Author note: Super early release because I'll be out of town tonight. Enjoy!---Why didn’t he tell us sooner…? Ambraz thought, hovering high near the ceiling of Brazardian's chamber.
He was about to tell Irwin how the ancient Ganvil was starting to get rust-brained when a rip in reality appeared on the balcony in front of Brazardian.
So, now let's see what happens, he thought as a dark-cloaked Librarian walked out of the portal.
She resembled exactly the one Brazardian had told him arrived the previous time, which wasn’t a bad thing. According to the Monarch, she was the one who had been handling his connection to the librarians for over six hundred years.
“Monarch, I have managed to find some more information about worldskills and worldcards,” the Librarian began without so much as a greeting. “Did you prepare the payment?”
“Of course,” Brazardian said, his voice causing a tremor through the chamber.
A small card floated up from an area the Librarian couldn’t see, moving towards her. She bowed her head as she took the card and produced a small metallic tablet from her gown.
Ambraz felt a shiver run through his metal frame as he saw the card-checking device.
Glad Brazardian isn’t using one of our cards.
A soft chime came from the metallic tablet.
“Good, this seems perfect,” the librarian said as she pocketed both the tablet and the card before focusing back on Brazardian. “First, my apologies for how long it took, and a heads-up. The amount of information we found was rather limited compared to what we usually have to offer.”
Brazardian just let out a deep hum, and the Librarian bowed her head.
“Worldskills are the step beyond soulskills, while worldcards are theoretical cards that would be the step beyond a soulcard,” she said. “From what we have found, soulskills were uncommon even in the ancient eras. They were supposedly comparable to how, in our current time, recently discovered worlds think about heartcards, or in rarer cases, soulcards. Furthermore-”
Ambraz listened as she told them most of what they already knew about worldskills, waiting to see what she had to say about worldcards.
So, they know barely anything about free-roaming worldskilled, he thought halfway through. It confused him slightly, as they had learned about those from two sources already.
A few minutes later, the Librarian fell quiet for a moment, tapping her chin as if trying to remember something.
Not as good as Daubutim, Ambraz thought.
“Now, references to worldcards were only found in two books,” the Librarian said. “One had a single line, which referred to them as hypothetical, and likely possible but unproven. The second book spoke of…”
The Librarian was quiet for a moment, almost seeming to steel herself.
“Well, it spoke of Yilda. I am sure you have heard about the legends. According to this book, she may have been stronger than a soulcarded and able to move around the portal gallery. A note said it was possible that she was a worldskilled. The book suggested that her ability to retain her ability to move around the Portal Gallery had something to do with her specific worldcard. Now, I do have to warn you. The author of this book is a rather dubious figure. Until a few years ago, he was a member of our order- not an important one, I assure you. However, he caused some issues and had to be expelled.”
“I see,” Brazardian rumbled. “Just for completeness' sake, what was this Librarian's name? I take it as he isn’t part of your order anymore, his name can be shared?”
“I… Yes, I see no harm in this,” the Librarian said, though her eyes narrowed. “He was a rather eccentric man called Gelwin.”
Beardyface? Wait. She says he was expelled? Ambraz thought, feeling his desire to fly down and ask her a whole lot of questions. Still, he grinned as he thought about what she’d said. Not an important one. Hah! If he’s still alive, I’ll rub that in if we ever meet him again.
Luckily for him, Brazardian seemed to remember the name.
“Gelwin? I have heard this name before,” Brazardian rumbled, sounding both curious and colder than a moment before. “According to my information, he has been known to capture Ganvils and lock them away in a form of stabilized fake Shardworlds.”
“Yes, that was one of the reasons we had to expel him,” the librarian said, sounding weary.
“What were the other reasons?” Brazardian asked, before adding. “And what makes you still believe the book he wrote has any credibility?”
