After finishing off the dwarves and stripping them of all their gear, I left their corpses to rot in the hot Texas sun. It's all the bastards deserved after attacking. Coming after me was one thing but attacking my friends was another.

Despite my desire to immediately go after the perpetrators of this little plot, I was forced to curtail my emotions. I had no way of locating my target, although, I had a few ideas. First I needed to intercept my new captains and get the other barge out of Houston.

After returning to the fortress I moved south of the Spine and around toward the coastal city. I really should find out what that city called itself.

My arrival didn’t go unnoticed as I plopped the fortress down in an empty shipping yard near the docks. I hurried out to prevent any misunderstandings among the locals.

A few of the town militia had already shown up but they quickly spotted me and lowered their weapons. But I noticed they didn’t put them away.

“I thought you said you would be gone for at least another week?” one of the men asked and I recognized his face from the previous time I had been here.

“The barge won’t be but I plan on setting up a shipping hub here.”

“Why not just remain in Houston?” the man asked in confusion.

“I want one on either side of the Spine. Makes it easier for handling the trade routes,” I replied. Technically true, the best type of truth.

“Alright, I will let the Sheriff know you are here. You can hammer out the specifics with him. By the way, what is that thing you flew in on?”

“Just my house. Makes living on the road much easier.”

The man gave the fortress another glance before he either decided I was telling the truth or it didn’t matter and it was above his pay grade. Either way, he and the men with him left.

I set out a folding chair and a cooler as I waited for the Sheriff. I was two beers in by the time the man showed up.

“Want a drink?”

Kurt eyed my drink with longing but shook his head. “I hear you want to set up a headquarters here?”

“Yup, that going to be an issue?”

“…No, the city will automatically tax you if you own any property. I would just ask that you refrain from arming people this time around. We are still discussing how to handle that issue and choosing a new mayor.”

“Fair enough, but I can’t prevent merchants from selling weapons to the locals.”

“That’s fine, so long as we know who sells what. At least then we can register the weapons.”

I thought the man was being naively optimistic but it wasn’t my town, he could run it how he saw fit.

“I only plan on sticking around for a week this time around. The barge should arrive then. Once I talk with my employees and the Earth mage aboard the Barge, I will get started on constructing my dry dock. Know any good properties?”

“Depends on what you’re looking for.”

“Warehouse space and waterfront access,” I replied after thinking about it for a bit.

“Plenty of that. But best to keep off to the east side of town. Most of the fancy homes are on the west end of town and while they are currently empty, I imagine they are going to be sold out once people learn of the trade going through the town.”

“Fair enough. I will locate an appropriate structure and get back to you. Is it ok if I leave my house here?”

“Well, let me officially welcome you to Saint June,” Kurt said holding out his hand. “As for the house... we should probably talk about that.”

***

The man didn’t believe for one minute that it was a simple house. I couldn’t blame him for his skepticism. The fortress was a hardened rock dome full of sharp angles on the bottom and just looking at its construction it screamed built for conflict. The thick metal door on the outside showed signs of battle but had held, short of the patch. To top it off, I had gun ports situated around the fortress covered in steel panels as well. Most people didn’t realize what they were but Kurt obviously had some idea.

I agreed to move the fortress to the far end of the docks and not attack anyone from the city that approached. That last part was key because eventually, people from outside the city were going to get curious, and well, I didn’t need looky-loos. It also kept prying eyes away while I made repairs and much-needed upgrades to the fortress.

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***

The warehouse district ran along a road near the coast. The road was along the top of an elevated seawall with small docks for fishing boats dotting the land below.

Most were empty, similar to the larger dock I had set the fortress down on. Those docks had been meant for larger ships but not the massive cargo vessels that the Houston shipyard had been designed to handle.

There were a few brave fishing vessels that trawled the waters near the coast. The number of broken ships that lined the coast told the story of the vessels that braved the waters too far out. I was glad my barges were unaffected by the sea life. I would have to mention to the new captains to take care if they ever had to set down in the open ocean. The shield wouldn’t stop a large monster from dragging the barge down.

I located an abandoned warehouse that was close to meeting my needs. It was large and open with a security fence and gate around it. The only downside was the lack of an open parking lot. It wouldn’t do to store ready barges there. But… the smaller warehouse next door had a large lot, filled with unfinished sailboats. I would have to ask Kurt if I could have both. Otherwise, I would have to set the barges in the water. Not the end of the world but the upkeep would be more time-consuming as barnacles would need to be removed more often.

