Irwin's Journey - The Cardsmith-Chapter 280: Ancient knowledge

They really do get along fast, Irwin thought.

It had been three days since he'd returned home, and as per usual, he was in the smithy and not alone. He watched as Trimdir talked animatedly with Hou'dor, making wide gestures with his arms.

The two had hit it off as soon as they started talking two days ago, the older Ganvil seeming unbothered by Trimdir's lack of knowledge. Instead, they had started talking about regular smithing and purifying.

By now, it was obvious to all that Trimdir wasn't going to head back any time soon and had taken over Endil's guest bedroom. The two had been doing nothing but talking, and when Irwin arrived a bit ago, he'd found them at it again.

When Brownyn heard that Trimdir was going to stay, he had started warning the populace of an enormous bird that might arrive at some point.

Irwin was secretly hoping it would, as he was more than a little curious about it.

"Are you sure it's even possible?" he whispered.

"Kid, there's nobody who could know for sure, but there's a chance, and we should take it," Ambraz whispered back." I've been thinking about this ever since you redid Hind's card, and I just know it should be possible. If you can near-shatter handcards or a soulscape to redo it, it has to be possible to do so with a Ganvil's resonance."

"He might have to restart from zero," Irwin said. "And that's if he doesn't die in the process."

"I don't think they will lose all of it," Ambraz said. "But we will need to get a lot of cards ready because Hou'dor will need to absorb a lot of soulforce."

"Or we could do what we did on the ship?" Irwin asked.

"That would help, but it's likely not enough," Ambraz said thoughtfully. "Unless…"

As Ambraz seemed to get lost in another idea, Irwin thought about the last few days.

Greldo had left to get Zender and the others and should be back in a few days, while You'gyn had bonded with Endil.

As he thought about Endil and You'gyn, Irwin's other half split off as it began thinking about it, and he couldn't help but shake his head.

After Ambraz had explained his plan, he also suggested that Endil talk with You'gyn. Irwin had worried about that, afraid You'gyn would walk all over Endil, but to his surprise, nothing like that had happened. You'gyn had been almost fearfully careful while talking with the young smith, as if afraid he'd do something wrong. Then, when the Ganvil had seen Endil create another hundred percent amethyst card -especially when he'd heard him sing while doing so- You'gyn hadn't wanted to leave the smith's side anymore.

Right now, they should be working outside, Endil reforging another card and You'gyn absorbing the purified soulforce while synchronizing his own resonance with Endil's.

As one half of him continued pondering the oddities of the bonding process, the other heard Ambraz hum again.

"We need to find out how high we can boost the ambient soulforce. If we can force it up high enough, it might create a stable enough environment for the first crack. That one will be the hardest…"

Irwin grimaced as he thought about Hou'dor willingly cracking his soulresonance. Before he could say something, Ambraz continued.

"Kid, listen. If Trimdir can help Hou'dor change his resonance to match his own and then bind with him, that means others could. Hundreds of rank four and fives, who have all but given up on growth, would willingly come here. Even if half or more would die in the process, they wouldn't care! Can you even fathom what that would happen to Eluathar if even ten rank fives with living smiths would be here?"

"I can," Irwin said, knowing what Ambraz meant. The only world with more than a few rank-fives was Granvox, and even if they mostly didn't have a living cardsmith, it made the world one of the most stable anywhere in the Langost Branch. It was possible that if Giard had only a handful of rank fives, it would have never become as destabilized as it had. With such a stable world, they could find an adjacent world, or an adjacent of an adjacent, and destabilize it so portals would appear. A non-populated one, of course! Then, with enough rank-five Ganvils, the world could be kept stable almost indefinitely.

"It will take years before Trimdir can reforge enough cards for Hou'dor to re-align his soulresonance," Irwin said. Still, as he said it, he couldn't help but imagine a future where they would be nearly self-sufficient: cards coming in from worlds and enough cardsmiths to reforge them. With so many Ganvils, one would surely become rank-six, or perhaps even seven!

"Not if he learns how to make heartcards," Ambraz said.

