Ell stared at Bren.

“You're going to let them all do it?” she said.

He nodded.

“Of course. It's not a treasure to keep locked away. It's something so precious that we have to give it to everyone. It's the only way we can have a future.”

Everyone was watching Pru, waiting for her to drink the potion.

She popped the cork out, and held it up.

“Well,” she said in her small voice. “Here I go...”

She swallowed the whole thing in one gulp, then looked around nervously.

“It doesn't taste like anything. What do I do now?”

Bren took some sticks and coal from his robes.

“Try making something,” he said.

Pru stared at them like she'd never seen them before.

“I... I think I get it,” she said. She slowly took them, and twisted a lump of coal against the end of a stick. There was a small clicking sound, and the torch erupted into cool flame and light.

She gasped.

Bren just nodded.

“There you go,” he said. “Just that easy.”

“It's like... I don't know. It's like another place in my mind opened up,” Pru said. “I can sort of see how things might make sense together. In new ways.”

She just kept staring at the torch she'd made, looking amazed. All of the villagers started talking at once. Most of them sounded excited.

Ell frowned.

“Is this really a good idea?” she said. “I mean Pru is fine, she's a good person. But giving it to everyone? What if they want to make things wrong? Or make dangerous things? We can't just let anybody make anything!”

She stared at the rest of the villagers, then looked back at Bren.

“We should only let people we trust do that,” she said.

Bren shook his head.

“That's where the Iron City went wrong. They're like that,” he said. “That's why I needed to go.”

Mat thought about it.

“You're different?” he said.

Bren nodded.

“They thought I was too precious and that what I did was too dangerous. They treated me well enough. Everyone treated me like... something more important than a regular villager.”

“Then why would you leave?” Ell said.

“It didn't matter. I was still theirs, not my own. They weren't going to allow the rest of the world to have me.”

He waved his hand around at the island and the villagers.

“People need the gift. They have a right to it! You saw what happened here. It's the only thing that can save them.”

He reached into his robe and pulled out another vial of blue liquid. He held it out to Mat.

“You're a bookish one. A librarian through and through. There's power in that. You'll be able to make enchantments once you practice a bit. You'll give your people magic they haven't even dreamed of.”

Mat took the vial and considered it.

“I can make a library?”

“You can. That and more.”

It was almost too much to imagine. Pru looked up from her torch and gave him a little grin.

“Drink it,” she whispered.

Mat didn't feel anything, just like she had said. It didn't even have a flavor.

“Okay. So do I do the torch trick now?” he said.

Bren nodded and gave him the materials.

He looked at the stick.

I guess it makes sense, he thought. The coal can sort of twist on here, and then...

The torch lit up in his hands. He stared at it for a moment and then laughed.

“That's it?” he said. “That's all? It's just that simple?”

Bren nodded.

It was too easy. He thought about the walls Ell had made. The blocks would kind of slot together, really you could make them into any shape at all.

Anything.

He felt dizzy.

“It's so easy,” he said. “It so simple and you can make anything. Anything you can think of.”

Pru gave him a little smile.

“Right? It's kind of frightening. There's so many possibilities. I already feel lost thinking about it.”

Bren nodded again.

“That's it,” he said. “You're a maker. Who's next?”

He handed them out to every single villager – telling them about the things they would make as well – axes, doors, windows, walls, forges and anvils and potion stands and glass for windows and beds and swords and arrows and wells and on and on. They all drank them eagerly, and before long everyone had forgotten about anything else. They were all talking about what they might be able to make. Bren pulled out some simple tools; stone axes, shovels, picks, and handed them out.

About three minutes later there was a hole in the island with villagers digging away at the bottom and laughing as they piled up the dirt into weird shapes.

Ell just stared at them all and shook her head.

“Great, so they can all just make any stupid idea they come up with,” she said.

“They can build,” said Mat. “Isn't that a help to you?”

“If they listen,” she said. “But if it's just a disorganized mess then what's the point?”

Mat thought that she was the one missing the point, but he let it go.

Bren grinned at them all – it was the first time they'd ever seen him smile.

“Good, good,” he said. “But there's one more thing.”

He gestured for Mat and Rab and Ell and Pru to come over to him. Everyone else was too excited to even notice.

“One last gift,” Bren said.

He held out another vial. This one glowed bright green, brighter than any of the others.

“What is it?” said Mat.

“This is the rarest potion. It allows you to make Makers,” he said.

He held it out towards Ell.

Nem gasped.

“Not her!” she said.

If Ell’s look could have actually hurt Nem, she would have dropped dead then and there.

“Not me?” Ell said coldly.

Bren held up his hand.

