The kids were quickly packed up into the wagons, and Karl’s team prepared to head out.
“Will you be following us to town?” The retrieval team leader asked.
Karl shook his head. “No, we need to make a delivery to a nomadic tribe today, and if we go through the city we won’t make it on time after all this delay.”
The team and the bandit kids all looked concerned with that answer.
“You’re going to make a trade deal with the nomads? The Yellow Tusk Orc Nomads? Are you insane?” The team leader asked, unconsciously checking his armour as if they might hear and attack.
“It’s just a load of dried fish, it’s not like we’re trading weapons. Besides, I’m pretty good at getting along with Orcs.”
One of the wagon drivers laughed. “Is that even possible?”
“Of course. When they challenge you, just tell them off and demand to talk to the boss.”
The wagon driver held his belly as he laughed. “Oh, it’s like that. I suppose if you’re not averse to a fist fight with an Orc Champion, it’s a good method. Presuming that you don’t die of stupidity.”
Ophelia changed back to Werebear form and took a seat on the front of the wagon after everyone else was loaded. She had put Cara in the wagon to keep both Lotus and the Void Badger entertained, and they were ready to leave as soon as Karl finished chatting.
“Alright, gentlemen. Good luck with your work. Perhaps I will see you again one day.”
Karl turned the wagon northeast across the road and into the open grassland.
He had a general idea where he was going thanks to Hawk’s scouting, and now he just had to wait for the bird to find the exact spot where the Anomaly was going to appear.
Thor was making good time, as the grass was mostly untouched, and the dirt soft enough that the wheels weren’t taking jarring hits, except when they found a hidden stone.
[There is a large group of people walking in the distance, near the hill with the three upright stones where the Anomaly should be.]
[What species?] Karl asked.
[Orcs, mostly. But they’ve got some others with them.]
That sounded odd for Orcs, but Karl altered Thor’s course so they were all headed for the Anomaly location. Even if the meeting with the nomads went badly, it would be good cover for them interfering with the Anomaly.
“There is an Orc tribe ahead. They’re near where the Anomaly will appear, so I will go meet them, and we can delay until the Anomaly opens. If what Bishop Misty told us is correct, it should be soon.” He explained, so the others understood.
The Orcs sent a runner when Karl was still five kilometres from the stones. He turned to meet them, so the Orcs didn’t think he was running away. But he didn’t turn directly so that he would end up with a few hundred metres of the stones when they met each other. The Orcs were intending to pass by the stones, but they had stopped on the far side to see what the merchant who would keep driving a wagon toward them wanted.
The Orcish runner straightened the tie around his neck, worn with nothing but a pair of tattered black shorts that were once fashionable pants.
“Yellow Tusk Clan Chieftain, World Smasher, wishes to im-choir what yer business is.”
He spoke slowly with a thick accent, as if unfamiliar with the language.
That was a major change from the last time Karl had seen them, when the leader spoke with a posh accent, and wore fancy clothes that the clan had made themselves, not looted from another species and altered.
[Rae, make a pair of simple black pants that will fit the leader of the clan.] Karl instructed.
[Why? Are we making friends?]
[Yes. I am going to give them to the leader as a gift. Trust me, it will be fun.]
Rae didn’t get what Karl was going for, but if he said it would lead to fun, she trusted him.
She quickly made them, but left them a bit loose and with a rope at the waist so they could be cinched to stay up.
“Please tell Chieftain World Smasher that we wish to trade a bundle of dried fish, fresh from the coast, for any trade goods he has that the cities will take. Here is a gift of good faith for him, to show my sincerity.”
Karl handed over the pants, and the Orc got a cunning look on his face that he tried to hide.
“And what if the Chieftain says he doesn’t want your pants?”
“Then tell him I will punch him in the face for disrespecting my gift. Go ahead and inform him that we will meet him at the standing stones to talk business.”
The Orc ran off back to his Clan, while Rae laughed in Karl’s mind.
[You’re right, this will be fun.]
Karl stopped the wagon before the stones, so it was less likely to get caught up in the chaos, then double-checked on the item he had gotten to stabilize the Anomaly when it appeared.
After a few minutes of shouting and swearing that Karl could hear from three hundred metres away, a massive Orc came over with freshly made black pants on, and four large orcs carrying bags of something.
Karl went to retrieve the fish and set the bundle on a relatively clean stone while he waited.
The Orcs walked up until the leader was chest to chest with Karl, but towering over him by a full sixty centimetres. He had an intimidating scowl on his face, but he was wearing the gift, so Karl didn’t back down or make any aggressive moves.
“These are good pants.” He announced.
“Of course they are. I wouldn’t give cheap pants to a Chieftain.” Karl scoffed, and the big man smiled as he stepped back.
“What kind of fish do you have? It’s not often someone comes looking for us to trade.”
“One hundred kilos of dried salmon.” Karl announced, then untied the top strings holding the cloth on the bundle.
The Orcs took a deep breath and smiled. Orcs didn’t deep water fish, so they could only get salmon during spawning season, and that wasn’t prime salmon flavour, as they were exhausted and had burnt most of their fat to get to the spawning grounds.
These were prime specimens, carefully dried. The flavour would be incredible, and just the smell was more appealing than the dried jerky that they had.
Chieftain World Smasher motioned for his man at the back to bring a bag forward, then for the others to leave. Karl didn’t know what was in the other bags, but the Chieftain had made his choice, and he was digging through the bag for something.
A few seconds later, he started tossing armour pieces out, then boots and miscellaneous equipment that wasn’t fit for an Orc.
He stopped and looked at the pile, then at the fish. Karl frowned as he mentally calculated the value. It should already be more than the fish was worth, by a factor of at least three, but the Chieftain went back in for one more set of bracers and added them to the pile.
He nodded at Karl, who smiled and nodded back.
“We have a deal, then. Boys, pick up the fish and spread it through the tribe. Today we celebrate.” He announced.
“Oh, are you holding a wrestling competition? I was once sent to the past, and I heard that was a favourite of the tribes.”
That was one hundred percent bullshit, but it would keep them all right here where the Anomaly should be opening within the next hour or two.