They followed Bj?rn down the hallway and back down the stairs to the entrance hall. He paused for a moment until he saw Rodan sitting at one of the tables in the lounge, and led their little group over to him. Pulling out a chair, he indicated with a head nod for Lance and Lydia to do the same. They each took a seat, and Bj?rn spoke. “I imagine you have questions.”
Rodan started it off. He asked, “So according to this book anyone can become an explorer member of the Union?”
“Anyone of good character”, Bj?rn replied. “If a person is a known troublemaker or criminal, they won’t even be allowed to apply. The truth-seeker that you all saw when the Chief questioned you usually roots out any others.”
Lance spoke up then and asked, “So, I have no problem helping people, but what exactly is expected by ‘working with fellow members, and assisting them when in need?’”
Bj?rn answered, “The Union understands that not everyone is going to get along or have compatible personalities. What they expect is that if you are on a mission together, you cooperate and behave civilly whether you have personal issues or not. Assisting another explorer in need is actually related to coming on another explorer and assisting in their defence from attack, or treating or assisting a sick or injured explorer in the field.”
Lance nodded his head. That tracked with his understanding of what he had read and agreed to.
Bj?rn then turned to Lydia and raised his eyebrows inquisitively.
“The only question I have is ‘When can we get to the missions?’, she said.
Bj?rn smiled and said, “That is one of the things I wanted to speak to you about. First, Rodan, I know that you are adrift right now, without friends or family to turn to. What I would like to do, if you are amenable, is become one of the guards for my merchant caravan. I can post it as a mission when we go up, and then you can immediately accept, if that is what you want to do. That way you get paid and earn credit toward rank advancement. I am willing to renew this mission at every branch house we visit.
Rodan’s ears perked up, and he said, “I am very amenable to your proposal. I plan to go back to those goblin caves and have my revenge, but I will need time to get stronger, and will need money for supplies and arms. Thank you Lord Merchant.”
“You are most welcome”, Bj?rn replied, “But I insist that you address me as Bj?rn or boss. None of this Lord business.” Turning to Lance and Lydia, he said, “As for the two of you, I would like to offer you the umbrella of my merchant caravan, allowing you to buy and sell under my charter. I would waive any commission, in exchange for the additional security and deterrent you provide. Not to mention, the opportunity to purchase some of your goods.”
Lance and Lydia both voiced their agreement. They were still getting their feet wet in this new reality they found themselves in, and Bj?rn and the members of his caravan had been both friendly and accommodating to their ignorance of everyday things.
“Now”, Bj?rn said as he stood, “let us take care of some business. First we will go to the information desk, they will have a ledger of bounties for people or items. The attendant will be able to take my list of what we recovered from the bandits and quickly cross reference it with the ledger. Then, we will go to the mission board and see if there are any subjugation or escort missions that you can take that fall along our path of travel.” Setting deed to word, he strode toward the information desk.
As they approached the counter, the attendant asked, “Merchant Handelsmann, how can we assist you this fine day?”
Bj?rn gave a pleasant smile and replied, “I would like you to please cross reference this list of described individuals and items against your bounty ledger please.”
The attendant took the list and placed it on the counter, then pulled a large leather-bound ledger from a shelf behind the counter and placed it beside the list. Placing one hand on each, her eyes took on a vacant look (like Lance imagined he looked when reviewing his status or reading notifications). After a few moments, she flipped to a specific page in the ledger and scribbled a notation on a pad of paper. Then she flipped several more pages and made another notation. After the third set of pages and marks, her eyes focused back on Bj?rn.
“Sir”, she said, “There are two items on this list that have rewards offered for their return, and one of the descriptions along with the location fits the description of a bandit leader that has been operating in the region for the last several months. I will have to get the Chief’s verification and authorization on the bandit, but I can pay out 15 Eagles for the enchanted sword, and 5 Eagles for the dowry chest. The bandit leader will be another 10 Eagles plus ranking credit.”
While waiting for Lady Astrid to arrive to approve the bandit bounty, Lance looked to Bj?rn and asked, “Eagles?”
“Ahh, yes”, replied Bj?rn. “We haven’t had a reason to discuss coin before now. The entire continent uses a standardized monetary system, broken down into coins of varying materials. In order of value from least to highest, we have iron, copper, silver and gold in regular use across the kingdoms. These are called sparrows, kites, falcons, and eagles, respectively. Then beyond common usage, we have platinum ravens, and gemstones.
Each coin is equal to 10 coins of lower value. For example, 10 eagles would be the equivalent of one raven, or one eagle would be 10 falcons. A rough estimate of gemstones would be each gemstone is equal to 5 of their lesser value, but appraisal is recommended when dealing with gems. After the platinum raven, we have rubies, then emeralds, then sapphires, and finally diamonds. Very rarely will anyone outside of governments and very large establishments or associations deal in anything above the raven, and those are usually only used by the Union and some merchant ventures.
