Tuck’s first view of the Human settlement didn’t do it justice, up close the wall was massive, about 10 stories tall and hundreds of kilometres wide. It literally closed the gap between two mountains. Running along the length of the wall was a deep fissure which was approximately 300 metres wide and acted as a moat. Tuck headed towards the only section of the wall that had a massive gate. Intrigued by the chasm he looked over the edge to see that it sank for a few kilometres and an orange glowing slow churning river ran along the bottom.
“Shit is that lava?” Tuck whispered, completely astonished by the audacity of this city’s builders.
"Ho over there!" A voice called from across the way.
Tuck looked up and saw… a Cowboy?
He had the hat, the boots, and a revolver on his hip but the green Pancho he wore with the yellow bird embroidered on it reminded Tuck more of the Tabard worn by the Musketeers. Tuck used his Spatial Awareness to get a better look at the ‘hombre’, beneath the poncho on his back the cowboy had a round shield and a cutlass. There were also many people dressed the same beyond the gate behind him where Tuck’s physical eyes could not see.
"You must be cold, dressed like that." The cowboy continued. Tuck took in his own appearance. By this time his shirt and cloak were a memory and what remained of his pants barely protected his modesty.
"Well met, I am a Bagman called Tuck. I've come to trade and rest." Tuck introduced himself, pulling out a sack from his Reservoir before putting it back to emphasise his claim. In Shaards a Bagman was someone with supernatural storage whether through a magical device or a Champion ability. Bagmen and women were walking superstores and in a harsh world like this they were a welcome sight. The Cowboy spoke to someone Tuck couldn't see.
"Raise the bridge." A wide bridge swung up from below, coming perfectly level with the road on Tuck’s side. He heard a bolt fire into place and took that as his cue to cross.
As soon as Tuck was across, the bridge was immediately dropped. They were taking as few chances with Titan Beasts as possible. The cowboy and Tuck clasped forearms in greetings.
"Well met Tuck, my name is Armin. I hold the rank of Captain. Welcome to The Warren."
"Thanks." Tuck said as he stepped through the thick wall.
Tuck had expected an open space beyond the wall but he was in an immensely large room, like the foyer of a modern office building. Tuck opened his Spatial Awareness wider to understand the geography of The Warren only to realise how apt its name was. What Tuck had thought was a guard wall was the facade of a massive building. He had entered the 3rd Level of a multi-level city that extended out under the mountains and down into the earth.
The Warren was a country all on its own.
Arnim talked to someone from his unit before returning to Tuck.
"Come on, I'll take you to Momma." He said before he began maneuvering through passageways. If he was trying to disorient Tuck he was failing but he did not need to know that.
"I am assuming you're not speaking of your own mother." Tuck said. Arnim chuckled.
"Naw, she's the Militia's Bagwoman, Major Iskandar." He stopped and faced Tuck.
"It should go without saying that we, the Militia, get first pick on items being brought in. That's not going to be an issue, is it?" Arnim held Tuck’s gaze as he waited for his reply.
Being hyper aware of his surroundings Tuck realised that Arnim had asked that question a bit loudly as they were walking through a very full lunchroom. Many lunch goers slowed down eating and paid attention to them.
"That makes sense, you're the ones keeping everyone safe." Tuck replied easily. Arnim smiled and patted Tuck on my shoulder. The conversation in the lunchroom picked back up and they continued their march to logistics.
They walked into a storage room that was buzzing with activity.
"The shipment from the green house should arrive within the hour and then you need to head to the farm to store this month's slaughter as well as the cheese, milk and butter." A tall thin man was consulting a thick ledger while following a short fat older woman with a jovial face and greying hair. Her eyes glittered with delight when she saw Armin walking in.
"Oh shut up Pete, can't you see that one of my favourite 'sons' has come to visit me?" Armin went over and enthusiastically hugged Major Iskandar aka 'Momma'.
"Hey Momma, I brought someone to see you." Arnim pointed out Tuck to the older woman. She eyed Tuck up and down.
"Armin, you naughty boy, bringing me a stripper. I'm a respectable woman!" Everyone laughed, including Tuck. He knew how a nearly naked man walking this complex must look.
