Irwin's Journey - The Cardsmith

Narios calmly walked next to the towering smith, taking the occasional glance. For a young man, he had a rather intimidating aura around him, and right now, he seemed deep in thought. He'd barely said a word as he returned from the Dean's office.

When they walked out of the academy and toward the merchant district, he decided it might be prudent to ask. If Irwin wasn't in his right mind, it would be better not to see Rosetta.

"So… did everything go alright?" he asked, looking at Irwin.

"Huh? Yeah… just a lot on my mind!"

"If you want to, we can see Rosetta tomorrow..." Narios said slowly.

The obvious hesitation on Irwin's face told him enough, and Narios forced himself to smile. As much as he preferred it to be otherwise, he was a teacher.

"It's alright! Just go and take care of the things you need to do, and we can go see her tomorrow!"

Irwin looked at him, the volcanic red eyes swirling and hard to read, and Narios barely repressed a shudder. It was one of the reasons he never took body improvement cards. So many had these gruesome physical changes forced upon their wielder.

"Alright, thank you. I do want to see her, but I want to attempt something first. Depending on how it goes…"

Narios smirked as he saw Irwin's eyes drift off. He'd noticed that, as soon as Irwin got an idea, he seemed fully focused on that.

"I'll come and find you tomorrow after your reforging class," Narios said. "Do you need me to stay… or?"

"No, it's fine! Thanks, and I'll see you tomorrow!"

Narios nodded and smiled, then turned and walked back to the academy. If he was fast, he'd have time to play the larger part of his third attempt at creating a real opus.

--

Irwin continued walking, waiting until Narios was far away. Then he looked at Ambraz.

"So… what do we do?"

"First focus on those cards and see if you can get your fourth one. After that we go and talk with Brazardian to see what he thinks. He has requested we both go and see him."

"When?" Irwin asked in surprise.

"Just after we left the Dean's soulscape. It just said -come and bring your bond-."

"Then we better hurry," Irwin muttered.

He increased his pace as he headed straight for the Greenbark Card Center. He was more than a little excited at the prospect of seeing his idea come to fruition, not in the least because he hoped it would help him with the other cards.

We could accept the Dean's request and fix that really fast, he thought.

Half an hour later, he was on the way back, seven new cards in his pocket, when he moved onto the final merchant square. A group of merchants, shopkeepers, and some customers were gathered on one side, listening to a merchant who was talking animatedly, making wide gestures with his arms. He looked well dressed, but his jerkin was slightly damaged, and he had a long scratch across his forehead.

Irwin angled so he could listen in without it being too obvious.

"-storm! I'm telling you, it was incredible. The barrier above the back of our fleet ruptured, and this massive storm covered us before we could leave," the haggard merchant said, shaking his head in dismay.

"Where was it?" someone shouted from the crowd.

Irwin slowed. As much as he wanted to rush to his room to start reforging, the mention of a chaos storm drew his attention.

"The most eastern leaf branch is near Marobin. We were returning from a trip -a rather successful one, I might add- and it just… happened! Massive, billowing clouds, black and filled with this purple soulforce. I'd heard about ambient soulforce, of course, but I've never seen it! It was incredible, and it felt like every bolt could cleave a ship in half! Some ripple struck the ship I was on, and our small mast was ripped to shreds, giving me this-" he touched the wound on his forehead.

There was a muttered round of awe, and the merchant smiled around ruefully.

Another merchant stepped forward, old and graying, arms crossed, and a worried look on his face. "Any losses?"

The haggard merchant, who had seemed happy with the attention, wilted. With a look of weary resignation, he nodded. "We lost our scouting ship, two ore transporters, each with a dozen crewmen, and an escort."

A collective moan came from the merchants, and the older merchant walked forward placing a hand on the other. "It will take Ms Jacob a decade to recoup the losses, but she will be fine. She didn't place all her eggs in one basket."

"Easy for you to say," someone else in the crowd bit angrily. "Not everyone has decades to spare!"

The older merchant's eyes narrowed, but before he could react, a young, longhaired shopkeeper spoke up.

"This is the third chaos storm in a few months, Bertrand. Do you think it has something to do with those rumors?" she asked, looking at the older merchant.

Irwin inched a bit closer, wondering if there had been chaos whales spotted during.

