Nothing? Irwin thought as he dully eyed the mission log.

"Are you sure?" he asked, tapping his pocket.

"If you think you know better, by all means!' Ambraz snapped.

Irwin sighed, ignoring the surprised chatter behind him. He knew Ambraz was more than a little annoyed about being dragged all around to every Mission Center Scintilla knew about, but he just couldn't believe it.

We must have been to over twenty, he thought, stepping back and nodding at the Mission Centers clerk, who just waved him away.

With a final, annoyed look at the green mission tablet, which seemed to be the same at every one of the Mission Centers, Irwin turned and looked around the Mission Center. This was the last on this level. A dozen people were browsing the shelves lined with cards, far more than he had ever seen at the Greenbark Mission Center.

Scintilla stood near the exit, leaning against the door with a look of annoyance.

"This is the last one on this level?" Irwin asked as he walked towards her.

"The elders be blessed, yes," Scintilla said before hissing loudly. "I should have kicked Driseog's ass when he gave you that token."

Irwin grimaced as her eyes flickered angrily. He somehow didn't doubt she would have truly kicked the owner and boss of a small Mission Center. Still, as he put his hand in his pocket and felt the tiny golden-bordered card, he couldn't help but be grateful to Driseog. Without the token, he'd never have been able to look at the mission logs of the other Mission Centers. Well, those of the smaller, privately owned ones. His one attempt at one of the larger ones had been met with rejection at the door.

"Let's go before that old baldy blows a vein," Scintilla whispered.

Irwin followed her gaze to see an old off-worlder, arms clasped across his chest, glaring at him from across the room.

What's his problem? Irwin thought.

Then he shrugged and walked to the exit of the Mission Center, one of the Viridian girls that stood there said something about being happy for his visit and hoping he'd come again.

He waved and smiled, then looked through the thin transparent crystal sheet that sat in the center of the door. Beyond it lay a bustling bazaar with hundreds of Viridians and off-worlders of various species moving about between stalls and small shops.

Back into the screaming masses, Irwin thought, recalling what Balarn had said when he'd asked him to come along.

As soon as they stepped out of the soundproofed Mission Center, the shouting of vendors and chattering of buyers erupted from everywhere.

"The best Favorn Fruits in Cinder Grove! Get them here for only one soulshard per pair!"

"Dried meat! Perfectly salted and crunchy! Buy three, get one free!"

"Have your image drawn on wood! Just two soulshards!"

The cacophony of offers quickie blurred into a mash of screaming, and Irwin resisted putting his hands over his ears.

The first auction is in weeks from now… great, he thought, as he tried to think of another way to get a good card.

Deep in thought, he absently followed Scintilla.

It was time to accept that he wasn't going to find what he was looking for right now. It was close to morning, and they had been walking around for the entire evening to try and find a card that would be able to close some of the gaps in his abilities. Sadly it seemed Scintilla and Driseog had been right when they warned him he wasn't going to find anything. Driseog said that those card missions had all been taken in the first week, and those left were for non-combat and non-smithing professions.

That left only the upcoming auctions or going out and hoping to find something by killing monsters.

"I think-" he began shouting.

He nearly bit his tongue as he was yanked to the side by Scintilla, who pulled him behind a crowd of people moving along slowly.

Seriously?

Getting a sense of deja vu, Irwin quickly followed her, bending his head and lowering his posture to try and hide. It was a good thing that there were many older Viridians around, their towering bulky frames even large enough to hide him.

"Haudur's charter again?" he asked in one of the few moments of relative silence.

Scintilla nodded as she let him go.

"Yeah, I saw two of those icy buggers, but I'm pretty sure they didn't spot us yet. There could be more, though," she said.

Irwin was about to tell her to just navigate them to the next exit when her eyes widened. Before he could even see what was ahead, Scintilla stepped closer and put an arm around his waist. As he felt her body pressed against his, the leather armor barely able to cover her curves, Irwin felt his mouth go dry.

"What?"

"Hold your breath!"

Irwin quickly did as she said, and he was just in time. A moment later, the world changed in a rush of sparks, shimmers of flame, and streaks of ash. All of it was against a backdrop of intensely black, red-lined clouds that churned and ripped.

A sense of insane speed came, combined with a sense of tension across his body.

Before he even had the time to panic, the world returned to normal, and he stumbled forward a few steps before landing on his knees. His head was spinning, and his stomach seemed intent on trying to flip upside down. Irwin clenched his teeth, barely able to hold his food inside.

"Sorry, hotstuff," Scintilla groaned beside him.

Irwin wasn't able to respond, afraid that if he tried, he'd vomit on the spot. Scintilla let out a hazy moan, and she clambered up and ran to a small patch of plants and vegetation. Sticking her head inside, a very unladylike sound followed.

