Interlude: The families

Four years had passed since their recruitment into the sect. Most of the children had begun writing letters home after the first year, trading contribution points to send money, and their families were becoming wealthy by mortal standards. Those that hadn't learned to read by the end of that first year were given help writing letters by the two Senior cultivators in the dorm.

Sam's family had increased the size of their goat farm to a proper ranch. They were becoming magnates in the goat ranching business. His brothers were both taking an interest in girls, but his parents insisted they were too young for any serious courtship. They had been turning down offers left and right from people trying to marry their daughters into the family, just to have access to their new wealth.

Kyle's family were doing similarly well. They had been able to buy more land, and grow alternative crops to supplement the wheat farming. They had bought old Ms. Augustine's bakery. The old woman had insisted on staying on as a manager, but she compromised and let them hire some help for her, since she was starting to have trouble getting around. They had started expanding already, and were buying bakeries in other towns as well. His oldest brother had married, and was expecting a baby soon. His middle brother was more interested in books, now that they had money to buy some, and he was studying to get into a university in the central plains.

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Emily's father built a proper library in town, and had moved the books out of the city hall. He was pushing an education initiative, with the hope of eventually building a local university, and was working with the boys' families to improve the roads and infrastructure to draw more financial traffic into their town.

Ava sent her letters to a random old man she'd found. He had dementia, and thought they were tax summaries, so he threw them in the fire. She didn't bother pretending to send him money.

Yuma's family were not pushovers. They had not risen to the top of the Demonic Desert Cult by being weak, or by being stupid. It wasn't that they had any real attachment to their son. Love was a weakness that could be exploited, after all. However, it was also weakness to allow their son to be stolen. The old god Coyote had claimed it was a fair trade, but nobody would accept that explanation without thinking less of them. So, they were building up their forces to search for their son, but it would take time.

Coyote was watching the world, laughing at the chaos he was cultivating. He expected it to benefit the people in the end. A few might die, but he would not begrudge himself a bit of mischief along the way.