The Land: Catacombs (Chaos Seeds Book 4)

by Aleron Kong

  Richter’s face became serious and his eyes grew hard. “Of course it would go without saying that anyone allowed into our village would be expected to keep anything seen confidential. That understanding is necessary for our survival. In fact, it’s necessary for the survival of anyone who even witnessed the wonders that you have seen.”

  Abbas’s face grew equally serious. “The word and honor of the Company of the White Pearl are accepted and trusted in all of the Kingdoms of the River Peninsula and beyond. I would not like to think that our new friend was questioning our honor.”

  “Of course not,” Richter said levelly. “No more than you questioned mine as you checked the authenticity of my gift.”

  The seven men seated at the table all sat in silence as Richter and Abbas gazed at one another. The four guards standing nearby tensed slightly at the change in mood, and Alma picked her head up from the table. Richter placed his hand on her back, not wanting her to attack his guests, but otherwise remained motionless, simply staring at Abbas. Thankfully the man smiled and the tense moment passed.

  “My father told me that you had steel in you. Truth be told, I was wondering what you would do when I mentioned your… luck in having such a building. You can count on the discretion of myself and my brothers. I see that you understand the truth of trust. It begins as only a small seed. Only with time and attention may it grow strong. I look forward to the day that it is a mighty tree that may shelter us both.”

  Richter reached out his hand and Abbas did the same. As the two men clasped wrists, he said, “We understand one another. If our relationship continues to improve, perhaps the Company of the White Pearl could help to sell some of our weapons and armor. Perhaps if our relationship becomes very strong, your Company could be the only trading group that sells our enchanted items. I imagine that could be quite lucrative.”

  Abbas’s eyes widened slightly as he started to understand what Richter was offering. “Our relationship and my Trade skill is just high enough that we could enter into a Trade Agreement…”

  Richter held up his hand and with a kind smile said, “As you said, I look forward to the day that we can shelter under the same tree, but that is not this day. Just know that I value the friendship of the White Pearl and that I am looking towards the future.”

  Abbas bowed his head. Richter continued to move the conversation forward. “So the total cost of everything would be…” He looked at Randolphus.

  The chamberlain finished doing a quick computation on his clipboard. “Two thousand fifty-five gold, four silvers, and six coppers before the discount. After taking it into account, it would be fifteen hundred and sixty-two gold, one silver, and five coppers, my lord.”

  Richter nodded as if he had already done all of the math in his head. “That’s what I thought. Before we get to what I am willing to pay, I would like to say that I am glad that you enjoyed the gift that I provided. In light of how happy it made you, I could be persuaded to part with another piece. I am curious, what do you think this item would be worth?”

  He pulled another piece of Tefonim jewelry from his Bag. It was a platinum ring that was formed by the coiled body of a lizard. Sapphires served as its scales and rubies as its eyes. Again the craftsmanship was so realistic that it seemed that it might scurry off of his finger if anyone startled it. Richter heard Abbas’s brothers murmur to each other again, behavior that was swiftly curtailed by a sharp expression from their elder. Again, Abbas himself showed no visible reaction to the valuable piece. Richter wondered if it was a Trader Talent or if the man just had a deep well of self-control that let him school his face to impassivity.

  At Richter’s prompting, Abbas took the ring to examine it. Richter told him to feel free to use his Talent again, which did bring a faint smile to the Trader’s lips. A faint hum tickled Richter’s ears for a second time, and then Abbas put the ring back on the table. “For this ring, I would pay one hundred and thirty gold coins.”

  Richter made his lips into a moue as if he was deep in thought. Then he signaled Randolphus to lean in and raised his hand to hide his lips. As softly as he could, he said, “I actually have no idea how much this is worth. Is that a good price?”

