Iris's eyes wandered the room while she and Kigo waited for the others to return. The more she looked, the more it appeared that most of the projects scattered about were attempts to replicate existing inventions with the materials that were available to the gargoyles in abundance. The small marble cannon was one example, but based on the cracks splintering down its barrel, it hadn't been successful. Various tools lay about with similar cracks, and there were even a few musical instruments carved from marble such as a flute and a horn that seemed to hold up much better.

Something particular caught her eye, stashed away in a corner beside a table piled high with discarded wooden prototypes and a stack of marble rubble was the unmistakable hilt of a weapon leaning against the wall. The handle was long enough for two hands and lacked any sort of wrapping that one might expect, and instead was just exposed white marble. The guard separating the handle from the blade was cast in silver, and was rounded and bulbous rather than the usual perpendicular cross bar. She could only see an inch or so beyond the cross guard, but the blade appeared to be wide and the height of the hilt relative to the floor implied it was quite long.

The others entered the shack with cheerful expressions, but were still careful not to move too quickly or approach Kigo and Iris. Autumn carried a large blue anti-boomrock approximately the size of the yellow-orange boomrock held by Kigo.

"It took some doing," Autumn explained, "but the experiments were a success. This oughtta take the boom right out of that boomrock."

"How do we use it?" Iris asked, still standing in the same place they had left her, just in front of the nervous Kigo.

"Just tap that rock with this rock," Cronur said confidently, "problem solved."

"Alright, hand it here," Iris said.

The others exchanged glances, and Autumn passed the anti-boomrock to Adan. One by one, everyone but Adan made their way back out the door they had just come through.

"We'll just wait out here," Autumn said as she stepped through the doorway, "we don't want to distract you or anything."

"Wow," Iris replied flatly.

"Ignore them," Adan said, "we have tested this numerous times."

"Why can't you just touch the stones?" Iris asked.

"Best not to crowd around the boomrock," Adan said, "we wouldn't want to risk disturbing it."

Iris gave him a critical look, but didn't argue. At her request, a single tentacle delicately rose out of the bottomless bag at her waist and wrapped around her walking stick to hold it while she reached out towards Adan. He took slow, deliberate steps forward until he was able to hold the anti-boomrock within Iris's reach, and she gently took it into her hands.

Slowly and carefully, she turned back towards Kigo with the best smile she could muster, "we're almost out of this, are you ready?"

"Mhm," Kigo said, ever-so-slightly nodding his head.

"Okay," Iris let out a breath, "here we go."

She held the anti-boomrock with both hands and slowly reached it out towards the boomrock in Kigo's hands. The two stones gently clacked together, and nothing happened. Then a spark of crackling energy shot between then, and the stone in Kigo's hands turned blue.

"We did it!" Iris shouted.

Autumn and the other gargoyles poked their heads in, immediately spotted the two blue stones, and erupted into cheers as they rushed into the shack. They crowded around Iris and Kigo, cheering and laughing as Kigo finally released a long-needed sigh of a relief. Everyone froze when another crackling spark shot between the stones, and both turned yellow-orange.

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"STOP!" Cronur said, extending his arms out to hold the others back from the stones.

"What just happened?" Iris asked.

"Don't know," Cronur answered hurriedly, "the tests didn't do this."

"Everyone stay completely still," Adan said, "the energy within the stones appears to be fluctuating."

"How do you know?" Autumn asked.

"My father made me very observant," Adan said, "please, wait a few seconds."

All breath in the room was held as the seconds passed at an agonizing pace. Then, both stones shifted back to blue. They stayed that way only long enough for everyone but Adan to sigh, and then another spark shifted the stones back to yellow-orange.

"What do we do?" Cronur asked in a panic.

"I can't take this," Kigo said.

"I have a plan," Iris said, "Adan, do you think they'll turn blue again?"

"It is likely," Adan said, "I believe the opposing energies are vying for control."

"Bigger always wins," Cronur said, "everything works that way."

Autumn shot him an unhappy glance, while everyone else glanced at Iris's rock, and then to Kigo's. They were close in size, but from most angles Kigo's appeared to be slightly larger.

"It doesn't matter which one wins," Iris said, "we just need them to turn blue again. Autumn, you're on Littletooth duty. Abby, be ready to pull him out and open the bag wide when I say so. Kigo, when the rocks turn blue, you're going to drop your rock into my bag, understood?"

Kigo nodded anxiously. The rocks turned blue.

"Now!" Iris said.

A tentacle erupted out of the bag holding a squirming Littletooth, who was promptly shoved into Autumn's arms. At the same time, the opening of the bag stretched wide and Iris twisted her waist to point the bag towards Kigo, who quickly dropped his stone into the void. Abby dropped Iris's walking stick and all the tentacles swiftly shrunk back into the bag just before it cinched itself tight and the draw string tied itself into a tight knot.

"Wait," Iris said, "no one move."

The room was still for several moments, and all eyes were on the blue stone in Iris's hands. Minutes past, and nothing changed.

"I think--" Iris hesitated in case the stone had an attitude, and only continued after a few more seconds of the stone not changing, "we're good."

The group shared a collective sigh, and Kigo promptly collapsed onto the floor and thumped his back against the wall.

"Cronur," Kigo said flatly with his eyes closed, "I quit."

"Understandable," Cronur nodded.

Iris blipped across the room and gently placed the anti-boomrock on a table, "I don't know what you guys should do with this one, but it's not going in my bag."

"That is smart," Adan said, "we should keep the stones apart, and dispose of both separately."

Cronur, Ferum and Juvu stepped up to Iris and bowed deeply. Cronur held his bow as the others rose, and spoke sincerely and formally, "you are truly a fantastic wizard, Iris, and you have talented assistants--"

"We're not assistants!" Autumn argued.

"We will repay you and your assistants in whatever way you wish," Cronur continued, finally rising from his bow, "we have materials, inventions, gold--"

Iris reached out towards the corner and blipped an object into her hands. The sudden disappearance caused a small avalanche of collapsing junk, but Cronur ignored it. The handle appeared in her hand, and a long, wide marble blade extended out several feet in the direction she was reaching. It was made of black marble, with a splintering pattern of white streaks down its entire length. Joining the pattern were cracks in the marble, which had been filled with streaks of gleaming silver that joined together with a thick silver band along the outside of the blade which formed the cutting edge. It was hefty, and she soon brought her other hand to the hilt to support its weight.

The widest grin possible spread across her face, "how about this?"

"Of course!" Cronur answered quickly, "it is yours."

"I'll be right back," she said, disappearing.

She reappeared outside the shack, where she launched into a series of swings, jabs and parries with the blade. The weight was immense, and her muscles ached as she slowed each strike to a stop, but that was exactly what she wanted. She imagined swinging the sword full force into a target, allowing all the weight to slam home and drive the blade through. Iris laughed with joy, and brought the blade flat in front of her to inspect its beautiful patterns.

"I think you'll do nicely," she said to the sword.

She turned as Autumn and Adan exited the shack. Autumn was carrying a stack of black marble tall enough to obstruct her view, while Littletooth sat atop the stack. Adan had picked up Iris's walking stick in one hand and was holding a chunk of regular glow stone in the other.

"What are you gonna do with all that?" Iris called out.

"I'm gonna make some sick armor!" Autumn yelled out from behind the marble.

Adan held up the glow stone, "I'm gonna add this to my hands."

"What does that even mean?" Autumn asked.

"I am not sure how to make my statement more clear," Adan answered.