by Frank Morin
An enormous elfonnel, shaped like the world’s biggest pedra, lay slumbering around the glowing pillar of the convergence. Clasped in its paws was a sculpted stone. Even from that distance, Connor sensed the condensed energy barely contained within the stone. It was full to bursting with . . . Healing power.
Understanding dawned as he studied the wavelengths of energy radiating through him. The elfonnel was earth-bound, and it was clutching a long rod of sculpted sandstone in its claws.
Pedra-Connor roared his pitiful roar again, laughing inside with the wonder of the discovery. Just like Ailsa had mentioned in her letter. Somehow she’d learned from the queen the amazing secret to powering affinities. That stone filtered the raw sylfaen power. Now that he understood, he recognized the undercurrent of healing power flowing past, mingled within the red and green frequencies. That sculpted stone was creating the power that fueled all Healers.
It was awe inspiring. He wished he didn’t have to fight the queen, to rid the world of her insanity. If only she could be restored, he yearned to ask how she and her husband had figured out the remarkable idea of using those stones to create affinities.
Wishes like that were like sweetbreads left unattended in Hamish’s house. Simply gone.
As much as he loved the experience of flying and exploring as Pedra-Connor, his friends needed to know what he’d learned. So he released the energy that bound the summoned creature and returned in a flash to his own body so many miles away.
Rocking back in his chair, he blinked open his eyes against brilliant sunlight. It might pale against the lights he’d been able to see in summoned form, but it still took a moment to recognize Verena sitting close beside him. The rest of his friends sat where he’d last seen them, looking impatient for news.
Verena shuffled even closer, her leg pressed against his. “You mentioned something. It sounded amazing.”
Connor grinned and touched her cheek. “It was, but not as amazing as you.”
Anika laughed and punched Rory on the shoulder. “Is good boy. Teach you how give happy words when see.”
“Hey, I tell you I love you all the time,” Rory protested.
“Yes, you strong hands. Train hard. Kiss many good, but sometimes you words many simple.”
81
In Order to Win, Great Sacrifices Might Be Necessary
Connor had only been gone for about an hour. During that time, additional platters of food and drinks had arrived. Lady Briet had joined the group, sitting beside General Wolfram. She was dressed in a brightly colored Althin dress of blue and gold and had dived in to help everyone consume most of the food.
Hamish had saved some and pushed a plate of beef, potatoes, and carrots over to Connor. It was cold, but still tasty. A second plate included a mound of fruit, cut into chunks. Connor dug in, feeling ravenous, despite everything he’d eaten earlier. Bonding so close to Pedra-Connor had taxed him more than he realized.
Hamish said, “Sorry we couldn’t get more desserts. Lady Shona seemed to think you needed the rest of this too.”
“We do need solid food,” Shona protested.
Verena rolled her eyes and added, “You can’t live on sweets alone.”
“After everything I’ve taught you about the proper appreciation of brain power, you still believe that?” Hamish exclaimed with a look of mock horror.
Evander arrived then, rising right up through the floor. Connor hadn’t even realized he’d stepped out, and silently saluted with a fork full of beef. It was reassuring to see Evander act true to the legend. He was still dressed in his great, black leather duster, but this time he carried in one hand a sheaf of parchment papers and in the other hand an enormous mug the size of Connor’s head. It looked like it held beef stew, and it smelled delicious.
Hamish glanced at Connor and grinned, gesturing at that enormous mug. Connor nodded understanding. They had to figure out how to get mugs like that too.
Kilian put down the wine he’d been sipping and asked, “Did you find anything useful?”
“I did.” Connor tried to explain what he had seen of the continent, the sylfaen, and the convergence points. Verena and Hamish both nodded knowingly as he tried describing the wonder of untethered flight. Even though he’d flown with Air since his ascension, flying as that pedra had been remarkable. He doubted he successfully communicated the vast scope of what he saw, but they seemed to understand at least some of it.
Lady Briet said thoughtfully, “So you spotted convergence points in Arishat lands, yes? I wonder why we don’t enjoy as many affinity powers.”
“Good question, and I think I saw the reason,” Connor said, explaining how only a few of the various convergences included sculpted stones. “Each sculpted stone filters a different affinity, as was suggested in that communique, so maybe it’s that filtered power infusing our lands that actually trigger Petralist abilities among the people who live here.”
General Wolfram said, “That’s an interesting point. It suggests that if we decided to add more stones at additional convergence points that we could spread Petralist powers across the rest of the continent.”
“If we can figure out how to do it without having to sacrifice a Petralist-turned-elfonnel at every one,” Verena said with a frown.
“Of course,” he agreed immediately.
The idea was fascinating, and Connor hoped they got a chance to try it. He wondered if they’d run into political resistance from Obrion and Granadure, though. Granting new Petralist powers to other nations would probably take a while to show much effect, but when it did, the great advantage that Obrion and Granadure enjoyed over their neighbors would disappear. How much would that change the balance of power?
Kilian breathed, “This is amazing. I wish my mother had explained more. This is the foundation of everything that we know.”
