Steelforged Legacy 2 - Chapter 4

Chapter 4

We need to get you a storage belt or ring when we can afford it.

Maude’s statement caught Casey by surprise as he carefully folded the lynx pelt to keep the bloody side towards the inside, tucking it to keep the messy part from sticking to the fur.

“Storage belt?”

It’s an artifact, something that high end crafters can make using spirit beast hides and parts. It provides an extra dimensional storage space that can slow or freeze time. They are exceedingly difficult to come across outside of a clan capital, as they are in high demand. Vendors know that the clans will pay the best prices for them, and the ability to transport goods with ease is something that the clans prize.

“I can see why,” Casey sighed, looking over the pile of meat he’d taken from the carcass. “I’d much prefer to just extract the core for my use, then bring the whole body back to town to have a skinner or butcher process it properly. I always feel like I’m making a mess.”

Exactly why the clans keep them close. For now, your pack will do. Just make sure to wrap the meat tightly. When you are done with this and checking the tree, we will have our noble guide take us to the river. You’ll need to wash the meat well, and chill the hide. You don’t have enough salt on you to properly salt the hide, but if we can find a secure place to have a fire, you can smoke it to help preserve the hide until we can get to a town.

Casey worked quickly, wrapping the meat well in several pieces of waxed canvas that he’d picked up in the last town he went through specifically for this kind of situation. With those tucked into his bag, he dragged the rest of the carcass into the trees for the scavengers. While he walked back to the tree, Casey inspected the core he’d found while butchering the animal.

He’d encountered three different types of cores so far. Fomori cores appeared like large lumps of sea-glass: irregular in shape and cloudy in color. The elemental cores he’d been offered in thanks for saving several of the elementals from a raiding group of Fomori had been stones in the shape of acorns that glowed faintly. The last kind of core was the one he’d taken from a spirit beast rabbit he’d trapped while camping over a week previously. That had been a thumbnail-sized stone with a faint white glow to its smooth gray surface. The core he’d extracted from the Leaf Lynx was like the rabbit’s, but far larger.

Roughly the size of a walnut, it was roughly oval shaped with a dull point on one side, vaguely reminding Casey of a leaf. To add to that image, it was a deep green and shimmered with qi that he could feel brushing against his skin, seeking out the channels in his body that led to his center where his own qi reserves lay.

It will provide quite a bit of energy. If this was the only reward you took from this encounter, it would be good. The meat will help too, as it has abundant qi in it too. We need to find you some fire and air aligned qi foods though, to keep your center in balance, Maude said thoughtfully as he tucked the stone into his pouch next to the teeth he’d taken as a trophy from the animal too.

Making a mental note that he would need to add those teeth to his hunt-necklace, Casey hooked his pack off the ground and slung it over one shoulder to head towards the tree that sat in the middle of the clearing.

The Gladewalker Elk stood next to the tree, watching him with a thoughtful look to its large, brown eyes.

“Thanks again for the warning about the lynx, Bruce.”

The Gladewalker Elk huffed, and Maude tittered at the animal’s annoyance.

While the name has noble roots, calling him that because he’s big and green doesn’t win you any points, you know?

“I know that, but I sure as hell don’t wanna see him angry after what he did to that guard,” Casey replied, shooting the elk one more look. “You sure you don’t like the name Bruce? It’s got more connotations than just that one. Bruce was a clan of repute back in my world.”

And also the name of that one masked vigilante’s mundane identity, Maude interjected. While I like the idea of our big fellow here fighting evil and championing good, he wouldn’t look right in a cape or a bat-mask. You know that your imagination is quite active, Casey. I don’t even have to look for the images floating through your head.

His plan foiled, Casey took the ribbing with a shrug and roll of his shoulders.

“I had to try at least. Well, let’s see what we have here, why don’t we?”

Inspecting the tree, Casey was quick to discover that it was not, in fact, a fruit tree. In fact, other than the small nest he found high in the tree that he guessed was the Leaf Lynx’s, it was just a normal-looking tree. Digging through the nest, Casey didn’t find much at first, but once he started dismantling it, he found several bits of metal wedged into the nest. Picking them out, Casey found an old brass belt ring and a small handful of copper and silver coins.

“Yuck… I feel less bad about killing that thing if it’s eaten someone else,” Casey muttered, dusting off his findings and tucking them into his bag.

