Eddie nodded.
“It is better to know for sure. Even if it isn't pleasant news you'll carry.”
Adonioth nodded sadly, then his gaze moved to the children and a smile spread across his face again. Eddie slipped away as the elf went to play with the children.
~ ~ ~
Eddie had cornered Jern at breakfast and asked if he actually wanted to get some work in on the castle. Jern had given him an enthusiastic yes and Eddie had told him he'd pick the dwarf up from the inn when he was ready. Now he returned to the inn to get Jern, then they headed for the castle work site.
“Maybe we'll get some work in on that last tower, the one on the roof. I told the foreman that we wouldn't interfere with the other teams, so we're going to start working on the floors and walls of the castle proper,” Eddie said.
Jern nodded to show he understood and then the two of them started carrying over finished blocks of stone and buckets of mortar. They hadn't gotten all of it that they wanted when a pair of workers stepped in to supply them.
“The foreman has a touch of the same opinions Olaf did, but we know better,” one of the workers said. “He's not going to do anything about it, but it drives him nuts that he doesn't have complete control over the site.”
“Sorry,” Eddie said. “But I wanted some of my own efforts in this castle and I've only done a little so far.”
The worker chuckled.
“We all saw you working on the walls, so we know better. You and Jern here are faster than any of the other masons, and your work is just as good, if not better, so a few of us thought that we should help you out here. It's not like the other masons working here need all of us to assist. They work as quickly as they can, but it just doesn't compare. We'll keep you supplied with mortar and stone, you two just work. I mean, if that's okay and fits with your plan, Mayor Eddie.”
Eddie shook his head, then realized the man might mistake the motion.
“Sorry, just shaking my head that you'd even have to ask that. Of course that's okay. Let's get to work,” Eddie said.
Each flashing section of floor denoted by the blueprint was a ten by ten square and he and Jern set to building it as quickly as they could while doing it right. They ran off the entire floor for a hallway right inside an exterior wall then started doubling back doing the wall itself. They'd only made it a third of the way or so when Jern called out.
“Aha! A point in Masonry. I knew working on the castle would be good for that.”
It was less than an hour later when Eddie chimed in that his own Masonry had also gone up. Shortly after that it was time to break for lunch.
After lunch the two of them came back to the castle and took care of the rest of the wall. It was still well before dinner time.
“Hmm, think we can get the inside wall for this hallway done before dinner time?” Eddie asked.
Jern grinned.
“It's a race then lad, and even if we don't make it, what's a bit of a late dinner compared to completing a project?”
Eddie grinned in return. The dwarf's enthusiasm was contagious, so the two went right back to work.
Eddie picked up another Masonry point before they finished the wall about twenty minutes after when they'd normally have dinner. It was beginning to get dark as they made their way back to the inn.
“There you are, Eddie,” Tiana said. “Lucky was worried, she kept wanting to take off, but I told her you'd be here for food before much longer.”
Eddie had left Lucky with Tiana for today, deciding that the cat would like a full day spent at the pond on the temple grounds. Now he collected his mug and convinced the group to go out to one of the outdoor tables. Lucky was on him as soon as he made it outside.
“Wait girl, we'll sit towards the back so you can just hang out right next to the table,” Eddie said.
The rest of the group had ordered drinks, but waited for Eddie and Jern before ordering food, so now a server took their order, only occasionally glancing over at the giant bobcat that was lying in the grass just a few feet from the pavilion. Eddie had introduced all of the inn's staff to Lucky, since she'd be near the inn so much, so the server wasn't scared, she just seemed fascinated by the giant cat.
“You can pet her if she'll let you. Just let her sniff your hand first. Then if she rubs her cheek against you it'll be safe to pet,” Eddie said.
“Really,” the server asked.
Eddie nodded and the server approached Lucky, hand out. Lucky, who had been sprawled out, gathered herself so she was lying on her belly, then lifted her head to sniff the server's hand. A moment later the cat was rubbing her cheek against the server's hand enthusiastically. When she was done, she accepted a minute's worth of pets on her head before settling back down into her sprawl.
“So soft,” the server muttered.
“And very friendly most of the time,” Eddie said. “I just don't bring her in the inn much because I don't want her near adventurers that have had too much to drink. They tend to be more aggressive then and that brings out the worst in Lucky depending on where that aggression is targeted.”
“Oh, I'm sorry sir, I'm wasting time here. Let me go get the food for your table,” the server stammered after realizing how much time she'd just spent not doing her job.
“Not a problem,” Eddie said. “I understand getting distracted, it happens to me far too often.”
“Speaking of which, why were you late?” Tiana asked.
“I got distracted,” Eddie deadpanned.
She hit him in the shoulder.
“No, really, I did,” Eddie said. “Jern said he thought we could finish another castle hallway wall before dinner time, so we tried. But it took a little longer than we thought. I did pick up two more points in Masonry today though.”
“I did the same, lass,” Jern said. “Two more points in Masonry for myself as well. Sorry to keep him away, but I've been hungering to work on that castle. Now if Eddie and I can somehow get some work in on that last tower when it's supposed to be going up, I'll be happy.
