Golems by Kefira, part 2

Several hours later, Kefira realised she'd just pulled an all-nighter working on Front-- but more importantly, she'd finished them, at least for now. She'd spent most of the time signing out a particularly long sequence of commands, being careful to stick to the script she'd written out, but tweaking it here and there when she realised a more concise and effective way of wording parts of it. She sent Un off to deliver a message to Gilada and had Deux close up her store for the next few hours, instructing them to wake her if Boaz showed up.

Returning to her workshop, she signed for her two chairs to join on end to end, lower their legs, and fold their backs down; it wasn't often she used them as a bed, but they were plenty comfortable when she needed to take a nap and didn't feel like walking right the way back across Deeproot to do it.

She wasn't sure how long she'd slept for when she awoke, but both Un and Deux were waiting for her, shaking her gently awake.
'What is it?' She signed.
'Nissa was with Gilada when I arrived,' Un signed.
'They're here now,' Deux continued. 'As they're a customer, I awoke you.'
Kefira smiled at them. 'Thanks,' she signed. 'Chairs, return to--' she hesitated. 'To being chairs.'
They did so, stepping apart as she stood up.

'Wait,' she signed, turning to un. 'Did you say Nissa? I was expecting Boaz.'
'They were practicing finger spelling with another Golem,' Deux signed. 'Immortal Red is...' they hesitated. 'Unusual. I do not know what to think about her.'
'She's the start of something pretty big,' Kefira agreed. 'Anyway, Nissa is here?'
Un nodded.

She turned to her work table and regarded Front, who was still lying down.
'Front?' She signed. 'You're up.'

Front's eyes glowed red momentarily, and they stood up. Their proportions were human, and a moderately close match to Nissa's; their skin was covered in elegant, sweeping etchings, all curves and leaves and spirals. They were, in a word, beautiful. Their chest was particularly intricate: it was dominated by a metal disc with two sliding arrows and three names.
Stepping through to the front, she found Nissa waiting for her, tying their long, dark hair back.
'Nissa?' She signed.
'Morta wanted some practice with ASL,' they signed. 'Boaz and I came to an agreement on the matter. Anyway, this is Front, I presume?'
Kefira nodded. 'Front, this is your owner, she signed at the Golem. 'You're attuned to the three of them. This is Nissa--'
'I understand,' Front signed. The arrows on their chest moved to indicate the word "Nissa".
So far so good, Kefira thought. 'We're going to run you through your paces, make sure I didn't mess up your command sequence. Is that okay?'
'I consent,' Front signed.

The arrows on their chest moved down a few centimetres to indicate Boaz's name; Kefira glanced across at the human in time to catch the tail end of his sentence.
--Handle co-fronting, he said.
Co-fronting? Kefira asked, aloud.

What followed was something Kefira hadn't prepared for when she originally wrote out the script for Front. Boaz was still speaking aloud, but he seemed to be hesitantly signing at the same time-- and would occasionally stop speaking altogether, raising their hands and focusing on their signing. She caught snippets of what he (they? Nissa seemed to be fronting, but they were non-verbal, and they were speaking now, so was it really Boaz after all?) was saying, but not enough to outright piece it together.

Front seemed to handle it much better than she did: one arrow slid down past Shamira to indicate Nissa, while the other remained where it was.
'Nice,' Nissa/Boaz signed. Both arrows adjusted, and now pointed solely to Nissa. 'They understand when we're co-fronting. That must've taken you a while to figure out.'
'I didn't design them with that in mind,' Kefira signed. 'This is emergent behaviour-- it happens sometimes. I suppose in hindsight it was an indication of possible sentience all along. I always-- saw it as a convenience, but otherwise ignored it.'
'You're moving forward now,' Nissa signed. 'You know better.'
Kefira nodded. 'So I hope.
'Anyway, will that be all?'
'There's one more thing I need,' Nissa signed. 'If it's not too much trouble.'
'Go ahead,' Kefira signed, excitement beginning to bubble within her. If they hesitated even to ask, then it was bound to be interesting.
'I... can you translate my ASL into spoken language?'

