Irwin's Journey chapter 22: Stuck (Patreon)

"They are leaving," Rachel whispered from her position next to the door. A dull red glow poured from the entrance, bathing the room in an eerie crimson.

Finally, Irwin thought, his gritty eyes staring at the wall of plants. He had been standing there for hours, his feet hurting and his mind a weary mess. Still, each time he would sit down, vines would poke out of the bush, ready to attack.

Glad it seemed over, he looked at Greldo, standing next to him. He was the only one who had wanted to remain anywhere near him while his flame was up, as the heat from it just added to their already horrible discomfort. Greldo was just taking a sip from his flagon, then looked up and nodded. "I'll check," he whispered after another drink.

As he moved away, Irwin glared at the green plants, wondering how they would react when the sun was completely gone. Hopefully not. Or perhaps they would freeze.

A soft howling came from outside, and Twintin audibly gulped.

"They are almost gone, and the shadow will be at the portal soon," Greldo said from the door. "Get ready to leave."

"What- what's that?"

Irwin felt his hair stand on end at the fear in Rachel's voice. He was already moving before Greldo's strangled yelp came. At the door, Greldo was pulling Rachel back, who was raising her hands in defense. One hand glowed, and her shield appeared. Daubutim was up and moving, his club out. Twintin sat to the side, startled like a scared rabbit.

"Twintin, warn us for the vines!" Irwin snapped as he reached the others, stepping passed Greldo and looking through the door.

The sun was almost gone now, and a cold wind blew over him, causing him to shiver. Shadowy movements came from between the cracks in the stone plates. It took a moment for his dark vision to adjust, but when it did, he clamped his teeth in anger. Vines, long and nimble, were slowly ripping through the dusty ground, rising into the air everywhere.

Should have tried to kill a dog, he thought, even though he knew how unlikely that would have been.

He took a step back and saw that two vines were slithering across the ceiling. They froze when he moved, and as he raised his flame, they pulled back in a blur.

"They are too smart," Daubutim said, and Irwin looked at him, hoping the odd boy would follow up on the statement.

"And," he asked after a few seconds.

"The Botany book at school says that plants attack without care for themselves," Daubutim added.

"Did you read anything about things that look like plants and act like this?" Greldo asked, sounding rushed.

They had gathered at the wall near the entrance, Greldo looking outside and Irwin at the plants.

"No," Daubutim said as his eyes focused on the door.

"Great, now what?" Greldo whispered, looking around. "Please tell me that somebody has a great idea?"

It was quiet, and Irwin saw everyone slowly turn to him. What did they expect him to do? It wasn't like he could pull a miracle out of his-

"Ambraz," he blurted before taking a deep breath. The others looked at him stunned while Greldo's eyes began shining. Irwin ignored him for a moment and looked around, trying to come up with another way. But there just wasn't any. With a deep sigh, he stuck his hand in his pocket, feeling the small Anvil there. He pulled it out, noting it wasn't moving.

Wait, don't tell me he couldn't come in here? Irwin sucked in a breath as he raised the statue. Then he saw the lips on the mouth clenched together and shiver slightly.

"Ambraz," he whispered before looking around. "You can't tell anyone what you are about to see. Alright?"

There was a series of confused nods, but he noticed Greldo's gaze was locked onto the Anvil.

"Well, I guess the cat's out of the bag," Ambraz whispered as his tiny wings fluttered to life and lifted above Irwin's hand. His lips were pursed together. "You really have poor luck, Irwin."

"What is that?"

Everyone looked up as Twintin's eyes had turned round and shiny as she gazed at Ambraz. Her hand was raised, and a wide smile crept to her face. "It's beautiful!"

"Ah, someone with great taste!" Ambraz said as he whisked towards her, staying just out of her reach. "Yes, I am beautiful and amazing!"

"A flying, talking Anvil," Rachel whispered. "It's incredible… but how is it going to get us out of here? Can it use cards?"

Ambraz swirled around, hovering a bit higher as he looked at them. "No, I don't need cards," he said, and Irwin was surprised at how haughty it sounded. Before, with just him, Ambraz hadn't been like this. Had it?

Doesn't matter, he thought as he shook the worries from his mind.

"Ambraz, we are in trouble and need to get out of here," he said as he looked around. He was stunned by the difference in responses. Rachel seemed stunned, Greldo interested, Daubutim totally unconcerned, and Twintin ready to grab Ambraz and… hug him?

"Yes, I've noticed," the Anvil said, seeming to slump a bit. "This isn't a typical common portal. It's either still hours from evolving into an uncommon or…" he hesitated. "All those hounds and plants might mean it's ready to push out a surge."

"So… what can we do?" Irwin asked, raising his flame higher. The others inched closer, seeming interested. As they did, Irwin noticed they weren't sweating as much anymore, and their breathing had eased.

Ambraz hummed softly, then his lips pursed. "Well, there are two things I can think of that might get you out alive. If there is a surge, all we have to do is remain here while you fend off those plants. From the number of creatures, it will likely happen soon. Perhaps next morning."

