Andrew's guide kept up a steady stream of idle conversation as he led the way through the camp towards the main building within the walls. He explained at length what happened since the fight, mostly confirming what the redheaded Alex had said to him around the fire. Kala knew most of the prisoners kept in the main building personally, they worked together closely during his time in the kitchens and they were quick to accept his leadership when the fight was over. Now they mostly led other small groups, getting them organized and accomplishing tasks around the camp. A couple of the more combat ready staff set up a guard rotation, which was mostly just there to sound the alarm for one of Andrew's party to take care of it. Most of the day was spent cleaning up after the fight, recovering their wagons from the forest and salvaging arms and supplies from the exterior buildings and bringing them inside the wall. A clear census was next on the list, but as of now there were six prisoners dead, fifteen wounded, and another ten or so with only minor injuries or non at all. He was just starting to try and start naming off all the Kitchen staff and their tasks when they reached the door and Andrew was thankful for the opportunity to stem the tide of speech.

If he told me all those names someone might expect me to remember them. Can't have that, better I can honestly say I have no idea. Kalan sounds like he'll do a good job leading things around here anyways. He can remember the names.

"Alright, ah well, we're here. It was good to meet you, hopefully we'll be seeing more of each other. I'm working closely with Kalan after all, and you'll be taking over for him now that you're up right? That guy needs a break ha ha." The guide said, chuckling and waving as he made his way back to the bonfires, leaving Andrew outside of one of the many unremarkable doors within the second story hall.

Not sure that I said more than five words that whole walk. Does that really even count as meeting someone? And all this business about taking over for Kalan? I'll have to go in there and set things straight with him. He's a far better option for leader than I am, and it would seriously get in the way of my crafting projects.

Andrew knocked twice, then pushed the door open. Kalan was sitting in a makeshift office within. It looked like he repurposed a set of personal rooms to form the office, a cot sat in one corner, while a large out of place desk took up the majority of the narrow room. On it there was a map of the camp and several sheets that seemed to have lists and numbers on them. Kalan was staring blankly down at one of the those sheets, head resting on hand, looking just about ready to drift off when Andrew opened the door.

"Hey, Hey Kalan! You good? How long have you been cooped up in here, what are you even working on right now? From the sounds of it you guys have things pretty well handled right now. Everyone else is sleeping or celebrating right now, or on watch at least, which is probably for the best I suppose." Andrew said, approaching the desk and taking a peek at its contents.

"Ah, well, I was just about to head to bed anyways. Just wanted to double check some things. We've been finding new stuff all day, and I just was putting it together into one list. Its good to see you up and about, that'll make a lot of things easier. I'm usually pretty good with people, but leading this many people? Thank god you're up, we need to figure out what we're going to do. At least four hobgoblins got away! They're sure to be running for reinforcements, and what are we going to do when an army of those assholes show up? They'll wipe the floor with us! We only won this one because we surprised them, and you weren't awake for what happened afterwards, without the grenades and you distracting them, they came across the river and nearly had us. These people aren't ready for a fight like this, most of them were just trampled over and the really brave ones got isolated and killed, we'll need so much time to get them ready, and if they come with a real force?" Kalan's fatigue drained away into anxiety and passion as he spoke.

"Hey hey, whoa slow down for a second. We'll be alright, it's day one, and the next camp is a ways away alright? We have time to figure something out, remember how long it took us to get here? The giants in the grass, how dangerous that road was? Those carts had a few weeks worth of supplies in them, and if I read the maps in that main building right its at least twice as far as we traveled to get here from the next base over. That’s like, two weeks at least. Plenty of time. We've been traveling and fighting for a while now, take a page out of the crowd outside's book and relax a little. You've done a great job here. I've been speaking to the people around, they didn't know who I was, and they were very impressed with you. I'm very impressed with you. You've organized everyone here, kept them busy and kept them from fighting each other. You really are better at this whole thing than I am, seriously, but you need to rest right now. Alright? "

Really seems like I’m not going to have the chance to have the whole, you're in charge stop telling people I’m the leader, conversation tonight.

