James had planned to only stay a day, but it actually took two days of careful planning before they were ready to leave. Staying at the inn, he made plans with Grobar and also made sure to tell Elizabeth of his plans. He also noticed one important change in his quest.

Quest: Reverse the Curse

You have learned that your beloved has been turned into a djinn. Negotiate her release with the Djinn King.

Reward: Vial of Race Strengthening/Tome of Basic Enchanting/Marriage Certificate

James felt happy looking at the quest. Previously it had told him to find a way to reverse Jessica's curse, but now the quest told him that he was on the right track by learning about the Djinn King. When he asked the dwarves they knew nothing about djinn, but when he pulled out the information on the Gravitus family he still kept he learned that the family had begun in what was now called the Endless Wastes. From the map, he saw that it was or had perhaps previously been an inhospitable place of either a barren rocky landscape or perhaps even a desert. Of course with everything changing because of the System, he knew he couldn't blindly trust the map. Still, it was a hopeful step, one that he hoped would soon lead to him being reunited with his mermaid.

When they left, they did so in the middle of the night and quietly so as to avoid the other humans in the mine as much as possible. James hadn't even bothered to learn the name of the mine, but he did try to learn the names of the dwarves and other nonhumans. He could only shake his head when he learned that the crafty dwarves had placed sleeping drugs in the humans cups and used their incredible strength to tie up and restrain others. It hammered home for him the importance of ensuring a good workplace and happy staff. But also, how lawless this world was.

They slowly made their way towards the same river James had once travelled with Jessica when they had fled Sagaste, which his map typically did not show. While he worried slightly about going back there considering that the Gravitus' would probably be searching for him and might include the area where Garbi had died in that search he told himself to stop worrying and to stop overthinking it. Their progress was slow because there were so many of them and most of the dwarves possessions were packed on carts pulled by this world's equivalent of oxen including all their heavy mining and forging equipment but James didn't mind. As they travelled he quickly found himself quickly thrust into the role of a teacher and sure enough his Scholar skill levelled up to level two and he also gained the skill Teaching. Not just the dwarves but also Elizabeth proved themselves eager learners, and he quickly passed out pens and paper and pencils and other school supplies so that they could all study as they travelled. Grobar himself could hardly be pried from his books on metallurgy and geology. Having never studied these subject in any great deal before, James still tried his best to help the dwarf by reading the same textbooks and providing what insight he could. He was also happy to see that Elizabeth was quickly becoming a member of the group, even helping her fellow dwarf students with studying and serving as an excellent role model. James soon learned that none of them had had access to such knowledge before, and all of them were eager to give themselves a better tomorrow and raise their skill levels. Grobar himself admitted that his smithing level had risen from fifty-four to fifty-five just by learning about the different metals and where to look for them through the books.

They bypassed Sagaste, and so far everything was going smoothly. Luckily James had plenty of food and other supplies in his inventory, and the cooks quickly fell in love with the spices and seasonings he provided to them. There was some danger, but they kept a strict watch on their surroundings and thus they only had to fight monsters twice and bandits once. Fortunately there were no casualties. Through experimenting, James also raised Medic to level two and learned healing magic when he tried to knit a small cut on the back of his hand back together. The result left a scar, but simply learning healing magic was enough to make him want to practice it for whenever there was an emergency.

At last after three weeks of travelling they came to the edge of the map near the Sea of Cazamir. It seemed strange to remember when he had been talking about that same place with Jessica only a short while ago. But with his sense leading him further out into the sea, James pressed on.

"James? Where are you going?"

"It's alright. Let me check this out. I'll be back soon."

Assuring Grobar, James pressed on following his weird senses. At first he thought that the location was out to sea somewhere, but as he walked away from the group, he found his footsteps leading him along a narrow path that was only just above the water. Reminding him of the Mont-Saint-Michel that was an island at times and a peninsula at others due to the tide, he spent at least half an hour following the narrow winding and twisting path through the rocks while being sprayed by the surf as the oceanic waters crashed all around him. While there were barnacles, starfish, and other marine life he didn't pay much attention to them and only focused on getting to the end.

