rock. It is good to breathe. It builds a strong body.”
“That can’t be right,” Lilah said. “The men are just saying that so the boys keep doing the grunt work.”
“Alpha,” Shinni pleaded, “the mountain, the stone, is a part of us as we are a part of it. We crush stone for many things. We breathe in the dust. It makes us all stronger.”
“She is correct.” Valori joined them. “The rock is essential to our lives. Only strong alphas can be gone long from the rock. We use it in our foods and medicinal needs.” While the elder spoke, the others returned to the garden. Valori put a hand on the arm of the young lady who made the swords in the lava pits.
“Alpha, this is Muriel. She had a strange sickness as a child that took away her ability to speak.”
Lilah smiled. “Yes, we met earlier.” As with the others, Lilah gave her a hug initiating their female bond. When she pulled back, Muriel’s eyes were wide. Had she felt the link too?
Valori continued. “Muriel wants you to know about the ash.”
“Ash?”
“Yes. It’s not a secret among the females, but she wants our alpha female to know. When melting down the rock the boys put into the cauldron—”
The scene in the lava pit popped into Lilah’s head. “That’s what you were doing down there? Melting rocks?”
“Yes. That is how we make the metal items we use. Small particles of iron are mixed with the stone. Only the lava is hot enough to melt the hard material, releasing the metal in a liquid state. It floats to the top, and Muriel pours it into shaped casts. Rock ash is left behind, which she dumps before starting the procedure again.”
“Got it,” Lilah replied. She wondered what else she didn’t know about these people. There was so much to learn. “Now, what about the ash?”
“It is important that you know this. When mixing the metal with a bit of ash, the metal becomes much stronger and can be filed down to a sharp blade.”
“Like your kitchen knives,” Lilah said. She remembered the knives were shiny, and the swords were not.
“Yes,” Valori added. “Muriel made those for us. She combined the ash and sharpened them to the point they would cut rock.”
“Yowzer,” Lilah replied. “I can see myself slicing all my fingertips off.” She rubbed her fingers against her palms. “So why are the swords not shiny like your knives?”
Both fae’s expressions turned angry. “Because the smith refuses to take the time to understand her. Even when I told him about this, he chose to ignore it, saying a female wasn’t smart enough to know that. He would never let her make the mixture.”
“Do you use the knives to protect yourselves?” Lilah wondered if this could be a way for the ladies to remind the men they weren’t in charge anymore. A little nick on the arm would be a good equalizer.
“No,” Valori answered. “We have our nibblers for that.”
“A what?” Lilah hadn’t heard that word before.
Valori and Muriel reached under their blanket coveralls and pulled out gadgets that basically were rock slings. Lilah didn’t know whether to laugh or be afraid for their safety.
Muriel loaded her sling with a rock, then twirled the long strings at her side, building speed and momentum as it circled around and around. With a flip of her wrist, the rock shot out like from a gun. She aimed at a gourd sitting on the ground by the garden. Next thing Lilah knew, the gourd exploded like a bomb had been inside it. Flecks of mushed melon rained down. If that had been someone’s head, the mush matter would’ve been made of brains. Eww.
“Does everyone have one of those?” she asked.
“Only the females. We carry them at all times.”
Lilah smirked. “I bet the men think those are useless, right?”
Valori and Muriel looked at each other than at her. “How did you know?”
Lilah winked at them. “I’m the alpha female, yes?”
One of the Gnoleon had noticed the weapon exhibition. “Do that again,” he said. “That was amazing.” He put a smaller melon on a stump.
Valori pulled out her nibbler, loaded a rock into the pouch, and swirled it until it spun so fast it was a blur. She flicked her wrist, and a blink later, the gourd had a single hole in the front. The man lifted the melon and turned it. The entire backside had blown out. Once again, the fallout would’ve been brain matter.
Okay, she had