Irwin's Journey - The Cardsmith

Irwin and Greldo walked through the outer wall of Portal Keep until they found Basil and Xi'kroak. Seeing the Da'xi leader, Irwin noticed a gleam on the other's face plates and a glitter in his eyes.

"Smith Irwin," Xi'kroak boomed, causing Basil to look up. "It is good to see you again."

"Captain Xi'kroak, how are you?" Irwin asked.

"Fine. The building of the Da'xi district is going well, though I would have liked more space," Xi'kroak said.

Irwin wasn't surprised as he recalled how much space the different species' distract had been back in Fiverio. "Daubutim has good reasons to limit the area given to any single district."

"I know, and although his reasoning is sound, it will take some getting used to," Xi'kroak said. "Especially with the Frozir district nearby."

Irwin raised an eyebrow, then noticed Basil shaking his head, mouthing no.

Okay, let's just leave that for now, Irwin thought. He turned to the central court and the heavily fortified tower that housed the exit portal. "How are things on the other side?"

"Good so far. I take it Lord Bron told you about what Xi'kroak saw?" Basil asked.

"Yes, that's why I'm here," Irwin said. "How is the growth of the trees going?"

Xi'kroak hummed, answering before Basil could. "The temperature has increased and stabilized. Between this and the carded, the vegetation is flourishing. Still, it will take at least a month or two before the trees grow up to the exit portal and at least another month before the branches are thick enough to hold any type of structure."

"Then we need to make sure no Galub ships find us, or if they do, that we take care of them before they can flee," Irwin said.

"Which is why I have a suggestion," Xi'kroak said. "You and The Sonata stay behind at the portal, and I'll go with The Zura'ix and Greldo and hunt for Galub raiders. Each additional ship we can get will increase our safety and ability to protect ourselves."

Irwin felt a twinge of worry and looked at Greldo, who was nodding slowly.

"That's a good idea," Greldo said. "Will La'suna be joining us?"

Xi'kroak grimaced as he shook his head. "I'm afraid my mate will be remaining here for the foreseeable future. We are expecting our first brood."

There was a moment of silence before Basil grinned and slapped the surprised Da'xi on his shoulder. "That's fantastic! Congratulations!"

Irwin and Greldo added their own well wishes while Xi'kroak looked at them quietly, his face plates opening and closing slightly. From his time with the captain, Irwin knew it meant the Da'xi was slightly uncomfortable.

"Thank you, though it would have been better if it had happened in a few years," Xi'kroak said with a dismissive gesture.

Irwin shared a quick look with Geldo, wondering why Xi'kroak seemed surprised that it had happened. It wasn't like he hadn't had a hand in it… Irwin suddenly wondered how Da'xi mating even went, but he quickly shelved the idea of asking Xi'kroak. From all he'd learned about Da'xi, being open to personal questions wasn't one of them.

"Then let's go and head through the exit portal," Irwin said.

"One thing," Basil said quickly, turning to Xi'kroak. "Daubutm and Lord Bron have decreed that any cards found are to be handed to Irwin and the smiths for reforging."

Xi'kroak's face plates rattled softly, and although he nodded, Irwin knew the captain wasn't all that happy with the message. Still, he gave no complaints.

"I will tell my crew," the Da'xi simply said.

"Thank you, Captain Xi'kroak," Basil said, suddenly far more formal. "I'm sure you can understand why we must do this. We have very few carded and too many needs, so all cards will be divided to those who will be able to help us all the most."

"I understand," Xi'kroak said. "There will be no issue."

Irwin hummed as he thought about going to the ship and what would happen if Galub raiders found them.

"Basil, can you send a message to Rindiri and ask her to come? If we need to do any ship-to-ship combat, I'd prefer having her with me," he said after a while.

Basil nodded. "I already sent her a message, and she should arrive in a few hours."

"I'll also send four of my men your way," Xi'kroak said.

Irwin nodded, and they discussed a few details before Basil led them through the building, across the open square, and into the tower.

