Hans spent a few afternoons visiting with the residents of Gomi, one home at a time. For those who he had not met formally, he introduced himself and explained that he was looking to make a list of chores and wish list projects, small jobs that needed doing but somehow got drowned out by more urgent needs. Those tasks ranged from chopping down a dead tree to repainting a chicken coop, from pulling weeds to mucking stalls.

Back at the guild hall, he dusted off the old job notice board and rehung it in the main common area. Next, he tacked on several scraps of paper, each listing a location, a task, and a point value. Once a dozen or so of those were hung, he finished the board with a written explanation of how points could be redeemed.

Stepping back with his hands on his hips, Hans smiled proudly at his little project. His handwriting could be better, but there was no helping that.

New Quest: Explain the new quest board to the kids’ class.

***

“Adventurers are motivated by a lot of different things,” Hans explained to the kids class seated on the benches of the guild hall, “but the best adventurers I’ve met put community first.”

Harriot blurted, “Like Master Devontes?”

Doing his best to hide his wince, Hans answered, “Yes, like Master Devontes. Adventuring is still hard work and can be very risky, though, so it’s okay to do good and get paid for it. That’s why we have a new job board.”

Stepping aside to give the children a clear view of the board, he explained that every piece of paper represented a job that a Gomi citizen needed help completing. While a few of the jobs had an age requirement, most of the notices on the board could be taken and completed by any student.

They were allowed to take one job at a time, and if they brought the notice back with a signature from the townsperson who requested it, they earned points. Those could be redeemed for progressively larger treats from Charlie’s bakery, with some flexibility to account for individual tastes.

Hans had to suppress a grin when he saw the children lean forward in unison at the mention of earning a pastry or a whole pie if they saved enough points.

“There are a few rules we have to follow. First, you’re not allowed to take a job posted by your own family. I’m not going to give you points for doing your own chores.” He gave the children a mock scowl.

They giggled, and judging by a few flashes of disappointment, several children had intended on pursuing that scheme.

“Please tell me when you take a job. You’re not full blown adventurers yet, so I’d like to know what everyone is working on. Lastly, be respectful to the person who posted the job. Show up for your job at a reasonable hour, and be courteous to them and their belongings. You don’t get points if I hear you were rude or cut corners. Everyone understand?”

The class nodded.

Stepping farther aside for his own safety, Hans told the kids they could look at the board. “I’ll add more jobs when I get them, so take a look at the board when you come to class if you want to earn more points.”

Every child selected a job, from the oldest to the youngest. Hans made a note of who selected what and waited to see how his experiment would play out.

Quest Complete: Explain the new quest board to the kids’ class.

***

Three days after his visit to Galad, Mayor Charlie invited Hans to join him for dinner. He hadn’t said it directly, but Hans surmised that the topic of the night would be his proposal to the Tribe.

Sitting down at the familiar dining table in Charlie and Galinda’s apartment, the Guild Master happily accepted a stein of beer, fresh from the barn. Summer was beginning to wane, and the Tribe sold casks by the wagon to the merchants each time they made their monthly visit. Whether it was superstition or tradition, Hans wasn’t sure, but the Tribe kept the first batch of the season for themselves and Gomi, making it a small honor to be offered that particular stein.

“How is your job board going?” Charlie asked. “I’ve already handed out three cookies to your young adventurers, so I imagine well.”

Hans wobbled his head side to side. “It’s a strong start. We’ll see if they stay motivated beyond this first burst.”

The Mayor nodded. “This is true. This is true.”

“Paying Gunther for chores might get us into trouble later,” Galad joked as he joined Hans, Charlie, and Galinda at the table.

For most of the meal, the group bantered about small things, like Mazo’s visit or some of Becky’s more memorable antics–like the time she adopted five orphaned raccoons and brought them to town. While she slept one night, the mischievous creatures burgled half the neighborhood, making off with several snacks.

As conversation shifted to dessert, Galinda looked around at the other three people at her table. “Why are we not talking about what we met to talk about?” she asked.

Charlie gently rubbed his wife’s back. “You’re right. We’ve been avoiding the subject. Galad, would you like to begin?”

“We think we can take in 40 more tusks,” Galad said bluntly, “and we’d like your opinion on our plan.”

He estimated that they could accommodate that many tusks if they built two more barns to function as dormitories. The Tribe would do their best to make them comfortable, so the accommodations wouldn’t be painfully spartan, but they would be somewhat minimalist. After the winter, they would build proper homes for everyone who wanted to stay. For their current timeline, the dormitory approach was their best chance at having enough space to shelter everyone.

If they had any overflow, most of the tusk families were happy to host a guest or two, depending on what their own resources allowed.

The finality of the way Galad spoke surprised Hans. The Tribe had decided they would take in as many tusk refugees as they could–and quite quickly, apparently–so now the challenge was logistics.

Quest Update: Help refine the plan to take in more tusks.

“We know that we need to let our brothers and sisters know that they are welcome in Gomi.”