Finally just as he was beginning to get concerned about how he would get back if the tide continued to rise, James turned again along the winding path and suddenly saw something that would at best be described as a ruin. There were about two sides remaining to the foundation of what had once been some large structure he could not identify. One of those walls was the one directly in front of him facing the coastline; what might be termed the west wall according to the map. But even that had crumbled so much that he could just barely tell where an opening in the wall for a doorway or gate had once been. While the ground here was not covered in sealife like kelp or barnacles, there was still an assortment of crumbled rock and a few timbers faded by the elements. Moving past the wall, he saw that the fortress or whatever the structure was had been massive, at least as large as a castle if not bigger. But what drew his eyes was a faint red glow from the center of the ruin. Quickly hopping over stones and debris, he hurried forward and coming around a large boulder he saw a glowing scarlet red orb hovering in the air, right in the centre of the ruined fortress. Excitedly he reached out for it, his fingers brushing it just before the System alerted him with a new message.

Congratulations! You have discovered the Fortress of Unyielding Night!

You may choose to restore:

Great Hall

Courtyard

Throne Room

Warehouse

Wall

Library

Dungeon

Armoury

Mine

Dining Hall

Gardens

Marketplace

Pathway

Ballroom

Harbour

Stables

Harem

Ballroom

Crafting Hall

Kitchen

Barracks

Training Yard

Treasury

Bedrooms

James looked through the menu of rooms and places, amazed at all that he saw. While he didn't understand why a harem was listed, he saw immediately that the pathway and walls would be the first things needed for repair. He selected them both.

Pathway

0/10,000 Stone

Wall

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0/100,000 Stone

0/100 Iron

0/100 Wood

James selected the pathway and then wondered how to add stone to the count. He stored a few pebbles in his inventory, but the counts for both the wall and pathway stayed the same. Next he tried verbal commands, but that didn't work either. Noticing that the orb just stayed hovering quietly, James had a flash of inspiration and brought several large boulders to the orb. To his surprise the rock disappeared much like how Jessica had been absorbed by the necklace, and finally there was a 2 in the required stone for the pathway. Sure now how to rebuild the fortress, James put the orb away in his inventory before racing back along the path he had come by. As he reached the shoreline, his feet were growing wet as the tide continued to rise. Seeing him return Grobar put down his books and walked over to him.

"Ah, James! Did you find what you were looking for?"

"I did. But there is a catch."

James pulled out the orb and was surprised when Grobar made a strangled noise in his throat. Looking over at him in surprise James saw the dwarf pointing at the orb.

"Do...do you know what that is?"

"An orb?"

Grobar made a noise between gasping for air and fury.

"That's an Orb of Power!"

"A what?"

He looked down at the orb and used Analyze.

Orb of Power

Used to create a Place of Power

"Okay...what's a Place of Power?"

Grobar groaned and brought his hand to his forehead in a universal 'Who is this idiot?' gesture.

"A Place of Power...is a location that can be used or built up. It is usually known as a stronghold or place of incredible might. They are incredibly rare. Tell me, is it a growth type or already built?"

"I don't know. The place was a ruin and said that I would need stone to start rebuilding it."

"That's even better. A growth type Place of Power is known to be more powerful than a static one that cannot grow."

"Like being a powerful level fifty versus a level one that can grow to level one hundred?"

"Exactly."

"Okay...so how do we build it?"

"What does it need? What does the Place of Power need?"

"So far I only know that I need thousands of stone. I think the size of the stone is about a square foot."

"Okay. We'll start gathering it then. And what is it called?"

"'Fortress of Unyielding Night.'"

"Okay. We'll want to make camp before finding a place to set up a quarry."

James let Grobar manage the group and was content to follow his instructions on where and how to set up temporary shelters. When that was done he briefly experimented, wondering if he could pull up the progress without holding the Orb of Power. Through this he discovered a new quest in his character screen.

Quest: Restore the Place of Power

Your Place of Power is in ruins. Restore it.

Reward: 1000 gold coins/Pet/Portal

James could not help but whistle softly seeing the rewards. While he didn't know the value or lack thereof of a portal or pet if it turned out to be something simple like Napoleon had been, a thousand gold coins was certainly nothing to sneeze at. Despite his resolve to stop thinking, he pondered his next move and putting the Orb of Power away he went to find Elizabeth. He found her helping set up a kitchen and beginning to prepare ingredients to feed their company.

