Chapter 99
Flange Orphanage, City: Three Prongs Fork, Republic of Shantu, Continent: Barat, the Year 2031, Planet: Grimoire
Grifton woke up with a start. He shivered and realized it was pouring, with lightning crackling around him. Damn, when had that begun? There was no way he'd be able to get inside without someone kicking up a fuss. Grifton sighed in aggravation as he pondered on the dream. Well, that settles it. I must complete all my projects and make them as noticeable as possible. He didn't necessarily need to make them flashy.
So how could they be made to stand out but not with gaudiness that was just tacky? The last thing that Grifton wanted to be known for was gaudy and tacky cheap garbage. He grimaced at the idea and shook his head. Grifton exhaled in frustration since he was stalled at the seriously wrong time. All right, he had a general idea of what he didn't want to do. That was a start. He generally preferred using natural materials. Hmm, what haven't I done lately that would make my work stand out? That would also incorporate natural materials but won't disintegrate in lousy weather, obviously.
Grifton tapped his jaw as he considered his options. Right, his cousins always had something to say about what he'd done with the material itself, even before creating items. Uhm, why did he have to think of them right now? He grimaced in discomfort. It hurt that they'd disappeared over a year ago by now.
"What have my cousins said?" Grifton recalled what they'd mentioned in the past. "Oh right, they liked the ones with protective spells that activated with mana infused into them, no wording required." Now, he had a better idea of what to create.
Satisfied that he'd gotten an idea into his head that he could focus on, Grifton did just that. He was unaware that many people were now searching for him. During that period of peace in his mind, he began working on projects that would take him to another level of proficiency, and he sincerely hoped that they would allow him to escape this hellish place.
Just when he wrapped up his last piece, Grifton finally heard yelling interspersed with curses because he wasn't responding. "What?" He jumped down from his perch, minus his projects. Since he wasn't sure who was hollering for him. If it was the wrong people, they'd ruin his hard work just for the hell of it.
~*~
Much to Director Eben's ire, he was almost frightened out of his skin when a dark, narrow, tall figure dropped from one of the oldest trees on the property. He lifted his lantern.
Bright light fell onto the now sopping wet head of the delinquent foundling, Grifton Tinroy. The boy stared at them with wary, distrustful eyes. He'd been mending his clothes or trying to.
Eben tsked. He was a filthy mess. It was apparent that he didn't care about manners or anything else.
"Benson," Eben ordered his aide with some irritation. "Take him back to the building and get him cleaned up." He glanced at Grifton, who watched them in blatant confusion. He needs to look good while going through the medical exam."
He watched as Benson grabbed Tinroy with a rough grasp that would surely leave bruises. Oh well, they wouldn't appear until long after the examination.
Director Eben turned his attention to the tree. "So, this is where he was hiding. No wonder no one could find him." He was surprised to see Lamberton climbing up the tree with agility he hadn't thought possible.
"Hmm, I found where he's stashed his projects," Lamberton commented. "I think he's got quite the interesting perspective in some of the concepts he created this time." The fact that he wasn't dropping anything for them to examine annoyed Eben.
"So, what are you going to do with what you found?" Eben demanded angrily.
There was more rustling around before Lamberton jumped back down with evident comfort. "I'm going to store them in a safe place," he stated very calmly, much to Eben's rising ire. "I'll bring them back out for Tinroy when he's cleared of any potential threats to society."
This meant he was going to stick around, and that irritated Eben to no end. He also couldn't do anything about this area until that man and kid left the premises. "Fine," Eben ground his teeth when Lamberton headed to the Orphanage after Benson took the kid to the medical room.
Now that he was sure no one was around to argue with him, Director Eben looked around the area. All he saw was a rundown shed. There was no possible reason to keep a bunch of trees this close to the Orphanage's main buildings. "Tom, Lewis, I want you to knock down all these trees. They would be a hazard to the buildings if they fell."
"Yessir," Tom and Lewis went to fetch axes and saws.
That pleased the Director. Now, he could go about his business. At least there would be no further instances of that brat hiding in trees to avoid the other foundlings. Nor would he be able to conceal his projects, either. Eben smirked. It would be much easier to find reasons to confiscate whatever the brat worked on, even if the items weren't quite finished. There was no need to worry about keeping him in the Orphanage either. Once Eben got the diagrams and materials, he wouldn't need to have the brat around. It was time to expel Grifton Tinroy from the premises.
