The Trials of a Modern Paladin 2

by Kevin Culp

  “Actually, yes. There is a town meeting in front of my house this evening.”

  “I am aware. A little boy already came and told us this.”

  It was good to hear that the brothers had already gotten around to letting people know. “I hoped that you could help make sure that the area is ready. I know that preparing a venue isn’t in your job description, but I was hoping you could help as a personal favor?”

  “Certainly, my boy. It looks like they could probably use Korana’s strength as well. Show those young lads how it’s done.”

  Korana huffed a bit but didn’t really seem to mind.

  “Of course, we will finish our tea first,” Gregory said flashing me a creepy smile.

  I had really come to appreciate Gregory. His knowledge and abilities were phenomenal. At the same time, everything he did gave me the creepy old man vibe. Truthfully, it kind of made me laugh on the inside. I had always joked with my friends that I wanted to be that creepy old man one day that argues with telephone poles, comments on kids these days and their games, and yells at them to get off my lawn. Not to mention the old man advice that kids just assume is outdated but is often a nugget of wisdom that a lot more people could use.

  From there, I decided it was time for lunch and headed to the tavern. Zeus was out front with the small wagon from Nicholas’ farm attached to him. It made sense they would need some way to transport all the food. I was kind of surprised that Christina had found Zeus, but he had been staying much closer to town lately. People were now used to him and would pet and feed him when they saw him rather than being afraid. Maybe this should have annoyed me since he had a job to do, but I often felt bad for not spending as much time with him.

  I almost ran into Christina as I walked through the door. She was carrying a large pot full of produce. Mary was behind her carrying a big sack that probably had even more food in it. It definitely looked like they were ready to feed an army.

  I took the pot from Christina which she released with a sigh of relief. “Where are we headed?”

  “You can put it in the wagon. We are taking this to the house to cook. I think we have enough room for this, and we will need more than one kitchen going.”

  I set the pot in the wagon and then Mary added the sack of food. “I’m glad to see you found some help here, Christina. Thank you, Mary.”

  She rolled her eyes and started walking towards the house. As much as she got along with Christina, Mary was one of the few people in town that didn’t like me. She always expected that eventually her son Joseph would marry Christina, and when he died after I “stole her away from him” she was sure to blame everything on me. In her eyes, I caused the orcs, and by extension, her son’s death. I couldn’t say that I blamed her. Based on what had happened, it was very possible the orcs wouldn’t have attacked Freid had it not been for my first skirmish with them in the woods. That being said, they probably would have raided some town eventually, and it probably would have ended much worse.

  I patted Zeus on the side and gave Christina a kiss. “Don’t work too hard. I’ll see you this evening okay. If you need anything, let me know.”

  Christina nodded and followed Mary. I went into the tavern and realized that it was probably a mistake. They were serving lunch, and the back door was open. I could see that Rin was there and two other women that I didn’t really know. One of them I believed was Geoffrey’s mom, and the other I think was a new arrival in the village from the past few months. Irene was still out taking orders and serving people, but she was also making sure that people knew about the town meeting tonight, which I appreciated. The tavern kept stores of dried meats, nuts, and cheeses to give as general rations. I decided to just go back and grab some jerky and make a lunch of it.

  The rest of the day I stayed relatively busy. I traveled to the farms that were further out of town to make sure everyone knew of the meeting. Many of them had already been informed, but some of them seemed like it was new information. Most assured me they would be present and many inquired what it was about. Some seemed to think I was trying to warn of some kind of impending attack for some reason, but I did my best to put that rumor to rest. Before I knew it, it was late in the afternoon, and it was time for me to head back home.

  I was pretty impressed with both the display and the turnout by the time I got to my house. I’d say about eighty percent of the adult population of the town showed up. The front of my house had rows of logs laid down, but they had been shaped with backs that made them kind of like pews. In front of them were essentially picnic tables. They weren’t very wide, but it was sufficient for everyone looking forward. There was a stage with a podium in front of my house. Pretty much all of the new lawn furniture was warped in ways that were abnormal letting me know Gregory had definitely been involved.

  Two bonfires raged, one on either side of the makeshift meeting spot. In the back, there was another long table with four massive pots on it being manned by Christina, Mary, and the two women from earlier serving stew. Rin and Irene were walking around bringing everyone drinks. I couldn’t help but think that if this was in my world, there would be at least be one person who would complain about the lack of options when it came to the food. As is, people didn’t really expect that here, and Christina’s stew was delicious.

  I waited for a short while for everyone to get settled in. A few more people trickled in as the time passed, but eventually, everything had calmed down. I made my way to the stage in front of the house and got behind the podium. The crowd of people began to quiet, and I waited until it had died down completely before saying anything.

  “Good afternoon, everyone. I thank you all for taking the time to attend this meeting on such short notice.”

  “What’s this all about?” Shouted someone in the back. The voice seemed more curious than upset.

