Julina of Blackstone - 023 - Borderline

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Julina starts her involvement with the evening very early on – and what an involvement!

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Julina of Blackstone
Her Chronicles

by Julia Phillips

023 - Borderline


Disclaimer:

The original characters and plot of this story are the property of the author. No infringement of pre-existing copyright is intended.
This story is copyright © 2013 - 2020 Julia Phillips. All rights reserved.

It uses some of the associated characters and situations that arise from the world called ‘Anmar’ created by Penny Lane, whose stories
are also copyright © 2010 - 2020 Penny Lane. All rights reserved.


Julina of Blackstone
Her Chronicles
023 – Borderline

Another day, another start, another frayen-riding visitor before we had finished our breakfasts, with another problem that required hasty discussion.

But this time, the gentleman caller was for Papa, not for me.

And we all scrabbled round, making ourselves tidy and giggling with embarrassment at our varying states of undress. And clearing space for the men to sit and discuss and so on.

At least at first.

“Your Honour, Captain. Welcome to our humble abode.”

“Master Kordulen, Mistresses Swayga, Julina and Kordulet, girls and boys. I humbly apologise for disturbing your household so early, but I find I have need of Master Kordulen's expertise and that I must have the knowledge before our major Assembly meeting tonight. I have taken the liberty of summoning Masters Bezan, Fedren and Yarling as well. I find I must request some things from you. We will need some table surface, and perhaps Mistress Julina, knowing your abilities, I could prevail upon you to make some notes of our discussions. I have brought a parcel of that paper with me and some reedlets, in case you have none handy. Naturally, I would have summoned Master Jepp but he is down to the Forest Roadhouse on another matter for me.”

“Of course, Your Honour. I must get dressed, if it pleases you, before the others arrive.”

“Thank you Mistress Julina.”

A small silence fell just then, broken only by a slight gurgle from the Steward's tummy and the rustle of my clothes as I walked away.

“Your Honour,” said Swayga, “perhaps you have not yet had the time to break your fast? If you are here for a discussion, then perhaps some space next to you might be found for a platter and a mug? We have some porridge, some cold cuts, cheese, bread, eggs. And I dare say you might appreciate some pel? How may I serve you?”

“Mistress Swayga! That would be a life-saver. Please don't go all mad and try to present everything with a flourish, a simple mug of pel and maybe some bread and cheese or whatever you have already to hand?”

Kords was already headed to the kitchen before he had finished speaking and Swayga bobbed a little curtsey before rounding up the others and ushering them away. She led them to their rooms and then she went to check on Kords getting the refreshments before returning to chivvy the children into making themselves more presentable.

I hopped smartly to my room and found my dress. I cursed my hair for being particularly awkward today, and was silently shouting at it, if you understand what I mean, when Kords rushed in and helped me without asking. She is a very thoughtful young lady – at times.

We chatted quickly, both of us wondering what on Anmar could have caused this minor chaos. But we knew well enough to leave it to be explained, recognising a moment when patience would bring us our answers. Kords also told me that she would help take notes, for which I was astonished to find myself extremely grateful. Two minds to recall the events for the final report would be an advantage, as I suddenly discovered myself to be surprisingly nervous about doing something new; and it being so very official – a job for the very highest person in our immediate lands. I then helped her tidy her hair quickly and she slipped into her dress before going off to finish the pel for everyone.

I heard another two animals arrive, the riders talking to each other as they approached: so their voices told me it was Master Bezan and Master Fedren. The third arrival came up shortly afterwards, just as I finally twitched my dress into place and pushed my feet into my slippers.

Soon the five men, Kords and I were seated round our dining table, the pot of pel in the middle, and a pile of paper in front of us. The bread and cheese for His Honour had disappeared in a trice and Julu whisked the empty plate away, blushing as the Captain thanked her nicely. Meanwhile Kissa enquired if any of the others required something to eat; however, they all indicated a negative to food, but were happy to have some pel.

Swayga then ushered all the rest of the family away into the depths of the house, making it clear they were to be as still and quiet as possible. This then left the meeting free to get under way with an introductory speech from His Honour.

“Masters all, Mistresses Julina and Kordulet. I must thank Master Kordulen for allowing us to invade his privacy and I thank you all for attending at such short notice. The urgency will make itself clear as I report the relevant events, and we need to be as informed as possible to make some decisions tonight at the Assembly meeting.

“I received from the shuttle last evening an official document from His Grace, Lord Gilbanar. I must briefly take a moment or two to praise the efficiency of the Valley Messenger Service. It was sent as a 'fast' delivery rather than as an 'urgent' one, and also as a 'no immediate reply required'. So the Valley Messenger Service rider caught up with the shuttle just at the top of the incline, by the Strettalm bend and handed it over to the driver there. Naturally he knew the shuttles are licensed to carry. He had left Tranidor, near where he had overnighted, that dawn. The message was despatched from Dekarran at noon and they got it to just north of Teldor that night, then up to near Tranidor the next night. He tried to get to the Forest Roadhouse before the shuttle departed but just missed the noon deadline. A valiant effort indeed. So I repeat: praise to the Valley Messenger Service for efficiency. Part of my mind wonders what they would have done had it been an 'urgent' delivery.

“Now circumstances constrained such that I only read the despatch this morning. I had been out last night and the message was left with Master Mesulkin, who handed it to me when we met first thing. It gave me some degree of urgency this morning, I can tell you.”

He paused and looked around. Every single one of us was waiting with bated breath to discover what the message might have been.

