"Brazardian is correct," Exarg rumbled. "I have heard of soulskilled that had cards like that, which needed very specific surroundings or situations before they could successfully become stronger. Long ago, I had a friend who needed to be inside a very specific swamp. It had birds that sang a certain song, a plant with a root system that caused purplish puffy clouds… It is one of the few memories of that period that I have left."
Irwin hummed as he lay on Luath's back, his summon swimming beside the enormous Titan Whale.
"In your case, it seems you need the resonance of your soulforce to match the completed worldskill song you told me about."
"Is there any way to know when it is right?"
"Remain in your soulscape for a few weeks and just listen to both the song of the ambient soulforce and your new soulskill part… the Heartcard. You should start sensing what must be done. Just make sure you don't move anyone into your soulscape till that time, and don't make any more soulscape constructs."
So, the same as Brazardian explained to us, Irwin said. I'm going to have to tell Daubutim and Trimdir to add this to some of the classes.
They continued swimming for a while, Irwin occasionally glancing at the city of Driftah in the distance. Built within the crystalline trees, it was a beautiful if somewhat chaotic place, with Crathans navigating ships around and Chaos Whale calves either playing or helping.
"The time dilation has stabilized at a factor of just over two," Exarg rumbled. "From what I have been able to learn, all other worlds are somewhere between one and two."
"Yes, Scour is the only other one we know that has any time dilation left," Irwin said, recalling what Daubutim had informed him about. "Every three days on Eluathar is four days there."
"Why isn't it going to one?" Luath rumbled below Irwin. "If the Oculithar are responsible for this and they keep multiplying… shouldn't the time dilation stop completely as you said a few years ago?"
"I don't know," Exarg rumbled, sounding slightly annoyed. "It has to mean something is curbing their growth. Perhaps they fight for territory…"
I wonder if Greldo killing all he comes across has something to do with it, Irwin thought as he listened to Luath and Exarg talk for a while.
"Now that you are very close to becoming worldcarded, have you decided what you will do with your world?" Exarg asked.
Irwin hummed in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"Your world will likely become a very large one, but one of the few things I know about the worlds of free-roaming worldcarded is that it is never clear where the world will end up. The exit portal could be near your own world, on the other side of the Portal Gallery, or not within it at all."
Irwin blinked, his mouth opening and closing.
"Wait, so my world could appear beyond the Portal Gallery?"
"It is possible," Exarg said. "Like I told you before. The strongest of the worldskilled were no longer alive by the time I lived. All I have are the stories of them, and those speak of worlds that exist within the vastness of the Primordial Chaos… well, the Exit Portals, at least."
Irwin stared at the ancient being that had once been a Titan and was now something else.
"If that happens, what does it mean for me?" he asked slowly.
"It means you need to always keep one of your bodies within the Portal Gallery, or on a world connected to it," Exarg rumbled.
"Do you know why this happens?" Luath asked, seeming to sense Irwin's slight worry.
"No. If anyone knew, they kept these things to themselves," Exarg said.
"Does the location of my soulscape have anything to do with it?" Irwin asked as one of his Aura Clones appeared near the border of his soulscape, spreading its senses to look beyond the thick, almost impenetrable wall of fog that now wrapped around his soulscape.
"Not that I know of," Exarg rumbled.
Irwin lay back down, staring up at the stormy sky high above.
I'm going to have to ask Daubutim to find what he can about this.
He remained with Exarg for a few more hours before heading to Driftah to see if any cardsmiths were interested in moving to Eluathar. None were, which didn't surprise him, because most of those who did were moved back and forth by the body-doubled porters who already lived in both worlds.
With the time dilation nearly the same, he decided to keep his body within a building in Driftah so Luath, Sarha, and Mikili could roam the gas giant for a while.
"Let me know when you start," Luath said as he swam into the depths of the silver sea.
"I will," Irwin said, closing his eyes and moving into the giant body inside his soulscape.
A moment later, he hovered above his own sea.
"Fine, let's see what state my soulforce has to be in," he muttered, closing his eyes and spreading his senses.
-- A few weeks later --
Irwin watched as Soot kept hopping around the shadows while dodging the attacks of Flagrian. Flux and Mia were trying to circle her, staying out of her view.
