Joe’s makeshift inn — more of a shoddy shack given how little time he had to make it, was a nice addition to their living situation. Rather than all needing to be crammed in the cold, poorly lit cave that Zoe had built her home in, people could stay outside with windows and sunlight peeking through.
It was a single floor and just a short walk away from Zoe’s cave entrance. Close enough to be accessible, but far enough so she’d still have some privacy. The kitchen was thrown together from some of Zoe’s enchanted gems and a handful of small rooms that reminded Zoe of the cramped spaces in Gafoda inns, but it was enough for Joe’s skills to work. The inn was comfortable, unnaturally so given how creaky the floorboards were and how similar the walls were to swiss cheese.
Nora showed up again a few days later, and everybody gathered to talk outside at a table Zoe threw together the day before.
“Korna’s fine, wherever the elemental came from, it didn’t pass through Korna. So I think it would be best if we all went there to start up a new life. I can’t buy you all houses, but it’s better than living out here in the wilderness and fending for yourself.” Nora said as she sat down on one of the stools.
“I don’t want to go.” Jeffrey said. “There’s bound to be more to find in Flester’s ruins, and leaving it all behind for a life in some city that never helped me anyway sounds pointless. I’d rather stay here and spend some time poking through the city’s rubble once we’re set up. Maybe find some storage items full of alchemy supplies, or some rich asshole’s horde of extravagant crap.”
Zoe nodded. “I’m staying here anyway. It sucks that Flester’s gone, but I already lived out here so it doesn’t really affect me nearly as much as all of you.”
“Oh come on. Jeffrey, was it? You’d rather rummage through a destroyed city than come live in society surrounded by new people, new opportunities, new relationships?” Nora asked.
Peter scoffed. “What opportunities? Get hired by some rich noble to care for their kids growth and be beaten at every turn because their kid isn’t as much of a blessed genius as they thought and for some damn reason that’s your fault?”
“Yeah I don’t know either,” Lauren said. “If the option to just start our own thing and live on our own power here is there then that sounds a lot better than having to deal with getting settled into a new town again.”
“Really? You think that somehow living out in the middle of goddamn nowhere is safer than one of the most powerful cities in the Injellar kingdom?” Nora scolded.
“Mum, Joe’s inn is a little special. These people didn’t have the best lives, before they showed up there. And then y’know, our fucking city burnt down anyway.” Emma whispered to Nora.
“Ah. Well I’m sorry if you’ve been abused by people before, but you’re not all wanted criminals. You’re people. Come to Korna, put your money together and buy a small house, get a job and fit back into society. Staying out here in the wilderness because you’re afraid of some stuck up nobles is silly.” Nora said.
Joe shrugged. “It’s not that bad anyway, really. In a few months we can have a little village here. Maybe there’s still some people stuck in Flester who would be partial to moving in too. I’m fine either way, but I can’t leave these people behind.”
“I’m staying. I don’t care about making a village or whatever, but Flester’s full of riches right now and I’m not leaving it behind.” Jeffrey stated.
“Fine. Whatever. Emma, please tell me you’re not going to be staying out here as well.” Nora asked.
Emma sighed. “I don’t know. The cats have already been through a lot and there’s really no difference to them if we’re here or in Korna. Here’s maybe even better for them anyway with how much space they could have to themselves with some renovations.
“But then again I don’t know how I’ll get food for them if I stay here. I don’t know, really.” Emma said.
“I can run down to Korna now and then, I’m probably not much slower than your mom and I’d like the excuse to visit Korna anyway.” Zoe said.
“And I’m an alchemist,” Jeffrey said. “If I can get some supplies and a recipe, then I can probably make cat food. While I’m here anyway. Once Flester’s looted, I’m not sure I’m sticking around.”
“That’ll probably take a few years, you know?" Zoe said.
Jeffrey nodded. “But I’ll be rich after.”
“Well I guess if food’s not going to be a problem, then I don’t have much reason to go either. I’ll stick around for a while at least. Unless you can pay for a teleporter for us?" Emma asked her mom.
