TODD
Companion was pretending to sleep on the floor when the conversation finally ended. Alex shook the selkie and promised him beer. Companion climbed back up to his feet too fast to have actually been fast asleep. When Companion first joined their group, Todd thought the player would be able to answer all their questions about the structure. That turned out to be a false hope. Companion’s people seemed to be even more specialized than humans. Companion freely told them anything he knew, but what he knew was limited to his narrow path in society and colored by his belief that the system that controlled the technology in the building was a god, the true god.
Todd suspected Companion was listening closely to Grandmother's words. The selkie both feared and worshiped her as a lesser god. He would learn all he could from her and take it home to his people. Todd said as much to Grandmother. “Good,” was Grandmother’s response.
“How much of that did you know?” Todd asked the selkie. They also experienced the same problem with Companion that they did with Grandmother. He assumed they knew things they didn’t.
“Some,” Companions replied, “Some confusing.” Todd made a note to try to talk about the subject again to sort out the player’s confusion. Sometimes that meant he just didn’t understand, but sometimes it meant he picked out a mistake in Grandmother's assumptions but didn’t want to say anything because of the whole lesser god thing.
As they crossed the square’s courtyard they passed its protection crystal. Each of them touched the crystal briefly to update their transportation access to the square. It was tiny for a square crystal. Todd wasn’t certain it was any larger than the protection crystal in the southern gallery.
“It’s smaller than the last time I was here,” Grandmother commented. “They must have had another war.”
“Not much time left,” Companion fluted. “Two or three lives.”
“Lives?” Todd questioned.
“I think he means generations,” Alex explained.
“How many years are in a generation?” Todd asked.
“Not know,” Companion replied.
“I tried to explain a year to him,” Alex explained, “but his people have spent too long in the structure and have lost the idea of seasons.”
“That’s not good news,” Grandmother observed. “We will have to figure out how to make it bigger.”
“Tasks from the true god,” Companion supplied. “Like you finished in Home Square. The true god rewards with time.”
Grandmother straightened in surprise. “Now I have to figure out what task we completed and how I was supposed to know we were completing it,” she mumbled under her breath.
Todd smiled. He was amused at Grandmother's distress. Londontown was not her responsibility, but Todd knew if she could figure out a way to help them without committing to ruling the place, she would.
They arrived at the door to the inn and pushed their way inside. They were greeted by a wall of silence. They arrived in the middle of the evening meal. Nearly every seat at the tables was taken. The majority of the occupants were male, wearing blue touched leathers. These were the people who ruled the square. Very few warriors took up their offer to buy their spells. The few wizard and warrior skills Alex and Todd verified were performed by people who left the fighting professions behind to become crafters.
Companion pulled himself up to the full height and pounded on the top of the service counter. “Strong beer!” the selkie called. Of course no one outside the party understood him. Alex solved that problem.
“Your strongest beer for myself and Companion!” he called out to the innkeeper. He sang Companion's name in the notes of the selkie’s language. The innkeeper was probably in his thirties. That was old for the structure if you ignored the outliers like Mary. He glanced nervously at his own dining room.
“Six iron,” the innkeeper declared.
“That’s steep, the beer better be strong,” Alex commented as he paid from his inventory. The innkeeper fetched the beer himself, leaving the rest of them standing inside the door. Todd was keeping an eye on the silent diners. Companion accepted his tankard and chugged it. Alex was still drinking from his tankard when Companion slammed his back onto the counter.
“Arrowhead root! My favorite! Another!” he fluted. Alex choked on his drink, dropping it back on to the counter.
“What?” he cried. Arrowhead root was a poison. “I can’t feel my lips.” he mumbled. Grandmother stepped forward.
“Killing a customer is not good for business,” she commented. She cast a quick blur, then a heal on Alex. He spit on the floor and tried not to heave the contents of his stomach as the numbness from the poison was replaced by the pain side effect of the spell.
“I would never,” the innkeeper countered, “if the beer is too strong for the warrior the healer above will cure him.”
Todd stepped over to Companion repeating the casts on the selkie. Companion showed no reaction from the heal. It was an indication he was serious about the root being his favorite.
