Bondsfungi: Chapters 15-16 (The Weirkey Chronicles) (Patreon)

I was encouraged to see the positive reaction to last week's chapters. ^-^ Because people generally enjoyed them, of course, but also because of how that ties into my broader plans.

When I was planning this series, before I had written the first, I knew that this set of books would be a potential point of conflict. If I was following the standard model, where the books are largely focused on a protagonist who advances as fast as possible, then the wise decision would have been to compress the fifth, sixth, and seventh books into one.

I could have written that version of the story, but I wanted to try something riskier. I actually give half the narrative to Nauda for the fifth book, dedicate some time to rebuilding, and emphasize a book about a platonic relationship. The fact that people enjoyed it is encouraging. ^-^ I hope that you'll continue to enjoy the developments throughout the rest of this book: there are some elements everyone has predicted, but others I hope will surprise you.

(If you're wondering about the references to my overall outline: the potential issue with the sixth book is that it will dedicate time to plot and Fithan politics instead of pure advancement. When we do get to the seventh book, I hope that it will feel fully earned. If readers are willing to stick with me through what I build in those, I hope everyone will enjoy the rest even more. These characters have a long path ahead of them.)

Covers: Voting on the two covers has closed. I wish I had been a little clearer that I wanted input purely on the artists' skill, as opposed to the composition of the two different covers, but I think the results are still fairly clear. You guys were generally positive, but more positive toward the first artist. I will be going with them, and hopefully they'll be a consistent artist for the rest of the series. With that established, there should be no cover-based delays for TWC5.

Anyway: This introduction has gotten long. This next set of chapters continues the fact that this is the first pivot point of the book. I hope by the end you will all enjoy everything that's been set up. ^-^

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Chapter 15

Theo staggered back as Nauda's fist collided with his jaw, stumbling several steps before he could right himself. He knew her staff was coming next, ready to bind him in place, and felt her cantae splash against his coat. In her current condition, his coat repelled it entirely, leaving him free to-

Her staff kept coming, the tines stabbing him in the chest. Fortunately his coat held against that as well, though with Nauda's strength behind it the blow still hurt. Another step back and she was rushing at him, snarling, her staff whipping around for another blow...

A narrow but powerful gravitational field sent her staff plummeting to the side. Theo immediately stepped forward, filling one leg with cantae and kicking the shaft. He reversed the gravity at the same moment he struck and the staff went skittering across the tiles, far out of her reach.

Nauda leapt to recover her weapon and he chased after her, noticing too late that she had left a line of wards with her feet. Unfortunately for Nauda, her skill remained too weak and he charged directly through it, the wards splintering off his coat. He rammed into her back with his shoulder, not an elegant move but charged with cantae.

She was much better than him at hand to hand combat and managed to twist, blunting the blow and sending him to the ground. This time he couldn't catch himself and he flopped over onto his back. In that time, Nauda grabbed her staff and rushed to finish him off.

It might have worked, but Theo wasn't even winded from their melee. Physical combat might not have been his strength, but the completed bathing chamber in his soulhome let him keep fighting without tiring. His mind was still crystal clear and he used his focus to reach up and cast his newest skill before she could strike.

"That won't..." Nauda choked, staggered to one side, and then collapsed to her knees, vomiting onto the tiles. She wiped her mouth and spent a while just catching her breath from the fight.

Theo sat up and watched her as she recovered. This match had been as fun as the previous, and all the design work had reminded him just how much he enjoyed Nauda's company. He reflected that she was physically attractive in such a distant way that he briefly wondered if there was something wrong with his new body. But no, he wasn't a horny teenager anymore, he should be able to have healthy platonic relationships.

Nauda finally looked in his direction, still grimacing from the taste. "I thought for sure I'd be able to resist the technique that time."

"It's getting stronger." Theo hopped back to his feet, checking his soulhome for any irregularities. The chaosgem worked for his new disorientation skill, but it didn't quite gel with the rest of his blueprint. It was taking a lot of tweaks and modifications to slowly integrate it fully into this gravity design, but in the end he was sure it could do much worse than that.

"Your durability chamber is too effective." Back on her feet, Nauda wrung out the hand that had punched him. "I wish we could go back to the Chasm and get another one of those stones, because I'd be happy to have one or two."

"I doubt we'd have much luck there, but when we finally get access to weirkeys, we'll be able to locate more resources I know."

"I am honored by your charity, oh great master."

Nauda still looked a little woozy, but had otherwise recovered from the fight. She jerked her head to the side, indicating that they should head out. Sometimes they soulcrafted directly in the training courtyard, but since Nauda had vomited there, moving made sense. On the way out, Nauda apologized to one of the cleaning staff by name, which Theo thought was a little odd but at least meant she was feeling better.

