//------------------------------// // Chapter 10 - Homesteading at the Height of Summer // Story: Banners of Griffonia // by GardenCanary //------------------------------// The hammers beat like small drums on the nails as I watched the cluster of workers on the roof fix the last few tiles into their proper place. With the recent opening of the slate quarry, and the steady flow of slate tiles coming out, it did not take long for the laborers to finish off the first of the new houses in Blackwood. The home might have been rather simple, but it was certain to be far more comfortable than the tents and carts the immigrants had been stuck living in since they arrived here. Having a home was an important thing for anyone, and now they would truly be able to start calling Blackwood their home. It was something solid that would anchor them here in the hinterlands of the realm. The family that owned the plot I was watching were eager to settle into their new house. Indeed, they made up most of the half dozen griffons perched up on the roof of the building. As they worked, I looked down the future street at the other homes that were nearly complete themselves. Griffons were hard at work on their roofs as well, and from the looks of things by the end of the day the house in front of me was not going to be the only one in use tonight. Construction had progressed rapidly thanks to the simple design, and there had only been a few bumps in the road due to disagreements between the workers. Those disagreements were the main reason that I had been running myself ragged the past few days in my quest to unify my village. I was trying my absolute best to smooth over feathers as much as possible, while simultaneously working to set the foundations for future developments. It was a rather tall order without the experienced aid from Gunther beside me, and I missed the company of the older griff dearly. I was already rather used to having my steward handle the running of the village for the most part, leaving me free to work on whatever project was the forefront of my mind that moment. That was the most satisfying part of being a ruler to me. I was still fresh to my role, but here in my little corner of the realm, I was free to practice and learn at my own pace for the most part. I was still enamored with the ideal vision of what a leader was. Someone creating grand plans, and guiding my people towards new horizons. I hoped that someday I will be able to reach that ideal. The responsibilities that came with command were far less glamorous though, and would take up the majority of my time without loyal griffons to delegate them to. As the lord of the village, I had not thought that I would be the one called upon to mediate something as petty as whether or not the roof shingles should be attached from front to back or the other way around. With the need to appear impartial and approachable a primary concern at the moment, I was forced to sit there and solemnly listen to the arguments put forward by both sides before making a decision. With such a small thing, my proclamation was simply that whoever owned the property would be able to choose for themselves, which went down well enough with the onlookers. Tensions had cooled a little bit recently with little input from me, as the first row of houses was nearing completion. Seeing the buildings come together provided a bit of a shot in the arm for village morale. Being able to watch progress occur right before your eyes gave the immigrants a sense of pride in their work. Being able to sleep under a roof was a welcome relief to those whose homes were finished first as well. The lots the finished homes were sat on would not be fully cleared out anytime soon. Large stones, tree stumps, and sections of underbrush and shrubbery still dotted the properties in question. The resulting spaces looked rather messy, but the basic structure of the homes would suffice for now. Once the villagers moved into their homes, they were free to develop their lot as they wished for the most part. I left it to them to engage in some good old fashioned homesteading in what little free time they had. After all, wasn't that one of the great appeals of moving into the countryside? The small house in the lot left plenty of extra space around it for them to work with. Perhaps later on the house would be expanded outwards to hold shops, craft spaces or other profitable ventures, but at the moment I expected the land to hold the typical gardens and chicken coops of the age. There was little reason to add another room to the house at the moment. The family that was moving into the first house that we were finishing off today were the carpenters, some of the few skilled workers that I had access to in the village. They were fine folks, and I was hoping that once the houses were finished and everyone working on it were released to work more as they pleased, they would open a carpentry workshop soon. Some of the other laborers though, I wondered about what they would be working on next. Completing the houses would be a magnificent accomplishment, but it was a bit of a ticking clock for me as well. Once freed from their obligations to work on the housing project, the