  “Yes, I’m sure you’re all wondering why I have asked you here today. As you all know, I have not been the lord of this land for very long. I also do not know this land the way that all of you do and as such lean on all of you for guidance. Especially Christina, she has been a blessing in this venture that I never could have hoped for.”

  People actually applauded, and Christina blushed slightly.

  “I know little about the intricacies and politics of leading a town. Furthermore, as many of you know, I have goals of my own in this world and cannot be around at all times. I also hope that when I venture from here, Christina will be coming with me. However, you should know that both of us returning will always be the highest priority for me.”

  “So, it is your plan to abandon us as you did my son!” Mary shouted.

  “No, Mary, It is not. It was a tragedy what happened to Joseph. He was not the only one who lost his life in that attack and each and every one of them are missed. The reason I called this meeting is that I feel we need structure and protection even in my absence. Even when I am not absent, it is unfair of us to lean on Christina for every request. She is an amazing individual, but we cannot expect her to handle all the disputes that arise here alone. For that reason, it is my goal here today to form a governing body to look over the town.”

  There were a few murmurs from the crowd, and I waited for them to die down before continuing. I was wishing that I had put more thought into what I wanted to say before now.

  “We need people to handle disputes, laws so they don’t arise, guards to protect us, and a treasury to handle any needs that may arise and pay the individuals that take on these positions. It may be an unpopular opinion, but I also believe that we need taxes to fund all of this.”

  “Oh great, so you just want to become the next Baron Lyndmire!” Mary shouted.

  A few of the stares in the crowd became incredulous. Most of the people here trusted Mary more than me, and it showed.

  “On the contrary, I do not believe that I should receive any income at all from the town. All of it should be invested back into Freid itself. Baron Lyndmire was a corrupt man and what he charged was
not taxes but mere extortion. What I am posing is that we set a fair value that is agreed upon by all of you that can be levied upon all sales including the sale of produce to the local shops. This would be collected weekly by a nominated Treasurer and all transactions would go through that individual and be monitored by other involved parties.”

  Some of the incredulous stares shifted into those of curiosity. I looked at Christina in the back and she was raising her hand as if she were in school. I couldn’t help but think it was kind of cute, and a slight smile came to my lips.

  “Yes, Christina.”

  “I’d like to vote Mary for that position. She is good with numbers and used to help my papa and me with the tavern’s budget, especially after visits from the Baron. Also, she doesn’t trust you but is loyal to Freid. I wish she trusted you, but it may help reassure the town that the money isn’t going to another greedy lord.”

  She blushed a bit and looked embarrassed. “Not that I would ever think of you that way. I know you are a sweet, honest man.”

  I think I heard Gregory chuckle a bit at that.

  I smiled at Christina. I think she had a good idea with her nomination. “Excellent, is there anyone else that someone would like to nominate for this position.”

  Gadrick stood on his seat and started jumping up with his hand raised.

  Before I could say anything the man behind him spoke up. “Sit down, Gadrick. If you were monitoring our finances, no one else could follow what was going on with your ‘Organization’ of the books.”

  Everyone started laughing and Gadrick sat down.

  No one else raised a hand. I’d always hear people complaining about a government official running unopposed, but I guess if no one had objections and was happy with it then why did it matter?

  “Does anyone have any objections to Mary taking the position of Treasurer?”

  No one spoke up.

  “Alright then, are you willing to take this position, Mary, and accept the responsibilities that come with it?”

  Mary stood tall and proud when she responded. “Yes, I am.”

  I started to announce that it was official, but everyone started applauding before I even could, so I guess that was good enough. I waited for everyone to quiet down before speaking again.

  “Excellent, so before we do any more voting, I want to run through what people feel we need, and we can proceed from there. We need an assistant to work with Mary that will be the primary for ensuring that the books are correct. We also need a council of mediators. They will handle all disputes and can enforce laws as needed. It will also be necessary to have someone to manage the town’s defenses and recruit local guards. Is there anything else anyone can think of that we would need?”

  An older man stood up, and I nodded to acknowledge him. “I think we need another person that can oversee and monitor all of the rest as needed. They would have access to all the others but would only be able to make changes with a vote by the residents.”

  Everyone was nodding in agreement.

  After that, we took the positions one by one and nominated people to them and took a vote. The whole process took us a few hours, and it was well past dark when we were done. Christina had gathered blankets for people to stay warm, but the fires kept it from being too cold as well as giving light for us to see.

  Tony’s wife, Sharon, had been voted to work alongside Mary with the town’s funds. She hadn’t been here long but had already earned people's trust. Three older men, Robert, Jaron, and Franklin, that were retired farmers had been set as the Council of Mediators. Their age made me want to call them the Council of Elders, but I wasn’t sure that people would be as amused by that as I was. They had chosen a middle-aged man named Lendon to be the captain of the guard. He was apparently captain of the guard in a neighboring town until recently. After the orc attack, his widowed sister had asked him to move here because she didn’t feel safe. Given that she had three younger children while all of his kids were grown he had obliged. His wife had also died a few years ago, so while I believe his oldest son had visited once since he had moved here, he mostly kept to himself.