“Enough, stop that,” he said. “I don’t pick who can make makers. If someone has the ability, I can see it. That’s all. Ell is the only one here who can do it.”

He held it out again, and Ell took it from him eagerly.

“This is precious,” he said to her. “I’m entrusting you with a power that can save villagers everywhere. It’s not for you to keep for yourself.”

Ell held the vial up and looked into it.

“I understand,” she said, and drank it down without another word.

She looked around.

“I don't feel anything.”

“Put together an idea,” Bren said. “What kind of villager? What can they do?”

Ell's eyes lit up with excitement.

“In your inventory,” Bren said.

She put hand in her robe and pulled out a vial. It glowed blue. She looked at it curiously.

“I was thinking about a swordsman, a fighter,” she said.

Bren nodded.

“Well done. You should give that one to Jak.”

She stared at it a while longer and then nodded.

“Fair enough,” she said. “I'll do that.”

Nem muttered something to Rab. Ell gave her another angry glare but didn't say anything.

But there was no time to relax.

“We're leaving,” Bren said nearly right away. “I need to keep going, before they find me. There are more villagers out there. We're taking the gift to everyone. Everyone who needs it, everyone who wants it.”

He gave Ell a look when he said it, but she just nodded grimly at him.

“Wait!” said Nem. “Do you know about the Deep Witch?”

Bren gave her a strange look.

“How do you know about that?” he said.

“We're supposed to be looking for her,” Rab said. “But we don’t even know what she is or where she is. And we’ve been busy helping everyone.”

“Who told you about the Deep Witch?” Bren asked again.

“His name was Yob,” Rab said. “He helped us, but he didn't make it.”

Bren shook his head.

“That's too bad. I knew Yob,” he said. “He learned a lot of strange things from the Umbrals. If anyone was going to find her it was probably him.”

“He gave the job to us,” Nem said. She stared fiercely at Bren.

Bren sighed.

“He thought we could stop the Underworld breaking through,” he said. “It started when we were younger, down south. But it’s just gotten worse and worse. That’s how the Iron City started. It was a lot like this once.”

“Were you in the same village with him?” Nem said.

Bren nodded. “He wanted to know what the Umbrals knew. They know a lot. People didn't like it much though.”

He looked Rab and Nem up and down.

“If Yob thought you could do it, then I guess I should trust him,” Bren said. “But I don't know how you're going to get to her.”

“Who is the Deep Witch?” Rab said.

Bren shrugged.

“Probably only Yob knew that for sure. All I know is, she's somewhere inside a Stronghold in the old player lands. South past the Iron City. Nobody can get in, though.”

“Why not?” said Rab.

“It's buried. Deep underground. But worse, it's protected. Nobody has ever gotten through to it.”

“We'll find a way,” Nem said.

Bren gave here a crooked smile.

“Maybe you will,” he said. “I guess Yob trusted you.”

“Past the Iron City isn't much to go on,” Mat said. “Not to actually find it.”

“It's about two days walk after the Iron City,” Bren said. “In the swamps. I've never been there. That's all I know.”

“Why is the Deep Witch buried away down there? Who did that? Was it players?” Mat said.

“I wish I could tell you more,” Bren said. “Maybe she really does know how to stop the Underworld from breaking through to the Overworld. It was Yob's thing. He was always a strange fellow. He probably fit right in with the Umbrals.”

Bren was adjusting his robe and checking his inventory while he talked. Mat wanted to keep asking more questions, but it was obvious that he was getting ready to go and wasn't going to wait around to have a long conversation.

But then Bren grabbed Mat's arm and pulled him away from the crowd, over to where they could talk privately. Pru watched them but didn't come along.

“I was hoping to find another,” Bren said quietly to Mat. “That girl...” - he nodded towards Ell - “she has the talent, but I don't trust her.”

Mat grimaced.

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“She's never done anything bad,” he said. She had worked hard to keep Pru and Bren safe, after all. He felt like he should say something in her defense.

Bren just shook his head.

“I know,” he said. “This power... it's meant to be shared freely. But some people need to say no, just to show that they can. I hope you'll try to make sure she doesn't keep it for herself.”

Like it or not, Mat knew what Bren meant.

“We will. But if you keep making more villagers who can make Makers, eventually it won't even matter what she decides, right?”

Bren sighed and they started walking slowly back towards the others.

“That's what I'm hoping. It's why we need to go. I need to find more as fast as I can.”

“You should take more people. To protect you,” Mat said. “I'm sure you could find someone who will come along.”

“No. It's going to be just the two of us. Three was too many. Pru will do. Easier to stay hidden.”

Mat felt a flash of annoyance at Bren.

