Chapter 91: Post-Shame Life

Gula POV

The early morning sun was shining down through the window of my mud brick home. Waking up to the bitter cold, my blanket of rough hemp provided little warmth. A task my straw bed wasn't up for either. Getting up and dressing in a torn white shirt and shoddy leather jeans, I made my way into the main room as my breath fogged up with each release. To my left by the door was Mother. Wearing her typical white top and brown skirt, the muscular orc with twin brown braids was working on a quick morning stew of vegetables and rabbit while a pot of water warmed opposite of her spot by the fire.

With the arrival of necrosis, life got harder than it usually was. The tunnels to the north were a painful suicide with the undead meandering through the underground waterways which meant my group got dispatched to the west to help out with operations there. There certainly wasn't a lack of work with our territory expansion, countless scouting trips into what had been unreachable territory for years to update our maps, laying down scouting and supply stations, and on and on the list went.

"Here, dear. You'll need it for the trip." Mother said as she handed me a steaming bowl. Her three cornrows on the left side of her head were well maintained even as her thick green lips showed some chaffing, especially around her small tusks. Her strong jaw and thick muscles would be intimidating if not for the tenderness for me in her red eyes.

"Thanks, what about you? You seem set to take off." I asked as I sat on the packed dirt floor, my eyes going to the axe and wood shield leaning on the wall behind her.

"Bah!" Mother huffed as she stirred the pot, "Gotta fight the undead everywhere these days, might as well as earn a commission while doing it. They're paying good money for the work now, what with all that territory that's been opened up."

"Yes, we've been quite lucky this year." I said casually as I sipped the thick stew and let its heat melt through me.

"Luck!" Mother laughed, throwing back her head with a dramatic snort. "Meeting that mage was a lot of luck, but it wasn't just luck that made it end where it did. Don't sell yourself short just because you didn't get in his pants."

I stared at my soup for a bit before finishing the bowl. The truth was life outside of being shamed was better, but not by nearly as much as I had always dreamed of. Suicide missions were no longer required, but we were still expendable pawns for the higher ups. Cold and hunger were the same constant friends this time of year with the only real difference now being that people didn't go out of their way to make me miserable. But there was no way I would ever mutter a word of complaint to Mother. Her black neck tattoo was never coming off and the look of pride in her eyes was not something I could stand putting out.

Taking a rag from the line of them hung along the window, I dipped it into the steaming water. Getting a quick clean with the warm rags, I went back into my room and donned my regular black armor. The tight leather was too well suited for my quick and dirty fighting style to just throw it away, besides the fact that being un-shamed didn't come with a pay raise. I picked up my sword in the holster by my bedroom door and tied it around my waist. Around the head of my bed I picked up a scarf of grey wool and wrapped it around my neck and mouth. As I headed out the front door, I waved mother goodbye. She waved back before pouring some of the soup into a bowl for herself.

Making my way over the bitter cold swamplands, I moved along dirt paths that stuck out of the water with the view being rising and dipping cattails, as it always had been. The water wasn't frozen but getting it on me would still chill me to the bone if I fell in. At least I wasn't working in the north now, where the cold became more than bitter, and ice covered the land. After a while I made my way onto the mainland as the small pathways and islands merged into a solid mass. Sitting on some of the bark scars or rocks were my companions, the Frojan who had seen me through so much. The big frog men were wrapped up in proper clothes now, with some even having a long piece of wool that wrapped around their necks and front, the Frojan's equivalent of a scarf.

"Hey," I called.

The pack of bored frog men roused off their haunches and feet as Baloo came forward from further down the dirt path wearing a clean and proper blue robe now. A large green fellow with amber eyes, the unspoken leader of the little group patted me on the shoulder.

"Hey-aa" His deep rumbling tone reverberated around the empty plane where the only remanent of the trees was the large splotches of bark on the ground "You know what we're doing today?"

"Nope, at least for today. I do know that commands scrambling to take every inch of every patch of dirt they can." I said as we all started walking down the dirt path to the main gathering spot.

"The same story as the northern expansion?" Baloo asked miserably.

"The exact damn same. I wonder what miracle is going to fall out of the sky to save us this time." I said as we all moved through the cold air to the post where we would get the day's assignment.

"Well, at least this time we've got proper resources. Can't tell you how great it is to be allowed back in the main grottos, with proper huts and everything." He leaned back and looked to the grey sky as he rubbed a webbed hand over his bumpy hide.