"They really got a lot better," Scintilla said, sounding excited. "If this continues like this, they will be able to get their first blade much faster than anyone I know… Well, besides Flagrian, I guess. But she's just a monster."
"I heard that!" Flagrian shouted, moving her head sideways to dodge a stab from Soot, then flipped back and across Flux's blade. "I'm a beautiful Blademaster! No monster!"
"A monster," Soot shouted as he appeared above her, failing to stab his long black blade in the side of her head. "A monster that knows everything in advance!"
"No," Flagrian shouted back, jumping forward and kicking at what seemed like empty air, only to catch Soot as he reappeared, knocking him back into Mia. "You are all just way too predictable!"
Scintilla grumbled, and Irwin saw her hand drop to her own blade as she snuck forward.
Here we go again.
He was about to intervene when he sensed Glow move towards him from the other side of the training yard.
"Dad… can we talk?"
Irwin blinked at the slight uncertainty in his son's voice, but nodded.
"In your soulscape?"
This time, Irwin looked at him for a moment longer before pulling him into the living area of his smithy, next to an Aura Clone.
Glow wrung his hands, then rubbed through his hair, causing the golden fire threads that moved through the dark-red spikes to sparkle.
"Are you almost ready to finish your next soulcard?"
Irwin hummed softly, then nodded.
"Yes, a few more days," he said honestly, knowing that wasn't what his son wanted to talk about. He knew it likely had to do with Brazardian and waited quietly.
"I… Did Brazardian do that thing where he became young again?" Glow asked quickly.
"He did," Irwin said, absently sensing Ambraz, who was drifting through the Musical Trees, something he usually did when stressed or sad. "A few days ago, he triggered it, and he is currently living with a new group of rank zeros."
"Did you see him… after?"
Irwin sighed as he recalled the moment, two days ago. "I did. From what I can tell, and what anyone can tell, he is now nothing but a rank zero with an extra ability called Braz'am."
"Wait? Braz'am? He has the name of one of Ambraz's children?" Glow asked, eyes widening.
Irwin sighed, sensing a wave of subdued sadness from Ambraz, showing the Ganvil was hearing what was being said.
"Yes. Brazardian said it was the only thing that made sense because Ambraz is the only one here related to him. Besides that, Ambraz and Juul'rish have created a lot of rank zeros, so he can easily blend in."
Glow nodded, pulling his knees up as he stared at the table. "So… what happened to his memories?"
"They are inside a soulforce crystal which he hid for safekeeping," Irwin said, sighing as he recalled Brazardian's request that he and Ambraz tell nobody that his memory crystal was within Irwin's soulscape, and not tell anyone he could get his memories back so his new self wouldn't learn of it.
"Perhaps, far into the future, he can get them so he can read through them," Irwin said with a faint smile.
"Like a book… that has to be weird," Glow muttered before looking up. "So, he really is like a new rank zero?"
Irwin looked into the eyes so much like his own and nodded. "Yes. Ambraz took great care in checking, and the one we called Brazardian is no more."
A wave of sadness flowed through his connection as he felt Ambraz shoot faster through the forest.
"Then… I would like to meet him," Glow said, eyes glittering suddenly.
"Are you sure? You don't need to. He can probably find someone else to bond with. It might just take-"
"I am sure," Glow said, pushing his legs back down and leaning forward. "If he could bond only with me when he was rank seven, that has to mean the two of us have a strong connection. Besides, Zan is growing so much faster. If I want to have any chance of keeping up, I need to find a Ganvil who wants to bond with me."
Irwin looked at his son, knowing he'd been thinking about it for the last few weeks.
"If you are sure, I will take you to the rank zeros so you can meet them. However, like the other cardsmiths looking to bond, you will be let into the room with them and need to go through the normal process. That way we know for sure you bond with the one you actually want."
"That's fine," Glow said. "When?"
Irwin grinned, shaking his head. "As soon as Ambraz sends the message, it should start. So, I would imagine in two days."
"Can we do it before you do your soulcard?"
Irwin cocked his head, then slowly nodded. "We can… Why?"
Glow sighed, then shrugged. "Just in case something bad happens."
Irwin frowned, leaning forward. "What do you mean? Something bad happens?"
Glow didn't look at him, just stared at the table as he shrugged.
Realizing his son wasn't going to say any more, Irwin hummed before answering.
