Wallmaker and Prince of the Old Kingdom

Sam Stone is the second child of the rangers Sabriel and Touchstone, one of the most successful pairings out of the South Island of New Zealand with their Jaeger-Walking Death. His sister Ellimere is a member of the New Zealand government and constantly rallying for more money for the PPDC with every bit of her determination. Sam is a Jaeger mechanic, one of the best there is for his age of 19 as it seems he can seem to see through the metal to what needs to be adjusted to make any Jaeger its best. His accent is South Island New Zealand which means he sounds Scottish but with an added softness.

He'll be wearing overalls and work boots looking something like this image:

At the moment, he's based out of the Auckland Shatterdome, but might soon be transferred to the Anchorage Shatterdome to help work on the next Marks of Jaegers. Timeline wise, this AU is set about three months or so before Gipsy Danger's defeat.

After fighting and burning the Dead, Sameth made his way upstairs, stripped off all his clothes and stood under a hot shower. It partly helped and he considered burning his clothes but he didn't know if that would do more than make him feel better then fell into bed.

He awoke screaming as the cold river of Death and Hedge's burning hands tried to pull him under. In the dark, he checked all the spells on his door which glowed gold and the warmth of the Charter reminded him he was alive and not Abhorsen-in-Waiting. Then he turned on his bedside lamp and sat for a long time before getting dressed, he wasn't going to manage sleeping tonight.

Someday Sam will remember to stop working when the sun comes up, but last night wasn't one of those nights.

He opened the door from his workroom and found Milliways and just went up to that room, where he remembered to take off his boots and set the wards before falling asleep.

His dreams were nice, being in the room made him think of Kait and he kept reaching out for her in his sleep.

The first time Sam was called Wallmaker and it sounded like the person truly meant it was when he was fixing the first of the Charter Stones. Lirael's hand was finished and it felt like he had to take what he'd learned from the Great Stones and start to repair all the harm that had been done. He rode out with one guard instead of two because he wasn't going too far from Belisaere just past Sindle and towards the Ratterlin. On various rides back and forth from helping the Southerlings and to the Clayr's Glacier, he'd noticed it and it felt like the proper place to start. Soon he would go to the Wall and ride its length but that time hadn't come yet.

When they arrived at the Stone in the afternoon, he explained to the guard that he would need to be waiting on the road to make sure Sam wasn't disturbed and to not worry. Once the diamond of protection was up, he could even leave as there would be another layer of protection. The guard, Aldi, someone Sam didn't know too well gave him a look, "Best if I watch what you do, your highness, so I know what it looks like when it works."

Sam bit back a sigh as he knew that made the most sense, he was still getting used to being watched while he worked here. In Milliways, it had felt friendly but then this wasn't just making something in the forge, he missed knowing Kait might find him. He was trying to repair the Charter and he didn't know it would work.

Thinking wouldn't get it done any sooner and he drew his sword and began to create a diamond of protection around the stone, pushing his sword into the ground at the final point. Then he faced the stone, drew a knife from his belt and cut into his palm over a newly healed wound before pressing his hand against the stone. As his blood met the stone, the knife fell to the ground as he reached out to the Charter with Marks in his head that he traced with his non-bloodied hand. Time slipped away and there was only the Charter and him as he tried to reconnect the Stone as it should be.

He had to stop when it was clear he'd done all that he could for today and he gently removed his hand from the stone. The day had progressed to night and there was a small crowd near Aldi, which confused Sam as he didn't think they'd been there before. He quickly wrapped his hand before removing the diamond and walking over, he went slower than he meant to as the work was tiring. Before he could reach the road, Aldi met him and Sam didn't mind too much having to lean against him though it wasn't how he wanted to appear as Wallmaker.

An older woman stepped forward, Sam recognized her as the leader though he couldn't call up her name yet the way she said his title stopped him, "Wallmaker, thank you. Now it's time for us to take care of you for a time."

He'd never heard anyone other than perhaps Yrael in Milliways truly mean his title and he nodded because he couldn't find the words to thank her. Later in the evening he learned her name was Elisa and she remembered when his parents returned to take the throne and she looked at him with hope. He wasn't used to that and tried to answer what questions he could as he ate but Aldi was better at the castle gossip than him. Some time in the evening, he ended up leaning near the main fireplace and healing his hand when she approached him, "You could have had us do that for you, Wallmaker."

"Oh, you don't need to and you're doing more than you had to. I just needed to rest before I could. I'm sorry the Stone isn't fully repaired, it will take a few more visits," He finished the healing spell and tried to sound sure of himself but felt it didn't work.

She tutted at him and he felt rather young though she said his title as if it were true, "It takes time for great wounds to be healed and you've done quite a bit. The Charter already feels stronger around the Stone. Now tell me, who takes care of you in Belisaere? Is there a girl you're quiet about who keeps track of your wounds?"

Sam blushed and hoped the fact they were near the fire covered it as he thought of how far away Kait felt and how painful their last fight had been, "There was but I don't think there is anymore. Anyway I need to be Wallmaker and worry about everything else later."

She sighed and handed him a goblet of spiced wine, "Drink that, rest and take care of yourself, Wallmaker. You will do what is needed and happiness will find you. Your family's earned it."

