Gemwright

*Author's Note* This chapter has no intimacy scenes.

My stomach grumbles, waking me up. It's a little darker now, but still fairly bright. I stretch, yawn, then pack up. The bird escorts the basket home again, and I carefully scramble down the strange rock.

Hmm... let's check in on the Port before grabbing dinner. I need to have a conversation with Wed like I promised.

I jog back to camp, and have Sentral prepare the Gate scroll. I have Sentral open the Gate when I get back. It opens, and... one of the people enters the room and looks up at me. I connect, then send ¬hello# Grey here just checking in# how goes things on that side£)¬

¬good afternoon Grey# your women are still out enjoying the town# Lady Ban'yun's clothing is ready for you if you'd like to take it now)¬

¬ah thank you)¬ I have Sentral lift the box, and move it to Ban'yun's house. ¬is Wed available£ I have something I'd like to discuss with him)¬

¬he's not here just now# if it is important we can fetch him)¬

The Sentral issue can wait indefinitely. ¬no worries then# if that's all then we are done I'll contact my girls)¬

The Crew member nods, disconnects, and walks out of sight. I reach out to Agent Honeydew, success, then Hanamaya. She accepts right away.

¬Grey= how are you=)¬

¬I'm wonderful# I made some progress on the barracks# and Lunu was very good to me)¬

¬I'm glad to hear that# tell me about this barracks£)¬

¬I thought the Crew should have somewhere to sleep and store their belongings on the road# so I made a large cart for sleep and personal storage# 16 beds in total)¬

¬ah you're thinking ahead then)¬

¬I try# how are things on your end£)¬

¬bread= so much bread# also carrots# and if I'm being honest it's nice to wear clothes again# it's warm here instead of hot# you should make some crabs so that you can visit Juhatara freely=)¬

¬maybe# I am more concerned with finishing the barracks and the Topaz# I'll enjoy a day at Port when we're ready to move on from the Island)¬

¬alright# hey Rin is here too)¬

Rin is added to the telepathy, assumedly Hana's doing. ¬hey Grey# I found a bookstore that has an incredible selection of books# that's all)¬

¬glad to hear it# one last thing# I had an important visitor today# unless you have serious objections it seems Bor'wa will be traveling with us)¬

¬she's cute= I'm okay with this)¬

¬no# wait# what do you mean by that£ and who was this visitor£)¬

I guess Rin is my only woman that hasn't met Drothur... ¬until you meet I can't really answer that question# I don't think it's anything to be concerned about though)¬

¬I'll help Rin understand# was Ban'yun there£)¬

¬she was# Bor'wa too# I was surprised# if I understood the entire interaction then Bor'wa has modified or perhaps weak version of my abilities# also it was confirmed my children will inherit a portion of my power# and that Sentral won't betray me)¬

I can't feel emotion across a relay, but I can almost feel her grinning at me. ¬I bet you were happy to hear that# and I bet Ban'yun was thrilled)¬

I smile. ¬correct on both accounts# there was something else)¬ Ahhh... What was it again? Oh yeah, ¬I shouldn't go underground on Topaz Island or search for its power source# I'm unsure what the latter means# but not going underground will be a rule)¬

¬done=)¬

¬thanks ladies# anything else before I go£)¬

¬nothing else from me# take care of yourself Grey)¬

¬see you tomorrow=)¬

I close the connection, then the Gate. I turn to the Ruby, it's quite a considerable amount. I remove it from the rough and call Sentral out to me. Apply it in a layer over its body and limbs. It's the work of a few minutes. I walk around it, to confirm the hatches still work. All of them are open now, and I'm suddenly transported to that moment at the lake with the ice elemental, Sentral

moving to protect me without my ordering it

...

Fuck, I knew I had forgotten something critical. Sentral made a judgment call to protect me, meaning my attempts to keep it stupid by not introducing more Sapphire probably wouldn't have worked anyway.

I'm.. Not sure what to say right now. I suppose I should at least thank it. I reach out a hand.

'Sentral, thank you for keeping us safe.'

'Yes.' comes the reply. I lower my hand.

I stand there in a bit of a funk, then decide that nothing is actionable, so I resume ensuring the hatches work, then send him back to the box.

I reconnect and look at Zone. I mostly ignore almost all of it, but do note that dinner seems to have started. I ask Sentral to clean me, then jog over.

The village seems a bit emptier than usual. As I approach the cooking area villagers start running up to me as they see me. "Grey! To think you were strong enough to kill a Sea God!"