“Our Baroness, you will recall, left us eleven nights hence. She, the Prince and their party managed to reach Dekarran after some several delays on the road; they were delays of a political nature I hasten to add, it's not that there were any more attacks or anything like that! Lord Trosanar of Tranidor was 'invited' to accompany the party and this all resulted in a very important discussion or two down there in the Duke's castle, between the Duke and his vassals, Lady Garia and Lord Trosanar. These discussions resulted in some changes for all of us, all the way up here in the farthest reaches of the kingdom.”

He took from one of his pockets a much-folded piece of sturdy parchment. He dropped the item onto the table with a certain flourish and I, along with all the others, strained to read the hand-written words at the bottom. There were only two words, but my head was at the wrong angle to make them out clearly. However, it mattered not at which angle my head was to determine what the document was all about, since the basic premise was absolutely plain. It was obviously a hastily-drawn copy of a part of a map.

It was Master Bezan who was the first to hiss his breath in and say: “Maker!”

Master Yarling took away my confusion by saying: “New borders.”

This was the trigger that made it suddenly became clear to me.

Duke Gilbanar has handed over more land to Mylady.

And the direct result of that was that it meant that Captain Bleskin was suddenly responsible for a larger area – a much larger area it would appear, but this was beyond my capabilities and I had to leave it to the men to pick the information out of it.

I include at this point a copy of the map fragment that had been sent all the way up to us from Dekarran, for you to refer to …

Border changes.jpg

There was more silence as the men studied the fragment and then sat back in their chairs to think through the foreseeable results of such a change.

The Captain allowed a good while for their thoughts to be gathered as I just sat back, not having anything at all to contribute – this was, I repeat, all far beyond my range of capabilities.

“There is more!” added the Steward suddenly. “The east / north-eastern border of House Blackstone lands is now along the Chaarn Road up to the crest of the first pass which is roughly where we see the Chaarn road stop on this map. All this means we now have a hand or thereabouts of roadhouses under our control and some extra roads to be maintained. Hence Master Kordulen's involvement here. We have gained some fertile farmland with this so maybe we have some increased food supplies. We have control of the entire forests down to this new border here on the west bank and this new border on the east bank here,” he tapped the map for emphasis, “so that might make finding the wood for our expansion up here in town a little easier, but I would remind you that Mylady is adamant that any trees felled must be replanted to sustain adequate growth in the future. These are just my first thoughts at this moment. Gentlemen, the floor is open to you and your initial thoughts.”

I could feel Kords tense up just as my own nervousness increased; we poised our reedlets ready to note down what was said …

There was silence.

It was obvious that each man was thinking furiously. And Captain Bleskin was wise enough not to fill the silence. He himself was thinking hard.

Kords and I glanced at each other and giggled. We replaced our reedlets onto the table, knowing the wax doesn't like being gripped in hot hands and fingers. It suddenly occurred to me that we might have a problem, so I leant into Kords and whispered into her ear: “I'll note what the Steward says, and what Papa and Fedren say, you take the other two. OK?” She nodded in acceptance.

When the men began to speak, then it was both of Kords' candidates, so we hastily changed our agreement and made it alternate speakers. Somehow, this impromptu method enabled us to muddle through with making the notes of the discussions.

“There are more and more topics affected each heartbeat I think on it.”

“I agree, Master Bezan. I can see my miners being involved again with matters other than digging out coal. I shall have to go and survey the route up to the crest on the Chaarn road I suppose, to see if there are easier workings for coal extraction along there. Mylady had already requested me to do a survey of the Chaarn road for some distance, in case some arrangement needed to be made with whoever, probably Vardenale, but whoever it is who might control the lands to the east of the Chaarn road. Previously, Mylady's demesne was restricted to this area up here, but now it extends so much more, I must investigate all possibilities so swiftly as I can.”

“Aye Yarling, Happen so. And I shall have marks more of roads and their sides to inspect and maintain. I can see I shall require additional staff. There will be accommodation to pay for unless I can recruit from down there.”

“As you say, Kordulen. And shall I have responsibility for peace-keeping over all that area, Your Honour?”

“It seems so, Sheriff. But they must have some system in place that works at the moment. I myself shall have to visit each community, and soon, and I need to discover Mylady's desires with regard to taxes and so on. So tonight, we shall require a plan of action. Which is why I want us all to think about it during the day, so we waste little time later. There is already a packed agenda and this will change priorities, I'm sure.”

“Hah!” said Master Bezan, almost bitterly. “It's not as if we have had to do that before, huh?”

There were some sympathetic chuckles from all around, before the Steward continued.

“This will also increase our expenditure considerably, so we will have to increase the coal production as soon as we can to pay for it all.”

Master Bezan groaned theatrically again. “It's a cycle. A vicious cycle. Increase coal production, so increase traffic, so increase roadbuilding, so increase housebuilding for the displaced ones, so increase water supplies, so increase the workforce, so increase coal production to pay for it and so on. I wonder I have any hairs left to tear out!”

“Gentlemen, if I may? Just for a moment? I believe I might have an idea here that could be of assistance.”

His Honour waved Papa forward.

“We require the income from the coal, thus this must be maximised as soon as practice can make it so. One major problem we have that is restricting the quantities is the uphill part of the route, where the road to Tranidor starts climbing at a small bend and works its way up the flank of the valley to the junction with the Chaarn road. The coal wagons cannot be fully laden because of this climb.

