#28

"A masterwork, and he treats it like it's trash." Deluca looks like she wants to cry.

"It's not trash, just... not up to standards." I try to explain. "Amelia, help me out here. You understand, right?"

"I get it babe." She has a sad smile on her face. "But, I think your control issues are showing through again."

"Shit!" I curse myself out. "I'm sorry girls, and here I thought I was more on the lookout for this shit since the panic attack. You have my deepest apologies Master Mecatti." I bow deeply to her. "I must look just like a petulant child."

"One step at a time, babe. One step at a time." Amelia pulls me into a hug and now I feel like I want to cry. "You were so strong on the road, always looking out for us... for me. I think that now we're safe in the Capital, and you don't need on guard all the time. Well, all the stuff you were bottling up is leaking out the cracks."

"She's right, Sorrel." Apricot adds, hovering next to us. "Combine that with the shock of what you learned yesterday. And we should have realized it last night. Why else would you have been so obsessed with creating some form of long range communication? You're not exactly one to shirk your responsibilities, after all."

"Damn, if you're being serious, then it really is an issue. Now get over here. Embiggen!" I pull her into the hug and hold her there until the spell fades

"Whoa!" Devlen skids to a halt outside the doorway just in time to see the constructed body fade away. "When you said you had a spell to make her human sized, I didn't think it would be anything like that. What'd I miss?"

"Oh, just me realizing what an idiot I've been."

"Being able to do that just means you've got a good woman.. or two, besides you." Deluca says and grins at Devlen

"The best." I agree.

"Uh, yes." Devlen looks a bit uncomfortable. "I sent a messenger bird to Oliver, and he replied saying that he's on his way."

"Okay." I say, drained. "Is there anywhere I can sit down until he gets here?" I ask. I'm only still upright because of Amelia. I usually drop the spell before it takes all my magic, but I needed every last second of that hug.

"You're completely empty, aren't you? How are you still conscious? let alone carrying on a conversation? I got an idea for how much magic you had during the library. How can you have drained it all in just a few minutes? Just what was that spell?" Devlen shoots questions at me in a rapid fire.

"Give it a rest Dev." Deluca comes to my rescue. "He's got a damned good reason for training such a spell." She winks at us. "And, I think I understand your viewpoint on the phones, if that is what you consider to be your standard. Now, come on, you can sit in my office."

"Eh, that spell's alright." I joke, earning a smack from Amelia. "I just gotta get better at casting it."

I can hear Devlen mutter something about "Crazy Archmages" and "Ocean sized waterfalls", but just ignore him as Deluca guides us to her office in the back of the lab. He follows us, much more subdued, after a few minutes.

I take out a chocolate bar and break off a few pieces to hand out before taking a big bite for myself.

"Oh, my." - "Where did you get this?" The Mages talk over each other.

"He makes it." Apricot explains for me, as she savors her piece with tiny nibbles. "He may be an idiot lunker, but the boy can cook." I try to retort, but it just comes out as mumbles because my mouth is full.

"Don't even try to deny it, babe." Amelia sneaks a bite from my bar.

"Forget about the phones." Deluca says licking her fingers. "You need to present this to the Queen. She'll knight you just for that nibble you gave me."

Seeing the complicated look on our faces causes Devlen to mutter "What? Seriously?"

"Just some rumors we heard yesterday, nothing concrete." Amelia shakes her head.

"Dammit Florence!" Oliver Long curses as he walks into the room. "That woman never leaves her library. How does she always find out the juiciest secrets?" He sighs before asking. "Just how much do you know?"

"Starts with a 'B', and ends with us in charge of a dungeon town I thought we had quit for good." The Enchanter and Earth mage gasp when the Court Wizard just nods in resignation.

"If only she would accept the position of Spy Master." He sighs. "Oh, well. So, what was so important that Devlen had to use the emergency bird? And what are you eating?" He cocks an eyebrow at the half-eaten bar in my hand.