Irwin didn't immediately respond. He knew just how hard that was. He himself could barely do one without Ambraz's help, and that wouldn't be as good as when they did it together. Still, he had been doing a lot of other things, and if he'd only focused on that, he had the feeling he would have been able to do it by now. He didn't believe that he was better than Trimdir, which meant his teacher should be able to learn it.

As both of his halves were now pondering something, he leaned back. How long he was pondering, he didn't know, but he snapped out of it when Trimdir came walking over. His old teacher sat down at the table while Hou'dor landed on the ground beside it and returned to his larger shape.

"If you two want to have a private conversation about us, you might want to whisper softer," Trimdir said.

He gazed at Ambraz, then Irwin, before smiling.

"Don't worry about me, Irwin. I'm too old to bond to some young Ganvil with his whole life ahead of him. Hou'dor explained the risks, and if he is fine with them, then so am I."

Irwin didn't respond. When he had been heading here, he'd hoped for Trimdir to bind to a Ganvil to increase his growth. Now, his old mentor and friend was going to be spending the next few years on something that might not pay off.

"Don't worry, Captain," Hou'dor rumbled. "If I thought the chances were too low, I'd never have agreed with Am's idea. It might take a few years, but I'm sure Trimdir can learn how to make heartcards. As soon as he can, there will be a large number of people who will ask for his help, and I'm positive I can keep myself together with that much purified soulforce."

Irwin looked at the Ganvil, then nodded. "Just make sure you don't blow yourself up," he said.

Hou'dor laughed, a deep rumbling sound that made some nearby loose objects rattle.

"Captain, huh? That is going to take some getting used to," Trimdir said, looking at Irwin.

"It's only for on the ship," Irwin said, looking at Hou'dor. "I told you, you can just call me Irwin."

Hou'dor continued laughing for a bit, and the others could hear the stress of decades in it. The mere prospect of bonding and potentially growing again seemed to be doing something to Hou'dor, and they all waited till he stopped.

"I've gotten used to it by now, but I'll try and remember. Now, how about we go and see how the new building is doing?" he finally said, a wide smile on his otherwise smooth, dark gray surface.

Irwin crossed his arms, feeling a tiny headache appear at the mention of the academy building.

"I still don't get why we are doing it here and not in Degonda."

"Because you are here," Trimdir said. "Every cardsmith in this world wants to work where you are, learn from you, and see what you do. So unless you want to move to Degonda…?"

Irwin got up, not even answering that. With how little time he was actually on Eluathar, there was no way he would be anywhere but where his family was. Even if it meant the academy would be here. At least Bronwyn had been happy with it.

They walked outside to find Endil reforging a card, singing softly, while You'gyn was whispering encouragements and advice.

Irwin watched and listened for a few moments. There was a new smoothness to how Endil resonated his soulforce, the song clear and beautiful, that hadn't been there before, showing the influence of bonding with a Ganvil. Although it was far from what he could do, it was also a growth he knew would have taken Endil years if he'd even managed it.

After a few minutes, they left the smithy, and Endil's clear voice and steady strikes as they walked through the city.

"Have you decided on your heartcard yet?" Irwin asked.

"I have an idea, but I want to think on it some more," Trimdir said. Hou'dor was on his shoulder, and though Irwin knew the older Ganvil wouldn't be able to keep it up very long. Reducing themselves to this size cost a lot more energy, especially if a Ganvil had no bonded smith to supply a steady stream of purified soulforce.

"With your ability to shatter cards, I'm wondering if you can shatter the bonds created when we create a full hand."

Irwin blinked, wondering why he hadn't thought about that. Could he do that?

As he thought about it, they made their way to the northern side of the city, where a large section of the wall was being removed. Beyond it, the base of a massive building was starting to take shape, dozens of stone- and woodshapers moving around.

The sounds of constructions washed over them as the new section of the wall beyond it was almost visibly growing from the ground.

Having carded builders really makes things so much easier, Irwin thought.

"Do you think it will be big enough?" Hou'dor asked, sounding unsure.

"It's fine," Ambraz said. "They can always expand it if they have to."

Irwin shared a look of disbelief with Trimdir.

"You two do know we don't have to build something rivaling the existing academies, right?" he said. "This is just to start. Who knows where the final academy will end up."