“I fear I can’t divulge the other reasons,” the librarian said, before shrugging. “Beyond that, this Gelwin is the author of more than a few books, and many are verifiably trustworthy and correct. Had this not been the case, I wouldn’t have even mentioned it.”
“I see. Where is this Gelwin now?”
“I fear I don’t have that information, and even if I did, I wouldn’t have been allowed to share this,” the Librarian said. “Now, I have been tasked to ask you a few things, which is why I was so forthcoming with additional information. We have a rather long outstanding request for information about a certain Ganvil called Am’braz.”
Oh, even asking about me now?! Ambraz thought, feeling pride and worry fight for his attention for only a moment before being shoved aside as he focused on the librarian.
“From what I recall, and seeing his naming, I take it he is one of your progeny?”
Brazardian was quiet for a moment before humming.
“Possibly. However, some Collective Ones have the tendency to take a name like that after they leave our main worlds. It is hard to be sure exactly who you are looking for. What exactly are you searching for?”
The librarian was quiet for a moment before answering. “It has to do with the request I told you about previously, information on a certain cardsmith called Irwin. Our investigations have shown that a cardsmith with that name managed to reach the diamond-two rank. Sadly, when questioned, Joulihn, the current Guildmaster for the Langost branch, refused to give any details. We were able to find that he has a bonded Ganvil that is at rank four and goes by the name of Ambraz.”
Hah, good luck finding a rank four Ganvil with that name, Ambraz thought.
“As I said before, I am too busy with the war against the chained to go looking for a single cardsmith,” Brazardian rumbled. “However, perhaps if you were willing to answer the questions I have previously asked about the state of the Wandering Verge, or perhaps even the Tangled Core?”
The Librarian was quiet before letting out a weary sigh. “I fear, again, I have to disappoint. However, in this case, it is not because I am not allowed but because we simply don’t know. The Great Library is connected across all of the Portal Gallery from what we know; however, even we can’t navigate every part of it. Most of the Library is a dangerous place that we dare not traverse. What little information we have has been coming through a communications crystal, and I don’t have to tell you how expensive it is to send a message across such distances with that.”
Brazardian was quiet for a moment before speaking up again.
“You mentioned previously that you were tasked with finding this smith by someone in the central branches… How did you get this task then?”
“A message from the central branches, the first one we got since the war began,” the Librarian said. “Now, I have been giving you more free information than I feel comfortable with in the hopes that you will reconsider and help us with locating this cardsmith and his bonded Ganvil. We would like for the restrictions you have put on our shadewalkers to be removed so they can search Granvox for them.”
Brazardian let out a soft laugh, and Ambraz was reminded of the time he’d asked his Progenator to be allowed offworld to search for hints of their ancient homeworld.
Yeah… not going to happen, he thought with a smirk. That old rusty lump of ore isn’t even contemplating it.
“I fear I can’t allow that,” Brazardian said without hesitation. “We have explained this to your organisation before. If any of your portals or shadewalkers try to move beyond the designated area, we will have to remove them from Granvox. You know our history with foreign powers, and after the abduction of both Gavils and cardsmiths, we are not going to change our stance on this.”
Ambraz hadn’t expected anything else, though it took him some effort to laugh at the Librarian’s annoyed face.
The woman stared at Brazardian for a few moments before letting out a weary sigh.
“Then, at least, can you search for them and let us know what you find? I promise we are only after information and knowledge.”
“I see. So the request didn’t mention anything about someone coming to teleport this cardsmith to the central branches?”
What? Ambraz thought, moving his attention from the Library to Brazardian. Since when can anyone teleport all the way across those?
“Not that I am aware of,” the Librarian said. “So, I take it you will help us?”
Pushy, Ambraz thought, knowing she was doing exactly the wrong thing if she wanted Brazardian’s help. He’d long ago learned that if he wanted something from his progenitor, he definitely shouldn’t just keep asking.
“If I have the time. Now, I need to speak with the others about what you told us. Also, I feel that the actual information I gained was rather lackluster for a perfect Diamond card. I am expecting better in the future.”