"Chocolate." I take out a bar of each type and split them three ways. "White, milk, and dark. Don't eat it all at once, you'll get sick. That, and I'm the only person that knows how to make it. So, good luck finding another source." He eats a piece and tries to keep his face under control with a stern expression, but it quickly devolves into a look of pleasure. "And, these are why you're here." I levitate the five phones into the room from Deluca's work table.

Deluca takes over when she sees that I'm more interested in eating than explaining. "Sorrel here made these 'phones' last night and, incidentally, changed everything I thought I knew about Enchanting." She takes a deep breath and another bite of chocolate. "Can you make the map again? Thanks. They're communicators that use these relay towers to talk over any distance. Like from here to Miss Rialta's parents in their warehouse all the way over there."

Amelia picks one up and calls her mother. "Hi Mom. Sorry to bug you, but Mage Long from the castle is here, and we need a demonstration."

"You're not going to cut me off like you did earlier, are you?" Her mother asks with a hint of humor in her voice.

"Sorry, Mommy." I can see her trying not to sigh. "Oh, Mage Long would like to speak with you, is that alright?"

"Call me Oliver, please." He starts looking over the device. "Hello again, Mrs. Rialta."

"Oh, just Kaitlyn is fine."

"Remarkable." He breathes. "And, you're truly in your warehouse right now?"

"Yep, and we just had a client come in. I'm going to have to call you back, if that's alright?"

"Of course, of course. Um, how do I?" He starts.

"You just push the red button." Amelia says, before quickly adding. "Bye, Mom. Sorry for earlier." Her mother just laughs and disconnects the call herself. "Oh, that's not good. Sorrel, you'd better make some extra desert tonight."

"For you or your mom?"

"Her in the hopes it'll distract her, and me in case it doesn't." She hangs her head.

"Impressive, but you need five towers just to reach a few kilometers." The Mage sounds like he's looking for flaws.

"He made those out of components that are worse than what I give my newest trainees. it's a miracle he got the range he did with such inefficient materials." She nods to me and I switch to the hexagonal map. "This is what he should be able to manage with some decent parts. Apparently he got the subconscious desire to make these after talking to Florence yesterday."

"All the way to Circle Orchard?" His eyes go wide.

"All the way across the entire Country." She corrects him.

"I see why you used the emergency bird now." He gulps and eats another piece of chocolate.

"Now that I know that's why I built these" I finally speak up. "I can already think of a couple better ways to talk over longer distances. Neither is quite as convenient or easy to setup as these, but could probably be tied into the phone system as a backup."

"Let's stick to these for now. Now, I thought I felt a hint of light magic during use, but it felt off, different somehow." He tilts his head like he's trying to puzzle it out.

"Yes, a skilled Electromancer or a Light Mage, such as yourself, should be able to reproduce that part of the spell. But using Magnet Magic is far easier, and cheaper, especially when it comes to Enchanting." I explain. "When you have access to all Magics, you can see just how interconnected everything is." 'That, and having otherworldly knowledge helps a bit too.' I chuckle inwardly.

"Yes." He nods sagely. "I feel a hint of that with just Light, Air, and Fire. What it must be like for you, though?"

"So, where do we go from here? I didn't have any plan when I was making these. Not consciously, at least." I laugh. "But, it's been made abundantly clear that this will have far reaching consequences, and needs to go through the Crown."

"How do you feel about having lunch with the Queen?" He asks.

"More, and more, like it's something I need to get used to." I pop the last bit of chocolate in my mouth, causing two of the mages to check their nearly empty hands. "Heh, don't blame me for the stomach-aches. Oh, and don't feed any to your pets, it'll make 'em sick. Or to your pixies, it'll make 'em drunk." Apricot kicks my arm for that remark.

"You ate as much as we did." Devlen says looking sadly down at his last piece. "Where did it all go so quickly?"

"I've got a couple of walking and flying sweet-tooths by my side." They both hit me this time. "I'm used to eating junk all the time. Hey, lay off, I'm gonna bruise. Mittens, save me." I laugh as they attack again.