"Of course not. Almost two hundred years ago, when I only had two shops, there was a month where we had over twenty! Sometimes it just happens," the old merchant said.

"You aren't the only one old enough to remember that," a wiry old shopkeeper said. Her voice was cracked and worn from age, but she glared at Bertrand. "That time was because two massive chaos monsters were fighting! Permanently destroyed two whole side corridors and a small branch! Are you suggesting that's happening again, old man?"

"Who knows! If it does, we will hear about it soon enough," Bertrand said before focusing on the merchant that had caused the commotion. "Come, junior, let's take this to my shop. I've got some questions, and we are drawing a crowd."

"Just curious to see which ore they lost, and where it was heading," the female shopkeeper snapped.

Irwin listened for a few more moments, but all that happened was a shouting match between the two old people. He turned away, leaving the ragged merchant who seemed like he'd prefer to just leave himself, and walked towards the song and music district.

"Think there were any chaos whales?" he asked softly.

"Why? Thinking about the Dean's soullake and hoping to increase your own even more?" Ambraz asked. "Even if there are, let's try and not move through any more shadow storms, alright? Once was enough for a lifetime, if you ask me."

Irwin didn't respond, and the rest of their trip back was quick and without incident.

Back in his own quarters, he closed the door and quickly pulled out the seven cards. He quickly scanned them, surprised to find that he'd actually never seen similar ones before. They were all utility cards that allowed different types of information to be made visible. He guessed scribes, artists, or merchants might find them useful, but how the first smiths had ever come up with the idea to use them to create diagrams of the soulforce within cards was beyond him.

"Alright, how should we start?" he asked, spreading the cards out by rank. Four were Quartz rank the other three Amethyst.

Ambraz flew down and, with a flash, grew to his large, working form. "From what I could find, it's not that easy. Let's just try one," he said, sounding excited.

Irwin nodded and picked up the weakest of the quartz cards. As he placed it on Ambraz, the Ganvil began humming a soft tune. It was simple to the extreme, almost like some of the practice songs Irwin had played on the piano during his first few weeks.

Let's see what this does!

Twenty minutes later, he stepped back from Ambraz, looking curiously at the Topaz ranked card. It showed an image that faintly resembled a music sheet with unreadable notes.

"Alright, kid, we are going to go about this a bit different from normal," Ambraz said.

Curious about what Ambraz had in mind, Irwin waited.

"Just slot it and see what it does. If it sucks, take it out, and I'll just eat it."

Irwin stared at Ambraz, wondering if he was making a joke. Besides permanently damaging a rune, removing one also hurt like hell. He had initially planned for his soulstrum guitar to be only temporary and known what that would likely entail. But this?

"Bah, don't give me that look! You've been having it too easy for way too long. What if you become soft? Just slot the thing and see how it works. We can decide how to reforge the others based on that."

"Fine," Irwin muttered as he picked up the card. Somehow, holding the Topaz card above his hand felt wrong. It had been ages since he'd slotted anything below ruby.

"I wonder if there are cards like this that have growth," he said as he watched the card sink into his right hand.

"There's no reason to have two growth cards in one heartcard," Ambraz muttered. "If you want to think about that, I'd go and think about some card for your next one."

A growth one like Vera has, Irwin thought.

He focused on the card, and he wasn't surprised when a connection formed almost instantly. The card was weak compared to all his others, and it almost stuck out in its simplicity. As he activated the ability he felt, he realized he hadn't even looked at the card's specifics.

A simple piece of empty music paper appeared a few feet away.

"Alright, I can see the paper," Irwin said as he summoned his soulstrum guitar. "Let's see what it does."

He began slowly playing one of his practice songs, and instantly, notes started to appear on the paper. Even though he'd known what to expect, Irwin was surprised and impressed as he continued playing.

"This is actually really awesome," Irwin said when he finished.

One look showed him he had made a dozen mistakes. Notes and chords that were not like he knew they should be. He almost wanted to try again right away.

"Alright, so the first addition we should make is making it visible to others," Ambraz said. "Anything else?"

Irwin scanned the paper, then focused on the card. Curious, he unsummoned the sheet, then summoned it again. It was completely blank.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

"Yes. I think we should find a way to either put them on paper or in my book, or to remember them somehow. What if we come across a song or a card resonance we want to keep?"