Yes, it is the cycle of things and also why so many spirit beasts are aggressive. They know that they will grow by conquering and consuming another on the Drengr’s Road.

Casey had a thought come to mind and was about to ask Maude about it when the Gladewalker Elk grunted from right behind him. The enormous animal had crept closer while he was dismantling the Lynx’s nest and was now staring down at the ground by the tree. Following the animal’s gaze, he spotted a large root that crawled along the ground for a short way before burrowing down underneath the ground.

“What is it?” Casey asked, and the elk huffed at him, shooting him an exasperated look before looking directly at the dirt once more.

Following the animal's chastisement, Casey studied the dirt once more.

The first thing he noticed was the ancient shells of acorns, dried and long since eaten by squirrels or just baked in the sun and rotten by rain. But mixed into that were the distinct claw marks of an animal digging at the dirt. 

Something buried? Maude suggested, following the same line of thinking. Was the lynx digging for something here?

The elk huffed in agreement, tossing its head and moving forward to scrape at the dirt with one hoof, peeling back the top layer of soil and scattering the remaining shells of acorns. Even with the storm having passed by, the dirt in the shade of the tree was still moist and easily came away. Casey bent down and ran his fingers through the soil as well, feeling it shift at first before his fingers bumped into something firm, but with a faint spongy feeling to it when he pressed down.

“What the hell?” he muttered, staring down at the odd shape.

It took Casey some careful digging to expose more of the find, and it was clear that the lumpy objects he was carefully removing from the dirt were what the elk had guided him here for, as the animal began to huff and stamp happily as he set them aside. Maude was silent while he worked, though he thought he heard a faint muttering in his mind.

Each of the small, spongy objects Casey removed from the ground he carefully dusted off and inspected, before setting it in a pile on the grass before continuing to feel around and extract another.

Casey didn’t have to dig deep to find dozens of the ping-pong ball sized lumps, locating many within only inches of the surface and snuggled up close to the thick roots of the tree.

“I really hope I’m not digging up fossilized cat shit,” Casey muttered after extracting a large lump, pausing to sniff it hesitantly. The earthy, almost leathery scent made him hesitate and sniff it again. Casey was certain he felt the little orb of mystery in his hands had the tingle of qi to it as well. “That… doesn’t smell like poop at least.”

Those aren’t scat, Casey! The enthusiasm made Maude’s voice thunder in his ears and Casey almost fell over in surprise, bobbling the object in his hand before catching it and setting it aside. Those are mushrooms! Specifically, those are black truffles. Qi charged black truffles!

Casey blinked in surprise at the little pile of spheres on the ground before glancing at the Gladewalker Elk, who had a surprisingly smug look on his face. He’d heard about truffles in the past, mostly that they were expensive as hell and hard to find, as well as something about needing specially trained pigs to find them.

“Seriously, dude? You knew where there were truffles?” Casey’s question was met with a huff of amusement before the elk tossed its antlers at the pile and then at Casey before glancing towards the sky.

He’s right. Grab as many as you can, that you think you can eat in two weeks time. They’ll keep a good deal longer since they are qi infused, but these mushrooms don’t last long. Make sure you don’t take so many that they can’t grow back though, Maude counseled him. Frigga forgive me, as these should have a far grander fate, but they’ll make the Leaf Lynx meat a lot more palatable. You’ll be drying them too when you smoke the hide. Anything to preserve extras.

Not wanting to argue with his partner, Casey worked quickly and filled his shoulder bag with the still dirty truffles, assuming he could clean them properly when they made it to the river. The elk’s pointed glance to the sky reminded him that they might have pursuers, so staying out in the open field would be a bad idea.

After Casey got the last one of the little spheres he was taking, he quickly scraped the dirt back over the area and tamped it down, before scattering more of the acorn shells over the dirt. While it didn’t look perfect at the moment, he knew it would be in a few days.

If I ever come back this way, I’ll have to remember this is out here. Especially if I have one of those storage rings or belts like Maude mentioned. Kinda sounds like a bag of holding or something like that, Casey thought, buttoning his shoulder bag closed and getting his pack set.

“Okay, Prongs! To the river, please?”

Neither the elk nor Maude dignified Casey’s suggested name with a comment, the animal instead turning and leading the way back into the trees at a quick trot.

