Unbound

Felix shifted again. No matter his position, he couldn’t find comfort. He’d even shaped the ground into a low seat for himself, smoothing it out and adding a nice lumbar support. It took him a solid ten minutes to figure out the discomfort wasn’t from anything physical, but from inside.

The pain from Pit had ratcheted up considerably. The ember of heat had swelled into a merry flame before turning to a desolate ice or a nest of piercing thorns. The shift in sensations was random, but the intensity rose steadily enough that Felix tried once again to remove his friend.

Agony ratcheted up higher and higher as Convergence tried its best to dislodge his Companion, to no avail. Felix winced and let go. He could force it, maybe, but would Pit be okay? Felix didn’t know, and refused to risk it.

Etheric Concordance is level 93!

Begrudgingly, Felix returned to the book. Pit’s situation aside—and it was never far from his thoughts—focusing his Mind on the Rockshaper’s journal was difficult. His Mind was riled up despite and in fact because of his Void Sanctuary; just knowing that his emotions about his sister were being bottled up made him feel…he wasn’t sure what to call it. Distracted, certainly.

The language of the Dwarves unraveled slowly as Felix parsed out the broad strokes of their script. Similar to their unique sigaldry, the written word of the Dwarves was an abrupt, jagged thing that didn’t dwell overmuch on details. The Rockshaper wrote plainly about his many worries, most of which were concerned with Stone Shaping.

“The Night has touched my center, and I am enlightened…and disturbed. There is a noise that is forbidden. The song of my Skill, laid out to my ears. Stone Shaping, woven of Night and the sacred earth, thrummed to a specific beat. When the Night touched it the vibrations changed and brought with them a new scope of power. It…buzzes. A touch of Dissonance among my once perfect gift. It fouls my workings.

“I must find a solution.”

Felix lowered the book. He unlocked his Affinity and then evolved Stone Shaping…but the evolution was flawed. He recalled the buzzing that his shaping Skills exuded when he used them in tandem. It grew worse with each successive Skill, rattling like a machine with ill-fitting hardware.

What was it the Eidolons said? Stone Shaping was resonating with their Bodies. Felix glanced at them, huddled together as if asleep. The buzzing is resonance…and Dissonance. They’re trying to work together, but they’re not in tune.If he could change that, could he combine all of his shaping Skills together? What would he need to make that happen? Felix dove back into the book.

The book was a journal, and that was apparent as the Rockshaper outlined his day to day activities in his workshop and dealing with “puffed up clan bloods.” It described a time that seemed to be before the guy devised and built the Undermount, as the legends claimed he did. That was interesting to Felix. Inside a liminal space or not, how could someone build a whole mountain?

So how’d he do it? From what I heard, he used Stone Shaping to make it happen…but I can’t stone shape a mountain into a new pocket dimension.

So what did he need to evolve his Stone Shaping? The journal hadn’t given Felix any clues on that yet, it only spoke of “unity.” He still had more than three quarters of the journal to read through, but the cogs started turning in Felix’s Mind. What makes each Mana type different from one another? Unique vibrations, right? Change the vibrations, change the element. But…stone isn’t just rocks. It’s got lots of extra stuff in it. Dirt and metal, heat and shadow, life and water. Felix rubbed his aching chest. I know there are at least snippets of Stone Shaping’s pattern that match some others. But it can’t outright affect bodies of water, or shadow itself. That’s beyond its scope.

It felt like a door was loosening somewhere in his head. It hadn’t opened—it hadn’t even unlocked—but Felix felt like he was close.

He got back to reading.

“Where’s this nest? I can’t sense anything for a hundred strides.” Evie idly juggled three small stones in her right hand, the very picture of boredom—though she kept her left close to her chain. “How far does this place go?”

The cavern was shaped like a wooden box she’d once saw; it had been left out in the rain for a week before a four hundred pound Orc sat on it. Walls, floor, and ceiling were all curved inward, bulging sorta. It made judging distances tough, and her Perception kept snagging on bits of moss or dripping moisture. She hadn’t seen hide or hair of a beast since they’d set out, though.

“How are you holding up?” Vess asked, her voice gentle.

Too gentle.

Evie stopped, very nearly dropping her rocks as her back stiffened. “There weren’t any monsters out here, were there?”

“No. I apologize for lying, but you would not have come otherwise.”

“You could’ve just asked.”

“Would that have worked?” Vess inquired, circling around Evie to stare her in the eyes. “Or would you have attacked our larcenous friend?”

“Larcen—You mean the thief? He and I got business to settle. Pullin’ me away doesn’t change that.”

“Archie isn’t responsible for what happened. Harn chose to come with us. He chose to fight Imara.”

“So he deserved what he got?” Evie demanded.

“Did I say that?”

“You might as well have.”

Vess pressed her lips together. “You know what Harn would say to that.”

Evie shot her a sideways glance. “That I’m ‘settin’ fires before I even got my kindlin’’.” An explosive sigh burst from her lips, and most of her frustration ran off with it. “Okay, fine. He didn’t hurt Harn. Not directly. But he was responsible for us bein’ there.”

“That was Felix’s choice. And we chose to follow him.”

“Bah.” Evie hucked her rocks into the dark. They pinged off of the walls. “Why’re you so damned reasonable all the time?”

Vess smiled. “One of us has to be.”

