Me, My Spirit, And I [Book 1 Complete]

The city of Westlin was abuzz with rumors and wild stories as the infamous Mr. Shadow started appearing around the Shadow Company Compound.

"I heard he is actually an undead, a wraith or perhaps a revenant that is using the Shadow Company to enact some form of hidden revenge agenda…"

"No, that can't be right. There has been a Blessed spirit in Westlin for years. Mr. Shadow is the same spirit, I am sure of it. My sister's husband's cousin told me so…"

"Neither of you are right Mr. Shadow is an illusion crafted by a clever archmage in hiding…"

"He is an archmage, but not one using an illusion. It is some form of Astral Projection, so says my cousin's niece…"

"Whatever he is, he is a genius and I am grateful to him! Why, my husband never made so much money before and is even in training for a promotion…"

"Shouldn't the Priests be doing something about that creature? Surely they could banish it. We don't need dark spirits hanging around doing Goddess knows what behind closed doors…"

"I heard that the only way the Shadow Company could produce such cheap steel is live sacrifice. That's why they built over the former tainted site! They are killing criminals in secret to power those machines…"

On and on the rumors went. Shada heard some gossip at the Company Compound. Those were almost universally positive, but those he heard about town were more troubling. He would have to have Kariss do a personal relations campaign to smooth some things over. Maybe even get an endorsement from the Church and City Lord to help fight ignorance and rumor.

Today was an important day for Shada and the Shadow Company. The inbound Dwarven skyship was, based on mage messages they received, the one included in his deal with the Dwarven Confederation. He was finally going to get a chance to study how the locals used magic for flight then combine it with science and technology to create something unique. Luca was with him on the platform next to the docking cradle. Shada was enjoying experiencing Luca's excitement vicariously. They had considered merging for the occasion, but the Company had come to expect Shada's presence especially for something this important.

Shada rose into the air and wove a far sight spell to observe the incoming skyship. He could see the sails were filled with wind despite the still morning air. The entire construct glowed in his Essence Perception. The exact enchantments were obscured and he was looking forward to taking them apart once the skyship's ownership was officially transferred. It was being escorted by two other skyships that would take the crew back to Dwarven lands.

It wasn't the first time that Shada had observed an incoming skyship in motion or tried to study the magic that kept it in the air and propelled it forward, but it was the first time he observed what would be His skyship. As the skyship reached its final approach the sails were lowered and the ship slowed to a gentle glide. Flares of wind slowed and maneuvered the ship into the docking cradle with no little finesse, but a distinct thunk rattled the platform the Shadow Company delegation stood on.

The skyships escorting the one that had docked were circling above the compound in lazy circles. It would have been ominous, like watching circling sharks, if Shada didn't know the Dwarves were trustworthy people in general.

With the skyship docked, Shada returned to the platform to stand with Kariss, Luca, Mina, and Westlin. His engineers had wanted to be there too, but the platform wasn't that large. They must have looked strange. Kariss was dressed in fancy business attire that included brocade and embroidered silk robes over fine black pants. Mina was dressed in a fancy black uniform, which was made more striking by the fact that she towered over everyone else. Then there were two children with contrasting builds and heights. Luca dressed in beautifully tailored clothing that emphasized his shoulders in a masculine style while having flowing sleeves that gave a more feminine impression. Westlin was dressed in a formal tooled leather vest and silk tunic combo. Finally there was Shada's own ghostly form hovering with the group.

Westlin and Luca were looking at the beautiful enchanted wooden skyship with their eyes wide. Even Shada could appreciate the novelty of seeing something that looked like it was meant more for the sea sailing casually through the air on gusts of magically generated wind.

A delegation was forming on the deck of the skyship. In the lead was an elderly looking Dwarf with long white hair and beard worn unbound. A pair of googles were perched on his head and he wore what looked like work leathers with many tools, pouches, and buckles attached. Shada thought the Dwarf's aesthetic was reminiscent of something from a steampunk comic he had once read with his grandson Matt back on Earth. Beside the old Dwarf was a much younger female Dwarf in a similar get-up. The female Dwarf caught his attention not only, because she looked like a teenager, but because it was rare to see female Dwarves at all.

It was so rare to see a female Dwarf, in fact, that many people believed the myth that there were no female Dwarves and that they somehow popped out of the stone like some type of living golem. It didn't help that female Dwarves were half the width of a male Dwarvesf and could pass as short human women at a distance.

Wind Mages lifted the old Dwarf and the young Dwarven woman and floated them gently down to the platform along with Ambassador Yolden Hammerfell who was smiling at the assembled group. "This is a most interesting reception. Miss Kariss, care to introduce me to everyone while I do the same?"