"Yeah. I just wish there was more… everything. More food, more money, more heat. It's been hard, although it has certainly been harder on Lokan. Her kind deal as well with the cold as a flame does in water and I've been having to deliver all her food and wood. Not that I mind, she pays me well for the work and she's a good friend, it's just hard when I feel like I need three layers of clothes to feel warm if I move anywhere before or after midday."

Our conversation finished, we walked in silence for the rest of the trip. When we got there, we saw a patrol taking out an undead bear off to the left as the orc and Frojan campsite had crowds moving in and out from spots all over the region. It was a small plane of muddy dirt with a few bits of bark on the grounds as tents huddled as close together as they could fit. The undead would be drawn to this place like flies onto a carcass and it was only the constant patrols that made it safe.

The heat from so many bodies still did little to block the wind as it stole whatever faint heat managed to build up around my skin as we moved towards the biggest tent of grey cloth in the center of the camp. At a large table stacked with papers and a crude map, the leader of the operations in this region stood around barking orders until she finally got to us.

"You lot!" The buff orc leader yelled at us. Her black hair was done up in a ponytail and a metal patch over her left eye, leaving her right eye to show her irritation from the day. "Main road near the humans main supply camp. Patrol it and report on their activity."

I gave a quick nod and we took off to the right. This territory was relatively new to us and we took it slow as we moved down the dirt paths and flat stretches of land that went on and on for as far as I could see. Moving through the land's out west, we noticed several patrols in between the remaining fortress's roads. They looked more like whipped dogs than proper soldiers, slinking along the roads with terrified expressions.

Their nightmare had passed, of course. Sooner or later they'd realize the 'pandego' menace was gone and they'd start throwing their weight around again. Their mages could occasionally be seen slinking around, trying to avoid detection as they scouted. Not an easy task for people with no natural camouflage and ultimately pointless. A few people who managed to get away or were rescued from interrogation said the mages were all trying to find out more about the plant monsters and this mysterious fire mage orc, which meant the rank and file had little magical protection.

Oddly enough, things worked out in such a way that these blood-soaked lands had become more peaceful than anytime in living memory. Sure, the undead from the battle fields provided no end of grief as they always did. Even so, we were too busy trying to expand west and the humans were too preoccupied with fortifying their remaining positions or trying to help mages in foolhardy expeditions that were easy to counter with them being so far away from their safe positions, to provide much resistance to our efforts.

I had seen the frustrated impotence in the mages faces on those expeditions. Witnessing a gold embroidered woman who could lift boulders or cast fireballs scream and pout about not being able to get the green skinned menace who stole a mages seed was quite a sight. With their foolish waste of already thin resources, our efforts in the spring may yet yield additional fruit besides just trying to not make things worse. Even if that wasn't what happened, we were now enjoying a period of relative peace we hadn't known in living memory.

Along the way to the main road, we ran into a large pack of undead humans and orcs assaulting one of the midway forts. A large box of stone like that wasn't going to fall to the small army of undead around it and in the back I could already hear the clanging and yelling of battle as large contingents of steel plated men moved in to relieve the forts position.

Moving past them along softly rolling hills as the grey sky and cold air made even this ordinary work depressing, we eventually came up to a large hill that provided us some cover as we looked out towards the veins that kept the body of the Coalition supplied with its needed provisions. Baloo handed me a telescope that used water bubbles as a lens, a tool I promptly put to use. The vast stone road and its various dirt paths that led to other parts of human civilization was as packed as ever. One major difference was now every caravan had a large contingent of guards and the smaller carts and carriages didn't dare travel by themselves, instead moving together in large groups, as if the green menace would fall upon them at a moment's notice.

I let a smile creep up my face as I reveled in the fear we had inspired. The quad mage was the real power behind this change of course, but I decided to ignore that annoying little voice and take pride in my peoples strengthened position, no matter how temporary it was. Along the road, I saw a scared looking woman moving with her two younger boys and a baby on her back. Her long brown hair was dirty with some splotches on her face as she pulled a cart.

As she moved away from the carriage in front of her, her face became easier to see. She was clearly terrified as she looked over the planes and the misery in her situation was palpable, from her tired demeanor, the scrawny children accompanying her, and the meager amount of food and clothes in her cart.

