The Greystone Chronicles: Book One: Io Online Read online

  As the friends saddled up their mounts, the dwarves hitched up the horse and wagon. They all took a few minutes to load the wagon with some supplies: food; tools; and a few barrels of Brick’s precious ale. The dwarves piled into the wagon and they were off.

  They met the mayor and what was left of his people at the city’s east gate less than an hour after dawn. There were about 40 refugees, mostly women and children. They had managed to purchase some supplies and carts, as well as a few ragged old horses to pull them, though two of the smaller carts were being pulled by men and women. When the goblins attacked, their hunters and most of their able bodied men had held the monsters back while the others fled. Many hadn’t had time to grab anything in the way of possessions before they ran.

  The friends pulled their wagon up at the back of the line of carts. Alexander spoke briefly with the mayor, who walked at the head of the column. Since they were all going to be moving at a walk, Alexander dismounted. Max mounted his panther and ranged out in front of them, making sure their path was clear. They’d follow the road for about a mile, then turn off onto a dirt track leading to the village.

  The Greystone clan spread out, walking along on either side of the caravan, their new mounts walking alongside them. Well, mostly. The big cats kept bounding off and pouncing on fluffy bunnies, much to Brick’s delight. Initially Lainey tried to get skins from the dead rabbits, but the cats simply hadn’t left enough to be useful.

  Brick’s mount, whom he’d officially named Bacon, kept wandering over to snuffle at the base of trees, rooting out acorns or edible fungus of some kind. Twice he simply trotted well ahead of the column, finding a cool patch of mud to plop down in while they caught up, then moving along with them. Brick didn’t seem to mind that Bacon was getting absolutely filthy. It was a battle boar thing.

  The first mile of the trip was uneventful. They reached the turnoff and the carts began to head down the dirt track. Once off the main road, they decided to take a short break, mostly for the benefit of those who were pulling the carts.

  Alexander paused at the junction, and called Brick over. He then reached into the ground and pulled up a six foot column of stone about two feet wide. The mayor joined them, and watched as Brick laid a hand on the stone. The word “Whitehall” and an arrow pointing down the track appeared near the top of the stone. When the mayor looked at him with a question on his face, Alexander explained.

  “We’ve decided to help put Whitehall on the map, as it were. It’s not enough to simply reoccupy your village, you need to establish trade. Recruit new citizens to replace those you’ve lost. Grow crops and craft items that can be sold.” As he was speaking, an idea struck him. He stepped over to the side of the main road, on the corner opposite the new directional sign. He once again reached into the earth, raising stone walls half a foot thick. He raised a back wall, and two side walls, then grew a roof that began at the back wall and extended forward a good 6 feet beyond the ends of the side walls. Then he raised a stone block about 3 feet high along the front of the structure. When he was done, he’d created a very basic stone fruit and vegetable stand with a roof that extended out far enough to keep the goods on display out of the sun and the weather.

  He looked to the mayor. By this time, most of the refugees had gathered around.

  “This is for your people. Merchant caravans and groups of adventurers travel this road every day. With the recent clearing of the bandits, traffic should increase. Your people can set up here and sell fruits, vegetables, craft items, whatever you have available to the groups as they pass. If you are so inclined, it may also give you the opportunity to offer a new home to weary travelers and immigrants that would otherwise never hear of your village.”

  One of the women who had been pulling a cart walked up to him. Clearly exhausted, she gave him a hug that was more of a lean, and said, “Thank you, sir Knight. You have already done more for our village than we can ever repay.”

  Noting how weak the woman was, Sasha reached out to buff her, which led to buffs for all the refugees. Lainey decided it was ridiculous for people to be trying to drag carts two or three miles down the ragged dirt track, so she organized the transfer of all the goods from the carts to their own oversized wagon. Then she stacked the elderly and small children on top. The four people pulling the carts would have to continue to do so, but the empty carts were now much less of a burden.

