The Autocraft Alchemist

By the time that Richard made it to the depot he had already received a message from his father, "Rutger's there to pick you up." And he looked around to see if he couldn't locate the old man. There was a classic looking car that was parked in the waiting area. The horn meeped once and he saw Rutger was hanging out of the driver's window waving.

As Richard jogged over Rutger shouted, "Get in." The car had a large front end, was all sleek lines, and was painted baby blue. How something like it had not only survived the break but also looked mint condition was a mystery to Richard. And no sooner had his bottom hit the passenger seat the car roared to life, pulled out of the parking spot, and started down the road.

Rutger looked over and smiled at Richard. "While it may not be as fancy as those new flying cars, it'll sure turn some heads. They also tend to fly around or over when I'm cruising. Makes it easy to get to where I'm going as fast as I want."

"Uh. Weren't there speeding laws?" Richard said. He was still trying to do up his seat belt.

"Yeah. But the enforcers all know me by now. Plus it's only a little over the limit. Just a little."

They got through the city quick enough, and once they hit the highway to Welf, Rutger really opened it up. And the engine purred under the increased speed.

"What do you think? First time in a beaut like this?" Rutger asked.

"That's right. It's quite the smooth ride. I'm surprised, really. What kind of car is it?"

"2034 Janus. One of the first from an automaker that only started the year before. A bunch of engineers broke off from the big three and made their own. It's a bit of a call back to the muscle cars from 60 or so years before. Only with a modern twist while still being somewhat affordable."

"Wait, it's using gas?"

Rutger laughed. "I wish! No. It's electric and has speakers on it to make it sound like that. If I were to turn them off it would be quiet enough. But where's the fun in that!?" he asked with a big grin.

Richard shook his head and enjoyed the ride. It would have been nice if the weather was nice. Blue skies and warm air. Then he could have opened the window. Might be something to try for when he had enough disposable income for something like a car. Though he wondered how much something as old as Rutger's would cost.

"Do you know what's going on? Richard finally asked. "Dad didn't say anything to me at all. But if it's important enough to get picked up…"

"I've only heard rumors myself. But it seems like they found something up there in the wilds, chasing the ratters. I doubt that it's going to be something fun. Well," Rutger showed a half smile, "depending on who you ask I guess."

Richard kind of knew what Rutger was getting at. Some of the Horns were a little touched in the head. Was that an effect of living through the break? Or maybe it was because they were like that that they survived in the first place. From what he could remember from the night of the ratter invasion there were several old timers who seemed to miss the thrills of combat. So even if something bad was coming their way, there was a possibility that some would see it as a last chance for a good fight.

They got through the wall without paying taxes. Rutger showed the guard something and the man waved them through. "Bit of a secret that. We built the wall. Why the hell should we have to pay to get through it? Also can't really talk about it," he said with a shrug, "a lot of what we accomplished has been forgotten…"

Instead of going to the clubhouse Rutger drove them to the Boroughs Community Center. It was a shared community space that had a large enough hall in it. As well as things like swimming pools, basketball courts, baseball diamonds, and so on.

When they entered the hall Richard was surprised by the number of people. Most of them were grey haired and looked like members of the Mourning Horns. But there were also many younger people there. Were they the children of clan members like himself? Looking at how young some of them looked, there were probably some grandchildren as well.

"Richard!" his father called out to him and waved him over. The table his father was sitting at was mostly full and had the members of the potion testing group as well as several others. "We'll do the proper introductions later. But this is my boy," his father said and slapped him on the back.

It took about an hour before anything started. Richard sat there next to his father and listened in as they caught up with one another. They always seem to find something to remember, a fight that they escaped by the skin of their teeth, a story of someone that had since passed, or trouble that they had almost gotten into.

Richard was tempted to seek out some of the other younger people. But he didn't know what to try and talk about. Should he just go into dungeon stuff? Or maybe about how they relate to the clan? His connection to the clan only really was his father. And he worried that if the others had been a part of clan dealings since they were young, then they would have possibly known each other already. It was never easy breaking the ice when coming in from the outside with such a group.

There was a tap on a microphone that interrupted his thought spiral. "Alright folks. This meeting was called at the last minute. But I think that everyone that is going to come has arrived," Jackie said. She was wearing a white blouse and a long navy blue skirt. Something that was about as far away as possible from the heavy armor that Richard had seen her in last.

"We have a lot of the younger generation with us today. So we'll go over a few things before we hit the meat of the issue. And boy is it more than we might be able to chew," she said and nodded to a man who was standing to her side. "I'll get Edgar to take over for now."

This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Edgar stepped forward and looked over the crowd gathered in the hall. His white hair was a little thin on top, and was slicked back and professional looking. He was wearing a dark brown tweed jacket and dress shirt with the top few buttons undone. "It's been a great number of years before we have gathered like this. More so because it was beyond the number set by the government in their demands. But also because we got used to living in peace.

"Only now, we have justification against the government. I don't want to get ahead of myself just yet. So let's get the youngsters caught up first," Edgar said.

From there he talked about how the clan gave up its land and power for concessions from the new, at the time, federal government. They retained the ability to protect themselves. The ability to still gather in numbers less than 50, something that many of the smaller clans were unable to obtain. The ability for all and any to enter the dungeons that were once held under the clan's influence. Which was what led to the creation of the Dungeon Centers.