Ugh, Irwin thought as he quickly looked away and tried to ignore both the sound and his own heaving stomach.

As he recognized where they were, his surprise slightly suppressed his Nausea.

They were standing on the edge of the level, a few feet from the staircase.

Did she teleport us?

He shook his head. No. That hadn't been teleporting. Teleporting felt different- this was more like movement. But how? They hadn't gone around anything, so how?

As he turned around, he saw a group of four Viridians gape at them. They were carrying bags with what looked like vegetables and fruit, and as they saw him look at them, they turned and quickly moved away.

"Let's get up. I need a drink," Scintilla said as she walked towards him. Her face was pale, and she was rubbing her mouth.

"What did you do, and why?" Irwin asked as they walked towards the staircase.

"That was Inferno Blink, my fourth card and a present from my mother," Scintilla said as she gave him a wry smile. "When I said I wanted to set out alone, she said I'd need to take it, or she wouldn't allow it… Can you believe it? As if I'd ever need it. Mothers!"

Irwin smiled at the heavy sarcasm while images of his own mother played through his mind.

It took them a while to return to the smithy, and when they reached the street it was in, Irwin noticed two off-worlders standing near the entrance. They were leaning against the opposite building, and as Irwin and Scintilla approached, they pushed themselves forward to intercept them.

Irwin frowned, slowing his pace. Scintilla was glaring back at the two, and Irwin quickly put a hand on her shoulder, holding her back. They had no idea what these two were up to and what cards they might have. He didn't see any silvery eyes, but that didn't mean they couldn't be dangerous.

"Let's see what they want," he said, loud enough that he knew the two men had probably heard him.

The two slowed down slightly, giving Irwin enough time to inspect them. Muscular arms showed him they were probably smiths, although he didn't see any rank signs anywhere, and both were surprisingly young, probably no older than he was. One of them had a set of nasty scars on his chin, while the other had the beginnings of a flaky beard and mustache. Neither would have looked misplaced in Esterdon, though they were on the tall end. They also didn't really look all that dangerous. Not if Irwin compared them to all the things he'd met over the last year.

"You're Irwin?" Flakybeard asked threateningly.

Irwin blinked as a memory of his brother telling him how to deal with bullies suddenly surfaced. And bullies were what they looked like to him. What had Bronwyn said? If someone threatens you, push back harder. Don't show fear. There was more to it, but he'd never really used it as he'd been too small. Now, however?

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

Imagining turning into Coperrion Body shape and throttling the two men, he glared back.

"Who's asking?" he replied, lowering his tone and adding a slight growl to his voice.

The result was a deep, dangerous, and threatening voice that caused both men's eyes to widen. The one with the scars actually inched back a bit while the others swallowed audibly.

"We- we are from Eboq," the one with the scars said, his young voice belying his rugged appearance.

Irwin was still wondering what that had to do with anything when the man bowed low, pulling the other with him.

"Please take us as your apprentices!"

"..." Irwin gaped at the two young men.

A snort, followed by a burst of laughter, came from Scintilla.

"Just two wannabe smiths from one of the fringe worlds," she said, shaking her head with a wide smile. "Got me all worked up for nothing!"

Irwin looked at the two, who were still there, bowing low.

"I'm not looking for apprentices right now," he finally managed.

"Please reconsider! We will do whatever you require of us and work really hard," the scarred one said.

"Eej, punks, how did you even manage to get to Scour?" Scintilla asked, hands on her hips and looking at them with a wry smile. "Don't tell me you managed to remain behind after your merchant group left?"

A horrified look appeared on both men's faces, and they began shaking their heads.

"No, no! We are allowed to be here," the scarred one said.

Irwin wondered how they had managed to stay here if they couldn't lie any better than that.

"Sorry, guys," he said as he walked past them. "I have other things to do and might be leaving for a while."

"We can join you! Act as guards," the bearded one snapped.

His worried face didn't match his angry-sounding voice at all.

Irwin didn't bother responding as he reached the smithy. Balarn and Monyque were standing there, the latter with a sympathetic gaze. Wondering why they were remaining out of sight, Irwin frowned.

"Hey. You were right. I couldn't find one," he said, wondering why they were motioning for him to stop talking. "What?"

"Sir Smiths! Please, reconsider taking us in as apprentices!"

The pleading voice from behind made him turn around to see the two young men standing near the entrance, looking at Balarn and Monyque.

"I told you! I'm not taking apprentices," Monyque snapped before she quickly rushed into the building.

Balarn just frowned and raised an eyebrow, his gaze turning cold.

