Triple Strength

302. Deceive: Wiremu

Tabitha’s prisoner was only the first of several. The Quarry was not on the major trade routes, but that didn’t mean messengers came and went. Well, they came. They didn’t leave anymore. This was going to get noticed and investigated soon. Because of that, our caravan has moved out toward Yelets and camped with Modrica and Težka. Tāoke stayed behind and visible. Tāoke can hide, but Težka can’t.

The supply wagons are due soon. They will have two to three squads with them, more if they bring a Slave Taskmaster with them. Plus, wagons and wagon drivers etc. I assume the slaves here would be the labour force.

Tabitha’s courier is the puzzle. I had the contents of her courier bags laid out in front of me. What was so urgent they rode through the night? She was an official courier and had documents for various commanders and government officials. The quarry was only one of her stops. Most of the documents were general stuff. Coins owed, supplies ordered, troops on the move. That last was interesting. A staging camp was established south of Kirsk, and the deadline to be there was in four months. Was that when the Emporer was due to arrive? We heard he was marching south from the capitol with a large portion of the Northern army.

There were also several copies of an Imperial Decrees to several Provincial governors with the promise of future tax reductions if they supplied troops in excess of the minimum obligation and even more for affinity users. This is what’s behind the compulsory enlistment of people like Lord Nelson. It is probably also what is behind the creation of a slave army. If they impress the emperor, they will get favours in addition to tax cuts.

It doesn’t explain why the courier was in such a hurry. Four months was not long to move troops to Kirsk. Had the timeline been brought forward for them? The courier herself was dead, and the surviving trooper wasn’t talking any more. Modrica was a bit rough with the interrogation. It is probably just as well he died as he had seen Težka in action.

The other problem was what to do with eighty ex-slaves and approximately thirty prisoners. There were only thirty prisoners, as Tabitha and Modrica recruited ten, and Lee recruited three. Lee was a lot pickier than Tabitha, but she didn’t know that Tabitha was recruiting for a different purpose.

Lee and her helpers were looking after the slaves, some of whom were going to require weeks of recovery. Not many, fortunately, but some. Most of the prisoners and the freed slaves to date just want to go back to their homes. A few who are running or have been tortured want to go to the free Republic, but most want to go home and lay low. I think that is a fool's dream. They will not be able to lay low for long. However, they need to make their own decisions. What I need to think about is how those decisions will impact us.

We were always going to end up being hunted. What I want to do is muddy the waters. We are already telling our helper that we are heading north from here rather than east to Yelets. That has spread but won’t convince many people.

I look closer at the Imperial Decrees. It is printed on thick paper, but it appears to be normal paper. Most of the text is normal ink. There is spiritual energy coming from the signature and the Imperial stamp. My Copier Skill couldn’t copy Spiritual Signatures until Journeyman Level. It was currently high Apprentice. I felt I might be able to copy the signature’s spirituality but not the Stamp if I pushed it. It was because of my high Spiritual attributes. I have attributes to spare, and pushing more into Spiritual Agility could make things easier. I pushed the attribute all the way to 50. It didn’t substitute for the Skill Level, but I might manage it, and the Skill would definitely level faster now.

I could find paper and ink in the administration block. It wouldn’t be the same paper, but it would be close. I could probably make a forgery to fool the provincial people but not the inquisitors or high-level people in the governor's offices. Fooling patrolling troopers is still good.

It is time to consult Tabitha, Ruku and Lee about what we can fool people with.

“We could give everybody an Imperial Pardon,” Ruku suggested.

“To obviously fake,” Tabitha said.

“We need something that is in line with normal practice,” Lee added. “Pardons don’t happen. You serve your time, and that is that.”

“Transmute the crime to other things like fines or non-slave service,” I suggested.

“Possible. That does happen. Mostly for the rich and powerful,” Lee said.

“We could publish a decree closing the quarry,” Tabitha said.

“Why would they close the quarry?” Ruku asked.

“A monster taking residence would do it. Like the Sand Elemental near Obalno, and signs were posted to avoid it.” I said.

“We also changed shipping routes to avoid large sea monsters,” Ruku said. “I am sure the empire does the same thing.”

“They do, usually temporarily, until the right people arrive to kill it or move it on,” Lee said.

“Do you want to take up residence here?” Tabitha asked me.

“Ha. No. But would we need to?” I replied.

“By the time a decree is issued, the monster has been investigated and is either left to create Spiritual Materials or the army is mobilised,” Lee explained. “Mostly, it is done through the governor's office, though.”

“We could scatter some Spiritually enhanced Granite to give the impression a monster is here,” I said.

“That would certainly work for a while,” Lee said. ”Government paperwork does get lost.”

“That is a solution for the quarry. It could last relatively long term in the confusion of a war. What about the people?” I asked.

“Those going to the Free Republic won’t get there without running into at least one patrol,” Tabitha said.

“I can supply documentation that should get them past a patrol, as long as they don’t do anything stupid. I made sure I brought plenty of papers. It is still a risk, but that is their choice. They don’t have supplies, though,” Lee said.

“We should get plenty of supplies from the supply caravan arriving in the next day or so. They can probably take a couple of wagons. That would help with those still recovering,” I said.

