Cast in Time Book 2: Baron of the Middle Counties, page 1
Cast in Time
Book 2: Baron of the Middle Counties
By Ed Nelson
Other books by Ed Nelson
The Richard Jackson Saga
Book 1: The Beginning
Book 2: Schooldays
Book 3: Hollywood
Book 4: In the Movies
Book 5: Star to Deckhand
Book 6: Surfing Dude
Book 7: Third Time is a Charm
Book 8: Oxford University
Book 9: Cold War
Book 10: Taking Care of Business
Book 11: Interesting Times
Book 12: Escape from Siberia
Book 13: Regicide
Book 14: What’s Under, Down Under?
Book 15: The Lunar Kingdom
Book 16: First Steps
Stand Alone Stories
Ever and Always
Mary, Mary
The Cast in Time series
Book 1: Baron
Dedication
This book is dedicated to my wife, Carol, for her support and help as my first reader and editor.
With special thanks to Ole Rotorhead for his technical insights on how things really work.
Then there are my beta readers: Ole Rotorhead, Lonelydad, Antti Huotari, and Pat O'Dell.
And never forget the professional editor: Morgan Waddle.
Quotation
According to 'M' theory, ours is not the only universe. Instead, 'M' theory predicts that a great many universes were created out of nothing.
Stephen Hawking
Copyright © 2023
E. E. Nelson
All rights reserved
Eastern Shore Publishing
2331 West Del Webb Blvd.
Sun City Center, FL 33673
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, organizations, places, events, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
ISBN 978-1-953395-84-9
Library of Congress Control Number: 2023912483
Map of Cast in Time Cornwall
Table of Contents
Contents
Cast in Time
Other books by Ed Nelson
Dedication
Quotation
Copyright © 2023
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Back Matter
Chapter 1
Now that I had conquered Pirthtowan and Wadebridge, I had to integrate them into my Barony. I hadn't wanted to go to war with them, but they tried to assassinate me, so I had no choice.
Their failed attempt resulted in the death of the Dowager Countess Wendon and her son, the only male heir to the Barony. I had grown fond of them and had a good relationship with her father, John Chandler.
John, a ships Chandler in Saltash, was also a friend, and business partner. I couldn't leave their deaths unanswered. There was also the fact that once they had tried and failed, they had no choice but to continue.
But they only had to get lucky once. I had to win successfully against every attempt. So I set out with my war party the next morning.
I would like to report that we won a series of hard-fought battles. The fact of the matter was we rolled them up easily. My introduction of a stronger crossbow was the deciding factor.
Thad, my assistant scribe, attended to me as usual. He had accompanied me enough to know what was needed.
It would take weeks to give the locals an understanding of the changes that would be made. Followed by months of work to implement the changes.
The first step was to send the headmen of Pirthtowan and Wadebridge to Own-nap to see for themselves what we had accomplished. They would be our best salesmen.
Food was already on its way. It may have been hubris, but I was so certain of victory that I had a food train formed and set out before the battles occurred. Once there were full bellies, people would be prone to listen.
Then our head medical person Agnes would arrive with her contingent of nurses. They would start educating the local midwives. They would be our staunchest supporters once they saw how infant death rates could be reduced.
As these events were transpiring, I spent some time thinking about how all this got started. I was born over a thousand years in the future as James Fletcher. I lived a good life.
Most of it was spent in the military, where I fought in World War II, Korea, and Viet Nam. I was a combat engineer who forgot to duck occasionally and made things happen under fire.
These actions lead to awards and promotions. In between these wars, I continued the engineering studies I had started at West Point. With an eidetic memory, able to retain huge amounts of information. I retired as a Lieutenant General in command of the US Army Corp of Engineers.
During this time, I met, and married the love of my life Dory. She was my helpmate, lover, and confidant for many years. After retiring, I became a professional student. Taking every engineering degree possible. Dory said it kept me off the streets.
I died after living for more than ninety years. That should have been the end. However, as I was fading out, my last thought was, "What a waste of such wonderful knowledge."
Someone must have been listening because I woke up in the body of a young Baron named Owen-nap. The year was the eighth century, and from what I could tell not the same continuum that I came from.
