Heretical Fishing

Book 3: Chapter 3: Frack Around and Find Out

Beneath a blanket of stars, I took a deep breath, delighting in the scents of salt spray and fresh air that assaulted me.

“Are you sure this is necessary, Fischer?” Barry asked from behind me.

“Positive, mate. If I don’t get an influx of chi, I’ll probably pass out the second we try to create something.” Not at all sharing his sense of urgency, I smiled as a fish nibbled the bait at the end of my line. “Besides... it won’t take long.”

Barry sighed. “All right. Well, the fire is ready when you are.”

I glanced over my shoulder, seeing his campfire roaring. Its flames shone orange light over the surrounding sand, banishing the darkness. As if it sensed my distraction, something took my bait.

“Fish on!” I yelled, reefing the rod and setting the hook.

“Big enough?” Barry asked.

The rod’s tip bounced and bent; I grinned. “Feels like it!”

Hand over hand, I wound the fish in. It darted from side to side, but it never stood a chance. Not even a minute later, I bent and grabbed it by the mouth.

Uncommon

Found along the ocean shores of the Kallis Realm, this fish is a staple source of both food and bait.

“Just what the doctor ordered,” I said, dispatching it with a single movement.

Barry rolled his eyes at me, but I caught the hint of amusement on his lips.

With deft cuts of my knife, I prepared the fish, and as I placed it over the fire to cook, I let out a weary sigh. “So, we both know where I stand with the whole ‘not wanting to know what’s going on with the church’ thing. But if I’m gonna be helping you build something, you should probably give me a rundown of the plan.”

He nodded. “So, you know how you got a bag of gold coins, and you theorized that it was for reaching certain milestones in your skills?”

“I do.”

Barry glanced up, his face going serious. “You were right.”

“Oh, yeah, we worked that out already. Maria and I got another two bags of them when we were on the way to the capital.”

I reached into my backpack, grabbed them, and flung them towards Barry.

He opened each of them, peering down at the golden relics, then shook his head. “You’re really bad at being left in the dark.”

“I know, right? It’s infuriating.”

“Well, it makes things easier, at least.” He closed the bags and set them aside. “We’ve collected a modest amount of them over the past month since we found out they were rewarded for every twenty-five points in a skill.”

I waved one hand and turned the fish with the other. “Yeah, Maria and I guessed that too. We’ll be using them to create more space in the church, right?”

“Right...” he replied, narrowing his eyes at me. “I’m starting to think I don’t need to explain the plan at all.”

“Blame it on Maria. She’s as smart as she is cute. Can’t get anything by her.” I poked the fish with one finger, seeing it was mostly cooked. “I do have one question, though. Where are you expecting the church to expand? I don’t think raising a castle like the one in Gormona is too good an idea.”

“Why?”

“Because it’ll be pretty obvious we’re up to some shenanigans.”

“You don’t think the castle-sized tree is already going to give us away?”

I laughed. “Point taken. Still, though—going down would be better, right?”

Barry gave me an odd smirk. “We’re not going down. We’re also not going up.”

“Across, then? Not bad, I guess, but I don’t want it to go toward Tropica. Or toward Lemon’s roots.”

His smirk turned malicious. “We’re not going across, either.”

“Okay, I’m well and truly confused, mate. Where is it going?”

“You’ll see,” he replied simply, schooling his features.

“Ohhh, a little mystery, huh?” I poked the fish again. The flesh was firm, so I removed it from the fire. I raised an eyebrow at Barry. “Want some?”

“I’m fine, thanks. If you don’t have enough energy and you faint or something, Maria will have my head.”

“Good point,” I replied, laughing.

I devoured the fish, not wanting to take too long and give Barry a panic attack or something. Despite wolfing the food down, it was a blissful meal. With each bite, delicious flavors washed over my awareness and chi poured down into my core. I picked the bones clean, not wasting a single flake of energy. I might be in a rush, but I wasn’t about to disrespect the creature.

“Okay,” I said, standing and stretching. A small bit of fatigue remained, but my body was brimming with potential energy. “Let’s do some building!”

Barry led me back to the church, and when we got to the bottom of the stairs, we both paused.

“Damn...” he said, staring down the hallway.

“Couldn’t have said it better myself, mate.”

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The previously clear passage was filled with thick roots, barely leaving enough room for anyone to squeeze past.

Barry strode into the meeting room, whose entrance sat before the tangle of plant matter. He went around the back and slid a chest out from under the table. It made a sound like a boulder scraping across stone.

I raised an eyebrow at Barry. “How many coins are inside that thing? It sounded way too heavy for how big it is.”

“It’s not just the contents,” he replied. “The smiths and woodworkers made the chests so a regular human couldn’t steal or open them.”

“Hang on, did you just say chests?”

In response, he dragged two more out from under the table. After a few trips upstairs, we’d moved their contents to the surface.

“Barry...”

“Yes, Fischer?”

“Remember how you told me you had a modest amount of coins?” I pointed down at the two wheelbarrows absolutely loaded with small System-made bags. “In what world is this a modest amount?”

“There are over a dozen of us now. What did you think we’ve been up to all this time?”

“I mean, you’ve got a point, but still...” I shook my head. “With only a fraction of this, we built an entire underground building...”

“You’re leaving out an important ingredient,” he replied, wheeling his barrow south.

“What am I forgetting?” I asked, cocking my head as I rushed to keep up with him.

“Iridescent stones. Pearls, as you call them.”

