Lanek led the group into the meeting chamber before gesturing for them to sit. Ivan became acquainted with the two orcs while Lanek explained in detail how he had run across them and invited them back to the monastery.
“Before we start, are Ograch and Liv back yet?” Lanek asked.
“No, but it shouldn’t take them much longer, they know that they need to be back well before dark.” Caelis responded.
“Got it. However, if they aren’t back soon, I’m going to send Sanguineus and Kazuma to find them. Just in case.”
Khurzag spoke up. “Who are Ograch and Liv?”
“Two of my companions, without them I wouldn’t be sitting here. Ograch is a member of the Night Arrows and Liv is a human from the north. Way to the north.”
“Ah. So, where are they?”
“They are out in the city getting supplies to arm everyone here and strengthen our position. Which brings me to why I asked you here. See, leaving the city is incredibly dangerous due to the gaunts and other monsters out there and so is settling down in the city with smaller numbers like you have.”
“I agree, but we don’t really have a lot of options. I’m guessing that you want us to join you?” Shel interjected.
“I at least want to make the offer for several reasons. First, I promised Wurgoth that I would try to aid any of his people that still follow him. Second, it benefits everyone involved because we will all be stronger if we combine forces. Finally, it furthers my long-term goals.”
“I understand your reasoning and after seeing this place, I’m definitely leaning toward joining you. However, I cannot make a decision without knowing your long-term goals and speaking to the rest of my people.” Khurzag stated.
“Completely understandable. My plans are straightforward, but I’m going to be upfront about it. They aren’t going to be easy to pull off. I want to eventually reclaim this city and turn it into a sanctuary and stronghold. Too many people are simply eking out a basic existence with no hope of really living a long life, much less a happy one. I’m not making any grandiose plans like rebuilding civilization as a whole or conquering the continent. Maybe down the road or someone from a future generation will pull that off, but it will have to start with a single safe stronghold otherwise the people of this continent will continue to decline until it is far too late to reverse their eventual extinction.”
Shel’s eyes were wide as she listened to Lanek’s plans. “I want to call you crazy, but I can’t really disagree with your points. How do you intend to deal with the dungeon? This whole city belongs to it.”
“I’m guessing your people have seen the ruins of the wall around the original entrance to the Ashen Depths?” At the orcs’ nods, Lanek continued. “Once we get strong enough, I want to rebuild and garrison it. With defenses in place, I want to start exploiting it like Caelis did in the past, using it to get needed resources, equipment, and levels for our people in a controlled manner.”
“That’s what we did, but the city still fell.” Caelis said quietly.
“Well, I have some theories on how to avoid that, but I’m not going to sit here and claim that they are going to work perfectly. I’m positive that you had many people smarter than I am thinking of ways to contain the dungeon when the city was thriving.”
Caelis grinned cheekily. “Most likely.”
Lanek smiled in response before continuing. “The first thing I want to do after we have secured a place here is to investigate the city. While wandering and exploring the city, there are many signs that the city fell insanely fast. Even if the walls around the dungeon were breached instantly, the city should have held out for at least a few hours. However, I’ve seen signs that some adventurers were taken by surprise, to the point where they weren’t even able to don basic armor.”
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“You think the dungeon found ways to bypass the walls? Tunnels, maybe?” Talwarg asked.
Caelis frowned. “Maybe even tunnels into the sewers. I don’t want to admit that we overlooked the possibility, but it makes sense considering how quickly our defenders were encircled and isolated from one another.”
“Maybe you didn’t overlook anything, the tunnels could have taken decades or longer to prepare. Maybe the dungeon had outside help. It could have been anything. However, if we want to avoid another fall, we need to find out if those tunnels exist and seal them off before we replace the wall. Before I move onto my other proposal, did the city garrison ever really consist of adventurers or dungeon divers?”
Caelis shook her head. “Obviously, some of the garrison consisted of retired adventurers, but for the most part, no. The guard garrison was mostly made up of average people that didn’t want the life an adventurer.”
“I can’t blame them, but that isn’t going to work going forward. If we manage to start exploiting and containing the dungeon, every combatant must enter the dungeon regularly. It’s the only way for everyone to get strong enough to hold back the monsters and to get experience fighting against the most likely creatures that they will face if the dungeon breaks again. Obviously, I don’t like forcing people to do this and we’ll have to take it on a case-by-case basis, but we will need strength to survive. I also plan on having those of us that are of higher level accompany lower level groups into the dungeon to keep them from dying needlessly.”
Looking around the room, he could see that Caelis didn’t really like the idea. However, the rest were nodding their heads in approval.
“I really don’t like the idea of forcing every guard or soldier into the dungeon, but I see the necessity.” Caelis said.
“I don’t like it either, but it is clear from what you have told me and what I’ve seen throughout the city that the knight orders and the adventurer’s were the true fighting force and that the city garrison was too weak to do much.”
Caelis sighed deeply. “You are right. I think we became complacent and relied on Laethon’s troops to help us out with any major threats that the city faced. And, I did tell you that we believed that we were doing everything right when it came to maintaining the dungeon, so we were not at all prepared for the break.”
Nerek spoke up at this information. “What made Laethon’s army so much stronger?”
“They had a similar approach to Lanek’s proposal. However, instead of sending all of their troops into the dungeon, which wouldn’t have been feasible, they sent their trainers and all of their officers into the dungeon periodically. At that point, they returned to their city and trained the rest of the army.”
“Anyway, those are my long-term plans, Khurzag. Let’s move on to our immediate concerns before you return to your people and make your decision.” Lanek said.
Lanek filled the orcs in on the imminent threat they faced from the matriarch, which caused both of them to shudder. It was clear that the orc clan had dealt with the spiders in the past. Lanek also walked them through his immediate plans to fortify the plaza and possibly turn the plaza itself into farmland if they could figure out the process.
Shel perked up at the final part of the plan. “I think I can help with that last part, even if we don’t end up joining you. Maybe in exchange for supplies?”
“Oh, how so?” Nerek asked.
“I don’t know if any of you were able to see my class, but I am an earth shaman. If you remove the stones covering the plaza, I should be able to churn the earth enough to bring the deep soil that is still fertile to the surface and allow you to start farming once the growing season starts.”
Nerek’s eyebrows raised in surprise. “That certainly sounds like something that would be within your domain. I imagine that it would take a lot of mana to pull that off.”
“It would, but if I have somewhere to rest between sessions, I could have it done before spring. Faster if I can get a steady supply of cores.”
“Well, then I suppose all that’s left is to have you two go back and pitch the offer to your people. However, don’t hesitate to return even if you choose to not to join us. I understand that facing off against a horde of spiders isn’t exactly an appealing prospect. If you choose to go it alone, I am still definitely interested in negotiating for Shel’s services.” Lanek said while standing.
The two orcs stood as well, making their way to the door. Lanek accompanied them to the courtyard before saying his farewells as he didn’t want his presence to influence the decision of the rest of the fugitive orcs. As the two walked away, Lanek could almost feel Wurgoth smiling down on him.