Ozzy pulled out four glasses and a bottle of wine, pouring for all of them. He passed them out to his friends and then spoke seriously. “I think we should discuss something first, before we move back to town planning: Are we still set on supporting our Baron and building up the town? Is that the long-term goal?

I see Suzette tired at the end of the day and running crazy with several responsibilities. Ben is spending his free time doing extra jobs for Billy, with barely any time for his hobbies. And we all know Rolly wants to do things with Squirmy and explore weird places.”

Rolly spoke up first. “Squirmy and I are fine for now. We have some big plans, but things are fun here right now. I wouldn't mind hitting some dungeons together and seeing more of the city. When the five years is up, expect us to dive hip deep in adventure.”

Ben was also ok with the direction they were headed in.” I’m good for now. If the new town hall has a nice big room on the top floor, I’ll be claiming it for some experimenting. I’m getting in a lot of ‘adventure’ while on the road. Dodging assassins and fun stuff like that.”

Rolly smirked. “And meeting up with other couriers when you ‘just happen’ to cross paths every now and then at a town with a comfy inn?”

Ben actually blushed for a few seconds. “How the hell did you know about that?”

Rolly smiled. “I wasn’t sure. Now I am. As to how, well, you come home sometimes with that big stupid ‘I have a girlfriend’ grin on your face. You used to do that a lot when you dated that Pirate Queen."

"Oh god, don't tell me I'm that bad already? But yes, I've been seeing Harmony now and then. She wants me to spend time at Franklin House and attend the Couriers Academy. Luckily, I'm tied down here in town for a bit. It's a good excuse. :) I'll be ready to roam the Empire with her in a couple of years. I can do Billy’s chores until then."

Suzette rolled the wine around in her glass, giggling. “Bring her home sometime, Ben. We’d love to meet her. Ozzy?”

“I’m good for now. Work is getting more and more fun. Sometimes I think I should miss all the intrigue and spying I did in other games, but really, I don’t. Sort of fun to come home each night to a beautiful woman and wrestle with monsters by day.”

“But, I do want us to keep moving. Support Billy? Sure, but only because we are getting what we want out of the deal, plus a lot more. I want to see us on top of things at the end of the first five years. Let’s get stronger, make connections, gain levels, make money and improve the town. Someday we’ll be on the emperor’s yacht, sipping champagne and hobnobbing with nobility.”

“Let’s have a drink to that.” Suzette pulled out a dusty bottle of wine labeled “Gadobhra Red, the wine of Conquerors”. It had been in the cabinet when the town got rebuilt. The wine was dark red, fruity and full bodied with a peppery tang to it. They toasted each other and drank it down.

Ben whistled. “Wow, now that’s a wine to drink when sacking cities!” He used his chin to point to the north. “Or to take control of one.”

Ozzy agreed. “All in good time. We’re here for the long haul. Let Billy think he’s in charge for now.

Suzette looked at each of them in turn. "Then we are agreed. We stay loyal workers for now, grab every opportunity we can. And with that said, sadly, it's time to get back to business.

Suzette wrote out the list of things they thought were worth buying and left it in the center of the table. "Big question: What do we do with the Fae stuff?"

Rolly gave a thumbs up. "It sounds weird and neat. I like that. And if the options are rare, even better."

Ben was less convinced. "I'm worried. Your heritage is obviously leaning towards the Fae more and more. It's probably why those options are there. So, what comes through that mound will involve you more than the rest of us. But I do like the idea of the protection from the fairy lights. And the caravan sounds crazy good. In legends, a fairy market always has rare things to buy. An enchanted glade seems pretty mild, we have two of those nearby already. It's the ring and the mound that have big possibilities."

Rolly downed his glass of wine and poured another. "How so? The mound sounds like an embassy. We respect them, they respect us, etc. But what is the mushroom ring? Are they tasty?"

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

Ozzy blew out a mushroom shaped cloud of smoke. "No, not a good idea to go picking those. And knowing the fae, they are both tasty and poisoned, not that that will stop you. But it’s not a good idea to eat them.”

“In the old fairy tales, before they got turned into kids animated videos, a mound was a gate into the Underhill, a realm of the Fae. They had lots of kingdoms in little pockets of the Underhill, big and small. You could get lost there for years and come back either younger or older than when you left. The rings did freaky stuff as well, but most stories associate them with travel. Either to a part of Faerie, or to someplace else in the world. Getting back from where they sent you was difficult. You have to be careful of your exact wording, and include important things like where you'll arrive, and when. You can't just say 'Send me home.' Doing that might have you time-travel twenty-eight thousand years into the future, and appear in a nest of giant spiders. Details matter with the Fae."

Ben drew a circle on the paper, and then a second circle around it. "Something to consider and have ready: The Fae hate iron, or most do. Maybe if they cause trouble, we just put an iron fence round the mound and the ring?"

Rolly whistled. "Well, that would do the job. And piss them off. I like it though."

Ben pointed at Suzette. "Or a circle of white witches putting a containment around them. Don't forget what you did to asshole-from-the-stars. So glad we got rid of it quick. I'm going to have headaches every morning for a year because of that thing. If Jorges ever convinces you to bring down more meteors, I'll move to the Capital."

Suzette tapped her finger on the table, thinking. Finally, she looked up and said, "So we are all agreed then? Go for the upgrades but be careful?" The other three nodded. "We have the points. With all the treeties and bonuses from the Oak War and the Star Spawn, the town has 6600 building points. Everything including the mound and ring come to 5167. That leaves us a good amount for other things that might show up later on."

Ozzy looked at the list. "No fancy town hall?"

"Do we need it?"

Ozzy nodded. "I think we do. You can't keep running everything from out of the tavern. The College downstairs from where we sleep is quite enough. Go big and impressive. Hold your meetings at the town hall, and it gives Ben a place to coordinate all the workers and tasks, and a place for you to meet people."

Ben was ok with this. "I agree, and yes, between Courier jobs and running crazy when I'm home, I need someplace where I can keep things organized and in control. It's getting hectic with a couple of hundred workers, And it's only going to get worse."

Rolly grabbed the last of the dumplings, dumping the chicken back into the pan. "You did it to yourself Ben. Keep things simple, that's my motto. You don't see me doing anything other than herding cows and sheep, do you?" Ben looked sideways at Rolly, wondering if he was serious. Rolly stared back with silvery, pupil-less eyes. Then winked.

Ozzy looked at Suzette. "Go for it, we trust your decisions. And I'll admit, I'm curious to see how Billy reacts."

Ben whistled. "He was so proud of those gas lamps. He'll be jealous as hell over the Fairy Lamps."

Rolly smiled. "All the more reason to do it!"

Confirm purchase of the following upgrades for Sedgewick for a cost of 5667 Building Points? You will have 933 Building Points and 150 Gold remaining in the town treasury.

Six Storehouses at 50 points each = 300

Gnomish Bank: 100 BP and 2500 Gold

Lightning Rods for all buildings: 200 BP

Infirmary Upgrade for Adventurers Guild: 200 BP

Bound water elemental (small) available to put out fires: 200 BP

Circle of White Witches: 7 BP

Adventurers' Guild Hall Level 1: 500 BP

Mages' Guild Hall Level 1: 750 BP

Fairy Lights for entire town: 1000 BP

Fairy Mound: 1000 BP

Fairy Mushroom Circle: 100 BP

Enchanted Glade: 50 BP

Medium Merchants Fair: 50 BP per month x12 =600

Advertising of Merchant Fairs and caravans: 5 BP per month x12 =60.

Fae Caravan: 100 BP

Fancy Town hall: 500 BP

CONFIRMED