Reconvene

“Waiting is the worst!” Beth groaned as they lounged about John’s house Friday morning after a large breakfast. Their late afternoon romp had carried on far longer than any of them had planned, and by the end, exhaustion had claimed them and they had slept soundly until daybreak. And much to their collective relief, neither Brenda nor Kiera seemed keen on bringing up their extended absence, though the bluenette was keeping her distance from them, giving him some worry she knew what they had gotten up to.

Now, however, they were stuck waiting on the Order to contact them. And with an unspoken agreement to meet with them as a united front, they were **** to not do anything until they called to resume their talks.

“We should have expected it would take time for the Order to examine the items from the barrier,” Vivian said, looking up from her laptop. “Even with Moira’s direct testimony, they would want to check everything they could about what we gave them.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if they try to work the zilhavrum into something,” Senka added as she followed Aeolia in some sort of tai chi-like exercise, her attire switched to a tight-fitting sports top and shorts that stopped at mid-thigh.

“Wouldn’t put it past them to try everything they can. Gives them more time to think about how to get the best deal out of us,” Aeolia chimed in. She too was dressed in workout gear, hers a more loose-fitting top and basketball shorts. She turned her head towards Beth. “And if you're bored, you can join us.”

“I mean, as nice as it is to see you two stretch, I don’t think that stuff’s up my alley,” Beth remarked. “I want to run.”

“Um,” Kiera’s sudden interruption drew everyone’s attention to the bluenette, causing her to shift uncomfortably in place, “Verida has something to announce.”

“You relaying or is she going to come through?” John asked.

“I do need to practice, so…” Kiera mumbled before her magic swelled slightly and her body shifted, her appearance smearing like paint as it changed proportions, growing taller and gaining horns and tail. A moment later, Verida stood in all her godly glory in the Newman living room.

She tilted her head slightly to one side before smiling, her body radiating excitement. “Kiera wants you to know she’s fine. I’m not sure why she said needed practice. Seemed perfectly seamless to me. Anyway, I have been working on something that should make it easy once we get to go ahead to settle Teri’s people.”

“You've been growing treehouses?” Beth asked with a smirk, which caused Verida’s posture to droop slightly.

“Well, um, yes, I was,” the goddess replied sheepishly, prompting Beth’s grin to instantly vanish.

“Fuck,” Beth cursed under her breath before quickly saying, “I mean, that’s awesome. I wasn’t trying to insult them or anything.”

“Ya hardly have to try to do that, princess,” Aeolia quipped, sauntering over to flick Beth’s head. The dark-haired girl took the blow without complaint.

“Anyway,” Verida continued, her mood returning to its initial excitementment, “I managed to grow a number of treehouses in a spot just south of the entry point, with a good amount of flat land for farming. But I hit a limit to how many I could grow. I think your powers are connected to that, John.”

“Of course they are,” he muttered. “We already know I can create buildings Sims style. If you could just grow anything, that feature would be pretty redundant, minus me throwing up stuff that just clashes with the aesthetic.”

“While I’m not opposed to buildings of stone and metal, I’d prefer to keep the forest as green as possible,” Verida confessed before biting her lip. “I hope the clan doesn’t mind having to live in only four houses for now.”

“I think they’d be grateful even if they only got one place to crash,” Aeolia remarked. “They were over the moon with getting our old base. But didn’t Teri say those elders wouldn't like that?”

“I know she said that, but I couldn’t just not do a little helping,” Verida defended herself, pouting slightly. “If Teri’s asks, I can say I was practicing and they’re free to use them if they want.”

“They’ll need somewhere to stay while they build anything up. And then they can likely use them as storage,” Vivian said, before gesturing to her laptop. “I’ve been coming up with lists of things we might need. Housing chief among them. Still need to make sure they have beds, clothes, food.”

Suppose this is as good as any to give you this

New Quest: Necessities Shopping

Time to start getting those goblins back on their feet. No reason that can’t be a more exciting endeavor. How about an all-expense paid trip to a grand shopping center where all your needs can be met? Well, come on down, but don’t expect an easy time. Got to work for your loot. How about we add a bit of a team competition? Three teams of two, one from the Order, one from the goblins and one from Pruzonia. Winner gets a secret bonus.

Quest Barrier added to ‘Barrier Selection’ options. Will be removed upon completion.

“Well, that’s about an hour’s work down the drain,” Vivian remarked in a bitter tone. “Would have been nice to know that was going to be an option once the Kingdom settled.”

“At least we aren’t going to have to spend money,” Beth said. “Not saying we would have cheaped out on Teri, but it's good that we can get more stuff than we have cash for. And if we miss something, we might have the dough for it.”

That seemed to calm Vivian’s ire and she shook her head. “That’s a good point. Thank you, Beth.”

“No problem. I have to have some moments where I’m not eating my foot,” Beth remarked.

“This quest isn’t going to be some cakewalk,” Senka noted as she walked over to peer at the still-open screen, giving John a good view of her cleavage. Something he was sure she planned to happen. “The Order might not want to cooperate with Teri.”

