Chapter 2.01

Book 2

“You’ve given up on try to make the walls blend with the cliffs, haven’t you?” Twylip asked, scanning the new walls.

“Well, the fort’s existence was never a secret,” Flint replied, using [Bind] to merge the wall’s blocks with the neighbouring click walls. “According to Winona, after the last battle, all essence sensitive entities in our arc of the disk will have felt sensed our essence. It’s a worthwhile exchange, in my opinion. Listen.” He tapped the hard black blocks. “It sounds a lot denser, doesn’t it?”

“You don’t have to tell me about it. I heard about you held a competition for the strongest to test it with a prize of any skill stone in the stores.” Twylip chuckled. “I’ve seen smarter displays of power.”

“Well, Adam has two reasonably well-levelled strength-enhancement abilities. Even his two-handed swings failed to leave a crack or cause a chip.”

“It’s a shame you didn’t give me a chance,” she said. “I have concoctions for dissolving stone.”

“Fae tells me the Wyld don’t have alchemists with creations similar to yours,” Flint commented, taking a break from [Bind] to massage his hip. “Standard spells won’t do much to our defences.”

“How’s the leg?” Twylip asked. “Didn’t the healers and your totem not do the job?”

“It’s taking too long,” Flint said. “I was hoping magic would get it done quicker.”

“It’s just been two weeks. Your leg was broken in three places, Flint. Even their magic can do so much.”

“I’m just annoyed since it should’ve been a ten-day job. I’ve only been using [Shape] and [Change Density] while Ed and the others place the stones. They did a good job, but giving instructions and having them fix their mistakes slowed things down considerably.” Flint sighed. His energy was running low, and he would’ve loved to get some rest. Only one final section of the wall was left, though, and he refused to spend another day on the project. “On the bright side, we did start from the foundation up. The rubble wasn’t enough, so I got done with the second trench as well.”

Twylip stood on her tiptoes, trying to look at the empty moat halfway between the wall and the slope’s end. It was twice as wide and deep as the one further uphill. He had personally overseen the bridge’s construction across it, and it was just wide enough for a fort to get through.

“Once I sort out the water supply and sewage, I’ll redirect all wastewater into it.”

“That’s devious.” Twylip grinned. “Neither the inquisitors nor the Wyld will want to swim across that. I don’t get it, though. Why don’t you get Lefa and her people to fill the area with brambles.”

“Didn’t you see how the spell works? It cracks and fragments the ground,” Flint said. “I don’t want anything ruining the ground’s integrity. Besides, when the Wyld armies attack, I don’t want to worry about them using our plants against us.”

“Fair enough.” Twylip forced Flint to pause and ran a quick check on his still healing limbs. “Your arm is fully healed but will need a few days to regain its old strength. However, the leg needs another week. Take it slow on the ol’ up and down, alright?”

Flint nodded, waving her away and focusing on finishing the project. The new wall didn’t triangular ramparts and an overhang. As Flint’s understanding improved, he realised they had added to the structure’s instability. They finished with a wall six feet taller than the old one, and it featured a slight inward curve. After completing the last leg of his project, he left the rest to a fae woman with pale-blue-tinted skin. She used her fae magic to wash the stone and polish it, creating a smooth and slippery surface.

Dawn’s lights were setting in when the dogs returned from their daily outing. Each of them arrived dragging a giant deer. He whistled and then waved at the first guard at ground level to notice him. They opened the gate straight away, letting the pack in. Flint met them at ground level, showering the dogs with affection.

“Take it easy on the deer and moose, alright?” Flint asked, planting a kiss on Maya’s head. “At this rate, you’ll wipe them all out.” The sheepdog whined, drawing a chuckle out of Flint. He scratched her behind the ear expecting Bjorn to push her away. However, ever since her stomach started showing, Bjorn had gotten gentler and ceased his roughhousing. “You’re progressing ridiculously fast, aren’t you?”

Maya dropped her kill and leaned into his scratching. She sent him a memory of the dogs feasting on a stag as big as Bjorn. She showed him how the snow dog had brushed the others away, giving her freedom to feast on the delicious organs alone. Maya kept the heart for herself but shared the liver.

“You’re all good boys and girls. Keep one for yourselves and drop the rest off at the tanner’s. Alright?”

The dogs ran off, and Flint started his slow journey uphill. His pelvis felt stiff but didn’t hurt anymore. Flint wondered whether the discomfort would last for the rest of his life. It would be a cruel joke if it did. The pass’s incline got harsher the higher one travelled. As a builder and leader, he couldn’t afford to just stay in the fort. All he could do was hope and give it time. The healers had assured him that the bones were perfectly aligned and met him every couple of days to clean out the scar tissue. Yet, he couldn’t help but feel worried.

