B4 Chapter 467: Lost Treasures, pt. 3

Blinking away the System notification and shock, Kaius snatched up the orb. It was weighty, denser than he expected, with a fine texture and densely patterned runes engraved on its surface. The name of it hung in his mind — an Arachnacine Landyacht.

The description was clear, as was Castellan’s explanation: it was an autonomous vessel, some kind of carriage, he was sure.

Kaius couldn’t help but grin. Of all the artefacts that could sometimes be found in old Empire caches, any form of still-functioning and controllable automata was heavily prized. Judging by the name and what he had seen elsewhere in this facility, no doubt their latest prize was many-limbed, a boon considering the significant advantages it would have over a common wagon’s wheels. Rough terrain would be no issue, and if they were lucky, the thing might be able to handle the sort of hazardous environments they encountered regularly as delvers.

He struggled to picture it. Perhaps it was a simple flat platform atop a squat torso of machinery. It would certainly be the simplest solution. Anything more, such as a true carriage enclosure, would drastically increase the size of the thing. Considering that the entire artefact was stored in a spatial bubble inside the steel ball in his hand, that would have been a grand extravagance. Any form of spatial artefact was a precious thing, and even if this one was highly specialised, the volume required to contain even a normal carriage was immense.

He did have one question, though.

“What in the gods’ grace is a yacht?” Kaius said, passing the artefact over to his friends.

The second he voiced his question, Kenva went from reaching for the ball with a look of curiosity on her face to her eyes widening in shock as she snapped her head to Kaius and back to the orb again. Lunging forwards, she grabbed the orb — her eyes going glassy as she analysed it.

That was odd. Did she know what it was?

Looking over, Kaius saw Ianmus also giving Kenva a confused look. Meeting his eyes, the mage shrugged.

“I can explain what a yacht is, at the very least,” Ianmus replied. “There’s plenty of them in Mystral. They’re pleasure craft, usually — a kind of boat. Some use them to tour the coastal settlements, others to simply enjoy time out on the sea. They can get quite fancy.”

Kaius nodded slowly. Perhaps the thing wouldn’t just be a platform with legs.

Blinking away her notification, Kenva let out a breath and passed over the orb to Ianmus so that he could look for himself.

“It is a landyacht.”

Was that awe he could hear in her voice? She must know what it was. Though perhaps that should not have been a surprise to him. She was, after all, from the Hiwiaan tribes. Nomadic as they were, their caravans were the backbone of life and livelihood in their home. Hells, the almost garish colours they decorated them with were enough of a sign that they were prized things.

After his own zoned inspection, Ianmus went contemplative. He set the orb down on the table, rubbing his chin as he stared at it.

“I think I’ve heard of these, but I never knew they had a specific name. It’s certainly a find, that’s for sure.”

“Well, explain what’s so fancy about the special ground boat then, because I haven’t the faintest clue what any of you are talking about,” Porkchop said with a disinterested grunt.

“To my people, they’re just about the most valuable thing in the world,” Kenva said. “Owning one is enough to elevate the prestige of an entire clan — the most powerful and prosperous only have a few. They can be anything from a walking carriage to a mobile fortress — but I’ve never heard of the latter examples on the steppe.”

Ianmus nodded. “One of the dukes in Greenseed has one of those. Although, from the rumours I’ve heard, it is not quite as large as a real fortress. Still, it is mobile, armed and armoured. Even lesser examples are extremely valuable. They’re just too damn rare.”

That seemed to pique Porkchop’s curiosity slightly. He leaned in, prodding the orb with a paw, before a ghostly hand controlled by his ear-stud snatched it up and turned it over in front of his eyes.

“Hopefully that means I will be able to fit.”

Kenva laughed. “They vary in size quite a bit, but I’ve never heard of one being small.”

She shook her head, staring at the orb that held their prize with a dazed look. “To think I might actually get to step foot in one, let alone own it. My father’s been trying to secure one for the clan for years. It’s almost impossible to find them on the open market, and there are plenty with far more resources than him who are just as interested.”

Well, that was quite something, wasn’t it? Kaius reached over and hefted the orb. It would make a fine addition to their team’s capabilities, and, he supposed, a good enough statement of their new station and abilities now that they had reached Silver. It would draw a certain amount of attention, but he wasn’t so concerned about people knowing they were wealthy and capable. Though perhaps it would be a good idea not to reveal the existence of such a thing around Deadacre, lest questions arise about what exactly they had found in this ruin.

One thing hung in his mind: what Ianmus had said about some landyachts being mobile fortresses. He hadn’t seen any specific mention of that in the artefact’s description. That didn’t mean it wasn’t possible. Many specifics were lost in the System’s brief overview.

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Hells, even if it lacked armaments, it would be good to know how sturdy its construction was. There was no doubt in his mind that if such a thing became so damaged that its self-repair enchantments could not recover it, there was no way they could get it fixed themselves.

“Is there anything you can add?” Kaius said, turning to the brass monstrosity that was standing in polite silence only a few steps away.

Like with most of their conversations, the Castellan gave no outward sign that it was even capable of movement, let alone that it had heard his question — and still answered him a moment later.

“It is a civilian model, designed for the comfort of a single captain and a small entourage. As such, it is on the smaller side and lacks in armaments. But I can confirm that it should be more than large enough for you and your party to all fit, my lord.”

In what Kaius could only assume was a deliberate move, the automaton nodded its head at Porkchop.

“It is, however, high quality, even among its ilk. It is swift on land, capable of traversing all terrain, with limited amphibious capabilities, and it is well armoured. It is, of course, incomparable to the custom units that many far more wealthy individuals have procured, or those designed with military use in mind. Unfortunately, in the current circumstances, I cannot offer you something more appropriate for your station, Lord Unterstern.”

Well now, he had to see what it looked like. Large enough for Porkchop, and, by the automaton’s own admission, a high-quality piece.