The Greystone Chronicles: Book One: Io Online Page 34

  The others were quickly introduced, and the king thanked them all for their adventurous spirit. There were two retired guards, both had been sergeants. There was a carpenter and his family, including two sons who were apprentices. Alexander advised them to seek out Thomas once they were settled. There was a farmer who was tired of dealing with dire wolves (his farm had been west of the city) and his family. Also a priest who wished to build a small chapel.

  “The will be more coming over the next few days. I’ll leave you a list,” The captain said.

  Still concerned about Millicent, the king said, “Millicent, come with me. Alexander here is going to build you a new home. There are some areas that have become empty where homes were burnt down. We’ll let you design the house as he builds it! First though, let’s pick a spot.”

  He offered the woman his arm, and they slowly toured the village. Lydia had come along with the captain, and she and Sasha and Lainey went to go see about cooking a meal for everyone. Fitz heard the word ‘food’ and followed them. Max went to talk to the carpenters about finishing the floors and walls of the inn, as they were expecting more people soon. Brick stayed with Alexander to work on Millicent's home. He motioned for the two stone masons to join them.

  Millicent chose a spot about halfway between the gate and the mayor’s house. Alexander proceeded to clear the topsoil in preparation for building.

  “Now, Millicent. The first question you must answer is, what do you want Alexander to build? Is this just a home for you and your lovely girls? Or do you want a bakery as well?”

  Alexander was glad the king asked, because he hadn’t wanted to bring it up himself.

  “I intended to come here and just retire quietly,” Millicent said. “A little house, a garden, a little peace. But now that I see these people, how little they have and how they’re suffering, and I think maybe I’d like to help. All I know is baking, though my girls are both good seamstresses. I don’t know how long I’ll have the energy, but if you’ll make me a small bakery, I’ll do what I can. Maybe I’ll find an apprentice here, teach them what I know and then just supervise.” She smiled and patted the king’s arm.

  I caught the king’s attention and mouthed “Theresa” at him. His smile grew bright, and he sent one of his guards off to fetch her.

  Alexander raised two tables and four benches just off the street in front of where he was about to build Millicent's home and bakery. He figured later on customers could sit and eat pastries. She and the king sat down, and Alexander sat as well. This was going to be a lot of work. Brick produced a charcoal pencil and they sat down across from the king. After some discussion with Millicent and her daughters about the size and shape of the home, and the space needed for the bakery, they had a rough plan sketched out on the table. He was ready.

  He began as he had with the inn, cutting out sections of stone for walls, columns, and beams, creating a cellar. This time he remembered early to add a ramp access from ground level. The footprint of the building was 40 by 40 feet, and it would be two storey. Once he’d set up the wall sections and removed all the stone from the cellar, he raised three columns, placing one every ten feet down the center of the room. He then set cross beams on them, and laid a 6 inch thick stone floor on top. He opened a slot in the back corner for a stairwell, then grew one up from the cellar floor. He made the first floor walls 2 feet thick, just to be safe. Millicent's design had the entire back of the first floor as kitchen, storage, and general work areas. He added interior walls, dividing the kitchen and storerooms in the back from the 20x20 customer area in the front. The other half of the front side he left as a “room to be named later”. Having enough walls to bear the weight of the upper floor, he ran 3” stone flooring to begin the next level. Plenty thick enough to support the weight of furniture and such, but light enough not to stress the structure. For the upper floor he used 1 foot thick exterior walls. He added in divider walls to create a master suite with its own bathroom, a suite for each of the girls, and a guest suite. As he reached this point, Fitz appeared, holding his dwarven spirits in one hand, and a block of cheese in the other. He insisted that Alexander adjust the walls a bit, extending the end of the upper hall, above one of the kitchen pantries. Alexander complied, then moved on to the roof. He set beams across the tops of the walls, again having plenty of bearing walls to support them. Then he created a set of lightweight stone trusses sloping the roof from front to back. He added an inch-thick stone roof with several openings that Brick would fill with glass skylights. Then Alexander raised a platform at the back of the house, and added a rainwater cistern. They were going to install real plumbing, with water sourced from the same underground spring that fed the village well. But he wanted a backup just in case.

