Off To Work We Go

[Tyr]

With tools in hand Tyr gathered some of his citizens for a brief excursion around the woods and to the nearby mountains. He needed to make sure the people would be at least competent in their use of the picks and axes, because if they couldn't gather the wood and stone for him he'd never be able to build them some farms and better houses. Granted they'd have to help him with that too, but baby steps there. The long march took quite a while, but it gave the Duke some time to get to know the various people under his protection. Their names, their stories, what he could do as their leader to make sure they lived better lives.

It wasn't very difficult to get to the trees, the forest wasn't even a mile from the city, but the mountains would be a much longer trek. Over the river and through the woods you could say. There would be far fewer people on that trip, the woods weren't always the safest place and losing someone wouldn't be the greatest thing. They'd have to get a safe road established with some troops to patrol it in order to get steady travel to and from whatever mine they could establish.

Axe in hand Tyr found a nice sturdy tree at the edge of the forest line and just started choppin' away at it. He wasn't quite versed in proper tree chopping technique, so he was relying on the simple idea of 'Chop away enough of the middle and it'll come down.'

---

Used Gather to get wood from a tree.
(17/23 SM)

[Azuloth]

-Tyr gains 1 ash wood.-

[Tyr]

With wood well in hand Tyr decided persistence was the best course of action, you only ever got to the good stuff if you keep going after all. He kept at it, beating the hard wood with his axe to get the tree to fall. Suggestive? I'm sure I have no idea what you mean. Supervising the others as he went, making sure no one dropped a tree on themselves for instance, Tyr started doing that thinking thing he did every now and again, mainly about weight and angles learned during masonry, and started chopping an angle up so the tree would fall towards him. It wasn't going to drop all that fast so stepping out of the way wouldn't be a problem, he just needed to be certain it wasn't going to fall on anyone around him.

---

Used Gather on a tree. Again.
(11/23 SM)

[Azuloth]

Tyr received 2 Oak.

[Jorkahn Wealddir]

There was no wood to be had for this young lad. Is it a little bit sad that this thread made wood a fad? This post makes me feel a tad bad.

Jorkahn had been travelling for a few days as he was wont to do. Taking in nature and the scenery around him, exploring and learning new things about the land! And, occasionally, stumbling across something that may prove interesting. The boy had his travelling cloak on to keep his clothes and new armor and weapons from getting scratched, torn, or otherwise scuffed in some way as he briskly walked through the brush and trees.

He had stopped only for a moment, torn from his thoughts, as he thought he heard an unusual sound in the distance. It was the sound of metal hitting against wood, and by how frequent the thumps were the wandering Wealddir could tell that several people were nearby. Curiosity getting the better of him he made haste to the source of the sounds.

Just as he broke out of the brush the thumping stopped and was replaced with the screech and crack of wood grinding together and leaves and twigs colliding. Jorkahn looked up and started as the tree smashed into the ground right in front of him. The boy fell onto his rear and crawled back into the brush a few feet in a panic. He would likely sit there for a while, hyperventilating.

[Tyr]

As the tree came down with a hard crash Tyr caught a brief glimpse of something moving through the tree's leaves. Too bad really, if any birds hadn't gotten out before the thing came down then there was nothing to be done. It wasn't until one of the other workers nearby, who'd been fairly enraptured with his Duke's rapid felling of a tree, cocked his head and gestured over at the brush.

"Anyone see that guy over there? Nearly got crushed by that tree!"

Shouldering his axe, and now questioning what it was he'd seen, Tyr went walking over towards the would-be hiding spot. He could see the trail of something that had rapidly retreated away from the fallen timber, but whomever it was had gotten themselves past the brush and out of sight. Tyr slipped the axe off his shoulder and set the head on the ground, balancing it with the handle straight up.

"Ho there! Anyone about?"

---

(10/23 SM)

[Jorkahn Wealddir]

Apparently he had been noticed. At the moment he didn't really care. The boy would simply sit there for a moment trying to bring his heart rate back down and ignored the initial beckoning of Tyr. When his breathing finally came back to a normal level Jorkahn pulled the hood of his cloak back over his head, stood up, and slowly stepped out of the bush he had fallen into. The meek child brushed some of the smaller branches of the tree that had nearly crushed him aside and stood now in plain view. His face as well as most of what he wore and was carrying was hidden by his rather large travelling cloak, it blended in rather well with the leaves of the trees and bushes around him. His hands were at his sides near enough to his weapons so that he could pull them at a moments notice but not positioned in a way he would see as threatening. The rather short individual did not know how to respond. Should he introduce himself to break the tension and seem friendly? Or should he stay silent and listen to what the others had to say? Or were these people bandits looking to murder him and loot his corpse for sport?! Unlikely, seeing as they just seemed to be gathering wood for something. After a few moments of agonizing silence Jorkahn spoke up, his voice weak and raspy, unsure. "H-hello. My name is J-Jorkahn."

