A brief diversion to verify and record the word 'weapon', then -

"Yes. This is not a weapon," he lights the fire pin again, "but there are weapons like it. Bigger ones do more. Different ones do different things."

"I am unenthusiastic about the idea of providing weapons to one side in a war with only their word that they're in the right, but if you are telling the truth trying to get the other side of the story would just get me killed, so."

"If you want to try, Dalvor can send people with you. But yes, it would maybe get you killed."

Can anyone think of a less potentially lethal way to check off the top of our heads? she asks the others via convenient rose telepathy.

Um... beats me, says Cass. Although, related question, could we actually fight the alien invaders? We might be able to fight the alien invaders. Like, without arming the locals. Flowers are pretty badass.

...and if we could fight the alien invaders then we could go look at the alien invaders and probably not die? Yeah, I don't know, says Anna.

It sort of depends how destructive the invaders are? Like, I'm not confident any of us could survive being completely vaporized.

Yeah. So let's find out more.

"What kinds of weapons do the invaders have?"

"Like ours, but - more."

"What kind of more? More powerful, more versatile, just more of them..."

"'Powerful'? 'Versatile'?"

"Versatile--um, you can do more things with it. Powerful, more...force? Did we cover force?"

"Aha - " He gives translations and adds these words to the vocabulary list and then answers, "More powerful."

"What makes these more powerful, just size?"

"Size and design."

"Do they have bigger weapons or better designs?"

Wryly, "Yes."

"Ah. I see."

"But if we could make weapons by magic..."

"I dunno what your industrial base is like but with four people making them only one of whom can make 'em permanent I'm not sure how much good it'll do."

"Only one...?"

Cass raises her hand.

He nods acknowledgment, looking thoughtful.

"How fast?"

"...Well, probably faster than you could make them without magic..."