If you want to read 20 Chapters ahead and more, be sure to check out my P-Tang12!!!
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(A/N: Don't forget to give those power stones to Skyrim everyone!)
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They stepped off the train onto the wooden platform of Riggs Station. It was a small, rugged outpost, surrounded by towering trees and the distant, rushing sound of the Dakota River. The few local ranchers and station workers standing on the platform stopped dead in their tracks, their eyes wide as they watched the Don of Saint Denis, flanked by his terrifying, suited mafia lieutenants and heavily armed capos, disembark from the luxury car.
In there, they were immediately picked up by a massive, heavy duty transport carriage that Leopold Strauss had proactively hired to pick up Caleb and his entourage.
It wasn't a velvet lined city carriage, it was a rugged, reinforced stagecoach built specifically to handle the steep, treacherous mountain roads leading up to the town of Strawberry. The local driver, a grizzled old mountaineer, swallowed hard, his hands trembling slightly on the reins as he took in the sheer, overwhelming firepower of the men loading his coach.
Caleb, Arthur, Hosea, Vincenzo, and Silvio climbed into the spacious interior of the heavy coach.
As for the five deadly capos, they didn't bother trying to squeeze inside. Operating with the ingrained, hyper aggressive tactics of urban mob enforcers, the capos went to sit on the shotgun seat right beside the terrified driver, while the remaining heavily armed men simply stood on the running boards, grabbing the roof rails and holding on to the sides of the carriage.
They looked like a heavily armored strike team ready to repel a military assault, their repeater rifles resting casually across their arms.
"Drive," Vincenzo barked out the window to the coachman.
The driver frantically whipped the massive draft horses, and the heavy coach lurched forward, beginning the steep, winding ascent up the mountain trails.
The ride took several tense, bone rattling minutes. The carriage navigated the narrow, dirt packed roads, surrounded by towering, ancient redwood trees and massive, moss covered boulders. The roar of the rushing mountain rivers echoed loudly in the crisp air.
Before long, they finally reached their destination. The carriage crested a steep ridge, and the picturesque, isolated logging town of Strawberry finally came into view, nestled perfectly in the deep, forested valley below.
As the massive, heavily armed transport carriage rolled over the wooden bridges and into the main thoroughfare of the town, their arrival instantly became the absolute, undeniable attraction of the townsfolk.
Strawberry was a quiet, highly conservative frontier town, strictly governed by its pompous mayor and populated by rugged loggers, trappers, and general store clerks. The sudden, incredibly loud arrival of a heavy transport coach, completely covered in terrifying, scar faced Italian mobsters wearing expensive city suits and holding military grade rifles, brought the entire town to a dead, horrified halt.
The local blacksmith dropped his hammer. The women carrying baskets of laundry stopped and stared, pulling their children behind their skirts.
Even the local sheriff, stepping out onto the porch of the jailhouse, took one look at Silvio's massive repeating shotgun and smartly decided to turn around and walk right back inside his office, wanting absolutely no part of whatever corporate war had just rolled into his jurisdiction.
The carriage, ignoring the terrified stares of the locals, rolled smoothly through the muddy streets and, of course, stopped directly at the front of the massive hotel.
As Caleb and his lieutenants stepped out of the heavy transport coach, everyone, except for Arthur, who had briefly seen the initial, raw blueprints and the foundation work when he had visited the region weeks ago, was profoundly, utterly surprised.
Actually, even Arthur, the hardened, cynical enforcer who was incredibly difficult to impress, was still completely surprised by the sheer, staggering extent of the hotel now that the massive construction was officially finished.
It was a breathtaking architectural masterpiece of the Gilded Age, dominating the small, rustic town like a towering monument to modern capitalistic power.
The luxury hotel complex stood a staggering four stories high, built from a flawless, incredibly expensive mixture of massive, locally sourced, dark stained timber logs, polished river stone, and an unprecedented amount of imported plate glass.
It featured sweeping, wrap around verandas on every single floor, adorned with intricate, wrought iron railings. The roofline was an elegant array of gables and dormers, and massive, stone built chimneys promised roaring, warm fireplaces in the grand lobbies inside.
It seamlessly, perfectly blended the rugged, untamed aesthetic of the frontier mountains with the absolute, uncompromising luxury of a five star Saint Denis resort.
Hosea leaned heavily on his walking cane, his jaw slightly open as he stared up at the towering structure. "Oh my god... Don McLaughlin... you didn't build a hotel. You built a damn castle."
Vincenzo and Silvio, men who were accustomed to the sprawling brick factories and stone mansions of the city, looked at the massive wooden fortress with profound, unadulterated awe. To project this level of wealth and infrastructure out here in the middle of absolute nowhere was a testament to the Don's terrifying reach.
