Irwin's Journey 506: Type switching

Irwin leaned forward, eyes glistening as he saw the soulforce Flowrishin was forming ripple as it resonated like a thick cloud. A resonance not unlike those he created for cardseeds, yet at the same time incomparably different, was taking shape before her. Her Ganvil bond, Klei'am, was expertly holding a soulforce barrier, within which a tiny cardseed was forming.

'Definitely not one we can copy,' he sent to Ambraz.

'You don't say…' his own Ganvil replied sarcastically, before a wave of excitement came from him. 'I am noticing a pattern, though. I wasn't sure yet, mostly because nobody had managed more than one cardseed except for you. But now? Listen, there's something that matches with you and Flowrishin. Both with your soulseeds and hers, and the general card you usually create when using it. Your first, Candlelit Glow, is based on your first soulcard, and it is always a generic fire one. Her first is the same, Reaching Vines. Always a very simple vegetation control technique. After that, your second incorporated metal bonded to your Crathan physique, debatably your most powerful soulcard, and the one that changed you the most. From what she said, her second cardseed usually creates a card called Falling Leaves, or something similar, but in her case, it matches her weakest control card.'

Irwin was listening to Ambraz while watching Flowrishin wrap up the final strikes of the cardseed. Although he didn't know exactly what it would become, like Ambraz, he could sense the general direction. It seemed to embody the essence of plants and water. 

'After that, both of you began creating your other cardseeds, but she went with her most recent one, while you took your body doubling concept from your second soulcard. You succeeded much faster, and not just faster compared to her. She needed less than twenty years for her first cardseed, the fastest we know, except for you and Endil. Then she needed over six hundred years for her second, but only a hundred for her third.'

Irwin barely managed to hold back a hum of understanding, knowing it might cause Flowrishin to lose control. 

'You think there's an order we should be making the cardseeds in!' he exclaimed. As he did, he recalled how he'd been flitting back and forth with his cardseeds, many years ago. He'd gone from one to the other, usually when he got stuck. From what he knew, so had Flowrishin, but perhaps he'd been lucky with exactly which card he'd managed as his second?

'Yes! I mean, you and Endil had nobody to explain it to you, so we can't really use the time you needed for your first cardseed, but in your case, you needed roughly twenty-five years for your second, fifty for your third. Initially, I was wondering if each soulseed took double the time, but that doesn't really make sense. Now we know that Flowrishin needed about twenty times as much time for her second, but she was much faster on her third one. Now, not all of the cardsmiths started with their first card, but of those that succeeded, all did.'

Irwin was nodding along, just as a burst of soulforce exploded from where Flowrishin was working.

She succeeded, he thought, as he watched Flowrishin grab the quartz card that hovered before her. He could roughly sense that the type matched what she had explained before.

The ancient Viridian, likely one of the oldest he knew, turned to him, her hair again largely yellow, though a single stubborn green leaf hung to the side of her face, which had still kept more of its youth since he'd last seen her. A glitter of pride was there as she walked towards him, Klei'am shrinking and flying after her, landing on her shoulder.

"And now there are two," Ambraz said. "You did well, Klei'am."

"Of course I did," Klei'am said, his tone like Ambraz's, though his voice was higher and more airy. "I've got one of the best cardsmiths in the entire Portal Gallery as my bond, and I'm me."

Irwin saw Flowrishin roll her eyes, and he couldn't help but grin as he sensed annoyance mingle with pride from Ambraz.

"How far are you two with your fourth cardseed?" Ambraz asked, the challenge in his tone clear.

Before Klei'am could answer, Irwin quickly interrupted. 

"Ambraz, can you and Klei see if Frisyuustis has anything important to share?"

Ambraz sniffed, flying up from his shoulder. "Good idea. I'm curious if he finally managed to create a useful progeny," he said, zipping away and followed by Klei'am.

Flowrishin watched them leave before turning to Irwin.

"Do you think that how good a Ganvil believes he is has something to do with how good he is?" she asked slowly. "Because those two seem highly skilled, and also think they are the Elder Tree's gift to all of us."

