Ch: 5.5 A Hungry Ghost

Gary spent some time lying in bed, contemplating his gifts, he had explored them all systematically, except one: Interface. He plowed into it, reading any messages related to it, digging deeper whenever he could. Finally he found what he was searching for, a skill tree.

When he closed his eyes, he could call it forward, a near limitless void filled with tiny bubbles. Most were darkened, only a few, glowing like tiny stars. The dimmest were tailoring, parkour, cross country running and tanning. Cooking, tinkering and first aid were brighter, with his musicianship and woodworking skills gleaming nicely.

Tiny lines traced synergy and relationships between the skills in an impenetrable tangle of interconnections. Floating above them were the glowing points of his gifts, each one connected to different skills and aspects of his personal stats, also nestled in that impossible complex web.

There were no progress bars, numerical values or reference colors, just an innate sense of what was what and how it was.

He traced the line from woodworking to lumberjacking, it was tied in to his artisan gift, and would probably work just like his ability to harvest wild foods. Faster, better, and more returns, just like he liked it.

He traced that type of connection from his artisan gift and tracked down all of the resource gathering skills he could find.

Tagging them to highlight their connections. If he was looking at this right, he could pick up most of the resource gathering skills, like Mining, Fishing, Lumberjacking and Hunting quickly.

He had Gathering and a few related skills already. Apiculture, which dealt with bees and Poulterer, a chicken centric skill.

Those were already providing synergy with his other skills, refining and improving them passively. Meaning that when he gained skill in Cooking, Harvesting wild food improved, and when he Harvested wild food Cooking gained experience too.

That meant his woodworking skills were sharpening his musical skills, and lumberjacking would improve both at the baseline while also synergizing with both across each other.

He checked in on Tailoring and Tannery, yup, working together, and following that thread to Banjo class Percussive Stringed Instruments… yup, Synergy.

As Gary saw it, his biggest power move would be to take a week or two and learn at least novice level in each of those basic resource gathering skills, then a related, refining skill. As he moved through this world he would be growing steadily. He tried to look forward to what he would be at Otho’s age and wondered.

Liam pointed Gary to the woodcutters guild on the edge of the carpenters ward. Gary asked for work and got a bit of the expected ribbing from the rough and tumble crew.

Woodcutters headquarters was actually quite homey, a timber framed hall with comfortable chairs near the fire for the elders and benches near the bar for the younger crowd.

There were men and women, all dressed in sturdy knockabout working clothes. Stains of tree sap and stubborn dirt made them almost camouflage. They all gathered around a wicker wheel filled with wooden tokens.

As it spun, one token tumbled out to land in an artfully carved bowl shaped as a heavy laden ox, with the bowl forming the poor beast’s terrible burden, very portentous. The old man held up the token. “Triangle, blue.” Laughter, joyous whoops and pitiable groans filled the room.

That was how Adan, was put in charge of him for the day, he was a short, powerfully built man, still vigorous in his late sixties. With expansive gestures and a booming voice he seemed much larger than he was. The man with the blue triangle badge wound up being Gary’s “stupidvisor.” Gary held up a hand.

“Yes, I said what I meant. I’m here to keep you from winding up in the temple of the Blessed Healer, don't want her freshly sanctified hall polluted by the likes of you…”

They walked out together into the managed forest. A team of three donkeys following along placidly without tethers.

Out into the woods Adan would lead them to a marked tree. Talk briefly about its name, habitat, growing cycle and what it's wood’s properties were, then instruct Gary as he cut it down.

Honestly it was going quite well, Gary’s gift was making things tough for Adan though. Gary would touch the tree, get its description, then relax and let things happen naturally.

As he worked, occasionally Gary would find some limb or section of trunk exceptional according to his gift. The small items he just tucked away, the logs he marked with chalk he had brought along for just that purpose at Otho’s suggestion.

That was his day; march, cut, trim, saw, load, march repeat. By noon the mule team was dragging a sledge of cut lumber that was near capacity.

“All right, New Meat, you still have all twenty fingeez and toezies?” Gary did some spirited jazz hands to display the digits, which Adan also disapproved of, in the way he had worked harder disapproving than lumberjacking today.

