It took over one and a half week for Ambraz to wake. One and half week that Irwin spent with Scintilla their children, and thinking about what had happened.
The thing that most preoccupied his mind were who Zazir and his people were. That, and the Wizteriaz.
He'd spend time talking with Tang about them, and the giant Fiz'rin had explained that long ago, he'd spoken wit...
2024-08-20 19:45:18 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin sensed his soulforce drain rapidly, as if someone had pulled a plug and let it drain away. Gritting his teeth, he pulled both of his selves together, stepping around the fire and using his willpower to shink the fire.
"Impressive strength for someone with only one soulcard," the purple being said, its voice betraying no worry as its area of influence shrank slightly.
2024-08-16 20:12:39 +0000 UTC View Post
Irwin was happy when he saw Canadensis through the trees. His soulscape was starting to turn sore, and he wanted to find a place to put the embers- well, all those that weren't his own. He'd been having too much fun chatting with the last addition.
A few of the Viridians were walking around the buildings, looking up as their group walked out of the forest. As soon as they saw their...
2024-08-13 20:17:06 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin slowly followed Scintilla through the tunnels, his steam floating around in a massive, thin cloud, trying to scout for anything dangerous.
Reaching a small crossing, Scintilla turned and looked at him, a slight worry in her eyes.
"Are they really alright?"
"They are doing fine," Irwin said, smiling at how worried she was for the tiny embers. It...
2024-08-11 18:10:49 +0000 UTC View PostThe tiny ember that just thought of herself as me, rushed through lava, sensing where she was going based on the ambient soulforce. All alone, far down in the depths, her instincts told her she had to be very careful about predators.
She, a term she'd learned recently after her form solidified even more. Her base thoughts had started moving from animalistic and instinctive...
2024-08-09 18:28:13 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin followed Sahroot into what looked like a tavern or ordinary restaurant: tables placed neatly in rows, with bushes separating them. A room-spanning bar made from a single piece of wood and gleaming a very pale yellow was nestled at the back. A tall, older Viridian woman stood behind the bar, her hands on the bar.
Although there was no door to close, the sounds from outsi...
2024-08-04 19:12:23 +0000 UTC View Post"Welcome to the real burrows," Tang said, leveling out the large ore transporter. "The previous layer was more like an introduction."
Irwin kept looking around from his spot beside Tang.
The cave around them was like the many others he had seen by now: large and filled with a mist of yellowish gas to the point of being unable to see the other side. He didn't see any di...
2024-08-03 19:11:49 +0000 UTC View Post"That is almost as much Purperion as we had in that disk before," Ambraz shouted excitedly in his mindscape. "Try and find out if this Tang wants to sell it or trade it!"
Irwin didn't answer, staring at the mask. As his excitement slowly died down, he noticed a few things. For one, the mask seemed ancient, covered in tiny scratches and worn around the edges. Also,...
2024-08-02 19:29:05 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin leaned to the side as the old, completely metal-flying ship angled through a corridor at breakneck speed. The straps of the metal cabled harness dug into his shoulders and chest, but he wasn't even going to contemplate removing them. At these speeds, he was going to get hurled clear out.
Zender, sitting in front of him, in the spot beside the steering wheel, raised his arms a...
2024-07-28 18:12:59 +0000 UTC View Post"And you are sure they are Oculithar?" Marble asked.
"Of course, I'm sure!" Ambraz snapped. "Besides Brazardion having shown me images about them, what else do you think they could be?"
Irwin sat at one side of the table, watching the Ganvil, now in his working form, mouth in a thin line, glaring at Marble. The ancient Fiz'rin stood before him, arms crossed, w...
2024-07-27 19:30:45 +0000 UTC View Post"Captain, we should go to Smelter instead of searching for survivors near the outpost," Hind said, her eyes lingering on the distant city for a few more moments before she quickly focused back on flying the ship.
"Why?" Irwin asked, still trying to sense what Ambraz was hearing.
"The Bladematriarch is rapidly getting worse, and the council needs to know. Also, from wha...
2024-07-26 19:43:15 +0000 UTC View Post"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...
2024-07-21 20:02:57 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin and Tiscian both sipped from their drinks as they looked at each other. The Ignitzian Blademother had taken a chair opposite of him, and with him sitting almost on the ground, their eyes were almost level with each other.
Irwin sighed as the powerful, almost gaseous drink made its way down his throat. It was, like most things he'd experienced on Igniz so far, hot and spicy, a...
2024-07-20 19:34:45 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin followed Tiscian through a door that looked like obsidian rock. It was smooth and slick, except for a beautiful sword engraving that decorated the entire length of the front.
One step in, he looked around in surprise and slight shock.
Smooth dark-red pavers covered a hallway that ended at a low staircase that led into a room with pale white walls. Dark-gold...
2024-07-19 19:19:18 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin followed Tiscian down a long, winding hallway while his second self was talking with Zender.
"It felt… horrible," Zender said. "Like something was trying to push into my soulscape."
The young Yuurindi was sitting on a rocky outcrop, staring out across the lava lake that flickered and gleamed with Irwin's soulforce.
"If Sting hadn't been in my souls...
2024-07-14 18:41:34 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin appeared on the ship just as Tiscian flew toward the barrier at a slow pace.
"Nim, let her in," Irwin said just as Hind ran over to him.
