The Builder (The Young Ancients)

by Power, P. S.

  Using his thick Two Bends accent he allowed to Tor that his Patricia was pretty too, but she was already spoken for. Tor nodded and didn't remind his little brother that at nine, he may not have the best chance in the world with a rich merchant's daughter. Sara wouldn't be rude about it at least. Well, she'd always been kind to Tor at any rate and seemed to follow that code of the upper crust closely. Of course “Weasel” was being a lot more forward than he'd ever been, and might ask for her hand before they left. Tor knew because his brother confided this to him as he and the rest of the family helped set the tents up.

  “Well... If you're really interested you need to have ma get in touch with her mother in the Capital and see about making arrangements, maybe send a go-between. I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you, but that's how they do it, most of the time. You couldn't marry until you were at least fourteen though, which is a long time for someone like her to stay unmarried.”

  His brother kept helping for a while then went off to find his mom a little later, trying to be casual about it. Tor had to fight to keep from laughing about the whole thing and so did Rolph, but Sara just brushed her blond bangs out of her eyes and looked after him with a soft sigh.

  “I've... had worse offers. We'd have to wait a while of course. I'm not marrying a twelve year old. He'd have to be at least fourteen.”

  Right, he realized, since that part hadn't gotten translated, the girl didn't know that Weasel had just been told that. It was strange hearing it repeated, but probably meant it was a good point. It was considered kind of evil to be involved with anyone younger than that, wasn't it? More than just a bit.

  Tor thought that she was kidding at first, but her eyes were serious and dark when she said it. Patricia came around the tent and hugged her, but didn't say exactly what the problem was.

  “Yeah,” Patricia, who asked them all to call her that until they reached the school, shook a little, shivered like she was cold. She wasn't of course, even if she'd forgotten her amulet for it, she'd have been too hot, not chilly. So fear then?

  “If Tor hadn't made his play when he did I would have had to marry Count Overland, you can't really put off a Count easily for long. He's... Really he's a nice guy which makes it all that much harder, if he was a jerk it would have been a lot easier and we could have just sent an emissary to calm things down. But he's seventy-eight and even if I could get past the ick factor enough to sleep with him regularly, which I suppose I could if I tried, he really is a good guy after all, and he’ll probably drop in a few years anyway.”

  The others all knew what that meant, except Tor. Oh, he got the sex part, but the rest went past him totally. Tovey explained it, his deep voice slow and considering.

  “Overland already has an heir, so while his new wife would be a Countess, that would go away when he died and she wouldn't really get anything out of it. So, while he'd get a cute young woman to have around until he went, Tri- Patricia, wouldn't have anything to show for it in the end. Tor, in a lot of ways, is a better match, and was even before we knew that he was a Countier. At least he'll be around for a while, long enough to take care of any kids that might come about. Plus, even a Count would have to admit that her marrying Tor is at least as legitimate as marrying him, if not more so. A floating sky river kind of catches the attention.”

  For some reason Sara perked up a little at that.

  “Right, so that makes Weasel a Countier, what, seventh or eighth? I could sell mom on that. Not as good as landing you would have been of course Tor, but I imagine you're going to be setting up businesses for your family? Like you did with the Morgans? So just set him up quick so that his financial profile looks good.”

  Tor laughed at first, but then stopped suddenly, an idea coming to him.

  “Well, it's not shipping large scale things, but I wonder if people would pay for rapid mail and package delivery at all? I know that Rolph has wanted to get things from school back home a few times. I can get them the flying gear and shields, even floats for boxes to carry stuff in. It isn't really cargo hauling, but...” He smiled and Sara's eyes went wide, excited even.

  “I was kidding about your brother, mainly, but... Yeah, that would work I bet. Especially if they lose that indecipherable accent enough to be understood. You should see if any of them want to do it. Right now it takes a month or more to send a letter across the kingdom; unless you have contacts with the fast riders... people would pay pretty well to have things delivered faster.”

  They chuckled about it and came up with ideas for different services that could be offered. Including shoving people inside floating boxes for rapid transport. Count Thomson smiled and told Tor that if his family really wanted to put it together, he'd gladly come down to help them learn how to fly. Especially since, as he pointed out, after the next three months, he was done with school officially and really wouldn't have anything left to do except take care of emergencies in his county.

  “Don't let anyone tell you differently, the actual job of governing isn't that hard. It's just telling people what to do after all. The trick is being smart enough to have some kind of idea what the best thing to do actually is. Luckily, ninety odd percent of the time, people actually already know, they just want someone to confirm what they think they should do is a good idea. For the rest of it you either hire an expert or pass it along up the line to the King.” The giant man smirked a bit and patted Tor on the back. “Then, if you keep doing what you have been, he'll just send them along to you and you can take care of it. Well, only the really hard things, I'm sure. I know you personally though, so can just skip that part. Save time all the way around.”

  For some reason he thought that was funny.

  Tor gave him a look which got Rolph and Trice laughing too. Sara at least gave him a commiserating smile. He over-dramatized a sigh and hung his head as if the weight of the world was upon him. Then again, he doubted the King would be looking to someone like him for most issues. How often was some little bit of magic going to turn out to be the answer anyway? He'd have years at least before anyone really expected him to do anything regularly except school work. He... hoped that he'd be allowed to finish school and not marry and start working immediately instead, at least. There was so much to be learned! He didn't even know how to make a light yet.