"Yes, good point. Also, we should aim to be able to have multiple active and visible at the same time," Ambraz said. "When we return, you might need to help some of the others, and although the idea of being a teacher sounds horrible, we might have to!"

Irwin pursed his lips, holding back a grin. Ambraz's words and his barely hidden enthusiasm didn't match, and he knew Ambraz wouldn't mind one bit.

They continued brainstorming for a bit and ended up with a final feature. The ability to replay the song.

With his temporary card activated, Irwin began reforging the next card.

--

Irwin shuddered as he removed the second attempt from his hand. A dull pain, as if he'd carved out a part of his soulscape, made him almost angrily toss the card into Ambraz's gaping mouth. Then he clenched his fists together, waiting for the pain to subside. From having never removed a card to twice in a day, he hoped it would be a while before he had to do it again.

I wonder how Daubutim managed to resist screaming, he thought, as he recalled his friend removing two cards in quick succession long ago.

The tearing sensation dulled rapidly, turning to a painful throbbing in his soulscape that pulsed in time with a headache that felt like someone using his head as an anvil.

His gaze kept moving back to the three emerald cards that lay on the table before him. The book lay beside it, open and showing the details of each of the three cards, but he already knew which one they were going with. It was the only one that ticked almost all the boxes they had wanted. All it still needed was to be reforged to Ruby, which would have to wait for the pain to subside.

"Alright, you are sure you don't want to try reforging one of them up to Ruby and see if we can change it more?" Ambraz asked.

"There's no use," Irwin responded, feeling the pain slowly retreat. "This one is almost perfect, and we should keep the others for Trimdir and Endil."

"Good. With how much that topaz one was already helping, I can't wait to see what this will do!"

Irwin completely agreed, and as soon as the pain was gone, he resummoned his hammer.

The reforging process went smoothly, and as Irwin struck the final blow, he wondered if he could reliably reforge ruby cards now. If he could, that would make him a ruby-ranked smith...

"All right, let's see what was added!" Ambraz said as he changed to his small form and landed on the book.

There was a flash of light, and as soon as Ambraz moved away, Irwin opened the book, flipping to the newly filled page. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

"It's missing the ability to show dozens of people what they did, but beyond that, it's great," he said as he examined the book's text.

Card: Tablatures of Soul and Song

Type: Ruby, Reforged by Irwin Roddington

Owner: -

A rare utility card that can visualize any form of resonance or music on a music sheet. Depending on the wielder's soulforce, it can save up to a certain number of sheets in a book.

Passive: Small increase in memory

Passive: Greatly increased ability to memorize musical patterns

Active: Summons a music sheet that will record or playback a soul resonance or song

Active: Summons a book that holds recorded music and resonances (12)

Ambraz didn't respond, and it took Irwin a moment to realize that the Ganvil's mouth was pursed in a tight line.

"Ambraz?"

"Slot it. We need to leave," Ambraz said, his previous enthusiasm gone.

"Go? Where?" Irwin asked, picking up the card.

"Brazardian just told us to come see him right away."

Irwin looked at the new card, then slipped it into the first slot of his right hand. As it sank down, then settled, he felt the lingering soreness in his soulscape vanish. Grabbing the book and tearing at the page with the card, he burned it with a quick flame.

"No time to test it?" he asked.

"No. I just got another shout that I need to hurry."

"Then let's go and see what's going on," Irwin said, grabbing his vest and stuffing the book inside.

Where the academy was alight with carded torches and the sounds of distant parties echoed out from everywhere, the city was dark and quiet.

Irwin strode towards the central building that was dug into the volcano, surprised at how still it all felt- almost tranquil.

"The others are there too," Ambraz muttered.

"Others?" Irwin asked.

"Des, Yirta, and Ourelini, Yirta's bonded smith."

The long, straight corridor that led to Brazardian's place was empty, and as they passed the path that led to Ambraz's servant quarters, Irwin decided he'd go and see them after.

When they reached the entrance doors, Irwin saw two large Ganvil guards on each side. Neither spoke, but as soon as they entered Brazardian's main chamber, the doors shut behind them.

