Gleann had trouble with convincing the blacksmith and carpenter that his invention would help them. He understood how much work he was asking them. He made changes to his design so it would require more wood than iron. But there were some exceptions that could not be made. He had calculated and recalculated the costs of material and labor and the tools that would need to be forged in order for the contraption he had commissioned to be made. But the two men were being stubborn through and through. He ended up buying the materials, renting a shack as his shop, getting permission to use their tools and the smith's forge, and working on it himself.
If they wouldn't do the labor themselves he would. And he did. To their surprise he was actually a better smith and wood worker than they realized. The next obstacle was the farmers. He needed to cut a deal that would get them to rent his contraption. He knew they wouldn't buy it outright. They couldn't if they wanted to. He explained how it would work and how it would make things easier on their backs just as much as it would save them time.
Gleann was frustrated by the set backs. But at least things were going as planned. The farmers were more than happy to try his invention if it meant less labor for them. They signed contracts that sounded fair and agreed to a rough schedule of who would rent it and when. Gleann had made every effort to convince them that they were not loosing anything so long as they operated it correctly. If his contraption didn't work, they would not need to pay to rent it. They lost nothing. If it did, their payments would be made after they made and sold their harvest. When they would have money. And it was a fair price.
Glean had calculated and calculated again. He would be getting what he put in and a half. He couldn't be too greedy, or too careful. He just needed to make sure everything worked out. If he failed catastrophically, he still had money to get by. He could move to another town if he had to. But he liked this town. It was usually quite. Other than the buzz he stirred up. But he needed that. He needed to get his 'invention' noticed.
Gleann did not leave anything to chance. He didn't leave room for sabotage. He watched his contraption like a hawk. Every bolt, every rivet. Every inch of the mower blade and the spikes along it. The wheels, the axle, the driver's seat and springs to make things comfortable. He had a horse drawn mower. He had spent hours sharpening the blade and checking and rechecking everything. It was a simple device to him, but out of habit he needed to make sure everything was perfect and presentable. No cutting corners.
Gleann slept in the shed he rented out as his workshop. He slept there with the machine that he would present to the farmers the next day. He woke up with a start and pulled out his knife. His ears listened, his eyes searched. The door to his shop opened. " Damn your a prudent one. Look, I want to say I'm sorry for giving you such a hard time." The smith said as he set a lamp down.
Gleann continued to listen. He stood there dagger in hand. The Smith took a step back. " I want to make this clear. I honor my contracts. I strive to give customers good service with the highest quality I can muster. If you did not want to help in my project with your own hands I understand. Thank you for letting me use your forge and buy your metal. But I have farmers I need to impress. If you really feel guilty for giving me a hard time, lend me your horse. Otherwise I'll pull this damn thing all the way out there if I have to." Glean said. The smith sat on a crate and looked Glean over. " You sure are something. What's your master like anyways? Some one trained you, strange as your crafts is." The smith asked.
Gleann sighed. " He was a man of a build much larger than you. And I don't say this to rile your ire either." Glean said calmly. " My first master was a smith but he forged the most beautiful time keeping pieces that you couldn't imagine. He was a bear of a man that could lift that hundred pound anvil in your forge and toss it a pretty good a length without throwing his back out. I say this because he HAS thrown a hundred pound anvil. The man belonged to the Bear Clan of my lands. They are known for their temperament and their strength. I learned all I could from him before he died."
Gleann cracked his knuckles. "My second master was a woman actually. She was from the Wolf Clan and her temperament was no less dangerous. She had no qualms with gutting a man in the street if they didn't uphold their promises. Wolves are an honor bound people of my lands and they do not take oath breakers lightly. She was skilled and taught me many things besides being a good tinker. Most clans from my lands contend with one another. A few of us have managed peace for a number of centuries before coming to this continent and settling the archipelago east of here. So to sum up my masters. They were talented, honorable, and ill tempered. And I did well as a Fox to learn how to live and work with them." Gleann concluded.
The smith simply stared at him and shook his head before laughing heartily. " Oh my aching gut. I think I can get an idea o' what it is like from where you come from. Ha ha ha! Blimey mad house that place!" The smith said. " So why do you fancy talking to that tavern lady eh? Have some kind of eye for her?" Glean frowned at the man. " No. Even if I did, she had made it very clear she has no interest in taking on another lover. I just found her curious. And lovely." Glean said bluntly. " I guess I just don't understand the disposition between the humans and Keidrans of this land." Glean simply shrugged.
It had been a week ago that Adira had shot his subtle advances down. At least she had been gentle about it. He was welcomed to continue being a patron to her tavern and her daughter took an interest in some of his baubles he made. But he had also learned that a relationship between a human and a Keidran was not appropriate in public opinion. So it was wise to keep his opinions of romance private. What saddened him was that Keidrans had maybe a third of a human's life span.
