Day 56: Toilday the 13th, Neth, 4707
Today started out fairly calmly for what would happen. Savah, Bailey, and I all got up together and got out of bed without too much fussing. Savah and I got dressed and Savah took Bailey out to use the facilities while I prestidigitated the room clean. We had just gotten breakfast and we were figuring out what our plans were for the day when there was a knock at the door. It was Dame Rebekah. She looked a little downtrodden so I of course invited her inside and asked her to explain what she could about what was wrong over breakfast.
Dame Rebekah started off with telling us about her building woes the past few days. Apparently, they had gotten a visit from the tax collector the day before yesterday, and was charged more than fifty gold based on their assessment of the property and back taxes. I offered to go talk to the Mayor, but Dame Rebekah shook her head, saying that they had already paid the fine. Dame Rebekah went on to say that this wasn't her real problem, that the problem is that there are vicious rumors flying about today that she isn't a warrior of her deity, that she is just a sell sword for the highest bidder, and that this was why she had the money that she did at the drop of a hat.
I asked Dame Rebekah if she would like me to help quell the rumors, and Dame Rebekah noted that what she really just wanted was to not have to deal with this. She told Savah and me that her plans on leaving Windsong Abbey were to escort us to the festival and then to go on to fight horrors in the Worldwound like her parents did, in the name of her goddess, and that she didn't really know what she was even doing anymore. I looked to Savah and she kind of shrugged, so I asked Dame Rebekah if she thought that it could be possible that her goddess had other plans for her and that this was why she was here, around Sandpoint, with us. Dame Rebekah looked confused, and I told her that if she had not stayed here with us, after the festival, that I would have definitely been killed twice over, and that she likely would have not have stopped the ghast menace from plaguing the countryside.
Dame Rebekah then confided in us that during our first expeditions into the manor she had a vision that Aldern had broken into the area with the ghouls and ghasts to try to get some kind of poison for the group that he owned money to, and that the ghouls were just waiting there for him to break through. I noted that a lot of our problems, and the problems of those around here seemed to stem from Echidna, and asked Dame Rebekah if Echidna was an enemy of her goddess. Dame Rebekah seemed a bit upset and said that of course she was. I noted then that wouldn't her goddess want a strong warrior like her on the front line, to strike a blow against Echidna's plans while many of her other crusaders were occupied with the Worldwound?
That made Dame Rebekah think, and while she was thinking, I told her to get out of her armor. She looked puzzled for a second, and I told her that Veronica would modify it as needed, but that I could use her assistance with checking out the property while Veronica was doing her job. Dame Rebekah looked to Veronica and Veronica saluted in her fashion. Dame Rebekah disrobed of her armor and presented it to Veronica. Dame Rebekah asked how long it would take, and I told her that it would probably take all day, so she could relax a bit.
Veronica sent me a missive asking about what it should look like, and I asked Dame Rebekah if she wanted a helmet. Veronica declined, saying that Iomedae did not hide her face and she would not either. Veronica nodded as I passed along the information to her. I looked to Savah and said that we would be heading out to the property to see how things were going, and Savah said that she could provide Dame Rebekah with some armor on loan if needed, and Dame Rebekah declined, saying that she should be fine while she was here in Sandpoint.
I wished Savah good luck and thought to myself that I had not seen Oren, James, or Arika recently. As I walked out to the garage, I got on my bike, and Dame Rebekah came with me. We left to the outside, and she got on her horse. We drove/rode to the work site and Aesrick was there arguing with a man by the name of Belven Valdemar. Apparently Belven was demanding that some aspects of my construction needed to be changed to account for the needs of his ship's cabins needing the material. I asked Belven if he couldn't just pay the lumber company more if he needed the material more.
Belven complained that he had not budgeted for the increase in costs. I looked at him matter of fact and said that this seemed like a him problem. Belven looked like he was about to blow a gasket. He asked if I knew his father. I said that I didn't know many people within Sandpoint, and that this was a fault of not having as much time here as I would have liked, having had to go to Magnimar to save the Lord-Mayor after helping to save the town from a dastardly plan to send an invasion force of goblins to burn the town down.
