Jaeson looked over the texts of the engineering for what felt like the hundredth time, and yet he was still no closer to cracking the code of what mysterious force drove the mighty siege engines. There was a downward pull, that much was easy enough to grasp but it was the translation into motion and the release of the destructive energy, if possible, could be used to re-harness as motion for the tram.

He closed the book and rubbed his eyes. He was definitely getting well ahead of himself in this, and he needed to slow down. He collected the books and slowly walked under their weight to re-shelve them in their proper places.

“Look at the Sorcerer who thinks he’s a Wizard!” One of the other students said in a teasing tone. Jaeson grinned at the other student and stuck his tongue out, after quickly making sure that there were no senior lecturers present.

“You’re just jealous that I’m able to go on the expedition out into the wastes with others,” He said. The looks on their faces told him he’d scored a hit with his return jibe. He finished shelving the books and walked over to the student who’d done the taunt.

“Now you’re coming to rub my face in it?” The student asked. Jaeson clapped his arm on the other student’s shoulder lightly and smiled winningly.

“Look Elris, You’ve got one up on me with having people teaching you different knowledges…” He said. The other student relaxed a little under the charm offensive. “I’ve got to do it myself. And I’ve been given a challenge - help understand why the tram just stops. And to do that, I need to understand engineering better than I do now.”

“So that’s why you’re in here more than other sorcerers?” Elris asked. Jaeson nodded.

“Pretty much,” he said. “Anyway, I’d better get moving. Can’t afford to be late for packing.” The other student and those with him turned back to their studies while Jaeson headed off to his chambers, one hand lightly patting his belt pouch to make sure it was still there.

Jaeson carefully daubed his cut lip with the washcloth once more, before sitting back in his chair. The bowl of chilled water was soothing to his still sore face from where he had taken that head ringing blow from the goliath. He knew he could have had one more potion to heal himself, but it was something he didn’t want to waste when his own body would heal it naturally. Plus, it gave him a reminder of his first real battle. He wet the washcloth and placed it over his eyes and exhaled slowly. The sound of footsteps alerted him to the presence of someone else and he sat up, letting the cloth fall off his face. Five other apprentices stood there, looking at him

“So, you went and did the bidding of the archmage himself?” The speaker, a young woman with hair seeming like spun gold, was clearly impressed, respectful and a little envious it seemed. Not being a good judge of words, or intentions, Jaeson simply grinned in reply and nodded. The young woman turned and looked at the others.

“See? I told you he’d tell the truth if you just came and asked him,” she said.

“But what was it you did?” another asked. This young man was in robes and had more of a scholars bent than Jaeson knew he himself did. More likely to be an arcanist or a wizard, Jaeson thought to himself.

“The Archmage needed something investigated in the Tundra,” he said quietly, making the five of them draw closer. “Suffice to say, the experience was a very dangerous one, even though I was with others, I think only a couple of us escaped injury from what we encountered.”

“And what was it?” a nervous young woman asked, her own voice low.

“A Goliath that had been tainted. Two of the others with me were Frostwardens… and they peppered it with arrows while another of us shot it with a pistol. I hit it first with a ray of enfeeblement then Magic Missiles along with another Sorcerer.” The five apprentices were duly impressed. Jaeson exhaled slowly. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m still recovering from the headache from that brute’s punch. The others nodded and headed off. The golden haired apprentice stayed however and gently took the cloth.

“Let me help and have a look at that,” she said gently and lightly began to press the washcloth over Jaeson’s face with a delicate touch. Jaeson’s eyes closed and he relaxed. That was the good thing about apprentices in the Academy, he thought, we look out for each other.

It was another day of self appointed study and Jaeson was pouring over A tome that detailed the inner planes in general while touching on the outer planes. It was knowledge that Jaeson sucked up eagerly, seeking to embed the knowledge in his mind so that he would be able to better research against whatever might be needed.

He had managed to grasp the basics of engineering and while he knew he wouldn’t be as good as the masters that worked the tram, another set of ideas as to working on the tram issue he knew would hardly be turned away. The possibility that corruption of a sort had occurred to him, and he worked diligently to make notes as to what the possible sources of the corruption could be - if they were mechanical, planar, natural … or tainted.

He had heard about the goblins attacking the Caravan from the caravaneers who had survived, and it led him to thinking - perhaps an underground race might be interfering with the lines? That of course would point to sabotage but such wasn’t obvious otherwise it would have been countered. Which of course led to alchemical, arcane, or divine interference if it wasn’t taint.