Irwin grinned as he sensed Ambraz had continued bantering with Klei'am. 

"It wouldn't surprise me," he said, focusing on Flowrishin. His soulforce senses told him he'd finished her final heartcard, making her a five-soulcarded with a finished heartcard. She had reached the official end of her ability to grow stronger, unless she asked him to break apart her heartcard, something he very much doubted she'd be willing to do a second time. Still, her newest heartcard had helped her age far more easily than the previous one, and although he would be lying if he couldn't see the over five hundred years that had passed since he'd last seen her, she looked far less old than he had expected.

Flowrishin was staring back at him, raising a leafy eyebrow.

"You look younger than I expected," he said.

The second eyebrow joined the first before lowering as Flowrishin let out a soft laugh. 

"Even after all this time, you know so little of the Viridians," she said, looking around and waving him towards the door. "Let's head for the central area. It should be close to full by now."

Irwin followed her as Flowrishin pulled her leafy hair forward, glancing at it before letting it fall back.

"Viridians that are bored, or sad, or stressed, age faster," she said. "Viridians who are happy, healthy, and busy age more slowly. Then there's the amount of soulforce around us that helps, and I've been living near a venerable sea of Ancestral Coperion for over five hundred years now. If you want to know how much longer I can live-"

Irwin snorted as the ancient Viridian waggled her eyebrows at him.

"-you are out of luck. I don't know, and if I did, I wouldn't tell you."

Irwin let out a soft laugh as the two of them walked through the building. He felt at ease with Flowrishin, even though he knew that to her, it must seem strange, walking with him again after so long. 

"Have you decided yet?" he asked.

"Oh, I've decided many times, and then changed my mind only to decide the same thing again a few decades later," Flowrishin said. "But for the last century, I've held to the same one. I think I'll be staying on Scour, at least for another few hundred years. After you leave, the time dilation will be far less divergent compared to that of the Portal Gallery. Even if your own hunt for your friend takes a few years, I'll not be too old to go the next time you arrive."

Irwin felt a tiny stab of pain as he realized that one of the few people he knew on Scour would be staying behind. Flowrishin either didn't notice or ignored it as she continued talking.

"I am the only one who has been able to make more than one cardseed, and I feel I owe it to my people to stay here until more learn."

"I understand," Irwin said, feeling a slight weariness. 

They continued walking quietly as he thought about the other things he'd learned in the half a day he'd been back. A small journal had been waiting for him when he returned, written by Flowrishin and filled with small notes. 

Nobody is left, he thought, feeling a strong desire to leave Scour.

"You will come back, right?" Flowrishin asked as if she was reading his mind.

"I don't know," Irwin said honestly before quickly changing the subject. "Why did you plan this?"

Flowrishin was quiet for a moment before answering.

"Having you demonstrate your abilities? Or the tournament?"

"Both."

"Because over the last few years I've noticed that those you taught are those who had the highest eventual growth," she said. "I don't know why this is, or if it is just a coincidence. Perhaps you just notice those with talent and thus teach them. Whatever it is, I am having issues finding cardsmiths among our ever-growing ranks that eventually meet up to my standards."

Irwin spread his soulforce senses, feeling the thousands upon thousands of people crowded in the center of the Cardsmiths Guild's main open area. It was mostly used for exhibitions or smithing tournaments, though apparently every master cardsmith, including Flowrishin, gave demonstrations every few years.

"I'll see if I can find some for you," he said. "How long does a tournament usually take?"

"Not too long. A few weeks at most," Flowrishin said.

Irwin felt a slight annoyance at that, knowing it meant he would need to stay here for a lot longer than the short day he had envisioned. Then he pushed the feeling away, focusing on the time dilation. He'd left it untouched when he returned, holding back his own influence as much as he could. Even then, it was close to forty to one, meaning that he could easily be here for that long without breaking his promise to his children.

"Fine, let's see if there are any hidden talents," he muttered.

--

Berjin leaned back in his seat, which, like Uvra's, was in the third ring around the main field. Only the masters, and those likely to be one, sat closer, but he knew it hardly mattered.