tradition of the land stipulated that I was not allowed to simply command them to continue to labor for me without pay. While I certainly had more than enough projects and ideas lined up for them to work on, placing myself as a demanding lord driving them onwards without reward would not do much to endear myself to the populace at all. It would do me no good to agitate a large chunk of my new workforce, especially when I was trying to attract more similar to them towards my future town. If they were farmers, integrating them into the workforce would've been much easier. Fields could be cleared away, and then they could be left to tend to them and I could take my taxes from the harvest. But farmers had to be taught, and a city laborer knew very little of how to properly grow crops. Good farmers were raised on the farm, and had an intuitive understanding of their work from years of learning. Some certainly would be trained how to grow crops or care for livestock, but I was hesitant to attempt to incorporate all of them into the typical village profession and risk the overall harvest falling as efforts were made to support their struggling fields. I also wished to have some workers that would be able to work on construction projects during the agricultural season. The problem I faced was in paying them. Money was a rather difficult thing for me to acquire at the moment. Blackwood wasn’t fortunate enough to be sat atop a gold or silver mine as far as I knew, and without new coinage being introduced to the economy, the amount of wealth in practical circulation was distinctly finite. And with little to spend on, the money I paid them would be locked away for perhaps years. If I was able to establish a regular market, the stall fees could provide a steady stream of income outside of the yearly tax collection to finance, which was still several months away at this point. Besides linking Blackwood more heavily with the wider trade network and adding a source of coin into the village hopefully, the market was also an excellent chance to draw in ever more griffons to keep Blackwood growing at a healthy rate. Creating a market space would be relatively easy compared to other projects I had on my docket. The key things that a market space needed to function were simple; a clear open space to host it, vendors, and of course customers. The square in the old village on the hill was a bit small to be able to host a market in, and thanks to the defensive construction the tight entrances to the village were challenging for a cart to pass through. Fortunately, thanks to the forestry taking place around the new village houses, plenty of the larger obstruction had been cleared away. Much of the smaller trees and shrubbery were slowly being consumed for firewood and kindling as well. It would be rather trivial to clear the remaining obstacles away from any area for the market, and that meant that the only thing that we lacked was the griffons to attend it. That element would have to be contingent on the results of Gunther’s trip however, and it would be best to wait until my steward returned. With a round of applause as the last tile was fitted, the first house of the new village was complete. After exchanging pleasantries, I left the new neighborhood behind and flew off towards the southern field to turn my attention towards other matters. As the sun reached its highest point in the sky, I lay on my back in the cool shade offered by the birch trees staring up at the open sky. The soft breeze blew through the leaves and my feathers, and I sighed in contentment. Out here near the outskirts of the crops fields, away from everyone clamoring for my attention and the problems of the village, I had the chance to relax and think. Taking advantage of the calm, I closed my eyes and turned my attention towards the grander issue. I sat and wracked my brain in a search for a way to act upon Felian’s advice. If I wished to nip the growing problem in the bud, a plan of action would be needed as soon as possible.  Otherwise, I worried that the mysterious subversive elements among us would soon see their efforts bear fruit. Likely forcing me to take action against one group of arrivals against the other, or risk both turning against me. There was only so long before the starry eyed ideals of living in the countryside would wear off them. The central issue that I was grappling with in creating such a plan was that changing minds wasn’t some equation with a single clear and objective answer. Griffons were far more complex than the cold calculus of mechanical design, as with sapience came ideas and desires not easily controlled. Convincing people was an art form all its own, and was one art that I would need to achieve proficiency in rather quickly if I were to succeed. Another one of the challenges ahead of me in my quest to unify the divided groups in my village was the time delay for any scheme to see tangible results. It took time for people to change their opinions, especially without something major that resonated with them. Something with impact that made the participants feel greater than themselves. If I could find such a grand event though, with it acting as an amplifier I could likely