“No, I’m sorry hon. I don’t have the money for that.” Nora shook her head.
Emma nodded. “Yeah, I know.”
“How much would it be?” Zoe asked.
“For a good teleporter from here to Korna, with two animals? I wouldn’t even know. Way too much to be reasonable, though. We could get a carriage down here and take the cats up that way?” Nora asked.
“No, I don’t want to put the cats through that if I don’t have to. Thanks, though. I think I’ll stay here and decide later.” Emma said.
“Come on, Emma. The cats will be fine, come back to Korna with me. It’ll be safe, you won’t have to worry about food or wild beasts. It’ll be safe. Come on, Emma.” Nora pleaded.
“It’ll be just as safe here, mom. Zoe’s a monster now, Joe’s dark blue. And I shouldn’t be far away from my fifth class either. Maybe another fire elemental shows up, but maybe another fire elemental shows up and attacks Korna instead. There’s no way to completely avoid catastrophe, and we can handle the normal beasts in the area here.” Emma said.
Nora’s head drooped. “Come on, hon. Just come back to Korna with me. Please?”
“It would mean putting the cats through weeks of stressful travel, and for what? So they can have less space and I’d be around less often to work my job and pay for all of our bills?” Emma sighed. “Look I get it, when Flester was around I loved living in Flester. I loved my tower, I loved my garden. I loved my job, I loved the safety of the walls. Never in a million years would I have chosen to come live out here instead of in Flester.
“But I’m here now, and it’s not really that bad, and I don’t want to put the cats through any more than I absolutely have to. They don’t deserve that, it’s already hard enough.” Emma said.
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“Fine.” Nora shook her head. “I won’t force you to come.” She gestured to Kenzie and Sue who were sitting next to Joe. “What about those two? Do you want to come to Korna?”
“I want to be wherever Joe is,” Kenzie said. Sue nodded with her.
“You’re all insane. Korna is obviously the safest option.” Nora said.
Joe shrugged. “Maybe, but safety isn’t always everybody’s priority. Jeffrey wants to pillage, I guess. Peter and Lauren both want to avoid being around big cities if they can, and these two-” Joe gestured to the two teenage girls beside him, “want to stick with me.”
“Then you should have a responsibility to come to Korna so they come and get set up in a proper city with actual lives.” Nora said.
Joe nodded. “You may be right. But you could be wrong, too. At least for right now. In a few weeks when things have calmed down a bit? Maybe a month or two? They can make their own decision about where they want to be and we can figure something out. But right now, on the spot? I’ve got an inn made—”
“A shack, Joe. You have a shack.” Nora said.
“Really more of a shack, yes. But it does count as an inn. I can make food, I can defend the building, and in another week or two it won’t be so much like a shack. I just had to get the bare minimum done first so it would at least qualify. It’s really not that bad, and as I said there might be more people in Flester. Maybe they need help, maybe they could use a place to stay and help rebuild.”
“Fine. So you’re all staying in the middle of nowhere to build up your own village, then?” Nora asked.
Everybody nodded.
Nora took a deep breath and shook her head. “Alright. I’ve tried. If that’s what you all want to do then have fun I guess.” She looked at Emma. “I’ll come back every month for a while to bring the cats food, alright?”
Emma hugged her mom. “Thanks, mom. I appreciate it a lot. I know Korna would be safe, but with the cats I just—”
“It’s fine, I know.” Nora hugged her back then looked back at everybody else. “Well that’s it then. Best of luck to you all.”
“Oh, actually I had a question. Which direction is Korna?” Zoe asked.
“South-eastish. Why?” Nora answered.
“Did you happen to see a farm about an hour’s walk east of Flester?” Zoe asked.
Nora shook her head. “No, everything out that way was burnt down. You have a friend out there?”
Zoe nodded. “Kind of, yeah. She was pretty high level and a water mage, I believe. Or cold? Can’t remember now. But she probably made it out alive I imagine. Thanks.”
