Darkness and Hellfire

Chapter 37 Missing A Helmet.

Isaac and Lenna had a quick stop to make before they were to meet up with Lenny. The plan was to help Lenny get more experience fighting nonhumanoid creatures. Lenny had a perfect mix of gracefulness and lethality that led to him being great at gliding in and out of combat with multiple foes while removing any open threats. So far, Isaac and Lenna were both optimistic about his future prospects as a fighter capable of standing alongside them. The three of them all knew that as long as Isaac and Lenna didn’t start slacking off, Lenny would never be able to beat them in a one-on-one fight. That didn’t mean that he wouldn’t be able to beat ninety eight percent of other combatants in solo combat however.

Isaac and Lenna’s stop was right next to Stan’s Smithy. A few months prior, the old dwarf had sent the pair to the family of leather workers that he often worked with. The shop’s name was simple and to the point: Tanner Family Leatherwork. A bell chimed as the pair walked in and, much like the first time they had been there, there were two human men inside.

Both men had brown hair, brown eyes, and pale skin. The older of the two had his slightly long hair brushed back and it was tied off with a leather strap to keep it out of his face. His face was covered in stubble from yesterday’s, maybe the day before’s, shave. Both his beard stubble and hair were flecked with gray. There was noticeably a bit more gray than the last time Isaac had seen him. The younger man had his hair tied back in a long ponytail and his back was facing them as he used a counter, that was along the back wall, to work on something. He was so focused he didn't even seem to notice them. The older man did, however, and he greeted them with a smile. “Back so soon?” He joked with Lenna warmly. He knew exactly why they had come.

“Of course.” Lenna replied. “My husband-to-be is always impatient when it comes to new toys.”

“Oh?” Hank Tanner, the older of the two, replied. “When is the wedding? Soon I hope.”

“A bit under three months from now.” Isaac replied. “We still haven’t ironed out the invite list for the ceremony but the reception will definitely be big enough for two or three of you to swing by.” Isaac assured them.

“Swing by where?” Hank asked, genuinely curious.

“The Arbencroft Ballroom.” Isaac replied with a grin. “We’ll have the best venue in the city.”

Hank looked flabbergasted by the declaration. “Wow.” He said breathily. “I’ve heard rumors of your closeness with our dear duke and duchess, but this is unheard of. As far as I can remember only the duke and duchess themselves have been married inside their manor, ever.”

“Oh.” Isaac said more to himself than to Hank. “Sera agreed to that quite easily for it being something that important.” Isaac told Lenna with some concern. “She definitely has something cooking if she is willing to convince Izen to go along with something this out of tradition.”

“Most definitely.” Lenna agreed. “It will all work out well, I trust her.”

Isaac nodded. “Me too.” He replied and then turned back to Hank who had just learned some very juicy gossip that he probably shouldn’t have learned. “But that is not why we are here.” Isaac said to get them back on track. “My armor, your message said that it was here.”

Hank nodded. “Right you are.” He turned to his son. “Thadd, help me carry the manikin out.”

“Just a moment.” Thadd replied as he finished up what he was doing. “There.” He said and set it down on the counter. When he left to go help his father, Isaac got a good look at the intricate snake design he was making on a belt.

A few moments and some clattering later the father and son pair brought out a manikin with a blanket over it. “Your masterpiece.” Hank said and then he and Thadd revealed the armor.

It was even better than Isaac remembered, if less magically enchanted than he was hoping, and cut a striking figure. Blue scales glittered with golden strengthening enchantments in the glowing stone light. Falling-shadow leather was almost entirely hidden by the cascade of thousands of small scales. Each piece was connected by thin straps that held enchanted copper grounding so any electricity would be directed downwards and away from any of his fleshy bits. The straps and copper were almost entirely hidden once the armor was equipped to ensure that it wouldn’t get accidentally damaged and ruin the grounding.

The pauldrons were small enough to keep them from getting in the way unless he was trying to reach straight up into the air by throwing his arms out to his sides and then up. Isaac could still reach over his head if he moved his arms out forwards first before he went up. That would move the pauldrons to be mostly out of the way. The vest and skirt came together like a long coat of lightning immunity given form. The seamless transition at the waist gave the armor a more reptilian look. The skirt was cut most of the way down the middle in the front and back. It hung down to his knees in the front and a few inches higher in the back so it wouldn’t get in the way of him kicking or sprinting. The bracers were a suboptimal pick in hindsight but they would still do their job as long as he was careful. Isaac still liked his hands free to the open air so he wasn’t going to complain about that part. What he did kick himself for was the lack of elbow guards.

Isaac peered down at the greaves and grinned at the cleats that would aid in grounding the entire armor set. At least he had the forethought to ensure he had kneepads built into them. The leather and copper straps were attached to the skirt halfway down his thigh on the inside of the flaps. The straps went the entire way around his thigh to keep the flaps in place and then two straps, one on the inside of his leg and one on the outside, ran down each leg to connect the rest of the armor to the greaves.

“It’s still missing a helmet.” Lenna commented.

Isaac rolled his eyes. “A helmet wouldn’t have done anything agai-”

Lenna cut him off. “The mushroom executor almost split your head in four.” She reminded him.

“But I took the hit on the shoulder and it destroyed the armor.” Isaac added.

Lenna let out a long and exasperated sigh. “You are awful to argue with.” She told him.

“I know.” Isaac replied with a grin.

Hank chuckled at their antics. “You remind me of my parents.” He told them both warmly. “Now, are you going to stand there and bicker or will you put it on?”

Isaac quickly equipped the armor with only a little help from Lenna and Hank for some of the more awkward straps. Once it was all on he hopped in place. “As good as you remember?” Thadd questioned with a grin. The armor had been by far the most interesting set he had ever helped make and he was damn proud of it.

“Maybe better.” Isaac said in awe. “This should be immune to anything not magically enhanced, right?”

Hank nodded. “Nothing natural that doesn’t use mana will be able to damage that armor.” He agreed. “Well, unless you get in a fight with a building.” He added. “It can still be damaged, it's just much harder than it used to be. If anything ever happens to it, bring it back here and we’ll see what we can do.”

Isaac nodded in understanding. “I’ll keep that in mind.” He replied. “Well, thanks again for the amazing work.”

“Anytime.” Hank said with a smile. He seemed to hesitate for a moment like there was something he wanted to say. Eventually he nodded to himself as he found his resolve. “I do discreet work as well, you know.”

Isaac eyed the older man up and down. “I see.” He replied. “Well, I will keep that in mind if any of my shadows need some gear in the future.”

Hank and Thadd’s eyes got wider in surprise. It was clear that they realized they might have just dipped their toes into a lake far deeper than they initially thought. Neither was going to take back what was said, however. Maybe in the future, the decision to open his mouth would lead to Hank’s family business working with some of the greatest spies, thieves, and assassins on the continent, if not the world.