Kariss bowed her head gently in acknowledgement and returned a warm smile. "I would be delighted, Ambassador Yolden." She first gestured to Shada. "This as you know is Mr. Shadow owner and founder of the Shadow Company whom you have met before in a couple of different forms." Her smile grew bigger as she watched understanding appear on Yolden's face.

Yolden reached out to shake Shada's hand instinctively before considering how he was supposed to shake hands with a spirit. Much to his surprise Shada smiled back and gripped his wrist in a traditional handshake, which gave the illusion that Shada was far more solid than he appeared. Force Conjuring hads many uses, including creating the illusion of touch and solidity.

"It is good to see you again, Ambassador Yolden. I quite enjoyed our last few meetings. I am thrilled to host you and your companions at the Shadow Company once more." Shada's voice was rich and warm, but he added a hint of a ghostly echo just for fun.

Yolden looked at the ghostly apparition he had last seen as Lusha, with a bemused look on his face before shaking his head to refocus on the meeting.

"Let me introduce you to Alister Skyborne. He is one of the foremost experts on skyship design and one of our oldest living engineers." Yolden pointed to the old Dwarf. "Accompanying him is his niece and apprentice Yellena Skyborne." Two Dwarven engineers bowed their heads in acknowledgement of being introduced, but otherwise remained silent. Neither spoke Eastern Imperial, which was used as a kind of trade or common tongue by many people.

Kariss nodded at the other two Dwarves while giving an extra warm smile to the younger niece to let her know she was welcome before turning to Mina. "This is Mina, she is currently acting as Mr. Shadow's personal assistant, but her primary job is acting as guardian and caretaker for these two young people." This time Kariss pointed out the slender Lluca and the taller, broader Westlin. "This is Lucanarious Intarius Aseralis, whom you have met before. With him is his friend, companion, and milk brother Westlin, son of Mina."

It took Yolden a moment to recognize the child he had last met as Lusha. Luca's copper brown skin, hair, and eyes were quite the contrast to Luca's snow white skin, hair, and blue eyes. The rounded ears were also different. Even the look in his eyes wasn't the same, but the mischievous smile was something he did remember.

"Well met Mina, Lucanarius, and Westlin." Yolden said cheerfully.

"Now that everyone has been introduced, let's head inside. I have ensured refreshments are waiting and we can discuss the details of the deal." Kariss directed everyone inside after saying that.

The group took a side entrance that was separate from the rooftop cargo entrance commonly used by Dwarven traders. They walked through the well appointed halls of the Shadow Company before coming to the suite of offices used by Shada, which now included a private conference room. As was customary, chairs designed specifically for Dwarves were available. Kariss and Shada sat at one end of the short conference table while Yolden and Alister sat at the other. The kids including Yellena sat to either side with Mina.

It was Shada's turn to take the lead as everyone got comfortable. "Let us reiterate the terms of our agreement. In exchange for sharing knowledge of improved skyship designs and the designs for blast furnaces for the mass production of steel the Dwarven Confederacy agreed to provide the full schematics for skyships, a Dwarven skyship, and an expert shipmaster. This deal has been signed and confirmed under the eyes of the System." From his inventory Shada pulled the books on blast furnaces he had personally prepared with his engineers and smiths. The books were detailed and even provided a variety of tips for the smooth operation and production of quality steel. Shada made the books gently float on currents of Conjured force to the foot of the table and the Dwarven delegation.

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"The Dwarven Confederacy thanks the Shadow Company for agreeing to this unprecedented exchange. As you likely already guessed Alister here is the promised expert. The brand new, and as yet unnamed, skyship above is now the property of the Shadow Company." Yolden turned to Alister and spoke in Dwarven. "Please bring out the schematics and other skyship engineering books you bought."

Alister nodded to Yolden. So far neither he nor Yellena had said a word. Their faces were unreadable. From a dimensional storage bracelet Alister pulled out a stack of books and papers. All were written in Dwarvish. Once he had stacked everything neatly Shada picked it up with a gesture and more Conjured force that didn't even cause the precarious stack of paper to slip a single inch.

If Shada's skilled psychokinetic display surprised anyone no one showed it on their face. "Everything that was requested, and a bit more, was included as per our deal, but there is one issue I feel I must address. Alister only speaks Dwarvish. His niece Yellena speaks Eastern Imperial, though heavily accented and not as fluently as I would prefer." Yolden looked at Yellena and Alister in reproach. "The Skyborne clans were not happy with this deal despite recognizing the value of what you offered us. Therefore all the information is there, but is all in Dwarvish. You will need to have it translated." Yolden's tone was apologetic.