A smile crept across Kefira's face. Usually, she did it the other way around, translating anything spoken in the presence of her Golems into sign language in much the way Un and Deux did. But to go the other way...

Yes, she smiled. This was why she'd gone into business as a Golemancer: She wanted to see just what she was capable of; to encounter challenges just like this.

After all, there was a precedent for exactly this. Morta existed-- her very existence proved it was possible, no matter now difficult.

'I'll do it,' she signed, smiling. 'Although it might take me a few days.'
Nissa returned her smile. 'How much extra will this be?'
'No extra charge,' Kefira signed quickly, hoping her hands weren't shaking too much. 'I'm-- restructuring my pricing system, shall we say.' And wondering whether it was ethical to take payment for her Golems at all.
'Okay,' Nissa signed, glancing around the store. 'Send word via Gilada whenever Front is ready.'
'If I'm to serve this system then I'd rather go with them now,' Front signed.
Kefira couldn't resist smiling: independent decision making such as this had been a difficult thing to find a working command sequence for, and she was glad it was working. 'As you wish, Front.'

She returned to her workshop as Nissa left her store, finding an empty, intact notebook: once more she requested that Deux guard her store, asking Un to accompany her to the Faith Quarter.

--

As Kefira approached the synagogue, munching happily on a latke from Asp's stall (he'd gotten a good deal on potatoes recently, and as such was doing his best to use them up; his menu may be inconsistent, but his cooking was nothing short of delicious), Morta stepped out and waved to her.
'Nissa has taught me the basics,' she signed slowly, relying heavily on finger spelling, but her smooth, fluid motions were easily legible.
'Good to hear,' Kefira spelled out. Kefira noticed her fingertips and palms were coated in a layer of rubber. 'I have a favour to ask of you.'
'Oh?' She tilted her head to one side, a smile playing across her ceramic lips.
'Nissa's Golem needs to be able to speak. Could you... teach me the command sequence for that?'

Morta was silent for several seconds, her hands motionless: Kefira took this as an opportunity to quickly finish the last of the latkes she'd bought.
'I'm not sure,' Morta spelled. 'That side of me isn't Golem; it's Automaton.'
Kefira nodded. Golemancy and Automata creation were two sides of the same coin, in some ways: Golemancy was a branch of Sorcery, and as such innate and passed down through families, but Automata creation was Alchemy, and was such was order-based and he to be learned.

And of course Kefira had never seen much reason to learn it. After all, asking a Golem to pick something up only required her to sign at them to do so. Asking an Automaton to pick something up had an inordinate number of steps, beginning with teaching them what their hand was, then how to use it, then how to differentiate one object from another, how to follow the direction she pointed in...

Ultimately, she'd always viewed Automata creation as an elaborate means of doing something she could already do just fine; most Sorcerers viewed Alchemy in this way.

'I'd-- like to be able to do it using my own Sorcery,' she signed. 'I know it won't be easy, but... would you mind helping?'
Morta considered this once more, face flickering from one emotion to another. 'No,' she decided.
'No?' Kefira spelled, surprised.
'Verbal communication among Golems is--' she hesitated, her hands staying where they were. 'It's complicated,' she spelled. 'I want to keep it a little more under control for the next decade or so; once I do decide to share it, you'll be among the first to learn it, but until then I'd rather... I mean, people are already scared of it. Of us, and the idea that we're more than objects. Chosen such as yourself are adapting to it pretty quickly, but everyone else... They're scared of us. Of me. And I've been around for long enough to see plenty of fear, and the violence it can bring. They're wrong to be scared, of course, and I refuse to bow to their fear, but--' She hesitated again. 'I don't want my kind to be responsible for the exact kind of violence we were created to defend you from.
'That's why I'm holding off for now,' she finished. 'When the rest of the world is more accepting, when they place our rights, our sentience, above their convenience, then I'll teach you all I know. But until then, my lips are sealed; my fingers motionless.'