Brazardian's massive shape was gone, and instead, an anvil the size of a small building flew into the center of the room. Two smaller ones hung to the side, while a young, slender woman with hair bound in a long braid of orange and yellow metallic hair stood alone on the visitor's platform. Her body showed she was strong, but she had far less muscles than Irwin had become accustomed to. That still made her bigger than most normal fighters, but it did stand out compared to the heavily muscled smiths he'd been around.

As he examined her, Ourelini looked back with dark gray eyes before nodding.

"Finally," Brazardian snapped. "Why are you always so late when I call you?"

"We were doing important things," Ambraz said. "Now, what's with all the shouting?"

There was a soft gasp from Ourelini, but Desbraz just snorted.

"If you'd been here faster, we would have known!"

"Yeah, yeah. We are here now, right?"

"Alright, enough," Brazardian boomed. "There's trouble near some of the side branches of The Dimarintsia River. A chaos storm that started on the most eastern fringes is moving closer to the central worlds. Gynerigon, Hestolgron, and I have discussed and analyzed the data, and there is a large chance that it will block our access to Suiderfuix, Tulpil, and Fiverio."

Irwin felt his mood sour instantly at the mention of Fiverio. There was, by all accounts, only one path there, and if that was blocked…

"Thus, we have decided to speed up our plans."

Our plans? Irwin saw Ourelini's eyes widen while she turned pale.

"What plans?" Ambraz snapped.

Irwin winced at Ambraz' ’s undiplomatic shout, but Brazardian didn't seem to care.

"You and your bonded haven't been privy to this, as it wasn't needed. Now, however, things are going to change. Yirta, you, and Ourelini are going to be joining Glau'hest and Ulan'gyn towards Suiderfuix. From there, we have arranged transport to a new rank three world that we have purchased a continent on. You will travel through the central worlds together with an escort of rank fives, two of which are capable of becoming World Anvils."

"I thought we were to remain here?" Yirta said, sounding worried.

"That was the initial plan, but things are changing too rapidly. We cannot risk another near extinction of our people, so we are starting Project Scatter," Brazardian said. "Leave for the Harbor to meet with the others. Glau'hest will be the leader of your party until you reach your destination…"

Yirta'braz was flitting around nervously before landing on Ourelini's shoulder.

The massive Ganvil's voice softened. "Yirta, make sure you train properly. No more slacking off. All of my offspring should be able to become rank six, and perhaps seven, even if none have yet. I ask that you try…"

"Yes, Brazardian," Yirta muttered, sounding sad.

"Good. Now, say goodbye to your siblings. I know this is short timing, but we need to move fast."

Irwin crossed his arms, his heartrate increasing and his skin growing cold. Were they also going to be asked to leave? He still had things to do!

Ambraz left his shoulder, flying towards Yirta, while Des joined them in midair.

"Kid… Yirta, make sure you train hard! I want to see you at rank five the next time I see you," Ambraz said.

Des exhaled before agreeing. "Exactly! Don't disappoint us!"

The three Ganvils slammed into each other a few times- an oddity that Irwin knew resembled a hug.

After a few minutes, Brazardian grunted, and Yirta moved back to Ourelini.

"I'll make you all proud," he said, sounding far younger than Irwin thought a hundred-year-old being should.

Then he flew away.

"Des, you are going to Dimarintsia with Syn'gyn and Syd’hest You are going to meet with our scouting fleet and split up. We have bought three small rank two portal worlds as far as we can. It will take you ten years to reach them, but once there, you are to take one of those worlds and hide. It is a small one with a small footprint and no connection to the Soulcrystal network. You are to keep it like that for at least a hundred years or till I send a message."

"What about Am?" Des asked anxiously.

"He will be going somewhere else," Brazardian said.

"Can't I go with him?!"

"Yes! He would be-"

"Enough!" Brazardian snapped, his voice causing a rumbling in the walls.

There was a deadly silence for a moment, and then Ambraz snorted.

"No need to get angry," he said. "Why not?"

"Because there's too many things happening that don't add up," Brazardian said. "Between what you told us, the distant troubles on the farthest edges, Smiths Guild worlds being attacked, and now the storms? This hasn't happened in written history. I checked with the Librarians."

"Fair enough. But why can't Des come with me?" Ambraz said stubbornly.