My smile died as my throat caught from me trying not to swallow.

It was not the first time I had thought about my people's happiness coming at the humans expense, but there was nothing a no-name grunt like myself could do about it so I quickly took in the various guard posts and formations along the road and tossed the telescope back to Baloo. We made our way back down the muddy hill and back onto the plains of bark scars and tall grass. The only delay was when we ran into two undead dogs. While they were more of an annoyance right now and presented no real problem, when they swelled into packs of thirty or more, that small problem got very big very quickly if the smaller groups weren't put down first.

Rushing along the dirt paths as the grey overcast sky continued to steal any ray of sunlight that may have illuminated the dreary landscape in what felt like the approaching mid-day, we eventually came back into the camp. The small plane with tents everywhere seemed particularly active. It took me a minute to realize what the difference was. A sea of green skin and the deeper greens, blues, and occasional reds of the Frojan had all gathered near the center of the camp with few if any leaving the camp now. Coming through the crowd, our group eventually got close enough to the center to see what the fuss was about.

"- Armor like a bird. Aye. We saw him yesterday but had to take a lot of detours to get back"

In the main open tent and around the table that held all the documents and a crude map, were a small group of scouts talking to the commander. They were all dressed in plain leather armor and sporting the typical axe and shield, equipment that looked like it had been put through a stampede, though the commander didn't seem to notice. She was too busy nodding with an eager expression as she turned to a woman down the line and prompted the skinny red head to speak with a handwave.

"Indeed, the human beside him said he was the quad mage. Dressed in steel armor with wing embellishments and a hawk like beak above the face of his helmet. I couldn't quite make out the fine details, what with trying to keep my face from getting bitten off." She said with an eager little hop.

Yeah, that would be him alright, taking on a bird like armor set instead of just plain steel plates.

Moving around to the left, I saw their faces, all bright eyed and happy enough to look like they just found out their previously empty soup pots were filled to the brim.

A brief rumble from my stomach distracted me until I looked at the last one of the scouts.

Her muscular frame and grey streaked hair of black marked her as a veteran, as did her scars and the way she looked the commander right in the eye. What drew my interest was the look of deep contemplation in her red eyes and the stark contrast between the seeming hesitation in her body language and the outward jubilation in her companions.

"Hadren, what is it?" The commander asked, now noticing the lack of radiant joy from the last scout.

"He had purple eyes and silver hair," She said with a bite on her lip above her sharp chin as she twirled her ponytail in her right hand distractedly. The commander crossed her arms as she tapped a foot before speaking.

"Hadren, what's the matter?" The commander demanded with a raised right eyebrow.

"Did none of you get a good look at the quad mage during our entire exchange?" Hadren said with a pleading look to her fellows. A few looks between themselves with confused expressions and they all shook their heads in denial.

"The thing is… the quad mage. You see…he-"

"By the bastard's beard, woman!" The commander scoffed. "I've never known you to be so tedious in spitting out your report. Out with it, before I have to retire at the least."

"I don't think he was hostile."

A pall of dead silence fell over everyone before small whispers scurried around me.

"What? Like he's a pacifist?"

"Maybe he's a bad fighter."

"Are we so beneath him that he doesn't even consider us a threat? The arrogance!"

The commander silenced the chatter with a wave of her hand before turning back to Hadren.

"What exactly do you mean 'not hostile'?" She asked in a curious tone.

"The tunnel collapsed and saved us. We probably wouldn't have made it back if it didn't."

A snort from the scout to Hadren's right interrupted her.

"Yeah, we was damn lucky it fell the way it did else we wouldn't be here now."

That prompted a wave of nods from the other scouts, which died when Hadren shook her head.

"Not luck. I think the quad mage did it. To save us."

A dead silence reigned over the camp as the commander gave the scout a blank stare with her one right eye as even the skin behind her left metal eye patch also stretched in surprise.

"What?" She asked in a whisper that carried through the now empty soundscape of the camp.

"The quad mage. When I looked up at the group, I could see the plain hatred and fear in the other students but his purple eyes… they held no malice. I had thought the tunnel collapse was natural at first but when I looked back up to the leaving humans, he… nodded to me with no hint of contempt or disdain in his eyes or movement. My gut says, and don't bother wasting the breath to tell me how foolish it is, my gut says he must have used an earth spell to… help us."

