《Chapter and Verse》


 1. Determined

    Anu was a determined child.


    At 12, without telling her parents, she had marched into the local forge and demanded to be made an apprentice. Duncan, the smith, had said yes out of pity, not expecting this tiny but loud mess of red hair to turn up the next day.


    She did. Six days a week she¡¯d turn up, and do the most menial of tasks. Chopping firewood. Fetching supplies. Handling customers. After a month, he¡¯d given in, and taught her for real. He¡¯d taught her the basics of forging, and inscribing equipment. After a year of that, she was ready to handle some of the smaller jobs. Another year, and she was handling some of the inscriptions herself.


    Anu was a determined child, who hated the isolated mining town she grew up in, and saw forging as her best chance to escape. Stubborn down to her last breath, she¡¯d worked in the forge for almost four years, saving up for her chance to move on.


    ¡°Duncan, here¡¯s the ward. I may have tweaked the inscription a little¡±


    Three months before her sixteenth, Anu looked much the same, albeit a little taller. Brown eyes, fiery red hair, same olive skin.


    She¡¯d found Duncan, sitting at a workbench in the back of the forge.


    ¡°Thank you Anu. I¡¯ll put the money aside as ever¡±


    Duncan examined the orb in his hand, a barrier ward. Anu had cut a few extra lines into the magic circuit. He was a little too curious about the changes, and completely ignored Anu talking.


    ¡°Three more contracts and I¡¯ll finally be taking my savings, I have enough! I¡¯m finally going to the academy. The entrance examination is in a few months, too¡±


    ¡°Huh, what¡±


    ¡°The Academy? Verse City? Don¡¯t you remember, Duncan?¡±


    ¡°Of course I remember! I just didn¡¯t think you were that serious. I thought you¡¯d wait a little longer¡±


    Anu frowned.


    ¡°Fine Anu. Serious. So, I assume magic circuits are your first, but what¡¯s your second discipline? That¡¯s why I couldn¡¯t get in, only good at equipment¡±


    Anu replied with a confused look.


    ¡°Oh, Anu.¡±


    The academy was divided into four schools: Artists, Scholars, Soldiers, Smiths. The entrance exams were technically open to all, but, he explained, she¡¯d need two schools to accept her.


    The soldier, school taught weapons, swords, offensive and defensive magic.


    The scholars, taught accounting, languages, history, and the study of nature.


    The artists, taught music, painting, sculpture


    The smiths, taught forging, but only of magic equipment.


    ¡°... Anu?¡±


    Duncan looked at the now petrified Anu. Staring, eyes wide open in shock. Anu had assumed she could get into the academy on her magic circuits alone.


    She had no talent for the sword, and almost no magic ability. The small mining town she called home offered no real opportunity to grow, or to escape. The forge was the exception, a specialist brought in to maintain the mining equipment.


    Anu was watching her best chance to leave crumble in front of her.Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    ¡°What do I do?¡±, Anu looked up at Duncan, she was the most hopeless he¡¯d ever seen her.


    ¡°Right now? Nothing. You¡¯re done for the day. Actually, Anu¡±


    Duncan leaned over in his chair, and pulled out a lump, wrapped in a leather cloth.


    ¡°This was meant to be your 16th birthday present, but, maybe this might help¡±


    Anu snapped out of her mild panic to examine the gift. A large, leather bound book, worn around the edges, with a handful of extra notes stuffed in the back.


    ¡°I thought you could do with a third book¡±, Duncan smiled.


    Anu had two prized possessions. Books on magic circuits.


    The first was an introductory volume, explaining the mechanics of mana, how circuits collected, aligned, and emitted mana. It was technically Duncan¡¯s book but he¡¯d never found the courage to ask for it back. The second was ¡°A treatise on folding mechanics, part II¡±.


    Anu hadn¡¯t ever seen part I, or part III. The book, missing a few pages, and without its siblings, had become affordable. Anu had bought it immediately. She¡¯d spent many nights pouring over the intractable dry prose, trying to make sense of it.


    The book in front of her, would make three: A history of Verse City.


    ¡°Anu, I may not have able to get into the academy, but I did work in Verse for a little while, before getting posted out here. Verse, and by extension, the Academy, is not a place governed by rules. It¡¯s governed by exceptions.¡±


    Anu wasn¡¯t entirely following Duncan¡¯s logic.


    ¡°The Academy was set up by the first emperor, open to all, and well, today ...¡±


    Today, The Academy was notoriously exclusive, as well as expensive. Where royals, nobles, and the wealthy, sent their spoilt offspring to be transformed into useful people: not just to get stronger, but to be well connected in the next generation.


    ¡°.. and the extra fees? That¡¯s for mandatory accommodation, not the teaching. Anyway, that¡¯s why they still have entrance exams: yes, they¡¯ve priced people out, outsiders have to join two schools instead of one, but, technically, they still have to give everyone a chance¡±


    Duncan pointed to the gift.


    ¡°I¡¯m not saying the answers are in *this* book Anu, but, knowing Verse, there¡¯s always a loop-hole. Remember your training. Ask the right questions, enumerate the possibilities, double check your answers. Always twice: once to see if you¡¯re wrong, once to see if you¡¯re right¡±


    ¡°Well I guess I¡¯ve done the first bit, I got it wrong¡±


    ¡°and now Anu, now you have to try to get it right.¡±


    After three words, Anu joined in, repeating Duncan¡¯s words exactly. This wasn¡¯t the first failure he¡¯d talked her through. Magic inscription was an time-consuming, frustrating trade. Duncan had drilled into her that it would always take patience to make progress.


    Duncan laughed, Anu joined in.


    ¡°Look, you¡¯ve got three months left, right?¡±


    Anu nodded


    ¡°I¡¯ll be paying you a full wage, not the half you agreed to back then¡±


    Anu made a confused face, although this time, a little happier.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been putting the entirety aside. You¡¯ve been a diligent apprentice, and I¡¯ve never needed to fix your work either! Take these next three months to see if you can¡¯t come up with a plan, given you¡¯ve already saved enough for the academy.¡±


    Duncan could see that Anu was beginning to be lost in her own thoughts


    ¡°And Anu?¡±


    ¡°huh¡±


    ¡°Anu, if you don¡¯t come up with a plan, you¡¯re always welcome here. I can always put in a note to my boss, i¡¯m sure I could find you a job. It might not be in Verse, but¡±


    ¡°Thank you Duncan, and for the book too¡±


    Anu mulled over Duncan¡¯s advice. For, ¡®Asking the right question¡¯, Anu decided to find everything out about the admissions process and examinations.


    Anu took her new gift, and went home to scheme.


    It wasn¡¯t entirely bad news for Anu. Duncan was right, she needed a second school, but, it might be a little easier than she feared. She needed two recommendations, a major, and a minor, to enter into the Academy. The examinations and requirements for the minor were much simpler.


    In her search, she had outright rejected the Soldiers, and focused on the Scholars and Artists. She¡¯d found loop-holes, but she wasn¡¯t going to pick up a musical instrument quickly, nor learn a new language to speak.


    She put it to one side, and went back to the Soldiers exams, to discover her loop-hole: The exam for Magical Beasts (Summoned or Contracted Familiars).


    Using animals to fight was older than the human use of magic, and even the the earliest magic spells were to complete a contract. Humans would offer some of their mana, giving the beast the opportunity to grow, and in exchange the beast would follow and defend the human. Summoning was different: Using untold amounts of mana, a magician could bring over incredibly powerful beasts.


    Anu wouldn¡¯t be able to contract anything stronger than her, or offer much mana, but it didn¡¯t matter. The examination was buried in a footnote, and the entry requirements were simply to have a familiar.


    There was one creature she might be able to form a contract with: a spider.

 2.

    Anu planned to blame Duncan if her plan didn¡¯t work out. He''d inspired her.


    Duncan loved to tell stories about the history of magic, and magic circuits. His favourite myth was about an emperor, who watched the spiders in the royal gardens, gaining inspiration for his magical circuits.


    The spider in the story was a mana-weaver. Mana weavers spun large collective nests, and their silk conducted mana. Their silk was used in the manufacture of rather expensive magical artefacts.


    If Anu was going to look after a beast, she¡¯d rather have a useful one.


    There was a nest nearby, a couple of miles out of town, somewhere up the side of the mountain, near the mine entrance. Anu had been to the nest before. Aged 10, her and a few of the other kids stuck in the mining community had dared each other to explore the nest. They didn¡¯t see any spiders, returning home safely and rather disappointed.


    Mana weavers were generally docile creatures, and would hide from humans. You could take leftover silk without angering the hive, although damaging the web, or touching the trapped prey, would get a very angry response.


    The spiders were about half the height of an adult, and, for Anu, a little less terrifying this time around. She had walked carefully into the nest. It was easy to find, as large overlapping webs extending out of the mouth of a cave tended to stand out.


    From her backpack she had unfurled a large magic circuit, carefully laying out the parchment on the ground, taking care not to rip it. The circuit was one large circle, drawn in conductive ink, with lines stretching across it, and out to smaller circles across the page.


    Her plan was relatively straight forward. Wait for a drone to walk into the circle, try and form a contract. Mana weavers operated as a hive, and Anu figured that individually, a solitary weaver might be easier to contract with.


    That and they wouldn¡¯t attack her until then. Probably.


    Anu waited by the circuit.


    The drones had vanished inside the cave as she had approached. After a coupe of minutes, three drones appeared, and slowly explored the cave entrance. Anu gripped her fists, waiting for one of the drones to approach the circle. They didn¡¯t. The drones would meander close to the circuit and scuttle away as soon as they touched the conductive ink.


    Anu waited by the circuit.


    The three drones had vanished. Four larger drones, with thicker legs and smaller abdomens, had come to explore. Ignoring the circle, they surrounded Anu. After a tense minute, and one of the spider¡¯s legs getting a little too close to her face, the spiders turned back towards the cave.


    One of the soldier drones walked across the circuit, without touching the large circle. Anu weighed over her options but with only a second to spare, she pushed on with her plan. Placing her hands on the circuit, she pushed her mana into it.


    She felt some resistance, and then a shock which threw her onto her back. Pulling herself upright, she remembered to panic. Quickly looking around, she found no sign of the drones. The circuit was burned, the ink shattered.


    Anu carefully rolled the parchment back up, and took another from her satchel.


    Placing the replacement circuit on the floor, Anu waited by the circuit.


    One drone appeared. Black, like the other drones, but with golden lines around the joints. This spider carefully walked up to the circuit. Taking its time, it spent five minutes slowly walking around the circuit, behind Anu, and around the other side. Finishing, the spider walked to one side, and took a seat on the ground.The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.


    Anu could feel that the spider was looking at her.


    ¡°Hello?¡±


    The spider stood up, and walked into the centre of the contract.


    Anu tried again. In a rush, she leaned over, and pushed mana into the circuit. It felt different. Before, she felt the contract begin to activate, but then cancel out. This time she couldn¡¯t even get it to start.


    She didn¡¯t notice that the spider was now directly in front of her. Looking up, she jumped back, disconnecting herself. The spider continued walking, and after turning around, sat down exactly in the spot that Anu had occupied.


    Anu asked herself, ¡°What the ...¡±, and, dusting herself off, she carefully walked over to the spider. Without turning her back to the spider, she walked around the edge of the circuit, slowly. Coming to a stop, she looked back at the Spider, now watching her.


    The spider waited by the circuit.


    Lowering its forelegs, it placed then onto the circuit, where Anu¡¯s hands had laid. Anu watched as the circuit shimmered, the surface of the ink oscillating as mana was pushed through the circuit. The spider stopped, and withdrew its legs. Turning its head to look at Anu, staring back in disbelief.


    Anu had chastised herself for trying to speak to the spider, and now, it seems, it was offering her a contract instead.


    Taking a deep breath, she walked into the centre of the circuit, and took a seat.


    She watched the spider slowly move its legs into position, hovering just above the circuit. Anu assumed she wasn¡¯t the only one having second thoughts. Before Anu could doubt more, the spider had activated the circuit, she could feel the mana around her getting stronger, and a pressure pushing down on her body.


    For a moment she saw eight red strands reaching out from the spider and into her body. She felt an overwhelming pain, then a burning sensation as the foreign mana pushed its way around her body.


    She passed out after a good few minutes of thrashing and screaming.


    Anu woke up, bolted upright, and fell over immediately.


    Opening her eyes again, she saw a makeshift hammock spun from spider silk swinging above her head. Looking to one side, she saw the spider from before, looking over her. Pushing herself upright, she stood up, and made a seat out of the hammock.


    ¡°Um, Hello?¡±


    The spider waved its forelegs


    ¡°Did you form a contract with me?¡±


    The spider waved its forelegs up and down.


    ¡°Is that a yes?¡±


    The spider repeated the wave.


    ¡°Uhh... are you going to harm me?¡±


    The spider crossed and uncrossed its front two legs


    ¡°Is that a no?¡±


    The spider waved its forelegs up and down.


    ¡°So that¡¯s¡±, Anu flapped her arms, ¡°for yes¡±, crossed her arms ¡°for no¡±.


