To expand on what I said earlier, shopping was a word that I knew the definition of but was uncertain on the details. The basic concept was simple enough, going between various merchants to find the best price and goods. But given that my village inherently distrusted merchants and coin, the idea of having multiple merchants to talk to was laughable at best. The idea of comparing their wares was equally so. Still, there were other words and concepts to understand and I didn’t let Thuvvik dwell on it.

  Unfortunately, that left me utterly unprepared for ‘shopping’.

  I had been expecting market stalls, with merchants at stands, like I had seen when I first stepped off the Immendium. Instead, Natalie led us to a long street with the tall buildings and large windows. I had seen a few with clothing in the windows, but all of the shops here had dresses or trousers or other clothing. We spent some time looking in the windows as we went from shop to shop, but didn’t go into any of them. Faith was looking for something, though what they wouldn’t say, leaving Cecilia and I trailing behind walking mostly in silence.

  After several kedu of just walking, I attempted to fill the void. “You keep looking around. Are you not used to the tall buildings either?”

  “No,” she quickly responded, before softening. “I mean, yes, I’m not used to so many tall buildings, but that’s not why I’m looking around.”

  I blinked and made sure that Faith and Nicole were still ahead of us. “Oh?” I asked.

  She sighed, “We have no guarantee that whoever we stopped was acting alone. They’re clearly well funded enough to be able to just give equipment to a group like that. And now we’ve split into smaller groups and the three of us are out here.” She slid past a group of people, watching them carefully as she went, “And none of us are fully equipped.”

  I wanted to argue that I had all the supplies I needed to cast, but that would’ve been petty and dismissive. Besides, part of the shopping today was to provide me with gear that I hadn’t known I’d need as an adventurer, so I was certain that I didn’t match her definition of ‘fully equipped.’

  “Why didn’t you wear your armor then?” I asked curiously.

  Neither of my fellow Starborn had. Or at least, not obviously. Faith might’ve been wearing their chain under a shirt, but I didn’t think it likely given how uncomfortable that would be. Then again, they didn’t have any fur or breasts to chafe on. For all I knew, their body could have been… designed? Ugh, something else to ask about. Regardless, wearing armor under their clothes might be an option for them.

  Cecilia tilted her head at the people around us, “Didn’t want to stand out. There’s not a single person here in armor. Besides the guards. Walking around in plate would’ve been the same as declaring ‘Here we are!’”.

  You can’t be harmed if you can’t be found.

  “Same logic for the large sword I’d imagine,” I said pointedly not acknowledging Rin’s commentary.

  She nodded, “I’ve still got a shortsword. Not ideal, but certainly better than nothing if something goes awry.”

  I nodded, because I wasn’t quite sure what to say to that. There was another bout of silence before Cecilia sighed again.

  “How long does it take to find an armorer?” she asked, raising her voice.

  Faith turned around and looking appalled, “An armorer?”

  “An armorer?” I echoed.

  “Where else are we going to find someone to make leather armor for her,” Cecilia said, pointing a thumb at me and ignoring my question.

  “I thought that was expensive and rare,” I said.

  “It’s also light and won’t hamper your movements,” Cecilia responded.

  “Additionally, Lord Winthrop offered to pay for outfitting us,” Faith responded.

  It seemed a bit rude to take advantage of Lord Winthrop like that, but given how unpleasant getting stabbed would be, I couldn't bring myself to argue. So, instead I closed my mouth and gave a small smile, silently deferring to their wisdom.

  “So, an armorer?” Cecilia asked again.

  Nicole stepped forward, “If you’ll forgive me, most of the armorers in Freeport work with metal. A tanner would have a better hope of helping you, which is why I was leading you to one with whom m’Lord has worked with before. We are taking a bit of a circuitous route, but that was as Lady Faith requested.”

  I could feel myself blanch at that statement. Tanning was a foul smelling process handled by the lowest members of society on the farthest reaches of town. It was actually a point of pride that the Academy didn’t have or need a tanner. We sent all of our skins and hides to a nearby commune and had them handle it. I had heard the smell of festered carcasses compared favorably to a tannery by the guards who had been there.

  “I am not a Lady,” Faith said immediately, missing my concern.

  “Sir Faith,” Nicole corrected immediately.