The entire camp burst out laughing, with chortles and heaving all around. Even the commander got a good chuckle out of her tale. My group did its best to fit in, but I could just feel how fake we looked. Fortunately, everyone was too busy keeling over in mirth to notice how our laughs resembled sheep chittering. Eventually everyone calmed down, even as Hadren's scowl did not.

"Hadren," The commander took a moment to chuckle again before adopting a serious expression. "That is quite a tale. Are you truly asserting that the quad element male mage is friendly towards orcs?"

Hadren gritted her teeth as she took a deep breath to level out her tone.

"I'm saying the quad mage, in this specific circumstance and at this specific time, chose to help out a group of orcs when there were no real consequences for doing so. What he would do on the battlefield or when surrounded by other humans who would see his actions, I can make no judgement on."

The commander sucked in her lips as she looked at the other scouts, who all avoided her gaze. Sighing, she moved back to the middle of the table and got some papers.

"You're all going to write up a report. I don't care how insignificant it is, a weird fly landed on you, the bedding this morning was stiffer than usual, anything and everything will be going into these reports and be prepared to do a personal interview."

The crowd burst into whispers at that, paying little attention to the scouts now. But for all the talk, no one understood what any of it meant. Having a human mage not hate the orcs was such a fanciful tale, it almost overshadowed the fact he was a quad mage.

Almost.

"Can you imagine the children we would get out of him?"

"Who knows, he may give them willingly."

"A quad mage. Damn, my body aches for him already."

Me and my group just walked forward to give our report as the excited chatter quickly built up. As we came up to the table, the commander seemed to barely pay attention to our report. Which was fair, I suppose, since we didn't provide anything nearly as salacious or exciting as anything to do with the quad mage, just the same traffic patterns that had been observed before our report.

"Good, good." She said, barely paying us any attention as she looked over the other scouts' reports. "Do another sweep near the eastern end with a report towards the locals there and you're free to go."

Making our way back from the table, the crowd was still buzzing even as some officer tried to get them moving. Frogmen talked quietly in small groups while the orcs gathered around making raunchy jokes or looking excited enough to rush northward to get a taste of the mythical quad mage, odds and obstacles a mild afterthought in the haze of lust consuming them.

We shuffled our way out of the camp, our feet trudging through the mud as we half ran out of the camp. It was when we were a good distance away, with the camp now a few grey and brown spots far behind us, that we dared speak, even then, only in spirit connections.

'Oh, shit.' One of our younger members almost yelled as we continued along our path north.

'It's alright.' Baloo said, heading off the panicked conversation. 'No one knows anything about his… history.'

'Correct.' I said as we moved around a bend towards the north. 'Although, it's still bad news for us.'

Baloo nodded while some of the younger Frojan looked confused.

'What? Why?' A younger red skinned frogman to my left said.

'Because now that they know that the 'rumors' we heard about some quad mage are real, they'll get him, or at least try to. If they do catch him, we'd all be doomed. Getting a single or dual element mage is a national disgrace for the Coalition. But if we get the quad mage, every human nation from here to the central continent will burn the swamps to their roots and snuff out every last living thing in these lands to make absolutely sure they don't have some quad scions orc brood sprout up in a few decades. Frankly, they'd probably do it just to help ingratiate themselves into his good graces. At least, what they think are his good graces.'

That prompted a few minutes of silence as we all moved across what was now the grass lands of the south, snacking on the few bars and nuts we had as a measly lunch along the way.

'And they're not going to stop trying to get him?' One of the younger Frojan asked the group.

'No,' Baloo said sadly, the big green frogman now looking a bit more tired with that one word. 'If you want to be stoned to death, make that suggestion loudly in the market when surrounded by orcs. Everyone knows what a bad idea it is, but not even we Frojan could say no to such an operation. Having quad element mages running around in a few years would be the end to whatever advantages our water affinity gives us, to say nothing of how sitting out the hunt would strain our relationship with the orcs. Maybe the quad mage could have an 'accident' with his Frojan captors if they do get him, but that may very well blow up our alliance.

Sadly, they'll do their darndest to try and catch him. I'd like to think everyone knows in their minds it's a bad idea but bad ideas like these are chosen because they're better than doing nothing.'

It was a good minute before another of our group spoke up.

'But if they get him all secret like, the orcs may have enough time to pass him around long enough that we could hold out.'