"That was ridiculous," Uvra exclaimed, her voice lost in the deafening outburst that came from the massive crowd around the central area. "He just… just… made a Diamond-rank card as if it was nothing!"

Berjin didn't respond as his own mind was still trying to deal with the ease with which Irwin had created a cardseed. He'd never been able to make one, though he'd gotten closer to the single tone he needed, but what he'd seen just now? It put into perspective even those times he'd seen the Guildmistress demonstrate her cardseeds. The ease had been startling, and almost made him wonder what he was doing wrong if it could be done like this.

"This is the end of Guildmaster Irwin's demonstration! You all have an hour to make your way to your designated crafting area," Flowrishin's voice boomed through the enormous area. "Remember, this is not optional, and any cardsmith who doesn't join will be fined."

There was a moment of silence, then the crowd of cardsmiths that had come from all over Scour began getting up, some using movement cards to reach the sprawling grounds below.

"Ugh, why is this mandatory again?" Uvra muttered.

"Nobody knows, and stop complaining," Berjin said as he slowly followed the line of cardsmith masters that had sat before him. Most were younger than him, something that had stung for a long time until he had gotten to grips with his own limited skill. "Besides, the Guildmistress has been warning us this would happen for over fifty years."

"I know," Uvra said wearily. "But wasn't it supposed to be a year after the Guildmaster returned?"

"It was, but perhaps he will be leaving even sooner than expected?" Berjin said absently, looking at the spot that had been his for the last hundred years. Like all cardsmiths, he had just enough room for an anvil and for the runes engraved in the stone ground to block out the surrounding noise. He hated having to stand in it, as it always made him slightly claustrophobic. 

"I just hate having to see these brats outperform me again," Uvra continued.

Berjin didn't react, but when he reached the railing that bordered the steep drop down, he looked at his old friend. "Make sure you do your best!"

"I always do," Uvra said, haughtily.

No, you don't, Berjin thought as he hopped over the edge.

Six hours later, he was sweating slightly as he finished reforging his card up to Topaz. He was rapidly approaching the limits of his skill, but as he looked around, he was happy to see that only the masters and a few of the other older cardsmiths were at the same stage as him. He'd always been fast with what he could do. He just wished he could manage to reach the Ruby-rank of smithing. 

Well, who knows, perhaps I'll succeed today, he thought to himself as he began mentally preparing himself for the final step he knew he should be able to do. Topaz to Emerald was seen as one of the harsher bottlenecks for most cardsmiths, with many able to reach Topaz only to falter here. He'd been able to reach it in under a hundred years, not the best, but definitely good enough to have been a prospective master. Sadly, none of his ruby-rank cards had ever reached eighty percent perfection, with most shattering. He still felt that it was both due to him not having a bonded Ganvil and something about his chosen cardsmith style just wasn't… right for him. Not that he knew what the problem was. He still worked best with patterns, though he had tried fire, force, and music. Sadly, none of those styles had helped him overcome his issue.

With a final look around, noticing that most of the masters were deeply engrossed in their own emerald reforge, he focused on his card.

Let's see how well I do today, he thought.

Many hours later, he let out a weary but content sigh. His soulforce was drained, and he knew he wouldn't be doing any reforging for a few days, but that was alright. Like most of the times he'd joined, he had managed to be among the first hundred to finish an emerald card. It wasn't perfect, sadly, but at ninety-six percent it was nothing to scoff at either. Sadly, he knew that he wouldn't be able to get to the next round, though, as he looked around, he saw that over ninety percent of the cardsmiths had already left, which meant they had either blown up their card or finished it below eighty percent.

A few steps away from his crafting area, now surrounded by abandoned crafting stations, he saw Uvra waiting for him. He stared at his card, knowing he'd have to leave it here or be disqualified. He walked out of the runic barrier. Instantly, the chatter from the crowd in the stands returned, as did an exasperated sigh.

"I still don't understand how you can be this fast and not improve for so many centuries," Uvra said. "I only just finished my Topaz reforge."