Everyone on Shada's side of the meeting smiled in amusement at Yolden's statement, which caused the Dwarf to scowl in confusion. Luca actually laughed out loud before getting himself under control. It was Luca that looked at scowling Yolden and replied in perfect unaccented Dwarvish. "My dear Ambassador, I do not think there will be issues with the documents you provided. Shada and I can both speak, read, and write in Dwarvish fluently." Luca tried his best to stifle a giggle at the stunned expression of the faces of the three Dwarves. "In fact everyone here understands at least a few Dwarven phrases." Everyone on the Shadow Company side nodded in agreement. Mina was from the Ice Fang Peak's western side so had picked up Dwarvish from traders and had helped tutor Luca and Westlin. Kariss made it a habit of learning the basics of the languages of those she traded with. Luca and Shada had innate magical language abilities. Dwarvish was just one of many languages they could speak.

"Luca is correct of course. Translation won't be a problem. In fact should we continue the rest of the meeting in Dwarvish?" Shada asked his last question with amusement coloring his voice.

"Meeting a bleedin ghost that can speak the mother tongue wasn't on my yango card for this month, but it will make this job a mite bit easier I say." Alister's voice was gruff with a mix of grumpiness that came with old age mixed in with a bit of cheerful excitement. "Yolden are we done with all this formal nonsense? Since language isn't a problem I want a tour of this facility and more information on how this spirit thinks he can improve our centuries old time tested designs."

Yolden sighed in resignation. "Mr. Shadow I assume that you are amenable to Alister's crass request?"

Shada smiled. He liked the old Dwarf already. "Of course, I will personally give Shipmaster Alister a tour." For effect Shada turned to Luca. "Perhaps you can show Yellena around as well? She might prefer the company of someone near her own age rather than two rambling old men."

Luca nodded cheerfully before he, Westlin, and Yellena went off in the opposite direction of Shada and Alister. Yolden and Kariss were left to discuss the nuances of trade while Mina followed protectively behind the children.

"So Shipmaster Alister how was your trip?" Shada asked politely as they left the conference room.

"Just call me Alister Mr. Shadow. Titles get cumbersome after a while. We had fair weather, but had some trouble with an angry wyvern when we passed too close to a Glade back east. Otherwise it was a calm, if long, trip." Despite the oddity of talking to a spirit Alister didn't seem too troubled and was already treating Shada like any fellow old man. Like recognized like after all.

"You can call me Shada. We will be working together for some time after all. Are aerial predators a common problem for skyships?" Shada would have to add defenses into his preliminary designs to account for them.

"Eh? They can be. Depends on where you are flying after all. Most Beasts see skyships as too big to bother with and flying Monsters are rare, but aye it is something you have to consider if you plan to build your own."

Shada would have someone else give Alister a more generalized tour of the Shadow Company Compound, but was going to show him the Research and Development Division. There were certain secrecy clauses that Alister had to agree to beforehand, but it was a quick bit of paperwork.

"Welcome to the Shadow's Playground as my workers have affectionately named this part of the Compound," Shada said as he opened a pair of large double doors. The artistic and formal halls of the business and office sections gave way to the plainer, more chaotic domain of Shada's researchers and engineers. A wild array of half finished projects, experiments, and oddities could be seen from where the duo paused at the entrance just behind a yellow line painted on the floor. "Please keep an eye on the colored paths. Some of these projects are dangerous and if you are stepping into one of the red zones you may get hurt."

Alister was looking around at the spectacle in a bit of awe. He could see machines and tools that were familiar, but so many other things were as alien to him as computers to a caveman. He had no clue what some of the things he could see were, let alone what they were supposed to be doing.

"What is all this?" Alister asked quietly.

"This is where new concepts and ideas are tested and refined in order to create new products and even new markets. Much of what is being worked on will not be released to the public for sometime, but the future of Sierrallas is being created here," Shada said proudly. He led Alister to a modernized forge where several pieces of cookware were waiting for inspection.

Alister picked up the heavy steel frying pan as if it was a mere paperweight and pulled his enchanted googles down to examine it in more detail. He even held it to his ear and flicked it a few times. "This is steel right? High quality steel at that, but I can hear something different inside."

"It is, I haven't met a Dwarf yet that couldn't tell good metal from bad. It's called stainless steel and is much more resistant to rust and corrosion."