That's it? Really? You sneak up on a large group of people, come out in some mysterious, and quite frankly shady, garb, and then do nothing but introduce yourself in a volume just barely above a whisper? If one could see his face they could tell that the lad was blushing right now. He had no clue how to react in this situation.

[Tyr]

As the young man haltingly approached Tyr stood in patient silence, waiting for any sign of...well anything really. This new arrival was a quiet one, and covered to hide everything. A tricky one, but to be dealt with the same way Tyr dealt with pretty much everyone. At the mention of a name the Duke perked up, a smile spilling over his face. He let the handle go and raised his hands in welcome, walking straight over and putting an arm around the lad.

"Welcome Jorkahn to the Mardok Duchy! My apologies for the scare there, didn't think anyone would come walking out of our woods right as we were felling some trees!" He started leading the boy back towards their small supply wagon. Water and a snack would do him some good. "Take a canteen, eat some bread. We're nearly finished here and you can head back to the town with the rest of them, or you can head wherever you're going. Or you can come with me to the mountains, either way." The other citizens of the Duchy started chopping the few fallen trees into smaller logs to be hauled onto the cart and returned to town. This was just the start, they would be back for more later.

Getting some water himself, Tyr traded his axe for a pick, and started getting ready for his short trek. He wanted to at least get something to bring back to his forge today.

---

(9/23 SM)

[Jorkahn Wealddir]

The rather large man had stayed where he was until the boy spoke. When he had given his name the man reacted as if it was familiar. This confused Jorkahn for a moment, but only for a moment as his conversation partner suddenly stood up and walked straight over to him. Just before Tyr had reached him the meek little creature took a step back and flinched as an arm was put around him. Jorkahn's hands suddenly squeezed over the handles of his daggers but he made no sudden moves to pull them out.

When he opened his eyes again he was being pulled toward the rest of the group and the man was speaking to him. Jorkahn felt the strength of the craftsman and, though this may not be true, felt like he would not be able to escape from him if he needed to. As he was directed he kept looking back towards the safety of the woods that he had just left. He tried to explain why he had come out at such an inopportune time, but all that came out were quiet "uhms" and mumbles.

Tyr was a rather friendly man and it threw the poor boy for a loop. The only other person who had been so openly friendly to him was his sister, and he had grown up with her. If Tyr had been Valorie then he would had loved to have come up to the mountains with him. But, he had just met the guy and didn't know what to think of him yet. When Jorkahn was led over to the supplies someone thrust a canteen and some bread into his hands and he meekly thanked them. He looked the provisions over and determined that they likely weren't poisoned. Pulling down his hood revealed his long, platinum blonde hair, his feminine facial features, and his heterochromic eyes. The boy took a quick sip and a small bite of the bread.

After all was said and done he stood there in silence, nervously tapping on the canteen with his fingers. He simply watched Tyr and his men unsure of how to respond.

---

7/10

[Tyr]

The boy was a bit stiff, shying away from people, but Tyr figured it was just all the new faces. He'd warm up eventually, most people tended to. The Duke took it for a good sign when Jorkahn took his hood down, although he did have some peculiar features to him. His hair for instance stood out like a sore thumb, wasn't a very common thing amongst humans. It was the ears that gave him away however, though not to Tyr.

"That boy's an Elkagr," one of the woodchoppers said, pointing directly at the aforementioned ears. "Just lookit his ears!" Yes, thank you, we get it.

Tyr inspected the kid for a solid minute, shrugged, and went back to his water. Who cared what race he was? He looked human enough, acted decent enough. Why not treat him like one of their own? Loosening his muscles with a few brief stretches, Tyr hefted his pick, grabbed a full canteen, and started ordering the small group about.

"Mik, get this group turned around and headed home. Lark, make sure that wood gets cleaned up some and to the building site. Jor, hop on the cart or let's get to walkin'!" Heading straight into the woods towards the mountain, Tyr left it up to the new guy to decide what he wanted to do. The Duke had accepted him, the citizens would accept him. It was a thing that tended to happen every now and again when the head man of your town liked to make friends everywhere he went.

---

(8/23 SM)

[Jorkahn Wealddir]

Jorkahn didn't really understand why some people cared so much about race. He didn't know much history, and his parents had intentionally kept him far away from politics. He had never really been discriminated against but one of Tyr's men seemed to be making a bit of a big deal about his ears. In fact, Jorkahn was impressed that anyone could even tell he was part Elkagr. His ears were barely tipped enough to be considered elfish, these men must come across them rather frequently. The boy fidgeted where he stood and quickly finished off his bread before realizing Tyr was staring at him. His decently white skin slowly took on a shade of red and he brought his hood back up to cover his ears and his eyes once more.

When Tyr began to give orders the boy looked up and watched as everyone listened. He could tell that the craftsman's men respected him. Maybe one day he could be that comfortable around others and be so well respected? But Jorkahn did not think very highly of himself so he doubted that would happen. The boy snapped his head to look at Tyr when he called him Jor. The quiet individual was confused for a moment, was the larger man referring to him? He simply watched as everyone began going on their way, and when most everyone had left reluctantly followed Tyr into the brush. He had seen the direction the man had been going and headed the same way, he would likely catch up pretty quickly, but would likely keep his distance unless beckoned closer.

