Game of Alchemy 2 (Patreon)

Being perfectly honest, I didn’t expect this to happen quite this quickly. I was a no-name outsider, even with my Alchemy, hardly the sort of person my breakfast companion would deign to give the time of day. Yet, apparently, something about me caught her eye.

“I must apologize in advance, Your Majesty,” I said as I bowed to Queen Cersei. “My homeland lacks a king or queen, and I am still learning the proper forms of address.”

A carefully manicured eyebrow rose as she took me in. She was certainly beautiful and, unlike Baelish, looked nothing like the actress who’d played her in the show. I lacked the words to properly describe her, but I could see why so many men were distracted in her presence.

“The proper form of address would be, ‘Your Grace’,” she finally said while gesturing to the chair across from her.

“Thank you, Your Grace,” I said with a bow of my head as I took the offered seat. “For both the correction and the invitation.”

“You say your homeland lacks a king or queen, yet you have a term of address. Curious,” she noted as she placed a few bits of finger food on her plate.

“We didn’t have a monarchy, but one of our neighbors did. ‘Majesty’ was the closest translation to the term that they used. If it is not too bold, may I inquire as to the reason behind this invitation?” I asked, not touching any of the food.

“You may eat,” she said, noticing that I wasn’t doing so. I chose a few cuts of cheese and sausages before loading them onto my plate. “Rather curious rumors surround you, why wouldn’t one be curious?”

“I assumed that a foreigner in the employ and mercies of a minor noble would be beneath the notice of one such as you, Your Grace,” I said in response, taking a bite of cheese. It tasted like a brie, but had a texture like gouda.

“In some circumstances, you would be correct. However, when the rumors all speak of your… mystical gifts, exceptions are made,” she shot back, taking a sip from her goblet.

“An understandable response, I suppose,” was my half murmured reply. “Though having rumors calling me some manner of sorcerer are… annoying.”

“So you do not possess the abilities spoken of?”

“As I have not heard the rumors myself, I cannot say with certainty one way or the other. I do possess skills that I have not seen practiced in my limited time in Westeros, which I suspect is what the rumors are referencing,” I said, taking a moment to consider how to explain it. “If Your Grace will allow me to make a comparison, I have heard that your brother is the finest swordsman in Westeros. It is a skill he has worked hard to master and dedicated countless hours in the yard and field practicing his skill. Something that he should rightfully take pride in. I am not as skilled in my own craft, but calling Alchemy magic would be akin to one saying that all that is needed in swordcraft is knowing ‘the pointy end goes into the other man’.”

The member of the Kingsguard behind me shifted. It wasn’t Jamie Lannister, but I imagine the comparison I’d made annoyed them all the same.

“That is well put,” the Queen agreed. “But as to your earlier question, you mentioned being able to teach your skill to others?”

“I believe so,” I answered. “There is a great deal of knowledge required, so actual transmutation would not be practiced for some time. From my understanding, the Order of Maesters would be the closest local equivalent, in the focus on knowledge required.”

“Is that so?” she asked, showing little of what she was thinking.

“Take this plate, for example,” I began to explain, tapping the plate in front of me. “To transmute it, turn it from one form to another, I need to know what it is made of. Not just the metal alloy, but the ratio of base metals that make it. More than that, I need to have a clear understanding in my mind of how those base metals are mixed together. Then, I need to be able to picture them in the shape I desire, in the mixture I desire. Any decorative embellishments need to be clearly visualized as well. It is a skill that takes time, training, and a great deal of practice to master. Which is why hearing one dismiss it as mere ‘magic’ is aggravating.”

Queen Cersei hummed, taking a sip from her goblet. After a moment, she said, “Show me. Use your gift on the plate in front of you, and explain each step of the process.”

I nodded and, after popping the last piece of sausage into my mouth, moved to a clear patch of floor. Taking out my stick of chalk, I began to speak, “The circle works to contain and focus the energy pulled from the world to fuel the transmutation. The symbols carved within serve to guide the energies, to provide direction and reduce the strain on the alchemist performing the transmutation. What one desires to achieve will determine the symbols used.”

With the circle finished, I placed the plate in the middle of the circle and took my place, “Placing one’s hands on the circle provides a conduit, allowing the energy to pass harmlessly through you while providing more specific directions to the transmutation. Then, with enough focus…”

The circle began to glow and the Kingsguard drew his sword, but I remained focused. With a flash of light, the transmutation was complete. Where there had been a burnished bronze plate, was now a flower, the copper forming the flower petals while the tin formed the stem. The chalk circle was gone, and I picked up the flower before walking back to the Queen. I presented it, stem first, like a blacksmith presenting a sword to a prospective customer.

She took it, carefully inspecting each and every angle. After five minutes or so, she set it aside and turned back to face me.

“You will come to this chamber tomorrow morning and begin instructing Prince Tommen in your art. I will receive progress reports every fortnight, from both yourself and him. Dismissed.”

Well, this was progressing even better than I’d hoped. I bowed and said, “As you wish, Your Grace. I will begin preparing my lesson plan.”

I held in the smirk I wanted to make until I reached the rooms I’d been loaned. Things were progressing amazingly well.

[hr][/hr]

The next day, I was back in the Red Keep bright and early, where I was escorted to the chamber the lessons were to take place in. To my surprise, it wasn’t just myself and Prince Tommen who were present. Beyond the guards, the Princess, Stark girl, and several other young ladies were having their own lessons on the other side of the room. It wasn’t exactly a grand hall, so they would certainly be able to hear me as I instructed the young Prince. Interesting.

