Anthony and Bob milled about as the horses moved through the opening. Having a moved portal meant they were never going to be that far from each other. Physically, they would be separate, but whenever Sonya or Zan used the gate, they would connect one of their four iron gates. Absent the gate at the academy, there would now always be people nearby one of them.
“So, at noon everyday we’re going to send a few people over here for shift change. Then you guys are going to send people over to the compound?” Anthony said,
“I’m going to have a team ready to go when the Sun is high. There’s not much to do here, so really I’m just going to be having the local talent sort through the city. Did you know that there’s like 5,000 houses there?”
“That seems about right, given the size of the city.”
“There are only about 200 boats, so Gigi and her team are going to go through and catalog all the votes. We’re going to see how many are worthy. Not every single one is going to be good for us. I’m happy you gave us Sophie, though,” Bob said.
Far below them, Sophie was digging a canal, moving it with Earth Magic.
“If Gigi says we need this canal for what Andrew is planning that I will not argue with either of them.”
“Are you ready for the big push?” Bob said, flexing his muscles.
“Ready,” Anthony said.
“Ready!” Valerie said from the inside of the gate, tossing them both a large, thick rope.
“We’re not pushing rope here, right?” Anthony said.
“Definitely not,” Bob said, pulling the rope like he was an extra at a bellhop convention.
Both men slung a cord of thick rope over their shoulders. Both men leaned forward in a sprinter's position, as if it was going to actually help.
“Disengage the brake!” Bob yelled through the gate.
A loud audible thump clicked, and both men fell flat on the faces.
Just asked quickly as they got back up as one of the Tinker wagons rolled through the gate. This wagon was one of the first things that they had salvaged on their trip and it had become more than a Memento of their trip. On the side, members of the Caravan had scrawled about their historical deeds, slaying zombies and taking names.
Now it was going to take up its spot as the beacon for their efforts. Wherever this Tinker wagon was, that would be the main effort for the Caravan.
Bob and began pulling ahead of Anthony. The line got more slack, and Anthony redoubled his efforts.
“You know there’s something poetic about. We’re reclaiming this land for the first time? We spent so much time seeding the land to the zombies and now?” Bob said.
“We could be less metaphorical and more physically present to pull this rope?” Anthony said, picking up his slack.
The actual work was easier than any kind of math that Anthony never presented with. It was just that every single muscle appeared to need to be strained to let them pull the cart through. Definitely had wondered if his storage power could increase the weight of a thing that he was using.
In that moment, Anthony was absolutely sure that this cart weighed more than it possibly could because of the magically increased storage capacity.
It was really good to get out of the airship though because the smell was getting a bit much. Without the horses? He could finally deal with the smell. He eagerly anticipated a shift where the air wouldn’t be filled with the smell of horse dung and goat all day. I definitely had some goats coming with me but they were not majority In the minority of the majority. In fact, how about half of the chosen were heading east with them when they left?
“You know what? I’m really sad that we didn’t leave this here when we left initially. But I’m glad it’s back,” Bob said. “It’s going to be the new meeting spot every morning when everyone from the promontory gets together.”
“You going to put shift change at the Tinker wagon? That sounds like a plan.”
They pulled the wagon entirely through and it was on the other side in the promontory. Valor called for a halt and set the parking break.
“Ready to take the other one through?” She said.
“Let’s do it,” Bob said, setting down the rope. He then disconnected it, preparing to walk through the gate.
In a flash, they were back inside the deck of the Queen’s con. Valerie was there, adjusting the parking brake of Finley’s wagon.
“Anybody else for the promontory?” Sonya yelled. “All right. Closing it up! Next spot is the compound! Just to move Finleys wagon. Stand clear again!”
Sonya stepped back and gave Anthony a peck on the cheek.
“These things are heavy,” he said.
“You’re a big man. You can handle it,” she said, casting the spell.
Well, once they could see out over the promontory into where the wagon have been placed, now they could see the inside of the compound that was now a buzz of activity.
“Prepare for the Tinker wagon!” Anthony yelled, checking that I had to clear out the spot inside. There was enough of a wooden surface underneath the compound to support the Tinker wagon.
Bob returned from the ship, going through the portal with their two large ropes. Friendly waves to Bob as he went through. They pulled Finley’s wagon through tug-of-war style.
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“Mind the carpet!” Finley said, as the giant wooden wheels hit the dirt.
“I can’t see how we could?” Bob said. “Where did you even get this carpet from?”
The impressive animal skin rug appeared to be a shaggy beast that just donated way more than it had ever needed.
“You ever heard of a wooly-” Finley said, before dodging the two insistent men. “-right there.”
Anthony heaved his last big pull. After this, they would have to use the storage inherent in the airship, like peasants. He much preferred the bespoke wagon to store his things, but he would take an airship cabin.
“What the heck is this thing?” Bob said, testing out the shag on the carpet.
“It’s an ambush predator. They call it a wooly blanket,” Finley said. “The guy gave me a deal, since he knew a guy who raises them. They are sought after for their comfort, the same thing that makes them the perfect parasite in the jungle.”
Anthony immediately stepped off of it to a corner. The single large room had desks, a large iron portal gate and now a large wagon in the center. It was more a museum than a gift shop. On a way, it was a museum of their journeys so far. Finley would have to move the wall to even get the wagon out of the compound.
“Oh, hey Anthony! In honor of your trip, I had the meat vendor that we love to deliver a special package!” Finley said.
“Anthony got a special package from the meat man?” Bob said. “And I got nothing?”
“He said that it was a special package for a special man?” Valerie said. “And something about how I was so happy to deliver his special package so he can put his meat in a special man’s mouth?”
“There’s no way that he actually said that. There’s just no way.”
Finley picked up a package and waved it at him.