“She was so messed up even then,” Hamish said with a frown.
Aifric said, “Perhaps there was more to her reasoning than that. What if truths of the convergence points and this ramverk of creating affinities actually holds the key to her weakness.”
Connor glanced at Evander. “Does this help at all?”
After taking an enormous gulp of his steaming stew, Evander nodded. “It may. Coupled with the notes I shared earlier, this does indeed shed new light upon the construct of my grandmother’s life.”
He drew from the pocket of his huge coat a sculpted stone made of slate. Like the sandstone piece that Connor had sensed in pedra form, it was much larger than most sculpted stones. Even sitting ten feet away from it, Connor could sense its power radiating like invisible waves of heat.
“That’s what you took from the elfonnel that you defeated in southern Obrion last fall, right?” Verena guessed.
Evander nodded. “I did not expect to find such a stone, but when I defeated him it fell from his grasp. It contains far more power than any stone I have ever held, and I have studied it, trying to determine why that is so. At first I thought perhaps the elfonnel had somehow poured some of his essence into it before expiring, but I cannot discover how he might have done so.”
Hamish grinned. “And now we know better. That stone’s been a filter at the nexus of power for hundreds of years. If it absorbs even a tiny bit of the energy that’s flowed through it, it must be thousands of times more powerful than any other sculpted stone.”
Evander nodded, but Ilse suddenly gasped. “You took it from a convergence point. With it removed from the ramverk, does that mean we’re going to lose our slate affinity?”
That was an excellent and very scary point.
Evander said, “I have not experienced a withdrawal of earth yet, although if we do not eventually return the stone a drought may occur.”
General Wolfram said, “Then again, it wasn’t until the queen consumed the serpentinite stone that she broke the affinity. Might the sylfaen still be filtering through that stone somehow even though it’s no longer at the convergence point?”
They all glanced
at Connor and he shrugged. “I have no idea. I can study it to try to find out.”
Kilian said, “Later. We haven’t noticed problems with slate yet. Let’s not get distracted. You noticed other things, and we need to know them.”
Connor told them about the convergence point between Merkland and Crann, as well as how he’d sensed an earthbound elfonnel there and the sculpted sandstone.
Aifric looked extremely excited to get her hands on that stone, but Kilian reminded her if they removed it, they might break her healing ability. That dampened her enthusiasm a lot.
Evander said, “These truths enter the mind like a lantern cast open in a dark cave.”
“So you think this can help us somehow?” Shona asked.
Ivor added, “I hope so. The queen and her army will be on the way soon. We’re out of time. We need to figure out a strategy for attack.”
Evander asked, “What is the great need of our cause?”
Connor considered that for a moment. They needed a lot of things. More Petralists, more time, more power stone, and more desserts.
Verena did not hesitate. “We need to understand the queen’s weakness, of course.”
Oh yeah. That. That was such an overriding concern that he’d totally overlooked it. It was as if he’d asked the people of Alasdair what defined them as a village and no one mentioning the quarry.
Kilian leaned forward and asked, “Have you figured it out?”
Evander shook his head, dashing Connor’s newly reborn hope before it could take its first breath. “And yet while not understanding the physics that command a great ship to float upon deep waters, one can still figure out how to sink it.”
“What are you saying?” Shona asked.
Evander flashed a rare smile. “What is the queen’s great strength that we have yet to overcome?”
Connor was ready this time. But Hamish blurted first, “Growing new hair.”
Verena chuckled, and Shona instinctively patted her head. Hamish flushed and added, “I mean, you know, her freakish ability to heal.” He gestured at Commander Six. “Even when your brother cut her into pieces that only seemed to annoy her.”
He was right. The queen’s healing ability was their great challenge. Evander nodded and spoke yet again in plain speech. “Exactly. We may not yet understand how to slay her outright, but what if we could diminish her capacity to heal?”
Whoa. The idea was like a diorite explosion in Connor’s mind. He exclaimed, “Are you suggesting we go retrieve the sandstone filter from that convergence point and destroy it?”
Most of the group looked shocked by the suggestion, and Aifric paled and looked like she was about to swoon. Her expression shuddered as Student Eighteen took the control position. Connor could imagine inside her mind Aifric lying on a cot with the other ladies gathered around fanning her face or throwing buckets of icy water at her.
Student Eighteen said, “That would destroy all of our healing abilities too.”
Could they really risk such a drastic move? The idea of it seemed impossible, even though they had already experienced it with serpentinite. Affinities had always seemed a constant in the world, like the sun rising and setting or the inexorable movement of the tides. The loss of serpentinite had shaken the absolute of affinities, but few Petralist established that affinity, so the pain was isolated.
Sandstone was a totally different matter. Healers were a vital part of the national identity and armed forces strategies of both Granadure and Obrion.
Lady Briet said, “If such a thing could be possible, the Arishat League have proven that we can field an army without healers.”
Verena said, “But so many would die. We would lose the healthbeds as well as the healers.”
Shona asked, “But what if it was possible? If we chose to assume such a dire cost, would it grant us the power to defeat the dread queen?”