When they dragged the load back to the lumber yard and untied, it was like Adan transformed into a new person.

“Come on Gary, we knocked off early thanks to you! What a kid! Hey, guys, the new kid Gary, he's got a gift!”

“All right, Gary!”

“Who's Gary?”

“I think he's that guy in the sawmill”

“He owes me six iron bits!”

“Adan, is this another one of those things where you bust my chops all day but then everything is cool?”

Adan stopped with frothing mugs of pear cider clenched in his fists. “This is Wheatford, Gary. Home of good beer, fine food, beautiful women, and men of cordial good manners. Of course I rode your ass like a rented mule.”

He flopped down on a bench and motioned for Gary to join him. “Now sit down and shut up.”

As they ate a fine lunch and drank good pear cider, other teams came back to congratulations for the early returns and jeers for the latecomers.

“So now what do we do? More woodcutting?” Gary asked after a rather long lunch. Adan stared at him.

“We do this.” He held up a freshly filled mug. “Until seventh bell then we go home.”

“I think I might wander down to the sawmill Adan.” With a wave he was off.

If the woodcutter’s guild was relaxed, the sawmill and lumber yard were well organized and staffed. Each one wore a badge with a shape and a primary color. No doubt for the drawing of lots.

Gary gathered that the elders filled the wicker ball with the members' tokens, and then assigned those drawn until the day's work was allotted. The lucky ones lounged at the guild hall in case they were needed, or traded out with co-workers if they felt like getting their hands dirty today. It was all very civilized.

Gary was quickly taken in hand at the mill and guided around. Word that he had been properly hazed had been transmitted (gossiped) through some secret guild means (gossip) that the members were very mysterious about.

In short order the woman running the mill had totted up his day's work and noted which logs he had an interest in. Her ledger was all in numbers, dates and leaf shaped icons to indicate species. Very clever.

It cost Gary a half copper mark to buy the four logs he had his eye on, about twice his day's wages before deducting lunch. It would cost that much again to have them dried in the magical kiln at the college.

He did a bit of math in his head and reckoned a half decent wood cutter could keep a roof over his head and a family of four fed, working three days a week. Not bad.

Gifts were the game changer, Adans gift was in handling those mules, they listened to everything he said and did whatever he asked like well trained employees. He treated them like coddled pets too. Gary’s mind drew a direct line to the kids in the orchard garden.

He took the opportunity to fondle some of the lumber that had seasoned and was coming up for sale in a regular lumber auction next week.

His chalk marks joined a few others on a number of rough cut timbers. An ironwood beam in the corner was the only really special log he found, and it was unmarked. Cagily Gary did not tag it, but was not missing out when the lumber auction came up.

Ironwood log; resource/ fuel/ crafting component/ reagent/ this sample can accept enchantments of iron rank plus

Gary spent a few hours learning the ins and outs of Saw milling, which synergized nicely with Lumberjacking on through Luthier. He could feel them cooking, swirling away in his soul. He was ready to return to the bath, he was beginning to suspect that his hot spring was more than just relaxing.

Outside his door, Otho, Liam and Amicus all stood, baskets and towels on their arms. “The neighbors are going to talk, you goons!” Gary told them quietly. “I don't want them to know I'm running a bathhouse here!”

“I thought this was a musical instrument shop.” Amicus helpfully replied.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“So why do you have a towel and…” Gary peered into his basket. “Domeshine plus, head polish? Eyebrow conditioner?” Amicus smiled benignly

“A clean scholar is a happy scholar!” He replied, heading inside.

Gary had expanded the bathing facility at the expense of other living space with the storefront, workshop and minimal kitchen. Much of the garden had been incorporated into the bathing pool.

“Very nice Gary, I approve.” Otho said while paddling about.

“It is everything you said Otho” Enthused Amicus.

Liam floated by a moment later, looking very relaxed indeed. “I think we should revisit Otho’s suggestion of last night. It's a bit of a sausage cart in here…”

“Damn you Liam, don’t even… What is that in your mouth Liam?” Gary sputtered, smelling a smell.

“Nothing in my mouth” He coughed, passing it to Otho.

