Gabriel and Mouse arrived at the forest that bordered Gabriel’s new barony. Mouse jumped off and said he will come over to Eagle Peak when he finishes [Fortuna]’s quest. Gabriel waved goodbye and continued on towards the village at the base of Eagle Peak.

Gabriel let [Alastor] have his head, with increased speed the pair closed the distance in a short twenty minutes. Gabriel rode with a smile on his face, just enjoying the breeze blowing through his hair. He silently crossed over the borders of his new territory, only accompanied by the sounds of [Alastor]’s hooves; galloping along the grass road. Arriving at the outskirts of the shanty town, Gabriel inspected the area from atop his horse, as he brought [Alastor] down to a trot.

The houses were mostly built from found timber and shoddily constructed. There were large gaps for the outside elements to enter the homes. One house even had its partially thatched roof caved in. Gabriel could see a sickly middle-aged man inside the shack, using the roof thatch as a makeshift blanket.

‘If it began to rain or a wild monster was in town. These people are entirely exposed’. Gabriel thought as he walked [Alastor] through, what was the supposed main street and took in all of the miserable sights the shanty town had to offer. Most of the villagers poked their heads out of their shacks to throw fearful looks in Gabriel’s direction but none approached. A certain feeling of gloom hung in the air.

Gabriel dismounted [Alastor], he stood next to the broken fountain where his party had first met [Sarah]. Gabriel put two fingers in his mouth and produced a loud whistle. The sound carried across the silently dying village, at the sound of the whistle, the villagers began to move in his direction. With the gathering crowds malnourished and dirty figures, Gabriel was reminded of a swarm of Draugr.

“People of Eagle Peak, please gather to me. I have an announcement to make!” Gabriel shouted. He tried his best to put on a non-hostile and approachable face.

The attempt was a little ruined, considering Gabriel was still decked out in he’s battle gear. Luckily most inhabitants of the world of [Valhalla], were used to people carrying weapons and armour everywhere they go. The half-starved villagers made their way to Gabriel, some looked down trodden and broken. Others gave him looks of anger mixed with fear.

Gabriel surveyed the gathering crowd and saw a familiar face; [Sarah]. She stood hand in hand with a young woman, by their matching features she appeared to be [Sarah]’s mother. The two were standing at the forefront of the crowd. A young boy held [Sarah]’s other hand, he had the awkward build of someone just hitting their teen growth spurts. The boy was one of the few Villagers that looked at Gabriel, not in fearful hostility, but with shiny eyes of curiosity.

‘That must be [Billy], the boy the [Wolfpack] saved as I was busy flying’ Gabriel thought when he saw the boy.

“Hello everyone, my name is [Baron Osiris]. I have just been given the Barony of Eagle Peak. I am now in charge of these lands and its people.” Gabriel announced, allowing a pause to let the news sink in.

The crowd broke out into hushed whispers at Gabriel’s words. A tension filled the air. The Villagers didn’t actually fear having a new lord all that much, most people feared the actions of [Baroness Mengrel] and her Coven, when they found out these lands had been taken over.

“Now, I know these lands were once apart of [Baroness Mengrel]’s lands and you have lived under a blanket of fear for a long time. Some of you may be thinking, she might send her evil coven to exact revenge on these lands. I promise you, that will not happen! In only two days, the Imperium Army will be marching on that Witch’s personal fortress and they will put her down once and for all.” Gabriel declared. The crowd slightly settled down at his words, some unconsciously leaning closer to him, but others still had many questions and worries.

“What do you want from us then!? Are you expecting us to pay taxes! We have nothing left; we barely have enough food to feed the children we have left!!” A large bear of a woman yelled from within the crowd.

‘My god woman. You don’t look like you ‘barely’ have enough to eat.’ Gabriel thought while having to crane his neck to match the woman’s eyes.

“I will not be asking for taxes. As this is now my lands, you are now my people and under my care. I have already organized some foodstuffs to be delivered today, with a stock of lumber and workers to fix up some of these homes.” Gabriel said.

The crowds appeared to brighten up considerably, after hearing those words. Especially after hearing about that food would be coming soon. Gabriel continued when the crowd quieted down again.