"I will ask Ambraz to send the message to do it the day after tomorrow," he said.
"Already on it," Ambraz grunted, vanishing from his soulscape.
"Now, let's head back to the others," Irwin said, sensing Flux and Mia searching for Glow.
"One thing… I think it would be best if you don't tell the others who Braz'am really is."
"I know," Glow said quickly, grinning. "If they know, the chances that they tell him are pretty big. Which reminds me, how do I keep that from him?"
"You don't have to," Irwin said. "Ambraz already told him. He knows he was Brazardian, and he knows he is now completely reset and different. Ambraz even had a message from Brazardian for him, which explained he would need to earn his own cards and that he'd given his entire collection away. The reason you should keep it to yourself is so the other Ganvils don't learn of it. They might act oddly around him if they do, or even hold it against him."
As he spoke, Irwin's mind mechanically went to the massive collection of cards that now spanned the new giant library shelf in his smithy. The ancient Ganvil had given Ambraz and him so many cards that he'd almost doubled the number of natural, non-cardseed-crafted cards he had.
Glow grinned, then shook his head. "So I guess that means that I also won't be getting a lot of cards?"
Irwin leaned back and smiled. This had been a conversation he'd wanted to have with Glow and the others at some point, and he guessed now was just as good a time as any.
"I will help you get your first soulcard, and the cards for your next one," he said. "After that, you will need to earn them by yourself."
"So, we will get a Chaos Whale with our second card?" Glow asked, leaning forward with gleaming eyes.
"If you want one," Irwin said with a nod.
"I do, and I don't mind having to find my own cards," Glow said, almost jumping up and down with excitement. "Daubutim said that there is an almost infinite number of different cards! Besides, you managed to make your own cards. I want to learn how to do that."
Irwin smiled, nodding at that, though a tiny part of him sighed sadly as he remembered how long he had spent in the time-dilation worlds to get to where he was now.
"Now, let's head back," he said, moving himself and Glow out of his soulscape.
They reappeared within the training grounds where Scintilla and Flagrian were dashing around, trying to chop each other to bits. Soot was gone, and a quick scan showed Irwin that he'd returned to the shadewalkers guild, while Mia and Flux were heading to the forest.
"They are heading that way, near the western gate," Irwin said.
"Thanks, Dad," Glow said, turning and sprinting away.
Irwin watched him leave, then focused on Ambraz, who was talking with a bunch of other Ganvils.
"When you return, do you want to go and check a new Ganvil Restaurant I noticed in Driftah?"
"Definitely!"
--
Braz'am flew around with the others, his excitement growing. He still found it hard to believe that he had been some all-powerful rank-seven Monarch before, but it didn't matter now. Besides, if he'd reset himself, that must have meant he'd somehow reached a limit.
I am definitely not having that problem, he decided, snorting.
"Braz, do you think we will find a bond? The older rank zeroes say that it usually takes five or six choosing events," a high-pitched voice piped beside him.
Braz'am glanced at the only other progeny in the room, La'juul.
Well, technically, neither of them was really a Progeny. Apparently, his previous self had chosen the name, and Ambraz had agreed, though it was unclear whether his otherself had even begun as a progeny. La'juul, on the other hand, had the soulforce resonance of two Ganvils, though none of the others seemed to be able to sense this. Not even La'juul herself, which still confounded him.
"Progeny usually find their bonds much faster," he said, causing La'juul's thin lips to curl up in a hopeful smile.
"Right! That's true! I am sure the two of us will be bonded right away," she agreed before spinning around him again.
"Everyone! Get ready! The cardsmiths are ready, so the gates will open in a moment," a deep voice rumbled from above them.
Braz'am looked up at the rank six hovering above them, the pressure he exuded enough to cause all of the rank zeros to hover quietly midair.
I will definitely reach that again, he told himself, feeling a tiny bit of worry. What if he didn't find someone to bond with now? Or never? Would he have to remain a rank zero for the rest of his new life?
The gates above snapped open, and the closest rank zeros shot up.
Braz'am shot after them, La'juul right behind him.
"I hope there are enough girls," she shouted.
Who cares about that, Braz'am thought. All I need is the best cardsmith there is so I can reach rank eight!
