Primordial Expanse: I have the Strongest Talent!

Cass stood frozen for a moment, her gaze lingering on Rothwind like she had never seen a dwarf before.

But she knew Rothwind very well.

Well, she knew of him well…

She had actually never spoken to him before, and this was probably the first time he had ever even paid any attention to her.

"From what I hear, you're quite a brave young 'un, lass."

Rothwind decided to ease the tension she must have been feeling by speaking up first, besides, it wouldn't be the first time he had tended to a young kid like this in his hundreds of years of life.

'Ahh, best not to bring up bad memories.'

But the more Rothwind looked at Cass, the more he could resist that urge.

Cass's wide eyes slowly shifted to meet Rothwind's, and the dwarf found himself staring into a gaze that was both sharp and cautious — but also laced with an innocence that hadn't yet been completely stripped away by the harshness of life in the slums.

Something about it tugged at his heart in a way he hadn't felt in a long, long time.

"Brave?"

She echoed quietly, almost as if she couldn't believe that word was being used to describe her.

"I'm not… I was just scared, that's all…"

Rothwind chuckled softly, reverberating a low rumbling sound that resonated through the clearing around them.

"Fear's part of it, lass. Being brave means acting in spite of it, not without it. You did more than most grown folk dared to do. That means more than anything."

He glanced away briefly, softening his gaze as his mind wandered unbidden to memories he'd long tried to bury deep.

Memories of another young face — round cheeked and smiling, with bright eyes that always looked at him with trust and admiration.

A face that he'd never forget, even after all his years.

His daughter.

The memories washed over him like a wave he couldn't push back — her laughter, the way she'd cling to his leg whenever she got scared, how she'd insist on sitting in his lap while working at the forge, babbling on and on about how she'd become the 'greatest blacksmith warrior' when she grew up.

And then there were the darker memories.

The fire.

The screams.

The choking smoke that swallowed everything…

Rothwind blinked rapidly, forcing the memories away.

This wasn't the time to dwell on the past.

For real this time.

'Not here. Not now.'

He reminded himself, clearing his throat and shifting his gaze back to Cass.

He had a duty to focus on the present — to keep Alex and Mira safe, to give this brave young girl a chance at something better than what his own daughter had been denied.

"Anyhow."

He continued with a forced but gentle grin.

"I reckon anyone who's got the guts to stand up to the mayor's thugs has got more courage than they know."

Cass stared at him, unsure of how to respond.

She shifted on her feet, kicking at the dirt slightly, before finally muttering.

"I didn't… I didn't stand up to them though. I just ran and hid… then told Alex and MIra what I saw…" Read new chapters at empire

Rothwind smiled.

"Sometimes hiding is the smartest thing you can do."

There was a flicker of something in Cass's eyes after hearing Rothwind's praise — a spark of pride, or maybe just relief that someone finally saw her as more than just a scared street rat.

For a moment, Rothwind found himself wishing that he could do more for her.

But he pushed those thoughts aside, locking them away in the deep recesses of his mind where they belonged.

This wasn't about the past. This was about the future.

Their future.

"Right then."

Rothwind said, making his voice gruffer than intended.

"Let's not dwell on what's already done anymore. We've got work ahead of us, and I expect we'll find every bit of bravery you've got."

Rothwind let out a long exhale, shifting his gaze away from Cass and falling on to Alex and Mira this time.

His expression hardened, and for the first time since they reunited, his eyes took on a solemn, almost resolute quality that made Alex instinctively tell that he wasn't in a pranking mood anymore.

"There's something I want to show both of you."

Rothwind said quietly.

"And… something we need to talk about."

The seriousness in his tone immediately put both Alex and Mira on edge.

Rothwind reached into his spatial storage, and with absolute focus, pulled out two objects glistening brightly in a red hue.

He peeled away the coverings that he had put on them since he had last taken one out and shown Alex for a brief moment.

Mira and Alex's eyes widened in unison as the shimmering armour glinted before them in all their glory.

This time, Alex could get a proper inspection of them.

The suits of armour were like nothing they had ever seen.

Each was crafted with meticulous precision, which is the least they could expect from a master smith such as Rothwind.

Gleaming scales interwoven with complex patterns neither of the two could understand seemed to dance under their own red light.

Both sets were tailored to their respective forms — Mira's sleeker and more agile, with some ancient looking runes etched along the surface; Alex's was broader and heavier, designed for sheer strength and durability.

"With how amazing they look, it only makes me all the more excited to find out just what they can do…"

Alex whispered quietly.

He reached his hands out in order to touch it, while he asked Rothwind.

"So, what can they do?"

It was quite a straightforward question.

As their creator, surely Rothwind would know them better than anyone, right?

Right…?

"I have no clue."

Wrong.

Both Alex and Mira looked confusedly at Rothwind, who just shook his head with a 'what do you want from me?' face.

"I created them with both of you two in mind, and with the level of the materials I was working with, they were bound to be quite powerful. As it turns out though, they still exceeded my expectations. They developed a 'mind of their own' and so now they can pick and choose who wields them. Much like your Virtue's Edge."