We ended up deciding not to decide where the doors to Skawa’s Adventure would be placed. He told us it didn’t really matter. He wanted them against ‘a wall’, and there did not even need to be anything on the other side. Perx was really excited at the prospect of building hand-carved doors, putting his full talent and long years of artisan experience into a special project for a god.
Dad had seen that I had brought a notebook with me and asked to see it. I explained that it was just two sketches of raw ideas. I did not know how they would fit into what had already been planned. While Perx was envisioning what he would be creating, Dad, Asiel, Orian, and Ator were all studying my sketches. They liked the idea of the wall-end of the parade grounds also serving as an archery range. I had already envisioned building a third student apartment quad. While sketching, I knew two quads would house the 40 students, but I hate to design with no extra capacity. Since it was likely we would have 45 students this semester, the third quad was now actually necessary. Well, we could have added a duplex like the Wraith’s housing, but it just made sense to have all the initial student housing be the same.
I envisioned one quad for staff, four people per room, two of the individual apartments being family units. That was again over-capacity. Ator said they had already decided that all the staff housing would be family units, which was fine with me. If single teachers, cooks, etc., were living on campus, they could adapt to living as a ‘family’. My sketch included a large meeting hall with capacity for about 150 people. That aligned perfectly with their preliminary ideas.
They had already built a small stable, similar to the idea in one of my sketches. I recognized that with replacement guard contingents every couple of weeks, they would need someplace for their horses. The current one could house eight, but we decided to double that to sixteen.
There was an element of one of my sketches that they did not understand – a water tower. I told them that it was part of an idea based on Earth construction, but I would like to speak with Merz Sholut before expanding that idea further. That puzzled them a little, what a groundsman would have to do with anything. They accepted my reticence though, deciding that it would make sense for a groundsman to have a large local source of water.
Yes it will. And everyone else.
I was glad to have attended the meeting. Even if Skawa had not shown up, it would have been eventful. They accepted me not as a dumb kid but an equal, and that felt good. I asked where Ronkel was. She had flown to Capital City to speak with the Duchess about the events relating to Sterbian and the Priestess’ plot to slowly curse the royal family. They considered it likely that cursed items had been hidden in plain sight in all the royal houses of the kingdom. Ronkel would also be making arrangements for the thieves guild and its bank to send representatives to Cottages. She was expected back sometime this afternoon.
Must be nice to be able to fly.
Yes. Rint has a worthy host.
I laughed to myself. ‘Uncle Interface’ has entered the building.
Dad asked if I would be participating in Community Day. I didn’t even think of it as an option. It was what Covargh, and all of Cottages, did. There have been a number of them since my arrival, but this would be my first. It was after 10, and he said I should head to the town square, where everyone would be choosing from a list of tasks. By 10:25, they, no, we, would begin heading for our assignments.
I saw Niscus, but not her father, when I left the admin building. He was finishing off a task at one corner of the grounds. I would speak to him later; there was no time right now. She and I headed to the town square, discussing what each of us had been up to this morning. This would be her second Community Day; it was not something that they did in Cycles.
Last week her family worked as part of a group clearing an area outside of town. It was the first I had heard that Cottages would be physically expanding. I should have realized it would be a necessity with the upcoming growth. Actually it had already started. Onre, Lenyet, Corval, Mowd, the Sholuts, and this evening the Yons. Some of them would be living on campus, but damn, add a bank, no two banks, a thieves guild, and eventually an adventuring guild, too.
We’re going to need a bigger boat.
At the square, we met up with Arrjee and the whole gang including Odd and Corval. The area was pretty packed; everyone in town seems to take Community Day very seriously. Lenyet Birch, Asha Yon, and the blacksmith apprentice Quorlin Smurn were also with them. Arrjee had already let them know that he and I would be working at the orchard cooperative today. Quorlin was coming also; he grew up there. His family had been a core part of the cooperative since its founding generations ago. Like me, Asha had not seen the orchard yet, so he was joining us as well. The others chose to work at various tasks within the town limits. The new ground outside town had already been cleared. Construction there had not yet begun because they were waiting on materials before commencing.
----------------------------------------
It was about a 25-minute light run to reach the orchard. As the four of us traveled, Quorlin told us what to expect. There were multiple types of fruit trees. I knew about the peaches, but there were also apples and two types of citrus. They were chosen so as to spread out the harvest from mid-summer to late fall. Additionally, the cooperative had acquired quite a bit of adjacent farmland over the years. They grew mainly vegetables with a smattering of fruit such as raspberries. The ground produce had similarly been selected to achieve an even longer production period, from early spring to the start of winter.
