Tad woke up a few hours after dawn to the clomping of hooves on the floorboards of the wagon.

"Com'on Kid, get up. We need to go find this city, Ring Hunt, and save Aea. "project Jack loudly.

"ahaahaha, don't you sleep? "groaned Tad.

"Sleep? Don't be a child! Awaken. Let us be off," projected Jack.

"Jack, we can't go until we can talk to Synethaes. Which means it needs to be dark. I don't even know where she is! "said Tad loudly.

"She is in the World Egg. She came back screaming about bees and setting them on fire or something the next time she saw them. Her face was swollen up when Kettle closed the tube. "said Jack.

Tad sat up at that, "Did she harm them? "he asked.

Jack chuckled and gave a whinnying laugh, "I got the impression it was the other way around. The goddess infused them with her magic. "

Bees packing life energia would definitely not be a happy moment for an undead. "Kettle are they both still ok in there? "projected Tad.

"Yes, I extracted half a pod of blood into their tubes. Synethaes's face healed after that. They really like that blood, Tad. They drink it right out of that tiny feeding tube in there now. Do you think it's addictive? Sometimes magic is addictive, "said Kettle.

"I don't know, Kettle. The goddess said they would prefer it, and it would satisfy their hunger. We will have to wait and see, "said Tad. Vampires addicted to his new village's magical plants didn't sound like a good thing, but perhaps he could leverage it somehow to keep the Mistress Vampire more in line with his wants.

Tad rolled his legs to the side of his cot, looking for his boots, "Jack, I need to do some things today before we leave. Let's plan on after sunset. Are you taking Aea? "asked Tad. Tad had been ignoring the city rebuild and the new residents for too long. Also, the dwarven caravan was due any day now he should get some things organized for them.

"No, I'll not risk her. She agreed to stay in the World Egg, and perhaps Kettle can entertain her while we are gone. She needs to stay safe, "projected Jack in a severe tone. Tad remembered Jack's tale and his loss, and he could see how keeping her in the World Egg was a good idea. She should have enough food with those blood pods.

A boot came walking out from under the cot, "What that in the hells, besessh, "shouted Tad as he jumped off the cot, reaching for his staff against the wall.

"Got it!" shouted a small muffled voice from the boot.

Tad looked harder at the boot. It had grown small bronze legs. Wait a second, "Kettle!"

"No, I'm not Kettle," said the small minotron dropping the boot. "I'm Kenneth, your new chamberlain. I have been tasked with helping you keep your room tidy and to guard you when you sleep. "the small bismuth metal creature wearing a small miner's cap pulled a metal stick off his back and started swinging it around like he was fighting a battle.

Tad projected to his friend, "Kettle, I don't need a chamberlain, and certainly, one of this size isn't going to help me much. He can barely carry my boot. "

"They are a work in progress, Tad. I can't make them much bigger than two feet tall, or they start breaking down. "Kettle paused, "Fine, I'll put him to work out in the cooking area cleaning up. "

Kenneth's small black eyes moved back and forth, looking around, then he stopped swinging his metal cudgel. Then spoke again in that high-pitched voice, "Ahh, demoted before I could even show my metal in combat. Bah, down to scullery maid. "Kenneth brought his heels together, gave Tad a quick fist over chest salute, turned, and walked towards the door.

Tad moved ahead of the minotron and opened it to let him down the ramp.

"How many of those things have you created, Kettle? "asked Tad as he closed the door again and went to put on his boot.

"I should be able to make nine of them if they all stay in the valley near the mana in the lake. They are not very efficient in mana absorption, and I still need to keep an eye on them, or they stop doing things once their tasks are complete. There are four of them in the sewers cleaning and repairing the tubes. Once that is done, I'll work on fixing the privy houses in the city along with the fountains, "said Kettle.

"Why isn't Kenneth out helping the others? "asked Tad.

"I ran out of stone melding fingers. Kenneth would just be carrying stones around or some other task, not very effective that way, "said Kettle.

Tad nodded, "Terri and the others will appreciate his help with the cleaning. I'd assign some constructs to help, but I don't think they have the motor skills for the task. "said Tad thinking of their stone fingers trying to pick up a plate without breaking it to bits. The farming constructs had nimble fingers, but he didn't want them going to help with cleaning plates or cups. Food gathering is still an essential task for them right now.