" Ah yeah, thanks. I guess, but we're still in serious trouble here. We need to get everyone training for a real fight, starting yesterday. And we don't have fitting equipment for anyone, and barely half the people here have the stomach for a fight anyways, and they're all injured. Shelby can't help, she just can't deal with the attention we've been getting and has been avoiding everyone since the fight, Bailey too. Carter Does better but barely talks at all, and Tyler as done nothing but drink and brag since the fight ended. I don't even think he's 21, not that that matters to anyone anymore. The kitchen staff has been helping, but none of them listen to me like they listen to you!" Kalan rested his forhead on his palm, face down to his lap.

He somehow managed to look more tired now than he did when Andrew first entered the room. Though it was a different kind of tired, a stressed overwhelmed fatigue rather than simple exhaustion. It was difficult ot reconcile this image of a stressed out kalan with the one who so frequently defused conflicts within their little group. It was, uncomfortable.

"Listen, we can handle this. Do you see how much we managed to do with six people. We have way more than that now, and there will be plenty of people around to help us out. You think we can't handle a hobgoblin army or two? With these numbers? C'mon we're better than that. You're tired, you've been working all day, and from what I've heard you haven't rested since the battle. I'll be here to keep an eye on things until you get some rest alright? We can meet up with the others and figure that out as a group later, meet up with everyone in camp, come to a consensus. Everyone in camp knows exactly how dangerous those things are first hand. It won't be hard to convince them to put in some hard work. Hopefully."

Kalan let the silence dragon on for a moment, eyes closed, seeming to focus his thoughts. "You're right. I've been up for too long, and I can't keep this up all night. I'll give you the rundown on our current situation and supplies, then I'm off to bed. We'll need a leader eventually, and I’m really not cut out for it. Seriously, besides you should listen to yourself, that kind of thing is exactly why I've been telling people you're in charge. I know you don't want to but, maybe we take turns or something at least. I can't do this all the time. The kitchen staff, the people you rescued, they respect the hell out of you, make it sound like you were half dead when you picked a fight with that big bastard alone. He fucking nailed me with a rock by the way, you might've saved my life doing that. Thank you. Bleh, alright I'm rambling, we should get started, most of the kitchen staff is resting but I have a few people who are staying up late working on a couple things. Here, sit down and I'll get you caught up."

Kalan spent the next hour going over the status of the camp in agonizing detail. They had enough food in the camp for months, plenty of material supplies, weapons enough for everyone, though the armor fit basically no one Several of the kitchen staff had fire affinities similar to Kalan's' and minor spell skills with similar effects. The main concern was the inevitable hobgoblin response, and whether they vacate the camp before or after it. For now most people were content to take orders from the kitchen staff, as the things they've organized so far were common sense solutions, but he was also worried about whether they would follow orders when more controversial decisions were made. They respect Kalan, but the word of the kitchen staff's experience has spread like wildfire, and more and more exaggerated tales of the things Andrew did the morning before were being spread around.

Andrew stayed quiet throughout. He had plenty to say in opposition to being a leader, but he held his tongue. Kalan needed rest not argument, and he was honestly reporting the status of the camp and the people, which meant those are these were the condition s Andrew had to work under, whether he should be leader or not. That was a problem to be solved another day. He offered up the comfortable bed he woke up in and the safety of nearby friends when Kalan was finally ready to head to bed.

By the time Andrew finally took a seat behind the desk he was already feeling restless. He took a moment to reorganize the desk and realized that there really wasn’t much more left to do here. Most of the inventories and paperwork was already done.

I could help out a lot more with our real problems by making equipment right now than anything I'd do from here. I should find one of the kitchen staff, let them know I'm going to check out the buildings around here, find somewhere to work on smithing or inscribing..

Andrew's thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Come in."

The door opened and he recognized the person walking in. It was the blonde girl who half carried him through the building they sat in this very moment. She was wearing impressively repurposed hobgoblin leather armor and carrying a sword at her side.

"Hey there. I heard you were in charge now, you look a hell of a lot better with a day of rest in you." She said as she walked through the door and approached the desk. The room suddenly felt quite a bit smaller to Andrew.

