THE MOMENT
“Sharp Development?” The revelation was unexpected enough to give the partners pause. Nicollette and Kiera stood behind the counter as the client introduced herself as Bijou. Each of them suspected Bijou’s employer based on her wardrobe and the way she carried herself. The lithe woman with short, crimped, rainbow hair strode across the shop in a red blazer with padded shoulders, a red tie, and red slacks. After Bijou introduced herself, Nicollette and Kiera shared an amused look between them, then smiled at Bijou.
“Can’t your company make everything from nanos?” Kiera asked.
“And don’t you already have billions of blacksmiths on the payroll already?” Nicollette added.
“Both of those are true,” Bijou nodded. “And I’d still like to hire you for a special project. You have a glowing reputation,” she said.
“You see?” Kiera elbowed her wife with a giggle. “Didn’t I tell you you were glowing this morning?”
“Did you?” Nicollette smiled. “It’s hard to keep track, I’m almost tired of hearing it,” she said. “Almost.” They stared into each other’s eyes for a moment longer before Kiera focused on Bijou again.
“What do you need?” she asked.
“Armor, naturally,” Bijou replied. “You have the talent to draw out high-quality pieces from average materials. Have you ever worked with Red Iron?” Behind the wooden counter, and below the surface, outside Bijou’s view, Kiera squeezed Nicollette’s hand tightly, and hers was gripped just as tightly. This was it! The two of them loved working metal almost as much as they loved each other. Red Iron was a very tightly monitored, rare, and prohibitively expensive material that couldn’t be found in dungeons. It was a proprietary material owned by Sharp Development.
“We got a small sample once,” Kiera nodded as both she and Nicollette showed off their glossy red wedding rings. The crimson metal seemed to glow with red light as the two rings drew closer to each other.
“It’s almost magical how easy it was to work with,” Nicollette added.
“It’s sensitive to magic and intent.” Bijou nodded. “If you’d like the chance to work with it some more, I’m offering you formal positions. We have a sudden need for an abundance of Red Iron armor.” Again, the couple looked at each other and shared an entire conversation with a single glance.
“Why?” Kiera asked.
“You have other resources; what do you get from us doing the job?” Nicollette clarified the question.
“I’m afraid that answer is on the other side of an NDA,” Bijou replied. “But there are a few elements that I can highlight to at least catch your interest.”
“Red Iron is very sensitive to magic and intent,” she repeated her earlier statement, but kept talking. “And somewhat less responsive to feelings, but still more than traditional materials. Feelings are, after all, magic in their own right. That you found it so easy to work with is a testament to that. It has a reputation for being a difficult metal to smiths who have a relatively hard heart.”
“Uhuh…,” Kiera mumbled, and Nicollette nodded.
“We could make nanos take any shape we want, in any material, including Red Iron. Or, we could put some of our tireless craftsmen on it. Nanos are missing the human touch, and grabbing any random craftsman for the job would be missing out on what you bring to the process,” Bijou smiled.
“What?” Both of them asked simultaneously.
“Love, obviously,” Bijou nodded. “I said you have a glowing reputation. You produce high-quality pieces, but the thing all of your clients really notice is just how much you two love each other. That is the ideal environment for producing Red Iron armor. You need to forge it with love,” Bijou said. “...it’s to protect Magical Girls after all.”