Adventure of Pando 1

Pando, Tessa, and Avaris arrive at the deeded Bellmarket house with their belongings and Captain Vey’s arranged supplies. The public lane opens behind them, bright with late afternoon traffic.

The house stands modestly but soundly around a small garden. Near the wall, a carpenter’s measuring cord lies beside a heavy tool chest, waiting for its first use.

Inside, the upper room tells the immediate truth: fresh water stains spread across the ceiling, warped boards buckle underfoot, and a narrow stream of daylight slips beneath damaged tiles.

Below, the supplies remain stacked beside the entry, while the garden wall catches the fading light. Tessa looks between the stained ceiling and the waiting tools; Avaris stands quietly beside her.

The house is secured, the repair materials are ready, and the carpenter’s equipment offers a practical beginning. Nothing moves until the family chooses how to inspect the damage and claim the rooms.

A closer inspection settles the question. The leak has soaked through the upper room’s floorboards, and several supports beneath them have softened beyond safe repair.

A loose board flexes under its own weight near the stained section. Beneath it, the supporting joist shows dark rot where the water has traveled downward.

The tool chest below now has a clear purpose: the roof still needs tiles and timber, but the upper room also requires new floorboards and sound supports beneath them.

The upper room remains closed for now. Their first repair has become larger than expected, but the house is still theirs, and the damaged floor has given them a definite place to begin.

Pando kneels beside the softened boards and studies the grain, gaps, and joists beneath the stained section. The rot follows the leak in a narrow, traceable line rather than spreading across the whole floor.

By lifting one loose edge without bearing weight on it, Pando finds the damage’s full boundary. Most of the floorboards can be salvaged, and the sound timber below offers firm points for temporary bracing.

The inspection gives them a precise repair plan: remove the rotten boards, replace two joist ends, and retile the leak above. The hidden dry space also lets the carpenter work from below, reducing the floor’s disruption.

Pando crosses to the entry and opens the waiting tool chest. Timber lengths, replacement boards, iron fasteners, and stacked roof tiles lie ready beside the carpenter’s cord.

He sorts the timber by grain and straightness, testing each piece against the measured span. His scraped palm protests around the boards, but the inspection stays controlled and precise.

Pando confirms the fit by laying the timber beside the exposed damage, then separates sound boards from warped ones. He finds enough usable material to reinforce both joist ends and replace the rotten section.

The repair plan is now complete: brace the sound supports, replace two joist ends and the damaged boards, then retile above. The house has everything needed to begin safely.

Pando retrieves the carpenter’s measuring cord and iron fasteners from the tool chest, then releases a thin stream of blood that hardens into a precise saw. Tessa and Avaris watch from the safe boards.

He measures the damaged span twice, marks the straight timber, and cuts away the rotten boards and two softened joist ends. The blood saw bites cleanly, though its edge consumes more blood than the cut should require.

Tessa kneels on the stable side and slides the iron fasteners within reach. Pando fits the replacement timber beneath the opening, bracing the sound supports before setting the new boards flush.

Pando drives the fasteners through the boards and into the reinforced joists. The hole disappears beneath a firm, level patch, while several prepared boards and part of the blood tool are spent.

The upper room gains a solid floor beneath the damaged roof. Pando’s scraped palm stings around the saw’s grip, so he dismisses the blood tool and wraps his hand before continuing.

Tessa glances toward Avaris, then steps carefully across the repaired boards. Avaris follows without hesitation, leaving the upper room clear for Pando and his final work.

They descend and pull the door nearly closed behind them, leaving a narrow line of light across the repaired floor. Their footsteps settle below, close enough to hear but no longer in the room.

The upper room is quiet at last. Timber, tiles, and the remaining tools wait around Pando, while the damaged roof admits one thin strip of fading daylight.

Pando releases a thin stream of blood across the repaired boards, guiding it in even lines along the grain. The blood-fire follows without flaring beyond its chosen path.

A controlled warmth passes over the wood. Moisture fades, the surface hardens, and the boards take on a smooth dark finish that deepens the grain without charring it.

He draws the fire into the remaining seams and joist joins, tempering the repaired section until it matches the older floor. The new boards settle firm and level beneath the quiet heat.

The blood-fire folds back into the thin stream and vanishes. No smoke remains, only the clean scent of warmed timber and a dark, finished floor ready to bear weight.

Beyond the nearly closed door, Tessa waits for permission to return while Avaris remains nearby. The upper room now has a sound floor and a dark finish, its last work completed safely.

Pando looks toward the door with a smile. The invitation carries clearly through the narrow opening, and the waiting presence beyond it answers without hesitation.

Tessa opens the door and steps onto the newly tempered boards, testing them with careful weight. Avaris follows close behind, her gaze moving over the finished floor and repaired joins.

Tessa walks farther in and looks toward the stained ceiling, while Avaris kneels briefly to inspect the sealed seams. The room now welcomes them both, awaiting only the roof repair above.

Pando steps to the window and studies the roofline from inside, tracing the stains upward to the damaged tiles. The leak follows one narrow run above the repaired floor.

From the garden, he checks the eaves and the visible slope. Three tiles are cracked, two have shifted, and the surrounding rafters remain dry and straight.

He follows the water’s path along the underside of the roof and finds no wider rot. The repair will need replacement tiles, fresh flashing, and careful sealing around the joint.

Pando raises his focus toward the damaged roof. A smooth stream of shadow spreads beneath the missing flashing, filling the gap and sealing the narrow leak against the fading light.

The shadow settles into a firm temporary cover, angled to shed rain away from the repaired floor. It holds without strain, leaving the sound rafters and fresh boards untouched.

Tessa gathers the carpenter’s measurements from the entry while Avaris watches the shadow seal along the roofline. The house is protected for now, and the needed materials are clear.

Pando heads toward Bellmarket’s public lane to obtain replacement tiles, flashing, and sealing pitch, leaving the upper room secured behind him.