    The spider excitedly waved its forelegs.


    After a round of questions, Sarah found the spider, as yet unnamed was quite happy to follow her home, and onto the academy too. She¡¯d tried asking more than yes or no questions, and the spider was quite happy to answer. Unfortunately, the more excited the answer, the stronger the headache Anu got.


    ¡°Why did you contract me?¡±


    The four legs waved manically in front of Anu, and she felt a sharp pain in her skull.


    ¡°Owww aaarrhgh. Stop stop. Can we stick to Yes and No for now¡±


    The spider paused, then slowly waved a yes.


    ¡°For now, you¡¯ll follow me, and you¡¯re not going to attack anyone?¡±


    A yes.


    ¡°Can I go home now? Can you come now?¡±


    Yes.


    ¡°Perfect. Let me grab my things and then we can go back into Town. Wait. Town.¡±


    Anu remembered that it might not the best idea to take a spider, just over half her size, back to town.


    ¡°Wait. I need to put a marker on you, so people know you¡¯re my contra..¡±, ¡°so they know you¡¯re tame¡±, Anu corrected herself.


    Taking a wide, flat blue ribbon, she tied it gently around the spider¡¯s abdomen, where it met the thorax, tying off the ends into a large bow.


    ¡°There¡±


    ¡®Problem solved¡¯, thought Anu, ¡®a spider wearing a bow *must* be tame¡¯. As Anu reassured herself the plan was still working, she was dismayed to watch the spider slowly fidget with the bow. The spider adjusted it for a few moments before tearing it off in frustration.


    The spider scratched itself, trying to relieve itself of what seemed to be an itch.


    ¡°Uh. I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t know it would scratch, I just thought a bow would let...¡±


    Anu stopped talking, realising the spider wasn¡¯t listening, it was weaving. A very similar wide, flat ribbon was taking shape from under its spinnerets. No quicker than Anu had realised what it was doing, the spider had finished weaving a new ribbon and tied it around itself in a bow, using its extra legs to hold it in place to hold it taught.


    Five minutes later, Anu had a new white silken headband around her forehead, tied around the back, also in a bow. Anu wondered if this was the spider marking her, after it rejected her marking it. She wasn¡¯t going to tear up the headband though. It was soft and comfortable.


    It didn''t matter. As far as Anu was concerned, the plan was an overwhelming success. She carefully packed up the circuit, double checked her possessions, and began to walk home, with her new friend in tow.

 3.

    ¡°Duncan?¡±, Anu stuck her head through the door of the forge.


    ¡°Come in!¡±, a voice yelled back.


    Anu, spider in tow behind her, wandered around the forge in search of Duncan. She found him kneeling over a large unfinished circuit, oblivious to Anu behind him.


    ¡°Duncan?¡± ¡°Oh! Anu! Let me just finish up here¡±


    Anu knelt down to help. A difficult junction to wire up. Crossing lines in a circuit was a ¡®very bad¡¯ idea, and a large part of the skill was being able to untangle the necessary connections.


    ¡°If we move the inducer inside the main ring, and then set up another one outside in resonance, the connection won¡¯t be as good but¡±, Duncan finished Anu¡¯s sentence, ¡°but it will hold together far longer. Ha! Serves me right for trying to cut costs¡±.


    He had a smile, but his face looked exhausted. He was happy for Anu, but he realised work would be a lot harder without her. A lot less fun, too. Having an apprentice was a well needed dose of enthusiasm, and his escape from this dull mountain town.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know I¡¯d be laughing the day my best assistant left¡±, Duncan sighed. ¡°I¡¯m not sad you¡¯re leaving Anu, I¡¯m sad because I¡¯ll be stuck here. Speaking of...¡±


    Duncan put his tools away, covering the unfinished work in a tarpaulin. Anu¡¯s suggestion would work, but it could wait.


    ¡°I suppose you¡¯re here for your earnings. I can hand them over now, but, I can also arrange for my Brother to pay you when you arrive in Verse, and give you a little, now¡±


    Anu agreed readily.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t say it explicitly, but yes, you can keep ¡®The Mechanics of Mana¡¯, oh! that reminds me. The Library might have parts I and III of your other keepsake too, but anyway, I was going to ask, could you let me gift it to you properly?¡±


    She pulled out the handbook, handing it over to Duncan. There was at least eight pieces of paper sticking out, stuck between the pages, and the leather binding had cracked in several places. She¡¯d scrawled all over Duncan¡¯s copy, adding her own notes and calculations. It was meant to be the reference copy for the forge.


    Anu was a little embarrassed. Duncan tried not to laugh at her. He flipped open the book, and wrote a quick note. Closing the book, Duncan had an idea


    ¡°Oh!¡±. He rushed off to a corner of the forge, and rushed back with a thin sheet of leather.


    ¡°and a binding, right, here it is.¡±. On a nearby table, he spread the sheet out, positioning the book atop of it. Marking out several points first, he glued it over the original cover, cut it to shape, then folded in the excess.


    Duncan was proud of his tiny victory. His forge, being one of the few workshops in the mining town, had to be prepared to fix almost everything.


    ¡°Fixing both the magical, and the mundane, Ha! A gift for you that¡¯s a little of both. I put a bit of extra glue on the spine too.¡±


    ¡°Thank you Duncan¡±, Anu beamed. It was her copy now.


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s almost everything, but, Anu, I was really hoping to see your Familiar before you left. Everyone¡¯s talking about the spider in a bow.¡±


    Anu stared at Duncan, spun her head around trying to find where it had gone to.


    ¡°It was with me outside¡±


    The two walked outside, No spider. Inside the forge, off towards the storage, they discovered the spider examining the products on display.


    ¡°I see you found something more curious than you Anu¡±


    Anu pouted, ignoring Duncan, she walked over to the spider, tugging on its bow. Anu nodded in Duncan¡¯s direction, once she had the spider¡¯s attention.


    The spider, it seemed, could understand what she said, even when she didn¡¯t say anything.


    When Anu had asked about it, through a long, long series of yes or no questions, she had come to understand two things. The spider wasn¡¯t reading her mind, but, when she spoke, she would be thinking ¡®at¡¯ the spider. The spider was also thinking ¡®at¡¯ Anu, but anything more complicated than Yes or No answers gave Anu headaches. The spider promised it would get easier in time.


    ¡°Duncan, This is my familiar. A mana weaver. ¡±


    ¡°Nice to meet you, um... Anu, does it have a name?¡±


    Anu turned to the spider, with a look of ¡®Do you?¡¯Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more.


    The spider lifted it¡¯s legs to say Yes, then paused. Then went to cross. Then paused. The spider had learned to be moderate when answering.


    Duncan interrupted, ¡°Anu, if I could. Does your hive have a name?¡±


    The spider waved enthusiastically. ¡°That¡¯s a yes, Duncan¡±, Anu interpreted


    ¡°... and you, this spider here, do you have a name?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a no. Thank you Duncan. I think the spider is saying thank you too, yep¡±


    ¡°While we¡¯re all here, Anu...¡±, Duncan walked over to a chest, pulling out a short sword, ¡°remember this commission? The barrier ward? Follow me back to the workshop¡±


    Looking at the spider, he added ¡°You too¡±


    The sword was engraved with a barrier circuit, activated by plunging it into the ground. Designed for travellers, and used by workers at the mine, for temporary defences overnight.


    ¡°Anu, I had you make one extra. This is yours. Don¡¯t refuse. The textbook, Sure, that¡¯s been effectively yours for years now, the new book is a birthday gift, but this, this is from Teacher to Apprentice. You don¡¯t get to refuse.¡±


    Duncan explained that as a Smith, she should have a piece of her work acknowledged by the Teacher.


    ¡°Pretty much any of the stuff you¡¯ve made would be fine, but I wanted to you to have something a little more practical. I just need to get my guild stamp.¡±


    Duncan disappeared into a corner of the workshop, returning with a leather bag. Inside was a solid, heavy, polished wooden box, with a metal plaque. Duncan fumbled with the box to retrieve a small golden rod.


    Putting it to one side, he clamped the sword onto a workbench. Using a mallet, he used the rod to stamp out his mark onto the blade, just above the hilt.


    ¡°You¡¯ll need to stamp the other side, but you can do that when you register at the City.¡±


    Handling the sword over to Anu, he added, ¡°It¡¯s meant to be ceremonial, Anu, but i¡¯m not sure you¡¯d like a sword you¡¯re not meant to use.¡±


    As Duncan put away his stamp, back inside the box, he took out a small dagger. ¡°See? You¡¯d probably think this was pointless, but, anyway.¡±. Duncan placed his ceremonial tools carefully back in the box, clearing the workspace.


    ¡°That¡¯s it. Your earnings are waiting for you with my Brother, You¡¯ve got your mark of an apprentice too. Congratulations Anu. ¡°


    Duncan beamed. ¡°I am so proud of you. Make sure to cause plenty of trouble at the Academy. And it was wonderful to meet you too, Anu¡¯s Familiar¡±.


    ¡°Anu, before you start thinking of names¡±


    ¡°Yes Duncan, I am pretty sure ¡®What name would you like?¡¯ is already the right question to ask¡±


    ¡°Uhuh. Well, let me ask one last question, my final act as your teacher. Have you tried asking it to write things down? I¡¯ve only seen you playing twenty questions.¡±


    Anu paused. Looking at the spider, she started to ask ¡°Can you write?¡± but the spider had already responded, ¡®No¡¯.


    ¡°Well, I see the two of you have much to discuss, and, the journey to Verse is at least a month away by foot. You¡¯ll have plenty of time to work things out¡±


    It was time to go.


    Anu packed away the sword, along with her now repaired book.


    She herded the spider out of the workshop, Duncan following behind. He was enjoying watching Anu bicker with the spider, if only overhearing one part of it.


    ¡°Here¡¯s the letter Anu, my brother should look out for you.¡±


    Anu took the letter, tucking it inside a book before packing them away.


    ¡°Thank you Duncan¡±.


    ¡°You too. Oh and don¡¯t take any crap from my Brother.¡±


    Anu stretched up to give Duncan a hug, ¡°I won¡¯t¡±


    ¡°and uh, I have friends in the Smith¡¯s guild, but I did leave behind some grumpy customers in Verse. I¡¯m sorry if it gets you into any trouble¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll make my own trouble, Duncan¡±


    Anu smiled, Duncan laughed, she joined in.


    ¡°The student has become the teacher. Just one more thing and I¡¯ll finish being your teacher, Anu, if you would be so kind?¡±


    ¡°Sure¡±


    ¡°Anu, contracting an animal is a responsibility, a duty of care. I know the spider is quite smart, but you can¡¯t expect it to work out everything for you. When you teach, you have to be extra careful to check your assumptions. Like ¡®this spider can only answer yes/no¡¯ questions¡±


    Anu frowned. Duncan was right, but she didn¡¯t want to explain that the spider, not her, started the contract. Anu felt the spider should be the one being lectured.


    ¡°Or, I have to be the one to give you a name. I¡¯m not the only one who thinks your names are terrible, Anu.¡°


    ¡°Finnneeee. Thank you teacher¡±


    Her names *weren¡¯t terrible*, just, straight forward, she felt. ¡°Partitioned space device¡± was a perfect fine way to describe a barrier. The spider didn¡¯t like her suggestions of ¡°Fam¡±,¡°ider¡±,or ¡°eight¡±, or ¡°leggy¡±, and she wasn¡¯t enjoying Duncan¡¯s giggling in the background either.


    ¡°and to you, her familiar. Anu is a headstrong, determined girl, almost an adult. Both of you have the opportunity to grow, and support each other. Every lesson for the teacher is a lesson for the student too, and vice-versa. Even if her names are rubbish¡±


    The spider waved eagerly, stopping once Anu glared at it. The spider made a much quieter wave of ¡®yes¡¯.


    ¡°Good luck, the both of you¡±, Duncan nodded towards the pair, and returned to the workshop.


    ¡°Come on, you.¡±


    Anu shrugged towards the town exit.


    As Anu slumped towards the exit, she bickered. Duncan could make out the last of it, as the two disappeared.


    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with ider?¡±


    ¡°How about S?¡±


    ¡°Do you have any ideas?¡±


    Duncan smiled, returning to work. Some pride, some envy, but mostly, he was happy for Anu. He also felt that a familiar as stubborn as she was made for a good fit. It was at least three week¡¯s journey to Verse, and at least Anu had interesting company.


    It might be another 3 years before he would see her again. His forge was a little bit lonelier.


    The workshop still had a few of Anu¡¯s items on display, now she was gone, Duncan thought it best to put them to one side. He collected the handful of wards and weapons, and found a suitable trunk, storing them safely along side his other valuables, including his guild stamp.


    He told himself that he was being sentimental.


    Really, he a little too embarrassed to admit that Anu had outdone him, once or twice.


    He was a better smith, but Anu had a real knack for laying out circuits. Circuits were designed on paper, but were inscribed onto objects. Duncan had learned to just strengthen the circuit, but Anu would come up with sightly bizarre modifications to fit.


