Irwin's Journey - The Cardsmith

"It can drain from anyone?" Irwin hissed as he felt a tiny seed of fear. "What would happen if we were closer?"

"With how strong what I'm sensing is, it would start draining our soulforce," Ambraz said.

Irwin crossed his arms, staring off into the night as the power continued erupting far away.

It continued for a good ten minutes before fading away rapidly. Irwin stared at the sky, where the puffy ash clouds moved as if nothing had happened.

"It calmed down," Ambraz said slowly.

"I wonder who or what that was," Irwin said as he remained at the window for a little while before turning around.

The thin layer of pristine white sand on his bed beckoned him, but Irwin shook his head. He felt restless, and his soulcards' incredible endurance boost had wiped away most of his sleep. Checking on his two daughters, he was surprised to see that they were still asleep.

"Let's see if we can find some of that food Tiscian mentioned," he said as he walked to the door.

It didn't take him long to find a small kitchen-esque room. As he stepped in, he saw Boohm sitting at the bar, slowly sipping a drink. An empty plate stood before him, and he looked at Irwin enter.

"Captain! Hard time sleeping?" he said with a grin, managing to keep his voice remarkably soft. Irwin saw a flicker of sadness in his eyes, but it vanished instantly as the bald Onyxian rose from his seat. "Let me get you some food!"

Irwin waved him back. "It's fine. I'll get some myself."

Boohm hesitated, then sat back down.

"Did you feel what was happening in the direction of the city?" Irwin asked.

Boohm cocked his head. "Felt what?" he asked, sounding surprised.

Irwin quickly brought his cook up to speed on what had happened as he moved around the room, filling a plate of his own.

"So, a powerful Ignitzian turning Addled?" Boohm rumbled, shaking his head. "Just what we needed."

"It doesn't have to be an Ignitzian," Irwin said as he joined Boohm at the bar. He eyed the thin, high stools for a moment, then ignored it and just remained standing. Although it seemed to hold Boohm just fine, he was a great deal heavier than the Onyxian.

"What else would it be?" Boohm asked. "A Fiz'rin?"

"It could be one of those purple-bleeding attackers," Irwin said, chewing on his food.

Through his other self, he took a look at his daughters, but they were still asleep.

"I guess that could be… Perhaps one of them had a shadowwalker card?" Boohm said as he swirled the golden liquid in his glass before sipping again. "But why would they send someone to attack here if they are turning Addled?"

"It felt like an Ignitzian," Ambraz said, flying around the room.

Irwin stopped chewing, wondering how Ambraz could sense something like that.

Boohm hummed contently as he sipped from his drink before focusing back on Irwin. "Captain, are you going to search for your other Embers? There were six, right?"

"Five," Irwin corrected him. "And yes. I at least want to see they are alright, and perhaps…" he hesitated, wondering if he should bring them into his soulscape or leave them here. As soon as he pictured leaving them here, he felt a slight anger bubble up.

Leaving them here felt like abandoning them, but just as his anger grew, it fizzled away. And then what? Bring them with him, away from their own kind? To roam the Portal Gallery with him and all its danger.

He absently focused on his daughters, noticing they were starting to wake. His other self headed down into the volcano, and it took Irwin a few moments to pull the rest of him back to the real world.

I could bring them with me and to Mom, he thought, wondering how his mother would respond to them.

That did mean he'd have to get them cards to deal with the cold, and that meant they had to take their final shape. He looked up to find Boohm quietly watching him.

"You okay, Captain? It must be a bit of a shock to meet a bunch of your children for the first time!" Boohm asked, staring into his drink, his eyes dark and still.

Irwin nodded slowly. He suddenly wished Greldo was here. Or Daubutim. Although he appreciated Boohm's company, he would have liked talking to his friends about this. He focused on the Onyxian, about to brush it off when he saw a deep sadness in the shorter, wider man's eyes.

Irwin focused on his cook, who stared into his drink and took another drink, a deeper one. Any thought Irwin had of leaving was wiped away as he watched Boohm.

"It is a shock," Irwin said slowly. "But I'm very happy that I found them, even if it's only two of them."

Boohm smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes, and he angled his cup before frowning at the empty glass.

"Did I ever tell you about my son, Captain?" he said, reaching for the bottle that stood on the bar and refilling his glass.

"No," Irwin said, staring at his cook quietly.

Boohm was gazing at his drink, swirling it around, the crystal glass small in his massive hands.

"I guess that makes sense," Boohm said almost absently. "I don't talk about it a lot."

