Chapter 100

“Patrolling isn’t going to work,” Ashlara said. “With more Bloodchildren showing up each day, the villages need real defenses. Walls. Guards.”

“You’re right,” I said. “I hoped this would pass, but it’s clearly not going to. I’ll ask the matrons to gather and we’ll figure something out.”

Getting them all together wouldn’t be quick. Each village sat roughly half a day’s travel from its nearest neighbor, with the farthest nearly a full day away. I could step between them easily enough, but the matrons couldn’t simply abandon their villages without notice.

After breakfast I stepped to each settlement and spoke with the matrons personally. Every one of them agreed to meet in Reedwatch two days from now - on the condition that I handled the travel. They all knew I could teleport, but only the goblins of Reedwatch understood how I did it, or knew anything about my demesne.

Once that was arranged, I returned to the workshop and started on my next project.

Heat for the bath.

I found another flat stone and shaped it with magic, then carved the runes and began assembling the mana construct. The enchantment was meant to draw power from the surrounding environment and convert it to heat.

It held on the second try.

Encouraged, I carried the stone to the bathhouse.

The tub was only about a third full so far. I undressed and stepped into the foot and a half of icy water, wading to the center. Using a bit of shaping magic, I carved out a recessed pocket for the heating stone and sealed it beneath another layer of rock, leaving a few vent holes so the warmth could spread while protecting anyone’s feet from the worst of it.

One stone wouldn’t heat the entire bath quickly, but it would eventually get the job done. If it proved too slow, I could always make another. The materials were cheap.

I climbed out and began drying off.

That’s when I heard gravel crunch at the far end of the bathhouse.

I turned. Nothing.

I went back to dressing, but when I turned my back I heard the sound behind me again. Whatever it was was on the far side of the room.

I kept my movements casual and stole a few quiet glances around the room.

Eventually I spotted the well door. It had cracked open just a hair.

I pretended not to notice.

After a while, a small irregular stone slid between the door and the frame.

It took me a moment to realize the stone wasn’t alone.

Tiny arms and legs made of smaller rocks clung to it, with a slightly larger stone forming the torso. The whole thing couldn’t have stood more than a foot tall.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” I called out as I finished tying my boots.

The stone vanished instantly and the door clicked shut.

I walked over quietly and sat down beside it. If whoever - or whatever - it was came back, I’d be waiting. If not, I’d only lose a few minutes.

Almost five minutes passed.

Then the door creaked open again. The little stone figure wedged itself into the gap.

“Is that you, Iolite?” I asked.

The tiny stone head turned toward me - then the whole figure vanished outside again.

“I’m not going to hurt you,” I said. “If you’re Iolite, you already know that. And if you’re someone else… I’m still not going to hurt you.”

Another minute passed. Then the little stone man returned, looking as sheepish as a pile of rocks could manage.

“Sorry, Shaper,” he said, his voice like pebbles clicking together.

“Why are you sorry?” I asked.

“It is not my place to disturb you.”

“You’re not disturbing me,” I said. “If you want to talk, I’m here. What do you need?”

“I do not require anything, Shaper. I was… curious.”

I chuckled. “Well, come on in and satisfy that curiosity. I just finished installing a heating stone in the pool.”

“I felt the Earthpulse,” he said.

“The magic?”

He nodded.

“I’m still learning how to enchant things,” I told him. “I’m getting better, but it’s not easy.”

He studied me silently.

“So,” I said, “tell me about this Earthpulse.”

“It is life,” he replied. “It flows through the stone. Some places have more. It is strong in the veins to here.”

“The veins to here?” I asked.

“They are paths in the deep stone that allow us to travel.”

“So… you’re from another world?”

He simply watched me.

“What’s your home like?” I asked.

“Like home,” he said.

I tried again. “Alright. How is home different from here?”

“Home is stone. Cool. Free. Here is not stone. Sometimes it's hot. Sometimes it’s cold. It’s not free. The Earthpulse is weaker here… except around you.”

“What do you mean it isn’t free?”

“Here there is here,” he said simply. “I can move down, but not up. It is hard to move above the stone.”

“So back home you can move up, down, forward, backward - because everything is stone?”

His little head nodded.

“And you don’t have much ‘above stone’ there?”

“There is some,” he said. “Small. Wrapped in stone. One I saw was very long but not wide. It traveled for miles but is only a few hundred feet across.”

“Like a cavern?” I asked.

He watched me in silence.

“Do you like it here? Above the stone?”

“I am pulled here sometimes,” he said. “I stay for a while, then go home.”

“Pulled here… like someone summons you?”

He nodded again.

“I’m sorry that happens,” I said. “If you don’t want to come, no one should **** you.”

A thought occurred to me. “Is it difficult for you to come here?”

“The veins can take us here.”

“Is the hot and cold uncomfortable?” I asked.

He shook his head.

“How long can you stay?”

His stone torso shifted in what looked suspiciously like a shrug.

“Well,” I said, “you’re welcome here any time you want. Stay as long as you like. We’ve got a lot of different kinds of people around here, and everyone’s pretty friendly.”

He just watched me.

“Do you want to see my workshop?”

Another shrug.

That was good enough for me.

* * *

The next two days passed in a blur of activity.

I raised another dozen shelters within a mile of the keep - simple stone structures sung from the earth, little more than three walls and a low roof, but enough to keep the worst of the weather off. I took the ferals hunting so we could gather more meat for the wandering Bloodchildren. I patrolled the villages with Moss and Clo. And when I wasn’t doing that, I was planning with Ashlara, Elise, and Mirri, since I would need their help when it came time to raise the village walls.