Pru doesn't even get a chance to say yes or no?

“You could take someone else,” he said. “Maybe ask for volunteers? Pru could do good things here, taking care of everyone.”

Bren looked down at the ground.

“I know she could,” he said. “I'm sorry, but I need her. I’ll teach her some potions on the way. This is important. It matters for all of the villagers everywhere. All the ones who don't even know what's happening yet. And I'm old now. Too old for this.”

Suddenly his face sagged down and he looked tired enough to fall asleep right there. Mat remembered how old Bren had looked the first time he saw him.

He might really be the oldest villager I've ever met.

He was having trouble walking, and Mat helped him along back towards the others. All the energy he’d been showing seemed to have left him again.

When they got near to Pru she went to him right away. He wanted to ask her what she thought about it being just her and Bren, but there wasn't a chance. She didn't seem worried anyway. She took the food that they offered her and put it in her robes. Everyone gave some of what they had.

All the same, Mat was surprised when Ell took out her shiny iron axe and held it out for Pru.

“You'll need this,” she said.

“Are you sure?” said Pru.

“I've got a stone one too. It's not like I can't make more. I want you to have it,” Ell said.

“Thanks Ell,” Pru said. She looked like she was blinking back tears. “If we come back this way I'll visit.”

“You don't have to visit,” said Ell. “You have as much right to live here as any of us.”

Mat nodded. He agreed with Ell about that much.

“Oh,” Bren said in his creaky old man's voice, looking at Mat. “I just remembered one more thing. The library. That should interest you.”

“The library?” said Mat.

“In the Stronghold where the Deep Witch is. Yob said it has the greatest library in the world. Just sitting down there in the dark. Thousands of books taken from everywhere. More knowledge than even the Iron City has.”

“How could he know that unless he had been there?” Nem said.

“I don't know. It's just something he told me once. You know as much as me now.”

Then suddenly they were going. Mat gave Pru a hug, which surprised her at first, but she hugged him right back.

“Be careful out there,” he said to her.

She nodded.

“It's okay, I'm with Bren,” she said, then grinned. “I think he might be more dangerous than he looks.”

“Nobody asked you if you wanted to go.”

He was happy that he finally got a chance to say it out loud.

“I know,” she said. “But I don’t mind. Not at all. By the time we’re done every village everywhere will be able to protect themselves. I want to make that happen.”

The last they saw of Pru and Bren was when they turned a corner around the mountains, heading towards the distant forest.

Mat turned to Ell, Rab, and Nem.

“So... I guess we build?”

Nem nodded, but looked off in the other direction – where the riders from the Iron City had taken Jak.

“We can work on making a house for tonight, but we shouldn't do much more.”

“Why not?” said Ell. “Everyone can just have fun, now that they can all do it.”

She didn’t look happy about that.

“The Iron City riders were suspicious when they found three of us who could make things,” said Nem. “What do you think they'll say if suddenly everyone is building houses and gardens?”

Rab smiled.

“I'd like to see their faces,” he said.

“I don't trust them. I don't think they should know what we can do,” Nem said.

Mat agreed.

“All we need is a house for now. Once they're gone we can build whatever we want.”

Ell shook her head.

“They'll find out. You saw how they are. They're going to be back.”

“Well we can't spend our lives worrying about what the Iron City thinks,” Rab said. “Once we've got some time on our own, we can build things up enough that we're safe from anyone.”

“Safe from other villagers?” Mat said.

Rab shrugged.

“Safe from whatever,” he said. “Oh, plus somebody please get them to fill in that hole, okay?"

They sent four strong villagers out to the mainland with Ell to cut wood, while the others argued about what the first house should be like. Before long they came back with more wood than Mat had ever seen in one place before.

Even Ell looked proud of how much they had.

“It's amazing how much you can get done with a bunch of people all working on it,” she said.

They let her organize the plan for the first house. She had the most actual experience making things, after all. She pointed out where to put the blocks down, and where to start making the beams that marked the corners and the door frames. She built a workbench for them, and even made two nice doors.

By noon they all took a break and ate in the sunshine. Most of the villagers were relaxed and happy now that they could see the house taking shape. For the first time they almost looked like a proper village. Everyone was just standing in scattered groups, talking and laughing.

He was sitting with Rab, sharing a loaf of bread that someone had given him. It was the first non-carrot he'd eaten in days and he was staring at the sky and smiling while he chewed.

Nem walked up to them and sat down. She was the only one who didn’t look all that happy.

“They said there are no players. Only us.”

“Oh right,” Rab said. “I’d forgotten about that.”

He shrugged.