As for the dry dock, that wouldn’t be an issue. The seawall across from the warehouse dropped right into the ocean, with only some rip rap at the bottom to break the waves. There were no docks to get in the way and a staircase ran down the side for people to access the water for fishing.

I hadn’t seen anyone fishing from shore since I had arrived so I figured it wasn’t high on anyone's list as a survival mechanic. Either that or the ones who had attempted it were pulled into the ocean never to be seen again. The latter option seemed more likely since food was always a priority. It was the main reason ships still took their chances out on the water.

I did make a note to develop an anti-monster barrier. Something that would keep anything too dangerous from coming ashore but leave sufficient room for fish to get through.

I surveyed the ocean. The area was significantly different from what it had been prior to the System. When I looked east I could just see the yellow-brown haze of the massive desert off in the distance. It turned the area from Mexico to the desert into a large cove, reducing the ocean's effect on the waters by a significant bit.

Weather patterns were starting to shift as well. I had seen the beginnings of this when I was in Houston. The once arid area was seeing more rainfall as air currents pushed clouds against the imposing wall of the Spine. Some of the clouds would push their way over but most ended up dumping their water against the mountain chain to form new rivers that ran down and toward the coast. In a few years, I expected a river larger than the Mississippi would run along the mountain chain.

The east side of the Spine was much drier. Ocean breezes would carry storm clouds north from the coast but they were small in comparison to what they could have been prior. Saint June saw a fair share of light rains but the storm fronts would break apart long before they crossed the barren rocky area that the elementals called home. Occasionally a hot dry wind would blow in from the desert, carrying with it fine particles of sand that would wash into the ocean during the next rainstorm.

With enough time it would build up and turn this cold coastline into a beautiful sandy vista. But that was decades away at the earliest. And while it was nice to dream about the future, I had shit to do now.

***

Kurt agreed to let me have both properties, assuming I could continue paying the taxes on them. Which reminded me I was broke. That issue was quickly resolved when I spoke with a few of the boat captains. They had been eager to learn of anything that made their important work a bit safer. I couldn’t offer them levitation as I didn’t have that kind of time or resources, but I was able to provide a simple shield that could protect them long enough to fight off a sea monster or make their way to shore.

I was only able to apply the shield to three vessels due to my lack of additional mana hearts, and even those three had come from some of my unfinished projects. The shields weren’t much but they would be able to soak up five hundred damage. I hadn’t yet figured out how to merge smaller mana hearts into a larger one but that work was ongoing.

***

The week went by quickly and finally, my barge had arrived. I strode onto the boat and waved at the guards who gave me confused looks. They knew it was me and not some double as I had a control rune to disable the shield.

“Keep up the good work, I just have to speak with the captains.”

The guards shrugged as I walked past, they were busy directing the merchants off to set up their carts on the dock anyway.

“Mr. Paul! What brings you here?” Maria asked in trepidation.

“I had some business to attend to here and thought I would stick around until you two arrived. How was the trip so far?”

“No issues, Mr. Paul,” Javier added with a smile.

“Good, hey, while I have you two here I need you to do something for me when you return to Houston.”

I felt a bit guilty about putting them up to this but I needed both barges here.

“What would you like us to do, Mr. Paul?” Maria asked.

“Well, when you return to Houston, I need one of you to pilot the other barge over here. It isn’t fully operational but it should be able to stay above the waves, just take it slow. Oh and if anyone says the Barge isn’t mine or tries to force their way on board, leave and return here.”

The two were looking nervous as I spoke and I tried alleviating their fears. “You shouldn’t have any issues and I will be paying the guards to protect you and the barge for another round trip.”

“Are you in trouble, Mr. Paul?”

“No… why would you say that? It’s just a small misunderstanding with some of the locals. If you have concerns go and talk with Marshall Sumner, he can tell you what is going on. Oh, I might also have a few friends that want to join me here. Their names are Martin, Fiona, and Ska… Ska is a large cat man, so don’t freak out if you see him.”

The two nodded slowly like they were rethinking their choice to work for me. I just smiled as disarmingly as I could. It didn’t seem to help. I really wished Martin was here with his abnormally high Charisma to help me out.