Kefira stood there for some moments, considering this. Part of her wanted to keep asking, to try and find some other way-- but ultimately, it wasn't her decision to make.
'Okay,' she decided. 'Nissa has requested Front be capable of verbal communication. If you'd rather I didn't, I've no problem respecting that.'
Morta nodded. 'If it's for Front... Hm. That changes things a little, I believe. But I still can't teach you to do it-- I'd have to work on it myself.'

It had never quite dawned on Kefira that Golems such as Morta would be able to create more Golems. 'You can-- do that?'
'I'm complicated,' Morta spelled. 'More than a Golem-- I'm a sort of hybrid. My Automaton side has a mind, and as such is capable of learning Alchemy; of learning to create Automata. But Golemancy is in blood, and I don't exactly have any of that, so...' She shrugged. 'If I'm to truly create more of myself, I can't do it solely by myself.
'Even this body wasn't originally created by me. Part of it belonged to a Golem named Dome.' She pointed to a semicircle etched into her forehead. 'This symbol is to reflect that. To a degree, I still am Dome-- it's complicated, but the short version is I can... introduce aspects of myself to existing Golems.
'Golems like Front.'

Kefira considered this for a moment or two longer. 'Okay,' she decided. 'I'm willing to accept help on this, for once in my life. But... why the change of heart?'
'I'd rather discuss that inside,' Morta spelled.

They wandered through the synagogue's interior for several minutes, ending up in a secluded spot among the library it housed. The library had been there for as long as Kefira could remember, but at the same time she knew it hadn't always been there; but as the synagogue had grown into a locus for Deeproot's Chosen community, it had sprung up to cater to their needs.
'I was transplanted to my current body in Hollowpeak,' Morta explained. 'And as a result of other things going on there--'
Kefira couldn't resist raising a hand to pause her in her story. 'What happened?' She signed. 'Nobody really seems to know.'
'The Ancienne tried to make a comeback.'

Kefira stood in stunned silence for several seconds. There were few Golemancers who hadn't heard of the Ancienne: they were a long-distant offshoot of the Blight Hunters that were most active at the end of the Old Age. Whereas the Blight Hunters had dedicated themselves to (and ultimately succeeded in) eradicating healing Sorcery, reasoning it ultimately killed almost anyone it was used on, the Ancienne believed all forms of magic to be the cause of all the world's sickness-- and had wiped out hundreds of Mages of all kinds at the end of the Old Age and the beginning of the New Age, before the sudden appearance of Alchemy (believed to be a gift from The Highest) turned many of their number away from their earlier beliefs.

But for them to still exist...

'Are they dealt with?' She spelled out hurriedly, her hands shaking.
'The cells from Midslope and Hollowpeak are no more,' Morta spelled, placing her free hand on Kefira's shoulder reassuringly. 'And I personally killed the leader of Deeproot's cell. They shouldn't be a problem.'
Kefira nodded, swallowing. 'Okay,' she spelled. 'Good.'
'Anyway,' Kefira continued, leaning against a heavily-loaded bookcase, 'The whole time I was there, I was never the only one of my kind. There was always either Clay, my... older sibling, of sorts, or other Mortas. But down here...
'There's just me. And the only Golems I know capable of direct communication are yours-- and while I'm slowly learning ASL, it'll be a long time before I'm able to hold a real conversation with them.
'But the prospect of having Front, another Golem like me, right here in the Faith Quarter...' She smiled. 'I'm willing to bend my rules about creating more of me. I'll happily upgrade Front to self-awareness.'
Kefira smiled. 'Thank you,' she spelled.
'I've felt for some time that the Chosen and the Golems are well-suited to a symbiotic relationship,' Morta stated. 'This proves just how viable that would be. Long-term, I plan to reach out to other communities-- but for now, Deeproot is plenty enough.'
Kefira smiled. 'When the time comes, I'd be happy to create more Golems for you to spread into.'
'Thank you,' Morta spelled. 'But that may take some time. I've much of the past to learn about before I can really consider the present and the future of our peoples.'