Dashing through the narrow corridors, he quickly overtook a few of the others before racing into a spacious chamber. He felt the soulforce resonance of a few dozen young beings there.
Most of them are Crathan, he thought, as he hovered near the ceiling for a moment.
Some of the rank zeros were already moving towards one or another cardsmith, but he knew they could never have found any resonance overlap. Even he would need a few minutes for that.
Humming softly, he calmed himself as he began scanning the individual cardsmiths, trying to find one with a soulforce resonance that matched his own.
That one isn't too bad, he pondered as he felt a slight resonance overlap with a tall Crathan woman, only for another Ganvil to reach her a moment later. He hesitated whether he should also go for her when he felt a tremor move through his soulforce. He shuddered as he focused on a young Ignitzian… boy?
Wait, I thought those were all girls?
Confused, he felt his soulforce resonate again, stronger even, and he was moving before he even realized it. The next thing he knew, he was hovering in front of a young Ignitzian boy with deep red eyes and spiky red hair between which golden fire flickered. He was looking at him curiously, the pressure of his four cards showing they were far more powerful than those of the ones around him.
"Hello?"
"I am Braz'am… Who are you?"
The boy's lips crept up.
"Gallowil, but you can call me Glow if you want."
"Glow? That's a great name," Braz'am said, thinking about forges and lava. "How far have you gotten with cardsmithing?"
"I am officially an Amethyst-rank smith," Glow said, removing a small crystal from his pocket and holding it up. "But I've managed to make a few topaz cards."
Are you kidding me? Braz'am thought, feeling a slight bit of awe. He knew from his ancestral memories just how special that was at that age.
"Wait, how old are you anyway?" he asked.
"Uh, I don't know exactly, but something like twelve or thirteen?"
"You don't know your exact age?" Braz'am asked, curiously.
He instantly saw a slight sadness cross the boy's face, and he wanted to slam into the nearby wall. How could he ask something that stupid? The boy clearly didn't know, and that probably meant he was adopted or something like that.
"Not exactly."
"Ah, sorry," Braz'am said before blurting out, "I also don't know my exact age."
Ugh, what is wrong with me?
Before he could answer his own question, the boy grinned.
"Yeah, I heard about that. Do you want to head out and chat somewhere else?"
Braz'am scanned around, noticing that a few of the other Ganvil and Cardsmith pairs had left already, while La'juul was chatting happily with a young girl with silvery-metal hair.
"Yes," he said, hesitating before landing on Glow's shoulder.
"You don't need to look for other potential cardsmiths that might resonate with you?"
Braz'am let out a snorted laugh. "I don't know what you know about me, but even without something clearly going on there, there's no way anyone here will resonate more with me than you."
Glow grinned and began walking towards the exit. "Well, then let's go and check out this Ganvil bar my father told me about."
"Oh, do you have enough soulshards to buy me some cards? We only got two cards a week ago, and I haven't had any since."
"Yes, but not expensive ones."
"Ah, no need for that. I'm happy with whatever!" Braz'am said, already feeling a shiver at the prospect of eating a card. "Hey, what cardsmithing type do you use? Fire?"
"Singing and music."
Oh… that will work, Braz'am thought, recalling the set of first skills he'd be able to choose from when he reached rank one.
As Glow walked out, he thought he sensed a soulforce sense skimming across him, but looking around, he didn't see anything.
Whatever. Let's go and see if we can find a smithy somewhere to do some forging after we have some food!
--
Irwin and Ambraz stood in the back of the room, hidden behind some runic shields, watching Glow and Braz'am walk away.
"I wish this skill were something we could choose at rank six or even earlier," Ambraz said softly. "There are so many old Ganvils that would be able to really live again."
Irwin just nodded, sensing Glow laugh at something Braz'am said, before focusing on the other semi-progeny of Ambraz and Juul'rish.
"She's also found someone," he said, motioning at La'juul.
"Yes," Ambraz said, but Irwin could sense the lack of enthusiasm.
"You don't think the smith is the right one for her?"
"She wants it too badly and is not noticing some of the red flags," Ambraz said. "It is fine. Juul'rish is watching and will know what to do. I think you should probably warn the other kids that Glow is going to bond."
Irwin nodded, knowing his friend was right. From what he could sense of Glow and Braz'am, it was clear the two were already well underway in forming the first steps of their bond, discussing attempting a reforge after they had something to eat.
