The Artificer's Apprentice

By DJ Edwardson

Can a man fashion justice as he would a clock?

Cast out of the craft hall in his prime and bitter from his many losses, a blind artificer has taken on an apprentice to make what he no longer can: a device that will enter him into the Grand Competition.

But does the artificer even want to win? Or does he only care about revenge? And will that be enough?

The Artificer’s Apprentice is a short story set in a medieval city where magic and technology blend seamlessly and where the Artificer guilds make handsome profits keeping the city's systems running. The leaders of these guilds have complete control over their members, but one man is about to challenge that authority. Blind, frail, and destitute, the embittered artificer could not be that much of a threat, could he?

Follow the tale of The Artificer’s Apprentice to see what he shall fashion in his shop...

• Language: English
• Publisher: DJ Edwardson
• Release date: Feb 15, 2013
• ISBN: 9781301199419

DJ Edwardson

When he was younger, DJ used to recount the entire plots of the novels he was reading to his best friend as they walked to and from school together. Writing novels is a lot like that for him now except that he is making up the story and he has to worry about grammar and punctuation, and re-writes, and jacket art and...ok so maybe it’s not exactly the same. When he’s not writing or spending time with family, DJ dabbles in 3D modeling and digital art.

Book preview

The Artificer's Apprentice

by DJ Edwardson

Copyright @ 2012 DJ Edwardson

Published at Smashwords

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each reader. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

THE ARTIFICER'S APPRENTICE

One squeeze.

That was the sign for yes. And that was what the boy gave him.

All right, then, Talomai smiled, anxious to get started. The Grand Competition was only six months away.

Now let go of my arm. You need both hands when you work.

The blind artificer guided the boy’s hands to the implements resting on the workbench: the lux intensifier and the metron swivel. They were Talomai’s most prized possessions and, along with a few precious stencils, the only things he’d managed to bring with him from the Signore’s crafthall.

Now be careful, ragazzo, the elder admonished. These aren’t like the castoffs those vagabond peddlers try to stiff us with. These are Francescan make. Take care with them, as if they were your own fingers and hands. An artificer is never greater than his tools.

Though his apprentice said nothing, he knew the boy was listening. He was always listening. That was probably why Talomai put up with him. Life was hard enough on the back streets of Renze without having another mouth to feed.

As long as you don’t get in my way, he had told the boy when they first met, I’ll give you what scraps I can spare.

But it was hardly altruism that had motivated the artificer to take in the street urchin. There was something the artificer had to make; something for which he would need an apprentice.

By law, I’ve no right to train you, you know. he told the boy. But if the guild has no use for me, then I have no use for them.

The artificer daubed a bit of synth-metal gel onto the palette and