“They haven’t given me any sign that they find non-humans inferior,” Verida interjected.

“To be fair, you showed up as a dragon first and are a goddess,” Aeolia said. “That’s the kind of thing that makes people behave.”

“Maybe we should call Teri and see if she picked up anything from them,” John suggested. “I want to believe they aren’t sharpening their swords but couldn’t hurt to get any insight we can. Though, I would like to think she would tell us if she picked up bad vibes from them.”

“She didn’t seem too nervous after the meeting,” Verida mused. “No more than someone worried about their loved ones anyway. I think we’re safe to think the Order will treat them with at least neutrality.”

“Just because they’re okay with them settling doesn’t mean they’ll want to go and fight alongside them,” Aeolia remarked.

“If they don’t, then we just have to do what we were already planning on doing and get the stuff the old-fashioned way,” John said.

“By beating a bunch of barrier monsters for loot and going shopping?” Beth cheekily asked.

“Exactly,” John answered with a grin. “But, if the Order is still curious about what my powers can do, maybe we can use this more complicated quest to entice them to come along.”

“It would be good if the Order could see Teri’s people in a good light,” Vivian muttered. “Not that they’ve done anything wrong, but there are reasons why goblins don’t have the best reputation.”

“I think we’re avoiding an important aspect of this,” Senka interjected. “Teri’s the only one of her people that speaks English, as far as we know. That will make things difficult in a combat situation.”

“Not as large of a problem as you’d think,” Vivian said, quickly tapping her keyboard. “Translation potions and devices aren’t uncommon, but they aren’t exactly cheap. Since we had Teri to translate, getting some of them wasn’t really needed, but we could spend a bit to make sure there won’t be any complications.”

“How complex are these things supposed to be?” Beth asked, a sly grin on her face. “‘Cuz I can always try and trick Lynn into making one.”

“While having someone on our side being able to make it, let’s not impose upon your sister,” Vivian remarked. “Besides, there’s no guarantee we could get all the materials together in a timely manner. There’s also the brew time to consider. I doubt the Order and Teri’s people would appreciate having to wait longer than they have to.”

“Ruin my fun, why don’t ya,” Beth grumbled, her grin only dimming slightly.

“How much do they go for anyway?” John asked, calling up his character sheet to confirm his funds. “Got just about 20K.”

“The cheapest is four grand,” Vivian revealed, causing John to flinch at the cost. “And that’s one dose that lasts about twelve hours.”

“Let’s hope the quest doesn’t take twelve hours to complete, then,” John said. “And that there’s some cash rewards mixed in the amenities.”

Looking over his sheet John sighed, “I think we’re going to need to start some hardcore grinding. Yeah, quadrupling my level in a week sounds good, but we only just survived Sunday. I don’t want to be in that position again.”

“So once we clear this Order business and get Teri’s people all settled, let’s go all out,” Aeolia declared. “Line up some barriers and just grind all day.”

“We’ll have to do some logistics work first,” Vivian said. “If we’re going to do back-to-back sessions, we’ll have to make sure we have healing resources and food.”

“Is that something I can bug Lynn about?” Beth asked.

“I think that’s a more reasonable request for you to make,” Vivian replied, smiling at Beth. “Just don’t go overboard.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Beth waved off her warning, “I’m a professional at annoying my sister. I know how to do it just right.”

“I’m sure Mason and Cammie wouldn’t mind whipping up some food to go,” Aeolia added. “Maybe we can ask Gaia to give you a pause button so we can eat without having to change the barrier.”

“Not sure I’m the sort who’d like to eat on the field of battle,” John admitted. “But it would make things easier.”

Before any more could be said, Vivian’s phone rang, causing them all to turn to the redhead as she grabbed the device and looked to the I.D. displayed, the jovial air of the room vanishing.

“It’s the Order,” she said, which cranked up the room’s apprehension even higher. Accepting the call, Vivian answered, “Hello?”

The tinny voice coming out of Vivian’s speaker was hard to make out, but Vivian’s countenance didn’t betray any bad news. Instead, she said, “Two hours should suffice. Thank you.”

“That was a quick call,” Verida remarked as Vivian moved the phone away from her ear. “I presume the Order wishes to reconvene to conclude the summit?”

“Yes, they do,” Vivian reported as she began to text Lynn’s and Teri’s numbers of the Order’s plans. “It was some knight, not anyone we’ve met, so I couldn’t tell anything from their tone about their intention.”

“I think we’ve proved to be competent fighters and have valuable assets they would be foolish to cast aside,” Senka made her opinion known. “I think they won’t change much, if anything, about the terms we came to.”

“Let’s hope my bullshit is enough to sway them,” John said.

“Teri will be waiting for us around where I dropped her off Friday,” Vivian reported after getting a reply from the goblin. Another ping sounded from her phone. “And Lynn, Harker and Martius are on their way.”

