Dom and Lucius showed Elder Qiao how to do the daily spawns, where three families were spawned in total, bringing the original Villagers of Tranquillity to a grand total of ten. The three main spawns had a mixture of skills, with a Farmer, a Fisherman and a Builder, plus their families. Dom felt like his luck had been high with the initial daily spawns in Riverside and once again in Tranquillity. He imagined the frustration if it was an initial village spawn and they had received a skillset that wasn't overly helpful at the beginning stages, like an Author. Thankfully they had brought along a ship full of residents with them, who had a variety of skills to help Tranquillity get kick started without the worry of the daily spawns. who quickly got to work with unloading the cargo that had been shipped with them.
They had made sure to load up a large selection of wood, tools and food. Wang Shu had also sent one of his son's along to help direct the beginning of the building. Even though there were many other capable builders in Riverside, Wang Shu and his family had cemented themselves as a mainstay within Riverside's structure.
Pullo was directing the unload of the Merchant Ship that had docked, the other anchored and waiting in the River. Whilst Hatshepsut and Shang Yang directed people to different areas to place the goods. Dom had explored the Town Centre with Elder Qiao, as it would be Elder Qiao's home for now and was impressed with how similar it was to Riverside's when it spawned. He wondered if all Town Centre's looked the same, or if this architecture was specific to the geographical area that Riverside and Tranquillity were based in.
Dom was impressed at the speed that those that would be left behind got to work, with the new spawned Villagers quickly getting to work with those that had arrived via ship. The Farmer had disappeared somewhere with Lucius and the other farmers that had travelled down in the first batch. Their role was to start drawing areas for different crops, whilst more would travel by foot the following day to support. Lucius had been extremely excited since the spawning of the Vineyard and Dom looked forward to trying some of the wine once it was produced.
The Fisherman had travelled to the docks and was preparing the small fishing boat that had arrived for departure. Dom had checked the stats of the Docks and was impressed to see that it had the same perks as those from Riverside. The Calm River was already abundant with fish and the perk gave them an incredibly good source of food.
The Builder had joined Wang Shu's Son and was now, amongst many others, moving goods and preparing different plots for houses. Housing was the priority for now, as it was in Riverside, so all those that were moving here had a roof above their head. Hatshepsut and Sostratus had been discussing how they could deal with key things such as hygiene and sewage within the housing districts.
They were soon ready to leave and Elder Qiao had explained that he would stay behind and help get everything in place, before re-joining them in Riverside the following day before Dom logged out. He had explained confusion when Lucius had mentioned to him that Dom would leave for a prolonged period and was even more grateful for the trust in managing Tranquillity in it's initial growing phase.
Dom had reboarded the Galatea, leaving Pullo and half a Century behind to support the Villagers and Elder Qiao. Lucius had also explained that he would stay behind and would be picked up later on the return trip. He would investigate the land between the Sea City and Tranquillity in the coming week, but for now he wanted to make sure that they had good plans in place for the space between Riverside and Tranquillity. Benjamin the lead Farmer and Zanug the lead Shepherd were both on their way to Tranquillity on land and Lucius was extremely excited for the following conversations.
The rest of the group had also boarded the Galatea, with Hatshepsut, Xun Yu and Shang Yang now stood at the front of the ship. Whilst Meritamen, Hua Rong, Crassus and Artemisia sat in the centre. At the rear Gan Ning, Subutai, Sun Ce and Dom continued down the river towards their final destination of the day.
"Are you happy with your Father in law being the new mayor?" Gan Ning asked Sun Ce as they departed.
"I think it is great to keep him busy." Sun Ce replied honestly, "He is a capable man and this is something he would excel at."
"What will your wife think?" Subutai laughed, wanting to tease Sun Ce and not expecting a serious answer.
"Gratitude, but she seems to be struggling and I think having him around will make her feel more comfortable." Sun Ce explained seriously, turning Subutai's tease into a deeper conversation.
Gan Ning patted Sun Ce on the shoulder and told him that everything would be ok now. Dom saw in Sun Ce's eyes a real disappointment that his wife had gone through so much and he hadn't been there to help her. He wondered if he would be the same warrior that he was, knowing that he had almost died and by him not being there his family had gone through so much.
....
"We are nearing the Sea!" Hua Rong shouted from the front, having moved there during their journey for a better view. The Bireme was still at the front of their convoy, but they were missing one of the Merchant Ships that had stayed behind at Tranquillity. Dom was excited to get the new Town spawned and to then head back west towards Riverside. The sun was now high in the sky and the day would soon pass. There was plenty to do in the remaining time left, especially for those that were left behind.
"The pace of the Galatea will increase when we exit the Calm River and enter the Shimmering Sea, so everyone needs to be prepared for that." Gan Ning explained as they made good progress towards the Sea. "We will then make a turn to the north and land on the beach, how far up do you want to go?"