"Sorry for disturbing you!" the scarred one squealed as he pulled his friend along.

Irwin watched in stunned silence as they disappeared between the buildings, heading back toward the edge of the level.

"What just happened?" he asked, turning to Balarn.

"Something you should get used to," the smith said calmly. "There are many people that want to learn to smith, especially from newer worlds where there are only a few. Some manage to reach worlds like this to try and become an apprentice. My advice is to ignore them until you reach Emerald rank. From Emerald to Ruby takes a long, long time, and one way to practice is teaching others. Tensor actually began at that rank, only becoming a charter when he reached Ruby rank."

Irwin nodded. So these two hadn't actually been looking for him specifically. They were trying to get anyone to take them in.

Still… How did they know my name?

"So, you didn't find a skill… what now?" Balarn asked.

"I'm going to… reforge my hammer to Topaz, then head out," Irwin said as he hesitated. The prospect of the intense pain that would bring made him shiver already.

"That might be for the best. What route are you taking? Multipurpose form, battle form, or are you going to augment it with fire?"

Irwin shrugged as he followed the other smith inside.

"Not sure yet."

"Well, if you are going out to do dangerous missions, I'd suggest a battle form," Balarn said.

Irwin nodded, and he remained in the hallway, talking with Balarn for a while. After he had a lot of useful tips, he headed back to his room and sat down.

"So… what would you suggest?" he asked, tapping his pocket.

There was a rustle, then Ambraz flew out and landed on the table.

"Balarn has a point," Ambraz said. "Although I'd prefer you focus on smithing, I don't think you are going to be able to avoid combat. There is one path we could take… but it's a stretch."

"Which is?"

"How many cards do you have left?"

Irwin frowned, removing the stack of leftover quartz cards from his pockets and doing a quick count.

"Fourteen," he said.

"Alright, that should be plenty," Ambraz said, and Irwin could almost see him stare hungrily at the stack.

"For what?"

"To reforge your hammer card to Emerald."

"What? Are you crazy? I can't even reforge a proper, high-percentage Topaz card," Irwin snapped.

"Kid, who said you had to do it by yourself?"

Irwin leaned back as he stared at the Anvil.

"Explain."

"With enough food, I can help you reforge that card to Emerald. Remember when I told you not to reforge it beyond Amethyst when you got it?"

Irwin nodded, absently wondering how many cards Ambraz was planning to eat this time.

"Well, one of the reasons was because you weren't able to reforge it to a hundred percent perfect. However, it's a growth card, and I've been keeping an eye on it, and it reached a hundred percent a while ago."

"You can see that?" Irwin asked in surprise.

Ambraz snorted. "I can see nearly everything about cards!"

"Alright… but shouldn't we leave it at Topaz so it can get to a hundred percent again?" Irwin asked.

"Who said we can't get it to a hundred percent?" Ambraz retorted.

"..."

"Exactly. If all things go well, you can already reach the high eighties. With my help, reaching a hundred will be easy enough."

"So… why don't you help me with the other cards, then?" Irwin asked, surprised.

"Sure! If you can feed me three or four cards per card, no problem," Ambraz said.

Irwin grimaced, shaking his head. "So, how many will you need to reforge it to topaz and then to emerald?"

"Me? No, we," Ambraz said. "It's about time we start working together. You are slowly reaching a level where working together will benefit both of us, and we might as well get started!"

Imagining reforging a card to Emerald and seeing the brilliant green border, Irwin felt his excitement surge.

"So. How many cards?" he asked again.

"Four to get it to a hundred percent Topaz, then six to get it to Emerald. How good it will be depends on how much we can work in sync," Ambraz said.

Ten cards? Irwin thought as he flinched. Then he sighed. What else was he going to do with them? He could reforge them and sell them, but in the end, raising his own strength should be his number one priority.

"Alright… how do we start?"

"You by preparing for the pain, and me by eating four cards," Ambraz said.

Sounds fair, Irwin thought with a sad sigh.

--

Daubutim leaned back. His head was throbbing, but it couldn't stop the sense of overwhelming joy.

"Prospect Daubutim. Have you finished?"

Daubutim looked up to see Purntou standing there. The man's eyes were glimmering.

He should know I have. Daubutim thought. That meant he wanted him to say it?

Holding in a sigh at the illogical behavior, he nodded.

"I have finished."

A rush of whispers came from all around him, and he looked up and saw the other Prospective Librarians that had reached the second stage stare at him. There were looks of disbelief, anger, and even fear. He didn't really understand the last one, nor did he care to find out right now. His mind was still overflowing with the knowledge he'd just absorbed, and he wanted time and silence to try to figure out what it all meant.