Casey followed, only pausing at the treeline to scan the sky again, checking one last time for the distant speck that might be the shape of the flying ship while it searched the forest.

Still no sign. It’s possible they are still looking for him. It all depends on if the pyre was still warm when found. If not, they might assume those were some hunters who got caught in the crossfire between the two spirit beasts, Maude suggested as they ducked through the oak forest, following another winding game trail to the east.

“We can only be hopeful, Maude. I’d want to keep moving, but we do need to preserve the meat and the hide. It’ll help build our cover if someone does find us.”

<><><>

Locating the river wasn’t hard. Less than an hour after they left the clearing, Casey could hear the distant rushing of water. His guide moved to head north, angling slowly toward the sound over the next hour or so until they emerged from the trees above a small cove that was sheltered by a large boulder from the main, rushing bulk of the river.

When Casey had crossed it via the bridge earlier, the river had been wide and deep. Now, though, it looked even faster than before, and he knew that it couldn’t be because of the storm runoff, as that would have finished draining out of the area by this point as the storm had been days ago. The river itself had to be over a hundred feet across at this point, and was a mess of rushing eddies and fast moving water. The trees ended a bare ten feet from the shore of the river, and Casey saw several flat spots that would make for a good camp.

Glancing up at the sun overhead, he noted that it was towards mid-afternoon and early for a camp for now, but it would give him plenty of light to work with. Satisfied, Casey went back to surveying the river once more. Other than the trees, the rock, and the relatively still pool of water, the entire area had a peaceful feel to it and looked untouched.

“Looks good. Thanks, big guy.” The elk huffed and glanced pointedly at Casey’s hip pouch before looking back at him, making the man laugh. “Yes, I’ll share them with you. Just let me get a camp set up and wash them off. Unless you like the taste of dirt on your food?” The reproachful look the elk shot him just made Casey laugh harder.

Having spent the last several weeks traveling, camping, and living off the land, Casey didn’t take long to get things set up. He quickly got the hide soaking in the river, weighted down by several stones, to keep it cool, before getting a fire pit set up and gathering plenty of wood. The Gladewalker Elk settled itself into the grass by the firepit, clearly intent on waiting for him to get things set up, which was normal for the animal.

Going to forgo your tent tonight? Maude asked as he got the fire going with a quick clack of his flint and steel together, catching the sparks in a dried bit of moss and cramming it into the fire lay he’d prepared.

“Not worth it,” Casey said in between blowing into the fire and adding twigs. “We are more exposed to the sky here. If we have to take off, I don’t want to leave my tent behind. Besides, I doubt it’s going to rain tonight.”

You know that you are lucky my father is on your side, right? Lines like that are some of his favorite, as he views them to be invitations.

“Loki, if you throw rain on me right now, I’m going to make it a point to teach all of your sons the most annoying songs possible that will get stuck in your head and stay there rent free,” Casey said, addressing the statement to the blue sky overhead before bending down to puff on the small flames again.

Threatening a god isn’t a good idea. One would think you were aware of this, Maude replied dryly.

“It’s fine. Loki knows the score this way. I learned in the orphanage that the best way to keep casual pranks away was by escalating to just beyond the realm that folks are willing to mess with you again,” Casey said with a smirk.

I sense a story here, but I won’t distract you. Get the fire going well and we can start drying the truffles. You are going to want to find a nice flat rock and set it near, but not in or on the fire. You are going to have to be even more delicate with these than your berries in the past.

Following Maude’s instructions, Casey got to work, first washing the precious mushrooms and then splitting them up. Half of his haul he would keep and eat fresh, the other half he would dry to preserve them as long as possible. The very first of the little black spheres, though, he gave to the elk, who chomped happily on it, his head swaying back and forth in enjoyment.

“I can’t believe how many we collected,” Casey muttered as he looked at the pile of black mushrooms. They still looked like little black golf balls to him, but from the hungry way that the elk was eying the pile, they must have been tasty.

And there were even more in the ground. We really should try to double back to get more if we can. Maude’s voice was smug, and Casey could easily imagine his raven-haired lover standing with her arms crossed under her full bosom, a satisfied look on her face. Go ahead and eat one now, just be careful of the qi kick. 

