In the heart of Steelspire…

  Bailan looked over the piece of Faer metal in his hands again, three of his mentees watching nearby as a fourth pumped the bellows.

  All told, when the Conservatory ended, he’d had the second choice of location. He’d tried to be smart about things, accruing most of his points in repairing others' equipment. That is, whenever he wasn’t out on patrol to earn even more.

  The bulk of what he’d earned had come In their time on Melody. It turned out that when you mainly wore metal, an ocean was not a kind place to be. Creating hardened leather for his Cohort and helping to modify the armor to fit various body types had seen his point total skyrocket.

  Now, he was the Founder of Steelspire, a beautiful little piece of land that seemed to be designed for one such as him.

  Using a novel tool he’d come up with, he tweaked the tip of the metal again, angling it just right, then removed a file from the wall. Bringing it to bear, Bailan smoothed out any sharpness apparent in the design, humming softly under his breath as he worked. While he bent his back to the task, his mentees asked a few questions he was only too happy to answer.

  “How do you know it's the right angle?”

  “Initially by eyesight, but eventually, you’ll find that you have a feeling for it.”

  Gently, he smoothed out another edge, his face holding a mixture of contentment and focus. He eyeballed it as another question came in.

  “Which file is that?”

  “My mentor called it a flat file. This is a rougher cut type since we’re not at the finishing stage yet. It’s useful for getting the worst of the imperfections out.”

  Moving the file back and forth a few more times on the last section remaining, he began to prep for the finishing stage. Creating an object like this would take about four hours for someone with his training, whereas it might take a full day’s work for one of his mentees.

  The finishing stage was where all of his skills came together at once. As he continued shaping the piece, he explained in detail what he was doing and why he was doing it, including giving tips for when errors predictably happened. Throughout all of their questions, as bad as some were, he was always calm, answering with a smile and a dose of encouragement. Heph had taught him that patience would get him further in life than anything else, and he was right.

  Since first stepping into the god’s smithy, it had felt like home. Maybe Steelspire didn’t feel like that yet, but it would get there.

  Putting a final buff on the dark metal, he looked it over a few times for imperfections. When he didn’t see any, Bailan tapped into the Territory system, giving it a name so it could be analyzed. A yellow glow sprang up around it.

  Item analysis:

  Name: Faer Spring

  Tier: 4: Fine

  Item Type: Component

  Crafted by: Bailan Smith

  Description: This well-crafted spring, forged from black Faer metal, demonstrates the skill of a prodigious blacksmith. Tough to start with, its handcrafted design allows for both increased durability and precision.

  Functionality: Due to the unique use of Faer metal in its creation, this spring provides exceptional rigidity, allowing it to perform reliably across various projects while withstanding a higher pressure than lesser components.

  Value of donation: 11 Notes (Extra note provided for use of rare material)

  Bailan nodded and donated it to the Item system. Within a second, a notification struck his window. His eighteenth for the day.

  Congratulations Bailan!

  Your donation of a Tier 4 component has earned you 20 points in the Ascendancy event!

  Internally grinning, Bailan grabbed another of his training projects off of the wall. He’d created dozens of them before the seeding, expecting they’d be useful in training future blacksmiths. When he was done with his metal projects, he’d move on to his wood ones, something he was fairly skilled in as well, according to his mentor.

  Steelspire might not get first, but he’d be damned if it didn’t place in the top five.

  The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  Among the Traveling Territory…

  Melias the Wanderer was often called the strangest Founder by those who knew him. He was infamous among the third cohort, his wanderlust often taking him to places he never should have been. Already, people spoke of the man who would talk to dolphins, and the only founder who could find friends among the indigenous inhabitants of Fortis.

  After first hearing the story of what their Creator wanted from his people, he knew what he was meant to be…an explorer. A man whose only need was the bottoms of his feet, never satisfied with borders or the end of the skyline. A traveler of worlds.

  But he was also a Founder, and he took that responsibility seriously. So, as he studied Territorology under Elder Neus, he’d spend much of his time and charisma on changing the green squirrel's idea of what a Territory was. And that’s how his wishes came to fruition. An exploratory territory…Or more specifically…

  Melias’s Moving Marvel!

  Others may call it the Traveling Territory, but no! There was no flash to the name! No Wonder! It was boring! And that was never a title he would take on. Never.

  But Melia’s Moving Marvel! It had three M’s! MMM for short! Even thinking of the moment he’d come up with the name brought a tear to his eye. It had been a glorious day, the sun frozen overhead and…

  Melias shook his head to clear the memory away. Too often his mind pushed back when routine burst its head through the mental door. He wasn’t simply Melias the Wanderer anymore; he was also Melias the Founder, and he had a job to do.