Gary looked over in the corner, where his little cannabis plant was not so little any more… and there were wet footprints leading to the corner of the garden it lived in.

“Otho’s idea” Amicus coughed.

“Traitor, you brought the pipe!” Otho fumed red eyed and grinning.

Gary felt like they had a very productive discussion, but had trouble nailing down any concrete gains or plans that had developed.

What had developed was a serious attack of the munchies. The whole crew retired to an all night tavern for fried potatoes in any form that could be had.

“So,” Liam was not exactly whispering, telling Amicus and Otho the story of their day at the festival and the plots and counterplots.

“...naturally I had no choice but to escort the lady for the day.” Liam spoke in heroic tones painting a decisive and bold image of his day. “While Gary slunk away with that Healer girl.”

The two old men tutted at Gary’s bad form while grinning like fools. “Now Gary, how did things go with acolyte Tawny? She is a delight, I can assure you.”

Gary smiled smugly and would only say “A gentleman does not speak of such things” exactly as the lurking spider queen Jennah had instructed him. Gary was going to survive this.

The fifteen minute walk from his shop/bathhouse with Liam had quickly become a part of his routine.

As they strolled Liam proudly brought Amicus’s pipe from a pocket and lit it, passing it over.

“Dude!” Gary protested.

Liam looked puzzled. ”Is this one of those things you are weird about Gary? Like nudity?”

He thought for a moment, puffing contemplatively. “I think it is Liam, let me ask, is this herb legal to own and consume?”

Liam smiled. “Yes, but you can't sell it. Only give it away.”

Gary pondered that as they walked. “This is just some rando I found in the woods, and it’s knocking me for a loop, why isn’t anyone growing it in their yards?”

“Like everything, it comes down to magic. In higher magic zones monsters occur more often, in lower magic zones some things are not easy to acquire. That is why people live on the edge, and why we have brothers and sisters everywhere.” Liam looked serious, but in the way really really high people are serious.

Gary passed him the pipe. “We should give this back, I can make us one.” He coughed.

“Good plan, brother.” They drifted back to the orphanage to be greeted by Ivy’s disappointed stare.

“Gary, your admission paperwork for the college has been here all evening. Liam, Dannyl is on report for fighting again.” She swished away with disapproval in her every step.

“We need to get it together Liam.” Gary groaned.

“I was doing fine until recently Gary, what could have gone wrong I wonder?” Liam replied, heading off to find Dannyl, a rowdy ginger kid with a knack for helping Ivy in the kitchen if Gary recalled.

As he headed for his room Becky caught him. “Someone was looking for you, they didn't come inside so we didn't spook them.” This was clearly the important part of the message. “They said they would come by tomorrow at first bell. No Mercy!” She waved and ran off as he fecklessly replied “no mercy…”

When Gary woke he groggily dismissed a storm of messages from his interface, and dove into his skill tree instead. Novice Lumberjack was working with novice Sawyer which fed into Woodworking, into Carpenter, which improved Luthier.

Just as he hoped. He would keep building those basic skills up, getting the others, and then see where they led. As each new skill lit up they gradually illuminated related nodes nearby revealing paths through the tangle.

He had promised to run with Liam before breakfast while under the influence last night, he already regretted it.

Gary wheezed his way around the orchard garden struggling for each step, yellow stamina bar blinking angrily.

Meanwhile, Liam jogged in condescending loops around him, easily quadrupling the distance Gary had ‘run’.

“You came from so far away, clearly you did not run to get here.” He mocked.

“Your house has such a glorious bathing room, yet you seem to have never worked up a sweat before.” and

“No one has ever died of ‘tired’ Gary… they died of exhaustion.”

“Coach Liam is an asshole.” Gary puffed and groaned his way into the dining hall, a staggering wreck. The smiling, handsome jerk was his usual glowing, energetic self. While Gary felt, and moved like an extra in a bad zombie movie.

He collapsed thankfully in a chair, when Liam promised to get food for them both.

When Liam returned he brought a slice of the local egg, cheese and bacon quiche, one of Ivy’s best.

For Gary was a large bowl of porridge with raisins. “Hey!” He protested. “What's the deal here?”

