Irwin's Journey 520: The start of a full-hand

Irwin hummed quietly to himself as he lay on his back, staring at the forge’s ceiling. Thick beams of wood hid dozens of nooks and crannies for Ambraz and the other Ganvils to hide in. Some were entrances to small cubby-like holes, others led deeper into the building.

He didn’t see them.

Focus on music and soulforce, or more fire, he thought.

Two of the Chaos Whale cards he’d templated and reforged where both interesting, but not for the same reasons.

‘Kid, why are you being so hesitant? You know which one will be the best,’ Ambraz grunted.

Irwin sighed.

‘I know, but it might be the only chance I have to keep my soulstrum guitar,’ he muttered.

‘Rust-brained fool,’ Ambraz snapped, flying down and landing on his chest.

Irwin was surprised by the annoyance he felt through their connection.

‘Any Chaos Whale is a being of music, even if it doesn’t say so on the card. Also, you have more cards to bridge the gap. You should be more worried about your steam ability,’ Ambraz continued. ‘Besides, this isn’t why you are hesitating, is it?’

Irwin sighed, listening to the distant chatter of his family as they went through their morning routine. It had been a day since he’d reforged all of the cards in public, and Zan and the others had yet to calm down.

‘After I finish this heartcard, we have to go to the Titan Sliver,’ he said, recalling the message it had left for him.

It had happened when he’d tried to move Brecka from Eluathar to Scour through his soulscape. Back then, it had been far weaker, and with his soulscape nearly devoid of soulforce, something had happened to his soulcards. Back then, he’d had no idea, while a voice had come into his mind.

“You aren’t ready yet... Five cards, then come and see me.”

“Five cards,” Irwin muttered, his deep voice echoing through the smithy. He looked at his empty hands. “What if it tells me that my final cards have to be something specific?  I fear I’ll not be able to bridge the gap between music and heat.”

“If that happens,” Ambraz grunted. “He doesn’t know what we can do.”

Irwin blinked, staring at the Ganvil. Ambraz’s annoyance had changed to certainty, and for some reason, it made him feel better. He knew each card by heart, as he’d looked at them many times over the last few days and weeks. He pictured their descriptions as he stared at them one at a time.

Card: Soulforce Hearth

Type: Fire, Soulforce, Diamond

Owner: Irwin Roddington

The wielder of this card gains a Soulforce Hearth in their soulscape, which increases all types of regeneration while within its range. [Soulscape]

Passive: Increased mental stability while near the Soulforce Hearth

Passive: Greatly increased regeneration while near the Soulforce Hearth

Active: Create a Soulforce Hearth within your Soulscape

​

The Hearth had been hard to reforge, but the result had been great. Although he wished he could have summoned the Soulforce Hearth outside of his soulscape, this sideways reforge had been the only one that gave him what he needed.

Besides, it wasn’t like he didn’t have something for that instead.

Card: Incandescent Regeneration

Type: Heat, Regeneration, Diamond, [Cursed?]

Owner: Irwin Roddington

The owner of this card gains the ability to greatly increase the heat radiating from their body, increasing the surrounding temperature. All those within the radius gain greatly increased regeneration. [Cursed?] The wielder’s body heat increases exponentially with the heat they radiate.

Passive: Greatly increased regeneration

Passive: Greatly increased area regeneration

Passive: Greatly increased heat resistance

Active: Boost your body’s heat to radiate outward, increasing the area and power of the regeneration

​

And then this one, he thought, staring at the red-bordered card with the clear outline of a Chaos Whale on it.

​

Card: Neamhnathair [???]

Type: Summon, Neamhnathair, [???], Ruby, Reforged by Irwin Roddington

Owner: Irwin Roddington

The wielder of this card can summon a Neamhnathair that has a predisposition to heat and soulforce. Warning! This Neamhnathair is [???] until it [???].

