NOVEL NEXT Chapter 22 - Graveyard and Gardens
With a clean hand, I pointed at Triangle. "No throwing bombs at guild members. Not even in the practice area, unless it's an agreed fight."
"That's no fun," the young one complained.
Naiad fixed her braid, wrapping it around her head, and joined in on the lecture. "Cleaning the mess wasn't any fun. You need to come up with a super soaker cleaning solution for us."
"Can I do that?" Triangle looked at me.
Guilt hit my stomach at how I caused this. He didn't need my approval like that in the game. "It's your game and class. Try to make a triggering system that sprays a solution only for us during a fight. But try doing it after we go out and-"
"On it!" He took off running to his bench, excited to explore.
Before I could ask if wanted to leave the guild hall, Naiad walked toward the exit of the city. "Looks like it's us two again today for the spiritual journey."
"No, we need Triangle to play with us and level up." I firmly said.
"I want to go to the graveyard today and look for herbs. You know he hates dead people." She didn't even slow down and led the way out, spawning on the other side in the city. "Should we use our mounts or save them for later?"
"Save them. Triangle knows this is a video game. He'll be fine if he comes with us."
She pointed to the tinker workshop. "Too late. He's absorbed into crafting a super soaker. He'll be a destroyer and cleaner all in one. Terrifying because no matter what, no bodies would be left behind." She rubbed her arms in shivers. "He'd clean that cemetery."
"I wish he cleaned his room and the dishes with such enthusiasm." I said.
"Mom says the same about you."
I shut it up, not wanting to cause more stress. If Beth wanted to clean, she could help. Keeping up with home and watching the kids wasn't easy. For now, we had the game, and I wanted the time to bond with them. I didn't want them to grow up without a parent like I did.
I adjusted the settings for the stream to show what I saw, along with my face in the bottom corner. With it ready, I sent the Live notice out.
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[You are entering the holy and historical sites of Fanamel.]
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Builders constructed Fanamel during an industrial age of technology and amid the seventeenth-century slums. Parts of the city were pristine, with brick white washers and window cleaners in the street, while the rest of the city lacked any clean running water. The worst sat by the mountains and plentiful of rats and goblins roamed there, and according to the kids, not a fun place to visit.
The holy areas were located closer to the palace on the southwest side. Just a few streets away from the docks. The path changed from worn road to pavers under our feet and carriages crowded the road as high-important NPCs went about their daily lives. Smooth sidewalks existed, leaving the middle open for carts. Instead of people shouting out about their wares, the windows glistened in the light to showcase their supply. Mrs. Crockery's shop was around the previous corner. We rarely went into this part of town. These NPCs dealt with political and commerce. My goal in this game was adventurer and quests.
Because of that, our cloaks, even though clean, stuck out compared to the more posh clothing the people wore here. Women held white parasols, adjusting them to avoid making eye contact with me. While a player even adjusted his cufflink and smirked while we walked by. His perfume being a mix of rosewood and cardamom. The people behind us slowed down and divert off on other paths. A bubble of isolation formed around us.
"No NPC will talk to us like this. Should we grab some new clothes?" Naiad asked, pausing in front a of dress shop.
A green skirt, edged with what I believe was lace, hung at the hem and shoulders. This was a high end place that price tags weren't on display.
"Do you want to fight in that outfit?" I questioned. I rarely took her shopping. Beth wanted that to be their thing. "Your new bow would go well with it. Want to check it out?"
The shopkeeper walked over and flipped the sign, declaring them open to closed. The hours written on the back showed they should be open right now. Pompously, the man shrugged, a dust of powder coming off his wig on his head as he sauntered back further into his velvet shop.
I wanted to smash the glass for his lack of class. This game would punish me for that behaviour faster than I could get out of town. Vandalizing in broad daylight with this many people would make the game put a bounty on my head. I would be a terrible role model for Naiad.
"It's fine." Naiad cleared her throat and spoke louder. "I wouldn't want something holy touching that ugly dress."
We continued our way through the city to the first graveyard near the first holy site. Overgrown plants covered the tombstones; flowers rested on various dug-out pits, a few freshly turned. It was always odd how in games the dead were bad, but kept a batch of full bodies ready to be risen by a necromancer, next to the temples.