As they walked back to their rooms, Theo remembered his other news item and reached into his coat for one of the few objects he didn't carry in his soulhome. "By the way, the specialists finally returned your gloves. The reason the Blacksilver specialists couldn't figure them out is that they're 'clear' armaments, meaning they aren't aligned with any technique."

"What's the point in that, then?" Nauda asked. She did take the gloves from him, running her hands over the fine fabric.

"Apparently they can be attuned to another skill, not as powerfully as a unique armament but requiring less space in your soulhome. The specific techniques are a bit obscure, but you can probably figure those out yourself."

"I will if I remember them." Nauda tucked the gloves into her belt and sighed. "I keep forgetting these exist. I was hoping that an ancient armament from the Chasm of Lamentations would contain some overwhelming skill, but apparently not."

"Don't discount the benefit of any force multiplier, especially ones that don't require a large portion of your soulhome. Fiyu's bracers, for example. I wish that I had something like that myself, and you know how I generally feel about armaments."

Their conversation was briefly interrupted when they reached his room. While Theo locked the door, Nauda marched in and pulled out the wine he stored there, gargling some before taking another drink. Given that the taste in her mouth had been his fault, Theo let it pass, mostly just glad that she seemed so much more comfortable.

"Do we have specific soulcrafting to do today?" he asked. Nauda shrugged, but he saw a twinkle in her eye.

"I wanted to go over some of my blueprint again."

"Sure, we can. I'll just get-" He was partway to the papers when she stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

"Actually, Navim helped me repair the telescope. It's still bent and scratched, so not much good for investigating others, but it's adequate for cooperative work. Or I hope it is... I figured I'd try in private in case I fail horribly."

Despite her words, she seemed to have no trouble at all inviting him into her soulhome. After so long discussing the designs in the abstract or catching glimpses when she lowered her defenses, Theo was eager to get a good look at everything she had done over the past month.

The heart of her soulhome was now filled by three foundations of white stone, fused with her soul by overwhelming cantae. Two of them were surrounded by simple walls built from the temporary bricks she had previously made. They leaked cantae horribly, but he'd advised her that there was no point wasting more time on a stopgap measure. Eventually they would be replaced by well-built walls of the same melted stone as her foundation.

Her third pillar was basically just sublime cloth draped over the heart tree. Theo floated near and stuck his head through, observing that the heartoak had not been disturbed by being transplanted. The roots had thickened and the leaves were thicker while staying within the bounds she had set. It was already about two floors high and would be an excellent source of cantae once enclosed.

A few of the rebuilding techniques had required the assistance of Blacksilver Authorities, and it had been Theo's influence that convinced them. He thought that there had been a little unspoken tension there, as Nauda felt that they didn't respect her enough on her own, but as a whole she seemed quite happy with the developments.

The most significant change for him, aside from their relationship, was his prioritization of the Ruling City Wargames. Nauda would need an influx of brand new materials of high quality once she got past her initial rebuilding stage. Unless he could find an old cache, or they suddenly gained access to another world, the Wargames were her best shot. He and Fiyu could earn Fithan materials for Nauda, and in the process he might be able to take a step closer to the House of the Lost.

"How's stoneshaping with Navim going?" Theo asked as he floated out of the tent. Nauda sighed and gestured at the pile of broken rocks.

"You can see the bad news for yourself, can't you? The best I can do is make sad blobby bricks like those."

"You can't expect to learn a discipline as complex as stoneshaping in just a month, even if you're only learning the soulcrafting side of it." Theo examined the bricks, which looked like blobs that vaguely aspired to being rectangular. He'd never trained in the skill himself, so he wasn't sure about her progress, but it was true that bricks like those would never serve for her walls.

"Well, aside from taking a look," Nauda said, "I wanted you to help with a few details of my death room."

They walked to the building that would eventually become Nauda's left leg. She had taken to calling it her "death room" and he had to admit that it was appropriate. The floor was covered with skulls, rainhorn antlers, eryo claws, and other remnants of dead beasts. Her centerpiece was definitely the black skull she'd brought with her from Tatian, which he'd helped design an altar for.

She had a few questions to ask him about composition, since there was a difference between rooms with several merged purposes and isolated concepts. Theo accepted in theory that merged rooms could be potent, but he much preferred isolated ones. Now, instead of mixing many different concepts, Nauda had a room that was truly lethal.

In his ghostly form Theo couldn't do anything more than offer guidance, so he was ready to depart and begin his own soulcrafting. Just as he started to shift away, however, Nauda waved for him to stop. She didn't say anything, just beckoned him to follow and led him to the stakes along the edges of her soulhome.