Mayor Charlie cut in, saying, “I should add that we are aware of the risks.”

“But they are acceptable to help other tusks,” Galinda said, completing her husband’s thought.

Hans leaned back to think. “So we need to tell as many tusks as we can that they are safe here while also protecting the anonymity we have now. Yeah, that’s a tricky contradiction.”

The other three people gave him time to think, filling the silence with mouthfuls of food and refills of their drinks. When Hans shared his perspective, they were ready to listen.

The plan he laid out began with him sending letters to the handful of Guild Masters he trusted without question. He would use a standard courier service instead of guild mail to avoid attracting attention from the Adventurers’ Guild. Though the tusk population in most towns was low, it was rarely zero, so each of his friends would have access to people they may be able to help. Their discretion was Gomi’s shield.

His next suggestions were more complicated and hinged on using Osore, the next closest town, as a source of misdirection.

“We should pick a few strong but discreet tusks to send out to the nearest towns. Any place we’re sure that our people and our new people will have enough time to get back to Gomi before the snow.”

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Heads around the table nodded along, listening.

“To give us an extra layer of protection, we don’t tell anyone that their final destination is Gomi. Instead, we tell them we’re meeting in Osore and leaving from there. On our way out of Osore, we make it known the group is going to Raven’s Hollow and leave town in that direction.”

Galad smiled, amused by what he knew was coming next.

“There’s a road that goes around Osore. Well, probably more of a wide trail than a proper road, but it’s not well-traveled. We can take everyone back to Gomi while anyone in Osore would say we went in the opposite direction, to Raven’s Hollow.”

The table agreed the plan was elaborate but could not fault the logic. “I’ll have Luther recruit four more to go with him.”

A camp of migrating tusks would attract attention no matter what, much of that attention being simple curiosity and gossip fodder with the potential for a hateful reaction. With four of their people on the road, they could keep at least one person posted in Osore while the others shuttled groups to Gomi using the alternative route. As odd as it was to consider it a blessing, the people who disliked tusks usually did so passively. If tusks came to town and moved on, they likely wouldn’t care to cause the Tribe trouble.

Galad clapped his hands together. “Then we are agreed?”

The table said that they were.

“Excellent. Let’s get to work.”

Quest Update: Purchase supplies for tusk refugees.

***

“You want how many mattresses on the next shipment?” a potbellied merchant with one long gold chain earring asked.

“Forty. I’ve got all the quantities on the list.”

The merchant scratched his collarbone, re-reading the list in his hand. “What could you need all of this for? This is almost the size of all of our other orders combined.”

Hans shrugged innocently. “You know how it is with adventurers. We have more money than we know what to do with, so I came up with some projects for myself.”

“What project involves 40 mattresses, 40 blankets, 40 winter cloaks, 500 pounds of rice, 500 pounds of beans, and ‘40 assorted works of fiction and nonfiction for all ages?’”

“The mattresses are for a training idea I have. I need books for the chapter, and everything else is for a winter survival course I plan to teach.”

The merchant considered Hans for a moment and looked back at the paper he held, reading it yet again. “And you’re paying in gold out of your own pocket?”

“Including the rush fee I think you should charge me. I appreciate your flexibility, and I’d like to ask that you don’t share that I am wealthy with anyone else. I’d rather not deal with the attention.”

That raised the merchant’s eyebrow. “You’re telling me to charge you more?”

“That’s correct. If you can protect my identity and be discreet, I’ll gladly place all of my future orders through you. How much did you say that was going to be?” Hans made a show of opening his pouch wide, giving the merchant a clear view of the 90 gold he carried.

Predictably, the salesman couldn’t agree quickly enough, grabbing Hans’ hand from where it hung at his side to seal the deal with a shake. “5 gold, 50 silvers for all that you asked with the rush. Want me to procure anything else for you, Mr. Hans?”

“If you didn’t mind waiting for a moment, I can think of a few things. I’ll need to grab my colleague first.”

The merchant was happy to wait. A short while later, Hans returned with Olza, stepping aside as the alchemist rattled off a list of ingredients that the potbellied man furiously transcribed into his ledger. Everything she requested was for curing various diseases and for brewing various strengths of healing potions. If a bad flu cut through the new Tribe dormitory, the consequences could be tragic. These extra supplies guarded against that.

Hans passed another 2 gold to the merchant to account for the alchemy supplies. The man shook his hand again and promised that he would be a reliable long term partner for Gomi’s Guild Master. In that spirit, he was more than happy to deliver Hans’ letters to the courier in Osare along the way.

Quest Complete: Purchase supplies for tusk refugees.

Before returning to the guild hall, Hans had a new thought, and he had a little more than 82 gold in his pocket to blow through.

A brief walk later, Hans arrived at the blacksmith’s forge. Harry and Harriot’s father was hard at work forging nails. Based on the materials nearby, he planned to make several hundred of them.

Ah. Galad placed an order for their new barn builds.