“Are you drinking?” he asked Alex, with a wave of his flipper at the abandoned tankard.
“All yours, friend,” Alex managed to reply. The selkie picked up Alex’s tankard and chugged that as well. Yep, he was serious, Todd thought.
“We’ll have dinner and rooms,” Grandmother said to the innkeeper, after giving him a hard look.
“No rooms,” the innkeeper muttered, stuttering over his words. “We are full up.”
“You lie,” Companion said sharply. He pulled back his lips showing his teeth. Suddenly everyone was aware that the large tusks hanging from his whiskered mouth were actually sharpened blades. “Inn’s always have room.” Todd wondered if that was true. Inns were a special kind of business. They were run more by the structure than the proprietor.
“We have not broken any rules. Turning us away is a violation of hospitality. I see now why your crystal has grown so small,” Grandmother said calmly. She smiled at the man. “Thank you,” she said sincerely. “You have relieved me of the need to solve that problem.”
Grandmother turned and looked at the silent crowd of witnesses. She wondered how many were related to her. She was certain the ‘healer above’ was. Her youngest brother ruled from a step behind her mother. He died under unusual circumstances when one of his children became the queen’s new favorite. The protection crystal shrunk around that time too, Grandmother remembered.
“We will find lodging elsewhere,” she announced to the room, “and return in the morning to finish our business.”
Ellen opened the door. The crystal in the courtyard was visibly smaller.
As they stepped out of the inn Grandmother cast conceal on them. From the inn residents point of view they simply vanished from sight.
Grandmother led them back to the transportation room. Grandmother and Todd pushed the rest of them inside. Sarah, Ellen, Alex and Companion were all tier three. Sarah just recently reached the tier, while Ellen and Alex both expected to reach tier four any day. Companion believed he wouldn’t reach tier four for years yet, if ever. The transportation system could only be accessed and controlled by tier four players or above. The result was they pushed and pulled their lower tier party members through it. While in the transportation room the lower tier members were blind.
“That was… interesting,” Ellen commented. They were all crowded together in the small room. Grandmother held her hand on the control console, but she didn’t select their target yet.
“I think we brushed against someone else’s Narrative. Or at least I hope it was just a brush. Did anyone mention where we came from?”
“No,” Alex said, “I didn’t even use my southern marches title.”
“I mentioned we already visited other squares,” Todd admitted.
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“That’s good, that should make it seem like we came from the north,” Grandmother replied. “Tomorrow try to let it drop that we are from Melbourne.”
“Melbourne?” Todd asked. “Where is that?”
“It is a dead square,” Grandmother responded. “The one Companion’s people cleared out.” Companion shifted on his flipper-feet and began to click. This behavior was a sure sign of fear in the selkie.
“You know?” he fluted.
“A misunderstanding I am sure,” Grandmother responded. “We are doing better this time around I think.”
Companion calmed and fluted his agreement. Grandmother selected the crystal that represented Home Square. The stone departure door transformed into a sheet of light. Todd finished securing his spear over his shoulder with a loop of rope. He nodded once at Grandmother and stepped through the door.
Todd stepped out the arrival door into the transportation room at Home Square. The air seemed cleaner. Todd felt the tension lift from his shoulders. He swung his spear off his shoulder and rested it against the wall. He pulled the exit door to the hallway open and used a door wedge to hold it.
He barely finished before the warning sound rang. The stone of the arrival door transformed into a curtain of light and Ellen stepped through. Todd guided each of his teammates out of the transportation room and into the back hall. He barely managed to remind each one to meet at the inn in the morning before the next arrival warning sounded. Todd realized Grandmother must be pushing everyone through the door as fast as she could. Grandmother stepped out last.
“Did everyone get through safely?” She asked.
“Yes,” Todd responded. “I reminded them to meet at the inn in the morning.”
“Good,” Grandmother commented. She pulled her staff out. Instead of securing it with cord as she usually did, she slipped it through her belt at her back. Todd saw it as further proof that she wanted to leave Londontown in a hurry. “I need to talk to Harry,” Grandmother announced.
