“Come in,” Henry’s voice called out.

  Loch opened the door, letting Ed walk in first. It had taken a good fifteen minutes to find someone that knew where Henry Bolton was and then a couple more to find the exact conference room the man had taken. Walking into the room, Loch was surprised by who Henry was meeting with.

  Serio Gray Branch sat at the table next to Henry Bolton, both of them watching as Loch and Ed walked into the room. Both started to stand up, but Loch motioned for them to sit back down. IN front of the two were small crystals that glowed with some kind of light blue inner light. There were a variety of small tools scattered across the table. Awls, picks, small chisels and small hammers. The crystals were covered in small runes.

  “Good afternoon Lord Lochlan,” the current leader of the former Silver Bark Elves said, nodding his head.

  “Lord Serio,” Loch said, returning the nod. “I didn’t realize you were in the Clanhold.” He looked out into the lobby. “I didn’t see any Silver Bark Guards.”

  “I came alone,” Serio replied. “The snow and cold do not affect me as it does others. Even at my advanced age.”

  Loch and Ed took seats opposite the two. Serio looked down at the crystals, his expression off, then he looked back at Loch again.

  “I am sorry.”

  “For what?” Loch asked, genuinely confused.

  “For not aiding in your attack on the giants and Si-Te-Cah,” Serio replied. “I feel as if we let down our side of the treaty.”

  Loch waved it away.

  “I understood when you said you couldn’t.”

  Things for the former Silver Bark had changed drastically the last couple of months. There had been a bit of a civil war between those like Serio and Casian that wanted to change for the future and those like Glarian Coldstalk that wanted to stick to their Silver Bark ways. Serio’s people had come out on top with the Clan taking on a new name.

  The Northlake Elves.

  “Thank you,” Serio replied. “I still wish there was more we could have done, which is why I am here,” he said, pointing at the crystals. “The last time I was here, I ran into Mr. Bolton who explained the issues he was having with making Portal Crystals. I am not a Portalmage like he is or the ones the Silver Bark had, but I do know some things and thought I could help.”

  Loch picked up one of the crystals. It was multifaceted, about the size of a baseball. Each face had a single rune carved into it. The thing felt warm as he touched it. Warm and heavier than it should have.

  “Won’t Glarian and his people be angry that you’re helping us make Portals?”

  Serio shrugged.

  “He would have been but Glarian will not be a problem any longer.”

  Loch looked up sharply, Serio only shrugging again.

  “It is also in the best interests of the Northlake Clan to assist you with the portals. These will not be able to go from this world to another. Henry and the Spirit of the world are not at that point and will not be for many years. But making portals that can cross long distances across the surface of the planet? That is something that is possible.” He picked up another crystal, sending a surge of Spirit into it. The crystal flared brighter, another crystal of matching colors on the table brightened as well. “We would like to have access to your portals once they are established.”

  “I think that can be arranged,” Loch said, smiling. “How do these work?” he asked, setting the crystal back down.

  “They are two way connections,” Henry said. “One can be placed in the ground and the other brought with someone and then turned on somewhere else.”

  “Seems simple enough,” Ed said, picking one up, studying the runes.

  “It is and it isn’t,” Serio answered. “The concept is simple but the execution is not. It took a lot of Spirit and time to carve those runes. And it will take a lot of Spirit to activate the portal and keep it open.”

  “Does the power need to be on both ends?”

  “It does not,” Serio answered.

  “Good, because I think we might have the power part covered.”

  The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

  Serio raised an eyebrow questioningly.

  “A gift from the Si-Te-Cah, but nothing we can deal with until the spring.”

  “I look forward to the spring,” the elderly elf said.

  ***

  Loch swung his axe, cutting into the side of the leaping Raptor. He twisted to the side, avoiding the flaying front and back claws as the feathered dinosaur landed hard on the ground. Blood flowed out of the wound, staining the white snow red. Loch shook Onyx, spraying drops of blood into the air. He looked around for more but all the Raptors were dead or soon would be.

