The Fifth Realm

by Michael Chatfield

  “I haven’t told you yet, but with our permanent population and our size, we officially became a Ten Realms-recognized grade-two town the other day,” Aditya said with pride.

  “Congratulations.” Elan smiled. “Only two more grades and you’ll reach city status!”

  “I never thought that I would control a city—still doesn’t feel real,” Aditya said.

  “There’s still a long way to go.”

  “And many problems to be dealt with!” Aditya chimed in.

  Elan snorted. “Well, at least it keeps us both in a job.”

  ***

  Fehim was walking through the Alchemy plants, stopping as he reached the center of the garden where the silverlight tree had been replanted.

  He liked to tour the garden every so often.

  “Checking up on the others?” Erik, who sat on a bench facing the large tree, asked, turning his head to look over at Fehim.

  “As the Alchemy department head, it’s only natural,” Fehim said with a smile. He moved over to Erik and bowed.

  “No need for that, Fehim.” Erik waved him off and indicated to the bench.

  Fehim smiled and sat down on the bench, looking at the tree with Erik. There was an Alchemy book open in his lap.

  “Seems a little different.” Erik looked at the silverlight tree. Instead of being silver and green, its main trunk looked to be made from polished silver and looked fragile, as if a stiff breeze would cause it to snap. The leaves hung down in myriad colors, mingling with one another, random but beautiful.

  “Well, that might be because we got the tree type messed up. It was a silverlight tree, but now it’s an ever-silver tree. Known to people as a mana tree. It can live in any environment that has a truly massive amount of mana, but only one in ten thousand will reach maturity because they are incredibly fragile and it has interesting mana requirements.

  “When you brought it, it was silver and green, due to its structure being changed by the mana that they absorb. So when it was in the dungeon, absorbing just two types of mana, it took on characteristics of them both. So when it was exposed to other kinds of mana, then it started to change. We took it around the garden, balancing out all of the different attribute manas that it consumed and then it changed into its current form.

  “From what we’ve been able to learn, when it reaches maturity then silver fruits will appear on its limbs, showing up once every five years afterward. These fruits are called silver fruits. Someone’s naming scheme isn’t that amazing,” Fehim said dryly.

  Erik smiled. “What will they do? Can they be used in a concoction? And what does the tree do with the mana? I can sense it pulling in mana but not letting any out?”

  Fehim grinned. “The silver fruits randomly increase a person’s attributes by one to seven points.”

  Erik looked at the ever-silver tree with a new appreciation.

  “I haven’t been able to find out about any concoctions that use them. I think few people would try to experiment with something so powerful. I’ve been searching for more information discreetly but they’re incredibly rare and even the one that you brought wasn’t in good condition. It would have died in a few months or years—even now we have to monitor to make sure that the trunk doesn’t snap. We’ve been trimming back the branches so there’s not as much strain on the trunk. It will mean a lower yield, but as long as we can grow the tree, there’s a possibility that it will create a bud that we can plant and grow into a second ever-silver tree.”

  “What protections have you put into place?” Erik asked.

  “There is a defensive formation around it. Qin worked on it personally. It is powered by the dungeon and there is a mana barrier as well. Someone will be alerted as they get close to the tree. If they keep going, then the defensive formation will toss them out. Second time, it will attack to disable. If someone attacks, then the barrier will block and the formation will attack,” Fehim reassured Erik.

  “Well, we should get a good harvest in five years,” Erik said.

  “Four, nearly three years,” Fehim corrected.

  Erik looked to Fehim and raised his eyebrows. “Huh. Time seems to have sped on by.”

  “It has,” Fehim said.

  “Are you afraid of losing your position as the head of the Alchemy department?” Erik asked.

  “You going to fire me from it?” Fehim asked.

  “Nothing like that.” Erik shook his head at Fehim’s easy smile.

  “I will probably lose the position soon, but, I am quite a bit older than most of the students and I started learning later on. I care more about the ingredients and my skill lays in assisting alchemists with their concoctions, not making them myself,” Fehim said. “I knew that others would surpass me eventually. If Delilah was not the council leader, then she would be the department head.”

  “Not many people would be as willing to give up their position as you,” Erik said.

  “We are growing. Alva has tens of people coming from across the realms every week instead of every few months. About four-fifths of those people are choosing to live in Alva. People are working harder than ever so that the people who just joined Alva don’t take their position. It creates competition, and there are some inner frictions, but all areas of Alva have handled it well, turning it into action, instead of nefarious rivalry.”

  “It’s much bigger than when we started,” Erik agreed.

  “And like our gardens, it will continue to grow faster with each passing year.” Fehim cleared his throat, making Erik look over.

  “About the lower floors.”

  “Not you too.” Erik snorted.

  “We have plants of different attributes up here. Although I wish to keep a garden here, with the need for more housing, I can see that we can’t keep expanding the garden all over the place. Also, I am told that the mana density on the lower floors is higher and we have gotten samples back from the Metal floor already. Are there really floors of all different affinities?”

  “Don’t care about your position but passionate about your plants,” Erik said dryly.

  Fehim shrugged, a light smile on his face.