"My name is Tuck, I'm a Bagman, I just came in, out of the forest." Tuck introduced himself again. Momma became serious and smacked Armin across his lower back hard enough to make him wince.
"You couldn’t even offer him a blanket? Come this way lad. Let's get you some zes-root tea while we talk business. Pete reschedule my evening before joining us."
A few minutes later they were sitting in a warm cozy office. Tuck was wrapped in blankets and sipping on a hot beverage similar to ginger tea.
"Now, there is no way to look into someone else's inventory so we Bagmen have to go by our word. I'll have your oath that you won't sell SoulGems to anyone but me while you are in The Warren."
"You have it." Tuck replied.
"Good, that means you have SoulGems to sell. How many?" Tuck realised Major Iskandar had tricked him into revealing more than he may have wanted. Momma addressed Tuck's hesitation.
"Don't worry you won't be short changed. Our man Pete over here is a versatile Wizard and has a great appraisal magic tool."
"Why don't you go out and hunt the Titan beasts yourselves?" Tuck asked, they had the numbers and quite a few Champions.
"We do, or we did but it seems our current tracking squad is… inept. Since they can’t seem to differentiate between Titan and Magical beasts. We have tried to brute force our hunts but on average we lost one Champion and three Gunmen for every SoulGem. That is not sustainable, so we are retraining our trackers now.” Iskandar admitted. Tuck realised his own method of training would be seen as suicide to others.
“Do you know your letters?" Iskandar asked, handing Tuck a clipboard. Her change in direction derailed his train of thought. It took him a moment to understand she was asking if he could read and write. Tuck took the clipboard and checked.
The sheet on the clipboard was divided into 2 columns. The larger one was headed 'item' and the smaller was headed 'amount'. With all the information the Goddesses had put into his head Tuck should not have doubted his ability to read but it was nice to have confirmation.
Tuck quickly made up 2 lists, the first he was selling the second he was buying.
"I've noticed you haven't listed any SoulGems." Momma said while tapping the first list.
"Let's finish what we have before us first. You have shown yourselves as cunning twice already, I need to hold onto my leverage." Tuck said as he sipped his second cup of tea.
'Twice?'
Momma and Pete had a quick exchange of looks before both glared at Armin. Through his Spatial Awareness Tuck could see Armin who was behind him by the door squirm under their stares. They had rightfully come to the conclusion he had done something to put Tuck on his guard.
Momma's trick wouldn't seem bad if it was the first one, but following the trap in the dining hall the Militia seemed to favour manipulation. What Armin and Iskandar reminded Tuck was that the most dangerous creatures he would face wouldn't be Titan Beasts but other people.
Pete cleared his throat, indicating for them to begin. Tuck displayed the items he had listed and Pete appraised them.
Pete's appraisal magic tool was a pair of spectacles that he pushed energy through to determine something's worth. Since Pete’s appraisals matched Tuck’s own he decided not to haggle over the prices Momma offered. After a few items, Major Iskandar realised Tuck was just accepting her first offers. She insisted on starting over and paying more for everything.
The SoulGems she wanted were keeping her honest.
At the end of the assessment Major Iskandar introduced Tuck to the Warren's banking system.
In Shaards settlements had a barter system with each other and outsiders. Large cities like The Warren had a sophisticated internal banking network allowing for paper money called Grams based on metal weights. They had coins representing grams; nickel was 5 gram, tin was 10 gram, iron was 25 gram and steel 100 gram. Gold and silver were too precious to be coined since silver was valuable in magic insulation and gold in magic conductivity.
After the 100 gram steel coin came paper bills for 500 grams, 1 kilo (short for kilograms), the 2 kilo, 5 kilo and finally the 10 kilo.
When he left The Warren Tuck could turn in his bills for the weight they represented so he would have metal to trade at the next settlement he visited. It was a good system but not perfect. Tuck was sure The Warren wouldn't give out gold nor silver weights to anyone leaving the city.
