I held the Quest Gem out to Fannon, and said, “Examine this, but do not take it from my hand yet”.

She did so, and her eyes got bigger than I’d ever seen them. She looked at me, “Are you serious?”

“Totally, serious, but you have to be aware, our ‘stronghold’ is a ring of trees, and a big tree with a rock under it, that’s all. You can’t get much more primitive. You’ll have to convert of course; the decision is yours. You can walk away and just do the trades we already agreed, no harm no foul. We both walk away happy. I’m not pressuring you into this, that’s not my way. I just want to offer folks a fair shot at success with nobody bleeding them dry. Speaking of which, is there a tailor or seamstress around that you’d can vouch for, or a good leather worker, I desperately need a pair of pants, and I’ve got 2 more of these quests if we can find the right people.”

Rhuad spoke up again “No tailor, but Granny Gatlin is handy with a needle, and good people. She’s just old. Her son was one of the hunters for the mercantile he might have been able to tan hides. but he died 2 months ago. Plus, mom and Thorbjorn are both friends with Olaf, the Cooper.”

Fannon spoke then, “Like any frontier town, this village is made of a mix of good and bad folks. The merchant is arguably the worst, close tie with Claudius who runs the Ratsnest pub, which is frankly a den and a whorehouse both. They are both right bastards. Most of the rest are hopeless dreamers one way or another, or they wouldn’t be out here. But if you really want to make inroads, we’d do better to recruit a carpenter, and go set up a house and a shop and show folks. They have all heard fairy stories, show them something real, something they can touch and smell, and you’ll do much better. I accept the Quest by the way.”

I handed her the Gem, and my quest count went up by one. I looked her in the eye “Do you accept Danu as your Goddess, and swear to treat she and hers fairly, and do what you can to help her and them out?”

“I do”

“Me too”, Rhuad spoke up quickly, “I convert to Danu too.”

Well so much for my dreams of Ebay riches.

I spoke to Yamina, via party chat, [See if you can round up Thorbjorn and Jimni and get them to swing by. After that, do a quick mapping pass of the village, don’t worry about what building is what, we can get that later from Fannon, sound good to you?]

[On it] said Yamina her tone like iron.

Then I turned to Fannon, “What does the Mercantile need from you the most? Picks? Hammer? Gold Panning pans? Something you and I could whip up together?”

Every miner needs a pick, a shovel though those can be from wood, 2 gold panning pans, and basic survival gear, a decent knife, fire steel or fire stone, plus food and water. Most replace that with beer, the local brewer isn’t half bad, he’s under the mercantile’s thumb though, so no sales except through the mercantile.

“Contract?”

“Worse, Brother in Law.”

“Ouch, Probably for the best, I don’t think we grow much grain up there yet.”

“If I magic up small knife blanks, with a thin carbon edge, would

He buy those, or would we have to sharpen them and put a hilt on them? I want to trade for as much supplies as I can, before we head out. No taking gold, straight trade. We need canvas, rope and stakes I can handle, any nickel, weapon armor, shields, etc”

“Hammer and chisels are probably the easiest if you can weld a face on them with your mojo.” Said Fannon her tone lowering and slowing down in thought..

“What about bypass the mercantile, trade meat to folks with things they can spare? Seems like we’d get more good will than gold that way, especially if we trade generously. ” I said, my voice speeding up and getting a bit louder with excitement.

“We’ll need one of those lizards tonight, and in the morning, just for us 4 and the 2 you sent for.” Said Fanon. Her eyes darkening seriously”

“Does Badgerbear taste, okay? I’ve got a whole skinned Badgerbear in here, if folks will eat it.”

“Tastes like bear, as long as you are careful with the scent glands.”

“Those are all in the skin, right? We may be good; I have a feeling we’re not sleeping much tonight. Help me whip up a gambrel and hang it up over here.” Then I need to make some stuff out of this cloth.

That’s what we did, using shape, I made a Hibernian tunic, in the Goddesses colors for Thorbjorn, and a pair of pants and a peasant’s shirt, for me, and a bunch of belts and sashes from the rest. When the lads showed up with Yamina, we gave them each a whole rear leg of the Badgerbear. I told them, my voice low and steady “Go trade for weapons, armor, shields, craftsman’s tools, canvas, tents, water containers etc. Plus, any herbs spices, etc. you can get, be super generous. Just tell folks we’re in a hurry, and start by bidding high. Get what you’d need to live in the woods and build a large homestead, seeds for crops whatever. If there is anyone out there, who’s good people and in a bad way, just make a donation of a piece of meat to them. The ones you really trust, can bring stuff here to trade. Don’t worry about us carrying it to out safe area, if we can get it here I can handle the bulky and heavy stuff.”