Caleb stood on the dirt road, his sharp blue eyes sweeping over the massive structure. He took in the pristine glass windows reflecting the mountain sun, the solid stone foundations, and the sheer scale of the achievement.
He nodded his head slowly, profoundly satisfied looking at it. It was exactly as he had envisioned it. The perfect, highly lucrative, completely legitimate money laundering and producing machine, standing proudly in the wilderness.
As he stepped fully off the carriage, adjusting his heavy dark overcoat against the mountain chill, the heavy, double mahogany doors of the grand hotel entrance were pushed open.
At this exact time, Strauss came out.
The former loan shark looked entirely revitalized. He was no longer the hunched, miserable, desperate man constantly looking over his shoulder in the outlaw camp.
He was dressed immaculately in a sharp, incredibly expensive tweed suit, his spectacles polished, and his posture straight. He looked exactly like the highly successful, untouchable real estate developer Caleb had molded him into.
Strauss hurried down the wide wooden steps, a wide, genuine, and incredibly proud smile breaking across his face. He greeted them all with immense, formal respect.
"Don McLaughlin! You have arrived exactly on schedule!" Strauss beamed, bowing his head respectfully toward Caleb.
He then turned, of course, and greeted Arthur and Hosea as well. He did not greet them as mere gang members anymore, he recognized the shift in their profound authority.
"Mr. Morgan. Mr. Matthews. It is an absolute pleasure to see you both looking so incredibly well. Welcome to the crown jewel of West Elizabeth."
Caleb stepped forward, entirely bypassing the formal handshakes. He reached out and patted Strauss firmly, affectionately on the shoulder, a gesture of absolute, unshakeable approval, his voice ringing with profound, undeniable pride, "You have done wonderful work, Herr Strauss. Truly, spectacularly wonderful work. You took a blueprint and a mountain of cash, and you built an empire out of pine and stone. The family is incredibly proud of your execution."
Hearing that absolute validation from the Don of the syndicate, Strauss practically smiled.
He thanked him for his incredibly kind words, adjusting his spectacles to hide the sudden, emotional moisture in his eyes. To be recognized not for his predatory lending, but for his brilliant logistical management, was the redemption he had desperately craved.
Strauss then gestured grandly toward the towering hotel, pivoting smoothly back into his role as the executive manager.
"If you are ready, Don McLaughlin," Strauss offered, his voice vibrating with professional excitement, "I would be incredibly honored to offer you and your esteemed lieutenants a comprehensive, floor by floor tour of the finished construction."
Caleb looked up at the massive structure, the gears of his hyper intelligent mind already turning toward the underlying engineering that made it all possible. He nodded his head definitively.
"We will inspect the grand lobbies and the luxury suites shortly, Leopold," Caleb commanded, his voice dropping into a highly technical, deeply focused register. "But I want the grand tour to start on the exterior first. Specifically, I want to start on the Pelton wheel."
Strauss blinked, slightly surprised that the Don wanted to start with the heavy industrial mechanics rather than the luxurious amenities, but he immediately nodded. "Of course, my Don. Right this way."
Caleb wanted to see the power source firsthand. Before they looked at Persian rugs or crystal chandeliers, he needed to verify the absolute, beating heart of his investment.
He wanted to see the massive, highly advanced Pelton wheel producing the immense, roaring electricity that would be primarily used to light up and heat the massive luxury hotel, and then, completely monopolizing the local infrastructure, the excess power would be shared and sold to the rest of the rustic town as well.
With Strauss leading the way, Caleb, Arthur, Hosea, Vincenzo, and the heavily armed capos walked around the side of the towering hotel, heading toward the rushing, roaring waters of the mountain river, ready to inspect the technological marvel that would secure the McLaughlin empire's dominance in the West.
So began the grand tour for Caleb and his heavily armed group.
With the cold, crisp mountain breeze sweeping through the towering pines, Strauss led them first away from the main entrance of the hotel, guiding them down a freshly cut, stone paved path that wound its way around the western flank of the massive structure.
The sound of rushing water, initially just a distant, ambient noise in the town, grew steadily louder and more ferocious with every step they took.
They were heading directly toward the steep, rocky drop off where the roaring waters of the mountain river cascaded down into the valley. As they approached the edge, the misty spray of the icy water hit their faces, and there, housed within a heavily reinforced, stone built hydro facility nestled right against the cliffside, was the beating, mechanical heart of Caleb's western empire.
The Pelton wheel.
It was an absolute marvel of modern, industrial age engineering. The massive iron wheel, fitted with specially curved, split bucket paddles, was currently spinning at a terrifying, blinding velocity.
The raw, unadulterated kinetic energy of the Strawberry waterfall was being aggressively funneled through a high pressure steel penstock pipe, blasting a concentrated jet of water directly into the iron buckets. The resulting rotation was driving a massive, copper coiled generator, emitting a deep, continuous, vibrating hum that vibrated right through the soles of their boots.