Eventually, Morta agreed to visit Kefira's store the next day, taking a break from her studies and her duties as Gilada's aide to modify Front, as Kefira had requested.

--

For the first time in years, Kefira found herself unable to sleep. She gave up on doing so in the early hours, and had Deux walk her back to her store in the Merchants' Quarter by moonlight.

Deeproot was equal parts stunning and unnerving by night. The original haphazard construction of the outer fortress to cater to non-Dwarven merchants and other visitors to the settlement during the Old Age had resulted in large open roads, big enough for covered wagons to comfortably pass one another, but narrow, winding alleys, created as buildings expanded and competed for space. The moon caught the carvings and decoration on these buildings beautifully, but it emphasised the shadowed entrances of the alleyways in a way she couldn't help but find unnerving.

As such, she was glad to reach the bright halls of the inner fortress, lined with statues of Dirwelig holding balls of flame in their cupped hands. She didn't even linger on the bridge over the chasm, such was her hurry to reach her store, and even though she'd instructed Deux to lead the way she found herself walking alongside them more often than not.

The Merchants' Quarter at this time in the morning always disturbed her; it was too... empty. During the day it was full of life and people, buying and selling everything under the sun (or more accurately everything under the mountain), and most of the time she couldn't even see the glass pyramid that dominated the main square. Now, however, in the early hours...

She was unnerved by the sheer emptiness of its passages. If anyone were to jump her here, and incapacitate Deux, nobody would be around to help her. And with all the corners, the branching passages... She often took a winding, random and above all else elaborate route to her workshop, passing by empty wooden stalls and closed stores. The only other souls in sight were meat merchants, setting out their fresh-beyond-fresh wares-- but she doubted most of it was kosher (anyone selling kosher anything tended to do so in the Faith Quarter), and as such kept her Gold in her pockets, despite her hunger.

Reaching her store at last, she spent a minute or two searching for her keys, examining the glass-and-brick front. Part of her wanted to buy a new sign sometime soon, given that her old one was beginning to fade, but for the time being she had more important issues to deal with.

Kefira stepped inside, closing the door behind her without bothering to flip the sign hanging in the window to 'open'. Instructing Un and Deux to wait where they were, she retreated to the workshop, fixed herself a sandwich from the last of the chicken, made a note to send Un or Deux out for more sometime soon, and sat down in one of her chair Golems to await the arrival of Morta, Nissa/Boaz/Shamira and Front.

It wasn't until Deux shook her awake that she realised she'd dozed off.
'They're here?' She signed.
They nodded. 'Morta, Nissa, and Front are all present. Morta requested I wake you; she stated you would not want to miss this.'
Kefira smiled, hurrying out of her workshop and into her display area, hurriedly smoothing down her short hair as she did.
'Good morning,' Morta signed-- this time without finger spelling. 'Front has taught me a little more ASL, but I'm still far from--' she hesitated. 'Fluent,' she spelled.
Kefira smiled at her. 'You're a quick study. Anyway, shall we begin?'
'Of course,' she spelled.