“This will not be permeant though. I will be making a plan for you all to receive new homes. What I need from you now is some patience. Tomorrow I will be taking a census of every villager on my lands. What your skills are and your current needs. I will be going towards the manor on top of Eagle Peak now, to make a plan to hopefully create a paradise of a city you can be proud of. I will need someone to let me know when the delivery arrives though, can somebody help me with that?” Gabriel declared.

[Billy] and [Sarah] both shot their hands up. Gabriel chuckled at the two.

“You can both come together, that way you can keep each other safe. I will mark a trail of torches through the cave so you don’t lose your way. Please let me know once the delivery arrives and everyone else! Please don’t take anything from the carts until I arrive. It is to make sure I can count the goods, so the trader hasn’t stitched us up.” Gabriel said, he walked over to the two young ones and passed them two Silver coins, that had the number 100 stamped on them, each.

The kid's eyes shined at the sight of the coins, as Gabriel waked away. The crowd didn’t disperse when Gabriel left and stood around talking about their new Lord. Most of the villagers did not hold much hope he was going to be better than any of their previous lords, they imagined he would just use them up until they held no worth. These villagers were all a part of another barony previously run by horrible Baron that mistreated them, they finally fled together and arrived here, just to be used as experiments by the Witches.

It was safe to say that most of the adults at Eagle peak, had next to no faith in Nobles left. The kids however stood around each other and gazed at [Billy] & [Sarah], the other kids eyes reflected plain envy at the silver coins in their grasps. The children talked about all the different armour and weapons the ‘strange’ new lord had on him. [Sarah] and a couple of the other young women, were more interested in Gabriel’s beautiful, giant black horse. With its silver mane that seemed to dance in the wind, it appeared like an Emperor’s horse to their minds.

Gabriel trudged on the trail that led up the side of the mountain, aptly named Eagle Peak, once half way he arrived at the cave entrance. It was wide enough to ride a horse drawn cart through. Gabriel still planned to hire some miners though to widen the entrance and make choke points throughout the cave. Right now it provided the only access point to the manor up top and Gabriel wanted it to be easily defensible.

Gabriel made his way through the cave entrance leading [Alastor] behind him, the horse took slow hesitant steps, as the whites of its eye was reflected by the dim torch light. Gabriel gently stroked the horse’s muzzle, as he continued to lead him up and out of the cave.

The pair reached the flattened mountain top that gave the Mountain its name. They made their way across the clearing towards the Pagoda. Passing through the opened gates of the now silent compound. The perverted statues, stood as the lone sentries in front of the multi-layered building. Gabriel visibly shivered as he stopped in place, sandwiched between the statues, a feeling of someone creeping up behind came upon him. Throwing a look over his shoulder, he saw nothing but [Alastor] looking back at him. His gaze travelled over the front lawn; its clumps of brown dried grass blew in the slight breeze. Reaching the statues, Gabriel stared into the carved eyes of the [Horned One], the feeling of being watched travelled across his body again even more strongly than before.

“Well, [Alastor]. I think one of the first things I am going to ask the miners to do, when they get here, is to smash these creepy statues to pieces. Don’t you agree boy?” Gabriel asked, stroking his horse’s muzzle again, but [Alastor]’s wasn’t the one in need of comforting strokes.

Gabriel took quick steps and arrived at the stairs leading to the front sliding doors. He let [Alastor] roam on his own within the compound walls. Entering the Pagoda, Gabriel was met with pure silence inside, only now broken by the squeak of his leather shoes on the wooden floor boards. Gabriel remembered most of this Pagoda when he was here last time with the [Wolfpack]. However, as they were only scouring the floors quickly in the search for enemies, Gabriel didn’t take a proper look around.

Gabriel didn’t know if it was the Witches or villagers below, but the building was now barren of all furnishings. The first floor was just a large open room, taking up the entire floor, it held two entrances. One, the way Gabriel entered and the other was located at the opposite end. The back entrance was another sliding door that led to a small unused garden area, complete with a tiny rundown tool shed. The walls of the compound only covered the front, the back was open to the sky, it led to a cliff face that ended in a rounded edge.

Gabriel climbed the stairs that led to the second floor and arrived before a hallway that ended with another set of stairs. Each side of the corridor held two sliding doors. Gabriel peaked inside each, only seeing nothing but empty air, he didn’t bother to linger long on this floor. The third-floor stole Gabriel’s full attention as he entered. It was split into three separate rooms, with a short corridor. Straight on the left was a sliding door that opened onto a large room, with soft matted flooring.

