Duchy Unleashed

by Zack Finley

“It is hard not to wake up to Allo,” I said, surprising myself, putting on my gear.

  “She is very happy right now with all the younglings. She is moving from group to group. I think she will sleep for a week once we move her to the Keep.”

  “Did you make any progress with Avia’s acolytes last night?”

  “Not as much as I’d like. They acknowledge their responsibility but want to rest for at least another day before they return. I hope they don’t stretch this out. I don’t want to move our younglings here until they finish their business.”

  “Let Tobron know so he can put that into his planning.”

  “I posted it on the assignment board last night so he would see it first thing.”

  I let the com hub know we were back on duty as we walked to the dining hall. We weren’t the only early risers.

  I checked the assignment board and saw I had a meeting with Loma at HQ. My economic summit was on the schedule, though I had forgotten to add it. Someone was looking out for me. A new group of transfers was arriving this morning, along with a lot more supplies. One of the first shipments of food coming directly from Losan was arriving today as well.

  As promised, Inoa was interviewing people at HQ. Tobron was spending the morning with the Duchy Guard. Clive was working on the palace.

  Argon was tapped first to meet with recruits in Losan and Klee to get them moving toward the Keep. She was then assigned to help Jord at the Klee warehouse. I suspected that assignment was prompted by whatever Jord was discussing last night with Tobron.

  I then saw a second meeting at HQ had been added to my morning, one with Ellte and Marfo.

  I asked Argon, “What problem is Jord having?”

  “Tobron thinks he is feeling left out and unappreciated. He wanted me to work with Jord today to help out.”

  “Findot could be driving him nuts,” I mused.

  “Yes, that is a definite possibility, I feel a bit bad dumping her off on him. But only a little bit.”

  “He has an important job but I know everyone is focused on the Keep, not what it takes to get everyone here,” I said.

  “Yes, Tobron thinks all he needs is a pep talk and a little help. He hasn’t been getting any rest.”

  “Good luck with that and on getting our newest recruits on their way,” I said.

  “They have been getting impatient and will be happy to start moving. We’ve had barges on standby for several days, waiting to move them. Now we just need to make sure there is a ship scheduled to pick the Losan group up. I’m not as worried about the Klee groups. They can stage at the Klee warehouse or transfer directly to a ship depending upon how the timing works out.”

  A quick kiss and we left to begin the workday.

  Loma was waiting for me at her HQ workshop. I’d teleported directly to the location posted on the schedule.

  “I’m ready to deploy some crystals at the Keep,” she said the second I arrived. “We will need a large number of crystals to completely cover the Keep. Mostly because of the distance involved. We were lucky at HQ because the area is so compact. The Keep is huge. Yesterday I discovered if you put a partially filled crystal close to an attuned empty one, magic will flow to equalize the levels in both.”

  “Wow,” I said barely comprehending what she was saying.

  “We can cover all the current buildings with four sets of crystals. I recommend planting these and then as we have them, network sets to cover all the main areas of the Keep. We’ll start with just charging them for now. As we learn ways to use the power we have stored, the next set of changes will come. Inoa has already tweaked the mind shields for our mundanes to not only draw from any nearby battery but to charge the batteries as well. We only have the original stone batteries Clive and Tobron installed originally but replacing them is the first priority.”

  Loma drew my attention to a small cluster of crystals on the bench. There were seven crystals, a larger one in the center with six crystals aligned along the central crystal’s facets. The bundle was held together by leather thongs.

  “We’ll encase them with stone to hide what they are before sending them out in public, but that is a battery for all seven magics,” Loma announced with pride.

  “How many would we need to link HQ with our Klee warehouse?” I asked.

  “We can keep the stone ones at HQ for now, especially since we’ll probably have most everyone at the Keep. We need one set for the warehouse and at least two more to bridge the distance. What are you thinking?”

  “It will be helpful if we can treat the Klee HQ and warehouse as a single entity. Let’s get these wired together before expanding to the Keep. We need to get you a workshop at the Keep as well. It will be easier if we don’t have to transport these crystal sets very far.”

