Once the new arrivals were all situated in the church with fresh sleeping bags, water jugs, and a brief explanation of the shop mirror and loom, Harvey, Hannah, and Julian met behind the forge.

  “Thanks for not asking questions when I asked to put everyone in the church tonight,” Harvey said, walking towards the minecart he had stashed just inside the tunnel.

  “No problem. What’s going on?” Julian asked.

  Harvey wheeled the loaded minecart into the light with a grunt. “After Gabe and I finished searching the outpost, I came out here to check these crates. I couldn’t shake the feeling I was being watched, so I took a look around inside the cave.”

  He paused, picking up chunks of iron ore to hand to each of them. “Turns out, there are lesser iron elementals in there.”

  “What does that even mean?” Hannah asked, testing the weight.

  “Elemental, as in floating iron trying to murder people?” Julian asked.

  “Exactly,” Harvey replied.

  “How do you just know stuff like this? It’s like you guys are speaking a different language than I am, and apparently I speak Spanish now.” Hannah asked, turning a blank stare at Julian.

  “Don’t judge a book by its cover! I may have played my fair share of video games growing up.” Julian replied.

  “I guess I should’ve spent less time at cheer practice. Doesn’t exactly help with murder rocks.” She struck a pose and rolled her eyes

  Harvey laughed as he walked to the crate by the door, retrieving a core and some essence-infused ore. “They’re pretty close to what you’d expect from the name. 7-foot-tall columns of floating stone with a humanoid upper body. Energy comes out of one of these cores and builds a body of rock and ore to protect itself while it creates this. Essence infused ore.” Harvey held up each item as he spoke before giving them to the others.

  “You killed one?” Julian asked.

  “Barely. I thought it was a person at first, so I walked right up to it. Almost punched a hole through my chest. But, I got lucky and blocked the next one with my shield.” Harvey replied.

  “Don’t sell yourself short, man. I’m sure it wasn’t all luck.” Julian encouraged.

  “No, it was. I dropped the lantern when it hit me the first time, so I was basically fighting in the dark... I got lucky.” Harvey grimaced. “But I drank some potions and went back in with a better plan. That’s where I found this.”

  He tossed the Essence Crystal to Julian, and after a few seconds, a pensive look flashed across his face.

  “I want to see,” Hannah said, snatching it from his palm. “Crystalized Essence? Like what we get when we kill stuff?”

  “Yeah, that tunnel leads to a massive cave filled with these things. There were elementals sitting on top of big clusters of them, and I’m guessing they were absorbing them to get stronger.” Harvey replied, excitedly.

  “Do you think that would work for us?” Hannah asked.

  “No clue, but I wanted to wait for you guys before I tried anything. The mere existence of the elementals is a huge find. They give a ton of merit, and I’m planning on using it to buy the forge guide in the merit store. That way, we can start turning all this ore into weapons and armor for everyone. If these essence crystals can be used to power level, we’re sitting on a literal gold mine.” Harvey replied.

  They all waited, a mix of excitement and trepidation on their faces as they stared at the crystal in Hannah’s hand. She rolled it between her fingers for a moment before tossing it back to Harvey.

  “Sounds awesome! Why don’t you test it out?” Hannah quipped.

  “What? I don’t want to be the guinea pig. Besides, I don’t know how to get the essence out!”

  “You found it, it wouldn’t be right for us to take it from you!” Hannah encouraged with a teasing smile on her lips.

  Harvey looked at the Essence crystal with concern. Holding it again, he could feel whatever magic helped him identify things waiting for him, but nothing suggested he could extract the essence.

  “Wait, let me try.” Julian offered. “I’ve got the highest vitality and endurance out of all of us and the best chance of surviving if something goes wrong. Unless you gained more than 2 levels today, Harvey.”

  “Just one, you guys got two?” He asked.

  “Yeah, and I bet we’re not too far off from a third. There’s a lot out there, and almost nothing was friendly.” Julian confirmed, grabbing the essence crystal.

  Hannah’s smile went downcast. “We found a lot more corpses than survivors.”

  They sat in silence, nobody knowing what to say.

  “You said they just sat around these and absorbed them? I don’t feel anything.” Julian finally remarked.

  “I’m assuming that’s what happened, but it’s not like I could ask. I’m pretty confident, though, because the higher-level elemental I killed had more essence-infused ore than the weaker ones. Best guess is they use the essence to refine their bodies.” Harvey replied.

  “Well, it doesn’t do us much good to wait around all night holding one. Should I try eating it?” Julian asked.

  "Eww, gross. Don’t tell me you're going to start eating rocks all of a sudden.” Hannah groaned.

  “Well, what else am I supposed to do?” Julian shot back, grinning.

  “We can always get more. Why don’t we just smash it and see what happens?” Harvey suggested.

  Without any better options, Julian set the crystal on a rock and stomped on it. Blue dust plumed out from beneath his heel, the cold glow igniting red as it invaded Julian’s weave.