He was struggling to get up, determined to acquire his own quiche, but it was useless. His legs were seized in an iron grip.

A momentary flashback to the hospital made him thrash in panic, an unconscious moan escaping his lips. And then he saw nothing.

#

In a comfortable black void he heard his name, distant and sweet. “Gary, Gary?” it was a familiar voice. “Mom?...” He mumbled. “Am I late for school?...”

“No Gary wake up.”

“Ooo!” Gary burbled. “It's Tawny, golden hair, golden skin, golden eyes, golden voice. She’s so pretty, but I don't think I’m her type.” He confided stupidly. “Her sister is scary and sexy, she's scexy! Sleepy…” Swirling colors filled his vision and it all went away again.

Gary was in bed in his room in the orphanage alone. He was absolutely ravenous and parched, on the bedside table under a napkin was a loaf, some butter and jam and a jug of water.

He housed it all and staggered up looking for more. His limbs were leaden and ached fiercely while his back and chest burned and felt hollowed out at the same time.

Whatever happened, he was a wreck. He staggered down the hall, dressed, but only barely. His pants were inside out, his shirt was slowly unwinding and he was wearing one sandal and one slipper, both lefts, but both somehow on the wrong foot.

He shambled into Ivy’s kitchen like a boar in a vegetable patch, rooting around for anything edible. It took a moment to realize she was there, and another moment to realize she was yelling at him for looting her kitchen. He flopped onto a stool and pleaded. “Feed me Ivy, I feel like I’m being turned inside out!”

He pounded down three loaves of bread, a whole crock of butter, a whole pot of plum jam, a roast chicken and half a peck of apples before he was full. “What are you? A hungry ghost?” Ivy asked.

From behind her Otho’s voice rang out. “Gary and I will thank you to keep those kinds of speculations to yourself Miss Ivy.” She bobbed a quick assent and made herself scarce.

“Acolyte Tawny if you would please?” She came over to where he sagged on his stool, barely mobile and sweating.

He groaned softly and said; “Second date is where I show off my sweet dance moves…” While barely twitching his body. “All this can be yours, not too late.”

“Shut Up Gary!” She jabbed him with something and the world went away again.

#

He came back to some place warm and quiet, the sound of trickling water, the herbal and mineral scent of his hot spring. He was drifting in his pool feeling more solid and real. His limbs moved and he was hungry, in a weird way, he felt half full.

His eyes were still closed but he could feel his house around him and feel the people in it. They were all familiar and comforting. Liam and Otho in the kitchen, Amicus in the reading nook and Tawny here in the bath. He drifted on, barely aware.

He heard Liam's voice faintly. “Is he awake yet?”

From nearby Tawny’s liquid gold voice came “He’s more awake than yesterday.”

‘That's nice’ He thought. ‘I must be getting better, ohh Aisha is here.’ As he floated away again.

A sudden jolt sent him swirling back. As his eyes dragged open, he was floating a yard away from Liam, Tawny and Aisha, all nude, all in the bath with him.

“Hyurrk” He drowned, drowningly. As he struggled back to the surface, hands seized him to help, soft tiny hands. She managed him like a stray kitten, folding him up to her bosom and holding his head above water... So soft.

“I told you he has a thing about nudity.” Liam complained as he dressed and fled through the door.

Tawny snarled furiously. “I am NOT wearing my clothes in a mineral bath! Ruin my robes, as if I would!” While holding Gary above water.

Aisha had complaints too. “Tawny we are friends, how could you keep this delicious secret from me!”

She peered closely at Gary’s face, pressed to Tawny’s bosom. “Ohh! I suppose he is handsome in a way, it's probably the way you are holding him though, everything looks better draped in gold.”

Gary flailed weakly and Tawny tightened her hold.

“Aisha, if I let him drown in the interest of strangling you, that might just balance out.”

Aisha rose from the pool and wiggled her way back inside calling; “Well, I know when I’m not wanted!” Pausing at the door, she smiled and bounced up and down a few times to watch him freak out. “Get better Gary!” And she was gone.

Leaving him alone with Tawny, the naked girl in his bath. Gary struggled to maintain his dignity while also being too weak to stand or really do anything beyond flail around.