Passive: Greatly increase soulforce sensitivity and control

Passive: Greatly increased soulscape stability and size

Passive: Greatly increased [???] and control

Active: Summon a Neamhnathair [???]

​

“Fine,” he said, lowering the three cards. “So, which one first?”

“The Chaos Whale, then the Hearth, then the Regeneration one,” Ambraz said.

Irwin raised an eyebrow at that, but before he could ask, Ambraz was already continuing.

“The Hearth will allow you to connect both other cards to it and allow them a minor increase in regeneration,” the Ganvil said, sounding excited. “That should allow you to use everything you have more than you already can.”

Irwin nodded and pushed himself up in a seated position.

“Fine,” he muttered, pocketing two of the cards and looking at the Chaos Whale card. He felt a tiny bit of trepidation, wondering what it would be like to have a summon. He knew Chaos Whales were smart and sentient. Would this one be the same? Also, would he be able to summon more than one, like with his hammer and soulstrum guitar? He’d tried to ask around, but the information on it had been conflicting. Apparently, it depended.

Well, we will see soon enough, he thought.

“Any final advice?”

“Slot it already,” Ambraz grunted.

Irwin grinned and put the card above his empty hand’s first cardslot. It hovered for a moment and then began sinking in. It vanished with a flash, and for a moment he felt no change, then a buildup began in his soulscape.

What…?

Irwin focused nearly all his attention on one of his giant bodies in his soulscape, shooting into the air and hovering above his soulsea. None of his other cardslots had ever caused a sensation here, but as he watched, he saw soulforce begin to flow into the spot a heartcard usually hung. It started slowly, but within moments began speeding up until a massive amount of soulforce began compressing in a glowing dot.

Greldo never said anything about this, he thought.

A sudden flash was followed by a, compared to his size, small shape appearing in midair. A Chaos Whale calf, roughly the size of a large cart or sloop.  It looked identical to other Chaos Whales he’d seen, with a smooth, dark-gray, almost black hide and one big eye with four smaller ones arranged above it. He knew the number of eyes above the large one held significance, but he didn’t know how or why.

So, I can feel it, like Greldo told me I should expect, Irwin thought.

That said, he was unsure of what he was actually sensing. It wasn’t like Ambraz, where he could feel emotions. It was fainter, but with the emotions came a similar sense of being able to speak that he shared with Ambraz. A sense of waiting came from the Chaos Whale, and he also sensed the card it belonged to slowly changing.

Seconds passed, then minutes, and the Chaos Whale just hung there.

“Any idea?” Irwin finally whispered.

“I think I do. Just wait,” Ambraz said.

Minutes continued to pass, and very slowly, a change began to come over the tiny Chaos Whale. The pure black hide began to turn slightly ruddy, and lines began to appear across it. A golden gleam began coming from behind the eyelids. The changes started slowly, then seemed to escalate.

“It’s adapting to your soulscape,” Ambraz said, sounding excited. “I can feel it take in the aspects of your soulscape. This might be even more than we had hoped for!”

Irwin felt his excitement grow in lockstep with that of the Ganvil, and he moved slightly closer.

The calf continued to change, the regular long, smooth head growing slightly shorter, with the jaws gaining a more predatory feel. Where the skin had been dark gray, it was now black around the bottom, turning a fractured red as it rose and resembling a glowing coal at the top, with pale golden lines running around, almost like cracks.

Half an hour after slotting it, Irwin felt the card settle, and he knew that whatever had happened had finished. Immediately, he felt a young, curious, and energetic mind reach out to him. No, not just to him.

“Another brat!?” Ambraz cried out as Irwin felt a wave of worry and confusion from the Ganvil.

‘Pod? Sing?’

The emotions were almost words. Short and to the point, as the Chaos Whale’s eyes opened, burning with a golden fire. It shot forward, flying through the air with ease, causing an odd disturbance in the Ambient Soulforce within Irwin’s soulscape. Where it passed, it seemed to grow thicker, more solid. It also began resonating far more strongly, and Irwin began hearing a beautiful, faint hum that drifted closer.

