Mark of the Witch

10

^^ The Black Tower ^^

Two more pirate attacks, both during the day, were casually foiled by myself, netting me a total of 60 Reputation and enough Materials for another Level Six building, before we reached the river that fed this Sea, and our destination. The Black City did not have a Port, irritatingly enough, just a small fishing village with a single rickety wooden dock that we had to approach with a row boat, so the Captain sent us off in the dinghy, clutching his new map that he couldn't read to his chest protectively. Once he had a member of my Faction as a Navigator, they'd be able to read it and tell him it was a Legendary Map in its own right, but only of the surrounding waters for about a thousand kilometers, complete with depth markings and known hazards; for now, all he'd know was that it was precious, and it contained instructions for the navigator to best assist him. (The first rule being to not tell him how rare the map was, of course, as the less people who knew, the better.)

The fishing village was well put-together, unlike its dock, and after a brief moment examining the locals, I had to believe that it was left that way on purpose to deter people from using their village as a stopping-off point.  Unfortunately for them, they were also at the perfect point to create a Pier, unless I wanted to create it on the other side of the river and build a ferry-barge, which I strongly considered doing, considering the Black City was within sight of here; I could see it in the distance, maybe ten miles off, and the tower as well, a tall, twisted spire of stone that reached into the very clouds themselves, a perpetual twist of thunderhead that seemed to gravitate towards the tower at all times.

Stopping by the headman's home, I spoke to the old man sitting on his porch, weaving a fishing net without looking at it in his lap, his sharp eyes hiding in craggy cheeks and salt-stained and sun-squinted eyelids and staring at me like a wise man would a tigress in the jungle. Wary, but non-hostile for now. "Hello, old-timer! How would you feel if I built a small town across the river from yours, and a barge to take goods here and to the City?"

He continued working ceaselessly, but he did blink for the first time, before humming softly. "I think... that it is your right to do as you please... and so long as you do not build on our side of the river, besides a landing spot for your barge, I will have no issues with it, nor will my people... you seem an honest sort, so I don't mind it."

"Many thanks, sir." I nodded and set off back to the dinghy immediately to cross the river and begin my work. When I opened the building menu on the beach of the other side, at first it was blank, but then I was rewarded for my patience with a prompt.

'Claim Unoccupied Land for your Faction?'

"Yes, of course."

'Building or Flag Required.'

I nodded and immediately got the building plans for my docks ready, altered a little bit by the circumstances, then added a town behind it to match its level of sophistication; a Tavern, an Inn, an 'Inn', a Bank, a Gambling House, a Mayor's Mansion, a Barracks, a Pantheonic Temple, a Town Jail and Guardhouse, a Courthouse for trials, a Barge with good stabilizers and a wide base to prevent tipping, and of course a sturdy Curtain Wall with Guard Towers facing all directions that extended out into the water and only had three openings; one Land, one River, and one Sea. The Sea opening was big enough for Ships, while the River Portcullis was big enough for the Barge, but too low for a Ship, and the Land Gate was normally sized. A castle was built at the back, furthest away from the water, and upgraded with two Terrariums and an Arcanum instead of all the other fancy stuff I'd put in the first one, with a basement room of unidentified purpose for when I figured out Teleportation, providing food to everyone in the town for little to no cost and trading with the fishing village next door for fish and cattle goods, most likely.