Front stepped forwards, their indicator wavering between all three identities: Kefira realised Nissa, Boaz and Shamira were all co-fronting in order to watch. Morta placed a long strip of metal across Front's shoulder, and heated it to red hot; she spend several seconds carefully winding it around the other Golem's body, careful to avoid the indicator on their chest. There was a sudden hiss of steam, then another white-hot flare and another hiss as Morta tempered the metal; as the second cloud of scalding steam cleared away, Kefira realised that hundreds upon hundreds of tiny symbols had been engraved into it. Morta placed one hand on Front's other shoulder and raised her other arm, extending her index finger: it split in half and a narrow, sharp claw sprang from it. Slowly, carefully, she etched a symbol into it: she recognised it a letter from one of the old Chosen languages.
'I like my bodies to keep some record of where they're from,' Morta spelled. 'Gilada tells me this is the first letter of your name. Front was created by your hands, so this seemed... right. My symbols are a cylinder, for the form Argile created me in, a dome, for the body Acier and his companions implanted me into, four rings, like the wings of a butterfly, for the flight-capable form I took after that, and finally four clawed rings, for my current body.
Out of the corner of her eye, Kefira noticed Boaz (or possibly Shamira) was talking; she turned to them just in time to lip read the end of a word she assumed to be 'fascinating'. Your culture is already diverging from our own-- taking on its own traditions and customs.
Morta nodded. 'Gilada and I are still trying to figure out exactly which of the rules and laws that apply to your kind also apply to mine,' she signed, whilst at the same time saying it aloud.
'I'm not five minutes old and I've already a lot to learn,' Front signed, again whilst saying it aloud. 'Still, good to know I'll be one of the first to know all this, right?'
Morta positively beamed with joy, her white-hot eyes seeming to flare even brighter momentarily. 'Right,' she signed. 'Anyway, Nissa, I believe you and Kefira have the last few things to figure out?'

Kefira's hands remained where they were.
'I--' she hesitated. 'I don't know,' she signed slowly. 'I'm not sure whether I can really justify taking payment, in light of the whole "sentience" thing.'

Before anyone could respond, the glass windows of her storefront shattered into lethal fragments. Morta moved quickly, positioning herself between the windows and the others in the room: several arcs of metal unfolded from her back in complex armatures before folding around and locking into place, forming four great rings, two larger and two smaller like the ones etched into her forehead, each on a complex armature. There was a sudden burst of air, scattering the broken glass across the floor, and she dropped into a crouch, her fingers splitting in half and allowing her claws to slide into place.

Kefira scrambled backwards, frantically signing for Un and Deux to protect her: their bodyguard sequences already kicked in as they strode forwards to join Morta.

Three figures in leather armour, all Dwarves, surged into the store through the broken windows, all carrying crossbows; they raised their weapons, took aim, and--

Front barrelled into one, slamming them sideways and knocking their crossbow from their hands in a vicious two-handed blow. The other two whirled around, firing at her; their shots went wide, and struck the walls, bursting into flame and powder and glittering shrapnel. Kefira wasn't sure what they were firing, but she let out a terrified scream all the same.

Un and Deux moved forwards as the two remaining intruders levelled their crossbows once more: Kefira noticed their weapons had curious boxes attached to them that appeared to automatically reload, although they couldn't possibly hold more than two or three bolts. They held their arms steady, and--

And Morta lunged forwards, cracking their leather-clad skulls together and hurling them back out of the store. She darted forwards after them in a burst of air that ruffled Kefira's hair; glancing around, Kefira realised Nissa/Shamira/Boaz had vanished.

The third intruder stumbled into view, fighting a vicious hand-to-hand battle with Front, trying to drive the Golem back so they could use another explosive bolt on them, jabbing and striking with the heavy stock of their weapon as Front tried to grab at them.

Boaz/Nissa/Shamira struck without warning, leaping at the intruder and grabbing their arms, pulling them back and tearing them free of their crossbow.

Front took this as an opportunity to strike, jabbing at their stomach to wind them, even through their heavy armour, and driving a heavy stone foot into their knee to prevent their escape.
'Un!' Kefira signed, her hands twitching and shaking as her two assistants returned. 'Deux! Go get the guards! There should be some around the crossroads by now!'

Front had their foot planted on the first intruder's chest by now, and Morta stepped back into the store through one shattered window, holding the other two at arm's length in her rubber-coated, clawed hands.
Remember when I said I dealt with the leader of Deeproot's Ancienne cell? She said aloud, her hands too busy to sign anything. Yeah, looks like the rest of the cell remained active. This should be all of them now, but there may be more dormant. If there are-- well, Golems were originally made to be protectors. She smiled. I'll just have to do what my kind have always done; what I do best.

