159. Lavaman: Wiremu.

We left the bonds at the camp and hiked up the mountain. The stone was warm underfoot, and Tāoke had curled up on the first rock near the camp and soaked up the warmth. I left him there.

There were steam vents in various places, and we discovered some of the gasses they were venting were poisonous. It was suddenly hard to breathe. Astrid was the one with the weakest Physical Constitution and took a while to recover. We came to our first lava flow mid-morning and followed it to where it disappeared underground. Lava is hot, very hot. Astrid had to stay well away. The rest of us all had strong Constitutions and/or heat resistances. I know my heat resistance levelled; mine would be the highest here after my fight with lavaman and training Kelda.

I asked the others to give me some time, and I sat within the sensing range of the lava. Lava was essentially molten rock, and I had a rock affinity. My Granite Sense was feeling a connection. My Sense Spiritual was much higher levelled and could trace the spiritual flow over the lava, but my Granite Sense could feel it in the lava. I did what I did with the Sand Elemental and focussed on where the lava flowed against the rock. This was not a Lava Elemental, although I had no doubt there were one or more elementals in the mountain. This was very Spiritually enhanced molten rock flowing out and cooling as it flowed. My Heat Resistance went up a level.

The point where the lava met the rock was the melting temperature of the rock. The rock wasn’t Granite, but that didn’t matter. There were lessons to be learned here that I couldn’t get anywhere else. I created a Granite spike at the junction, which didn’t melt. The spike had a higher melting point than the rock that made up this lava. I created a horizontal spike and extended it further into the flow. The further from the edge, the hotter it was. Eventually, my Granite Spike started to melt. I kept creating it and watching it melt. There was something for me to learn here. My Heat Resistance went up a level.

With my Granite Sense, I could tell the temperature variation along my Spike up until it melted. This was hotter than most blacksmith forges. I concentrated on that temperature variation for a while. A new Skill seemed close. Identify told me I needed more attributes in Spiritual Perception and Spiritual Agility. I had plenty, but I kept adding them until they were both at 40, using all but 1 of my points. The new Skill that appeared was Thermal Sensing (Mineral). That was interesting. I would have to test out what that can do. It also indicated there were other types of Thermal Sensing. That is great, but that is not what I am here for, and I am not sure it was worth the points. My Heat Resistance went up a level.

I concentrated on the melting point of the Granite. This is the point at which I am vulnerable. The point at which my bones would start melting. Lavaman wore down my Granite Shields, so he was generating close to this heat. It took him a while, which is the only reason I am still alive. Granite Sense levelled. My Heat Resistance went up a level.

I tried my new Thermal Sensing (Mineral), and I could detect the temperature variation along the spike and then out into the existing rock. Lava was hot. Not a new revelation there, but the temperature difference was impressive. Thermal Sensing (Mineral) levelled. It expanded the area, no, the sphere I could sense. I could sense nothing outside the rock, but I could sense the temperature of the lava. I pushed the Skill for more sensitivity. Thermal Sensing (Mineral) levelled. I was in an extreme environment. I couldn’t think of a use for this skill but kept pushing it until it reached Apprentice level. It would never be easier. My Heat Resistance went up a level.

At the point at which the granite melted, the granite didn’t just disappear. It flowed away and mixed with the other molten rock. I could sense it for a while. The Granite Spike was my creation, but the other lava was not. I tried manipulating it as it flowed passed and merged with my Granite. Granite Manipulation was at a point where I could use it on different rock types, so it worked on the lava. I pulled some out of the flow and watched it cool with my senses. It was much easier to manipulate as lava. If I had Granite Manipulation when fighting lavaman, I wouldn’t have got so hurt. I am sure his control would have overpowered mine, but it would have helped. I played with the lava for a while, creating spouts, dams, and shapes. This wasn’t getting me anywhere. Granite Manipulation Levelled. My Heat Resistance went up a level. My Pain Resistance went up a level.

If Granite manipulation is easier with molten rock, can I change the temperature of the rock? Can I create my own lava? I created my Granite Spike again. Could I adjust the temperature to stop it from melting? No. Can I heat it to speed up the melting? It seemed not. I investigated with Identify and got the impression I would need a whole lot more Spiritual Strenght. Like well over 60 points, Way over. I invested my remaining point and brought it to 40. Lavaman must have maxed out Spiritual Strenght to the detriment of other areas. Assuming he had a rock affinity. Maybe he bonded with a Lava Elemental? Maybe he had a fire affinity, or maybe he had a straight lava affinity. The more I thought about it lavaman probably just had a straight Lava affinity. Could I bond with a Lava Elemental? I extended my senses, and I couldn’t detect any. My Heat Resistance went up a level.