Gabriel remembered this room from his past visit, unlike the rest of the house it still held a couple of items. At the back of the wall was multiple empty weapon racks and man-sized armour mannequins, Gabriel felt the soft flooring with the tip of his boot. It reminded him of the mats at his dad’s training centre. Continuing down the short corridor, Gabriel arrived at a set of doors. These were the only doors in the entire Pagoda-styled manor that was made out of thick solid wood and held a door knob and lock.

Gabriel entered the door on his right first, receiving a satisfying click as the latch unlocked and the door swung open. Inside was a simple study room, it held only three things. A plain, brown wooden desk and chair combo on one end facing the door. The last and most important item was a round table, it was just above Gabriel’s waist in height. On the table was a map that showed a bird’s eye view of the Barony of Eagle Peak. It was a miniature 3D map, that held incredible detail. Gabriel peered at what was the tiny cluster of shacks at the foot of the mountain. Gabriel could even make at small figures moving around.

Gabriel leaned back slightly and eyes widened at the sight. He watched the tiny figures moving around for a little while, before reaching his hand forward to touch one of them. His hand went through the image like smoke. Receiving a notification for his action, Gabriel rubbed his hands together in excitement.

[You have accessed the Territory Map Menu, options and details of current lands are as follows. Note: You and two other people can have access to this menu. To allow access, see [Steward] tab]

Gabriel saw a screen that was similar to his character menu but also vastly different. There were multiple tabs he could choose from some of which appeared greyed out not allowing him access at this point. Gabriel clicked [Territory Status] first.

Territory:

Barony of Eagle Peak

Parent Kingdom:

Imperium Empire

Tier:

1

Current owner(s):

Baron Osiris

Villages:

1

Towns:

0

Cities:

0

Total Population:

74

Total Weekly Revenue:

0

Tax Rate:

0%

Total Public Order:

-20 (Unhappy, Starving)

Monthly Migration:

0

Treasury:

0

Monthly Wages:

0

The lands consisted of very little and the starving villagers contributed nothing to improving the current state, the table was bare at best. Gabriel selected the tab [Villages] and it brought up a list that held only one name, it simply read “Shanty Town”. Selecting the Village name brought with it another table and a set of options. Below the screen in front of Gabriel's eyes, the table that held the view of his territory, it zoomed in on the shanty town, the change in view caught his attention. Gabriel could use his fingers to zoom in closer or pull out and move around.

Gabriel played with this option for a moment and could even vaguely make out the sight of [Sarah] and the other kids playing tag when he zoomed in on them. Looking back to the new table and options, Gabriel read through them all slowly, not wanting to miss a thing.

Village:

Shanty Town

Tier:

1

Population:

74

Public order:

-20 (Unhappy, Starving)

Guards:

0

Buildings:

38 (List truncated)

Constructions Queued:

0

Weekly Income:

0

[Available Building Blueprints:]

INSULAE: (Dwelling) (40 Pop limit)

Cost: 50 x Units of Lumber – 50 x Units of Mud Brick

Description: Eight apartment blocks, built around a staircase and central courtyard. Each apartment consists of two rooms. (Can be rented or bought out as a whole or separate) Build Time: 1 Day.

DORMUS: (Dwelling) (10 Pop Limit)

Cost: 75 x Units of Lumber – 75 x Units of Fired Clay Bricks

Description: A single or two-family dwelling divided into two main parts, atrium and peristyle. Consisting of multiple rooms. (Rented or bought as a whole) Build Time: 2 Days.

AQUEDUCT: (Public Works)

Cost: 100 x Quarried stone (Varies depending on height & length)

Description: A series of pipes, tunnels, canals, and bridges. Channels water from a freshwater source, such as a lake or spring. Build Time: Minimum 1 Day, may require more time depending on size and distance from water source..

BARRACKS: (Military) (200 Pop Limit) (Upgradeable)

Cost: 50x Units of Lumber – 50 x Quarried Stone

Description: Barracks to house soldiers and a Centurion. Comes with large open training ground. Build Time; 1 Day.

PALISADE: (Defence) (Upgradable)

Cost: 100x Units of Lumber (Varies depending on height & length)

Description: Defensive wall made from wooden stakes. Comes with gated entrance and singular guard towers. Build Time: Minimum 6 hours, may require more time depending on height and length of the wall.