“Guild Master, welcome. Will more of your adventurer friends be visiting soon?”

“I don’t expect any,” Hans chuckled in reply. “I’d like to place an order.”

The blacksmith whistled. “I’m popular today. Are you in a hurry?”

“Not particularly. As long as it’s ready before winter, I’ll be happy.” Then Hans listed what he wanted to order.

The blacksmith’s eyes bulged. “You’re serious?”

Hans said that he was.

“Gods. Are you building an army? Hang on, let me write this down,” the blacksmith said, patting his apron for a pencil. He found it behind his ears and started repeating Hans’ order. “10 longswords. 20 spears. 20 targes. 10 longbows. 400 arrows… did I miss anything?”

“Just what I owe you.”

The blacksmith slowly exhaled as he calculated the job in his mind. “I don’t know how I could do all of this for less than 21 gold, and probably 50 silvers I’m sorry to say.”

“That’s fine.” Hans dropped 22 gold on the table and went on his way. The blacksmith stared at the gold wide-eyed. The Guild Master was nearly out of sight when the blacksmith remembered to say goodbye. Hans waved back.

Buying weapons was not part of the plan he and Galad had agreed upon, largely because Hans never raised the topic. His habit of obsessively preparing for challenges that might lie ahead told him that a town full of refugees fleeing persecution might need to defend itself. That outcome was unlikely–as there was no strategic value to be gained by conquering Gomi–but he had no other use for the gold Mazo left.

If they needed weapons and didn’t have them, Hans would never forgive himself.

Lost in his thoughts, Hans was nearly at his desk in the guild hall when he realized Becky was in the room. He startled and grabbed his heart.

“I’m pretty sneaky for a dwarf, eh boss?”

“Hello, Becky.”

“Got a minute? I need to show you something you’ll want to see.”

His curiosity piqued, Hans followed Becky around the back of the guild house and across the field to the treeline, well away from any of the roads going in or out of Gomi. A few yards into the forest, Becki snorted a greeting and stood from where she slept. A blanket sat next to her, covering a pile of lumps the size of a small pony.

Becky leaned against her familiar. “Best to just lift the blanket. I wouldn’t be able to explain it if I tried.”

Grabbing the corner of the blanket, Hans tossed it to the side.

The partially rotted corpse of… something lay in the leaves. As a single entity the anatomy didn’t make sense. If he looked at the left side in isolation, the beast resembled a squonk. If he did the same with the right side, he saw a gnoll, twisted and compressed like a bent accordion for the rib cages to align, but still distinctly a gnoll.

“Did you kill it?”

Becky shook her head. “Found it dead fifteen yards or so from the flowers. Was maybe two days old.”

The more he studied the corpse, the more Hans was convinced his initial assessment was accurate, as unlikely it seemed. The squonk half was distinct. The gnoll half had been distorted to connect the two very different body sizes.

Hans poked at the division between the two with a stick. “I don’t see any stitches.”

“What’s that mean?”

“It looks like a natural chimera. I think only four or five of those have ever been recorded, and they were all deep into the frontier.”

“What’s an unnatural chimera?”

“A few mages over the years have conducted some disturbing experiments. With the right healing magic, creatures can be combined. Those are more common, but still very rare.”

“If this is a natural chimera, how was it formed?”

Shrugging, Hans replied, “We don’t know. I’ve seen a few scholars argue that wild magic is the cause, but even less is understood about wild magic than is known about chimeras.”

At first, the proximity of the squonk attacks to the purple flowers could be waved away as a coincidence. Becky’s finding this body so near to the flowers, and the fact that it combined a squonk with a gnoll, the monster the flower apparently disintegrated… well, the events seemed to be connected. Arguing otherwise was increasingly difficult.

“Would you be up for a job?” Hans asked the Druid.

“You know my answer.”

“Depends on the job, right. I’d like you to find a place to observe the flower patch, safely and from a distance. That might be the only way we learn something more definitive.”

Becky hemmed and hawed. “I don’t know. I’m on board for doing favors for the town, but I’d need at least a gold to camp there for a month.”

“Done.” Hans tossed a gold coin to the dwarf.

“Bollocks,” Becky said, catching the coin. “I should have asked for more.”

New Quest: Collect Becky’s report on the flower stakeout.

While Becky began the journey back to where the purple flowers bloomed, Hans updated Olza on the latest discovery. She knew little about chimeras, but she agreed that the new development was disturbing.

Very disturbing.

***

Open Quests (Ordered from Old to New):

Progress from Gold-ranked to Diamond-ranked.

Mend the rift with Devon.

Complete the manuscript for "The Next Generation: A Teaching Methodology for Training Adventurers."

Identify the unknown purple flower from Olza.

Don’t forget the beer!

Brainstorm ideas for safe approaches to training on uneven terrain.

Design a winter curriculum.

Create a plan for what to do if you are removed from the Gomi chapter.

Collect Becky’s report on the flower stakeout.