“What about those that want to go to their homes in the empire?” Tabitha asked. “It seems to be a good opportunity to disseminate propaganda.”

“Like what?” I asked.

“We could mix it up. We want to create confusion so we can vary it.” Tabitha said.

“Shall we make an Imperial Decree baning slavery?” I joked.

“You can make it say anything?” Lee asked.

“I can Adjust a Decree, and then Wiremu can copy it,” Tabitha said. “It is better if there are not too many adjustments.”

“Most of the decrees are about Tax deductions. Tax deductions don’t pay for a war.” Ruku said.

“Incite rebellions by changing redactions to increases? That should fire up the governors if we can find a courier to deliver them.” Tabitha said.

“I can get it to an Army base, and they will see them delivered, but that doesn't solve the problem with these people,” Lee said.

“Running from the monster attack on the quarry?” Ruku suggested.

“That has possibilities,” Lee said. “A lot of accommodations are made for monster attacks. Civilian commendation for helping and surviving a monster attack could work. There would need to be evidence.”

“I can have Puia destroy this place when we leave,” I said.

“That plus a Decree warning people away is probably our best option,” Lee said. Lee was our expert on Imperial law and bureaucracy. Tabitha grew up here but only knew things a thief would know—a young thief at that.

So that was the plan we set in motion, and my days got busier. Freeing a slave every 4-5 hours or so and then working on fake imperial Decrees.

Two nights later, I had a change of plans. Here I am, moving through the dark, a half-day ride from the quarry. Nne had spotted the supply caravan, and Tabitha had decided it would be better to attack it before it went to the quarry. If people got away, then it was just bandits and not an invading force. This meant no recognisable bonds. I think Tabitha’s new outlaw class is influencing her.

Tabitha, Umreti, Ruku and Lee are playing outlaws. I am providing ranged support and stopping anyone from escaping.

I watched Tabitha take out the guards and then mount Dusk and ride through the camp, tossing Phantasm (Mineral) rocks. The other three then rode into the camp, destroying tents and troopers. The civilians and slaves they avoided as they could. They were keeping affinities discrete as well. That was going to make it difficult against the thirty troopers. We had ascertained there was no Slave Taskmaster with them. Otherwise, there would be more troopers and experienced ones as well. Just a supply run did not need specialised troops.

There was a lot of confusion, but my Darksight and Telescopic Sight kept track of the team. I added arrows where it would make a difference. The Phantasm was keeping the confusion going. These were not the brightest troops. A bit of Mental Strength goes a long way.

Everything went smoothly. I had to discourage a couple of runners. They were civilians, and we were trying not to kill civilians, but I did have to wound them. One had reasonable stealth as well. With the troopers dead and the civilians gathered, they were bound and blindfolded into a covered wagon. We would keep them a few days before, ‘letting them escape and make there way back on foot.

Meanwhile, Ruku and I worked day and night to free the Slaves. There was only one irreversible error, and I don’t think he will even recover. Ruku pushed too hard, and the damage is evident in all his classes. We tried so hard as well.

As soon as the last slave was freed, we sent the ones heading to the Free Republic off. They are on their own now, and I hope Lee's documents are enough.

Our wagons and the people Tabitha and Lee recruited are resupplied and heading to Yelets. Tabitha and I are the only ones left here, but nobody knows that. Tabitha’s Shadow Puppets give the impression that there are more people.

The third night, after everybody left, Tāoke and I went to work Shaping the Granite all over the quarry. We made twisted faces and creatures from the rock, incorporating Spiritually Enhanced Granite and Phantasm (Mineral). I found if I put a grain of Phantasm (Mineral) in the eye of the creature, it gives the impression it is looking at you. Creepy and haunting is what I am going for. The quarry is going to be a haunted nightmare by the time I am finished. Tāoke preferred twisted snake shapes. I was sure several looked like him. I raised my Stone Shaping Class as well as my Granite Manipulation and Stone Shaping Skills.

It is an hour before dawn, and it is time to wake everybody up. I launch a series of Granite Quakes, and Tāoke copies me, and we set the ground violently shaking. Some of the less stable structures partially collapse, and the ex-slaves and remaining prisoners panic. I caused a quake hard enough to collapse the gates and some of the barrier fences.

The Tāoke ground stone in the Granite cliff on the quarry side of the prisoners' area, and a shape emerged from the rock, and the grinding got louder. Tabitha’s shadows increased the impression that it was moving rather than just shaped from the rock. Panic increased as the prisoners started to run.

I heard several comments about a monster, and then someone clicked on to what we were aiming for. “It’s a Gargoyle nest! Run!” and this was repeated, “Gargoyles, Run! I increased the Quakes, and some more buildings collapsed. The stone admin building lost a wall, and I shaped a twisted face on the side facing the gate with Phantasm eyes. It had a twisted smile and large fangs with narrow eyes. It did not take long for everybody to be out and running. I then collapsed more of the wall as if large rocks were thrown and left the rocks there. A granite quarry is the best place for me and Tāoke.

We spent a few hours finishing the staging of the remains of the quarry. A Gargoyle Nest is not something most armies are equipped to deal with, and it will mean the quarry is abandoned for decades. The Imperial Notice warning people was almost superfluous.

My Masters Level Deceive Skill went up.