Irwin's Journey 521: Two attempts

Irwin yawned as he walked toward the smithy, while the bustling city of New Malorin woke up around him.

I wonder what he found out, he thought.

He hadn’t spoken to Endil for a few weeks. Mostly because he’d been busy with preparations for his next heartcard, and the large reforging to help people fill their soullake. Thinking about it made him wonder how Greldo, Dahlia, and Daubutim were. The first two had said goodbye immediately after receiving their new soulcards, then rushed to the Volcano Academy. Daubutim had appeared a day later, eyes back to red lightning and with a single card in his hand.

Still can’t believe he didn’t want to show me what he could do with it, Irwin thought with a sniff.

His friend had told him he needed practice because the card was a handful. With anyone else, Irwin might have thought they were just holding out, but he knew Daubutim. Still, he’d been looking forward to finding out just what Anthem of the Havoc Tempest was able to do.

“Irwin,” an older passing man greeted him, smiling widely.

“Morning,” Irwin replied, having no idea of the other’s name.

The man smiled and continued on, while Irwin lost track of what he’d been thinking before. Instead, he pondered how things had changed. New Malorin had grown rapidly since its inception. He hadn’t known most by name even then, but now he didn’t even know most of the faces.

Stepping around the corner of the large street, he got a clear view of the northern crafting square.

Surrounded by everything from stone-shapers to wood-shapers to a very rare rune-crafter, the main building was a large smithy on the far end. The Volcano Smithy, though the name sometimes made him sigh. After he’d named it, and after the Volcano Academy, many places in both New Malorin and elsewhere had started adding the Volcano part.

Halfway across the square to what was technically his own smithy, even though he was rarely there and preferred his private smithy at his house, a soft jostle came from his soulscape. He sensed his otherself, which had still been resting, wake up to be nudged by the Chaos Whale calf. It was sending images of exploring the world, and Irwin grinned. With the world, it meant his soulscape, and he wondered if it would be let down at the size.

Well, it’s still expanding, he thought, sensing the borders of his soulscape. Who knows how big it will end up?

When he’d woken that morning, early as always, he’d found that the expansion hadn’t stopped overnight. According to Ambraz, it had already added a mile in all directions.

He reached the door to the Volcano Smithy, pulled it open, and walked into the stocked shopfront. Carlif, Endil’s brother-in-law, looked up from where he was arranging a large shelf of knives.

“Irwin,” he said, looking up excitedly. “He’s waiting for you in the back-smithing area!”

Irwin’s eyebrows rose at the younger man’s excitement. Usually, he would ask a ton of questions, most of which dealt with the happenings outside the Exit Portal, but now he seemed to almost bounce up and down.

He must have made a cardseed, he thought.

“Thanks, Carlif,” he said, walking through the area with more traditional metal items into the one with cards. Many were topaz-ranked, the lowest he and Endil sold, and all of those he saw, except a few on a ‘faulty reforges’ shelf, were a hundred per cent.

Or maybe he finally managed a hundred per cent Emerald reforge?

The Volcano Smithy had long since stopped being the sole smithy in New Malorin, and it wasn’t even the biggest when it came to metal items. With cards, however, none could compare, and that wasn’t just because of his contributions. Endil had improved greatly over the years, more so than most of the other smiths born on Giard, their old homeworld.

Curiosity rising, he pulled open the side door and stepped across the muting-runes. Instantly, the sound of hammering, humming, and singing greeted him. Ahead of him, Endil, gleaming with sweat, stood in the classical part of their smithy. It was a part Irwin knew Endil still felt more at home than the cardsmithing side, not odd for the son of a smithing family that went down a few generations.

Endil hummed loudly as he kept striking a sword that he had likely just started working on. The blade glowed a hot orange in a cone of fire that raged from Endil’s eyes. The singing and humming weren’t needed, but Irwin knew from personal experience that it was easier to just let it happen.

He barely got two feet into the smithy when an excited voice called out.

“He’s here!”