Tuck purchased a shirt and pants (of course) but after that he bought containers in bulk. Bottles, baskets, bags, crates, wrapping paper and miles of twine; so he could package his findings in the future. Tuck would shop around the civilian section for a wider variety of clothing, toiletries, utensils and spices as well as things to sell at his next stop. He also had a personal project he needed to commission if he could find someone to make it.
Momma and Pete opened an account for him with the bank and deposited half of his earnings there, the other half they gave him in blocks of metals. Tuck took Tin, Nickel, Bronze, Steel, they even ponied up some Silver and Gold but he refused the Iron. Instead he exchanged his iron for the same weight in their more manageable blocks. Tuck was already wealthy by the time talk came back around to the SoulGems.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
“Well now Tuck, I hope we can move on to your main attraction. How many SoulGems do you have?” Momma asked as a serving woman put sandwiches on the table. With a flourish of his hand, Tuck took out the SoulGem he got from the MonoOwl.
“Let’s do this one at a time.” he said. “You may wish to tell me how many you actually need, I already have enough funds to do what I want to do in town.”
Pete put on his spectacles and began analysing the gem.
“A MonoOwl SoulGem!” he exclaimed, jumping to his feet. “The General must hear of this immediately.”
“Sit and give me the analysis Pete, I’ll meet with the General when I’m done here.” Momma’s voice was flat and Tuck got the feeling Pete had vexed her. As for Pete he looked abashed and sat down promptly.
“Y-yes Major Iskandar.” he whispered. “The abilities to be gained from this SoulGem are the standard Strength, Speed, Reflexes, Endurance and Heightened Senses as well as the exceptional air manipulation and an All Seeing Eye.” Pete concluded. Tuck thought Pete missed some abilities like slight precognition, sonic attacks and stealth but the more he thought about it the more he realised they would fall under the All seeing Eye or the Air manipulation, it was up to the user how much they could squeeze out of their skills.
Momma turned to Tuck .
"We need five SoulGems but we want as many as you can sell us." She said seriously. "We have an army to outfit. Anyone who makes it to Captain is supposed to be made into a Champion but we have five new Appointees awaiting their SoulGems."
Tuck put 5 more SoulGems on the table bringing the number to 6.
4 of them were from Titan Grass Wolves and 1 was from a Titan Juggernaut Rhino. He had about 5 more but that was none of her business.
"I want weapons. A crate filled with an equal number of revolvers and rifles. The holsters and belts needed to carry each weapon. Another 2 crates filled with ammunition. And finally a bullet mould for every gun." Tuck finished his list and let Momma think it over.
Armin whistled behind Tuck.
“You sure don’t mess around.”
Tuck had paid attention to the guns since he had arrived. They were magic tools not mechanical ones. They didn't use gunpowder for propulsion, instead the inside of the barrel was lined with magical runes that created a pulse of magnetic acceleration.
They were railguns.
The firing pins closed a circuit, completing and activating the magic. They would be great sale items even if they would be next to useless against a Titan beast they could kill a magical one, not to mention people.
Momma turned to Pete for his assessment.
“The 4 Titan Grass Wolf SoulGems give the standard abilities plus the exceptional Light manipulation, I’m not so sure they compare to the MonoOwl.” Pete told her. Again Tuck thought Pete missed the mark but this time he wasn’t going to let Pete undersell his product so Tuck interrupted.
“Pete, you are disparaging a fantastic skill. Each of those 4 Grass wolves attacked me in completely different ways using the same skill. With Light manipulation a Titan Grass wolf made his pack invisible to ambush me. One of them had made illusions so it looked like it was attacking from everywhere while we battled. Another had gathered the sunlight and fired it at me in a beam. And last one pushed all the light away so it could attack me in absolute darkness, betting its life on its sharper senses. Plus I missed my killing strike against the one using illusions and it pulled in sunlight to close up the wound.” Tuck said.
“Truly?” Pete was amazed.
“Truly. All Titan beasts are dangerous but with human imagination the same skills the beasts had can become truly terrifying.” Momma added. “What’s the last one Pete?” she asked. Pete looked carefully before answering.
“It’s a Titan Juggernaut Rhino, aside from the usual skills it has the exceptional skill shield.” Pete looked to Tuck to provide further insight.