I still managed to steal a little time for my workshop.

Iolite proved surprisingly helpful. He told me which stones worked best for certain tasks, which soils held together when fired, and which clays would crack under heat. With his guidance I managed to build a small kiln. Before long I had fired several dozen tiles and even experimented with glazing them using various mineral pigments.

The plan was to use the tiles to line the bath.

He also showed me which clays could survive the heat of molten metal. With those, I shaped a proper crucible and fired it in the kiln. It held together.

That was exciting.

It meant I was finally one step closer to smelting metal - one step closer to forging an anvil and the hammers I would need to really start building things.

Whatever time remained, I spent reading. I focused on forging and metallurgy. That was the next big project, and if I was going to do it right, I needed to understand more than just the basics.

I realized at some point that I hadn’t slept in several days.

Normally that would have worried me. But right now there simply wasn’t time, and I felt perfectly fine - alert, focused, energized even. At some point I would have to ask Yveth whether sleep was optional for gods, or if we simply needed less of it. Or maybe I was just an anomaly.

Eventually the day arrived for the meeting with the matrons.

I stepped to each village in turn, gathered the matron and her guards, and brought them through the demesne.

It felt strange calling it my demesne now. Everyone used it. Elise practically lived there. Mirri, Serah, and the children worked the fields daily. Vel visited the wargs often. Even Grams had begun learning how to step there.

The matrons were clearly impressed.

Colorful ribbons drifted through the air above the fields. The castle rose proudly from the valley floor. The horizon shifted in strange, beautiful ways that made the entire place feel alive.

Even Morghinna seemed taken aback, though she tried her best not to show it.

Once everyone had gathered, I addressed them.

“More Bloodchildren are arriving every day,” I said. “I don’t know why they’re coming, but they seem to be gathering near the keep. Unfortunately, that means they sometimes wander close to your villages.”

“So far there have been no incidents,” I continued. “But I’m not willing to gamble on that. I want to build walls around each village. With gates. And I would like guards posted to watch for trouble.”

I looked around the room. “There is also an army of orcs marching this way. I haven’t checked their progress recently, but they will likely arrive sometime next week.”

Concerned murmurs rippled through the gathered matrons.

“Their target is the keep,” I said. “I’ve been trying to slow them down. Trying to negotiate a withdrawal. But so far they’ve been resistant. Urzan-Brek - the god of carnage - has been killed. His Faith is running uncontrolled, driving the orcs into bloodlust.”

“You’ve already seen the effects here. Arguments escalating into ****. Tempers running high. You’ve been somewhat protected because you aren’t soldiers - but the influence is spreading. Until a new god takes his place, we’re all going to have to deal with the consequences.”

“Why was the god of carnage killed?” Morghinna demanded.

“How was he killed?” asked Drikka, the matron of Snagfield.

“Will walls really protect us from an army of orcs?” Thulgraa of Mudcross cried.

“I don’t know how or why he was killed,” I answered honestly. “And walls alone won’t stop an army.”

“If the orcs arrive - and if they threaten the villages - we will evacuate everyone to the demesne. That’s the name of the place we went through to get here. There are crops. There is water. Shelter can be created quickly and easily. And the orcs can’t go there. You’ll be safe.”

The room erupted into fearful shouting. It took several minutes before Grams finally managed to restore some semblance of order.

“These Bloodchildren come because of you,” Morghinna said, pointing an accusing finger. “This army of orcs comes because of you. You have brought danger to all our villages. We should never have allowed you to stay.”

The room exploded again - some voices agreeing, others shouting her down.

“We’ve done everything we can to protect your villages,” I said, struggling to keep my voice steady. “We brokered peace with the trolls. We led the Bloodchildren away from your homes. We protected Reedwatch when the dragon attacked. We will continue to protect you.”

“The Bloodchildren are here because of you!” Morghinna shouted. “The dragon attacked because of you! The wargs came because of you! Your protection means nothing when you bring these dangers to our homes!”

“You’re right,” I said, my voice carrying through the hall.

The room went quiet.

“The orcs are coming because of me,” I continued. “Because I tried to save lives. I didn’t provoke them - but they’re coming anyway. The dragon came because of me. Because the god killer decided I had to die. I hadn’t even met him before we fought.”

“I don’t know why the Bloodchildren are gathering here. But yes - it’s probably because of me. I didn’t invite them.”

I met Morghinna’s glare.

“If you don’t want my protection, I will leave. I’ll gather everyone from the keep and we’ll go,” I told her. “But understand something. “That won’t stop the orcs. It won’t stop the wargs.”

“And you will lose the meat that helped you survive the winter. You will lose access to the crops in the demesne that will help you through the spring. And if something does go wrong, you won’t have us to stand beside you.”

“You have no walls. No soldiers. No guards. No one and nothing to protect you. Mothers would have died giving birth to the Bloodchildren - and that wasn’t a danger I brought. It happened everywhere.”

“You would have gone hungry when the merchants stopped coming. Arvellia has already claimed these lands as their own. I’ve been to Northgate. I’ve been to Crownreach. They would happily drive you out. And one day they might try.”

I looked around the room. “So decide. Let me help… or exile me. Whatever you choose, I will accept.”

Then I turned and left the council hall, the air behind me erupting into a storm of shouting voices.