John nodded as he swapped from his casual shirt and shorts into his good clothes. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

---

The air in the meeting chamber was a bit less intense than it had been the day before, but the tension hadn’t abated completely. The Order had a slight change in their roster, leaving the old sage and the seer woman behind in favor of two more knights. It made some sense to John, as the time for investigating their claims was over and there was likely little need for them to be dragged out here.

‘I would think the seer could still have uses in these final moments,’ Senka opined. ‘Gauge us for any last-minute deceptions.’

‘Think something came up that needed her attention?’ John asked as the Order took their seats.

‘Most likely,’ the spirit replied. ‘It would probably be best to not point it out. Even if they account for us noticing.’

‘Can do. But I can’t exactly warn everyone else to not bring it up.’

“Welcome back, esteemed guests,” Verida opened the discussion cordially. “I hope you come with good tidings.”

“I believe you will find the Order’s decision to be as such,” Lord Brighton replied, cutting any preamble. Then he looked right at John. “The metal you provided us shows a lot of promise, as does the mana storage device. We would be remiss to not count your ability as a great asset to this Kingdom.”

Lord Brighton cleared his throat. “It is my decision, as Lord Protector of the Shield Branch of the Order of the Golden Rose, that we shall enter an alliance with the Kingdom of Pruzonia.”

He lightly tapped a shield-shaped pin on his lapel and a small stack of papers appeared in his hands.

“A written contract with the agreements we made at yesterday’s meeting,” the leader of the Order explained as he placed it upon the table and pushed them towards Verida. “The paper is enchanted so that those that sign it will suffer severe consequences should they knowingly and willingly break the terms.”

“What sort of consequences?” Verida asked, her eyes narrowed. John also cast Observe on the paper before them.

Judas Papyrus
While made from modern material, the centuries-old namesake holds true. Any signer who breaks the inscribed agreement will suffer a withering curse, a prolonged degradation of both body and magic until the wronged party declares the debt paid.

“That is some consequence,” Verida said as she read the first paragraph. A glance at it showed it basically said the same as the Observe said.

“Incentive to uphold our agreements,” Lord Brighton remarked. “Self-preservation is a strong motivator and the Order will not brook breaking a deal made in good faith. And, if I may be frank, you are not lacking in means to ensure agreements are kept. That silver pen of yours seemed rather interesting.”

A steely gaze settled on John and he quickly understood what he was hinting at. He summoned the Binding Pen and put it on the table.

“I suppose your seer had something to say about that,” Verida inquired. “The pen’s magic requires a full unveiling of its ability.”

Lord Brighton nodded. “She noted that its magic was similar to the contract’s. She also warned that mixing the two might create unintended effects.”

John wasn’t sure if he believed Brighton’s assertion and he cast a glance towards Teri to see if she was picking up any duplicitous emotions. Her expression didn’t betray any insight, but he presumed she would look a bit less neutral if he was lying.

‘Not that we can really call him out on it if we had a good reason to believe he was fucking with us,’ he thought, earning a hum from Senka.

‘Truely the perfect crime,’ the spirit snarked.

Verida poured over the pages while John tried to gauge Lord Brighton’s honesty, her eyes sweeping over the text with scary intensity.

“Everything looks to be as we discussed before,” she concluded once she reached the final page, looking to the rest of their side of the table before stopping at John. “The Order wishes to do weekly check-ins with you to review anything you obtain in your barriers.”

“I’m going to assume that you don’t want me using or selling anything without your approval,” John said, a sour taste in his mouth. It reminded him too much of over-controlling guild leaders in some of his MMOs and how they tried to control the other players. He knew the Order wanted first crack but he didn’t think they would make it something so regulated.

“While we would prefer you to not play around with dubious artifacts and the like, that did not fall within the scope of our negotiations,” Lord Brighton remarked. “As for selling, yes. We would like you to refrain from putting them up for sale before our appraisers can examine them. Once they determine they’re safe to sell and not something the Order wishes to purchase, you may do as you please.”

“That’s acceptable,” John relented. He felt Senka perk up in his mind, but whatever observation she made she kept to herself.

“Excellent,” Lord Brighton said, producing a pen from his personal pocket space. “Moira and I shall sign for the Order...”

“And John and I for Pruzonia,” Verida finished. As the two Brightons signed the accord, John had to wonder if Moira’s only purpose here was to sign. When it came time for them to sign, John did so first. As he did, he felt the slightest flutter of magic run up his arm. It vanished a moment later.

Once Verida signed, Lord Brighton said, “And the pact is sealed. We have a copy for you, of course, but this will be sealed in our archives for safekeeping.”

“You are currently in the best position to ensure it remains undamaged,” Verida admitted.

“Now, since it would be foolish for us to come all this way for just the signing, I believe it would behoove us to continue our discussion on the embassy,” Lord Brighton suggested.

“I think that would be a good use of our time together,” Verida agreed. “However, John has received a quest that requires your participation. It seems now is the time to begin discussing it, even if it will take time to be able to actually embark on it.”

“Is that so?” Lord Brighton murmured and a look of intrigue crossed Moira’s face. “Well, let’s hear about this quest then.”