Throbjorn left with a whistle and a bounce in his step, off to do good. “Come Jimini, we go to good works.” Jimini, went, grumbling the whole way, but he went.

About 30 min minutes later, Jimni stopped by with a very large piece of soft hide, a buttery yellow and soft like elk but not exactly either. ID said “Butter Soft Moose-Elk hide”. JImni also dropped off a small bit of very fine pigskin, some broken up antlers, bundle of scrap linen rags, and a fistful of woad. He said. “Boots fer all de big folks, and a nice set of pigskin boots for deh Girly. Maybe get her some blue clothes out of the rags & woad fer more blue. If not just make thread out of it. And ye makes her some pigskin armor, hear? “Oh, and dis”, He handed me a gob of bees wax. He said not to tell Thorbjorn as he thought JImni was off stealing weapons from the guards. Looks like Danu had Jimni’s number.

I sat down and cranked out a simple pair of lace up turn shoes for each of us. I added an insole of an extra layer of hide, and an outsole of raw lizard hide. Even those of us who had boots, the boots were Battered, torn grey with wear and the soles patched with bits of leather inside and out in many places. Then instead of the woad, I used concentrate to pick up all the forge scale laying around, and make black dye from it and water. The black to dye and the wax to wax the threads and to water proof the seams. Fannon had a bit of oil about, so we use the oil last to water proof them as well. I make the buttons and the thread out of Blessed oak branches, so they would be blessed too.

There was more than three fourths of the hide left yet, apparently “Moose elk” are as big as you’d expect from the name. Next, I went out and use concentrate to make more Raw Iron, and used the charcoal I had to slowly convert it to mid carbon steel. Then I rolled up a piece of soft Iron and made more rivets, using Fannon’s Rivet set from her smithing tools. Much easier than doing it by hand, and I saw Fannon’s eyes watching me do it, hungrily, her brain clearly thinking at a million miles an hour how to synergize our two crafts together.

Next, I made a bunch of large and small curved pIates with holes in the perimeter where I needed them. Then washers for each of the rivets, that was way harder than anything else I’d done. It’s always the little stuff that bites you. I made a bunch of holes in the leather to match the plates. I proceeded to assemble simple wrap around leather vests of plates based loosely on the Visby type 1 finds, some of the best quick and dirty armor around. This was one each for myself Jimni, Thorbjorn and Fannon.

(Wisby Type 1 armor.).

I added plates upper arms for myself and Thorbjorn, before I was down to scraps of hide. I welded the scraps together with shape skill and made more of the small plates. With that I pieced together a simple plated vest for Rhuad, so he’d have some protection. Not as good as the large Wisby, but still more than he had. Using the woad, I died them all a dark blue.

I decided to make more plates later, as by then I was nodding and wobbling where I sat, I laid my head on the table and knew no more.

I made smaller plates in the morning, and riveted them on Rhuads gear and ours in the areas where we needed more flexibility and protection. I made Yamina a set of soft pigskin tunic, hat and pants, for a bit of protection, and dyed them blue with a bit of the woad. Leather armor for her. Nothing that will impede her speed.

I also finally restored and hafted Thorbjorn’s axe, something I should have done before. The axe itself actually had runes carved in it and inlaid with silver, the faintest shimmering about the runes hinting at more than a simple tool.

(A great 2 handed Dane axe)

It turned out to be one of those huge two-handed Danish axes like the Varangian guard carried. The best kind with a lighter web of the axe, and swelling up to a ridge just along the edge, to make a stronger cutting edge, but keeping the total weight down. Light and fast in the right hands, and capable of devastating hits.

If Thorbjorn was any good he’d be a destroyer of the heavily armored with that axe. If he wasn’t I just put a price on his head if he meets a real warrior from the north.

Jimni showed up with a solid bar of iron about 3 feet long, and a steel buckler, which to my surprise he silently handed it to me. Then he pulled out a thin round shield of wood, with an iron boss, and a cloak made out of a large head on bearskin which he said he’d killed himself as a child. He still wasn’t big but he was way more intimidating than I’d ever seen him, His angry eyes all the more feral starting out from under the bear head hood. He had leggings of bear hide laced up around his calves as well.

