Night has taken over. We all work to help carry the wounded to my father\u2019s Keep. There, Thon helps my mother, her sisters, and several of the slaves that Sigvor has taken in, including the priests and elves, help heal the wounded. I\u2019m amazed at Thon\u2019s ability to heal. His abilities even surpass that of my mother and my Aunt Sigvor. That is saying much since my Aunt Sigvor is by far one of the best healers our village has ever had and my mother, along with their sister Ingithora, is not far behind. But Thon\u2019s abilities far surpass their own. Even they\u2019re admittedly amazed. He can even reattach severed arms and legs without a trace of scars. With his help, the wounded are all healed as if they were never hurt. I finally relent and allow him to heal my wounds. A piercing green light fills me with warmth. It invigorates me, and the pain fades as my body is rejuvenated. My rib seems to mend back in place and the bruises and cuts disappear. That was a bit painful, but now I feel great. Even the ringing leaves my ears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What surprises me, even more, is my mother and my aunts. I never thought I\u2019d see the day they\u2019d set their pride aside and ask for teaching. Thon is willing to show them his techniques for weaving the muscles and flesh back together as if he was stitching up a tattered pair of trousers. However, his stitching leaves the trousers better than they were before. Strangely, I can understand what he is doing as I watch, but I don\u2019t know how to do it myself. Or maybe I am just not strong enough to do it. Even the Valkyrie Matriarch who arrived with her healers were impressed. And it seems she is a very skilled healer as well. They both use this strange green magic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I slip away to make several trips up and down the mountain to gather several barrels of the ore water and a few sacks of the mushrooms, taking my brothers with me. We find a cave near the pathway to my own cave. I enter it to make sure it is empty. Thankfully, it is. It\u2019s full of mushrooms and glowing ore. Fortunately, most of the ore is at the bottom of pools of water. I eat a few mushrooms and drink as much water as I can before I make the track down the mountain with two full barrels of water as my brothers carry giant sacks of mushrooms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Builders arrive, and my father makes a deal with them before they get to work. I help clear out some debris before stepping aside to let them work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Koll finds me and pulls me aside. \u201cYour father mentioned that you\u2019d show us how you got your strength.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I nod. \u201cGet Einar and Throst and meet me at the side gate in the morning. Tomorrow, I will teach you how to gain this strength.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He nods. \u201cI look forward to it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As he walks away, I seek out Griotgard, Solmund, and Skardi. They are with their father, who was wounded and recovering from being healed. I pull them aside. \u201cYou three must come with me at my father\u2019s request.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They exchange looks and nod. They follow me out the side gate and up the mountain to the same cave we all discovered as children. The cave I made a home for The Longest Night. As we enter through the door, I built and inside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWow, you\u2019ve really made yourself at home here, Bothvar,\u201d Griotgard says as they follow me to the pools of light.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy father wants me to teach you three how to gain the strength I found here. Along with Koll, Einar, Throst, and Thormar. However, I do not want to teach them here. This is Thorkel\u2019s cave. I want it to remain a place of solace and solitude. It\u2019s one of the few things I have left of him that was truly ours,\u201d I tell them as I look up at the hammer that\u2019s rested there for so long. Still shines as bright as the day we found it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe understand, Bothvar,\u201d Skardi says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI agree. It feels wrong to let others know of this place. It was Thorkel who discovered it. Others would desecrate it and seek to claim the hammer for themselves,\u201d Griotgard says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe will search for a similar cave with the ore and mushrooms and then tomorrow we will begin training.\u201d They all nod and follow me out as we head through the hidden passageway out to the root of the mountain. \u201cLet\u2019s stay together and be weary. This mountain is full of these fiends the yeti call Shadow Stalkers. They\u2019re vicious and cunning and they too dwell in these caves along with yeti. The yeti we can bargain with, but the creatures of the shadow only seek to kill.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They nod and follow behind me. We all have our weapons drawn. We make our way up the mountain until we find another cave. I can smell the musky scent of something living in there. I recognize it. \u201cThere\u2019s a bear in there. Maybe more.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHow can you tell?\u201d Griotgard asks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI can smell it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYes. I remember when I ate the mushrooms last. I could smell things I couldn\u2019t before,\u201d Skardi says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLet us move on.