Berjin shrugged as he headed towards the exit.

"You will continue tomorrow?" he asked.

"Are you crazy? I can't reforge up to ruby-rank any better than you can, so I only have one more attempt. I'll be heading back in a week for the last session. You?"

"Same," Berjin said, hesitating as he looked up. "Did you want to join me for dinner?"

"What, at your family estate? No thanks! Too many kids running around, and too much screaming," Uvra said. "Why don't you join me in one of the restaurants?"

Berjin shook his head. "I can't. It's possible that the Matron is going to show up."

"The Ma… The Shipwright Guildhead, Rindiri?"

"Guildmistriss, but yes," Berjin said.

"Fine. You twisted my arm, I'll come with you," Uvra said. 

"She might not show up," Berjin said.

"It's worth the risk."

Berjin let out a soft laugh as they headed out.

--

"So… what did you think?"

Irwin lay back in his chair, arms crossed, a slight headache throbbing in his head from having to focus on the thousands of cardsmiths reforging constantly. He'd regretted that Ambraz had left, and in the end had to pull the focus of both his selves into his body to be able to cope. Still, it hadn't been without result.

He took the paper he'd been scribbling on and handed it to Flowrishin. "In order of how well they did, these are nineteen cardsmiths that I think should be able to reach Ruby-rank at least."

Flowrishin's gaze flickered across the paper, and she frowned before looking up. "Most of those have been locked at their current rank for a hundred years or more."

"They are using the wrong smithing style for their soulcards," Irwin said, rubbing his eyes before pushing himself up. "Am I right in believing we will have more smiths arriving tomorrow?"

"Yes, and the day after," Flowrishin agreed, still staring at the paper. "How are we even going to help them progress? Some of those, like Berjin, tried every style we have masters on."

Irwin hummed softly as the name made him think about Rindiri, who had asked to be pulled out soon. 

"I've got books on them," he said. "And I know Frisyuustis knows at least two of the styles they need."

"Frisyuustis hasn't been… on good terms with us for a while now," Flowrishin said with a weary sigh. "A few of his rank zeroes died a hundred years ago, and he still blames the Elders."

"I read about that," Irwin said as he looked around before deciding he was going to eat first. "Let's go and eat, so you can tell me about that. Also, I'm sure Ambraz can help with that."

"I wonder," Flowrishin said as she followed him.

A lot later, when the sun had set and Irwin had finished a few plates of Burning Stew, a local dish that had grown popular over the last century, he walked with Rindiri through the city. Flowrishin had returned to the Cardsmiths Guildhall to prepare for the next day, asking him to be there early the next day.

"You are sure you want to come along, Captain? It's probably going to be boring."

"Boring is fine. My head is still throbbing," Irwin said. "Besides, I'm curious to see what happened to Earilla's family." 

Your family.

Irwin didn't add the last part because he knew how sensitive it was to Rindiri. As they walked through the city, they picked up snippets of conversations, mostly dealing with his return and the sudden full-scale Cardsmith tournament. 

"It's good they don't know me," Irwin whispered, watching a group of Crathan children sprint across a small square, dodge a few merchant carts, and run past them without looking up. The merchant shouted warnings after them, meeting Irwin's gaze for a moment, but just nodding before he continued onward.

"It's also troublesome," Rindiri said as she glanced at a nearby statue depicting two Crathan warriors, glaring at the dead corpse of an Insectoid Queen. "They know very little about you, though luckily they did learn a lot about the Guidar early in their life. From what I could glean from those notes you gave me, they did learn from last time we were here."

Irwin nodded as they walked into the street where Berjin and the rest of Rindiri's remaining family lived. With night having fallen, most of the light came from the runic lanterns that dotted the walls, creating a shadowy, orange lighting. Irwin knew that it was likely for the non-Crathans that lived in Blackgass, as all Crathans had inherited his dark vision to some degree.

"I'll go to the Shipwright Guild tomorrow and see how many ships they have ready," she said. "I also left them a few assignments, mostly research into runes and ambient soulforce absorption for sails. Even after all these years, we are still so far from the efficiency of the sails they make in Suderfuix, let alone the richer branches."