Doing as she directed, Casey picked out one of the smallest in the pile and bit into it. The flesh of the mushroom was firm, almost hard, but it gave under his teeth with a bit of pressure. The flavor that washed over his tongue felt like a mixture between the satisfying taste of a fine steak and the rich flavor of a mushroom, with a faint taste of nuts lingering on his tongue.

“I can see why folks like those,” Casey muttered, regarding the pile of delicacies again with fresh eyes. He felt a sudden pressure well up behind his breastbone and Casey winced as a feeling not unlike heartburn started to roil in his chest before rising up his throat and falling once more, fading away as it receded.

Closing his eyes, Casey immediately let his focus fall into his center and he saw the streams of brilliant green and brown qi pouring into his personal qi pool.

The flood did not last long, but the streams were as thick as his thigh for the few seconds it took to drain the energy into the swirling silver pool at his center. The qi that rotated steadily in his pool devoured the colored energy, tinging with faint sparkles for a moment before his center processed the energy and returned to the neutral silver color he had grown used to seeing his qi as.

Letting his awareness return to normal, Casey began collecting the still-damp truffles from where he’d set them and carrying them back to his fire, which was beginning to burn down some. Settling by the fire, he dragged over one of the flatter pieces of log that he’d collected and split with his hatchet to use as a cutting board and began slicing the truffles and laying them out on a piece of slate he’d found by the river and set to warm by the fire.

He caught the wide-eyed begging look from the elk and snickered before tossing the horned animal another truffle, which the elk snapped out of the air with laser-precision.

“Wanted to ask you something, Maude,” Casey began as he popped another of the mushrooms into his mouth, chewing on the firm flesh and swallowing, this time ready for the burst of flavors and the punch of qi entering his body. He continued his question as soon as his mouth was clear and before Maude could prompt him. “I got a burst of qi when I defeated the other drengr, but I didn’t feel one when I killed the lynx. Is that because of its core?”

No. You did actually get a small burst of the qi, but it was far less than another spirit beast might collect if it defeated the lynx. In fact, our handsome fellow over there captured that share instead. Just like how I can draw on sources of qi in conflict that you aren’t able to access, and from the cores as well, he can harvest qi in another fashion. It isn’t going to reduce your growth by much at all, and will actually help cement your bond.

“Well, it’s only fair since he was the one who guided us to the lynx and its stash of treasures.” Casey shrugged, nodding to the pile of mushrooms. Reminded of the lynx, he dug the meat out of his pack and, after greasing the squat iron pot he had, tossed in a hunk of lynx steak to brown. He would occasionally pause in his work to flip it on occasion or sprinkle a bit of the salt he had on it.

Casey had his rock full of sliced truffles in short order, allowing the mushrooms to slowly begin drying out so he would have something flavorful to hang on to. At Maude’s direction, he’d used the pommel of his belt knife and a round of stone to grind up some of his spices and the dried herbs he’d brought with him and rubbed that into his dinner as well before setting to work slicing the rest of the meat thinly and impaling it on sticks to dry on the other side of the fire.

Once his lynx-steak had cooked nearly to the level he wanted it, Casey chopped up another of the truffles and sprinkled it over the meat, letting the juices and grease from his steak quickly cook the truffle bits before pulling the pot off the fire.

“It’s not truffle oil. But damn, does it smell good,” Casey muttered as he sniffed the pot. There was a faintly gamy scent, but the lynx meat honestly smelled a lot like pork to him now that it was cooked. Throughout that was the thick scent of the cooked truffles, the natural oils from the meat having released an even stronger scent.

Cutting off a bite, Casey chewed it slowly, savoring the meat and mushroom mixture with a happy groan.

“Gods, Maude. I wish you could taste this…” Casey muttered as he finished. “Whoever told you lynx meat was nasty lied.”

I think that’s more to do with the effect of the truffles, but I’m glad you are enjoying it. Maude’s voice was thick with affection, and Casey swore he felt the ghostly sensation of a cheek pressing against his in a nuzzle. Don’t take too long though. You still need to get the hide out of the water and get it smoking, too. I feel like such an unkind task-master ordering you around like this, but you know I’d help if I could, right?

“I know, Maude. It’s just not a good use of qi for you right now. Emphasis on the right now,” Casey said, cutting himself another hunk of meat.

While he chewed, he renewed his determination to ensure that Maude had everything she needed to reach the point where she could join him for meals like this and the rest of the little joys of living.