He saw Bronwyn stand to the side, waving them over.

Irwin made his way there, looking at the older woman with long, graying hair with whom Bronwyn had been talking. Her face was wrinkled, creating a near-perpetual smile around her lips.

"Irwin, glad to see you managed to drag them out of the library," Bronwyn said with a laugh. "This is Lunira Sagari, I told you about her. She is responsible for keeping the builders from going crazy and is going to make sure that the Volcano Cardsmithing Academy is going to be the envy of all."

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Irwin was so surprised by his brother's over-the-top speech that he didn't even cringe at the name. Then he saw that the people nearby had been listening in and were now looking at each other excitedly, whispering amongst themselves.

"Good to meet you," he said, looking at Lunira and instinctively checking the cards. The song was simple but effective, showing the six cards she had meshed well together, and from the strength, he knew there was at least one topaz-ranked card.

"And you, Smith Irwin," Lunira said. "I've heard you will be looking for people to create heartcards for. If there are still spots for that, I would be honored if you could think of me."

Somewhat surprised, Irwin looked at Bronwyn, who quickly nodded.

"I'll see what I can do," Irwin said. "How is the construction going?"

"Almost perfect," Lunira said. "We are still waiting for more metal and stone, but most of the rest is here. It should be done in a week at most."

"Crafters are already working on the furniture," Bronwyn said. "We even have-"

A low, bone-rattling cry seemed to ripple throughout the city, causing everyone to freeze and look up in shock.

Irwin acted before he realized that his hammer was appearing in his hand while both of him searched for whatever was attacking them. Within a split second, he sensed a massive concentration of soulforce high above them and, looking up, saw a small dot that was rapidly closing in.

"That's one impressive bird," Ambraz whispered.

"It's got at least the strength of four soulcards, and no weak ones either," Hou'dor rumbled.

"Yes, and I wish he wouldn't do that every time," Bronwyn muttered, his face going dark as screams began erupting from the city. "I'll be back later!"

Bronwyn was running before Irwin could respond, shouting for Lunira to come with him. The older woman seemed more than happy to leave as she sprinted after him with an ease that had Irwin wonder how many body enhancements her cards gave her.

A moment later, Bronwyn's voice rang out as he disappeared into town, roaring angrily. "Don't you all bloody panic! It's the Leafarit I told you would be coming! Zegritar isn't here to hurt anyone. He is just here to speak with the smiths! Calm down!"

So that's Zegritar, Irwin thought.

He watched the dot turn into a small bird that quickly grew as it closed in. With massive wings of leaf-like feathers in shades of green from pale to nearly black, talons large enough to pick up a charbull, and a beak that could likely bite his head off in a single snap, Irwin understood why Bronwyn was worried of panic.

"Let's move a bit away so we don't cause more of a scene," Trimdir said, and he began jogging towards a clearing that was used to store wood and stone.

Irwin followed him, and then they waited until Zegritar reached them. The gusts of wind from his beating wings caused a few stacks of beams to topple, and the few carded shapers that had been there quickly moved closer to the city.

"Trimdir!"

The soulforce around the clearing hummed as a loud and clear voice caused it to resonate and vibrate.

"Zegritar, I see you managed to find me," Trimdir said.

"Who are these beings that glow with soulforce as bright as the sun?" Zegritar said, his voice, though clear, conveying a sense of being ancient. It faintly reminded Irwin of when he'd spoken with Gelwin.

"We are Ganvils," Ambraz said.

He flew from Irwin's shoulder and changed into a form as large as Irwin had seen when he'd found him long ago. Hou'dor copied him, becoming even larger.

"I have heard of you from Yort and Vert," Zegritar said, leaning forward as if examining Ambraz. "I had not expected that you would be similar to our Sylvaneth friends."

"..."

Irwin almost sensed confusion from Ambraz.

"What do you mean by that?" he asked, instantly feeling the massive bird's focus shift to him.

"You are Smith Irwin, the one I heard so much about?"

"I am."

"I have brought a few cards. Are you willing to inspect them and improve them as Smith Trimdir does?"

"I can, but could you explain what you meant just now? How are Ganvils like the Sylvaneth?"