  The night was less than comfortable, mainly because, while Rolph didn't snore, the Count flailed in his sleep. At least twice the blows made the ground shake enough to wake both he and Rolph. He triggered his shield and so did the Prince, just in case Tovey managed to migrate over to their half of the tent. It had started as an even third split, but Rolph rolled a few times for safety. Tor couldn't really blame him. At least he didn't end up with feet in his face like he would have if he'd been sleeping indoors. Even if he did, Rolph bathed quite a bit more than his younger brothers.

  His parents encouraged bathing, unlike some of the families in town, because they touched food all the time in their work, or so they told people. But his little brothers were, well, boys. If they could get away with missing a boring bath time now and again, they would.

  Now that he had a little more information to go on, he realized it was probably simpler than all that really. His parents might be aping the people around them, but they just couldn't handle living with the stink that poor people in the woods often had. On the good side, it made breakfast in the morning far more pleasant.

  Terlee cooked most of it, his sister was only a little older than he was, eighteen, small and thin, seeming more interested in books and child rearing than anything else as far as Tor knew. Girl stuff. Like bathing and perfumes.

  Still, that kind of stuff might be closer to what they'd all need to learn if they liked his idea of a delivery service. For all he knew they'd all refuse to fly and run off into the woods to hide when he suggested it. That would almost make sense. Magic was kind of rare in Two Bends and flying was brand new. Who could trust a thing like that?

  What happened instead amazed him more than a litt
le. A lot more.

  Terlee had just finished making the oatmeal and toast for everyone, what they ate each day in the morning, and oddly enough even the royals said they had on a regular enough basis so that it didn't seem strange to them, when she asked him a question.

  “Is' kay fr'me ta'fly too?” She said so fast that Tor forgot to translate in his head and just spoke out loud, surprised she'd even asked for herself. Normally the girl, with her long, incredibly straight black hair and pale skin, managed to hide behind it when talking, even to him, but today she didn't, looking him dead in the eye. For Terlee that was like offering to fight Count Thomson bare handed or something.

  Tor just blinked for a few seconds.

  “Is it OK for you to fly too?” He smiled at her and nodded excitedly. “More than OK! I can not only teach you how, today if you want, but give you your own flying gear and a shield so that if you ever do crash or something hits you, it won't hurt. I have enough for everyone in fact, if... anyone else wants to try?” This came out in his normal accent so no one outside of the family really got it, but they all suddenly erupted, a wall of sound that caused the royals to jump, except oddly Count Thomson, who just smiled.

  The giant man nodded at the girl. “I can show you how, if you like? It may be easier to learn from someone that isn't family at first. Tor's good, one of the best actually, but he's liable to be too nice to you. Flying is fun, but there is a bit to learn, and it takes some practice to master.”

  Tor half expected Terlee to bolt from the room, or at least hide, or maybe, just maybe, ask him to translate for her. Instead she took a deep breath and nodded.

  “S'th... I mean, that would be very nice sir. Thank you.” The words came out slowly, but clear enough that everyone in the room looked at her funny, except for Laurie. From her there came a snort.

  “Flying through the air though? Well, I suppose it is faster than walking, but I'm going to have to see it first, before I totally trust the idea. How much do these devices cost anyway?”

  Tor... froze. He knew that a clothes dryer went for about eleven gold; at least it had at school. Past that no one had mentioned cost anymore, probably to keep his mind off of the fact that he wasn't getting whatever was owed yet by Debri house. Not that it mattered that much. That would come around or it wouldn't. He needed enough for him and Trice, but he'd earn it somehow. He glanced at her and reached over to squeeze her hand, noticing that the whole room had turned to stare... at his mother.

  Smiling she shrugged and looked at everyone in the room.

  She said everything twice, first in Two Bends dialect then in Noram standard.

  “Kids, your father and I have... Well, you'll all be told the whole tale in time, but for right now we've decided that all of you need to learn to speak properly...” She floundered a little after that, trying to come up with reasons why, since most of them had never been more than forty miles outside of Two Bends and everyone inside that area spoke like they did.

  Timon, or rather, Weasel, Tor corrected himself quickly, tilted his head.

  “S'all aight... Alright. May I ask why?” He stumbled over the words more than Terlee had but Sara clapped happily at his effort. After half a beat Tor did too. He gave her a little seated half bow. It looked funny with him being so small and in brown and tan homespun, but he'd gotten it about right anyway, Tor noticed.

  For a Countier to a merchant. It seemed to be on purpose too. Amazing.

  Scrambling Tor stood up.

  “Um, two main reasons for right now. If you want to go to the wedding, which may be away from here, probably in the Capital, since that choice normally goes to the bride's parents and this isn't their place, you need to be able to communicate with people clearly.” Like his mother he said everything both ways, correctly first, then in standard so that the guests could understand it too.

