far ahead. It was an advanced use of the music skills, that was for sure. From what Dallion could assu, the trick was to change the lody part way in. Going by standard logic, the first note was to attune to the targetthats the reason it froze, it was waiting for the next input. Going by that theory, he had to play the combination of emotions he wanted the target to obtain following the exact sa timing.
If the vase displayed calm, Dallion had to replace it with a combination of tenderness and excitent. Thinking back, he had seen a lot of instances of excitent during his battles, but only one of tenderness.
Here goes nothing, Dallion thought, and played the strings that vibrated along with the vases calm. The blue markers appeared and started making their way to the tip of the sword. At the precise mont they reached it, Dallion repeated the process. The blue markers appeared once more.
So far, so good. At least the timing didnt cause any problem. The real trick started now, though. Instead of two strings, Dallion was going to have to play five, if his assumptions of lody conversion were correct.
Waiting for just the right mont, he pulled the strings with the fingers of both hands. The lody kept sounding. That was the good part. The effect, however, was less than what he had hoped for. Instead of changing, the vase was now oscillating between its original frequency and the new one. Was this a good thing? Dallions subconscious told him it was along with the slight headache that had started to form in the area of his temples. Holding his breath, he repeated the process.
This ti the effect was imdiate. The calm gone, the vase flew towards him, as if attracted by a magnet. The action was so sudden that Dallion could only pull the shield in front of him for protection. A loud crash told him that wasnt the best choice.
Excellent, the general said with a snobbish smirk and a slow clap. I must say, this is the first ti I see an item react this way. You still owe ten gold coins, however. Well, that is unless you convince otherwise. He crossed his arms with a cocky look on his face. Ready for the real thing?
Drat! That was so stupid! Dallion cursed. He could have easily caught the vase if he hadnt acted so surprised. Now he was in debt no matter what happened. His only hope was to have sothing to show for it.
Yes, General, Dallion said, taking a deep breath. He had to remain calm on this. If he allowed himself to get provoked, the battle was as good as over. He focused his senses on the new target.
Calmness and excitent rged into one, displaying doubt. At the sa ti, Dallion could sense another type of excitent on its own.
Isolate the emotions, Dallion thought. All he had to do was get rid of the doubt and build on the excitent and add so tenderness, this would work. It was all in the timing.
Here we go, he played the strings. A tone filled the air, matching so of the generals vibrations. When the markers appeared, Dallion knew that he had gotten the first part right. From the look of things, he wasnt the only one. Both furies put up their guards, ready to react should he attempt anything dangerous on their employer. Lethal aggression stread from them.
As the markers reached the tip, Dallion played the new set of strings. Part of the generals emotions began to oscillate, though not as much as they had with the vase. That was to be expectedhe was a sapient being, after all. Keeping his cool, Dallion repeated the process a second ti, then a third, and a fourth.
Bit by bit the oscillation shifted in his favor, but still the doubt wouldnt dissipate. It was almost as if with every success a new doubt erged. Normally, that wouldnt have been a bad thing, yet with each ti Dallion played a chord, the pain in his head and fingers increased. By the seventh ti he felt like burning pins were drilling into the back of his skull. By the tenth, his vision was starting to blur.
Why wouldnt the doubt go away? There was only a sliver of it left, but it had been there the last four tis as well, refusing to leave. Dallions initial theory had been correct, and the execution had remained spot on, so why wasnt the general changing his mind? Sothing had to be missing, but what?
Think, Dallion told himself. The general wanted to give him the shield, that much was obvious. Not only that, but the separate excitent had increased, likely intrigued by the effect Dallions music was having. Then, what was keeping him back? If Dallion were in the generals shoes, what would prevent him from giving sothing he owned? For one he had to be inclined to do sowhich the general already was. However, that wasnt always enough. Being okay with doing sothing didnt automatically an soone would do it, there had to be
Thats it! Dallion thought. The reason the general hadnt agreed was because he didnt feel any joy in doing it.
Quickly, Dallion waited for the correct mont, then added a note of joy.
Theres no beating so good old dopamine, he thought. Hardly had he done so when the awakened realm disappeared, returning them to the real-world room.
There was a long mont of silence. Dallions head was still pounding, but he forced himself to smile.
Sorry about that, the general said, with a slight yawn of disappointnt. My guards get twitchy when music is involved. You can never be too careful with those higher skills. In any event, you managed to convince . A bit unorthodox, I must admit. Personally, I thought youd follow a different approach, but Ill gladly consider this a win as well.
A different approach? Dallion wondered.
So, he passed? Arthurows asked.
With flying colors. Provided he has the three gold, of course.
Dallion returned the harpsisword to the fury, then reached into his pouch and took out three gold coins. While it was good to have an adequate shield, the action had pretty much bankrupt him for the week, not to ntion that in twelve days hed have to pay the sa amount for the second month.