  Looking around the area just beyond the mountainous border, he nodded. This wasn’t a terrible area. Perhaps a bit plain, a bit boring, but it had potential. With a flourish, he pushed his cape back, stepping further into the new Territory they’d only recently arrived at. As they moved further in, he noticed his number one scout quickly approaching him with a worried expression.

  Jenia was the leader of his scout group, those brave enough to stab into the wilds, disappearing into the brush with only the mysteries before them. Oh, to travel to new lands, no one around you-

  “Mr. Melias, Mrs. Gold of Prosperity would like us to leave the region at once.”

  That doesn’t smell right…

  “Why? Isn’t she all about money? We have notes to spend,” Turning, he looked at his traveling group.

  “She says they only deal in Prospers…” She trailed off as he looked at her.

  “Prospers? What in the Creator’s pimpled buttocks are those?”

  “It’s Prosperity City’s currency, Mr. Melias. In order to stay in the region, Mrs. Gold’s assistant stated we would need to pay for a residency permit. I can look into the Note conversion rate if you would like.”

  Waving her away, he paused and thought for a long moment. His current goal was to take his people to the Eternal Base, widely considered the center of all Symphony. For the Grand Seeding, he and his people had chosen the south, in a densely packed area filled with unique trees. Those trees were a large subject of his study on Sonata. Their wood was known to be flexible, with a magical absorption rate much higher than a standard Pine or Oak you’d find in most regions.

  Considering all of that and his newfound hatred for Karen Gold, he turned back toward the border they’d only recently crossed.

  Further south was the Great Ocean, but to get there, you’d have to pass through the lands of the Consortium, a group of weirdos who had decided that they wanted nothing at all to do with Magic. It was created by two male and female Founders who didn’t do well in the Second Cohort’s Conservatory run. He didn’t know them well, but what he did know was that they weren’t well-liked, and as he understood it, there was good reason for that.

  To the east was a mountainous region, and more than a few. He’d already heard from a few travelers that the monsters there were particularly violent, with no Founders controlling their population in the area. They were too busy with the event going on right now.

  West was his only real choice. Passing through Prosperity City and that damned Gold woman just wouldn’t happen without his people paying for the privilege through their noses. No, West was the way. They’d lose a day backtracking, but that was worth it to get out of the region. He looked back at his Seedlings, a puff of pride in his chest as he considered them.

  Each traveled in their own vehicle. Back on Sonata, he’d spoken with Grand Elder Virgil, a title the black squirrel foolishly refused to accept, and learned of wagons and replaceable parts. With that idea in mind, he’d devised numerous innovative designs for his future seedlings, spending all his time out of the Conservatory on the effort. Each was unique, built for different purposes from defense to food, growing, even a few that may one day hold animals so they could sleep at night when they stopped for the day.

  The center wagon, holding the only traveling Mana Tree in Symphony, was also where he slept at night. He still hadn’t figured out how to walk while sleeping, but he was sure his walking skill would help him in the next set of levels he was due to find. After all, it was already in the high 90s.

  Tapping into his Oratory skill, a huge benefit of gaining the Wanderer Profession, he spoke to his people.

  “If this land will not take us,” He paused for a moment as the skill went to work, the dramatic pause helping to organize his thoughts and the pattern of words he would need, “then we will not provide for them. We will not share our wonders, our beauty, and our family. They would wring every note from us, bleed us, and call it fair. But we do not let greed saddle us with the turbulence of no options. We will not bow to Prospers and the Golds of the world. No, friends, let us turn back. There are better paths to walk, ones in which we may find our destiny.”

  Congratulations Melias!

  Your skill [Inspirational Oration] has reached level 75!

  [Inspirational Oration] is undergoing an upgrade…

  [Inspirational Oration] is now [Unity’s Call]

  You will now have an easier time forging emotional bonds while speaking to large groups.

  A cheer rose from the group as Melias finished with a bow; they didn’t know he was mentally stumbling as the skill upgraded, clamping down on his mouth lest he say something he didn’t mean to.

  Standing upright, he quickly instructed Jenia, who immediately left to update her team. Stepping toward his Mana Tree wagon, his mind still a jumble, he grabbed onto the side railing to lift himself to his seat, the Tamer currently driving it moving over to the passenger area. He stepped toward his Mana Tree wagon, Jenia beside him to receive his instructions. As she left to update her team, Melias grabbed onto the railing of the wagon, pulling himself toward the Driver’s seat as its previous occupant slid over to the passenger side.

  Making sure the Tamer had fed and watered the animals, he called out the order to move, his wagon moving toward its rightful place in the lead. Slowly, to give the scouts time to move, he pushed forward, three sets of Duo Wolves yipping as they pulled on their harnesses.

  Together, Melias’s Moving Marvel, made up of two-thousand people and several hundred monsters, drove back toward the border.

  A new horizon beyond it.

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