Ambraz’s grin widened, knowing a dismissal when he heard one from Brazardian.
The librarian seemed to realize the same and, with a look like one of Irwin’s kids when they bit into a sourcake, walked to the portal and left without another word.
Ambraz spread his senses, feeling the slight disturbance in the ambient soulforce where the portal had been knit itself closed. It was much faster than if it had been anywhere else, and when it was completely gone, he grinned and shot down.
“You had a lot of fun, didn’t you?” he asked, landing before Brazardian. “You were right, though. We learned barely anything for that price.”
“Not exactly,” Brazardian responded, sounding amused. “I learned three important things.”
“What? Nothing of what she said about worldcards was new. Worse, she knows less than we already told you! The most interesting was about Gelwin, and that’s only that. Interesting. Totally useless beyond that.”
“One, the Librarians are disconnected from those beyond our branch,” Brazardian rumbled. “I’ve been trying to find out how they handle communication for a long time. Even asked her multiple times across the centuries. The last time she told me that she’d only ever share something like that if the Library itself was in danger and for me to stop asking her.”
Ambraz’s mouth fell open, but Brazardian just kept talking.
“Second, she was clearly not interested in finding Irwin or you, but sending a warning. I didn’t notice the first time, but this time it was very clear. She was trying to annoy me on purpose. We have been in contact for hundreds of years, and she knows exactly what to say and not. This was… very unlike her.”
Ambraz’s frown deepened as he tried to recall anything in the conversation that had been off beyond just the annoying part.
“Thirdly,” Brazardian said, sounding weary. “There was someone observing us through that portal, and most of what she said was for them and not us.”
“They… what?” Ambraz snapped, recalling the portal and that he’d not even checked it after the librarian came through.
Is that even possible?
He pushed the thought away. After everything he’d learned with Irwin, something like this was definitely possible, even if highly unlikely.
“How did you notice?” he asked.
“Her eyes. At certain points, she kept glancing at the portal, and sometimes she moved herself in such a way that her face wasn’t visible through the portal. That and when I asked her questions, she kept hesitating. She never hesitates, just like all other Librarians. Wasn’t that friend of your cardsmith a Librarian at one point? You know how they are.”
“I do,” Ambraz said as he flew up and around, pondering what this meant.
“Now, go and tell your cardsmith what happened,” Brazardian said.
Ambraz opened his mouth, about to say something, when he stopped.
He hasn’t called Irwin by his name a single time since she left. What is going on?
Ambraz focused on his soulforce senses, and this time, as much as he would when helping Irwin reforge a cardseed. For a moment, he felt nothing, then he sensed a tiny inconsistency in the ground below where the portal had been. It was like a lingering, slowly fading soulforce resonance. He hesitated, then flew above it, hovering there while focusing on Brazardian.
His progenitor's lips curled up slightly, but there was no humor in his voice as he spoke.
“Now, why don’t you go and have some fun. I’ve got more important things to do,” Brazardian said.
Ambraz hesitated before humming and answering. “That might be for the best. Call me if you need anything.”
He remained where he was, while Brazardian just called out a ‘bye’ before falling quiet.
Ambraz kept his focus on the soulforce resonance, and it took half an hour before the lingering tiny bit finally seemed to untangle and vanish. It almost felt like a waterdrop, evaporating in the air, and as soon as it was gone, Brazardian let out an angry growl.
“They left behind a soulforce skill trigger.”
“A what?” Ambraz asked, landing on the ground and scanning it to be sure nothing remained.
“It's a rare skill that allows someone to leave a tiny bit of soulforce behind. This soulforce resonance triggers, usually on a specific sound or soulforce resonance. When the trigger occurs, the soulforce skill begins copying all of what is being said and done to the other side.”
Ambraz cursed as he flew back up. “Why haven’t I ever heard of this?”