The changes also seemed permanent, and with them, Irwin could feel part of his soulscape change. Not just where they were standing, but also around the edges. Unlike the usual extreme changes, it was gradual. He could feel the edges slowly push out.

Perhaps the benefits only fully show as it ages? he pondered. That could have worried him if it weren’t that he was planning on heading to the Titan Sliver and the gas giant before too long. The time dilation there would allow him to allow it to grow without causing issues. Well, without issues with himself.

‘Sing?’

“Ugh! Just when you have grown up, we get this?” Ambraz exclaimed. “Why couldn’t it have started as an adult?”

Irwin didn’t respond, laughing as the Chaos Whale calf reached him and bumped into his chest before slowly circling him, nudging him.

“I think it wants to sing,” he said.

“You don’t say,” Ambraz responded, voice heavy with sarcasm.

Irwin hesitated, then recalled the first song he’d ever heard the Chaos Whales sing. It had been one of joy, back when they had been roaming the storm, and taking a deep breath, he began humming.

The first sound immediately elicited a happy reaction from the Chaos Whale, and he felt it focus fully on him. Turning his humming into a wordless song, Irwin’s second giantself appeared beside him, soulstrum guitar in hand as it joined him.

A sense of overpowering joy and belonging echoed from the Chaos Whale, and it began softly humming along. It was clear it didn’t know exactly how the song went, but it also didn’t seem completely unfamiliar.

I wonder if it has ancestral knowledge, Irwin thought, the joy of his young new summon infectious.

‘Come on,’ he said, prodding Ambraz through their bond.

“Oh, fine!’

Irwin could sense Ambraz’s annoyance and interest war for only a moment before the Ganvil’s deep voice joined in. The Chaos Whale let out a cry of joy before joining again, and for almost an hour, Irwin, Ambraz, and the new addition to his soulscape enjoyed the sound of their combined song.

Eventually, however, Irwin sensed the tiny mind begin to weaken, and a sleepy feeling began to emanate from it. Letting the song slowly wind down, Irwin wondered where it was going to sleep. The tiny Chaos Whale nudged him a few times before flying a short distance towards the volcano.

‘Sleep. Pod. Not alone?’

Irwin grinned, and one of his selves flew forward, following the Chaos Whale. It took a while to reach the mountain, and when it did, it slowly lowered itself down into the superheated magma at a spot where it was barely ten feet deep. Not even fully submerged, it pulsed joy and sleepiness at Irwin, then put its head on the edge, let out a contented sigh, and fell asleep.

“I guess calves are just babies,” Irwin said softly. “They need a lot of sleep. Any idea on how long it takes for Chaos Whales to grow?”

“No, but Basil should know,” Ambraz answered.

Irwin nodded as he left one giant body sitting beside the Chaos Whale, while the rest of him moved back into his small body.

The first thing he noticed was two familiar eyes staring into his from less than a foot away.

“Zan?”

Irwin blinked, then noticed that the door to the smithy was ajar, and all of his children had gathered around him. Scintilla and his mother stood near the entrance, smiling.

“You slotted it!” Zan said, making it sound almost like an accusation.

“I did,” Irwin said, frowning. “How did you know?”

“You were singing with a Chaos Whale, but there’s none here,” she said, stomping her little foot. “Is it a baby?”

“A calf, but yes,” Irwin said.

“You said it was a secret, but you shared it,” she said, pointing her finger at his nose. “Now they all know! I want to see it!”

Irwin barked a laugh, prodding her in her stomach with a finger and causing her to move two steps back.

“It’s sleeping.”

“Don’t care! I won’t wake it,” she said, though her voice went from demanding to pleading.

Irwin saw the rest of his children hover nearby, clearly biting their lips but deciding that if anyone had a chance to get him to comply, it would be Zan.

They know me too well, Irwin thought with a smile.

“If I let you see it, you have to let it sleep,” he said, raising a finger.