Irwin waited, taking a sip from his own drink as he watched Boohm. The Onyxian was staring off into the distance, clearly not seeing the wall before him.

"You know how I told you that I left Charxian?" Boohm said, his voice soft like a whisper and deep like the rolling thunder. It was filled with pain.

Irwin recalled that conversation. It was when he'd heard Boohm had been left stranded because he couldn't stand even the slightest cold. "I remember."

"Well, I didn't just leave because my cards weren't very useful back home," Boohm said. "There are storms on Charxian that we call Swirling Glass Typhoons. They are hard to predict and can mostly occur around the Frictian Desert, which is why nobody lives there."

Boohms voice rose slightly, though it didn't reach his usual volume.

"I was heading to my parents when a freak storm occurred," Boohm said before finishing whatever was still in his glass in a single swallow and almost mechanically refilling it. "Nouliandis, my son, was with me."

There was a soft crack, and Boohm stupidly looked at the glass that sat shattered in his hand. Then he wiped his hands, causing a crunching sound as he wiped the wet, crystal mess away, took up another glass, and refilled it.

"Usually, men in my world have at least one card to shape stone," Boohm said, his voice sounding almost dead. "The only exceptions are the sons from powerful families that will leave for expeditions. Me? I thought I was something, and that's why I took the cards I have. So when the storm hit us, I couldn't create a shelter… I was wrapped around my boy, trying to protect him as the ship was torn asunder around us. It didn't help. The glass just swirled around us, never-ending."

Irwin watched Boohm in horror, listening to how he described the glass ripping apart his armor and his son.

"When I was found, a day later, there was nothing left of…" Boohm took a deep breath before draining his glass and refilling it. "Paliandira couldn't look at me, and I didn't blame her. She'd always told me I was a fool, been angry for months when I took the cards I did. I left three days after the memorial, in the dead of night."

Irwin stared at Boohm, struggling to find something to say.

"That's horrible," he finally said as he imagined one of his daughters being killed while he was there, unable to protect her. He'd only met them for a few hours, but as his otherself hovered beside the tiny embers as they explored more of the volcano, Irwin felt his hands clench together in anger. The mere thought that something would harm them was enough to cause him to shiver.

"Horrible," he said again, with far more anger this time. "To not be able to protect him…"

Boohm stared at the bar, glaring at a puddle of the strong drink, a trickle dripping down the edge. Crystal shards glistened wetly in the light.

"It's been over ten years," Boohm said softly. "And I can still feel it, hear it. No matter how much I drink, the memories only dull, but they never go away. My father, just before I left… said everything fades with time. I'm still hoping for that."

"It won't fade," a soft voice said from behind them.

Irwin turned to see Tiscian walk into the room. She glanced at the bar, then took a glass for herself and sat down.

"I am sorry," she said, looking at Boohm. "I came to warn Irwin and accidentally overheard something I shouldn't have."

Boohm took a deep breath, then exhaled a plume of shimmering air so hot that Irwin felt it where he sat. It smelled like a mix of alcohol and brimstone.

"No worries," Boohm said, shaking his head. "I don't like telling it, but perhaps that's one of the reasons I can't let it go. Perhaps I should just talk about it more."

Tiscian took a drink, grimacing at the strength of the alcohol.

"Onyxian hard liquor," she grunted. "It's been ages since I last had this."

Boohm smiled, a genuine one this time. "I'll make you some before we leave."

Irwin had been quietly watching Tiscian, but now he leaned forward.

"So, what were you going to warn me for?" he said.

Tiscian took another drink. "You and your friends need to leave before dawn."

Irwin blinked, then cocked his head as his mind connected the dots.

"The eruption of soulforce that happened," he said.

Tiscian looked at him in surprise. Then she snorted. "I should have guessed you could sense that all the way here. Yes. I can't share any details, but there's an issue that has been plaguing Obsidian for decades, and it has just cropped up again."

"A six-soul-carded person turning Addled isn't just an issue," Ambraz said. "Is it that Bladematriarch?"

Tiscian began coughing, spraying some liquor at the bar. She whipped her lips and looked at Ambraz.

"What do you mean, Addled?" she hissed.

"What we sensed just now is a massive imbalance in someone's soulscape, and if it continues like this, it will result in whoever is having the fits to become Addled," Ambraz said.

Tiscian slammed her fist on the table before catching herself. She sat upright, her glass forgotten in her hand.

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"I want to say it's impossible," she said softly. "But… somehow, it makes perfect sense."

