[infodump] Settlement Begun, Character Info
384 4 9
X
Reading Options
Font Size
A- 15px A+
Width
Reset
X
Table of Contents
Loading... please wait.
As I've said in nearly all my stories, I'm doing 'infodump' chapters from time to time, skippable but should also be interesting. This one is all done from the perspective of the main character Maxwell Townsend, and I had intended this to be a 'chapter one' but that kinda drags down the pace of the story there. It's essentially after the soldiers leave Max and the bandits behind, to 'settle' here; then in the next chapter Max builds a diner (where the narrative contained herein would be placed, I mean it will be a shared meal and plenty of talking) and as the group settles in for a bite, he asks them to introduce themselves and tell him about things. As such I will admit it's only narrative with no plot to this part, just a way I can "store" character data along with the story for now. Readers can skip it if they wish but it does have some humorous or witty observations at times. I haven't gone into putting things in the "Glossary" section for my fictions; perhaps sometime in the near future I may. But until then, this shall be a "pseudo chapter" with analyses of various former bandit characters of the group ... which should be inserted into the next chapter actually.

I've got a fair sense of people, from having watched so many around me on Earth too. Of the twenty bandits, three fourths are female ... at least by what I see. Call it 15 female, 5 male (though one female, a half orc, does have a more 'masculine' personality as well ― does she count as female?).

Niki is the obvious leader of the group, a female half wolfkin whose stated objective is for me to help find ― then rescue ― her younger sister. Now that we're all waiting around, her story from earlier got repeated and filled in more by her friends who would not let her skip over this or that detail. One of them even embarrassed her by revealing she's still a virgin ― and yes, so is the priestess girl, too ― to which I abruptly do admit to being the same. Stunned looks all around, so I genuinely scowl at their looks ... but I think I made the point ― it's not fun to be laughed at for making a choice of staying pure. I think, no I know, either Niki or the priestess would like to jump me all the more now, to claim me. Just not in public, okay?


Niki's got some slaves ― about seven ― I see listed in her status.

Niki's 1st slave would be Caren, a female catkin archer. Caren has a calm and casual walking style, but through it I see she's scanning all around and trying to be not so oblivious of what's going on around her. Like a cat on the prowl, she walks; even slavery cannot reduce this trait. Probably a really good archer too, to reach level nine in, what ― a small number of years? Her status screen does show her age at nineteen. Her bow is held to her back, she has the bow held on her body with the wood across her back and the string to her front.

Niki's 2nd slave I see is Deena, a female dogkin scout, who opposite her profession is acting more carefree than any other slave. I don't suppose she is so careless as to not know what's happening around here or her team; but she really is so casual right now. Aah she also looks so young ― but if she has a body of a humanized canine, then ... is cross breeding with her kind allowed?

Niki's 3rd slave Elanor the female half orc swordsman is crude in her speech, holding a rough stance; yet somehow I sense this one would still take to the front lines in battle. When the team arrived fleeing from the soldiers close behind, it's her who was at the rear of the group ― not because she was the slowest one though, but because she put herself there. And when the bandits did stop and turned to face the arriving soldier band, it's Elanor who stood again at the front to face them, weapon drawn. Even so, even if she is a tough girl, she still does have the 'pretty' half of her from her human parentage.

Niki's 4th slave Ferret the female foxkin ― I do see from her status, she's a 'thief' by profession. Very adept, dexterous movements here ― a force to be reckoned with, should it come to me actually having anything of value for her to take. Despite the name she is given, she looks nothing like an actual ferret, but as an anthropomorphic bipedal humanoid fox girl ― hair so frizzy and clean with the recent bathing, short whiskers laying so tidy on her face.

Niki's 5th slave Gray is the first male of the group I analyze. Like Niki, he's a wolfkin, but not half human like she is. From it I get they have a sibling type of relationship ― a little easy teasing there, and it's not hard to see how Niki can find it strange to get a younger sibling as one of her slaves. Maybe she rescued him from a hard life? But I guess Niki is taking family loyalty as a true thing, wolfkin or not. Gray is a swordsman; and while he wasn't as 'up front' as Elanor was, he still seems to have a good stance with his sword. He might actually be dangerous with his weapon.

