It took some time for the crowd to calm down and for the council members to once again meet in the office as they had before. This time they were joined by a young blonde woman who was introduced as Serenity Carter, the healer that had been mentioned in the prior meeting. Once everyone was seated, Ronald called for order as most people began talking amongst themselves. All except Joe who sat and brooded, staring into the distance while Holly on one side argued with Alan, and Iona on the other speaking quietly with Kier and Mirabella. Rory pulled out a stein of beer and fed Bixby some jerky. The two of them the very picture of calm and unconcerned.
The arguments went on for some time with half of the council wanting to take action immediately and the other half wanting Joe to allow one of them to create the Camp. Joe could not shake the anger that the elves had engendered, and it bothered him that the System seemed determined to push him into feeling a certain way. The cacophony around him finally began grating on his nerves and he suddenly stood up which toppled his chair behind him with a loud clang. “STOP!”
The voices and arguments came to a halt as everyone was shocked by Joe’s outburst. Holly looked on with concern, while most of the survivors wore expressions of either fear or anger. “Just, stop.” Joe added more quietly. He sighed, “Look, this is getting us nowhere. Kier, can I hand control of the Camp to someone else after it’s been established?”
“Oh aye. You can either delegate those you’d like to have access to the Planning Table, or you can outright give the Camp to another.” Kier stroked his beard and nodded understanding where Joe was headed.
“OK, then I’d rather ask forgiveness than permission.” He pulled the large brass orb from his inventory and held it out where everyone could see. He looked around the room to make sure everyone was paying attention. “I’m not going to argue and I’m not going to apologize. There’s too much at stake. You all are just going to have to trust me.” He let his eyes linger on Ronald, then he closed them and focused on the orb in his hand. He infused a small amount of Mana and a screen appeared.
Inactive Sanctuary Core
Do you wish to activate the Sanctuary Core? Y/N
Joe chose “Yes” and a flood of Mana was ripped from him as another screen opened.
Congratulations! You meet the minimum criteria of 200 inhabitants for creating a Sanctuary Zone! All other minimum criteria waived by using an inactive Sanctuary Core.
Congratulations! You have activated a Sanctuary Core and established a Sanctuary Zone!
Please note that monsters will not spawn inside the Sanctuary Zone; however, they may enter from outside.
This Sanctuary Zone includes a Travel Stone.
Note, this Sanctuary Zone is designated as a Camp and must be upgraded to a Village before it will have access to a Shoppe or a Class Room.
Notice: Please designate your Sanctuary Center. This is the central most point of your Sanctuary Zone and where your Sanctuary Core will be located. You may reassign this space once your Camp has been upgraded to a Village.
Would you like to designate a Sanctuary Center? Y/N
Notice: Please refer to the Zone map in your Sanctuary Center for placement of your Travel Stone and for all building, offensive and defensive options.
Joe minimized the screens and looked at the orb in his hand. It had gone from looking like a dark brass ball to a glass sphere filled with swirling colors and slowly pulsing lights as if a thousand fireflies were imprisoned in a snow globe filled with translucent paints. The people in the room were all staring, some in wonder and a couple in outright anger. Alan and Edward, which did not surprise Joe in the slightest, were frowning. “It’s asking me to designate a Sanctuary Center. Any suggestions?”
It was the quiet Mirabella that spoke first, “You’ll want to place it somewhere deep in the building where it can be as defensible as possible.”
Rory added, “The lass is right. Just because you own the Core, does nae mean that someone cannae take it by force.”
Astonishingly Edward spoke up, “The basement level is probably the best place. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I think the deeper into the building we can get it the better. It’s my understanding that we can reconfigure the building as well so we should be able to protect it pretty well.”
Alan gave Edward a look brimming with upset. “So now you’re suddenly okay with this?”
With a deep breath, Edward replied, “The man’s already done the deed. If we truly want to help everyone, then it behooves us to make the best of the situation.” He turned back to Joe, “I’m not excusing what you just did, but now that it’s done, then let’s not bitch about what’s happened and instead focus on what needs to be done.”
Alan leaned back in his chair, obviously unhappy, but unwilling to continue the argument. Joe looked around then said, “Ok, basement it is. Is there anything we need to do? Are there people down there that may get affected by a room suddenly changing or appearing?”
Ronald shook his head no, “We haven’t actually explored the basement, so I think you’re fine.”
“Okay then.” Joe focused back on the orb and answered “Yes” to the prompt asking if he wanted to designate a Sanctuary Center. The bright ball flashed a series of colors and seemed to sense Joe’s desire for its placement and promptly winked out of existence. This was followed by another scroll screen unfurling.