    Sitting at his desk he went over the circuit from earlier.


    Anu¡¯s offhanded suggestion would work. After testing the numbers on paper, it came out as expected, a little lower in efficiency. Unfortunately, he hadn¡¯t asked her about the crucial details: how to lay out the circuit in practice.


    He was too embarrassed to ask her for help on the last day he was a teacher. It was an important day for him, he¡¯d prepared his words in advance, just to make sure it went perfectly..


    ¡°Well, I deserve this. ¡±


    Duncan spent the rest of his evening working through the possibilities Anu had meant.

 4. Travel

    Two weeks into her journey, Anu was lying back in a hammock, re-reading ¡®The Mechanics of Mana¡¯. A beginner¡¯s textbook, it had been given to Duncan as a tongue-in-cheek gift, but the appendixes proved useful enough to earn it a place in the workshop.


    ¡°To my brother Duncan. Congratulations on your new forge¡±


    ¡°To my apprentice Anu: Treat this book well, so that one day, your apprentice can steal it too. Duncan Lucian. ¡±


    She¡¯d spent many evenings working over some of the exercises, or trying to find shortcuts in the existing solutions. Each page had slowly been filled with notes and calculations. Duncan¡¯s note was written in the remaining free space on the page.


    Anu still felt a little guilty about taking the book, but it was hers now: it said so right there on the first page.


    Tonight, she wasn¡¯t going over the exercises, she was looking for inspiration: the spider still didn¡¯t have a name.


    During the day, Anu would draw out letters, and words for nearby objects, hoping that one of the names would stick. None of the names ¡°felt¡± right, apparently. The spider didn¡¯t really listen to the words, but, the noise her brain was making.


    Anu tried asking for suggestions, but one intense headache and a blackout later, she remembered why she¡¯d stuck to yes or no questions earlier. At least it wasn¡¯t as painful this time.


    After two weeks, with no other company, the spider¡¯s simple yes and no gestures had become more elaborate sort-of, and maybes, and it-depends. Anu had learned the gestures for hunger, danger, and boredom. The spider was very bored of travelling.


    It had been a very quiet journey. The spider had seen to that. Sensitive to nearby mana, occasionally the spider would nudge her towards, or away from a specific direction. Anu didn¡¯t question the advice.


    Earlier today, she¡¯d tried asking if the spider could draw the name of the hive, and watched as it traced out a large circle, slowly filling in the detail. Anu recognised it as an incomplete circuit.


    That evening, while the spider disappeared to hunt, Anu was slouched in the hammock, flicking through the appendix, hoping that something would please the spider. Hearing a noise, she peered over the textbook to see it waiting for her outside the barrier.


    Anu crawled out of the hammock, and pulled her sword out of the ground, deactivating the barrier ward. Waiting for the spider to come closer, Anu reactivated the circuit, and took a seat beside it, in the hammock.


    ¡°Hey. I know you didn¡¯t want me to give you a name, and well, I can¡¯t really say the name of your hive, I was thinking of a compromise.¡±


    Anu held up the textbook, then flipped through the pages to find a handwritten note, marking the right page. Finding it, she laid the book out flat, between her and the spider.


    ¡°If your hive has a name that¡¯s a circuit, maybe your name can be one of the parts¡±


    Anu watched as the spider peered at the book, and gesturing ¡®No¡¯ as it scanned over the names it recognised. She had to read out one or two of the technical terms, but, the closest she got was a ¡®well, it¡¯s not awful¡¯ waggle.Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    Anu took a moment to reflect. ¡°Not one of the parts. You¡¯re the mana? You¡¯re the energy in the circuit, the circuit is the hive¡±


    The spider was waving a yes, but Anu wasn¡¯t watching.


    ¡°How about Kay? The measurement of mana, Kays¡±


    The spider paused. Anu turned eagerly, pushing her face closer.


    ¡°Can I call you Kay?¡±


    A yes. ¡°Finally¡±


    Anu performed a small victory dance, Waving her hands in the air, she leaned back, collapsing into the hammock, legs dangling over the edge.


    ¡°Oh, Wait¡±


    Anu pulled herself up, and with a stick, wrote her name on the ground.


    ¡°Kay, this is my name, Anu, and this¡±, Anu drew ¡®Kay¡¯ on the ground, ¡°is yours¡±


    ¡°Oh, and tomorrow¡±, Anu continued to draw, ¡°we¡¯ll hit the river¡±.


    Anu sketched out a mountain range, a gap underneath, and a river stretching out


    ¡°Verse is further down river, but we can get a direct ferry there, I hope¡±


    Anu was interrupted by the spider hissing.


    ¡°Hungry? Oh. Do you mind if I go and sleep? Will you be safe outside the barrier?¡±


    Anu disabled the ward to let Kay outside to hunt.


    ¡°In the morning, we¡¯ll walk to the river, and I¡¯ll see you then.¡±


    Anu turned the barrier back on, pulled out a few blankets, and wrapped herself up atop the hammock to sleep


    Kay¡¯s hunt did not go well. Anu spent the morning going over her textbook, waiting for it to recover from injuries. By the afternoon, and after lunch, Kay was ready to travel again.


    ¡°But *everyone* knows mana weavers are tame. I mean, it¡¯s wearing a bow¡±


    A small argument from the city guards was to be expected, but finding a ferry to take both of them seemed impossible.


    The first captain was insistent that at least two people had to accompany any large animals. The second, Anu reckoned he was afraid of Kay. The third asked for four times as much as the other two. The fourth, fifth captains had left earlier. The sixth one she''d asked was going in the opposite direction.


    She¡¯d wasted the entire afternoon. Anu gave up, and tried to find a room in an inn. She couldn¡¯t. Kay was just as popular with the inn-keepers. On the third attempt, she was pointed to an inn on the edge of town. The only one with stables.


    The inns were for people transferring from boat to carriage, and vice versa. There was very little demand for somewhere to keep a large animal.


    En route, Anu consoled herself. ''At least the inn is on the edge of town'', she thought, ''I can just keep going if I need to camp outdoors, again''


    Outside the inn, her last hope for a bed, Anu approached the front door.


    ¡°Um. You can come in, but your ..¡± ¡°Familiar¡± ¡°Familiar can¡¯t¡±


    Anu sighed. ¡°Did I get it wrong, I was told this was the only Inn that accepted animals¡±


    ¡°If you can pick up your Familiar, and carry it inside, it¡¯s a pet. Otherwise, the Stables¡±


    ¡°Can I go and look at the stables first?¡± ¡°Sure thing.¡±


    Anu lead Kay around the back of the inn.


    ¡°Will any of these do?¡± No.


    Anu couldn¡¯t blame it. The ¡®stable¡¯ was a wooden roof, some piles of grass, and covered in shit.


    Checking underneath her, to see where she would land, Anu slumped onto the ground.


    ¡°Great.¡±


    ¡°No no I don¡¯t blame you. I wouldn¡¯t stay here.¡±


    ¡°I think we¡¯ll have to go back, at least the hammocks you make are comfortable. ¡±


    ¡°Um, can I try picking you up? Maybe I can convince her you¡¯re a pet, a really big pet.¡°


    "I give up"


    Anu sighed, with her arms already wrapped around her knees, rested her head atop to complete curling up into a ball.


    Feeling a tap on her foot, she mumbled, ¡°Kay, I was being silly. Even if I can pick you up, they won¡¯t let you in¡±. Tap tap tap. ¡°What?¡±


    Anu felt like an idiot, again.


    In front of her was Kay, but small enough to fit on her palm. She had many questions, like ¡®why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡¯ or ¡®why didn¡¯t I think to ask a magic spider to do magic¡¯, but first she wanted to know ¡®will this work?¡¯


    Picking Kay up with one hand, and the ribbon it wore in the other, she rushed back to the innkeeper.


    ¡°Um, so.¡±


    Anu scratched the back of her head, holding the ribbon.


    The host gave Anu a strange look.


    ¡°I did say that. Yes, you are holding them. There¡¯s an extra deposit for pets, but I¡¯m going to ask for double the normal amount, I¡¯m afraid¡±


    It was good enough for Anu.

 5.

    Inside her room, she sat on the bed while Kay sat on the desk nearby.


    ¡°I should have asked. Like with the writing.¡±


    Kay seemed a little embarrassed. It had learned enough to know when Anu was exhausted.


    ¡°Do you mind, uh, being small? No? Um, well¡±, Anu scratched behind her ear


    ¡°Could you stay small? For now. I feel awful about asking you to hide¡±


    Kay made the ¡®It¡¯s cool¡¯ gesture, or so Anu decided to interpret. Anu wasn¡¯t sure if Kay could actually roll its eyes.


    ¡°What? Wait, here¡±.


    Anu could interpret most one word answers by now, but, sometimes she got lost. She placed some scrap paper and drop of ink atop for Kay to use.


    Kay scrawled ¡°carry me. small.¡±


    ¡°Of course Kay¡±, Anu grinned, ¡°aren¡¯t contracted beasts supposed to carry their patrons. Yes, Kay, sure. ¡±


    ¡°no bag. horse carry¡±


    ¡°Uh. You mean, you ride me like a horse, you sit atop me? Like on my head¡±


    yes


    Anu held out her hands, making a circle with her fingers and thumbs


    ¡°If you can get this small.. I can¡±, Anu stopped talking to fish in her bag for a hair clip, ¡°I can use one of these. I stopped using them when you gave me a ribbon.¡±.


    Anu tied her hair back one one side, revealing one of her ears. Her hair was still a little temperamental, but at shoulder length, it grew heavy enough to mostly obey gravity.


    She turned her head to show Kay, ¡°You can sit here? It might be a little more comfortable? I made them myself so, I can always tweak it a little¡±


    As Anu turned her head back, she saw Kay moving towards her at great speed.


    ¡°Um, Kay?¡± tap


    ¡°Is it comfortable there?¡± tap tap tap tap


    Kay was drumming with all eight legs in delight.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see¡±


    Anu walked over to the window, it wasn¡¯t perfect, but she could make out her reflection. With a smirk, she fetched her cloak, and returned to the window.


    Kay made a fetching hair ornament. Complimenting her skin and cloak, and contrasting with her hair. Anu struck a few poses before grinning.


    ¡°Kay, I think I make quite a lovely, um. Porter¡±


    Anu smiled as she felt a tap in agreement.


    She paused. Porter. Contract. Carrying Kay was the first real reminder of who had contracted who.


    ¡°Kay. There¡¯s one other thing I want to know, could you¡±, Anu offered her palm for Kay to jump on to


    As she moved Kay back to the desk, she continued, ¡°You might need to write this down¡±


    ¡°Why did you contract me?¡±


    Anu had many theories.


    ¡°weak. explore. circuit. ¨C¨C¨C¨C.¡±


    ¡°Because I was weak?¡± yes ¡°To explore, outside the nest?¡± yes


    ¡°¡­ circuits, and something you don¡¯t have the words for. ¡° yesyes


    Anu watched Kay strike a pose. One leg to it¡¯s mouth, one pointed up, spinning around on the spot.


    Anu sat, jaw dropping. ¡°Is that meant to be me?¡± yes


    Anu looked down. Kay obviously didn¡¯t mean dressing up, spinning around.


    ¡°Fun? You thought I would be fun? And weak enough that I couldn¡¯t hurt you?¡±


    Kay waggled yes enthusiastically, stopped, then a very firm no.


    ¡°help¡±


    Anu thought back. She didn¡¯t go to the mine with the intent of getting a weapon, or a tool, she wanted to have something to follow her to the academy. She was just as happy being on the ¡®wrong¡¯ end of a contract.Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    ¡°weaver¡±


    ¡°So, Kay. You offered me a contract, because you saw I needed help?¡±


    A firm yes.


    ¡°and, you thought it would be fun¡±


    Kay started jumping up and down


    ¡°and, ¡­ because I made, weaved that contract?¡±


    Kay started to sketch out the contract circuit, roughly, before drawing Anu¡¯s attention to one detail.


    ¡°Oh? I repurposed it¡±


    A beast contract normally had a means to punish as well as reward the animal. Anu had changed things to account for her tiny mana pool. A big circuit to connect up feedback, and a very efficient circuit at transferring small amounts of mana. Anu''s contract had no mechanisms for punishment.


    Anu spent the rest of the evening going over some of her design choices. Kay had also been dying to ask Anu a few questions. First, about the contract, then, about some of the devices in the workshop.


    The evening ended with Anu pulling out her textbook, and rushing to the table.


    ¡°Wait¡±


    Anu was in such a rush to explain a random idea, she felt it would be good to hold for a moment and catch herself.


    ¡°Kay, maybe later, but do you want to work through this book with me?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m a little embarrassed but, I really struggled with some of the easier questions. All the hard stuff in this book is about placement but, I find that much easier.¡±


    "Not right now. Can I go to bed?¡±


    Anu changed out of her cloak, and into a gown. Then, after laying an extra blanket atop, she wrapped herself inside the bed.