\u201d They follow me farther up the mountain, but a familiar foul scent catches my nose and I tense up ready to strike. I hear them stalking around. \u201cThe Shadow Stalkers are close. Stay behind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We slowly walk around a curve to find a cave full of them. They see us and several ear-piercing screeches echo through the mountains. They charge at us, but they aren\u2019t as fast as I remember. I slice through the first one\u2019s torso and carve a path, leaving a trail of their corpses. The fight is over before it starts as I cut the last one\u2019s head off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThese are what Shadow Stalkers are? They\u2019re beyond revolting,\u201d Solmund says, covering his nose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Their stench is foul. Like rotting flesh. They don\u2019t follow me as I enter the cave. The smell gets even worse. There are no mushrooms here, but plenty of the ore. However, this cave is far too corrupted by their filth. It won\u2019t do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We continue on until we find another hidden cave down a narrow passageway. I don\u2019t smell anything so I head in. Thank the gods, this one is empty and there is plenty of the mushroom and the ore. This mountain seems to be rich with both. I turn back to the others. \u201cYou three might as well stay here and begin. Drink the water, eat the mushrooms, and push your body to limits. That is how you get strong.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhere are you going?\u201d Griotgard asks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cTo get the tools we need.\u201d They nod before I leave to head back to Thorkel\u2019s cave. That\u2019s what I\u2019m going to call it from now on. I grab the tools I have there and bring them back to our new cave. Then I head down the mountain to the village where I find Aldam in his ruined shop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m surprised to find him arguing with another dwarf. It looks like a dwarf woman. I think I remember her. She\u2019s his sister\u2026 What was her name?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The two bicker back and forth as if it’s normal. \u201cThis is exactly what you deserved. You never took care of your tools anyway. Mother always told you to keep them in better shape.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBaggisli, will you ever shut up?\u201d Aldam asks. That\u2019s it\u2026 Baggisli!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIs this a bad time?\u201d I ask.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The two dwarves look up at me. \u201cBothvar. It\u2019s the perfect time. My sister is only yapping like she always does.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She glares at him. \u201cYou are a slag-headed, hollow anvil of a dwarf.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd you\u2019re a molten brained, yapper, with a mouth the size of a cave entrance!\u201d Aldam snaps back before he turns back to me. \u201cBothvar, you remember my sister Baggisli? She set up shop with the Valkyrie tribe around the same time I came here.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She huffs, turns her back on Aldam, and crosses her arms against her chest with clear disdain. \u201cSee if I\u2019ll help you fix your shop.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t ask for your help. Don\u2019t you have work to do? Hreitharr knows hard work is a stranger to you.\u201d That earns him a glare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou are such a\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cA what?\u201d Aldam asks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She lets out an exasperated growl, dragging her hand down her somewhat chiseled face. She shares the same bronze hair as Aldam that\u2019s long and braided and the same dark gray skin. It now makes sense how they got the gray skin. I always thought it was just a dwarf thing. She\u2019s nearly as thick and muscular as him as well. She walks off, grumbling. \u201cYou\u2019re impossible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Aldam just slaps his forehead in a gruff huff. \u201cWomen! Even worse, sisters\u2026 Sorry about that. That woman is a pure volcano. Always quick to blow her top off over nothing. What do you need, lad?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI can trust you, right?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOf course,\u201d the dwarf says without hesitating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMy father has asked me to show those closest to our family how to grow strong with the glowing rock and mushrooms. I need some tools for them to harness the metal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI see. But as you can see, my shop is a little\u2026\u201d We both look at the pile of rubble that was once his shop. \u201cI\u2019ll tell ya what, you help me dig em out, you can take what you need and I\u2019ll help ya show ’em the proper way to handle Nedraetium. The dwarven way. We\u2019ll whip your crew into shape and we\u2019re going to make some of the best Nedraetium weapons and armor no one has ever seen. Just be careful. Ships can\u2019t take too much of the metal before they become too heavy. That\u2019s always been a problem with the metal and the reason the price for it is so high even though few can use it. It\u2019s one of the hardest metals there is, but also one of the heaviest.