Congratulations! You have successfully placed a Sanctuary Core and established a Camp. You have been granted the role of Overseer. Exp earned, 20,000 (Banked).
Would you like to name your Camp now? Y/N
Joe pondered the question for a moment while the room broke out into conversation with Kier and Mirabella fielding questions about what was happening and what to expect from the creation of the Camp. Finally, Joe decided and answered “Yes”.
Congratulations! You have successfully named your Sanctuary Zone [New Santa Cruz]!
Immediately the others in the room began animatedly talking. They all received a notice welcoming them to the New Santa Cruz Sanctuary Zone. Joe could hear cheers and celebratory shouts from outside as the rest of the survivors were given the good news.
Achievement Unlocked! Second Sanctuary! You are the second human of your world to create a Sanctuary Zone and establish a Camp. Rewards Unlocked! You and your companion gain +1 Willpower, +1 Intelligence, and +1 Perception. Exp earned, 10,000 (Banked). Gold earned 5,000.
Wait, what? Second? Joe thought as he read the screen. Then that means there are other survivors out there that managed to create a safe space for themselves? Hot damn! Although internally he was a slightly upset at missing out on another first, the thought that there were other survivors out there doing as well as they could, made him quickly dismiss the slight jealousy.
Bixby nudged Joes hand and barked. Joe minimized his screens and focused on what Bixby was saying and realized that Kier was trying to get his attention. To Bixby then to Kier, “Sorry, got lost in the notices for a second. What’s up?”
“I was saying we needs to get down to the Sanctuary Center and get about setting the Camp boundaries before you upgrade to a Village.” He stood a stretched, “I’m sure the elves have scouts watching for our departure and creating a Camp is sure to piss them off something mighty. Tis a good idea to get some fortifications going as soon as possible.”
This comment was met by unanimous approval as everyone agreed that the elves were the largest, most immediate threat. The entire group exited the meeting room and headed deeper into the building to the wide stairwell that led to the lower floors. Joe was surprised to see that the conversion of the building was already underway as the walls of the lower part of the stairwell were lit by flickering torches that burned with a whitish fire and gave off no heat. Stepping through the double doors into the basement level, the stairwell was situated at the corner of the building, Joe could see that a hallway stretched off straight ahead and also to the right. The cement walls had been replaced with cut stone like one would expect in the bowels of a castle. This brought comments from among the group and Joe realized that they had formed quite a retinue as many survivors had followed them down.
A short walk down the right hallway brought them to a heavy wooden door with wrought iron hinges and large wrought iron bands across the face of the door. Up close, Joe could see that there was a swirling filigree design embossed into the iron. A simple latch handle gave way when Joe touched it and the door opened soundlessly.
Inside, the room was dominated by a large, heavy, wooden table set squarely in the center. There were hanging lamps similar to the ones Joe remembered from the dwarven Overseer’s office. The entire room was illuminated well. Joe looked at his companions and Rory shoved him forward, “Get to doing what you must already.” He admonished.
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Flanked by Holly and Bixby and followed closely by the dwarves and the rest of the council, Joe approached the table. Behind him, he could hear Kyle telling the onlookers to stay back until they had a handle on what was going on.
Joe stepped up to the table and saw what looked like a three-dimensional topographical model of the County Building and its surroundings. He quickly figured out that it was showing him the boundaries of the Camp as all the features beyond a certain point were blurred out. The Camp was roughly a square that on one face fronted Water Street, the one which held the bridge that Joe’s group had crossed to get to the County Building, and the right-side encompassed Ocean Street and a bit beyond into the swamp area. The bottom edge ran along a small side road called Dakota Avenue and included a small footbridge that spanned the river. The final side of the property actually ended on the far side of the river so that the entire left side of the Camp included the river in its boundaries. It in fact reached to within fifty feet or so of the bank that Bella, Kelly, and the children had been holed up in earlier.
Joe looked at the group of people around him. Everyone had gathered around the table and could see the map. “Should I place walls or expand to a Village first?”
Several people began discussing next steps as Kier stepped up to Joe and quietly said, “I suggest, as a gesture of good faith, that you upgrade to a Village, then a Town. After that, you may want to dump a fair bit of gold into the treasury then delegate some others to access the core.”
Joe bent down and whispered back, “Can’t I just hand off the ownership now and give them enough money to upgrade themselves?”