"Good. Follow me to the next and final step of the exam," the Librarian said.

Daubutim pushed himself up, his gaze lingering on the stack of books he'd read. The knowledge inside had surprised him, as it dealt with famous kingdoms, empires, and species. Much of it was probably common knowledge, but to him, it had been a welcome source of new information. Surprising too.

He followed Purntou, who led him towards another door. Moving inside, this time, they entered a long hallway, the walls covered in bookcases. Paths branched off everywhere, all covered with shelves lined with books, while a periodic green tablet was attached to some of them. Heavily worn stools stood in small alcoves.

"You may stay here and rest until the others are ready," Purntou said, staring at him intently.

"Thank you," Daubutim said, hoping that was what would make the other man leave.

His guess appeared right as Purntou nodded, turned, and left.

Looking around to ensure he was alone, not accounting for the eyes he presumed were still on him, he moved to the nearest stool and sat down. Leaning with his head against the closet, he gazed at the opposite wall.

So… How is it possible that The Galadin Empire came from the Portal Gallery if there were no prior Portals, he thought, pulling up the information about the ancient kingdom. It had been one of the more powerful ones, covering almost an entire side branch of the Portal Gallery, and it had mysteriously disappeared roughly ten thousand years ago.

This means either they found a way to Giard or they originated there.

He sped through the knowledge again, combining it with what he knew from his father's history and legend tomes. There was nothing known about The Galadin Empire's origin, and all that remained were legends and roads. Flat roads, made in a way that nobody could reproduce now.

Probably with heart- or even soul cards, Daubutim decided.

There was no more information he could remember, and he sighed as he felt his mind slowly bog down. He wanted to know why, but he didn't. Knowing if he tried to force it, he might even fall asleep, he quickly shoved his curiosity away and looked around. His head was still pulsing, but seeing a large number of books, he could only smile happily. Rubbing his head, he looked at the nearest shelf, noting that the books were written in a language he didn't know.

Running his finger around some of the beautiful leather-bound tomes, he moved along the lines, scanning them for anything that seemed familiar. He absently moved through the hallways, noting that the map forming in his head showed there were odd elevations in the library that shouldn't be there. At one point, he looked back, and although he saw no slope, the mental map told him they had just gone down a flight of stairs.

Some form of illusion? he wondered.

Deciding to see if he could circle around, he used the map to continue walking back but along another path. It took him a few attempts, doubling back to find the paths leading back up. Just when he was closing in on the area he'd started at, he noticed a set of dark, leather-bound tomes with symbols he recognized.

Galadin runes!

Curious, he hurried towards them, picking up one of the books. His knowledge of the runes was small, mostly because there were very few left, and as he leafed through the cream-colored book, he knew there was no way he could read it.

--

"Interesting. He managed to easily navigate the outer library, seeming unhampered by the illusions," Purntou said, staring at the towering warrior leaf through the ancient tome with a delicacy that warmed his heart.

"What's more curious is that the Library Spirit decided to show him these books," an old voice muttered beside him.

Purntou turned and bowed slightly to the ancient figure standing next to him. With silvery eyes, a gray beard, and deep wrinkles, he oozed knowledge. As always, he couldn't read anything from the others' responses.

Unsurprising from a Master Librarian, he thought.

"And you are sure that he came from the farming world that the locals call Giard?"

Noting a tiny flicker of curiosity in the ancient silver eyes, Purntou nodded, trying to hold back his own curiosity.

"Yes, Master Gelwin," he said. "I've researched him, and he came here together with three others. From what we know, they were the first group and didn't act out in any way. Two of the others became smiths, one named Irwin quickly showing a profound level of skill, while the other, Lamia, was more in line with what is to be expected. She vanished two days ago, and it is presumed she has fallen victim to the malevolent entities causing trouble in the other districts. The fourth one, Greldo, seems uninteresting. He has been moving around the underground fighting circuits."

The ancient Librarian quietly looked back, seeming to think it over before responding.

"Anything else?"

"The second group from Giard caused far more issues, and most of those are kept in the Central Registry to be sent to mining worlds to pay for the damage they have done. All but one, someone called Indoutor, who is the cousin of Daubutim."

"Interesting. Alright. After you are finished with this year's prospects, I want you to find out anything you can about the missing smith, Lamia. Then contact the Central Registry, and tell them to have all people from Giard work off their debts here."

The ancient Librarian looked back at the warrior, then nodded and turned away.

"I saw that you have asked to have him as your apprentice," he said. "I'll make sure that happens, but I want you to keep me up to date on anything this Daubutim does."

"Yes, Master Gelwin," Purntou said, his curiosity now fully peaked.

Why is he so interested in the people from Giard? he thought.