"Well, I think it was worth any belly pains." Deluca states as she finishes the last of her candy. "Just like this is well worth it, for having you show me what's truly possible through Enchanting." She sets down a meter cubed crate from her inventory. Pulling open the lid, she continues. "These are my best components. Don't even think about declining. You earned them!" She says before I can even open my mouth.

"Then I must graciously accept. Good thing we left the books at home." I sub-divide the crate into eight smaller ones, and store them in my inventory.

"Only level five." Devlen mutters to himself.

'Poor guy.' I can't help but think. 'Seems like once he loses his cool, it just doesn't come back.'

"Shall we?" I stand, and ask the only Mage who had enough self control not to devour his entire stash. Though, it does seem like he favors the dark chocolate, with only half as much of it left.

"Yes." He stands and gathers up three of the phones. "Is it alright if we leave these two with Deluca and Devlin? Good. If you build another relay tower at the Castle, do you think these will work over that distance?"

"Not unless I put a better relay here, the phones are just too weak." I'm already building one as I explain. "Fortunately, the towers are simpler than the phones. I just need to strip out all the workarounds I added... and, look at that. So much better." A wide grin takes over my face.

"Workarounds?" Deluca queries.

"The signal could barely make it down the block before, so I set it up to basically have it quad cast the spell." I draw out the designs for the original phones and towers, and then copies with the workarounds. "It's the only way I could get enough power out of what I had to work with. It's using up the Mana Stone over four times as fast now, but that's not exactly an issue for me." I take a few seconds to conjure a replacement for the one I just used on the new relay. "Oh, the power flows and efficiency on this stuff is so much better. I'm getting hundreds of times the output for a fraction of the cost."

"Could I take a look at the old tower, now that you don't need it?" She asks as I swap their places.

"Sure." I shrug and magic open the sides so she can get at the guts without having to cut it open.

"If you're ready?" Oliver gestures out the door.

"Yes, please." I nod. "Thank you again Deluca. Goodbye Devlen." She's already poring over my designs, and he seems a bit out of it.

We're out in the hallway when Wizard Long speaks up again. "Ah, poor Devlen." He shakes his head ruefully. "He's a good lad, but once he stumbles, he has some trouble finding his feet again."

***

"Apricot!" Faye's voice rings out as she runs into the sitting room Oliver had us wait in. "Uncle Oliver said you were here." She bounces around the pixie, her doll flopping up and down in one hand, making Amelia and me smile.

"Hello, your highness." We stand and bow to her, and again to her mother who followed the exuberant Princess through the door a minute later. "Your Majesty."

"Oh, no need for that. Not while we're in private at least." She waves the matter away, flashing her new tattoo in the process. "Now, Oliver tells me that Florence has let the cat out of the bag, as it were. But, that seems to have been a good thing, since it lead you to create a wonder that will change the country yet again. And perhaps a third time, if you're willing to share this remarkable treat." She takes a bite out of a piece of milk chocolate.

"Sweets?" The Princess nearly shouts. "Uncle Olly, you didn't say there were sweets too."

"Well, darling." Her mother starts. "Perhaps if you hadn't run off as soon as you heard that miss Apricot was here. Then, you might have learned of this amazing 'chocolate' that young Sorrel has created."

"I'm sorry Mommy." Her shoulders slump. "I'm sorry Master Long. I should have stayed and listened or, at least, excused myself properly."

"At least you understand what you did wrong." The Queen walks up and rubs her daughter on the head. "You're going to be Queen one day, and you need treat your people with the respect they deserve."

"I know Mommy." She looks so hang dog at disappointing her mother that I can feel my chest tightening for her.

"It's alright Faye, just be sure to learn from your mistakes and not repeat them in the future." She breaks off a corner of the bar and hands it to her daughter.

"Mister Sorrel, you made this?" The girl's eyes go wide, before closing in delight. "The chefs never made anything this good."

"I'm very glad you like it." I smile at the Princess. "I was going to prepare a sampler of various chocolate treats tonight as a present for the gala. But I can offer a few bars now." I set a small crate on the table with a light thud. "The ingredients are few but somewhat rare, and the process is rather long and involved. So, I'm afraid your chefs won't be able to re-create this one anytime soon."

