96. Thorn March

Author's Note:  Extra long chapter here.  I'm very curious to hear takes on the new characters introduced in this chapter in the comments, if you're so inclined to share them.

We arrived at the steward’s family’s vineyard not long after Thomas left us.  Nobody thought it was strange that an administrator had come to chat with me.  Tarisha did discuss his advice with me briefly.

“I know he said that you’re not vital to the world,” Tarisha said, “But if you dodecide to take a vacation, I suggest that you wait until the next king of Yuikon is crowned.  I am quite certain that he was understating your importance in that matter.  I would view your health as more important than the story of this world, but at the same time, I believe that the story of this world is important to your health.”

“I know,” I agreed.

“But I agree with the other part of his suggestion.  You should definitely start handing out bullshit quests sometimes, now that you actually have some direct control over it,” she said.

“I what?”

“I’m not joking.  Send some people snipe hunting.  Ask your guild for suggestions for quests that they think would be funny, and then get your throne’s system to write them for you.  Write quests that youthink would be funny and assign them.  Have some fun with your powers, now that you have them.”

I paused, considering her advise.  “What if the Travelers figure out what I’m doing?”

“They’ll love you for it,” she assured me.  “Especially if the quests you assign are actually funny.  I mean, the worst thing that can happen is that a traveler refuses or abandons one of your ‘fun’ quests, right?  So where’s the harm in it?”

“I’ll think about it,” I promised.

A handful of Natives were milling about tending the thornbeary vines when we arrived.  They stopped to look at us, and a child came running forward.

“Who are you?” she asked.

“I’m Earl Hail Jeoran,” I answered.  “I was told Steward Benarth lived here.  Is he available?”

“PAAAAH!” She screamed, and it took me a second to realize that it was a nameand not a sound of … I don’t know, defiance?

A middle aged man stopped what he was doing out in the fields and made his way over.

“Pa, I think these people are Important,” the girl said.  “Did you hear the capital letter in Important?  Because it was supposed to be capital.  Because it’s important.”

I smiled.  On a whim, I pulled out one of the Sir William Von Barutasburg summoning items.  “Would you like a toy?”

She blinked in surprise.  “What is it?”

“If you [Use] it, a metal doll will follow you around,” I informed her.  I tossed the metal ball to her, and she promptly followed my instruction.  The item itself poofed, almost like it was really a darkspawn despawning, and the girl let out a little screach.

“Sorry!  It’s harmless, don’t be scared,” I said.  “I forgot that might look scary.”

“I wasn’t scared,” she said.  But then she was looking at the vanity pet, and she began laughing.  Within the moment, she was playing with the useless little thing.  Before long, she was chasing after it with a stick.

“I hope that wasn’t valuable,” the man said, arriving.

“I have spares,” I said.  “I don’t actually know how much it was worth, because I haven’t priced them yet.  But it was worth it to see her smile.”

“Of course it was.  But I have to say that, I’m her father.  Welcome to Thorn March, My Lord.  We’ve been expecting you.  I am Steward Max Benarth,” the man said, bowing deeply in the proper manor for a Yuikon court.  The display was somewhat offset by the fact that he was barefoot, covered in dirt, and his clothes were torn from the vines and bushes he had been tending.  But I was hardly going to base my opinion on the state of his work clothes after I had appeared at his home unannounced.

“I’ve just come for a tour, Benarth.  To get a general sense of the land.  My body guards flew me over a small chunk of the province, and it seems that the threat of darkspawn is quite low here,” I said.

“We are blessed to live in relative safety, My Lord,” Benarth agreed.  “The only real threats that exist out here are the goblins, and the kobold lair.  But they fight each other constantly and keep their numbers down themselves, so we never need to send our own lads in to cull them.  I hope you’re not too disappointed in receiving these lands, as there’s little of value to them.  We do produce a lot of thornberry wine, of course, but the wine sours after three years, so we have to sell it dirt cheap or it goes to waste.  Taxes are more or less balanced, after our duty to the throne is satisfied.  Some years there’s a slight surplus, some years a slight deficit, but rarely any lingering debt.  It’s a cozy little posting.  If you do replace me with someone, as I have heard you did on the other province you govern, I would ask that you allow me some time to instruct them to their duties, so that I may be satisfied that I am leaving my neighbors in skilled hands.”