    ¡°If you want, now you¡¯re tiny, you can sleep on the bed too¡±


    Kay Leaped off the desk, diving under one end of her pillow.


    ¡°Good night Kay¡±. Anu turned onto her side, facing away.


    ¡°and, uh. Thank you for picking me, but, ¡°


    Anu was interrupted by a tap on her shoulder.


    ¡°oh, ok. Good night Kay¡±


    ¡­


    ¡°Kay¡±


    ¡°Kay are you going to sleep in my hair¡±


    ¡°Fine¡±


    Anu woke up to find Kay nestled in her hair. The spider had discovered a new reason to follow her: her hair was particularly comfortable.


    ¡°Good morning Kay. Sleep well?¡± yes ¡°Could you come down for a second while I get ready to leave?¡±


    A long pause, then a yes that sounded more like ¡°I suppose¡±, and eventually Kay disentangled itself. Once free, Anu washed her face, brushed her hair, and clipped one side in place.


    ¡°Kay, if you ¡­ Kay you have got to stop leaping onto my head¡±


    Carefully reassembling her textbook, putting all the notes back between the right pages, Anu finished packing.


    As she put on her cloak she remembered one other question to ask.


    ¡°Oh, and Kay¡±, Anu tapped the side of her head.


    ¡°Will you be alright if I put the hood up¡± tap


    With the hood up, she hoped no-one would notice the hair ornament fidgeting


    ¡°Is this ok?¡±, Anu could feel Kay burrow further into her hair before answering. tap


    Pulling the hood back, ¡°but this is better, right?¡±


    taptaptaptaptap


    ¡®Just like the ribbon¡¯, Anu thought. ¡°Oh, the ribbon¡±.


    Anu took her cloak off, and retrieved the ribbon, and a sewing kit. It would be just long enough to cover the inside of the hood, and around the collar, too. Kay joined in, joining the edges of the ribbon together, once cut, to form the pattern.


    Finished, she put the cloak back on. Kay leaped up, returning to her hairclip.


    Anu would have to get used to Kay¡¯s speedy ascents.


    Flipping the hood over, Anu asked, ¡°Better?¡±


    taptaptaptaptap


    ¡°One last question before we go¡±, Anu covered her mouth, and whispered under her breath ¡°You can still hear me, Kay?¡± tap


    ¡°Let¡¯s go¡±.


    Anu left her room with a huge smile plastered over her face.


    Anu took her bag, and checked out of the inn.


    The innkeeper stared again. ¡°It got smaller¡± ¡°Yep¡±


    After picking up a few extra supplies, she went back to the docks.


    ¡°The rules haven¡¯t changed¡± ¡°Um, but my spider has¡±


    ¡°What, it got smaller?¡± ¡°Yep¡±


    Anu pulled back her hood and pointed to Kay.


    ¡°Uh¡± ¡°Does it count as a large animal if i¡¯m carrying it like this?¡± ¡°No¡±


    ¡°Do I need two people?¡± ¡°No¡±


    ¡°So I can come, right?¡±


    The captain gave Anu a look. ¡°It isn¡¯t going to get bigger, right?¡±


    Anu tapped the side of her head, ¡°Kay? You can stay this size for a while, right?¡± tap


    ¡°I checked. No problem.¡°


    Seeing the Captain gawk, Anu took her confusion for a ¡®confused yes¡¯.


    ¡°When are you leaving?¡±


    ¡°Midday. Was going to be tomorrow but someone booked most of my ship. Direct to Verse¡±


    ¡°Direct? Perfect!¡±


    The Captain Paused.


    ¡°Please. I¡¯m going to the exams, a little early, but I have to register. Please!¡±


    ¡°Oh. Yes, of course. Sorry, I was just lost in thought about how your ..¡± ¡°Familiar¡±


    ¡°Your familiar can change size¡±


    ¡°I had to re-summon it. I joked earlier, but it will be a month before I can do the ritual again. More convenient for carrying it, but the whole point was to keep me safe so¡­¡±


    This was technically a lie. Saying she had contracted it, also, technically a lie. Anu didn''t enjoy misleading people, but she didn''t want to be late.


    ¡°¡­ so, I was really worried that I wouldn¡¯t be able to go directly¡±


    Giving Anu another look, the captain gave in.


    ¡°I am supposed to let people get to the exams. The other person is from the Academy, I¡¯m sure they¡¯d be ok with it. Come back at midday. No, come back just before then, and I¡¯ll know then¡±


    ¡°Thank You¡±


    Anu, with a bit of a skip in her step, meandered along the coast. Finding a more secluded spot, she took off her cloak, unpicking her earlier stitches. With Kay¡¯s help, and using some of the headband, Anu made the lining a little more permanent.


    ¡°Kay, when we get to the city, could you make me some more fabric? Please? It¡¯s very comfortable¡±


    Kay was unconvinced.


    ¡°It just feels so much nicer now, all of my other clothes feel itchy, you know?¡±


    ¡°Can you at least think about it? Or at least, just a little bit. Please Kay¡±


    Kay leaped back onto Anu¡¯s head, without answering.


    Anu sighed. ¡°Fine¡±, mumbling ¡°at least one of us is comfortable¡±


    Kay tapped out the ¡®I¡¯m tired¡¯ pattern, curling up around the hairband.


    ¡°Kay? Oh, does being small take a lot of energy?¡±, tap, ¡°Oh. Sorry for asking without thinking¡±.


    Anu¡¯s enthusiasm for textile products could wait until later. She grabbed her cloak, fastened it, and slung her bag over her shoulder. Tucking her hair inside, she pulled the hood over her hair.


    ¡°I hope it¡¯s comfortable, Kay. Anyway, go Nap¡±, She felt a very gentle tap in response.


    With over an hour before midday, Anu took her time returning to the dockyard.


    Finding the right berth, but with no sign of the Captain, Anu found a nearby crate to slump onto. Pulling out her textbook, she went back to the last problem she¡¯d been stuck on.


    ¡°Given a standard ring, and only three resonators, use an extra loop to ¡­.¡±


    ¡°Hello? Are you the other passenger?¡±

 6.

    The ferry had been booked out almost entirely by Agwa, an elderly herbalist. When Anu asked, the captain wasn¡¯t entirely clear about what Agwa¡¯s role was at the Academy, but did say she was returning to Verse after collecting samples of the nearby flora and fauna.


    Herbalists, like many other professions, used circuits too. The cargo she was carrying was stored in protective containers, wired up with circuits to try and preserve the contents.


    Within five minutes of meeting, Agwa had insisted that Anu join her.


    She had taken an near-instant like to Anu, after seeing her waiting on the dock, head buriedin book . She got excited when she found out it was about circuits. She was a little overjoyed to meet Kay too, even if they were currently napping atop Anu''s head.


    The trek through the mountains was a little dull. Her companions for the trip, mercenaries, weren¡¯t every enthusiastic about flower picking. Company, especially company that appreciated her research, was very welcome.


    Anu, similarly, had taking a liking to Agwa. The old woman had been polite, and asked about her textbook. She¡¯d taken her on a tour of the ship, answering questions about some of the circuit design. The circuits Anu had studied, were often about offence, defence. She¡¯d rarely seen circuits used for more practical uses, like plant storage.


    Anu¡¯s curiosity quickly transformed into enthusiasm. Agwa was delighted to have someone being genuinely interested about her work. For her it was a simple, but rare, pleasure.When she told people she was a professor, people, especially other herbalists, would treat her differently.


    Smiths were often seen as a step above labourers, printing someone else¡¯s circuit design onto a weapon. Herbalists were similarly treated as machines for pills, tonics, ointments. A professor, on the other hand, depending on the subject, would be treated with respect, sometimes reverence.


    She¡¯d been coy about her job on purpose, but it hadn¡¯t really mattered that much to Anu. Once she¡¯d seen the circuits, at least.


    The captain had searched the docks for the pair, only to find them aboard, an animated discussion in the cargo hold. She managed to get them to pack up and move out, but she couldn¡¯t get either of them to stop talking about circuits.


    Inside the shared cabin, the two continued to talk. Anu talked about her work in Duncan¡¯s forge, her plans to study at the academy, and asked Agwa questions about the equipment from earlier.


    ¡°Oh, Anu, I forgot how old I am today. I need to be in bed before nightfall. It¡¯s been wonderful to meet you, and your familiar too, I hope they''re rested by tomorrow¡±


    ¡°Actually¡­ I think Kay might be waking up¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d be delighted to meet them, if they¡¯re awake¡±


    Anu reached up with her hand, ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, Kay¡±, waiting for them to climb onto her hand.


    ¡°This¡±, she said, arm outstretched, ¡°is Kay, A mana-weaver¡±


    ¡°Hello K. So tiny!¡±


    tap tap ¡°Um, No, it¡¯s like the unit, Kays, it doesn¡¯t sound the same to them¡±


    ¡°Kay?¡± tap, Anu smiled, ¡°Yep. They tap things out, or draw sometimes¡±This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.


    ¡°Wait. Mana-weaver?¡±


    ¡°Yep¡±.


    "I¡¯ve never seen, well, anyone like you Kay, up so close before. Such a cute little spider too! Oh! I have a gift!"


    Anu tried to explain that Kay had shrunk for travel, but Agwa wasn''t listening. She''d walked over to her luggage in search of something.


    ¡°Wait, where was it, ah, Here!, only a little but, this plant always shows up in their webs, I¡¯ve always been a little curious, ah here we go, Hibslock petals¡±


    Agwa held up the flower to show Anu, but Kay noticed first. They whipped out of Anu¡¯s palm, grabbed the flower, and returned to her hair in one fluid movement. Kay was rubbing the petals against their face and torso, wildly tapping their other legs against Anu¡¯s skull.


    Anu had stopped mid expression.


    ¡°Ahahahah Cat-Nip¡±, Agwa quickly broke into laughter so hard that she was wheezing.


    ¡°Sorry, uh¡±, Anu was embarrassed, ¡°I don¡¯t really have much control over what they do. I am pretty sure Kay is the happiest they¡¯ve been all week, so thank you too.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s fine! I¡¯m surprised, oh, wait, there we go¡±


    Kay had crawled into the hood of the cloak, rubbing the petals onto the silk.


    ¡°I take it your hood is lined with silk, right?¡±


    A little embarrassed, Anu nodded.


    A few moments later, Kay slowly crawled back to their perch, above Anu¡¯s ear.


    ¡°Yep they do say thank you. A lot. Kay, Kay? I get it¡±


    Agwa smiled. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I don¡¯t have any more, oh, but, maybe I have something you¡¯d like to see, Anu. ¡±


    She fetched two small globes from her bag, opaque, round, and shiny. One clear-ish, one a matte black.


    ¡°I was going to wait till later, but... you can¡¯t tell anyone about these, they¡¯re unfinished research projects. From one maker to another, can you keep a secret?


    Anu nodded.


    ¡°Great because I have been dying to show someone my work. ¡±


    Agwa held out the clear orb, ¡°This one, this is why I¡¯m out here. It tests for poison. A compact circuit that recognises some of the characteristics of specific plants. I''ve been doing field tests.¡±


    She rolled it around her hand to reveal a small indentation. Placing a leaf atop, small lines and circles lit up within the orb, finishing in a light green glow.


    ¡°The idea is to recognise some of the energy in plants, and try and work out the good and the bad bits.¡±


    ¡°Neat! Does it work like the regulator in a forge?¡±


    ¡°Ha! Yes. A feedback loop, casting a spell and detecting the effects. Ok, little genius. What about this¡±.


    Putting the poison detector away, Agwa held the other orb out. Pushing mana into it, she lit up the circuits inside.


    ¡°Is that a light spell?¡±


    ¡°Wait one second¡±


    A small blue box hovered over the globe, and slowly letters began to form


    <blockquote>TEST TEST TEST TEST</blockquote>


    ¡°I really should have made it say something more interesting, but, this is several light circuits chained together. The message is a little baked in, unfortunately¡±


    Anu tapped the side of her head, ¡®Kay look at this¡¯


    ¡°The idea was, what if it could tell you what poison it was, or perhaps suggest treatment? I was already using a light circuit¡­ This isn¡¯t anything too clever or fancy, it¡¯s just, well, a lot of circuits. I haven¡¯t worked out how I am going to change the message but¡±


    ¡°No this is incredible, Agwa¡±


    Anu was amazed: A strong reminder that you can build incredible things with only the basics, and a lot of hard work. She estimated that it would take maybe three maybe six months to build the 400 or so light circuits.


    ¡°Kay, did you see that?¡± tap


    ¡°Agwa, these are both incredible.¡± Anu had seen circuits to make a better wall, a sharper sword, but very few original designs. Anu had a few more questions, and Agwa had a few more answers, but eventually it was time to retire.


    ¡°I love your enthusiasm, but, I think I will have to go to bed now. I can¡¯t wait for both of you to come and visit me. Once you¡¯ve found your feet in Verse, you must!¡±


    ¡°This was wonderful fun. I¡¯d be delighted to come visit! Kay too.¡±


    ¡°Wonderful. With that, it''s a good time for me to head to sleep¡±


    ¡°Good night Agwa¡±, ¡°You too, both of you¡±


    As Agwa tidied up her tools and books, Anu prepared her bed for the night. Looking at the well worn hammock, Anu untied it, replacing it with silken one she¡¯d been using earlier.