I gave a tired sigh, which drew the gaze of the blue frog man.

'No. As powerful as he was, he was still flesh and blood. You'll notice how he didn't ever just charge in like he could take them all on a thousand to one. We orcs thrive in the spaces between human societies, the places where they can't go or where their systems fail, not as separate nations since we need them more than they can tolerate us. Besides, I don't think we have the supplies and material reserves to go on a defensive war of that scale considering how we were barely holding on against the Coalition by itself.' I said in a defeated tone.

The rest of the trip passed in dread fueled silence. The roads to the east were totally empty aside from the occasional scout. Viper base, for so long a monument to all we could never overcome, was a field of ruin before us as we observed it from the road. Stones lay in heaps and the crumbled gate had been left where it lay. Vines had taken to some of the stones, but winter had come and cut their ambitions short. A day of victories roiled through my memories just looking at the spot by the ruined base of the tower where Borba had removed my neck chocker. With the end of our pleasant memories, we headed down south towards the local camp.

Being of the same make and size as the one we left from, we quickly went in and gave our reports before being dismissed for the day. Going along the southern road into the swamplands proper, we eventually got to the regional market late in the day. With the rivers not frozen over, this more northern market was still a bustling center for all the Frojan and orcs in this area. Wide, wooden platforms with circular thatched roofs dotted the riversides with small boats carrying goods of every description up and down the river.

These places were typically swarmed with mosquitos and flies, but the encroachment of winter had the usual bug problem replaced with a bitter cold. We moved along the wide platforms of wood with hundreds of others. Merchants plying their goods to passing customers, mothers with their children, and the frogmen, both buying at and working the various stall, though they focused more on water animals and seafood. I spent a good hour perusing the stalls and haggling for good deals. After getting my usual cloth, grain, and disappointment with how far my coin went, I left the wide array of stall and platforms behind as I headed east towards my hut.

We eventually dispersed as my Frojan pack now had its members living in the various small villages that dotted the swamps instead of roughing it in the wild. Coming through the cattails and small islands of the swamps, I came back to the single-story hut with mud bricks and thatched roof. Oddly, mother was standing in front of the door with an excited look as she licked her thick green lips in anticipation of something.

"What's up mom?" I asked as I laid down my burden of a small grain sack and cloth by the door. As I looked her over, I saw she had a white envelope in her right hand.

"This is from a dwarf who came by earlier. Said it was for you and he'd be back tonight to pick up your response." She said, her black eyebrow raised in a question even as her nose flared.

I quickly took the offered letter and ripped it open to look over the contents. Behind me I heard some shuffling and I saw in the corner of my eye mom getting an axe from inside the house then rushing to meet the source of the noise.

"Undead deer. I got it." Mom's rough voice said, but I was too busy trying to get the letter neatly out of the envelope. When I did, I immediately devoured its words.

'Hello, Gula. I am inquiring about a possibility of stationing someone near and dear to me with you while a certain tense situation is resolved. The hope that the aid that they rendered you during the collapse of the cave would move you to accept also played a part in writing this letter. However, I know that our relationship is based on mutual benefit and favors, not charity, so I would be willing to supply you with a certain amount of food, metals, or any other number of items for this service. I understand the dangers involved in this arrangement but my willingness to make this proposition palpable is not to be underestimated.'

Amazing, I spent a portion of my day explaining why getting the quad mage was a horrible idea, but I felt a bit of drool fall down my jaw at the thought of catching him. Of course, that was quickly discarded when my mind went over the impossibility of a lowly grunt like me taking him in, to say nothing of how I could possibly explain him being here in the first place. Then my eyes went over to the section about him giving us food and my stomach rumbled again.

I took a deep breath and decided that, even if it was only to get more food, turning away the goat woman who saved my life didn't sit right with me. Going inside and writing on the wall with a small ink quill and paper that we had been given earlier for my reports, I wrote my response.

'I'd be lying if I said I wasn't interested, even if I cannot commit to it at this time. However, this is a dangerous thing, as you said, and I would like some assurance that the goods will arrive. A small shipment of food would help with these concerns. While her staying with me directly would probably raise too many questions, I have a friend who could take her in and even if discovered, would not raise any real suspicion.'

