Moving up and moving on
Thread Chain
This is one of the following chain of previous threads:
On this particular morning, Winston was perched atop a stack of ledgers in his office, peering intently at a map of Idalos spread across his desk. His trusty assistant,
Alex
, a human of considerably more conventional proportions, stood nearby with a quill poised over a notepad.Maps were strewn across tables, notes were pinned to walls, and in the center of it all sat a small model of what Winston insisted was Etzos, but looked more like a child's attempt at building a castle out of mashed potatoes.
"Right,"
"Here's the plan. We'll send our brave volunteers to Etzos, where they'll infiltrate the city by pretending to be normal, wall-loving citizens."
Alex, who had long since learned that interrupting Winston mid-plan only led to more confusion, simply nodded and continued taking notes.
"Once inside,"
"dey'll begin phase two... 'Operation Make Friends an' Influence People But En A Non-Suspicious Way Because Remember Etzos Are Our Friend'."
The administrator shook his head, barely able to suppress a smile as the ferret's attempt to make him laugh was deployed without relent.
"I don't think we should call it that,"
Winston paused, whiskers twitching thoughtfully.
"Yuh right. Et's too lang. 'ow about Operation Friend-Finder?"
"How about we just call it 'Community Outreach, Etzos'?"
"Yes! I love et! Boring but effective. Me like et! Write that down!"
Alex, who had already written it down, nodded patiently.
"Now,"
"we'll need to establish our headquarters over there, right. I'm thinking something subtle, understated. Perhaps a giant treehouse in the shape of a ferret?"
"Winston,"
"We will need to start small, but you are right. We cannot just send them there and leave them hanging. We will need a permanent presence at the very least to ensure those that go have the support they need."
"Etzos is a walled city in a relatively arid region though. I don't think there are many trees large enough for a treehouse, let alone one shaped like a ferret."
Winston's ears drooped slightly.
"No trees? How do de apples stay up?"
"They... that's not how... never mind. How about we focus on finding a normal building to rent?"
"Oh, alright,"
"But can we at least paint a fairy on the door? For branding purposes?"
Alex made a non-committal noise that Winston chose to interpret as enthusiastic agreement.
The ferret was amusing, silly, fun to be around, a little crazy and very easy to overlook... He was also brilliant, caring and easy to underestimate. He was obviously in a good mood and all of the notes that
Shinwa
had made with him in the trials approached this meeting were in order and well thought out. Totorial was obviously a tr=ial to blow off some steam for the little chap and far be it for Alex to pop his bubble.[say}"Penney! Take note!"[/say] I commanded to his pen, which hovered over his own notes, poised to write his every thought.
"Talk to the diplomat about arrangement for a modest building to homes the Isonomia branch in Etzos."
As they continued to plan (or rather, as Alex planned and Winston provided colorful commentary), a knock at the door interrupted them. It was Milfred, one of the volunteers who had signed up the trial before.
"Excuse me,"
"I just wanted to ask a few questions about the relocation program."
"Of course!"
"Step intuh Alex's office!
"Now den,"
"What would you like to know? And before you ask, yes, we do provide complimentary cakes."
Milfred blinked.
"I... that wasn't one of my questions, actually, but yes, please. Thank you."
Alex stepped in smoothly.
"Of course. What were your actual questions?"
As Milfred began to inquire about more practical matters like housing and job opportunities, Winston's attention wandered. His gaze fell upon the map of Etzos pinned to the wall, and suddenly, he had An Idea.
In Winston's experience, Ideas (with a capital 'I') were dangerous things. They had a tendency to take on a life of their own, growing and evolving until they became full-fledged Plans, which inevitably led to Adventures, which more often than not ended in Chaos. But oh, how he loved them.
This particular Idea involved tunnels.
"Alex,"
"Alex, I've just had a thought."
Alex, who had developed a finely-tuned sense for when Winston was about to suggest something outlandish, braced himself.
"Yes, Winston?"
"Wat ef... naw 'ear me out... wat ef we built a tunnel fram 'ere tuh Etzos? Tuh ease trade."
There was a moment of silence as Alex processed this suggestion. Milfred, sensing that something important was happening, stopped mid-question.
"Winston,"
"Etzos is on another continent."
"Yes, an'?"
"Across an ocean."
"Yuh point being?"
Alex took a deep breath.
"My point is that building a tunnel under an ocean is... not feasible."
Winston's whiskers peaked slightly for a moment.
"OH! Me mean like a partal. Dem's jost tunnels through space, see."
"Ahhhh.... Well yes, that would be a lot more efficient for getting people there and back. But is that even possible."
"Yup."
Milfred waited patiently.
"OK. Then lets look into it, once we have the outpost set-up."
Milfred, who had been watching this exchange with growing concern, finally spoke up.
"Um, excuse me, but I thought we were going by ship?"
There was a pause as Winston and Alex turned to look at her.
"Noh-noh. By de grace af Saioire, we'll be partellin' dere di time an' ef me plans work out, yuh will be able to come back any time dat way to."
Winston's mind was already racing ahead to new Ideas. Trading posts, a third bar to add to his chain, secret identity protection rackets for freed slaves! Ships were all well and good, but a portal would bow them out of the water, so to speak.
As the trial wore on and more volunteers came to ask questions, Winston found himself growing increasingly excited about the prospect of establishing an Isonomia presence in Etzos. Yes, there would be challenges. Yes, there would likely be mishaps and misunderstandings. But there would also be adventure, new friends, and most importantly, new walls to admire.
As the sun began to set, casting long shadows across the room and making the potato model of Etzos look even more dubious, Winston clambered up onto Alex's shoulder.
"Yuh know, Alex,"
"Me think we're really ontuh somet'ing 'ere."
Alex, surprised by this moment of sincerity, smiled.
"I think you're right, Winston. Though perhaps with fewer tunnels and treehouses than you'd prefer."
Winston chuckled.
"Details, details. De important ting es dat we're bringing 'ope tuh peopal, Alex. An' walls. Mostly hope, bot also walls."
As they began to tidy up for the day, Winston's mind was already racing ahead to the next phase of their plan. There would be logistics to manage, connections to make, and undoubtedly, many, many more Ideas to come. They needed to choose some representative to send to Etzos to run thing that end and they had to be competent and trustworthy.
"Cun yuh reach out tuh Becan an' Scalvaris? Dere are a nomaba af new recruits an' odda peepal dat might benefit fram a new start somewhere not so close tuh home."
The administrator nodded.
"Absolutely, Winston, consider it done."
For now, the ferret was content. Etzos, he thought with a grin, had better be ready for Isonomia. And more importantly, it had better be ready for Winston Miller.
All template credit, love and admiration goes to Kisaik