Niki's 6th slave Halley the female catkin is a rogue by profession. Her armor is all leather and very well fitted to her, maybe looking a little 'self made' but fair craftsmanship to boot. Her chosen weapons seem to be a paired set of iron daggers which are now scratched up as I last saw them when they were drawn. She keeps these very close to her body; but I make no mistake in assuming she or Caren are any less lethal with claws extended at close range.

Niki's 7th slave Janna is one who I cannot see a level or a profession; they are somehow locked to me. She is a female dragonkin, the largest by body size, and by her dress and grooming I'd say she came from employ in a brothel ... but I'm not sure of this at all. I can't really diagnose what type of weapon she uses; or maybe she's the magic user of the group and so is even higher level than me in certain affinities.


After this, it's onto the others. Niki's "second in command" seems to be a male harekin priest named Bonner Ragget; he's quick to move or maybe a little too eager to be doing something; but other than this he does seem calm now. Probably from the healing bathing time and a chance to relax now. I also did note once they stopped in my settlement he was the first to step to one of the others and give an impromptu heal ― it's not unlikely the other was wounded in their fleeing and this was the first moment they had to stop and rest. But he also looked fatigued, as if the heal took a lot out of him, and so maybe he didn't have enough mana regenerated to go for the 'full bathing experience'. He will, in time ― I am sure of it. The priest didn't have slaves ― he said he didn't believe in taking them, since he felt it not a right thing to do ― and I agree, with a quiet voice.

Third in line is a female lizardkin mage named Arcatha Fuzel, or called 'Arc' or 'Fuse' for short. The humanoid lizard woman has visible scales of a reddish hue, and she might hold a touch of fire affinity ― or maybe something else. She does have four slaves ― one male and three females ― and they had more of the usual combat skills.

Arc's first slave, a male kobold fighter named Cave, was primarily a user of slings and thrown projectiles like darts. Actually most people here had some 'backup' weapon such as a slingshot; only for Cave it seemed a primary weapon. His small scaled body was a mottled gray and brown, lending him an appearance of being 'dirty' ... though he was not. Like his mistress Arcatha, he too would likely have some magic affinity, such as earth.

Arc's second slave, a female ratlike archer named Feriga with leather strap armor barely held together by threads ― looked all worn out, even after the bathing chance. It seems the 'clothes cleaning' did nothing to repair armor or equipment damage so much, only to ensure it's cleaned. Maybe something more to add into the bathing structure, in the future? Might cost more mana, but then again for these people ... it might be worth it at all costs.

Arc's third slave is a human female spearman named Avarice, or Ava, who wields an iron spear. Maybe in her early teens, too ― with a wooden staff holding an iron spearhead on it, she's a real sight. She's a shy girl, looking at me with blushing cheeks and a mouth she's trying to hold to a calm smile; but I think she's one of the girls here who might be interested in me. Oh, skip it ― she looked furtively to the side, to one of the other people here. Aah so she leans that way, then.

Arc's fourth slave is a female gnome named Inga, more properly an alchemist type supporter role. She doesn't seem to carry much for weaponry except one small dagger in a sheath on her waist; her clothes are just ordinary attire ― but with my analysis those clothes look supplemented by mana somehow.


After these, the remainder, six individuals, round out the group with various other functions or roles. Three of the four women were adventurers, like Niki was ― in fact, Niki met them by partying for a guild quest at the time, a mere year before 'noble trouble'. The last female is a young priestess who got caught in a compromising position ... and lost her place in the temple order.

The next one, a female half elf named Sarina Ketera is maybe a maternal type I'd like to ... hold. She's comparably one and a half times my own teenage years, in elf years too; but I shouldn't let it stop me. But her status shows her more a mild drunk, which probably means she'd dare me to drink her under the table. For some reason I'm thinking of changing her name to Matsumoto, like I really should? Ugh ... I'd be more afraid of what she'd do after she was under said table, drunk or not, than with her above it and leaning toward me. Still somehow she does seem to have pretty decent archery skills, and a backup short blade too.