He started to speak but she had left and he said thank you to the goblet, her confidence warmed him as did the wine and reminded him of other voices in Milliways. This was what he was meant to do and maybe he'd even find a way to share it with Kait someday.

Sam knew he should be happier, this was what he’d been hoping for longer than he’d known, someone else would be Abhorsen-in-Waiting. Yet it didn’t feel like a relief, he could see how Lirael knew it was the right thing for her to take up the bells. Looking back in the mirror explained how and apparently she was his aunt but she’d read the Book of the Dead on her own and had pipes that worked like bells that she knew how to use. While he was a Wallmaker and it must be more right than being Abhorsen-in-Waiting but he doesn’t know what being a Wallmaker even means. In the old rhyme they became stone and mortar, which while it would help to rebuild the Old Kingdom would hurt.

He’s been at points where he almost welcomed Death but he doesn’t want that, he wants to hold Kait and tell her that he hasn’t forgotten his duty. If he could find the words, he’d also like to tell her that he can’t imagine a life without her but this isn’t the time for that. For now he’d just be happy if she wasn’t disappointed in him or for anyone to think he can’t do what he needs to. There may never be a time for that with the Destroyer tangled up with Nick and having to save the Old Kingdom and all the confusions of her world. Everything has been happening too fast and now he has to find Nick with Lirael and be Wallmaker with a new surcoat that doesn’t feel like enough. The Clayrs have their library, the Abhorsens have the House and the Book of the Dead, the royal family has Belisaere, what does he have as the first Wallmaker in who knows how long?

His plans of leaving were quickly intercepted by Ellimere who pulled him into Petty Court for the rest of the day. At least that night there weren't any major plans and he was quite nice to the woman Ellimere put beside him, he was going to leave so best to not cause any trouble beforehand.

After dinner, he told Ellimere that he'd be studying for the next three days and taking food and water in his room, her reaction was so nice, he felt bad. Still that moment of guilt wasn't enough to curb his excitement as he was going to be doing something useful. She'd find the note he'd written on his desk after the three days had passed and this was the best way for him to help.

The Sending he constructed would work well enough as it could yell, "Go away!" and "I'm very busy!" in a way that sounded decently like him even though it had no depth.

Once that was set, he went to his workroom to pick up his coins, a few things he'd made, the sahs from Teja and other things he might need.

The closed cabinet felt like an accusation but he went by it. Though in his dreams, he put on the bells and read from the book and was pulled into Death and awoke thrashing in his sleep. It took some time to calm down and realize that it was only a dream and he heard the bell strike four o'clock, he didn't think he'd sleep again, it was time to leave.

He slipped on the glamour and then slipped out of the palace using Charter-spells of quiet and unseeing, his saddlebags felt heavy on his shoulder but he had what he needed.

Next he would go to the market to buy a sword and then the Horse Fair for a mount, as he went he felt lighter as he mixed with the bustle of Belisaere. It felt like when he'd had an unexpected holiday as a child and he laughed, trying to make it deeper than normal and twirling his new mustache.

Nothing had changed. Sam knew things wouldn’t have, but it was still strange to come back to his workroom with everything the same. Nick’s letter was sitting on his desk where he’d pieced it together and he could feel where The Book of the Dead was hidden in the cabinet.

He had to find a way to get to Nick, he pulled down the almanac to calculate where Nick might be now, biting his lip in concentration. It looked like he was near the Wall and possibly Edge, which was close to Red Lake where all the trouble was happening. Since Nick was clear with all his visas, there wasn't a good way to stop him from going farther into trouble.

It was his birthday again at least here in Milliways. Sam knew it when he woke up and finding a his birthday surcoat in his wardrobe just confirmed it. There was a time when he looked forward to his birthdays, it wasn't that long ago just felt as if it was.

When he turned sixteen and his parents gave him a key and they all walked up the winding stairs to his workshop. He still can't believe they gave him that space when it was so far from being Abhorsen-in-Waiting. That time had been easier, Ellimere was still at Wyverly so they came home together for the Winter holidays and they talked. He can't remember what they talked about, but they'd felt more like a family.

When he went down to the forge, he carried the folded surcoat with him and could almost feel it as he worked. There were no new commissions so he concentrated on folding and pounding metal into useful knives, horseshoes and arrowheads. It seemed as if Teja was in the same mood, there was no comfortable talk just work and fire. He stayed later than Teja and when he couldn't work anymore, wiped his face and hands to try and clean himself up and then put on the surcoat.

The weight was comfortable, he'd grown up wearing surcoats and he smoothed it, his fingers tracing the towers and keys. Then he walked back to the Bar. His birthday should be an occasion.

Sameth's never made a cabinet before, but he doesn't think that should be a problem. After all there are a lot of things that he's never made.

Bar at least was willing to get him some big sheets of steel to start with and he's just inside the forge using them to build the outer structure.

Its not yet noon, but its hot work so he took off his shirt early in the day and is partly visible behind the metal to anyone who enters the forge.

Since he's found a door to Milliways again, Sam's days have been full of the forge and Kait.

At the moment, his major project is the soldier for Tavi, which is going slowly due to the joints and detail work.

So to put his thoughts in order, he works on the simpler things that need to get done, arrow heads and horseshoes.

The forge is hot and the glow of the Charter adds another layer to the fire.