//------------------------------// // Chapter 8: An Invention, And Brief Tour // Story: Trial and Error // by Kiernan //------------------------------// Chapter 8: An Invention, And Brief Tour "Okay. Not too tight?" Akaitora asked, gathering up a few spells to transfer over to the emerald, whose pale green light was emanating from the device. "No, it feels fine." said Fluttershy. "What does it do?" "Nothing, yet. I wanted to know how well it fit first, so I could adjust it if need be." A steel-blue magic aura surrounded the gem as the spells were swapped over to it."I prefer to do things one step at a time, while multitasking if I can. This time, I could both check the fit, and put some spells on it. Temporary, of course." "Why only temporary?" asked Fluttershy, taking off the collar and holding it out for him to take back. "Wouldn't it be easier to just make the spell last longer so you don't have to cast it over and over?" "A good question. The reason I made the spells temporary is so that I can check to see that they work and not have to completely start over if it fails." he said, opening up the door and placing two small devices at the bottom corners. They one by one glowed with Akaitora's aura. "And therein, I can find any flaws in my spellweaving." He tossed the collar through to doorway, or rather, to the doorway, as it stopped as it reached the invisible wall. It fell to the ground, unable to break the barrier. "One success down, two more to go." He then picked it up with his hoof and tried to forcibly push it through. It refused to break through the blockade. "And there are the other two." He then cast another series of spells, then tossed the collar to Fluttershy. "Put this on and try to take off." he commanded. Try as she might, she couldn't get any airtime at all. "Did you feel any pain?" he asked, genuinely wanting to know. Also, he wanted to keep his specimen alive, but that was the lesser of the two reasons. "Oh, no. I'm fine. Just not used to having anything around my neck, I guess." She actually had felt a sharp pinch, but, since she didn't fly that much, that it wouldn't matter. "Ah. good. If you'll excuse me then," he walked to the door with eight small machines, the ones he had used to create the barrier earlier. "I'll be right back." and with that, he closed the door. It wasn't long before he was back, a cheerful grin on his face. He had buried the rods in the ground surrounding the castle, using a spell of his own design to create grass over it to not arouse suspicion. He now had a hidden barrier around the castle. "One final step, and I'll let you out of the cage!" he called to Fluttershy. "Oh, good! I can't wait to help you succeed in your dream!" she said excitedly. "Well, let's finish this mini-project then!" He levitated a lock over to Fluttershy and secured it it in place on the collar, rendering it irremovable without magic or the key. And since the key had been long since destroyed, probably, there was only one method of removing the lock. Fluttershy could no longer remove the collar without his consent, and was confined to the castle and a small portion of the surrounding area. "You may come out now," Akaitora said, opening the cage. "You are free to explore the castle, with the exception of one room: the treasury. I'll show you where that is so you don't try to wander in there without meaning to." He walked to the door, which was left open, and led Fluttershy down the hall to a staircase that spiralled in both directions. He walked down two flights, coming to the deepest part of the keep. Three doors down, he stopped and turned to face Fluttershy. "This room to my left is off-limits for reasons I can't tell you right now." Inside was his vast collection of florins. He didn't want Fluttershy to collapse like Twilight had. "So what are these other rooms? What do you use them for?" "Most are empty, But I an show you the rooms that hold a purpose," he said, trotting over to the staircase, but stopping when he reached the last door. "The door to my right leads into the greenhouse," he said as the door swung open. Fluttershy peered in. Inside the room, it was as bright as the middle of day during the Summer Sun Celebration, a severe contrast to the rest of the castle. The room was lined with five stone paths, with four long patches of earth between them. Growing out of it was a tall, yellow grass-like plant, with bristles at the top, branching out in all directions. Beyond this, there was another patch of earth, this one laden with apple trees. They all seemed to be in bloom, despite Applebuck season being months away. Further yet was a waterfall along the back wall, running beneath the stone paths. "I set this up so I would never have to leave if I needed food. The light was actually quite easy to find. One day I was looking through one of the few books left here when I found a reference to the effects of certain potions on certain ores. It mentioned that Malachite, after being refined, had the ability to glow a bright yellow if you simply rubbed a paste made of blurite gel and the roots of a kath plant across it, and would last for two months, usually." "What sort of plant is this?" asked fluttershy, pointing at the yellow grass. "Wheat. It's used to make flour, a key ingredient in breads and pasties. You've never seen wheat before?" "No, most of our flour comes in white sacks, and goes directly to Sugarcube Corner." "Remind me, one of these days, to show you how to make flour. It might make Sugarcube Corner more productive." He turned to the door on the other side of the hall and swung it open, while simultaneously closing the greenhouse door. Fluttershy turned to face the new room. "This room is where I do most of my alchemy and cooking," he said proudly. The room was smaller than the last one, the walls lined with ovens, like the ones Fluttershy had seen in the kitchen at Sugarcube Corner, and a series of tables in the center. By the far wall was a device that had a stone wheel, and a wooden pole extending out the other side. Not far from it was some glass instruments that she had seen in Twilight's lab, but had no idea what they were or what they were used for. "This is a very nice setup, but I don't have any idea how to use any of this." She yawned, just in time for Akaitora to see it as he closed the door and turned to walk back up the stairs. "Tired?" "A bit, yes. But I imagine you would be more tired, having not slept in a few days and all." Akaitora stopped in his tracks, realizing in that moment that she was right. he hadn't slept in over a week. "Very well, I'll show you to your room now."