"Yeah, well, apparently a few hors of being knocked unconscious did some good for me. You must be one of the kitchen staff I've been hearing so much about. Kalan tells me you guys have been massively helpful. Thank you for doing your part to keep everything going. What was your name by the way? I'm Andrew." Andrew said, cursing every sword as soon as he spoke it and standing to shake her hand. He was sounding far too much like a leader there, he needed to choose his words more carefully.

"Madison, but you can call me Maddie, all my friends do. I just came by to see how you were doing. I saw how bad you looked this morning, more so than anyone else, but it looks like that was nothing for you huh? Can't even imagine what your vitality must be like to survive something like that." Maddie said, staring directly into his eyes and pressing against the desk, getting closer than strictly necessary.

"I, uh, yeah. I mean I'm higher level than most people here, probably. Had some chances to increase my vitality too, sure, got a ton of that. Um, was pretty bad in the moment though, I got knocked out during the battle I planned heh. I mean, helped to plan, the others did a lot too. Can't take any credit for that, I just did the distraction part. They were the ones who save d most of the people anyways. Um, so is there anything I can help you with? I just got here so I’m mostly just getting my bearings." Andrew said, trying and failing only a little to maintain eye contact. Her gaze was very intense. She was around his age, but had the confidence of a far more social person.

"Oh I don't know, charging that monster like you did was very brave. I don't think anyone would be free right now if it wasn't for what you did. I know I certainly wouldn't be." She leaned forward across the desk, taking on a very distracting posture. " really cam e here to help you. Is there anything you need right now? I want to do my part to repay the one who saved us after all."

What the fuck is happening right now? Is this what I think it is? It isn't right? Maybe she's just being really nice. That must be it. Or she's trying to brown nose me because Kalan has been telling people I’m the leader. That's pretty likely too. Really, thinking about this objectively, it must be one of those two things. Whatever, this isn't important, what was I doing before? Crafting? Yep. That's important. I should go do that right now.

"Uh, yeah, you know what, I could use some help right now. I don't see any labels on the buildings on this map here. Could you look around and see if you can find a good place to set up a workstation? I'll have to put something together if we want to get some better equipement built soon. Also do you know if anyone found a chisel during the clean up efforts? It's pretty important to me, I need it to make the grenades I was using so much during the fighting and isn't cheap to replace. Those are the most important things right now. Also make sure you get some rest, most of the kitchen staff has been up all day too right?" Andrew broke off eye contact to gesture to the reports and the map, putting the slight look of disappointment on her face far from his mind. That was not what he should be focusing on right now. She's just being nice anyways.

"…Yes I can go look around for that. All your stuff should be together with your carts, a friend of mine also in the kitchen staff made sure of that. I'm sure your chisel is there as well. The wagons should be stored right here, inside of the medical barn with the other wagons the hobgoblins were already keeping. They haven't been unloaded or included in the inventories. I think there was a workshop or something in one of the out buildings, but we haven't checked anything outside the walls thoroughly. I think it was this one or this one." She said, taking on a slightly more conservative posture as she pointed out each of the locations on the map in front of him. "I can go out and look if you'd like, but Kalan said there might be stragglers around so it could be dangerous.

"No no, don't worry about going out there. Knowing where it is is enough. I'm uh, probably going to be heading over there pretty soon, there are some things I'd like to work on tonight, and there isn't much more organization to do tonight. I think better while working anyways. I'll keep the lights on so you guy scan find me, but I think it would be better if you focused on resting, I'm sure tomorrow is going to be quite busy and we'll need you guys to be in good condition. You're the ones who do the most to keep this group together right now you know." Andrew said, standing up and gathering the map and a copy of one of the inventory lists that had basic materials on it.

Maddy straightened up as well, wearing a complicated expression which she quickly smoothed out before nodding once to him and striding out the odor. Andrew let out a short sigh, made a show of reorganizing the papers to buy a little time, then gathered them up and headed out the door himself, pinning a short note explaining where he was on the door on his way out.

