Auger & Augment

by Wilson A Bateman

  The grating continued unabated, but still there was nothing to see. Unable to determine its source, I remained still as the light grew overhead and the others began to stir. I shushed them as best I could, and one by one they caught on, hearing the scratching themselves and edging closer to try and find its source.

  Varba made the discovery—leave it to those goblin ears. She silently pointed to the auger, still resting on the back of my right hand, which in turn was held to my chest by the sling. Carefully I rotated the stone into view.

  The mana stored inside had finally passed the one million mark, but that was not the most dramatic change. The stone had been smooth, round, and gray, and I knew its surface well from having to carry it for days. The mana designs on its face had been static, but now they swam and drifted across the surface in iridescent waves. The surface itself had changed from gray to a creamy white, and was dimpled as if the stone had become hollow and was collapsing in on itself.

  I scarcely had time to take all this in, before the surface of the stone rippled

  I would have jumped were I not laying down. Instead, I simply wrenched my shoulder in an excruciating fashion. Something was alive in there!

  Each member of the party had a different reaction, ranging from fear to fascination as a miniscule slit broke the surface of the stone, growing wider over the course of minutes, until at last a tiny, scaly nose broke through and pushed its way out into the morning light.

  THE END

  Thank you for reading

  Blood of The Boundless: Auger & Augment!

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