Draith
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Chapter 67 - On The Horizon
🕑 Added 2025-04-06 14:00:06 +0000 UTCThe actual repairs to the Waygate were simple enough. Simple in the same way it was to replace wiring in a car. Which is to say, easy to understand the concept of, incredibly frustrating to actually do. Especially with the nests of wire modern cars had become. Or the nest of enchanted materials layered over each other.
It was technically an easier repair than the ocean Waygate had been. If I hadn’t had to work around the rest of the still working enchantments.
Despite the familiar frustration, the process was also soothing. A reminder of simpler times. Times when I hadn't needed to worry about anyone except myself.
I tried to tell myself it had been better that way. That I'd never needed a sister then.
Even as the Waygate sparked to life, I still hadn't convinced myself.
Standing in front of the gate, I cracked my knuckles. Just like Nexxa would. Except there were no sparks for me.
I wondered at that for a moment. Was that a sign of her incredibly high Storm affinity? Or some sort of spell she kept running at all times?
Pulling out my journal, I flipped to a new page, and labeled it, questions for Nexxa. After a moment, I added all my questions to the blank sheet. Then I put it in my robe.
With that done, I retrieved Calbern from the peak. As I did, I looked out across my domain. Really needed to get a spyglass so my most treasured companion wasn't wasting his time staring into the distance.
No matter how much he might enjoy it.
Relaying my success, Calbern soon followed me down. When I'd started my way up, I'd sent one of the villagers to inform Tresla and, through her, Inertia that I’d, probably, fixed the Waygate. Which meant they were both waiting by the time we returned. Inertia was inspecting it so closely that her one eye was only a fraction of an inch away from the surface, the panels on the side having slid up and away so she could rotate it independently.
Was pretty sure she knew how creepy it was. And also didn’t care.
"Excel," Inertia hissed out, pulling her head back, the plating around her eyes shifting until both were facing forward once more.
"Inertia would like to convey her admiration for how much you've improved. She can only spot a couple hundred errors," Tresla said, her voice tinged with a hint of amusement. "She says this would be acceptable work for the most newly molded Forgeborn enchanting apprentice."
"High praise," I said, shaking my head ruefully. Sadly, from Inertia, it kinda was.
"Shall we?" I asked, triggering the Spellkey. This time we were prepared for any sudden changes, such as an ocean attempting to rush in.
However, the Waygate operated normally, the dark substance reaching out and grabbing us after I confirmed the prompt.
We emerged in a sheltered cave. The Waygate was covered in limestone, part of its exit blocked off by a gradual buildup. Another few centuries and it would've been encased entirely. It only took a few minutes to break it apart between careful applications of Crumble and Sculpt Stone.
Under the limestone, the Waygate itself was as intact as the one in Mistvale. Which was promising. I hoped we'd find more intact Waygates. Repairing them might've been within my capabilities, but making new ones certainly wasn't.
Not yet.
We ventured out of the cave with Calbern in the lead, all of us under the effects of Hush. Inertia alone cost more mana than the rest of us combined, and the spell did nothing for the perpetual cloud of steam she put off.
Still, it only needed to hold long enough for Calbern to ensure we weren't going to be ambushed as soon as we emerged outside. When that didn't happen, we stepped out to take in the arrival point.
It was a small valley, maybe twice the size of Tetherfall. The bottom looked to have a freshwater stream running through it, before plummeting off the cliffside.
Looking around, I couldn't help but frown. This seemed like a much better spot for a village. Why did Balthum set up in Tetherfall?
"Think it's drinkable?" I asked, gesturing towards the stream. Even if it wasn't, that was something I could easily change. I was already picturing the buildings we could erect here. It wasn't like there was a ton of space to house the refugees in Tetherfall.
"It is beyond my ability to discern, master Perth. Your Water Purification spell will tell you, will it not?"
He was right. I'd overlooked that simple fact despite using it for precisely that purpose numerous times on our journey along the High Road.
Looking out at the ships in the distance, I figured we had more than enough time to check the water. After all, even with Eagle Eyes, I could barely see them. In fact… "Are they just floating in place?"
"It would appear so, master Perth," Calbern replied, shielding his eyes once more. "There is no discernible sign they've noticed us."
"Guess we should let them know we're here. But first, Inertia, can you make sure the water's not gonna tear up their hull?"