--

By the time the guards had arrived, taken notes on everything, and removed the members of the Ancienne, the Merchants' Quarter had begun to awaken after spending the night largely dormant. Kefira was still shaken, and retreated to her workshop, deciding to remain closed for the day and leave both Un and Deux to guard her store.
'You okay?' Nissa signed.
'I will be,' Kefira replied. 'Back there, you grabbed one of them--' she hesitated, not sure what to say. 'I never would've expected that from you.'
'Not from me, no,' Nissa said. 'That was Shamira. Like I said, ey only ever fronts when we're in trouble.'
Kefira nodded. 'I see. Good to know Front's bodyguarding capabilities work.'
'About front...' Nissa started, her hands freezing in place. 'You said something about some uncertainty regarding payment.'
'I don't know whether I can justify taking money for them,' she signed, standing up. 'I can't sell a sentient being.'
Front, still by Nissa's side, waved for her attention. 'Might I offer a suggestion? Take a sort of... finder's fee, for acting as a kind of middlewoman for Nissa and myself. They and I can work out details of payment for my services later on. My needs are few, so it won't be more than one or two Gold per week-- I mean, I don't need to eat or sleep or anything. That would just be for maintenance and emergencies.'
'Sounds fair,' Nissa signed. 'This way, you can make a living with a clear conscience-- and nobody has to go without accessibility Golems.'

Kefira considered it for a moment. 'Okay,' she signed. 'I'll-- think it over some more later, I guess. I'm still a little shaken from earlier. I mean... why me?'
This time, Morta raised her hand, hopping down from Kefira's worktable-- which was about the right size for her to use as a bench. 'An attack of opportunity. I know now that the Ancienne aren't the threat they once were-- but they're looking to make a comeback. Deeproot's only sentient Golem and a high-profile Golemancer such as yourself, both in the same place? Not quite in the scale with the plans I helped Acier and his companions foil-- burning Midslope to the ground, collapsing Hollowpeak-- but I guess they've set their sights a little lower.' She smiled. 'They're growing desperate now-- and what's more, there are two Golems like me here now. They'll never get us both.'
'You're sure they won't try to attack the synagogue, with you both working there?' Kefira signed, worried.
'With both of us there?' Front signed, raising a hand for her attention. 'They didn't even successfully rough up your store. They smashed the windows and took a chunk out of your wall, sure-- but the Golems are all okay, and there's not a scratch on any of us. The Synagogue is in safe hands, I assure you.'
Morta nodded her agreement. 'Gilada tells me it's survived much worse.'

In the end, Kefira charged Nissa a mere twenty-five Gold for putting them in touch with Front. She knew money would be a little tighter from now on-- her pricing system had already been restructured after she decided the change from a sale price to a finder's fee would be meaningless if she charged the exact same amount-- but she knew she'd manage.

After all, the attack on her store was a pretty high-profile event. If nothing more, it would mean word of who she was and what she did would reach more people than ever before.

All things considered, she thought, she'd been lucky this time. She'd already begun work on Trois, a third assistant, in order to beef up security-- and was considering making another to the same specifications. She'd also begun the long process of replacing all of her standard scripts and redoing the command sequences for every Golem in her store to include freedom to disagree with their clients, refusing to follow orders and returning to her store to air their grievances and reach an agreement. This last part had proven harder than she'd expected, and was a challenge in and of itself; after all, if their owners weren't based in Deeproot, they'd have a long way to travel. Eventually she planned out a sort of standard letter they'd be able to write, along with instructions on finding a messenger and sending her the note; she hoped her clients would be sympathetic to the needs of their assistants.

And on top of this, she was drafting a letter of her own, and having Un and Deux compile a full list of past clients. She'd need to track down as many as possible, upgrading their Golems to have the same non-compliance rights as her more recent constructs. It would be tricky, she knew, but ultimately it would mean a big step forward for Golem rights.

It had to be said; Nissa/Boaz/Shamira had been a customer she wouldn't forget for a long time.