Then Edgar talked about how after they had retired the clans were washed from history. How it was probably from fear, but also to put distance between the new country and the clans over the mountains and across the dragon wastes.

"As for the benefits that we traded for… many of us wanted to return to our lives of peace. Of the lives that we lived before the break occurred. And retiring the clan was considered to be the best way towards such an end. And with the promises from the government it was considered to be a good deal at the time.

"But this leads us to the single most important item," Edgar paused and looked around the room, "it was that the government would set protections in place. Protections that would prevent another mass break from happening. Protections that should have prevented the ratter invasion from happening. Protections that should have dealt with the looming calamity that we have found to the north.

"There was an allowance to take arms and armor to defend against threats. As well as deal with the source of such threats," Edgar said. "This is what we drew upon in order to punish the ratters for daring to raid our towns. Our houses. To take vengeance for those who were lost or disappeared in the attack." He paused to take a drink of water. There was a mood in the air that Richard had trouble placing. A tension of sorts that made it hard to breathe.

"We have dealt with the ratter warrens that should have been responsible for the attack. And so the allowance that we had for action has come to a close. At least it would have been. Only before we made it to the final warren someone had been there before us. It had been picked clean and a warning had been left behind.

"A relic of a past age. A effigy of a ratter, carved with symbols, and impaled for all to see. Something many of us have had less than pleasant memories of. An. orcish. war. promise."

Richard felt like a bomb had gone off in the hall at the mention of the orcs. Nobody moved. Nothing changed at all. But the tension that had appeared earlier had exploded and there was suddenly a much heavier pressure in the air. He felt dizzy out of nowhere and like something had settled onto his neck and shoulders and was trying to push him to the ground.

Edgar held out his hands and made a calming motion. "Now now. Some of the next generation can't handle this level of killing intent. So please hold off of it for now."

Richard gasped in a deep breath of air. He hadn't even realized that he had stopped breathing at some point. He looked at his father and there was a sharpness about him that Richard had never seen before. All of the old timers at the table had it. It was as if a promise of hatred and violence were bundled together and projected.

"We now stand before the greatest question that we have faced in the decades since our disbanding. War is on the horizon. The government hasn't made good on its promises to us. They have failed to protect our homes and families once already. Do we stand again? Or do we sit back and hope that the government can take care of this threat and the next with their guilds?"

The room broke out into murmurs as people started talking about the question Edgar had asked. "I'm too old for this," Rutger said. "If only it had been 10, no, 5 years ago."

Indigo shot a fist into her palm and she wore a smile. "I've been wanting some action of late. Kind of missed out on fighting with the clan against the ratters. But orcs, oh my. I can't believe that we have to fight with them again. I don't know if I should be happy or sad. I really don't."

Jeet sat there with his arms crossed and a gleam in his eye that felt like the pressure from earlier. And Richard felt that if they disturbed the man something bad would happen.

Kent had stood at the announcement. And he was looking at the podium where Edgar was still standing and talking with Jackie. The increasing noise of the room made it impossible to hear what they might have been talking about.

***

Chuck had done it. Well, not entirely. But enough was in place that he had probably done it. Of the 5 presidents of the Crafter's Unions he had brought 2 to his side already. Both Fernado the President of Product Development and Sita the President of Operations. He had sweet talked the two of them into agreeing that something needed to change. And he had managed to get Hertha, the President of Finance, to suggest that she would be willing to agree with him if his case was sound.

That was a majority vote, and if he played his cards right he would be promoted as the President of Buying. It would be a minor role when compared to the others at first. But it would reduce the power of Nora as well as getting his foot in the door. And then he would be able to reduce costs while bringing in more product. Show some results. And prove through his leadership that they could compete with the other crafter's guilds in the other provinces.

Then, he would be closer to taking over the entire guild. But he needed to make sure that he didn't make any mistakes in haste. The others were willing to lend him an ear and help his goals for now. But they also wanted their share. So Chuck would need to bide his time. If he made enough promises he would only need to follow through with them at the start.

Though there was something that needed his attention. Argence had failed him and Nora had overruled his choice and placed Grant as Richard's dedicated buyer. While it was possible to fight and change things back, it wasn't the right time for that. And any such strong-arm tactics would look bad on him at the next presidential meeting.

How could he get the crafter onto his side? Was it possible? Maybe. But there wasn't time for that. Chuck needed a win and having those recipes would be it. They were also part of his promise to Fernando. They were struggling on all fronts at replicating what had been found in the dungeons. And the man was desperate for some sort of progress.

An idea slowly came to Chuck. Richard seemed to be someone who probably had trouble saying no. One of those weak willed individuals that were walked all over by management. Forced to work overtime without pay and the like. So maybe it was possible to use that? Or even something a bit more forceful?

Chuck started a message requesting that Richard give him a moment of his time. That would be enough. And a moment would be all that he needed, then some sweet words and some promises that didn't need to be kept. And the man would be in his pocket. Then Chuck could force the recipes out of him. Confirm Fernando's support. While also getting a win over Nora. Baby hands get baby results.

He stood and looked out the window, down at the ants crawling on the street and sidewalk. They didn't know it. But each and every one would soon be pushing Chuck higher and higher.