Strauss stood near the iron guardrail, practically shouting over the deafening roar of the water and the grinding machinery. He eagerly explained to Caleb and the others the intricate mechanics of the Pelton wheel, detailing how the specific, spoon shaped buckets captured the water's momentum with virtually zero wasted energy.
As they stepped deeper into the stone hydro facility, they met with the specialist technician, a soot stained, brilliant engineer imported all the way from the industrialized northeast, and his crew of local workers who had actually put the wheel together.
The men were currently there, making several rigorous mechanical checks. They were carefully adjusting heavy brass pressure valves, monitoring the rapidly spinning governors, and also making absolutely sure that the thick, rubber-insulated electricity lines and the primary generators were operating within safe, optimal parameters.
Caleb stepped right up to the spinning generator, entirely unfazed by the raw electricity arcing faintly in the copper coils. He engaged the specialist, wanting to learn a bit more from the technician about the Pelton wheel and the exact, quantifiable amount of electricity that it was currently producing.
"She's a absolute beauty, Mr. McLaughlin," the chief technician yelled over the noise, wiping grease from his forehead with a dirty rag. He pointed toward the massive pressure gauges. "With how incredibly good the natural positions and the heavy, year round currents of the Strawberry waterfall are, we are operating at nearly ninety five percent efficiency. The head pressure from the drop is staggering."
Caleb looked at the gauges, his mind translating the voltage into pure, untouchable profit. "Can it handle the maximum load of the hotel's grid once every room is occupied and fully lit?"
"Handle it?" The technician let out a loud, barking laugh. "Sir, this turbine is producing enough raw wattage to light up your hundred room hotel like a Roman candle, power the industrial kitchen ovens, heat the boiler rooms, and we still have a massive surplus of excess voltage bleeding off the grid. As per Mr. Strauss's orders, we are already laying the heavy conduit lines down the hill. We have enough juice to power the entire main street of Strawberry, the mayor's office, and the local lumber yard. You essentially own the town's lifeblood now."
Caleb nodded his head, a fierce, deeply satisfied smile crossing his face. By monopolizing the town's power grid, he had effectively made it impossible for the local government to ever cross him. After thanking the technician and handing the man a crisp fifty dollar bill as a bonus for the spectacular work he and his team have done, Caleb signaled for the group to move on.
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Name: Caleb Thorne
Age: 23
Body Attributes:
- Strength: 8/10
- Agility: 8/10
- Perception: 9/10
- Stamina: 8/10
- Charm: 8/10
- Luck: 9/10
Skills:
- Handgun (Lvl MAX)
- Rifle (Lvl MAX)
- Firearms Knowledge (Lvl MAX)
- Past Life Memory (Lvl MAX)
- Knife (Lvl MAX)
- Blunt Weapon (Lvl MAX)
- Sneaking (Lvl MAX)
- Horse Mastery (Lvl MAX)
- Poker (Lvl MAX)
- Hand to Hand Combat (Lvl MAX)
- Eagle Eye (Lvl MAX)
- Dead Eye (Lvl MAX)
- Bow (Lvl MAX)
- Pain Nullifier (Lvl MAX)
- Physical Regeneration (Lvl MAX)
- Crafting (Lvl MAX)
- Persuasion (Lvl MAX)
- Mental Fortitude (Lvl MAX)
- Cooking (Lvl MAX)
- Teaching (Lvl MAX)
- Trilingual Language Proficiency - G, I, & C (Lvl MAX)
- Inventory System (Permanent - 100x100x100)
- Acting (Lvl MAX)
- Alcohol Resistance (Lvl MAX)
- Treasure Hunter (Lvl MAX)
- Drugs Resistance (Lvl MAX)
- Business (Lvl MAX)
- Leadership (Lvl MAX)
Money: 2,822 dollars and 60 cents
Inventory: 284,392 dollars and 61 cents, 11 gold nuggets, 74 gold bars, 1 Double Action, 1 Schofield, 2 Colm's Schofields, 1 land deed (Parcel), 1 Mauser, 1 Semi Auto Pistol, 1 Lancaster Repeater, 1 Old Wood Jewelry Box, 1 F.F Mausoleum small brass key, 1 Ruby, 1 Braithwaites Land Deed, 1 Broken Pirate Sword, 1 Milton's Safety Deposit Key, 1 Senator Pendleton Sealed Envelope, Proof Of Marlin-Thorne Firearms Co., 10 Dynamites, 1 LeMat, 1 M1899, 1 Carcano, 1 Ownership deed of Doyle's Tavern, 3 Diamonds, & Important Documents & Deeds Of Cornwall
Bank: -