So he had heard about that?  It had been several days, I supposed.  “Arkan the steward was corrupt.  It was quite obvious from the state of North Shire simply from the presence of the bandits and the corruption of the constable that the steward was either completely incompetent, or he was criminal.  I willexamine your management of Thorn March, Max.  And if I find signs of corruption or criminal activity I will deal with it accordingly.  But I don’t mean that as a threat, it is simply the way I wish to rule.  I will not employ corrupt or incompetent people.  If my investigation shows that you are an upstanding citizen and have been a dutiful steward, then I will certainly want to keep you around, if for no other reason than to help my Traveler friends learn how to manage land properly.”

Benarth grinned.  “Truth is, part of me has been hoping you’d just fire me and get it over with.  Governing is a headache, it is.”

“I’ve noticed,” I agreed.  I smiled.  I decided that I liked Max Benarth.  I would still have to investigate his stewardship properly.  And if I found any indisputable evidence of corruption, I would have to fire him.  But unless my Traveler friends found evidence that he was engaged in criminal behavior, I wasn’t planning on replacing him.  If anything, I might encourage Daemon to tap him as a resource.

We spent the afternoon in Max’s office.  He went over a map of Thornmarch with me, explaining the key locations and their importance in terms of trade, history, and important citizens.  At one point, he paused, looked at Tarisha, the only Traveler who had been allowed to follow him inside his office, and then he shrugged and pointed to one of the estates.

“There is a man who lives and works here.  A Traveler.  You asked for important citizens, and that’s not exactly what I’d call him.  But he is noteworthy,” Max explained.  “Good man.  I like him.  My daughter likes him.  Everyone likes him.  It’s just strange to have a Traveler be part of the community.  He’s more than welcome here, of course, I don’t mean to say that he’s not.  I am not biased against our saviors from another world!  I am simply bringing him to your attention, My Lord.”

“Thank you,” I said.  “I believe I will make a point to visit him soon, if possible.  I believe that Tarisha also mentioned him as someone noteworthy, which increases my interest in him exponentially.”

After the geography lesson, Max and I reviewed the finances.  Which weren’t great, but weren’t abysmal either.  I wouldn’t be able to sweep funds from Thorn March to cover the debt of North Shire.  Nor would I be able to take in an income more generous than what even very casual Adventuring would give me.  But I wouldn’t be bleeding gold into the coffers of Thorn March either.  At least, according to the picture that my steward was painting for me.

I’d still have to have it audited, but I put that on the low priority list for now.

I was invited to stay for an evening meal with Max’s family, but I politely declined in favor of flying off to visit the strange Traveler who had gained the notice and respect of both Tarisha and Max Benarth.  I would have preferredto ride on the trusty back of Shadow, but we were hoping to catch the eccentric Traveler before nightfall.

The landscape blurred beneath us.  Tarisha took the lead, having scene the map and managed to set a waymarker on the destination through her own interface.  I reflected over the difference between Arkan and Max, and I could only shake my head.

If Arkan had come across as incompetent, over his head, or fearful of the bandits, perhaps I would have had a different reaction to him.  Instead he had presented himself as ‘too useful to dispose of.’  Which was a mistake, because he had also made himself‘way too dangerous to keep around.’  I hadn’t known at the time that I would be able to actually give Arkan’s position to Daemon, as I did, but I had been banking on my ability to involve my guild and Traveler allies in the resolution of the debt situation.  I had notbeen willing to trust a viper in the rabbit clutch.

Max had presented himself as loyal, but not overly attached.  He didn’t need his position as steward, as he had said more than once, and he wasn’t opposed to being replaced.  Legally, I couldn’t take his vineyard away from him, which is what he truly cared about anyway.  I might end up replacing him, eventually, even if I found no evidence of criminal activity on his part.  But I was steadily inclined to keep him for as long as I could.  Again, assuming that the investigations I would have my Traveler friends perform did not find anything untoward.

We landed in the yard of the estate where my target was said to be employed, but it took a few moments to track down anyone who cared.  We had interrupted their evening meal, it seamed, so nobody had seen us approaching.  One of the members of my Dawn Guard returned after a few moments of exploring, explaining that he had found a Native willing to give directions to “the Target.”