“Yeah. Anybody else have a question to ask before I leave then?" Nora asked. When nobody responded, she stood up and ran off to the south.
“Alright, that’s it then, huh? We’re building a village here by Zoe’s place?" Joe asked.
“Sounds like it.” Zoe said.
“I’d like my own house if possible. Do you think you could teach me the Carpentry skill?” Peter asked Joe.
“Me too, please.” Lauren said.
“Sure, we can do that. We’ll get houses for everybody. But first, you said the town was cleared out of the elementals, Zoe?” Joe asked.
Zoe nodded. “From what I could see, yeah. Why?”
“I think we should take a day or two at least and just look around for more survivors who might be stuck under the rubble. Even if they don’t want to live here, we could at least put in an effort to help them out a bit.” Joe suggested.
“I’m down,” Jeffrey said. “Might find some nice stuff while we’re searching, too.”
“I’d rather not leave the cats alone for too long right now, sorry.” Emma said.
“That’s fine. I imagine Kenzie and Sue, you two will be staying back here too?” Joe asked.
The two sisters nodded.
“Peter? Lauren? You two able to come help out?" Joe asked.
They both nodded as well.
The group fell into a routine for the following weeks, searching the ruins of Flester for any people who might have survived in safe houses or sturdy basements. Or maybe just with enough health to not be crushed under the weight of collapsing buildings.
Joe, Peter and Lauren stuck together and started in the north west of town and worked their way inwards, searching through each destroyed building for signs of life. Jeffrey ran off on his own to search through the wealthier districts of town, collecting crystals and anything with a glint of fortune.
Zoe flew through the town in a suit of Earth as she looked for any signs of people struggling. Sounds of motions that were out of place, or ragged breathing. She tore through rubble of buildings surrounded by tracks in case somebody got trapped while they fled.
They found quite a few people in their efforts. Many had sustained injuries — stumps for arms and missing toes, but all were covered in soot from the fires that ravaged the town. Zoe healed the people she could, but none of the worse injuries were recent enough for her to heal them completely. Bruises and scratches were washed away, but their missing limbs and torn clothes seemed right as rain to Zoe’s skill.
Most weren’t interested in starting up a new life by Zoe’s place and just wanted to get to Korna and be done with the horrors of Flester as soon as they could be. Zoe directed them all to Kaira library where they could gather and make plans for the trip to Korna together, and then left them on their own.
A few did show interest in settling nearby, not being interested in moving to a big city or wanting to leave the area they grew up in. The little settlement by Zoe’s place continued to grow as almost another two dozen people moved in, with all of their skills and experience. There were three carpenters, as well as a stonemason who moved in and with their dedicated classes homes were raised far faster than Joe and Zoe could with their simple general skills.
By the end of the month, they had two somewhat nice apartments risen in the woods not far from Zoe’s cave and Joe’s inn was looking much healthier. They even made some furniture for the rooms — beds and dressers, some chairs and tables for people to sit and work at. One of the people who joined was a creeler who made some comfortable cushions and blankets for people. She didn’t have much experience working with fabrics, but many of her skills still applied and Zoe had a decent stockpile of material from Flester’s ruins.
A growing concern for Zoe as the village around her home grew was the security of her cave. Until now, she had gotten by with being unnoticed. Nobody knew where she lived, and a quick glance revealed nothing more than a normal cave wall with somewhat unusual mana. But now there were over two dozen people who lived no more than a decent stone’s toss away — not to mention Emma still living with her.
Some additional measures would be nice, if Zoe could figure out something to do. There was a fine line between making your home too difficult to enter, and making it so difficult to enter that people thought it would be worth it. But an unlocked door that would open to anybody with a simple surge of mana was a little too far on the not difficult end.
One of the people that had joined them in their settlement was an enchanter, so Zoe thought she might spend some time chatting with him about the problem. If there was a way to make her door only open to certain people, then that would be ideal. Maybe she could make two enchantments that worked together, like a special key she could hand out to people.