To break that down further, a common laborer in the city would earn one falcon per day, while my caravaneers earn two to three per day depending on how long they’ve been with me. City guards will usually earn about two falcons per day, and skilled artisans and crafters will bring in 10 to 15 eagles per month. Soldiers of the kingdoms, depending on rank and years of service, will usually earn about three to nine eagles per month with room and board. A filling meal at an inn would run two to three kites. A simple room in the same inn, about five or six kites.”
Lance considered the economic data, and determined that if he applied a minimum wage workday of $100 dollars to be equivalent to the one falcon (silver) per day here, then a meal at the inn would be twenty to thirty dollars, so a little high, but the simple lodging would only be fifty or sixty dollars, so a bit lower than a night in a motel back home.
As he was pondering this information, he saw the Chief making her way across the hall to the information counter. A few words with the attendant, and she gave a nod and flowed some magic into the ledger entry and went on her way.
The attendant turned back toward their group and spoke, “Okay then, that will be a total of 30 eagles, and the Chief has authorized 100 ranking points for each of you.”
As the three new explores started to protest that the bandit was taken down by Bj?rn, he raised his hand to stop them saying, “Lady Astrid knows the circumstances, this is most likely her way of working around some of the limitations she had to deal with in establishing your initial rankings. Just realize that most missions will only award a fraction of this amount of ranking credit, and you will need one thousand in order to advance in rank.”
Bj?rn asked Lance to please go retrieve the two items from the wagon, and as the attendant started counting out the gold coins, Bj?rn asked her to split them into thirds, and to break two each down into falcons. He then handed her a gold coin and said, “Please provide each with a banking bag.” The attendant handed Bj?rn back 4 silver coins in change.
When Lance returned with the sword and chest, the attendant had three stacks of 8 gold and 20 silver coins. He took the items from Lance, and then placed each stack of coins in individual leather pouches and handed them over to Bj?rn. He handed one each to Lance, Lydia, and Rodan, then asked them for their explorer’s badge. They handed them over, and Bj?rn passed them to the attendant along with his own badge. She laid them on top of the ledger, and pulsed some magic through it. Each of the badges flashed momentarily, and she passed them back. Bj?rn handed them each back their badge and said, “You are now all firmly on your way to your next rank in the Union.”
After Lance reattached his badge to his shoulder, he raised the leather money pouch up and spoke to Bj?rn, “I feel almost no weight from the coins that I know are in here, while at the same time, I can feel a magical weight of some kind.”
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“Very astute, my friend”, Bj?rn replied. “Those bags are created by skilled enchanters who work exclusively for the bank. Once you bind them to yourself, it will never be able to be lost or stolen, and you will have an innate knowledge of how much it contains. It is a spatial artifice, that no one I know has ever been able to overfill, that removes the weight of what is placed inside. Just recently, one of my young apprentices found out that they can even contain more than just coin. As long as what you are trying to place inside them will fit through the mouth of the bag, and you consider it valuable, it will store it.”
Lydia spoke up and asked if they needed to bind it like they did their badges, and Bj?rn confirmed that, yes all it needed was a drop of their blood applied to complete the binding. Lance withdrew his knife and passed it around, and they all three pricked their fingers and placed a drop of their blood on their pouch. As soon as that was completed, Lance knew without any effort that he had 8 gold eagles and 20 silver falcons. He immediately took the token that Ragnar had given him out of his pocket and placed it in the bag.
Finished with the bounties, Bj?rn then led them past the missives counter, which he explained was where messages could be sent and received. “Somewhat like a cross between the postal service and the telegram system”, Lance thought to himself.
Coming to a stop in front of the banking counter, much to Lydia’s frustration, Bj?rn turned to them and said, “I would recommend opening an account with the bank and depositing about half of your reward money. Your banking bag cannot be lost or stolen, however it is possible it could wind up somewhere you would not be able to reach, or that it could be completely destroyed along with everything in it. Every Union Branch will have bank access, and there are often small bank branch windows in some of the smaller towns and villages. Upon opening an account, they will give you a token that identifies you and your account, allowing you to access your funds at any branch.”
Lance agreed that having bank access across the kingdoms would be useful and beneficial, but took a moment to ask Bj?rn, “So, Ragnar warned us about being wary with the use of blood magic, and so far we’ve already used our blood to bind our badges and our money pouches, and I’m assuming we will have to do the same with the bank token. Do we need to be concerned about this?”
