“Is that beer?” Noah asked, incredulous. Ta’Ku was standing nearby and frowned at his words.

  “I don’t know what beer is, but this is Jon’Go!” he said excitedly as he thrust a glass mug into Noah’s hand. It was hard to tell in the fire-lit room, but Noah could have sworn that Ta’Ku’s face was flushed a deeper red than usual. How strong is this stuff? He wondered as he sniffed the beverage in question. The scent was far stronger than he anticipated and he sneezed for the first time he could remember. He looked askance at Ne’Ja, who was laughing heartily at his performance.

  “Drink it!” she instructed. Noah chuckled to himself before taking a tentative sip of the aromatic brew. His eyes went wide as his palate came to life. He realized with no uncertainty that it wasn’t beer. This Jon’Go was more like a spiced wine, with hints of citrus, cinnamon, and star anise. He took another drink, then another, finding that the flavor built with each additional sip. Several orcs had gathered around to watch their leader consume the beverage and began to grin as the drink vanished down his throat. Before Noah knew it, his drink was gone, and a new mug had been thrust into his hand.

  “This is amazing!” he announced, causing a chorus of cheers in the affirmative to rise throughout the room. Ne’Ja found mugs for Recter and Un’Dal before leading them to a quieter section of the room. The first floor of the building was a massive tavern, filled with tables and hosting a kitchen on the far side. In the center was a wide open space where most of the dancers mingled and moved to the uneven beat of an orcish chant. There was a staircase to the left of the entrance that likely led to lodgings above, and it, like the rest of the room, was adorned with beautiful wood trim. He continued to scan the room with a sense of wonder, finding the attention to detail both out of place and grounding amidst their dire circumstances. While part of him may have argued that the craftsmen had better things to spend their time on, he couldn’t help but appreciate the beauty of the room and the effect it had on the atmosphere.

  “Who’s idea was this?” he asked, looking to Ne’Ja and Un’Dal.

  “Un’Dal recommended the tavern, Ta’Ku insisted on the dance floor, and I pushed for the rooms upstairs. The jon’go was something that Ro’Kar loved, and it only seemed fitting for it to be the first drink we produced. The farmers were able to find and grow kao root as well as several of the needed spices,” Ne’Ja explained. Noah nodded, finding that a warm feeling had spread throughout his body. That was fast. He looked down at the amber colored drink, noting the pale golden foam sitting atop the liquid. He took another sip, this time savoring the flavor and light carbonation. It was smooth and rich, and the sweet taste was an unusual find in their nomadic diet.

  “Ro’Kar had good taste. Should we be drinking this before our meeting, though? I am already starting to feel something,” he commented. Ne’Ja and Un’Dal both laughed.

  “There is very little alcohol in it, you are feeling the effect of the kao root. It makes you warm and tingly but nothing more,” Un’Dal explained. Noah grinned at the news and took to his second mug of jon’go with vigor. Fifteen minutes later, the various town leaders began to stream into the tavern, making their way to the table they had secured away from the noise. There was an elf representing the crafters, several orcs on behalf of the warriors and newer members, a human woman representing the farmers, as well as Julie, Ta’Ku, Recter, Ne’Ja, and Un’Dal. Julie was surprised to see Noah and was quick to throw her arms around his neck.

  “Noah, you’re back! When did you return?” she asked. Noah smiled and returned her embrace.

  “We just got back a few hours ago. I heard that you arrived with Ta’Ku. I am glad to see you made it up here safely. How has your stay been so far?” he replied.

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  “It’s definitely not up to the standard that we were used to back home, but we’re managing. We will be working on changing things on that front as well.” she said. Noah suppressed a frown and opted to change the subject instead.

  “How many people came with your group?” he asked. She considered it for a moment, making a show of counting on her fingers.

  “Roughly 100 orcs, 25 elves, and another 30 humans. From what I understand, the orcs are primarily warriors, and the elves and humans are a mix of warriors and crafters. This will likely be the last batch of people for a while, though. We have already brought up every crafter that was nearing Copper, and the warriors are struggling to find enough beasts to kill for essense,” she commented. The news was a mixed bag for Noah. 100 new warriors would go a long way in their coming conflicts, but their numbers were miniscule compared to the army he had just faced. He would have to hope that they could each amount to a handful of beasts in battle. Julie turned to the others and cleared her throat. She opened her mouth to speak but seemed to think better of it and turned to Noah.

  “Would you like to get us started?” she asked. Noah stood, finished off the last sip of his jon’go, and stepped up to the table the others had circled around.

  “Thank you all for coming. From what I’ve heard, we have a lot to go over. For those of you I haven’t met, I am Noah, the leader of the Ro’Kar. If you wouldn’t mind, I would like to get to know you after the meeting, but for now, we will skip introductions,” Noah paused as the others nodded in agreement.

  “First off, we suffered significant losses on our trip, including one of our squad leaders, Zo’Kati. Those who survived the ordeal have gained substantial amounts of XP, however, and are near or over level 300. We can confirm that the next path becomes available at this level, as well as a significant boon in stats. I will provide more of those details in the following meetings.” There were several gasps at the news of Zo’Kati, but more seemed interested in his later statement.

  “We also have reason to believe that Jelene will soon turn against us.” Eyes went wide at his statement, and someone began to protest, but Noah held up a hand.

  “I understand your confusion, and I agree. We were not aware of this information before agreeing to come to their defense. It was only after the battle that I received the warning in a dream.” Noah noticed Julie’s frown at his mention of the dream, but thankfully, she was alone in her reservations.

  “Truly you are a seer? Ta’Ku said as much, but we were hesitant to believe it,” said the largest of the orcs.

  “It is true, we have seen his visions come to pass on several occasions,” Un’Dal commented. Others nodded in agreement.

  “I am confident that this particular insight will come to pass. Unfortunately, we aren’t ready for the consequences of that truth yet. We will need to make countermeasures for her magic, otherwise, we may as well run. I was helpless in the face of her illusions and could have easily killed our own people if they’d been present,” Noah explained. His words had the intended effect, evidenced by the fear and consideration in their eyes. After an appropriate pause, he started again.

  “I have been informed that the elves may have some ideas on how to best counter illusion magic, so we will be looking to them for guidance. Additionally, I would like to continue the work on supplying our warriors with enchanted armor and weapons. We will need to see if any of the crafters are capable of an anti-illusion enchantment or are knowledgable about other useful effects,” he said. The elf at the table stood.

  “I will take on that task and begin speaking with our crafters immediately,” he announced. Noah smiled and nodded.

  “That’s perfect. I have also been made aware of the recent attacks from what appear to be scouting parties. We cannot afford to be fighting battles on two fronts, we don’t have nearly enough bodies for that. Our priority is to clear the surrounding regions and locate the approaching army. We will work the moles to set up counter-scout posts and to get behind enemy lines once they are discovered,” Noah finished and gestured for Ne’Ja to continue. She reiterated what she had told Noah at the house and went into further detail on their current patrols and the changes that would need to take place to carry out Noah’s goals. They discussed the issue for some time before the conversation turned to other pressing matters.