  A pained moan escaped gritted teeth as Julian fell to his knees, grabbing his head like he wanted to rip the energy out of his mind. Harvey saw beads of sweat seep through his forehead as he gently rocked back and forth. When the glow finally subsided, they both rushed to his side, placing comforting hands on his back as they tried to look into his eyes.

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  “Julian! Are you ok?” Hannah asked, panic-stricken.

  He didn’t respond for a few seconds, rocking gently until he finally choked out. “It’s… wrong.” The words made him start violently coughing

  “Do you need anything? How can we help?” Harvey asked.

  The pain slowly left his face, and his grip relaxed until he fell forward onto his hands and knees.

  “It’s passing. I just need a minute.” Julian replied.

  “What happened?” Hannah asked.

  “At first, it felt like killing a monster. That heat in your chest, you know? But instead of making me stronger, it wanted to rip me apart. I could feel these visions stabbing into my mind, but none of them made any sense.” Julian croaked.

  “You felt visions?” Harvey asked.

  “Yeah. I didn’t see anything, just experienced all these sensations I couldn’t understand. Almost like my body doesn’t have the tools to process those emotions.” Julian replied.

  They waited for Julian to recover before helping him to his feet.

  “So they’re poison for us, but food for the elementals? Great.” Hannah sniped.

  “I guess that means no power leveling.” Julian sighed, wiping his mouth.

  “Yep, and I think it reinforces the point I wanted to make, which is that I think we need to keep the details of the mine hidden,” Harvey said.

  A concerned look appeared on Julian’s face. “We may not be able to get essence from the crystals, but everyone could benefit from killing elementals. When the flames are at your back, you don’t hide the hose. You pass it around, or everyone burns.”

  “What if that hose wants to juice you like an orange? To kill an elemental, you have to get to its core. Hitting the infused ore seems to annoy them, but until I blasted this, they just kept coming at me.” Harvey said, holding one up. “It’s protected by chunks of stone you need to blast through to give yourself an opening. No offense, Hannah, but unless your skill to infuse arrows makes them explode, I don’t see how you’d ever manage to hit this.”

  “None taken.” She replied.

  “You’re probably strong enough to overpower one, but not without taking some big hits first.” Harvey turned to Julian.

  “So, there are other people who took the arcanist class who could benefit from hunting them,” Julian replied.

  “Totally true, I’m not claiming to be anywhere near decent at fighting,” Harvey added. “The second problem is Gary. I’m worried that if he finds out about the elementals, he’ll monopolize the mine for himself and hoard all the materials from it. We may not be able to use those essence crystals right now, but I’m sure we can make some decent gear with the infused ore.”

  “Won’t he find out the second you start making weapons?” Julian asked.

  “He’ll think I’m chipping rocks out of the walls and won’t waste his time,” Harvey replied. “If we keep the mine a secret, we don’t have to worry about losing people to the elementals, and Gary has no reason to monopolize the materials we’ll need for the forge.”

  “Who’s to say we won’t lose you to the elementals? I’m happy to see some confidence coming back, but not if it gets you killed.” Julian replied.

  “I have the right tools to fight them, and I’m careful. Trust me, I won’t hesitate to run if I have to.”

  “I still don’t like it. This mine could be an asset for everyone.” Julian said.

  “And it will be, as long as Gary doesn’t take over. You’re not going to be around all the time, and I’m not confident about getting in his way.” Harvey replied, nervous but standing firm.

  They each stared at each other for a long moment until Hannah finally broke the stalemate.

  “Why don’t we just check out the mine together? If we find any elementals, we can see for ourselves if it’s worth the risk.” Hannah suggested.

  They both agreed and prepared to set off. Harvey unloaded most of the ore, piling it up under the table along the forge’s back wall, so pushing the minecart wouldn’t be as difficult. He left just enough to keep the branch holding the lantern secure.

  They walked in silence, listening intently for any movement other than the creaking wheels and swinging lantern.

  “Make sure you check behind you. I don’t know if they can move through walls, or I just missed the rubble the first time, but one got behind me pretty easily.” Harvey whispered. The others nodded as they continued walking.

  Nothing bothered them as they reached the mouth of the cave.

  “It’s beautiful,” Hannah remarked, spinning in place as she gazed at the high ceiling above.

  “And dangerous,” Julian added, pointing his sword at the blood-stained minecart toppled near the end of the tracks.

  “I don’t see any rock men. Should we take the lantern and keep moving?” Hannah asked.

  “No, if it breaks, we’re going to have a hell of a time finding our way out of here. Last time they came running when they heard me trying to break a crystal out of the wall.” Harvey replied.

  “Worth a shot. I’m sure we can find another use for them.” Julian said, grabbing the pickaxe from the minecart.

