“Tim, I’ve brought him.” Mandy told Tim over the comms the next day. “He’s here.” “Professor Marakovichi, I presume?” Tim said politely. “Pleasure to meet you. We were hoping to consult you on a little project in the Wildlands…” “What sort of project?” “We want to develop a society that doesn’t rely on magic.” Professor Marakovichi choked. *** While Tim was dragging the unsuspecting Marakovichi into the maelstrom of change that Remian and George were floundering in, Aren, Zana, Taj and Nadia were setting about expanding the Kara-Goth settlement all the way to the Amber Gorge and the Misty Mountains. Since they now enjoyed peace with the Wilds and the Spectres were beaten back, they figured they didn’t actually all need to squeeze into underground quarters any more and could quite feasibly spread towns all across Shadowflash Fief. In fact, Aren went so far as to consult Lockjaw and Bright to see whether they would allow human se

Remian soon learned that the reason why train parts were so expensive was that his ex-wife beat him to the punch. Jim explained it like this; “Tim called Mandy and Mandy called Marakovichi and now Ashdale is buying tons of stuff from Libertaria.” Also, “I’m pretty sure that Ashdale’s neighbors would soon discover what they’re up to, and will make moves to do the same. Libertaria knows that too, and fully expect demand to rise accordingly.” At this point, the countries of the world had four options to deal with the present crisis. First, do nothing and descend into anarchy. Second, revert to the iron age or thereabouts and settle for a life without modern amenities. Third, buy mana from the Dragon Empire, which was really expensive and would usually only be feasible if you were willing to either become a vassal of the Dragon Empire in exchange for your crystal supply or join the Dragon Empire outright. Fourth, they could race to adapt to steam-engine technology. This was best achie

Twenty thousand people. In the three weeks since Remian returned to the Wildlands, the population of Kara-Goth more than quadrupled. Construction was underway for major mining towns, Remian’s Craggy Falls, Tim’s Nightshare Farm and Song Chen’s Great Docks, but until they were ready, the masses crowded Kara-Goth and the Encles settlement. Campsites spread around the hills in every direction. Massive amounts of food had to be imported from Three Pines despite the Farms’ best efforts. Darian had a hand in helping with that, having elephant-sized fish brought over from Dragon Lake daily. The new immigrants were given nothing for free. They were given work, and accordingly were paid generously in order to keep up with the sudden spike in food prices. The highest paying jobs were to be found in Sabriane’s hospital, where the need for healing magic and medical skills were at an all-time high. Roads leading from Kara-Goth to the Amber Gorge mining towns sprouted up w

In a fortified command post in the middle of the Paleres/Desert border, the Black General, General Bakar himself, received reports of the incoming forces from Fal’Herim. “How dare they invade us! This is an unprovoked attack, without declaration of war!” Bakar fumed. “Yeah! Just like we did them!” Aide Ali exclaimed. WHACK! General Bakar smacked Ali over the head with his four star General’s hat. “We should announce it to the international community! The Brotherhood of Six shall know of this!” Ali cheered. “Yeah! Cuz everyone’s doing the same thing!” WHACK! General Bakar smacked Ali over the head with his white gloves. “Prepare the artillery! We’re going to pound these desert-rats into the dirt!” “Except… you know… the desert don’t have no dirt. There’s only sand…” WHACK! “You wanna give the orders?!” General Bakar said threateningly. “Yes, sir!” Aide Ali leapt up. “Sound the alarm! All civilians

That same day, two months after the Sealing of the Rift, Mindy completed her shipments of Wasp A’s to Ashdale, fully earning her 60 million lir. Some of them looked rather worn due to ‘extensive quality testing’, but due to speedy delivery, Commander James Eddings decided to accept them anyway. “We need them, and we need them now.” “How come? I thought the World War was over.” Mindy blinked. “So did I. Tell that to the raiders showing up on our shores.” “Raiders? Where are they from?” “Where are they NOT from? We’re getting raids from all sides! Even the Wilds are trying to cross the channel to take a bite out of us!” As Mindy concluded her deals with Ashdale, Remian and Phoebe watched from the side. “You look proud.” Phoebe mentioned, seeing Remian’s expression. “I am proud. Of her.” Remian admitted it freely. “She’s come a long way. I hear she was just a scared orphan waitress hiding in a tavern, too afraid to