Lou strode out into the chapel that was deafeningly quiet.

He kept his eyes fixed ahead of himself, while his clammy right hand that clutched his sermon, trembled. He stepped up, made his way to the pulpit, and then he faced…

A total of seven people.

His unsteadiness worsened.

Karen Hinterland sat in the front pew on the left, and three pews back sat a woman with an infant and young girl. The child, who couldn’t have been more than five, was seated on her mother’s left, and Oliver Kelly on the woman’s right, which told Lou that they were his family members.

Four pews back on the right side sat Benny beside Mary Wicks, and in the second pew on the right sat Lieutenant Crimmins.

Moving carefully, Lou did his best to set the pages on his podium and grip its sides without revealing how terrified he was.

He couldn’t even imagine what he would’ve done if the chapel had been full.

“Good day, everyone, and thank you for coming to my sermon,” he began with a brief nod.

Then, looking at the pages in front of him, he wondered why he suddenly couldn’t form words…

Where did the sermon start? Had he written the greeting as part of it?

Forget it! You know the gist of what you wrote! Just speak!

The monk’s mind raced, as he licked his lips.

“For to-today’s sermon, I have chosen to speak to you all about Heleka, the goddess of peace and slumber.”

Lou made the mistake of looking at Oliver who had raised an eyebrow and looked less than impressed. The monk’s heart jumped to his throat and he dropped his gaze back to his pages.

At the very least he doesn’t look angry.

“Goddess Heleka was created after a century of wars and crimes of passion. She appeared before the heroes that had descended from both Berra and Reckish’s first chosen priests, who had led wars against each other.” Lou knew he was speaking too quickly, and so he tried to take a steadying breath. “Heleka asked them to lay down their weapons, and sit on the battlefield to listen to the sounds of peace… and with the help of Goddess Vienn, the soldiers adherred to her request. Setting down their weapons, and sitting on the earth, they could hear the call of birds who felt safe singing in the quiet. The wind rustled the grasses, and the scent of wildflowers overtook their desire for blood and chaos…”

As Lou spoke, his eyes fell to the aisle, but his words grew more confident and impassioned.

“Oxby reminds me a lot of this story,” Lou glanced up, and noticed that the Kelly family looked serious, Lieutenant Crimmins and Karen were nodding along, while Benny and Mary Wicks had grown tense.

“When I first arrived in Oxby, I was at war with myself. I was asked to come to this town to help establish this new chapel and a congregation, but I have not once led a sermon, let alone start a new place of worship. At first I resented having to leave my brothers in my old abbey… I was happy, and comfortable there. We all worked and lived together in harmony. Through good days and bad we had all built a small haven, for me to leave that and come here… well… it was a hard change.”

Lou paused, and noticed that those that had been hesitant at the beginning of his speech had relaxed a little, though still appeared wary.

“Then, I arrived and found I could hear the birds singing, the wind through the trees, and… before I knew it, I felt peace. Just like the heroes and soldiers that had brought forth Heleka.”

There was thoughtful silence, though Lou couldn’t help but start to feel lightheaded as he started to relax and it was easier for him the breathe again.

“It’s been mentioned once or twice that Oxby, with all its charms, has its own wars bubbling beneath the surface.”

The speed with which tension filled the room was impressive, but while Lou’s heart pounded harder in his chest, he pushed himself on, forcing a feigned calm to enter his countenance.

“While I cannot speak on behalf of either side of this feud, I will suggest that now and again to listen for moments of peace for your own good. It is hard to acknowledge the pain of others when we ourselves feel we are bleeding in agony, all alone. So I don’t ask you to consider your foes, or even your friends. I ask that you all treat your greatest ally to a measure of comfort first; yourselves.”

Lou hadn’t known exactly the reaction that the congregation would have to this part of his sermon– though to be honest, he hadn’t exactly written down what he was saying… He had the gist of it, but in the moment… something in him knew to word it differently than what was on his pages.

Karen Hinterland was dabbing her eyes with her handkerchief, and Maureen Kelly… she too was looking toward the ceiling with tears in her eyes.

Beside her, Oliver grew concerned, and so carefully wound his arm around his mother’s shoulders while his infant sister crawled onto his lap and rested her head against his chest, her eyes drooping sleepily.

“Listen for peace, and you may just find it within yourselves.”

Lou paused, and because he had completely lost where he was in his written sermon, he took his time to shuffle his papers.

“Now, we will-”

“Mister, are there going to be snacks?”

Lou halted, and looked up to see the little redheaded girl standing up in the pew. He looked at Oliver flatly.

He had only started the sermon a few minutes ago.

The imbecile shrugged with a grin.

Clearing his throat, Lou redirected his attention to the little girl with her flaming red hair, wearing a simple lilac colored dress.

“There are no snacks here, but I will be serving tea later to those of you that wish to stay and discuss the sermon,” he nodded to the child and looked back down to the notes.

He heard some rustling, and then some whispering… and then some louder whispering…

He set his sights on the source of the noise, and found that Franny Kelly was sitting with her arms crossed and her brow lowered while performing a full pout.

Oliver was trying not to laugh while Maureen Kelly was doing her best to keep her daughter from speaking up again.