"I've isolated most of the bondsfungi here," she said, "but I think it's gotten inside. Fortunately, it's struggled to grow on any of the melted stone since we had Karchibol blast it. I haven't wanted to bother you with this, but... I'm not sure what I'm going to do about the infection."

"What do you need to do about it?"

Nauda stared at him blankly. "What do you mean?"

"I tried to do a little more research on the material. It's not like I found any secret solutions that Grekig missed, but as I was reading about it, I had another question." Theo gestured to the glowing blue mushrooms surrounding her soulhome. "What harm is it actually doing?"

"I can't decide if that's a stupid question or a great one." Nauda blinked a few times and bent down to examine them. "Most obviously, they turn flesh into stone. There were entire fields of dead bodies that had been petrified."

"You aren't a dead body."

"Yes, but whenever they infect villagers, their health deteriorates as their organs harden. And with other soulcrafters, the bondsfungi choke out everything else unless they can purge them. It can't be good to just let them keep growing inside me."

"I'm not so sure. You've survived with them for several months with no ill effects."

"Grekig said that because I'm a Ruler, I can probably resist them longer. Plus I've been fighting them back."

"That's one interpretation, but he also said that a Ruler hasn't been infected like this before." Since he was just a spirit, Theo floated directly into the mushrooms, examining their cantae. "They might act like an invasive species in most contexts, but they're still a sublime material in your soulhome. You're a Ruler, not a peasant. What if instead of fighting them, you embrace them?"

Nauda's eyes widened. "And you don't think that could go horribly wrong?"

"I think that you've already tried the best methods of eradicating them to no success. Don't spread them everywhere, especially not on the heartoak, but see if you can't bend them to your will. They're not intelligent, after all, just instinctual. If you can work with them like any other material, you might find a benefit to them that no one else has."

"I... will consider that." She glanced up at him and smiled. "Thank you, Theo. I imagine you have work to be doing?"

He did indeed. Theo passed out of her soul, accepted the Esoteric Chisel from her in the real world, and then passed into his own soulhome.

The ferocity with which Nauda worked on her new design had inspired him, so Theo had been dedicating even more of his time to soulcrafting. He'd completely finished the bathing chamber on the first floor and tweaked many of the other rooms. Eventually he might find more supportive materials, but all the essentials of the first floor were completely ready for ascension.

Several large boulders of densecrest sat at the edge of his soulhome, reminding him of the one area he'd been slacking in. He had finally purchased another piece of densecrest, which meant he had enough raw material to finish every single room on his third floor. Now that he had the Esoteric Chisel back, he could make more bricks. So far he hadn't set aside the time for it, which would need to change soon... but not today.

Instead Theo walked to the experimental garden beside his vestibule. He'd been successful at just about everything but the grizzleroot. It still resonated strongly with his soulhome, but it refused to grow. No matter how he coaxed it, the roots wouldn't expand to anything like their full potential. There were a few types of sublime water and sublime fertilizer he hadn't tried, but those were expensive and his funds were low until his regular income from the petalfilters came in.

His other problem was the voidflint, which still cut up his hands instead of knapping properly. He knew there was real potential there, maybe even a chamber centerpiece, but he hadn't cracked the problem yet. Theo made another few attempts, even using the Esoteric Chisel, before going back to the drawing board.

But he definitely wasn't going to give up. Not when he was having so much fun.

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Chapter 16

Watching her two companions filled Fiyu with a surprisingly mixed array of emotions. She never feared that they would abandon her, not for a moment, but she did worry that they would leave her behind with all their intensive soulcrafting. Even if Friend Theo took time to prepare for Authority and Friend Nauda required time to recover, she would still remain at Archcrafter, doing what she could to prepare.

Fortunately, such worries were largely overwhelmed by happiness. After Friend Nauda had been so miserable, closing in on herself, Friend Theo had been able to crack her shell and make her enjoy life again. Fiyu dearly wished that she had the same skill and that she could have put those smiles on Friend Nauda's face.

Fiyu had been pleased to offer Friend Nauda suggestions about the polishing of her staff tower, and the two of them sometimes soulcrafted side by side. But it was dwarfed by the time that her two companions spent working together. They did invite her on many occasions, and they never directly excluded her, but it was a simple fact that they had developed the blueprint together and so needed to invest time in perfecting it. She was truly and unquestionably pleased to see them so happy together, as companions should be.