"Not very, I want this location to cover the entrance to the River as well as the Shimmering Sea." Dom replied as he held on to the railings on the Galatea. Subutai and Sun Ce had left him at some point and he was now stood alone with Gan Ning at the back. Subutai had gone to discuss something with Crassus, where as Sun Ce had headed below and was watching the oarsmen and learning more about how the Galatea worked.
"Hopefully there is a good location that isn't to far north then." Gan Ning agreed, before pointing to the last bit of land before they neared the Estuary where the Calm River and Shimmering Sea met. "Otherwise we could spawn it around here and be a bit more inland."
...
They soon reached the Estuary at the end of the Calm River, the water didn't feel as calm as it had originally as the Oarsmen had to put in more work to control the pace of the Galatea. The Bireme ahead of them had now entered the Shimmering Sea and had slowed it's pace to wait for the Galatea to catch up.
The Estuary was stunning, full of lush trees and colourful plants that covered both sides of the Calm River. There were plenty of small animals that were grazing, including a group of small wild Deer that seemed confused and cautious by the large ships that were passing by. Dom also noticed in the Shimmering Sea some fins that were closing in on the Bireme, he panicked at first, until one jumped from the water and showed that it was a type of Dolphin.
"There is a lot of nature around here." Gan Ning commented as they left the faster current and entered the Shimmering Sea themselves.
Dom looked around and saw that to the north, after around a hundred metres dropped from a vegetive area and became a long beach, the one that he had originally discovered the Shimmering Sea on. He looked back at the small group of Deer again and felt a bit reluctant to ruin their habitat, but it was the best location to spawn the new Town Centre.
"Let's beach the ships there." Dom stated, pointing towards the first bit of sand that they saw.
"I'll signal for the Bireme to do it." Gan Ning replied, not wanting to risk the Galatea on any unseen rocks that may be underneath. The Bireme were smaller and easier to repair, they were also less valuable to Riverside than the Trireme. Gan Ning shouted some orders and a flag was raised, followed by another. Dom wondered how they had come up with the flag signals, but felt that was a conversation for another day.
...
The sand was soft and warm on Dom's feet, having filtered through the sandals he wore and it's coarseness running against the base of his feet as he walked with difficulty back towards the Estuary.
"Last time I did this, I was on horseback." Dom complained as he walked, his sandals feeling heavy.
"It's beautiful." Meritamen replied, ignoring his complaining as she looked out towards the Shimmering Sea, the Dolphins now swimming around the Merchant Ship that was anchored nearby.
"It really is, I wish this was the Capital." Hatshepsut agreed, she seemed a natural on the sand and unlike Dom that was walking heavily, she seemed to have the correct pace to travel seamlessly across it.
Dom could see further behind them that Shang Yang and Xun Yu were both struggling, with Sun Ce, Crassus and Artemisia helping them across.
Gan Ning was further ahead with some Hoplite from the Galatea, making sure that there were no hidden predators in the vegetive area ahead at the Estuary. Part of Dom didn't disagree with Hatshepsut's remark as this location was a different type of beauty compared to Riverside and Tranquillity. He felt it was a shame that Lucius hadn't seen this yet, and expected that the Mayor of Riverside would have been excited at the sight of the Deer and the Dolphins.
"Watch your feet around here!" Gan Ning had exclaimed as they began to leave the sandy area and reach a more solid ground. Dom looked and saw that Gan Ning was pointing at some strange circular mounds.
"What are they?" Hatshepsut asked as she caught up to Gan Ning, leaving Dom and Meritamen behind. Dom still struggling whilst Meritamen laughed at his expense.
"Turtle eggs!" Gan Ning replied seriously, "Majestic creatures that should be treated with respect."
"Or in a soup." Hatshepsut laughed as she eyed the mounds with a teasing look.
"We have enough food options without having to eat Turtles." Gan Ning replied with a shake of his head, before they all reached the vegetive area of the Estuary. The group of small Deer had all now ran away further to the west towards Tranquillity as the group of humans walked in their land. The Hoplite had spread out and were scanning the trees, bushes and other foliage for any predators.
"What about snake soup?" Hatshepsut asked as she kicked a small one that had appeared in front of her. She looked at it for a second to see if it reacted, but it hissed at her and slithered away. Gan Ning rolled his eyes at her, not daring to eat a snake after the arrival of the Titanacondas.
"Do you want to head a bit more inland?" Gan Ning asked Dom, pointing to a point just beyond the vegetation that seemed to open up more. Dom thought for a few seconds on whether to place the Town Centre closer to the waters edge like he had with Tranquillity, but decided against it. This new location was the face of the new kingdom to anyone that came by the sea, placing the Town Centre so easily to be attacked was a risky choice.
"Yes, let's head there." Dom agreed as they passed through some vine covered trees, before grabbing the B Grade Town Centre Cube. "System, please spawn the Town Centre!"