A crackling series of hissing-whistles issued forth from Inertia in response. It honestly worried me.
"Inertia says-" Tresla started before Inertia's plates shifted into a completely new design, one that resembled one of my old diamond tipped drill bits. Then Inertia launched herself with an explosive burst of steam, sailing over the edge. She didn't make it all the way to the water, a loud clang shaking the air as she fell.
"Ah, now they've noticed us," Calbern said, his tone even as Inertia caused several plumes of water to shoot into the air. As well as a small avalanche.
"Inertia said it would be her pleasure to destroy some ocean rock," Tresla finished, pulling out her pipe and staring at it for a second. Then she shook her head, sliding it back into her robe.
"Okay then," I said, gazing towards the ships. "Have they reacted?"
"Not yet, master Perth. I believe they're discussing their situation," Calbern replied.
"Right. You stay here. Let me know if anything changes. Tresla?" I asked while taking a step towards the head of the valley.
She nodded, and we set off. As we descended, I noted several of the plants that were used in the mats. Here they simply grew free. They were also choked out by other plants I didn't recognize. Hopefully Tanis or Selvi knew if any of it was useful. Or… maybe I should contact Vaserra. She got stronger by hunting, and with the mist-rex dead, she might be able to help thin the monster population in Mistvale. That would let her grow away from the prying eyes of her father. And then there were the wyverns in the not so distant peaks.
Lots for her and her companions to hunt.
Just needed the time to reach her first.
Tresla and I reached the stream right as Calbern called from the top. Unfortunately, Eagle Eyes did nothing to help me understand what he was yelling at me. Since he wasn't waving for us to come back, I decided we could afford to at least test the water first. A few minutes of channeling mana into my grimoire later and I was smiling. The water was clean enough I wouldn't need to set up a Water Purification enchantment.
The hike back up was surprisingly invigorating. Compared to climbing the nets every day, it was… easy.
"Sorry, couldn't hear you down there," I said as we got close to Calbern.
"I had surmised as much, master Perth," Calbern said, turning back towards the ships in the distance. "They haven't moved. It seems they're waiting for some sort of signal. They did wave a flag, though I’m afraid I didn’t recognize the meaning."
"Well, Nexxa never said anything about a signal. Think they'll just move on if we don’t respond?"
"Not likely," Tresla said, pulling her cloak tighter around her. "Not many ports north of here and they know what the clans do with elves."
"Wait, what do the clans around here do with elves?" I asked, almost not wanting to hear the answer.
"Sell them. Elves are considered even lower than 'sheep'. Guess you missed that too," Tresla said with a soft chime-filled laugh. "And most clans aren't as civilized as the Frost Riven. At least according to the Tethered."
"Still can't believe I was the only one who didn't pick up on that," I grumbled. At least I was able to guess that Tresla was referring to the villagers when she said the Tethered. "Do the villagers really call themselves that? The Tethered?"
"Yes, they do. I think it’s fitting," Tresla said, her hood tilting downward. "They were under Balthum's control for a long time. And it gave them some pride in their home. Pride can be a shield, especially when times are hard."
I was saved from thinking of a response by a jet of steam shooting up from the water below.
"Oh. That might be why they're not approaching."
"Certainly a factor, master Perth," Calbern agreed.
"Hmm. Think you three will be okay here by yourselves? I'd like to get the villagers started bringing some of that wood they gathered through.”
"I'll go," Tresla said, patting my hand. "And you really should call them Tethered. It's their own name for themselves."
"I'll… take it under advisement," I conceded, nodding at her as she left. I intended to ask Selvi and Myris about it too. I considered asking Tanis, but I suspected the large man wouldn't care. For all I knew, he might think they called themselves the Tangled. That was a perfect name for a monstrosity, not for a group of weavers, woodworkers and bakers.
Soon a number of villagers were making their way through the Waygate, led by Tanis. Unlike the forest, they struggled at first. Then Myris showed up, her voice cracking out orders. Soon they started erecting poles carved from the recently felled trees, stringing nets between them.
I helped out by providing anchor points to tie the poles off to, bemused by the amount of effort they were putting in, all so they wouldn't have to walk on the ground. When I pointed out the nearby cliff, the entire operation quickly shifted gears to reach it in as short a path as possible. Soon as they had, their rate of expansion was incredible.
