by Han Yang
That still left funds in the bank, so I added some features Duke had requested. Guard towers along the walls were a smart investment, seeing as we didn’t plan to upgrade the wall tier in the short term. He also requested ‘foundation platforms’ at regular intervals along the inner side of the wall, far enough back that they weren’t actually touching the bottom of our defensive barrier.
Odd, but it wasn’t an overbearing drain on our finances. Most of the cost would be in regards to losing plots for other builds, but we had an abundance of those for the time being. I gave the stats page a check and couldn’t help but smile at what I saw.
Norn Statistics:
Citizens: 509 +3
Visitors: 16
City Debt: 0 cubes of hydrox.
Citizen behind on taxes: 0
Buildings behind on upkeep: 0
Buildings behind on taxes: 0
City projects slated for downgrade: 0
Upgrades in progress: 5
Complaints in progress: 8
Immigrants this month: 106
Emigrants this month: 8
Rating: 100
Walls: 3
Docks: 3
Taxes: 5% on residents
The ‘visitors’ column spooked me a little, but I assumed it was just tourists. Though we didn’t have much to attract them, maybe they just wanted to check out the new and upcoming city in their vicinity.
Or maybe their purpose was more sinister.
As I finished the last document, a heavy knock at my door announced that Duke had returned. I called out, letting him into my study without hesitation as I pushed myself up from the comfortable chair.
“Is it ready?” I asked.
“Of course, Baron Lord.” Duke bowed his head in my direction. “I would request to join you upon this journey, along with a few handpicked companions. You can trust them as you trust me.”
“Sure. Whatever you say.” I clapped his shoulder as I strode out past him into the corridor. “Let’s get this show on the road. Where is this mystery vehicle of yours?”
“Ah. Follow me.” Duke moved out of my study, carefully closing the door behind himself before he turned to lead me toward the stairs. “It may take a while, but please be patient.”
I wanted to question him, but I managed to keep my tongue still as we strode down a set of stairs - then another and another.
Deeper and deeper we traveled, far lower than the ground floor of my manor. The walls turned from brick to stone as we moved from my home to a cave system carved out by hand. The walls were oddly smooth, showing that the workers had likely not been human.
“Venturebots?” I queried, receiving a sharp nod in response. “So this is why you wanted so many online at once…”
Duke didn’t respond to my unspoken question, and I didn’t bother to press the issue. I had a feeling I’d learn the true reason for his actions sooner rather than later, and the anticipation actually built up excitement rather than dread.
After one last set of carefully carved stairs, we finally reached the masterpiece of Duke’s endeavors.
“What the hell is this?” I turned to my robotic companion. “You’re insane, you know that?”
“Perhaps.” Duke responded with a casual nod.
“And I love you for it.” I slammed a hand into his back, though my enthusiasm caused me to use a little too much strength. As I rubbed some feeling back into my fingers, I turned to view the huge area laid out before me. This… is perfect.”
Chapter 4
It was difficult to hold in my excitement as I saw the busy area laid out before my eyes. What was the best way to describe the space Duke had created?
An underground lair.
Venturebots rushed to and fro, each one overburdened with loads of timber and stone. Many crafting stations had been set up where individuals were working on their own specific projects.
Some worked on repairing damaged items, such as carts or market stalls, while others created items from scratch. The expansion of my little domain made a lot more sense, but after borrowing a checker from Duke, my own statistics didn’t quite match up.
Name: Bradley
Origin: Ocarna
Race: Human
Gender: Male
Residence: Norn - Baron Lord
Rating: 13.1
Strength: 10
Endurance: 11
Perception: 13
Burst: 11
Luck: 18
Reflex: 16
Charisma: 24
Charge: 11%
Healing: 3
Intelligence: 24
Melee Combat: 19
Crafting: 6.1
Aim: 13
Dexterity: 11
Steam-bot Mastery: 194
Leadership: 32
Construction: 11
Farming: 8
Tree harvesting: 17
Gathering: 9
Fishing: 6
Skinning: 12
I could account for the increase in my personal attributes. The long arduous journey to the survey site had given me plenty of time to grow, along with the stint I’d spent in the mine, but the sheer scale of my overall growth caught me off guard.
Luckily, Duke was on hand to explain the discrepancies.
“Apologies, Baron Lord. The growth in our venturebots exceeded expectations. After a shared consciousness meeting, they persuaded me to allow the runoff for skills to filter for their master.”
Several seconds passed as I contemplated what I’d just heard. Their master, technically, was me. Duke only served as my overseer, so the fact the increase in skills had bypassed him made sense. The logic worked.
That’s if I ignored the fact that somehow my little robot army had managed to give ME the skills THEY had earned.
“How- Wait, no, should I even ask?” I glanced at Duke, who merely responded with a slow shake of his head. “I don’t want to look a gift horse in the mouth, but won’t this set off alarm bells… well, somewhere, at least?”
“It’s well within acceptable bounds. Please do not worry yourself overly.” Duke let out a creaky chuckle as he patted my shoulder, just as I had done to him not so long ago. “If we didn’t share the growth, then potentially it may have raised concerns. All we need to do is increase our workforce to avoid future complications.”
