Lolo led the dwarves to their new temporary home and showed them all the amenities that came with it.
Thrain and the rest of the dwarves jumped up and almost cursed the high heavens when Lolo flicked the switch mounted on the wall and turned on the bright light in the living room.
“By my beard! What is that light?!”
They couldn’t believe that such a bright light could be emitted from such a small glowing wire. And just like before, there was nothing magical about it either. It was as natural as the air, which confused them even more.
Michael had to teach them the basics of electricity and how everything was being powered through the Steam Turbine.
“Harnessing lightning?! Who would have thought that such a dangerous element could lead to such a useful source of power!” Thrain said, staring at the light bulb for too long.
The more they stayed in the village, the more they understood that this place was more advanced than even the richest metropolis in the world.
Its technology was miles above that of the Dwarven Kingdom, just by virtue of the ‘plumbing system’ by itself. Not to mention the electricity, everything they pulled off in this village was nothing more than fantasy for other places.
And in terms of wealth, they had all of it as well. After all, all HobMankeys could eat as much as they wanted, they could drink as much as they wanted, and they obtained everything they wanted from the village for free.
Every HobMankey contributed to the village’s well-being, allowing all of them to live as freely as they did right now.
One by one, groups of HobMankeys visited the dwarves’ abode and gave them little gifts and trinkets to welcome them into their village.
The HobMankeys gave them daily items like cups, plates, and other such objects that would make their lives comfortable in their new home.
Some seamstresses also gave the dwarves well-knitted clothes and ponchos that fit them perfectly. They had the innate power to create comfortable clothes just by sight alone, which surprised the dwarves.
Everyone in this village was powerful in their own right. They had knowledge, skill, and power which were characteristics that no demi-human should have obtained.
What confused the dwarves the most was that Michael seemed to be surrounded by extremely talented individuals. This was far too much of a coincidence.
Not only that, but the Mankeys were also completely different from what they were taught. Everyone said Yellow Mankeys were not complex enough to wield magic or smart enough to build even the simplest of tools.
Yet, what they saw was the complete opposite.
The ‘engineers’ of this village were a lot smarter than even the proudest of blacksmith dwarves.
This led them to become even more impressed at Michael, the human who started all of this in the first place.
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…
…
After getting acclimated to their surroundings, Michael let the dwarves wander around the village at their own discretion.
They went through the farms, the Steam Turbine, and the plaza.
As they were walking through the streets of the village, Thrain and the other dwarves suddenly heard the sound of a satisfying metal CLINK ring out from a distance.
Then, this was followed by raucous cheering that seemed to emanate through the streets.
“What’s that?” Thrain asked.
“Oh, that?” Michael said with a bit of a smile. “That’s just a little game that I spread to the villagers. It quickly became popular within the HobMankeys, with most youths spending their time playing it during the day.”
“A game?” asked Thrain with curiosity.
Michael answered by leading them towards a large field on the outskirts of the village. The area was diamond-shaped, with HobMankeys placed in specific places on the four plates.
The juvenile HobMankey in the middle of the field had a serious look on his face as he stared down his opponent.
Opposite him was another HobMankey, who wielded a metal bet, lightly swinging it in preparation for what was to come.
The HobMankey in the middle winded up his arm and threw the ball with such speed and ferocity that the wind whistled as it cleaved through the air.
Just as the ball was about to go past the metal bat, the HobMankey suddenly twisted his hips and brought power to his hands, allowing the bat to accurately hit the fastball, sending it flying through the air.
The crowd of HobMankeys watching on the sidelines and bleachers all screamed in excitement.
“Homerun!” they cheered as the HobMankey with the bat rounded out the bases on the diamond field.
Michael smiled as he pointed at the energized camaraderie between the players and the audience.
“That is baseball!” he proclaimed.
The dwarves looked on at the game with a burning curiosity. Even though they didn’t know the rules of the game, they were all taken by the intense focus and seriousness among the players. Not only that, but the energy oozing between them was palpable. Their joy upon hitting that ball to the ends of the horizon was nothing less than exhilarating.
After the game, the batter on the mound slowly approached Michael and the dwarves.
He slowly took off his hat and showed himself to be Kong, the Chief Engineer of this village.
“Boss, you came to see me win! I’m getting better, right? I’m sure I’ll knock your ball right out of the park the next time we play a game,” Kong said, his excitement showing on his face.
“You still have a lot to learn, padawan,” Michael replied. “We’ll play a game tonight and I’ll show you who’s the Ace!”
The dwarves couldn’t believe the camaraderie and fellowship between everyone in the village.
They all seemed to be united with this one game. Those who won showed happiness as if they had just won a war. And those who lost showed no sadness, only an intense desire to get better.
And even still, they showed respect and admiration for each other regardless of the outcome.
This sparked a desire for the dwarves to learn more about this strange game called ‘baseball.’
Michael saw their curious looks and invited them to watch tonight’s match with their own eyes.
“You should see the game tonight,” he said to them. “The Cleaving Chefs are fighting against the Brainiac Engineers!”