    Peering out from her private cabin, Agwa asked, ¡°Did Kay make that too?¡±


    ¡°Yes¡±


    ¡°Your familiar is very thoughtful. I¡¯m a little jealous¡±


    ¡°Maybe I will have to find them some more Hibslock petals .. Ow ¡­ Ok I will. Go to sleep Kay¡±


    Anu heard a giggle, then ¡°Right, sleep well¡±


    ¡°See you in the daylight Agwa¡±


    Anu climbed into her hammock, tucking the blankets around her for warmth.


    ¡°Kay?¡± tap


    ¡°That blue box, could you cast a spell like that?¡±


    A blue box hovered in front of Anu¡¯s face. Slowly, a few letters appeared.


    <blockquote>no. tired.</blockquote>


    ¡°Good night Kay¡±.


    <blockquote>good-sleep anu</blockquote>

 7.

    When described by the captain, the journey was ¡®Wonderfully boring¡¯. The pay was good and the cargo was valuable, but not interesting enough to steal. With only two passengers, she was hoping for a slow, quiet week.


    She mostly got her wish: Agwa and Anu spent their days, and nights, talking about circuits.


    Anu had been a little disappointed to learn that Agwa hadn¡¯t made the orbs entirely by herself, but was still impressed by her work. Agwa was an expert in herbs, not circuits, and had brought in other staff members to help her on her pet project: a poison detector.


    The poison detector was really about 50 or so circuits, stuck together. The smiths at the Academy hadn¡¯t considered making one before, but they were eventually convinced. The text orb was a harder sell: making it show text was easy but changing the text was hard. For the poison detector it wasn''t an obstacle: the names of plants were unlikely to change.


    They spent the first day going over the circuit design, Anu filling in some of the gaps of Agwa¡¯s knowledge, and vice-versa. Kay did not enjoy sea travel, Anu¡¯s cloak had been hung up, so that they could nap inside the hood.


    The second day was very similar, more conversations about work, but Anu had begun to talk about the city. Bythe third day, Agwa had run out of questions on circuits, and had instead asked about Anu¡¯s plans.


    ¡°Well, my plans are pretty much over¡±


    Anu continued, ¡°I wanted to leave home, I wanted to have a life outside of the mountain town. Not strong enough to fight, not enough mana, no money, no talent. I can make circuits though. I thought that would be enough to get into the Academy, but¡±


    Anu paused, looking down at her feet


    ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for Kay, I wouldn¡¯t get to take the exams. I just want to pass, graduate, and maybe stay in Verse? I feel lucky enough already¡±


    Aqua smiled, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Dreams are hard, even when you¡¯re young.¡±


    With a sly grin, she continued, ¡°When I first told people about the poison tester, they told me that I¡¯d never get it to work, especially on unknown plants, but I found a way¡°Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    She explained her dream was to modernise herbalism, putting tools into peoples hands, like circuits had done for spells. People with lots of mana, and lots of practice, could cast spells. Circuits let people use the mana around them to achieve the same, without much practice either.


    Her dream was similar, distilling her expertise into a device anyone could use. Agwa had seen circuits applied to warfare, storage, tools, but their use for more domestic needs, or in rural areas was scarce.


    ¡°It was either impossible, or stupid, or pointless. So I learned how to make circuits, learned their rules, and then broke them. Ha.¡±


    Agwa was beaming, a little proud of beating the smiths of the academy.


    ¡°Anyway, why I¡¯m telling you this: I don¡¯t want to hear your plans, I want to hear about what you wanted, before you got told it was impossible¡±


    ¡°Um¡±


    Anu closed her eyes and tried to think back to some of the weirder things she''d imagined as a child.


    ¡°Travelling anywhere. I drew little circles when I was a kid, pretending they¡¯d take me somewhere else. Not just that. I used to think you could keep drawing bits on to make it do everything, rather than having all of these specialised bits¡±


    She blushed. Memories of arguing ''Nuh-uh, now my circuit is fire proof, no now it does water too'' with the other kids, felt a little silly now.


    ¡°Those are pretty good dreams Anu!Your plans, and goals seem ok too, even if it''s just keeping your head down and focusing on graduating. I think you¡¯ll know where you want to be, or maybe where you don¡¯t want to be, eventually. The academy isn''t going to easy, but being in the city might speed up your decision a little, that¡¯s all.It has that effect on people¡±


    Anu smiled, ¡°Thank you. Oh, and I promised Kay I¡¯d find more of the petals too¡±


    ¡°Well, one of your goals is about to be accomplished. Sort-of¡±


    Agwa rummaged in her luggage, "Aha! This for for you!", and handed over a small bottle of oil. ¡°It¡¯s concentrated extract¡ªA drop will make ten cups¡±


    ¡°Thanks, but, why do you have all of this stuff?¡°


    Anu wasn¡¯t ungrateful, but a little curious.


    ¡°The gardens are full of it. Oh. How much do you know about Verse?¡±


    ¡°I have been reading the history a little, but ¡­¡±


    ¡°So. Fortress, Old town, New town. The new town is full of hibslock trees, especially in the gardens. Did you learn about the empire¡¯s reformation? Anyway, the emperor was apparently very fond of mana weavers, thus the hibslock gardens.¡±


    ¡°¡­ but why do you have a bottle with you?¡±


    ¡°It smells nice, and it¡¯s used as a base in some medicines. I was also hoping to meet a mana weaver, some of the most interesting plants are usually found by their nests too. They don''t mind you waiting in the nest if you put a drop of oil on, we think. It might just be taken a sign of non-hostility.¡±


    ¡°Is it safe? Like could I wash my hair with it?¡±


    Agwa started to mumble, ¡®Why would you ..¡¯, ¡°Oh, for Kay, right?¡±


    Anu nodded


    ¡°I guess you could use it undiluted, or in a concentration. Maybe test a small drop first?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll try something when I can get to a bath, or even a shower¡±


    ¡°Soon, Anu. Until then, can you show me some of your answers again?¡±


    ¡°Sure. Let me fetch my textbook¡±

 8. Arrival

    After two weeks of sailing, and many, many conversations about magic, the ship arrived outside Verse. Arriving a little earlier than planned, but a little too late, as the city gates and canal locks had been closed for the night.


    Anu was planning to camp outside the city walls, but Agwa wouldn¡¯t allow it.


    She used her status as a professor to bend the rules, arranging for the city guard to escort the ship further inside, and for some academy staff to unload the cargo too. With the unloading in progress, and someone else in charge, she dragged Anu back to her home.


    Her son was also joining the academy this year, but until he arrived, Anu could temporarily use his room. She lived in a small apartment nestled into larger buildings, tucked away in a corner of the old town close to the fortress.


    The next morning, outside Agwa¡¯s house, Anu stared at her todo list.


    It was misleadingly small.


    <ul>


    <li>Register as a smith at the city Guild</li>


    <li>Register for the Academy Examinations</li>


    <li>Meet Duncan¡¯s Brother</li>


    <li>Pass Exams</li>


    <li>Find Accommodation, Work</li>


    <li>Visit Agwa in the Gardens</li>


    </ul>


    Anu pocketed her list, pulled out the crude map Agwa had made.


    First, exam registration.


    Anu found the process pretty straight forward. She took a form, handed it back, and was assigned examination slots for the next week. A standard physical test, magic test, smithing test, and the familiar examination. The clerk was a little confused by the latter.


    ¡°Familiar exam?¡±


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°You are aware that your familiar will have to fight, it¡¯s very combat oriented¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Your first is smithing, right? People tend to pick art or scholar for second, rarely soldier, although many soldiers pick smithing for the second. Familars are a little ...¡±, he coughed, ¡°.. posh. The magicians who take it as a second choice, have a summoned beast, The soldiers who take it, sometimes have a contract¡±.


    Apparently, the newly rich and wealthy families would buy a contracted beast, although in some cases it was some tradition or some-such. A few summoned beasts too.


    ¡°Either you, with your familiar as support, or the familiar itself will have to demonstrate combat skills and potential¡±


    Anu was starting to panic, but a gentle tap from Kay stopped her thoughts.


    <blockquote>it fine. grow big. fight</blockquote>


    ¡°... anyway, that¡¯s everything. The smithing exam is an interview, remember to bring the work you¡¯re proud of. ¡°


    ¡°Thank You¡±


    Anu, collected her examination schedule. Making her way out of the academy office, and towards the smith¡¯s guild, she searched for a quieter spot to stop and talk to Kay.


    ¡°Um Kay?¡±


    tap


    ¡°Are you sure about fighting ...¡±


    <blockquote>fine. kay strong.</blockquote>


    ¡°Are you?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to ask¡± ¡°are you sure?¡±


    Kay had no worries, and repeatedly insisted that they would be ok, despite Anu¡¯s repeated questions.


    <blockquote>contract. kay protect anu. anu help kay</blockquote>


    Anu smiled.


    ¡°Right. Speaking of which, is there anything I should be doing for you?¡±


    <blockquote>fine. smell. good.</blockquote>


    ¡°Good. Agwa says they¡¯ll make me a real shampoo later, but I¡¯m happy the oil is working out¡±


    Kay tapped out a happy pattern


    Anu smile, ¡°Agwa also said you wouldn¡¯t have to remain small¡±


    <blockquote>no. fine. carry. good anu.</blockquote>


    ¡°Fine. But the examinations¡±


    <blockquote>fine. carry. go.</blockquote>


    Kay tapped with a ¡®Let¡¯s go¡¯ as if Anu was their mount.


    Muttering under her breath, Anu made her way to the guild of smiths.


    ¡°I¡¯d like to register¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t handle examinations miss...¡±


    Anu sighed and clumsily dropped her ceremonial sword onto the counter.


    Flipping it over to reveal Duncan¡¯s seal, Anu restarted the conversation


    ¡°I¡¯m an apprentice. That¡¯s the seal of my teacher. I need the other side stamped¡±


    ¡°Oh¡±


    ¡°Yes¡±


    Anu heard someone yell from behind he, and turned to see an older man marching towards the desk.


    ¡°Geoff, you little bastard. Causing trouble for the students is going to ...¡±


    The old man paused mid sentence, staring at the sword.


    Picking it up, he pulled it up to his face for a closer view.


    ¡°What has that little Lucian been up to. ¡°


    He lowered the sword, and turned to Anu


    ¡°Oh I¡¯m sorry. You must be that troublemaker¡¯s apprentice. ¡°


    Anu nodded.


    ¡°This doesn¡¯t look like his work. You made this sword, correct?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t suppose he wrote a letter or ..¡°


    Anu shook her head, ¡°He told me to come here to get the other side stamped¡±


    The old man rolled his eyes, ¡°Typical¡±, handing the sword back to Anu.


    ¡°Got a design yet? For your seal? Good, follow me. Geoff, I¡¯ve got this¡±


    The old man waved at the clerk, and walked back into the corridor he appeared from.


    Anu looked at Geoff.


    ¡°That¡¯s the guild leader, Adam. Follow him, he¡¯ll handle everything¡±, he shrugged, ¡°You might want to hurry, he isn¡¯t slow for an old man¡±


    Anu, sword in hand chased after Adam.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    ¡°Ah there you are, what was your name?¡±


    ¡°Anu¡±


    ¡°Excellent, right, this is my office. Come inside, take a seat.¡±


    Anu sat while Adam searched his office for tools.


    ¡°Right¡±


    Adam sat down at the desk, putting two boxes down.


    ¡°Let¡¯s see the design¡±


    Anu had sketched out a design, tracing it from a book during the journey.


    Adam gave the same close look, pulling the design up to his face and scanning over it slowly.


    Placing the paper upon the table, he took out a small knife, a small drill, and a white marbled cube from the boxes he had just found.


    ¡°I hope you don¡¯t mind, but, I¡¯ve embellishing your design a little. The guild has a style¡°


    Anu watched his hands move quickly and delicately across the ston, carving something that resembled her idea. Without looking away from his work, he continued talking.


    ¡°How long have you been Duncan¡¯s apprentice¡±


    ¡°Four years. ¡°


    ¡°and you¡¯re off to the academy, too?¡±


    ¡°Hopefully. My exams are next week. The standard tests and then one for smithing, and the other for my familiar.¡±


    ¡°Oh?¡±, Adam smirked, ¡°I hope you¡¯re not worried about your smithing exam? This sword is a fine piece of work¡±


    Anu blushed, ¡°Thank you. I¡¯m hopeful, and even Duncan said i¡¯d find them easy. The first year is apparently bringing everyone up to speed, but my backup plan is to find a local smith to take me in¡±


    ¡°Haha, well, if you want work, come find me after your exams.¡±


    ¡°Really?¡±


    ¡°Duncan was my student, You¡¯re my grand-student. I wouldn¡¯t let you work for anyone else¡±


    Anu smiled awkwardly. She wasn¡¯t sure if that was an offer of employment, or a mild show of power.