I opened and closed my mouth several times before deciding to remain silent on the issue. While I had given Duke full authority to expand as he deemed fit, the sheer scale of his undertakings left me lost for words. Literally.
Then again, it wasn’t like I’d tell him to stop. The dream of my own personal venturebot squad to brave the wilds had been left far behind as I scanned the sheer volume of busy workers before me.
It was then that I caught sight of the largest project of them all, far up against the rear wall of the workspace. Several enormous tubes, each as long as the outer walls were tall, rested against the back of the lair. Venturebots scurried back and forth, hammering and drilling along their lengths, working toward some purpose I couldn’t yet fathom.
Too small for sewage piping, too large for use in homes or stores. Duke avoided my curious gaze as he pointed me toward the main goal of our little expedition.
My attention was pulled away by a clunky looking contraption. A deflated balloon rested atop a large, metallic box, along the edge of which sat glass fronted windows at periodic spacing. The whole thing was only about as large as my study, but, if push came to shove, I guessed you could fit around ten people into its confines with room to spare.
“Is this -” I shook myself off and strode toward the vehicle. It wasn’t a blimp, exactly, but the logic behind its usage looked to be the same. I didn’t fancy its chances if the weather turned harsh, but I assumed that for a relatively short trip from one city to the next, it wouldn’t be too dangerous.
Then again, I’d already been involved in one blimp crash. My luck had skyrocketed, but perhaps that wouldn’t be enough to avoid my next journey
ending in a similar manner.
“Has it been tested?” I asked, though I already knew the answer. Duke shook his head before turning to one of the venturebots, signaling for it to fire up the rickety vehicle for our inspection. “And how does it get out of here, exactly?”
“Do you see that tunnel up there?” Duke pointed into one of the upper dark corners of the lair. Only after I’d shifted my augmented eye did I manage to see a cave system cut into the stone wall itself. “Remember the underground bear you fought?”
“Do I ever,” I muttered as I glanced down at my now fully replaced leg. “Not too often you fall into a pit and almost get -”
I paused as the meaning behind Duke’s question settled in.
They’d found a tunnel system… and he planned to use it to launch the personal blimp secretly.
“That is the most insane thing I’ve ever heard.” I glanced at the cave, then at the slowly inflating balloon of the blimp, then back again. “Will that even fit? It looks like a damn tight squeeze to me.”
“Measurements show it is more than large enough for our passage.”
I shuddered at the thought of traversing a tight, underground tunnel system in a rickety, untested blimp, but it wasn’t like I could find a better option.
Well, maybe I could, but a part of me wanted to try it anyway.
After all, when would I EVER get the chance to do something crazy like that again?
“Fine. When is it ready to set off?”
“Now.”
I had half expected Duke’s response, but the confidence behind his tone still surprised me a little. He strode up to the side of the metal box which was now suspended beneath the bulging balloon and tugged open the door. Duke bowed in my direction as he motioned for me to board first.
I jumped aboard the blimp and checked the interior. Harsh and barren, compared to the last blimp I could remember riding, but it had more than enough amenities for the trip ahead. I move to the command console, a simple contraption made from bronze and silver piping. It even had an oversized wheel inset at each spoke with a large, shimmering crystal.
What Duke lacked in common sense, he more than made up for in his desire for the dramatic.
Several clunky footsteps caught my attention from behind. I turned around, expecting to see a squad of handpicked recruits from above, but instead-
I saw a group of venturebots, each one custom designed and ready for combat.
“Duke?” I called out as the overseer for the group hopped into the blimp and closed the door behind me. “By handpicked, did you mean…”
“These were chosen from those who offered their services, Baron Lord.” Duke strolled past me and settled down into the command seat for the blimp. “Before we depart, do you wish to name your new transportation device?”
“Huh? What?” I shook myself off as the venturebot crew slotted themselves into bays set up against the walls of the ship. Bars swung across each one, locking the bots in place as they powered down for the trip. “You really think that’s the most important thing right now?”
“It’s a tradition, or an old charter, or something like that.” Duke swung in his seat to face me, and I almost felt like he was trying to give me an admonishing look as he added. “It is unlucky to travel without a name to guide you.”
“Fine! Fine.” I dropped down into the co-pilot’s seat beside Duke and buckled myself in. “Give me a minute…”
For a moment, I had the urge to just name it Darcy, but I nixed that idea a second after it appeared. It had to be something new, something interesting, something that… would matter to me.
“Moonlit Goddess.” I finally spoke as I patted the dash before me. “That’ll work for you, right?”
“A fantastic name, Baron Lord.” Duke hissed steam as he manipulated the controls. His hands were a blur as he swung levers and pulled on knobs with an ease and grace I hadn’t expected from a venturebot, even one as advanced as him. “Any reason behind the name?”
I smiled to myself as I remembered Joanna. She would be heading back to Norn sometime soon, and the thought of her beautiful, snowy hair billowing in the night sky left me speechless for a moment.