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I nod and then help him clear out most of the rubble from his shop. We manage to salvage most of his tools and fill a cart with them, along with all but one of his anvils. He\u2019s got more than I thought he had. At least half a dozen. Why does he need so many? I haul the cart full of supplies up as Aldam follows with another cart. We head past the bear’s cave and the mess of shadow stalkers before we arrive at the narrow passageway. Then I unload the cart of tools and anvils before we haul it to the cave. Inside, all three of them are pushing the ground. They stop as they see.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re back,\u201d Solmund says. They\u2019re all drenched in sweat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHow do we know if we\u2019re getting stronger?\u201d Griotgard asks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou won\u2019t realize it until you have to use it,\u201d I say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAin\u2019t that the truth!\u201d The dwarf snorts a laugh. Then the ore catches his eyes. \u201cBy Hreitharr\u2019s beard, these mountains are rich with Nedraetium. And those emerald iridescent shrooms. Before I came here, I never knew there was anywhere outside of the Iron mountains with the metal.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat is he doing here?\u201d Griotgard asks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cDo you want to learn how to make the best armor and weapons out of the Nedraetium or not, ya insulin boy?\u201d Aldam asks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhat do you mean? We have to make it?\u201d Griotgard asks, raising his eyebrows to the top of his forehead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWhere else did ya think Bothvar got it from? He had to craft it. It’s a good thing he learned from the best and I\u2019m talking about me, ya goat-brained slag shitters. Of course, I\u2019ll give the boy credit. He managed to figure out how to smelt and craft the metal. It\u2019s not a simple thing to do. Much harder than iron.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
My chest swells with pride. Some things will never change and that brings a smile to my face. \u201cI\u2019m glad you decided to help us, Aldam.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOf course. You think those thick-skulled, pee-brained Jotnar will just leave you alone now that they know where ya stay? They\u2019ll be back and when they do, we\u2019ll teach ’em how stupid they really are. Now, why are you all standing around for? Get to it. The metal won\u2019t smelt itself. And before you can even think about smelting it, you need to be strong enough to pick it up.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The three of them get back to pushing the ground. \u201cWhat in the name of Hreitharr are ya goat-brained trolls doing? Do ya want to get strong, or do you want to keep pushing dirt?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even I look at him. How does he expect them to get strong without doing ground pushes?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWho is Hreitharr?\u201d Griotgard asks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHe\u2019s the Dwarven builder god who taught us how to smith metal, among other things. He\u2019s also our ancestor. The first king of the dwarves was his son. At least that\u2019s the rumor. Hreitharr left many, many cycles ago. He\u2019s a crafty one and could build the most magnificent things with a hammer and an anvil. They say he has a peg leg, though.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The four of us just trade looks and shrug.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cCome here, ya ram turds. This is how dwarves do it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The three of them all get up and walk over to him. He pulls out six thin dark emerald bracelets. Then he hands one to Skardi. \u201cPut these on your wrists.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Skardi goes to grab it, and the thing nearly takes him down to the ground with it. \u201cWhat a bunch of goblin shit. I didn\u2019t think you\u2019d be so weak. We have our work cut out for us.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cLet me see that,\u201d Griotgard says, pushing Skardi aside as he reaches down to pick up the bracelet. He can\u2019t make it budge after huffing and puffing in his attempt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He steps back and blinks. \u201cWhat is that thing made out of?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I lean down and pick it up, hefting it in my hand. \u201cThis is that metal, isn’t it?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou betcha. These bracelets are pure Nedraetium. Made em myself for just such an occasion,\u201d the dwarf says with pride. \u201cOf course, you\u2019re too strong to really see any benefit from ’em. They\u2019re more for weak little turds like these three. But I guess we\u2019ll have to start out with something smaller.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The dwarf takes out a small tiny little pebble that also has the dark emerald color that\u2019s nearly black, just like my weapons and armor. He sets it on the ground in front of them. \u201cSee if you arsefaces can lift that.\u201d Griotgard steps up, and it takes all his might to lift it a finger length before he drops it, causing a loud thud. \u201cWell, I guess that\u2019s a start. We\u2019re going to need to put in a lot of work to get your troll snots in shape. Let’s get to it then.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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