  Seeing the opportunity to practice his magic, Alexander strode ahead of the caravan. Using his earth mover skill, he smoothed and hardened the trail. He took his cue from what he knew of roads in the real world, and sloped the trail slightly to ensure proper drainage. It took much less effort than raising stone, as he was just modifying the earth that was already there, filling in potholes and leveling out ruts. Still, he needed to stop every twenty minutes or so to rest and rejuvenate his mana. Lainey and Sasha kept a close eye on him the entire time.

  He apologized to the mayor for slowing their pace. He was walking as he worked, but it was not a brisk walk. The villagers were thrilled at the improvements to their road. The smoother track made it easier for all of them to move. The mayor begged him to continue as long as he could. The children, more than able to keep up with the pace, began to make a game of it. They gathered around him to watch his work, then quickly dashed ahead to play “spot the pothole” and “help” him make it all correct. Sasha and Lainey moved forward to watch over the kids, as Brick and Bacon took rear guard.

  Soon bored with the road, the kids had tackled the felines, a few of them riding the big beasts, others running about as if being hunted by the cats, who would pounce and “tag” them before dashing away like giant kittens. Sasha could see the villagers’ mood lightening, their morale rising at the sight of the children at play, safe among the adventurers and mounts. And they were going home. One of the elder men on the wagon began to sing a song. It was a simple song of sunny days and fertile fields. Others joined in. It was a pleasant melody that seemed to raise everyone’s spirits. Even Bacon tried to join in with some snorts here and there, much to the amusement of the children.

  In this manner, they continued down the now improved dirt road. The trip took nearly two hours at the pace Alexander had set, but it was still mid-morning when they reached the village.

  Max was waiting for them at the gate. He had patrolled the area and reported it clear of goblins. Seeing him standing there waving, the villagers cheered and dashed forward to reclaim their home. The others moved the wagon and carts inside the gates as the villagers inspected homes for damage and lamented over destroyed or missing items. While the goblins had mostly left the structures intact, those that hadn’t burned during the attack, they had looted everything of value, destroyed furniture, and consumed all the stored food supplies.

  The mayor called them back together at the center of town, where all the carts were gathered. He directed them in unloading the wagon and carts. Those few with personal belongings moved them to their homes, while the others helped unload the communal supplies they’d purchased. Alexander heard the mayor discussing where to keep supplies.

  “I can help with that,” he volunteered.

  He bade the mayor pick a spot for a warehouse. When the man indicated an area off to the side of the road near the smithy, Alexander went to work. He raised a rectangular stone structure with six inch thick walls, roughly 40 feet by 80. He made the walls two stories tall with small windows every 10 feet or so. He built a stone ramp 8 feet wide that led from the ground floor to the second. He set the height of the second floor at 10 feet, and then created a series of columns to support the weight. Then he repeated the process on the second floor, placing a set of simple stone trusses atop the walls and columns. The village carpenters or the stone masons would have to build the roof. He didn’t have the energy. The higher he lifted the stone, the heavier it became.

  Taking a seat on a stone bench he’d raised for himself, he explained to the mayor, “This warehouse will also work as a refuge for your
people should another attack come. It is much easier to defend a stone structure that won’t burn. You can fire arrows from the windows above, or drop hot oil on your enemies and set them afire without fear of the building burning. If you keep a supply of food, water, bedrolls, and other necessaries upstairs, you could hold out long enough for help to come. Once I’ve rested a bit, I’ll add a rainwater cistern and a fireplace upstairs. If you add a stout door at the top of the ramp, you’ll provide a second line of defense.”

  Thanking him, the mayor directed all the communal supplies to be moved into the new building. Then he announced that any who wished to do so should sleep inside the warehouse for the night. There was room for everyone.