I focused on my pupil, beginning with the basics of Alchemy. I was curious to see how quickly he’d take to the lessons, and even if he never became particularly powerful as far as alchemists went, it was still to my benefit to be the personal instructor to the Crown Prince. Fortunately for me, Prince Tommen proved to be an eager and apt pupil. He was always asking questions, wanting to learn as much as he could, wanting to know the why of what he was being taught. I feel no shame in admitting that he was a much better student than I ever was. Granted, that was a low bar, since I was a complete and utter shit of a student.

“Why triangles?” Tommen asked as I was showing him a basic destruction circle.

“Two key reasons: efficiency and scalability,” I answered. “The fewer components in a circle, the fewer opportunities for something to go wrong. To use a comparison, say a tradesman wanted a particular item. There are countless ways he could go about getting that item, each having their own drawbacks. But is he more likely to engage in a long, complicated scheme involving five and ten different steps, or head down to the market and simply buy it?”

“Go to the market and buy it. So triangles are simple, but so are squares,” Tommen pointed out.

“Very true, squares are simple, however,” I took the piece of slate I’d been using as a chalkboard and drew a square, before drawing a diagonal line through it. “I still have a square, but now I also have two triangles. More than that…”

I began to draw a number of stars, each with a different number of points on them. Drawing lines separating the points from the center, I gestured to it, “See? Any number of stars can be made by adding another triangle, which makes the ability to scale it up and down depending on how complex the transmutation is far simpler. The simpler the transmutation, the simpler the circle.”

The lesson continued on, shifting from the theory behind transmutation to the more material aspects of it. It was around midday that things took a turn for the less than pleasant.

“Your Grace, it is an honor,” I said with a bow. Things were really moving a lot faster than I was happy with.

“So you’re the foreign mummer so many have been taken in by,” Joffrey Baratheon mused as he lounged on the Iron Throne.

“I wouldn’t call myself a mummer, Your Grace. While I do know some jokes, I’m afraid my best ones would not translate well. My gifts lie with the mental pursuits rather than performative. If Your Grace would like, I could offer a demonstration,” I offered.

The boy king scoffed, “I have no need of fools who can claim to turn shit into gold.”

“Of course not, Your Grace. Anyone who could claim to turn anything into gold is clearly delusional at best and a charlatan at worst. I have only been in King’s Landing a short while, the Red Keep even shorter, but from what I have seen Your Grace does not strike me as the kind to be taken in by the honeyed words of a charlatan,” I told him, hoping I didn’t sound like I was kissing his ass. Fortunately, the compliment had the effect I was hoping for, as he stopped looking at me like I was something foul he’d stepped in. I was more likely to keep my head that way.

“Indeed, I am not. You already show more wisdom than the traitor Ned Stark did,” he said, and even without looking I knew that Sansa had stiffened from where she was in the crowd.

“Thank you for the kind words, Your Grace,” I said with another bow. “My offer for a demonstration remains, if you would like to test my claims.”

Joffrey was silent for a long moment, before he stood and clapped his hands once, “I do believe I will. Dog! Give him a blade.”

The scarred face of Sandor Clegane walked up to me, pulling a short sword from his belt and shoving it into my hands before stomping back to where he’d been standing.

“Make it gold,” Joffrey said with a wicked grin.

“Gold makes for a poor blade, seems a waste to turn such a fine blade into a mere decoration, but I will do what I can,” I mused aloud, even as I knelt and pulled out a new stick of chalk.

I wasn’t going to turn the blade into gold. Even if I thought it was a good idea, I didn’t have a philosopher’s stone. What I did have were some gold dragons I’d gotten making fancy furniture for Baelish. That would let me add gold to the hilt and a tiny amount to the blade to make it distinct and give it a unique appearance.

The circle was simpler than the once I’d used to make the flower for Cersei, and in a few moments it was ready. Placing the two gold coins in the circle along with the blade, I placed my hands in the proper location and visualized what I wanted in my mind. With a flash of light, the transmutation was finished.

Standing, I picked up the blade and held it aloft, presenting it to the Royal Court. The shape of the blade was the same, but there was a faint yellow hue to it, and a line of gold ran down the middle of the fuller. The pommel now possessed a roaring lion’s head, with the guard resembling a pair of lions in mid pounce.

“In addition to the visual changes,” I announced as Sandor Clegane approached and took the blade from me. “I also honed its edge beyond what a simple whetstone can achieve. It is not as long lasting as valyrian steel, but I firmly believe it should possess comparable sharpness.”

My bait was cast, and sure enough, a blonde haired fish bit hard, “Can you make valyrian steel?”

I gave a slight shrug, “The Valyrian Freehold never reached my homeland, so I have never worked with valyrian steel. But I believe so, upon having a chance to examine it and study its make-up. The only reason I wouldn’t be able to would be if it were a pure material the same way that gold is, but from all I have heard that cannot be the case.”

And just like that, provided I could follow through, I’d made my position invaluable. If I could come through and make new valyrian steel anything, then I’d instantly become the most valued person in the kingdom. I wouldn’t be respected, since I still couldn’t fight worth a damn and Westeros was a warrior society despite appearances to the contrary, but I’d be valued.

“How fortunate that we have an extra valyrian steel blade available for you to examine,” Joffrey declared with an almost manic grin.

[hr][/hr]

Less than an hour later, and I was in the closest thing in the Red Keep to a workshop, the Stark ancestral blade on a wooden table in front of me and half a dozen guards surrounding me. In the source material, it would be turned into two swords, here it was going to be broken down so I could figure out how the hell the metal did what it did.

It would be easiest to just use a simple deconstruction circle and let my download cheat do the work for me, but somehow I didn’t think the guards would let me live if I straight up destroyed Ice. So it was the slower approach of transmuting it into different shapes and forms without messing with the make-up. Should have something to work with in a week or two. Well, without stretching it out to see if anyone makes me offers to speed things along.