Zan put her hands over her mouth in a way that made Irwin smile, and the rest of his children copied it immediately. That said, the gleam in Soot’s eyes told him he would need to keep an eye on his most adventurous of children.

“Very well,” he said, rising to his feet.

Six pairs of eyes widened with joy as he raised his hand and pulled them into his soulscape. He felt his otherself ready to intervene, but all six of his children just rushed the little lava point, none of them showing even the slightest issue with the heat, staring in fascination at the tiny Chaos Whale.

Irwin could see that all of them wanted to ask questions, but he decided those could wait as he turned to his heartbond and his mother.

“We were wondering how long you would remain unslotted,” his mother said, glancing at the one card in his hand. “Are you going to slot the others soon?”

“After it wakes,” Irwin said, cracking his shoulders. “How about we have a bit to eat?”

“The kids?” Scintilla asked.

“I think they will be a bit busy for at least an hour,” Irwin said, one of his selves keeping an eye on them.

The three of them walked into the kitchen, and Irwin’s mother waved them to the table as she began preparing. Irwin knew asking to help would be met with a raised eyebrow and a lesser portion, so he just sat down.

“So, tell us! How was it?” Scintilla asked, eyes wide. “Is it just like those outside, or were you and Ambraz right? Did it change?”

“It changed,” Irwin said.

For the next hour, he explained what had happened and ate, and slowly he realized he’d underestimated the allure of a tiny Chaos Whale to his children. They seemed content with sitting and watching it, oohing and aahing at every motion it made. Eventually, he had to bring them back so they themselves could eat.

As soon as they appeared in the kitchen, however, they surrounded him.

“We want one!” came a chorus of voices.

“To sing with!”

“Play with!”

“Explore the Portal Gallery!”

More reasons were rattled off, but Irwin just let out a deep sigh, shaking his head in mock severity.

“But what if there is only one more?” he asked, eyes wide, eyebrows up. “What if I have already promised that one?”

Zan’s smile froze, though her eyes gleamed. The others all froze with shocked expressions. All but one.

“You have template cards,” Ti said calmly.

“Right,” Soot shouted, arms in the air. “Don’t be mean, Dad!”

Irwin laughed softly before glancing at Scintilla. She shrugged.

“Very well,” he said. “If you all still agree in a few years, you can all have your second set of cards start then.”

“A few years?” Zan whispered, while they all looked at him as if he’d told them he was going to be leaving for Scour again.

Irwin sighed, waving at the table. “You are too young to slot cards faster than that,” he said. “Besides, after you combine both cards, which I have to remind you is very painful, you still need some time to get used to it. After that, you need your heartcard, which you will take some getting used to, and then you need to fill your soullake. It will take time.”

All six children sat down at the table, looking horribly annoyed.

“Can’t we get it as our final card for the first heartcard?” Flux asked, frowning.

“No,” Irwin and Scintilla said at the same time, causing the moment of hope to fade again.

Irwin sighed as he saw his kids frown and exchange looks.

“There are a few reasons why getting a summon like that as your first card causes issues,” Irwin said, knowing he would have to explain it more. “For one, you all need to focus on your main goal with your first soulcard, and this shouldn’t be a summon.”

“But what about Uncle Greldo?” Mia and Flux asked at the same time, before sharing a surprised look.

“Greldo is a special case,” Irwin said. “Coal gave him his shadewalking ability, and Greldo was able to make that his focus. Besides, he was older than you all are, and his soulforce far more stable.”

“But-” Glow said, and for the next ten minutes Irwin kept slowly explaining what he could. After that, however, he had enough and raised his hand to forestall more questions.

“I know you don’t like it,” he said with a sad smile. “But it's not worth the risk to rush it. If you get the card as your first card in the second batch, it will be stronger and have no risks attached. Now! It is time for bed!”

There was a round of moaning, then Zan stepped forward. “Can I see the baby when it's awake? Also, is it a boy or a girl? What name does she have?”