"That means those monsters will go out of the portal and into the world," Daubutim said, sounding suddenly very clear. "I can't allow that to happen if there is something I can do to stop it. My father would not approve!"

"There's nothing the five of us can do to stop this!" Rachel hissed, and she stared angrily at the taller boy. "Right now, we don't even know if we can survive until morning!"

Daubutim stared at her, and his eyes clouded slightly as he seemed confused by her outburst.

"And what is the second option?" Greldo asked.

"Well, I think before it becomes night, this world-fragment is going to grow into an Ame-... uncommon world-fragment," Ambraz said. "It will take a while for this place to become more dangerous after this, and before this happens, I can reforge one of your common cards into an uncommon. That should give you an hour to fight your way to the portal and out."

Irwin flinched, not sure how he felt with everyone knowing about Ambraz. He knew he was out of options, but this?

There was a stunned silence around him, then Twintin jumped forward. "You can make cards better?" she squealed.

"Yes, but I only currently have energy for one," Ambraz said. "So, I'll have to inspect your cards to see which one would become the strongest."

"Incredible," Greldo muttered before turning to Irwin. "Why didn't you tell me about this?" he asked, sounding slightly hurt.

"I found him when I exited the portal," Irwin said, deciding it didn't matter much anymore. "Each time, there was too big of a chance to be overheard." It wasn't completely true, and from Greldo's frown, he understood the other realized this as well. "The more people know, the bigger the chance the sorcerers find out and take him from me…" Irwin added lamely. He still thought he was right for not telling anyone, but he also hoped Greldo wouldn't hold it against him. Too much.

"There's no time for this," Rachel said, suddenly stepping forward and holding out her hand. "How do you check my card?" she asked.

"Right. You probably don't know either, so close your eyes and focus on your card. Imagine ejecting it from your hand and holding it.

Rachel closed her eyes, a crease appearing between her brows. After a few seconds, she shuddered, and her eyes snapped open. "It's not working!"

"It takes time and practice," Ambraz said. "All of you try!"

Irwin looked around to see every one, even Daubutim, with their eyes closed. Two seconds later, a flash of light came from Daubutim as a dull, common card hovered above his hand. A simple club decorated the front. He scanned it for any odd wavy lines, but there was nothing out of the ordinary.

"Oh, another fast one," Ambraz said.

A movement from the corner of his eye made him look up to see a few vines hanging halfway in the door, poised to strike but not moving. Startled, he raised his flame higher and pointed it slightly in their direction. They whipped back, and out of sight. A quick scan around showed more rustling within the bushes.

"Alright, such an interesting card! Highly unusual. This is part weapon, part crafting card!" Ambraz muttered from above Daubutim's card. "How odd… to find two cards that are on the cusp of a rank-up in this place." A frown came over his lips as he backed up. "However, as interesting as it is, the best I could do is turn it into a full weapon card. If you had a second elemental card, I might have been able to merge them. But as it is…"

Daubutim stared at the Anvil for a while before summoning his club and looking at the door.

A lot of moaning, and ten minutes later, another burst of light, someone else had succeeded.

Irwin, his flame nearby to warm him from the occasional freezing wind that was wafting in from the door, looked up. He had thought it would be Greldo, but Twintin looked up with a wide grin as her card hovered above her hand. It was a simple one, with a single drop of water on it. There were no curly lines, but Irwin didn't need those to know what it was. There were a few people in Malorin who had the water drop card, and although it had its uses, at best it could create a few handfuls of water from the air.

Wait, she could have created water, he thought as he scowled at Twintin. She didn't see, only seeming interested in Ambraz.

"Ah, an elemental one," Ambraz crooned as he rushed closer, hovering above the card. Twintin stared at him, all starry-eyed, but so far kept her hands to herself. "Oh… oh my, now this is definitely one that we could use," Ambraz said as his lips curled up. "It is the weakest water element card I've seen, meaning it would benefit greatly from a reforging, taking it up to uncommon, and a rather strong one at that!"

As he spoke, Twintin's twinkling eyes had gone, and with an open mouth, she was looking at Ambraz with deep hope and desire. "But, but," she whispered. "It's just Waterdrop… and I can only-" her face turned ugly, her shoulders going up as she shivered.

"Yes, yes," Ambraz said patiently. "Probably only able to create four or five drops of water?"

Twintin froze, then nodded slowly.

Irwin's anger faded as fast as it had come, as he recalled what Twintin had told them in the first portal. Right, four drops... No wonder she never used it, he thought. That wouldn't even be enough to save herself from this heat.

"Well," Ambraz said as he looked around. Rachel was cursing in anger, opened her eyes, and shook her head. "I can't do it," she said.

"Neither can I," Greldo said, sounding more sad than angry.

"Don't be alarmed. It can take a few days sometimes," Ambraz said. "These three are just very fast."

"Wait? Did you do this already? Do you have an uncommon card? Is that why this portal is so difficult?" Rachel asked, her voice rising in anger.

"No!" Irwin snapped back. "I can take out my cards, but I have no uncommon card!

