Jared's Song Elrek's Rise

“But Father, they do have uses! And the more they are used, the more these little problems will be sorted out.” Elrek said. Jared looked sceptically at his son and then back at the tangled remains of the small demonstration model of the new steam machine. “It was my usual luck that it had to have a major problem when I was showing you.” Elrek sighed, his slim shoulders drooping. Jared nodded, “Well, that I can understand. That always happens if you are desperate to impress someone. Come and walk with me and explain what sort of uses they could be used for.” He said. Elrek sighed and walked beside his Father along the paved way that ran along the seawall. “Well, attached to the base of a crane, they can lift many times more than men can at the moment, without making too much of a change, and turn the crane too. If you see them as power units just waiting to be connected to something, it helps. They can power threshing machines, and larger harvesters, they can power hammers for forges that are not near a stream or be a secondary power source for mills on windless days.” Jared stopped and they leaned on the seawall and looked out over the beach. “The quarries are interested in them, as are the sawmills. Father, they will never replace men or horses, just be there to do the dangerous heavy lifting or pulling. Yes, they are still a little unstable at the moment, but then, at the moment, ropes can break or horses can go lame or kick.” Jared smiled, listening to his son making his case. “Wait a minute!” he said as he realised, “Replace horses?” he asked, looking at Elrek. Elrek flushed, “Ah, well. You see, if you make a special wagon, one of those units can drive it, without a horse pulling it. Master Gato says that he can foresee a time when even ships could be driven by such a unit, though a large one.” Jared frowned. “It’s all just a matter of gears and drive shafts.” Elrek said. Jared stared out across the ocean, and thought, as Elrek stood silently beside him. Jared turned and looked at his son, “Alright. I think there is an old storehouse over at the edge of the compound, though it might need some work on the roof. Master Gato can work there, and I will allow him to access the other workshops, as long as he doesn’t stop their work. You can finance him.” Elrek grinned and hugged Jared, who laughed. Alisha smiled as Jared walked into the dining room, “I see you survived Elrek’s demonstration.” She said, “We heard the bang up here.” Jared chuckled, “It was sort of impressive, even when it exploded, but it is the future, dear. I have given this Gato an old storehouse to work in, and because Elrek seems so interested in these steam machines.” Alisha chuckled, “He has too many idea’s. He tells them to me, but I don’t understand half of them.” “It must be all those hours he has to sit listening to all those boring legal cases.” Jared said, grinning. Just then Pelona entered, and stopped seeing just the two of them talking, and attempted to creep out again. “And where do you think you are going, Pelona?” Alisha asked. Pelona stopped and turned, “I thought you might be talking privately, so I...” “Dear, I keep telling you. If we want to talk privately, we do so in our chamber or our minds. Come in and sit down.” Pelona entered, as timid as usual. Jared smiled to her then remembered, “Ah! We are to go exploring today!” Pelona nodded, “Yes, sir.” Jared nodded, “I will eat a little and go and change, and we will be off.” Alisha glanced from Pelona to him, “Why did you not say anything what she called you sir?” she asked. Jared sighed, “This is the best we have got to, dear. She cannot bring herself to call me by my name, for reasons I still do not understand. I growl at her when she calls me ‘Sire’, so we have settled for ‘sir’, which she said a well brought up Daughter would call her Father.” He said, and shook his head while making himself a thick sandwich. Alisha grinned, glancing to Pelona. “And what is this ‘exploring’?” She asked, looking at Jared. “It is Pelona, myself and a small wyvern, and our horses, because I am still not allowed to travel far by myself.” Alisha frowned, “No guards?” Jared chewed whilst looking at Alisha, finally answering, “Oh, I forgot, yes, a company of guards, a cook and accompanying staff for lunch, a map-maker, and various gentry to just get in the way and look good.” He said. Alisha looked at him, “I ask because I worry about the two of you. There is no need of cutting remarks, dear.” Jared muttered to himself, and then said, “I am planning on hopping from high point to high point, stopping long enough to make a quick map and off again. Line of sight with the wyvern scouting out ahead. We will be safe, because I know you will shout at me if we are not. If there is trouble, we just travel back here.” Alisha nodded. “She fusses too much.” Jared said, looking around from the top of a hill. “Because she cares about you, sir.” Pelona said. “It is because Elrek and Druna have grown up, so she turns her attention to me.” He said directing the wyvern to the next hill across the valley. “Alisha loves you sir, it is natural that she cares for you.” Pelona said, not looking up from the rough map she was sketching out. Jared grumbled to himself, and checked the small direction device to check that they were still heading basically south. “Um, shouldn’t it be getting warmer? I mean, if you go south in Korvessa, there’s that huge desert that is damned hot.” Jared said. Pelona rolled up her paper and put it back in the travel tube hung from her horse’s saddle. “I did wonder about that.” She said, looking around, “All it seems to be doing here is getting wetter.” Jared nodded, “Those trees are tall, look, over there, much taller than I’ve ever seen.” “Closer together, too, sir.” Pelona said. They travelled to the next hilltop, which was a little higher than the last, and just had grass on top. Finally they came back, their clothes soaked in what seemed to be a perpetual mist of water that had penetrated everything. Pelona was quite upset that her map had got wet, but Jarl assured her that it would dry out, and praised her for her attention to detail. When she returned, she found Jared telling Oleth and Varie about the jungle they had found. “Here is Pelona! She’ll tell you! Pelona, was there not a little bright frog living in a plant?” Jared asked. Pelona smiled and nodded, “There was indeed, such a tiny thing too.” “Everything seemed to have things living on it there. I’m not sure I’d like to live there though.” Jared said. Varie looked at Pelona, “Pel, you don’t look very well, are you okay?” Pelona frowned, “Why, certainly. I feel just a little hot...” her world seemed to fade and she collapsed. She seemed to be aware in a sort of dream-state, though she couldn’t move, and voices seemed to come from a distance. She was lifted up and floated to be put on her bed, and Druna bent over her, frowning down at her. “Pelona? Can you hear me?” Pelona tried to nod, but she couldn’t seem to make her head move. “What did she touch?” Druna asked, “Her left hand looks like it is burned, but it isn’t, her right hand fingers too.” Jared’s lower voice said, “Not much, she is a careful girl and wears her gloves.” “Think, Father!” Druna said, “Oh, the little frog!” he said. “I’ll go and get it!” and he vanished. Pelona wanted to warn him, but she couldn’t. Her eyes closing at last. Jared returned with his clay jar and inside a tiny black and fiery orange mottled frog. Alisha and Druna looked at it, “It is so small!” Alisha said, and Jared nodded, “It was living between the leaves of a plant, where water had collected.” Druna looked closer, “Ah! See? Its skin has a slime upon it. I have noticed that animals that wear vivid colours do so to warn of danger. I must get this to the Temple. Try to keep Pelona cool please, Mother, I’ll be back as soon as I can.” She took the frog and vanished.