It turns out that Quorlin had left the family business just before he had turned 12, because of cabbage. That year there was unseasonable rain which made it impossible to harvest the cabbage fields in time. They rotted, and as Quorlin described it, the stench was unbearable. From that point forward, a strong odor of any sort of produce made him nauseous, which is why he had chosen to live in town. He could endure it for a day though, and he wanted to visit his family anyway.
I asked Asha about his family. He and his wife had grown up in the village of Trees. Like many people in town their families were involved in the lumber industry. Asha had chosen a more adventurous path, choosing to become an armsman and shieldsman. He ended up working part-time as a teenager for the postal service, which ended up as his full-time job for close to a decade. His wife had become assistant manager of a lumber mill, but her skills allowed for employment in many fields. Her classes were manager and shapeshifter. For her job, she would often hulk out to a 50% greater size and double her body mass, with corresponding strength. As long as it wasn’t huge, she could carry a whole tree. They had twin boys of age 12 and an 8-year old daughter. They should be arriving sometime around 15.
Remembering the interest I had expressed during our spider hunt, he asked me if I had learned the Make Water skill. When I answered no, he offered to show me how to learn it during a break this afternoon. I told him I would appreciate it very much.
And I could cross off a to-do list item.
We met co-op personnel, one of which was Quorlin’s Mom, at their open-air market. The produce was kept shaded, and people could purchase just a few pieces of fruit and vegetables, or in bulk. They also had customers who would buy on a regular basis, but this market mainly supported random customers. They split us into two groups. Arrjee and I were to pick peaches, while Quorlin and Asha would help ready a fallow field for a new crop. While the cooperative was a commercial venture, they could not afford to maintain staff year round for peak periods. Their arrangement with Cottages allowed them extra personnel when they needed it in return for discount prices for those who lived in town.
I realized there wouldn’t be an easy break in which to learn Make Water. I wanted to stay with Arrjee, so I didn’t suggest we alter the plan of who would work where.
Oh well, another time.
There were already some ladders and large wicker baskets among the peach trees. One of Quorlin’s cousins, Lerto Smurn, came with us to get us started and do some picking of his own. Arrjee and I were to work together, with one of us generally on the ladder who would drop peaches to the other, who would then gently place them in a basket. Lerto was a telekinetic and was able to be his own “team”. There was a wagon on a grove road where we would empty our baskets. The wagon had a tarp which was usually in place to keep the fruit out of direct sunlight.
Arrjee enjoyed watching Lerto do his thing, I’m sure imagining he had his telekinetic class already. We worked for almost four hours, which was the amount of time generally spent on community projects. Lerto offered to pay us if we came back tomorrow, but I wouldn’t be here, and Arrjee did not want to, so we politely declined.
We met up with Asha at the market. Quorlin had already gone home to visit with his family for a couple hours and have dinner with them. On our way to town, Asha ended up showing me how to learn the new skill. After about ten minutes, we had to pause our run back so he could show me what to do.
“You cannot start out just making water. You have to visualize it.” He pulled the knife from his belt and made a small cut in his left index finger. Blood started to flow. “Now pretend the blood is water. It is not, and it will not become water. This is to help you focus. Some guys visualize by urinating.”
No. Blood will be fine, thank you very much.
The urine is already mostly water.
“No. Just no. Once I start making it, I’ll be drinking it. I don’t want that association.”
Eventually, there would be no blood, or other bodily fluids, involved at all. The water comes from transformed aether. I pulled out my knife and cut my own left index finger. It stung a little, but I focused on the blood slowly dripping out.
Imagine it being water. Imagine a steady stream.
I wanted to focus on learning this for a while. Asha needed to get to town to be there for when his family arrived. Arrjee realized if he stayed he would be a distraction, so he headed back with Asha.
I don’t know how long I was standing next to the road between the groves and town, slowly bleeding myself over and over. I wasn’t really bleeding much blood, but Bless Blood was available if I needed it. Which I didn’t, not for that.
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I hadn’t heard anyone approach, but I hadn’t been listening. I was concentrating on generating water – well not generating water, but trying.