Life was definitely getting expensive. The arrangent with Hannah might have allowed him to find a room rent free, but that didnt go for his gear. At the end of the day, there was no such thing as living rent free in Nerosal.
My offer still stands, the general said. Fulfil the canes destiny and you get to keep the shield. Until then, I wish you the best of luck.
Thank you, General. Dallion made a slight bow. On the inside, he was sweating bullets. He had gone through so close calls so far, but this felt more terrifying than all of them. Had he ssed up he would have ended up with the equivalent of a student loan he would have had serious difficulties paying off. Even now, the situation wasnt as rosy.
Use it with care. The general had one of the furies give Dallion the armadil shield. Now that weve concluded that, Kilina will show you out. The man turned around, making his way to his seat near the entrance. Thanks for the treat, Art. Entertaining as always. Please co back if theres anything else you wish to rent. Im sure it could be arranged.
Given what this test was, Dallion had no intention of asking for anything else. Not to ntion, he didnt have the funds to rent any more gear.
The fury from the reception appeared shortly after, escorting Arthurows and Dallion out of the room. Nothing was said while she did so, at least not out loud. Arthurows seed unusually relieved with the entire situation, as for Dallion
Congratulations, the new shield said to him. Nice save back there. You sure know how to raise the stakes. I guess life with you will be quite interesting.
Item Awakening
Dallion entered the shield. Apart from being tired of participating in a one-sided conversation, he wanted to see the guardian he had rented.
The SHIELD is Level 2
You are in an elegant sky silver room.
Defeat the guardian to change the SHIELDs destiny.
Knowing how difficult it was to improve sky silver, Dallion had no intention of trying. Unlike the rooms he had seen before, this one was shaped like a tower, or rather like a very chic maisonette that extended five floors high. It was well lit, perfectly furnished, with a winding staircase ascending up along the walls.
Up here, the voice said, far more lodic than it sounded on the outside. Sorry I couldnt greet you, but you know the rules.
Of course, the rulesa guardian couldnt leave its chamber. Cautiously, Dallion made his way to the start of the staircase and looked up.
No need to worry, I wont attack you, the guardian laughed. After finally finding soone, I can talk to, itll be a waste. Co right up.
There was a definite sincerity in the shields voice. Leaving all hesitation behind, Dallion started the long climb up. Each section of the tower was very different from what he expected it to be. Apart from the floor, each was fashioned like a master bedroom of a different style based on the ti of day. The fifth floor, of course, was the one that held the guardian and he too was not at all what Dallion had expected.
SHIELD GUARDIAN
Species: Dryad
Class: Shadow
Statistics: 100% Health
Skills:
- Splinter Arrows
- Entangle
- Regrowth
Weak spots: none
No weak spots? That was always sothing to be cautious of. The most unexpected feature of the guardian, though, was his appearance. Half-naked, he resembled more a model or a male pop-idol than an actual guardian. Slender, but with pronounced muscles and long green curly hair, he was probably perfect for a Twilight novel. The trousers he was wearing were more like britches ending above his knees, as if he were about to grab a surf at any mont.
Hey, you made it, the dryad said once Dallion reached the top floor. I must say it feels good to finally see so action again. Ive been pinned to a wall for so long, Ive almost forgotten how to move.
Youre welco Dallion blinked. He had this feeling as if had co to visit the playboy on campus. Arent you? he pointed.
Huh? The dryad looked down at his chest. Oh, the clothes. Yeah, sorry about that. Im not up to the latest fashion. Give so ti and Ill get my bearings. Just bring to a few social events and Ill pick up sothing stylish.
Err, thats not exactly the issue. This was without a doubt the weirdest guardian Dallion had seen. Well, second weirdest, after the copyette. He was just as talkative, though, if not more so. Shouldnt you be more combat oriented and all?
I guess I can put so armor on if you want. The dryad shrugged. Your choice really. Well, actually its partially your choice. You might have , but my owner remains Balall. Until you win over, that is. No pressure, but Id really appreciate it if you do that. As I said, being part of an ancient collectionnot the best experience.
Ill give it my best. Why am I making promises to a piece of armor? Dallion wondered.
Anyway, I just wanted to let you know, anyti you need comfort after a long day or a difficult trial, Im here to accommodate. And dont worry, you dont have to tell your preferences, Im a very good observer.
Okay, just stop! Dallion snapped. This is getting way too awkward.
It is? I hadnt noticed. There was a brief pause. You are aware Im a companion shield, right?
Look, Ive only been awakened for a month, so maybe tone the weirdness down a bit, okay? All I want to know right now is just how to use you in battle.
A month? the guardian asked. And you only rented because you wanted a shield?
Yeah. You were the one who spoke to , so I thought youd be a good fit. Thats how I found my harpsisword pretty much.
The dryad remained silent for several seconds, eyes fixed on Dallion, then shook his head with a sigh.
Oh dear, he said. I think theres so explaining I need to do.
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