“I have a solution to that but which would require some new infrastructure. Not much, but nevertheless some. I have been assured that my suggestion is practical. And I believe that it could be brought into life as early as next spring. I know all this since Master Bezan here asked to me to scout out a route that would negate the necessity for that uphill stretch.” He reached out to the map on the table.

“Here look, on this border map. Going up from the bottom and following the red road upwards, we see it climbs up the east flank of the Bray Valley just after passing the new border. Then comes the junction that leads to us – there, the slightly narrower red road.” His finger stabbed the map fragment showing us all where he meant. “The road descends from that junction, through the kink to the right, the kink to the left, across the river marked, and another lesser stream only faintly marked and reaches the final of the three kinks, this one to the right. Can you all see that?”

He waited until everyone round the table had nodded assent.

“From the road junction to that northernmost kink is something like seven or eight marks. It is 17 marks from the junction to the Forest Roadhouse, so you can all see this is slightly less than half that distance.

“Now that northernmost kink is the point at which the road ceases sloping down and starts sloping up again.”

A further thought was signalled by a flash across his features, so he turned to the Captain directly. “Er, Your Honour – I could spend a few moments reporting in more detail this point here or I could just give you an overview? I feel maybe that it will prove better down the line if we all have some of the detail now, so that time can be gained in this evening's meeting? The information will make clear just how I know these things and will explain my conclusion.”

“Very well. Let us have the depth now – but maybe as shallow as possible?” he finished with a friendly grin.

“Thank you, Captain. The key to what I wish to explain is that northernmost kink. There is a forester's track that runs almost straight down to the river there. If you look closely at this map, you might make out a second stream north of the main stream, this main stream as I have termed it is the one which comes down from the Chaarn Road pass. Let me tell you what I did when I went down there scouting. I followed that forester's track and as I got near the river Bray, I came across a narrow, quite steep-sided canyon. I was on its north bank of course.

“The canyon I emphasise is not that wide – too wide for a man to leap, but really not much more than that. The major problem I came across is that the south bank of this canyon is in fact the side of a small peak. I followed the canyon all the way down to the river itself, a further cast or two but the steep side across the stream showed no sign of diminishing. There is a cliff that finishes that peak, and that cliff drops vertically down to the river some hand of strides below. It was impossible for me to see what was further downstream along this bank of the river.

“I tried going back upstream of the river Bray to see if that afforded a better view but it didn't. I made a note of noticeable signs and markings on both sides of the river and headed back to the main road. I wanted to cross that stream and then go back to the river's edge, following the south bank this time. Which is what I attempted to do. But all I achieved was to come across the back of the peak. I could not pass to the north side of the peak as I had suspected. The flank of the peak falls directly into the canyon. I therefore followed the foot so to speak of the peak in the other direction, leaving the stream and canyon behind me, thus working my way downvalley. A little further on, I came across a second stream, almost a river in itself. This was much bigger than the first, and far faster flowing. This too was in a steeply-edged canyon, and once again I was on the north bank. I followed this downstream as far as I could, but again did not reach the river, the blocking peak preventing me just as it had done on the other, upvalley, side. So again I had to turn back, going this time upstream along this second cross-river. I followed it, as near as I could in the thickness of the forest, back up to the main road. There was little difficulty in the ground and the canyon-like nature of this river route shallowed gradually out. It was just the trees that made passage awkward. Once I gained the main road again, I realised that in fact this second cross-river is the very river that flows down the pass that the Chaarn road follows. It is plainly visible on this map.”

Again he tapped the parchment on the table.

“I crossed this large stream using the main road, and again followed the river/stream towards the Bray river, this time of course on its south bank; the canyon developed steeper and steeper sides as it neared the main river. This time, however, I made it all the way down to the Bray. The peak was blocking my view upstream, of course.

“I looked around to see if there was anything that would enable me to judge the distance to the other side of the blocking peak. Imagine how much I was astounded to see a tree across the river that had a particular scar where the bark had peeled away. I had last seen that tree when I went down to the river at my very first attempt, following the waters of the first cross-stream, on the upvalley side.

“As a result, I estimate that the two canyons reach the river only a cast or so apart, which in turn means that the peak is quite narrow as it reaches the river. Both canyons are easily bridged distance-wise, but these two bridges are separated by at the most one and a half or two casts of sheer rock. I suppose that a way could be constructed around the point of the peak, on some sort of gallery, but then it would not be a gentle curve as my task was described. It occurred to me that maybe a tunnel could be bored through there, but there would be a difficulty finding a starting platform for such a thing. I would require some mining expert to confirm my feelings. It must be feasible. Maybe the nose of the triangle of the peak could be sliced off, so to speak. This would allow an almost straight stretch of road, thus fulfilling the terms of my brief.

“The rest of the way downvalley from there is simplicity itself to construct a roadway of gentle slope which could in fact rejoin the main road almost opposite the fifth roadhouse after the junction, as you descend, of course. There are far fewer trees in comparative fact downslope from the junction itself, although it is still a forest. To have a completely gentle slope from the start point I suggested to rejoin the main road below the junction, I would estimate could take up to fifteen marks depending upon how soon you might want to regain the existing road. Master Bezan did suggest maybe a single direction system so that laden wagons descending are the only ones to use the new road, upvalley traffic could use the existing road.

“However, that I feel is probably some years away. There is another possibility, which seems to me to offer some rapid advantages.”

He paused and took a sip of pel. Bezan and Yarling nodded to each other, having heard this already, at this very table, while the rest listened eagerly, if that's possible.

