A Tour

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House Odestag owned three different types of workshops that produced automata, Ahsch had learned. The first category, which made up an impressive 70% of all House Odestag facilities, and 85% of automata workshops, were the standard, mass-production shops. Contrary to the name, they did not assemble hundreds or thousands of automata on the daily, but rather output a respectable 20 per month. Given the pre-industrial nature of Euphoria, the magic required to properly make an automata function, and the secrecy that House Odestag kept regarding both the magical and mechanical workings of their constructs, that was actually rather impressive. The mass-produced models, came in two primary variants, each of which had a few sub-options; a domestic unit that was capable of fine motor skills such as cooking and cleaning, and a manual labor version that was useful for heavy lifting or backbreaking labor - such as mining in the wilds, outside the safety of Civilization.

An additional 10% of the automata workshops were for more refined models, as well as special orders, and usually served the nobility and wealthy merchants. These shops, all together, could potentially output maybe three or five units per month, but usually only made one or two, as their customer base was significantly smaller.

The final few workshops didn’t make a product to be sold - at least, not directly. Instead, they were the facilities where further research into automata was conducted.

Aside from the automata facilities, House Odestag also owned a few large-scale farms and a small mining business, as well as some largely-unused property within the Capital. But the bulk of the House’s holdings were the automata, and they were the sole authority in that field.

A field that Ahsch was grossly unfamiliar with, though he comforted himself in the knowledge that his wife was far from an expert in the constructs herself. Still, as the two Lords Odestag toured first the mass-production facilities, then the smaller specialist buildings, he couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed, entirely out of his depth. The basic concept of mechanical clockwork being powered and guided by magic, he could grasp. But beyond that, into the specifics, he quickly found that he lacked the background to understand anything.

And she thinks I can somehow pilot one of these things, he grumbled to himself as they left the last of the specialty workshops and made their way to the first of the research buildings via carriage.

Now that you can make a demi-plane, perhaps you could read up on the automata and figure it out yourself, Mahat suggested.

I feel like hoping for my body domain to give me something is a better bet, he demurred, though he held out some small hope that something would work out from the trip. Not to mention he almost felt like he’d used up all his kudos on Object of Worship for the immediate future on accelerating his bond comprehension - though notably he had yet to develop any new Innate Magics for any of his domains, so the potential was there.

Even as he considered the practical angles of the tour, part of his mind worried about his wife. Avery had been rather subdued throughout their outing. Oh, she spoke amiably with the overseers and managers of the workshops and made small talk and shot barbs towards Ahsch, but he could tell - even without Heart Sight - that something was bothering her. She was practically brooding, which wasn’t like her at all - at least, not where anyone could see it happen.

Ahsch watched, frowning, as he followed his wife, her emotions twisting and writhing with a bevy of different feelings - all negative. Yet he didn’t dare ask about it in public - he knew better than that. I’ll talk to her when we’re back home, he resolved, heart aching at the knowledge that his wife was suffering.

The first of the research facilities was of the broad, simple type - they looked into how to increase efficiency, how to squeeze a little bit more speed or power out of the constructs, better materials to make up the various components, and so on. The Lords’ visit was brief, and then they were on to the second, far more interesting building, where the research was of a more unique bend. It was at that second facility that new options were considered; new directions to take the automata, new tasks to program them for, new variants and options.

It was there that Ahsch held some hope for something useful for his needs.

The man who greeted them was tall, pale, and reed-like, his brown eyes so dark they seemed almost black, and when Ahsch noticed his nails were black it took the hrafthi a moment to realize that he was not, in fact, looking at another vampire, but rather that the man painted his nails.

“Lord Odestag, a pleasure to see you again!” he greeted Avery with far too much cheer.

“Garren,” she replied almost off-handedly.

If he noticed her tone, he didn’t show it as he continued, “Have you reconsidered loaning Butler to our hum-”

“We’re _not _having that conversation again, Garren,” Avery cut him off sharply, and the man’s mouth clacked shut.

An awkward pause made everyone but Avery shift and look around for a moment. “Well then,” Garren broke the silence first, “I suppose it’s time to get on with the review!”

From there, things went largely how they had at the other workshops, with Garren showing the around and pointing out the different projects those under him were working on, though the lanky man ran his mouth a _lot _more than any of the previous ‘tour-guides’ had. It was only as they were obviously wrapping up that Avery let out a small sigh. “Garren, I have a… project for you,” she said, her voice sounding almost pained as she spoke.

The reason why such a sentence might hurt to say became abundantly clear as a gleam entered Garren’s eyes, and his mouth split into an eager grin. “A _project _you say? My Lord, I would be most pleased to undertake any task set by our most gracious…”

“It’s for my husband,” Avery interrupted, stepping to the side and gesturing to Ahsch, shooting him a look that the hrafthi recognized to mean, ‘sorry-not-sorry, I’m going to enjoy your suffering.’

Garren’s gaze snapped to Ahsch. “Ah! My Lord _Ahsch _Odestag, a delight! What would you ask of your humble servant? Oh! Perhaps a request, not as Lord Odestag, but instead from the Prophet of Enochiel? I daresay, I’ve suggested constructs suitable for sexual use before, but my _keepers _have repeatedly…”

“It’s a personal request,” Ahsch interrupted, shooting his wife a glare as Garren dug around in his coat for something to write with. He thought for a moment, trying to ignore Garren’s manic stare, and carefully worded his request in his mind before saying anything. “It’s occurred to me that an automata lacks any personal directive of their own - with the exception of Butler, that is - and that while they are normally pre-programmed with their tasks, it may be possible for a mage to direct them ‘manually,’ possibly even from a distance. To pilot them like a personal vehicle, if you will.”

The manic eyes widened even more, and Ahsch swallowed heavily, wondering what he had unleashed. “Yes, yes! A most excellent idea, My Lord! I’ve considered the concept myself, you know, but a lack of interest from our clients - who I’m _not _allowed to speak to directly, for some reason - has repeatedly quashed the initiative. But if _you _are requesting such a feature, such a model, then I should be able to get a team together and find out if such a thing is possible - well, I _know _it’s theoretically possible, but perhaps _plausible _is a better word.