Irwin hadn't been to the exit portal since the building had been built, and as he walked inside, he was surprised by the sheer thickness of the walls. After walking up a wide, high staircase, they entered a spacious hall, empty but very obviously inspired by Fiverion's. A pillar with door-sized openings and a circular desk stood in the middle, and he couldn't help but wonder how it might look in a dozen or two dozen years from now. Would it be filled with people going on and off the world?

Unlike the building on Fiverion, which had a staircase up, their staircase led down a single story to a room with a massive stone door, which was partially open. Guards and rangers were training in the room, some shooting at distant targets with bows and spells while others were having mock battles. A few stood near the back, guarding the portal that hovered a few inches above the ground.

"They practice here?" Irwin asked as he looked around.

"Yeah, that was Daubutim's idea," Basil said. "He thought that until we get far more powerful, it would be best to keep a lot of guards here in case of an emergency."

Irwin stopped before the portal and looked at the swirling mass. He'd not been through a portal since returning, and he felt a slight regret that he had to go. Even if it was for only a short while, he had hoped that when he left, it would be to go exploring, not just for guard duty.

"See you on the other side," he said as he grinned at Greldo. Then he jumped in.

A moment later, he was dropping down the familiar corridor. Instinctively, he looked around, but there was no movement behind the energy barrier.

The trip was long and boring, and when he finally reached the end, he was glad for it. As he slammed into the ending, the world turned black, then he stood on the deck of a ship. Looking around, he saw dozens of guards and rangers, most with bows or other ranged weapons out. A short distance away, the Zura'ix hung in the air, Da'xi moving around, cleaning the sails and seeming busy.

Irwin quickly walked away from the portal so nobody would bump into him, just as someone called out his name.

"Smith Irwin!"

Irwin turned to see Jort walk his way, silvery eyes gleaming.

"Jort, how have you been?" Irwin said as he walked towards the ranger from Malorin.

"Fine, though I'd have preferred if things remained boring instead of interesting," the short, dexterous man said as he accepted Irwin's handshake.

"I didn't know Bronwyn sent you here," Irwin said just as Greldo appeared from the portal.

"Daubutim said that all heartcarded rangers and guards were to assist with protecting the exit portal," Jort said as he shrugged.

Irwin could see the slight humor in his eyes, and he couldn't blame him.

"All of them, huh?" he said with a grin. "So you and all your friends?"

Jort grinned, shaking his head as he looked at Greldo, who joined them.

"So, you are here because of those Galub raiders that were spotted?"

Irwin nodded and quickly explained to Jort what their plan was going to be. The ranger nodded, and Irwin could see his relief when he heard that Irwin was going to be staying with the portal.

Xi'kroak joined them a minute later. After a short discussion, the Da'xi captain floated back to his own ship to send back four of his crewmen.

We need to practice way more, Irwin thought as he looked around. Basil had said that with only two ships, they had done what they could, but they really needed more ships.

A short while later, he was standing beside Greldo as Xi'kroak was sailing forward.

"Make sure you don't get killed," Irwin said as he looked at his friend, who just snorted. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. You better guard this portal!"

Irwin grinned, and Greldo waved before vanishing. Irwin looked at the quickly distancing ship before sighing.

You better be careful.

--

Greldo was standing on the prow of the ship, his eyes scanning the mountain range to their right that continued seemingly without end. They were nearly a day from the exit portal, closing in on where Xi'kroak had previously seen the Galub Raiders.

The temperature was surprisingly high, which, in hindsight, was probably a major problem. The only reason for that would be if a portal had opened, and the Galub would know this. The only good thing was that due to the height of the portalworld, it was probably much farther away than the Galubs would believe.

"Incoming ships," a soft shout came from the top of the sail.

Greldo looked up to see one of the sailors point slightly to the back.

Dammit, did we pass them? he thought as he headed to the side of the ship. Three tiny specs closely cropped together were flying down the mountain towards them.