  “Clive has converted one of the guard towers into a workshop. We’ll need access to earth magic to grow crystals there.”

  “Clive, Tobron, and I can drop by and donate some if we can transfer it in the same way I was able to get my refill after the lich lord.”

  “That should work, I’ll have Clive put an earth crystal under the tower and set up some growth cells.”

  “I think we had better call a director’s meeting to discuss going forward,” I said. “We have a lot of smart people we need to get input from. You should also talk with Inoa about getting some help. Especially as we discuss moving into production.”

  “I’ve been thinking the same thing,” Loma said. “I’ll also have Clive install one set in the warehouse, and we’ll arrange for a basas and covered cart to install the other two tonight. He should be able to dig a hole under the road, drop the crystals in it and fill the hole quick enough. That way no one knows they are there.”

  Loma scurried off to execute the plan and I ‘ported into the Klee HQ entrance. I told the com hub I was available and it reminded me of my scheduled meeting with Marfo. I told them to advise I was ready to meet when they were.

  I didn’t recognize the woman minding the desk and introduced myself. I had met the Duchy guardsman before and asked how things were going. They both were eager to get to the Keep and asked how it was going. I thanked them for their service and went to find Inoa.

  Inoa had an anteroom filled with recruits. They were supplied with plenty of chee and pastries. I spotted Gera.

  “Gera, how are you doing?” I asked, feeling foolish I didn’t have something smarter to say.

  He got up promptly and nodded toward me. I felt he wanted to hug me but resisted the temptation.

  “Very well Duke Steve,” Gera responded. “I’m done with my duties in Augun, so I’m free to join the Duchy.”

  “How were things in Augun?” I asked.

  “A lot of their mages have returned,” he answered. “Not all were pleased with the changes we implemented.”

  Gera was a diplomat. Who knew.

  “Well, their loss is our gain. Inoa will be chatting with you soon. Once she’s passed you, we’ll talk again,” I offered.

  Gera nodded and returned to his seat. I sensed he was nervous, but job interviews were like that. Everyone else in the room stared at me. Most were curious, and several were definitely sizing me up. I didn’t want to get more involved, or I was sure Inoa would dump the interviews back on me, so I made a hasty retreat.

  I ‘ported to the conference room Marfo had chosen to meet in. I was there first and took the opportunity to peruse the assignment board. I normally only looked for my top lieutenants or me but today wanted to see more about it.

  I spotted my farmers and foresters and noted they were assigned the same duty for the next three days, although they were being reinforced tomorrow by several people currently listed in transit.

  The com hub now had 10 people assigned to it at HQ and two at the Keep. The younglings and caretakers were the largest groups remaining at HQ. They were slated to move to the warehouse in two days.

  I saw we were back to catering meals at the Klee HQ and warehouse.

  The warehouse
had two blacksmiths and a large group of barnta and basas handlers assigned to it. It also had a large group marked ‘in transit.’ I assumed they were slated to board ships today or early tomorrow.

  I tried counting how many people we had but lost track. Definitely more than 400 and that didn’t count the new people Argon was putting on barges this morning. Or the ones Inoa was interviewing.

  And then I thought about how empty the Keep seemed.

  Marfo and Ellte chose that moment to arrive. I had never met Ellte in person before. Marfo made the introductions. Ellte was slender with shockingly white fur contrasting with her rich mahogany skin. She was also dressed in a kaleidoscope of colors, nearly an insult to one’s eyes. Each of her toenails was a different color. I’d become used to most Jaloan’s preference for muted colors. Perhaps I needed to reexamine my baseline.

  Ellte was completely oblivious to my reaction and immediately took her seat. She pulled out a stylus and notepad. I could feel her nudge to get on with it, time was wasting.

  It was effective, and I sat down abruptly. Marfo acted amused at my reaction, but she jumped right in.