Zegritar stared at him with his piercing green eyes.

"One of these Ganvils is bound to you. It's soulforce moving and flowing like yours, and its soft song entwined with your own," the bird said. "The other seems lost; its song is a mere half of what it should be, as if part of it was ripped free. Though… I can sense that a tiny bit is starting to connect with Smith Trimdir. Sylvaneth, they are similar. Either bound to an ancient tree or bound to a Leafarit, they need another to grow and move freely."

"You can sense a connection between Hou'dor and Trimdir?" Ambraz exclaimed.

Trimdir glanced at Hou'dor, a glint of joy in his eyes.

"I can. The Ancient Lifetree, Yilda, gifted me a sharp sense."

Irwin froze, staring at the bird.

"You know of Yilda?" he asked, unable to keep the surprise from his voice.

"Of course! Yilda The First. The giver of seedlings, the progenitor of the ancient trees. She who brought the first of our kind to Pinea. Legends of her course through our people's sapstreams."

"Did you talk about this before? Does Daubutim know?" Irwin asked, excitedly turning to Trimdir.

"No… we did learn that the Sylvaneth used to be Galadin, but this is the first I've heard of this," Trimdir said, frowning. "Why are you acting so excited? I know it's odd that they know of something we also knew on Giard, but with portals everywhere, it's not that strange, right?"

"He is excited because there's barely any knowledge about Yilda anywhere! Every so-called expert can only tell you that different species and worlds know of her. That includes before they were connected, but I've never heard of anyone who said anything remotely like what Zegritar just told us," Ambraz said. "Even if we assume it's only partially true due to how much time has passed, it-"

A stifling wave of soulforce blanketed the area, silencing Ambraz.

Irwin instinctively readied himself to attack, but Zegritar didn't move besides glaring at Ambraz.

"I don't lie," Zegritar said. "And for my people, even assuming we do is seen as an offense."

"Calm down," Hou'dor rumbled. "Ambraz isn't saying you are lying, he says that over the course of thousands of years, knowledge changes or gets lost."

"I am over a thousand years old," Zegritar said, the soulforce in the area returning to normal as his apparent anger faded. "And I know of some that are older still. From them, and the ones they knew when they were young, who were ancient then, I have never heard of anything different. Even if things change, my people pride themselves on our history, and we still tell of the times when Hilla left Pindrag on the verdant world that is Pinea."

Pindrag? Irwin thought curiously.

"Yeah, sorry for making it sound like I called you a liar," Ambraz said, sounding anything but sorry. "Still, if all of this is as you say, didn't the Galadin that came, those that turned into Sylvaneth, ask about it? Were they not curious?"

"Yes… I- Although I know much, the Galadin period is not my expertise, and it is long ago," Zegritar said, sounding somewhat apologetic. "I will send one of my leaflings to find someone that does."

Irwin almost hit Ambraz to make sure he wouldn't laugh or say something stupid, but luckily Ambraz just hummed and kept quiet.

"Thanks," Irwin said.

"It is fine," Zegritar said. "I do have a question for you. From all I have gathered, you are likely going to go back to what you call the Portal Gallery. Yes?"

"Yes, but not for a while yet," Irwin said.

"When you leave, can you take one of my Leaflings with you? Perhaps you or one of those with you could even bind it?"

Irwin hesitated. He had no idea what a leafling was besides something Zegritar could seemingly control.

"What are those, exactly?" he asked.

"Leaflings are potential offspring," Zegritar said. "They are not yet able to communicate as I am but can only speak directly to the one they bond to. Still, they are useful because if they can gain enough soulforce to kindle their own soulskill, they will eventually grow strong. I would ask you to take one along so one of mine can learn of the Portal Gallery and share it with the rest of us."

Irwin didn't hesitate to reply this time.

"I am not interested in bonding with anything right now, but I can ask my crew if one of them is interested," he said.

"Of course, that is acceptable. Also, don't think this Leafling would just be a burden. My kind is able to harness the ambient soulforce and use it to empower our bonds while stabilizing their souls."