  While Alexander was working on the warehouse, Max and Lainey had set off to patrol in a one mile circuit around the village, searching for any signs of goblins or other mobs. Max took the opportunity to teach Lainey some woodcraft, showing her the shapes of different animal tracks and signs of trails through the brush. They also took the opportunity to do some hunting, bringing back half a dozen deer and several rabbits to add to the village food supply. Brick had gone to the smithy, and was assisting the village blacksmith in setting things to right. Most of the blacksmith’s tools had been found scattered around, but were still intact.

  Sasha had recruited the dwarf crafters to accompany her on a mission to look around the surrounding area for resources. She had questioned the mayor, who said there was a small quarry just north of the village, but that they had never used it as stone blocks were too heavy to move. She took the dwarves and the wagon and headed off to see what they could find.

  Having rested some, Alexander enquired from some of the villagers about the burned down structures. Apparently they had all been small homes, most belonging to those who had perished in the goblin attack, though one of them had belonged to the woman who’d been pulling a cart and her two children.

  So he went back to work. He started with the woman’s home. Clearing the debris that was left on the site of her former home, he then raised four walls in a roughly 40x40 square. He went with a basic plan, a great room in the front of the house with a fireplace. In the back he placed a kitchen, with a door leading out to the back yard. He raised a long stone counter with a built in sink along the back wall below the window. And added a row of shelves off to one side. To the left of the great room he placed a single large bedroom, and two smaller ones on the right. After thinking about it, he added a 6x8 bump-out off the kitchen for a bathroom. He’d get Brick and the crafters to work out the details for plumbing in the kitchen and bath. This time, since it was a small structure and only one floor, he added in thin 4 inch stone trusses and a roof made of 1 inch thick slate that wouldn’t be too heavy for the walls to support. He sloped the roof toward the back of the house, where he added a stone cistern to collect rainwater. He extended the roof forward at the front of the house, creating a small covered porch four feet deep. Lastly, he raised up a stone bench on either side of the front door. With a mind to defense, he’d made all the windows small. He’d get the crafters to create doors and shutters. He hadn’t learned yet how to make hinges.

  Deciding to rest and recharge again, though the structure hadn’t been that difficult, he sat on one of the porch benches and waited for his mana and stamina to recharge. He was staring at nothing, contemplating his next creation, when a small boy stepped cautiously up to him. The boy was trying his best not to cry. “This… this was our house. The monsters burned it down.” He sniffed.

  Alexander lifted the boy, who was maybe 6 years old, and set him on his lap. “This is still your house!” he said. “We killed all those nasty monsters, and you’re safe now. And just in case they come back, I’ve made you this nice stone house that they can’t burn down no matter how hard they try!” he smiled at the boy.

  “This… this is for us? But it’s so BIG!” the boy’s eyes grew wide. His tears completely forgotten. When Alexander smiled again, the boy leapt off his lap, dashing off, screaming for his mother. This of course got the immediate attention of several villagers who looked to see if Alexander was harming the boy in some way. Seeing the new house he was sitting in front of, they began to gather. It wasn’t long before the boy reappeared, dragging his mother by the hand through the crowd. She carried her daughter on her other hip.

  Alexander stood and bowed his head. “I was told that your home was among those that were burned in the attack. I hope this will be an adequate replacement.”

  The woman hugged him again. “My name is Theresa. This is Danny, and my daughter is Chloe. I know not how to thank you for all you’ve done for us. My husband went to defend the gate during the battle, and was likely killed, as he never met up with us in the city. I had no means to rebuild our home, and was prepared to live on the kindness of my neighbors. You have given us a home again, and a fighting chance.”

  Not trusting himself to speak, he motioned for the family to look inside. As he listened to the reactions of the boy running from room to room, he smiled to himself. Then he looked up to the villagers gathered in front of him. “My friends and I will be focused for the next few days on strengthening your defenses. You have a warehouse now, which you can take refuge in if necessary. Brick and I, along with the stonemasons, will be working to rebuild the walls around the village. Our journeyman smith and your own blacksmith will be working to provide basic weapons and tools needed for rebuilding, farming, and crafting.” At this, several of the ladies and a few of the men stepped forward to hug him or shake his hand.