He exhaled slowly and set his ink pen down. The possibilities that he had were myriad and he would need to go and investigate the tramlines himself, if nothing else, to eliminate the possibilities that might already have been overlooked or discounted by the craftsmen themselves. The power source of the trams was another detail he had to consider as he had yet to examine the schematics for them. But that was setting the sled before the dogs - he knew he would have to improve his engineering skill before he would be able to properly decipher a tinker's musings. And he was no tinker, nor did he desire to become one.

After rubbing his eyes with the backs of his hands, Jaeson then yawned and stood, collecting his things, packing them up, before making his way to the shelf where the tome had been collected from. Once it was shelved, he shouldered his backpack once more and made his way to the apprentices dorms. He yawned once more before changing and climbing into bed.

Jaeson sat at the table in the Library, looking over the details he had looked at for the trams. They were starting to make some semblance of sense now, but he knew that it would be a while before he had the full understanding of them. Even so, the mention of aid from the foreman had been encouraging, and he was determined to make things work in their mutual favour.

He looked at the tome, researching more into the denizens of the underground, seeking to see what else could be hindering the progress of the tram. The Giant rats had been a nasty surprise, and he was determined to be able to get the jump on them more effectively in the future. Or, for that matter, anything else that might be lurking in the subterranean caverns.

There were tales of a lizard type folk, that were extremely xenophobic, that might cause problems if a lair of them was encountered in the tunnels. Jaeson carefully made notes about them, even as he continued to research about the workings of the tram itself. He paused when he heard light footsteps behind him and he looked up. The golden haired apprentice who had tended his cuts was looking at him quietly.

“I’m sorry to bother you Jaeson,” she said, “but it’s meal time, and the others were wondering where you were, so I volunteered to find you.” Jaeson looked at the light cast on the windows and realised he had been pushing himself a lot harder than he had intended. With a rumbling stomach he looked at the other apprentice and grinned.

“I’ll be right there. Save me a seat, will you Eloise?” he asked. Eloise nodded and headed out and Jaeson started packing up his belongings, mentally cataloguing what he had learned and what he should send to the foreman as suggestions and ideas to help with the running of the Tram. Now that he had managed to gather a sense of what was going on, he felt a little more confident with making his suggestions. With the tomes back on the shelves, he made his way to the mess hall with a grin.

Jaeson carefully and deliberately turned the page of the planar knowledge book, reviewing, not for the first time, what he needed to understand and consolidate his message to the Archmage. He felt more than a little presumptuous doing it, but with what had been learned, he felt that this theory needed to be sent to the archmage as swiftly as possible.

He turned and started writing his theory with what he had been able to piece together, using the rat example he had said to Jeff and Pirith, highlighting how he believed that whatever was on the other side of the portal would be the corruptor and twister of the beings that went through to the world.

He worked calmly, keeping his senses open to people moving through the library to ensure that he was not being spied upon, even as he wrote deftly and quickly. Finally, he looked over the writings and details and nodded and let the ink dry before rolling the scroll up and sliding it into his backpack. As he did so, he was aware of a few of the other apprentices approaching. He noted Jeff wasn’t among them, but Eloise was. She seemed to be the spokesperson for them.

“Jaeson, we heard that the Archmage pulled you aside for another secret meeting,” she said winningly, her own charisma shining through. Another apprentice, this one with ebony hair, Kara, looked at him and Eloise.

“Look, we know if you’re meeting with the archmage, that’s your business,” she said diplomatically, “But we’d also appreciate not being kept in the dark when you can let us know.” Jaeson nodded.

“Look, I can’t talk about the meeting right now,” he replied and some of their faces fell. “But when I can, I will.” That seemed to satisfy the others and they headed off to leave him to what he was focused on. Jaeson exhaled slowly once they had left. Eloise was charismatic, sure, but Kara was exceptional at getting her way. At least neither of them had pushed the matter. He stood and headed to where he could deliver the message to the archmage, ensuring his thoughts were passed on without interruption or interception.

Jaeson walked slowly to the Station of the Tram, his mind racing with different options as to what could be done for the tram, for the city, for others. There were too many thoughts and possibilities for a single human lifetime, but at the same time, he knew that where one might falter, others could pick up the details and move on. Yet… part of him still wanted to be able to see how the events would unfold. And so, he continued making his way to the tram station.