  “Under the Alva Dungeon floor, there is the Metal floor, the Earth floor, the Fire floor, Wood floor, and then the final Water floor. Each of the other floors is many times larger than the current Alva floor.”

  “We could grow so much down there, raise different attribute plants. We would have a hard time on the Earth floor—the farmers are going to want to work there. Maybe with the higher Earth mana, they would be happier with a smaller plot of land. They care about growing things in mass instead of increasing their potency. Wait, is this why you’re holding off increasing your Body Cultivation?”

  “Partly,” Erik said.

  “You used the battlefield dungeon as a way to get down to the Fire floor in order to temper your body in the heavy Fire-attribute mana?”

  “Right. For my next tempering, I require to temper my body with the Earth attribute mana, then Metal, Water, and Wood. Each time, I will require stronger concoctions and higher concentrations of mana to allow me to temper my body completely. From what we’ve learned, we know that there can be partial temperings and complete ones. Partial will allow us to complete the quest and some will remain there; others will continue to temper one’s body completely, removing any and all weaknesses. It requires a lot more resources and power, but there are greater benefits later on.”

  “One can become stronger immediately but weaken his gains later on.” Fehim nodded.

  They fell into silence.

  “So once the Earth floor is cleared, will you attempt to temper your body once again? We already have the Metal floor—that will be two temperings complete, right?”

  “Yes and no. I can feel that I will need powerful aids to complete my temperings. I will talk to my Alchemy teacher to see if he knows what can help me to overcome my remaining boundaries. Body Cultivation requires a lot of resources to cross, no matter what. Mana Gathering Cultiv
ation requires a lot of work over time, but it is possible to increase through sheer tenacity,” Erik said.

  “Both paths take us beyond the realm of just humans, touching upon the power of the Ten Realms in different aspects,” Fehim said. “I’ll keep an eye out in the books from Vuzgal for any information on cultivation aids.”

  “Thank you, Fehim.” Erik looked at him and then back to the tree. “I wonder what it will look like in three years.”

  “Bigger, I would guess,” Fehim said seriously.

  Erik couldn’t help but laugh and Fehim joined in.

  ***

  Rugrat showed off the new tools in the workshop: routers, band saws, sanding belts, table saws, and drills.

  “This will make things a lot easier. Instead of taking hours for the new blacksmiths to sharpen blades, it will take them what, a few minutes?” Taran said.

  “With the routers, I think that the formation masters would be interested,” Tan Xue said.

  “I sent off a bunch of the routers to them. They can just use gems and mana stones in order to power them instead of having to use their mana all the time to make mana blades and other tools,” Rugrat said.

  They looked at the machine shop. It hadn’t taken Rugrat long to make everything, using parts and items that they had already. With the rotating formation, his mana blade, and refined metal.

  “It should increase production on different items. Though we still haven’t reached this factory stage level of assembly. Even with ammunition, we are casting the rounds and the cartridges, which is done by hand,” Taran complained.

  “Haven’t you been working with Matt, the blueprint office, the Alchemy department, and the formation masters to make a machine that will make the cartridges and the rounds for you?” Tan Xue asked.

  “Yes, but it all takes time. The mortar rounds need a process, as well as the grenade launcher rounds.” Taran sighed.

  Rugrat snorted and then looked at them both. “We had none of this a year ago. Like, look at how far we’ve come. Sure, we’ve got further to go but we’ve done a lot. You’ve both done a lot. If it wasn’t for your efforts, we wouldn’t have gotten to this stage. We are producing rifles at a breakneck speed. Once we can incorporate the machines in this machine shop into production, then it will only increase. When we started, no one would think about four different departments working together in tandem.

  “This is what Alva needs—people sharing information, working together, to take what we have already and combine it together to increase their effect. Alchemy concoctions used with needles and intravenous needles. Healers working with tailors, alchemists, and smiths to create sterile plastics. Alchemists working with farmers to make more potent, plentiful, and powerful ingredients as they discuss preparation with the cooks.” Rugrat looked between them both. “You’ve done something incredible here—don’t let anyone tell you any different.”

  Taran and Tan Xue looked away, awkward with the praise.

  Taran cleared his throat. “Well, if you have some more secrets about making it into the Expert realm of smithing, then I would think you were proposing!”

  “Don’t worry—I’m sure you’ll make it to Expert only a few years after me.” Rugrat’s winning grin appeared as Taran faked throwing a punch. Tan Xue snorted and shook her head, the serious atmosphere from before disappearing.

  “Though I did want to ask Tan Xue about a few things Expert related. Beers?” Rugrat said.

  “Well, seeing as we’ve done so much work as you’ve said, it would be impolite not to accept your offer to buy a few rounds.” Taran cleared his throat and walked ahead.

  It took Rugrat a moment to figure out what he said as Tan Xue moved to follow Taran.

  “You coming there, slow stuff?” she called back to Rugrat.

  “I didn’t say anything about buying a few rounds!” Rugrat said, moving to catch up with them.

  They reached the Spitting Boar, one of the new bars that had appeared in Alva. It looked over one of the parks and stood three levels tall, with the top level open to the rest of Alva.

  They went to the third floor, grabbing drinks and moving to a table.