“There is only at most three casts of dense forest from which to hack out a passage. The forester's track would also need widening, but of course there is space there already between the trees. At most a single mark of new road, maybe a mark and a half, but I doubt it is so much. We could thus have a functioning road down to the very water's edge. And transship the coal to a barge.”

He sat back with a certain amount of pride.

“A barge, Master? But we would then need to negotiate with barge companies and so on, not to mention other landholders nearby. I don't see that as being conducted in any degree of haste.” He must have seen the look on Papa's face, because he continued queryingly: “Do we have any experience with barges?”

“Actually, Captain, we do.”

Suddenly, our Steward sat up straighter.

Papa continued: “My brother-in-law-to-be, that's the brother of Swayga, works down at the Forest Roadhouse. He used to work for a barge company before coming upvalley. His name is Steef and he is second-in-charge of the Roadhouse. Swayga might be able to give you more details, but Steef was one of the bosses of that barge company until it was squeezed out of existence, some say by Lord Trosanar down to Tranidor.”

“Yes, I have been informed of the thinking of Lord Trosanar. I am also reliably informed further that that thinking has changed and barges could now be a viable option. I must arrange to meet this Steef at the earliest opportunity. Now, Master Kordulen, you are the only man here that can tell us … what DISadvantages of this proposal do you see?”

He shook his head as he answered: “Your Honour, there is even a rocky ledge down there that is almost a ready-made wharf. The only disadvantage I can see is I have no knowledge of water levels during the rains. All the rest is eminently doable. The tree-felling is relatively minor, and would provide needed wood for the expansion here. And it could be brought into action by spring, if not earlier, given an easy winter. Maybe one other awkwardness is that there is no life down there and the workers would have little civilisation at first.”

“Thank you, Master. Your information is excellent, and it was wise to go to that level of detail. Do any of you others have any questions of Master Kordulen?”

They all shook their heads and the Steward took over once more.

“So we have a relatively easy option to increase the flow of coal departing our lands, using the increased lands Mylady has been granted. Let me now ask each individually of the difficulties you foresee in each of your areas of expertise. Fedren, you start.”

The Sheriff simply reported that he was already stretched just dealing with events in the town. If the greatly enlarged Barony were also to be included in his brief, then he needed to recruit aggressively and rapidly. But maybe first he would need to travel downvalley and ask the people down there how it functions at present. He should also establish some contact with his counterpart in Tranidor, but that would have to be done once he had sufficient staff here to cover his absence.

Yarling followed and made a good point when he said that if coal was to be found in the Chaarn Road Pass area, then it would likely be far easier to transport it out of there and that Blackstone's development would as a consequence be able to be cut back.

Bezan finished the session by saying that Yarling's point was perhaps the most fundamental, and should be pursued as soon as possible. Thinking of the logistics, he felt that maybe a small village should be built down there, which would address Papa's point about the loneliness of the workers and also maybe assist Fedren by having somewhere to base some of his staff. He wondered if maybe the Steward should like to base himself down there. More in the middle of his responsibilities rather than have so far to travel from the uttermost end.

“I understand the logic behind your suggestion, but that might be something I'd consider in a few years. At the moment most activities will be here – unless Yarling finds something of value. Maybe then we would have to consider moving the baronial seat.”

He thought for a moment or two – but I confess it seemed a lot longer.

“Right then. Yarling and Kordulen, can you both together go down and investigate the coal possibilities of the Chaarn Road Pass, if it pleases? You can also establish an initial contact with the roadhouses that are now ours. Then Kordulen, you can show Yarling your wharf/tunnel/gallery area and get his opinion of the rocks around there. It's around 40 marks to the junction from here, so you could get down there in a little over half a day on frayen, it being downhill all the way! If you start tomorrow early, then you could be at one of the resthouses, settle in and do a little investigation in the late afternoon. You could then spend the morning doing some more and pass on to another of the roadhouses for that night. Work your way back to the two canyon area and have the third night in the Forest Roadhouse. That way you could be back here by noon of the fourth day. I don't see you can do it any quicker, unless you don't visit the roadhouses and simply camp out.”

Again there was a silence as each man tried to think of anything else relevant.

“Right then. Keep this in mind for this evening's meeting and off you go about your normal business. Sheriff, you may inform that ruffian in your cell that his trial will be on the morrow at the sixth bell. I have too much to do today and it will do him good to sit and stew for a while. I want this to be a public trial so I will ask Mistress Sukhana if we can use her courtyard again. Master Jepp informed me of the details after Mylady and His Highness told me what had taken place. I deem many women will want to be present, and I want to be sure that they see justice is done. They will be less complaining if they see that we care. It may be of great benefit to us.”

He stood up.

“Master Kordulen, we thank you both for your hospitality and your neat possible solution. We also thank your two valuable daughters here, who have done such a good job as makeshift scribes. Please convey our thanks to Mistress Swayga and also to your other children for keeping this meeting interruption free. Gentleman, I shall see you all this evening – and no doubt your good self too Mistress Julina. It would appear I have many letters to write and others to see. If I rush, maybe I have time to get to the Forest Roadhouse and back. Steef I believe you said the name was. Or maybe I should send for him. That would probably be best. Otherwise I have to rearrange too many other meetings. I'm sorry, I was thinking aloud. I must away.”

With that, he swept up his hat and strode to the door before hurriedly mounting his animal and moving smartly off.

The other men followed, after generous thanks. They also went quite swiftly and suddenly we who remained were left alone, breathing quite rapidly it seemed.

What a whirlwind of a way to start the day.