Her eyes narrowed, and she focused on Ambraz. "I know only the basics about The Addled. Is this preventable, curable?"

Irwin looked at Ambraz, recalling what they had done for Hind. That had already been difficult, and she only had a single soulcard and was cooperating.

"If someone turns Addled, it's too late," Ambraz said before hesitantly adding. "But before that happens, it's possible to fix things… sometimes."

"Sometimes?" Tiscian asked.

"There is a way," Irwin said. "But-

"But to help someone with that many soulcards, and at that strength, we would need at least a rank seven Ganvil," Ambraz added. "And one that still has their Smith…"

"I haven't heard about the ranks of Ganvils," Tiscian said slowly. "But, are there any at rank seven? Are you?"

"There are some, and I am not," Ambraz said. "There's a couple of added problems, though. The trick behind it is rather new and untested, and there are no rank seven Ganvils outside of those on Ganvrox."

"Would one be willing to come here? Could you reach them to bring one here?" Tiscian asked.

"No on both," Irwin said. "The person in question would have to go there, and we have other things to take care of before we could potentially go there."

Tiscian took a drink, seeming to think about what she'd heard.

"Then I fear we will have to solve our own issues," she finally said. "And it's best for you three to leave in an hour. I have sent two of my guards out to search for Hind and another to prepare one of our long-range scoutships.

"What about The Concerta and the rest of my crew?" Irwin asked.

"They will be fine as long as they remain off-world," Tiscian said.

Irwin hesitated before asking the question that had been on either of his minds all the time.

"And my other three children?" he asked.

Boohm glanced up, and the two of them watched as Tiscian shook her head.

"It seems my two granddaughters have taken it upon themselves to lure them back. They have remained awake. Against my express orders, I should add," she said. "I'll have to come up with a proper punishment for that later, but for you, this is good news. That is if you want to bring them with you?"

Irwin nodded more resolutely than he felt. The idea of having the five tiny embers with him while he went off doing dangerous things sounded stupid, but he couldn't help but worry for them. His otherself was currently being bombarded by happy emotions and curiosity requests that made that part of him grin. As if he could just create a stream of lava all throughout his soulscape like that!

"Then I'll go and talk with them. Can you get your things together?" Tiscian said as she finished her drink, shuddered, then walked to the exit.

"I'll get Zender," Boohm said as he got up. There was no sway in his step as he walked outside, and a moment later, Irwin and Ambraz were heading back to his room. He had most of his things in his soulscape, but his vest and a few other things were still there.

Just as he'd grabbed all of it, there was a soft knock on his door.

What?

Irwin frowned as he walked forward, readying himself for anything. Before he reached the door, it was pushed open, and a small Igntizian girl rushed into his room. As soon as she saw him, her eyes widened, and she closed the door behind her.

"Hi! You are Irwin, right?" she whispered hurriedly, looking around as if expecting someone to jump out.

"I… am," Irwin said, not sure what was going on.

"Good, you just like what Aunty Scintilla told us," she whispered, walking forward. "So you should be just as nice!"

"What are you doing here? Your grandmother was just about to-"

"I know," the girl whispered excitedly. "But she doesn't believe us! I told her Aunty Scintilla is probably still alive and that she had to send someone to search for her!"

Irwin stepped closer, towering above the tiny girl. As he watched her, a part of him wondered if his own daughters would look like that and already knew they probably would. The girl showed no nervousness as she gazed up at him, and Irwin wondered what Scintilla had told her and her sister.

"What's your name?" he asked, and as he did, his other self froze. What name did his daughters have? Did they have names yet, or-

"I'm Gi, but I don't have a grownup name yet," the girl said, looking surly for a moment. Then she shook her head. "We have to hurry! Bri won't be able to keep the Blademother busy for long!"

Irwin took a deep breath and lowered himself to his knees so he was at equal height with Gi. "Alright. Tell me what is going on."

"Aunty Scintilla got two new cards, but she didn't tell the Blademother because she wouldn't agree with her choice," Gi said hurriedly. "Her cards were meant for her to come find you and be able to stay on ice worlds. The Blademother doesn't like those, says it deludes our potential! So Aunty Scintilla never told her. Now she won't listen to me, says I'm making it up because I'm gria… griv, grieving!"

"And you think Scintilla's card was strong enough?" Irwin asked, realizing he wasn't at all surprised.

Didn't Triscian say something similar… so why would Gi think she didn't believe her?

"Definitely! She could make ice-fire! It was really cool, though I couldn't touch it because it would hurt," Gi said. "She had this trick where she covered herself in this blue icy block with fire raging inside!"