The chaos of when he was there last hadn’t subsided one whit, the rails were still being laid, there were trams half constructed, others ready but needing cleaning from the continual work that was ongoing. He did note that there were four new additions to the chaos - four frostwardens were leaning against the wall, seemingly idle, but Jaeson noted they were watching the goings on intently. The reason for their intent interest in their surroundings escaped him, and so he left them alone even as they stuck out like a sore thumb.

“Ho Lad! I see you're back!” The Dwarven foreman strode over to Jaeson and slapped him on the shoulder. Jaeson nodded with a grin.

“Yeah,” he said. “Had some free time, and decided I’d do what I could to help with the project. By the way…” he lowered his voice to a conversational tone that the cacophony of the construction hid. “Why are there frostwardens here?”

“Best not ask too much lad,” The dwarven foreman replied in the same tone. “You don’t want to know. Now… come here… these are the plans for the tunnels we have so far…” Jaeson walked with the foreman, knowing better than to press a potentially dangerous subject and headed over to a table covered with maps and diagrams and surrounded by four dwarven miners who were arguing about the safety of the tunnels as well as the structural integrity of them. The Foreman whistled sharply to get their attention. They looked briefly at Jaeson, then at the foreman.

“Alright you lot. We’ve got this lad from the Academy here to help us,” the foreman said. “Now before you get ideas that he’s here to take over, he ain’t here to cause trouble… he’s one of those who dealt with the rat problem, and it seems he’s got a bit of an engineering mind as well. He’s here to give ideas and offer points we might have overlooked.” The miners studied Jaeson with calculating glares.

“Look - you four are the professionals,” Jaeson said. “I’m the amateur here, and trust me, I know it. I just want to help as much as I can - I’m better at the planning than the digging which is why I’m here at this table.”

“Alright,” One of the dwarven miners said. “We’ll give you a chance. Screw up, and you shut up. Got it?” Jaeson nodded and the foreman turned and strode back to where a rail was being particularly stubborn with being installed.

“What are you talking about? The load would carry easily with the arch there!” The Dwarven engineer looked at Jaeson as if he had suddenly grown an extra set of heads on each shoulder, and come out in pink spots. A couple of the others nodded with him. Jaeson couldn’t blame him, but he was there as a second set of eyes.

“Yes, the load will carry, but if you look here, it gives no room if there is thermal expansion of the tram passing underneath. That’s a geologically hot area.” He tapped the map and two other dwarves nodded with Jaeson in agreement. Inwardly, Jaeson breathed a sigh of relief. He had managed this small victory of getting at least two of the other engineers to agree with him. Now the battle was swinging a third. The initial dwarf wasn’t backing down, nor did Jaeson expect him to.

“Alright Laddie, and if we use something not prone to thermal expansion?” He challenged.

“You know as well as I, that a thermal resistant metal would crack under the strain, and that wood is in scarce supply for the type and quantity we would need here. In addition, treating it would be expensive. Instead, we could expand the tunnel in the non-thermal parts, and anchor the arches more effectively. That would give the tram space to move with any expanding and corresponding reduction of space.”

“Yer daft if you think we can source out exactly where the hot spots are, Laddie.”

“We don’t have to drill deep, and it’s the upper part of the tunnel we would be working with - thermally cold.” The dwarf stroked his beard at Jaeson’s words, contemplating them.

“Alright. I’ll see what the other lads have to say about it,” he finally said. Jaeson nodded.

“I will, of course, defer to your ultimate decision, as I am only here to give a second set of eyes.” The dwarves nodded and went to consult with the master architect, leaving Jaeson looking over the plans once more.

"Nm" Jeff said when he heard about this. "I guess we need some sort of spell or something that can detect heat. Unfortunately I can't think of one right now. Plus, I'm sure there's a formula that will give you the amount of expansion as a function of temperature. Hmm . maybe we can do that."

But I'm not sure what you meant by a reduction of space caused by the expansion. Wouldn't that make more space?"

Jaeson smiles when Jeff meets with him about it. "Simple - As you'd know, Expansion goes both ways, and the arches had been deigned in parts to just give only a litte clearance in a few points. The simple answer was to make sure there was enough room without sacrificing structural integrity. You should come down and study the engineering schematics as well as the geographical maps they have. Quite interesting."

"I think I will" Jeff replies. "I ... probably should get out of the library more anyway. Besides, the geology could be interesting, although I haven't really got into that. Physics and astronomy seem to be more my thing"

"If you view it as finding stars underground as opposed to finding stars in the sky, I am sure you'll make the adaptation smoothly..." Jaeson smiles as he speaks, seeking to set Jeff at ease. The man was definitely more jumpy that bacon bits in a skillet when around others. He'd seen him study and that did seem to be his balm.