  “So I’ve explained a lot of this to Taran already. I made it into the Expert level of smithing. I’m not really sure how. Though I have a feeling it didn’t have to do all with knowledge, but the application of that knowledge. Right now, I feel like I am in unknown territory, so I haven’t been talking about it much. I don’t want to send people off on the wrong path. It feels like there is a boundary around me, like there is something I don’t know that is stopping me from progressing. At the same time, I feel like if I figure out what is holding me back then I will be able to increase my ability in smithing a lot.” Tan Xue took a big gulp of her beer.

  “Okay, well, when you made that first Expert-level item, what did you think? What did you do differently—materials, tools? Why were you making the item you were? What were the deviations from the plan?” Rugrat asked.

  Taran and Rugrat focused on her and she looked up, closing her eyes to picture the whole process.

  Rugrat pulled out a notepad; Taran did as well. They forgot about their drinks in a rare moment and declaration of interest in Tan Xue’s words.

  “I was really tired. I was just looking at my hammer and hitting it on the metal. I was focusing on using the vibrations of my strikes to increase the strength of the sword. I think it was a sword. Though I kind of tunneled—my mind started to think on my hammer. I knew it so well, how it had formed. I looked at it and I thought that it was interesting how I was working on a new weapon with an old tool that I had created. I thought about the cycle of weapons—hewn from the earth, then refined and combined with other elements and turned into tools. I thought how I was creating a resonance in the weapon with my hammer, how I wondered if I could create a resonance in my hammer’s different elements and if that would transfer that change over to the sword.

  “I focused on the hammer. Instead of using the hammer to attack the weapon and create the right vibrations, I started to alter how I used the hammer. I changed the mana flow through my body, the way my muscles moved, achieving a resonance with the hammer.”

  Tan Xue opened her eyes, stunned but also at peace.

  “I realized that I am the creator. I always used the hammer to form, but it is I forming the weapon, with the hammer as a medium. That without a smithy, without a hammer and a forge, I could create a weapon. My body is the smithy. It is my truth, my realization. At the same time, using my body instead of my hammer to create the vibrations was a form of technique. I don’t know what it means... I have to get back to my smithy,” Tan Xue said, her eyes glossed over.

  “Tan Xue, I need you to come to Vuzgal, if you’re okay with that.”

  “Huh, what?” Tan Xue jolted in her seat.

  “We need a high skilled crafter in Vuzgal if we want to attract people to the academy and make sure that any of the high skilled crafters that we hire will listen to us,” Rugrat said.

  “I have projects, classes, I run the smithing department for the Kanesh Academy,” Tan Xue said.

  “Well, umm, Taran, would you be interested in taking over as the smithing department head in Alva?” Rugrat asked sheepishly.

  The two smiths looked at one another, their eyes narrowing as their turned their stares on Rugrat.

  “How long have you been sitting on this plan of yours?”

  “Uhh, a few days... maybe weeks,” He muttered into his drink, taking a big swig to cover over the embarrassed look on his face.

  “So you want me to go up to Vuzgal so we have the authority to negotiate with other expert crafters and establish ourselves and Taran will take over the department in Vuzgal. Anything else?” Tan Xue pressed.

  “Well, there will be a group of crafters that will be heading up to the higher realms, and,” Rugrat coughed. “You would be the head of the Academy.”

  Seeing the look in her eyes he talked quickly.

  “Don’t wor
ry you would be a figurehead! There will be a staff and people that will help with the day to day running of the academy, like all of the assistants and helpers that are in the Kanesh Academy. You would get a bunch of resources, time in the crafter trial. Umm blueprints, the best of the best! There will be expert level crafting rooms too you’ll be able to go outside too!”

  A look from Tan Xue made Rugrat close his mouth.

  She sighed and looked to Taran.

  The bulky man shrugged.

  “You’ve been running the smithing department by yourself pretty much this entire time anyway. You’re well suited to it and with the extra resources you should be able to reach Expert soon. Are you okay with it though?” Tan Xue asked.

  “I didn’t think that I would like teaching others, but, I’ve come to enjoy it, seeing how excited they are, I don’t mind being a teacher. Also I have five barrels of shine on the line, I’m not losing to him,” Taran looked at Rugrat.

  “I’m, just a half step away!”

  “A half step too slow,” Taran grinned.

  The two of them looked at one another, grinning like idiots. Excited at the challenge set down between them.

  “Alright, I have to go and pack,” Tan Xue said, draining her drink and then standing. Next time, a little bit more warning would be nice.”

  “Yes Academy head!” Rugrat said, raising his glass to her.

  She snorted and rolled her eyes, a smile pulling at the corner of her lips as she nodded to Taran.

  “I’m sure we’ll keep in contact,” He assured her.

  “You’ll try to escape Alva more often than not,” She filled in for him.

  Taran just chuckled.

  Rugrat, seeing them both he realized how just a few short years ago he had never met them, but now he couldn’t imagine a life without them in it. Sure they fought and complained at one another, but they were his brother and sister, even if none of the same blood flowed in their veins.

  ***

  Hiao Xen sighed as he got the latest information from the Stone Fist sect through his sources.