“Now that be how to build a building!” Krazzik roared, thrusting his fist in the air. There was a pregnant pause from the crowd that lasted all of two breaths before every dwarf erupted into cheers so loud, they shook the walls.
Glade would have happily joined them but didn’t have the energy. Instead, he smiled at the celebratory dwarves and took in the immaculate room.
The hall was twice as long as it was wide, with two lit fireplaces - one on each side of the room at the midway point. The light from the fires, combined with soft glowing stones set in brackets along the walls, gave off enough illumination to see the wonders within.
10 uniquely carved and immaculately designed chairs sat on the dais next to his stone one, all in similar styles except for a peculiar symbol carved into each of their backs. It didn’t escape Glade’s notice that all the chairs but his had cushions.
The remainder of the hall was covered in smooth stone floors and plush rugs of incredibly intricate design. Tables and chairs scattered throughout the hall gave the impression that the council’s hall was more like an overly large den instead of a meeting hall. There were even a handful of cabinets and bookshelves scattered throughout the room.
But most importantly, the hall was warm.
“It does kind of look like the Hogwarts hall,” Glade speculated aloud. “It’s a lot smaller, and without the house long tables or transparent roof, but it feels… cozy.”
“I knew it!” Kedryn cried, causing everyone around them to jump as he pointed an accusatory finger at Glade. “You totally know what Harry Potter is, don’t you!”
“Who or what be Harry…” Krazzik began, but Riya, who was still swaying on her feet, placed a hand on the clan chief’s arm.
“Don’t bother,” she yawned. “They’ll try and explain things and all it will do is confuse you more.”
“Yes, I know what Harry Potter is,” Glade said with a roll of his eyes. “I was… strong armed into watching the movies.”
“Ha! I bet it was Wildfire,” Kedryn grinned. “Well, did you like them? The movies I mean.”
“Let's talk about it some other time,” Glade said, pulling up his stats. He was down to 57 HP again. At his current rate of internal bleeding he would be dead in little over an hour. But a little thing like dying wasn’t going to take his attention away from what came next. All they needed was to build one more structure to meet the requirements for settlement level 1.
“I bet you would have been in Gryffindor house. Who was your favorite character?”
“You’re not going to let this go, are you?” Glade sighed.
“Nope,” Kedryn’s grin widened. “We’re not about to die, well, I’m not at least, and this is the first relatable topic I’ve had to talk about with you.”
“Fine. The online test said I was Ravenclaw, but the same person who strong armed me into watching the movies said I was a shoe-in for Slytherin. As for most relatable characters? I’d have to go with Professor Bins, the history teacher, or Mad-Eye Moody. Now, do I have your permission to move on?”
Kedryn stared open mouthed for a brief moment before his grin returned in full force.
“I don’t believe it. You’re a fan! How many times did you watch the movies? Wait a moment… You wouldn’t have known about Professor Bins unless you read the books!! You read the books, didn’t you!”
“I’m done talking about it,” Glade grumbled as he pulled up his interface. “Besides, everyone knows the books are always better than the movies.”
Kedryn’s eyes were alight with excitement and a promise this conversation was far from over.
“Now, let’s get back to our previous discussion. Bragden, have you made your decision?” Glade asked.
The bald dwarf was still staring open mouthed at the hall.
“I see it, but I still canna believe it.” Bragden whispered in awe. “Ye spent the mana already, didn’t ye. That’s how ye fixed the hall.”
“No. This was from a reward we just earned - the restoration of any defined structure of my choice. We were already going to spend the mana either way you chose, and the only other structures available to us didn’t cost nearly as much. It seemed like the most prudent choice.”
Bragden nodded, still looking out across the hall. After a few moments, the dwarf turned to face Glade with a troubled expression.
“I’ll give it to ye straight. I don’t like the fact that me clan now be tied tighter than me own marriage knot to someone with eight bloody brands and a human to boot. That said, I canna change the path me own chief has placed us on. O’ course, I think it’s just a matter o’ time until we all burn to the ground because o’ you,” he said in a more subdued tone. Bragden’s face then shifted from his typical dour demeanor to one with a hint of humor. “But at least we’ll be warm when we go.”
“I take that as a yes then,” Glade said.
“Aye, I’ll accept the position as Storm o’ Magic.”
Kedryn snickered, everyone turning with a questioning look.
“Sorry,” the Kid said, struggling not to laugh. “The way Bragden said it… well, it sounds like a bad infomercial product. All he needs to add on is - you get two for the price of one.”
“Corporal,” Glade warned, trying very hard to keep a snort of laughter from escaping. His connection to Ember really was wreaking havoc on his emotional control. That and Kedryn was right. The title sounded terrible.
“I know. Shutting up.”
Bragden dropped to one knee before Glade, Kedryn, and Krazzik.