win over a great many griffons. At the very least, plant the seeds of the ideas I wished to sow among them so that they would bloom later. The more time that I spent thinking about it, the more it seemed that such an occasion was the best chance I had to decisively put a stop to the rising tensions at home. The glare of the summer sun on my face suddenly disappeared, and I opened my eyes to find Cynthia peering at me from above, her dark feathers blocking my sunshine. “Hi there, Geralt! Are you having a nice nap out here?” She asked me cheerfully. “I wish that I could have been sleeping,” I replied with a groan. “That would have been much more pleasant than what I was actually fretting over. Politics are rarely an enjoyable experience, unless it is the moment all your plans come together in victory. Do you remember what I had talked about with you over dinner last night?” Cynthia nodded, and settled down in the shade next to me. “About what you and Felian talked about yesterday? Yeah, I remember. Is that what you’ve been thinking about out here for the past few hours?” “Essentially. So far though, I haven’t been able to create a complete plan. I have an empty frame of sorts for an idea that I think offers the best chance of success. I just don’t have whatever the core event of the whole affair is going to be sorted out yet,” I confessed. “Maybe I can help you out then. What have you got so far? And Isn’t the apprenticeship plan already helping you out in this?” Cynthia asked.  “It is, and I hope to find a way to expand that program later on,” I replied. “The political benefits there were mostly a lovely side benefit, and not my main intention. I had just wanted to start the training pipeline for the trades quickly so that later on I’d have the pool of skilled labor I would need. So far, I think it fair to say that I’ve got the support of those who are benefitting directly from it. For the others though, I’ve been trying to come up with something larger, to really make an impression with the community as a whole.” Cynthia took a moment to consider my words before putting forward her thoughts. “What about doing something special for the midsummer festival? That’s coming up pretty soon, and with it as a backdrop I’m sure that we can create something that everyone would really love. And I bet they would really start to consider this place their home once we show them what we can do!” “That’s a great idea Cynthia!” I sat up quickly. “I didn’t even think of asking about any upcoming festivals for that.” “What, you forgot about the midsummer festival?” Cynthia teased me. “Honestly Geralt, sometimes that way you act makes me think you aren’t a griffon at all. I mean, you’ve completely forgotten one of the biggest celebrations around. You really should have gotten outside more before being tossed down here.” She stood up and recited a few lines from a play on Felian’s shelf. “Oh, great woe to those trapped within walls of stone, never to know open air beyond their home. Closed are the skies to them, by their own kin stand condemned.”  “Oh, are you going to try and turn into that griffoness from the play there Cynthia, delivering sorrowful monologues nearly each scene? Best you try and avoid meeting her end though, I don’t think Gunther would appreciate it if you died in some far-flung town.” I grinned at her. She giggled. “Hardly, I’m just a farm girl. Not some silver-winged maiden waiting in my manor for a dashing adventurer to whisk me away into the clouds, away from my controlling family. I don’t think I could be the subject of some grand romance. And I certainly would rather live.” “Oh? Have you not heard the stories where the noble knight ventures to some secluded village, and falls in love with the lovely village farmgirl?” I countered, striking what I thought to be a suave pose. That one seemed to hit home, and Cynthia turned bright red underneath her dark feathers before stammering out. “Well… I… I’ve never heard of that one before. Maybe you can teach it to me sometime?” “Ha, I don’t have any exact story in mind for that, I hate to disappoint. I know that such a thing has been written about many times though, so I can relay to you the common story beats all of them would share.” I chuckled at how flustered she was getting, before steering the conversation back onto topic. “But we can talk of such tales later on. For the moment, let’s get back to the present matter. How long do you think we have until the height of summer?” Cynthia nodded. “From what the older villagers have been saying, we probably have maybe a week and a bit until the height of summer. Usually the preparations would be starting any day now, but I guess with my father gone and everyone so busy there hasn’t been time to begin.” “I’m sure that Gunther will be back any day now. He’s got a lot of ground to cover with his party, but he’s had ample time. In the meanwhile though, we can start preparations for the celebrations. I’m sure that a week of reduced construction duties would be a welcome change of pace for everyone anyways,” I responded. “You’re right. Let’s go and make the best midsummer festival that Blackwood has ever seen!” Cynthia stood back up and the two of us made our way back towards the old village. As we flew, we spotted a group of griffons marching towards the village from the south. Moving to take a look, we soon flew down to greet the tired returnees. Cynthia rushed forwards to wrap the lead griffon in a hug that was soon returned. Gunther and the soldiers had returned home. Gunther and the rest of his expedition trudged back into the village proper, exhausted from their recent journey. After their arrival, I dismissed most of them to return home for some much needed rest, for which they were immensely grateful.  