"Yes yes yes ... and I see what you mean though but I presume you meant contraction, not expansion as the metal cools. Although mathematically we could just insert a minus sign and call it negative expansion."

"No, I meant expansion - there are hot geothermal spots in the tunnel that haven't been mapped properly, and the reinforcement would have potentially weakened if one had braced under it, and found. In addition, having the carriage with minimal clearance is always asking for trouble."

It was one of the quiet moments that Jaeson enjoyed following work in the Tram tunnels. The Library wasn’t exactly a haven of silence or an oasis of solitude, but it was close to both. The gentle murmur of students and researchers murmuring to themselves thrummed through his blood like a soft benediction of calm. It was at times like this that he understood the allure of the library to the more scholarly inclined. He turned the page of the arcane tome he was studying when he became aware of a dark haired presence standing next to him.

“Hello Kara,” he said, keeping his voice low without even looking up. The dark haired sorceress shook her head slightly at his comment.

“Never ceases to amaze me how you dragon bloods are so perceptive of the world around you, yet you can be as tactless as anything,” she said in the same quiet tone with amusement in her tone as she sat down. Jaeson looked up, a slight frown on his face.

“And what, in the name of the veil, do you mean by that?” He asked, feeling a little defensive. Kara laughed and patted his shoulder.

“Oh Jaeson, you’re so easy to wind up sometimes.” Her laugh became a smile. “I meant nothing by it, it was simply an observation. You and Yasmine need to learn a touch of diplomacy sometime, like me.” Jaeson’s smile became wry.

“Oh, it’s on my to do list, don’t you worry about that,” he replied. “Anyway, to what do I owe the pleasure of your visit?” Kara’s smile became mischievous.

“Oh, just the other sorcerers and arcanists, even the wizards, are bussing about how you managed to get Jeff to come out of his shell,” she remarked. “It was a stroke of genius to convince him to speak to Elosie - one none of us had even thought of. He wouldn’t have considered me, and there’s a rumour he thinks all female sorcerers are out to get him. Is this true?” Jaeson shook his head.

“No, it’s a misconception,” he replied. “And definitely not a challenge, Kara… so let the two of them study in peace.” There was a gentle warning in his tone that Kara caught easily. She nodded, though she also pouted slightly.

“You’re too straight laced sometimes, Jaeson,” she said with a smirk. “Perhaps you need to loosen up as well as Jeff.” Jaeson raised an eyebrow at the comment.

“No, I think I’ll be quite fine as is…” he replied with a grin. “Now you’d better hurry or you’ll be late for your next class.” Kara smirked once more and rose smoothly.

“Think about what I said, Jaeson...” she commented. “All work and no play… and all that…” and with that she turned and walked off, her long dark hair hanging to her waist. Jaeson watched her walk off for a few moments, then smiled and returned to his own studies. However Kara’s words started intruding in his mind, as he knew they would. The woman had a definite way with them and he sat back in his chair, looking at the ceiling, ruminating as to what to do. He had a lot on his plate, what with his work with the tram and his own studies, as well as the occasional research he did for the academy. For the time being, he decided he would relax with the arcane studies he was doing. And then, when he had his next break, he would head out and do something different. Possibly go with Felia on an exploration through the Tundra, patrolling to make sure that the area was safe as best as possible. He grinned. It wasn’t the kind of break Kara had in mind he suspected, but it was a break from the tram and his studies all the same.

Jaeson hurried from the artificers lab with a quick pace, nodding to others and keeping his expression carefully schooled into a neutral face to hide the turmoil he was feeling inside. Oh Nyssara, what have I gotten myself into now??? He thought frantically as he made his way to the front doors of the academy. Once outside, he looks around quickly, taking his bearings and hurries toward the Snowdrift inn. He looks inside, not quite frantic, not yet anyway, but not seeing any sign of Callista, he moves back to the street and looks around, wondering where to go next.

He settles on heading back to the academy to at least start the paperwork and try and conceptualise the idea that he had half formed into a more crystalline structure. He hurried to the library, looking around to make sure all was quiet, and then made his way in. He set a copper piece on the table knowing that the light spell would last a good hour and would tell him when he needed to take a rest. He touched the coin and cast the light spell on it, then settled down to start writing.

