by Frank Morin
Although in recent months those soldiers had begun to understand the wider world, Connor had to remind himself that few of them really understood much about what was going on with the Builders, Jean’s miraculous school, and the incredible advancements in technology of the Arishat League.
So most of the affinityscapes were similar, often looking like parts of Merkland or surrounding towns. In most of them, Connor used trees or sometimes stone for the trusses. That seemed to work fine, although he tried focusing on each person’s most passionate hobby or interest for the planking. That seemed to help snap the affinity into place better, and proved far more interesting.
People might seem similar on the surface, but everyone was unique inside. So he ended up building planking from all sorts of fun materials, from lake trout to knitting to food to hand-crafted woodworking. Every success felt like a huge victory.
After taking a break to eat some bacon-wrapped steak and down a glass of perfectly clear water, Connor greeted his next candidate, a mature woman who seemed extremely competent. She possessed no affinity but had a quick mind and served as an aid to one of the junior officers. Even Fogwatt knew her name and spoke well of her. She seemed an ideal candidate for a new primary affinity.
“What affinity motivates you the most?” Connor asked as he had the others.
Everyone else had instantly picked one, but the woman only shrugged, refusing to meet his gaze. “Whichever one you choose is fine, I guess.”
“Okay. Can you tell me what motivates you most?” he asked.
She considered that for a moment before saying, “Knowing what is expected of me, and executing it perfectly.”
That was unique. Connor looked forward to seeing how that translated to her affinityscape. He decided on basalt for her. She could use the exhilaration of speed to spice up her life. Tapping the requisite stones, he connected and appeared in her mind.
It looked similar to many of the others, made up of the simple town square of the village where she grew up. The islands representing the various affinities were a little smaller and less well-defined than in other minds, and hovered farther out of reach, but they were there, so he could build bridges.
The woman did not appear in her affinityscape. That was unusual. Everyone else had appeared with him. Connor checked his active affinities, and they were all there, the connections in place. Strange, but surely he could make it work.
A few trees grew in the affinityscape, so Connor ripped one up and moved it into position to form a truss. He extended it toward the low, black basalt island, but instead of transforming into part of the bridge, it dissolved into sludgy mist and plunged right over the edge and disappeared into the bottomless abyss.
“Not wood for this one, I guess,” Connor said to himself. He tried again with stone, but with the same result. He tried every material he could find in the town, but nothing would stick.
Finally, he stepped from the woman’s mind. Maybe he’d done something wrong with the initial connection.
“You’re awake,” she commented when he blinked open his eyes.
“Did you feel anything?” he asked.
“It felt like you were poking around in there. Didn’t find much, did you?”
“Why would you think that?” Connor asked. What an interesting comment.
She shrugged. “Somehow I knew it was a mistake, Master Connor. Affinities are for people much more special than me. I know my place and I’m happy to serve where I am.”
Connor wanted to try again, but he sensed he’d just fail. He felt terrible, but all he could say was, “I’m sorry.”
She didn’t seem very disappointed, as if she hadn’t allowed herself to hope for an affinity. He escorted her to the door, thinking about that. He’d found great success with people who really wanted an affinity and who were passionate about learning something new. The woman wasn’t. She didn’t seem to accept the fact that she could develop an amazing new aspect to her life. That was so disappointing.
News that the woman failed spread down the line of waiting candidates with a splash of reality. Not even Queen Dreokt could succeed with everyone, but for a while they’d all forgotten that. Now they realized there was risk of failure, and it made many of them suddenly nervous.
Connor motioned Earthnail Fogwatt into the room.
“What happened?” the big man asked, looking back after the departing woman.
Connor felt convinced that there should be a way to help everyone establish even a weak affinity, but the truth was, not everyone would succeed. “I find the most success with people who accept that they can become more than they are now.”
“She didn’t?” Fogwatt asked, looking surprised. “She’s so good at what she does.”
“But she seems to think that’s all she’ll ever be able to do,” Connor said.
Fogwatt considered that for a moment. “I don’t see how I could have determined that ahead of time.”
“I don’t either, but while I work with folks, I need you to motivate your people. Encourage them to believe this is possible and that they can become something more.”
“If someone doubts, they’ll fail, won’t they?” he asked.
Connor was relieved the man grasped the situation so quickly. “I’m afraid so. I’ll do everything I can, but I’m learning that a lot of what makes this work is the mindset of the person I’m helping.”
“It makes sense. I’ve seen soldiers with excellent native talent fail while those who appeared less likely to succeed accomplished miraculous growth,” Fogwatt said thoughtfully. “Hard work and passion for growth pay off in life. I hadn’t realized those traits played such a key role in affinities too.”
“Neither did I.”
Connor got back to work and was grateful when the next soldier established a brand new affinity with obsidian. That success seemed to reignite all the other hopefuls’ enthusiasm, and the next eight candidates all succeeded.