She? You just asked if it was a boy or a girl, Irwin thought.

He frowned, realising he had no idea, and focused on his card.

‘Any idea?’ he asked Ambraz.

‘No, perhaps something was added when the card changed, and-’

Ambraz fell quiet, then whistled in appreciation.

‘What?’

Ambraz didn’t answer, but Irwin felt him fly to his otherself.

-- Irwin’s Soulscape --

“Kid, a book! Quick! The question marks are gone!”

Irwin flinched as he saw the still sleeping Chaos Whale roll around at the sudden shouting. Luckily, it remained asleep. He summoned a book to his hand, putting it on Ambraz’s back. A flash and a flip later, he was staring at the page with his eyes wide.

Card: Neamhnathair [Volcano]

Type: Summon, Neamhnathair, [Volcano], Ruby, Reforged by Irwin Roddington

Owner: Irwin Roddington

The wielder of this card can summon a Neamhnathair. This Neamhnathair is fully [adapted]. Permanent type change to [Volcano].

Passive: Greatly increase soulforce sensitivity and control

Passive: Greatly increased soulscape stability and size

Passive: Greatly increased heat and pressure resistance

Active: Summon a Neamhnathair [Volcano]

“You were right,” he whispered, nodding slowly as he examined the text and glanced at the sleeping Chaos Whale. “So, it’s likely the other one would have gravitated to sound…”

“Perhaps,” Ambraz said.

“What if I slot another?” Irwin said, leaning back.

Ambraz was quiet for a while, then hummed.

“I wouldn’t do that without a check at Granvox,” he said. “I’ve not heard of that, and there might be a reason for it.”

Irwin nodded slowly, staring at the Chaos Whale. “Perhaps the next heartcard.”

“For now, I would wait with slotting your next card until the Chaos Whale is used to things. Greldo said that slotting an adjacent card gave Coal a boost but also a scare.”

Irwin nodded. “We can do it in a few days. No idea on Zan’s questions?”

“No… We will have to wait until it wakes up.”

Irwin nodded, leaning back.

-- The real world, Eluathar --

“I looked, but there’s no information on it,” Irwin said, focusing on Zan.

Zan frowned, then took a step closer. “Wake me when she wakes? I wanna hug her!”

Still not sure it's a girl, Irwin thought, smiling.

“I will. Now, off to bed!”

The kids groaned but did as asked, though not before all of them rushed in for a quick hug. Zan held him the longest.

“I really, really, like the baby,” she whispered in his ear before running off to drag Ti away, much to her sister’s obvious surprise.

An hour later, Irwin finally sensed his children had all fallen asleep. He had expected Zan to be last, but in the end, Soot had been tossing and turning, his soulforce signature uneven the longest. It was an easy way to detect if people were awake or not, even if it only worked with those unable to control their own soulforce signature, like children.

“So you didn’t have any big changes when you slotted your new card?” Scintilla asked, curious.

“No, everything seems gradual,” Irwin replied, focusing on his heartbond. “Everywhere it flew, soulforce turned thicker with a stronger resonance. It also feels like the borders of my soulscape are growing and expanding. I can’t be sure, but it might be bound to the Chaos Whale’s growth.”

“Does that mean you won’t have the full strength until it’s mature?” his mother asked, putting her steaming drink down.

“It feels like it,” Irwin agreed.

The two women were quiet for a bit before they shared a look that told him they were worried about something else.

“What is it?” he asked.

“The other me told me you are going to go into the gas giant,” Scintilla said. “Are you going to be alright?”

Irwin instantly knew she was talking about the time dilation, and he nodded.

“I’m not going to remain in there for as long as I did on Scour,” he said.

Not unless the Chaos Whale needs to be fully grown before I can complete my heartcard, he thought, keeping that to himself.

“Good,” his mother said. “Irwin, that time dilation? It’s not good for you. Also…Trimdir said there are rumors that the time dilation on Eluathar could be slowing.”