“Aye, you can do that, but you’d be robbing yourself of some pretty serious experience, achievements and possibly titles. And I for one, would rather have that go to you than anyone else.” Kier scratched his cheek, “And to be perfectly honest, since we’re still in a Party, we’d all get a taste of the experience as well. But perhaps that’s my self-interest showing.”
Joe chuckled, “Iona did warn me about dwarven greed.” That brought a smile to Kier, “And, I agree. I got an achievement for second human to create a Sanctuary.”
“Well, I highly doubt anyone of your kind have the resources to get further than a Camp. You’ll probably get quite the prize if you become the first to create a Village and a Town.” Kier clapped Joe on the back, “Best get to it boyo.”
Joe stood up and addressed the group, “Okay people, here’s what I want to do. I will upgrade the Camp to a Village and then a Town and then a City. After that I will add one or more of you as delegates to be able to make changes to the city.” He scanned the faces of the humans in the room, “Personally, I think it should be Edward as his Class is best suited for this, but that’s your call.”
There were words of agreement and Edward said, “I appreciate the vote of confidence, but I think we should hold off on upgrading all the way to a City. That’s going to incorporate a lot of land and we simply do not have the resources or people to handle the security of a property that big.” He gestured to Joe, “Can you show us what each stage would encompass on the map?”
Joe looked at the map, “Hmm. Maybe? I think so.” He focused on the map and a scroll appeared before him with a list of options. One of which was called Expansion. He chose that and then chose an option called Upgrade Sanctuary Zone. This caused the map to shrink just a bit on the table as the borders rearranged themselves to show a ghostly image of what area a Village would enclose. It was a linear expansion in all directions. Joe thought that he could manipulate the borders to some extent but was fairly satisfied by the amount of space represented on the table. It grabbed much of Downtown Santa Cruz as well as more of the river. It also grabbed the feeder creek to the South all the way to the Soquel Steet Bridge. Unfortunately, it also pushed further into the swampland.
He expanded one more time to a Town border and was surprised at just how much land was considered a Town. This covered far more territory than most expected. And the city coverage was astounding. After a lot of discussion, it was finally determined that Joe would expand the Camp all the way to a city and then hand over control to Edward who would then get busy creating fortifications and allocating resources to set up the survivors for success. Even if they could not use all of the city space right away, it would keep monsters from spawning anywhere near the current survivors, adding a much-needed relief from any immediate danger. The question was asked about the treasury and how much they could build, but Joe just said, “I’ll do something about that before I add Edward.” This got some puzzling looks from the Council members, but Joe ignored them and chose to upgrade to a Village.
More notices popped up.
Notice: Your Sanctuary Zone does not meet the minimum requirements of 1000 inhabitants to be able to upgrade to a Village. You may bypass this requirement for a one-time expenditure of 20,000 gold.
Would you like to upgrade your Sanctuary Zone from a Camp to a Village? Y/
Whoa, twenty thousand? Joe stood a bit stunned at the cost and the implications for the rest of humanity that could not afford to create and upgrade a Sanctuary Zone. A lot of people are going to die without that kind of safe place. With a sigh, he chose “Yes” and was given a notice that his personal treasury had been depleted by twenty thousand gold.
Congratulations! You have successfully upgraded the Sanctuary Zone [New Santa Cruz] to a Village. You have been granted the role of Village Reeve. Exp earned, 25,000 (Banked).
Achievement Unlocked! Shire Reeve! You are the first human of your world to create a Sanctuary Zone and upgrade a Camp to a Village. Rewards Unlocked! You and your companion gain +2 Willpower, +2 Intelligence, and +2 Perception. Exp earned, 25,000 (Banked). Gold earned 10,000.
Title Unlocked! First Seneschal! You are the first human of your world to gain the role of Shire Reeve. Rewards Unlocked! You and your companion gain, +2 Constitution, +2 Intelligence and +2 Willpower. Additionally, you and your companion gain a +10% bonus to attack speed and damage to any foes while fighting in the confines of your primary Village. Exp earned, 40,000 (Banked). Gold earned 12,000.
Joe blinked at the notices and continued to upgrade to a Town.
Notice: Your Sanctuary Zone does not meet the minimum requirements of 5000 inhabitants to be able to upgrade to a Town. You may bypass this requirement for a one-time expenditure of 40,000 gold.
Would you like to upgrade your Sanctuary Zone from a Village to a Town? Y/N
Joe, of course chose Yes after balking once again at the cost.
Congratulations! You have successfully upgraded the Sanctuary Zone [New Santa Cruz] to a Town. You have been granted the role of Alderman. Exp earned, 25,000 (Banked).
