The Way Ahead

Interlude: And Awoke a Star of Stone and Flame

Interlude: And Awoke a Star of Stone and Flame

Lord Sfashkchlil took a deep, raspy breath as he laid in his bed, stewing in his misery. It was all that depths-shunned Outsiders fault.

Soralash had found the human, half-dead and collapsed on the side of the Highroad, and brought him in along with her normal suite of Surface goods and news. From there, the Outsider- a true Outsider, or so he had thought- had been brought before him, but spoke no tongue he knew, and so was passed along to Rashin, with the idea they might be able to learn a bit about him and learn of the wonders he might provide.

Everyone knew about Outsiders, after all. Some thought they were but a legend, but Rashin himself had interpreted the carvings pertaining to them, so Sfashkchlil knew this knowledge to be true. Thousands of years ago, true Outsiders had come to Joriah, bringing with them tales of mighty magics and advanced knowledge, sent as messengers by the gods themselves to aid those who had their favor. Visit for the best novel reading experience

The mighty city of VisDaric and its inhabitants, the Gozau, were all that remained of their numerous creations, and yet what a legacy it was! It was his birthright to claim such a valuable asset, with his family legacy crumbling around him. Destined for greatness, bah. But that was before the human arrived, seemingly a gift from his ancestors.

From the first moments after Rashin had reported on this concrete from the Outsiders homeland, liquid stone which potentially could be used in place of Blackstone for walls and fortifications had settled the matter. His ancestors had clearly delivered a gift to him as an act of providence, who was he to shun such a turn of fortune?

He would not be as foolish as so many others he had seen, sharing their knowledge and fortune, cast aside the moment his usefulness was at an end. No, this Outsider would be a vein unto himself. However, for his Taskmaster, Break Spirit, and Inspire Greatness Skills to affect the boy, he would need to be a citizen of Clan Blackstone, a puzzle which Rashin, his most brilliant advisor, had solved for him. If he were to make the Outsider a Free Shaper, by law, he would similarly be making him a citizen, and thus the human would be focused, grow quickly, and become loyal to him and him alone, a thought that brought his fingers to twitch.

That alone was not sufficient, though, as it brought up an additional complication. By Dwarven law, any quenched Free Shaper must Tour in each of the Five Cities, sharing their knowledge and teaching, such that their skills may be spread and all the Highpeaks may benefit from their brilliance. That was something which couldnt stand. No, it was better that nobody even know of the humans existence, yet such a secret would never stand. So he had to circumvent that law in a legal fashion.

The thought of his incompetant guards were another point of failure. The boy had been armed with mere rocks and sand and yet they had utterly failed in their attempts to subdue him. They would face suitable punishments in time, though what he had yet undecided.

Then there was whatever weapon the boy had used on him, which he had apparently smuggled in so thoroughly that it had gone undetected for nearly two moons. Hed never felt heat of its equal, and as he targeted his beard, he had lost enough hair, the strands detaching to prevent him from developing Forge Sickness, that whatever strange powder was used had gotten into his lungs, burning him from the inside out, to say nothing of falling in the Steel Rivers.

Though only two had died, many more were grievously injured, yet not a single one could tell what was used, cloaked deviously as it was as mere rock. And while the boy was no longer considered one of his citizens, and thus his knowledge of the foreign tongue had faded alongside his ability to Task the human, he would sooner see his city burn than to see such an insult go unavenged.

A presence appeared at the end of his bed.

Took took you, He coughed, his voice hoarse. He cursed the human for his sorry state, long enough. I have a task for you.

The figure at the end of his bed stood and listened. As the human had been a nominal guest under hospitality, his debt had been expunged upon leaving, and even pursuing him as an assailant with Clan assets would result in too many questions being asked, and the endeavor would likely be nullified. Worse, it might be usurped, and the alleged Outsider would slip out from between his fingers. But he still could not let such a slight go unavenged. And fortunately, there was just the right person for the job.

Edwin would pay for what he had done.