Both of Irwin's minds stilled, then slammed into each other as an idea formed, and the image of Zender as Earilla popped into his mind. If one of those Leafarit could strengthen their soulscape, perhaps they would be able to hold a heartcard! If that was possible, having one might be enough to keep them alive for much longer.

"What if the one they bond to has an unstable soulscape?" he asked excitedly.

He saw Trimdir looking at him, but he'd explain himself later.

"That would not be an issue. It is the reason Sylvaneth bond with us, as without us, they are unable to leave the trees of life. Their souls are too weak to generate enough soulforce on their own. Only those who become full-handed, as your people call it, are able to move by themselves, though even those prefer to remain with their bonded Leafarit."

"Then I know of more than one of my crew who might be interested," Irwin said. "That is if you have more than one leafling that you would want to send?"

"Although it pleases me that you feel that way, I only have one leafling ready right now. With Verd bonded to Jort, only Emra is at a place to bond."

Irwin felt a slight stab as he realized that meant only Zender or Earila could bond. Still, who said there wouldn't be more later?

Wait, Jort bonded to a Leafarit?

"How is Jort doing?" he asked, curious what such a bond would mean for the amethyst-ranked heartcarded. If they stabilized and strengthened souls, could he just shatter the hearcard and improve it to a higher rank with this Verd keeping Jort alive? Realizing he was getting distracted while Zegritar was responding, he forcefully moved one to remain active in the conversation as the other pondered the potential possibilities.

"Jort and Verd are doing fine. They are currently traveling across Pinea to tell the Rooted Enclave about this world and your people."

Irwin was about to ask what that was when Bronwyn came jogging back from town. He looked exhausted, and as he approached Irwin, he saw him glance at the massive green bird with barely hidden annoyance.

"Zegritar, it's good you are here, but would you mind if we relocate? Your size is scaring some of the people," Bronwyn said.

"Very well. Perhaps we could go to the smithy so Smith Irwin can reforge the first of the cards?"

Irwin wondered what type of cards Zegritar had or where he was keeping them. Perhaps he had a soulscape?

Wait, do soulskilled beings even have soulscapes? he wondered.

"I fear the smithy isn't yet big enough for that," Bronwyn said, turning to Irwin. "You can reforge outside of town, right?"

"I can," Irwin said before recalling some other times. "But if it's going to be a high-rank reforging, it has to be a place where I can work unbothered."

He didn't want to get disturbed by some of the Flyingrazorteeth or Bullfrogs.

"I've got just the spot! We can go to one of the Ranger Cabins in the woods," Bronwyn said hurriedly.

Well, this isn't what I'd planned to do today, Irwin thought as he looked at his brother, than turned to Trimdir.

"Go and help. I'll take care of everything here," Trimdir said. "I'll ask Clarish to teleport me around so I can gather the best smiths. Then, in a week when the building is done, we can see to binding them to the rank zeros."

"Alright," Irwin said.

Bronwyn let out a sigh of relief, and he began walking towards the still under-construction expanded wall segments.

"Alright, this way!"

Irwin ran after his friend while Ambraz and Hou'dor turned to their smaller shapes. Zegritar jumped up, batting his wings with a massive crack to shoot up nearly straight into the air.

"Try and keep him away from the city, alright?" Bronwyn whispered. "I'll try and inform the people some more, but he's just… really big."

"I'll do my best," Irwin said as he followed his brother beyond the walls and toward the forest.

An hour later, Irwin was rubbing his chin as he looked at the six cards he'd been handed.

"They are all similar in typings," he said. "Remind me of Viridian cards."

"It's all in the vegetation category, with mostly plant and tree typings," Ambraz agreed.

They were standing in a small clearing in the depths of the forest, nearly an hour's travel from New Malorin. Behind them was a three-story wooden tower that blended with the trees as if almost one of them.

Zegritar was standing in the clearing, his massive form barely fitting. Branches and leaves lay scattered all around from where he'd burst through them.

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"Will you be able to work with these?"

Irwin looked up, slightly surprised. Shouldn't Zegritar have thought about that before?

"Don't worry, there's no smith on this world or any nearby that is even close to as good as Irwin," Ambraz said.

Irwin held back a grin and then turned to walk into the ranger's tower.

"I'll start on one and let you be the judge," he said.