There was a comment about what level of technology I would be introducing, it isn't going to be conventional, it will be a fusion of modern science and magic. I will be introducing gunpowder but it wont have a significant impact as far as military matters go. As for oil, it too wont have as great an impact in the field of energy resources, there is, after al, one abundant resources that is rather limitless, easy to harness, and completely clean...I'll let you figure out what that resource is ;)

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Chapter Six – A Prince and a New World

*** Leo ***

After returning from the journey to Odea I spent some time visiting the mage Granate, his little think tank was quite the wonderful thing as they aided me in completing some of the more complex designs for spell crests. They took what they could learn from my visits, but I would never reveal to them the full extent of my designs, never letting them in on what I planned for the complex designs.

Bjorn was already on his way down the industrial road so I did not need to visit him lest I mess with the current satisfying schedule. There were rumors that the first three of his commissioned vessels had already set sail, though there would be an official maiden voyage ceremony for the following three. Grandfather Edwards was probably being cautious about the success of the maiden voyage of the first three.

After my venture through the city and a day’s worth of rest I went with Sophia to the market fair, it was a rather uneventful trip though I did enjoy watching little Sophia enjoy her time with Helton’s three daughters. I spent a couple of days working on processing iron so that Sophia could play after having been cooped up in the isolated wings of the castle for near a week.

The return trip to the castle required the usual cautious entry, we entered by night as I scaled the walls and brought Sophia into the empty wing of the castle into her usual room. I rarely had to move her from her room though sometimes it would become necessary to move her to a different room or floor.

The next day I was in for a rude surprise. The two men I had met in the market fair had arrived after I had left with Sophia. They had been waiting for me to reappear.

*** Adrian McGlothin ***

It was a surprise to find that the heir to this island nation was a rather free spirit that, like the wind, would come and go as he pleased. No one knew when the child would return only that he never disappeared for more than four days at any one time.

Just as I had been informed the boy returned on the night of the third day, I could feel his presence once he was within the castle, it was an unmistakable presence. The next day I discovered the child in the central garden apparently having a lesson over magic with the same little girl he had with him in the market. They were currently collecting and dispersing water as if straight from the air as there was no visible water source around them.

“Hello child,” I greeted the boy interrupting their lesson though I did so with hesitation as the skill they were performing was quite a marvel.

The boy turned towards me but said nothing, there was a look of indifference in his eyes though from the girl I could see childish anger.

“You are quite the unique little mage,” I stated. “While it is obvious that you have a level of skill I can’t discern I know that I can offer you more if you would come with me to Agraea, Bulbaria’s capitol. Our academy is one of the finest of the continent, if you agree to come with us its doors will be open to you. You will be taught among the best of…”

The boy interrupted by holding up a hand. He seemed to be thinking deeply as he held up his hand for my silence.

“I am six now,” he stated. “Wait until I am ten, if your request remains the same till then I will go to your country and learn from your mages.”

As if dismissing me the boy turned back to the angry little girl and tapped her on her head telling her to focus on her lesson. The boy was interesting, his reaction was nowhere near what I had expected, he had maturity and intelligence beyond his years, my only question was why ten years old?

Satisfied with his answer I left before he could change his mind.

Later that day we ate with the royal family and exchanged polite conversation before retiring to our rooms. I told Nigel of the encounter, he was confused by the wait time but was also satisfied with the child’s answer.

We left after breakfast the next day heading back to Odea and on to the ocean on our way back to the motherland. My time in Boraia had taught me many things.

*** Leo Cazador ***

Prince Adrian, I had learned his name during dinner when he had been present in the castle, he was a smart man and smart men were dangerous men. His offer gave me a chance to learn more about the world and about the empire that might one day become a fierce foe. Unfortunately with Sophia’s life completely in my hands I could not act selfishly and accept his offer, what would become of her?

Four years was my deadline to come up with a solution or set up a situation in which Sophia would be capable of surviving without me in a lifestyle deserving of her.

