Chapter 382: What Strength Carries

Ren stepped through the seam onto a solid platform. A square socket lay cut into the stone at his feet, with smooth sides and a flat bottom. Beyond it, the bridge crossed the hall to another platform beneath the hanging block.

’Of course the block was at the other end.’

From here he could see the joints in the bridge. Wide, short deck sections stood in a row, each about a stride long, with narrow gaps between them. Every section rested on its own pier. The piers ended in open air, inscriptions shining beneath their bases.

Short glowing marks ran along both walls, one beside each section. They lay below the deck’s upper surface, leaving room for it to descend before reaching them. Farther down, a continuous line traced the hall beneath the bridge. Ren looked from it to the marks beside the decking.

The cart-sized block hung over a square cut into the far platform. Ledges ran along its sides, and the single chain ended in a hook through a ring on top.

An inscription faced him beside the entrance. The System relayed it privately.

[THE LOAD’S WEIGHT IS FIXED BY ITS FORMATION. CARRY IT TO THE RECEIVING SOCKET, LOADING EACH MARKED SECTION IN SEQUENCE.]

[RESTING THE LOAD ON THE BRIDGE, DRAGGING IT, OR BYPASSING A REQUIRED SECTION DOES NOT COMPLETE THE CROSSING.]

[THE LOAD-BEARING STRUCTURE MAY NOT BE ALTERED OR GIVEN ADDITIONAL SUPPORT.]

[A DECK SECTION DESCENDING BELOW ITS WALL MARK: FAILURE. CLAIMANT DESCENDING BELOW THE LOWER BOUNDARY: FAILURE.]

[SURRENDER ENDS THE ATTEMPT UNDER THE STATED TERMS.]

Ren followed the row of sections with his eyes. Each had an inscription near its edge. Earth supports were ruled out, as was carrying the block past the bridge on heel blooms. He would have to put the load through every section without letting one sink too far.

He stepped onto the first.

The stone took his weight and began to descend. He watched its edge against the wall mark, then shifted his trailing foot off the platform. The deck sank a little faster with both boots on it. There was still space above the limit when he stepped onto the second section.

Behind him, the first rose. It stopped level with the unused decking while the section beneath him continued downward.

Ren walked on, watching each joint as he crossed. The section ahead stood slightly higher than the one carrying him, so he had to lift his boot clear of its edge. Once he moved his weight across, the lower stone recovered behind him.

At the far platform, he turned to watch the last section rise into place.

His passage had left every section well above its limit. That told him how the bridge behaved under his own weight and pack. He looked up at the block. Whatever he could hold in his arms would still have to pass through his boots into the decking.

— • —

Ren checked the marked square beneath the chain, then stepped into it.

The chain paid out. The block descended smoothly and stopped with its top just below his chin. It swayed once before settling, still fully supported.

He moved around it. The side ledges were deep enough for his hands, and their undersides were smooth. Above them, the hook sat in a hinged fitting. Tension held it closed around the ring. A spring would swing it clear when the weight came off.

He would have to take the full weight before the hook let go.

Ren checked the route back to the socket. The block would fit across the decking with room on either side, though he would need to watch the joints past one corner. He tightened his pack straps and settled the harness under his coat. Neither glass guard would sit between his arm and the stone.

He raised Titanhide, placed his hands beneath the ledges and began taking the weight.

The burden reached his forearms, then his shoulders as he straightened. Far more than a piece of stone that size should have weighed. He increased the lift steadily, keeping both hands at the same height.

The block rose.

A finger’s width was enough. The chain slackened, the hook swung out of the ring, and the empty length drew back toward the ceiling. Ren stood on the loading square with the full weight in his hands.

He held it there while checking his grip. The pull stayed constant. He moved his right hand a little farther along its ledge, then raised both ends again.

At the practice hall, his right side had once lagged near the top of a press stroke. He had stopped when the level indicator moved. Here he watched the block’s upper edge against the stonework beyond it as he raised it a little farther.