Once that happened, peace would once again settle on the grounds. Not only that, but Eben could also get rid of those blasted orchards. Who needed bunches of groves anyhow? Lately, those things haven't been producing sufficient crops either. In that case, they could remove from other sorts of projects that would create more efficient profits in the short, mid, and long term. He would make good use of this time as Director of this worthless Orphanage.
The first crack of a problem came when Lewis addressed him warily: "Uh, sir, we have a problem."
Oh, now what? Director Eben turned to stare at the two of them and then winced. "Good grief, what happened to those implements?"
The saws were mangled, and the axes were in multiple pieces. There was no way of mending them either. "Well?" Eben demanded when the two men shook their heads.
"That happened as soon as I struck the side of the trunk." Lewis pointed to the axes.
"The same thing happened with the saws," Tom informed Eben. "It seems they're being protected with some kind of barrier designed to prevent destruction of their roots and bark."
Well, that was a hindrance to his grand plan. Hmmph. "Fine, get rid of those things and check on the other projects that were started earlier." Eben hoped that something would go right.
Ever since he'd taken over, nothing had gone as planned whenever he wanted to alter the landscape of the Orphanage. However, Eben wasn't going to give up that easily.
After all, he was the Director. There was no way he would return this position to that loser, Doyle Moline, who'd made this place into some gothic horror. Eben sighed. He wanted to modernize it quickly to gain the most profit before selling the land. That was the plan, at least. However, to do it, he had to prove that it was wholly worthless or so profitable that no part was useless.
So far, Eben hadn't managed to do anything other than lose workers. "Maybe I should've kept those damn orchard teams after all." That was not something he'd accounted for when dismissing all those workers. Now, it seemed that none of them were willing to return until all their benefits were reinstated. That wasn't going to happen. Eben didn't believe in spoiling men too much when he knew they had side jobs to supplement the income they received from their careers here.
Well, whatever, he wasn't going to worry about that anymore. It was no longer a subject worth pursuing. Eben grunted. "So please report to me about the progress of other projects?" He eyed Tom and Lewis sourly. Indeed, they were helpful in something other than running errands.
~*~
This is unbelievable. I was so close to officially graduating early, too. Grifton wasn't pleased with this development at all. All I needed was two more months. He fumed in disgust at the timing. How hard was that to accomplish? He'd hoped for some more time before he was kicked from the Orphanage.
Grifton was demoralized by the latest hiccup because he was at a loss. Now, what should I do? That's when his subconscious coughed up a conversation that happened in his proximity. It surprised him, but he merely shrugged it off as hearsay.
Grifton rolled his eyes. How unoriginal can people get? Aliens, from another timeline, or the world? That was so cliche it wasn't even funny. After all, there was zero evidence of him not being anything other than a dragon and human. "That is hard enough to believe, now that other stuff was being thrown in?" That much had come to light after all this time. Grifton considered just how much he hated rumors. Such malicious crap can ruin people's lives. He sighed in frustration. Now it was rumored that his parents came from another timeline after all? He shook his head in disgusted contempt. How stupid and gullible can people be to believe such crap?
Right then, he was shoved under a cold shower and handed a clean set of garments.
"Get dressed." Benson snarled. "Don't waste any more precious time."
Asshole, Grifton glowered at his back. He toweled off first and then dressed. None of the clothes fit, but whatever. It wasn't like Grifton would remain in them for much longer.
The woman who waited for him in the examination room blinked in shock at the sight of him. "Just what happened to you?" That's when lightning flashed brightly, making them flinch. The crackling thunder that followed the flashes made her jump.
Grifton sighed. "That's what happened, along with being startled out of my hideout in a tree." He grumbled.
The woman laughed. "Sometimes you resemble a cat more than a dragon." She shook her head. "I thought it was strange that Calico was named that when he was more of a dragon in his preferences."
Grifton shrugged. "Well, I could also be something like a griffon of legend too; you never know."
She eyed him in surprise and shrugged. "True, there's no telling what the future holds. I'll make this as painless as possible."
True to her word, she kept the examination short. Much to Grifton's surprise, she produced a set of clothing that would keep him warm and fit him properly, too. "Compliments from Lamberton, who admires your work, by the way."
Grifton blinked at her. "Err, so I heard a conversation earlier..." He paused, not sure how to start.
The woman nodded. "I'm Madam Murray," She introduced herself. "Save the questions for another day and just sleep in there." She pointed to where a real bed waited for him to crash for the night.