  They had unanimously voted Christina as the person who could oversee all the voted branches. It really wasn’t even a question. She was the first to be nominated and ran unopposed from that point. At my request, however, they voted Nicholas to take her place if she was absent for an extended period. He didn’t seem particularly thrilled about it but accepted.

  Once everyone had settled down after congratulating Christina and Nicholas on their appointment, I spoke again. “Now that we have all that decided, we will also need a place for these individuals to operate. It will also be a place that if a town meeting is necessary in the future it can be held, and a place that can be fortified if a need arises. I have requested the building of a large town hall at the end of the main road leading into the fields. It will have a meeting room, rooms of operations for each of the appointed positions, and a place of storage for whatever we may need.”

  Everyone seemed to be excited about that. I think they felt safe knowing they would have a location to fall back to in case of another orc attack. They also appreciated knowing that they would run their town. None of the people nominated had been politicians, but this was running a small town not a kingdom, so I think that was for the best.

  People came up and shook my hand as they left. I paid Tony the rest of his money when I saw him and asked if he could deliver Nightmare to Nicholas’ farm the following morning. I also spoke with Tyler and asked if once he was done with the current house he could put up some small stables by my house for our new horses. He would plan the layout of the town hall, but it would be a few weeks before we had the proper supplies. I didn’t want some random wood structure that could be burned down as our “fortified location.” I’m not saying it needed to be several feet of stone like the Elven home, but definitely not flammable.

  Christina was the last to approach me, and she smiled and gave me a hug. “I think it’s great what you did, Archaeus. To me, I already realized that you didn’t really plan on intervening, but I think this will show everyone else that you are letting them be in charge of Freid themselves. I’m going to help get all the dishes back to the tavern and take care of those. I’ll probably be home late.”

  “Can I come help?”

  “You really have done a lot today so thank you. It will be crowded though, so I’m sorry to say that I don’t think you could help even if you came. Get some sleep okay.”

  I gave her another kiss and watched as she went to help Nicholas and the others load the wagon. Irene was holding one pot on its side and Zeus had his face in it his tail wagging excitedly. He really was just a giant puppy. I wasn’t sure if it was my imagination, but he seemed to be getting fatter. He needed some action soon to help him stay in shape. Christina would probably be busier than ever for the next few days, but that should die down soon.

  Once they had departed, I went inside and prepared for bed. I had managed to scrape together a bowl of stew from the pots Zeus didn’t put his face in. With everything going on, I still hadn’t eaten, and the stew was cold but good. Once finished, I washed my face, changed into my nightclothes, and went to bed. It definitely felt that things could only get better from here.

  Chapter 8

  I think it is some kind of unwritten rule that once you start thinking things could only get better that you are always wrong.

  For a short while, I was actually convinced that I was right. Christina had been very busy for about three days after the town meeting just trying to organize everyone, but for the past two weeks, she had very little to do in the best of ways. I would wake up in the morning with her cuddled up to me with her head on my chest. She walked around with me doing my general patrols. We had lunch together most days. On some Mary would join us, and she seemed to hate me slightly less than before.

  Rin had officially accepted a position as lieutenant of the guard. Phillip, Vincent, Kayden, and a ma
n named Jason in his mid-thirties who apparently had been in the royal army before moving here had also joined the guard. Lendon and Jason had both been present a few times during our evening training and were teaching Phillip, Vincent, and Kayden some new techniques. Neither of them were as skilled as Rin, but I would guess they were fighters between level 5 and 8. Lendon had said his fighting days were behind him, but he enjoyed teaching, and it was good to know Freid had more than one skilled fighter now. They said they couldn’t teach Christina much because her fighting style seemed to be unique and if she focused on trying to use their techniques, it would probably conflict with her natural ability.

  Jason had been here during the orc attack. He didn’t strike me as a coward, but apparently, he hadn’t fought. It made sense that the common soldier wouldn’t risk fighting an army of orcs alone when their life had not yet been threatened. Then there is the idea of not putting those you care about at risk for a futile fight, and he was married with children.

  After about two-and-a-half weeks, more supplies arrived from the kingdom. A big part of it was stone, though more like the ones I would commonly see in construction than the enormous ones used in the construction of the Elven home. Along with the building supplies, came two more soldiers. They had a letter showing that the Prince vouched for both of them, and he had paid their first year’s salary to serve as guards in Freid. I thanked the men for their service and sent them to find Lendon.

  I had continued to regularly communicate with the Prince, but it was typically just a short letter. He didn’t have any news for me, nor I for him. The soldiers that ventured into the cave were pretty certain it was part of the Under Realms, though there were so many paths winding all over the place they hadn’t investigated much. They would go in teams of about a dozen and take turns, but they didn’t want to venture too deep as they mapped out the upper levels. A few times they had encountered ratkin, dark elves, and goblins, but mostly in small groups, and they hadn’t had much trouble dealing with them.