Chapter 13

With a lot of work, we passed some used construction machinery through the gates. The first was a grader that was too big. It had to be then partially disassembled them reassembled. This was much easier than before. A small dozer came along with a tanker truck for fuel. Our roads would be better now.

The time for the trip back to Shreff finally arrived. Woodland was almost shut down and the gates hidden under steel in case the city was attacked and taken in our absence. We had a convoy of twenty two trucks. We mainly carried agricultural equipment and some seed I wanted to try. There were now culverts in the damper areas and we didn't need the winch at all. Though we didn't expect a fight, we put out the drones just in case.

The trip only took a day. The roads were still bad but a lot better than before. The fort had grown in our absence and the tent camp was gone. Artlam, Jonna, Bulla and a very gravid Lomma were in the front to greet me. I had missed the girl that carried my child and now I didn't want her far from me.

Artlam said, "You have quite a procession, my King."

Artlam and I had talked about this and he told me how he had to follow customs or there would be anarchy. "Only just enough to start farming."

"We cleared the land and those marvellous machines have begun to make ditches and remove hills. Your people are simply amazing."

"These are your people too and I think they are marvellous too. Tell me what you've done?"

We sent messengers all the time and some of this was for the ears that were trying hard to overhear us. "Six of your cities have agreed to your terms. A seventh wants to see you before they go to their knees. They're following your laws though."

"What city?"

"The capital, Limka."

"Any of Willas family giving us problems?"

"The Habstner tend to be thorough when they settled the city. There are no close family left."

I didn't like this but it did make it easier for me. "Any reports of any more incursions?"

"None, my King. The ones that made it back must have been very descriptive in how they were routed. Now that you are here, I expect envoys to be coming soon."

"I think that it's likely too and I figure that they may try to remove me."

"I, too, have considered that. On another topic, we have made two 'honeywagons'. Our streets are much cleaner." This had been collected before to produce nitrates that were used in gunpowder. Now the edicts were enforced so it was easier to keep the city safe from disease."

"Let's go in. I would like to see the city."

"Yes, my King."

The trucks stayed behind with Lauren and Tiffany in the other armoured vehicle. There was lots of work to do still and we couldn't waste it on useless processions.

The gates had been enlarged and we were able to drive through and down a wider route to the school. There were people everywhere and they looked happy to see me. Jonna told me that they didn't do this for any other king that she had ever heard of.

The area devoted to the school building had grown significantly. Artlam showed me a drawing of the facade of the school and it looked like what was found on one of the DVDs we left here. It was also good to see a lot of children working on the site of what would one day be their school. Those same children were now fed and off the streets without the word welfare being used at all.

I suggested that my home not be started. Artlam didn't mind me as a guest and I could look around first before getting a home built. This was not a time of leisure though. There were lots of meetings to attend to. The former Habstner citizens and army were all loyal citizens of Mendab. This, I knew, wouldn't make them sweet and agreeable. The business community wanted to get around some laws that were instituted to make the city safer and more profitable in coming years. They couldn't see beyond their immediate gain.

People were already here looking for compensation for war damages. Willas would have had them hung. Everybody figured I had untold tonnes of copper. Well, I did have many tonnes but I couldn't use it for fear of causing inflation.

Artlam had a large meal prepared for us and after another meeting we went to our chambers. Mine had Fislu, Selna, Ronna, Bulla and of course Lomma. When we started, it was with Lomma. She was about eight months along now so I was extra careful. I abused her with my lips many times before I moved into her opening. When she eventually came, I filled her. Fislu was there in a flash to show the girl that she was accepted. I moved to Bulla and I now could use longer strokes.

I lasted through all of the rest then started all over again. This time I filled Bulla and later Fislu. I was too pooped to carry on then.

I ate a full breakfast and left in a five ton stake truck to the area that was going to be ploughed for planting. My cargo was my young people. Those that I had taken from the original Habstner group nearly swamped the ones I had before that.

The equipment had been removed from the flatbeds and the empty trucks were used to convey officials from the city to my experimental farm. I had to use the PA system as some of the original one hundred taught some basic ploughing skills. The people had all my notes and textbooks from university but couldn't learn a language in the short time they had. They were learning quickly and were able to listen to the PA system through a long set of speaker wires.

The road we had travelled over had already been graded and a ditch dug on both sides. The sides were far apart to accommodate a very wide road bed that would be like the old Roman version but higher. This could land a large plane and this is what I intended.