“I, Bragden Grimheart, Clan Slaghammer’s first advisor, do swear to the ideal of what Storms' Rest should be. A refuge from the world so those true o’ heart can grow in strength with the intent o’ rightin the wrongs in the world. I also swear that I will not withhold information from the Master o’ Storms that will benefit or harm this settlement. I also promise that if’n ye do somethin remarkably stupid, or worse, hurt me clan, I’ll be the first to punch ye in the face. Lastly, I pledge me knowledge and me axe to strike down, or build up, so long as the cause be honorable. This I swear.”
“Bragden Grimheart, your oath is recognized and accepted,” Glade said, already dissecting the dwarf’s oath. There were one or two hidden, and not so hidden, statements that he needed to discuss with Bragden when he could get him alone.
“Witnessed,” Kedryn and Krazzik intoned. Even Riya whispered something along those lines, though he doubted she knew what she was saying at this point. It was far past time for her to rest.
There was a short pause as everyone patiently waited for the settlement to acknowledge Bragden as a member of the council.
“Sooo…” Kedryn said after an awkward pause. “Does anyone know what is supposed to happen next?”
“Your guess is as good as mine,” Glade sighed. “I was waiting for a notification to tell us what to do. All I know is Bragden must prove himself worthy of the position. Are we supposed to give him a quest or does he have to figure this one out on his own?”
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They either shrugged or muttered something too soft for him to hear.
“Great,” Glade sighed, doing his best to ignore his exhaustion and pain. “Until we figure this out, or the settlement gives us an answer, does anyone have an objection if we repair the privy? The vault is too expensive to repair, and we need one more structure to get Storms' Rest to level 1.”
“I’ll be honest with ye.” Krazzik said in a relieved tone. “I was secretly hopin we’d repair the privy next. I haven’t had a proper seat to drop me…”
“Whoa! TMI brother!” Kedryn said, waving his hands. “TMI!”
“No objections from me,” Bragden huffed while giving Kedryn a strange look. “It’d be nice to have a proper squat…”
“Still TMI!” Kedryn cried.
Glade chuckled, approving the expenditure of mana.
----------------------------------------
The repairs for the privy weren't nearly as grand as that of the hall, but the celebratory cheer was just as loud. As soon as the facilities were complete, the majority of the group charged to the entrance just outside of the hall.
It was a small, expertly built room with marble walls and fine wooden stalls that gave a modicum of privacy. However, the real treasure was a constant stream of ice-cold water that flowed down a series of carved channels that fed into a small pool for washing one’s hands.
They now had shelter and access to water. Glade didn’t count the stomach curdling porridge that Croon had cooked up as food, which had led to their current discussion.
“I’ll be organizin a group o’ me boys to try our hand at huntin round the area at first light,” Krazzik said, bringing Glade back to the present. “But afore we do that, I’d like to ensure me clan has permission to bind to the Storms' Rest bind point.”
A notification asking if Glade wanted to delegate authorization of Bind Point privileges to Kedryn and Krazzik appeared. He selected yes without a thought.
“Just be sure to keep them safe. Theres no telling what might be out there… Arrghh!” Glade cried out just as Riya finished casting the settlement’s mend bone spell.
25 mana dropped from the settlement’s pool.
“I’m sorry for the pain,” Riya sighed as the radiant glow of celestial mana flowing into his arm faded. “The level 1 version mends the bone by guiding the break back to its proper alignment. The problem with this spell is it can only move one bone at a time. For simple breaks, that would be a relatively minor step. But… well…” She gestured to the mess that was his arm.
“There is another spell that deadens pain,” Riya added apologetically. “Unfortunately, I can’t access it until we get the settlement to level 2.”
As she spoke, Glade felt a shard of bone worm its way under his skin at a snail’s pace, creating an entirely new sensation of discomfort. As soon as it finished moving, another piece began its trek back to where it was supposed to be.
Glade’s already dangerously low HP bar began flashing as his points began ticking away one at time.
As if reading his concern, Riya channeled a level 1 settlement healing spell, bringing his HP up by another 15 points.
Another 10 mana dropped from the settlement’s pool.
The drop in settlement MP took Glade’s mind back to the moment the privy had been completed. He and the others on the council received an elaborate notification alerting them that the settlement had reached level 1. In an effort to escape the pain, Glade reread the messages.
Congratulations! Your settlement, Storms' Rest, has achieved the minimum standards to reach a level 1 status (Tribe). The following rewards have been awarded:
* 500 XP for appointed leadership of Storms' Rest
* Access to level 1 spells (healing) – appoint worthy council members to unlock more settlement spells.
* Ability to expand areas of detection and effect.
* Access to settlement quests.
There were several useful spells within the settlement’s repository, chief among them being the basic healing and mend bone spells. Others of value were basic cure disease, triage, and a beacon spell. All were fairly self-explanatory, but with one major advantage that proved how invaluable settlement magic was.
Any council member could cast the magic, regardless of attunement. They could even use their own mana while increasing skill levels. The downside was the effectiveness of the spell was intrinsically tied to the person’s skill and attunement levels, which made the healing spells all but useless to anyone but Riya at the moment. They would need to grow their capabilities in time, but for now, they just didn’t have the mana to spare.