“Hey, half-breed, what the fuck you doing?” came a shout. “If you want to be cut, we can cut you. It looks like you like that.” There was some rough laughter, all from some distance away. I looked over to my right to see four adults on horses, a Covargh male, two Human men, and a bald Human female. They weren’t yet in range for me to analyze, but they all appeared to be maybe 25 to 35 years of age, the Covargh being the most mature looking. The female was wearing some sort of plain dark robe. The other three were dressed in what I associated with Human travel attire – tunics and breeches. The men were all armed with swords, while the female had a staff of some sort.
Holding my temper in, I greeted them as they approached at a steady pace. “Hail, travelers. I am learning a skill called Make Water. The first step is to visualize liquid from your body as water.”
The woman responded haughtily. “Common ki skil. We know of it. Why are you out here alone?”
Not that it is any of her damn business, but, “My friends went ahead into town because I wanted to focus on learning this.”
“Foolish boy,” she said, what ‘acolyte’ said. That was what Analyze revealed. That was all that Analyze revealed about her; no name, no age, no job, just ‘acolyte’. I knew Ronkel could spoof her persona, but this lady revealed nothing.
I have a bad feeling about this.
As you should.
She continued, “Are you so ignorant as to not realize the roads are dangerous to travel alone?”
I hadn’t felt it in weeks, nor something else in over a year. My temperament stat was being triggered, and an old characteristic of Jacques was awakening. Still, I managed to not rudely respond, and with an ignorant grin, “I am exactly that ‘ignorant’. Those who know the region near the village of Cottages understand that our roads are safe.”
By now they had ridden close and were getting off their horses. They were still too far for me to see their classes, but in addition to acolyte, I saw:
Chesta Bane – male Human, age 30, level 28
Mercenary
Chogrin Bane – male Human, age 28, level 25
Mercenary
Farkwun Rose – male Covargh, age 34, level 31
Lord
“What kind of occupation is ‘Lord’? Or does it just show titles for royalty?”
If he had an occupation it would show.
“Oh, one of those.”
Yes.
Cheech, Chong, Lord Farquad, and Ass Got it.
“You don’t generally laugh at my jokes.
You are not generally funny. But take this seriously.
Cheech, whom I recognized as the first person to shout at me, “This road is no more safe than we allow it to be.”
Ass added, “You speak insolently for a lone 16-year old half breed.”
Lady, this is how I speak to gods.
“I do not mean to insult your fine personages. The purpose of my words was to assuage your doubts concerning my well being.”
As if.
Lord Farquad finally speaks, “Enough of this! We are here to gather information. Forrest, are you from the village of Cottages?”
Uses my name without being introduced.
Uses my first name.
General prick.
“Yes, lord. It is my home, although I now live on campus next door.”
“What kind of campus, boy?”
“An adventuring school is being built. It is far enough along that a few pre-accepted students live in apartments there. It is not expected to actually begin holding classes until Ninthmonth, however.”
“Are you aware of any unusual events that occurred in Cottages seven days ago?”
I don’t want to lie, but I don’t want to tell them too much. Above my pay grade. “I know a merchant went crazy and died. Our town grocer.”
I could see that he and Ass were exchanging glances. He asked, “How did this grocer die?”
“I didn’t see him die. But I saw his body at the funeral pyre. It was gruesome looking, somehow being dried out and over-wrinkled at the same time. People said it was a curse.”
Ass asked me, “Was this man of any status besides being a grocer?”
“He had been mayor, but that was years ago.”
Continuing, “Do you know if he had ever been to Capital City?”
These guys may know about the cursed & blessed scroll, trying to figure out how it got out here in the sticks. I’ll continue to play ignorant, truthfully, “I did not know him very well. He would sometimes help us divide up animal carcasses and buy the meat. But it would not surprise me to hear he traveled. He had been mayor, after all.”
Lord Farquad asked, “What was this man’s name?”
“Sterbian Morse. Why do you wish to know all this?”
Chong spoke for the first time, with as demeaning a tone as he could manage, “We’re asking the questions, half-breed.”
It was not the words that bothered me. It was that he thought he could intimidate me with them. But my temperament wasn’t having it. My hackles weren’t having it. And Jacques’ stubborn demeanor was tired of this crap. “Look,” I began with a louder voice than I needed, “All I know is a rumor. Everyone knows it. Some bitch cursed him with a magic scroll, He ran into the street threatening everyone. He died. If you want to know more, you’ll need to ask in town.”