We found him in a simple loft, sitting over a plate with a sandwich, two pickles, and a Kiwi fruit.  He also had a glass filled with Thornberry wine, with the bottle corked nearby.  He was an average looking sort of man, which somewhat suggested to me that he hadn’t done much to change his appearance in the ‘character creation’ menu which Travelers get when they first travel to my world.  He was in his late forties, with slightly gray hair, and brown eyes.  He was wearing the same sort of simple clothing as the Natives, which was extremely out of place on a Traveler.

“You actually tracked me down,” the man said, glancing at Tarisha as soon as she arrived.  “Well, you’re not the first who wouldn’t take the hint.  No, I will not join your guild.  No, I do not have any more deep secrets that aren’t already on the blog.  No, I haven’t uncovered any super secret epic quest lines that I’m just sitting on.  If I had, I would have sold the secrets already.”

Tarisha blinked.  “I apologize if we are causing you inconvenience.  I wish to politely inform you that Hail, here, is a Native.  Sort of.  And I also politely request the name you would prefer to be addressed by in this context.”

“Leonard,” he said.  “Same as in the blog, same as in real life.  Actually Leo is better, but I go by either.”

Leo took a bite of his sandwich, and with his mouth still full, he said “Look, lady, I think you have the wrong impression.  I really don’t give a crap about role play or perfecting my persona or methodacting or whatever it is that you probably think I’m doing here.  I don’t expect you to understand.  I’m notacting.  I just like this setting.  I like the en pee sees.  I like the food, and I like watching the sunsets and the sunrises from that hill over there.  That’s all.”

“Oh.  I see,” Tarisha said.  “I respect that.  A lot, actually.  I confess I did have some misconceptions.  But I wasn’t actually the one who came to track you down, really.  I’m escorting Hail.  I mentioned your blog to him in passing, and then the steward mentioned you again.  It was his idea to come.  Had he not been interested, I would have left you in peace.  I apologize if his curiosity has caused you inconvenience.”

Leo looked over at me, shrugged, and dipped his sandwich into a bit of mustard on his plate.  “You’re that hybrid kid or whatever, aren’t you?”

“Hybrid?” I asked.

“It’s one of the terms that’s circling around on the forums to describe what makes you different from other Natives, Hail,” Tarisha explained.  “Yes, Leo.  Part of the reason I was trying to get in contact with you was to warn you that … well, Hail tends to change the context of locations in this world as he passes through them.  I wanted to give you a heads up, as a professional courtesy.”

“Yeah?” Leo frowned and looked at me.  “You planning on marching an army through here or something?  Burning down the vineyards?  Killing the en pee sees?”

“No, none of that,” I said immediately.  I glanced at Tarisha.  “Can I trust him with the truth?”

“I think so,” Tarisha said.  “He doesn’t seem like the kind of guy who would oppose your goals in this way.”

I nodded, accepting her judgment.  “My mother is pregnant.  The politics of the situation are complicated, and there’s a chance that someone may try to hurt her.  I’m looking for a quiet place for her to hide until after the coronation of the next king of Yuikon.  I thought that Thorn March would be a good place for that.  The last thing I want to do is to turn this land into a battleground.”

Leo swallowed, and took a sip of his wine.  He was quiet for a moment.  “You picked a pretty good place to lie low, actually.  There’s plenty of en pee sees around who you could probably convince to take her in temporarily, even if you weren’t the lord of the land or whatever.  I suppose her being a princess or whatever complicates things.  I’ll think about it some and send you a list of contacts to check out.  Can I just respond to your … what are you, a bodyguard or something?”

“I’m the captain of his guards,” Tarisha answered.  “Yes.  If you wish to send him information through me, I will accommodate as best as I can.”

“Uh-huh.  Is there anything else you need, or that I should know?” Leo inquired, biting into a pickle.

I thought about it some.  “Well, I was originally planning on introducing a few dungeons into the zone.  I’m not certain that would bother you or not, because it might attract other Travelers.  If you’re coming here for the isolation, that is, then I--”

“It’s not that I don’t like people,” Leo clarified.  “I’m antisocial, but I’m not a hermit either.  I can even be friendly, when I want to be.  It’s just that I really like the routine of working here, and, well, there’s another factor.  I have a personal reason for wanting to spend as much time in this game as I possibly can, aside from the usual one of entertainment and the time dilation.”