Belven told me that we would see if I could get property finished after he goes over to the Town hall and has a talk with the Mayor. I told him that he could talk all he liked, and that if he wanted, I could go down there with him and we could all talk it out with Mayor Deverin. I asked Dame Rebekah if she would be willing to go with me to the Town Hall, and she said yes. We left the site after I told Aesrick that we would handle this and that he could continue to get the building done. Aesrick told me that he would but that he had some other questions to ask later. I told him that we would try to make it back quickly enough to answer them.
Belven had already ridden off to go talk to Mayor Deverin, so Dame Rebekah and I took off after him. His horse, though good, was not even close to Dame Rebekah's Pseudo-Pegasus or my two wheeled terror. We ended up arriving at about the same time, which is convenient, because I would not have wanted to get there before him and make us wait. He seemed even more infuriated that this happened, but didn't talk to us about it. I left my helmet with my bike again and Dame Rebekah and myself both walked to meet with Mayor Deverin.
Belven made sure that he walked a few steps ahead of us. I guess that he wanted to get to the Mayor first, so I would be fine with letting him talk first. The town clerk led us all to the Mayor's office and Belven just about barged in. The Mayor was in a meeting with Sheriff Hemlock at the time. They both looked up at the intrusion to their meeting and before they could say anything, Belven demanded that I stop my construction because it was hindering the Valdemar family business. The Mayor raised an eyebrow and the Sheriff was a bit dumbfounded to respond back properly. Belven went on to claim that I was an outsider, and that even though I had swindled my way into the good graces of a bloviating buffoon like Grobaras, it was no reason for their town's noble families to suffer.
The Mayor took all of this in and asked if I had specifically taken resources from Belven. I told the Mayor truthfully that I had, for the most part, left resource acquisition to the Site Foreman, but that if he had acted in an untoward manner, that I would make recompense. I asked the Mayor to please take the concerns of the people of Sandpoint into consideration and allay to me the magnitude of the fine, and I would reimburse the town for it. I saw a smile creep up on the Mayor's lip. The Mayor pronounced that there was a possibility that I had interfered with the preexisting contracts that Belven had, and that the town would need a bond to represent the possibility of a finding that was not in my favor. I asked the Mayor if she knew how much that finding might be.
The Mayor looked like she was tallying something up in her head and pronounced that the finding would likely be a fine of thirty gold pieces. I pulled that amount out and handed it to her. The Mayor noted that the town would only need ten percent of this amount to secure the bond for the investigation. I told her that I would rather pay the fine right away and finish up with my property, since there were scoundrels that were starting to lurk around the property I was at, and I wouldn't want a nearby business to take a hit from an opportune steal while they were looking to get at me and mine.
The Mayor nodded and said that the town would start the investigation in say, two weeks, and that any further building at my property site would have to pause during the investigation. I told the Mayor that I understood and that I would ensure that Aesrick knew that he would not be able to continue building after thirteen more days. The Mayor said it was settled and Belven looked like he realized exactly what had just happened. He started to interject and say that he would take this up with the Town Council. The Mayor said that this was his right, but that the investigation into the investigation couldn't be done until after the findings of the first investigation had been done.
Belven looked irate as fuck and said that his father would hear about this. Mayor Deverin noted that even his father, patriarch of the Valdemar clan, would likely be glad to bring this up at a town council meeting, but that he should be caution to not appear biased against the wishes of Magnimar, considering it was Magnimar that granted the petitions for Sandpoint in the first place. Belven stormed off in a huff while Dame Rebekah and I remained. Mayor Deverin sighed and noted that now that this was done, she wanted an update on the bikes. I told her that we had four done and ready for pick up, and that we could continue to work on others after we did some needed updates to our own gear. Sheriff Hemlock said that he would have Oren and Arika pick them up after they got off their swing shifts.
I nodded and noted that Oren already had his own bike, so that number didn't include his personal bike. Sheriff Hemlock noted that this would mean that he could send a group of four people out on patrols while still having a bike to spare to get help if needed. Mayor Deverin noted that Oren seemed to be a model guardsman since his hiring. Sheriff Hemlock agreed and said that he had no issues with Oren Drake at all. Dame Rebekah smiled and noted that she had seen that there are defenses going up around the town that she agreed with. Sheriff Hemlock said that they would take a long time coming, but that they would end up with a good sturdy all the way around the town eventually.
