The rest of the party was somewhat surprised by Eternion's manners, or lack thereof. It was true that Dracons didn't have the best reputation for conduct at the table, but this was taking it to a whole new level! Tallon dispatched a couple of servants to attend to the mess, trying his best to overlook the mess that was created, while turning to Adykon to discuss the upcoming events.
"So, what's next on the agenda?"
"Marcus and Rhiga intend to marry soon, as you know."
"Ah, yes. I heard about the disaster the first time around. That mage... what was his name?"
"Arcantas. I had killed him, but he was brought back as a vampire. To put it bluntly, he crashed the party."
"And kidnapped Rhiga, where she was placed under a tower for months on end, I've heard. Vespion told me about it."
"Yeah... amazing what sorta things can happen in this world."
"After the wedding, what next?"
"We will meet with the king again. I was informed recently that he's dispatched an army of several thousand to combat any immediate threats that Dememoras will launch. The problem is, we don't know the extent of his capabilities. He has the loyalty of Hekaga's heir, the crown prince, and we know that he has many other powerful nobles as well as mages under his command."
"Didn't you once tell me that his forces included kobolds?"
"Yes, badly armed ones at that. We have also seen well-armed Dracon soldiers, as well as some sort of clay creatures."
"Clay creatures?
"Some sort of humanoid-shaped beings. I believe the term is... construct. Clay constructs. We fought one that was able to mimic Rhiga not long after she was captured."
"A mimic? I've heard of those." Tallon replied. "I know that certain mages can take a portion of magically-treated clay, place an enchanted scroll inside of it, and command it. Since the clay is magical and mutable, it can take on the shape of whatever the mage needs it to, within a certain size difference from its original form."
Tallon was wearing silken robes with gold woven into them. Even at breakfast, he was quite a sight to behold. Taking out a piece of parchment the noble wrote down some quick notes about what the party was going to do next.
"I understand that you may be encountering some dangerous magics, Adykon. Tell me, please, about what you have encountered so far."
"Well, I don't remember everything, but starting with my first meeting with Arcantas, I faced kobolds, a chimera, wooden constructs, two vampires, some dragons, I've been told that Minna and Ilsa have faced some drakes and a sorceress, we all know about the archmage Arcantas, and of course, those Dracon soldiers. I wish I knew where they came from, and why they serve Dememoras."
"I've heard something about them being geased to serve him." Tallon replied. By now, both of them knew that a geas was a spell used to compel another to obey orders. "That still doesn't explain where they come from, or why they decided to serve him to begin with. I've never heard of any mass kidnappings. No, it seems like these troops are being given to the Dark Master by the normal authorities; chiefs, nobles, and kings."
"Why would they do that?" Adykon asked.
"To increase their own power. As a very rich Dracon, I know how that works."
"Well, tell me, how does it work, Tallon?"
Tallon paused for a moment to think about his words. How to say it...
"Wealth is both a means and an ends. Money has no intrinsic value, yet we would kill for it. You can't eat gold, but people gladly give you food for it, and coinage is essentially a medium by which a deal works; we all agree that coins can buy things, otherwise, the system would break down. What does this mean? It means that as long as we keep agreeing to it, money means power. The second society no longer sees it like that, money is worth very little indeed."
Taking a breath, Tallon continued.
"Increasing one's power does not mean being given more gold. I don't get my wealth from sitting on a pile of coins all day, I control the means by which wealth is produced. That's why I run mines, farms, vineyard, roads, ships, housing, the works. I control more than money; I control the means of producing it."
"So, how does that fit into the Dark Master's scheme? I'm not getting it. I also don't get why nobles would side with someone who would take all the power for himself." Adykon asked, crossing his legs.
"Dememoras will have control of all if he is in charge, this is true. However, even if all property and wealth theoretically belonged to him, in practice, there would be a group of nobles who controlled a great deal of assets. The ones who side with the Dark Lord clearly seek to get their piece of the pie. Fools. They don't create wealth by doing that, they just want to profit at the expense of the rest of us."
"Isn't that what you do, Tallon? No offense meant."
"Well... yes and no. Yes, I don't doubt that my operations have taken advantage of land and labor alike, not to mention that every acre of land that I own is one less acre for everyone else, but my assets are geared to produce value, not merely to turn on a tap and collect rent. That sort of behavior is exactly what those who side with the dark master want."
"What behavior?"