“Slowing?” Irwin asked slowly. Where had he heard this before?

“Yes,” his mother said. “It’s not confirmed, and it’s apparently only a slight bit, but if I think about what you told me about Scour when you first came there…” she trailed off, her eyes unfocused.

“I’ll be careful,” Irwin said, deciding that he’d have to talk to Trimdir.

I wonder why nobody told me, he thought, recalling the quiet months one of his selves had spent on Eluathar. He’d spoken with both Trimdir and Daubutim a few times, and if Trimdir knew, his friend would.

The rest of the evening passed calmly, though part of him kept pondering about the time dilation.

--

Zeit felt had been about to return three days ago when his senses had detected something far in the distance. It had been faint, but unmistakable. Now, as he shot out of the glacial area and into a warmer corridor, the ambient soulforce rapidly rising, he knew it to be sure.

There’s another main branch here! Tiny, but complete!

He could barely believe it as he thought about the month of traveling he’d needed to reach it. He had no idea how small it had to be for the corridor leading to it to be this small, but his people had long learned that any main branch would only form if there were powerful enough exit portals in it. For one of this size, he had no idea how many there could be. Two? Three?

There are rank five worlds here, or a rank six, he thought as he continued forward as fast as he could.

A day later, he saw the distant, narrow corridor partially blocked by two warships. Each was easily the equivalent of one of Slaudi’s less warships. The soulforce signatures he felt on them showed that all were at a minimum one-soulcarded, with a pair of two-soulcarded on each ship. Not enough to be worrisome, and not enough to trigger his orders. Luckily.

He moved past them without them noticing, which didn’t surprise him, and headed towards a distant mountain range.

No wonder this place was never found, he thought, as he sensed how the ambient soulforce was being partially bottled up behind it. As he moved through the valleys and along the mountainsides, he sensed something else behind them.

Something familiar…

What is that? he thought, as he felt his carefully curated emotions start to roil and heave.

He knew this feeling. It had been eons since he’d last sensed it! Back when he was a youngling, not even a warrior.

Shooting across the last mountain caused a distant, sprawling forest to appear, with the trees further out rivaling the largest he’d seen. The barrier had grown high by now, showing that the mainbranch behind it was a bubble one. Rare, but not unheard of. An exit portal gleamed in one of the tree’s branches, surrounded by a harbor city that was clearly a recent addition.

Many of these things would have caused him to be annoyed, as they would have triggered his chains. His orders.

Yet, none of it mattered as his eyes lay on the giant shapes gently floating around the city.

He knew them and knew the Guidar had actively hunted them for many reasons. But one of the reasons was because of what he felt now.

A lock on his mind, one he’d not even known was there, and that had hidden knowledge from him, was ripped away. He hovered in midair, all else forgotten as a beautiful, ancient, and warm song rippled through his mind. The chains that bound him began to shudder and shake as he felt the song touch something deep in his soulscape. Something that had been dormant.

Cracks began appearing.

Neamhnathair!

Zeit felt and sensed the song, distant and muted, grow louder, barely realising he was moving forward. Only when he was in front of the largest one, hovering before the faintly curious eye, and heard a shout from its back, did he realise he wasn’t even hidden anymore.

None of it mattered.

‘Ancient one! Free me!’

His mental shout was momentarily met with confusion, then a flicker of understanding. A moment later, a deep hum came from the beautiful creature, weaving a pattern of soulforce that flowed into his soulscape.

Freedom. At last!

--

Basil stared in confusion at the tall figure that hung midair beside Scariander’s head. His giant friend had been clearly confused, but then had apparently remembered something. Now it was singing, as the young ones came closer, joining him. Whatever it was doing was causing the figure to shake violently, blood flowing from his pitch-black eyes. If not for the wide smile on the man’s face, he might have tried to stop it. As it was, all he could do was watch and wonder.

It’s always the same. Irwin returns, and mad stuff happens, he thought.