“Oh?  May I ask what it is?” I inquired.

“Not a real secret.  I’m blind is all,” he said.  “On Earth, at least.  Ninety-five percent reduction in vision.  Doesn’t matter to the helmet though, my visual cortex is just fine and dandy.”

He ate the rest of his pickle as we contemplated his revelation.

“That’s sucks,” I said at last.  “I’m really sorry.”

“Thanks,” He said, chuckling.  “Don’t worry about it.  I do okay.  Mostly I live off of benefits and insurance money.  The game subscription is free if you have your doctor fill out the right forms with Arc, and my health insurance covered the cost of the helmet.  The helmet doesn’t fix an injured brain, of course, but if the problem is in another part of the body then you can come to this world to … get away from it for a while.”  He chewed his pickle for a minute.  “Like I said, I like the sunsets here.  But I wouldn’t mind it if actual gamers came by more often.  If it really got to me, I’d just go to one of the other low-competition zones and establish a new routine.”

“Low-competition zones?” I asked.

“Yeah.  There’s a list.  For people like me, who want to play the game, but not play the game, you know?  A lot of people consider it therapy.  That’s why I started the blog, to be honest.  I was hoping that others like me would see it and come by more often.”  He paused his explanation for a drink.  “Met a kid that way.  She played for a few weeks then quit.  Sent me a message to say goodbye.  Nice girl.  Lost her leg.  She promised to let me know if she ever started playing again.”

He didn’t say anything more after that, just continued to eat and waited for us to leave.  I wasn’t quite satisfied with that, however.

“If I wanted to do something nice for you, what would that be?” I asked him.

He glanced up, surprised.  “Don’t really need anything from you.  You don’t owe me anything.  Arc already gives me a free subscription for this place, so it’s not like--”

“I like you,” I confessed.  “You seem like a good person.  I’m not saying that your blindness on Earth has nothing to do with me wanting to do something nice for you.  But you also promised to help me find a place to keep my mom safe.  So, yeah.  What can I do for you?”

Leo looked interested in the conversation for a few moments, then a little hopeful.  “Well, the truth is, I managed to get a quest a while ago to buy one of the vineyards.  I’ve saved up about four million gold, but I need twenty-five for the downpayment, and I’m not sure that I can keep up with the loan paymentsafter that.”

I nodded.  “I don’t have that sort of gold just laying around.  But while I was speaking with Steward Benarth, I learned that I do own three vineyards.  I’m not quite willing to just give you one for nothing.  But I wouldn’t mind appointing you as an overseer.  You’d probably be able to earn gold much more quickly, and you could either use that gold to complete the quest you already have, or I’d be willing to sell you one of the vineyards in my possession.”

“That’s,” Leo was quiet a moment.  “You can do that?”

“I think so?” I said.  “If not, I’ll come back and apologize, and find something else that I cando for you.”

“It’s very likely that what Hail proposes is within his power,” Tarisha said.  “We’ll have to find his Throne in Thorn March for him to have access to the relevant abilities.  When he appoints you, you will likely be given a contract from Arc to become a canon character.  In fact, it’s very likely that if you had completed your other quest by saving up the necessary gold, you would have gotten a very similar contract indeed.  Hail is offering you a chance to leap forward in that sort of progression, but the end result would likely be very similar to what you were already working for.”

Leo looked very thoughtful for a moment.  “I’m not sure I can say yes or no right now.  I have to think about it.  And read the contract.  And talk to people.  There are … other reasons I was hoping to buy one of the vineyards, and I need to figure out if I can still do what I wanted to do with it if I’m an overseer, or if I need to actually own it.”

I nodded.  “I need to find my Throne here anyway.  When I do, I’ll appoint you as the overseer to my vineyards, and you can take your time making up your decision either way.  I won’t be upset if you decline it.”

“That’s very generous of you,” he said.

“Honestly, it’s not,” I confessed.  “I don’t think it’s costing me very much at all.  If you do a good job as overseer and increase the profits of my vineyards, then this deal might be more in my favor than yours.”

“If things work out the way that I hope they will, there is no way that is possibly true,” Leo said.  He laughed.  “Oh dammit, now I have to talk to a lawyer.  I hatelawyers.”