Trees decorated near the graveyard. Next to the small red and silver temple was a large greenhouse, half the size of the temple itself. Lady Branchelot lived in a tree. This temple had a lot of plants. This would be a good place to start.
A gentle breeze, smelling faintly of freshly turned earth, caused the old wagon to groan, its wheels protesting, while nearby wind chimes tinkled a soft melody.
Both Naiath and I jumped and looked around for the large red hat of the half-gnome. The only red thing here was the temple painted a deep red and crowned with silver.
"Ha, you got worried too." Naiad teased.
"It be great if he came along. Why are you preventing him from joining us?" I asked her.
"You aren't listening to him and trying to force him into doing what you want."
"That's because you're kids and don't know what to do to and need guidance, like how you need it for school and eating your vegetables."
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I felt like I was repeating myself constantly as a parent.
A collection of dangling silver bells got between Naiad and I. Sunlight glistened on the polished bells, their unexpected appearance silencing us instantly. The person holding the stick of bells had a soft facial feature with a shaved head and a welcoming smile in their sweat stained white gown, a red rope tied around her waist. It was an impressive trick for her to walk up to us silently with that many bells.
The stranger spoke to us in a pious voice. "The youth are the spark of inspiration, signs of vitality, and we must be a compass, but not the map."
She was barefoot on the cobblestone path in the graveyard and tilted her head in acknowledgement to us. "Welcome to the temple of Nitia. Where we toil and hope that something grows. We might not get the seed we planted, but still embrace all forms of life. Before you enter, please remove your shoes and feel the gift of earth beneath your feet. I am priestess Ixik."
She walked us out of the graveyard and pointed to a row of shoes by the upright sticks that created a fence around the temple and graveyard. "You may place your shoes there if you wish to have them back."
We both complied, removing our shoes and placing them on the sparse grass by the fence.
"It's an honor to meet you, priestess. I'm Boulder and my companion here is Naiad. We are looking for an answer about The Carrion of Life and Nanabush. Maybe even the forest guardians?"
"Hush!" Ixik jingled the bells again and walked the path into a nearby garden. The garden was larger than the temple itself. Gazebos gave support for vining plants to provide shade, and multiple signs were stuck next to the plants everywhere. A few players were tending the place as apostles dressed in brown rough clothing, digging up weeds.
I couldn't understand why anyone would spend their gaming time on weeds and simple life.
While following the priestess, the signs displayed "Minty Fresh," "Thyme was Seasoned," "Cinnamon is always a secret," and displayed more spices from our world until we reached ones I'd never heard of. The game wouldn't let me search for their names either, saying I lacked the knowledge of it.
In this back part of the garden, a player in a white tunic and brown rope trimmed at a bush, humming a song. "Shhhh, what I have told you about singing to the plants?" Ixik scolded in a stern voice.
"Sorry priestess, I'll only listen to the plants." The man whispered before tightening his mouth shut.
The priestess nodded and walked between Naiad and me to whisper. "While in the garden, we must keep our voices low. Then listen to know root of the problems we have and dig deeper for our answers. Sit here by this patch and figure out what lies beneath your troubled heart."
She patted a hard stone near a wide, open pit. The hole eerily matched my height and looked like my grave. "You can touch the plants, but please don't damage them too much. If you need me, I'll be in the glass temple, feeling the warmth of our brethren's god heating our home."
With that, she silently walked away. Her feet barely left any footprints in the dirt and grass as her long garment covered them up, dragging sticks and leaves behind her. I felt unease with being told to sit by a hole big enough and deep to bury me in. I scooted next to Naiad.
"She said the name of the quest." Naiad failed to keep her excitement down in whisper mode.
"When?" I asked back.
"Just now. Weren't you listening?" Naiad asked.
"She talked a lot, and I was looking for clues." I partially told the truth. NPCs go on rants all the time. It's easy to zone them out. "Did she answer any of my questions?"
Naiad vigorously shook her head from side to side. "You go after her while I dig up herbs and roots? Starting with cinnamon, it said it had secrets." She pulled out of from her inventory her small knife. "I should've bought a shovel."
I summoned a spoon I got from a rat's nest. "Don't forget to look for Beverya and Terralight. Or whatever you want for your class quest. Hopefully, this spoon can help you."