Okay, that’s done with next I need to find our wagon, grab a couple thing's I've been dying to play around with for a while, and see if I can find this workshop. Hopefully it has an anvil or something at least. I'm sure we have enough iron for one now, but I haven't the slightest on how to make one properly. Not that I can use one without making a fucking racket enough to keep the whole camp up all night.

It was a short walk from the building to what people now called the Med Barn. It was where the hobgoblins previously stored their wagons, and where they now kept their injured. There was plenty of open space and it was easily accessible, most of the wagons were pulled outside and lined up against the wall, but Andrew didn't see their wagon among those lined up outside. He walked into the barn and saw a number of curtains made from rough wagon canvas pulled closed around what he assumed were occupied beds. Sitting around the barn were several people also wearing repurposed patchwork hobgoblin leathers who looked up as he entered, and paused for a moment before seeming to recognize him, and returned to their respective distractions. One stood and approached Andrew as he looked vacantly around the barn in search of any sign of their wagon full of personal effects and supplies.

"Hey, Andrew right? Good to see you up so soon, most of these guys didn't get hit half as hard and they're still out for the count. Is there something I can help you with?" The woman was in her early thirties and solidly built, with long brown hair and a warm smile. She whispered as she spoke, but Andrew would be shocked if there was a person in the barn who couldn't hear her.

"Uh yeah, that’s me. I was actually just looking for our wagon, I'm told most of our stuff stayed in there, along with my armor and weapons and things right? I'm told it was being stored in here, but I don't see it." Andrew said, making a show of looking over her shoulder around the room again, despite already having failed to find it on his first sweep.

"Oh yes, of course, should've known. It's just over here, we've been keeping it behind one of the curtains. Not that anyone would think of stealing from you, of course, but you know, just in case. Here I'll show you to it." She walked back down the center of the barn between the curtained off beds until she reached a larger set of curtains in the back corner, she pulled these back to reveal a pair of wagons jammed closely together and filled with all of their belongings.

"I think, um, all the things you had on you were put in that one there. I don't know if your armor will still work though, um, I looked at it, and um, it looked pretty beat up. Very bent up and such. Anyways, take you time looking through, it's, uh, your stuff after all." She was gesturing to the wagon, but her eyes were flicking back and forth from the wagon and his face.

"Okay, cool thank you. I'll probably be poking around here for a little bit, so don't mind me, you can just go back to whatever you were doing, I think I can handle it from here. I'll try to be quiet." Andrew said, stepping up to get a better look into the wagons and grimacing when he saw his set of armor, all bent and broken, straps cut and metal heavily warped and crushed in several places.

No wonder they thought I was going to die. This armor is seriously fucked up. I'll probably need to remake it from scratch. Maybe once I've got my catalyst, make an improved version with whatever skills that gets me, assuming they're actually useful.

Andrew pushed the armor to one corner and rooted through the cart until he found his chisel, the two bone wands recovered from the goblin mages, a cluster of rocks he didn't have a chance to turn into grenades, a few ingots he had left over and the book filled with precious runic reference notes, then shoved them into a couple of their spare sacks and pulled them shut before climbing out of the cart. Laden with his newfound old loot Andrew nodded to the woman with a quick, "I was asleep all day, so I'll be heading out of camp to get some work done, if anyone asks where I am, it's the building with the lights on outside, should be easy enough to find." He received a chipper "Okay!" in response and headed out the open barn doors into the night. The gates were very obviously closed, so he headed in the direction of the hole he blew into the wall earlier. There was a cluster of four torches gathered loosely around the hole, and Andrew headed that way, sack in each hand, when he approached he saw several individuals again in scavenged hobgoblin leathers, with swords belted around their waists. They came to attention as he approached, but he raised one arm, sack in hand to wave to them.

"Hey there! It's uh, just me. Andrew. I'm heading out, going to check out a workshop you guys found earlier? I just woke up a few minutes ago, Health is nearly full again so I think I'll be okay if I run into anything out there, just want to get some things done before things get busy again tomorrow." Andrew said, walking closer into the flickering torchlight. "I'll leave the lights on, and I'm a real good screamer in case you're worried about hobgoblins snooping about."