Both sides came up together.

He brought it closer to his body, keeping it level. Its right corner left him a view of the deck beside his leading boot. He could see the joints without leaning the load onto one shoulder.

Ren settled his elbows and took a breath. The weight was substantial, but he had room to adjust it in his hands. He would need that on the bridge.

He stepped out of the square and toward the first section.

— • —

The deck began sinking as soon as he transferred weight onto it.

Under the block, the descent was much faster. Ren saw the stone’s edge approach the wall mark while his trailing foot left the platform. He kept moving, lifting his next boot over the joint before the height difference grew.

The first section rose behind him. The second sank beneath him, and he crossed that one before it reached its limit.

He could feel the weight through his shoulders on every step. Titanhide remained active as he moved. He kept Holdfast released, letting his feet follow the load instead of fixing them ahead of it.

At the third section, he drew the block slightly closer. The adjustment steadied it without costing him a step. His hands held securely beneath the ledges; he could spare enough attention to check both the next joint and the wall mark beside him.

The fourth crossing went cleanly.

On the fifth, he reached too far with his leading foot.

The block was still back over his trailing leg when he began transferring his weight. Its near edge dipped. Ren caught it with his arms, set Holdfast through the forward boot and stopped to level it.

The block steadied. The deck kept descending.

His trailing foot still touched the previous section, but most of the burden was now over the anchored leg. The forward section had sunk farther than any of the others. He saw the narrowing space between its upper edge and the fixed mark on the wall.

He had corrected the tilt. He was still holding the section down.

Ren released Holdfast, finished bringing the load over his leading leg and stepped through. He lifted his next boot clear of the higher edge and transferred the weight onto the sixth section. The fifth rose behind him before it reached its mark.

He kept walking.

’Venn would have seen that coming.’

In the ring, the instructor had turned Ren’s shoulders while his boots stayed anchored. Ren had freed himself by releasing his footing and moving with the pressure. Here he had fixed one foot before finishing the transfer, then stood on it while his arms did the correction.

He shortened the next step.

His leading boot reached the new section, and he moved his hips and the block forward together before bringing the trailing foot across. The load stayed close. There was no pause with his body stretched between two sections.

The next transfer took the same care. Ren watched the raised edge ahead, placed his foot beyond it and kept the block moving with him. He could feel his shoulders working, but the stone remained level in his hands.

He repeated the movement at the following joint. The pier behind him recovered, bringing the unloaded deck back into line.

There was no need to rush his feet ahead of the block. He had enough strength to hold it where he wanted, and enough time for a short, complete step. He kept his attention on that through the remaining sections.

The ledges pressed firmly against his palms. He adjusted his fingers without shifting the block and carried on. Each section descended while he stood on it; each began recovering once he was clear. None reached its wall mark.

The solid platform was close now. He could see the socket beyond its edge.

Ren kept the last step as short as the others. His leading boot met fixed stone, and he transferred the load before bringing his second foot off the bridge. The final section rose behind his heel.

He stopped with both feet on the platform. The block was still level.

— • —

Ren approached the socket and checked its edges around the block’s base. He shifted his grip enough to align the corners, then bent his knees and lowered it into the recess.

The sides passed the rim without touching. He slowed the last part of the descent until the base met the bottom, then eased the remaining weight out of his arms.

Both hands left the ledges together.

The block stayed level. He looked along its upper edge once more before stepping back. Neither side had dropped as he let go.

Beside the socket, a dark mark lit in the floor.

Ren straightened and took several slow breaths. His shoulders ached from the carry. He lowered his arms, opened his hands and rolled his shoulders while looking back across the bridge.

Every section had returned to its starting height, clear of the marks below. The chain hung empty above the far platform. He could see the fifth section among the others, level again, with nothing to show where he had paused.

He settled the pack against his back. Its straps had held throughout the crossing, and the guards had stayed clear of the load.

A seam opened beside the socket.

Ren approached and looked through the opening into a small room.

A single inscription lit the floor ahead.