Irwin saw You’gyn shoot down from one of the numerous alcoves. He exuded the sense of stability of a rank-four Ganvil, though Irwin knew from Ambraz that the other Ganvil was growing rapidly. Not as fast as Ambraz himself, but being a progeny from Gynerigon, the only rank eight Ganvil known to be alive, he was still faster than most others. Especially since he had been bonded to Endil, who now had a ruby-rank soulcard and a ruby-rank heartcard.

He wasn’t there for the reforging, Irwin thought, sensing the pressure from Endil hadn’t changed since the last time he saw him. An idea floated into his mind, but he suppressed it as Endil lowered his hammer and looked up.

“Irwin,” he said, grabbing the sword and placing it in the part of the forge where the coal burned warm but not too hot. “I’m glad you came early.”

“Well, you sounded rather excited in your message,” Irwin replied, walking forward. “What happened?”

Endil snatched a dirty rag from a table and tried to wipe most of the sweat and soot from his face, which only caused it to smudge more.

“I finally succeeded,” he said, walking towards the other part of the smithy.

Irwin’s senses extended out as he followed, quickly detecting the two cards on the table. Both were quartz and both appeared identical. Although to most, cards made from cardseeds would look identical, Irwin instantly sensed the differences: a slightly more stable song, less chaotic but no less complex.

He had to bite his tongue not to shout it out, waiting for Endil to grab the card and hand it out with a wide smile.

“My first cardseed,” the other cardsmith said, smiling widely. “It’s called Horseshoe Hammer!”

Irwin saw a simple, small hammer on the card, and his eyes widened.

“A hammer!” he exclaimed, letting his soulforce senses ripple across the card.

He felt Ambraz jolt in his soulscape before the Ganvil appeared next to him.

“A hammer?” the Ganvil asked, sounding incredibly excited.

“Yes,” You’gyn said, sounding incredibly excited, and not a little smug. “A cardseed to make cards that every smith and cardsmith will want!”

Irwin whistled as he looked at Endil, who was smiling widely.

“Did you try reforging it yet?” he asked.

“I didn’t,” Endil said, shaking his head as he picked up the other card from the table. “I thought we might try our hand and see what we can come up with?”

Irwin’s grin widened, while he could almost feel the competitive tension between Ambraz and You’gyn shoot up.

“That sounds like a great idea,” he said. “Also, after that, show me how you made it. Perhaps I can copy it.”

“I hope you can,” Endil said, following him to the open area large enough for two Ganvils.

“Though,” Irwin said, stopping Endil in his tracks. “I think we should reforge these in my soulscape.”

Endil frowned at that.

“Why?”

“I have a surprise to show you,” Irwin said. “And we need to experiment with something else.”

--

“You got a Chaos Whale summon,” Endil shouted, looking at the wagon-sized Chaos Whale as it circled them, sending out curious pulses and clearly wanting to know who the new person was.

“Yes,” Irwin said, crossing the arms of his Aura clone. With both of his smaller bodies occupied, and his bigger ones too large for casual conversation, he’d been left with no other choice than to use one.  

He had a sudden idea as he examined the other smith. Should he ask if Endil wanted a Chaos Whale card? If what he was going to attempt in a minute worked, it could be of immense potential.

If only he could hold the Chaos Whale in his soulscape.

The thought dampened his enthusiasm. The Chaos Whale had formed inside his soulscape after he’d slotted the card, something Greldo had said was what happened with all summons initially. That meant whoever slotted one needed a massive soulscape.

Ugh… I’m going to have to talk with Scintilla about this, he suddenly realised.

He pushed back both his ideas and the problems, focusing on the other cardsmith, who was happily padding the Chaos Whale.

“What’s he called?”

He? Irwin thought. Still, he focused on the Chaos Whale, trying to ask what its name was.

The response was as elaborate as it was useless. An image of a Chaos Whale, swimming through a lavastream that flowed through dark, rocky hills. Clouds of ash floated lazily above, spewed from volcanoes massive yet so distant, that they were no more than pinpricks on the horizon. Accompanied with it was an exuberant Chaos Whale song and a set of emotions. The strongest were joy, curiosity, and a stubborn desire to explore.