“Acolyte Tawny,” Gary croaked, ‘I assume you are here in your professional role?”

She dragged him to the steps and beached his almost corpse. “No Gary, in my professional capacity I see the sick and injured at the temple, or in their beds. Rarely, I travel to the scene of an injury. Never do I soak in a bathtub for three days and nights, to preserve the mind of a fool who neglects his body and soul to this degree.”

Gary felt the sting of those words even though he didn’t understand. “Whah? Huh?” He asked.

Confounded by those logical arguments, Tawny huffed and held him in place. “Explain yourself to Otho, since I am unworthy of learning the mysterious Gary’s circumstances.” The hurt in her voice was raw and honest.

“I’ll tell you everything, I promise, but maybe when we have clothes?”

She smiled sadly “I didn’t believe Liam, that you were shy, you seem so confident in your pants. Is that all it takes to shatter your resolve?”

Gary flailed weakly. “We just don't go around naked where I'm from… definitely not with girls.”

Seeing an opening, she pounced. “Where are you from Gary, the nearest towns are not so different from Wheatford. I have been to Port Ellis, Flintspire Town and Herndon. They wear their hair differently, and their clothes have a different cut, they are not like you. So odd, so strange, those songs… where are you from Gary?”

“A town on the north coast…” He started to lie, then fell silent, looking a little ashamed. “No. Sorry, I promised.”

And he told her, waking up slimy and lost, about the dead man and the weird spear. His house and the birds, there was even a bit about a magic flute.

“...and I passed out.” He rasped to a stop, exhausted. She frowned.

“But where are you from?” She looked extraordinarily frustrated. “Before last week, you dolt.”

“We should also like to learn those secrets.” Otho announced, following Amicus and Liam. “Now that you are on the mend and can't escape this pool for a few days, we are going to squeeze some answers out of you, boy.”

All of them immediately disrobed and entered the pool.

“I can't believe this is my life now.” Gary moaned weakly.

#

Struggling to sit a little higher, Gary got rolling. “I was born in a seaside town, my family were all musicians or instrument makers, they died, I lived.”

Gary paused for questions and when there were none, went on. “It was an accident, I was hurt badly. With no other relatives, when the money dried up, I got booted out of the hospital and dumped in foster care. Just another destitute crippled kid.”

Another pause, and Tawny asked “What of the local temples?”

“We don't have those, not like here, ours don't actually do anything but collect money.”

Tawny scratched her head in a way that was very distracting. “What about your god?” She asked. “Did you seek guidance?”

Gary sighed, preparing for an uphill battle. “We don't have real gods or magic where I’m from.”

He braced for chaos but received only a mild “Oh! How strange.” Gary continued his explanation.

“When I’d had enough of their crap, I ran away and lived on the streets for two years. I took care of myself just fine.”

Amicus called out from around his pipe stem. “According to Zygno’s notebook you died young in that world, boy. Low marks for ‘taking care of yourself’ if you ask me.”

“So your powerful nudity taboo is from your world?” Otho asked.

“I don't like being seen naked… by anybody, it was bad enough when it was just the leg and back, doctors poking, showing their students.”

He shifted uncomfortably. “The other kids, they made it worse. I know in my mind that they're gone now, left on my old body…”

Gary felt warm, soft skin embracing him as his body shook. Sadly, it was Otho, holding him close with tender compassion..

From across the pool he heard Tawny’s voice, so golden.

“That's why there are no mirrors…” Her soft words cut him. “I should have noticed right away, No mirrors in your whole house. Even the pool is never able to cast a reflection.”

“I just don't like seeing myself, or being seen.” He struggled against the wiry old coot, visibly weakening.

Tawny clapped three times, so loud they rang off the walls, breaking the silence. “Boys that can stand and walk, please leave the pool, the boy who can't leave the pool needs to sleep.” Tawny wrapped herself in a plush robe and settled into one of his kitchen chairs, “I will watch over him.”

Gary once more slipped away, while her golden voice hummed idly about second hand emotions. Too wrung out and too weak to do anything about it, he listened to her as long as he could and drifted off to sleep.

#