Why do they smell like meat?

Me, "I was drunk, so I don't actually remember it. But it seems I did." I continue walking to my meal, and they don't stand in my way, but follow at my sides and back instead. "Where is everyone? I thought I'd see more people." It's not official, but it seems most people work from morning to around dinnertime, and use the rest of the time for leisure. But aside from the people here cooking or eating dinner, I don't see anyone.

A woman at my side answers. "All hands were called by the chief to harvest the Sea God! We will be eating well for weeks!"

Me, "Hah, fantastic. I'm glad to have been useful." It also explains why they all smell a bit like meat. "Is it for dinner today?"

Another answers. "Only a little. We're confident it isn't poison, since you and A'yado ate some this morning, and are still alive."

I arrive at the front, and they hand me a leaf parcel that is set apart from the others. I guess it was already cooked, they moved it further from the usual central heating area; I suppose that way it would keep warm, but not cook further? I accept the wrapped meal. Oh, it's heavier than usual. Bulkier too, I guess they gave me a larger portion. It smells odd, but delicious. The beef-like smell is strongest, then below that something like tuna.

I get to a table, and I'm quickly joined by eager villagers. "How did you defeat it?" "Was it's roar terrifying?"

Hmm, it'll be hard to eat if I have to field questions. "Sorry, I really don't remember. The chiefs brought me more of that drink, and by the time I woke up, the sea beast was already dead."

The Hardbark chief appears and takes a seat on the other side of the table. "For all of Grey's strengths, his ability to withstand alcohol is not one of them. Allow me to narrate his tale."

Thank goodness. I nod, then unwrap my meal.

Shit, what was the Hardbark Chief's name? Whatever, HBC for now. He begins, "Grey was on his fourth cup of firewater, and the party of myself, A'yado, Ban'yun, and the cloth-covered Wed following closely behind. 'Grey' I say. 'Your might is recognized by all. But surely not even you could best a Sea God.' Grey looked at me and smirked. 'I'm sure it's nothing but a big fish,' he said. 'No problem.'"

He's even impersonating my voice, impressive.

HBC, "He closes his eyes, and before long, ten birds carrying ten crabs appear, then fly off in various directions. 'The first step is to find one.' I cannot see what he sees, so I wait patiently, and continue to drink. Grey does not keep us waiting long. 'Found you,' he said, then his jaw dropped. 'It destroyed my crab! It's personal now!' Grey heroically stood up, then staggered drunkenly towards the beach." There's a murmur of laughter, well deserved I'm sure, even if it's at my expense. "It doesn't take long for us to arrive, and he tells us on the way he's found the Sea God again. His gemstone man joined us at the beach, carrying a towel of all things. It laid out the towel, but we continued following Grey, who walked to the shore before Wed stopped him. 'You won't escape from me this time!' Grey shouted at the water. We weren't sure what was happening. Grey's gemstone man walked up to him, and Grey put his hand on him."

"And then." He pauses dramatically...

HBC, "And then, the water was disturbed. Grey began laughing like a man possessed. A Sea God slowly rose from the water. And not just part of it.

All of it

. Grey shouted something at it, and gestured wildly. I know not if it was a spell, or the ravings of a madman. The beast wildly struggled in the air, tentacles thrashing. And at last, Grey winds back and punched the air. A loud

crack

sounded, and a massive hole appeared in the Sea God! It died soon after, and Grey dragged it to shore.

"To think I'd see the day a man killed such a beast. I made sure

we

were the first to ever dine on its flesh."

Its flesh is damn delicious. Incredibly savory and juicy. The beef smell carried over to the taste, but the fish taste is something else entirely, I can't place it.

It seems the story is over. I guess the tribesmen liked his storytelling, because there's a bunch of cheers, and hard pats on my shoulder with congratulations. "Our tribe's future is bright!" is a sentiment echoed by more than one person. I guess things are looking up for them.

HBC, "Grey, though you are a Coral Tree, it would be our tribe's honor if you could stud for our women as well. I'm confident many of our women would be happy to raise the child of the man who felled a Sea God."

Ohh..... That sounds nice. A woman hugs me from behind though, and a pair of large, soft breasts pushes against my shoulders. "Grey has arrangements for his tribe, but will be taking me as a mate the day after. He will hold off on further studding until I am with child. Isn't that right?" Seems this woman is Ban'yun.

