Inheritor of Strength (Book one of Alfireán age)

Traverse Wake

Drake's mind reeled. When he had read about Traverse Wake, he hadn't believed it actually existed, regardless of its official documentation, and never had he imagined he would encounter it. "With this skill, Vackzilian could..."

"I know," Zachariahs said.

Drake scowled as he stared at the amethyst jewel set in the sword's pommel. There, nestled in the center of the transparent gem, sat a small green skill orb. Traverse Wake. With Vackzilian's abilities, and this stone, taking over the entire world wouldn't just be a dream, it would be a viable option, Drake thought to himself.

"Traverse Wake?" Olivia asked. "I don't believe I've ever heard of that before."

"Most haven't," Drake said. "It's a one-of-a-kind skill which defies the laws of physics, since it enables more than one person to be on the same plane of mass without adding their weight together."

Olivia tilted her head and frowned at him, "That's not possible."

"As I said, it appears to defy the laws of physics."

"So what exactly does it do?" Alf asked.

The prince sighed, "In lay man's terms, if you were to utilize this skill, even I could keep up with you. All that's required is for you to have me marked as an ally, and for me to mentally decide to follow you."

"Okay. . . so basically, if I had an army with me, and this skill, they could all run as fast as I can?"

"No, Alf. They wouldn't even have to run. They could be laying down and still be keeping up with you. All they have to do is have a desire to follow you. In essence, I could be sitting beside you and have you carry me along without touching me or having my weight added to yours."

Alf's mouth dropped open in astonishment, "How is that even possible?"

"That I do not know," Drake replied. "I am well versed in the applied science of frequencies and the manipulation of matter. This, however, is far beyond my knowledge."

Alf turned to Olivia.

Pushing a strand of hair that had fallen loose from her braid back behind her ear, she said, "There are many skills, abilities, and magic that we can't reverse engineer, such as the teleportation stones. All we know is that before The Dragon Wars there is a period of lost and confusing history in which several great civilizations created all these things, and back then they didn't call it magic as we do now; they referred to it as 'Science'."

The young healer gazed at the jewel, a look of burning curiosity in her eyes, but she remained put, dutifully helping Zachariahs breath with a wind spell.

Drake extended his arms so Olivia could study it, though he kept the weapon firmly clenched in his hands.

She smiled her thanks at him and waved her hand at the gem. A three-dimensional scrying appeared above the jewel, displaying numbers and frequency wavelengths. After a moment or two of observation, she said, "Like Drakovian, I understand how the science of frequencies and magic works because I have to as a healer, but I must admit, the math equations and formulas in this skill orb baffle me."

Suddenly, like a ghost emerging from the shadows, a tall, slender shape glided through the opening and into the office. "While you were talking, we gathered and bandaged the remaining survivors in this town. With your permission, we'd like to lead them back to Brockovich," the form said in a crystal, bell-like tone.

Drake spun around, shattering Olivia's scrying, and hiding the sword behind his back as he stared up at the silver-haired woman.

It was the eldest sister of the maids. How in Eldrin's name had sh... Wait, they wanted to do what?