"Captain, that's a Blademother! I recognize the symbols on her armor," she whispered. "They are the most revered of the Ignitzions, and many are or become one of their people's leaders."
Irwin nodded. "Can you...
2024-07-13 19:34:45 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin stood on the prow, staring at the distant corridor walls, finally angling off to give way to a larger area. They were approaching the part of the branch that housed Igniz and a few of the other, lesser worlds of the Ignitzions. The barriers had managed to hold out against the storm, and he was happy to see the relatively calm area they were approaching.
"It feels like ages si...
2024-07-12 20:01:09 +0000 UTC View PostChapter 293
Irwin sang softly as he kept The Concerto steady in the storm raging around him. The barrier was at its lowest power, muffling the sound but unable to keep all the shoving at bay. They had been sailing like that for weeks, giving Nim'ron the time to rest.
Dahlia stood on deck, constantly reforging and barely able to keep the ambient soulforce at the level t...
2024-07-07 19:08:50 +0000 UTC View PostBronwyn woke as he always did, with a clear mind and an instant grasp of what was happening around him. It was a thing he'd learned long ago when he'd first joined the Rangers. Sleep light, wake fast, and ready. Carla's body was pressed against his, her breathing slow and steady, showing she still slept. Celeste's breathing, much fainter, came from the crib at the back of their room.
<... 2024-07-06 20:50:01 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin hummed thoughtfully as he raised the card.
"Did you succeed?" Endil asked.
Irwin nodded. Even if Ambraz hadn't shown him the card's result, he could tell from the reforging that it had worked.
"So that's the last one? Only three cards that can be used by someone to channel the Chaos Whale soulforce," Endil said as he sat down at the table in th...
2024-07-05 17:28:54 +0000 UTC View Post"So… tell me again why you crawled into that smelly thing?" Greldo said, his voice warped and muted as he pinched his nose and kept backing away from Irwin.
"Because of this," Irwin said, waving the small, surprisingly heavy bit of Aurorium around. "Now stop acting like a baby, or I'll come over there and hug you!"
Greldo's eyes widened, and he vanished from his spot to reappear...
Irwin felt relaxed and drained as he finally struck the final blow.
The card flashed brightly as the ambient soulforce that had been blocking his vision either surged into the card or seemed to drift away. As his surroundings cleared up, the card's previous red color drained away into a crystal clear pale border.
Irwin let out a breath of relief, sensing just how weary...
2024-06-29 19:40:26 +0000 UTC View PostDaubutim tried to remain calm, slowly opening and closing his hands.
Tension will not result in a good ending. His father's cold words echoed through his head.
Forcing himself to calm down, he took a deep breath and continued to observe The Concerto as it dodged the enormous tentacled beast.
Seven minutes in, he thought, as a tiny p...
2024-06-28 18:55:39 +0000 UTC View PostTime flew as they traveled around The Verdant Isle, Irwin searching and not finding anything odd. During the evenings, Greldo would hunt something for them, and their meals consisted of rations and fresh meat. Although they both knew they could easily return home if they wanted to, they continued traveling the forests.
The only thing of note that happened during those relaxed...
2024-06-23 19:38:20 +0000 UTC View PostDaubutim stood on the reshaped edge that bordered the underground lake. Whispered voices came from all around him as stoneshapers shaped the rock, and the teleporters brought in more people and woodshapers to work it.
In front of him, a trio of stoneshapers was using their cards to reinforce the platform they had created below the portal. A staircase led up to it, and they were now...
2024-06-22 19:31:46 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin and the others continued talking softly while watching for anything dangerous.
Greldo came back to check on them twice. The first time, he told them that they had found tracks leading both north and south. The second time, he returned with the news that the tracks north ended in the territory of a sizeable pack of Sixtusk Boards. The scattered remains of another of some...
2024-06-21 18:48:05 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin followed Greldo through the forest, breathing in the cool air. The cold wind and fresh scent promised more rain. If there hadn't been as much moss and grass below the forest, they would be walking through a thick layer of mud.
He was constantly looking around, ears perked for anything out of the ordinary.
The novelty of the forest had worn off after walking throu...
2024-06-16 19:25:28 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin dropped into the reinforced chair, watching the tall ranger almost run out of the smithy. The last thing he saw of her was her wide smile and gleaming silvery eyes.
"That's the last one for now," he said.
"A shame," Nim'dor rumbled. "I could get used to this!"
His massive size made the smithy seem positively tiny.
"Shut it, you overgrown...
2024-06-15 19:14:10 +0000 UTC View PostOkay, I guess you will sleep a bit more than, Irwin thought as he looked at Trimdir.
The older smith was lying in a makeshift bed in the Smithy, still fast asleep. His face retained a bit of the pallor he'd had, but he had stopped shivering and shaking. Lilinethe had said he was physically alright, and with Irwin's assurance that his new heartcard and soulforce were fine, ...
2024-06-14 13:57:30 +0000 UTC View PostIrwin slowly lowered his hammer, staring at the Emerald card that rested on Ambraz's back. Unlike the reforging he'd done over the last few months, he'd let the card be more the deciding factor on what to make, and he'd thoroughly enjoyed the process.
"It has potential," Ambraz said. "Right now, it can allow the wielder to control up to a hundred leaves to harden and move around li...
2024-06-09 19:29:58 +0000 UTC View Post