Artlam then Mantoya had to plough and did so for two long furrows that extended nearly three klicks each. The councillors needed to have a turn and this was ok with me. We left after a few hours. The land had been disced to break up the clods. There were three fields and they totalled nine square klicks or 900 hectares. We could do more but I figured I had to purchase some local produce or the farmers would starve.

Once back in the city, Artlam said in private, "The group in Limka may need a visit with you showing your weapons. I would advise that you put some of your people in charge there."

"I figured the same. What do we do with those we remove? We could use another boat yard here."

Artlam said, "That may work. You could monitor them. I found something of interest for you. I didn't want to put it in a letter."

"It must be sensitive then?"

"It is. The first baggage train you captured had a priest and two boys in training. There was also five laywomen and seven girls. We found this out when some of them tried hard to get to the wagon they had travelled in. We found records and some books."

"That sounds logical, what about priests in the major camp?"

"Most were killed with the missile, though not all. There were seven more boys and perhaps thirty laywomen and some younger girls in training."

"Why so many women?"

"I guess to keep the rest of the women in line. It's good that you left Jonna here. She has been both a pain in my side and a tireless worker to route out the Church."

"Did you find out what the Church wanted?"

He looked at me as if I was daft. "Why, you of course."

"I can see their reasoning. Their primary weapon was the Habstner army. An organisation like the Church has to have alternate plans."

"We were unable to find out. Since then, many of the laywomen have died of apparent suicide. So have some of the boys and the girls. We keep them separated now and think that the woman that promoted this has died herself."

I looked at Artlam carefully and asked, "Did you find any artifacts?"

It looked like a truthful answer when he said, "Some, but Jonna thinks that they are minor icons."

"What does Modak say?"

"He was murdered last week."

I felt bad about that. He may have still been alive if he had not come forward. It did make me even angrier at the people that had caused this. "Do you think it was the local Church?"

Two attempts were made on my life and I heard a substantial sum was put on yours. I can see them going after your people that live here, especially Lomma. I think the idea was to lure you to where they wanted."

"They tried to kidnap her?"

"Not yet. There are some strangers watching this house. There happened to be a servant's ear to her master's door during the planning so I heard of this before anything serious could happen."

"The priests?"

"Them or a group sent here. They will try a lot harder to kill you."

"Arrest the Churchmen quietly. Perhaps it can look like they fled."

"I can do that. What are you going to do with them? They will not talk."

"I have an icon that will make them my slave. They talk to me and in a year they are back the way they were before I arrived."

"I figured you would suggest that. These plans have already been made. We might get some in as little as a few days."

There were a few more motion detectors and I gave them to Artlam along with a shoulder harness and a nine millimetre. It already had his name engraved on it. The threaded barrel accepted a silencer.

Artlam looked at the gifts and said, "I don't know what to say. The detectors I can see because I'm protecting your people, but the pistol? It's beautiful."

"It is a beautiful piece of work." I handed him a silencer. He didn't understand until he saw the threads. It didn't take long before the two were mated.

"What does this do?"

"Try it where others will not see. You'll be pleased."

Artlam studied the gun for a minute then smiled and said, "It contains the sound of the explosion within the weapon?"

"You're right. The fewer that know about it the better it would be for you."

I pulled out some DVDs and handed them to Artlam. He said, "What are these?"

"Most of the secrets of my people. If you use this then we will be just as powerful. You have to learn English. There's no way around it because there are so many words that are not even in your language."

I studied the books Artlam gave me that dealt with magic. I had to figure that what was talked about was not bullshit but just a way of looking at something or like when Jonna first tried to heal with the Heart of Opfu. It might be that all I needed was a new perspective.

There were more meetings after supper and it was late when I got to bed. Lauren, Tiffany, Jonna and Kuenta were in the bed so I knew I wasn't going to get a reprieve. Kuenta got me first. She was soon on her hands and knees and I was behind her.

Out of the blue, Jonna said, "The women of Bejek are subservient to their men." I said nothing and it was difficult to get around her block. "We are now also women of Earth. We have decided that we want children. We want you to be their father."

"Just like that?"

Jonna was very frightened. She had put on a front and then threw out her bluff. In a way I figured it was time, too. "I will agree, but under some conditions."

The girls were shocked, especially Jonna. When her thinking got straightened out I saw how her mind was jumbled by my declaration. She said, "What do you wish?"

"One gets pregnant but the rest have to be spaced out at least to three month intervals."