  Alexander sat down to rest, while Brick and Fitz moved into the house. Fitz created some doors and shutters, which Brick began to hang, starting with the front door of the shop. While he did that, Fitz went into the kitchen and created two large ovens, two small ovens, two sinks, yards and yards of countertop. He added shelves on each side of the pantries, and created the staircase leading up to the 2nd floor, right above the one leading down to the cellar. Then he putzed around, enchanting the ovens, turning one of the pantries into cold storage, etc. Brick came in and worked the stone to form water supply and drain pipes in the walls for the kitchen and bathrooms. Fitz then created a channel directed toward the underground creek, and put an enchantment on it to draw water on command. He put another enchantment on the cistern to heat the water inside, and had Brick add a supply pipe for that as well. Now the kitchen and baths would have hot water as well as cold.

  While Alexander went back inside to create display counters in the bakery and add fireplaces in various rooms, Fitz commandeered all 12 of the guards who came with the captain’s group. He loaded them in the large Greystone wagon, and without hitching up the horse, teleported them away. Fifteen minutes later, Fitz and the guards reappeared with a wagon full of furniture. He had taken them back to Millicent's house and grabbed all of her furniture. The guards immediately began carrying beds and chairs and tables into the house.

  The king motioned for his escort to help. The guard had managed to track down Theresa, and she arrived carrying her daughter, Danny trailing behind. The king stood to greet her, and whispered for a few moments in her ear. Her eyes grew wide, and she nodded her head yes, smiling. “Millicent, this is Theresa,” he said, leading the woman over to where Millicent was sitting. “Theresa lost her husband and her home in the goblin attack. Alexander was kind enough to provide her with a home this morning, but she still needs a way to support herself. I believe she’d make an excellent baker’s apprentice.”

  Millicent began to cry. Fitz literally shoo’d away the king, sat down next to her and gathered her in a hug. “All of this, for me?” she whispered.

  “All of this for the woman who slipped extra pastries to a young prince to give to a grumpy old man,” Fitz said as he hugged her tighter.

  As the last of the furniture went inside, Fitz lifted Millicent to her feet. He escorted her inside to look around. She kept crying over every little detail, saying it was too much. Her daughters were crying as well. When they had finished touring the first floor (there was nothing really to see in the cellar that she hadn’t seen before it was closed off), Millicent paused at the stairs.

  Her daughters moved to help her climb, but Fitz stopped them. “She can get upstairs on her own,” he said. Taking her hand, he led her into the pantry. On the back wall was a full length mirror. He stood her in front of the mirror, looked over her shoulder at their reflections, and said, “Upstairs.”

  From the second floor they heard a surprised, “Oh, my!” followed by a faint giggle. They ran up the stairs to find her standing next to Fitz in the extended section of hallway he had insisted upon. There was a matching mirror on the back wall. He had created a teleport for her.

  “All you have to do is look into the mirror and say ‘upstairs’ or ‘downstairs�
�� and it will send you there. You can do the same in the cellar,” he said to her. She blushed and thanked him, then toured the upstairs. Reaching her bedroom, she said she was a bit tired and would like to rest for a bit. The king kissed her forehead and bade her farewell. Reminding her that she was always welcome at the palace, no invitation needed. They all left her and her family to get settled, and headed back outside.

  “Thank you, all of you. Especially you, old goat. Who knew you had such a soft heart?” the king chuckled.

  “If you could make pastries like she does, I’d be nicer to you, too!” Fitz returned.

  Lydia walked up to them, hugging her brother. “Dinner’s about ready,” she said.

  “I’m afraid I cannot stay,” the king said sadly. He let out a long sigh, then took a more formal tone. “I’m glad things here are so well in hand. Captain, I look forward to a report on the dungeon as soon as possible. Fitz, please stay here and help Alexander with the perimeter walls. He’s pushing himself too hard, even if it is for good cause.” Fitz nodded his head and slapped Alexander on the back of his.