Once more, nearly the whole village had turned out for the effort. And there was just as much laughter and celebration as when Tresla had first held her impromptu feast. Even as they ran along the cliffside, many of them waved at the distant ships, despite not being able to see them.
In a day, they not only rigged nets leading down to the water, they had placed all the timber for a rough pier, with Inertia gleefully providing holes to anchor the poles. It was only roughly fit into place, but securing it would be my job. I doubted the pier would last for very long. We didn't know what the tides were like in the area, nor was the wood treated to resist sea water in any way. I thought I might be able to modify Water Purification to offset that at least.
Since the wood was so green, in a very real way, it was still alive. If it had been replanted, even without magic, there was a small, nearly zero, chance it could've grown into a new tree, even in the sea water. With Bloom, that tiny chance became reality.
To my surprise, the spell was far more effective than I’d expected. Even a tiny amount of mana caused the trees to flourish. I’d doubted the salt water would allow them to thrive long-term, but for a time, as I walked along the pier, encouraging one tree after another to Bloom, I imagined it to be the sort of dock a proper druid would grow.
Nexxa would get a kick out of it, for sure. Pulling out my journal, I started another fresh page. Stories Nexxa would enjoy. Once more, I wrote my thoughts down.
By the time I'd finished the dock, I'd added half a dozen stories to the page. Not the full story. Just little one line references, like, 'the living docks' or 'A night with the Frost Riven'.
It helped.
The pier itself, when I was done, looked like a covered canopy, leading out into the ocean. Thanks to Bloom’s strange compatibility, I'd more than doubled the original length. Turned out that the trees drank up salt water just fine. Or maybe it was the mana in the water that did it. Could’ve been the trees themselves.
Either way, as I walked back to shore, the Tethered were already spreading their nets and vines amongst the trees. Considering my success with the trees below, when I returned to the clifftop, I used Bloom on the posts that'd been secured there.
It wasn't nearly as effective as it had been below. It was still more effective than I expected, the roots shooting deep and fresh leaves blossoming from spindly branches, yet it wasn’t the full on canopy that I’d produced down by the shore.
The ships didn't make their way in that night, but when we returned in the morning, we set a campfire on the shore, and Calbern used it to send some emergency smoke signals he'd learned from the Captain. Technically, it was a message requesting rescue, but we figured that, combined with the pier we'd grown for them in a day, they'd understand our intent well enough.
While Calbern was doing that, the Tethered and I expanded their hanging road, as I was thinking of it, into the valley. We didn't stretch it across the whole thing, simply creating a path of anchored trees that led to the end of the valley, where we left more fresh fallen wood to be reshaped into homes or whatever else the refugees would need.
When we were done, the ships had started moving closer. Soon, I could make them out myself. I was glad I'd put so much effort into the pier. The quality of the ships was… well, I still remembered seeing the massive airship near the Front, the Dauntless. I suspected it was the pinnacle of magical engineering. These weren't that, but they were a lot closer than what I was dealing with in Tetherfall. Even Fang, as much as I was proud of it, didn't compare to the fine make of these ships.
There were six ships in total, each of them similar, but unique. None of them had much for sails. They all had small squares of cloth that served the purpose, yet the size of the sails compared to the ships themselves would've been laughable on Earth. I suspected there was some form of enchantment in play.
About a quarter mile past our pier, all but one of the ships stopped, corded green vines slipping off their sides. I could just make out the spiked metal bulb that likely served as an anchor on the remaining ship below the water line.
The ship that approached us was longer and thinner than I was used to. Then again, I'd never been much of a boat guy. Our trip up the Teleti river was the first time I'd ever been on one. Knew enough from our time with the Captain that I was reasonably sure these qualified as ships though.
The sails on this one all had little green triangles with a golden emblem of a lion sewn into them. At least, I thought it might be a lion. Didn't actually know an Elinder word for lion, so there was a good chance it was some other big cat. Possibly a water panther? They had a word for those.
On the front of the ship, standing on deck, there was a group of five people. There were several more further back, but they were all being kept in place by a transparent barrier that let off occasional sparks of green.