Jonna did a poll and the girls happily agreed. I went back to making Kuenta happy. The night was long and tiring. The women found new depths of stamina and I ran out long before they did. Still, it could be fun being a spectator.

The next morning I casually said at the table, "People tried to kill Artlam because we're friends." That may or may not be true and only time would tell. "This means that we're liable to be on the receiving end of a knife or an arrow. We're still in a dangerous situation."

Tiffany asked, "Who would want to kill Artlam?" The man in question was sitting close. "He's so sweet and he takes care of all the children."

Artlam said in a syrupy voice, "Everybody knows that our King favours the weak. I watch over our charges. The King's enemies may seek to harm him by simply harming those he loves."

Now the girls had to reflect on this because they were even closer to me. I said, "You go armed and in groups at all times." I got a lot of nods.

After everybody went off I had another meeting with the councillors. One said, "How are we going to make that road you want? It will cost a fortune just to make it the old way, and you want it so wide."

I took a page from what was done on Earth. "The economy on Earth is complicated in a way, but mainly it's what is called Capitalist. Our people can draw a picture of a bridge and various groups of men can bid on the job of building it. The lowest bid would get to make that bridge. Inspectors watch the construction to make sure it is done right. If the company screws up then it is not invited to bid again. The cost is kept down the same way a shop owner has to adjust prices if another offers the same goods at a lower price."

There was some thinking and I could just about read their thoughts from looking at their faces. "It's possible that everybody would secretly conspire to keep the prices high. That will not be permitted," I said.

This idea would continue on to building a simple culvert out of stone to making the road itself. A dozer could make the job easier but women still had to place the stones to make the surface stable. With the surplus of women, and their place in society, all the labourious work was placed on their shoulders.

The chemists came next. They were quite exuberant about their sulphuric acid production. I had to go into teaching mode and I was only partially interested in this subject, and then only when it had to do with farming. To get around my shortcomings we used a projection television that was hooked up to a laptop. All of this was powered from a portable generator.

The recorded words were in English and I had to stop the presentation a lot so I could translate. To save my voice, the computer would record my translations and place them in the presentation where they belonged. These people were great chemists but hadn't been able to cast iron until recently. This topic was now covered so the production could be done more efficiently.

We went through the history of steel making. The men would be as enthralled if I had shown grass growing on the television screen. I only spoke for an hour then turned the presentation into auto and let the chemists hear everything once more. I was now free for a while to do other tasks.

The reason for steel making was to present how to make nitric acid from sulphuric acid and sodium nitrate when it reacted in a cast iron container. The nitric and sulphuric acids would be combined later with glycerine. The product was then both cleaned and neutralised so it could be used as an explosive.

Black powder rockets were old hat but we had a way of using local people to make weapons. The steel industry would provide the materials to make rifles and hand guns. We would even try silver casings in our cartridges but I didn't know how they would work. Perhaps I needed silver bullets like the 'Lone Ranger'.

The two acids in conjunction with hydrochloric would be used to purify the gold I collected so I could sell it with a tenth of a percent of impurities or perhaps even a hundredth. I could then sell the material much easier and for a higher price.

Lauren and Kuenta were looking through a military manual to set up an antenna for one of the transceivers I bought. The nine radio transceivers were fairly cheap and would bypass the need for hand delivering messages. At noon today, those at the gate would try to contact us to test this out. If it didn't work then every two hours they would try for ten minutes. We had tried this before and they had communicated with the trucks.

The transceivers were thousand watt military surplus units. The man to sell them to me said that they were very low frequency amplitude modulation units that would transmit to the other side of the Earth.

When I had asked for more, the salesman had said, "Ham radios are just the same. A small modification and most of them will transmit on almost any frequency you want."

"Why don't all the hams do that?"

"They want to stay out of jail. The government tends to be picky about who can use what bands. My advice to you is to make sure you have all the licences because they will track you down and nail your hide to the door if you don't. Especially if you start using any of the government or military frequencies."

Lauren was looking over the radio and things that came with it. Kuenta just looked lost. We needed to get it set up and running. She kept looking between the radio, the power supply, cables, and antenna. She finally asked me, "Why is this manual written so poorly?"

I said, "It was written at the simplest level it could be written at. They needed to make sure that anybody could at least set the equipment up, not just the communications people." I continued, "Just turn off your brain and follow exactly what the book says. If you don't make any assumptions, it should work."