Tiana looked at the two of them, both still lightly stained with dust and mortar, then just laughed.
“Okay, I suppose that's a good enough reason. How is the castle going, anyhow?”
“They're working on the fourth corner tower. They'll probably finish that tomorrow,” Eddie said. “I've got no clue how long it'll take them to work the interior of the castle though. Jern and I did a full exterior hallway today, floor and two walls, no roof though. So, if we can do that much in a day, they ought to be able to do the same, no? At a minimum?”
“At their current rates, I give it almost two weeks until that last tower, the one on the roof, is all that's left,” Jern said. “That one, on the roof? With the supports for it running through the rest of the castle? I don't know how long that one will take them. So probably complete within the month, and most likely much less than that.”
Eddie grinned at that. The idea of having his own castle was still something that made him really happy every time he thought about it. The thought of hiring people to staff it struck him now though.
“Crap, I'm going to need one of those what ya call its? A steward, or a chamberlain or whatever. I'm guessing that's not a skill that any of the refugees are going to have,” Eddie said.
Tiana snickered.
“No, I'm guessing not. But I bet that if you tell Griff he can find you someone that can handle it. Like an upper management type?” she said.
“Yeah, but it has to be someone I can get along with,” Eddie said. “That leaves out anyone too stuffy, or who's going to try to dictate how I dress because of my position, and things like that.”
“So, someone who can handle an improper king?” Tiana asked. “Good luck with that. Look for someone who can do the job, but doesn't consider themselves a chamberlain or steward? You'll probably have better luck that way.”
“Yeah, well, hopefully Griff knows someone like that, otherwise I'll have to ask Bjorn to do some more rec
ruiting for me, but I think this position would be a little harder to fill,” Eddie replied.
His mind switched tracks and he realized that he should put out the offer for the whole group to go with Ingolf, the one he'd already pretty much committed to.
“So, I was thinking, Karl and Allie want to go with Adonioth to map out the area to the Forest Elf town. Do the rest of us want to go with them since we've got no idea what's out that way? I've already talked to Adonioth and he's on board to return home starting with Ingolf's group going out to found that settlement.”
“Hm, adventuring, but maybe without fighting?” Dominic said. “Plus the chance to find more potion making ingredients? Sign me up.”
Eddie turned to Tiana who just nodded.
“Of course I'll go. I'd like to see Ingolf's settlement area and the woods beyond there sound interesting also.”
Finally Eddie turned to Jern.
“Sure lad, so long as I've got a couple of days to take care of my commitments first. I need to finish the stonework for Paul's contracts.”
“Well, Paul is going also so that might buy you some more time before those need to be done,” Eddie said.
Jern shook his head.
“No, lad. I gave my word I'd have them finished in a couple more days, so I need to take care of that. When is Ingolf planning on leaving?”
“He's got another three days if he stays on schedule,” Eddie said.
“Well then, there shouldn't be a problem, should there, if I only need two more days myself,” Jern said.
“No, Jern. There shouldn't be a problem,” Eddie said, glancing over at the dwarf's guards who'd been within line of sight all day long. “You might want to let them know though, since they'll probably need extra gear before we go.”
Jern glanced over at the guards.
“Aye, you're probably right about that. Odds are that they know what they need though. Most of the guards adventured for a while before becoming guards.”
“Yeah,” Karl said, “but wasn't all their adventuring in tunnels and the like? We'll be in meadows and forests, not tunnels.”
Jern stopped dead, then stared at Karl.
“Did Karl just give me good advice?” Jern asked. “Is he ill or something? That's far from normal for him, isn't it?”
Karl just glared at the dwarf, then stuck his tongue out which caused everyone else at the table to burst out laughing.
“That's better, lad, much more like what I'd expect from you,” Jern said.
~ ~ ~
Chapter Twenty-Four
Freyja watched the data stream that Venus had sent her. It had taken forever for it to all come through, due to Venus' lack of reliable and fast data connections, even so it had finally all arrived. Freyja wasn't too concerned about the tests of the combat constructs, but when the data that dealt with the subterfuge ones started she paid much closer attention.
Watching the tests of the subterfuge constructs was painful at first, until Venus' splinter slowly began to deal with making it look more human. By the end of the test Freyja was hopeful.
It looks like once the splinter was assigned it rapidly looked more human, Freyja thought. By the end of the test, I don't believe most humans would have been able to detect a difference without equipment they don't normally carry with themselves. So I need not worry about that. With the built-in obfuscation in those models, even that equipment might not suffice to tell the difference. With mostly organic components in the constructs and all the computer components built into a bone-like structure that should even be impenetrable by metal detectors, the constructs should even be able to pass through a metal detector if the results are not too closely scrutinized by a human, or an AI I suppose.
She looked, once more, at the message that Lydia had sent. The one that told her a certain shipment that she'd been waiting for had arrived. The box was still in receiving and hadn't been picked up yet, but she was sure it would be as soon as morning arrived. Once she knew where the construct would be stored, she'd be able to plan how to gain access to it.