Three of the five people were elves. Each of them had the distinctive ears and horns, though each of their horns were different styles. One had little horns that barely completed one small twirl before fading to nothing along her forehead, nearly hidden beneath her raven-black hair. The second had a pair of jagged horns that extended upwards like lightning bolts, though he'd looped his also raven-black hair around them in a style which made it look like he had a small building on top of his head.
The last elf was bald, though his horns more than made up for it, winding up and around his skull before descending down past his ears. Kinda like a ram, when I thought about it.
Standing at the back of the chevron the group had arranged themselves in, was someone I suspected had a monstrous bloodline. A strong one. They reminded me of the raptors we'd seen in Mistvale, their scales shining with an iridescent beauty.
In fact, if there was one unifying trait among this group, it was their beauty. They were some of the most aesthetically pleasing people I’d seen on Ro’an.
With one notable exception. At the tip of the chevron was a human woman, whose most distinguishing features were her smushed nose and chubby cheeks. Over her left shoulder lay a heavy golden sword, held in place by her left hand while her right rested on her protruding belly. Unless I was mistaken, she was pregnant.
All of them were dressed in clothes almost as nice as the ones Perth's family made. Which was saying something. The more I traveled, the more I'd come to realize just how impressive those clothes had been.
"Well, this should prove interesting, wouldn't you say, master Perth?" Calbern said as we made our way down to the pier.
"Interesting is certainly one word for it," I replied, putting a gloved hand on one of the ropes before closing my eyes and bracing myself. I'd seen everyone in the village do this, including Tresla.
Still, when I jumped off the cliff with only two hands clutching that rope, I had to fight not to clench my hands tight. Instead, I did as I'd been advised and let it 'loosely' slip through my fingers.
It did what it was supposed to, slowing my fall so the thirty foot drop didn't even hurt my knees as I landed.
Calbern went sailing past, making the entire five-hundred foot drop in one go. Tresla was right behind him.
Not me. I took one short rope at a time, keeping my descent controlled. Back on Earth, I'd seen movies of people walking down or jumping off buildings in a controlled manner. This was nothing like that. Even with my shorter jumps, I was worried I was gonna swing back and smack into the cliff. Despite the fact the ropes were suspended away from the cliff thanks to all the trees we'd planted the day before.
Even with my broken descent, I still reached the bottom long before the ship pulled into the pier. Which gave Calbern a minute to ensure I was the pinnacle of Magus Dominus-ness.
"Does it need to be that tight," I asked, tugging at the scarf that displayed my new Astral rank.
"My apologies, master Perth," Calbern said, adjusting the scarf in some invisible way that relieved the tightness. "It appears it caught on the way down."
I simply nodded before stepping out onto the pier. We'd be meeting them close to the cliff, with Inertia watching from above. She'd been a bit too excited when I'd asked her to be ready in case anything went wrong. Still, I'd gotten assurances she wouldn't simply sink the ship… as a first resort.
When the ship pulled up alongside the pier, a decorative panel along the side pulled inward, revealing a long rope of corded green beneath. That cord broke free of the ship, stretching towards the pier. After it made contact, thousands of smaller cords split off the central stalk, forming a ramp.
It was down this ramp that the five figures descended.
Terra Vistans didn't follow the fashion trends of the Hundred Kingdoms or Althon, which made it hard to pick out if any of them were mages. I suspected that at least one of them would be.
The pregnant woman led them with the sort of smooth motions I was used to seeing from Calbern, despite the heavy sword resting on her shoulder. When she was standing directly in front of me, she took that sword and jammed it straight into my freshly grown pier.
While I was still processing her so casually defacing my pier she said, in heavily accented Elinder, "Right then. You the big dragon 'round these parts?"
"I'm Egerta. Heard ya might 'ave room."
Comments
Noah
Depends on the species of plant and the Magic involved. It would make some sense that they were something similar to a mangrove, since the forest is so close to the ocean?? The tree also sounds like it has its own magic, so maybe it has the power to adapt to different environments?
ThoMiCroN
Salt water would kill plants due to osmosis. It would drain them of their water.
Christopher
Are these refugees going to integrate, try to take over, or perhaps settle in the other valley
Jason Hardman
The tethered seem plenty useful, within their skill sets. Having people educated in other ways is good though, assuming they are cooperative.
BookDragonling
Hopefully the people on the ships have more intelligence and trade skills than his current villagers. He really needs an infusion of useful citizens.