“Because they are about as rare as the cards Irwin has,” Brazardian said.
Ambraz held his breath scanning the room, but nothing happened.
“Don’t worry. I would have sensed it if there was any remaining,” Brazardian said.
“Wait, so, what about that bit about the librarian you told me before?” Ambraz asked, suddenly confused. “Was there someone watching or not? Did she do this?”
“It was all true, but I told you to be sure,” he said. “If any of those things had been the trigger, I would have been wrong. But I wasn’t. The triggers are definitely either Irwin or Ambraz, or something related.”
“Great, so what is going on?” Ambraz grunted.
“I don’t know for sure, but I fear the Librarians have been compromised. You told me that Irwin got a warning from that Gelwin person not to return to the-”
“Library, yes, yes,” Ambraz said. “I know that. So, you think the Guidar didn’t just send Chained there, but they actually took over?”
“Perhaps, but there’s no way to know for sure except to go there,” Brazardian said. “Which I don’t think is a good idea. What I do know is that, if they have someone with the ability to create triggered soulforce resonances like this, any world with a Library Door is potentially compromised.”
Ambraz groaned as he skidded across the floor in annoyance. “Great. So that means all worlds that are still resisting!”
“All but Eluathar,” Brazardian said. “But now that we know, I’ll speak with the others, and we will likely destroy the door.”
“You can do that?” Ambraz asked, confused why Brazardian was even talking about it if he could.
“Why not? It’s just another type of portal, and not even a particularly stable one,” Brazardian said.
“Ugh, don’t make it sound like I should know this. You never let me see the door, and the others are all… ah!”
“Exactly,” Brazardian said, humming. “That’s why they don’t let Ganvils or cardsmiths anywhere near them.”
“Great,” Ambraz grunted. “Here I thought the central branches were trying to find us because of… Wait! Did I even tell you about this?”
Brazardian fell quiet, his lips pursed and unmoving.
“Hah, we didn’t,” Ambraz said, unable to keep his joy from his voice. “Say, did you know it's possible to reforge above a hundred percent? Perfect isn’t actually perfect!”
Brazardian didn’t say anything, but his lips thinned even more.
“The thing is… Oh. Right! You need to get rid of all the perfection measurement devices! Those things are rigged. If they measure something about a hundred percent, they send out a burst of soulforce towards the central branches… Well, probably those.”
Brazardian took a deep breath. “Am, calm down and tell me exactly what happened.”
Ambraz grinned as he landed back before his progenitor, glad he had found more things to shatter the ancient rusbuckets' pre-determined notions with.
--
‘You didn’t shock him again, did you?’ Irwin asked, as he walked with Narios towards the Tappestery.
Night had fallen, and the city was bustling with people, music, and scents that reminded him of long ago.
‘No, of course not! Anyway, he’s going to get rid of all those measuring devices as fast as he can, so that's good. Did you tell Daubutim what happened?’
‘Yes, my otherself is working on it now.’
‘How is Memory Kid doing anyway?’
Irwin felt his headache intensify as a rush of memories and information flooded his mind. It took him a moment to clear the fog, and he shook his head. A small group of younger cardsmiths stepped out of his way as he sighed.
‘He and Rindiri have tripled the effectiveness of the shipyards, and I’ll be moving two entire fleets off what they are now calling frigate-class ships. They even have three battle ships, and according to Daubutim, there are plenty of Crathan’s interested in moving to Eluathar.’
‘Plenty doesn’t feel like the word he would use,’ Ambraz responded, humor flowing through their connection.
‘I don’t recall the exact numbers, but upwards of two hundred thousand. Not all warriors or crew, of course, as some wanted to bring family, but still..’
Ambraz was quiet for a bit, and Irwin sensed a complex set of emotions from his bond.
‘It’s not bad, and it will mean we will have plenty of crew for a few fleets,’ Ambraz said. ‘But it’s not going to be enough if we get a full frontal attack.’