Rachel seemed to shrivel up, taking a step back. "Sorry," she muttered, looking at the ground. "I… I just…"

"Never mind," Irwin said as he looked at Ambraz. "What do you need to do to reforge that card?"

"Nothing for that. We just have to wait until this shard-world grows to an uncommon level."

"You said that before, shard-world," Greldo said, seeming to shake off his sadness at missing a potential uncommon card. "What does that mean?"

Irwin looked over, as interested as his friend was.

"Well, that's what we are in," Ambraz said, sounding nonplussed. "Don't tell me you came here without knowing where you went?"

"Sorcerers have been trying to find out what these portals are for hundreds of years without success," Greldo said. "Nobody knows."

"Well… nobody here, I guess," Ambraz said. "Fine, as we have the time, let me explain a few things then."

Irwin tried to keep his eyes on any potential vines that might creep forward, while also listening as intently as he could.

"So, I'll refrain from giving you a complete history lesson on the potential causes of the shattering of the first worlds or what eons of complex research have shown, but lets just, for now, assume that sometimes portals begin appearing on worlds and that they lead to the shattered remains of other worlds. Now, if these portals are left, they grow, slowly increasing until they reach Diamond level, at which point they eventually erupt. This leads to the portals ejecting the shard-world they connect to into the other world, changing it permanently, and more often than not, destabilizing it."

"I have no idea what you just said," Rachel muttered, staring at the flying Anvil as if it had just farted.

Irwin couldn't blame her. Ambraz had suddenly started talking so fast while using words he'd barely ever heard use that he lost track of half of what was said. Still, he thought he had a general idea of what Ambraz meant, though he couldn't repeat it if he had to.

"Will enough destabilizing lead to the world-shattering?"

Irwin looked at Twintin, stunned. The girl was staring at the Anvil in utter concentration while Greldo was nodding as if he fully understood what was going on.

"Yes, yes! Indeed," Ambraz said. "Now, not all words destabilize so far that they shatter, and this is usually because the inhabitants manage to close the portals quickly enough."

"But how?" Greldo asked, shaking his head. "There are so few cards that there are never enough people to close all the common portals!"

"What? Why would you only want to close common portals?" Ambraz asked, sounding confused.

A dull rumble followed his words as if to punctuate what he said while interrupting Greldo, who had seemed ready to answer. Twintin let out a startled scream, jumping next to Rachel and grabbing her hand.

"Ah, I guess it is growing to uncommon, and it's happening even faster than I thought," Ambraz said, sounding happier than Irwin did as he felt a dull shaking through his feet. The few vines that had kept creeping around had pulled back, and there was no movement.

"Alright, show me your card again," Ambraz said as he whisked toward Twintin.

The girl was staring at the door and didn't seem to hear him.

"Twintin!" Irwin snapped, causing her to jerk and look up with wide eyes. "Your card, quick!"

She nodded and closed her eyes.

"Are you sure her card is the best?" Irwin asked Ambraz, wondering if it wouldn't be best to increase his flame. If it became much stronger, he could probably burn the plants!

"Yes. At uncommon, she should be able to summon over her body weight in water and manipulate both it and the water in simple organisms," Ambraz said.

"Like plants?" Irwin thought out loud, his eyebrows shooting up as he remembered teacher Rhym explaining that roughly sixty percent of their bodies was made of water.

"Like plants."

A few minutes later, as the rumbling from outside continued to increase, shaking the building so hard that dust came from above, a burst of light filled the small area, and Twintin's card appeared.

"Alright, the growing will be finished as soon as the rumbling stops," Ambraz said. "I'll upgrade your card as soon as it does. It might feel a bit weird, but you don't have to worry."

"Will it hurt?" Twintin asked, leaning closer to Rachel who put a protective hand around her shoulders.

"No," Ambraz said. "It might sting a little, that's all."

Twintin didn't seem relieved, and when the rumbling began to subside she was pale and shivering.

"It will be fine," Irwin said as he gave her his best, winning smile. "After this, you will be the first uncommon-carded in our group, and you won't have to go into another common portal!"

Twintin nodded.

"I begin," Ambraz said, and with a flash, a one-meter-high Anvil appeared where the small flying one had been. "Put your hand on top, and relax."

Twintin began crying silently but still moved forward, putting her hand on the flat surface.

"Make sure she doesn't remove her hand," Ambraz said, and Irwin felt his heart skip a beat. He looked at Rachel and Greldo, and they stepped forward. Twintin was crying loudly now, and Rachel hugged her while Greldo held her arm in place.

"Don't let go," Ambraz said, and a dull thud came from the Anvil as if a massive hammer had struck it. Twintin jerked at the same time, almost ripping free from Rachel and Greldo's hold. Her eyes widened, her mouth was open in a startled cry, then there was another thud, and she screamed.

"Daub, help hold her!" Greldo screamed.

Irwin wanted to help, but a movement showed vines appearing from the wall of vegetation as if they were called by Twintin's screams. He stepped forward, waving his flame at them.

I hope this is fast, he thought as behind him, Twintin screamed again. Then he remembered that he might have to do this soon too. Very fast, he thought as he grit his teeth.