    ¡°Right before I stamp this, Did he tell you anything about this sword?¡±


    Anu shrugged.


    ¡°He stamped one side, and left the other blank. Since I was coming to the Academy, he said I could get it stamped here. Said that it was the mark of an apprentice, and with it it would be easier to find work¡±


    ¡°I see my student is as sloppy as ever. Anu, this sword isn¡¯t what you think¡±


    Seeing Anu panic, he added ¡°No, no. Yes, this is technically an apprentice¡¯s sword, until I stamp it¡°


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°As an apprentice learns a new skill, a weapon, usually a sword, is created by the teacher for the student to finish. As the apprentice grows, they begin making the weapon, and the teacher finishes it. Eventually, all the teacher does is stamp the final product¡±


    Picking up the finished stamp, he punched the design into the sword.


    ¡°This was your last sword as an apprentice, Anu. Now, it is your first sword as a smith¡±


    Handing the sword over, along with her seal, ¡°Congratulations Anu, You¡¯re a registered Smith of the city¡±


    Seeing Anu¡¯s look of confusion, Adam laughed, ¡°He really didn¡¯t tell you anything, did you? He probably picked up that habit from me. Typical. My troublemaking student seems to have outdone himself. Anyway, there¡¯s some formalities and forms to handle but I will find someone else to do that for me. Oh that¡¯s a point, do you know your examination number?¡±


    Anu rummaged in her bag, and handed over her schedule.


    ¡°HEEEYYYYYYYYY¡±, Adam yelled into the corridor, ¡°WHERE¡¯S JESS¡±


    A minute or so later, Jess appeared.


    A little taller than Anu, and still wearing face mask.


    ¡°Whmm tmmm fmmm dmmm mmm mmmt¡±


    Anu couldn¡¯t make out anything Jess was saying, but she had a bit of a feeling as to what she was saying, something like ¡®can¡¯t you see i¡¯m busy¡¯ and ¡®what do you want, now?¡¯


    Adam turned to Anu, ¡°Your sword, please¡±, and handed the schedule and sword to Jess


    ¡°Could you sort this out now?¡±


    ¡°Mmmmmm?¡±


    ¡°No, this isn¡¯t a favour, I just want to speed things up. Yes I checked, and Yes I trust her teacher, Duncan¡±


    ¡°MMMM?!¡±


    The helmet turned to face Anu, and she watched Jess fumble around to find something in one of her eight-and-counting pockets.


    Finding a punch, she clipped part of the schedule, and handed it back to Duncan. Offering the sword to Anu, Jess mumbled again.


    ¡°Thanks Jess and no she¡¯s going to work for me.¡±


    ¡°Mfft¡±. Anu could make out something that felt like ¡®Typical.¡¯


    Jess reached for her mask, stopped, and mumbled again before running out of the office.


    ¡°Uhhh¡±. Anu was first to break the silence.


    Adam was still smirking from Jess¡¯s hasty exit.


    ¡°Oh. That¡¯s your examiner. Being a city smith is enough for the entry requirement¡±


    ¡°Did she know Duncan too?¡±


    ¡°Yep¡±


    Anu decided not to press for details.


    ¡°So, the exam?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s done. Come back after you¡¯ve done the other exams. We¡¯ll talk about jobs then. Oh, I guess you¡¯ll need a rulebook too¡±


    Adam stuck his head back outside the corridor


    ¡°GEOFFFF, GET OVER HERE¡±


    Anu heard something fall over, then hurried footsteps


    ¡°Er, Hello?¡±


    ¡°Geoff, Anu here is our newest smith, go give her a rulebook¡±


    Geoff returned to find Adam fitting Anu with a belt.


    ¡°.. and this is for your sword. You can¡¯t just tie it to your bag every time. I don¡¯t care that it has a scabbard. I don¡¯t care so much for rules, but there is something about taking pride, and care of your work. Geoff?¡±


    ¡°Yes¡±


    ¡°Rulebook, that¡¯s all¡±


    Adam took the small book and dismissed Geoff.


    ¡°Most people take a lot longer to be recognised by their teacher. Duncan will have taught you about everything he cares about. Making equipment, designing circuits. He will have taught you nothing about working in a forge, or running accounts, or negotiation. Being a smith is more than just being good with the auto hammer and knowing the 106 basic circuits. Although to be fair to my old student, he was very very good at both of those.¡±


    He handed the rulebook over to Anu.


    ¡°Every forge has rules, and only some of them are written down. You¡¯re going to need to catch up on these parts if you don¡¯t want to step on people¡¯s toes. Don¡¯t worry. I wasn¡¯t kidding when I said I wanted to hire you¡±


    ¡°Thank you¡±


    Anu looked down to admire her new belt, wide and sturdy, but made from delicate leather, it was a fine piece of workmanship.


    ¡°Do you have somewhere safe to put your seal yet?¡±


    Anu stumbled to answer ¡°Well I have sort-of but¡°


    ¡°Just leave it here. Pick it up after you¡¯re done with exams. I usually here in the mornings, and if I have enough time then, I¡¯ll take you around the forge. In the meantime if you need to prove you¡¯re with the guild, the chain on your belt will do. Guards here will recognise it.¡±


    Anu picked up the ornamental chain, attached between the belt and the scabbard, loosely dangling between them.


    ¡°Your sword tells me you¡¯re recognised as a smith, but the chain tells everyone else you¡¯re part of our guild. The seal is only for work you¡¯re proud of Anu, when Duncan stamped your sword, that meant that he was proud of you.¡°


    Anu blushed.


    ¡°But until you¡¯ve read the rule book, try to not to get into any trouble. On the other hand, if trouble finds you, let me know quickly, ok?¡±


    Anu nodded.


    ¡°Let me check. Seal, belt, chain, sword, book. Yep. You got everything?¡±


    ¡°Yes, thank you¡±


    ¡°Any last questions?¡±


    ¡°Um, Everything? Especially about Duncan.¡±


    She learned that being recognised by Duncan was both a reward and a punishment. He had a reputation for detail and also a reputation for sloppiness. He¡¯d run a forge inside the city, but had to sell it to cover debts. No-one had complaints about the quality of his work, but his time keeping wasn¡¯t exactly popular.


    Anu cleared things up before leaving the guild, and had gotten to meet Jess without her mask too.


    Adam had promised her plenty of work, and the chance to earn the trust of some of her peers. The guild would handle the paperwork. She could come in, pick work off the common board, and complete it within the deadline for a reward. The guild would pay her a stipend, enough to live on, to be available for work.


    By the time she left, it was nightfall. Getting lost earlier hadn¡¯t helped.


    Getting back to Agwa¡¯s was less difficult. She¡¯d remembered enough of the dead ends, and where the main bridges were. Agwa had already retired for the night, leaving a note out saying that she would be disappearing early, but to meet her tomorrow for dinner.


    Anu felt that sleeping would be a good idea, too.


    Putting her bag and sword away, she undressed and crawled into the guest bed, somewhat oblivious to Kay, still perching in her hair. She¡¯d gotten used to Kay occasionally fidgeting, and manoeuvre around them. She¡¯d even taken the hairclip off and gotten into bed before remembering to say good night.


    She had four days until her beast/familar exam, and the other tests had been booked for the same day.


    They opened registration for a month, scheduling candidates one week, and testing them the next. Each school did examinations on a different day. Some of the more popular classes took examinations on the three days that followed.


    She¡¯d arrived on the last day of registration, and picked an unpopular course, and passed the other by accident. Timing was onher side.


    There wasn¡¯t much left for Anu to do but wait. She¡¯d found a job, she¡¯d found temporary accommodation to last until her exams, and there wasn¡¯t much she could do to prepare for them.


    The physical examinations was more of a technicality, left over from the academy¡¯s early days as a military institution. Kay had reassured her that the familiar exam wouldn¡¯t be a problem. She¡¯d planned to revise her circuit basics, but alsotookthe time tofindNathan, Duncan''s brother.


    She found his studio easily, the new town was a lot more organised, but it was deserted. She left the letter Duncan had given her, and instructions on how to find her through the guild.


    With nothing else to worry about, she spent the remaining time exploring her way around the city, chatting to Kay, and, when no-one was looking, she¡¯d pull out her sword to admire her new seal.


    Anu had drawn a single hibslock petal, traced out from one of Agwa¡¯s notebooks. Adam had done more than embellish it.He had engraved the flower, showing the spiral of petals, with three in the centre, five underneath, and eight at the edges, stippling them to give them texture.


    (Yes, technically he¡¯d engraved the negative, and stamped the sword.)


    It was beautiful.


    Anu thought that a mark was just a technicality to complete, but she had fallen in love with the design. Duncan would always bully her over aesthetics, especially her choice in names. ¡°Don¡¯t come back if your seal looks as awful as I fear. No spider webs, Ok?¡±


    Bythe day of her exams she was already itching to get things over with, to get back into the forge and stamp something new.

 9.

    She straightened her belt, sword in place.


    She adjusted the hibslock flower in her hair.


    Inspecting herself in the mirror, she was a little frustrated with how she looked: The shampoo Agwa had prepared worked, her hair felt wonderful, but it had also bleached it white.


    Anu was a little unhappy with the color. Agwa was delighted by the fragrance, and Kay was overjoyed. It had become a little easier to brush, though.


    With one thing already going wrong, Anu was trying her best not to spiral before the exams.


    <blockquote>go!</blockquote>


    At least Kay seemed eager to be tested..


    Anu was expecting a very simple examination, something more like: ¡°Do you have any magic?¡± ¡°No¡± ¡°Do you have any physical skills¡± ¡°Nothing combat related, but everything smithing related¡±, and she¡¯d already skipped the smithing parts too.


    Arriving at the examination hall, things did not go to plan. The clerk at the office had taken her form and given her directions for combat testing.


    ¡°But you¡¯re wearing a sword!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s ceremonial. I¡¯m a smith. I should be doing that practical examination¡±


    ¡°It says here you¡¯re also registering for the beast corp. You can¡¯t do that without the combat tests yourself, too¡±


    Anu gave up, and took a seat in the corridor, waiting for her number to be called.


    tap tap


    ¡°I¡¯m worried, that¡¯s what¡¯s up¡±


    tap


    ¡°Kay I don¡¯t know how to use this sword. I just make them.¡±


    <blockquote>kay help</blockquote>


    ¡°You can¡¯t fight for me Kay¡¯


    ¡°Excuse me, Miss...¡±, Anu¡¯s short chat was interrupted by the exam clerk.


    ¡°That¡¯s your number, number 85. I understand you¡¯re frustrated but, i¡¯ve explained your situation to the examiners. Head up, second right, first left, door at the end, number 12¡±


    ¡°Thank You¡±


    Anu straightened her clothes one last time, and walked slowly to her exam. The sounds of fighting permeated the corridors did not inspire confidence.


    Anu gripped her fists, knocked on the door, and took a deep breath.


    ¡°Hello, I¡¯m candidate 85, Anu¡±


    ¡°Come in¡±


    Anu pushed open the large door, revealing an even larger hall.


    In the centre was an elevated ring, as wide as her parent¡¯s house. Big enough to fit most of a forge inside. Standing in the centre were two teachers, as well as two animals.


    The blonde teacher, she had a large colourful bird perched atop her shoulder. The other teacher had light blue hair, short, and with a large wolf like beast napping behind him. Both were wearing the same academy robes the clerk was wearing, albeit with subtly different colouring and patterns.


    ¡°Ah hello, You must be Anu. I¡¯m Ota, and he is¡±, she pointed at the other teacher.


    ¡°Dys¡±, heanswered.


    ¡°Anyway, can you explain how a smith ended up applying for the beast corp¡±, Ota continued.


    ¡°Um, I guess the first thing is to show you my familiar¡±


    Anu picked Kay up, and gently put them onto the ground.Kay pulled at the bow, still tied around them.


    Dys cracked a smile seeing Anu present a tiny spider, but it was quickly wiped off his face when he saw Kay grow.


    ¡°Um, did you get bigger? No no it¡¯s fine it¡¯s, anyway¡±


    Anu was surprised too. Kay had grown to almost her height, but decided to ignore it until after the exam.


    ¡°This is Kay, my familiar. A mana weaver. We met earlier this year, they were curious about the circuits I built, and so, we ended up travelling together.¡±


    Anu shuffled her feet.


    ¡°I¡¯m no artist, but I can use a hammer. I can forge you a sword but I¡¯d rather not swing one. I¡¯ve no talent for magic unless it¡¯s a circuit. I put all my hopes on getting into the Academy, and, well, this was my best, only option¡±


    ¡°One Moment, Anu¡±, Ota said, turning to Dys.


    After a few quiet words, Dys nodded.


    ¡°Anu. The beast corp might be a technicality for you, but, it¡¯s about keeping the unit alive for us. In a way we can be proud of. Contracts, Summons, they all predate circuits. It¡¯s smiths like you who changed everything.¡±


    Anu felt an overwhelming urge to curl up into a ball.


