Chapter 34: Moonwood

It takes effort to improve. It takes repeated actions, and regular work to improve. Which is what Ellena had to repeat to herself when only half of the great Black Wolf's hide came out usable.

Yes it was still a better percentage than the last few attempts, but she had hoped that all of the great beast would have been available to practise leatherwork with. It was enough to build whatever armour or equipment she wanted, but less than she wanted to experiment with.

Though, in all honesty, there was currently nothing for her to craft. Maybe a little present for Rugtug who had become a regular for tea. Though what could an intelligent Tugglit make use of? A bag for collecting herbs and the like maybe?

More importantly, now that the ex-Human had a huge pile of leather sitting next to her bench and no slowly rotting corpse, she could move on to her other project. It was something that she had been thinking about for a few weeks at least.

It was a weapon. Simply put she needed a weapon. The fight with the Black Wolf pack leader combined with Rugtugs advice made her realise as such. Yes her head was a weapon as were her shields, but she needed something reliable and something that didn’t require her to quite literally put her neck on the line. There were a few things she had to think about before choosing what to wield though.

First off, of course it would have to be something she could make. There was the option of buying or commissioning, but she didn’t exactly have money. Besides, it would feel more personal if homemade.

Secondly, it would need to be something she could make use of with no training as she had never wielded a weapon before. She had, however, wielded a few different farm tools. Not that most of them would have made great weapons. Perhaps a weaponised hoe or pitchfork maybe, but no, the little Mushman already had a weapon in mind.

A simple blunt hammer of some sort. Long like a polearm so she could keep distance from biting jaws and scratching claws. Something that suited her fighting style of hitting as hard as possible. Since she had no experience blacksmithing, she decided to seek the advice of those around her.

“A weapon hmm?” Ellephwen answered, absent mindedly stirring her tea.

“Lass ya entire body is a weapon!”

Ellena looked at the Tugglit deadpan. The last few days he had been visiting even outside of tea time. Instead turning every visit into tea and biscuit time. She appreciated his presence, but it was starting to feel like he took advantage of their hospitality. Though was she any different?

“I’d wather not end evewy day covewed in bite mawks,” she growled.

“She has a good point mister Tug.”

“Please lady Ellephwen, call me Rugtug, I ain’t worth bein’ called mister by ya’s.”

Ellena nodded. “I agree.”

Samora brought over a variety of biscuits. “So, what sort of weapon did you have in mind Ellie?”

The Mushman spread her arms out. “Something long with a big head on one end. A big hammew or mace or something.”

All three of the adults around her practically nodded in unison. Rugtug chuckled dipping a long biscuit deep into his cup.

“Aye, can’t say I’m surprised.”

“I should have expected that from Ellie.”

“It truly could have been nothing else.”

Ellena narrowed her eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Not ta’ diminish ya accomplishments, but ya movements ain’t exactly refined lassie.”

“Honestly Ellie, I love you, but your tactic is generally just to beat something as hard as possible until it falls down. A huge hammer just seems like natural evolution.”

This was something that the Mushman already knew and admitted about herself, but to hear it from these three dug into her for some reason. Perhaps because two of them had never even watched her fight. Not properly at least. She had tactics, it’s just that sometimes cracking someone's skull in half with her own was the most effective one.

“So, should Samora take you shopping sometime, Ellena? There are a few skilled blacksmiths within the Council of Ents territory.”

She shook her head. “No I want to make it myself, I just don’t weally know what matewials to use.”

Ellephwen glanced over at Samora who nodded back. She then grasped her teacup gently in her fingers. “Well. I have an idea for the stave at least.”

“Oh?”

“Something that won't break no matter how much brute force you throw into it. Moonwood.”

Rugtug’s face lit up. “Even this ol’ bastards heard of Moonwood! Ya’ have some?!” He asked excitedly.

Samora cleared her throat. “What I am about to tell you is a secret of the Elves. It isn’t as though telling you is a great crime or something, but it is generally frowned upon. So, therefore so as not to spread it too far, I will ask that Rugtug leaves the home, at least for a moment.”

To some that request may have been seen as an insult, or a challenge. To a relaxed old man like Rugtug, it was simply an inconvenience.

He sighed, grunting as he hopped off of his chair. “Alright, but I’m comin’ back later, yes? You got this old man curious now!”

Ellephwen giggled. “We will inform one of your sentries, young man.”

The three of them watched as the Tugglits left the house, waiting until their presence was far from earshot. Then, Samora moved to her bed pulling a staff from beneath it.

“Moonwood is not a naturally growing tree, Ellena. It is created.”

She placed the staff on the table. It was a dark brown, but looking closely one could see that its form shifted lightly once in a while. It also seemed to shimmer a pale blue at some angles. Sitting opposite Ellena, Ellephwen pulled out a sharp looking carving knife and brought it down on the staff. It bounced off, like it had hit steel, yet neither the knife nor the wood had a single mark.