… … …

The levelling teams were back to their usual positions now that the work had been done on East Street. Perhaps that's not quite accurate. They were now concentrating on the Loop Road, working their way round the valley head and angling down in a great gentle arc towards the new bridge. Already the Loop Road had been extended from the last place I had seen it, although the surfacing of the new road sections was noticeably absent.

I was fascinated both to see our town from the west side of the valley and to see the sights as we passed round the head of the valley on our morning ride to get there. We, Papa and I, had nearly been late after the 'emergency' of the morning but our companions were fascinated by our news, which of course we passed on as we rode up that way.

“Good for the Duke,” declared Sookie forcefully. “He is obviously very bright, and knows that Mylady will manage this well.”

“It seems so,” agreed Pomma as Papa and Parry rumbled noises of approval.

Our chats about the new lands were interrupted as we passed by the third quarry, the entrance to which was so far above our heads. There was a new contraption there which fascinated us all. Lumps (and dust!) of freshly mined coal were being carried down from the mine entrance to a waiting wagon at our road level by a long piece of cloth, it seemed to me. A few moments of study revealed how it worked, and, as always, the simple things give the most delight.

No less than three, one of them ancient, dranakh were harnessed to a turntable. To this turntable, a stout rope was attached. The rope we could see was a big loop going round some machinery at one end of this cloth thing that ascended the hill to the mine entrance, or descended the hill from the mine entrance laden with coal. We saw that the cloth was actually a giant loop of cloth, maybe a stride wide. When the coal reached the end of the cloth, it simply dropped off into the belly of the waiting wagon. The cloth went round a roller and was dragged back up to the top of the incline once more, this time not being laden of course as it went under the descending other half of the loop.

We rode nearer to the apparatus at the end and could then see that the machinery caused another wheel to turn and this wheel was attached somehow to something that at first we could not see clearly. But we could see that it was this something that drove the cloth bit which was loaded with coal, carried on rollers that rotated. When we got even nearer we could see a complicated arrangement of gears that was providing the driving force. The coal simply fell off the end of the cloth into the wagon's belly. The piece of cloth it had been travelling on looped down over a roller before travelling back up to the top again, underneath the loaded portion of cloth.

As we rode on past, we discussed what it might be called and we all decided that the name 'continuous carpet' was our favourite.

We rode on to the point where a track joined ours as it descended from an acute angle to our right. Papa told us this was the track that led up to the Stone Sea, as Sookie nodded her agreement, and added there would not be time to go all the way to the Sea, but maybe to what they called the 'false ridge'. Of course, everyone else wanted to go up there, but I knew I had not the time – I had a meal to prepare for about twenty people! Papa agreed to accompany me back and let the others return at their own pace. We said goodbye to the other three, agreeing – of course – to meet for another ride on the morrow. We retraced our way and again marvelled at the continuous carpet.

As we got next to the Miners' Village, there was some sort of ceremony or celebration going on. So of course we had to slow and observe. We could see the water channels sloping down through the three levels, but what was interesting was that these channels were covered only until about half-way down. As we watched, there was a cheer and we could see water cascade down the channels on the extreme left. Enquiring of a worker nearby, we learnt that the lowest level of all, where there were six sheds evenly spaced round the edge of the lowest semi-circle, was the level for the privies.

Here is a quick description, as given in an earlier tale:

There were three levels prepared, each a half circle. The levels were joined to each other by two wide ramps that cut the half circles into three equal areas. These ramps were just wide enough for a wagon. The upper level was about thirty strides from one side to the other. The next level was two strides lower, I could judge that fairly accurately by seeing the height of one of the wagons being used down there compared to the upper surface. This level was about a cast wide as its circle was that much greater than the one above. The third level I guessed to be much the same, two strides lower and a cast or so wider. There was a final level that was NOT a half circle – instead a number of simple circles all of their own.

My memory says that I counted a hand of the privies before, but six makes much more sense, two for each third.

The celebrations were that now the left-hand segment (as we looked from the main road) was fully integrated with a water supply. The workman laughed wryly as he added: “Without a lid on the waste channel, the smell might be quite strong!”

“Why are there no covers all the way on the channels?”

“Oh, the stone required has been allocated to another project that came up, the new street over to the east of the town. We have run out of cut stone it appears and that new street doesn't have enough to surface it either, so we end up with two projects not completed. This place is a shambles.”

We took our leave and rode back down to the Claw where we left the animals, before scampering up the slope to home. I changed swiftly, and then Papa and I loaded our arms with various buckets, carry bags and containers and went down to M's.

I got to the kitchen half a bell before I had arranged to be there and started checking that the ovens were hot and so on. Kassama and Haka had done marvels, the kitchens were clean, the ovens were indeed hot and the water tank was filled, as well as several cooking pans. I thanked Papa and waved him away, knowing that I would be here for many bells now. Papa was to be included in the evening's meeting, so he could escort me home afterwards.

Tonight, I would be cooking for 22 people, 7 of whom would not be in the dining room. Which thought made me want to do another check before I got started in earnest.

I quickly went to the dining room and tables had been grouped together to make one large one. I counted quickly and there would be space indeed for 15 diners. Gyth and Kelly were going to be the ones to serve the diners, so they could do the table setting. Michet would supervise. I had to learn to let others do things and not control them myself. I think that turned out to be my most awkward job of all!

Back to the kitchen, then. There were three ganifilis to be done first. I would make some more stock and some more soup from these, then cook them as the back-up dishes in case anything went wrong. I slipped an apron over my head, and got started after moving the tank of fish out of the way of my chosen place, where the most light spilled onto the work-surface.