The light winked out and Jaeson blinked. Had it really been an hour? He straightened and felt his back protesting at having been hunched over the table for a long period of time. Yeah, it had been an hour. He looked at the page he had been working on and groaned inwardly. It was full of crossouts, corrections, side suggestions and remarks of rationale for why the unit he had thought of might even feasibly be a good idea.

There was no doubt in his mind now. This was no project that he could manage on his own - others would definitely need to be brought in to help refine the details of what was workable and what was not. Why did he have to go and open his mouth and give an idea that was so far from half baked it wasn’t even gathered components yet?

“Jaeson?” a familiar voice said from the doorway. “What are you doing here at this hour?” Eloise.

“I told you, the man is part wizard for all the study he does…” another familiar voice said. Kara. Jaeson turned and looked at the two of them with a tired smile.

“Not study this time… no… I’ve gone and really put my foot in it this time,” he replied. Kara smirked and sauntered over while Eloise looked concerned and hurried over to him.

“You’re not in trouble are you?” she asked, concern in voice and on features.

“Him?” Kara countered, “more likely he’s found a new project to work on.” Jaeson laughed then stretched.

“A bit of both actually… there was an explosion from the Artificers lab, and I ran there with Eldrin and Jeff… and thankfully it was nothing. But, one thing led to another and I opened my mouth regarding the tram, and now I’m charged with writing a thesis on something I only basically understand…” Eloise looked relieved while Kara giggled.

“Oh Jaeson, you’ve powerful, but sometimes your wisdom is sorely lacking,” Kara said, bluntly, yet her tone was tactful. Jaeson nodded.

“Yeah, but I’d better get some sleep,” he remarked. “ I need to find Callista tomorrow to go over what I’ve worked on, see if it makes any sense before I tidy it up.” Eloise and Kara both nodded and turned, walking out of the library. Jaeson watched them leave then looked back at the three pages of scribbles before carefully slipping them into his backpack and collecting the coin and making his way to the door of the now dark library, closing it after him.

Jaeson was working calmly on the proposal for the Inventrix Selia when a hand forcibly placed itself in front of the paper. Jaeson looked briefly at the hand, then returned to his work.

“What is it Kara?” he asked calmly, continuing to work. “I’ve a lot to do and not a lot of time to do it in.”

“I can’t believe you outright told Jeff that I had a dark bloodline.” Her voice was quiet, only carrying to the two of them, but the repressed anger in it was enough to make Jaeson pause and look up at her, his own silver eyes meeting her dark eyes. Eyes that were flashing with barely held anger.

“Kara, you know as well as I do that the man has been the subject of bullying and teasing for most of his life,” he stated. “He was initially accusing Eloise of being of demonic heritage…”

“So you let him think I was, did you?” Her eyes flashed once more.

“Far from it. I advised that yours was dark and that he needed to speak to you about it.” Jaeson regarded her levelly. “Think, if I had outright told him what you told me, he wouldn’t have approached you in a million cycles. This way, I was able to at least have his own curiosity grow to where he was able to approach you.” “Kara took a steadying breath and tightened her lips, then relaxed.

“Yeah, well the gamble worked. He sought me out and we had a chat.” Kara shook her head slightly. “And I was able to clear the air with him. But if you play with anyone’s emotions again I swear by Nysarra...”

“You'll do what. Spank me?” Jaeson’s tone carried humour, his eyes did not and Kara got the message immediately. She smirked.

“I might, you know. We dark ones are known to toy with our prey. Look…” she sighed and looked around, then back to Jaeson. “Just… be a little more mindful of whom you tell, ok? I have enough trouble with reactions from others as it is.” Jaeson nodded.

“Believe me, I understand that quite well,” he replied. “As any sorcerer would and should. We all carry a little of something not human within us. If we didn’t we wouldn’t be as we are.”

“And you, of all people, should know that very well with you becoming more draconic by the day. I mean your humanity is changing faster than most generally would.” Jaeson shrugged slightly in response.

“Your point is made, I’ll keep an eye on who I tell, if I tell anyone else at all,” he says. “Now, was there anything else? Or can I get back to work?” Kara looked at what he was doing then rubbed her temples slightly.

“No, you do what you need to do Jaeson, that diagram is giving me a headache just looking at it,” She replied. Jaeson grinned.

“Imagine what it’s doing to me, and I’m the one who has to present it to the Inventrix.” Kara laughed warmly and Jaeson grinned widely.

“Oh my, you’ve really caught it with her,” she said, and walked out of the library, still laughing. Jaeson smiles as she leaves and then returns to writing the thesis, extrapolating on various engineering points and safeguards.