Having the Den renovated completely changed the mood of the Witches who had gathered with Wolfe in the Wastes. Everyone was visibly happier and more relaxed, and he could tell that they were beginning to really feel at ho here, not like refugees waiting for it to be safe to go back to their ho city.
Sure, the Den was underground, but most of them had grown up like Wolfe, in a Fortress City with no natural light anywhere, even on the upper levels where it could have been seen if there were windows. Being inside the Den was nothing new to them, and compared to the floors that they had grown up on, this was positively luxurious.
The growth of the Gardens over the course of the day while Wolfe was reworking the visual aspects of the Den had made a huge improvent in their breakfast options, which were now back to more familiar options from ho, but with minor twists due to limited availability.
Seeing what looked like regular salads back on the table, along with bowls of oatal and fresh bread that he could sll baking in the ovens, was a definite improvent, and even the scouts who ca to pass ssages were drawn in by the scent, only to get panicked and stop in the hallway just before the dining room.
The chef had taken pity on them, and everyone who ca to drop off a ssage was sent away with a fresh loaf of bread, in the Sylvan style, a long loaf with a thick crust.
Wolfe was inspecting his work to make sure that there weren't any obvious mistakes when a ssenger found him personally and passed him a well-written note.
[We have found the rest of the prisoners, we think. There is a human camp much further south, nearly to the Morgana Coven borders, and they have been bringing covered vehicles to a warehouse in the forr village there.
It's over two hundred kilotres away, too far for any of us to go, but it's close enough that the Witches should be able to get there.]
"I will make sure that your ssage gets passed along to soone that can make good use of it. As you said, it's a long way from here to there, and we would have to pass over the whole battlefield and pass a Major Fortress City to get there.
The Witches should have soone that can take care of the issue and get their people back. How did you get the ssage without it coming over the radio, though? That's not anywhere near where the villagers of the Wastes would normally patrol."
As he couldn't speak properly with so many witches around, the scout mid a fish swimming, and Wolfe thought about the route for a while. The village that he ca from should be camped not far from the mouth of a river, which ran from the small lake which was west of the Den to deep inside Morgana Coven territory.
"So, an Amphibious scout? Good work. If they're still around, take an extra loaf and a few ration packs from us as a thank you ssage." Wolfe instructed him and got an enthusiastic thumbs up in return.
Cook managed to understand what was going on from Wolfe's side of the conversation and prepared a small gift basket wrapped up in a piece of cloth for the scout to bring back to his comrades.
The young man bowed and rushed away out of the Den, but Wolfe could hear the cheering once he got outside. The other scouts must have been too afraid to co down into the Den where there were so many Witches. But, if they were right outside, at least they got the treats while they were still fresh.
"How easy is it to contact your friend in the Inquisition? I think that we should go directly to soone with brains for this particular bit of information." Wolfe asked Priya after showing her the note.
"I can't guarantee that it will make it to my contact, but I can get a ssage to the Inquisition easily enough. What do we tell them, though?" She asked.
"Tell them that the Demon Familiar in your group has been working with the Mutants, and they traded the information to him. You should likely also tell them that the locals have been scouting for us for a while to help locate the retreating army units so that they take you seriously." Wolfe suggested.
"I will do it right away. We won't hear back, of course, but there will be a signal that it was received." She agreed without hesitation and then went upstairs to broadcast.
They had much better radio equipnt now than they did at first, but they still didn't have a permanent antenna set up above ground so that they could get proper reception in the Den. They had been waiting until they determined that it was safe enough that they wouldn't have to worry about it giving their position away.
But with so many visitors every day, that was nearly pointless now. Anyone who wanted to track them could follow one of the dozen groups of scouts, both their own and the locals, who ca in and out every day.
If it was going to be that easy to find them anyhow, they might as well start making things more comfortable for themselves and add all of the little luxuries, like an extended high-gain antenna and a proper entrance to the Den.
Wolfe had seen what was left of the temple at the Lumix house, and it would do quite well for the entryway here as well. Just a simple roof with stone pillars holding it up, leading to a secure set of doors.
He even had the spell to make the doors.
It wasn't complex, and he would need the witches to make the actual door, but the ward itself was a combination of Air and Gravity magics that would prevent anyone who wasn't authorized from actually touching the door. With protective wards placed on the inside, it would be nearly impossible to blast them down from the outside, so it could be a good option here.
But on the other hand, they could also make it look like a Nomad's hovel, and that would be less suspicious since a single nomadic witch would often make her living working with the locals, and her house wouldn't be worth attacking or be expected to have more than a few potions inside of minimal value.
That seed like a better option to Wolfe. The back wall of one of the rooms could lead to the actual door to the Den, and any particularly large items could be brought in through the garage.
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