Yet, where once her thoughts would have stopped there, Fiyu found herself wondering what it would be like if Friend Nauda and Friend Theo became lifemates. She did not think it was likely, based on Friend Theo's stated position and Friend Nauda's tendencies. Yet the thought remained in her mind, and Fiyu was uncertain what she felt about it.

Such thoughts were a distraction from her work. She returned to her meditation and made that part of herself go dormant again.

While her companions focused on their soulcrafting, Fiyu attempted to keep abreast of the activity in Norro Yorthin. There was more Wargames fervor, as always. The drama with House Crimson had been largely forgotten, aside from a scheduled military action. The Order of the Deepest Blue had been expelled to the outer city for causing trouble and earning themselves no allies. Other Ichili continued to spread word of suspicious entities stalking the Greater Dark, reinforcing her desire to remain secure.

And yet, Fiyu found that she had been in her room long enough. When she heard that Friend Nauda was going to join Friend Theo on the next mission into the wastelands, she resolved that she would travel with them.

~ ~ ~

The most reasonable plans had been made impossible, leaving only the increasingly perilous.

Guchiro floated above the gate that would allegedly lead him to the city where his ward was being held and considered an assault one last time. Despite the cloudspiders crawling their webs in the sky around him, the gate was not heavily guarded, at least by his standards. 

Ward Fiyu's message had left him with clear directions to her location, yet he remained blocked by a simple gate between worlds. The guards were only Rulers, offering little resistance, but his research on this city called Norro Yorthin suggested that it contained considerable military force.

A frontal assault would not lead him to his ward. Guchiro accepted this, yet stared at the gate for a while longer, hoping he could see another path. The soulcrafters who kept it were Ichili of respectable caution, securing against nearly all stealth techniques. Their defenses had actually increased since his first attempt, allegedly due to the Fithan war on the other side. He suspected that the unstated reason was that his investigations had incited further security.

That was perfectly dutiful of them, given that they should not simply accept claims of relativehood. A kidnapper could easily slip away into the Greater Dark and take a child for their own, which was indeed a valid concern.

None of that made the blockade any less frustrating. They had even refused his attempts to send a message through, as they wanted the gate entirely shut due to the Fithan war. Guchiro wasn't sure why they took it so seriously, given that Fithans were always at war. Allegedly this one included overwhelming soulcrafters, but he could never be certain of the frame of reference for such statements.

A cloudspider above him began to glide lower, weaving an acidic web from its spinnerets. Guchiro ignored it, giving the sublime beast a chance to live. Instead he let the words of his ward's message run through his mind, by now a familiar stream.

"Relative Guchiro. I am well. I have been taken to the city of Norro Yorthin, on Fithe. It may be found by traveling to the gate near the source of this message. I am held by an organization called House Blacksilver, and controlled by outsider traveling companions. I will not be able to speak honestly in person."

The sentence construction was unmistakably his ward's, yet the incongruities of the message continued to trouble him. It was remotely possible that she had herself changed in his absence, leading to the discontinuity, yet he doubted that she would change so quickly. By far the most likely possibilities were that she had left the message under unusual conditions or that her state of mind had been altered. Damage did occur in biolumin relays, but aside from that, the only possibility...

Dismissing such fanciful ideas, Guchiro traced a finger over his weirkeys and considered alternate routes. Without a weirkey for Fithe, finding another gate and traveling to Norro Yorthin would take considerably more time than passing through, but it might be his only option.

He was reasonably certain that his ward was truly in Norro Yorthin: the local Ichili refused to give him much information, but he had received credible reports that a young woman had won a local contest of first tier soulcrafters using stealth and lightstorm skills. That was likely to be Ward Fiyu; the question was her present condition.

The cloudspider drifted closer to his neck, a shadow among shadows crawling across the winds.

Information about this Organization Blacksilver had been gathered more easily, before the locals had begun regarding him with suspicion. None of the information made it seem like a sinister organization that would hold his ward captive, and it held an above average reputation among local Ichili.

Of course, those truly responsible could be the outsider traveling companions his ward mentioned. Guchiro frowned and began manifesting solid darkness around himself. That fragment of the message troubled him most. He had never taught her to fear outsiders, and it was strange for her to refer to her captors as companions. That added credence to the idea that her message had been monitored, yet that possibility conflicted with other details.

Finally the cloudspider struck, hurling a web gleaming with cantae as it lunged to bite his neck.

Twisting the darkness around himself into several rotating blades, Guchiro cut the spider into pieces. As the remnants fell, he extended a tendril of shadow to grasp its silk core, which would be an appropriate material for his ward.

Because he would find Ward Fiyu, no matter what it took. He would observe her interactions with these Fithans or outsiders and that would tell him the truth of her present condition. Then he would do whatever was necessary.