“Just remembering what’s important is all.” I shrugged and settled back into my seat. “Let’s go, before I change my -”
My words were forced back into my throat as an enormous weight slammed into my body. The pressure crushed me into my chair as the entire cabin jerked and shuddered around us. Fortunately, Duke seemed unfazed by the insane acceleration of our take off, but I couldn’t take my eyes away from the rapidly approaching wall before us.
Time slowed to a crawl as we sped toward our demise. As much as I trusted Duke, I still couldn’t bring myself to see anything but a flaming wreck in our future.
Maybe I’d get lucky. I could always survive another crash, right?
But then, at the last moment, Duke swung the wheel and pressed down upon a pedal, hard.
The Moonlit Goddess curved perfectly, swinging around to face the darkened tunnel that would serve as our exit. Even with my augmented vision, it was difficult to see through the darkness, but it did seem like we were on the right track.
Several seconds passed before we dove into the abyss. Sparks rained past the windows as we skittered and shuddered our way through the cave system. Duke seemed to know where he was going, so it was likely they’d pre-planned the route, but that didn’t mean nothing would go wrong-
WOOSH!
An intensely bright light filled the cabin as we cleared the exit, shooting off into the sky in seconds. I blinked away the blurriness in my vision and glanced around to see only rolling clouds in every direction.
A pale grey blanket, rolling and drifting in the sky.
“If we stay at this altitude, our approach should remain undetected.” Duke locked the wheel in place before he turned to me. “A few kinks to work out, but at least the engine didn’t implode again.”
“Wait, implode?” I glanced back toward the thumping compartment at the rear of the cabin. “Seriously, Duke, sometimes I think you’re worse than me.”
“Perhaps, but everything I do is for you, so some transference makes sense.” He shrugged and turned back to the command console. Various dials and doodads whirred and beeping, warning of who knows what, from who knows where. After a glance, Duke shut down the alarms, so hopefully, they weren’t anything important.
Now that the ride had settled down, I unbuckled myself and walked to the edge of the cabin. The venturebots still remained in their bays, silent and unmoving, but the locking bars had kept them in place and safe during our ascent.
Only thin strips of land showed occasionally through the dense cloud cover below us. Duke had taken the Moonlit Goddess far above the standard height for blimp travel, and the fact we weren’t turning into frozen treats did confuse me a little until I glanced around and saw several whirring heaters in each corner of the cabin.
“How long have you been working on this?” I asked without turning away from the view.
“Since work began on the manor. We already needed to secure the foundations, so I began the side project at the same time.”
“And it didn’t show up in the city logs because it was completed manually, huh?” I glanced back at Duke, who gave me a cheerful nod from his seat at the command console. “So, anything else I should know?”
“Anything else? Oh!” Duke tapped his forehead in irritation before he turned to me. “I believe Lei is pregnant. It seemed like Joanna is going to have a sibling soon. You too, in fact.”
Chapter 5
The fact that I might be a brother-in-law soon caught me off guard, but I pulled myself together after a few moments. Technically, I had yet to marry Joanna, and while I didn’t hate the idea of joining together with her in such a way, the fact remained that our schedule was likely to be a little too busy to arrange such a thing.
On the other hand, I wasn’t interested in that noise. As soon as I got back to N
orn, I’d start the preparations...
As long as Joanna accepted my proposal, that is.
She might still be angry that I’d left her behind with the survey team. I also needed to find Ginli first because the thought of a wedding without her new closest friend by her side probably wouldn’t please my lovely wife to be all that much.
But once that whole mess had cleared itself from my mind, a more pertinent question rose up in its place.
Why were so many folks becoming pregnant in my city?
Norn Statistics:
Citizens: 511 +3
Visitors: 17
City Debt: 0 cubes of hydrox.
Citizen behind on taxes: 0
Buildings behind on upkeep: 0
Buildings behind on taxes: 0
City projects slated for downgrade: 0
Upgrades in progress: 5
Complaints in progress: 8
Immigrants this month: 108
Emigrants this month: 8
Rating: 100
Walls: 3
Docks: 3
Taxes: 5% on residents
It wasn’t like they were going wild and ravaging each other in the street, at least not as far as I could tell. The Norn statistics sheet had shown a plus three, and that wasn’t counting Joanna as she still hadn’t returned at that point. Since I’d last checked we had gained another two citizens and one visitor-
“Duke, visitors. What are they, exactly?”
Duke paused for a moment as he hummed thoughtfully. “Tourists, adventurers who aren’t citizens, drifters… or spies.”
“Thought so.” I glanced at the sheet again. “And are you still following the checks I laid out before I left?”
“Full vetting at all influx points, train, boat, and blimp. Out of the number who have entered the city, at least half had nefarious purposes.”
“Had?” I caught on to the slight stress on the word as I turned to Duke again.
“Indeed. You do not need to worry about them anymore, Baron Lord. Those miscreants have been dealt with.”
The cold harshness of his tone made it clear exactly what he meant by ‘dealt with.’ The fact he hadn’t given me any specific details proved that their interrogations hadn’t yielded any fruit, but I pushed that concern aside as I turned my thoughts back to the task at hand.