  “Lydia? Are you coming back with me? Or would you like to stay a while?”

  “There’s so much to do here, I think I’ll stay a day or two.” Lydia hugged him again.

  “Very well then. Time for us to go. Thank you all again for your kindness and hard work here. It will be remembered. Fitz, if you would?” The king and his escort grouped up, and disappeared. The captain took control of the guards, assigning them shifts and patrol routes. The rest of the group headed back toward the warehouse, where a large meal had been prepared for everyone.

  Once everyone had been fed, they organized sleeping arrangements. Most of the villagers elected to sleep in their own homes, feeling secure with the guards and adventurers there. The captain and Lydia elected to accept an invitation to stay with the mayor. The remaining villagers and new residents set up bedrolls in the upper floor of the warehouse. Alexander and the rest decided to sleep in the first floor of the inn. The guards were setting up in the barracks by the gate.

  The companions all called their mounts to them, then set them loose outside the walls to hunt and forage at will. One of the guards was detailed to let them back in the gate when they were through.

  With that resolved, they all enjoyed a well-earned night’s rest.

  The next day began much as the last had ended. They gathered by the warehouse for breakfast, before Alexander, Fitz, and Brick went to work creating homes for those who still needed them.

  The captain, Max, and Lainey rode out to scout the area around the dungeon. The captain intended to poke his head inside, just to see what he could see.

  Sasha and Lydia took the two sergeants and the remaining big cats and Bacon out into the forest to find herbs for making potions. Bacon was quickly sent back, as he kept eating the herbs before they could be collected. The sergeants were there partly for security, and partly to learn the lay of the land.

  The new carpenter and his sons went with Thomas to the inn. After a short discussion, all but Thomas went out to cut some timber. Two guards were sent along with the big wagon to bring back the lumber. The farmer climbed atop one of the towers and surveyed the area around the village. Finding a likely spot not far from the gate and just off the side of the road, he headed down to walk the land and check the soil. Seeming more than satisfied, he went back and retrieved his horse and plow, and began to turn the soil. The tower guard kept watch over him as he worked.

  After a few hours’ work, Alexander, Fitz, and Brick had finished constructing homes for the day. Rather than going to work on the walls, which were already serviceable, Fitz suggested they go to work on a plumbing and sewage system for the village. So they delved down into the earth, redirecting small underground streams into the natural spring that already fed the well. Then they narrowed the fissure that pushed the water up to the well, creating greater pressure. From there, they created a series of larger main line pipes that transported water to different quadrants of the village. Then smaller pipes branched off of those to run along a line of houses. And from there, smaller lines branched off into the homes themselves. Fitz showed Brick and Alexander how to cast the spell that would allow the water to be turned on and off at the touch of a ‘lever’, and the spell to infuse a pipe with heat for hot water lines. They stopped at lunchtime. The adventurers had agreed to join the captain at the dungeon after lunch to get a report, and potentially to clear the dungeon.

  The group, including Lydia and Fitz, made their way to the dungeon entrance. Once they were all together, the captain updated them.

  “We stepped inside. If there are not goblins in there now, there were recently. I didn’t see anything living, but we don’t go more than a few steps. I think we should check out the first floor, at least.”

  As there were too many for a normal dungeon group, Alexander formed a raid, and invited everyone. Sasha, Lainey, Lydia, and Fitz all cast buffs that between them raised every major stat. Then the group stepped inside.

