Old Xu led the Shell-People into a circle, squatting by the yet-to-erupt fountain and extending their hands into the pool.
Shells flowed down the Shell-People's arms and into the water, quickly reaching the bottom of the pool.
The pool wasn't deep. The shells spread continuously along the bottom until they had covered it completely.
The shells also burrowed toward the bottom of the pool, beginning to fill the crevices in the rock.
The hard rock crevices crushed some of the shells that delved too deep, but the resulting fragments plugged the gaps completely.
The ever-spreading shells compacted the fragments, pressing them deeper into the rock.
Soon, all the rock crevices were covered by branching patterns of shells.
The Shell-People all looked exhausted. Even just squatting, some began to sway as if they were about to collapse, their strength failing them.
