The music box project was set aside as Jinyi half-walked half-crawled in a hunched posture to his shelf of chip inventory. He selected a bag of the classic flavor, copying Yellow's choice as the safest one here, pushed the cut remnants of his robes aside, and shoved the whole thing bag-and-all in his chest-mouth. The papery taste of the biodegradable packaging was not very appetizing, but it was extremely neutral and most importantly not sweet or fruity whatsoever.

This pressing issue taken care of, Jinyi picked up the music box again and returned to his attempts at enchantment. This time he thought he got the idea of the spell right--at least, it felt like how he thought it was supposed to feel, based on his admittedly limited experience with this magic.

Jinyi would feel the enchantment take, albeit weakly. And if it had not been for the sheer power behind the Enchantment spellcast, perhaps it wouldn't have taken at all.

As it was, his magical prowess would grant him the feedback to understand at once why it had been weak: the magic was seeking... armor. Something defensive, something... protective. If this music box were damaged, then it would see some minor repairs, in the form of glassy chitin. But armor? A breastplate, a helmet, would be as good as new in hours.

He had discovered something! And perhaps... there was more to it, too?

---

Jinyi has discovered the Ordered Enchantment!

"Repairs damaged armor over hours, replacing the damaged portions with a lightweight, powerful lattice of glassy, chitinous webbing. Also provides a weak Sensorial Link type of bond between bearers of all armor enchanted with Ordered Magic; for non-Ordered users, this link is only one-way, providing Origin's Hive with a link to any non-Hive wearers."

This enchantment has been added to the master list of available Enchantments.

If desired, the music box may be posted for in Update Me to be added to the character inventory of Enchanted Items, either for Jinyi or any recipient of the gift. In the future, the enchant will only apply to armor.

@Jinyi

Though the spell had been successful, somehow the magic felt reluctant to make its way into the music box. Jinyi thought at first that it was because he was still a beginner at enchanting things, but then the understanding of what had happened slowly filtered in. It seemed that no matter the original intent behind the magic he'd cast, it would all end up the same—something to repair armor—in the end.

Disappointment pooled in his gut that he could not imbue this gift with the supportive magic he'd intended. He discarded the idea to make an armor that suited the enchantment better—Juggernaut was already so well armored that it was hard to imagine he could make anything that could armor it more without getting in its way. At least the sentiment behind the music box was there, if not backed up with the magic itself, and at least it was insured against accidental damage now.

Something prickled at the back of his mind—perhaps there was more to this enchantment too, that he had not yet discovered. Jinyi poked and prodded at the music box, trying a simple spell while holding it—it did not feel bolstered by anything more—and tapping at it carefully with various objects. Finally he just held it and stood there for a time, trying to meditate on it and see if it made him feel any different. It did not.

Finally he gave up on trying to figure out what it was, and simply wrapped it up carefully with the same nondescript paper used to pack bags of Dontas. It was still personalized, and carefully painted with sparkling dyes, and played music. Hopefully its intended recipient would enjoy it with or without extra magic.

exit