Harry was the head of the square’s defenses. Todd was certain that in Grandmother’s mind Harry was the square’s leader. He wasn’t, Grandmother was. Everyone knew it. Grandmother was the only one who wouldn’t admit it.
“He will have heard the arrival gong,” Todd observed. “I am sure he is on his way.” Harry was Todd’s uncle. He was also a tier four warrior. Grandmother managed to give him access to the transportation system. That allowed him to see the door to the transportation room and hear the arrival warnings. He could also use the system, but Todd was certain Harry never left the square without being forced. Grandmother dragged him to the southern gallery in order to give him access. She made him touch the crystal there and at the northern gallery, opening those destinations to him.
They stepped out into the hallway. This hallway led from the back door to the square’s courtyard. Todd acknowledged the guards on watch at the back gate before turning to the square. They walked slowly, giving Harry time to get there.
Harry came striding out of the stairwell as they emerged into the courtyard. “Good trip?” he asked when he saw them.
“Interesting trip,” Grandmother responded. “I have news to share. Let's go up to my room where we can relax.” They crossed the courtyard and went into their own inn. It was a near copy of the inn in Londontown. Only here the tables were filled with crafters and hunters with both sexes in equal numbers. The noise of the chatter filled the room.
Companion was settled onto his bench at Grandmother’s table at the far wall. Alex arrived just before them and was still crossing over carrying a pitcher of beer for the table. He plunked the pitcher onto the table just as Todd reached the bottom of the stairs.
“Gather round,” Alex called out in his storytelling voice, “as I tell you the story of good old Londontown and its mad queen.” Todd caught Grandmother shaking her head as she climbed the stairs in front of him. They emerged into the quieter hall above. Rooms for rent lined both sides of the corridor. Grandmother led them to the end of the hall where the rooms faced the square. She opened the door and stepped inside. She held the door open so they could follow. Since the room was rented to her, only she could open it.
Harry’s pace stuttered slightly, before he cleared the doorway so Todd could enter. When Todd gained entry he realized instantly what surprised his uncle. The room beyond was no ordinary inn room. Companion’s room in the inn was a little like this. The first night Companion spent in the square, he drank Alex under the table. Worried about his new friend, Companion carried Alex up to his room for the night. Alex came too in the morning on a pile of rocks. Shocked by the discovery that the bed provided for Companion was so different from what was provided for human players, Alex dragged every member of the party through Companion’s room to view it.
Grandmother’s room did not contain a pile of rocks. The wall across from the door was a floor to ceiling window out into the courtyard. The view beyond was crystal clear, although Todd was certain you could not see in from outside. The ceiling was too high. The light panels were held up by arching beams of wood, bound in copper. The floor was covered in carpet. It was a deep purple, crisscrossed in a pattern of diamonds in a shade of copper that matched the ceiling beams. The area right inside the door was a sitting area with a sofa and stuffed chairs, while to the left was an enormous oval bed, draped in shades of violet.
The right wall was covered in an elaborate tapestry that showed a forest scene complete with animals looking out at them. The few animals Todd recognized made him wonder if the rest were also real. A weapons rack in copper was just inside the door. Todd set his spear in the rack, next to Grandmother's staff.
Harry was walking very tentatively on the carpet. Todd recognized what it was from his time on the Speedwell. They had never talked Harry into making the trip. He probably didn’t know what it was.
“This is unexpected,” Todd offered as he sat on a stuffed chair. The upholstered furniture were all covered in tapestries of elaborate images, following the same forest theme. The chair Todd sat on was covered in leaves and flowers. A quick inspection of the pattern of petals on the flowers showed it was encoded with the symbols for the third tier healing spell. He thought there might be a second spell encoded in the lobes on the leaves. He ran a hand across the fabric as he puzzled it out.
“It’s been this way since the migration,” Grandmother mumbled. “I try to ignore it.” She sat down onto the sofa.
“It's the queen’s suite,” Harry said suddenly, looking around. “Although the mad Queen’s room was never this deluxe and hers was in blue. I can still recognize the bones of her room in this one.” Todd forgot at times that his uncle was once a part of the ruling elite in Londontown. He was just a minor figure, but his position as a member of the guard bettered the lives of the rest of the family.