    ¡°You¡¯re a smith of the city. Although Dys didn¡¯t recognise that sword on your belt, I do. Dys did however convince me to give you a chance.¡°.


    Dys had actually said ¡®But spiders are cool Ota, c¡¯mon. She¡¯s not like the other nobles we have to babysit¡¯.


    ¡°First I¡¯ll test Kay, then you, and then afterwards Dys can handle the magic stuff¡±


    ¡°Kay?¡±


    tap


    ¡°Your familiar knows this is practice, right?¡±


    ¡°Kay¡±, they waggled back at Anu, ¡±that means no injuries, just testing¡± Kay waved dismissively in response.


    ¡°Dys, stand at the edge. Anu: Command your familiar to try and attack me. ¡±


    Kay looked at Anu, who shugged.


    <blockquote>big?</blockquote>


    ¡°Uh¡±


    <blockquote>fight. kay. big. kay big</blockquote>


    ¡°Um. Ota?¡± ¡°Whenever you¡¯re ready¡±


    ¡°Um. Can Kay here grow bigger, um, before attacking?¡±, Anu¡¯s voice was not filled with confidenceThis narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    Rolling her eyes, ¡°Of course. That¡¯s what I meant by trying to attack.¡±


    Anu looked at Kay and shrugged, ¡°I guess that¡¯s a yes¡±


    <blockquote>anu move. big.</blockquote>


    Kay pushed Anu gently away.


    Dys yelled, ¡°Come sit over here and wait with me, and let them get ready¡±


    Kay waited for Anu to sit, before moving into position, turning to Anu and waiting for a signal.


    Ota stared at Kay, then at Anu, ¡°I¡¯m waiting¡±


    ¡°Uh, Kay, I¡¯m safe over here, please be careful¡±


    Another dismissive wave.


    And watched as Kay crept slowly over to Ota, coming to a halt a few steps in front.


    Kay gently lifted their foreleg up, now above Ota¡¯s head, and in one smooth movement, stabbed it into the ground in front of them.


    Ota stared at the ground. Kay ignored her, rushing over to Anu.


    As Anu argued with Kay, Dys asked ¡°Ota?¡±


    ¡°They passed Dys. Anu, your turn. Kay has passed¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°Passed. Your turn. Get over here¡±


    Anu stood up and walked slowly over to where Kay had stood before.


    In front of Ota there was a large hole, big enough to stand in.


    ¡°You did that?¡±, Anuspoketo Kay


    Kay drummed on the floor in response.


    <blockquote>kay strong.</blockquote>


    ¡°Ahem¡±, Ota was waiting. ¡°Anu, you have to hold out for 15 minutes. Run away, jump, whatever, but, you have to show me how determined you are.¡±


    ¡°Kay, can you go stand by Dys?¡±. Anu pulled our her sword and pointed it at Ota, ¡°I¡¯m Ready¡±


    ¡°Really? I wasn¡¯t expecting a smith to pick up a weapon¡±


    ¡°I said this was a technicality, yes, but it is my only hope. I¡¯m ready¡±. Anu withdrew her ceremonial sword, ¡°I get a little head start, right? I can stand a little further back?¡±


    Ota nodded, ¡°Sure, take about 10-15 steps back, then we¡¯ll begin¡±


    Ota withdrew her sword, ¡°Dys, will you count us down?¡±


    From the sidelines, Dys waited until Anu and Ota turned to face each other.


    ¡°Three, Two, One, Start¡±


    Ota rushed towards Anu, expecting her to run immediately.


    She didn¡¯t expect Anu to plunge the sword into the ground, or to sit down next to it.


    Dys frowned, ¡°Uh oh¡± He watched Ota run head first into it, bouncing back a couple of meters.


    ¡°She isn¡¯t going to like that¡±


    For the next 15 minutes, Anu sat under her barrier, twitching every time Ota pounded on it. The ground around Anu had started to fracture. Small bits of stone rattled with every punch.


    ¡°Time¡¯s up Ota¡±


    Ota Scowled. With one last strike, a large crack appeared across the floor, matching Kay¡¯s.


    ¡°You can come out now Anu¡±, Ota lamented.


    Anu didn¡¯t get up. She felt no particular urge to leave the barrier.


    ¡°Fine. Anu. You pass, but¡±


    Dys yelled back ¡°Ota¡±


    ¡°Shut up Dys¡±


    ¡°Anu, I¡¯m not going to hit you. Come out.¡±


    Anu stood up, pulled the sword out, and re-holstered it.


    ¡°I passed?¡±


    ¡°You didn¡¯t fail. What would you have done if the barrier fell?¡±


    Anu pouted. ¡°It¡¯s pretty strong. I would have enough time to devise another circuit¡±


    ¡°Oh? Hrmm¡±. Ota was stumped.


    Dys broke the silence, ¡°Ota? Come on, I still have to do the magic testing¡±


    ¡°Anu, you¡¯re going to have to learn more than this to stay in the unit¡±


    ¡°learn what¡±


    ¡°Combat¡±


    ¡°Oh ... wait, stay in the unit?¡±


    ¡°Being in the unit means you¡¯ll have to face me in combat regularly. With training swords at first.¡±


    Dys interrupted, ¡®Soooomeone loves to fight¡¯


    ¡°Shut up Dys. Anu. You¡¯ve passed¡±


    ¡°Yessssssss¡±


    ¡°But, you¡¯re going to have to show me what you can do, honestly this time¡±


    Ota went to the side of the hall, and retrieved a few wooden swords.


    ¡°These, are training devices. They soften impact no matter how hard I swing them¡±


    Anu wanted to ask ¡°but why did we not use them in the first place¡±, but held her tongue.


    ¡°Watch. I¡¯m going to strike you, but it won¡¯t hurt. The sword will break on impact¡±


    Dys rolled his eyes. Ota really didn¡¯t like smiths.


    Ota casually swung the sword at Anu, trying to knock her off balance.


    ¡°but it should be enough to trip you up ... uh¡±


    Anu had impulsively jumped out of the way.


    Ota smiled ¡°Heh! Looks like you might have a little bit of talent¡±


    She swung again, aiming for Anu¡¯s head, but whipping the sword to change the direction.


    Anu sidestepped again.


    Dys watched as Ota swung four or five more times, getting a little more impatient.


    With one final swing, she rushed forwards and struck Anu across her side, breaking the wooden sword in two.


    ¡°Is that enough, Ota?¡±


    ¡°Fine. Yes. Whatever¡±. Ota snapped the remains of the sword into pieces.


    She stared at Anu.


    ¡°I still haven¡¯t seen you swing a sword, and as much as you piss me off, you¡¯re not going to embarrass me. Dys, she¡¯s yours. I¡¯m going to blow off some steam¡±


    Ota waved and marched back into the corridor.


    ¡°Anu? Right, come follow me¡±


    Dys turned to his wolf, and beckoned it over.


    Anu watched as it leapt onto Dys, transforming in mid air, and landing as a bracelet around his wrist.


    ¡°Summon?¡±


    ¡°Yep¡±


    ¡°Magician? Oh wait magic examiner. Magician.¡±


    ¡°Yep, but Ota could have done this if you hadn¡¯t pissed her off¡±


    Anu mumbled, ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to¡±


    Dys laughed.


    ¡°She¡¯s fine. She loves two things. Fighting to get over things, and getting worked up over nothing until she wants to fight. She probably likes you.¡±


    Anu made a nervous laugh.


    ¡°Anyway, if you two would follow me, and if you¡¯d like to recall Kay it might be easier¡±


    Kay shrunk back down and leapt back into Anu¡¯s hair.


    Now ready, Dys lead the pair through several corridors and staircases, to another part of the building.


    ¡°Where are the other candidates?¡±


    ¡°Anu. You¡¯re the only non-soldier, non-magician to apply this year, everyone else comes on different days. We¡¯re not exactly a popular choice, and we have to fit our exams in around the other courses. They get to use some of the modern testing equipment, but we of the beast corp get to use wonderous ancient technology.¡±


    ¡°Oh¡±


    ¡°Anyway, here we are come inside.¡±


    Dys lead Anu into a small room, stone floors and only a few windows.


    Inside was a large circuit, engraved onto the floor, with a small plinth in the middle.


    ¡°You need to stand in the centre¡±


    Anu walked across the circuit, inspecting the details. The central piece was a standard collector, wired up to the plinth. Outside the collector was a long spiral, increasing in width, extending out to one of the corners.


    ¡°I push mana in, it lights up¡±


    ¡°Yep. Well, you don¡¯t have to push, but let the mana through you I think. I should probably be asking you to explain it to me¡±, Dys laughed, ¡°but the trick is that each segment on the spiral takes more mana to light up.¡±


    ¡°Downstairs, they¡¯ve got the little portable ones, and the ones that show affinities, but this is just about mana.¡¯¡¯


    ¡°and then after that?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s it. I was meant to spend some time in the arena with you, but you said you didn¡¯t know any spells, correct?¡±


    ¡°Yep. Tested at 8, some blessings, not much mana, almost no mana sensitivity, either¡±


    Dys scrunched up his face. He was pretty sure mana sensitivity was how Anu had managed to dodge Ota¡¯s attacks.


    ¡°This is a pretty sensitive device, so you might see a little more lights than you expect. It¡¯s capable of measuring newborns. The first three segments are where an adult normally fills. You can¡¯t fail this test, but it¡¯s meant to give us some insight on how to train you. Whenever you¡¯re ready, I¡¯ll start. ¡±


    There was more to it, the device measured the volume of mana, the speed by which was emitted, and the purity, or how easily it could be aligned. It was a lot more elaborate than Dys gave it credit for.


    ¡°Wait, what about Kay?¡±, Anu pointed


    ¡°Kay¡¯s fine. You¡¯re contracted, right?¡±


    ¡°Yep¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s perfectly fine. It¡¯ll be the same if you stood there alone. You ready?¡±


    Anu nodded


    ¡°Ok, I¡¯ll start. If you put your hand on the plinth, and not so much push but try not to resist¡±


    Anu closed her eyes. She felt a small tingling in her fingers at first, but it slowly became more comfortable.


    ¡°Right, do you want to start pushing now?¡±


    Anu opened her eyes. The circuit had lit up one segment. She began to push and felt the sensation in her hand increase.


    She watched the yellow light slowly fill up the second circuit.


    ¡°Ok, right, this might be a little tiring, but we¡¯re going to try pulling.¡±


    Anu closed her eyes to concentrate.


    She felt a little uncomfortable, but after an awkward start, it turned into a more pleasant sensation as the mana was drained through her hand. It was a little easier to push too, she didn¡¯t feel any resistance.


    Dys watched as the light slowly crept up, gradually slowing to a crawl. He didn¡¯t notice that the first segment had started to change color.


    Anu started to push harder.


    The first segment turned white. Dys noticed that the second was starting to change colour, slowly replacing the paler yellow light. Once it over took, it slowly filled up the second segment. The third began to change rapidly. Then the fourth. Very quickly the light spread through the spiral.


    Dys had realised something wasn¡¯t right, but by now 23 segments had filled up, and were shining brighter. The final segment started to light up, rapidly filling


    As he tried to warn Anu to stop, the final segment filled, and the light across the circuit shined brightly. Dys covered his eyes as the last segment began to oscillate, creak, and then shatter.


    Twenty three loud bangs sounded as each segment cracked, one after the other, smasing the plinth in the centre, and knocking Anu to her feet.


    ¡°What the...¡±


    ¡°What¡±


    As the dust settled, Anu looked at the debris around her. The circuit had fried, the floor had several cracks through it, breaking the engraved channels apart. She inspected the remains of the plinth, in several large chunks around her. The channels were burned black, breaking into smaller and smaller pieces as it traced its way to the corner.


    Dys was standing next to a large hole, where the corner used to be.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t look like it is going to collapse, but, are you ok Anu?¡±


    ¡°I think so? I don¡¯t feel bad¡±, Anu answered. ¡°Kay, are you ok¡±


    She reached up to check that Kay was still there


    <blockquote>kay help anu. kay strong.</blockquote>

 10.

    ¡°As I was saying, I think we should skip the rest of the examinations¡±


    The headmaster looked around the room, first to Ota, then Dys, then Anu.


    Finally, he stared at Kay, still perched atop Anu.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ve passed. Anu? was it.¡±


    Anu breathed out, melting into the chair.


    ¡°You two, thank you for bringing this to my attention. I¡¯m sure you¡¯re both very busy¡±


    Ota interrupted: ¡°I¡¯m not¡±


    ¡°so if you could give me a moment, both of you¡±, he continued, ignoring Ota.


    Ota grumbled under her breath, meanwhile Dys had been smirking since the accident.


    The pair left, leaving Anu and the Headmaster alone.


    ¡°Perfect, so Anu, what the hell is going on, and Kay? I think you owe me an explanation too¡±


    Kay dug into Anu¡¯s hair, ignoring him.