  “Once your walls are secure, I’ll work to replace your lost buildings. Then we’ll tear down and replace the homes of any who desire it. The wood can be reused for other things.”

  At this the gathered villagers raised a ragged cheer.

  Leaving Theresa and her family to get settled with the help of some villagers, he moved down to a section of the road just inside the gate, where three homes had previously stood. Confirming with a passing villager that the owners of those homes had not been among the refugees, he once again went to work. He had a different plan here. This was going to be an Inn.

  First, he began to dig a hole. He cleared away all the surface debris and soil in an area roughly 40 feet by 100 to expose the bedrock about 8 feet down. He then sliced the rock into wall sections of different lengths, ten feet in height and 6 feet thick. He raised them up one by one, building a box around the perimeter of what would become a cellar. With the walls in place, he cut 4 foot square pillars from the stone, standing them up in intervals across the center of the cellar. Then he cut stone beams, and laid them across the width of the cellar, resting atop the beams. Cutting more wall sections, only much thinner this time at only 4 inches thick, he placed them to one side. These would become the floor.

  He took a break, raising a block to sit on. This would be more complicated than he’d expected. He had a basic knowledge of what was needed for a stable structure. But he was no engineer, and he wanted to be absolutely sure these buildings would be safe and would last a long time. He decided to seek some advice.

  Walking back toward the center of town, he grabbed a passing child and asked them to go find Brick for him. He waved and called out to the mayor, who quickly moved to join him.

  “I saw what you did for Theresa and her children. Thank you, Alexander.”

  “Of course, mayor,” Alexander nodded his head. “All part of the service. But I need your assistance, if you would? I’m working on constructing an inn near the gate. But I’m afraid I’ve reached the limits of my expertise. Our stone masons are running about in the woods somewhere, so I cannot ask their advice. Would any of your people happen to be carpenters or builders?”

  “Old Thomas was a carpenter. Though he’s not got the strength for it anymore. His apprentice was killed by the goblins. But I could find you a couple of men who could lift logs at his direction…” the mayor thought about who to assign.

  “No need for the labor. I just need Thomas’ advice. I can m
ove the stone well enough. If you wouldn’t mind sending him down toward the gate?” Alexander waved in the direction of the inn.

  The mayor moved off to find Thomas just as Brick came walking up. Alexander led Brick to the house he had created for Theresa and her family. After calling out for permission to enter, he showed Brick the kitchen and bathroom, quickly explaining what he had in mind for plumbing. Brick confirmed it was easy enough to arrange, that one of the apprentices could even handle it.

  They departed the home and headed toward the inn. Finding Thomas waiting for them, they introduced themselves. Alexander raised two stone benches and a stone block in between for use as a table. Alexander began to explain what he had in mind. As he spoke, the old man produced a charcoal pencil and began to sketch on the stone tabletop. Brick smoothed it out for him to make it easier.

  “You’ve the right idea, sir Knight,” the old man began.

  “Alexander, please. And this is Brick.”

  Thomas nodded and continued. “The pillars be plenty strong to take the weight of three floors, or even four. And you’ve placed them on solid bedrock. So no worries there. The beams be good for distribution of weight. But the walls will tend to push outward as you place more weight upon them, and they’ll shift in the wind. So you have to add brackets to hold them in place. Ideally you could notch the beams where they set on the walls, too.”

  “Brick and his guys can create brackets and bolts, that’s no problem. But how about if I just fuse the stone of the walls together where they join? And do the same with the beams and columns?” Alexander asked.

  Laughing loudly, Thomas nodded his head. “Aye, that’d probably work. Though you don’t want to fuse the beams to the columns. Leave them to move back and forth if needed. But show me what you have in mind, lad.”