Alister looked at Shada like he was insane. "You are using ferrum argentum for cookware?" Alister asked in disbelief.

Shada gave a ghostly shrug. "The ingredients for making steel are dirt cheap if you know how to extract it. Your people will be producing steel by the ton soon, using my company's blast furnace designs. Why not use it for cookware?"

"Thats…its…hmmm, I guess I can see your point. It is special in part, because it is rare, but that ain't the case here in Westlin, is it?" Alister looked thoughtful as he continued listening to the pan as if it was talking to him. "Still can't place what was mixed in here though."

"Iron, chromium, and nickel with a layer of copper to help with heat distribution," Shada said this casually, but he knew that the locals had yet to independently separate and identify these metals.

"Never heard of chromium or nickel." As a Dwarf not knowing something about metals was a bit of a hit to their pride. Stone, metal, and minerals were discussed as part of casual conversation in their culture. Dwarves discussed it like others might their favorite foods.

"I would be surprised if you had. I have found no word for these metals in Dwarvish or Imperial for that matter. I introduced the concept of atomic elements to my researchers and created a few processes for extracting them…" Shada went on to explain the basics of atomic and elemental theory in scientific terms. His explanation was bare bones and left out a lot of important details, but was just enough to give Alister an idea of the implications.

"So you are breaking things down into tiny bits then sorting them into piles of stuff that can't be broken down and sorted further?" Alister was having a bit of trouble wrapping his head around the concept.

"Come, I will show you samples." Shada led Alister to a section of the workshop where pure powders and ingots were kept. Some had to be held in sealed and enchanted containers to keep them from reacting with the air, but there was an entire wall of metal ingots sorted by element and alloy. Each carefully labeled and identified.

Alister stood before the wall of metals with his mouth agape. He could hear dozens of new metallic notes he had never experienced before. Some ingots were like listening to a choir of voices singing in harmony. The look on Alister's face was one of near religious awe. A fellow Dwarf that worked for the Shadow Company approached tentatively.

"Shipmaster? Is this your first time at the Singing Wall?" The Dwarf asked warily, but with a smile on his face.

Shada looked at the newcomer curiously. "Singing Wall?" He asked, causing the worker to jump in surprise.

"Yes sir, Mr. Shadow uhmm sir, that's what we Dwarves call this storage space. The metal sings to us you see." The worker was clearly nervous, but was the friendly sort and couldn't help himself when he saw a new Dwarf in the area.

Shada nodded in acknowledgement. He floated beside Alister with his hands behind his translucent back and simply waited to see how long it took Alister to come out of his shocked state.

Alister shook himself and turned to look between the Dwarf and Shada before addressing his fellow Dwarf. "How many new metals are sitting on these shelves? How many notes are unknown to our people?"

"Dozens Shipmaster, and a potentially infinite number of alloys. We are still discovering uses for everything, but…" The unnamed Dwarf gestured at the wall of metal. "It will be a long while before we run out of new things to explore. Lifetimes in fact."

Alister chatted with the Dwarven worker for a bit before he and Shada moved on. "The development of practical applications of new materials is one of my staff's primary focuses."

"I heard a rumor that you planned to build metal skyships. Is this true?" Alister asked.

"It is. There are metals like aluminum, with really high strength to weight ratios that would be ideal for skyships. I can produce it in bulk." Shada went on to describe the potential of aluminum skyships as they continued their tour of the Shadow's Playground.

"Why show me all this? Aren't you afraid of me stealing your secrets?"

"You signed a secrecy Contract and extracting many of these materials requires processes and methods I have not shared with anyone. I have people working on recreating my magical methods manually, but it will be a longtime before they can do that. I suspect they may not be cost effective."

They passed through another part of the research and development area before Shada stopped before another set of double doors. "Behind these doors is a space created specifically for developing more advanced concepts and a hanger for working on my own skyship ideas. It is also where you will likely want to spend most of your time." As Shada said this he opened the doors, which led to a small hall. At the end of the hall was another set of doors that only opened when the first set closed.

The second set of doors revealed a cavernous space that was multiple stories high and partially dug down into the bedrock. Shada had done his best to have an aircraft hanger replicated. The space was massive enough to build multiple skyships. Around the edge of the space there were multiple work and testing areas. There were winches and pulleys, magic lifts, and stacks of raw materials. It was, in a few words, a shipmaster's wet dream. Once again Alister's mouth hung open as he stood on the balcony overlooking the space.

"Come on. I have more to show you!" Shada's normally dignified voice held a hint of childlike excitement as he floated down the metal stairs to the workroom floor with a still starstruck Alister in tow.