Ulrin Mercantile Hub.

"Wait! That's very deli-"

CRASH!

"-cate." Dylan said as he and Alban watched as a line of dwarves and humans moved boxes and crates of their work out of their, now former it seems, workshop.

Neither one of them new exactly what was going on and at first they were worried that the dwarven clan had finally gotten tired of their failures. So it was only with partial relief that they weren't hauled away in chains and forced into indentured servitude.

Dylan turned and saw Alban stuffing some of their more controversial plans into his tunic. With those secured Dylan tried his best to keep everything else from being destroyed. Though that was rather hard to do given he was a 3ft gnome trying to fight against dwarves and humans.

Though "fight" wasn't really the word as they easily pushed him aside as they moved, rather ungently, their things out of the break house. As he tried to stop one of the humans from setting down a crate of gears and springs, unsuccessfully, Aerin came over with a couple of dwarven guards.

"Mr. Aerin sir! Please! We just need a bit more time is all!" Dylan pleaded as another crate of tinker toys was roughly sat down.

"And you will! However, we have decided that you will no longer be doin' yer work here at the hub." Aerin explained as his workers continued to haul the Artificers' things away.

"What do you mean?" Dylan asked as he scrambled to get a hold of some plans before they blew away.

"I mean that your continued failures are becomin' rather... distractin'."

"But we're-"

"Which is why tha clan has decided ta relocate you ta a place where you can freely practice yer work without causin' any... distractions, fer us." Aerin explained further.

"Oh? Uhm where Mr. Aerin sir?"

"Why a wee lil place just south o' town! Nice, quiet, full o' folk that will be more than happy ta assist you in yer work!" Aerin described, with some chuckles from the dwarven guards behind him.

"Really? So we're not being collected upon?" Dylan asked.

"O' course not! Yer work is important ta us! We just think that a better environment is in order! After all! We're doin' blastin' which I'm sure affects yer work. And yer work also affects our own efforts here! So this way we both get what we need!" Aerin said as he led Dylan and Alban over to a rather beat-up truck that had seen better days.

With barely a word, the artificers' things were moved into the back of the rusted old heap. No more gently than before either. As their things were thrown into the truck bed, causing it to creak with every crate and box. Dylan and Alban looked up at the rusted piece of junk. Though Dylan was a bit more excited about it than Alban was.

"What's this?!"

Aerin gestured to it.

"This, is yer mode o' transportation! We procured it fer ya!"

He slapped the side of it, causing a cloud of rust to fall off, as well as the passenger side door. Dylan was feeling less thrilled by the moment as the wonder of being given one of the strange carriages was overwritten by the thought that this was indeed, a rusted piece of junk. He would be surprised if it functioned at all!

As the last of their things was thrown into the back of the bed, and the bumper was slapped back on, Aerin gestured to the rusted truck.

"Well? What are you waitin' for?"

The other workers stood nearby and watched as Dylan and Alban looked worryingly at the truck. Some muttered and chuckled to themselves as they watched them try and get in without cutting themselves on the rust. The interior wasn't any better. The upholstery was worn down in some places so much that nothing but metal was seen and everything had a layer of dirt or dust on it. It was quickly decided that Alban would drive as he was the only one that could see out the window, as dusted over as it was. Even then he could only peer between the holes in the steering wheel.

"Ok Alban. Uhm, try that?" Dylan gestured to a handle to the left of the wheel.

Alban grunted and moved it. Up, down, he even twisted it. Though all that did was snap the strange handle off and revealing the wires within it. Dylan mumbled and began to press the various knobs and dials on the center of the console. But none of them did anything either.

All the while the other workers laughed and muttered as they passed coins between one another as they all watched. Aerin and the dwarves were no different as they too watched the artificers struggle. Eventually Dylan grabbed the strange metal thing on the side of the wheel that had a worn black ball with a infinity symbol on it and what looked like a rabbit's foot. He pulled on it and found they were attached to a key. Putting two and two together he slotted it back into the holder and turned.

He promptly stopped when he heard the thing try to start up. Though it sounded like a choking animal rather than the smooth humming he heard from some of the others that come and go from the hub. Even the large ones that roared like beasts had a feel of power to them. This one on the other hand sounded like it was sick and dying.

Dylan looked over to Aerin who just smiled and waved his hand in a 'go-on' gesture. Dylan groaned and turned the key again. Earning them all an ear grating noise that sounded like a sputtering seagull! But he persisted and held the key until something finally clicked somewhere and the truck roared to life!

Kinda, Dylan thought as the brief roar was replaced with a whining like noise that didn't sound good. He and Alban turned to look at Aerin, only to see him wave at them with a smile even as the other workers got various looks of satisfaction and displeasure as they passed coins once again to one another through a haze of noxious smoke coming from somewhere.