Bj?rn replied, “Ahh, that is a reasonable question. So, in theory, your binding to these artifices do fall under the blanket of blood magic. However, they are not a danger the likes of which the Jarl was admonitioning you against. These ‘tokens’, if you will, use your blood to imprint a memory of your essence, what it is that makes you you, into them allowing them to be constrained to use by you and to identify you to certain systems. What the Jarl was cautioning you about was blood oaths, contracts without very clear and precise wording, rituals, and sacrifices. All of these require the consensual use of your blood, and can result in some rather nasty repercussions, and in the case of rituals and sacrifices, could result in some very vile creatures being summoned. About the only thing your blood can be used for without your consent, would be to track your location or scry on you somewhere, using a ritual.”
Lance responded back, “Okay that makes sense, and makes me feel more comfortable. Thank you for that explanation.” To himself, he thought, “So, these devices are basically reading a sample of our magical DNA.”
With his worries diminished, Lance stepped up to the attendant at the counter, and went through a short registration form and the associated token binding. Placing the token in his banking bag. He then asked Bj?rn what happens if his coin purse (that’s what he decided to call it) was destroyed with his banking token inside. Bjorn told them that in that event, they would have to go to one of the main bank branches in one of the capitals and have a verification reading performed and a truth stone used to verify the veracity of your claim. Then a new token would be linked to the account and you would then rebind to that token.
Focusing his thoughts upon the token inside his coin purse, Lance attempted to ‘Analyze’ it. The return told him that it was a magical artifice linked to the Federated Union Banking and Reserve organization, and that he had a balance of 5 eagles. That process, somehow awoke something more in the little device, because now, the same knowledge Lance had about what was in his coin purse, also automatically applied to the balance in his bank account. He immediately let Lydia know via their party chat.
Lydia and Rodan followed suit at the bank counter, and then they followed after Bj?rn once more. Frustrating Lydia once again, Bj?rn bypassed the Jobs counter, and headed to the door to the left of the staircase labeled with the logistics sign. Following Bj?rn through the door and down a stone hallway to the left, they came to a large warehouse style area with a big counter. Standing behind the counter was a svartálfar with a long braided beard, and decked out in rings and shiny bands on his braids. He looked up from the counter, and upon seeing them, shouted out, “Bj?rn, ye li’l rock eater, what are ye up ta?”
Bj?rn grinned broadly and replied, “Hakon, you old muskid! My new associates here and I, have a partial wagon load of arms and armor that you might be interested in taking off our hands. If you’ll trust my appraisal, I have a list of the items here.”
“Aye, I be trustin’ yer appraisal on the quality o’ the items, but I nay be takin’ yer word for their value, me boy. Ye are a merchant after all. Gimme that list.”
Bj?rn handed over the list, Hakon grabbed a scrap of paper and a pencil from the counter and started jotting stuff down while mumbling to himself. After a few minutes, he laid his pencil down and looked at Bj?rn and said, “I kin gi’ ye five eagles four falcons fer the lot o’ it.”
Bj?rn snorted and said, “Bollocks old man! It’s worth 10 eagles at least.”
Hakon rolled his eyes and replied, “If’n ye were supplyin’ ‘em to a desperate guard quartermaster mebbe you could get that. The best I kin do ye is seven.”
“Seven and two, and you have a deal. But your men will need to unload them.”
“Done and done”, Hakon said as he reached across the counter and shook Bj?rn’s hand. “Di ye want me to deposit it in yer account?”
“No. I want you to split it between my three friends. Hanok, this is Hersir Lance Raven, Hersir Lydia Morales, and Herr Rodan. My friends, please meet one of my oldest friends and the man who practically raised me, Hakon Hammerclaw. If you would like your money deposited in your account, please pass Hakon your bank tokens. All transactions at the Union can be completed using coin or your bank account.”
Lance made to protest again, and Bj?rn tutted and told him that this was an investment for him into his newest guard and hopefully future trading partners. They each passed over their token, and Hakon held them against a medallion set into the counter for a moment while pushing magic through them. When Lance deposited his back in his coin purse, he immediately knew that there were now another two eagles and four falcons in his account. By his estimation, his account now held almost a month’s worth of pay for a senior member of the military here, not accounting for room and board.
Bj?rn turned back to Hakon and said, “If you send your people out front, Viggr is standing watch over a wagon attached to an odd looking aether-wagon. Have them tell him they are to take the arms and armor but leave the rest in the wagon and Lance’s bags are not to be disturbed except to move them out of the way.”
With this transaction out of the way, they all grasped forearms in the local version of a handshake, and made their way back out toward the main hall. Bj?rn grinned at Lydia, as they entered, and said, “Now we shall look at the jobs board.”