  With a herculean swing, he brought it down hard near a golf ball-sized essence crystal in the floor. Where Harvey’s swing carved tiny shards out of the wall, Julian’s sounded like a cannon, and sent jagged chunks shooting like the rocks were running for their lives. A second buried the tip under the crystal, and he levered it out of the ground before tossing it into the minecart.

  “Could you be any louder?” Hannah complained, plugging her ears with her fingers.

  “Wasn’t that the point?” Julian replied, moving to the next crystal.

  Harvey felt each impact vibrate through his feet, and it didn’t take long before shadowy outlines appeared in the distance. He put his hand on Julian’s back and pointed. “Look, three of them headed our way.”

  Julian kept the pickaxe in hand and backed up to join the others beside the minecart. They waited patiently as the hulking forms crossed the wide cavern floor.

  “Start shooting.” Julian urged, nudging Hannah’s arm.

  “What, in their general direction? I can barely see!” Hannah hissed back.

  “You can always get more arrows... might as well try!” Julian replied.

  She drew back and sent an arrow whistling into the darkness, disappearing as soon as it left the lamplight. A distant thud signalled it had hit something, but Harvey had no way to tell what. A mix of blue energy began to glow around Hannah’s hand as she knocked her second arrow. As she drew back, essence moved down the shaft before gathering in weak, indiscernible patterns on the arrowhead. When it all condensed, she took a breath and let it fly.

  Harvey realized he must be seeing her skill for the first time, and was impressed as the energy released from her hand increased with each shot. Even in the dark, she hadn’t missed yet. Even so, the arrows did nothing to impede the advance of the elementals, and it wasn’t long before the closest entered the light.

  Harvey saw both his companions flinch at the inhuman sight, before Julian sprang into action.

  “I got this one!” He yelled as he swung the pickaxe in a swooping diagonal arc. The elemental turned, offering an arm to block the hurtling tool. The pickaxe ripped through it like an axe through dry wood, sending stone spraying backward. Julian expected the creature to stagger, but was surprised when its other fist came crashing towards his face. His heavy swing left him overextended, and his only escape was to duck underneath the clunky fist.

  He dropped to the ground like he was about to do pushups, before leaping to a crouch and driving his shoulder hard into the elemental’s back, pushing it away. Instead of turning to face him like Harvey expected, it simply reoriented its body and punched again. It was an important lesson that conventional wisdom didn’t apply to a magical being like this.

  This time, Julian was ready for the punch and swiftly ducked beneath it while loading up for a decisive swing that sent the pickaxe tip straight for the torso. The swirling mass of stone interrupted the swing before it met the core, but the strike still sent the elemental flying backwards as stone pushed against the heart hiding beneath.

  The magic holding its body together shuddered under the impact, but the familiar haze reasserted itself as the elemental stabilized. Harvey was shocked to see a large crack running through the chunk of essence-infused stone. Harvey had never managed to break any of those pieces. He simply pushed them out of the way. Julian had nearly split one in half with a single strike. Sadly, a shattered stone wasn’t enough, and a second elemental had reached the fray. Instead of pursuing his injured target, Julian backed up closer to the minecart, staying in the light.

  “I can help…” Harvey began.

  “No, I need to see for myself.” Julian snapped back before exploding into action again as the two elementals approached. This time, he swung deliberately for the arms and stone column holding the injured elemental aloft. Controlling his swings, he destroyed what was left of the injured arm before repeating with the other shoulder, all while fending off swings from the second elemental. With a baseball grip, Julian unleashed fury at the exposed chest of the defenseless being, sending the infused ore and core flying as the force holding it together popped like a bubble. Just as he finished his swing, a stone fist came down hard on his shoulder blade, a sickening thud followed by a pained scream. Julian sent the elbow of his injured arm rocketing up into the creature, knocking it away as the second fist began to fall towards his other shoulder.

  Harvey wasn’t willing to see him take another blow and shot a bolt into the hand. Stone rained back as it was knocked away moments before impact. With a roar, Julian dismembered it before striking towards its core. Ore flew into the air before falling like hail in the darkness beyond the lamplight.

  He massaged his injured shoulder and adjusted the grip on the pickaxe, but Harvey stepped in front of him. Without a word, he waited for the final elemental to arrive. When it finally stepped into the light, Harvey methodically destroyed each arm like a lumberjack cutting down a tree. He knew he could accomplish his task with 3 bolts per arm if he was careful, but now was not the time for careful planning.

  He needed to show absolute competence in handling these things, and as such, sent bolt after bolt until stone fell like blood from an open wound. When it came within arm's reach, he coated his fist in a fangbreaker shield and punched the elemental’s chest. A thunderclap echoed through the cavern, his shield cracking like a smith’s hammer striking the anvil.

  The floating ore parted like the Red Sea, revealing the glowing core within. Two bolts later, it fell dead at his feet.

  In seconds, he effortlessly tore the final elemental apart.

  You have slain Level 8 - Lesser Iron Elemental. Essence Gained. 987 Merit Earned