"Alright Alban! I guess we go to our new home! Again." Dylan tried to lighten the mood some. But Alban grunted and looked to Dylan. The gnome looked at him confusingly before looking below the wheel and down at the peddles. The peddles that Alban couldn't reach.

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"Oh!?" Dylan cried as he squeezed his way down so that he now had the peddles before him.

"Can you steer Alban?!" Dylan asked.

Alban reached a hand up and tried to wipe away the dust covering the window. But did nothing more than streak it and smear dust on his fingers. He looked over to the driver's door and tried to lean out to see where he was going, only to send that door down to the ground with a rattling thud.

The workers laughed and snickered as more and more came over to see all the commotion. Alban leaned over a hair and could now see where they were facing. He grunted down at Dylan. The gnome nodded and pressed the left peddle first. But nothing happened. No sound or pressure or anything!

"Strange. Something to figure out another time!" Dylan muttered as he pressed down on the right peddle and earned him and Alban both a start as the truck lurched forwards! For about half a centimeter. Then an awful grinding sound rang out and the truck stopped in its tracks.

"What's happening up there Alban?!" Dylan asked as he looked at the peddles before him.

Alban grunted and looked around and began to press the various buttons on the center console. Earning them both a fright as static erupted from somewhere in the truck along side uncomfortably hot air being blasted at Alban!

"What's that Alban?!" Dylan asked as he tried to see what was happening.

Alban didn't answer as he smashed a thick dwarven hand into the center console and all at once the hot air and the static ceased. Only to be replaced by more mocking laughter from the workers nearby. Alban looked around some more and laid his eyes on a lever to his right. He grabbed it and began to pull and push it this way and that. Earning various degrees of grinding from the truck.

"Oh?! Did you figure it out Alban?" Dylan asked.

Alban grunted unsurely. Dylan took that as a confirmation and pressed on the peddle that caused them to lurch forwards again. Only this time they made it a little farther before stopping. As Dylan continued to press on the peddle, Alban shifted the lever to his right this way and that. Causing them to either go a few feet before stopping or a couple inches. So slowly, but surely, they left the hub behind as their mode of transport lurched and grinded along at a snails pace.

"Do you know where we are supposed to be going Alban?" Dylan asked over the grinding and rattling of the truck.

Alban grunted and shrugged as he leaned his head out the side and tried his best to see where they were supposed to be going. But that was hard to do when they weren't sure WHERE it was they were supposed to be heading to! Aerin had just said south of town. So Alban did his best to steer the rusted old rattler south. At least he thought it was south.

Fortunately they were going slow enough that they didn't have to worry about running into anyone. At least if they were paying attention that is. So they passed by a library that Dylan wanted to go to but was never given the time to do so. Then they passed that general store that the dwarves owned and where their thundersticks were coming from lately.

But Alban continued on, down the road and into a bit of a wooded area. Before long he though that they had come to where they were supposed to go, and immediately got worried when he was the goblins standing nearby the entrance! Alban grunted and gestured for Dylan to stop.

"What?!" Dylan called up as he couldn't hear much over the grinding and whining of the truck.

Alban looked up and saw the goblins sneering as they neared one another. Eventually one came up and glared at Alban.

"Who are you and what do you want?!"

Alban, obviously, didn't answer and the truck continued to lurch and squeal. The goblins didn't like none of it and began to shout and point their muskets at them and shouted orders for them to stop. Alban grunted and kicked Dylan and gestured with his foot to a different peddle in an effort to get them to stop.

Dylan wasn't sure why Alban was acting strange, until he turned to the side and saw the goblins getting closer! So he pushed on a peddle! The right peddle. Causing the truck to lurch some more and grind and squeal. Alban tried to jiggle and wrench the level to see if it would make them stop. But it just caused the truck to continue on and make an even worse grinding noise as well as continue to sputter.

The goblins tried to stop them, but were stopped themselves as Alban turned the wheel, causing the truck to turn another direction. As they turned, a plumb of smoke billowed out behind them and forced the goblins to retreat back as they hacked and coughed. Alban turned the wheel until they were facing the direction back towards the forested road and quickly jiggled the lever to get them to go faster away from the goblins!

So the truck continued to lurch, shutter, and sputter as it carried on down the road and back towards town. Alban sure hoped that wasn't supposed to be their new home. As they came to a junction that Alban missed and he saw the road go left. So he pulled on the wheel and forced the rusty beater to turn even as it squealed in protest.

They continued on down the road, a grinding, smelly, and annoying thing that caused everyone around them to either flee or glare at them as they lurched their way through town. Alban heard and felt something hit the truck but he wasn't sure what it was or if it wasn't just the truck making more noises and movements. It wasn't until he heard the sound of glass breaking that he realized they must've hit something! He looked right to where the passenger door would've been and saw, and heard, and felt as their truck squealed and scratched a car to the right of them!