‘I know,’ Irwin said. ‘Which is why we need to continue with the plan to get our entire branch cleared and prepared.’
‘You still want to start giving away free reforging services from a world we don’t even have yet, in a harbor that doesn’t exist, for people that don’t know us yet?’
‘Yes,’ Irwin said. ‘Did you discuss this with Brazardian yet?’
‘Not yet, but we still have a few weeks till the Scour part is ready, right?’
Irwin rolled his eyes, sensing Ambraz’s reluctance to ask Brazardian a favor.
‘Do you want me to ask him?’
‘What? No, no. No need. I’ll ask him tomorrow,’ Ambraz said, sounding annoyed. ‘Did you find Tang yet?’
‘Not yet,’ Irwin replied.
‘Well, are you going to shatter his handcards to break the bonds?’
Irwin frowned. ‘I’m not sure that will work. The problem is that he has two soulcards. To get him a third and what he desires, he’d need to somehow get a higher baseline than what his first amethyst gives him. That means somehow changing his first soulcard’s effects on his soulscape, and we still don’t know if that is even possible.’
Ambraz didn’t respond, but Irwin sensed him pondering something.
‘I’ll think about it,’ Ambraz said after a short while. ‘I’ll go and talk with Brazardian, you got and find Tang. I’ll talk to you later.’
Irwin felt his bond pull away, the connection turning muted. Looking around, he saw they were in the busiest part and only a minute or two from The Tappestery.
“Done talking with Ambraz?” Narios asked, looking at him from the side.
The teacher’s wariness had mostly faded, though Irwin had the feeling he was still slightly more jumpy than he should be.
“Yes. Let's hope Vera was right, and Tang is in at the Tappestery.”
Narios laughed, his orange eyes gleaming happily. “Don’t worry. Her students have been trying to get her a special friend ever since she accidentally let it slip that she was lonely during a party. If they say Tang is there, he will be.”
“She did?” Irwin said, surprised.
Narios’ eyes gleamed even brighter, his lips curling up to show his sharp teeth. “Oh, yes. She’s been complaining about their interference ever since, but somehow never used any force to make them stop.”
Irwin shook his head as he imagined Vera being lonely. During their lessons, she’d always been incredibly self-assured, and at her age, he didn’t expect it.
Guess age doesn’t say everything, he thought.
“You haven’t seen him yourself?” Irwin asked, remembering how Narios had been a frequent guest at the Tappestery.
“No,” Narios said with a weary sigh. “Ever since the war started, most of my evenings have been relegated to reforging high-ranking cards. The Niox Mercenary Collective is taking full advantage of getting free card reforgings.”
They walked through the final street, silent for a moment, as Irwin thought about the Niox Mercenaries.
Although they had been protecting Granvox for a long time, how safe was it betting on them? From all he knew, they were not against taking what they wanted.
They might just do the same thing the Guidar does if they get the chance, he thought.
A short while later, they reached the Tappestery, joyous music echoing from the open windows and across the terraces. Hundreds of people were sitting, standing, hanging around, or dancing outside, while others were milling about inside.
Irwin followed Narios into the main area, and he instantly saw the person he was looking for. Far to the back, a giant stone chair stood in a corner, with a ten-foot giant sprawled out across it. A large table stood beside it, with some food and a metal mug that could have filled every glass on a nearby twenty-person table.
“I… take it that’s Tang?” Narios whispered just as the giant Fiz’rin’s gaze moved to them.
Irwin saw Tang’s eyes widen in recognition, and the giant rose to his feet, towering over everything present. If the room hadn’t been fifteen feet high with balconies on all sides, he’d have rammed his head through the ceiling.
“Irwin!”
“Right, never mind. That answers it,” Narios said while Irwin just walked forward.
I wonder why he came here, he thought, noticing that Tang was the same as he had been, with the exclusion of a thick metal necklace that gleamed silvery.