Connor raised a hand to draw their attention. “One other point to consider. We know now that it’s possible to break an affinity. Terrifying, but possible. When the queen broke serpentinite she severed only the red energy source. I can still access it when focused exclusively on green. We might be able to do the same with healing.”
“But then only you and the queen herself might be able to heal consistently,” Ivor pointed out. “The rest of us would pay such an enormous cost and potentially not even block her.”
Kilian, whose expression had turned thoughtful said, “But what if she did not realize she still had access to it? From that note, it appears she believes serpentinite is beyond her grasp, or at least that it’s not productive for her to pursue it. If we could sever sandstone long enough to attack her, might the distraction of that loss prevent her from recognizing the possibility that she might still be able to access it?”
Verena added, “As much as I hate the idea, if we did survive and defeat her, we could craft another sculpted stone and bury it again. That would restore healing eventually.”
Student Eighteen was still scowling, and no doubt several of the women in her head had to forcibly hold Aifric back from assuming control and shouting at all of them that they were insane. Connor understood her fear. He would’ve died many times over without the miraculous power of sandstone. The thought of sacrificing healing across the entire continent for the slim chance of just maybe defeating the queen seemed an awfully high risk to take.
But they could not ignore the possibility.
“Could we even take the stone without awakening the elfonnel, or would we have to fight it before getting a chance to destroy the stone?” Ivor asked.
“If we could, would it be possible to restore another stone to it as well?” Wolfram asked.
“Or would we have to sacrifice someone in elfonnel form to restore it then?” Shona asked with a grimace.
No one had an answer.
“If we did awaken it, would the queen sense its rising?” Verena asked.
Excellent question. Connor bet she would. The rising of an elfonnel rippled across the continent. Someone as powerful as the queen would surely notice it.
Kilian nodded. “She would, and most likely would rush to investigate anything tampering with her ramverk.”
“Could we use that against her?” Connor asked.
“Perhaps,” Kilian said, lapsing into thought.
The conversation faded as they considered the myriad questions. They faced too many unknowns. There was no way to know for sure. Any one answer they got wrong would most likely destroy the attempt and waste the effort, leaving them weakened instead of the queen.
Connor thought back to all the uses of sandstone. He considered the precious sculpted sandstone pendants that Aunt Ailsa had sent to him. They had saved many lives. He thought of the healthbeds and all the great work the Builders were doing to push science, led by Jean and her fixation on the tiny world of molds and rot and infection. Could she still pursue her research without the power of sandstone? If only she had years to make new discoveries before they considered destroying that power.
As he thought of Jean and the marvelous work that she and her teams were doing, he thought about the recent visit with Nicklaus and got an idea. He snapped his fingers and exclaimed, “Nicklaus!”
Everyone turned to him, clearly not understanding the reference. Kilian asked, “What about him?”
Connor turned to Hamish. “Remember when we visited him?”
“Sure. I want to study that water purification mechanical.”
“Remember the other part, about the higher level mechanical he was building that didn’t work?”
“Oh, yeah. Sort of forgot about that with everything else going on,” Hamish admitted.
“What higher level mechanical?” Verena asked.
“Something he was working on that Water was teaching him. I was going to discuss it with you, but with loaning powers and everything, I totally forgot. Actually, loaning powers plays into what I’m thinking too.”
“How?” Ivor asked.
He gr
inned, struggling to make a concrete idea out of that flash of inspiration. “Two things just came together for me that might help us. First, loaning powers. I could only loan so much. Once I spread my affinity far enough, there was nothing left for me.”
General Wolfram asked, “Are you suggesting we find a way to convince the queen to loan her powers to others to leave herself vulnerable?”
“She’d never do it,” Kilian said.
“I know, and that’s where Nicklaus’ failed mechanical comes in. Hamish, remember he said when he turned it on it only seemed to be messing with a lot of energy?”
“Yeah,” Hamish said, still not getting it.
“And a Water Moccasin asked him to turn it off because it was interfering with his affinity?” Connor pressed.
“What?” Verena exclaimed as Hamish nodded, a look of dawning understanding on his face.
Connor was growing more excited by the second. “I have a copy of everything Water told him in a book in my room. Christin wrote it all down. What if that higher-level mechanical gathers affinity power, sort of like how my summoned pedra absorbed light?”
“What if it could?” Shona asked, looking confused. “No mechanical could absorb all the healing magic everywhere.”
“Not everywhere. At the convergence point,” Connor said triumphantly. “It’s where healing power comes from, right? There’s a lot of healing power available, but not an infinite amount. What if we could divert it somehow through a mechanical?”
Verena’s eyes lit with that thrill she always got when exploring new concepts. “When I activated Kristin’s Defense, I saw how the stones were linked, how the commands were layered. If that notebook does have some clues, I’m confident I could build a higher mechanical to suck in all healing power in a concentrated area.”
Hamish grinned. “If we could leave the queen temporarily without full access to healing, that might accomplish the same thing as destroying the affinity altogether, right?”