Lou, still trying to regain his focus, brushed his eyes over his notes, waiting for a word or two to jump out at him to help him pick up the sermon.

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After almost a full minute, he finally did find his place, and managed to proceed with reading out the prayers for Goddess Heleka.

He then lit the frankincense, followed by the myrrh, and stood before the chapel with his hands clasped and head bowed in prayer.

Normally it was the time when a choir would sing gentle beautiful harmonies that would aid the meditation portion of the sermon, but silence for Heleka was often used for that time, even with a choir.

After waiting the ten minutes of designated quiet, Lou opened his eyes, and smiled when he saw everyone with their heads bowed in deep thought– including Oliver Kelly.

Though sensing someone watching him, Oliver opened his eyes and looked back at Lou, then rolled his eyes and leaned back into the pew defiantly.

“Everyone, thank you for coming to my first sermon. I look forward to seeing you all next week, and should anyone wish to join me for some tea to ask any questions you may have, I would be happy to pour you a cup.

“Hey! Mister!” Franny Kelly was standing on the pew again and Maureen Kelly was staring at her daughter incredulously. “That was a bit boring; you should at least have snacks!”

Everyone did their best not to grin too noticeably– They knew it wasn’t the best thing in the world to encourage a child’s rudeness with attention.

“Right well… how about next time I bring snacks but,” Lou held up his finger, and after a tense moment, smiled at the little girl. “Only if you sit quietly through the whole sermon, does that sound like a deal?”

Franny considered his offer while her brother smirked.

“Well… what kind of snacks are they going to be?”

Lou carefully folded his arms over his chest, while there was a soft snort that echoed from either Benny or Mary…

“What kind of snacks do you enjoy, Miss Kelly?”

The little girl started to open her mouth to respond excitedly, when her brother, whose arm was still around their mother’s shoulder, gently tapped her back, making Franny turn to her brother. With a small gesture of his chin that had her leaning closer over their mother’s lap, he whispered something that had Maureen Kelly letting out a sigh of annoyance.

Franny straightened. “I think it is a reas-one-able request that there be two kinds of snacks. Scones with cream and tarts!” she informed the monk with all the confidence and assuredness of a seasoned barrister.

Lou opened his mouth to respond, only to find that he was unable to keep the laugh from his voice.

“Miss Kelly, I will see what I can do. Do I have your word?”

Franny nodded seriously and quietly seated herself back down.

Looking around the room at the smiling faces, Lou felt the weight of his spiritual duty be lifted.

It hadn’t been a sermon that felt fiery and invoked devout prayers, but… at the very least everyone seemed to be in better spirits than when he’d first laid eyes on them.

Though he was not so obtuse as to think that the change was due entirely to him.

He’d have to find a way to thank Franny Kelly another time.

Meeting everyone’s gazes once more, Lou then asked, “Now, who would like to stay for a cup of tea?”

***

Stifling a yawn, Lou slowly made his way to his cart.

Karen Hinterland had been the only one to stay behind after the sermon, and she had had a great deal she wished to talk about with the monk… Though the first thirty minutes of the meeting was her apologizing for not bringing her husband and children. Apparently her husband had insisted he was too busy negotiating the new barracks placement, while their children insisted if their father wasn’t going they weren’t either.

Lou had waved off her concerns, and instead listened to her thoughts on the sermon. Toward the end she had even offered to bring some of the snacks for the following week.

He was grateful for the assistance, and after a few more topics had come and gone, she had left, and Lou set to cleaning out the humble incense bowl before taking his leave.

Though as Lou set his pony into motion toward home, was forced to silently admit to himself that he had half expected Oliver to be waiting for him outside.

He sighed. What am I even thinking? He has chores and a family, and probably a sweetheart waiting around for him. He’s just been paying attention to make sure I’m not meddling in the town feud.

As his carriage continued tottering down the road back out of the town, Lou found himself yawning again.

He was looking forward to getting home and lighting the hearth, making a quick meal, and perhaps brewing some tea with honey to help his throat, which felt a little hoarse after speaking so much.

All in all, the day had gone over far better than Lou had anticipated, despite not many attendees in the congregation.

He’d delivered a reasonable sermon (if a bit short), successfully negotiated with a Kelly family member (he chose not to think too hard about the pride it gave him despite her only being five years old), and he had not unlocked another power of Reckish’s.

A grand day indeed!

Once home with his pony unhitched, Lou strode into his empty house, only a little saddened by its shadowed quiet.

He did his best not to think too much about it, and instead set about groping his way around the stone mantle for the flint stone.

With a few strikes he had the kindling he’d set out that morning ablaze, and from its flames, retrieved candles and a lantern from the mantel.

Once those were lit, he turned, preparing to set them around the cooking space so that he might fry up a sausage and perhaps toast a bit of bread, when his eyes landed on a figure standing on the opposite side of his table.

Letting out a yelp, he almost dropped the candlestick and lantern he held in each hand, and fell into the fire. He recovered from his shock, albeit not too swiftly, as he found himself staring at the very real, very solid form… of Reckish the god.

In. His. House.

“Good evening, my Priest. We have a few things to discuss.”