Satisfied with my letter, I set it beside my bed in preparation for handing it off later. Mother came back shortly after and we dined on a petty meal of grain and vegetables. Later that night the red leathered dwarf came by to take my letter and we set up a system where I would leave my letter in a tree trunk near my house for him to check once a day if I wanted to send my own letter to the quad mage.

For the next few days, life continued in the usual flow of wants and needs it always did this time of year, although the rather generous shipment of vegetables, grain, and salted pork we got from my letter friend was a great boost in these predictably hard times. One dreary day when the sun still could not find its purchase in the grey cast sky, I was heading towards one of the camps for another scouting run. They were now more in demand than ever with a sudden change in the Coalitions formations, but my mind was busy going over the quad mages proposition and it took me until we were halfway into the camp to see how panicked the place seemed. Baloo and the other Frojan had already noticed and I joined them in unconsciously huddling closer together.

Frojan and orcs were scattered around either yelling in strained voices or in scared little clumps whispering as though the cold open air held some menace that would be attracted to their words. Coming up to the main central table under the cloth tent, I looked around until we saw the local leader, a tall skinny Frojan of red skin and green eyes with black robes.

"What happened?" I asked.

The leader was too busy issuing orders and going over papers to notice us, of course, but one of his helpers shoved a scouting report into my hand before moving to go about her regular business.

It was an official notice from high command. Our eastern spies had noticed that the activity from the Phoenix empire had suddenly spiked. There had been a surge in their scouts these past few weeks, but this looked more like a mobilization of their entire army and it was moving south. This might be a part of the previous build up, but the observers noted that this buildup was being done in an almost rushed manner, with entire battalions that were clearly meant for the mountain range being diverted below the mountain passage that held their interest for so long. That, combined with them withdrawing their forces that were already at the front with the Coalition and towards our lands, suggested a massive operation to move through the swamps.

This would have been bad enough, but the portion of our seas by the southern area of the swamps was now running into trouble. Our fishing boats had reported skirmishes between the massive ships of the Rodring kingdom and some pirates from hidden southern port of the Burning Mist. What was notable in the report was that the ships weren't the small scouting vessels, but rather proper warships. The fighting was still just outside our regular fishing spots, even so, enough observations had been made that high command felt confident that neither side had bothered trying to send scout ships to survey the land or set up proper maps of the area. The battles and movements of their fleets suggested they intended to make landfall in the woodlands west of our swamps, the cost in blood and ships being no concern as they rushed headlong towards our shores.

What this report suggested, along with the Coalition now flooding its remaining forts with new soldiers and mages, was that something had happened in the past few days that set of a mad and desperate rush of the other countries trying to get into the Coalition. The placement of the Coalitions troops away from the westward coast also said the point of their interest was in the eastern region of their country. High command were speculating this all had to do with the quad mage, but this sudden dash was totally unlike the increase of previous scouts and border irritations.

As I handed off the letter to Baloo for him and the men to read, my mind went over all the things that could have happened to produce this drastic change. Then I resisted the urge to slap myself as I realized I could just ask the man who had to be the cause of this. Our trip here was now more important than ever as high command tried to co-ordinate around this coming storm, we were sent on another scouting run of the forts. On our trip we saw the increase of troops, more fortifications, long supply lines for siege preparations and all the signs of a nation holding its breath before plunging into a major conflict.

Coming back and giving our reports, I waited until we were back outside the camp to talk with my Frojan friends.

'I've got to get back home.' I said in a spirit connection as we walked down the dirt road back to the swamplands.

That got a few nods and some raised eyes.

'So soon?' Baloo asked from my right.

'Yeah, I'm just not feeling it today. Catch you guys tomorrow.' I said, feeling slightly guilty about lying to them. The truth was I was heading back home to send a letter to the quad mage and I felt I understood them enough that they wouldn't want me putting them in danger by getting them involved in such a risky exchange. If this all blew up in my face, I wanted them to have full deniability when it happened.

It took a while, but I eventually got back home and quickly wrote out the letter, making sure to not be too demanding for the answer as the strength of my position was far below his, no matter how polite he was in our correspondence.

My task finished, I headed out to the stump a good walk behind my house. Leaving my letter in the hole at its center, I headed back home and got ready to head to the market without even waiting for mother to get back from her duties. The stalls and merchants were going be whipped into a frenzy of price gouging when the news got out, if they weren't already, and I wanted to get as much as I could on my thin budget while the prices stayed relatively reasonable.