I looked around for the others. They had gone off exploring. I think I had been sitting there for hours. I also needed to do some exploring. First, I queried Tāoke through our bond. What would he think of trying to bond with a Lava Elemental? Adding another bond was tricky as they all had to get on together in a very unique way. Gwaed had three bonds at one point, but she had the Druid Class to help her. I still don’t know how she did it. An Elemental like Nyx is fundamentally different to an animal, though. Bonding to an Elemental would mean creating the Elemental Bond rather than it sharing the Animal Bond with Tāoke. Tāoke was not against the idea. He decided to come to me as we explored. I had no idea how to bond with a Lava Elemental. I assume the first step would be finding one and then getting close to it. It was time to go exploring.

I was at the place the lava emerged from the ground, so I extended my Granite Sense and tried to use it at the same time as my Thermal Sensing (Mineral) to follow the lava in the mountain. I lost it when it went deeper than I could sense. Tāoke caught up with me, so I decided to hike to the crater. It took me two hours and early afternoon when I got there. The crater was full of water. It was a lake: a boiling, steaming lake, but a lake nonetheless. I walked around the edge for a bit. I saw some of the others across the other side and waved.

I spotted another lava flow coming from the side of the mountain and went down that side to explore. When I reached it, I extended my senses once more. This lava stream was closer to a larger pool in the mountain. I got the idea of pressure, and this stream of lava was like a release valve. My Granite Sense was doing the bulk of the work here, and it levelled along with Thermal Sensing (Mineral). This time I could sense something in the lava, and I called out to it, although called is the wrong word. It came closer, and I got the sense it didn’t like the colder lava in the stream. My Heat Resistance went up a level.

I pulled out one of my stone knives and touched it to the lava, inviting it to come. It didn’t like the cold. The tip of the stone knife was melting. I assured it I had a high Cold Resistance, and we could explore the world. It was comfortable in the volcano. I let the melted knife sink into the lava and got another. Had it tasted this Granite before? I created it. It touched the knife and found it interesting. It knew all the rock around here, and this was different. Rich. My Heat Resistance went up a level.

What about this sand that I learned from a Sand Elemental? I sprayed the sand over the lava. Similar but different. A tickly, fizzy sensation it had never felt before. There was more to explore than that. Then I grabbed one of my spear shafts off my back. This spear shaft was one I had used my Petrification Skill on to turn the core into rock. It was a Skill I had little use for as it was slow to do, and it was still in the Novice levels. I touched the shaft to the lava, and the wooden outer layers burned off, but the Petrified wood inside was a whole new flavour of rock. There is more where that comes from. I can petrify all sorts of organic material for you. My Heat Resistance went up a level.

It wouldn’t form a bond. It was too big and comfortable. It would create a small Elemental to bond with me, experience new things with me, and someday come back and share them. It was dividing itself and creating a baby elemental, sort of. It was hard to explain, but part of the elemental split off and entered the spear shaft. My Heat Resistance went up a level.

It burned the fingers that were holding the shaft and found my Granite Bones. My Heat and Pain Resistance went up a level. I felt I was burning up as it moved through my bones, inhabiting me and forming a bond with me. My Heat and Pain Resistance went up a level.

The Elemental discovered my bond with Tāoke and wanted to meet him. I touched him with my hand, and the Elemental split part of himself off and burned through Tāoke’s flesh to his bones, and we truly formed a three-way bond. My Elemental Bond levelled, allowing it to have two parts and still be one elemental. This was fundamentally different to Nyx. It was lava, a molten mineral composition. Nyx was shadow and incorporeal. It had more similarities to the Rock Elemental we encountered before reaching Jern. But it was different there too. Might it have changed my Granite Bones? Maybe, maybe not. I feel like my body temperature has skyrocketed, and I am cooking from the inside out. My Heat Resistance went up a level.

My temperature dropped as the Elemental adjusted to living in Tāoke and me. I felt that broken Granite Bones would no longer be a problem as the Elemental could just melt and reform them. Then it discovered I was missing the middle finger on my main hand, and lava flowed out, forming the finger, complete with flexible joints. I had no feeling from that finger as it was rock, but it was a functioning finger. The Elemental Bond Levelled again. It was adjusting very fast, and it needed a name. Puia meant volcano in my mother tongue.

I checked my status, and Tāoke’s Heat and Pain Resistances had jumped. Puia only had one Master Level Skill, Molten Rock and a Lava Affinity. I noticed he had already picked up my Cold Resistance. He was cold. As our bond grows, we will learn from each other, and I hope we will share affinities. I looked up, and it was fully dark. Finding the camp was no problem for me with my Mapping Skill and Darksight, so I picked up Tāoke, and we headed off