Once things were more secure, Flint hoped to head out into the wilderness with his pack every now and again. He loved watching dogs run freely in open ground. If his pelvis didn’t heal, he’d have no choice but to spend his days cooped up in the fort. It was a future he hoped would never happen.

As Flint walked uphill, he was surprised to find Winona and Ed in the new training area just beyond the tannery. Dinner time was approaching, and he expected anyone not on duty settling down for a meal or heading to the fort. The high fae woman rarely visited the walls. Instead, she sent them commands and directions through Ed or Agatha. Flint wanted nothing more than to check his recent progress and rest, but curiosity got the better of him.

Both Winona and Ed were so focused on their exercise that they didn’t see Flint approaching.

“You don’t need to touch the ground to mould it,” Winona said. “Squatting down and rising up is slowing you down and forcing you into an unpredictable pattern.” Ed nodded. He held his right hand out, and golden light pulsed down his arm. His magic had no effect. “You’re not reaching your with your Essence, Ed.”

“This just isn’t working.” He sighed. “I can’t stone levitate. No matter how much I picture it in my mind’s eye, it’s just not happening. Maybe my essence just doesn’t function the same as yours.”

Ed’s brows furrowed. He stared into space for a moment before holding his hand out once again. The golden light once against stopped at his palms. At first, Flint didn’t notice any change. Then the stone appeared to liquefy and swirl next to his feet. Then skinny tendrils rose out of the ground, entwining around one another. They twisted and tightened, forming an arm-long spike.

“This feels more natural.”

“Smart.” Winona smiled. “It’s a learning curve for me as well. I don’t exactly know how the abilities gained through skill stones work. We fae rely on incantations—silent or vocal—or runes for our spells. The visualisation and will allow for more varying manipulations than your skill stone’s limitations. It’s still good, though.” She ran a finger along the narrow spike. “This is almost as hard as Flint’s compressed stones.”

“Since the [Earth Moulding] softens the stone while I shape it, I pictured the tendrils twisting around each other like wire. It’s nothing like Mr Flint’s [Change Density], though.”

Ed tested the spike’s weight for a moment placing his feet shoulder-width apart. He pulled his arm back, puffed his chest out, and then threw the projectile. A slight grunt escaped his lips as the spike shot forwards much faster than a javelin. It hit pierced through the sand-filled dummy made for target practice and struck the cliff wall behind it. The spike shattered but also left several cracks in the stone.

“That was a hell of a throw!” Flint exclaimed, making both of them jump.

Ed grinned sheepishly. “Thanks, Mr Flint,” he said. “You were right about [Spearplay]’s [Steady Hand] working well with the [Throwing] skill stone. This opens up several new options in a fight.”

“It’s a shame your strength enhancement ability is limited to throwing, though,” Flint commented. He wandered over to the shattered spike and tested the pieces. It was still the same strength but coiled tight like a good rope. The stretching and twisting gave the shaping excellent structural integrity. “Just be sure not to mould the outer wall into javelins. I poured too much energy into it.”

“Moulding gets more difficult with harder materials. It wouldn’t be efficient for me to do the same with the wall’s stone.”

“It’s about time we continue your essence training, Flint,” Winona said. “You need to stop making excuses and focus on improving your abilities too.”

“I know. I know.” Flint sighed. “I’m not a natural like our young prodigy here.” He said, patting Ed’s shoulder. “It looks like [Earth Moulding] will be an excellent combat ability in no time.”

“I’m going to come find you tomorrow morning.” Winona grinned. “I can sense your essence, and Alais tested it too. You’ve been tapping it into it all this time, using your abilities a whole lot more than a normal human should. There’s no reason why you shouldn’t be able to feel your essence too.”

No one had brought up the subject of Flint’s heritage since the meeting with Alais. He wasn’t sure whether the old puck had divulged the information to others or not. Flint wasn’t sure how he felt about it. Things were simple when he thought his ancestors were some unknown species of fae. The topic of druids and them being the source of the Heartstones felt alien to him.

“Fine,” Flint said. “I’ve given myself a light workload tomorrow. Come find me in the morning, and we’ll try to get to the bottom of it.”

He left the pair to carry on practice and made his way towards the Heartstone. Fling couldn’t help but feel a pang of jealousy. Ed and the other builder’s growth was much too quick. It wasn’t just their skill stones that progressed quickly, but their understanding of essence as well. He told himself it was an age thing. Most of them were almost half his age, and they’d made more progress with their new skill stones than he had with [Alteration] or [Pack Leader].