Irwin nodded, the hope he'd had growing even more.

"You have to believe me! Aunty Scintilla needs help!" Gi said, grabbing his shirt and pulling on it.

"I believe you," Irwin said, staring at the girl. "I'm going to go and find her, don't you worry."

"You will? Of course you will! Aunty Scintilla said you were awesome and the most powerful smith she'd ever seen!" Gi said, jumping up and down and hitting her fists in the air.

Irwin grinned. "The Blademother said you were searching for my other three embers?" he asked, using the Ignitzian term for a baby or young child.

"Yes! We found one, but it said the other two hadn't been seen for a long time," Gi said. She frowned. "I hope those mean serpents didn't get them."

"What mean serpents?" Irwin asked, suddenly worried.

"There's these really big snake things that live realllllyyyyy far below the ground, and sometimes us embers… Wait, I'm no Ember anymore, right? Those tiny embers go down there to explore and get caught by the snakes. They swallow us- them, and it takes a really long time to get back out!"

Irwin looked at her, trying to understand what she was saying.

"There are snakes down there that eat embers?" he asked, hoping she was making a joke.

"Yes! But they aren't as bad as the Earth Titans. Those absorb us and then-" Gi spread her arms wide as she made a whooshing sound. "-you're gone."

"Where is my third daughter?" Irwin asked, his hackles rising. He was not leaving his children there if this was what it was like.

"She's with Bri!" I'm sure grandm-" There was a soft knock on the door, and Gi's eyes shot open as she stopped mid-sentence. She looked around, visibly looking for a place to hide.

"It's Tiscian. She just appeared right in front of the door," Ambraz hissed. "She has to have some teleport ability."

Irwin didn't know what would happen if Tiscian found her here, but he didn't think it would be bad. Gi, however, looked terrified, and with her obviously trusting him, he didn't want her to get in trouble, no matter how minor. He leaned forward, lowering his voice to a whisper.

"Do you trust me?"

Gi blinked, her eyes wide.

Irwin put his hand on her shoulder and softly pulled her to his soulcape. There was a tiny moment of resistance, and then Gi vanished. Irwin felt her appear in his soulscape, and his other self began talking to her. Seeing no worry, Irwin walked to the door and pulled it open.

Tiscian stood before him, glancing into his room with a mocking grin.

"She's hiding below the bed, isn't she?" she said, shaking her head. "No matter. I guess I shouldn't be surprised. She's my granddaughter, after all. Irwin, I presume you have already heard that they managed to find only one of your embers. If you want to bring it with you-"

"I do," Irwin said, nodding sharply.

Tiscian looked a bit surprised by his reaction, then smiled. "Good. Then let's go and bring her to your soulscape. Hind is waiting in the courtyard on a scout ship."

Irwin nodded, and as he walked out of the room, closing the door behind him, he ejected Gi back into the room just as it closed. It was something he'd never thought he'd need, but as the door closed, he saw the surprised girl look around, then at him, and grin widely.

Tiscian was quiet as she walked back to her own abode, and as they walked across the open courtyard, Irwin saw Hind in a small airship. Boohm and a sleepy and confused-looking Zender said behind her. Hind's face was slightly drawn, and she mouthed hurry before focusing back on the panels of the ship.

When they walked back to the subterranean lavas chamber, Irwin saw the other little girl sitting there, whispering to a tiny being in her hand. With arms and a rudimentary head, it was swaying around to the sound of Bri's voice.

"Ah, you came," Bri said. "This one is really anxious to meet you!"

Irwin knelt beside her, looking at the third of his children that he met. Unlike the other two, it was hard to recognize it as an Ignitzian, but as he held his hand out, the tiny being jumped atop his hand without hesitation. A sense of relief flooded him, and he felt even more of a connection with the largely unformed child. There was a tiny moment of resonance, then it was gone. Unlike before, this time Irwin's otherself was ready, and it captured the tiny child within a bubble of lava, rushing it down to the river.

"Did everything go alright?" Tiscian asked.

Irwin nodded as he got up. "She's fine," he said as his other part began trying to connect more to the third child. Unlike with the other two, there was barely any cognizance to the tiny child, only emotions.

"Good," Tiscian said with a relieved sigh. "Bri, go and find your sister. She's probably in Irwin's room or already managed to sneak back. Go get your stuff because I've got to send you to one of your aunties."

Bri's face turned stiff, and she shook her head. "But why, grandma? We like it here!"