*** Bastion Cazador ***

After the arrival of the ocean going vessels, colossal ships that overshadowed the puny long ships, colonizing the new continent was made possible. The first of the ships landed in the fertile plains on the central southeastern side of the northern half of the continent. The land was wild and untamed, it was a merciless place for new colonists seeking to make a life for themselves in these lands.

Plows became highly demanded, coincidentally there was a smith in the motherland that produced very durable silvery iron plow teeth. They were able to cut through the thick wild grasses and turn the plains into farmable lands. Wild bulls roamed those lands, bulls with furry hides and long sharp horns, their meat was rather succulent and exquisite, unfortunately the meat would spoil long before reaching the motherland and transporting live product was simply too taxing, there was no way to harness the new food resource for the moment.

I decided to write about the problem to father, there was apparently an able tinkerer in his counsel that might just be the man to find a solution for transporting the meat without it spoiling. I was surprised by the quick response, in no less than a month, six of the nine new ocean goers were retrofitted with refrigeration systems, they used magic and some sort of elemental gas to keep the temperature within the walk-in containers at a cold freezing temperature. This system proved itself in just the first journey, the meat remained viable and fresh even after the two week journey back to the mainland. The product was so sought after that the meat trade demanded this new bull meat at an almost fervent degree.

Interestingly enough I was sent a letter marked with the crest of house Cazador but it contained no name and no seal, it simply urged that the hunting of such animals be limited to only as required. There was a simple and informative argument as to why allowing the broad and unchecked hunting of the herds could pose a threat to this new resource. The letter even proposed solutions for monitoring the hunting of the bulls. As the letter bore the crest of the house I could not ignore it and even more I saw the reason behind the letter, thus I implemented the Perseveration Commission.

The commission was tasked with monitoring the hunting of the bulls as well as farming and its techniques among other things. The letter itself was several pages long describing many things I might wish to keep an eye on for the future of the new Boraia Empire.

There had been an exploratory commission that sent a report back to the empire on a regular basis concerning the new continent. Botanists, biologists, geologists, etc. People of many professions came to the new continent to write books and reports on new findings.

Barely two months after the first exploration party was sent out a new letter arrived describing farming techniques and the use of certain herbs, fruits, roots, and leafy greens. The farming prospered as the right harvests were sown, the colonial community grew strong and it spread fast. Several years ago, during the birth of my son, the motherland experienced a sudden explosion in the population, now with the colonial era upon us the excess populace had a place to go and go it went.

Each trio of ocean venturing vessels always brings six hundred to a thousand new settlers for the new continent. Several docking towns were born on the coast lines as trade increased.

The biggest change came in the form of a puffy plant, it produced bulbs of puffy white fibers that a letter from the same person who sent the previous unsigned letters described as cotton. It described a process to harvest the fibers and turn it into useful thread, the fibers were so fine and the thread of such quality that it lowered the price of clothing due to its availability.

The empire that made contact with our nation did not have access to our cotton, it was native to the fertile fields we laid claim to. Bulbaria opened its trading ports to us to receive the finished cotton products providing our new empire with a bountiful new source of income. By this trade we have also come to learn of other nations both big and small, Bulbaria for the moment stands in the way of our tapping into new trade partners, but with time that will change.

*** Bjorn ***

Phylagene Fibrosa, a plant discovered in the new continent, proved to be an incredible fire resistant and durable fiber for sail weaving. The plant was also a quick growing one and within just a couple months new sails were being made of this fiber, it was incredible what resources were being discovered in the new continent.

Black water was among the new resources, this was called petroleum by the child who after a long absence decided to visit my workshop. He delivered to me a letter describing the potential uses of this resource, he asked simply that any and all applicable uses be submitted to him before being utilized. As per our agreement we kept our findings secret and every two months he would appear to approve and disapprove which findings we could make public use of.