Making a quick count of the griffons that had returned, I was relieved to see that Gunther had not taken a single casualty that wasn’t able to keep walking while visiting the other villages. There were some visible injuries though, which made me equally concerned and curious. With everything else that had been happening in the village, I was glad to see that my steward had returned home safe and sound, and that I would have his experience to turn plans into production for the festival. I was also glad to know that I wouldn’t have to worry about any missing faces in the crowd, or the damper that a funeral would put on the village mood leading up to midsummers.  I wondered how it might feel to rule a larger town, where it was impossible to recognize most of the people you were sworn to lead. Maybe it helped in making objective choices, or maybe it left you feeling distant. Such ethical musings were beyond my worries at the moment though, and I moved to speak with Gunther. Once he had been freed of his armor and had placed his spear back on the wall where it belonged, he sat down with me for his debriefing. “How did it go out there for you, Gunther? Were the other villages willing to provide us with a portion of their harvests for us this winter in exchange for coordinating a market and mutual defense?” I asked as Gunther sunk into his chair. The middle aged griffon gave a short grunt before replying. “For most of them, no. Actually, that’s not quite right. That makes it sound like I didn’t get anything done. Better way to put things would be that they would rather meet with you themselves before signing up together.” I nodded. That seemed to be a reasonable enough demand from them, and I was more than willing to accommodate it. Their food was needed desperately for the winter after all, and I willing to listen to nearly anything they asked for. “I’d suppose that the reasons behind those requests were that they would prefer to take my measure then. After all, while they might know and trust you Gunther, once you told them that you didn’t have the final say over matters in Blackwood anymore they would be a little more hesitant to an agreement.” “That’s probably the root of it,” Gunther agreed. “Folks here are used to doing things their own way. As far as any of the other eldergriffs know, you’re just a random outsider who came down here and now is looking for a chance to set himself on the top without ever looking down.” He went on to add, “I figured that it might be a good idea to try and get them all down here at the same time, so I asked them all to make their way here for the summer festival. That way they can meet you when we’ve got plenty of stuff going to impress and distract them all. Might make more friends that way.” That was a bit of a surprise, but the reasoning behind it was sound. I could only hope that I would be able to balance everything that was being piled onto this festival. Such celebrations were typically major events for the village, but this one was going to have much of the typical merrymaking overshadowed by the realities of politics. “That should work out well. Though we do have a few other problems that have arisen. After speaking with some of the griffons that I trust, we are hoping to take some actions against them during the festival as well.” Gunther raised an eyebrow at that. “From the looks of things, I’d say that things are going pretty well here. After all, looking over there I can see a few new houses that certainly weren’t there when we left. What are the problems that you are talking about?” Indeed on the surface, the progress that our village has made was rather impressive. The amount of new houses being built so quickly was astoundingly impressive when all you had to work with was basic hand tools and determination. It made me puff my chest out with pride when I looked down at the new village. It was a shame some others didn’t seem to have our best interests in mind. I shook my head. “They aren’t exactly the kind of problems that you’d notice upon arrival, but I can bring you up to speed on the village’s latest news in the morning. At the moment, I’d like to hear a little bit more about your trip. Your party was looking a little bit worse for wear on your return there, and I’m curious as to why.” Gunther held his face in his claws, letting out a heavy sigh. “You wouldn't believe some of the things we had to deal with out there. They'd asked us to do some real strange stuff, and we ended up bouncing around between the villages trying to figure it out." The sun started to slink beneath the horizon for the night, and Gunther told me the tale of his adventures out in the woods.