… … …

The meal was a success.

I shouldn't boast, but it really was a success and everyone was delighted. I could tell this wasn't simply a formal nice polite saying – it was a genuine expression of delight.

I reacted as you will have expected – I blushed at the lavish praise, but I did make sure that Molly got her share of praise too.

And the whole evening was also a very valuable exercise for the five of us most closely involved with the organisation of the Salon.

Yes, there were things that didn't go right. A simple accident meant that two of the main dishes were dropped on the floor as they were being carried to be served. They had to be thrown away. We learnt from that that we must always have a spare dish or two on the side, just in case. This evening we had seven people to feed who were not in the dining room, so it was simple to slip two of those plates in, with time to remake two more in the privacy of the kitchens.

A few things went wrong in the kitchen, a few in the dining room. All very valuable lessons indeed and so, as far as we were concerned, the evening was a huge success. The Foti dish was a complete surprise to those not in the know, and the Captain was delighted, Kelly said. And everyone declared that the food we served was delicious.

A certain amount of Assembly business had been conducted whilst they ate, the girls informing me that they were minor topics, but still necessary for the overall running of the town. The major topics had been left until after the meal was out of the way, mainly because, Papa told me later, the Captain wanted me to be there in case any questions arose about the notes of the morning's meeting.

That part of the evening started at around the half bell announcement after the second bell. It was heralded by the four of us girls being called into the dining room where, as I mentioned, we were all embarrassed by the lavish praise. The Steward then apologised to the three others that he had a need for me to be in the room for the next topics to be discussed and would thus have to leave the clear-up to the others just this once. He announced that an entire Solly would be donated by the Assembly to be shared amongst us as a thank you for what we had done. We were amazed – that was a whole hand of feniks for each of us! We stuttered our shocked thanks, and then the girls left to clear up. Michen went with them to help after escorting Master Morden to his sitting room, where he apparently fell asleep almost as he was sitting down into the chair. Kassama was just finishing her meal in the kitchen as the others trooped back in, followed by “The Boss”, who was grinning with delight that his/her Salon was a success.

… … …

“… and so Masters, and Mistresses Lendra and Julina, there is now a MUCH larger area to administer. Master Yarling, accompanied by Master Kordulen, will travel down to the junction and from there up the Chaarn Road to the pass to see if there are any easier-mined coal seams. If so, then the development here in town may be put off, at least for a while. So their report is crucial as to how we proceed. They will depart tomorrow morn, early, and I would expect them back by dusk of the fourth day after that. So on the fifth morning, we shall all reconvene here at the second bell – Master Michen has agreed that we may use this room as our Assembly room until the Community Hall is built.

“With the increased size of the lands, there will come a time when we need to raise a few more guards and they will need to be trained. And not just for guard duties. Forgive me, that is the years I have had at the Palace talking. There is not much here to guard and the men we will need to recruit are hardly likely to need to be as proficient with weapons as real guards are. If any invaders get here, then the professionals downvalley will have been defeated already. However, men will be required for a variety of duties. Communications, controlling, expediting. I don't know what to call them really. Militia maybe. There is a military aspect to the requirement. Even now, we require staff for the semaphore system, and this I feel should not be a burden to the Sheriff in HIS duties. Maybe, it would be sensible if the Valley Messenger Service were to take over those semaphore duties, after all it IS about getting messages about the place.

“The Sheriff himself will require to recruit some more staff and a recent development means that we shall have to have some females working for him as well. Quite how the differing duties can be resolved between the Sheriff's department and a more military department is a matter for further discussions, maybe not this evening – in fact almost certainly NOT this evening. We have a lot of detail to get through, and we must not clutter up the time we have.

“What is absolutely clear and obvious is that I myself cannot devote all my time solely to the guard , sorry, militia that will have to be here; I have a host of other duties to perform. As a result, I therefore have an urgent need of someone to whom I can delegate these more military tasks. That person would have to be responsible to the Assembly and to my mind, it makes sense that he is also a member of the Assembly.

“Do any of you object to having someone in such a position? Please feel free to discuss this openly. As usual, if you have anything against, then I expect you to say so. I shall never, I hope, become a dictator. It is my duty to think ahead and prepare this now expanded Barony for the immense development that is envisaged and for the inevitable problems that will be brought along as a consequence. Our entire country is going to change within the younger generation's lifetime and indeed within some of ours.”

There was a general murmur of agreement and those seated at the table looked round at each other.

But no-one took up the Steward's offer to make a discussion of it.

So, with no gainsayers, the Captain continued: “I therefore officially propose that such a position is created and becomes a member of this council. All those in favour?”

Everyone raised their hand.

“I see I have no need to ask if anyone is against, nor if there are any abstentions.”

Everyone chuckled as the Steward gave Master Jepp time to record the events.

“Now, we need to find a candidate, or candidates, to fill that position. Does anyone have any suggestions? I have one in mind, but would be interested to see if any of you have any ideas.”

There was a general conversation at this point, with various names half-suggested and mostly rejected. But one name was suggested from various sides and they all sat back in their chairs and breathed the equivalent of “Of course” when they heard it.

I didn't know what to do, but just then the Steward said: “Excellent. Master Michen was my candidate too. Mistress Julina may I trouble you to go and fetch him? Thank you.”

I was in turmoil at this moment as I could foresee some difficulties ahead. Outside the room, I met Kassama and asked her where Michet was – she told me that she was using the toilet and would be out very soon. I told her that Master Michen was required in the Assembly room and she promised to send HIM in as quickly as he could get there.

