"Do you need help getting up?"

He waved his hand. "Do not worry; I control my mana now."

With a stomp, the ground cracked, and he slammed his palms together. As he pulled them apart, the earth shifted and created a series of steps that led up to the shore. With long strides, he quickly joined me and beamed.

I applauded, and he nodded while searching around.

"Looking for something?"

"Yes," he scowled. "I recall seeing my club somewhere."

I was about to offer help looking for it, but he growled and raised his hand. I heard stone break and turned to see his club rise into the air before rocketing toward him. It smacked into his palm with a good thwack that echoed throughout the cavern.

That sounded painful.

"Now I'm ready!"

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"I appreciate the concern, Little Wolf. But I am filled with more life than I've had since being chained up. Now, let's greet the rest of your pack. I'm sure they are concerned."

He raised his club high, and flames spilled forth that blazed with the rune on its handle. With a sneer, the flames congested around the handle and left behind smooth stone once the fire died. From the tip of the club, an acrid yellow-green goop spilled onto the floor and burnt a hole through the ground.

With a swing, the last of the goop was expelled, and he inspected his club. "Better. Rid of that coward's filth."

When he raised his club this time, new runes sprouted across its surface that glowed with a subtle green light. As he swung, it created a distortion in the air that stayed as the club smacked the ground.

Two stone pillars shot outward and quickly formed an archway, the distortion shifting into a golden light that stretched across its frame.

"It's different from the one you made earlier?" I asked.

"That one was created using pure mana manipulation; this one has my essence channeled directly into it. It should be more stable than the previous; I don't want to risk disrupting the nodes when they're already frustrated."

You make it sound like they're alive.

The portal formed, and Rock-splitter turned around. He winked and raised his club once more. The thing grew until it was easily three times its size during Hanse's transformation. With a dramatic swing, the club crashed into the shore and left a headache-inducing streak of emerald in its afterimage. Stone and dirt shook beneath my feet, threatening to flip me onto my rear.

I tried to get up, but a second rumble nearly flipped me over. "Hey!"

"No time to be standing still! Let's go before we're stranded!" Rock-splitter shouted.

A large hand grabbed me by the stomach and picked me up like a sack of flour. I had enough time to blink and look back, staring at a shiny green rear as the yellow portal approached.

Crap!

I exhaled as much air as possible before the yellow overtook my vision.

Surprisingly, my cloak remained dormant and when I felt the twisting pressure of the transportation take effect, Rock-splitter waved his club and forced it back.

The time between worlds was… Strange. I smelled purple and watched as my vision made turns upon turns, flipping from one orientation to the next. It forced me to shut my eyes, but I smelled two familiar scents by the time I did.

Pack. Safe.

I opened them and stared at Alice, who stood with her battleaxe out. She switched between looking down at me and then up at Rock-splitter's head.

"Cain?" she whispered.

I waved. "Hello. Uh, Rock-splitter, can you put me down now?"

"Ah, yes! Here you go," Rock-splitter replied, dropping me to the floor.

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

I spat dirt out of my mouth and dusted myself off. Standing up, I found Devon staring at the titan with a conflicted look.

"Cain. Who's this?" he asked carefully.

"This is the owner of this mountain. Rock-Splitter," I stated.

Devon glared, and I couldn't fight the smile that pulled at my lips.

Yeah, it's not so fun, is it?

Rock-splitter turned around and swung the club over his shoulder while placing his other hand on his hip. "Nice to meet you, Grimms. I may not look it, but I am the Keeper of this node cluster."

Devon continued to glare but at least looked over to me and examined me from head to toe. For a second, he looked like he wanted to say something but then looked away. "We'll talk later."

I looked at Alice, but she shrugged and sheathed her battleaxe. "Are you okay?"

"I think better than ever, but I'm ready to lay down," I replied. I turned to face Rock-splitter. "You said you can help us travel past the mountain? Can you still do it?"

In response, the titan flexed his fingers. "I can; if you give me a destination, I can create another portal. How many of you will be traveling through? Are you including the humans hiding in the tunnels?"

Devon bowed his head, a surprising reaction that made Alice and me stare.

"If you are willing, Keeper. We have a hunt to complete that requires their return," he said.

Rock-splitter nodded. "It will be a challenge, but I can hold it open long enough for you all to rush through. It will be the last portal I can use until the ley lines return to full functionality."

"We will do our best."