The female tiefling Johara is a planar demon of indeterminate age, somehow trapped on this mortal plane and trying to find her way back. She doesn't need to carry physical weapons; she is the weapon, she explains. Those horns, though, and the tail ― it looks like she has a lot to deal with, in the way of being different even for this place. Even so, I do see twin daggers in her belt. She's aloof but calm, somehow glad to have gotten through being chased just a while ago ― though she might have had enough power to deal with the pursuers on her own. Which makes me wonder what she's really planning, for being here. And somehow she has three slaves: one female and two males.

Johara's 1st slave is a female harekin named Bebe who has been the 'camp cook' for this bandit group, for a few weeks. She is one who could run this diner, with her level of energy; though after reading more of the diner's stat screen I see how I do have other options too. Even so; she is saying she'd really like to become a farmer, like her father was. I am sure she may have the opportunity, somehow.

Johara's 2nd slave is a male human former adventurer named Drake, who is ... Johara's love slave. Well I'm sure she needs her intimacy too; but to not have this middle aged man have any notable combat skill means he was sold for cheap. This guy is smiling anyway, thankful for any part of this settlement where he can stay for a time; though if his mistress is ready to return home, he's out of a job-

Johara's 3rd slave is a male dwarf who doesn't have a proper name, but goes by the nickname 'Fixer'. Seems this one is good at most forms of item repair, given the resources; so I think his skills came in handy for a bandit team constantly on the run these past few months. I guess most of the team's gear looked okay; so this must mean he'd done his job. He seems stressed ... like he doesn't get the same treatment Drake does.

Last but not least, the final person is a teenage female kitsune named Terabell; she is dressed in finer clothes (though as worn as the others) which represent her as being, or having been, a priestess. When asked, she gives a shy look and tries to hide the explanation ― but others spoil it for me. Yes as a young girl she was part of a temple; but on one day being 'caught in a compromising position' with a temple patron, then found out by the temple's high priest no less, she was ejected. No matter what she'd done or not done, even if she still claimed an allegiance to Keigo or to the temple ... she could not return to service; because as they said, she acted in an irresponsible way.


Their mutual histories of getting to this point in time is fairly interconnected; at least a third of them knew each other while growing up, slave or not. Mostly the slave members got shipped around the country to be sold here or there, and maybe ultimately not knowing if they would live to see the next day. Same could be said for most of the 'normal' bandits too.

A deeper level of their stories is, Niki's human father was actually head of one of the "lesser noble merchant" families, and maybe the fifth wealthiest in Cassino, up until a decade back. I tried piecing together an idea of whether she could be considered 'noble' by extension; but I hesitated to ask such a personal thing.

For his stature, though, her father ― Merchant Lord Dev Dorsey ― wed four wives. The first being a human woman; the second being Niki's wolfkin mother; the third being a harekin woman; the fourth one being a catkin woman. In those families with multiple wives, they hold to the tradition of taking turns on husband/wife dues, except for three days through the year where the women decide for themselves who gets the day. Nearly all of the women in this world are agreeable to this; after all, it's better to get one third or even one fourth of a man's time, than none of any one man's time. Do the women have rivalries? Sure do; but for most it's a moot point.

To my own question of whether family time gets constrained by maternal loyalties, Niki can only answer the truth. For what she'd seen of her own "mothers", sometimes the wife doesn't always have the right to have time with her husband when she's fertile and in the mood; or sometimes when she's ready and it's her day, he's not available somehow, or tired from ... other reasons. Lots of little complications for a family.

In the midst of this setup, Niki's father had done a successful business deal which took two days and two nights of extensive meetings. He'd missed three days of time with wives in prep of the day beforehand, plus the two days during, and one day after the deals. Understandable his wives were 'frustrated' and each wanted their day, or even altogether and to restart the wives' rotation. Begging of any romance that night, he went to bed after the brief meal, and ... was not seen alive again. The next day, his body was found dragged to the creek running through their property, slashed many times.