Dame Rebekah talked a bit with the Mayor and the Sheriff about what her plans were for "The Misgivings" and how it would be a much different place. Sheriff Hemlock noted that he would include the place on his troops tours, just so that we can know when a group is missing if they don't show up. I noted that this is a great idea for situational awareness and operational security. Sheriff Hemlock noted that he had spent some time talking to Jonathan, and he had told him of these concepts from "movies" that he had seen from my devices and they sounded wise. I nodded and said that these were things that my former world needed even without things like goblins and ghouls.
We spent a little more time talking with the Mayor and the Sheriff before heading back to the new house. We got back to our mounts, Dame Rebekah's Pseudo-Pegasus and my steam bike, and rode off to the site. Aesrick was there, working on the second floor with his crew. We entered into the building and made our way to the second floor. The entire first floor was complete and ready for us to start moving things in.
Aesrick pulled off of the working on the Master Bedroom to talk to us. He noted that this was a much more interesting set up than he had really thought about at first, and asked how we were planning on getting the water up to the second floor. I told him that we had an enchanted rock that could generate a gallon or water every six seconds and as such would keep a small tank full, so that we could have a reservoir of water. I told him that we would also be putting in a fire suppression system later, utilizing the same reservoir. Aesrick nodded and said that he was greatly intrigued about this idea, and that he would like to look into getting the details for this system, as he remembered the last time that Sandpoint had almost burned down.
I told Aesrick that I would draw up the schematics and that he could get the copper piping from my workshop at a deep discount as long as it was going to this. Aesrick noted that he would likely just get lead pipes and I told him that if he believed in anything I ever told him, to move away from lead piping as lead was a toxin that leached into your body overtime. Aesrick was a bit shocked as I was rather adamant about this, until I told him that I really didn't care where he got the piping from, but that lead really was bad for you. Aesrick asked if Iron would be okay, and I told him that it would be fine if it was allowed to "season". He understood my meaning eventually and let it drop.
I asked Aesrick if this was all that he needed to talk to me about, and he told me that there was an odd man that had requested to stay the night in the house, as he was travelling from Windsong Abbey to the city of Magnimar alone. I told Aesrick that it was okay, and that he could stay the night in any room but the Master Bedroom. Aesrick said that he would tell the man if he saw him again, as the man had walked back into the woods before we got here. I told Aesrick that if this man had any questions, he could get them to me through whatever means he felt were best and I would get whatever answers I could. Aesrick nodded and said that he would pass the message along.
Dame Rebekah and I went back to the Armory and Savah was celebrating making a great sale. Oren, Arika, and James were all there, celebrating with her. We all appreciated the good sale, and I told Savah and the rest about the good news about the property. Oren seemed a bit downhearted at first and then I think he remembered that he would have a room as long as he needed at our house. He also took the opportunity to warn us that people were beginning to talk about Faunra and Shalelu in a less than stellar light. I reflexively cursed and asked why this was starting up. Savah told me that I had cut off most of the avenues of revenge for those who I had upset, so spreading gossip was mostly all that was left.
I rolled that around in my head and after a minute, turned to apologize to Dame Rebekah. Dame Rebekah stopped me before I could say anything and told me that if words were the worst thing that someone had against all of us, that we had mad ourselves very secure against attack. I nodded and said that preventing this would be akin to how totalitarian states stifle freedom of speech. Dame Rebekah nodded and asked how her armor was doing. We went in to the workshop and the armor looked to be half-way done. Veronica was working diligently on it and she sent me a message that it would be another four hours.
I relayed this to Dame Rebekah and she shuddered, obviously feeling somewhat naked without her armor. I asked her if she would like to accompany me to drop off a pair of books to someone who had lent them to me and would like them returned. Dame Rebekah agreed and I bid good luck again to Savah who was ending her lunch break and going back to work at her shop. We took off on our modes of transportation and headed over to the Garrison, to ask if the Tokages were on shift. Silver was at the Garrison and told us that Naru was currently at Thistletop, but Fumi was at the South bridge. I thanked her and we headed out. I asked Dame Rebekah if she wanted to head to Thistletop and she shook her head, so we headed to the South Bridge instead.