  They were standing in a rectangular room, maybe 20 feet deep, that led to a stone corridor. Torches on the wall provided meager light that faded into the distance. They paused for Alexander to use his earth magic and get a sense of the dungeon. He closed his eyes, and dove into the ground with his mind. He could not get much info on the first floor, other than what was within sight. This magic only let him see what was underground. It did let him detect underground traps in the first floor, though. He could sense another level of tunnels below, stretching out several hundred yards in a rough square around them. He took a minute to describe what he saw, following tunnels around to find the occasional dead end. He also noted several traps set in the ground and the walls, which he called out. Fitz was making a map as he spoke. Alexander then moved down and found a third level of tunnels. He took a few minutes to describe those as well. Below the third level was only a single stairway leading down to a large room. He had no way to tell what was in the room, but assumed it must be a boss room or a portal chamber.

  The group moved forward. As usual, Brick was in the lead. Lainey, Max and Alexander followed next, then Sasha, Lydia, and Fitz, with the captain bringing up the rear.

  The corridor extended on for another 50 yards before opening into an empty room with a door on each of the other three walls. Not having any particular indicators on which way to go, they chose the left hand door. Following a short corridor, they approached a round room with a domed ceiling. About 50 feet wide, the room’s floor sloped down toward the center. At the low spot sat a large glowing red crystal that gave off heat the group could feel from the corridor. Piled around the crystal, seemingly all asleep, were imps. “Well, that answers that question,” the captain whispered.

  Demon Imp

  Level 25

  Health 1200/1200

  Easy enough. With the DPS this group could generate, an imp would die in seconds. The problem was, there were roughly 30 of them, all piled together. To aggro one would mean to pull them all. And imps could cast magic. Usually fire balls and dark missiles.

  Alexander had an idea. He motioned for the group to move back, then whispered his plan. Fitz actually chuckled. They moved forward again. First, he used earth mover to raise a wall about 4’ high across the corridor at the entrance. Then he reached out with his mage sight and earth magic to carefully examine the crystal in the center of the room. It was a large chunk of simple quartz, heated with magic. He took a moment to study the heat spell with his mage sight before he reached into the crystal with his earth mover skill.

  When he was ready, he raised his hand, and Brick, who had climbed up on the wall in the corridor, began to curse loudly. The imps awoke with a cacophony of screeching and gibbering as they stood. Brick dragged his hammer across his shield, activating its taunt ability. Then he hopped down behind the wall and shouted, “Now!”

  Alexander pumped a massive burst of mana into the crystal, and willed it to burst. Even behind the wall, the group fe
lt the blast of heat as they heard an explosion, followed by the screams of imps, and the sound of a thousand small impacts against the wall.

  After waiting a second to make sure the fire had dissipated, Alexander lowered the wall and Brick stepped into the room, shield up and ready.

  He needn’t have worried. There wasn’t a live imp anywhere in the room. There wasn’t even a remotely whole imp. The room was painted with black blood spatters and scorch marks. Pieces of imp dripped from the ceiling.

  Level up! You are now level 17!

  Your wisdom has increased by +1. Your intelligence has increased by +1

  You have 6 free attribute points available

  Not bad! Killing 30 imps roughly 10 levels above us is good xp.

  Max and Lainey looted what was left of the corpses, while Fitz cast a detection spell looking for any hidden caches or secret doors. Finding none, and seeing no other exits from the room, they headed back the way they came. Arriving back in the room with four doors, they opened the next door to their left. This one revealed a long straight corridor that contained one of the underground traps Alexander had identified. A hidden spike pit spanned the width of the corridor and was about a dozen feet wide. Before heading down, they decided to open the last door in the room. The captain didn’t want to leave potential enemies behind them.

  The last door opened to reveal a shorter corridor that ended in a T intersection. The group advanced, and Max stealthed to move ahead and check the cross-corridor. “Hallway’s clear, closed doors at either end,” he reported in raid chat. The rest of the group moved to the intersection, and Alexander motioned toward the right hand door. Opening the door, Brick peered into the room. There was a group of half a dozen imps working in what was clearly a large kitchen. One imp, larger than the rest, had a chef’s hat on its head, and was working with two cleavers. They were preparing meat of some kind, chopping, seasoning, and skewering chunks to be set over a fire. A small cage with a pathetic looking goblin in it spoke volumes about what kind of meat the imps were cooking.