Pierce kept urging the forgemaster to pace himself, but Sev worked almost feverishly, with single-minded purpose. He'd eat something for breakfast and get to work, not stopping for a midday meal, working until the very last rays of the sun had disappeared. He said the work was his sustenance. He'd even commented that he would work through the night, if the light of the moon were of sufficient strength for his needs.
Eff dropped by from time to time, inspecting the growing stockpile, and after three days he deemed it enough, seeming vaguely proud of the fact. Pierce supposed a lesser wizard would need more to get the job done. The First said he would commence the enchantment the next morning.
Another couple of miners had been lost to the banshees, but their spotters had not been taken with them. Though the losses sat heavily on people's hearts, it wasn't really too severe compared to the typical fatality rate of a cliff-dangler. The team had done a good job here, and all the men made sure to thank their trumpeters and spotters.
Though news had come in that yet more cities had been conquered, that now there were bands of gen and werewolves roving the roads between the nations of Overland, spirits at Chasmverge were high. It could all be over within a matter of hours. The sky would be a beautiful blue, bathing the land in more light than it had ever seen, and the invaders from below would have to shade their black eyes and slink back into the holes from whence they had come. Men were already congratulating Pierce on the success of his idea, and he accepted the praise in sheepish silence.
He couldn't sleep that night. He paced and roved the grounds all around Chasmverge, thinking about everything that could come next. Sometimes in his mind, the First would fail, the sky would remain black, and Kash would conquer the world. In many fantasies, Eff would succeed, and Ess would embrace Pierce in girlish joy, rewarding him with a kiss for his ingenious plan. He felt stupid for his imaginings, but couldn't help himself. They played behind his eyes throughout the night like waking dreams.
With little else left to explore, Pierce eventually made his way up to the top of the tower, idly inspecting the green stone of its many spires with one hand as he gazed out into the dark. The stockpile of blue dust had been brought up here, waiting for Eff to begin the enchantment.
Sunrise should be coming soon. A breeze had kicked up, and he noticed it wasn't coming from the Chasm below, as it usually would. It felt like something was blowing on him gently from the north, like a truly massive giant's breath was escaping as it slept. Pierce didn't like the thought of a giant larger than the mega-Monstrosities he'd fought at Grondell.
There wasn't typically strong wind of any kind further inland - it was something one only experienced at the edges of Overland. He supposed this horizontal breeze could be something normal at Chasm's edge he simply hadn't experienced yet, but it seemed wrong somehow.
Suddenly he realized why.
The obelisks at Grondell. They had vibrated, emanating their sickening sounds, shaking his insides until Scythia had covered everyone with her enchantment of silence. Could they be causing a wind like this? It had already gotten stronger, but he could hear no evil tones yet. He wanted to tell himself he was overthinking things, that he was just paranoid at the thought of his idea's failure. Yet his intuition had never steered him wrong.
"Pierce!" came a call from down below, on the winding stair that led up to the tower's pinnacle. It was Scythia's voice. "Are you up here? A guard said he saw you heading upward."
"I'm here,' he called back. Soon Scythia appeared on the stair, the First right behind her. He looked groggy, as if he'd just been wakened. He was even still in his night robe.
"Something's coming," Scythia said. The gems on her circlet were pulsing brightly. "Either to simply attack or to stop the enchantment, though I don't know how Kash would know about it."
She guided Eff firmly to the stockpile of blue dust, and he began to fumble about his preparations.
"Ess, Agrathor, and Axebourne will guard the First," Scythia said. "You and I will be at the ready below. If the obelisks begin to crop up, we must topple them. If the mega-Monstrosities begin to arise, we must slay them. The garrison men are precious few, but they will fight their best beside us."
Pierce nodded. "I'll arm myself," he said, making for the stairs.
"Good," Scythia said. "I'll wait with Eff till the others arrive, and join you on the ground."
Pierce passed Sev on the way down, apparently awoken also by Scythia's stirring of the others.
"What can I do to help, Pierce?" Sev asked. "I am not much of a warrior."
"But you're strong," said Pierce. "You can fight if you have to. Get armed, at least for your own safety. Guard the tower doors."
Sev nodded once.
"We just have to hold out until the First is done," said Pierce, and bounded down the stairs to the floor his room was on.
Armored, sword at his side, Pierce made his way to the ground floor and outside. The breeze was now a wind, and Pierce could hear the faint humming that he'd dreaded, but he could not see the obelisks creating it. He kept expecting to see the hands of the mega-Monstrosities digging up out of the ground, but they, too, seemed to be delayed.
Then he heard the whooping and howling of a werewolf pack, likely several dozen of them. The sound of their approach grew gradually. Scythia joined him, followed by the remainder of the garrison men,