I returned to the Salon and heard the Steward making the case: “... the details will need to be thrashed out, but as we are all here, and we all foresee that this may become a larger requirement in the future, then I see no reason to delay. As far as I am aware, we have no other decorated guardsmen in town, the Assembly room is now in his house, and he also has the time. He is the leader of the hunters. He is furthermore fully aware of the ideas and aims of our Baroness, and is still injured from the battle up in the Vale in which he distinguished himself, again. He has fought at her side, and he has discussed many things with her, and he has added ideas to the town and its development. Are there any gainsayers to or abstainers from this proposal? If so, please raise a hand now.”

There was silence for a full moment, and not a single hand was raised.

The Steward said: “So be it. Again, unanimous.”

At that moment, Master Michen came into the room. Master Brydas was the first to start clapping but none of the others was too far behind.

“Master Michen is therefore voted onto our Assembly with the rank of Quadrant and he can be our militia leader. Please remark it as so in the record, Master Scribe.” The Captain beamed, and turned to M as he said: “Welcome Quadrant Michen to our body. You now have full voting rights in our Council.”

M blushed very heavily and looked directly at me anguishedly before saying: “If it pleases you all, can we just hold back on that, I beg of you. I'm not at all sure I can accept that.”


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Comments

'Lovely cliffhanger you got there'

*In a gangsterish tone of voice*

'If ya don't behave it just might have an accident, see? Yeah! '

^_^

So, is Michet going to out herself? OTOH, that is an awful lot of responsibility to dump on somebody who is unprepared for it. Of course this would be a great leap for intersexed or transgendered kind if Michet can successfully transition and be on an assembly that is currently all men and be a military commander. I don't know even if these relatively socially liberal men will handle trans issues.

Besides, there is a business to run and that takes time! So how much would she earn doing that vs running the salon?

Also

Is this expansion going through the forest reserve area? There does not seem to be a mention of that in this chapter.

Blackstone lands expansion

Hi there GR,

the award of the lands was described in Penny's chapter, #98 or #99 it must be, since the battle was in #100.
Also, this chapter does give fairly hefty clues.

I would suggest that maybe you could have a quick look at the maps, particularly the Bray Valley Forests one, and then compare that with the map fragment shown in this chapter.

You can get to anywhere in this 'universe' via my Index ......

here is a link to that .........
http://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/fiction/48235/julina-blackston...

This chapter started the subject with:

“The east / north-eastern border of House Blackstone lands is now along the Chaarn Road up to the crest of the first pass which is roughly where we see the Chaarn road stop on this map. All this means we now have a hand or thereabouts of roadhouses under our control and some extra roads to be maintained. Hence Master Kordulen's involvement here. We have gained some fertile farmland with this so maybe we have some increased food supplies. We have control of the entire forests down to this new border here on the west bank and this new border on the east bank here,” he tapped the map for emphasis, “so that might make finding the wood for our expansion up here in town a little easier, but I would remind you that Mylady is adamant that any trees felled must be replanted to sustain adequate growth in the future.

Then another clue is:

“Here look, on this border map. Going up from the bottom and following the red road upwards, we see it climbs up the east flank of the Bray Valley just after passing the new border. Then comes the junction that leads to us – there, the slightly narrower red road.” His finger stabbed the map fragment showing us all where he meant. “The road descends from that junction, through the kink to the right, the kink to the left, across the river marked, and another lesser stream only faintly marked and reaches the final of the three kinks, this one to the right. Can you all see that?”

a further indicator is:

“From the road junction to that northernmost kink is something like seven or eight marks. It is 17 marks from the junction to the Forest Roadhouse, so you can all see this is slightly less than half that distance.

And then we have:

It's around 40 marks to the junction from here, so you could get down there in a little over half a day on frayen, it being downhill all the way! If you start tomorrow early, then you could be at one of the resthouses, settle in and do a little investigation in the late afternoon. You could then spend the morning doing some more and pass on to another of the roadhouses for that night. Work your way back to the two canyon area and have the third night in the Forest Roadhouse. That way you could be back here by noon of the fourth day. I don't see you can do it any quicker, unless you don't visit the roadhouses and simply camp out.

And also there was:

“……. and so Masters, and Mistresses Lendra and Julina, there is now a MUCH larger area to administer. Master Yarling, accompanied by Master Kordulen, will travel down to the junction and from there up the Chaarn Road to the pass to see if there are any easier-mined coal seams. If so, then the development here in town may be put off, at least for a while. So their report is crucial as to how we proceed. They will depart tomorrow morn, early, and I would expect them back by dusk of the fourth day after that.

Given these indicators, and the distance chart given in the Index mentioned above, I think there was a fair degree of definition as to the size of the granted lands. The next chapter also mentions a few more details.

All the best

Julia

Okay ...

Thing is they are already considering tree harvesting so am not clear if they know not to harvest from the preserve area. I will read it over.

Forest preservation

Hi again GR,

rereading all this, it appears to me that there might be a slight misunderstanding between our PoV.

When the party travelled up to Blackstone, they overnighted at an old ruined Chivan outpost near the small falls in the river (shown on the map). Garia mentioned that it would be a shame to spoil the beauty and that something like it should be preserved. Keren (I need to go and check the exact wording I guess) suggested that he could award her the lands so that it could be preserved. There was no absolute confirmation that this happened, and now it is rendered moot, since Garia now owns the entire swath of land. She can dictate which part or parts shall be a preservation area.