  “I am not a Sir either.”

  There was a pause, “Noble Faith?”

  Faith laughed, “That’s acceptable.”

  *************************************************************************************************************

  Despite my fears, the shop Nicole led us to didn’t have a notably strong smell. In fact, it smelled like flowers if anything.

  “This is just a shop,” Nicole explained when queried. “The actual tanning is done outside of town for practical reasons.”

  I nodded, grateful that I didn’t have to handle the smell and let Faith and Cecilia talk to the shopkeeper as I looked around the shop. Most of the pieces were plain and simple, boots, bags, a quiver or two. I couldn’t imagine wearing leather boots, the material looked too rigid to accommodate my shifting feet, but the bags looked sturdy enough. I carefully examined one before spotting a quiet and neglected corner with a coat resting upon a person shaped display next to a pair of boots.

  Unlike the rest of the shop, the two pieces had notable designs on the pieces and were clearly designed to go together. The boots had sections of leather carved away in spiraling patterns, much like a wood relief. The coat had matching patterns, though mostly done through stitching instead of carving. Despite myself, I found my fingers tracing the outlines. The work was exquisite, sharply done and done with a degree of precision I wouldn’t have thought possible, with overlapping sections and interwoven chords. It made me think of the glyphs back in the refectory, designed to gather and concentrate magical energy into kolim. These patterns weren’t glyphs, but perhaps…

  A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  “Kara,” Cecilia said, tapping my shoulder.

  I shook my head and snapped back to the situation at hand.

  “Sorry,” I said, “Lost in thought.”

  She laughed warmly, holding up a bit of cloth. “I could tell. The shopkeep is ready to measure you. Put this on.”

  I blinked and looked around, “Where?”

  She sighed and pointed to a hanging sheet. With a nod and a sigh, I stepped behind the cloth into a small outclove. I was confused for a moment before I realized that the sheet could be pulled to provide privacy. Carefully, I removed my tunic and then slid into the piece that Cecilia had provided me.

  It was a thicker material than the tunic and had a much looser cut. Almost like a shapeless bag with extra holes for my arms and head. It was also flexible and light, which seemed to be the opposite of the armor I had seen yesterday.

  “Um,” I said, stepping out. “What is this?”

  Faith suppressed a laugh as Cecilia sighed, “Armor needs to be tightly fit to your body in order to be effective. This will allow the tanner to get tight measurements.”

  I nodded, not truly understanding as an older man stepped forward. He cocked his eyes in a wordless question and, after a brief hesitation, I gave him a consenting nod. Carefully, he began to pinch the cloth in so it laid tight against my body, folding over and then pinning it at various places and occasionally marking with chalk. He worked with a quiet intensity, making me slightly unnerved. I nearly jumped when he eventually spoke.

  “Ya done growing?” he asked as he pinched the back, drawing the cloth tight around my chest.

  “Uh, no?” I asked more than stated. Had you asked me that before I became Starborn, I would’ve said yes, but now I wasn’t sure. “At least I don’t think so.”

  He grunted and loosened the cloth slightly.

  “You’re not a fighter,” he stated. A silence hung as if that had meant to be a question, but the tone was a horrid mismatch if it was.

  “No,” I eventually agreed, uncertain what I was supposed to say.

  He grunted again, “Typically armor like this is designed to go over your clothes. Won’t be subtle.”

  Cecilia responded for me this time, “We know.”

  He grunted again, his eyes roving my body and settling uncomfortably on what looked like my chest. Despite the thick cloth, I felt the desire to cover myself. Thankfully, he turned and started making notes before I had to navigate moving my arms with all the pins, “Well, I’ll do my best, but if she gets much taller or bigger you’ll need to come back and get fitted again.”

  I looked down at my chest. “Bigger?” I thought to myself in horror. I already had enough issues with them as is.

  Faith snorted again in laughter and I suddenly realized that I had said that aloud. Blushing, I looked around but no one else seemed to have noticed.

  “It’ll take me ‘bout a week to get it all done and made,” he said. “And it’ll be…”

  Nicole stepped forward and cut him off, “It’s a gift. From Lord Winthrop. We’ll handle coin.”

  The man grunted once more, “Once you get out of that, drop it on the counter.”