(A small Metal Buckler)

When we set out early in the morning, several folks showed up with small trinkets to trade which they thought might help us on our way. Apparently, word spread during the night. We traded for an old battered brass compass, A large roll of filthy canvass, and surprise of surprises, a very old and somewhat dried out reflex bow with a quiver full of well-made arrows. This I quickly made shining like the day it was made with oil, wax and shaping.

We rewarded those who came open handedly with meat, and invited them to swing buy our place up north for an apple or two, if they had the time. We were free with the meat despite our reserves being down to just backstrap and ribs of the Badgerbear. One Old grandma lady, who turned out be Grandma Gatlin, brought out a lovingly cared for steel skull cap style helm, and battered but whole iron pot for cooking, and gave them both to Fannon wordlessly. Then nodded to me and left. Fannon looked at the cap, her eyes slightly watery for a second before she dashed the wetness from her eyes with a sleeve.. Note to self, bronze or steel helms and brigantine gorgets or camails, Asap. I really need to figure out how to use my magic to draw wire and get us all converted over to chain hauberks (Long tunic) and chausses (leg armor).

The rough supplies brought in by Thorbjorn and Jimni got thrown into my inventory without much time to look it over.

To the rest, including myself, I gave out a simple rough flanged mace, on a local oak handle. Only a hair more complex than a steel bar to make, and with far more penetrating power. We then harvested the backstraps, and gifted the rest of the ribs to a local old maid *(she was probably my age before “Peak Me”).

(a pair of flanged maces on a wooden haft)

As we stood and began to line up to leave, I noticed that Fanon’s skin was pale and sweaty and that she was swaying on her feet under a pack bulging with steel and Iron, her son too was deeply laden with supplies. I offered and took both their packs and threw them into my inventory. I noticed my mana regen went down, but not enough to fret over. So far so good, no weight penalties on the inventory. After hefting their bags though, it’s no wonder they were so skinny and worn looking from their trip up river.

Just as we were leaving, what ran up to use but an urchin, looking 8 or 10 years old, filthy ragged dirty blonde hair that looked like it’d been last cut with an axe, baggy castoff clothes with holes at the knees and elbows, no shoes. All in all a filthy and thoroughly undernourished kiddo. The urchin ran up, asking to “take the blue”, and go along with us. I looked at Rhuad and I saw his face blush, and he nodded vigorously thrice then stilled, his head down hiding his eyes. He’d obviously shared our secret, Fannon gave a more sedate nod, Yamnia just shrugged her shoulders, so I checked upstairs.

I asked the goddess to give us hope and then checked Divine Chat, [“Take the urchin, she’s as twisty as Jimni, and as sneaky as you, but basically good. She’ll be useful and keep Rhuad busy in the meantime. See if she can teach you move silently. Her uncle is both an ass and will likely not miss her, unless he sees a profit in it. This counts as one of your divine messages from your quest BTW”]. Divine Chat was the biggest hack ever, I swear to, well, you know.

Her name was Kat, and we swore her to the goddess, with plenty of stuff about helping fellow worshipers, and such for good measure, she was accepted.

I passed out blue belt or sashes of the watery material for each of us not already wearing garments in the color, including the urchin Kat. and we set off headed up river.

About 15 min down the trail, the urchin Kat came up to me and said quietly, “I’m a Journeyman in both Rogue and Scout, I’ll take one of those promotions quest things if you have one to spare. There is no guild here, not even a thieves guild for me to work with “. I asked her to swear to only use the dirty side of her skills in service of the Goddess and handed it over to see what happened.

The Goddess accepted her, and my quest incremented again.

I shook my head at having more blueprints than people in our new settlement, but assumed long term we’d be glad to have them. I wished we’d gotten a building that spawned villagers or a recruiting hall.

We turned our faces back north, eyes on the soft blue mountains in the distance and began to hike. As we walked, I kept looking for the top of giant oak that signaled our home. I thought idly about the 3rd crystal and wondered who the goddess had in mind for it.

We trudged northwards along the river, Throbjorn and Jimni at the front, and myself at the back where I could keep an eye on everyone. It was clear quickly that my companions all looked like they had little energy. We were going half the speed Yamina and I came down river. I decided it was best to take a 5 min rest every 15 min or so, wash our hands and faces in the river, drink a bit and rest up. The smiths were both hanging heads down at each stop, breathing fast quick breaths to recover from even a short walk.

I set to making Iron ingots out of the black sand in the river bottom with Concentrate, converting it to steel with Advanced Shaping and some charcoal out of my pack. Home carburization, eat your heart out.