Finger pointing began almost right away. The first wife Tammie thought the youngest one had the most opportunity if not reason. The second wife (Niki's mother) Kala held off of blaming anyone but did say Dev did not like the latter girl's cooking the day before. The third wife Benita threw a fit and broke into crying the second the sheriff had showed up, but did claim the last girl had something to do with his disappearance. Finally the fourth wife Haida loudly refused having any connection to Merchant Lord Cattan who was her past employer, even though Benita claimed she was seen going into one of his businesses.

But the family of children usually does get strained in the mixup. Niki's older brother Gray is actually a product of her mother's first marriage with a purebred wolfkin male who got killed after siring Gray. Dev had married first the human woman as she'd pressed him for the relationship; but then next married Niki's mother out of compassion because she was a widow of his former business partner. Benita and Haida came in following months too. But as Gray was the eldest, Dev's firstborn actually came from Tammie in the first year, followed by a second child from Benita, and then Niki herself, followed by a half dozen more children in various orders.


If the age to adulthood is generally fifteen in this world, then somehow Niki got her start adventuring at fourteen, a whole year earlier, and not at the 'about to turn fifteen' moment. From the aforementioned deeds ending in her father's death, it's clear Dev Dorsey had ran afoul of a dangerous selfish noble, then died by mysterious means; and this other noble as debt collector came to the widows expecting payment. Niki's mother and the other wives were forced to sell off children one at a time just to feed the rest; but only so for the eldest son and some younger ones. Seems this too is habit ― for debtors to demand their pay at any point and they don't care how they get it. Her half brother Gray was selected to be combat slave since he was the physically strongest and would fetch a high price. But still, even if the debt was repaid, the crazed old man kept hounding Kala for ... more.

Eventually it was found out the old man actually just wanted Kala ― a purebred wolf lady of good beauty ― as a sex slave or whore or whatever this world would call an indentured companion ― thus he'd used devious means. Maybe even had a hand in Dev's death too. At long last her mom could do nothing more than to give in ― deeded her share of the family property to Niki and her younger sisters, one of which was sold as a slave already, and asked Niki to find and protect her older brother Gray if she could. And thus ... Kala gave herself over to the old stranger, in either tears of sorrow or relief.

So ... Niki being the next oldest, set it up as her main mission in life to find her half brother, and to continue protecting her younger siblings. She did legitimately ask for help from the locals and family friends ― but few in the area could 'go against' the corrupt noble merchant to support the Dorsey family. The Ketera and Ragget families did help some, secretly ― and Arcatha too, but less in secret, for which the same noble breathed his wrath upon her. But Niki could not earn enough to buy back her brother for a long while yet ― not at least for two years almost to the date of the brother's enslavement; the first few days and weeks of her new adventuring life were the most informative.

I am piecing together, the merchant who wanted Niki's mother may have been this "Merchant Lord Cattan" who she and her group had been raiding. Whether the noble knew the mercenary team he'd hired for some jobs is led by the daughter of his target of lust, is ... possible but maybe unlikely at the same time. But just the same, it may have also put Niki into range of getting revenge, in some way. Why wouldn't she take it, if she could see the chance?


Further, others had their own personal tales too; Bonner Ragget's entry into their joint tale is because ... he worked for said same old man. He managed to break away from serving him without being enslaved to the older man, which is a plus; but like Niki of the following week, he found himself adventuring to earn his upkeep. He started partying with Niki and others. Even as a devout follower and priest of Genki the Goddess of Activity, he still felt it's not enough.

Both Niki and Gray had a wistful tear recounting their parts; Bonner showed a hint of anxiety he couldn't have done more than he had; and Sarina's family held outright indignation for the inadequacies of the times.

So ... polygamy is a thing; slavery is a thing; and also prostitution is a thing for the women who don't want to wait for a man to pick her. I haven't lived in this type of arrangement, but I can imagine quite a lot when it comes to having a man's time so divided like this. All of this, I think, because of a relationship imbalance due to the gender imbalance in the world. It's a weird, weird world out there-

And through all of these thoughts, I'm coming to realize even more, how messed up this world is. Messed up, and more. Irresponsible!

But ... by the time of this much being told, this day is getting further along; Bonner said it should be time to start at a village defense plan. I feel a subtle acid indigestion burp welling up in my stomach; I'll just let it out, and then decide what should be done next.

9