  I thanked the man and made my way back to the curtained area. I went to pull the shirt off and got stabbed by two needles for my trouble.

  “Uhm,” I said, “A little help here?”

  “Coming,” Faith said. And before I could protest, they stepped into the small curtained area.

  Carefully, she helped slide the wool garment over my head.

  “He was referring to muscles,” they said once we got my arms out. “He probably assumes that if your life is active enough to require armor, you’re probably going to get some muscles with it.”

  “Ah,” I murmured.

  “A thing we’ll have to keep an eye on,” they said, holding back some laughter. “In addition to your concerns.”

  I nodded and made a point of looking away from them as I started to pull my tunic on. Desperate for any other topic, I asked the first question that came to mind.

  “How were you made?” I winced, realizing that might be considered an indelicate question for public discussion.

  There was a pause and a scuffling noise, “What do you mean?”

  I couldn’t decipher the tone. Was this not something to be discussed? Were they inviting questions. I didn’t know, but decided to dive forward regardless. “Well, you’ve got metal plates and non-metal sections. Last I checked, metal doesn’t grow. So, were you built, or whatever the word is, like this or did you get sections replaced as you grew up or?”

  Faith laughed again, “Oh, you poor sheltered thing.”

  I stood up, slightly indignant, “I don’t understand what’s so funny.”

  They shook their head, “Sorry, it’s rude to laugh. I forget that not everyone knows about androids.”

  I didn’t let the indignance fade from my face.

  “Our bodies are forged, like one might forge a sword. Though, admittedly, more complicated.”

  “And your mind?” I asked.

  “A matter of argument,” they said with surprising nonchalance, “On the cosmic scale at least. Some say the process of forging gives us our mind. Others that we’re given life by the Steel-Father directly. Others say that we’re just echoes and mutations of those who forge us, that their mind gives birth to a new mind. Or maybe we’re just vessels of those who have died and refused to move on. Ghosts in a golem’s body.”

  I shivered despite the relative warmth. I was always warned of Misaki, spirits of those who died and weren’t given proper funeral rites. Dead, but unable to move on, they craved life and would cause torment and suffering to those near their grave until someone either helped them move on or gave them a life to return to, namely theirs.

  The worst stories were always about a Misaki who claimed a body and the atrocities they would commit.

  Still, Faith seemed to be a good, or at least decent person. And they were Starborn, like me, which meant that they were supposed to be working with me.

  “What do you think?” I asked, hoping to bring us back on topic.

  They tilted their head quizzically. “Do you really want to know, or are you just being polite?”

  “I want to know,” I said, nodding firmly, “Please?”

  “Androids don’t have children, at least not as the other races do. Admittedly, there are those of us who can and do fornicate, it doesn’t lead to procreation.” It took me a moment to decipher that, but when I did I winced and then blushed at the brashness of the sentence. Back home that would’ve been a scandal, but here it was… casual. The contrast was unsettling. Despite my apprehension, Faith continued. “But, we look like those who do. A facsimile. Which speaks to the intent of the Steel-Father.”

  “So, you think your mind comes from him?”

  They shrugged and then shook their head, “Yes and no. The Word states that the Steel-Father was once human, but transcended that form. But he still felt the need to create, to make. That desire led to the Living Guardians and then to the Androids. We are all, in a manner of speaking, his children. With our own goals, desires, and abilities sure. But we are his children. And like him we have that desire to create.”

  They paused, grasping at the air and for words. “You’re a mage, you might understand this. When you cast a spell, you feel the magic around you, but it’s just raw, unused. It’s the intent you give it that determines the spell. That gives it life. I think it’s the intention of those who made us that gives us our mind. Do you understand?”

  I wanted to argue about magic, that there was more to magic than intent and Energy. That even if there wasn’t, that didn’t explain the mind. My intent to evoke bright lights didn’t give those flashes of color sentience. That their description of magic lacked the structure I knew magic to have and sounded almost… whimsical in comparison.”

  But, I didn’t. Couldn’t. And while I wasn’t sure why, I was certain that it had something to do with the fact that Faith had, well, faith in the idea.

  “No,” I said honestly, “But I think I can see the shape of it.”

  They laughed, “Well, at least you’re honest. Now come on, we have other supplies to acquire.”