"You are right, let's go," he said, turning away from the room still filled with cardsmiths and Ganvils trying to find bonds. "I'll ask Greldo to bring Glow back."
"How far are you with finding out the resonance you need for the next soulcard?" Ambraz asked.
"Getting there, but I expect another week or two at a minimum," Irwin said as he sensed his otherself still fully focused on his soulscape.
"Good, then let's go back to Driftah tomorrow. I could do with some relaxation."
Irwin grinned and nodded. "Perhaps we should bring Zan and Silv'am, and Glow and Braz'am?"
"I… yeah, we could," Ambraz muttered.
"But perhaps we should do that next time," Irwin continued, causing Ambraz to snort.
"Kid, you are a bully, you know that?" Ambraz grunted.
Irwin just laughed as he sensed Ambraz's mood shift for the better.
I wonder how Braz'am will react when he learns that Glow is my son, and thus the son of the cardsmith to whom his supposed father is bonded.
--
"Lord Sjeeklin! One of the fleets on the eastern side has managed to breach into the Tangled Core. They placed their teleportation beacon, and upwards of a thousand Shadewalkers managed to pass through before it was closed."
Sjeeklin looked up from his desk at the excited Guidar that stood in the doorway.
"Which of the branches?"
"I…" The man's face paled, and Sjeeklin raised his eyebrow.
"Find out which branch and if there are any high-chance Galadin pockets nearby."
"Yes, Lord Sjeeklin," the man said, but he hesitated.
"Was there something else?"
"Yes, my Lord. When they broke through, the Chained said that they saw a large fleet of merchant ships leave through another Branch Corridor that led away."
"So, the branch they broke through had Branch Corridors adjacent to each other?"
"I… Yes, my Lord?"
Sjeeklin watched the Guidar until the man bowed and sprinted away without another word.
Fools. Don't come here without all the information, Sjeeklin thought as he stared at the enormous crystalline map that covered the side of his room. A single breach means nothing. Those Central Worlders will send one of those fleets of theirs to crush it. What we need is a way to actually create a foothold within the Tangled Core. One entire branch that is defensible.
He grabbed a paper and began penning some quick orders, not in the least for the Chained Shadewalkers to be ordered to find a weak point in the defenses if they managed to get back into contact.
--
A wave of green water shot through the sky, grabbing and carrying away six small shadowy specks that flailed. Nearby, a dark-hulled ship with a dark blue sail covered in white sparks began sailing forward. On the deck, two blue-haired men stood beside a green-haired woman who was lowering her arms.
"They are as strong as a single soulcarded…" one of the men muttered.
"Weak, but only when they are on their own," the woman said softly, grimacing at the man who had spoken. "Let's check I got them all before we head back to the harbor."
A short while later, the ship left the area, leaving nothing but wet corpses behind.
"The information from the central worlds has been spotty lately," one of the two blue-haired men said as he stood behind the helm. "Do you think it's true what they said? That the Outer Leaves have fallen?"
"All of them? Not in a thousand years. There are more branches and worlds out there than people in the harbor," the other blue-haired man said softly. "But that many have fallen is undeniable. It's not that hard to believe, right? Most of those branches have barely a handful of four-soulcarded warriors. To defend against these bloody Chained, you would need dozens or hundreds, depending on the size of the fleet."
It was quiet for a bit, then the woman, who had been sitting against the railing, hands on her knees, looked up.
"My uncle told me that Hegliron Third Fleet was sent to a nearby branch to clear out the source of these shadewalkers…"
"Wait, that's who sent the orders to find them?" the man behind the helm asked, eyes widening.
"Yes. The message also spoke of far more shadewalkers having managed to scatter. We are to keep a close eye on anyone with a problematic soulforce resonance."
"Great," the other blue-haired man said as he walked to the railing and leaned his arms on it. His silver eyes gleamed as he glared at the distant barrier." I really hope the Heglirons don't start conscripting again. "The last time one in every five got taken away, and of those, less than half returned."
"And that was for a war against a single upstart main-branch," the woman said, staring at the deck with weary resignation. "I'm starting to second-guess our choice of joining the Patrol Guards."
Neither of the two men said anything as they continued shooting forward, nor did they notice a small disturbance in the shadow below the hull of their ship.