A Mongrel Pack to A Kobold Village

By the time everyone had been gathered in the town hall so that the whole Fertility Goddess thing could be explained, there were already seven brand new kobolds happily joining in the meeting, one of whom being the result of your particularly frisky new level one priestess having popped into existence then immediately joining in on the procreation ritual that spawned her, a somewhat confused-looking Bruiser appearing shortly after. That took the tribe to twenty members, which seems to be the Level One cap for your Tribal Fecund Bonus. Last you saw the freshly made devotee of your divine mother she was merrily sweeping up the grounds of the shrine, and you couldn't help noticing that her trim belly was already starting to swell with what must be a legitimate pregnancy. Momo, for her part, seemed intensely proud.

Fortunately, as Momo explained to the non-clerical members of the tribe, constant pregnancy wouldn't necessarily be a mandatory part of their future. In the teachings of the Fertile Mother, ancient wisdoms dating back almost an hour and a half, physical intimacy is a gift, a joy that is to be shared freely and often between those that will. And while the creation and rearing of a child is no less of a gift, it is a gift only given to those who choose it. Therefore, all kobolds are free to indulge in their companionable pleasures without fear of unplanned consequences, and whenever the time comes that a tribesperson feels called to be a parent, Okaa will bless their decision. In the meantime, the priesthood will see to the growth and nurturing of the tribe, serenely accepting the offerings planted deep within their blessed bodies and turning them into the tribe's future.

Momo doesn't spell it out directly, but you have a feeling you're on the hook for a lot more baby names. It doesn't bother you like you might have once wondered if it would. The thought of ripe little Momo, swelling over and over with your divinely sanctioned seed? Maybe it's that fateful choice of Fecund talking, but you think you'll be okay with this.

So this is it! These twenty bright eyed and bushy tailed kobolds and one still-snoozing Moots are your tribe, for now. Your Fecund bonus will still grant you one "free" fully grown kobold every full moon based on how many priestesses you have, and Higen will hopefully be successful in relocating more mongrels to your village, but barring that you can only increase your numbers by doing it the long way or reaching Tribal Level Two. Which frankly, doesn't seem like that much of a barrier. Nine of your fellow villagers are Townspeople and five of them specialized as various kinds of Farmer, which along with Moots's pig farm has put you firmly in the black towards your Food Stores level up requirement.

In the black, for the record, being an expression you are aware of due to the dual choices of two kobolds to become specialized Sages and introduce the concepts of ink and books. So now instead of having two members of the tribe versed in the magic of the written word, the entire tribe is fully literate. Which begs the question, how have you been reading your character sheets all this time? The world is pretty confusing, but at least now you're free to mull over said confusion with in a journal.

It's entirely possibly that the constant pile of non-combat choice after non-combat choice was going to prompt Gero to explode, so it's fortunate that the remaining two townspeople specialized as a Metalworker and a Woodworker respectively. Any complaint the big female might have had melted into pure bliss when her club shifted before her very eyes, transforming from a roughly hewn tool of devastation to a masterfully crafted tool of devastation, its tightly wrapped handle tapering out to a thick, multifaceted war club fitted with heavy iron studs as tall as her own impressive height. You pity the first thing Gero comes across that requires smashing, and only hope whatever it is, it understand precisely how much said smashing means to her.

Well that all...seems settled then? The villagers mill away to see about their responsibilities while Gero directs the warriors to follow the priestess and crafters back to the shrine to help with some renovations. That just leaves you, apparently.

Then this is finally the moment to answer the one question that lays at the very heart of this village's mysteries.

"So the plants keep the fishes' water healthy, and the fish fertilize the plants?"

The farmer crouched beside you gives a nod as you both stare down into one of the trenches cut into the rice paddies, inspecting his little aquatic charges. "Yep!"

"That is the most amazing thing ever."

The farmer grins in proud agreement as you bend in for a closer look. They are all definitely the same type of fish, but there are some striking splashes of color here and there, seemingly t random. "Why are some different colors?"

"Oh! Um...I don't know!"

You make a thoughtful noise, then point out a fish with particularly striking orange and white splotches. "Is that a boy or a girl?"

"Girl."

"Could I take it? And a boy, too?"

And hour or so later you've relocated what you hope will be a mated pair of fish to the pond beside the village hall, thanks in no small part to a large bucket and the friendly help of the very accommodating rice farmer. There. You've got a hobby now. You look down at the two wildly colored fish with a sense of...you don't know. Something. This probably does nothing to further the Tribal Level of the village. But something tells you that you're passed the point where your every waking moment needs to be focused purely on pushing your people forward. You've helped create a life for the kobolds, after all. It would be a shame not to live it.

Besides. Maybe if you breed a fish with a weird enough color, you'll get an achievement. A man can dream, can't he?