About ten minutes passed, and Astari began explaining the significance and function of the dock. Her words aligned closely with what Isabel and Logan had shared earlier, but this ti, the most important thing was thatBegonand the others were fully grasping the gravity of the situation.
Astari painted a vision of a future, one that spoke of prosperity and growth.
"Building a naval force?"Begonpondered aloud.
"Establishing a dock town?" Kro added, eyebrows furrowed.
From Astari's words, the group could sense the potential unfolding before them, a grand blueprint of what the future might hold. It was an alluring vision, yet none of them spoke right away. Instead, they all fell into a collective silence, each person lost in their own thoughts, weighing the options.
Astari, standing patiently, allowed the quiet to linger. She knew this mont well; it was how decisions were made in this tribe. Everyone knew who had the final say, and as long as Logan showed interest, there was a good chance the plan would move forward.
Finally, Begon who seed the first to break free from his contemplations, stood up. His voice cut through the air with certainty. "Chief, I support the idea of building a port town!" he declared.
However,Begonwasn't finished. He turned, glancing at the others before continuing, "That said, I don't fully agree with the idea of establishing a navy just yet. It feels premature. Right now, we should focus on sothing more imdiate, expanding our fishing fleet. The at from the animal pens can't possibly supply enough food for our tribe.
Tens of thousands of people rely on it daily, and we're expecting the population to grow to a hundred thousand soon. A larger fishing fleet would help us sustain ourselves in the short term."
Begon's voice was firm but practical. "So yes, a dock is necessary, to harbor our ships. As for relocating the Snake People to this new dock town, I have no objections. It suits them. They've always lived near the water, it's in their nature."
Logan, who had been listening intently, nodded in agreent. "What my uncle says makes sense," he remarked, affirming Begon's perspective.
Astari, upon hearing Logan' words, exhaled quietly, relief washing over her. She could feel the montum shifting; the vision she had shared seed well on its way to becoming a reality.
But before she could settle into the comfort of the mont, Logan turned his attention to Kro and Lotts, the tribe's commanders. "You two," he said, addressing them directly, "what's your opinion on the matter of the navy? As commanders of the army, your input is crucial."
Kro and Lotts exchanged a glance, silently weighing their thoughts. After a mont, Kro stepped forward, speaking respectfully. "Chief, I have to agree with Lord Lot. It's far too soon to be thinking about a navy. There's simply no need for it at this ti."
Kro's words were blunt, but they ca from a place of experience. He had seen firsthand the challenges they were already facing. Just the day before, Logan had reprimanded the Wolf Cavalry, and that tension had filtered down into the infantry as well. The troops were restless, and the idea of diverting focus to sothing like a naval force seed impractical, even reckless.
"In my view," Kro continued, "what's the point of establishing a navy when we don't even have a coastline worth defending? The tribe isn't facing the sea. We'd be better off focusing on strengthening our cavalry and infantry, preparing for more imdiate threats."
He paused, eyeing Logan before adding, "Besides, what we're talking about here isn't a true navy. The waters near the tribe can only hold small ships, ten ters at best. Anything larger would run aground in shallow waters. A navy requires grand ships, massive vessels that can sail the open seas. We're nowhere near that stage yet."
Kro's honesty resonated with the room. Even though he had never seen a fleet himself, he had heard tales of ships that stretched hundreds of ters, colossal vessels built for warfare and exploration. Their small boats, by comparison, couldn't possibly qualify as a navy.
Logan nodded slowly, absorbing Kro's words. The commanders' reluctance made sense. The Silver Mane Tribe had no pressing need for a naval force right now. The imdiate goal, he realized, was to focus on building docks for their fishing fleets.
Turning back to Astari, Logan asked, "Chief Astari, how many shipbuilders do your Snake People have? And how large of a ship can they construct?"
Astari stepped forward again, her voice confident as she replied, "Chief, we have thirty-seven official shipbuilders and two senior shipbuilders. Together, they're capable of building ships up to thirty ters in length."
Logan raised an eyebrow, visibly surprised. "Thirty-seven shipbuilders? And two senior ones?" His surprise was echoed by others in the room, especiallyBegonand the rest of the council. Even the usually stoic Kro and Lotts exchanged looks of astonishnt.
The size of the Snake People's tribe was modest at best, yet they possessed an unusually high proportion of skilled shipbuilders. It was an impressive feat, one that hadn't gone unnoticed.
"That's... an impressive ratio," Logan remarked, his tone laced with admiration.
Everyone in the room, except perhaps the Kevin brothers, seed to grasp the significance of this revelation. The sheer number of shipbuilders within such a small tribe spoke volus about their potential. With that kind of expertise, the dream of a thriving dock town, and perhaps even a future fleet, seed closer than ever.
"They shouldn't be called the Snake People; they should be called the Shipbuilder Family," soone muttered in disbelief.