"Because I can't guarantee any place is safe, and this way, I have a small chance one of my offspring survives," Brazardian said calmly. "Your elder siblings have all been notified, and they will be going into hiding."

This feels a bit like what the Galadins did, Irwin thought as he was quietly listening.

He could see from the pursed, angry scowls on the smooth faces of Ambraz and Des that neither liked this plan. It didn't surprise him. If someone had told him to leave Bronwyn, even for something like this, he wouldn't agree. Not easily. Especially not if he knew about their own world that might actually be safer. Just thinking about that scenario made Irwin's fingers curl around his arms, clenching until it almost hurt.

"There are dozens," Ambraz said, seemingly still unwilling to give up. "Why not let Des come with us? You know-"

"I know," Brazardian said, his voice hollow. "Which is why you need to say your goodbyes to Des. Perhaps we are overreacting, and in a few decades, you two can see each other again. Now, until when either of you reaches rank seven, you will follow my orders!"

An angry growl came from Ambraz that caused even Irwin to look at him surprised.

"I have been gone for ages! Hal is DEAD! Now you are asking me to be separated from Des for potentially ever?!"

The last of Ambraz's words roared through the chamber with a power that belied his tiny size, and Irwin was looking at him shocked. He sensed the roiling power of Ambraz's soulforce as he seemingly lost control.

It was quiet in the room, and then Brazardian sighed.

"Des, leave us for a while. Return in an hour so you and Am can have a proper goodbye."

"Yes, Brazardian," Des said mutely. He flew to Ambraz, slamming into him, and for a moment, they remained pressed together. Then he shot away at breakneck speed.

Irwin swallowed as he felt Brazardian's focus shift to Ambraz.

"I have created one hundred and nineteen rank zeros," Brazardian said. "They and seven rank fives, one of which is Hou'dor, will be joining you on a new ship I commissioned for you. It is a custom ship, twice the size of what remained of your Sonata, and as close to a central world military Escort as I could get it."

Irwin almost hummed as he heard that. Although he would sincerely miss the Sonata, from everything he had heard, having a better and hopefully faster ship would be sorely needed. A look at Ambraz's pursed lips and the roiling, chaotic sounds from his soulforce made him scramble for something to say.

"Aren't there more rank zeros or rank ones we can bring?" he said quickly. "There are a lot of people in my world and many potential smiths."

"Irwin, I can't risk anyone knowing where you are going. Gynerigon and Hestolgron have both created their own rank zero's to go with the others. All others will remain here to keep whoever here is in league with those attacking the smiths in the dark."

"What about those that are going to leave on other ships in the next few days?" Ambraz asked, his voice still tense.

Brazardian was quiet for a bit. "A good idea. I will see what I can do. Now, I have split a large portion of my private card collection into three, and I will send one part to you. It should contain enough cards to allow you to create a Cardsmith school or academy in your world. Is there anything else you need?"

Irwin swallowed as he heard that. "Do you have any mental cloning cards?" he asked.

"I do not… Most go to the central worlds," Brazardian said softly. "I'll ask around, but-"

"Never mind, we will do it ourselves," Ambraz said, then he let out a shuddering breath. "Irwin, can you head back? I want to talk with Brazardian for a while."

"Are you sure?" Irwin asked, suddenly not sure he should leave Ambraz alone.

"Yes. Don't worry, kid, I'll stay civil. Just go play with that new card."

Irwin looked at Brazardian, then Ambraz.

"Alright. But before I go, I presume you want us to leave soon?" Irwin asked, looking at Brazardian.

"Correct. The ship is being finished now, and I expect you to leave tomorrow evening at the latest."

"Tomorrow," Irwin said, shaking his head in surprise. He'd expected two or three days, but this was hours from now!

"I need to go and talk with Skylar and the others," he said, looking at Ambraz. "I'll be in The Tappestery or with Greldo and the others."

"I'll find you," Ambraz stated, turning to Brazardian.

Irwin hesitated again as he felt Ambraz's soulforce turn to steel.

"Don't forget to ask him about what the Dean said!" he suddenly remembered.

Ambraz didn't respond, and Irwin sighed as he ran out.

Great! A few hours to say goodbye, get as many cards as I can, and reforge what I need for everyone, he thought!

Still, as upset as he was, a growing joy also filled him. He was going back and might see his family again soon!