  The chamberlain, sharp as ever, caught onto the game and looked at the ring on the table. He put on a slightly aggrieved expression and shook his head at the ring before leaning back down to whisper in Richter’s ear, “I cannot say for sure, but it sounds rather low. The old King once bought a Tefonim ring for over one hundred gold and that was simple gold without jewels. I do know the prices of the magic books and all of the other items, except for the blood, sound appropriate if you factor in a substantial markup from them traveling here to trade. My best guess is that he is charging you 150-200% more than what you would pay in Law. That is just going to have to be tolerated, though, my lord. The blood I cannot advise you as to an appropriate cost, though I do know that dragons are exceptionally rare on the peninsula and that the older the dragon is, the stronger it grows. It just depends on what you are willing to pay, my lord. Now I’m going to randomly show you something on my clipboard and shake my head in disapproval.” Randolphus flipped through a couple of pages on his ledger and then pointed. He loudly said, “You see, my lord. I just don’t think we can justify the expense.”

  Richter nodded at his chamberlain’s apparent sage advice. “I was hoping that we could figure out more in trade, but my chamberlain is correct. I can’t justify buying all of these things. I suppose I will take the arrowheads and the Book of Slow. Tell your father I appreciate his thoughts and consideration.” He stood as if to leave.

  “I’m sure there is something we can do,” the youngest one, Kadar, said. Abbas’s reserve truly broke for the first time as he snapped at the young man in their own language. Richter translated the words as “shut up, dummy,” but he would have been able to pick that up from context alone.

  Richter smiled and asked, “Is that true, Abbas? Is there something we can do?”

  Abbas stared at Kadar again, his gaze promising retribution later before turning back to Richter. “Of course, Lord Richter. There are always things that we can do.”

  “Great! Now I think you might want to take another look at that ring. I’ve been told on very good authority that a Tefonim ring can sell for over two hundred gold if it was only a gold band.” A little creative license never hurt. “This ring is platinum and encrusted with jewels. The quality is exquisite. Now I am about to open trade relations with the dwarves of the Serrated Mountains. My own trade ship will be finished soon as well, and who knows what opportunities that may open up. I would like to continue having the Company of the White Pearl as my primary trading partner, however, as long as we can come to an arrangement. We are, after all, friends.” Richter gave him a brilliant smile.

  Abbas smiled back, like one dog baring its fangs at another. “I see now that my earlier estimation was too hasty. My brothers and I will be taking a trip towards the Twins after this. I do know of a noble who might be interested in acquiring another Tefonim piece. I believe I could sell this ring for about four hundred gold. I of course cannot buy it for the same amount. I could offer you two hundred and eighty gold, however.”

  Richter was sure that if Abbas said he could sell the ring for four hundred, it was probably closer to five or six. That wasn’t the point though. Richter decided that it didn’t hurt to drum up a little goodwill on this one deal, especially since he actually would be able to send out his own trade missions soon. So he decided to be magnanimous. “They will sing songs of your generosity!” Basil coughed and shook his head slightly when Richter made eye contact. The message was clear: “Dude! You’re doing too much.” Richter reined it in. “I thank you for your honorable offer. I gratefully accept.”

  “Well, if we subtract the cost of the ring from the remaining items, that would be twelve hundred and eighty-two gold and fourteen coppers. Are you interested in procuring them all?”

  Richter slapped the table. “I think
I would! I can have the gold brought out immediately.” He started to stand, but then cocked his head to the side as if just remembering something. “That is, unless you might be interested in any of these items.” He placed four of the Dark Khan coins and a heavy gold Tefonim necklace on the table.

  Abbas’s brothers didn’t start talking this time, but it looked like the youngest might pop a blood vessel from restraining himself. Abbas examined each of the items and said, “So you just happened to remember these items at this moment, my lord?”

  Richter smiled broadly. “Damnedest thing, right?”

  Ultimately, Richter didn’t pay a single gold piece. Abbas and his brothers paid three hundred and ninety-four gold for the necklace and a total of twelve hundred and sixty-five gold and seven silvers for the Dark Khan coins. The price for the silver coins was more or less what Randolphus had told him to expect. Richter was more than pleased.