"Miss Elizabeth."

"Oh, James."

She smiled and wiped her brow with the back of her sleeve. James thought that she looked like a medieval renaissance actress in her peasant dress. The sight of her smile made him feel slightly less guilty for what he was considering doing.

"May I speak with you for a minute?"

"Of course."

James noticed that she was also speaking more since they had met the dwarves, appearing to have blossomed from a quiet child without hope to someone who spoke more with a curious attitude. He was glad for the change and hoped that her mother would have liked it too.

They walked a few steps away from the kitchen and the tents that were beginning to be set up. Then James turned to face her.

"I'm sorry that I have not spoken with you very much recently. How are you adjusting to all of this?"

"I'm fine."

"Just fine?"

"Yes, everyone is nice."

"Have you felt any exclusion or uncomfortable being one of the only humans among the dwarves?"

"Some. But most people are very nice and I'm making friends among some of the dwarf girls."

"I see. Is there anything I can do to make you more comfortable here?"

"I'm alright, thanks. Why? Is something wrong?"

James chuckled and rubbed the back of his head as if he had been caught in a lie.

"I'm considering leaving here soon to continue my search for my lady Jessica. I am thinking of leaving you here with the dwarves, along with several books for you to continue studying."

"I would like that. I never thought that I would receive an education. This is a priceless gift."

"It's nothing much. If I find any more knowledge I will try to bring it back. Are you okay with all of this though? I feel bad at the idea of leaving you here, but if it's what you want in order to study and it keeps you safer here, then perhaps that's best."

"I'll be fine."

"You're sure?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Thank you Miss Elizabeth. And I'm sorry."

"For what?"

"I feel guilty, like I should always be close by as your guardian. I admit that I still don't understand your mother's actions, wondering why she didn't just come with us. But I do understand that she wanted the best for you, and at least I can respect and try to honour that."

"Thank you."

"Still, keep a weapon on your person. You never know; maybe someone will try to attack us to steal the books if they are so valuable as you say."

Her face grew worried and James regretted his speculation. But he also wanted the young girl to be safe, so he felt slightly less guilty trying to create the best path forward for her similarly to how her mother had done. With a few more words they parted ways with Elizabeth going back to the kitchens and James going to find Grobar. He found him in a small circle of his fellow dwarves and patiently stood by to wait until he was done talking.

"James!"

Grobar saw him and hurriedly finished his own conversation before breaking off to approach him.

"What can I do?"

He smiled.

"My friend, can I leave this project to you?"

Grobar hesitated, uncertainty clouding his face.

"What do you mean?"

So James explained again his desire to find out more about the Djinn King and continue his search for a way to free Jessica.

"We have a potential power base here" he finished. "If you can build it up, it would be a good safe haven to go back to."

He pulled out the Orb of Power and handed it to the dwarf. Unlike the Orb of Mesmerizing, this was not some gem that caused conflict or avarice but a hungry void ready to eat any materials it was given. Grobar's eyes went wide.

"Human! Do you know what it means to give that away?"

"I assume it means that I am leaving you in charge of the Place of Power?"

"You can't just give that away!"

"Why not? You clearly love your people and want what's best for them, and I trust you. I know we haven't known each other that long, but if the Fortress of Unyielding Night is built up it can be a safe haven for the dwarves. And I can think of no one better to run such a project than you."

Grobar gaped like a fish as James thrust the object into his hands.

"Oh, but since I don't know how long I will be gone and you may need to conduct trade..."

James pulled out pieces of gold and jewelry. He placed them in a bag and added them to the items he gave Grobar.

"I'll also make sure to leave several provisions here."

Grobar coughed.

"That might be best...but human! How..."

James chuckled and clapped the smaller man on the shoulder.

"I think I will leave tomorrow. Let me know if you need anything. And like I told Elizabeth, be prepared for anything. If someone tries to attack us, be ready."

Grobar nodded.

"Aye. There's no telling what the humans will do."

Belatedly the dwarf remembered that James was a human, but he only nodded in response.

"I agree. Safety first."