225. SKOG: TABITHA

Skog was the most rundown city I had come across in the Kingdom. All its streets were dirt, except for the main roads. It was on the edge of the tropical jungle with high rainfall, so when I say dirt, I mean mud. Timber was the primary building material due to its plentiful supply, no doubt. There were three main roads. We came from the northeast, and there was another heading west to Waiouru. There was also a road to the south through the jungle. This lead eventually to the nearest Animalkin City State somewhere in the jungle. It was a rural border city. The main market was where these roads met and was also paved with a central fountain.

The King wanted me to discover why Duke Boris wasn’t paying his taxes. Looking at his capital city, he wasn’t paying for anything at all. Most Nobles at least paved the roads and dealt with the garbage, even if it was only so they didn’t have to smell it.

Skog was smaller than Obalno. It was slightly smaller than Duhovno and a lot poorer. Duhovno had the bounty of the Steamlands, and Skog had the jungle. The main export was timber. There were some mines in the Jungle, but they were common metals, and there were few of them. The jungle also provided other resources, but Skog was a poor city.

The land around the city was full of sharp crags and escarpments, all covered in jungle. The city was at the bottom of an escarpment, and the Dukes Mansion was at the top, outside the city's walls. The road to the mansion was off the main road west. It was well paved, and the jungle cleared well back from it. I assume he can sit in his nice mansion and survey his muddy, stinky city. Maybe he has a nice view out over the Jungle on the other side.

Once we get to the central square, we split up. My first job is to book some rooms in a nice Inn, or at least one of the better ones. Mayakku, Astrid, and Runa are all going shopping, such as it is. They shouldn’t get hassled, as Runa and Cōmpēṟi both have a competent and threatening air about them, especially Cōmpēṟi, that lion outweighs everybody, including Wiremu with his Granite.

This is definitely a rough border city, and there are rough people to match it. Being on the border with the independent and mostly Amimalkin-run City States, there are a lot of varied species in town. I had never seen Gorrilla-kin before. There were two on security outside a Treasury building. There were also some brightly coloured Avions and a couple of lizard-kin.

Ruku and Kelda are sticking with me. We have the Ironwood, bone and soil samples and are sending the map to Tāttā in Kirghiz. The Mercenary Guild put out courier contracts, but the Avion Express is the way to go if you want fast delivery. What they lack in carrying weight, they make up for in speed. A map and bone and wood samples with the Express Service and additional privacy and protection options are worth it. I pretend to hitch Dusk to the post outside, and Ruku follows me in while Kelda stays outside people-watching. Liten is around somewhere.

The courier company has had some personnel losses so it takes a bit to organise. I eventually watched the Hawk-kin with a Falcon-kin escort take to the air with the package. The Express service is immediate or close to it. It cost a packet for the Express delivery, but we had an account with Avion Express, and I picked up the regular messages waiting for me from Tāttā and Janez.

We move to the horses, and I hear a gravelly voice say, “That’s a mighty fine horse you have there, miss. How much for it?”

It is not like I didn’t sense the six people standing behind the horses. As this is such a nice, friendly town, I figured this must be a nice, friendly greeting.

I mount Dusk and turn him around. I am now towering over everyone. It gives a nice friendly impression. “She’s not for sale.”

“If it is not for sale, you must be giving it to me!” he declares with mock happiness. His friends laugh along with him, except one standing back from them.

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I smile at the joke.

He continued, “You are not man enough for a horse like that. How about you hand it over before an accident happens.”

“I can see you have my well-being close to your heart,” I replied, “and you are right. I am not man enough for this horse. This horse requires a real woman to ride her. Are you woman enough?”

Gravel Voice lost his smile as some of his mates chuckled. It is essential to spread the humour around.

“I can see an accident in your future,” he said warningly.

“I very much appreciate your warning. I will make sure I keep a close eye out.” Dusk did a half rear turn, making everybody step back with his hooves, and then we rode down the street, “You be careful that you don’t have an accident as well,” I called out over my shoulder. You have to reciprocate the kind well wishes to keep everyone happy. He did seem to me like he might be a clumsy sort.

Ruku followed me, but Kelda stayed behind. She is a good observer but lacks deception skills, so I hope she knows her limits. I did notice she was using her Blend Skill to remain unnoticed. We rode to the Craftsman district looking for a carpenter or joiner who might be willing to make some shields from the Ironwood. There were a lot of wood crafters.

A lot of the crafters specialised in buildings. They had big yards stocked with timber. An equal number specialised in furniture and some lovely furniture was displayed. A lot of the furniture makers also head wooden weapons on display, including shields. These weapons were for training purposes, and one glance at the shields and Ruku moved us on. They were not built with quality in mind.

A few coins into the pocket of a knowledgeable street person, and we were directed to a workshop off the main road.

“How much.” the Orc said abruptly.

“Isn’t that my question?” I asked, “How much does it cost to make two shields from ironwood?”

The orc carpenter growled in a low tone of annoyance, “How much Ironwood you got.”

“Enough for the shields and more.”

“Enough for four shields?” he growled. I nodded. “You give me enough for four shields I make two for you. Enchanting extra.”

Now I understood. This would have gone easier if I had brought Modrica, and they could have communicated in grunts. “Deal,” I said, “We have our own enchanter. I will deliver the wood tomorrow.”

He grunted.

I escaped. That was frustrating, but we will get good shields from it. I need to get Astrid and Runa to visit with the wood so he can size the shields.

Back at the Hungry Horse Inn, Kelda was waiting for us. Once we were in a private area, I said, “Did you follow the idiots that accosted us?”

“No, they were not what I saw that caught my attention. There was a bond, an owl. It is out in the day drew my attention, but I am sure it was there in the fight at the army base in Kirghiz.”

“How sure?”

“Fairly certain.”

“What was the group called again? Dragon’s Fart?”

“Dragon’s Breath was one of the names.”

“I am sure that is what I just said.”

Kelda ignored me, “Liten tried following it but lost it when it entered the jungle. She stayed too far back, but owls do eat sparrows, so I don’t blame her.”

“Which direction?”

“South”

“Did it recognise us?”

“I shouldn’t think so, as only Wiremu, Tāoke, Modrica and Težka were really visible, and even Wiremu was armoured up. The owl also did not depart in a hurry, so I doubt we were recognised.”

“So the question is, what was it doing? Wiremu and Rodion might want to explore that way. I know Modrica, Wiremu, and I are all looking for some payback.”

Ruku said, “It is far too big a coincidence that they are here along with a Duke not paying his taxes.”

I nodded. “How to flush them out?”

“That is the easy part,” said Ruku. I looked questioningly at him. “When you want to flush them out, just send them a message the Countess Auditor is coming for a visit.”

“That will stir them up, but we need more intel first if we can. I only wanted to be here a couple of weeks, but I can tell it will probably drag on. Finding the dragon fart base is probably too difficult, with nothing to track, so…”

“Not so difficult,” Kelda interrupted. “My Trackers Insight from the owl tells me that the base will only really be accessible from the air. The jungle is huge, but there won’t be that many spots within a couple of hours' flying distance, which is about the range I would be at if I was contracted here.”

“Two hours flying? Maybe a day on foot in this jungle,” Ruku supplied.

“Inaccessible from the ground means Wiremu is the best to access it as there will be rock escarpments. We need to find out where the Duke's tax money is going.”

“Looking around this place, all his money is going somewhere else.”