  The wind pushed the loose covering of snow, swirling it around, revealing the hard packed crust beneath. Most of which was destroyed from the footprints and fighting. Over a dozen Raptors lay bleeding out, or already dead. None of the people with Loch were even wounded.

  The lowest Leveled was Taylor Simpson, the Auracaster friend of Jake Warricks. The Aurastriker, himself, had taken out three of the Raptors. Loch had four of his own, with Harper and Piper dealing with the rest. Her latest inksummon, a large turtle with tentacles coming out of its shell, disappeared as she released it.

  Loch and his girls had come out to test out the inksummon and to just spend some time together. They’d come across Jake and Taylor, who had taken her out to get some Leveling done. The group had been talking when the Raptors had attacked, and quickly died.

  “Why is it that everytime I fight a pack of Raptors, I don’t have a Harvester around?”

  “Do you need that Skill,” Taylor asked.

  “To be the most efficient. If you don’t, you won’t get as much meat, feather or hide,” Harper answered.

  “That makes sense.”

  Jake and Taylor were both in their low-20s, Taylor maybe not even 20 yet. They’d integrated well with the rest of the Clan, Taylor even becoming a kind of older sister for Harper. Which Harper needed. Aside from Davis and Mike Turner, there really weren’t any others her age and no girls. Loch was glad the two were getting along. Harper had been spending more time with Elora, who was much older and from another world, so the two didn’t have much in common. It was good that Harper now had someone.

  “What’s this I heard about a Solstice celebration?” Taylor asked.

  “Something Ed Turner thought of,” Loch replied. “Instead of Christmas, we’re going to do something on the Solstice in a week or so.”

  “Like what?” Jake asked.

  Loch shrugged.

  “No idea. It’s Ed’s thing. I want to be as surprised as everyone else.”

  ***

  Loch read the note over the crate again.

  COLLECTION BOX FOR YANKEE SWAP.

  PLACE A TRINKET, PIECE OF JEWELRY, SMALL CRAFTED ITEM OR SIMILAR IN THE BOX. ITEMS WILL BE DISTRIBUTED VIA YANKEE SWAP AT THE SOLSTICE CELEBRATION. IF YOU DO NOT HAVE ANYTHING TO DONATE, THE SCAVENGERS WILL BE BRINGING ITEMS BACK AND PLACING ON THE TABLE. PLEASE SELECT ONE ITEM PER PERSON TO DONATE FOR THE SWAP.

  The crate was on top of a folding table they’d found in the school’s storage. Next to the crate was a large collection of figurines, statues, jewelry, bracelets and other assorted items. None of it looked that valuable. There were probably a hundred small items. Most looked like they had once belonged to a single collection the scavengers had found in a house. The crate was pretty full. Loch didn’t count the items, but he was sure there was an item for at least three quarters of the Clan population so far.

  He wasn’t even sure how many people were in the Clan. That was something Kristin would know.

  “Aren’t they worried someone is going to steal all that?” a woman asked from behind Loch.

  “Why would they? Having all that stuff won’t change their lives. What would be the point in stealing it?” another woman answered.

  Loch didn’t turn around, not wanting them to know he was there. The second woman was right. There was no point in stealing the mostly worthless stuff. Even the jewelry wasn't of high value anymore. There was no point in costume jewelry, which is what was on the table. The real gold or silver jewelry was all claimed by the Crafters, turning it all back into usable materials. The stuff on the table was cheap. What would someone do if they did steal it? All they could do was hoard it. There was no one to sell it off to. No reason to keep any of it.

  “If there’s no value, what’s the point?” the first woman asked.

  “It’s for fun,” the second said. “Just a little something to get us in the spirit and take our minds off…,” she said, trailing off as the two walked out of earshot.

  Loch liked the idea. Ed had formed a committee and they had come up with the idea of the yankee swap. All the items found by the scavengers could just go into the crate, there really didn’t need to be the element of people selecting items, but doing so made it more personal. It meant every item in the crate was one that a fellow Clanmember wanted another Clanmember to have. That made it a little more special. The items were nothing important, just little trinkets. As the Clan grew, the items used would grow in value, but for the first, everyone in the Clan would get something.