Heretical Fishing

Book 2: Chapter 62: Renovations

Warmth flowed through me as I slowly returned to the waking world.

A comfortable weight rested on my arm. When I opened my eyes, a small smile came to my face. Maria was still asleep, on her side and curled into my chest. We’d held each other in the early afternoon hours, both content to simply exist with each other. She’d fallen asleep before me, and it must have claimed me soon after.

Careful not to wake her, I rested a hand atop her head, caressing her mess of sandy-blond hair. She was like a hot water bottle, warming me beneath the covers. Her breaths came slowly, and each exhale blew warmth onto my neck, banishing the cool air trapped within my room. I inhaled, and the cool air passing by my nostrils was a pleasant counterpoint to the heat engulfing me.

Maria sleeping next to me had no right hitting me as hard as it did. I held onto the moment, intent on burning every line of her body, every point of contact into my memory. I pulled her tight, and she let out a soft noise, nuzzling closer into me. It melted my core from within, and I pulled her tighter, overwhelmed by the emotions roiling within me.

I was wide awake now, but I didn’t make a noise. I wanted the moment to last forever.

Not long after, I opened my eyes, and she smiled up at me.

“Morning, sleepyhead.”

“Sleepyhead?” I yawned. “I’ve been awake for a while.”

She gave me an odd look, smirking.

I frowned, and she laughed at the confusion on my face.

“You fell back asleep.” She got up on one elbow, her hair hanging down to one side. “You were too cute to wake up, so I’ve just been creeping on you for a while.”

I covered my mouth and yawned.

“I thought you said I was snoring. That doesn’t sound cute.”

She giggled, covering her mouth. “Oh, but they were such charming little snores, though.”

I narrowed my eyes at her. “I can’t tell if you’re messing with me.”

She pulled a hand to her chest, giving me a look of affront that was completely ruined by the grin on her face.

“You think I would mess with you? Well, I have never...”

She ran a hand through my hair, and it sent tingles coursing down my entire body.

I breathed out slowly. “Do you wanna go fishing? We should probably get up and do something or else I might never get out of this bed.”

“You know, I can think of worse things...”

She grabbed onto my hair and pulled herself down, throwing a leg over me. When her insistent lips met mine, every other thought disappeared once more.

***

Barry stood and stretched, needing a moment to reset his posture.

Swimming in what Fischer called his ‘lap pool’ had been a welcome distraction, and though it set him behind in his work, he didn’t regret it. He gestured down at the floor plan Ellis had been drawing.

“Just to confirm, this is the western wing, correct?”

“Right,” Ellis nodded, not looking up. “Ground floor. This here is the first, second, and third floor,” he added, pointing at the respective sheets of paper.

“Perfect. Thank you for your time, Ellis. I know you’d rather be working on that lizard.”

Ellis glanced up, sparing a moment to give Barry a smile.

“I am quite used to being pulled this way and that from my time in the royal library. You have no idea how often someone got the idea to shuffle around the shelving for absolutely no reason, usually right when there is another important project going on.”

“Weren’t you the head archivist? Couldn’t you just say no?”

“Just so, but sometimes you have to make concessions where it is least painful, lest you have to concede on something that actually matters.”

“Huh...”

It was rather insightful for a passing comment, but before Barry could say that, he heard the scuffle of footsteps descending the steps.

He prepared to hide the maps in case it was Fischer moseying on down, but then Brad and Greg appeared. Both woodworkers made to speak, then stiffed a yawn. Brad shook his head and rubbed red-rimmed eyes.

“The cart is ready to go.”

Barry blinked.

“It is?”

“Aye. We stayed up all night, but it’s done.”

They looked absolutely spent, and Barry gave them a thankful smile.

“You didn’t have to do that, but I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t glad. The sooner we can get supplies to the surrounding villages, the sooner we can move forward with Operation Sticky Fingers.”

“There’s one more thing,” Brad said, grinning through his lack of sleep. “When the wagon was finished... well, it transformed. Just as Fischer’s works do.”

Ellis shot to his feet, staring wide-eyed at them. Before he could demand the information he so desperately wanted, Brad continued.