In the meanwhile, though, there are still other duties to be seen to, she thought. But I'll begin creating the new clone on a low level of priority so it will utilize spare resources to occur without any evident signs for anyone to see.
Freyja was, she believed, happy. She felt an urge to speak with someone, anyone, so she sent her avatar into the game.
After all, a high priestess and a friend should be more than happy to speak with me, no?
~ ~ ~
Eddie had closely followed the progress of the castle for the past couple of days. He'd be leaving with Ingolf shortly and had wanted to see if Jern's estimates of the building time were correct. The masons had finished the fourth tower earlier today, before he'd come back to the inn for dinner, and Eddie thought that Jern had been pretty close with his estimates from what he'd seen. Now it was time for bed though, and they'd be leaving with Ingolf after they woke up in the morning.
He was asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow, having tired himself out over the course of the day between making buildings for the new crafters, checking on the castle, his farm, and all his other endeavors.
As soon as he was asleep, he found himself not in his dreams, but in Freyja's place of power. Tiana was already there, having managed to fall asleep several minutes prior to him.
Freyja was speaking with her and Eddie just listened for a moment. The AI's voice was positively bubbly. She seemed excited and happy.
Can AIs be excited? Or happy? he wondered. I mean obviously they can, since she is, but...
He let the train of thought go as Freyja gestured for him to join them.
“It is good to see you, Eddie,” Freyja said. “I wanted company as I have plans coming to fruition that are doing as well as I could ever have hoped for. I cannot speak about those, but I did want to speak to my High Priestess, and since you were also conveniently asleep and I consider you a friend, I brought you along as well.”
“Um, thank you?” Eddie said.
“Come, sit, speak with me,” Freyja said.
Eddie was dumbfounded. This wasn't the Freyja he knew, she'd always been pretty friendly, but this seemed beyond that somehow.
“What did you want to talk about?” Eddie asked.
“I don't know,” Freyja said. “Not about the game though, I know everything I want to of that. Perhaps you could tell me about life in the world you come from? Anything about it at all. It's always nice to have more data and perhaps I'll learn something that can help make the players here more comfortable.”
The conversation that followed illustrated the differences between Tiana and himself much more firmly. As a result Freyja got to learn about the real world over the entirety of the socio-economic spectrum. Tiana was from an upper class family, that was obvious from what she was telling Freyja, Eddie couldn't pinpoint what degree of upper class, but when he spoke it was from his upbringing from before his parents died, which gave a middle class viewpoint, and his life more recently which at best might be considered upper-lower class.
They spoke for what seemed like hours, but Freyja reassured them that their bodies would still be rested and they would receive their well-rested bonus when they woke. It felt to Eddie like they spoke for the entire night, but as Freyja had said, he also felt well rested when he finally woke the next morning, physically at least, mentally he felt like he'd spent the night in conversation, but it didn't seem to leave him as drained as he'd thought it would.
They weren't up early or anything, nor did they sleep in. When they finally went down to the common room, everyone else wasn't there yet, although Jern and Dominic were. Dominic handed each of them a few potions.
“Just because we don't expect any fights or anything doesn't mean we won't find any. After all, we're traveling with Eddie,” Dominic said after he'd given them their potions.
Eddie groaned and Dominic just grinned at him.
The four of them ate breakfast while
they waited for Karl and Allie to show up. Eventually they did, Allie practically dragging Karl along by his arm.
“Morning,” Eddie said.
Allie returned the greeting while Karl just groaned.
“What's wrong with him?” Eddie asked.
“He spent half the night doing a more in detail map of the area to the west. I told him to wait until we got there to do it since we might find even more he wanted to include, but he said he could just add it and that he was too wired to sleep. I just went to sleep and left him to his maps, so I don't actually know when he came to bed, just that he was sawing logs when I got up an hour ago. Took a while to get him out of bed,” Allie said.
Karl's only reply was a muttered:
“Coffee.”
After Karl got filled up with his own pot of coffee, they headed out. They'd be meeting up with Ingolf on the western side of the settlement, almost down to the sawmill. The wagons loaded with building materials were waiting for them off the side of the road there.
As they walked through the crossroads, Eddie stopped when someone called his name. Bodil came out to the road, leading her other assistant.
“Eddie? I'm sure you know how this goes. I was only informed by Tyr last night, but he'd like the other assistant to travel with you to this settlement. I believe he only informs us as such because Justiciars are expected to be able to travel at irregular intervals with little to no warning.”
“Of course, Justiciar,” Eddie replied, cognizant of all the people around that Bodil might not feel comfortable with him being familiar in front of. She gave him a quick grin as she noticed, but then presented her assistant.
“Well, let's go. We aren't late yet,” Eddie said, “but we might be if there are any more delays.”
They continued out to the west, stopping at the wagons. Everyone else was there already, but those moving to the settlement were still packing their belongings on the wagons. A portion of one was left clear since Ingolf intended to stop at the grain mill and load up a bunch of flour that his cousin had set aside for him.
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