  That of course left them owing him a rather large surplus of gold, nearly four hundred gold coins. The brothers offered to go back to their ship and obtain the necessary funds, but Richter had a different idea. Seeing as how they would be traveling to the Twins, he proposed that they invest his money for him. Abbas immediately looked regretful and turned down the offer. He said he was willing to discuss an agreement dealing with weapons and armor from the Forge again, but otherwise wasn’t willing to enter a trade agreement just yet. Richter just smiled and proposed another idea.

  He offered to let the brothers hold onto the difference if they would search the Twins for certain objects he was interested in, namely low quality enchanted weapons and armor, multiple copies if possible. He also asked for one or two more specific magical items that he had been wanting and said he would buy any books that the brothers could lay their hands on.

  Richter thought the proposal would be attractive to the traders as they had probably been planning on a cash windfall from selling these objects to him. Not having liquidity might hurt their negotiating stance once they reached the islands. He said they could pay him back in trade or gold if they came here again after their trip to the Twins. All he asked was another 10% discount for their next round of trading.

  Abbas looked at him long and hard, thinking it over, before finally agreeing. He even asked if Richter would be willing to front them a few hundred more. Richter smiled and said, “Of course! For another 10% off in ALL future deals.” Abbas just smiled and stood up. Richter did the same. They clasped wrists and like that, their economic battle was done.

  Abbas took a moment to show Richter how to bind the mapping ring to his Traveler’s Map. The procedure was actually quite simple. As the owner of the Map, he only needed to bring the two items together. A prompt appeared which asked if he would like to bind the items together and that was that.

  The four brothers stood and bowed a final time. Randolphus handed them the list of sundry items that they needed and then they walked back to their ship. Richter had offered them the village’s hospitality for another day, but Abbas begged off saying that their trip had already been delayed. The two parted, not as friends, but as business partners with a healthy respect for one another. Richter smiled as he put all of his new loot into his Bag.

  “Okay!” he said, slapping his hands together and then rubbing them vigorously. “Now I need to go kill some shit!” Alma tooted in excited agreement.

  CHAPTER 13

  Richter told Randolphus that he would need to speak to Roswan and the new alchemist, Tabia, later that night. The chamberlain said he would have them both come to the Great Seal after dinner. Then he started absently talking about the various things he needed to do and how he would make a lap of the village to ensure everything was in order as he walked off, flipping through the pages on his clipboard. Richter watched his organizational guru leave and whispered, “You complete me.”

  “Did you say something, my lord?” Basil asked.

  “No! I said nothing!” Richter responded quickly. “Go get ready for tomorrow. Krom will be hunting with me for the next few hours, but make sure to check in with him later. Let me know if you need anything else before tomorrow.”

  Basil stood and bowed, then moved off. Richter picked Alma up off the table and tossed her into the air. Her wings unfurled and she glided behind him as he walked to the gate. While he was walking, he saw that he had a new prompt.

  Congratulations! You have reached skill level 14 in Trade. 0.5% bonus to buying and selling per level.

  Congratulations! You have reached skill level 15 in Trade. 0.5% bonus to buying and selling per level.

  He smiled broadly. He had known that he had done well in his negotiations with Abbas, but hadn’t expected the Universe to agree so strongly. Two whole skill levels! Not a bad start to the day, he thought. Then he thought about a certain sexy redhead and thought, definitely not a bad way to start the day.

  He dismissed both prompts and kept walking towards the gate. While he moved through the village, he heard a shout. “Lord Richter! Lord Richter!”

  Turning his head, he saw Gloran running up with Futen floating above. He stopped walking and waited for the high elf to catch up. The man was breathing hard from having sprinted, so Richter let him catch his breath.

  “I’m sorry… my lord… I was in the… far pastures… when Futen found… me.” The elf was wheezing a bit between gasped words. He had actually forgotten that he had sent for the elf. Richter watched Gloran wheeze with a bemused expression. It occurred to him that he might want to institute a calisthenics program for the villagers.

  “It’s fine, Gloran. I need some more soul stones.”

  “Yes, my lord. You mentioned it… last night.”