Many things were the same and many different. Why I was here, I had no idea, but I promptly put my engineering knowledge to work to improve the lives of my people.
I had just realized that I needed more people to make progress. Not total body count, but specific trades.
I would need to go to London sometime in the future to recruit them. Number one on my list was an alchemist. They wouldn't know chemistry, but I could remedy that. Their understanding that chemical reactions could change things was a plus.
A master glassmaker was an absolute must. Most important was someone who could lead the effort to measure to the nearest one-thousandth of an inch.
Those were the hard sciences. I also needed someone who knew the geographical world as it exists here. I had seen enough to know that the textbooks I had memorized didn't completely match up with this world.
Then there was a person who knew the nations and politics of this new world, at least new to me.
I also needed a master trader to handle foreign ventures. They would need military support. My list kept growing.
A monk broke me out of my reverie, asking if they could use the Keep as a census headquarters. There was no reason why not, so I gave my permission.
But it brought up the question of who I would leave in charge of Pirthtowan and Wadebridge. I was running short of experienced people. I decided to put off that worry until tomorrow. Lady Eleanor would be joining me, and she might have some insight.
At least I wouldn't have to change the title of the Barony again. The Barony of the Middle Counties still worked. Of course, the flag would have to be redesigned.
Then there was the new, to me, surrounding Baronies. Adjacent to Pirthtowan were Lewanniet and Bolventor. Next to Wadebridge were Gaberton and Pensilva.
All these were on the maps I remembered from the future, but none were in the same place. Adding to the evidence that I was in a different timeline or universe.
These differences weren't of much import now but would become critical when I sent out expeditions to bring back raw materials and riches.
In the meantime, I would expand our spy network into these counties. I still hadn't filled the position of spymaster to run a network. It was imperative that this was done soon.
The management team I was building was doing well, but they couldn't do it all. Several of them were good in their current positions, but the expanded Barony might be beyond them.
I would discuss each person with Eleanor and get her opinion.
My Lady arrived midmorning the next day. She looked exhausted but was almost manic in her excitement. She had never been involved in a war before. War was a strong word for this small-scale battle, but it had changed my Barony and the surrounding countryside.
If war was diplomacy by other means, we had a war.
The Baroness's own accompanied her. I had given up thinking they worked for me. My messenger girl, Linda, came with her. That would be handy. Since it was new t
With Thad at my side to take notes and prepare messages and Linda to deliver them, I was all set to go. The question was where to go. Acting too fast would create more problems than solutions. After stabilizing the food and health situation, I should have a complete survey of the area completed before any major changes.
Even hyper Eleanor agreed this was the best course of action. John Steward suggested we assign five guards under a Sergeant to maintain peace in each Barony while we sorted things out. I told him to take care of it.
Rather than dragging Eleanor back on the road, we spent the day in the Wadebridge Keep interviewing the staff. It didn't take long to figure out the Keep's Steward was hated by all. He abused his position. He had disappeared in the fighting and was probably still running for his life. The young serving girls wanted him hunted down.
We didn't waste time on him, other than issuing a death warrant if captured. Two girls were seen with knives from the kitchen, checking out hiding spots in the village.
A search of his rooms turned up over three hundred silver coins. I directed ten silver each be distributed to the nine servants. The rest was to go to our treasury.
So far, we have had enough silvers to fund all the ongoing projects, but this state of affairs wouldn't last. A trip to Saltash to speak to John Chandler about establishing more trade with London was in order.
Eleanor and I, with our entourage, returned to Owen-nap. We arrived in the afternoon and received updates on how our orders were being implemented. The next morning, our group headed to Wendon.
Neither Eleanor nor I had been to Wendon since the deaths of the Dowager Baroness and her son. Sergeant Smith was still in charge. He and the Dowager had seemed to be getting very close, so I was concerned about how he was handling things.
’The changes were very apparent. What had been a forlorn-looking village was now a vibrant operation. Healthy-looking people were going about their daily business. Cheers went up as Eleanor and I were spotted.
We waved as we passed by them but didn't stop. Several Monks and a scout peeled off from our group to talk to those present. They would find out the true mood of the people and any concerns they might have.
It may be cynical, but what I hear in public may not be what is said in private.
Sergeant Smith and the Keep's Steward welcomed us as we arrived at the Keep.