Irwin blinked, trying to understand what he’d just sensed.

Well, at least I know it’s a boy, he thought, as he filtered through the sensation.

After a few moments, he tried again, asking for a name. The same image flowed into his mind, each detail the same, including the song. It took him a moment to remember what Basil had once told him about Scariander, how the Chaos Whale wasn’t actually called that.

Great, so does that mean I need to give him his name?

Irwin asked the Chaos Whale a third time. It didn’t seem bothered, but happily showed him again, seeming highly content. Irwin let the image and the senses above him form into a name.

Something like Luaith….reander? Irwin grunted at the hard-to-pronounce name. Shortened and simplified, it still only scratched the surface. He frowned as he flipped the name over in his head until a shorter version slowly drifted up. Luath….?

He sent the simple sound to the Chaos Whale and received a happy, singular tone, along with the image of a floating ash cloud.

Well, if you are happy, so am I, Irwin thought.

He looked up to see Endil stare at him with a raised eyebrow.

“He’s called Luath,” Irwin said, letting the name roll over his tongue slowly and focusing the word on the first part before frowning. “Luath,” he tried again, this time putting the main force on the latter part of the name. That sounded better, and he nodded. “Luath,” he repeated.

Endil blinked, then shrugged as he turned to the newly dubbed Luath.

“Well, Luath. It’s nice to meet you! I never thought someone would have a Chaos Whale summon, and I’m starting to feel why you wanted us to reforge in here.”

Luath let out a happy rumble, then almost shoved Endil to the ground as it rubbed against his shoulder.

“Careful there,” Endil laughed, while Irwin put a hand on Luath’s flank, pushing him aside a bit.

“Did you try to summon him outside yet?”

Irwin shook his head. “Not yet. I’ll keep him here until he is just a bit bigger, though I might ask Scariander if he and some of the others are willing to come in here soon.”

“Aren’t you afraid he might get lonely?”

“What? With the kid here and me?” Ambraz snapped from Irwin’s shoulder. “Of course not!”

Irwin didn’t comment, but he frowned. He knew Chaos Whales lived in tightly knit pods and groups. Would just him and Ambraz really be enough?

Later, he told himself, focusing on Luath.

“We are going to do some crafting and singing,” he said, adding a projection of his words because he knew the young Chaos Whale wouldn’t understand otherwise. “Do you want to join?”

A wave of joy and anticipation came, and Irwin couldn’t hold back a grin.

“I think that’s a yes,” he said, seeing Endil rub his head. “You alright?”

“Yes, but I felt that,” the other cardsmith said, grimacing. “Don’t worry, I’ll get used to it.”

Irwin nodded as he looked at the card in his hand, then at Luath.

“I’ll go first,” he said. “So Luath can get used to it. I’ll not tell you what I did. We go up to Amethyst only.”

Endil just nodded, his eyes gleaming with interest, while Ambraz thudded on the ground.

Irwin glanced at the simple hammercard, pondering for a moment what to make of it. First, he thought about making it like his own hammer, a resizable smith’s tool and weapon. Then another idea came to him, and he grinned.

If we are experimenting, we can just as well go all out, he thought.

--

Endil felt the stream of purified soulforce flow into his soullake as if it were a river flowing into a previously only half-filled basin.

If this continues, I could fill it in a few days, he thought, shaking his head.

He’d gotten the invitation to be there from both Irwin’s family, Daubutim, the Volcano Academy, and the Smith’s Guild, but had decided to stay home. He had been far too close to creating his first soulseed to dare risk it, and the result had been great. Still, realising he could have had his second soulcard now did sting a bit.

I’ll ask him if he can do this a few more times, he thought, listening to the beautiful song Irwin, Ambraz, and Luath were creating. They had only been at it for about thirty minutes, but the Quartz card was already close to being finished.

He wasn’t sure what Irwin was doing, as the resonance he felt wasn’t one he was familiar with. He did recognise it.

Something with music or sound?