"Rent-seeking behavior, the bane of our society. It generally means making a profit for oneself by extracting value through taking something from others without adding to productivity. In other words, the kind of behavior you see from those who collect rent from tenements without ever reinvesting money into improvements in them."
"And that's bad?"
"Very. That's one of the reasons so many Dracons are poor; instead of investing in productivity, the ones in charge of the economy invest in their own fortunes. I produce wealth by running operation that add value to the goods I produce, and reinvest a large portion of my profits into improving the efficiency of my operations. This makes the profits larger and gives me the ability to expand. I don't just turn on the tap and lie on a couch, I have to take an active role in my operations."
"How does this have to do with the Dark Master?"
"He seeks to simply place himself on the top, and have all others bow to him. He would run everything just to hear others praise him night and day, or so I've heard. Those nobles who send their soldiers to him are making a mistake."
"Speaking of warriors, how many do you have?"
"Me?" Tallon replied. "I have about 2500 armed guards plus I pay a retainer for another 1000 mercenaries to serve my interests." Tallon was not a perfectly good Dracon, he still owned slaves and payed many of his workers quite little, and yet, he treated them fairly well, all things considered. No one ever felt a whip under his service, and chains were not used. His methods of cutting costs rarely impacted his worker's safety, although their wages were still not the best. He also sometimes fought with other nobles using actual warriors, but he rarely let much blood be spilled.
"That's quite an impressive number."
"I also have mages, alchemists, and others work for me. My sons would gladly fight for my house as well."
"Do you fight, too?"
"Pardon?"
"If you had to fight to defend yourself, could you do it?"
"I could. I have skill with a sword and some basic spells."
"Did your father teach you?"
"No. He hired those who could. My father was a noble, like myself, but was not as careful with money as he should have been. I took his struggling plantation and turned it into the 'empire' you see before you."
"How did you do it?"
"Partly through luck. My family also owned land that had rich gold reserves that had never been exploited. Mostly, though, it was through finding a need and fulfilling it in the world of business. Once I had capital from taking care of that, I was able to use it to invest in other ventures. Once I had seen my opportunities in shipping, wineries, tenements, and other businesses, all I had to do was to take them."
"What need did you fulfill?"
"Insurance. I am the first Dracon to offer insurance on a large scale apart from the coast. I first became aware of this need when on a trip to the city of Naushindcalgoa, which as you probably know, is the largest city in our lands. Anyway, when there, I was amazed at the huge fleets of ships and the rich cargo they held; spices, silks, gold, silver, gems, pearls, you name it. Now, any number of bad things can happen to a ship, I should know. Piracy, storms, delayed trips, disease, mutiny, and many other things can all cut into profits, but nowhere was this a problem. I had learned that in spite of a spate of lost vessels that profits were still quite high, and for some Dracons, they kept climbing. Naushindcalgoa's merchants had an ace in the hole, so to speak. Their cargoes, crews, and the ships themselves were all insured."
"What does that mean?"
"It means that, in exchange for paying the insurer a certain amount of money each month, that if something happened to the item being insured, the insurer would cover the costs of it. I possess a near-monopoly on insurance in huge parts of our lands, and a total monopoly on insurance for everything save the royal assets in Minbenthac."
"It sounds like you have a lot to lose if the Dark Master takes over, but tell me, is it more than just principle which keeps you from joining him? Are you afraid that he will take what you have? Or divide up your assets among his followers?"
"Yes, yes, and yes. He wouldn't just take what I have, he would eliminate it. I know this for a fact. Even if kept the assets intact, he would run them like a cow to be milked, instead of a machine that needs repair and enhancement from time to time. Even if he does take control of our lands, I don't expect that any empire he build will outlast him, or even if he doesn't die, it will still crumble beneath him."
"Why's that?"
"An empire is a juggling game; without a team of people to run it, a single individual would have to put on a tremendous performance to keep it up. The larger the empire, the more balls are being juggled. Attempts to over-centralize an organization, be it a business or a state, can only lead to collapse if all power is vested in one individual. Even with brilliant leaders, time will take its toll; eventually, a less-than-stellar leader will be at the helm. When this happens, fragmentation begins, and if there are too many ineffective leaders for too long, the divisions can be too hard to fully heal, even if a great ruler does come forth. That's why my businesses will be run by a council when I am gone; no one heir could hold my operations together, I only do so by virtue of being the founder and the respect I command, as well as my... unusual acumen."
"So what you are telling me is-?"
"Stop Dememoras, or we'll all be bankrupt." Tallon told Adykon.
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