  “I thought since you have such a clear vision of what the food supply manager should do, you should relay it directly to Ellte. I’m also going to suggest that until she has it going the way, she wants it to, that she consult with you directly.”

  I nodded, what else was I to do. They both stared at me, waiting for me to start.

  “Feeding our people in the near term is a minor challenge. The food is available now. If we afford it, we can buy it. Moving to the Keep has complicated that slightly. We no longer have instant access to the Klee market to pick up any supplies we are missing. The plans currently in progress work well as long as there is enough food available from outside our Keep. We now we have our farms and orchards coming online. What food should they grow? What should we buy? Someone needs to work with them and our kitchen staff to provide the best food we can for our people,” I said, looking at Ellte, who still acted impatient for me to start.

  “There may even come a time when we must be completely self-reliant in our food production. We still don’t know how the economic downturn and the loss of production from Ylee and Kavil will impact the markets. We need to stockpile foods, to minimize the impact of any short-term problem. Marfo has had great success in contracting directly with specific farms for their output. We need to expand that to include Losan and Augun as each recover from adversity. I do not know how many we may end up within the Duchy, but we could be the size of the city of Klee before we are done,” I said.

  “As I see it the immediate problem is to assign crops to our farmers, so no food is wasted. I’ve looked at our purchases and have suggested Perga concentrate on quick ripening crops for now. I’ve asked he consult before replanting orchards. That will allow us to choose the most beneficial crops, especially given how long it will take to harvest their first crops,” Ellte said, as I tried to keep my chin from dropping in amazement.

  “Grain supplies are the most critical, due to the collapse of Ylee’s economy,” Ellte continued. “The market has yet to respond to that lack, so we have placed several orders in Losan for grain. That beneficial price won’t continue. I’ll get with Perga and our bakers to determine the best grains to plant locally. Kavil supplies nearly all the herbs on the continent. I’ve discussed the herb issue with our kitchen staff, and we are looking for seeds for most of the herbs used for food preparation. Again, the impact of Kavil’s destruction hasn’t been factored into the current market, so we should be able to gather a sufficient supply of seeds. If not, our cooks will have to improvise. I’m more concerned about nuts. Kavil supplied most of the region’s nuts. Nuts are an important source of all kinds of nutrients and are a mainstay in most kitchens. We are already looking for nut tree saplings for purchase. Similarly, we are looking for saplings for a variety of different fruit types that are not already planted at the Keep,” Ellte paused to see if I had anything to add.

  I decided I didn’t need to display any more of my ignorance. Ellte would do quite nicely as the food czar.

  “Good,” Marfo said. “Thanks for the update Ellte, I’ll see you in a bit.”

  Ellte, who hadn’t taken a single note, hopped up and left.

  “Is that what you wanted?” Marfo asked, not really trying to mask her glee at my speechlessness.

  “Very much so,” I answered.

  “I find she works best if you give her some vague instructions and just get out of her way. She had a lot of problems at her other jobs because her magic suite is a bit sparse. But the rest of the package is choice,” Marfo said with some pride. “She prefers working behind the scenes, but we’ve been working on that.”

  “She is definitely a powerhouse. Let’s make sure she has plenty to keep her challenged,” I said.

  “Will do, see you in Augun.”

  I was left in an empty conference room. Sweet.

  “I’m told you are still at HQ, come and meet Maude,” Inoa sent, along with a ‘port location.

  I ‘ported to it. Inoa and an older lady, I assumed was Maude, were seated in the conversation nook in Inoa’s office. Maude was dressed all in black. She even had a wide-brimmed black hat with dark gauze covering her face.

  “Hello dear boy, Inoa has such good things to say about you. She wants me to take charge of your farms and forests. While that would, of course, be an honor, I’m not sure it would be enough of an intellectual challenge. Too humdrum,” Maude said, nodding to me and gesturing dismissively with her hands. I noticed even her toenails were matte black as if shiny was too frivolous.