Yamina flew up, and spoke to me for the first time In a while, “Bill, I’ve been flying to scout ahead of us as we go, and I’ve been flying up really high and doing circles, so we get more terrain in our maps. Is there anything else I should be doing during breaks?”

I asked her “Have you been keeping up your dodge training, I thought that was a brilliant idea.”

She replied brightly, “Oh yeah, that’s fun! I just want to help out.”

I thought a moment and said “Keep an eye out for a big school of fish in the river, I’ll make some tackle and we’ll stop and get us some dinner if we pass one. Fannon and Rhuadh need a dozen big meals between them to get fit. Other than that, you’re doing great and are way ahead of me. Great Job.”

Yamina flew off, glowing brightly.

I used shape to cut long thin branches as we walked and stashed them in my inventory, then I cut some thicker ones about as big as my thumb 6 foot long. Next I made some square shanked fishing hooks that were probably too big, but were the smallest I could make by hand, and a few iron sinker weights, in case we needed them. I pulled the hooks back out and concentrated on converting the carbon steel to a nice Lath Martensite structure to give it a nice mix of strong and tough to the light metal. Advanced Shaper was really getting some serious utility. I didn’t get a lot of spell variety, like heal or other schools, but each spell had a myriad of uses. I’m going to need a big nuke at some point, but for now a focused high utility school still seemed like a good idea, especially in a resource rich, but supplies poor area.

I checked out my Shaper skills to see where I was.

Mage: Shaper

Advanced Shape: 15.3

Concentrate: 9.3

Dart:2.5

Hmm. The first two are coming along nicely, but it looks like my Dart spell is falling behind. Going to have to start pinching a dart and shooting it off at distant targets while we hiked along.

About 30min short of the Divine Grove, Yamina spotted a spool of fish and we all fished till we had one each as big as our arm. I used shape to quickly clean them and tossed them in my inventory to keep them fresh. We filled Granny’s pot with clean water and passed it around to drink, then again to wash.

A little ways down the path, I noticed Jimni picking plants as we walked and asked him what he was doing. He had us all gather around a cluster of plants and showed us.

“Dis here, dat looks like a long green fang tooth , dat’s wild onion, crush and smell, if it don’t smell like onion, don eat it. Der’s a bad plant that looks close to it, but don smell like onion. Dis one here, it’s Wood Sorrel, looks like clover but with yeller flower, it has a nice tart lemony taste, but only get a little, too much will make ye ill. Dat over there, with leaves like a pointed Eto’an shield and the white flowers, that’s wild garlic.” pointing at a long oval leaf that was slender at the bottom and pointed at the top, with white flowers that looked like little bursts of fireworks that not too far away. “Dis all together will make dat fish taste nice when we cook it t’night. All’s of you keep an eye out, each fish ‘ll need a good fist full of these herbs, collect up a fist for each of you, an bring it by me, I’ll check you didn’t get nothing thas bad for you. If I sees more good plants I’ll shows them out, with work all of y’all can learn what plants is good to eat, makes livin’ ruff like better when you eats good. Almos’ as good as keepin’ warm and dry. Jimni squinted a hard eye at me. “Not nowhere near as good as having Beer and a place to drink it, mind.”

Vintage 1800s drawings of wild onion, wood sorrel and wild garlic.

“Excellent!” I say playing air guitar with my hands dramatically. Jimni looked at me oddly for that, but I didn’t care, herbology was a gathering skill we’d need a lot of those.

Despite or perhaps because of my preparations, we don’t have any trouble getting back to the clearing. I’m a firm believer that the best way to avoid trouble is to be prepared for it. Part of that Boy Scout ethos I’d soaked up as a lad. I add each one of the party members to the friends list for the grove, and give Yamina the ability to add and remove people.

I used my shaping magic to clean and repair the canvas we’d gotten and using rocks rolled into the corners tie it to branches in the great oak with bits for vine. This gave us a reasonably waterproof place to sleep. We started a fire out away from the tree, so we don’t scorch its roots, and built a ring of stone and mud to keep the ashes from blowing all over. We weave a grill of green sticks and set the fishes packed with herbs to slowly cook. Our backs and feet tired, we eat and fall one by one to sleep. I take a moment to appreciate actually having real pants at last, and the beginnings of armor too. In a contented haze I’m among the last to drift off, enjoying the lush thick grass of the grove soft as a carpet beneath my back, Thorbjorn and Jimni talking quietly to each other as I drift off.