The settlement’s areas of detection and effect functions were also a pleasant surprise. The descriptions were exactly like they sounded. The detection function allowed them to pull up an insanely detailed 3D image in real time of everything within the ability’s radius, to include people. To expand the radius, it cost 10 mana per meter, which was why Krazzik had nearly bottomed himself out increasing the radius by another 10 meters.
The area of effect was also straight forward. You could use the core’s capabilities to affect anything within that area, much like they had done with the privy. But it took precious mana and raw materials to do so. Lucky for them, the ruins had plenty of raw materials lying around. However, such power came at an incredibly steep cost. It would take them a whopping 100 mana to increase the area of effect by 1 meter.
Then there were the settlement quests.
You have been offered a Settlement Quest: Pathway to Power I. You have successfully re-established Storms' Rest, a named settlement. Advance your settlement to level 2 (Hamlet) by doing the following:
* Increase population size to 100.
* Build at least 5 permanent structures of importance within the area of effect.
* Appoint two of eight council members.
* Make diplomatic ties with another settlement (does not need to be a named settlement).
* Create one profitable industry.
* Clear at least 3 dens of hostile threats from the area.
* Increase areas of detection and effect to 500 meters.
Reward: Increase in renown; 1000 XP for appointed leadership of Storms' Rest; access to level 2 settlement spells.
Warning! Inadequate housing for your people will begin to degrade your population’s disposition and health.
Warning! Lack of appropriate clothing for your people within this environment will rapidly degrade your population’s health.
Warning! Lack of food will rapidly degrade your population’s health.
You have been offered a Settlement Quest: Trouble at the Well I. The remaining mana well link to the settlement core has weakened to a fragile level. Find the mana well and rectify what has caused the link to weaken.
Rewards: 500 XP for all party members who join the expedition.
As soon as the settlement quests had become available, both Kedryn and Krazzik had raced to see who could access them the fastest.
They all decided the mana well quest could wait, instead focusing on what they could do. Which was another reason why Krazzik was organizing their hunting party. Hostile dens in the area meant there was food.
Another shard of bone slipped into place, bringing Glade’s attention immediately back to the present.
“Does he need another dose of healing?” he heard Kedryn whisper.
“In another few minutes or so,” Riya sighed. “I’m trying to keep him above 30 HP. Once the bones are set, the regeneration bonus should begin repairing the damage within his arm. Thank the Overseer that it has already healed the other internal bleeding. We might just have a chance to save him.”
“Thanks to you,” Kedryn said with a smile, placing a hand on her shoulder.
Glade grunted his approval at Kedryn’s words but gave him a pointed stare until the Corporal removed his hand. Riya, who was still in desperate need of sleep, hadn’t noticed the exchange.
“So, what now?” Kedryn asked.
“That be the easy part,” Bragden said, stomping up to them. “Ye need yer rest. We’re out o’ danger for the moment and Krazzik’s havin fun organizing the hunting party. If’n ye can’t sleep, I suggest ye use yer mana processing technique. I can see the mana poisoning in yer aura from a hundred feet away, lad. It might not be bad enough to make ye sick yet, but the longer it sits in yer body the more permanent damage it can do.”
Bragden then turned to Glade.
“That goes for you too,” Bragden said bluntly. “If’n I’m to be part o’ your slagging council over magic, I might as well start actin like it.”
Glade opened his eyes and gave the dwarf a pain filled glare of disbelief. He was barely holding onto his self-control as it was.
“Don’t ye give me that look,” Bragden growled, shaking one of his sausage like fingers at him. “How yer not dead from mana poisoning is beyond me, but ye might as well process out the excess mana stuck in yer body. At the very least it’ll be good training.”
Kedryn gave him a sympathetic look before sitting down into his lotus position, which still irked Glade to no end.
“I’ve recovered a few more points of mana,” Riya said, reaching a hand toward Glade. “I’ll use that instead of the settlement’s pool…”
Bragden whirled on Riya, giving her a stern glare, “Oh, no ye don’t, lassy. Yer ‘bout to tear open yer own bloody channels. Use the settlement’s pool if’n ye have to, but do not use another slagging drop o’ yer own mana until ye have had some solid rest. Our good Master o’ Storms here can handle a bit o’ pain and blood loss. Nothing grows a beard like some good old-fashioned grit. Am I clear?”
Riya nodded dumbly.
“Good. After ye rest, use a few o’ them pure mana shards to recover yer channels the rest o’ the way. The Mother knows, ye’ve got plenty o’ them.”
Bragden then turned his glare back to Glade. “Well? Are ye going to start or do I have to kick yer high and stormy backside from one side o’ the hall to the other?”
Another piece of bone clicked into place as Glade grudgingly began breathing according to his Twin Root and Branch technique. It was going to be a long night.