Beauty X Beast ~ Nineteen!

Through the entire process of the stylus scraping against the inner metal casing, the entire room was filled with the faint hum and sparkle of pure, unadulterated magic. Though Danielle could hear the Artificer muttering to himself as he worked, occasionally letting out a burst of steam in frustration, she ignored her nearly overwhelming curiosity and tried to think about anything other than her boiling desire to know what the magic process looked like.

Mostly, the Comte worked in genuine silence, the scraping and rhythmic pulsing of light the only sign he was still doing anything at all. Yet, every once in a while, he voiced his thoughts. There, Danielle started to glean that something was happening, something outside of his expectations. “Enhances the flow of energy… stabilize the input and output… what is this?”

In her experience, it was a very bad sign when a craftsman was working on something and released a question so filled with surprise. His voice trailed off, and when it picked up again, it was barely louder than the whisper of steel across leather. “These runes are shifting as I go, Danielle. That isn't supposed to be possible. I need to move faster… no! It's catching up to what I've already finished!”

He lapsed back into silence as he frantically scratched away, but now his words were coming more frequently. “That's an unexpected curve; it'll throw the whole system into disarray…! Oh. Never mind. I see. I see! It's condensing? I have more room to write, and it's so elegant.”

That was the first hint to Danielle that her skills were directly impacting the Artificer’s work as he made his etchings. His mumbling became almost manic with excitement. “It combined! It combined! I didn't know runes could combine. But now I can't fully understand it? It must do something, and… and I know what the underlying concepts were. A day of study, no more—I'm certain of it. Then I'll have an entirely unknown, unexplored symbol!” 

Finally, an interminable amount of time later, the glowing motes of energy vanished once more—just before the Comte let out a tired sigh of satisfaction. “Done. Come and take a look.”

He’d barely spoken the words before Danielle was standing next to the newly scripted prototype. Her eyes greedily roved the internal mechanisms, easily picking out where his magic had come into effect. “Sneezy? Are you all right? Comte, are these always so bright when you just finished creating them? Some of your older machines have barely a hint of a glow on their scripting.”

“Yes, they all started out looking like this. Well… not like this,” the Comte stated with a laugh hidden in his voice. “Look how these turned out! It's as if I was writing basic, blocky lines, and this turned it into exquisite calligraphy. I hate to have to admit this, but it's a work of art. I've never in my entire life seen something more beautiful. As for if this actually worked? Let's find out.”

It took a split second for the stricken Danielle to realize she was shocked to her very core that the Artificer considered the simple script in this machine more beautiful than her. It was a sensation she’d never before felt, and to her surprise, all she felt was… 

…relief. 

After tapping on one of the extended plates, the exposed internals of the prototype pulled together with a hum of gears and a flicker of light, seamlessly shifting into position. Soon after that process had completed, its eyes began to glow from an internal power source. The automaton began to move, sitting up with a human level of fluidity, using one of its arms to brace itself. “I seem to be adjusting quite well to the new body! Give me a moment to test my range of motion, then I'll be able to give you a better feel for how I'm… feeling.”

“How unexpected,” the Artificer murmured as the light from its eyes focused in on the articulating jaw of Sneezy's new body. “Why are you moving your mouth when you speak? You don't need to do that.”

“It's kind of nice, if I'm being honest,” Danielle added in before the automaton could adjust its movements to better fit with LeKrout’s expectations. “I've been surrounded by all sorts of machines giving me information, and half the time, I can't tell which one is talking to me. It gives me something to focus on. Again, a nice touch.”

“More moving parts simply means it will break more often.” The Artificer’s grumble had no heat behind it, so Danielle could only consider his words as a last gasp attempt at holding on to his long-standing traditions. “I hadn't realized the motion capture was doing such a good job at the small movements and flexing that your cheeks, chin, and jaw make. On that note, they must have glommed onto the larger range of motions I was attempting to instill. Does that cause you issue, Sneezy?”

“I like it!” Sneezy happily stated, showing them a double thumbs up as he twisted and turned. “I've already found at least two dozen sounds I was unable to properly use without moving my mouth. Now I should be better able to convey my… my desires.”

“Desires?” Where before the Comte had been mostly paying attention to how well the creature was taking to its new body, now he was studying its face. “You mean to say you have goals and ambitions? Beyond what I have designed for you?” 

“Is that…” The machine paused and perfectly replicated the motion Danielle made when she nervously cleared her throat. “Is that… okay?” 

The red lights turned on and off rapidly, as though the Artificer somewhere in the distance was blinking rapidly in surprise. “Okay? Sneezy. Do you know what the final hurdle for achieving Perfection is for my class skill?”

“I wouldn't dare to pry, my lord!” Sneezy swept into a deep bow and back out, just because he could.