“Not all standard abilities are equal, the strength you will get from the Juggernaut Rhino is next level. The one I got this SoulGem from used the shield ability to improve its charge, creating platforms to change direction and keeping itself safe when turning. Shield is a variation of the element known as force. Aside from barriers, if the skill is well trained it can be used to move and control things over a distance.” Tuck informed them.
This had been one of the toughest beasts Tuck had fought. In the end he developed the technique he ended up using to kill the Shadow Lynx, creating a Wyrm hole and pulling out its brain and heart.
“All these beasts sound exceptional, how did you beat them all?” Pete asked.
“Those markings on him end in a vicious looking serpent on his back but I don’t recognize it.” Armin contributed.
New knowledge floated to Tuck’s mind, in this world Tattoos were the mark of your Soulbeast or the Rune tapestry of a mage’s sect. Tuck now knew that his Army ranger tattoo had been erased when he was bound to the Void Wyrm by the Goddesses, in exchange he had gained an effigy of his Beast.
If Tuck had known that info before he could have thrown a pelt over himself or cut a sheet from the bolts of cloth he was carrying. Sadly he walked in nearly naked.
Of course that didn’t mean Tuck needed to offer information.
“So, Major, do we have a deal?” Tuck asked, blatantly ignoring their curiosity about his Soulbeast. Iskandar got up and shook Tuck’s hand.
"I'll ask you not to sell guns in The Warren as well." She said. Tuck agreed and that concluded their meeting.
Momma made sure Tuck got his items before heading off to her meetings.
Tuck changed into the shirt and pants he had just purchased before Armin gave him a drill on Gun safety. It surprised Armin how familiar Tuck already was with the weapon. When Tuck loaded the 6 shooter on his hip with 5 bullets and put the hammer down on the empty chamber Armin just shook his head.
Tuck put away his guns and was released into the general population. By now it was evening and Tuck was tired. The civilian areas were 12 ft high tunnels running parallel to each other. To get to the next street a traveller had to either go up or down a level where the streets ran perpendicular to the ones above and below them. Of course with Tuck’s ability to Wyrm through space he could make shortcuts everywhere but he decided to use the roads and not attract attention.
Tuck went to an Inn called the Jaunty that Armin had recommended.
The Jaunty was on level 7, the first civilian level. Level 7 was basically a tourist trap. All of the inns and high-end stores were on this level.
Local living quarters were usually deeper.
Tuck walked in, found a table and inquired about a room and a meal, he engaged in people watching while he waited for the waitress to get back to him. People watching led Tuck to be astounded by the variety of hair and eye colours on display.
‘Did mine change?’ Tuck wondered, he was changing so rapidly in such a short period of time he wasn’t sure, because of Tuck’s healing and constant battles, the last 3 days of activity had made him more buff than he had been in the military. Finding out about the tattoos made him wonder what else had changed.
‘I needed a mirror to see how much I have changed since I got here. I hope I still recognise myself.’ Tuck scratched his beard thinking.
The waitress returned and led him to the proprietor, a muscular older man who was balding but had a thick beard, Tuck noticed that the proprietor had a series of brands on his inner left arm. 3 Circles and 2 lines one of the lines had a diagonal slash through it, Tuck had seen these brands on a few other men on his way here but his appraisal ability did not seem to cover societal quirks.
“Greetings lad, the name is Boreson you wanna room for the night?” He shook Tuck’s hand while asking.
“You can call me Tuck, I’ll take your best room for five days Mr. Boreson if it’s available, and I would also like to ask a question.”
“Five days, I like you already, 210 kilo, pay up front. Suite comes with a private bath and two meals a day. Ask your question.” Tuck paid Boreson his money and then asked.
“What does the scars on your forearm mean?” Boreson gave Tuck a quizzical look before responding.
“You must come from further North than I thought not to know something so simple." Tuck immediately confirmed Boreson was in bed with the Militia. The recommendation from Arnim was one hint but the only way Boreson could know he came from the North was if someone from the Militia told him. Tuck didn't react, he let Boreson continue.
"The circles represent my daughters and the lines represent my sons, the crossed line means one of my sons died before he reached adulthood. If you have any children I’d advise you to get marked so that the women will know what they’re getting into. Liz show this man to Suite 1.”