“I’m so confused,” Ellena stated.

“Moonwood is one of the Elves greatest weapons. With a special chant one can turn any wood of any kind into Moonwood. Then, it becomes close to indestructible,” Ellephwen explained.

Samora sat down next to the Dryad. “Saying that though, outsiders are not forbidden from learning, we generally trust each other not to give the secret to one untrustworthy. Of course, Elves are not perfect creatures so on occasion it has spread too far.”

“What do you do when that happens?”

The Elfs expression turned grim. “An entire village of exceptionally skilled artisans, wiped out in one night.”

“A- Should I learn this?” Ellena chuckled nervously.

Samora went back to smiling. “Of course. I trust you, as does Ellephwen who has a long standing reputation with the Elves.”

Ellena nodded. This would be useful. Very useful. A weapon that she didn’t have to hold back using would come in very handy. “So what do I need to do?”

***

They now stood outside. There were a few logs of various sizes and woods. Samora and Ellephwen stood on one end whilst Ellena stood on the other.

“Now. Whilst I can say the chant and use the magic to a certain degree, it is Earth magic. Which as a Lake Elf I have a little difficult with. So, Ellephwen as a Dryad will demonstrate.”

Ellena raised a hand. “I can’t do magic.”

Samora raised her hand back. “Uh, well. If you’re going to be able to use any kind of magic it would be Earth magic. Given that you’re a Mushman.”

Magic didn’t massively interest the Mushman. Creating nearly indestructible wood did however. So, she nodded and prepared for a lesson.

“Then, I shall begin,” Ellephwen said, raising her hand above one of the wood logs.

Her mouth opened and some sort of sound came out, but it was not any language that Ellena knew. In fact it barely sounded like a language at all. Just flighty whispers and layered muttering.

A pale black of light enveloped the wood, then dissipated. The surface grew darker and the familiar strange features of Moonwood crawled across its ridges. Ellena looked up at Ellephwen, still not entirely sure of what had just happened.

“That’s it?”

“Try hitting it.”

Ellena shrugged, pulled back and launched a headbutt at the log. When she met it, she felt it. A strong pang of pain hit her head and the log dug into the slightly shattered ground. Yet the wood was unscathed.

“Woah,” she replied rubbing her aching head.

A small smile crawled onto the Dryads face. “Woah indeed.”

“In translation, Ellephwen just said ‘Oh wood of the moon, I beseech thee, allow this humble one access to your power’. It’s in primordial Elven. So old that most of our people don’t even remember half of it.”

“How do I leawn it then? Cus what she just said sounded like gibbewish.”

Though it was for but a brief moment. A Terrifying smile appeared on the Elves face. She walked over and placed a firm hand on the ex-Humans shoulder. “Ellie. For both your sake and mine, please do not call my ancient language gibberish.”

Ellena nodded sheepishly.

Samora clapped her hands. “Good. Now being honest in a way you’re not wrong. Primordial Elvish isn’t a language you can just learn. If you could, it wouldn't be so lost. Even this phrase you can’t just repeat the words as you can’t even really hear the words.”

“So how do I leawn it?”

“You have to feel it, my kin,” Ellephwen answered this time. “It is a language of intent. Of communication with the world itself. You may not even be able to learn it. If not I can of course carve your staff for you, but we can still try.”

“So this isn’t going to be a day long lesson then?”

Samora stifled a laugh. “Ellie, do you think the secret to Elven weaponry would be learnt in a day?”

Ellena sighed. She had kind of hoped, but not everything in life goes perfectly like that. Such magic would be a powerful advantage, so she couldn’t complain about actually getting to learn it.

“We’ll begin tomorrow. For now we should invite Rugtug back. He never did get to finish his tea.”

Ellena reluctantly followed them back into the house. Glancing back at the wood all lying in a row. She wanted to practise now, but it was already dark. Not that they couldn’t all see in the dark to some degree.

It was a matter of minutes after alerting the sentries before Rugtug turned back up again. He hobbled over to what had become his chair and got back to his pile of biscuits, happily munching down on them.

“Well, that’s the stave sorted. What about the big hard hitting head you were thinking of Ellie?”

Ellena shrugged. “Kind of why I was asking you guys. A big wock seems like a good idea at fiwst, but it pwobably wont take much punishment.”

“Wew. Iye moight be abel to helhp,” Rugtug mumbled between mouthfuls.

“Oh? Some sort of dungeon material that you know of Rugtug?”

The Tugglit wiped his mouth, letting crumbs tangle in her fur. “Aye. Not ideal of course, cus when is it ever?”

“How so?”

“Well,” he grinned. “It’s the bones of that ol’ rexy we’re gonna fight.”