  Richter had no recollection of even seeing the man the previous night, but then, he barely remembered taking a lightning bolt to the chest. Gloran unhitched a heavy pouch from his belt and handed it over. The bag was filled with amber colored soul stones of various sizes. Richter identified many basic-level stones, which didn’t surprise him because the marbled quartz could be changed into that level of soul repository. He saw several common, higher, brilliant, and even a few special stones as well, though. All of those required precious or semiprecious gems to make. So where had Gloran gotten…

  With a sinking feeling, Richter asked, “These are from the gems that I gave you last night?”

  “Yes, my lord. I converted all of the jewels you provided, the entire handful you took out of your Bag.”

  Richter sighed. At least the wealth had served a purpose. He thanked Gloran and started to walk off when another though occurred to him. “Gloran. Make sure that all of the Life magi have some basic-level stones, especially the hunters.”

  The elf hesitated before responding. “Errr, my lord. You told me that last night as well. Right before you slapped me on the behind and walked off with a red-headed woman. If I remember correctly, as you were leaving you said you were going to, ‘Grind the pretty off of her.’”

  They looked at each other for a moment. Then Richter said, “I think we’re done here.”

  Gloran nodded, looking relieved to escape the situation, and walked off. Richter poured the soul stones into his Bag and continued walking towards the gate. When he got there, everyone was already waiting. Sion and Caulder were speaking about something that was making them both laugh quietly. The main thing drawing his attention, though, was the loud complaining coming from Beyan.

  “This is unbelievable. Why am I here?” The gnome had been outfitted in the same armor that the guards wore, a high steel chainmail shirt, greaves, and helmet. He had been given a crossbow instead of a spear, though, the idea being to let him stay away from any direct melee combat.

  “You were told what this is about,” Terrod said, clearly irritated. “Why do you keep asking?”

  “First, you made me wait here last night, then tell me Lord Richter got detained, then you drag me back out here again this morning! This is ridiculous!” Beyan yelled.

  Well, that’s actually a valid point, Rich
ter realized. Still, better to just nip this in the bud. “We discussed this, Beyan. You agreed to take a wage to be here. So saddle up.”

  “What? What saddle? What are you talking about?” the gnome cried out, exasperated.

  Fucking colloquialisms, Richter thought for the umpteenth time. “Let me put it another way. If you don’t want to help with this hunt, where you just might earn a large amount of experience, then you can always go help on the building detail. I think they are widening the latrines today.”

  Beyan’s face screwed up until Richter thought he might break something, but he ultimately wandered off a bit, muttering to himself.

  “Ha ha. Well done, yer lordship,” Krom guffawed. The Smith was wearing high steel chainmail armor as well, and he held a two-handed ebony warhammer. Futen flared and Richter could see that the hammer had magical properties.

  You have found: Ebony Warhammer of Crippling. Damage 40-52 (Max 42-53). Durability 132/158. Item class: Uncommon. Quality: Exquisite. Weight: 27.6 kg. Traits: Successful strike will decrease a target’s movement speed by 37%. Charges: 440/440.

  “Nice weapon,” Richter said with a low whistle of appreciation. The thing looked heavy as hell, which probably meant it was slow, but if it connected… bye-bye bad guys!

  “Thanks, yer lordship. Ol’ Bessie has been in the family for centuries. It’s one of the reasons I’m dying to increase my Smithing rank. I won’t be able to get her to full durability and damage again until I’m an adept.”

  “She’s a lovely lady nonetheless,” Richter said. Then he turned to Ulinde. “It is good to see you again. I’m excited to finally see you in action.”

  The archer clasped wrists with him. “It will be good to hunt with you. I’ve been able to go out with some of the village’s other hunters, but we always had to avoid and retreat from the larger predators. It is time that they come to fear us.”

  “Damn straight,” Richter said with a laugh. “Now I’ve got a little present for you.” He handed him a bundle of his new ice arrows. Ulinde smiled broadly as he inspected each arrow in turn. A consummate warrior, he wouldn’t trust someone else with his weapons.