“Ohhh!” I laughed at myself. “Sorry, mate. It’s been a long night.”

Barry shared a smile with me. “I know it has, Fischer. We have a substantial amount of coins, yes, but we’re not entirely sure how effective they’ll be.”

“I’m sure it’ll work out.”

He nodded. “I am too. I have a... feeling, as dumb as that might sound.”

“Not dumb at all, my man. I’ve learned to trust those instincts in this weird fantasy world you’ve got going on.” I pulled up beside Barry as we continued striding south. “I think I have another question.”

“You want to know where we’re going?”

“That’s the one.”

We were walking over my property’s sandy flats. At first I thought we’d turn west and go meet the rest of the church by Lemon, but Barry hadn’t changed course.

“Where are we going, mate?”

“You’ll just have to wait and see,” he replied, shooting me a wink.

I rolled my eyes. “You know, the whole mystery thing is a lot less fun when I’m on the receiving end.”

“Does that mean you’ll stop doing it to literally everyone?”

I gave him a full-toothed grin. “Nope!”

“In that case, I’ll be drawing this out as long as possible.”

True to his word, Barry said nothing of where we were going as we crossed sand flats, the river, and sand flats again.

I looked down at my dripping body as we approached the distant forest on the south side of my property. “You know, Barry, you never mentioned getting drenched as part of the plan.”

He waggled his eyebrows at me, mimicking one of my favorite gestures. “It’s all part of the mystery.”

I snorted at his antics. “Okay, secret keeper. Lead on.”

When the barren ground gave way to grassy forest, Barry veered west. Rather than ask why and give him the satisfaction, I trailed silently. Mountains blocked out the sky the further we got into the trees. Looking up at them, Barry nodded to himself and stopped.

“Everything okay, mate?” I asked.

“We’re here.”

I pouted, gazing at our surroundings. “It just looks like a regular old forest to me, mate.”

“For now, that’s all it is.” He started unloading his barrow, placing the coin-filled sacks on the ground. “Well? Are you gonna help me?”

“Ooooh, he’s mysterious and sassy,” I replied, grabbing bags and adding them to his pile.

When all of them were sitting in a pile on the grass, Barry took a deep breath and let it out with a sigh. I did the same, stretching my body and enjoying the vigor still radiating through me from the fish I’d eaten.

“Okay, Fischer. Here’s the plan.” He spun on me, his eyes going serious. “We’re not expanding the church. We’re creating a village.”

I arched a brow his way. “You’re serious, aren’t you?”

“I am.”

“That’s… ambitious.”

“It is,” he agreed, grinning. “Any complaints?”

Rather than answer his question, I sat on the ground, crossing my legs and getting comfortable. “Ready when you are, mate.”

As he sat on the grass beside me, I closed my eyes, letting my awareness extend towards the pile of coins. Their power was clear. It was like sitting next to the remnant coals of a bonfire, and as Barry exerted strands of chi into them, embers rose from the ashes. Those embers became flames, and the flames became a roaring fire of force under Barry’s guidance. I joined my efforts to his. Matching his chi, our wills coalesced around the currency, swirling, combining. Consuming.

One by one, the coins started evaporating.

I’d not taken part in building something since my last breakthrough. It was an entirely different experience with my awareness as it was now. The essence that came from the coins was somehow... wrong. Maybe wrong wasn’t the right word, but I couldn’t think of a better one. The power they held wasn’t one that I could wield. I’d sooner be able to draw water into my veins than the chi that came from the coins. What we could do, though, was guide it.

As if he knew my thoughts, Barry pressed his will down on the cloud of essence. I focused my will with his, and to my surprise, I felt what he pictured.

A village large enough to house hundreds of people. Simple. Utilitarian. Sleeping quarters. Crafting spaces. A meeting area akin to an amphitheater. Something... caged? A prison, I realized. Barry imagined a prison.

Damn, my guy, I thought. That’s pretty dark.

It made sense, though. I’d brought back dozens of cultivators, all of which were a potential horror film waiting to happen. As I further considered the implications, I got the mental equivalent of a slap across the face.

Sorry, Barry.

I rejoined my awareness to his, helping him mold the coins into something more. Something better. We poured the essence into the buildings he envisioned, and now that they were taking shape, I opened up my core. Chi flowed from me in powerful torrents, and as the streams left me, the world began its transformation.

I had expected the process to be exhausting; it was anything but.

My soul seemed to rejoice at the power pouring from me, as it did when I unleashed blasts of light in the capital. Just as I thought it was almost over, something within me stirred. I furrowed my brow, trying to understand what it was, and that’s when I realized. It was the essence I’d somehow stolen from the lemon and passiona grove back in Gormona. It sat right beside my core, and it wanted to be free.

Being the kind of guy to frack around and find out, I let it come.

The bubble burst from me, propelled along by my will. Surprise came from Barry, but after a moment’s consideration, he pictured another structure. A grove, large enough to house multiple trees. The foreign pocket of chi obeyed us, shooting off to the far side of the village and forming. I returned my attention to the rest of our build, and beneath the weight of our combined wills, the last of the coins was consumed.

Abruptly, I came back to my body. I was no longer sitting in a forest. Hard stones lined the path beneath me, and I put my hands out, running my fingers along their uniform surface. A smile came to my face as I slowly opened my eyes, filled with anticipation for what we’d built.

Instead, lines of text printed out before me, blocking my field of view.

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