"Not so strange," Irwin said. "They have been doing this for millennia. It would be odd if you could catch up to them in a mere fifteen hundred years."

Rindiri didn't respond, but Irwin could see she still didn't like it. 

"Your sails might not be as efficient, but with Ambraz and me on the ship, we will be able to propel it forward much faster."

"I know," Rindiri said as she reached the door of the large estate. "They grew wealthy," she said before pushing her hand on the runic engraving on the gate. A dull gong sounded from the other side, but instead of having to wait, the doors swung open. 

Irwin and Rindiri shared a look before walking inside, arriving on the edge of a larger courtyard than they had five hundred years prior. The door on the back was shoved open, and a man Irwin had noticed before came speeding out. 

"Great-grandmother, Guildmaster Irwin," he exclaimed, arriving before them while leaving a trail of dust across the courtyard.  "I had hoped either or both of you would see fit to see us. We already ate, but if you want-"

"It is alright," Rindiri said, raising her hands quickly. "We have eaten."

"Ah… good, I guess," Berjin said, seemingly hesitating as his gaze moved from Irwin to Rindiri. "Would you like a drink?"

"That would be nice," Irwin said. 

"This way, please," Berjin said. "The children are already in bed, and we had just been discussing the tournament. Perhaps you could enlighten us on what you thought of it, Guildmaster?"

Irwin hummed in agreement, hoping it wouldn't end up with him tutoring Berjin all night.

Two hours later, that was exactly what he was doing, and not just for Berjin.

"No, no, you need to let your soulforce flow with the image," he said, wishing he'd paid more attention to this specific subset of cardsmithing. He also wished Ambraz were there.

"Yes, Guildmaster," Berjin said, taking a deep breath and focusing on his soulforce again.

He was standing in a cosy living room, Uvra a few steps away, focusing on the same image as he was while Irwin sat at the table, watching them. Rindiri had left together with the Rilla, her great-granddaughter, who was still alive, though looked more ancient than any Crathan that Irwin had yet seen. Most of the other adults had gone with them, very curious to learn about where their family originated from.

A few minutes later, Irwin felt how Berjin's soulforce was flowing more easily; the resulting image was clear to all who could see the soulforce as he could, which meant barely anyone. Still, as he felt Berjin's will shape the soulforce, using the image to create the pattern, he knew he'd finally found the smithing type the man would likely be able to progress with.

"Alright, that's enough," he said, causing both cardsmiths to stop. 

They instantly lowered their hands, staring at him and making him feel odd. Both were older than he was, but acted like students.

"Berjin, if you practice this from now on, you will be bound to see progress," Irwin said as he pulled a book from his soulscape. "You can read this, and when you are done, make sure to deliver it to the Cardsmiths Guildhouse Library."

Berjin took the book almost reverently, his eyes gleaming.

Irwin watched as he flipped open the book, already knowing what he would find. It was one of the copies he had that dealt with the rather obscure Cardsmithing Style called Visualization, one that was an offshoot of the Painting Style. The book was short, and he recalled having read it once. Although less known, the style was far more useful than the Painting Style because it didn't require someone to actually paint or draw. 

Humming softly, he turned to Uvra. Even older than Berjin, she was looking at her hands with a weary resignation.

"It's not for me," she said, looking up. 

"No," Irwin said as he shrugged. "I'm afraid you already have the most suitable smithing style. You will just need to practice more."

"More," Uvra whispered, grimacing. "I've been practicing this for six hundred years now."

Irwin didn't know what to say, so he kept quiet. She already had the Emerald rank of reforging, something only a small number of Cardsmiths reached. It was, however, likely that she'd reached her limit.

"I'm sure you can continue improving," Berjin said, looking up from the book. "Just keep practicing!"

"Well, I wasn't planning to change profession now," Uvra said, frowning at him before turning to Irwin. "Thank you for spending time to teach us, Guildmaster. I know it must have been a busy day for you."