"I'll put him to work there. We still have a great deal of metal from the fallen Bizmuth automatrons. I will look for a way to use it, " said Kettle.

Tad thought about this as he looked down at the bismuth metal band on his wrist. This he could push energia into, and it formed into a gauntlet. Kettle had given it to him a few weeks ago to keep Tad from losing another finger.

"Do you think you can make more armor like this gauntlet? We should keep the weapons. Don't change those. I'd like to test the constructs using them. " said Tad.

"I can make armor, but to make it movable and flex like the gauntlet would require a great deal of energia. You have plenty, so the minor drain isn't noticeable, but a whole set like that would be very noticeable. It's not as simple as just pounding out some iron in a forge. Speaking of that, you should start prioritizing creating smelter, forge, stone cutting, and wood cutting buildings. If you'd like, I can send Kenneth out to Bernard's tent to see what he thinks. Your city list has 0's in all of those, I think they will be the easiest to create, and they link to all these other craft houses. " said Kettle.

Tad sighed, "Sure, do that after he helps out with cleaning the food areas. I am going to take a walk around the city in the daylight, and I want to see more of the valley around the lake. " Tad just wanted to take a walk for a while. He hadn't had a break since the dwarven burial festival, where he wasn't responsible for fifty things going on at once. And that time Zanna had gone all demon lady when they danced, then he had drunk too much and then thought he was the best drummer in the world. He smiled, thinking back at how the dwarves had mimicked him playing the drums.

"Do what you think is best. I'm going to get some food and take a walk. I need to clear my head, " projected Tad as he stood up and walked for the door of the wagon.

Jack projected, "Tonight then, Kid, don't be late. "

"Yea, I'll be at the Tree an hour after dark, " said Tad as he stepped out of the wagon. He looked around and didn't see any of his friends, shrugged, and made his way out across the bridge, turning left to head towards the falls on the north side of the lake. He looked up at the sun coming over the edge of the valley. It would be high enough soon to remove most of the shadows near the cliffs.

***

Tad walked for a while. He saw a couple of new villagers near the bridge fishing while sitting on a large boulder. He passed the hoodoo pillars of granite on the right and kept walking. There were many more bushes and trees since the goddess had re-ascended. He was looking for the crocodiles in the water and shore as he walked along the stone pathway that led around the lake. He didn't see or sense any animals other than fish and a few of those long-tailed birds he had noted before. Small swarms of bugs sometimes landed in the water where the fish were greedily waiting for their morning meals.

The path had once been cobble and, in some spots, even looked like it might have been paved with mortar. Most of that was worn away now and the half-rounded tops of granite cobles sticking up were what was left.

Up ahead was a large stone that stood a few feet above the water and jutted out into the lake several yards, forming a small makeshift pier. It looked like it had once been a column that had toppled long ago, he could see where there was a broken base where it once stood tall. The sun was coming up, and Tad jumped up on the stone. The cathedral was over a mile away, and he could see it gleaming with the Fey Tree towering over it in the distance. He took off his jacket and hat and unslung his staff. He stretched out a bit, then started going through his staff forms. In his mind, he was following Magyar, his old master. He wondered how his friends were doing now. He missed those carefree days of sparing and training in the carnival.

Tad flowed across the wide column, went through the forty-two basic forms he had learned long ago, then moved on to the thirty-three advanced combinations using the forms. The primary purpose of many of the early forms was to set up for the combinations from the more powerful advanced strikes and trips. Some were to disable an opponent, and others were to do more. The low sweeps were not just to trip the opponent; if the combination was used, he could easily break an ankle or heel bone. He had extended several of the sweeps to compensate for the energia blade he projected at the end of his staff. Fighting the void creatures had been hard on him at first because the key to staff work and many other weapons was to use the rebounding force from the attack to power the attack from the other end of the staff. The blade slicing through the tentacles had forced him to compensate for the sweeps into another form. More than a couple of times, he had to compensate for his balance with soulmancy shields. He felt he was improving with this. Half felt like a different set of forms as he practiced what he had learned. He thought about those classes Kettle kept talking about, specifically the staff skills. He wondered if those numbers matched his change in usage of the forms.