“It is Londontown I want to talk to you about,” Grandmother admitted. “The protection crystal there is failing.”
“Failing?” Harry straightened up and turned his full attention to Grandmother.
“Companion said it would only last for two or three generations more, although we don’t know how long a generation is for him. I think more importantly was that it visibly shrunk when we were there.”
“What caused that?” Harry asked.
“They tried to poison Companion and Alex. The poison didn’t seem to work on Companion. He just thought it was delicious. I healed Alex. They tried to claim that Alex was just too weak for the beer and said they would have healed him. They didn’t realize Companion recognized the poison.” Grandmother explained. “Since Alex is a blue, healing in Londontown has a whole other set of insinuations in it.”
“I think them denying us rooms also played a factor,” Todd commented.
“I don’t know,” Grandmother responded. “I have not seen anything that proved Control understands our language and that exchange was all talk.” There was something about the way she said it that made Todd suspect it wasn’t completely true. He suspected she saw something, somewhere that made her wonder if Control could understand her words.
“Maybe Control doesn’t understand our language,” Todd responded, “but what about Companion’s? He was the one who called them liars.”
“Why did he do that?” Harry said, trying to get a clear image of what happened.
“They told us we could not stay the night because the inn was full. Companion said they lied, because the inn is never full,” Todd elaborated.
“Is that true?” Harry questioned.
“I have never seen one full,” Grandmother responded. “Situated as they are on the square, Control could just keep adding on rooms at the back as they are needed.”
“We will have to test it,” Harry said, winning Grandmother's approval.
“For now we can assume it is true. I think it was exactly what you said to them. They denied us hospitality. Given the way I introduced you, I would think the Narrative would shade the offense even harder than trying to kill or enslave a random visitor,” Todd explained.
“Given the way you introduced me, he was not a random visitor, but a member of my retinue,” Grandmother said thoughtfully.
“What the hell is a retinue?” Harry asked suddenly.
“The group of people who travel with royalty,” Todd explained.
“How did you introduce Grandmother?” Harry asked. Todd glanced at Grandmother wondering if he should say. She waved him on.
“As Irene, youngest daughter of the mad queen,” Todd reported.
“Ah, yes,” Harry said, showing no surprise at that title, “not just any royalty, a member of their own royal family.” Grandmother was shaking her head in disgust, as she wondered if everyone in the square thought of her as the mad queen’s daughter. Todd did have a point about the Narrative. A royal house in trouble turns away a royal daughter who returned from the wild bearing gifts for the people. Grandmother could see how that could quickly accelerate to assassination and war.
“We will have to be even more careful tomorrow,” Grandmother murmured. “With the protection crystal visibly getting smaller, there could be unrest in the square. We could see citizens or even armed troops searching for another square.”
“How do you want to deal with it?” Harry asked.
“I don’t want to go to war,” Grandmother responded, but the way she said it let Harry know it wasn’t off the table, “but I don’t want the flavor of the square to change either. I think it might be best if we could just remain undiscovered.”
“So don’t draw attention to ourselves and don’t let anyone follow us home?” Todd asked.
“Exactly,” Grandmother agreed. “And if we do take in refugees, make sure they are carefully selected and their numbers remain small. That way they should be absorbed into our culture and not bring their own. We don’t want any false recruits that carry our location back, at the same time no one is to be held here against their will.”
“How small should we keep their numbers?” Harry asked.
“No more than ten to fifteen percent of our current population,” Grandmother responded. “We don’t want to make the same mistake as Londontown. If anyone finds us without our help, they are welcome and are one of us. Our hospitality will not be questioned.”
“Agreed,” Harry responded. “I'll notify everyone to try to stay south of the green and to report any outsiders they spot. I’ll try to gently reroute anyone we find wandering to a different destination.”
“Tell our people why they shouldn’t wander north,” Grandmother suggested. “I don’t believe in keeping people ignorant.” Harry’s agreement made it obvious he never considered hiding the situation.