As we travelled to the bridge, we overheard some people talking rumors about not only Dame Rebekah and Chelger, but also Faunra and Shalelu. We stopped and I talked with the people that were spreading the rumors that we heard. I made a decent counter argument and we'll have to see where it goes, but at least the people know how important Chelger, Dame Rebekah, Faunra, and Shalelu are to this area and what they have done. I also put in a little pre-emptive word for Jonathan and Shayliss, because I figured that they would be next.
We got to the South Bridge eventually, and I saw Fumi there. She waved me over and Dame Rebekah and I both pulled up. Fumi asked me about my new armor and I told her that I was continuing to tinker with it to make it better. I pulled the books out form my bike's saddlebags, and handed them to her. Fumi asked me if the ability passed along, and I told her that I did not know. I asked Dame Rebekah if she could read either or both of the books. Dame Rebekah took the older book (which I had taken the time to Mend to repair it), and looked to read it. After a few minutes, she handed it back and said that it was giving her a headache, but that it looked like claw scratches dipped in ink instead of actual words.
Fumi handed her my version, and Dame Rebekah gave up on it even quicker. She told us that all she could see were one's and zero's and that she couldn't tell any pattern. Fumi took a look at it, and said that it was very interesting, because it was in their legible Common Tongue for her. Fumi thanked me and told us that if we ever needed help with something to just ask her or her brother. Dame Rebekah seemed a bit more confused and I told her that I would partially explain on our way back. We left Fumi and the South Bridge and started to head back.
On our way back, I told Dame Rebekah that the book was charmed to not allow wielders of arcane or divine magic to be able to read it. I told her that the first book was the original, that was written in the language of Dragons. The second one was the version that I had made that had made using my tablet to copy it and then my magic of a dubious source to produce it from my tablet. I wasn't sure if the second one would work the same or not because of the transition, but it looks like the charm copied itself over. I added that the book wasn't innately magical, just the charm around it.
Dame Rebekah listened as I explained it, and asked if she could know what the book entailed. I told her that the book dictated methods and techniques to defeat enemy spell-casters. Dame Rebekah asked if I was interested in it due to my most recent encounters. I told her that the Tokages had asked me to make a copy of it weeks ago, but I only had the opportunity now. I added that my recent encounters with spellcasters definitely spurred on my focus. She asked me if I had intended on telling the party about this. I told her that truthfully, I got enraptured by the book when I opened it for the first time this weekend and couldn't stop until I finished it. I told her that I did intend on telling everyone when we got back together in a few days, but that I didn't see the need to bring it up before then.
Dame Rebekah changed the subject and asked about all of the modifications that had been made about my armor. I told her that I would show her after we got back and Dame Rebekah said that this would be a good idea to wait. We got back and stabled our mounts in the garage. I stood back a fair distance and engaged both the spring blade and the shield. Dame Rebekah looked over both and made a suggestion or two for each, mainly to increase their combat capabilities of each, but she seemed overall impressed.
We went into the rest of the workshop and Veronica was working away on the armor. Veronica waved us off and continued to work. Dame Rebekah and I walked on to the shop where Savah was attempting a hard sale. The customer saw us and asked our opinion on armor and weapons. Dame Rebekah took the lead and answered the person's questions. Ultimately, the customer ended up buying a chain shirt and a longsword, both good purchases. Savah asked Dame Rebekah if she was planning on staying for an evening meal.
Apparently we had been gone all day for some reason. One thing after another I guess. Dame Rebekah said that she would need her armor back before she would head out again, so that would mean that she had to stay until the armor was done. I asked her if Chelger was okay with that, and Dame Rebekah said that she had told Chelger that she would likely be gone all day. He had to deal with some of the finer details with the repairs of the manor. I nodded and said that we could all go to Jonathan's for dinner. Dame Rebekah said that she was okay with it, as did Savah, so we locked up and headed over.
We all walked over to The Bolting Barghest, talking the whole way. I noticed that there were a few people lurking in the shadows, but didn't bring it up to the others. Jonathan welcomed us in heartily and set the three of us up with a nice table. The place was packed and it was all Shayliss and him could do to drop by sporadically to say hi. I noted to Jonathan that if business was really doing this good, that he might want to hire a manager or even just some runners to bring plates out. Jonathan said that he had been planning on doing that but that he was always too busy. I noted that he would always be too busy if he didn't get someone in. Jonathan nodded and said that he would think on it.