Tiscian walked to Bri, took a look at Irwin, and then seemed to resolve herself. "I know, little one. But there is going to be some trouble around the Tri-Capital soon. It will be safer if you are nowhere close."

Bri's eyes widened. "But what about you?"

"I will be fine," Tiscian said. "Now do as I say, and get your stuff. Captain Sabrina will take you in an hour."

Bri hesitated, then sprinted for the door.

Tiscian rose, and her face turned a lot older for a moment. The partial blaze of her hair dimmed, and Irwin thought he saw a few strands turn the dark gray that seemed to signal old age among the Ignitzians.

"I'll make sure to find the other two of your embers," Tiscian said. "When I do, I'll have someone bring them through the lava streams to Smelter. That's where you are going, right?"

Irwin had no idea if that was where they would be going, but he nodded.

"Good. I told Hind where Scintilla was when she died, but…" she shook her head. "Don't get your hopes up. I know the girls think she might have lived and that she had some new card, but I know my daughter. She'd never do something so wasteful."

Tiscian's face turned sad, her eyes dimming even more. "Though I guess the joke's on me. If I'd let her take that blight-frozen card, she might still be alive."

"I'll find her if she is alive," Irwin said absently.

Although he could sense how important things were for Tiscian, most of his attention was on the third of his little children as his otherself guided it to deep chambers where the other two were.

"Let's head out," Tiscian said.

Irwin followed her up the stairs, part of him watching the happy reunion between his three children. He sensed the two embers that were further along in their development, prodding the third one, sending it images of two others like it. The response was one of uncertainty and worry. Attached to it were mental images of fleeing something scary.

What was that? Irwin thought as he tried to get more information. His third tiny child, however, was already distracted and swimming along rapidly, exploring its new home.

As he followed Tiscian, he stopped when they reached the main room, causing the Blademother to stop and look at him.

"Is something wrong?"

"Perhaps. All three of my child- Embers seem to be very relieved about something, and the third one sent some worry, some worrisome images, and emotions. Almost as if something is wrong."

Tiscian's face dropped, and she looked at the ground for a moment. "I'll have someone investigate," she said. "Thank you for telling me. You had better go now."

Irwin nodded as he followed her out into the courtyard.

A few moments later, he was climbing into the light, small scouting airship. It swayed dangerously under his weight, and he gave Hind a worried look.

"You sure this can hold my weight?"

"Don't worry, Captain. It's able to haul a dozen Fiz'rin," she said, looking at him before turning to Tiscian. "Blademother, thank you for all your help. We will be heading out now."

"Good. I'll send a message when things change here. Until then, it might be best to stay away from the Tri-Capital. Irwin, take good care of those little ones!"

"I will," Irwin said as the ship began rising. It accelerated fast, and within moments, they were above, then over the walls, shooting toward the towering peaks in the distance. He watched the beautiful castle shrink behind them before looking at the person before him.

"Hind, what is going on?"

"Captain, let me tell you when we reach the mountain entrance," Hind said.

"Tell me now so I know if we need to force our way through the exit portal," Irwin said.

Hind cast him a terrified look over his shoulder. "What?"

There were similar remarks from Boohm and Zender.

Irwin pointed ahead, causing her to focus on flying before he answered.

"I don't know what is going on, but I can't get stuck on Igniz," he said. "We need to find Scintilla and my other children, but if there are issues here, we need to get off-world again."

"I… yes, Captain," Hind said. "But there's no need to worry. We can always go back off-world. The problem isn't along those lines. The Bladematriarch that rules Obsidian-"

A sudden swirling vortex of soulforce rippled from far behind them, and Irwin spun around, causing the scoutship to shudder.

"What-"

"It's that same thing," Ambraz hissed. "If that's the Bladematriarch, there's something seriously wrong with her!"

What? Irwin thought as he looked at the Ganvil. He was pretty sure that Ambraz wasn't just talking about her turning Addled.

"Do you sense the resonance of the Soulforce? Don't you recognize it?" Ambraz said.

Irwin frowned as he focused, but all he felt was that there was a resonance.

"I can sense there's a resonance, but it was too far for me to really hear the resonance. Why? What does it sound like?"

"Kid, I'm not a hundred percent sure, but do you recall Scintilla's crazy cousin?"

"Numilli…?" Irwin asked.

"That one. When she was pulling the soulforce from that Earth Titan? It felt surprisingly similar."

Irwin hissed as he stared behind him, ignoring Zender and Boohm's worried looks.

Great.