The Sergeant looked like he hadn't been sleeping well.
When Eleanor and I were in a private room with him, I asked how he was bearing up.
"It has been hard, My Lord. I didn't realize how much I cared for her and her son. I have lost many close friends in battle over the years, so I know time will heal."
"It's never easy. Do you want to remain in charge here or go elsewhere?"
"I would like to remain here. Lydia, young William, and I spent many an hour talking about how using your methods could improve Wendon. I would like to continue those efforts in their memory."
"So be it. You will remain in command here. With no heirs, I'm now going to incorporate Wendon into the Barony of the Middle Counties."
"I thought as much. You have no choice now."
"Eleanor was talking on the trip over about the command structure here. Leaving a mere Sergeant in charge won't do. I'm Knighting you."
At that, I reached over and lightly tapped his shoulder.
"Now isn't the time to have a big ceremony. We will make it more formal later, Sir Smith."
This was the first time I had ever seen the former Sergeant taken aback.
A dazed-looking Sir Smith said, "Thank you, My Lord and Lady, I never thought this day would arrive."
"I'm sorry it had to come like this,” I replied. “This promotion will also go to Sergeant Waters at Bodmin and those successful in the former Baronies of Pirthtowan and Wadebridge."
Eleanor added, "it is early in your grief, but please look out for those who will trip you and land under you."
"I will be careful of those women."
"Who said it was only women?" Eleanor smirked.
The old Knight blushed.
"Aye, you have the right of it, My Lady."
We spent several hours discussing the specific current needs of the Barony. They were fewer than I thought. Sir Smith and the Dowager had been busy and taken to heart all the new improvements.
I told him of my concerns about the Barons surrounding Pirthtowan and Wadebridge. He had spent time with them and gave some insight into their conditions. It wasn't encouraging.
I could see more warfare in our future. The question now was, should I wait for others to start it or be proactive?
Chapter 2
War was in the future. My immediate concern was to integrate the Middle Counties.
I called what was beginning to be my brain trust together. The people that I had come to lean on and, more importantly, trust.
This group comprised Eleanor, John Steward, Tom Smith, John Chandler, Abbott Luke, and Father Timothy.
Thad was taking notes with Linda Runner stationed outside the door to run errands if needed. The door was guarded by Sara Farmer, head of the Baroness's Own, responsible for the Keep's security.
James Stone was a recent addition to the group for at least this meeting. He was the senior supervisor of the Owen-nap Road building crews.
Eleanor and I had decided the first step in unifying the new larger Barony was to create a road network. I remembered back home that one could tell one had crossed a political boundary because of the changes in the road surface. All the roads in one county would be made to the same specification, but others would be different.
You could tell well-to-do counties by their road types and conditions. I explained this to the gathered group. Not about my previous timeframe, but the common roads identified a community.
After many hours of discussion and several breaks, we concluded there would be three common levels of roads put into place.
The first level would be the major roads connecting the Keep of each of the former Baronies. These would be four lanes wide, two in each direction, with a median between them, much like the interstate highways from my time.
There would be turnout areas for camping and, ultimately, wayside inns.
These would be all-weather roads with good drainage so that commerce could continue year-round. Taking lessons from the Romans, the roads would have a deep foundation, but we would pour concrete as the top surface.
There would be bridges over any stream, sturdy, with stone piers supporting the ends and each span. There would be no fording at any point.
Drainage would be achieved by ditches with culverts collecting the water and dumping it into retention ponds.
All trees and brush along the road would be trimmed back so that ambushes would be difficult.
This plan was ambitious. The surveying of the routes would take several months. The road building itself would require at least two years.
That was with road crews working from Owen-nap, Saltash, Bodmin, Wendon, Pirthtowan, and Wadebridge.
New mines, crushers, and kilns would have to be opened to provide the needed limestone. And the kilns would need local coal.
The introduction of horse-drawn road scrapers with iron-faced blades by James Stone would help immensely. They were similar to the Fresno Road Scrapers from my time. This invention was why James was now the Superintendent of Roads of the Middle Counties.
James would have a staff of inspectors to track each crew's work. No standing around on this project. He would be headquartered in Owen-nap, which was becoming the Capital of the area.