“He even did us a great job of wrapping up his package before delivering his load,” Finley said.
Bob snorted.
Anthony wasn’t that amused, but he would play along.
“So what you’re saying is that I have a special delivery man that delivered me a package of meat that he wrapped for my pleasure? I suppose there’s some creamy goodness that he left as well?” Anthony said.
“We don’t mix sweet and savory in this outfit,” Bob said. “We wouldn’t want cream getting on our nuts.”
Anthony blinked several times. Of course, they were going to milk this for as long as they could. He knew that there weren’t enough chances to have a good laugh until recently.
“All right, guys. I’ll take the velociraptor meat. We’ll going to see most of you soon, but for the rest of you? I think I’m going to walk back to the boat.”
Anthony says goodbyes before doing the walk of shame. Anthony devoured the meat of dubious origin.
“Huh. I guess meat is back on the menu.”
---
When Anthony and Valerie arrived at the Peace Turtle Tribes’ holdings, the changes surprised them. Between that and the Yellow Tail, the Peace Turtles look to be way more prolific and mercantile. Each had an armored carapace, but they were clearly the same species as the previous tribe.
Valerie had advised him to go straight to the encampment that showed the promise of speaking to the Dwarven legion. Once they had that in hand, the other tribes would be much easier to talk to. The legion, numbering at least one to two thousand, was going to be the bulk of their problem if they signed on board.
With Valerie as acting as the queen, assuming no other person in the legion asked for the honor and it was of Royal lineage, they should fall under her. That she already had thirty loyal followers at Gloucester, and was leading the rebuilding efforts as they reclaiming more and more land, meant that she had a claim to the throne that could only be greater by adding the legion to the ranks.
“Hey, I know you’re still the same person who we met only recently, and this is difficult, but are you ready to be the head of a nation?” Anthony said.
“I guess?”
“On Earth we have this old language that we refer to all the time called Latin and we have this thing where it’s called de facto and de jure. The fact is, it was what you are right now. The queen, in fact. De jure, that is like by law. We just need to square the law with the facts.”
“So what you’re saying is that I am the queen, in fact, but not by law,” Valerie said. “And I don’t even have time to become a princess for a while?”
“You can be a princess for the rest of the trip!” Sonya said from the breakfast book of the cabin. “Don’t let anybody say you can’t be a princess because you are. We can all be princesses.”
“Once again, I’m not setting a fake harem just because you want me to pretend that I am some sort of royal consort,” Anthony said. “If I have to marry someone to secure a trade deal, we cross that bridge when we come to it, but I don’t think there’s going to be a lot of humans interested in a late thirties male midwife who got summoned to their planet to quell a zombie outbreak.”
“Aren’t you in your mid-forties?” Sonya said.
“I have spoken,” Anthony said.
“Wait, how old are you really?” Valerie said. “You don’t look that old.”
She looked straight at him, sizing him up. He took that moment to burp into her face.
“Don’t you know it’s rude to ask a male consort his age?” Anthony said.
“My apologies, your grace,” Valerie said with a curtsy.
“Your grace, the small folk are restless,” Gigi said from the open cabin door, imitating the tone that Valerie had just made.
“How you doing in your druid training right now?” Anthony said, moving to the door to bump fists with Gigi.
“We are almost all day with the wild shape. Getting our chewed glasses to level three or two sometimes has really helped. Now we can basically be a dwarf all day except for when we go to sleep,” she said.
“That’s excellent. Praise the Goat Lord,” Anthony said. “In that case, are you ready to drop and do some street negotiation?”
“I’ve heard that the street major is excellent,” Gigi said, putting a lock of hair behind one ear. “So you should be satisfied.”
Anthony turned into his girlfriend and adjutant and gave them the look that he gave his sons whenever they did something wrong.
“I’m not mad,” He said. “I’m just disappointed. She was such a nice dwarf top before you corrupted her.”
“Hey Anthony?” Gigi said. “Do you remember how I told you? I worked at a bar next to the quiet sea?”
“Yeah, I remember,” he said, straightening up.
She walked over to him, then beckoned for him to lean over so she could talk into his ear. For the next 2 minutes. She dumped expletive after expletive into his sorry ear. Anthony’s face went from red to amused to frightened in short order as she got lower and lower. He knew she had a low brow sense of humor in tune with what Stella was giving off, but he didn’t really know the depths of it. She kept talking even as Valerie and Sonia tried to edge in to hear what she was saying. He waved them both off twice.
She stepped back, finally giving him room to breathe.
“... and so that’s why I don’t think you want to mess with me,” she said.
“That is noted,” Anthony said. “Please never be on the opposite side of me in any argument or fight because I don’t think that I could win that. You are clearly a superior orator and I feel you must understand that I am not looking for a marriage, but I have been told that if needed, I will be a royal consort for whoever needs to be married.”
“Strictly speaking, that won’t be necessary,” Gigi said. “However, I understand there’s going to be a lot of single male dwarves in the legion, and I need you to scope some out for me. So as penance for dragging me into this ridiculousness that the two of your close female friends have brought upon me, I’m going to need your help.”
“Whatever you need,” he said, still by the door.
“Awesome sauce,” Gigi said. “Now Valerie said that there were some dwarves at an infirmary down here? I think that they’re going to be getting a visit from not only their princess but also the new duchess of Gloucester.”
Valerie squealed.
“You’re accepting the position? I’m so happy.”
The two dwarves danced around, jumping and holding hands. And Anthony steps back to the breakfast nook and accepted a mug of tea.
“Did I miss something here?” He said.
“Oh yes, the princess has decided that she’s going to establish a duchy in the heart of Gloucester. And what does every duchy need? Besides land?” Sonya said.
“A duchess?”
“A duchess.”