    ¡°Here we have a self-declared smith, with no magic or swordplay, who frustrated our swordplay teacher and destroyed our mana testing equipment. Dys says you should pass, Ota wants to fight you again. ¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be. It was their job to stop things going wrong. Now they have gone, could you tell me in your own words, what happened¡±


    Anu started to recount the exam but was quickly dismissed.


    ¡°No. I want to know how you ended up contracting with Kay here. Or the other way around.¡±


    ¡°Uh¡±, Anu froze in place.


    ¡°One: They both saw Kay change in size. That takes quite a lot of mana. Two: you claim to have no mana, and yet tested quite positively. Three: Contracts don¡¯t tend to work that way.¡±


    He paused. ¡±Anu, what¡¯s going on here? or should I be asking your friend there¡±


    Anu took a deep breath. She started from the beginning.


    ¡°I found out a contracted beast would let me apply, and went to the hive nearby ... ¡±


    ¡°... They weren¡¯t tame, but the hive had been docile and friendly to us in the village as long as anyone could remember ...¡±


    ¡°... My circuit failed, but, when I pulled out a backup, well, Kay offered me a contract...¡±


    ¡°... they changed size to get on the boat ...¡± ¡°... and then, that¡¯s when it exploded¡±


    ¡°Right¡±, the headmaster was starting to make sense of things.


    ¡°Do you know how contracts work, Anu?¡±


    ¡°You offer them mana, they reciprocate in terms of action¡±


    ¡°Yep. So, it sounds Kay here has been offering you quite a lot of mana, more than you realise. Speaking of which, Kay has been very quiet.¡±


    ¡°Kay?¡± tap ¡°Would you mind, joining us?¡±, asked Anu.


    A grumpy yes was tapped out. The headmaster cleared his desk, offering it to Anu.


    Anu went to lift Kay over, only to watch them leap onto the table.


    ¡°Hello Kay, I¡¯m ..¡±


    Kay waggled at him. Anu translated ¡°Yep, they know¡±


    Briefly asking himself ¡®what am I doing¡¯, the headmaster spoke again.


    ¡°Kay, Anu said that you¡¯re a mana-weaver, is that correct?¡±


    tap ¡°That¡¯s correct¡±, Anu added, ¡°Although Kay is saying ¡®not how you said mana weaver¡¯¡± tap


    ¡°Wait, Kay you¡¯re not a weaver?¡± tap tap ¡°You are weaver¡± tap ¡°but a particular type¡± tap


    Anu felt she had become quite proficient in decoding Kay¡¯s body language.


    The headmaster found the interaction between the two a little amusing, if only following half of the conversation.


    ¡°A different sort of mana weaver? Would you mind if I took a closer look?¡±


    tap. Short and loud. ¡°I think Kay is saying ¡®not too close¡¯¡± tap


    He slowly leaned over, carefully looking at the pattern on Kay¡¯s thorax, noting the gold lining around the joints of their exoskeleton.


    ¡°Um¡±. The headmaster pulled a face to say ¡®That¡¯s not right¡¯, and without further explanation, he walked over to a nearby bookcase, searching for something.


    ¡°No. Nope¡±, he haphazardly stacked the unwanted book on a pile. Anu watched as the stack grew more unwieldly as he ploughed through his bookshelf.


    ¡°No. Wait¡±, the right book had been found.


    He quickly returned to the desk, skipping through pages as he walked, book in hand.


    He looked at he book, then at Kay, and at the book again.


    ¡°Kay, um, is this you? Well, are you like this?¡±


    He spun the book around, showing the open page to Kay.


    tap tap tap tap tapThis narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    ¡°Um, they¡¯re saying yes, but¡±


    ¡°Of course, here you go¡±, he handed the book to Anu, ¡°this explains so much¡±


    She saw the words ¡®Sovereign Mana Weaver¡¯


    Anu re-read the scant description, while Kay was still tapping away in delight.


    ¡°Mana Weavers form a hive, with some social structure. There are Soldiers, Workers, and occasionally, Commanders and/or Queens (depending on egg cycle). Nests can span hundreds of miles with interconnected smaller units, operating semi independently¡±


    Underneath was a chart, with the various small drones, a child¡¯s silhouette for scale, the larger worker drones and variant of queens, next to an adult. Finally there was a large spider, twice the size of an adult, with ¡®Sovereign¡¯ underneath.


    A footnote explained that ¡®Various historical reports have talked of a titanic mana weaver, with golden lines, and thick black exoskeleton. We include this for completeness, but the reader is encouraged to explore ....¡¯


    Anu shut the book. She felt it didn¡¯t explain anything at all.


    ¡°Kay?¡±, Anu asked for their attention


    ¡°You¡¯re a Sovereign¡±. tap. It sounded quite smug to Anu.


    ¡°Wait, you¡¯re not you¡¯re normal size¡± of course


    ¡°No I meant back in the hall¡± well, yes


    ¡°When you met me, you¡¯d already shrunk?¡± , Kay tapped out yes, duh


    ¡°How big do you get? As big as the picture? Wait, bigger? Kay?¡±


    Anu¡¯s confusion was interrupted by the Headmaster.


    ¡°Excuse me for interrupting here, but to confirm: Kay you set up a contract with Anu?¡±


    tap ¡°That¡¯s a yes, isn¡¯t it Anu¡± ¡°Yep¡±


    ¡°Right¡±, he returned to his seat, now face to face with Anu, and Kay still perched on the desk.


    ¡°I need to explain a few things¡±, he began counting off a list


    ¡°One: To be clear, you are being accepted into the Academy¡±


    ¡°Two: You won¡¯t be joining the beast corp. Technically, if you did, it would be Kay joining.¡±


    Anu was a little too delighted, and burst out into celebration, ¡°YESSS!¡±


    He coughed.


    ¡°Three: You¡¯re going to have to study in the Magicians school. Someone with enough mana to blow up a room is exactly the sort of person who needs to study magic.¡±


    ¡°Four: Keep your weird contract quiet for now, well, don¡¯t go telling everyone about Kay, but your teachers will have to know¡±


    ¡°Five: You¡¯ve qualified for the emperors¡¯...¡±


    The conversation was interrupted by the door slamming open, and a handful of threats.


    ¡°Orland. What the hell is going on here? And where is, Oh. Hi Anu¡±


    ¡°Hi Agwa¡±, Anu replied.


    ¡°As I was saying, wait, you know each other? Whatever, just sit down Agwa.¡±


    Kay took the interruption as their chance to return to Anu, and was now making a comfortable mess of her hair. Again.


    As Agwa sat down, the door slammed open again.


    ¡°Headmaster. If you think I am going to let another of my smiths play intern for your pointless plant... oh¡±


    ¡°Hello Adam¡±, Anu waved.


    The headmaster, Orland, put his head in his hand, pausing for a moment.


    Agwa just scowled at the new guest.


    Whenshe had complained about smiths getting in her way, she meant Adam. There was some budgetary fights within the city, and academy as a whole, but mostly he had dismissed her work as pointless, and she had been determined to prove him wrong.


    She¡¯d also been a little petty, and maybe the paperwork he¡¯d been subjected to for months on end might have been a little over the top.


    The headmaster sighed, wondering exactly how Anu had managed to get entangled between the two. It wasn¡¯t worth it.


    ¡°Does anyone else want to storm in? Dys? Ota? are either of you still outside?¡±


    Ota peeked through the doorway, ¡°He¡¯s gone but...¡±


    ¡°Just come inside. Assuming there¡¯s no-one else? Good? Right. One at a time. Agwa, you first, then, Adam.¡±


    Agwa had arrived after finding out about the accident. She¡¯d put in a request for a smithing student to intern, specifically Anu, to steal her before another teacher could ask.


    Adam had arrived for a totally unrelated reason, but had discovered Agwa¡¯s request and stormed into the headmasters office in anger.


    Ota explained she was just very curious about how Anu had dodged her attacks, and with nothing better to do, she stuck around to ask questions later.


    Orland started again.


    ¡°Anu is joining us. She¡¯s joining the Smiths, and as a student, Agwa is allowed to make a request¡±, he nodded at her, ¡°but as a guild member Anu can select her own work¡±, pointing to Adam, ¡°and we will be paying the guild rate, of course¡±.


    Adam nodded, satisfied.


    ¡°Ota, tell Dys that Anu needs magic lessons, mostly sensing, control, manipulation¡±, He paused. ¡°and tell him to stick to barriers for now¡±


    ¡°...and Ota, despite your request, Anu won¡¯t be joining the beast corp¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°It isn¡¯t safe for the beast corp, Ota. Kay¡¯s a titan class¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    Ota¡¯s eyes bugged out. Hesitantly, she looked over at Anu.


    The day replayed in her mind. The tiny spider on Anu¡¯s head could have easily crushed her.


    Ota lunged back slightly when Kay waved at her.


    ¡°Ota? ... Ota?¡± ¡°Yes¡±


    ¡°and Ota, per your request, although you will tutor her in combat training, the goal is to understand how the contract is affecting her physically. Finally, Anu, due to your unique situation, You¡¯ll be getting a scholarship¡±


    ¡°What!¡±, Anu exclaimed.


    ¡°There¡¯s a scholarship set aside for any student who shows exceptional ability. You are the only one who destroyed our equipment¡±, Orland smiled, ¡°That and you¡¯re the only person on record, to contract with a Sovereign Weaver¡±


    Ota snapped out of her earlier shock, ¡°The emperor¡¯s scholarship?¡±


    ¡°Yep¡±, Orlando nodded. He launched into an explantion, ¡°Funding for the beast corp comes from the emperor¡¯s will, to keep the practice alive, and ¡±


    ¡°Well it is his fault, I mean¡±, Ota cut him off.


    ¡°Yes, Professor Ota. The modernisation of magic tools, despite building the empire, this city, and the academy, did mean that familiars became far less popular and desired¡±


    Ota pulled back into her chair.


    ¡°Can I continue? Good. Funding for many subjects here comes from a bequeathment, but a small portion is set aside for students too. There¡¯s a bizarre, long set of rules. ¡¯Any Parent born in the city can join their child¡¯, ¡®Someone who saves the live of a professor¡¯ and so on, there¡¯s a tiny village that gets to send one child every 18 years.¡±


    Ota mumbled something under her breath.


    ¡°and yes Ota, the student with the strongest familiar gets a scholarship. In the rules, it¡¯s listed as ¡®one who has the command of a beast that can defend the city¡¯ and we¡¯ve traditionally given it to the strongest in the beast corp, but I trust you have no objections with how I¡¯m awarding it this year, Ota¡±


    ¡°No, Orland¡±


    ¡°So: Smithing as normal, Barrier Magic with Dys, Fitness with Ota¡±, turning to look at Agwa, then Adam, ¡°and no-problems with you working on Agwa¡¯s projects... at guild rates, yes Adam. Is everyone clear?¡±.


    The room was quiet.


    She¡¯d passed.


    Exercise with Ota every morning,


    Magic two afternoons a week with Dys,


    Working on Agwa¡¯s projects in her spare time,


    and three whole lectures about magic circuits every week.


    She¡¯d gotten a scholarship too.


    Anu, incredibly relieved, slumped into her chair.


    Under her breath, ¡°Thank you Kay. We did it¡±


    pat pat pat, Kay was a little patronising.


    Seeing Any delighted, Orlando looked across the room at his other guests, ¡°Is there anything else?¡±


    knock knock


    ¡°Yes?¡±


    ¡°Um, Hello?¡±


    A scraggy head popped around the door. A face that was one pipe short of a sea captain.


    ¡°I¡¯m the registered emergency contact for one of your students, my brother¡¯s apprentice, and I was told there was an accident.¡±


    ¡°Agwa, Ota, Adam, are we done here? Good. Come in, uh?¡±


    ¡°Nathan¡±


    ¡°Nathan?¡±, Anu was surprised.


    He stared back at Anu, puzzled.


    ¡°I left you a letter... and my hair was red until this morning.¡±


    His eyes widened ¡°Anu!¡±


    Orland stopped the introductions.


    ¡°As you can see, she¡¯s safe and sound. Right. I have other things to do, as do you all. Anu, I¡¯ll leave you in Nathan¡¯s care. Come find me when term starts.¡±


    Outside the headmasters office, Anu made promises:


    She promised Agwa that she¡¯d meet her later to talk about side projects.


    She promised Adam that she¡¯d meet him later and Yes She Would Read The Rule Book.


    She just stared awkwardly at Ota.


    ¡°9am, sharp, tomorrow. Hall 312, Leave your familiar at home¡±


    Ota confidently walked off, still worrying inside about Kay and trying not to show it.


    Only Nathan was left.


    ¡°So, Anu?¡±


    ¡°Nathan?¡±


    ¡°Yep! Anu, I¡¯m finished for the day, and was about grab dinner, would you care to join me?¡±


    ¡°Kay too?¡±, she pointed to the spider embedded in her hair.


    ¡°The familiar? Wasn¡¯t it supposed to be ...¡±


    ¡°Yes, but they shrunk. Actually I just found out...actually, dinner sounds wonderful.¡±


    Anu wondered if it would be a bad idea to explain that Kay could punch through stone and was likely more than twice her size, and decided it could wait until later.