The ninth failed. Connor sensed they were in trouble immediately. The man said all the right things, promised that he believed he could establish an affinity, but Connor could sense his reservations. The man finally admitted that he believed that some people were born with affinity talents, while others weren’t.
As the day wore on, a few others failed too. Connor studied each of them, trying to figure out the pattern of why they held that limiting mindset, but it eluded him. Many were accomplished in their jobs, competent and confident. Some were humble and self-effacing like the woman had been, but others seemed deeply troubled that they could not succeed. In every case, at some level, they either believed they lacked some innate ability to make it work, or feared committing to the effort out of a risk of failure.
After hours lost in the work, Connor again opened his eyes to share that moment of wonder with his latest success story, a lanky, skinny fellow whose greatest heartfelt desire other than marrying his hometown sweetheart was to become a Strider.
His bridge had come together so fast it almost felt like it was building itself. The planking was made entirely out of gold wedding bands. The man jumped up, laughing and cheering. He was offered a little bit of basalt to prove the affinity and test it out. In his enthusiasm he ran so fast that he almost shot right through an open window. Luckily a Boulder was standing nearby and managed to pull him to a stop.
Earthnail Fogwatt said, “Tis a miraculous thing you do here today, Sir. This will change the army. I only wish we had more time to train them before battle. General Wolfram has a team already engaged, but time is short.”
Connor agreed. He was liking the man more and more. He paused for a sweetbread and only then realized that the line of expectantly waiting soldiers was gone. As the new Strider left with a companion, only Connor, Fogwatt, and several aides remained in the room.
“Where is everyone?” Connor asked.
The big man chuckled. “I like your enthusiasm and applaud your dedication to the work, but even the Blood of the Tallan needs sleep. It’s nearly midn
ight. We’ll continue after you get some rest.”
His words seemed to unlock floodgates of exhaustion that clobbered Connor. A wave of weariness made him sag, and he dropped back into his chair. He could’ve rolled over and fallen asleep under the chair right there.
He rubbed his eyes and said, “All of a sudden, I agree. Thanks for keeping an eye on me before I keeled over.”
“You wouldn’t be the first. Get some sleep. All the affinities in the world can only keep you going so long.”
“Perhaps after one more patient.” Shona’s voice surprised Connor. He glanced to the door where she had just entered. She was dressed in her battle leathers and looked as fresh and vibrant as if she’d just awakened from a nap. That seemed terribly unfair.
Fogwatt saluted, but said, “Lady Shona, the young man is exhausted. Perhaps—”
She waved away the concern. “I know Connor better than anyone. He’s got stamina you can’t imagine. Besides, he knows my mind already. I doubt helping me will tax him greatly.”
She settled into the chair in front of Connor, their knees touching, and met his gaze, her expression eager. “Do you have time for me, Connor?”
He was glad she did not seem upset that he’d helped his other friends with new affinities first. It seemed that as long as he was willing to help her, she did not mind what order she came in. He had thought he knew her as well as anyone, but her recent budding friendship with Verena challenged his understanding of either woman. He hoped the good feelings continued. Shona was complex, brilliant, and ambitious. At times he had hated her and loved her in equal measure, but never could he claim to understand her.
He was immensely glad she had chosen their side of the conflict. So he took her hands in his and met her gaze. Her eyes were wide and seemed somehow vulnerable as she lowered the defenses she usually kept in place.
“Quartzite?” Connor asked as he prepared to tap the several stones he would need.
She nodded. “I considered asking for soapstone for the potential battlefield advantage, but both Ivor and Kilian reign supreme in soapstone. They don’t need me there. With quartzite I can see and understand the battle better and even raise my own voice to issue commands to keep my people safe. It has to be quartzite.”
Thoughtful choice. Connor approved. So he tapped the right stones and let himself plunge through those big hazel eyes into her mind.
Her affinityscape formed around him and he looked around in astonishment. He’d expected to see a royal ball, or perhaps the palace of Merkland or some other symbol of her power, but instead he found himself standing upon one of his favorite places of all time.
The starting platform of the Rhidorroch.
The huge, complex, beloved maze spread below him. He placed a wondering hand on the starting hourglass and stared out at the configuration. It was not one of the many he had memorized, but it felt familiar. Shona appeared beside him, wearing her battle leathers, her hair braided and extending down almost to her waist.
When she recognized the Rhidorroch she laughed, a happy sound that he had not heard nearly often enough of late. Shona’s rich voice raised in honest laughter always made him smile.
“I love your choice of venues, Connor, but how do you know this configuration?”
“The venue was chosen by your subconscious. I love the Rhidorroch too, but you brought us here.”
Shona stepped to the starting slide, a little smile playing across her full lips. “It’s perfect.” She gestured at the maze that took up the first third of the Rhidorroch. “This is the first configuration I ever ran flawlessly. It represents the day that I first mastered the Rhidorroch and claimed the top spot in the Boulder class.”
Interesting. She’d never lost that standing, despite intense challenge from many other gifted Petralists. The fact that she chose that place as her mental space was fascinating. Shona loved power and station and glory, but this suggested she loved the open, honest competition of the Rhidorroch above all else. She loved challenging herself against the best competition, and of course coming off conqueror.
