Chapter 121: Armies
Irwin gazed down the damp crevice. There was barely more than two feet left between the trunk of the tree and the rocky walls. Drops of water leaked down, and far below, he saw a flat glistening surface.
It had been two weeks since Greldo had entered the portal and over two weeks ago that Yogog and the others had set out. Neither had returned, and Irwin was starting to get more and more worried. Most of his time had gone into practicing with Crithann and smithing. He had reforged a dozen of the cards he'd gathered, even managing to get two to Emerald with the help of Ambraz. Although they were both useless to him, Crithann had told him they would likely fetch a good price during the auction.
If we ever get another auction, Irwin thought.
"They are still alive," Crithann rumbled.
Irwin looked up to see his teacher standing behind him, tall and quiet like a tree. He nodded, then took a deep breath and looked around. Had he made a mistake staying here?
You're just getting bored, he thought to himself.
"I'll head back and practice some more reforging," he said.
"Alright. I'll find you later for some more combat training," Crithann replied.
Irwin thanked him, then turned and ran back up the stone steps that led up the very changed hill. The sandy dune from before had been changed into a partially stone hill, and Viridians were moving around everywhere, moving square slabs of stone.
Still can't believe there was someone that could change sand to stone, Irwin thought as he felt the solid sand below his feet. The still-growing wall around the hill surrounded a town not unlike Grianfál, which wasn't odd. It was supposed to be the new version of the same town after all.
With the new and massive heart tree nearby, Crithann and the others had decided to relocate, moving their town almost an hour away.
As he ran past, Irwin waved at two Viridians stacking the blocks atop each other in a simple pattern, grinning as they shouted a greeting after him. Three buildings, still partially unfinished, stood in the center of the town, one of them with a large smithing area.