Mat felt the same way. He’d never seen a player, and the stories made them sound like more trouble than anything else. They built amazing things, but they didn’t worry what anybody thought about it. Players were just weird mobs, sort of like witches. Though a lot smarter than mobs, obviously. Maybe even smarter than villagers.

“That sounds like a good thing,” Mat said.

Nem just frowned.

“Players made things, is my point. Villagers didn’t. Now the player are gone and villagers are starting to make things.”

“Put it that way, it does sound strange,” Rab said.

“It's connected to what's going on, I bet,” Nem said.

“Something got all the players, and now it's coming for us?” Mat said.

“Maybe. I don't know.”

Mat thought about the empty world he'd been afraid of. He knew that much wasn't true now – there were still villages and villagers, and maybe even something like a regular life again. But that didn't mean things were fine now. Something was very wrong, somewhere.

He looked across the water at the mountains and the distant trees.

Pru was out there. She was giving up everything so Bren could help all the villagers who didn't even know they were in trouble yet.

Now that Mat knew that, he didn't think he'd be able to feel the same way about just sleeping safely behind a closed door all night.

“They’ll have houses soon,” Nem said, looking at the other villagers. “They’ll have swords and bows and everything else. More stuff to keep them safe than we ever had.”

Rab sighed.

“I was starting to feel kind of comfortable,” he said to her.

“I know,” she said. “But now we know where to find the Deep Witch.”

“Yeah,” Rab said. “I hear you. Can we at least spend one night in the new house?”

While they sat quietly eating, one of the children – Iri, a very young Toolsmith - suddenly stood up and stared away into the distance.

“Listen!” she said.

Everyone looked at her and fell silent.

“What is it?” Ell said.

“Can't you hear it?” said Iri. She cupped her hand behind her ear. “There! Again!”

Everyone shook their heads.

“It's like... boom... boom boom...” she said.

They all looked over in that direction. It was where the riders had headed off with Jak.

“Well,” said Rab. “I guess they're taking care of the Underworld mobs.”

He hoped that was what it meant.

Jak's out there too, while I just eat bread wonder what's happening, he thought.

By the time the sun was going down again, the house was nearly finished. The roof wasn't done, but nobody cared. Nobody even mentioned it. After everything that had gone on, most of the villagers looked like they needed a good night's sleep. Mat felt the same way. As it got dark, he went inside the house with Rab and Nem and Ell to be with everyone. The solid thunk of the door closing was like music to him. It meant things were finally getting back to normal, and he ended up falling asleep almost as soon as he sat down.

Someone was shaking him.

“Wake up, wake up!”

Mat's eyes opened and he stared around, confused.

Oh right, he realized, we have a house!

The sky was already bright blue. Normally most people would have been up while the sun was still rising, but instead the floor was covered with still-sleeping villagers.

Rab and Nem were standing over him.

“Get up!” Nem whispered loudly.

“What? What is it?” he said groggily.

“It's Ell,” Rab said. “She's gone.”

“Gone? Where?”

Nem snorted.

“We don't know, but I'll give you three guesses.”

Nobody else was outside, and there was definitely no sign of Ell.

“She must have headed out before the sun was up,” Rab said.

“That's crazy,” Mat said. “She'd be dodging mobs all the way. You sure she isn't somewhere on the island still?”

“We looked,” said Rab.

“She probably figures she can make it all on her own.”

“You really think she went... where? To find the riders? To join them?”

Rab shook his head.

“I think she's heading for the Iron City.”

“So she can be the most special villager ever,” Nem said bitterly.

“She would like that,” said Mat.

Then he noticed something on the mainland.

“I think there's something over there,” he said. It was a little flicker of blue light on the beach.

They crossed the land bridge and found the last glowing blue vial – the gift for Jak – stuck carefully into the sand. They could see footprints heading away down the beach, too.

Mat picked it up and stared at it.

“This means she really left us,” he said.

Nem snorted.

“Everything Bren said – about being treated better than other villagers, about being so important that they wouldn't let him go. That didn't sound like a bad thing to her at all. It sounded like the best thing.”

“She must have been planning to leave all day,” Rab said.

He looked back over at the village.

“We'll have to tell everyone. Of course, we don't actually need her now, anyway,” he said.

“That's probably why she left,” Mat said.

Rab cleared his throat and looked at Nem.

“You know we're going to leave too, right?” she said to Mat.

Mat nodded.

“You're going to look for the Deep Witch in her Stronghold. Down south.”

“We have to go,” said Rab. “But we'll come back up this way if we find anything useful. Anything that can help.”

Mat looked at the village.

“Jak will be the leader,” he said. “He'll be good at it.”