"Gelwin's balls," Greldo hissed.

With them behind them, they couldn't even head back if they wanted to.

Xi'kroak came running towards him, faceplates closed tight, only his bright eyes gleaming from within the natural armor.

"They haven't overloaded their sails yet," the captain said.

"Good, so what now?" Greldo asked.

"Now we need to hope they don't have five-horns," Xi'kroak said. "If they only have four-horns, how many can you handle on your own?"

Greldo snorted. "Without shadows, one. With? Five, maybe six?"

He saw Xi'kroak's eyes widen slightly, and he couldn't help but grimace.

"That's with shadows…" he said again, looking around.

Xi'kroak nodded before turning around. "Head into the mountain range and aim for the shadow side," he roared, pointing at a distant mountain. It was high, and part of the peak was angled to the side, creating a comparatively small pocket of shadows. Still, as soon as he saw them, Greldo felt a grin creep up on his face.

They continued ahead, and it quickly became clear that the raiders were closing in on them.

"Are they faster?" Greldo asked.

Xi'kroak grunted. "Yes, and that's not a good sign because that shouldn't be possible."

"Think there's a five-horn?" Greldo asked, leaning forward and squinting. It barely helped. Even his card-enhanced vision could not make out anything on the small ships yet.

"We will have to wait and see," Xi'kroak said.

They remained standing there while Xi'kroak's crew had begun preparing for a battle. When they were halfway to the distant pocket of shadow, the three galub-raiders had closed in enough that Greldo could make out individual Galubs.

Three, three, four, three, he thought as he scanned the deck.

"I see no five-horns, you?" he said after a while.

Xi'kroak was leaning on the railing beside him, his bright silver eyes scanning the ships.

"None, but they could be hiding within the hold or the cabin."

Greldo hummed as he scanned the three ships. The center ship was closing in fastest, and he counted two four-horns and a bunch of three-horns. The left one had three four-horns, and he grimaced. Then he saw the right one and hummed. It was holding back behind the others, and he could only find a single four-horn.

It could be a trick, he thought as he narrowed his eyes, trying to find hints of a trap or a five-horn. When he didn't see anything, he decided what to do.

"I'm going to teleport to the right one first," he said softly. "I only see one four-horn there."

"Alright. Just take out the four-horn, then move to the next ship. As long as we can take those out, we will at least have a chance," Xi'kroak said. "I can hold out against a four-horn, but beyond me, the others can only deal with the three-horns."

Greldo nodded, and they quietly waited as the distant shadows closed in. When their ship glided into the shadowy region, the raiders were less than a mile away, and Xi'kroak was worriedly tapping the railing.

"There's a lot of them," the Da'xi said, his voice muffled behind his completely closed faceplates.

"I'm going to attack the first one," Greldo muttered as he connected to Coal, letting him know what they were going to do. He grinned as Coal seemed more than eager, as it meant he could finally be out and about again.

He heard part of a be careful, just as he focused on the shadows and teleported to the furthest ship, which was just gliding into the shadows.

Sounds dampened, and warm and cold vanished as he appeared within the shadows of the ship. A mass of three-horns stood on the railing, happily talking and laughing.

"We will have a fourth ship!"

"Who cares about that! They must know where that other portal is!"

"I'm going to enjoy pealing those plates of…"

"Bah! Don't you will cover the ship in blueblood again!"

Bunch of monsters, Greldo thought as he quickly focused on the four-horn. It was a heavily scarred one, with one of its horns cracked and broken off. Still, its hungry eyes told him it was probably not to be trifled with in any normal combat.

Too bad this isn't going to be any normal combat, Greldo thought as he released Coal into the shadows.

Neither of them was visible, and they moved behind the four-horn. Greldo told Coal to hold as he took a final look around before moving through the open door and into the ship. Although he had little time, he had no interest in being backstabbed by something. Luckily, he quickly found that the ship was empty except for filth, half-eaten food, and barrels with supplies.