"Well, at least you started looking somewhat normal. Good grief you looked like a complete outsider when you got here. Now you look like an odd ball!" The smith jested before walking over and slapping Glean on the back. Gleann smiled wryly. "Just out of curiosity, where does the carpenter stand on my project?" Gleann asked. The smith's face looked serious for a moment but then he broke in a wide grin. " Missing a few teeth and his face in the muck. He's not standing at all after I got done with 'im." The smith said.
Glean understood the situation now. He had to look for another carpenter to work with from now on. " Thank you for that." Gleann said bowing before looking back at his contraption. " Your a damn proud man you are. I can understand that at least coming from a fellow craftsman." The smith said. " Your still strange. Nighty night then." And with that the smith left.
Mina was wondering why there was a crowd. Aidra, the tavern lady she had become quick friends with sighed. " That silly fool is showing off his contraption to the farmers today. You don't bother listening to the town gossip do you?" She asked. Mina smiled and shook her head. " No. I'm too busy looking after my 'master' to really pay that any mind." Mina said then dropped her voice to a whisper. "Isn't that the guy who's been flirting with you lately?" Adira looked at Mina annoyed. " I haven't the faintest clue what you are talking about." Adira said as she watched Gleann hook the harness to farmer's draft horse and guided the horse along slowly. The farmer who owned the horse was riding on the contraption's seat to get an idea of what it was like to sit on it while it was in use. It worked like a charm and it was pretty much like driving a horse drawn wagon. Except the horse drawn carriage was doing a weeks worth of labor in a fraction of the time.
The tinker gave the farmer the reins, gave some pointers on how to mow the crops and with that he started answering a barrage of questions from the towns people. How much did it cost to make it? Was it really made from just iron and wood? Why did he dress so funny? Adira grabbed Maeve and carried her away under her arm after that. Gleann just laughed it off and answered that it was a custom of his country. "Why won't you help with construction of the towers?" A Templar asked. Glean just smiled. " Because I won't work with magical instruments. They are too dangerous and unstable." Glean answered as if it was rehearsed.
The Templar was about to withdraw his sword when a man in a dark gray tunic and dark brown pants stepped in the way to asked Gleann a question. " What is it like in your land? Are there forests there?" Aiden asked. The Templar sheathed his sword and stormed away. Gleann cocked his head. " Well, up in the north. Mostly small woods here an' there anywhere else. And rolling hills with cliffs and such. The forests in the northern isles are old. VERY old. No one goes there. Not a place anyone sets foot in. Some say the trees dance there." Gleann said calmly. Aiden nodded. " Thank you sir." Aiden said and walked away with Mina at his side waving goodbye to Adira.
It was a few feet from the INN that Aiden stepped in Mina's way. She blinked feeling confused. When she tried to go around him he held his arm out to stop her. A man in a white shirt with a cyan Templar emblem stood in front of them. Mina looked at Aiden, then the man. " Good day sir." Aiden said politely. Mina looked at the man. Blue hair, blue eyes... He looked only a bit older than Aiden... " You noticed me. Even though you're blind. Heh heh. You must be talented." The man said. His voice was cold and arrogant. " Have you seen a tiger Keidran around here? I heard she ran away." The man asked. Aiden lowered his arm. " I don't think we have met one." Aiden said as he stepped aside for the man to pass, reaching back and grabbing Mina so he could pull her behind him.
"That's a shame. I'll probably end up killing her instead of returning her to her master anyways." He said and walked past them. Aiden put his hand on Mina's mouth to keep her quiet. She looked at him surprised. He wasn't normally like this. Aiden let her lead him to the INN before he sat down and prepared for her to chew him out. But there were no words said for a long moment. Finally she sighed. " He was that powerful huh?" Mina asked. Aiden looked surprised but simply nodded. " I could feel dark magic from him. Normally people don't light up. Not even you. But he was bright. A mix of blue and black like he was on fire." Aiden said calmly. "I could even see you because he burned so brightly... Or maybe so darkly..."
Mina looked at him and shook her head. " Scarey." She said and crawled into her bed before going to sleep. Aiden laid there awake for a long while, mulling over what had happened.
The next day Mina woke Aiden up. They did their usual everyday tasks. But today Aiden's employer needed him to collect an herb from the forest. Mina was his servant so she had to go with him, even though he was fine by himself once they were in the forest. But today wasn't like every other day. They happened upon a man who had white hair who was wearing a green tunic and black pants. He looked around and listened for a moment. Aiden simply stood in one place, somehow not being noticed until the man transformed into a Keidran. A very tall wolf Keidran.
Aiden blinked. He stepped forward when Mina gasped in surprise, startling the Keidran. " Oh. Well hello there." The Keidran-man said. Aiden smiled. "Hello there man wolf." Aiden said in high Keidran. The white wolf Keidran's eyes widened in surprise. He had obviously thought Aiden was blind... Well, Aiden was blind, but the trees could tell him what he did not see. What he could see was the magic the Keidran was building up in order to launch an attack.