  I looked at Inoa but got no help from that front. “Maude, we want to merge farming and forestry with the best of magic. Adopt best practices to maximize yield and shorten crop times. Our Duchy has some serious practitioners in water, earth, air, fire, force, and mind magics. We can provide a very supportive environment for plants and animals. I’m told this has seldom been done, but we are committed to making our Keep self-sustaining,” I said, trying to sound persuasive.

  “I have been experimenting along those lines since my terrible tragedy, but I have found few share my enthusiasm. Other magic practitioners refuse to assist me. It is too far below them,” Maude said sounding like a martyr.

  “I believe it is important and as the duke, I set the priorities,” I said. “Yesterday we discovered ways to add moisture to our orchards that made all the trees very happy. The foresters were irrigating the trees, but my mate and I were able to relieve their thirst immediately. That caused me to think there had to be ways to improve plant cycles and yields by helping them with magic.”

  “Yes, I see.” Maude looked at Inoa. “I like this boy, we will give it a try.”

  “Good, I’ll let him introduce you to Perga then,” said Inoa. “You can commute to the Keep for work or move there, your choice. We don’t care where you stay, we just need to know when you come and go. Mealtimes are posted on the message board. I’ll give you access to all that as soon as we reset your mind shield and you swear fealty to the duke.”

  With that, I was dismissed. I still had some time before needing to put on my dress uniform and decided to spend it trying to find Allo.

  She was in the upper floor commons that was created for the slave camp survivors. One of the teachers was conducting classes in the commons. The younglings were seated at her feet paying rapt attention.

  Today’s class involved basic mathematics, with the approach mainly transactional, dealing with buying or selling items at the market. Some of the examples were pretty challenging involving trades and resales.

  Allo came and crawled up in my arms for a few moments before returning to her fan club. I then ‘ported back to the Keep to warn Perga about Maude’s arrival and to dress up.

  Perga was actually thrilled to learn Maude was coming. Of course, he hadn’t met her, so I didn’t doubt his sanity. He told me he was very impressed with Ellte and looked forward to working more c
losely with her as they got more fields and orchards ready for planting. I was glad he recognized the value of coordination and hoped he and Maude wouldn’t come to blows.

  I took a quick shower and ‘ported to Augun a few minutes early. The place bore no resemblance to either the ballroom it was before we wrecked it nor the large empty space with a few tables the last time I saw it. I spotted Olive talking with some people wearing the same type of uniform she was. It was similar to that worn by the Augun King’s Guard.

  She didn’t spot me until I’d almost reached her. “Steve,” she called out rushing toward me before stopping and trying the head bob mages usually used.

  “Olive, you are looking great. I assume your conservation corps handled this transformation?” I said, gesturing at the hall.

  “Yes, we are really starting to reach our stride. Some of the old guard are still skeptical, but we’ve made believers out of a lot of others. I want to thank you for this opportunity, I know King Rufix listened to your recommendation,” Olive sputtered, not sure what else to say.

  “The king had plenty of reason to choose you, you’d proven yourself and shown you organizational skills, I just gave him a nudge. His main problem was he didn’t want to lose your contribution on the guard side,” I assured her, before changing the subject. “How is Augun’s recovery going?”

  “Better, not that you’d know it from all the snapping and snarling going on. No one likes the emergency edicts, but no one has something better to suggest. The first new crops are showing up in the markets, so that is a good sign. Our barge boys are doing a bang-up job keeping the traffic going on the rivers. Your basas express has been a lifesaver. We still have a lot of people missing, but most families have reconnected with their loved ones. I don’t see the basas express disbanding, ever. It is reliable and very quick. We even use it to send out orders to our corps teams.”

  “Sounds like things are on the mend,” I said.

  “Yes and no, there is a lot of friction between those who stayed and those who left. Those who stayed believe they should get a medal and those who left have only criticism for what those who stayed did. Much of that is playing out in Augun City, so I’m glad we are headed to the Flom area next. I don’t envy King Rufix, he is a lot more patient than I could be. Probably why I’m no politician.”