Returning to the deck, he hovered right above the four-horn. He relaxed, gripped his daggers, then surged at the exposed back, stepping out of the shadows at the last moment. The galub showed its experience and somehow managed to move forward and to the side without even seeing anything, but it wasn't fast enough. Plunging his daggers into the thing's neck, Greldo slashed outward before returning to the shadows as blood sprayed out.

Screams of panic came from the three-horns, while the four-horn lay gurling on the deck.

Best clean out a few more, Greldo thought as he signaled Coal.

The hound didn't even hesitate as he appeared amidst the three-horns, ripping into them, disappearing and reappearing as he ripped heads off and hurled them from the ship.

Greldo nodded, about to leave for the next ship, when he saw a green-bordered card plop down from the four-horn.

An emerald card? Seriously? he thought, barely believing his luck.

He dashed forward, appeared, grabbed the card, then returned to the shadows. He scanned the other bodies with a sudden interest. Within seconds, Coal had decimated ten of the Galubs, and he saw another card, purple-bordered this time.

He was about to continue wiping out the ship when he thought about the others, and he flew up, looking around. The other two ships seemed to ignore what was happening and were rapidly closing in on Xi'kroak.

Come on Coal, Greldo sent to his friend and summon.

A response filled with a bloodthirsty desire for battle came, and he unsummoned his friend before teleporting to the ship closest to Xi'kroak. He appeared amidst a bustling of bodies, Galubs looking around while the two four-horns stood at the back, shoulder to shoulder, their backs against the wall.

Ah, they are expecting me, Greldo thought with a grin before floating through the shadows to hover above their heads. Too bad that's not going to help.

--

Xi'kroak clenched his hands around the railing, glaring at the two ships.

"Captain, perhaps we should flee? If they catch up-" one of his crewmen asked.

"No," Xi'kroak snapped curtly. "We need to show Daubutim and the others that we are contributing. Greldo should appear in any… moment…"

Xi'kroak couldn't stop his cheek-plates from slowly rattling as he watched the tall bearded shadowwalker appear above the two four-horns, puncturing the eyes of one of them while the hound appeared in front of the other, mauling it.

"By the plated mother, it's a good thing he is on our side!" the crewmen whispered. "How does one defend against that?"

Xi'kroak didn't respond but watched as Greldo dashed across the ship, disappearing and reappearing as he slashed apart the panicking Galubs. He knew how to fight shadowalkers, had done so during the Reptilian wars twenty years ago, but even he shivered. The normal way was to wait till the shadowwalkers had arrived, then cause a massive amount of light to remove the shadows and take care of them.

However, with Greldo's ability to teleport in an emergency, his summon, and his power, Xi'kroak knew they would have had a hard time catching and killing him.

As he thought back to the wars and the horrors he had gone through, Xi'kroak absently watched Greldo decimate the Galubs on the ship.

"Captain, the other ship is turning to flee!"

Xi'kroak jolted, then focused on the second ship, which was turning away from the mountains.

"Turn and chase!" he roared, his voice booming across the shop as he ran to the helm. Before he reached it, The Zura'ix was angling around so sharply the deck turned diagonal. Decades of experience let him ignore it as he reached the helm, taking over from his helmsman.

"Prepare for battle! If Greldo can't reach the ship, it will be up to us!"

Though I hope Greldo does it, he thought.

--

Greldo's sensitive ears picked up Xi'kroak's roar, and he rose up along the shadowy sail, looking around. The Zura'ix was turning sharply, while the only ship he hadn't been at yet was rapidly fleeing. The first ship was also turning, but it was slower.

Clear this ship, he sent to Coal.

He stared at the second ship, then shook his head and teleported to the first one he'd been at. It would be best to capture two ships, and they had no idea what would be on the final ship. He'd been lucky so far, but if there was a powerful Galub on the final one, that'd just be his luck.