"It's fine. I enjoyed myself, and this way I could repay Berjin for the drinks," Irwin said, meaning it. 

"No need for that," Berjin said, looking up from the book again.

Irwin could see he was trying hard not to get distracted by what he was reading, so he got up. "I'll head back to the Guildhouse. Rindiri knows where to find me."

"Are you sure you would not rather stay? We have spare rooms," Berjin said, looking worried.

"Thank you for the offer, but I'll be fine," Irwin said as he walked towards the door. "I'm afraid you won't be able to use this style for this tournament. However, if you can find your way to the Ganvils, you should be able to find some of the older ones who know this style and can guide you. You might even find a bond."

"A bond? I fear I'm too old for that," Berjin said, shaking his head ruefully.

"That's what Flowrishin said," Irwin replied, raising an eyebrow. "About a thousand years ago."

Berjin's mouth opened, then closed. When they finally reached the gate leading into the courtyard, he had gathered himself. 

"I will practice as much as I can," he said. "Will you be gone for another five hundred years?"

"No," Irwin said, shaking his head. He hesitated whether he should tell the older cardsmith that he wasn't planning on returning, then decided against it. "I don't yet know how long it will be."

"Then I hope it will be sooner," Berjin said. "I would love to show you what I have learned by then."

Irwin forced a smile, shared a few more pleasantries, then walked away from the estate.

--

Almost done, Irwin thought, lounging on the seat as his strained soulforce senses were spread across the final two hundred smiths that were trying their hand on a ruby-rank reforge. He could already sense that the majority would fail, but he'd also made a few notes of those who could learn eventually. Probably. 

As he watched, one after the other cardsmith ruined their emerald card, some barely able to throw it in the bucket that would prevent it from exploding, others staring at a sub-eighty percent quality card. 

Eventually, only twenty-one cardsmiths managed to successfully create a usable ruby-rank card, and of those, only four were above ninety percent. 

"They aren't doing too badly," Ambraz grunted. He'd returned a few days prior with almost a thousand rank zeros and a promise that Frisyuustis would remain in contact with Flowrishin. Irwin had no idea what his bond had done to get Frisyuustis to cooperate this quickly, and he wasn't sure he wanted to know. All he knew was that he only had to wait and see if any of the twenty-one smiths could go a step further. 

Another two hours later, a single smith was still trying, the others having failed. The Crathan had been one of those he'd brought here five hundred years prior, one of the Galladin cardsmiths that had accepted Daubutim's offer. He wasn't the only one, as over half of those who'd gotten to Emerald and beyond had either been, or were family of Galladins. 

"Do you think Galladins that became Crathans retain what makes them good cardsmiths?" Irwin whispered to Ambraz.

"Definitely. It's an inborn soulforce sensitivity, and it's clear many Crathans share the trait," the Ganvil watched, before tsking. "He's about to fail."

Irwin sighed, knowing he was right. He sensed how the card's soulforce song became horribly misaligned to the point of being unsafe. A few seconds later, he was proven right as it shattered.

"This one can probably create Diamond-rank cards on a good day, though," he said. "Might have the occasional ninety percent one."

"He can," Flowrishin said from the side. "As can some of those who failed before. Do you think…"

"Think they can go beyond this?" Irwin asked, humming softly. "No. At least, not without another thousand years. They are using the proper style, but I think they are the best they can hope to achieve."

"A shame," Flowrishin said, sighing deeply. "Any of them that you think could create another cardseed?"

"None of the last group," Irwin said, shaking his head. "Your best bet is in the lower groups."

"Do you think you can give them some guidance?" Flowrishin asked, looking at the group that had succeeded in reforging up to a ruby-rank card.

Irwin wanted to say no and that he was ready to leave, but he also knew that he was being childish. He might never return here. 

"Tell them to meet us in the teacher's classroom," he said. "I'll see if I can teach them a bit, then after that I'll be off."

"Thank you," Flowrishin said, smiling. 

"No problem," Irwin said, pushing himself up and mentally preparing himself to go down and properly congratulate them.