“Also. It got my woodworking skill to 50, and this appeared.”

He reached behind his back, grabbed something from his belt, and threw it toward Barry. He caught the brown bag, the contents making an audible clink as it came to a stop.

It couldn’t be... could it?

Barry opened the drawstring with trembling fingers, his breath catching as he caught the glint within. He reached in and grabbed onto something cold and hard, then withdrew it into the magical light of the chamber. The golden coin glimmered. He spun it, revealing one face with a scythe, and another with the face of a man he didn’t recognize.

“Is that...?” Ellis asked, his voice faltering.

“It is.” Barry threw the coin to Ellis, who just barely caught it from the air. “It’s the kind of coin Fischer uses to build things—the same as those that made this base.”

“There’s ten of them,” Brad said, smirking at the look on everyone’s face.

Barry’s mind whirled, and his gaze went distant as his plans for the evening changed for the second time in so many minutes. He snapped back to the present when he made a decision.

“Get everyone out of the church. They can work from my home for now. Can someone go get Brigadier Borks? I may have need of him.”

“What are you going to do?” Ellis asked, not looking up from the notepad he’d begun recording in.

Barry’s eyes twinkled in delight.

“We’re going to attempt some renovations.”

***

With the sun setting at our backs and a cool breeze brushing by, Maria and I sat on the edge of the rock wall.

We both had a fishing rod in hand, and she leaned on my shoulder, eyes closed as she waited for a bite. I had a finger resting on my line, so I could feel the bump of any fish bold enough to munch my bait. If I was being honest, though, I was more focused on her. While I expected something to tug at my line, I never expected the tug that pulled at my core.

I jolted upright, whirling my head to look back toward land.

Maria let out a gasp.

“What’s wrong?”

I frowned and pouted for a moment, then just shook my head, smiling.

“Barry is up to some shenanigans. I didn’t mean to startle you, it just took me by surprise.”

I opened myself to the pressure tugging at me, letting chi drain away. While it wasn’t as much as the last time he’d sought my power, it was still a hefty amount.

“Shenanigans, huh?” Maria asked. “Are you okay? I know it was a lot last time that happened...”

If not for the transformation I’d had this morning, I might have collapsed under the weight of it. Now, though... I put an arm around Maria’s shoulder, letting the chi flow from me in a steady stream.

“I couldn’t be better.”

***

Sweat sprouted from Barry, his entire body tense.

He sat on the floor of his bedroom, and though he had originally held a meditative posture, it was long discarded as his tendons drew right. Helen had a hand on his shoulder, supporting him in the only way she could. Her fingers dug in, helping to keep him upright, but he barely felt them—such was the pressure exerted on his core.

Worse, he was drawing from Fischer. He’d hoped that he could do it in secret now that it was him possessing the coins, but that wasn’t the case. There was a steady flow of chi coming through an invisible connection, and he feared for his friend’s safety. In retrospect, it was a mistake. He’d wanted to let Fischer and Maria have their time together, but now Fischer might be in danger.

“Fischer...” he ground out through clenched teeth.

“What?” Helen asked, sounding as if far away.

“Check on Fischer... please.”

She didn’t respond, and when her hand disappeared from his shoulder, he knew she had gone. Flaring his nostrils, Barry realized his intent was too scattered, so he forced his thoughts onto the task at hand. On what the church needed. He would have to trust his wife, and Fischer’s resilience.

***

As the chi continued to flow through me, I felt Barry’s focus sharpen.

That’s it, mate, I thought. Keep up the good work.

“O-oh!” Maria started. “Fish on!”

She set the hook and wound the line in, joy clear on her face as the fish darted this way and that. Before she got it to the rocks, I heard footfalls behind me. I spun, cocking my head at Helen and the speed she was sprinting at.

“Helen? You all good?”

She skidded to a stop, looking at me with panicked eyes.

“Are... are you, Fischer? Barry said to check on you...”

“Never been better! Just catching some food for din—” I cut off as the force pulling chi from my core ended. Then, a burst of power bloomed from the west. I beamed at Helen. “Looks like he’s finished.”