A panicky, fearful atmosphere hung over the Galub ship, and it only took him a few moments to find that many had barricaded themselves in the cabins. Only a handful remained on deck, all around the steering wheel.

Well, that's not too bad, Greldo thought as he assessed the few Galubs that remained. They needed answers, and if they could capture a group of Galubs, the chances of getting one would grow.

He appeared behind one of the three-horns, easily slicing its throat before disappearing. Screams of panic came from all around, quickly cut short as he flitted about. Within moments, only the one behind the steering wheel remained.

With only a slight hesitation, Greldo reappeared, gently placing his dagger against the neck of the final Galub.

"Hold still," he hissed.

The Galub froze, and he could see his hands shaking on the wheel.

"Please… don't kill me," the Galub whispered, his voice cracking.

Greldo sighed. If he didn't know just how many innocent people the Galubs had killed, likely including these raiders, he might have felt something. Now, all he could wonder was how many merchants had asked for the same, only for the Galub to laughingly kill them. Still, he hadn't killed him for a reason.

"If you want a chance to live, follow after our ship," he hissed. "If I see you flee, I'll return and slice you apart."

"Yes, I can do that," the Galub cried. "Please, I'll do anything, just don't kill me."

Greldo wasn't sure if he should laugh or cry at the horror the Galub was presenting.

"I'll not kill you if you do as I say," he said, suddenly wondering why he felt like the bad guy. Then he thought of something else.

"Are there any five-horns on the ship that is fleeing?"

"What? No! We only have a few five-horns left," the Galub squealed.

"And those are?" Greldo asked, deciding on the spot to keep asking questions of the talkative Galub.

"They are with Doomblade, back on the Tringular. After the loss of Sharpspear, the boss said none of the five-horns were allowed away," the Galub said, his voice calming slightly.

Doomblade… why does that name seem so familiar, Greldo thought.

"Where is Tringular?" he asked.

The Galub swallowed and didn't immediately respond, causing Greldo to increase the pressure with the dagger.

"He… he will kill me," the Galub cried.

"Only if he finds you," Greldo growled. "I'll kill you right now if you don't tell me!"

The Galub let out a high-pitched cross between a cry and a giggle before swallowing.

"It's… it's a day in the direction you were going initially," he whispered. "Hidden in the Darkring Mountains."

Greldo frowned. "It's a portal world?"

"Yes… but it's going to shatter in a few years, there's no reason for you to-" the Galub began, silencing when Greldo pressed down with his dagger enough to draw a tiny bit of blood.

"How many ships are defending it?" Greldo asked calmly. As he did, Coal sent him a message that he'd finished on the other ship.

The Galub swallowed. "Twenty… sometimes a few more."

Greldo's eyes narrowed as he looked at the back of the four-horn. Twenty?

Then I guess we are going to have to return with Irwin, he thought as he grunted.

"Follow us, or I'll slit your throat," he growled.

Without waiting, he looked up and teleported to the next ship.

--

"How long do you think they will be out for?" Irwin asked, weary, bored, and trying to suppress his worry.

Jort stood on the deck beside him, and the two of them were looking out across the sprawling swamplands and the mountains to the side.

"Xi'kroak usually sailed a day away before turning back," Jort said quietly. "If they did the same now, they should be back today.

Irwin nodded, placing his elbows on the railing and staring out into the distance.

Being here for two days means I've been gone for eight on the world… mom's going to be worried.

The day continued seemingly endlessly when he was finally jolted awake.

"Ships incoming!"

Ships? Irwin thought, pushing himself upright and looking around. He didn't see anything, but looking up showed one of Xi'kroak's sailors pointing in the direction Greldo and the others had gone.

It took way too long before he finally saw a tiny smudge come towards them and even longer before he could make out two ships, each towing another one.

"It's The Zura'ix," the sailor shouted before a minute later he continued with: "I can see the captain!"

Irwin let out a relieved sigh before a wide grin surfaced on his face.

From two ships to five!

He couldn't wait to hear what Greldo had seen.