--

Irwin let down the hammer for a final strike before taking a step back.

“I think it worked,” he said, grinning as he picked up the card.

“Oh, it did!” Ambraz agreed. “Also, Endil, your seed is very good. Open to a lot of interpretation, but with a tendency for summoning and body improvement resonances. It’s got at least a dozen sideways reforges that I could find. Very impressive!”

Irwin almost dropped the card as he turned to Ambraz. His bond and friend rarely gave compliments, let alone such strong ones.

‘Ambraz?’ he asked.

‘Oh, you should see this card, kid! It would have been a great hammer if we didn’t already have one,’ Ambraz grunted. ‘Never mind. I’ll show you later, let's see what Endil can come up with.’

Irwin blinked, walking away to see Endil and You’gyn taking his spot. The other smith seemed highly excited to start and barely took a moment before he struck the card.

Irwin watched and listened as Endil began setting a direction for himself, and he quickly realised the other was not using the beaten path either. Still, where he had focused on a sideways reforge into the domain of sound and music, Endil seemed to choose something else entirely.

He’s making it into a weapon, Irwin thought, as he created a chair beside him where he sat down.

Finally, after a moment, he began analysing the reforging he’d done and came to two conclusions. First, Luath’s soulforce manipulation was still very limited, but even that was helping him as he reforged. Second, it had created a flow of purified soulforce that had not just helped both Ganvils, but also caused both his and Endil’s soullake to be filled.

Though as he focused on his own, he knew it was only the bare minimum. If it remained at what it was, he would still need to reforge hundreds of thousands of cards if this were all the input he had to rely on.

He is young, it will increase, he thought, listening to Endil reforge.

Just like he had, Endil took his time and needed an hour to finish. Stepping away, he grinned as he examined the card.

“That’s a dangerous thing you're working on,” Irwin said as he walked forward, examining it. He didn’t know exactly what it did, but he knew it was definitely a weapon summon now.

“With how few weapon summons there are, and how many warriors we have, I was wondering if this couldn’t work,” Endil said, picking up the card. His eyes glowed a bright orange for a moment, and he nodded at what he saw.

Irwin felt a tiny sting of jealousy as he recalled how he used to be able to read the cards like that, long ago. It lasted for only a moment before he looked at Luath. The tiny Chaos Whale was yawning, circling around them, but clearly not ready for anything else.

“I think we should head back out,” he said. “Luath needs rest, and we can discuss what we found.”

Endil pocketed the card and nodded.

A few moments later, the two were back in the Volcano Smithy, moving to the nearby table.

“So, the card can be reforged into a lot of different sidepaths,” Irwin said, as he poked the one he had made. He put a booklet on the table before tapping a finger on Ambraz.

“Right, right. So impatient,” the Ganvil grunted. “Here, let me do both!”

Card: Percussion Hammer

Type: Summon, Amethyst, Reforged by Irwin Roddington

Owner: -

The wielder can summon a utility hammer that blurs the line between instrument and tool. The small Percussion Hammer causes rhythmic strikes as it is used, causing less disturbance to the surroundings.

Passive: Minor increased sense of rhythm

Passive: Minor increase to strength

Active: Summon Percussion Hammer

“Interesting,” Endil said, re-reading the text. “That would be a great starting point for cardsmiths that focus on music.”

“That was the idea,” Irwin said, before looking at the other card description.

Card: Spiked Battle Hammer

Type: Summon, Amethyst, Reforged by Endil Randalson

Owner: -

The wielder can summon a battle hammer that is tipped with a large spike.

Passive: Minor increase to strength

Active: Summon Spiked Battle Hammer

“Jikes,” Endil said. “I had expected a bit more strength, or something else.”

Irwin frowned, picking up the card and focusing his soulforce senses on it.

“I feel it does more than what it says here,” he muttered. “Also, no mention of the metal.”

“I think it’s Lurast Iron,” Endil said. “Most Amethyst utility and weapon cards are if they lack any other typing.“

Irwin hummed, and the two began thinking about what they could make of the cardseeds and their respective ideas when a loud thud on the door interrupted them.