He was a bit surprised to hear himself say it, but it was true. Jak wasn't a deep thinker, but he worked at things, seriously and hard. Plus he was good with people, and definitely more confident than Mat.

More than anything else, he seemed to fit right in to this strange new world of villagers just wandering around all over the place. He was exactly the kind of villager they needed right now.

“It will work better without Ell here,” Nem said.

“You'll be on the council too,” Rab said.

Mat smirked.

“Not if I'm heading south with you two,” he said.

Nem frowned then gave him a serious look.

“It's dangerous out there. You finally have a village again. Why would you want to leave?”

“It's the library Bren talked about,” Mat said. “I spent all last night thinking about it. I want to see what I can bring back here. If it has more knowledge than anywhere else in the world, then we need it. It can't all belong to the Iron City.”

“Well, I don't mind,” Nem said, looking at Rab. “We probably need someone like you anyway. Neither of us was ever much of a reader. You'll know things.”

“Even if we can't find the Deep Witch, there might be answers in that library,” Mat said.

Rab pulled out his sword and held it out to Mat.

“Okay with me,” he said. “But you'll have to do more than just library work.”

Mat stared at the glittering Electrum edge.

“Fine,” he said, taking it by the handle.

He gave it a few test swings.

When they went back to the village, people looked more annoyed at what Ell had done than worried.

“She was a bit pushy anyway,” said Bil. That seemed like the general opinion.

By the time the morning was over the roof was almost finished.

“There they are!” a voice yelled. Mat turned to look.

The riders were coming over the top of the hill and down the path towards the village.

Everyone stopped working and tried to look like regular villagers again.

Building things? Who, us? Why would you think that?

He waved at the figure of Jak riding at the front of one of the horses, with the Iron City man behind him. Jak waved back and Mat could see him smiling.

Why am I not surprised? Mat thought. It was just like Jak to end up in front. All the same Mat didn't expect to feel so relieved at seeing that he was still okay. When they crossed over to the island Jak brought the horse right up to the crowd and jumped off casually.

“They showed me how to ride,” Jak said. “It's not as hard as it looks. We need to find some horses.”

He thanked the Iron City man and then whistled when he looked at the house.

“Nice job! You're nearly finished.”

Dom got down off of his horse and nodded when he looked over their work.

“Well done,” he said. “That was pretty fast work for one person.”

He looked around suspiciously.

“Where's your builder?” he said. “I need to talk to her and the other two. The two who can use weapons.”

“Sorry,” Mat said. “She headed out with some of the others to look for a good iron deposit. They might not be back for a couple of days.”

Dom stared at the house again.

“I'll send some riders out to bring them back,” he said. “I need to talk to her. Which way did she go?”

Nem stepped up in front of him.

“She's doing village work right now. We can answer any questions you have, okay?”

Dom stared down at her.

“Why don't I believe you?” he said. Then he looked over at the villagers and pointed to Kru the Blacksmith.

“Well?” he said. “Are they telling the truth?”

Kru stepped away from the crowd and walked up to Dom and the other riders.

“Of course not,” Kru said. “In fact it's worse than you realize. Bren was here. Hiding in the crowd. He's headed off that way with the woman who was taking care of him. Just the two of them.”

He pointed in the direction that Bren and Pru had gone.

Nem gasped and Mat's mouth dropped open.

“What's the matter with you?” shouted Rab. “Shut up!”

Kru looked at Rab blankly.

“Why didn't you tell us yesterday?” Dom said to Kru.

Kru shrugged.

“I was keeping an eye on him,” he said. “I was going to go after them if you weren't back today. They can't have gone far yet.”

Dom didn't look impressed.

“You should have said something,” he growled.

Kru shook his head.

“We're not under your authority,” he said. “It was my call. Anyway, there's more.”

“What?” Dom said.

“Bren found another one with the Maker ability here. The tall girl in Librarian robes. Ell. He went ahead and gave her the gift. She has the same talents as him now.”

Nem stalked over to Kru, looking like she was going to attack him.

One of the Iron City riders stepped in her way and grabbed her.

“Let go!” she shouted.

Dom never even looked at her.

“Where is the other one now?” he said.

“Gone too, but I'm less worried about her. She's probably headed for the Iron City.”

“You had two of them? And you just let them go?” he said to Kru.

“And if I’d gone after either of them, you wouldn’t know about any of this,” said Kru.

Dom sighed.

“Fine,” he said. “We'll send a party to find her. The last thing we need is her getting away from us now.”

He turned and barked orders to the others. Three of the Iron City riders jumped onto their horses and rode off without another word.

“That's all?” he said to Kru.

Kru shook his head and pointed around the village.

“They're all makers now. Every last one of them.”