"Thanks," Naiad said and immediately stood up and walked back the way we came.
I liked her initiative here and suggestion that we split up to save time. The priestess was talking in riddles and my quest didn't update or add a timer with whatever she said earlier. Without a change, it felt like this was the wrong temple.
The sliding door into the temple remained open and welcoming as I ducked under the doorway to enter the quaint sized building to find Ixik. A small gathering area was right at the front with a pool collecting water from the various irrigations streams running along the walls to feed the hanging plants on the ceiling. The water floated above in a magical stream, creating a gentle rain onto a small tree growing in the middle of the building, full of beautiful yellow leaves that glistened with the light off them. The leaves slowly drifted to the ground as the mist fell on them, and fresh new ones replaced them instantly. There was a smell in the room of moss and ash, but around the tree, it was the crisp smell of the constant season of autumn. I picked up a few leaves, noticing their lightness in weight and how they reflected the sun coming through the windows.
"You make take some with you if they speak to you," Ixik spoke from further down the hallway. Her voice reverberating off the bamboo walls. Little leaves bursted to life off where her voice echoed. Ixik sat in the back of a glass room, the sun pouring down on all the plants.
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[Level 45 Priestess: Ixik Dirth, Type: Human
Description: The head priestess of the temple in Fanamel. Gifted with carrying for the earth and others. Her appearances are humble to hide the fact she communes with her god.]
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Communes with the gods and mentioned our quest name earlier? This had to be the correct temple to get information from. I should have brought Triangle; he's lucky in situations like this.
"What do they do?" I stuffed about ten leaves in my pockets and walked the rest of the way to the greenhouse where Ixik lounged. The heat of the room was oppressive compared to the temple. The air felt sticky with the moisture from the water dripping down from the ceiling to the pool below.
Small fruit trees, broad leaf, and vining plants flourished inside here, where they would starve for water and heat outside of the temple. The system didn't identify any of the plants for me and I lacked knowledge of them. In the middle of the greenhouse, to the side of the pool, sat Ixik in a cushion red woven chair, with a teakettle and three tea cups. The one in her hand was full. Tools for pruning, digging, and planting covered the mosaic table. Dirt ruining the art beneath and leaving smudges on the kettle.
"A bit of good luck and a reminder of the times passed. Also, they make a good beverage." She held up a mug.
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[(Item, unique) Fallen Leaves of the Tree of Life, Type - Holy: Life comes and it goes, and it continues to grow. Life is a gift, like these leaves. The church commonly gives these out to entice people to join. Makes a good tea.]
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The system organized them under plant matter and told me nothing more about what they could do. I could give them to Triangle later for him to study.
I drew attention back to the reason for following her. "Earlier, we asked you some questions, but you walked away."
"I drift on the land as much as a bird flies in the air." She took a sip, loudly. The game was making her aloof.
I went for the straight approach with the question. "What can you tell me about the forest guardians? I found one, an ent, with a shrine in the Peaceful Prairie."
Her eyes shot big as steam rose from the mug. Silence stretched between us until she opened her mouth.
To tilt her teacup and take another loud slurp.
I tried again and asked, "We killed it and apparently it's up to no good?"
"Yes, guardians can't be pure like the gardener. They must fight for the gods. It is not in their nature to nurture. The same seems to be said about your nature."
Sluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurp.
It ticked me off the developers coded the female NPCs to judge a dad. I am going to file a complaint with Beth later about this.
"No," I defended myself, "She's at the age of roaming free and exploring the world. It's up to me to accept what she does. Like your garden is. It's not perfectly trimmed and organized. Able to drift."
Little hearts floated above her head at my retort. She must enjoy arguing. "Containing plants hinders their growth and endless possibilities."
I was getting frustrated at this exchange. I wished this was as simple as spamming through dialogue to get answers and head off to the next part of the quest. Again, I tried to get her to answer. "Can you please answer my question? Do you know anything about the guardian? It had antlers and could control the plants. The animals nearby responded to its call to attack us."
At last, the tea cup settled down on the table without a single clink. The priestess sighed, "If it attacked you, then I fear the outside of the city is your doing. Your welcome here is over."
Magic shimmered and charged at her fingertips, rattling the teacups on the table.