Hoh, I hadn't thought her to be so bold. I... would like to put more children into these women. But, on the other hand, I am hoping to explore more of the world, and I don't want to keep my women waiting longer than they already are. They'll still be here when I return. "It is as Ban'yun says. For now, I am not accepting additional requests. Forgive me."

Ban'yun takes a seat beside me and starts her own meal. Deer, it looks like. She gestures at her head, and I send her a connection, and deepen it as usual.

HBC, "Understandable. I understand you're leaving our land soon, but will revisit in the future? I will ask again then."

A few of the people look disappointed, but the rest just nod.

Ban'yun, "Chief Ter'kama was teaching me the secrets of hardbark. Tomorrow morning, I will put them to practice until evening. Then, in two days and until we are paired, I will be working alongside our hardbark shapers to learn everything I can. When I begin crafting, I will be a beginner, but I will do what I can to learn swiftly. "

Me, "I'll miss you, Ban'yun. I assume you're going back to the Hardbark village then?"

Ban'yun, "I am." She starts eating, and switches to Telepathy. ¬Ringara suggests I ask you for a personalized golem like her own Rawk'Hawk# but I wanted to discuss the matter with you# in the world outside will continue to wear my regalia yes£)¬

Hmm, I haven't heard that term before. I understand it means her necklaces, bracelets, and anklets. Maybe it's a Hardbark term? Anyway, I can't think of a reason why not. ¬sure# it is virtually always acceptable for women to wear jewelry and accessories# the amount you wear may be considered eccentric# but I understand your background)¬

She nods ¬I would like my golem to be a simple necklace incorporating hardbark)¬

Hmmm. That might be tricky. "I need a minimum amount of continuous Sapphire for it to be considered a golem. I can't have it be chain-link either, the contact points are too variable. But I can make it hinged, so it can be removed. Would one-side-wood, one-side-gem work for you? Or were you picturing something more mixed?

¬mixed# I'm glad to know it can be hinged# could you make it like this£)¬ Ban'yun sends me an image of a spiral pattern, but going around her neck. In her mind, she flows in the other half of the spiral with hardbark. Honestly, I can't call this a necklace, it's more like a choker, or perhaps a collar. It'll be a solid ring around her neck, though she seems to want it to hinge on one side and have some way to open it on the other, so she can take it off. Still... huh. So the secret technique involves manipulating hardbark the way I do gems?

She abruptly terminates the connection. She swallows what she was eating, and says "No, wait... Oh no.."

Shit. She accidentally leaked her tribe's secret. Some sort of... dendrokinesis? Hahaha, this must be what Wed is always warning me about. And frankly, it's possible I've leaked my secrets this way. Sorry, I saw it, Ban'yun, but I'll keep the secret. "Yeah, I can make that shape. Do you want to do the clasp, or shall I? If you want, I could find a magnet to make it simple."

She doesn't answer for a while. Eventually, she says, "You handle it please," and leaves it at that.

During this time, most of the people had been talking about the work on the Sea God, and how it had been going. One of the islanders notes that I'm not talking to Ban'yun anymore, and asks me something. "The head of the Sea God is harvested at this point. Would you like to move the head? It would be difficult for us to move such a bulky object."

Me, "I can do that. I'd been thinking of moving it to the hill overlooking the lake though. That's where I'm thinking about leaving behind my scroll, or, the item I will use to leave and come to this island. But if it would be easier to have such a thing be built near the village, I can probably do that instead.

The islander responds, "I think the trophy would bring our tribe prestige, if you place it within the village. But I'll leave it up to the chief to persuade you."

Huh, I guess I hadn't considered the matter of reputation. If they want me to have it in the village, or at least within eyesight, then perhaps I should. My own idea had been to simply put it near the lake, so I could come back now and again and skinny dip to get my exercise in and then duck out without making a fuss. Which reminds me, I wanted to get in some exercise tonight. I'm not sure how much Hana actually cares about my physique, but she did request it of me, so I don't want to let her down.

Me, "I'll ask Chief A'yado about it next time I see him. I'm not too concerned where it ends up. After dinner, I'll store it near the clearing."

Dinner proceeds normally, but I'm surprised at the end when a few tribesmen come up holding what appear to be very,

very

heavy dumbbells. Each of them holds two, for a total of eight. Two of them I know by name, Few'ree and Few'ja.

Few'ja, "Hey Grey! We noticed you exercising last time with weights that were far too light for you. You've helped us in so many ways, and we were thrilled when you agreed to become one of us. These weights are a gift from us to you. The tribe has been working on them for a few days now. Please accept them."