He yanked on the wheel to pull away and the truck protested before leaning away from the car, though it did little good as Alban could see that almost the entire side of it was scratched and even the mirror was on the ground and broken. Something they didn't have to worry about because the only mirror in the truck was hanging limply above the center console along side a pair of fuzzy green dice and a bird feather.

Eventually though, they came to another junction and Alban was faced with three roads. One that turned left, another that turned right, and one that continued on. He grunted down at Dylan, but the little gnome was too busy managing the peddles and couldn't hear him over the awful racket the truck made constantly.

So he had to decide quickly or risk potentially getting them lost or worse in this world. He peeked out and tried to see where the sun was for directions. But it was so cloudy around here that he could barely see it through the thick cloud cover. Alban grunted again and just pulled the wheel left, and hoped that that was south.

He was starting to regret his decision as they traveled down the road for a time before it turned into dirt and gravel. Aerin had said something about a quiet little place. But for all Alban knew that was just a way to send them away into the wilderness, until he spotted something in the distance.

He grunted and nudged Dylan with his foot. The gnome looked up from where he was muttering and studying the peddles.

"What?! Do you see something Alban!?"

Alban nodded and Dylan turned back to the peddles again and pressed the one on the left. If the one on the right made them go faster maybe that one was meant to stop them? Not like it worked as Dylan pressed down on it and didn't feel anything. They didn't slow down nor stop as far as he could tell. Not like they were going fast in the first place, Dylan thought as he kept pressing against the peddle but continued to feel nothing.

Alban grunted and turned the wheel to get a better look of what this place was, only to jerk forward as the truck ran into something! A sound of metal hitting metal and breaking glass was all they heard before a horn began to sound from nearby!

But at least they were stopped, Alban thought as the truck sputtered once more before clicking a final time and then dying. Leaving Dylan and Alban to wiggle out of the rusted truck and turn to what they had hit. A small gray car was parked out front of the town they were at. Beside it were a few other vehicles like it, some were cars and some were trucks.

"'Ey?! Who goes there?!" Someone called from the cloud of smoke that prevented either of them from seeing what exactly the town was.

"Hello?!" Dylan called out as the two artificers waved their hands to clear the caustic smoke away. Revealing a halfling. Two halflings! Both of which coughed and hacked as the smoke began to dissipate.

Then they looked towards Dylan and Alban, and got looks of disgust on their faces.

"Wha' do you want gnome!?"

"Well, we were sent here by the dwarven clan. Something about being relocated?"

"Bah! As if elves weren'y bad enough now we gots ta deal with gnomes!" One of the halflings decried and sent the other one away as he stood there and glared at Dylan.

Alban grunted and gestured behind the halfling. Dylan peered over as best he was able and could hear the sounds of celebration mixed with the horn from the car. As the sound continued some more halflings came by to investigate before promptly sneering and rolling their eyes as they saw Dylan.

To say that halflings and gnomes don't get along would be an understatement. Some people believe that the two of them are the same race, but no halfling or gnome of good standing would ever admit to being related to the other. Halflings find the gnomes too bookish and snobbish. Gnomes find the halflings too simple and crude. So it was inevitable that when the two of them meet that there is almost always some sort of argument that breaks out.

Dylan for his part, was never inducted into the stereotypical view of halflings like most gnomes are. He knew the whys and hows, but being an orphan and having a dwarven brother made something like petty rivalry with the halflings rather pointless for him.

Though from the looks on the halflings faces they didn't seem to hold that same viewpoint, Dylan thought as the sneers and glares continued until he saw the familiar, if slightly underdressed, form of Clive making his way over. He only had on a pair of pants and was quickly putting a shirt on over him as he walked over, barefooted, behind the other halfling that had ran to get him it seemed.

"What all happened?" Clive asked as he tried to get his head through his shirt as best as he could.

As he did so with a grunt of pain he turned and looked at Dylan and Alban and said with questioning look.

"What are you two doing here?"

"Aerin said that we were being relocated." Dylan stated.

Cliven stared at the two of them until a look of understanding dawned on him.

"Oh yeah, right. Uhm, look, I don't really have time right now to watch over you two. So if you just wanna get your stuff and get settled we can go over things when I can. Alright?"

"Of course! But uhm, where do we stay?"

"Well, you can stay... yeah, that is kinda a problem. I guess we can find you a tent in the meantime." Clive said in a sorry tone as he rubbed the back of his neck.

While Dylan and Alban didn't like the idea of sleeping in a tent compared to their workshop back at the hub, it was better than nothing they supposed. So they retrieved a couple crates and followed after one of the halflings as they led the two of them to their new home, grumbling the whole time about gnomes as they went.

Clive meanwhile sighed and turned to where some rusted piece of shit had hit his car. He groaned and pulled his keys out and ceased the horn blaring. He rubbed his face and grumbled as he looked up at the darkening sky before turning back around and heading towards his tent once again.