"That's all I can ask then," Rock-splitter smiled. "The Nexus certainly has its needs. Now, get the humans you want to take. My mountain is in need of an extermination. The last of pests that litter its interiors will not survive morning's rise."

"I'll get them; be right back," Alice volunteered.

It left me standing alone and trying my best to ignore the weird tension in the air as Devon deliberately turned to look away from me.

I sighed and ran my hand down my waist and then stopped. Running my hands down my hip for a second time, my face dropped. "Aaagh, damnit. It's missing!"

Devon turned, searched, and stopped as my hands rested on my belt. "You left behind your weapon"

"Ooh! It must have washed away. My apologies, Little Wolf," Rock-splitter said.

"It's. Fine. Can't blame you. It's not like I've been using it lately."

"Hmm," he hummed as he scratched his chin. "You know what? Take this as a final gift from me. I apologize for the quality; I am not as versed in wood as I am in stone."

"What?"

Rock-splitter leaned down and clapped his hands together. Before I could ask what he was doing, he dug his hands into the earth and pushed it aside like a shovel. I felt mana leave his body, and he stood up.

Devon watched from underneath his hood, and I inspected the ground where I felt mana spread like water.

"Give it a moment," Rock-splitter whispered.

We waited, and then, magic.

A thin yet richly-colored tree sprouted from the ground; it started as a small sapling and grew into a full trunk after only a minute. It wasn't large by any standards, but it was still a remarkable display of creation.

"That was cool, but it's a little too big."

"Don't be foolish; this is not the gift. This is."

He reached for the tree and selected a branch that was perfectly round without blemish. It looked as thick as my last axe, just a tad wider. With a simple pinch of his fingers, the branch came free, but remarkably, the part connected to the trunk separated rather than snapping off.

The branch in his hand looked like a perfectly smooth handle. And when he closed his fingers and slid it through his hand, it came out the other side carved with an intricate scene.

He held it close to my eyes, and I scanned the wood. "That's us?"

"Indeed. From you discovering my presence, to the snapping of my chains. A good weapon has a good story to tell on its shaft."

By now, I was feeling like a kid during Christmas. The handle looked exquisite, intricately detailed, and glossy as if coated in thin glass.

"It's beautiful, thank you. I'm sure we'll find a suitable axe head in the capital."

"Ah, listen closely, Little Wolf. I said this wasn't the gift."

He lowered his club and held it out. I stared at it with a raised eyebrow, and he grinned. Emerald flames sprouted from the head of the club, and it grew in size, but not like before. A stone ball sprouted like a tumor that separated into a clean sphere. He tucked the shaft into his arm and closed the freed fist around the sphere. When he opened his fingers, a sleek-looking bearded axehead rested on his palm.

It sported runes finely carved into its surface, and the edge looked remarkably sharp. He pushed his thumb against the stone and pulled away as it dripped blood.

I knew what his skin felt like, and for the axe to cut his skin so easily meant it was wickedly sharp.

"That's incredible. But are you sure?"

He chuckled. "It will weaken it some, but as always, it's nothing that time won't fix. Now, extend your hand."

I did as he asked, and he pushed the axehead onto the shaft. It connected, and he gently took my hand and placed it hovering above the spot where the head met the body. I felt something sharp cut into my palm, and my blood began to drip onto the weapon. With slow, deliberate movements, he lowered my hand onto the shaft and pressed my fingers around the wood.

A new connection blossomed in my senses, and I felt a tether shoot up my arm. Devon leaned in close but stayed far enough away to not intrude.

As the sensation calmed, I felt a new weight coming from my hand, one that went beyond the physical heaviness of the axe itself.

It reminded me of my cloak.

"I understand that iron is the preferred choice of Grimms, but hearthstone is just as, if not more, effective. That weapon is bound to you now and will require a name. Give it some time; names are a serious matter. Do not tarnish yourself or the fledgling soul-weapon by carelessly selecting its name. Let it call to you, and you'll know what's right."

He pulled his hand away and crossed his arms. I nodded seriously and lifted the axe into the air. It felt good, not too heavy, light even, except for when I swung down in a practice chop. It felt like I was splitting gravity, and the axe sank faster than I anticipated.

"Thank you, Rock-splitter."

"Put it to good use and treat it right; that is all I ask."

I nodded. "I promise."

He clapped his hands and turned toward the tunnel. "Good, they are arriving!"