As it turned out, most of the others agreed with Howard. They had found a place for everyone to sleep, though Jonathan seemed a bit unhappy about a few of the changes. Sanders took the three unexpected guests to his base while the rest of them stayed at the crash site. Howard had managed to claim a place that was actually in the crew quarters.

Unfortunately, the shuttle was not as sheltered from the houses grown from the fountain and light seeped in making it difficult to sleep. When night fell again everyone gathered to prepare to leave.

“Before we go anywhere I want to confirm something,” Natalie said, “Do you know how to make the sacred fountain and grow houses?”

{The houses are easy, but the sacred fountain may take some time,} Howard admitted, {Veda mentioned that it was taxing and the waters would test you.}

“So even with a whole night ahead of us there is no guarantee we will have safe shelter in time,” Natalie mumbled, “Especially since it is summer and the nights are shorter.”

{We could send Howard ahead while we try to finish packing,} Miranda suggested.

{If we do that I want to take Selina and Dorian with me. Both of them were Veda’s apprentices and I don’t want to risk something going wrong while I am alone.}

{In that case, maybe I should come as well,} James suggested, {We don’t need you getting attacked by a predator while you are focusing on something so difficult.}

Howard nodded, then turned to Sanders. {Has Selina shown you the destination yet?}

{She has,} Sanders said, {Don’t worry about communication. I will take care of that.}

Sanders flicked a finger and opened a portal in front of Howard with no warning. Howard took a hasty step back from the clean oval. It looked more like an optical illusion than something that was really there. On the other side was the exact place Selina had shown Howard the night before. The oval’s edge was a clean, clear line, like the edge of a glass sheet, and the oval was tall enough for a native to walk through without any worries.

{Just don’t touch the edge,} Sanders warned, {You might get stuck there.}

Howard decided he probably did not want to know where he might get stuck if he touched the edge, but Jonathan seemed all too interested. Howard decided to step through before he acted out any of his ideas, and James, Selina, and Dorian followed.

Stepping through the portal felt strange. Not because there was any strange effect, but because there wasn’t. It was as if they had simply stepped through a normal doorway. A doorway that closed behind them leaving them abandoned in this beautiful, but possibly dangerous place.

Now that he was there in person Howard could see that the pool was a lot deeper than it looked from Selina’s scrying. The water was also amazingly clear.

{Where are we going to put the fountain?} Selina asked.

{I had an idea for that as soon as you showed this to me,} Howard told her, {Some things always bothered me about the fountain in the Colony of Veda. It was in the center, but it was easy to access so she had to guard it constantly. There was also no backup, and she admitted that any water under the fountain’s influence could work just as well for doing ceremonies and growing houses. The Sage just had to be there to help. I think we should put the real fountain at the top of the waterfall and have a dummy fountain in this pool below it.}

{You mean turning the waterfall itself into the fountain?} Dorian asked. He looked intrigued.

{It will be part of the fountain but the source should be above it and much harder to access,} Howard explained, {If any other part of the fountain’s influence is tainted it can be purified, but if the source is tainted the entire colony could start dying. It isn’t something that can be risked.}

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Dorian nodded in agreement.

{I also think that Selina should be in charge of all ceremonies. She thrives in the spotlight and she also excelled at managing things like that as well as the system,} Howard continued.

Selina beamed. {This is going to be fun, especially since I won’t have to be on constant guard of them tainting the fountain.}

{And me?} Dorian asked.

{I think you would be best in charge of the colony’s defenses,} Howard told him, {I don’t want a wall of trees and a moat that can be gotten through with a mere boat. I intend to gather all of the poisonous and dangerous plants as a defense so that the predators won’t want to come in here at all.}

{We should probably do a wall too,} Dorian said.

{I intend to, but it should be made of dirt so that the deadly plants can grow on the outside of it,} Howard explained.

{From the sounds of things, you should be in charge of defenses,} Dorian pointed out.

Howard frowned. {For now, just help both of us then.}

{So, how are we going to get above the waterfall?} Selina asked.