There has always (well, 'always' is relative) been the intention to build a railroad. It is not possible to do that without some tree-felling. Garia's preservation area(s) can be fitted in around the route of the railroad. A hint was given as to that route in this episode - mostly down the east flank of the valley, thus far away from the river and thus far away from the original wishful-thinking area that Garia first mentioned.

I hope this clears it up?

Cheers

J

Cliff Hanger

The scratch marks from all the cliff hangers around here are starting to obscure my screen.

DJ

Well Garia told everyone that

Well Garia told everyone that lots of big and small changes were coming; so it would seem this particular change is going to be one of the biggest in the "vale of Blackstone". Altho she is a woman, NONE of those attending the meeting can claim she doesn't know how to fight, win, or how to hold her own with any man around. As an old 60s song used to say "the times, they are a changing."

Agreed, great song!

Dating myself a bit as I was a wee babe when that was made. Bob Zimmerman Rocks! Erm, 'Folks'?

More perspectives on Dranakhs?

I don't know if this is the right story to voice this curiosity driven question but based on Penny's story I wonder at the nature of the bond between Dranakh and human. They clearly have a fairly high level of intelligence. Base of SEE they have about Chimp level intelligence at a guess. So what is the benefit they find with being with humans? Why do they find helping out humans by providing the heavy labors for them seem like a good thing to them? What happens to Dranakhs who get too old to work? Are Dranakhs ever used for food?

I for one would imagine that no Anmarian would be able to even think using them for food since there is a psychic nature to the bond apparently would preclude the Dranakh from finding out about it.

Dranakh

And hi again GR - how are you on this Easter Saturday?

Dranakh ---- now there's a subject.

You have asked a few questions in that comment and I can only answer one of them with certainty.
Way back in my #001 there was a brief passage that suggested strongly at Dranakh behaviour.

The most relevant passage was:

---- start of quote ----

Also as usual, Jeen appeared about half a bell before departure and backed into the traces and harness. It became something of a ritual, both of us appearing at the same time, and it delighted Jafferkin as his head would swivel to and fro to see which would reach him first. Somehow Jeen always contrived to make it an exact match.

And then something really unusual occurred on one of his trips. He arrived, I greeted him, he released Jeen and she wandered away, perfectly normal behaviour. Two days later, it was time for him to depart again.

Jeen appeared at the same time as I, but was not alone. Trailing in her wake was a younger dranakh. I am not able to speak dranakh and I do not understand animals generally, but Jeen somehow made it clear that both Jafferkin and I should allow the new dranakh to accept our arms in his (yes, it was a young male) mouth. We looked at each other with wonder and then performed the ritual. But still Jeen wanted something and we were at a loss to understand what, until a thought seemed to flash across my mind.

“Jaffy, she wants us to name him!”

“You, Mistress,” grunted Jafferkin as his eyes widened in surprised comprehension.

I knew it had to be a ‘J’ to go with the two of them, so I thought swiftly.

“Jonile?” but Jeen indicated a negative.

“Jordile?” This was again met with a no but one that verged on a maybe. And then something else sprang into my mind.

“Josten!” No question this time and Jeen indicated that she was satisfied. She bleated with the youngster who watched intently as she backed into the harness, then they squeaked a bit and Josten wandered off towards where I knew the dam was.

Jafferkin and I looked at each other in amazement and awe. It was exactly the right moment to have a little hug, of which Jeen indicated her approval. This was the first and last ever physical contact I had with Jafferkin. And then J and J departed.

Maybe it will come as no surprise when I relate that next time Jafferkin was in town and it was time to go, both Josten and Jeen appeared. This time however, it was Josten who backed in and Jeen who remained to one side; she bleated a bit before looking at me meaningfully – and then wandered off damwards.

For the next few years, whenever I needed to move something large and/or heavy, then Jeen appeared to assist. She also never failed to come to see J and J whenever it was time for them to go.

Until one day she didn’t.

It was a strangely moving moment that even Josten seemed to join in. But of course, that’s the final part of the cycle of life, and we had all known that someday it would happen. I dried my tears as I watched the pair head off downhill, Jafferkin apparently had a small insect in his eye which needed clearing out.

---- end of quote ----

And so we broach the questions of the broader picture you have posed.

Short answer: I don't know.

Dranakh are a Penny invention.

Somewhere, a memory tells me, SEE describes dranakh as having four legs, which makes me tend towards the belief that they are also transferees. Something tickles my brain that 'native' anmarians have six legs. Please note, I am quite prepared to be wrong about this.

Another little brain tweak I have is actually from Penny's story and the way that I have learnt to interpret various things that crop up. The event with Beth after the battle - Beth was despatched by Garia to carry a warning to South Slip - and the other dranakh looked on in amazement. This makes me tend to believe that there is more to come about dranakh. I am merely cluctching at straws here, but feel I am right.

As you may well be aware, or maybe suspect, I pass my tales through Penny to make sure that I don't break any rules in her construct. It would be unreasonable though to expect Penny to have total recall of MY constructs. Once, many many months ago she requested that I did not make a dranakh do a certain thing. I have only just recalled that, so I suspect that our Universe Mistress has more information about the animals than we have so far been privy to. Maybe she will expand in the future. Such indicators suggest to me that she will, but I have been proved wrong in my feelings more often than I have been proved right.

So my advice is to simply wait and see. I FEEL that maybe we will be presented with an explanation, but that is not something that I can in any way guarantee.

Bye for now

J