---

6/10

[Tyr]

Makin' his way to the mount', walking fast, woods go past, and he's stone bound~ What, this isn't a music video? Fine.

Tyr strode through the woods with an easy confidence. He grew up here, he knew these woods, it wouldn't be a very difficult trek to the mountains. Not unless he started looking for trouble, but he wasn't in a condition to take on what that would bring out. Plus he could, barely, hear the steps behind him and he didn't feel like getting someone else into a scuffle with nature as well. This Jorkahn fellow was quiet though. Oh well, some people were like that. Best to just let them be that way. Tyr ran back over the brief encounter in his head though, something seemed off. Not that you can get much more 'off' than being discovered because a tree nearly pancaked you into the ground.

Palm met forehead though as Tyr thought about what he'd said. He'd completely forgotten to introduce himself.

"Name's Tyr by the way, Tyr Mardok. I'm the Duke of these lands. You'll like the people here, they're all pretty friendly. Sorran, the one that picked you out by your ears, used to live near the Bone Wastes so he's a bit touchy about Elkagr but don't let him bother you. Man wouldn't hurt a fly 'less it bit him or his kin." He talked without much of a pause and without asking questions. Jorkahn didn't seem to want to talk, so Tyr wasn't going to create a conversation that forced him to. Talking made friends though, and Tyr was determined to do that.

"I'm just headin' up to the edge of the mountains right now to get some ore to craft, and get a better grip on mining so I can instruct the people. Gotta open a quarry so we can get some stone to build with. Interestingly complex thing construction. Need buildings and tools to get materials, need materials to make the buildings and tools."

---

(7/23 SM)

[Jorkahn Wealddir]

Jorkahn had barely come up to within earshot of the craftsman when he started speaking again. The man introduced himself as Tyr Mardock, duke of the duchy they were apparently in. The boy knew he was near Mardock, but he didn't think he had crossed into it. His sense of direction was normally pretty solid as all he really did was wander, and wanderlust could be pretty deadly if you didn't have some idea of where you were going. Maybe he was tired? In fact, now that he thought about it he realized he had been travelling for days and most of the morning with very little rest. It's quite amazing how swiftly fatigue could hit you, but the traveler was good at fighting through it.

The fact that Tyr was trying to speak to Jorkahn caused the boy to come closer on instinct. He was now a few leaps away from the man. At the mention of Sorran and Tyr's admittance to the other's rather docile demeanor, the part Elf relaxed slightly. It was good to know he wouldn't be persecuted for his race, though he honestly hadn't been persecuted before. The boy was still surprised at how quickly Sorran had reacted to the fact of his blood. He hadn't realized it was such a big deal. Perhaps when he saw his family again, and if his parents ever had time for him, he would ask. Jorkahn hadn't been exposed to racial tensions very often in his life.

Without skipping more than a beat his companion began explaining what he was doing out here. Once again the boy got a feeling that Tyr truly cared about his people. The fact that he was taking the time to learn how to do something he planned to teach effectively was proof of that. Many of the richer people he grew up around claimed to know many things but had, in fact, never practiced their knowledge in the real world. He had been disappointed by many a fraudulent mage, and had almost been apprehended once for trying to seek out magical knowledge. There were other examples that came to mind, but the thought of mining and quarrying and the complexities of running a community suddenly came to the forefront.

After a long silence some words actually escaped his lips, "Father never really let me partake in politics or the running of our enterprise." Jorkahn suddenly blinked in confusion. He had no clue what had possessed him to say that, perhaps he was just warming up to the larger man?

[Tyr]

They were making good time through the woods, the mountains were rapidly becoming visible through the breaks in the tree tops. A little more walking and they'd be reaching some of the rocky outcroppings that skirted the edges of them. Tyr didn't need to mine inside the mountain itself right now, anywhere nearby would do for the purpose of learning. Just so long as there was stone to break with his pick. When Jorkahn spoke up Tyr broke into a new grin. Carefully drawing people out of their shell was difficult, but rewarding sometimes. Necessary to understand them though.

"That'll happen, parents often try to keep children from mucking things up. I 'spose I was lucky, I only ever wanted to make things and my father was more than willing to help me learn to do just that." Not very useful for the overall governing of some land, but it did help in building it up. Just being who he was however had turned it into a powerful force for leading his people. "I find the best way to learn something is by doing it though. At best you succeed, at worse you fail and learn what not to do. Watch out now, there might be some rock chips flyin' about."

He broke through the tree line and found the nearest mass of rock. Switching gears immediately Tyr pulled down on the pick with both hands, levering it over his shoulder to bring it smashing down. It punched straight into the rock, and with a heave up the stones split along the edge of the spike. With a sharp tug back the Duke reset his stance and launched the pick right back down.

---

Used Gather on mountainside rocks for ore.
(1/23 SM)

[Azuloth]

Tyr acquires:

2 Copper.
1 Tin.