{I had a plan for that too,} Howard said, {Houses grow just like we want them to. If I keep the image clearly in my mind it won’t be a problem.}

{But without the fountain, you will only have the Wisdom in yourself. Are you sure?} Selina asked.

{The Wisdom in the fountain comes from the Sage in the first place,} Howard told her, {I don’t really see how it makes a difference which comes first.}

As Selina thought about that, he concentrated on what he wanted. A giant redwood that encases the waterfall without disrupting its flow. It would have a large opening at the bottom that would allow gondolas to cross the pool and dock there. A floor that would float in the center of the inner tree allowing for both the waterfall and the dummy fountain to pour into the pool. Bridges that led to the edges and stairs to upper floors.

Two of the roots would also act as bridges across the pool so that gondolas were not necessary to enter. There would be a secret door that led to the caves behind the waterfall and only opened for certain people in case they needed to retreat. As for the next floor, there would be a meeting room where the stairways met. That would have a hall split off that led to common rooms, dining rooms, and a large kitchen.

The third floor would have a secret room that held the true fountain at the waterfall’s source, but would otherwise be filled with bedrooms and guest rooms.

That was all Howard hard for now, but he could always add more later. When he opened his eyes he saw Selina and Dorian gaping at the giant tree that had grown out of nowhere, and James with a hand on his gun.

{Did you do that?} Selina asked.

{I did,} Howard replied, noting with satisfaction that the sprays of needles on the branches were decidedly green, not teal or turquoise.

One of the roots that had become a bridge had stretched so it began right in front of them. There were rails and stairsteps when the bridge rose, and it was wide enough for several people to walk side by side.

{We should be able to reach the source of the waterfall now,} Howard told them.

{No kidding,} Dorian muttered, still slightly shocked, {Just how much Wisdom do you have stored up?}

{I think I still have enough to make the fountain. If not, we have a place for everyone to stay tonight,} Howard said.

{Shall we get going?} James said, stepping onto the bridge, {I will go first to make sure no animals got a sudden new house.}

{Good idea,} Dorian agreed, not liking the thought of suddenly being jumped out at while finding their way to the selected spot.

{After this can I be in charge of the dummy fountain?} Selina asked, {Since this is going to be the face of our colony it should look amazing, right?}

{Go ahead,} Howard told her.

They crossed the root bridge and made their way to the stairs. The stairs hugged the inner edge of the trunk and led up to a wide entry room of sorts. The entry room had a large set of double doors on the other side of it that led to a grand meeting room. This was as far as a guest would get. Howard demonstrated the hidden door in the meeting room and led them up to the third level.

There were some branches inside the third level that had a decorative effect without getting in the way. Howard then revealed the secret room on the third floor. It had been surprisingly quiet in the rest of the treehouse, but inside this room where the floor was more like a bridge over the waterfall, they could hear the ferocious roar of the rapid water.

There was an opening in the trunk to allow the river to flow in unhindered, but a grate like structure would prevent anything else from coming in.

{You want us to make the Sacred Fountain here?} Selina asked in disbelief, {If we didn’t have telepathy we wouldn’t even be able to hear each other in here.}

{The Sacred Fountain doesn’t have to be a fountain,} Dorian pointed out, {It’s base is an orb of wisdom that is completely stationary.}

{Will it manage to be stationary even in those rapids?} Selina wondered.

{Only one way to find out,} Howard told them, {Shall we? Once we finish this, the others can come and we can get the moving process over with.}

{Right.}

The three of them focused their Wisdom on creating the core of a Sacred Fountain. It was going surprisingly easily until Howard suddenly couldn’t feel anything anymore. Not just Wisdom, all of his normal senses had been completely blocked off as well as if he was floating in nothingness. He could not even tell if he was still standing right now.

{Do you three beings wish to become the Sages of this land and take on the duty of your ancestors?}

A voice filled Howard’s mind, causing all other thoughts to flee. The voice was powerful and overwhelming. Veda had not warned them about this.