Connor smiled too. It really was perfect.
“Do we have time to run the course?” Shona asked with a grin.
They probably shouldn’t, but Connor would never willingly say no to a chance to run the Rhidorroch. So he gestured Shona to the starting slide and reached a hand out to the sand clock. “Ladies first.”
26
Floppy Physics Are the Best
No doubt Shona understood that by running first, she gave Connor a few precious extra minutes to study and memorize the configuration, but she did not seem to care. Grinning, she dove onto the slide.
Shona raced into the maze of tall stone walls with her normal exquisite grace. She was a high lady, but she was also a warrior and she excelled in tap-rate management. She was naturally athletic, and moved with balance and fierce determination as she charged through the course, never missing a turn and never slowing. She posted an excellent time, and Connor recorded it as she raced across the maze exit.
She seemed to understand that the day’s challenge only included the maze, so did not bother running through the rope sections or the other parts of the complex obstacle course, but simply leaped into the air and soared all the way back to the starting platform.
Another impressive feat. “I haven’t seen anyone master the floppy physics of the mindscape so fast,” Connor commented as Shona gently landed on the platform beside him.
“Floppy physics?” she laughed.
He shrugged. “What would you call it then?”
“Not floppy. There’s nothing floppy about my mind. Maybe malleable or flexible.”
Those were really good words. Connor rubbed his hands together in anticipation. “It’s your mind, so your choice. My turn.”
He moved to the slide, and when she flipped the sand clock again, he dove onto it. He could not help whooping as he slid down the fast slide and launched into the course. The maze was complex, but not as bad as some of the ones he had memorized.
He’d mastered the art of quickly memorizing the mazes and even taught a number of students some of his tricks. Watching Shona run had given him more than enough time to memorize the route, and now he tapped just a little granite to strengthen his legs as he tore through the course. Basalt would have given him more speed, but then they couldn’t have compared times evenly.
The trick was to maintain just enough granite to not tire, and to tap a little extra on difficult turns when he needed it, but to release it again so it did not swell his muscles and make him ponderous.
Connor made no mistakes as he raced through the course, and he grinned as he ran. The Rhidorroch was simply amazing, and he hadn’t expected another opportunity to run it again. When he crossed the finish line, he raised his hands in victory. That was a good run. He hoped Shona would not be upset that he beat her at her own mind game.
He too jumped and twisted the malleable physics of her mindscape, soaring back to the platform where she was just jotting down his time.
“I can’t believe it!” she exclaimed, giving him an annoyed look.
“How much did I beat you by?” he asked with a grin.
She sniffed and tossed her long hair. “No one has ever bested me at this course, and you certainly didn’t beat me today.”
“Then what can’t you believe?”
She gestured at the paper. “This was the best time I’ve ever posted, and you tied it exactly.”
Connor laughed. “I was planning on beating you by at least three seconds.”
She sighed, then actually smiled. “I suppose if I’m going to tie with anyone it should be you, Connor.”
That compliment drew a little too close to some emotional areas they had agreed not to return to, so he gestured toward the outer stair. “We might as well get to work.”
From the top of the wall, they could see that her affinityscape was entirely occupied by the Rhidorroch, surrounded by the bottomless abyss filled with billow
ing mists. The floating islands of the various affinities sprinkled out across that abyss, with a rope plank bridge extending to the nearby granite island.
Not surprisingly, that bridge looked much more solid than most. Shona possessed one of the most powerful primary affinities he’d ever seen. Coupled with her sheer determination, he would not have been surprised if he found her bridge made from solid steel.
Another bridge crossed from granite to the limestone island, built by Queen Dreokt herself. Connor found it interesting that it was made of the same material as her original one. Did the queen do that on purpose, or had she never tried building bridges out of different materials?
It was a good question, with no possible answer. The queen was an incredibly powerful Petralist but Connor sensed that she seemed to have lost her love of learning and experimentation. Was that a result of her husband’s death or her long slumber? Did that grant him any kind of additional advantage? Not that he had seen.
As they descended the stair toward the first bridge, Connor paused to study the configuration of the islands again. Limestone did not extend straight out from granite, but rather at a sharp angle to the right. It passed very close to the basalt island, which huddled far closer to granite than Connor had seen in anyone else’s mind.
“Are you seeing that?” Connor asked.
“Is that not normal?”
“I’m not sure you could call anything in people’s minds normal, but it’s different. Basalt is really close to granite, almost caught between the angles of those two bridges.”
“So? Does that prevent me from getting a bridge from limestone to quartzite?” Shona asked, sounding worried.
Connor shook his head and moved to the starting point of the bridge out to granite. “It just suggests a possibility I hadn’t considered before.”
“What sort of possibility?” Shona joined him, still looking concerned. “I don’t really fancy the idea of experimenting in my mind, Connor.”
“Even if the experiment could make you Agor?”