Hah, what, am I supposed to carry them all back myself? I take one each from Few'ree and Few'ja. They're heavy, for sure, though I can manage with my strength. "I can carry two, but I'll need your help bringing them to the clearing, please."

Few'ree takes his brother's weight and casually lifts both of them like they were feathers. I laugh. "Showoff." Few'ja grins, and puts his hands out face up. I return the weights to him, and he does the same thing. "Hah, you two are insufferable. Come on, you can carry them back. Ban'yun, are you, ah, you are done. Alright. Huh, where'd my leaf go?"

Someone at the table says, "We got it Grey."

Haah, alright. "Thanks everyone." I smile, wave, then walk towards the clearing. The four follow.

Few'ja, "Gotta say Grey, I thought you'd be strong. But a Sea God? That's something I hadn't even dreamed of."

Few'ree, "The fact you apparently punched it from a thousand feet away was my favorite part."

Hmm, wait what? "Were you there at dinner and I didn't notice?"

All four of them look at eachother, then laugh. "Let me guess, Ter'kama told the story

again

?"

Heh, alright, I get it now. "I guess it's not the first time today?"

Few'ree, "Nope. He tells the story

every chance he gets

. I think everyone's heard the story a minimum of two times."

Few'ja, "To Ter'kama's credit, he was still helping carve the meat."

I should deal with that. I send a bird ... no, let's collect it personally. It seems to matter a lot to these folks.

Along the walk, they explain the 8 dumbbells are actually four sets of different weights. I can't make a good guess about how heavy the things are, due to my enhanced strength. They're heavy enough to impact my balance though, so if I work out with them again, I'll have to be careful not to overextend and fall over.

Not too long later, we arrive at the clearing. "Alright," I say. "Let's give this a try. Give me the heavy ones." I ask Sentral to bring cups to the table, and a water crystal... but also I ask it to bring the jar full of rainwater over as well.

Hydration in place, I take the heavy weights. Whew. These are no joke. Ban'yun takes the next size down, and the Few brothers the remaining.

We get started, and I lead the exercise, with everyone else mimicking my motions. The two without weights just do the motions without a weight.

Frankly, these things weigh a

lot

. It's not a problem of lifting them, but I'm too light, and it can't balance like this. On the fourth exercise, I trade off with Ban'yun. Once I've got muscle built up, it should be easier to lift these without a problem like Ban'yun is. Hopefully.

I call for a water break in the middle. I'm glad to finally use the water jugs the tribe gifted me near the start, and resolve to use it more often while I'm here. We finish the set after that.

I'm sweating harder than usual though. I'm used to the heat, but lifting crazy heavy weights at the same time is pushing my limits. "What kind of exercise do you people do anyway?"

Few'ja, "Most of the time, we don't. If we ever do though, we usually swim as a group. The water is safe, but journeying anywhere is a danger because a kurs could be anywhere. Many have trusted in you to protect them though, and stopped carrying spears while near to the village, because we know you are watching over us."

...

Who the fuck told you that?!

Me, "Just kurs, right? If you trip and twist an ankle I probably won't notice it. "

Few'ja, "Don't worry, we don't expect you to coddle us. Living free of the fear of kurs, even for the little while you're here, is precious."

¬Sentral# if any kurs besides Hanamaya's tamed kurs enters your Zone for the next week then push it away with increasingly powerful telepathy until it is out of your Zone)¬

¬yes)¬ comes the reply.

¬are any such kurs in your zone now£)¬

¬no)¬

¬thanks)¬

Good. I drop the connection.

Me, "Just checked, no kurs near the village. Besides Hana's."

They give me the weird 'awesome' gesture with both hands. The other two nod and smile.

I leave the heaviest weights in Ban'yun's cart, the next in mine, the second lightest in Rin's, and the lightest in Hana's. If they're unwelcome, I'll just take them to my home later. I actually hope Hana doesn't use hers too much... but they gifted us four sets, and there are four of us, so I think it was intended for her.

I have Sentral clean me, then chug some more water. "Shall we go pick up that skull?"

- - -

The thing's huge. And ugly. Yeah, I don't want this haha. It's pretty narrow, with double jaws, and teeth still attached. It's got some odd wavy structure around the eyes that seem very strange, holes for its nostrils, I guess?

The villagers have moved it away from the rest of the body, and are still hard at work carving more meat. I wonder how they're preserving it.

Oh well. I connect with Sentral, and check its mana. More than enough. I have Sentral move the skull back to the clearing, away from the carts. It floats over the trees and then out of eyesight.