STOREHOUSE: (Public Works) (Upgradeable)

Cost: 25 x Units of Lumber – 100 x Units of Mud Brick

Description: Durable building built for storing valuable commodities. Comes with Guard house and Iron locked door. Build time: 1 Day

MILLET CROP FIELD:

Cost: 10 x Units of Millet Seed (Varies depending on size)

Description: A grain-based crop field. For every 100 Feet of Millet, produces 10 x Units of Grain. Harvest time: 10 Days.

As the Barony of Eagle Peak was an undeveloped territory. Gabriel had limited supplies and only the basic blueprints. To upgrade his Barony’s overall Tier, he first needed to have at least one Tier-1 Town and one Tier-1 Village.

Gabriel checked through the rest of the [Territory Menu]. Majority of the left-over tabs remained greyed out, which included, [Trade and Diplomacy], [Military], [Resource Production] and [Edicts]. One option Gabriel could access though was [Territory Quests].

There were three options in this section, [Imperium Issued Quests], [Territory Issued Quests] and [Baron Issued Quests]. Clicking on them gave Gabriel a brief description that boiled down to, Imperium issued quests are issued from the higher echelon of the Empire, like the [Chancellor] or the [Emperor] himself.

[Territory Issued Quests] are system generated and could be completed by Gabriel or the occupants of the territory under Gabriel’s orders. They consisted of clearing out threats to the lands or defense requests. The last one [Baron Issued Quests], was quests issued by Gabriel himself. He could make a quest for almost anything, it would then be placed on a noticeboard in the Villages, Towns or cities of his choosing. Players or Citizens based in his territory could complete them. Gabriel had to also provide the rewards. If you posted something ridiculous, for example; kill 10x Ogres for 10 Gold. It would never get completed and the native population can even become disgruntled at the inane request and reward, making public order fall.

Gabriel had only one quest available for accepting, that was a [Territory Issued Quest]. Gabriel clicked on the accept button and received the quest.

[Territory Quest Received! Clear Water (Advanced)]

Task 1. The local underwater spring has stopped producing water to the Manor and local Village. Find out the reason and return access to water on your lands – 0/1

Extra Information: The local fountain in town has stopped flowing, it is connected to the underground spring below Eagle Peak Mountain. There was once an entrance to the spring behind the Mountain, it has not been used for months and the Villagers are too scared to enter, due to hearing strange noises coming from the entrance.

Rewards:

EXP: 3000 Public Order increased by +10 Building Blueprint (Basic) Access to Fresh Water in [Eagle Peak Manor] and [Shanty Town]

“Well, that is some piss poor experience but I suppose the quest isn’t really for increasing personal levels.” Gabriel said to himself.

Gabriel noticed movement on the map table, a train of horse drawn carts had just entered his territory. Their little icons were steadily moving and Gabriel gauged that it would take about an hour to reach Shanty Town.

“I have got to change that name first; this will eventually be the main city of my territory.” Gabriel said out loud.

Re-entering the Territory Menu, Gabriel accessed [Shanty Town] village and changed its name to [Babylon]. Then opening the construction menu, Gabriel put several orders in a queue. He first scrapped half of the shacks in the village, showing him that if demolished, he would receive a couple units of lumber.

The map table removed the icons for the shacks, Gabriel chose then to place two [Insulae] next to each other with a gap between for a cart to drive through. Sorting out the new homes for his current citizens, he moved on and placed a 10-foot high [Palisade] in a square, encompassing 4 miles of land. Moving his finger across the map table, the 3D image of a wooden stake wall came into being following his finger.

Gabriel put the main gates facing the direction of Roma. Finishing his current build order with a Barracks about a hundred feet from the main gate. Gabriel looked over everything and felt satisfied for now, so he clicked [Accept]. The orders wouldn’t be carried out immediately though, he wouldn't have to wait until the workers arrived and the system would assign them to their tasks. In the future, Gabriel would only have to put any available building in the queue, and the workers would automatically begin construction based on the first orders queued and available resources.

Gabriel left his manor for now and headed down to meet the incoming carts. Checking the game time and seeing it was getting dark. Gabriel thought he would wait for Mouse and then head to complete the [Territory Quest]. As it would be dark underground anyway and he believed he could finish the quest before logging off.