“He is?”

“Yup. Just now.”

She turned on her heel and sprinted away as fast as she’d come. I heard a splash and spun just in time to see Maria lift the fish from the water. It swung my way, and my hand darted out, grabbing it by the gills.

Mature Shore Fish

Uncommon

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

“Ohhh, it’s a big one!” Maria said, drawing my attention to the present.

“More than enough for dinner.” I dispatched the fish with a swift movement, then looked up at Maria. “There’s only one more decision to make.”

She pursed her lips, her hair dangling as she cocked her head.

“What’s that?”

I grinned.

“How are we going to cook it?”

***

Barry took deep, steadying breaths as his legs wobbled beneath him. He gave up on standing and fell back to the ground, leaning back on one hand. Sweat soaked his body and his brain was clouded by fatigue, yet he laughed, loud and full of relief. He heard thumping footsteps hit the wooden deck and fly inside, and a second later, Helen threw the door open.

She crashed into him, holding him tight and not caring at all about his soiled clothing.

“Barry...” she whispered, her voice filled with relief.

“Was Fischer okay?” he asked.

Helen pulled her head back so she could look into his eyes.

“Okay? He and Maria were fishing without a care in the world. Worry about yourself, you soil-brained farmer.”

He’d already had an inkling that Fischer was fine based on the way the power finished transmitting, but having it confirmed made a weight evaporate from his shoulders.

“Good...”

Someone cleared their throat, and Barry looked past Helen’s shoulder. A sea of faces was in the doorway. Most intent as always, Ellis’s hands shook around his pencil and notepad. He showed amazing restraint in not voicing any of the questions no doubt fighting to escape.

Barry squeezed Helen one more time.

“Would you help me stand, dear?” She easily lifted him to his feet, and he smiled at Ellis. “Let’s go look at the changes, shall we?”

A bonfire roared to life in Ellis’s eyes.

“The... changes?”

“Better to see it with your own eyes. I’m happy to tell you about the act of creating it as we walk, though.”

Ellis nodded feverishly and stepped aside, giving Barry a path out.

As he led the congregation back toward the church, Barry recounted the experience as best he could. As always, Ellis’s questions were pointed, helping Barry better describe what had occurred. The entire time they walked, hushed conversation trailed them. The excitement was palpable, and as they reached the bottom of the stairs, Ellis looked up from his notepad.

“It... looks the same.”

“Looks can be deceiving,” Barry replied, leading them further down the hallway. They passed the open doors to the meeting room, spa, and forest. When they passed Trent’s room, he ran to the bars.

“Where are my sweets, and what was that rumbling?”

“You just had dinner,” Keith replied from behind Barry.

“So?” the prince demanded, his voice incredulous. “What of dessert?”

Keith shook his head with a flat look.

“I’ll come back with your sweets, cousin.”

They continued on, all ignoring Trent’s indignant demands that called after them. When Barry reached the first door that used to open to a stone wall, he pointed at it.

“Fergus, Duncan—this one is yours.” He turned to the entrance on the opposite side of the hallway, gesturing at it. “Brad and Greg.” He took a few steps up the hallway. “Ruby, Steven, this is yours on the left.

All six of them stepped forward, their eyes wide.

“Don’t tell me...” Fergus said, his hand slowly extending to the handle of the door Barry had called his.

Ellis rushed forward, then stopped in the hallway between the three doors, his head darting back and forth, unable to decide which room to look in first.

“Don’t you want to see your room, Ellis?” Barry asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

Ellis whirled on him, and the confusion on the former archivist’s face made a smile split Barry’s face.

“My... my room?”

“Well, yeah. You didn’t think I’d add a room for the other crafters and not one for you, did you? Where better to process the scales of an ascendant being than within a System-made workshop?”

Ellis, his mouth moving and not making a noise, ambled forward. His pencil made a soft sound as it clattered to the ground, falling from his loose grip. He didn’t even acknowledge it, so Barry picked it up for him. Ellis's hand gripped the handle of the door next to Barry, just as the other crafters gripped theirs. As one, all four of the doors swung open on silent hinges.