Savah, Dame Rebekah, and myself all enjoyed a good meal made by an old friend. I took the opportunity to create dozens of flavored drinks during my time there, and recommended that Jonathan get a drink dispenser that could flavor drinks for him as a gimmick. He actually took notes, and asked if I would be willing to create some samples later on if he did manage to get one. I looked to Savah and she nodded, so I told him that I would be glad to. Jonathan had to run off to another table, but he caught back up with us before we left to thank us and tell us that he would seriously think on what we had suggested.
As we were leaving, Veronica noted that Dame Rebekah's armor was completed and ready for pick up. Veronica noted that she would continue to work on parts for the new house in anticipation of moving. I mentally thanked her and we all walked back. We got back to the Armory without any issue and we saw Oren and Arika getting two of the guard bikes to take to the Garrison. We wished them well and continued in. I led both Savah and Dame Rebekah to the workshop where Veronica was busy making plumbing fixtures for the various systems in the new house. Dame Rebekah took the armor to a different room and Savah went with her while I started piling all of the fixtures that Veronica had made into the cart for the bike.
By the time I was done, Dame Rebekah had changed and was adjusting the various components of her armor for maximum customization. Her suit ended up a little different than mine, with it looking much more like a combination of classical armor and the modern while I had forgone any sense of blending in. Savah asked me if she would be getting something similar. I told her that we could work to make it look at least close to what she wants. Savah smiled when I told her that.
I asked Dame Rebekah if the armor was to her liking. She noted that this armor didn't encumber her much more than it previously did, but she could tell that the armor was a bit more defensive. I told her that this was the point. Dame Rebekah smiled and thanked me for the upgrade. Dame Rebekah then told us that she had to be going, that she needed to get back to the manor. I thanked her for visiting and asked her to pass along to Faunra that I needed to update her armor as well. Dame Rebekah said that she would, and got on Bucepherous and left to head back home.
After Dame Rebekah left, I asked Savah if she wanted to move her shop today, or wait until later. Savah said that she would prefer to give her customers some time to know that the business is relocating. I told her that I could understand that. Savah told me that we could move on Sunday, when she was not scheduled to be open. I jokingly noted that she could have a closing and grand opening sale and she asked me what I meant.
I told her that where I had been from, businesses would boldly declare that they were decreasing their prices when they were shutting down one store, and then they would declare a grand opening sale when they opened a new store to get people interested in it. She asked why they would do that, and I told her that sales were a lot more important where I was from because everything was based around the moving of goods, and stopping this chain caused massive problems. I then went on a diatribe about how just in time worked, and how food stores never had more than three days' worth of food in storage. Savah asked me how this kept working and I noted that it really didn't. It just meant that more people had to be hired to move things around more frequently.
We left that topic, gratefully for me because it really boiled me up inside, and discussed how far along the house was. I told Savah everything that had happened with Belven and the complaint. Savah noted that we might have made an enemy there. I told her that Ethram had already been voting in lock step with Titus this whole time, so I didn't know how it would affect us much more. Savah noted that they could put pressure on the other council members if we were not more careful.
I thought about that for a little while and realized that having two noble enemies was actually worse than one. I asked her what her recommendation was, and she said that since Belven had taken it up with the law, that it would be up to them to figure it out, and since I had already paid for the fine that would be levied, they really wouldn't be much that we could do now except wait. I nodded and told her that I hoped that I had not made things worse for her and I. Savah shook her head, and noted that we needed to get into that house quicker anyway, so us utilizing the best of the people here in town only made sense.
Savah and I locked up the Armory after seeing James nod to us before heading into his room. I noted that we really ought to me more accommodating to him. Savah said that James had told her that he still had a lot of work to do sorting everything out, as much of the documents were written in Tien and he did not know how to read it. I shrugged and hoped that things worked out better for him. Savah noted that he was spending a lot of time in the Rusty Dragon with either Ameiko or Bethany to get the translations done. I nodded. Savah and I went into our room and got ready to sleep. Bailey was already curled up on the bed when we got in there.