“What is it?” Endil shouted before Irwin could.

“Endil, there’s a guard from the Exit Portal here looking for Irwin!”

Irwin blinked, while Endil’s eyebrows shot up.

“Let him in,” Irwin ordered, and the door almost instantly opened.

A weary guard, like a shade-walker if Irwin had to guess, stepped in, bowing his head slightly.

“Lord Irwin, Lord Basil asks your immediate presence. An unknown being has arrived at the Exit Portal harbour,” the guard stated.

Irwin rose, worry instantly through the roof.

“It’s a thin, pale-skinned being with pitch-black eyes that calls itself a Shaidin,” he said. “It has…latched on to one of the younger Chaos Whales and seems unwilling to let go.”

Ubral? Irwin thought, feeling a hint of excitement.

“Did it mention a name?”

“It introduced itself as Zeit,” the guard said.

Irwin felt his excitement lower, but he still turned to Endil.

“I’ve got to head out there. Can you tell Scintilla and my family what is happening? Also, tell them not to worry. I know of the Shaidin, and if they talk, things are usually fine.”

Besides, there’s something about Chaos Whales, he thought.

“I’ll go right away,” Endil said, tossing something.

Irwin caught the card he’d reforged and raised an eyebrow.

“I would love to see you reforge that up higher,” Endil said.

“It’s not like I’ll be gone for more than a few days,” Irwin said, confused.

“Perhaps,” Endil said, holding his gaze, before shrugging. “But half of the time you say that, you disappear for months. Just hedging my bets.”

Irwin snorted, then walked to the exit.

“My Lord, if you want, I can bring us to the gate?” the shadewalker asked.

Irwin nodded, wondering if the man was even able to drag him through the shadowrealm. Even Greldo sometimes complained about his weight.

“Do your best,” he said, trying not to resist as he felt himself pulled into the shadowrealm.

What felt like only ten minutes later, he was ejected somewhere in a forest. For a moment, Irwin felt his hackles rise, worrying if he was going to be attacked. Then he saw the guard drop to his knees, breathing raggedly.

“Can’t… further,” he muttered, before slumping on the ground.

Irwin grimaced, quickly checking him. He was still breathing and had only gone unconscious.

“Right,” Irwin muttered.

He picked up the guard, drawing him into his soulscape. Making sure he was settled on a couch, he clicked his tongue and shot up in the air.

About halfway, he thought, focusing on where he knew the exit portal would be.

--

“He should be here by now,” Basil muttered.

He felt his hand go up as the desire to summon his sword grew again. It took him more effort than he wanted to admit to stop it. He yanked his gaze away from the nearby harbour and focused on the distant Chaos Whales. They were softly singing at the odd being on one of their backs. The self-proclaimed Shaidin had been inseparable from them, but Scariander seemed unworried about it.

“Yes, I know you said he was harmless,” Basil said, glaring at the giant Chaos Whale hovering beside him. “But he still managed to move past all our defences and appear beside us as easily as if we were children!”

And that’s not to mention how powerful he feels. The pressure it’s hiding is horrendous.

He continued to mutter under his breath for a while longer when he felt Scariander prod him to look at the harbour city. He was just in time to see something vanish, and the next thing he knew, Irwin was standing on Scariander’s back with him.

“Finally!” Basil snapped. “Do you have any idea how worried I was? Can you feel that guy?”

Irwin looked at him, then at the distant shape.

“It’s definitely a Shaidin,” he said, nodding slowly.

“So, it’s like that one you told me about? Who taught you to create those impossible soulforce constructs?”

Irwin nodded. “He is, but he’s not the same. Has he been like this since he arrived?”

“No, initially it was worse. He just hovered there, then began bleeding from his eyes and nose. That lasted for a while, after which he began laughing,” Basil said. “Shouted something about the chains being gone.”

“I’ll go and talk with him.”

“Please do,” Basil said, rubbing his head. “I’ve already sent word to the others, but I was hoping things would be fine.”