“Cute.” Evie narrowed her eyes. “Wait. What’s happenin’ here? You’re busy askin’ about my problems, while I can hear your Spirit jumpin’ around like an Avum in a pan.”

She hadn’t noticed before—what with the distractions and all—but Vess sounded like a cluster of rowdy tavern patrons. Evie wasn’t quite sure if they were happy or upset, but they were three drinks in and looking to make a mess, that was for sure.

For her part, Vess’ calm smile turned a bit sour. “I am…worried. About going home.”

“Goin’ home? But that was your idea.”

“It was, and I stand by it. But—” Vess planted her partisan into the floor and leaned on it. “I fear for what happens when we arrive. My father will shelter us, of that I am certain. Yet I have Yintarion now…and the revelations I’ve been gifted by our bond are too vast to ignore.”

“The ones about the Dragoons betraying the Dragons? Yeah, I can’t imagine they’ll be happy to hear about that.” Evie clenched her jaw. “Or that they’ll even believe you.”

“That is another fear, yes. Unless I bring solid proof, I do not know what will happen. Not to mention the presence of the Hierocracy in Pax’Vrell.” Vess closed her eyes and leaned forward, until her forehead was pressed against the white and blue haft of her spear. “Listen to me. I brought you out here to offer comfort and instead I vent my concerns into your lap.”

“We’re friends, Vess. Vent away,” Evie said. “Though to be honest, I thought you were just worried your dad won’t like your taste in men.”

Vess blushed, hard. Then her eyes went very wide. “What? No. Oh. Oh no, I hadn’t considered that.”

Frenzied Vigilance is level 81!

A rock clattered in the dark, and all of the hairs on Evie’s neck stood straight up. She flared her Perception, her Skill singing within her chest, as the darkness split to reveal a long snout wet with a thick mucus and two eyes that burned with a blue-white light.

“Beast!” Evie shoved her friend and jumped back at the same time, reducing her own weight with her Born Trait. The enormous creature lunged through the space they’d just occupied, its long, salamander-like body wriggling at intense speeds. It had too many legs, a long lashing tail, and a wedge-shaped head topped with curled ram’s horns. The thing pivoted to regard them with its baleful eyes.

Evie landed, chain uncoiling into the air. “Gods, you’re ugly.”

“A Bethir! It’s Tier VI!” Vess warned. “High Master Tier!”

It screeched, and its stumpy legs sent it hurtling toward her. Vess responded with two conjured Spears, which ripped toward the beast before getting deflected by its curled horns. Their violent explosions made it flinch but didn’t stop it from pouncing, wide, wet mouth first.

“Bonds of Dominion!”

Ethereal purple chains erupted from either side of the Bethir’s jaws, stabbing into its skull like pitons. The beast’s head snapped back, but its body kept moving forward, sliding across the uneven floor before it twisted around entirely. Vess had already leaped away, well out of the thing’s reach, though that didn’t stop the thing from snapping wildly in her direction. The purple chains creaked as it pulled at them, its entire body contorting like a slickened worm. The Bethir focused on the two women.

Bonds of Dominion is level 82!

“Spears of Tribulation. Cage of Tumult,” Vess said, her voice echoing.

More silver Spears manifested, but this time they stabbed into the earth around the long beast in regular intervals, hemming the Bethir in further. More chains, these made entirely of white ice, burst from the ground and tangled across the monster’s twelve legs. They shattered with every movement the Bethir made, but more came after, again and again.

Bindings of the White Waste is level 80!

Bindings of the White Waste is level 81!

“Tooth and Claw!” Evie surged forward, her chain spinning ahead as spikes and blades formed from its metal length. She flung it out, catching the Bethir across the shoulder before pivoting and sending the bladed length across its slick neck. The creature bucked, bellowing as it threw off the chain. Evie danced back, recoiling her weapon, and cursed. It bore no wounds.

“Evie, back!” Vess cried.

The Bethir flexed, its head ripping through the ethereal chains as its body trampled the icy ones, and it leaped. Dark lightning trailed after it, sparking across its spine and down its tail as its mouth snapped frantically toward Evie.

Undine’s Grace is level 78!

She escaped it, bounding from rock to rock, even kicking off the ceiling at one point. The Bethir did not relent, driving its horns into stone or even its long, seemingly vulnerable snout. Its body smashed through Vess’ cage of Spears, simply taking the exploding weapons against its sides seemingly without a care.

Undine’s Grace is level 79!

Evie threw her chain, increasing its weight as she reduced her own, and flung herself just under the Bethir’s slimy bulk. It slammed itself down, eager to crush her, but only caught her cloak. Evie was jerked to a stop, cloak ripping from her throat as she tumbled head over heels across the rough, uneven terrain.

“Draconic Stormfall!”

Vess flew across the cavern sideways, impacting the Bethir’s neck with the tip of her powerful spear just as an explosion of lightning surged from the point of contact. The Bethir screeched, cyan blood spilling in all directions, before bashing its skull into Vess’ armored chest.

She went down, cratering the cavern floor as she hit.

The Bethir opened its maw, and a heinous breath sparked to violent life. Dark lightning crashed outward, downward, directly onto—

—a tower shield made of silver-purple chains. The lightning smashed it apart almost instantly, but the shield was big enough to cover Vess’ entire body for a brief, necessary second.

Chains of the Protector is level 45!

A lightened Vess over one shoulder, Evie ran.

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