"Perhaps I should hold onto that." The Queen steps forward after seeing the look on her daughter's face. "If you would?" She directs to me, and I separate it into boxes no more than ten centimeters on a side. "Thank you." She nods her head towards me

"You are most welcome." I give her a shallow bow in return. "A word of warning, though. It can make pets deathly ill if they ingest it." I send a look towards Mittens who's sitting in Amelia's arms. "And, give little girls who eat too much a very bad stomach ache." I say to the Princess who's licking her fingers and eyeing her mother like she's trying to figure out how to break into her inventory.

"Hahaha." The Queen's bell like laughter fills the room. "I hope she learned her lesson after having the chefs make her an entire trifle, only to stay up all night groaning." The princess looks quite chagrined at this. "Don't look so down, dear. I will let you have some more later. For now. Perhaps, Master Sorrel could grace you with a movie while we discuss his new invention."

"I would be honored." A silly grin comes on my face. "And, I have the perfect one. It is called Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. It is a very silly story filled with very silly ideas, and some very greedy little children." The movie starts with scenes of chocolate being made, causing Apricot and Faye to jump to attention.

"What a clever spell." Oliver compliments. "The mage guards tried to reproduce it for me, but I can see why they failed. Those are some odd carriages." He tilts his head at the cars parked on the street.

"Just one of those silly ideas." I dodge with a smile. "Carriages that don't need horses."

"We'll deal with that concept later, let's stick with your phones for now." He states. "Could you set up the relay?" I take it from my inventory, and the phone in my pocket immediately starts ringing.

"Uh, it's your mom again." I tell Amelia who's sitting down watching the movie.

"You answer it, please." Her face is bright red.

"Hello Kaitlyn, I'm sorry we can't talk right now-" I try to cut her off before she can get started, but she talks over me.

"Oh, there you are, I've been trying to reach you for the last ten minutes. Where's Amy-girl, is she trying to hide from me?"

"Mistress Rialta." The Queen speaks, her lips curled into a smile. "Amelia is currently watching a movie with our daughter, the Princess." Amelia's now trying to hold mittens up to hide her face. "Sorrel was just demonstrating his wonderful new device."

"The Princess?" We can hear the confusion in her voice. "Then, y-y-you-y-you're The-the."

"The Queen, yes." She laughs at this.

"Your Majesty." The sounds of fabric ruffling come from the phone, like she's curtseying. "I am so, so sorry. I had no idea. Sorrel, why did you make such an evil device? Oh, Your Majesty, I'm so sorry." She gasps.

"It is quite alright, this was a very effective demonstration, after all." Amelia is curled up looking like she wants to die, and I'm doing my best not to crack up. "I hate to monopolize your daughter and her young man's time, but we need to discuss these phones of his."

"Of course, whatever you say, Your Majesty. I'll end the call now. I am so sorry, again." There's a tapping sound followed by Kaitlyn taking a deep breath and muttering. "I'm going to kill that girl when she gets home."

I disconnect from this end while Amelia whines. "Why me? You're the one who made it."

"My apologies, Ma'am." I bow to her again. "Looks like I found the next feature that needs to be added. A way to tell the caller that you are busy. And maybe a silent ringer, as well."

"You plan to add more to these phones?" Oliver questions.

"Oh, yeah. You weren't there when I was talking to Master Mecatti. I tend to be a bit of a perfectionist." Amelia snorts at my remark. "And consider these to be just barely functional. I haven't even added the recharging function, let alone everything else they need, and just look at the thing." I can't help but shake my head at the plain, and somewhat clunky design which definitely isn't modeled after the old Nokia I had growing up. Nope, no way would I do something like that.

"Hahahah." The Queen laughs again. "Oh, my husband was the same way, he loved to sculpt but would spend weeks 'perfecting' a piece that anyone else would consider a masterwork." Her smile turns sad. "He was a good man, and he never let that tendency leave his workshop. A lesson you would do well to learn." She sends a significant look towards my girls.

"Your Majesty." I bow again.