  Then he told them about the delivery service idea. No one seemed to think much of it at first, until the Morgans' jaws collectively dropped open, eyes going wide. Eric grinned and shook his head in disbelief.

  “That's... No one could afford to compete with you for years! Yes... if you're willing to take in the Capital and some of the larger cities in your routes... This could be very big. I'm a little sad I didn't think of it first, to tell the truth. I recommend that you do it. If you don't want to though, I will.” The meaningful look he gave the kids made them all take notice and start becoming far more excited about the idea.

  Tor got it.

  They were being offered a chance at something a Duke wanted too, and it came from their own brother, so they got first go at it. That meant a lot.

  Once again his mother asked how much all this would cost, her voice doubtful for some reason and Tor spread his hands on the table top, showing he didn't know. “Really? Since I'm making them for everyone, just the cost of materials. A few bits of copper, something to etch them with for the activation sigil, it's not that much. Say ten golds for twenty of them? Not even that much really, since I've been buying stuff in bulk. I have more than that with me already made, but I wanted to make a gift of a few to some people at the school, so you can't have them all. Still, one for everyone in the family and a few extras in case anyone else in the village wants to try? I'd like everyone to get a chance, since this could be big. I can send more later. I've earned enough to pay for the materials though, no problem.”

  Sara looked around, a proud look on her face. She didn't speak until almost everyone was looking at her however.

  “Most of the flying rigs and shields are going directly to the military as fast as they're being made, edict of the King himself. There's a waiting list for nobles, and one out of every hundred is being sold to them. Those go for five hundred gold apiece, but only if they agree to wait and buy them four at a time. For a single one, it's seven hundred and fifty gold. You want a shield too and the Tor-shield is the military standard now. Nothing else comes close by half in what it covers you from. Those go for more, about two thousand gold each, but unless you get one from Tor you aren't allowed to own one as a private citizen unless you're members of the nobility or a sworn member of one of the militaries. I guess you all can... Um...” She waved her hand at Laurie, earning a slow head shake. Sara tilted her head, thinking.

  “Right, because you're Tor's family. Not even the King would argue with that, right?”

  She looked at Rolph who agreed, saying that really, as long as Tor gave them away, he was allowed to provide them to anyone, the idea being that if Tor cared enough to just make a gift, it meant that the people were important.

  “That's not new either, it comes from the King himself and is standard for all the top builders. It prevents problems.”

  Sara smiled and looked at everyone, but spent more time focusing on Weasel for some reason than anyone else.

  “So, it's not just a matter of coin, but short of being a Count or Duke, people allowed to have their own sworn military, no one could do it but you. But really, speaking Noram standard will help a whole lot. You'll have to learn maps and things too. I can have some sent, if you want? Debri house will want to use your services actually, and maybe hire some light cargo moving, come to think of it... We can't have our own cargo movers yet. I mean, we can own the boxes and devices for it, but the people to fly them are too hard to get so far... Really, if you're all willing I'd like to make a tentative offer for small and emergency shipments? I need to clear it with the head of the house, but if she doesn't agree it would be foolish, and my mother definitely isn't that.”

  Tor repeated what she said, and even if it was tedious, he did it using both kinds of speaking so that everyone could get used to the difference. Weasel looked at him seriously and asked, in nearly perfect Noram standard, if they could start right then.

  It turned out they could, but the lesson had to be given by the Count, Rolph and Sara, because everyone else was busy.

  Wedding planning.

  Except for Duke Morgan, who decided watching the training would be advant
ageous, since he had to set up his own unit for that soon. It was just to get out of the tedious planning session, but also was a good point. No one even looked at him too hard over it.

  It really wasn't that big of a deal, not for Tor. He sat back and agreed with whatever he was asked. After about half an hour they all started catching on and making more and more outrageous suggestions. Mercy suddenly asked for a water sculpture in the shape of a sparrow, to match her family crest, one that would float in the air like the magic river, and possibly flap its wings. Trice countered with a request for a falcon as well, because after all, Uncle Richard and Aunt Connie would be coming and it wouldn't do to seem to be promoting their family crest over the royal one, right?

  Tor felt his eyes glaze. “Um, how big?”

  Eyes twinkling Mercy held out her hands about two or three feet apart, then said, “about ten times that big?” She started chuckling and so did his mom, but Patricia looked at him and started shaking her head. “I... I hope you really want that mom, because I know that look and it means that he has an idea.”

  He did.

  It was just holding water in a static form. That basically just meant moving the water in to an area of space that stopped movement in all directions. By making the field move in a repeated pattern, could he make the wings flap? He got up to leave, and felt a hand on his arm, looking down he realized that Trice held him in place. Hardly fair.

  “Hey, no running off until we set all the orders for what we want!” She smiled, but Tor got it. It wasn't about telling him what to do, but about not leaving her alone with these two women that had suddenly gotten very scary and possibly gone insane. So far they'd been agreeing with each other too, so it wasn't even possible to play one off the other, not yet at least.

  The big things, of course, were the date, which Laurie suggested at being a year out, but Mercy didn't really care about overly herself, and the location, which was harder. Tor's mother wanted it to be held, not in Two Bends, but Grenwyn, the Lairdgren capital, since all of her extended family would be there.