Tad heard some giggling off in the bushes. He had sensed the two pride members a few minutes ago. He didn't let it pause his practice. The forms and movements of the staff always calmed him when he practiced them, and he had not been able to do much of that for a very long time.

Beads of sweat ran down Tad's back when he finally stopped. He looked over at the dense bush cluster on the shore. "You two can come out now. You will make terrible woodsmen if you continue making all that noise. "

The two youths came out of the bushes and stood in front of the fallen pillar Tad was on. He remembered them, one had been missing an eye, and the other had lost his foot. They were both healed by the magic of the healing mushrooms.

One of them shoved the other one forward, " Go on, Marku, ask him!" Both boys couldn't be more than twelve, they had the sandy brown hair of their parents, and the clothes they wore didn't appear to fit well.

The one in front was looking more bashful than anything. Then he looked back at his friend, who gave him that go-ahead nod Tad was familiar with from Nico always doing it to him as they grew up.

He squeaked a bit"Sir, errree Master Rockgrips, sir. We, my friend Vilhelm and I, would like you to accept us into your Order." Marku looked back at Vilhelm, then back and Tad, "We want to be your squires and learn how to become powerful and defend our families. " He stopped there, looking at Tad with hope in his eyes.

Tad looked at Marku's friend Vilhelm for a moment, then back to Marku. He hadn't thought about that. He knew paladins usually had an order or temple they were all named after when they followed their deity of choice, but he hadn't even thought about forming one or how that even worked. Tad took a deep breath, he had been using his soulmancy on the boys while the one talked. They both felt earnest, and he could sense no deceit or malice on the surface of their emotions. He couldn't read minds but being able to see what was on a person's face and comparing it to their emotional state that he could sense was his go-to for trusting people. He only wished it worked on stronger beings like vampires or any undead for that matter.

"Your names are Marku and Vilhelm, then? " Tad noted their vigorous nodding, "What do your parents feel about this? Aren't they folks that like to farm? " Tad felt a sudden loss from Vilhelm then and sadness. Damnit, there is a good chance he lost part or all of his family. Tad cursed himself for being an idiot. Rushing into his next words, "ah, Well, if you are going to join my Order. " Tad swung his staff around, doing a full rotation as he flipped, slamming the staff cracking into the stone. You will need to learn to defend yourselves before you can defend others. We will need to get you some staves. Tad looked around at the trees nearby for long straight branches he could harvest.

The two boys looked at each other, "Weee have some, " said Vilhelm, who had lost the feeling of sadness as the boys scrambled into the bushes again and pulled out two not-so-smooth, all though mostly straight sticks that were a few inches longer than the boys were tall.

Tad was glad his distraction had worked. He wasn't very good at consoling children, or anyone for that matter. He shouldered his staff and reached out to take the staff Vilhelm held. He concentrated on the bismuth gauntlet, which formed on his hand. He forced a bit more energia into the metal, causing the inside rings around his fingers to get a sharp edge. He ran his hand along the length of Vilhelm's staff once, then again as bits of wood shaved off. He made a third pass, then eyed the wood and felt the sides where he had removed the burs and small tree knot bumps. It wasn't perfect but much improved for staff work. He handed it back to Vilhelm and proceeded to do the same for Marku's staff. When done, he handed it back.

"Now take the staves and rub them along the stone of this fallen pillar till they are smooth enough to run your hands along without getting any splinters or cuts, " said Tad as he waited and watched the two boys checking the wood as they rubbed the staffs smooth on the rough stone.

"Ok, good, I was once instructed by a great master in the art of staff and bo. I will not dishonor him and teach just anyone. You will have to learn the forms, and when you are ready to be tested, we will see if you have what it takes to join me in guarding the valley and your people as a member of a new order. " Tad waited as both boys nodded enthusiastically. Tad's old master Magyar had said much the same thing long ago before he would teach Tad. It felt correct to Tad now. Not everyone is cut out for every weapon. The best would need to show dedication and skill. This would also give Tad time to find out what an Order of a Goddess would consist of and what, in particular, Gweleth would like.

"Ok then, I'll show you all forty-two forms. Then we will go over the first ten. You will practice these, and once I'm satisfied you know them, we will move to the next ten. Once you can do all forty-two without flaw, I will make my decision about teaching you and letting you become my squires, " said Tad as he bowed to the boys and then directed them to the column where there was a flat surface they could practice on.

***