Achievement Unlocked! Alderman! You are the first human in your world to create a Sanctuary Zone and upgrade to a Town. Rewards Unlocked! You and your companion gain +2 Willpower, +2 Intelligence, and +2 Perception. Exp earned, 25,000 (Banked). Gold earned 10,000.
Title Unlocked! First Alderman! You are the first human in your world to gain the role of Alderman. Rewards Unlocked! You and your companion gain +2 Constitution, +2 Intelligence and +2 Willpower. Additionally, you and your companion gain a +10% bonus to Diplomacy skills while in the confines of your primary Town. Exp earned, 40,000 (Banked). Gold earned 12,000.
Shaking his head and smiling, Joe pushed on to creating a City.
Notice: Your Sanctuary Zone does not meet the minimum requirements of 10000 inhabitants to be able to upgrade to a City. You may bypass this requirement for a one-time expenditure of 60,000 gold.
Would you like to upgrade your Sanctuary Zone from a Town to a City? Y/N
Congratulations! You have successfully upgraded the Sanctuary Zone [New Santa Cruz] to a City. You have been granted the role of Governor. Exp earned, 25,000 (Banked).
Achievement Unlocked! Governor! You are the first human in your world to create a Sanctuary Zone and upgrade to a City. Rewards Unlocked! You and your companion gain +3 Willpower, +3 Intelligence, and +3 Perception. Exp earned, 30,000 (Banked). Gold earned 15,000.
Title Unlocked! First Governor! You are the first human of your world to gain the role of Governor. Rewards Unlocked! You and your companion gain +3 Constitution, +3 Intelligence and +3 Willpower. Additionally, you and your companion gain immunity to control effects from spells or skill while in the confines of your City. Exp earned, 40,000 (Banked). Gold earned 20,000.
“Damn!” Joe said out loud, then looked around sheepishly as the others gave him curious looks.
“You can say that again.” Smiled Rory. “Pure barry.”
Joe watched as his friends all seemed to be lost in their screens. It seemed that Kier was right, and they all had gotten a massive chunk of experience as well. Holly especially seemed to be stunned by what she had received. Joe patted her hand and softly said, “It pays to be in this Party.” Holly, too stunned to speak, just nodded as Joe turned his attention back to the Council. Alright, give me a few more minutes, then I’ll hand this beast off to Edward.”
Those on the Council were involved in several conversations at once while Joe finished what he had intended. After several minutes, he moved around the table to Edward and set his screen to be visible to everyone in the room. The heavy-set man looked to his comrades for support and acceptance as Joe triggered the addition. Joe watched with a smile as Edward got used to the interface.
A notice popped up for Joe who read it quickly.
Notice! You have added control rights of the Sanctuary Zone [New Santa Cruz] to [Edward Pettigrew].
Edward’s dark blue eyes scanned the air in front of him for quite a while before he exclaimed, “Oh, you gave me Master Control rights? I can delegate administrators and give people different levels of access to the Core.” He muttered a moment and then looked directly at Joe with his mouth hanging open. “Is this right?”
Joe smiled impishly, “Are you looking at the treasury?”
Edward nodded.
“Then yeah. Merry Christmas.” Joe actually giggled a bit while Edward explained to those present that the treasury now had a whopping two hundred thousand gold.
Kyle erupted into a huge grin and lifted Joe in a bear hug followed by Ronald coming over to shake his hand, “I think that I will consider you a grace Mr. Sherman. Joe.” He corrected himself. “I have no idea how you came to have such a sum of gold, and maybe that’s a story you’d be willing tell later, but for now, thank you on behalf of everyone here. What you’ve done is a gift that will help people that you will never even meet. That was truly selfless. I am sorry we doubted your integrity.”
“I’m happy to have done it. It’s a relief to have a safe space finally.” Joe smiled back.
Holly followed in the hugging while Bixby stood next to Rory who sat at the end of the room against the wall looking ill, “He just gave away two hundred thousand…?” Kier walked over and knelt next to Rory to console him.
Joe’s attention was pulled from Holly by Edward calling out. “Hey, Joe!” He was next to Alan and Konrad, both of whom were in a side discussion staring at the table. “Just thought you’d like to know I’ve activated the Class Room and Shoppe in case you or any of your crew needs them. They’ve replaced the office we were in on the first floor earlier. And the Travel Stone is just outside the building. I’ll make a courtyard or something around it later.”
This got everyone’s attention and both Kier and Rory were next to Joe seconds later. Rory grabbed Joe’s hand and began leading him from the room, “Time to go laddie.”