“I need to create a life my machines want to live.” As the Artificer spoke, Danielle felt a deep sense of deja vu, due to how similar his level increase requirement sounded to her own. “How could that be possible, if I couldn't make one of you that wanted more for itself? That had ambitions and goals? With this… Sneezy, I'm on the very edge of success!”

“You mean I can just let you know what I want, and it won't be an imposition?” Sneezy smiled brightly. “Being allowed to freely discuss my thoughts and protect you is all I've ever wanted, m’lord. Well, that and someone to sample my creme brulee.” 

Danielle waited for the Comte to respond, for him to praise his creation for its words, but he said nothing. Confused at the disconnect between expectations and reality, she looked over at the towering behemoth of metal and hoses—which saved her life. Even as she looked on, the entity was already falling at her, and she had just enough time to launch herself out of the way before the half-ton machine crashed to the ground. “LeKrout? Beast! What’s happening?”

Pulleys and wires dropped from the ceiling, hooking into the fallen machine and pulling it off the ground. To her great relief, its eyes began glowing once more—though they were a deep, sapphire blue. “Beast! What was that?”

“Rejoice! Today is the start of a joyous, momentous occasion,” the Beast replied with utter reverence in his terrifying voice. “Comte LeKrout has achieved Perfection in his skill, and the Awakening Shard he carries at all times activated immediately. Currently, he is undergoing Breakthrough in his Full Class and will soon be able to achieve even higher heights.”

“What does that mean for him? Is he going to come celebrate; should we prepare for anything?” Danielle pressed the Beast for information, but his hesitation to answer her spoke volumes.

“I can make the biggest creme brulee you've ever seen in your life.” Panels shifted across Sneezy's body, his humanoid nose elongating slightly as the tip lit on fire. The palms of both hands widened to allow a series of spigots to be viewed, and his chest opened to reveal a nozzle three times as large as his original flamethrower. “Wait, I've reconsidered. I would like to have a few hours to practice before I deliver dessert.” 

Even without having sprayed gouts of flame into the surroundings, the air around Sneezy had become heated to the point of discomfort for Danielle. “That… might be for the best. Perhaps you prepare them… outside? Away from the grass?” 

“Unfortunately, the Comte will not be joining us,” the Beast finally intoned heavily. “While I appreciate your enthusiasm, it is simply not possible at this time.”

“Not possible? But why?” They had danced around the subject for so long at this point that Danielle was starting to grow annoyed. “If his full attention truly had to be on what he was doing, wouldn't achieving Breakthrough have interrupted everything? Whatever it is he's doing, by now it's either broken or needing to be restarted. Tell him to take a break!”

“There will be a creamy dessert with a flambéd surface of sugar!”

“Enough,” the Beast growled in its usual menacing manner. “This is not a conversation we will be having.” 

Annoyed at the stonewalling she was facing, Danielle crossed her arms—only then noticing a shimmer of light clinging to her skin. With a swipe of her arm, she learned what had changed. 

Skill increase! Unified Radiance [Level 6 (Considerable) → Level 7 (Proficient)]!

Requirement to advance to level 8: Influence a leader with extensive political power to go against their best interests in order to change a policy and benefit you.

“It appears I've successfully changed the opinion of a highly influential individual. Probably something to do with form factor. Bah. Why couldn't it have been an opinion that would help me more?” Danielle could only let out a soft groan as the Beast ushered her toward the stairs. “Might as well have restored his lawn instead, for all the good it did me. Hold on… what kind of requirement is this? It's basically forcing me to convince him to join the war if I want to progress my skill any further. Or… or I'll need to leave and suffer the consequences that come from that.”

“Don't think about it too much, madame!” Sneezy wrapped an arm around her, giving her a tight half-hug. “I've never seen or heard of the Comte backing down or changing his mind about something. The fact that you've managed to do it once? I'm betting that means you'll be able to do it again.”

Thinking over the automaton’s words, Danielle slowly shook her head. “I don't think I want to do that, Sneezy. This skill just gave me a requirement that goes against what I believe in. How could I possibly ask someone to put themselves in a bad position for me? Even now, I've been moving forward under the assumption that rejoining the war effort wouldn't be such a burden on Comte LeKrout… but seeing how he was in there? How he truly loves the craft of what he does?” 

They left the stairs behind and emerged into the grand hallway as Danielle finished her thoughts. “Something tells me he isn’t a man who wants to go back to creating creatures like his soldier, intended only for battle. Especially now, knowing that you can grow, learn, and live an actual life? That’d be like sending his children to fight for Verdelune, without ever giving them a choice in the matter. What parent would want that for their family, unless they were truly insane?”

Almost in a daze, Danielle walked back to her room, “I think it might be time for me to rethink why I'm really here… especially if I'm putting the Comte in danger.”