Ass’ face had begun to turn red, almost purple.
Uh-oh, she is about to lose it entirely. I’m guessing I should not have said ‘bitch’.
She pointed her staff at me. “You dare! You dare refer to the Priestess in that common manner?!”
“Sorry, Interface. I may end up back in the void early.”
Don’t die, Forrest! It is your prime rule.
“She looks like someone about to not give me the choice.”
She stopped speaking for a moment. Then, panicked, “I am sorry mistress! I did not mean to -” At that point she started screaming, but not at me. Screams of pain, of regret, of terror. Of ecstasy? Within seconds she collapsed, in a bug-eyed, bloated, steaming mess. My anger and fear had been replaced with complete flabbergast.
Um, first rule?
?
“First rule of Priestess Cult. Do not talk about Priestess Cult.”
Check.
As the others slowly examined what remained, I announced sardonically, “Yeah. I heard it was a lot like that, but slower, for Sterbian Morse.”
I would have died if she hadn’t boiled alive first. This isn’t a situation where I can afford to lose my temper. Hold it together, or you can still die.
The lord finally spoke, “Forrest, I had not intended to kill you. I certainly do not care that acolyte is dead. Nor, after witnessing that, can I disagree with your assessment of her mistress. However, you now know too much.”
What the fuck? He’s going to kill me anyway?
Stay calm; we will make it through this.
Cheech asked, “Can I play with him first, boss?” His brother wanted to play as well.
If one of those fuckheads touches me…
Stay calm.
Lord Farquad generously stated, “You have ten minutes each.”
Cheech walked up to me and tore off my loincloth. I closed my eyes and held my breath.
This will not happen! The three of them can kill me, but this isn’t going to happen.
I think that was when he noticed that my belt buckle and armbands were all charmed. “Some nice loot here, too, boss. I don’t know where a half-breed loser like him would get this stuff.”
As Cheech and Chong started to strip, I heard a familiar, but young voice. I looked over and saw a 10-year old hybrid boy named ‘Leknor’. “What did you do now, Forrest? Did you hurt their friend?” || Are you hurt?
“Another half-breed!” Chong declared. “And a young one. This will be an evening to remember.”
“No!” I declared. “She sort of got hot and wrinkly on her own. Boiling blood, I think.” || I’m fine, but I would not have been if you had gotten here a few minutes later.
To the others, “You’ll have to excuse Forrest. He doesn’t mean to be a troublesome boy.” || Rint said you needed help. I’m going to have a minute of fun. Okay?
|| Okay.
I could see he is already having fun, walking up to us with full confidence. My new associates were quite befuddled at his presence and demeanor.
Chong got past it and said, “Will you strip for me, Leknor, or do you want me to undress you?”
“Chogrin Bane, why don’t you undress me?” The human smiled and walked up to him. His right hand reached to remove his loincloth. He couldn’t untie it. His hands were sort of garbled against the side of Leknor’s waist. He seemed to be stuck somehow. The more he struggled, the more of him stuck to the boy.
“Oh, that’s why. You cannot.”
Chogrin called his brother for help. His upper limbs were not just stuck, they were at the oddest angles, as if somehow it wasn’t Leknor he was stuck to. Chesta came over and tried to pull one of Chogrin’s arms away. It would not release. He used Leknor’s chest for leverage. “Fuck, what are you?” Chesta’s hand was now stuck to Leknor’s chest.
“Boss, help, but don’t touch him! He looks normal, but he’s not.” Chesta tried to attack Leknor, swinging hard with his free fist. It actually went into Leknor’s face, without any sign of damaging it. My eyes saw a healthy pup’s head, but with an arm coming out of a cheek, still attached to Chesta.
Lord Rose had armed himself with a sword. “Release them, whatever you are. Or I will kill you where you stand.”
“Is that supposed to be a threat? You and your men were planning to kill Forrest and me anyway. A threat of further violence is meaningless. By the way, you may wish to analyze me again.”
I checked too. Except for being shown as a 10-year old hybrid boy named Leknor, all of his other information was correct for a level 50-S Ronkel. His job title declared him to be Thieves Guildmaster.
The lord wasn’t stupid. He slowly laid his sword on the ground and sat. “What now, son?” His very stuck mercenaries began to swear. “Idiots, shut up and analyze him.”