Liz showed Tuck to an apartment downstairs. Tuck thanked her and told her he’d take his meal in his room later that evening.
The Warren had no traditional windows below level 3 so this apartment had geometric patterns on the carpets and scenic tapestries on the walls. There were also indents in the wall where flowers were planted, the light crystals in the ceiling allowing for photosynthesis seemed to always be on. Tuck was pleasantly surprised when he noticed some movement on a few tapestries. He had no idea how it worked but they were ensorcelled so their scenes moved like visuals they represented.
Once alone Tuck stripped and went to the bathroom and as he had hoped there was a mirror in there.
‘I am different but not drastically so.’ Tuck examined himself, the man staring back at him could be a younger brother, if he had brothers. Tuck’s father was Middle Eastern and his mother was African American, of Caribbean descent, looking at his reflection he could still see hints of both of them, his dad’s hair and nose, his mom’s lips, his complexion was somewhere between the two. The signs were everywhere, except his eyes. They were once a light brown like his mother’s, now they were luminescent purple, the same colour as the Void Wyrm's eyes.
Tuck’s body was covered in an ornate tattoo of the Void Wyrm; the way it wrapped around to cover his shoulders, arms, legs and back reminded him of old Yakuza photos. Something told Tuck most Soulbeast markings didn't cover so much skin, maybe it had something to do with power. He'd need to see more to compare.
Before his transformation Tuck had already been tall around 6 foot 2 inches but before he was wide like a block. Now, rather than looking like a powerlifter or shot putter his physique was leaner, more like a runner or gymnast.
‘I guess this is more appropriate to the world I’m in now.’ he concluded.
Using his Maw Tuck did some manscaping, keeping his body hair neat, giving himself a Caesar haircut, shaping his beard into a box style and trimming his nails.
Then it was finally time. After all of his travelling, he finally indulged in a long hot bath.
***
Deep within The Warren a young man ran for all he was worth. News travelled fast and only the one who delivered it first got paid. He slid up to a corridor with 2 heavily armed guards.
“I need to speak to Mr. Wester now, he’ll want to know this first.” The out of breath boy said. The guards were professional, they didn’t say anything unnecessary nor tease the scrawny lad, that was beneath them, a simple frisk was all it took before one of the Guards delivered the young man to see Mr. Wester.
Behind his back people called Mr. Wester the Weasel, his pinched face combined with his unscrupulous methods made the name well deserved. Mr. Wester was in a meeting when he saw one of his guards open the door and wave at him. They knew how much he liked to have news first so there was no danger to them to interrupt him. Wester excused himself and came out and saw the young man waiting nervously.
“Piro my boy, what news do you have for me?” Wester came close so they would not be overheard.
“Mr. Wester, I was up on the 5th level helping Momma move some things to earn a few coins when I see a man come in dressed in rags with the scariest snake I’d ever seen tattooed on his back. I heard him introduce himself as a Bagman before Momma took him back to her office. I made sure to stay close by and look busy. Marie was coming out after carrying in some sandwiches when I noticed he had like 4 maybe 5 SoulGems on the table.” Piro rambled out. Wester’s face split into a wide smile. This information was definitely worth a lot to the right people.
“Good work my boy. Did you get his name?” Do you know where he’s staying?” Wester continued. Piro fought to remember for a moment.
“He said his name was Tuck, but I left as soon as I saw the SoulGems sir, I could find out where he is for you.” Piro replied eager to please.
“No, don’t stick your neck out any further, here take this.” Wester gave Piro 2 kilo coins. The Young man’s eyes lit up. The Weasel always paid his people well. Early on people tried to pass off bad information to get a better payday but after a few of them lost an arm and both legs and were left alive to beg for a living, people stopped trying to lie to the Weasel. Having the best information network was hugely profitable.
“Thank you Mr. Wester.” Piro was ecstatic.
“You know how to hide it so any ruffians don’t get it all. Get out of here boy.” Wester sent Piro on his way. While plotting his next step. He needed to put word out that he wanted info on this Bagman Tuck.