A chuckle ran through the group and one member waved to the others, "Yeah that's him, I don't doubt he'll be alright wandering outside camp at night, I saw him pick a fight with the biggest meanest hobgob I've ever seen half dead, looks a hell of a lot better now, no offense." He turned to Andrew, "You sure you don't want a couple of us to come out with you though? I know at least four or five of those bastards got away, I'm sure you can handle yourself, but, you know, most of us were caught unaware the first time, happens to the best of us. I've got a couple of boys on call, can be up in just a minute." He said, gesturing to a side door into the nearby main building.

"Uh, no I think I'll be alright, I'm just going to be checking out the workshop out there, assessing the tools, messing around with a couple of things, doing some experiments I didn't have time for before the attack, that sort of thing. Helps me think. Uh, also best to do it outside of the camp anyways, I'll might be messing with some volatile materials and I don't want to damage anything or get anyone hurt. Though, I would love to steal a torch or two off of you, Kalan is the only one who can just make fire out of nothing." Andrew said, sort of awkwardly gesturing with one sack, then the other, bits of bonestaff tipped with crystal sticking out the top of one.

"Oh, yes of course, well we have a few set aside, here, uh" One of the other guards handed over their torch and the lead man handed it to Andrew, then handed him another two unlit torches, also handed over fire brigade style by several of the other members of the makeshift guard. Andrew tucked the unlit torches under one arm, and held the other alongside the lightest of the bags. "Alright then, well, if you see any big, like, fires blasting out there, uh, don't worry about it. I'm probably just testing things. Uh, If I'm really under attack I'll scream, I promise, and I'll probably just take care of it myself anyways, but yeah, just uh, don't worry about the fire thing unless it looks like it's really getting out of control right?" Andrew said, as he shuffled forward with his ever increasingly awkward load.

The process of shoving himself and his bags through the splintered hole in the wall while the crowd of five watched him was almost as excruciating as crossing through the other way with an arrow in his stomach. But he turned his head such that he was facing outwards and didn't look back, shuffling towards the buildings marked on his map with all the dignity he could manage.

Don't look back. If anything this is a good thing. Maybe they'll remember this and elect someone else as leader from now on. Like, oh yeah, remember Andrew? Do we really want the weirdo who could barely squeeze through a wall to be out leader? No! Like that sort of thing? Might be nice, two birds with one stone, experiments and loss of responsibility, hopefully Kalan hears about this and decides to take over out of pure shame.

Andrew's thoughts continued along similar lines as he made his way across the grounds to the building. It was one on this side of the river thankfully, part of the cluster of buildings opposite the wolf pens that took the least damage from the fighting, thankfully.

Andrew dropped most of his load outside of the doors before pushing his way inside. His torchlight illuminated a paradise of benches and tools and stools and fasteners. Sure they were an unorganized mess. Sure almost all of them were related to leather working or carpentry. Sure there wasn't a single thing designed for forging or inscription, but it was a paradise non the less. The mere presence of a comfortable stool and a wooden worktable was ambrosia for the craftsman's soul. Andrew quickly spun around to find holder for his torch, there was one right by the door, and he shoved it in it so fast it made his bruises ache once again. He ignored it, practically jumping outside to grab the rest of the supplies he brought with him and dragging them into the comforting confines of a dedicated workshop.

Okay, Okay Okay, What to do first? What can I do? Can't make too much noise, don't want to antagonize all the people we just fought for, so that means, inscription, mana circles, wand testing, affinity experimentations. Alright, plenty to do, and uh, I think I should probably do most of it outside of this building. Need to get a baseline for the goblin staves first, then test one to see what it's affinity composition is like, see if it needs a spell cast through it or if it has some kind of straight up mana to fire conversion, could be useful. Then, well, there's an idea I've had ever since setting up for that ambush. Circles carved on trees can pull mana directly from the tree right, and seem to infuse the wood itself, so. Ah, I'll need to test that. Might be worth looking at all the old circles with mana sense on as well. I have an idea of how they work already, but it could give me some other ideas. So much to do .

Time to get to work.