Astari could sense the astonishnt in the room, as every eye was fixed on her, their expressions a mixture of surprise and curiosity. With a calm smile, she began to explain.
"Chief," she said, her voice steady, "the Golden Basin, where my people co from, lies close to the Golden Sea. It's a land riddled with waterways, and hundreds of tribes, both water and sea tribes, thrive there."
Her words painted a picture of a place very different from their current ho. "The terrain is split between dense rainforests and swamps, making boats essential for travel. If you don't have a boat, you can't move. Because of this, shipbuilders are highly valued, especially among the ruling tribes that control the major rivers. They hold the key to survival and trade."
She paused, letting the weight of her words sink in before continuing. "Take our Durant tribe, for example. We're a tribe of nearly 4,000 Snake People, and we dominate two waterways, each stretching over 10 miles. Before the conflict, our tribe had more than 160 official shipbuilders."
Astari's voice softened as she recounted the tribe's hardships. "But after we were attacked, only thirty-seven of our shipbuilders made it out with us."
She straightened, her tone growing firr. "In the Golden Basin, to the water and sea tribes, shipbuilders are worth their weight in gold. They're as valuable as currency, their skills considered equal to wealth itself."
As she spoke, the room grew even more quiet. Thirty-seven shipbuilders among a small escape party was impressive, but hearing that a tribe of 4,000 Snake People could boast over 160 shipbuilders, it left the room stunned.
Begon's brow furrowed as he tried to wrap his mind around the scale of things. "That ans," he began, hesitating for a mont, "there must be tens of thousands of shipbuilders in the entire Golden Basin?"
The idea was too incredible. "It seems too exaggerated," he added, still processing the numbers.
Logan, though equally stunned, had his mind on sothing else. The thought of this powerful region sparked new possibilities for the future. If the Silver Mane Tribe ever sought to expand its influence across the wasteland, claiming the Golden Basin would be a top priority. Shipbuilders on that scale could reshape the tribe's fortunes entirely.
Breaking through the group's collective amazent, Logan turned his gaze back to Astari. "You ntioned senior shipbuilders," he said. "Can they only build ships up to thirty ters in length, or can they construct even larger vessels?"
Astari smiled and shook her head. "Chief, shipbuilding is never the work of just one or two people. Senior shipbuilders can indeed oversee the construction of larger ships, but the real challenge cos with size. For our people, a thirty-ter ship is about as big as it gets."
She leaned forward slightly, her voice growing more thoughtful. "The larger the ship, the more complicated the problems beco. It's not just about skill, it's the materials and the power needed to move such a vessel. The longer the ship, the slower it moves, and the more sailors are required to operate it."
"The real issue," she continued, "is power. Right now, we don't have the chanical power devices necessary to drive ships over thirty ters long. Even between twenty-five and thirty ters, we still rely on manual rowing to supplent the power we have."
Lot and the others nodded, following her reasoning. But Astari wasn't finished. Her voice lowered slightly as she delivered the next revelation. "The largest ships in the Golden Sea, those massive rchant ships or even the dreaded pirate ships, are mostly built by the Goblin Empire. The goblins have mastered shipbuilding in ways few can match."
She took a breath before revealing the most astonishing part. "The Goblin Empire controls one-third of the world's oceans. It's said their imperial-class warships are colossal, so reaching up to a thousand ters in length. These ships are like fortresses on the sea."
A murmur spread across the room. Kro, ever the skeptic, was the first to react, his eyes widening. "A thousand ters long?" he exclaid. "Is that even possible?"
Begon though quieter, shared Kro's disbelief. "A ship that large… how could sothing like that even exist?"
Logan himself was visibly taken aback. He had seen much in his ti, but the idea of a kiloter-long ship sailing the seas was sothing else entirely. "A kiloter of ship… on the open water?" he muttered, more to himself than anyone else. The sheer scale of it was overwhelming. How could such a massive vessel be powered? What sort of force would it take to keep such a beast moving through the ocean?
"Could the Goblin Empire have discovered steam engine technology?" he mused aloud, trying to make sense of it. "Or perhaps it's driven by magic?"
Logan understood that in a world filled with magic, the possibilities were endless. Certain magical devices could be powered by the energy contained in monster cores or the raw power of elental magic crystals. It was possible, he supposed, that these ships might use such forces. But even then, the cost of running a thousand-ter-long ship would be astronomical.
He shook his head, still trying to imagine it. Was it steam? Magic? Or sothing entirely beyond his understanding?
"I don't know," Astari admitted, breaking into his thoughts. "It's just a rumor. I've never seen one of those ships myself."
Logan took a deep breath, slowly pulling himself back to the present. "Alright, let's not get too caught up in distant empires and ships that may or may not exist. That's far beyond us right now," he said, his voice regaining its usual calm.
The others nodded in agreent. For now, their focus had to remain on the imdiate challenges ahead, the docks, the fishing fleet, and the Snake People who stood before them, their skills offering a glimr of hope for the future.
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