Approaching the board, he continued, “I would recommend ignoring any of the gathering requests for now. If you spend enough time studying some of the various treatises on herbs, plants, animals, and monsters, then some of those requests can be quite profitable. If you intend to travel along with the company, most escort jobs will not fit. What we should mainly be looking for is culling or subjugation work, or delivery jobs. I would also recommend to you, Rodan, that you pick up a primer on the Common language and increase your fluency in it. All jobs posted in the Union will be in Common, even though most attendants and managers can speak several languages and dialects, or have a language skill. For today, I will continue to translate.”
Lance only now realized that Bj?rn and the attendants had all been speaking in the tribal dialect of the Vargb?rn. He made a mental note to try and be more aware of the actual words of the language being spoken and not just the translation that ‘Omniglot’ was feeding him.
As they read the various handbills, Bj?rn pointed out one and said, “This is a common example of a gathering job. The requester, most likely an alchemist, wants a bushel of Pyrebloom berries. Pyrebloom berries are mashed and then distilled to be used to craft a potion of cold resistance. The straight distillate can also be aged into a rather stout liqueur often served as an aperitif.
Here we have one that is perfect. It is a delivery job to the capital with no time restrictions. It appears to be a personal package being sent to someone attending the King’s Academy. Most likely something they forgot at home, or a gift or treat of some sort. While the pay isn’t much, and there are no ranking points associated with it, it costs us no extra to take this delivery since we are already going to be headed to the capital. Someone in my company will usually pick up a few such jobs at every town or city we stop in.
These two right here are wonderful examples of a culling job. On this one, a farmer on the north side of the town has an infestation of stórrott, a rat-like creature that stands halfway between your knee and the ground. This one here is just outside the gates where we came in, between the wall and the forest. Apparently the squillo population has gotten out of hand, and many of them dig around under the wall foundations at night. Normally I would say these jobs would suit younger explorers looking to become hunters, but with your backgrounds, I think these would be perfect to begin your path with the Union. I would recommend that you, Lance and Lydia, with your firearms take the stórrott infestation, and you Rodan with your speed and stealth tackle the squillo problem. Neither one of them pay much, only a couple of falcons each, but they both offer 10 ranking points, which is fairly good for a job like this.”
Taking the bills off the posting board, Bj?rn handed one to Rodan, and the other to Lydia. Then he grabbed the delivery bill along with another two delivery requests, and stepped over to the attendant’s counter. He passed the three delivery requests to the gentleman manning the counter along with his platinum badge. The attendant placed everything on top of his ledger and channeled some of his magic into it. He handed everything back to Bj?rn with a courteous smile and said, “All set.”
Rodan then stepped up and repeated the process with his posting and badge. Then Lance and Lydia stepped up and gave him both of their badges along with the job request. When Lance ‘Analyzed’ his badge, it came back with:
Active Quests:
Bj?rk Gr?nnheim has requested assistance with culling an
infestation of stórrotts at his farm.
Reward: 2 silver falcons and 10 Union ranking points (RP)
Time limit - 2 days.
Lance shared his quest description with Lydia via the party chat. She confirmed that she got the same quest after she analyzed her badge. Finished registering their jobs, they all exited the Union Hall. Viggr was still out front minding Bj?rn’s daleva and Lance’s pickup with its attached wagon. Almost half of the wagon was now empty with the arms and armor gone. What was left were the dry goods that they had collected from the bandit camp, some chests containing coins and jewelry, and Lance’s now six rucksacks with gear.
Bj?rn mounted up, and Lance and Viggr climbed in the truck, while Lydia and Rodan hopped into the wagon. Lance followed Bj?rn back out of the plaza and down the road back to the point where they had separated from the rest of the caravan. Bj?rn then led them down that road to a walled courtyard attached to the town walls. When they had parked inside with the rest of the wagons, Bj?rn explained that this area was called a caravanserai, and was a secure area where the caravaneers and their goods could be kept secure from pestering or pilfering until they set up for trade in the central plaza.
With dusk quickly approaching, Lance, Lydia, and Rodan decided to forgo visiting or partaking in the communal meal being fixed, and Lance grabbed an MRE for each of them. As soon as they finished eating, Lance went to the camper and grabbed two bolt action 22 magnum rifles with suppressors and thermal sights, that he kept for varmint/predator hunting, and handed one of them to Lydia. He also pulled a crossbow, with a quiver of bolts attached, out of the closet and quickly showed Rodan how to cock and load the weapon, and how to use the attached scope. Rodan convinced him that he had superior night vision and the simple scope would serve well enough. As he left the camper, he knocked out a quick ‘Duplicate’ on his duffel bag of trade goods.
They checked in with Bj?rn, and he assured them that all they needed to do was show their job posting and their explorer’s badge to the requestor and or the guards at the gate and they would have no issues. Exiting the caravanserai, they split up with Rodan heading toward the western gate, and Lance and Lydia heading north.