Aiden only raised his hand to bat the spell away. Something told him he would be more than capable of it. The next spell Aiden simply caught and crushed. The dragon vine that slept in his arm was awake. It pulled itself out of Aiden's arm and grew to the size of a draft horse, pinning the white furred Keidran to the ground. " Don't kill him... Yet." Aiden said calmly. The dragon looked back at Aiden and nodded before baring it's fangs and hissing loudly with a deep growl... The fangs were like huge barbed thorns the size of knives. The dragon's wings which were large and leaf like spread out to give the plant creature an even more menacing and aggravated look.
"What kind of magic is this?" The Keidran asked. Aiden sat down and looked in the general direction of his captive. " To be honest, I don't particularly know myself. My friend here is prepared to kill you though, for attacking me. So, Convince me... Why should I let you live?" Aiden asked. The Keidran stared at Aiden. " Because you will never be able to escape. It is just you, this creature and that girl... Wait, where did she come from?" He asked. Aiden simply smiled. "She was behind me most of the time. But you are wrong. We are not alone. This whole forest is aware of your presence. The trees know you. They tell me you are a Templar named Euchre of the inner circle of Templars. To be honest, your name and position is trivial to me. It is that you are a curious Keidran that you piqued my interest... But then you attacked me..." Aiden said and stood up.
"So I'll give you one more chance. Convince me why I should let you live?" Aiden asked. Mina tugged at his sleeve. " Maybe he could teach me that thing? Hey wolf guy, can you teach me to become human like you were? Can you?" Mina asked excitedly swishing her tail. Aiden chuckled. "Does it look like I teach parlor tricks?" The wolf Keidran asked. Aiden tilted his head to the side. " No, but it sounds like a fair trade. In addition to that, I'll even tell you how I probably use my 'magic'... Though as I said I don't really know how... I just have an idea... That might pique your interest at least." Aiden said.
Euchre sighed. " Very well then. I'll try. But I doubt she can learn it. It isn't something she can just learn, it requires a born talent." Euchre said. "Kiedran can not normally use magic like humans do." Aiden looked up at the dragon then the trees. " She'll be able to learn. And quickly enough. You just have to know how to teach her." Aiden said and sat down. The dragon let the wolf Keidran up and circled around Aiden before laying down and watching the Keidran. "How do you know I won't just curse her?" Euchre asked. Aiden simply smiled as a tree slammed its limb just shy of the old wolf Keidran. Mina giggled. " The trees are more than capable of dealing with you if you did try." She said smiling pleasantly. "They are like that."
Euchre looked at the tree and the forest around them. The trees were swaying by their own accord. He really wanted to know about this young blind man. Euchre spent the next few hours trying to teach Mina to no avail. He tried again and again to get her to focus and use magic like he would but it wasn't working. Aiden coughed to interrupt. " Maybe I can offer a suggestion. Mina, feel the ground with your toes. Concentrate on that. But don't just stop there. Reach out not with your body, but like you are trying to feel something. Feel the light around you, but more specifically, below you. Reach out and touch the blue or green lights. But don't pull too much of it. Don't touch the black light either. Let it be." Aiden said. "Let the black light sleep."
Mina and Euchre both stared at Aiden puzzled. It was a moment before Euchre realized what Aiden was talking about. It came so natural to him... But not other Keidrans. With that Mina spent a few moments trying to concentrate. She seemed like she was about to give up several times but she started to feel tugs from below. Soon enough she was holding and orb of green light, mana that Euchre had told her to focus. He started to instruct her on how to manipulate it. Eventually her body started to change. Soon Mina was no longer a Snow Leopard Keidran but a young woman with white hair and black along her fringes.
Mina gasped. She couldn't believe it. It had worked. "Now, I held up my end of the bargain..." Euchre said then turned to Mina."But I have to ask you, don't teach anyone else that. Ever." Mina smiled.
"Only to my kittens." She teased but none the less promised. Euchre sighed. He turned to Aiden. " You are a strange man. Are you a Mask?" The wolf Keidran asked. Aiden looked confused for a moment before shaking his head when the trees explained what the wolf meant. " No. I'm a Leaf Whistler. I think that is where I get my mysterious powers from. Other than being taught healing magic and being able to draw on the green light which seems rather abundant around us... I'm just able to talk to plants. And they can hear me." Aiden said with a shrug as he petted his vine dragon friend who was still watching Euchre diligently.
Euchre looked around him. The trees were very active with this blind guy near by. "My name is Aiden. I hope if our paths cross again it is a rather uneventful meeting... Or at least one that is more pleasant for the both of us." And with that Aiden left with the dragon and the now human Mina who was making him feel her soft non furry skin, which was making Aiden blush a deep red.
Euchre stood there in place staring at the direction they had left. He felt like he had just been apart of something out of a fairy tale. He looked up to notice the trees were now still when he finally came back to himself. " Leaf Whistler eh?" He asked himself and shook his head before continuing on his way. He had a mission to fulfill.