Chapter 13: Chapter 13: On The Road

Chapter 13

On the road

For the next four days, we travelled through the vast expanse of flat land that was The Belt. Fields of wheat stretched out like a golden sea in all directions as the wind gently carried us through the open plains.

Despite all the free time I had walking alongside the wagon I hadn’t spent much time exploring my abilities over the past few days. Most of my focus had been on the journey itself, marveling at the world beyond Wheat Hollow. And to be honest, I hadn’t felt the need, as the Belt was peaceful, its roads were well traveled and safe.

My days with Neil and Hershel had settled into a comfortable rhythm; we would wake early in the morning, pack camp, and gather around the fire for a quick breakfast. These were relatively plain meals, not the most nourishing, but a bowl of oats was far better than no oats at all.

Then we would travel until Clyde needed a break from pulling the wagon. He was a reliable and gentle animal, but it was clear his age was beginning to catch up to him.

As a result of our frequent stops, other wagons that had set out from Wheat Hollow would occasionally overtake us on the road. This would give us a chance to catch up on any news, exchange food items, and occasionally catch bits of news from the wide array of travelers on the road.

Finally, after a full day of travel, we would set up camp off a little ways off of the main road. As Hershel and Neil prepared the bedrolls and tended the animals, I would get to work preparing dinner for the evening.

A part of me wondered if the sly old man had done a poor job cooking that first night on purpose, so that I’d volunteer for the rest of the trip. Even if he had, I didn’t mind, doing little things like this was a nice way to keep my mind occupied and away from thoughts of home.

I prepared what remained of our vegetables for another simple stew, my knife moving efficiently as I chopped the onions, potatoes, and carrots, just as I had every night before.

Just as my mother had taught me when I was a boy.

I sighed. The memories still found their opportunities to creep in even when I was doing my best to keep myself distracted.

Tonight, however, as I reflected on the past several days, an idea came to my mind.

Grace’s father had mentioned that his wife’s path that let her add something more to the things that she cooked, such as letting the nourishment of the food last longer than normal. I had experienced it firsthand as I had eaten her food several days ago, and the effects were quite noticeable. I hadn’t even felt the need to eat dinner that night as a result.

When I compared that comment to what the priest had said about abilities operating off the concept of potential, I felt like I was close to grasping something important, but I wasn’t sure what it was quite yet.

Somehow, Grace’s mother could raise or enhance the properties of the food she prepared. With that in mind, I figured it would be worth a try to see if I could reproduce the results. I had nothing else to do, and I felt as if I had been wasting opportunities to experiment with my abilities.

After thinking it over for a bit, two ideas came to mind. My first idea was to try using Sow while everything simmered together in the pot, as it would be easier to do with everything gathered in one place. The second was to use Sow on the vegetables individually as I chopped and prepared them, thus infusing each ingredient before they even hit the water.

But then another thought struck me: maybe the most efficient option would be to wait until the stew was finished, portion it into bowls, and then use Sow on the final product.

The truth was, I didn’t know which method would yield the best result, or if it would make any difference at all. After some deliberation, I decided to go with the last idea; I would spoon the stew into bowls, and then use my ability Sow to enhance the food.

After waiting impatiently for what seemed like forever, I was finally able to declare the stew ready to eat. I portioned the stew into three separate bowls and lined them up on the makeshift table in front of me.

“Is something the matter, lad?” Hershel asked as he watched me stare intently at the bowls with my finger extended just above the stew.

I ignored the comment and continued to focus as I channeled my will, urging the potential within me to transfer into the bowls. I felt Sow activate as the warm light of potential moved through my body, down my arm, and into my finger. I touched the inside of the bowl and watched as potential began to pour into and be absorbed by the contents within.

The only way I could tell how much potential I had used for this experiment was simply by feeling it. I poured potential out of my body until I felt a small amount of my supply had been expended into the first bowl.

Hershel and Neil looked at me with wide eyes, and I could tell they were holding back questions as I continued to use my abilities on the next two bowls, repeating the process.

As I passed out the bowls I couldn’t wait to see how much tastier the food had become. I felt as if this would be my crowning achievement and would be something Hershel and Neil would remember fondly for a very long time. I dipped my spoon into the broth, brought it to my lips, and tasted.

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I spat the stew out and quickly set the bowl on the ground. My tongue felt like it was under siege by a variety of clashing flavors that no longer complemented one another. It was awful and was easily the worst thing I had ever eaten.

I had willed Sow to bring out the inherent properties of the vegetables and deepen the flavor of the stew. Instead, my poor application amplified everything unevenly.

The carrots were aggressively sweet, the onions sharp enough to sting, and the broth itself somehow both too salty and oddly bitter. I felt like the idea was salvageable, but the results were not. It wasn’t just bad, it made Hershel’s concoction from earlier in the week seem palatable.

Not wanting to be rude, Hershel and Neil politely took a sample of the stew and proceeded to follow my example.

“Good gods, lad, that is officially the worst thing I have ever eaten. And if you’re wondering, yes, I am including my cooking.”

Neil, rather than speaking, dramatically gurgled water from his water skin and then spat it out on the ground. After doing this a few times, he sat back against his pack and gave me a sad look. He was hungry and had lost his appetite.

I sighed and leaned back against my pack as well. “That was just my first try. Failure is the first step to being good at something, right?”

“Failed? Son, you exceeded failure, which is impressive if you think about it. A matter of fact, I think tonight is a night for whiskey, that’s the only thing that will clear that out of me mouth.”

Hershel then pulled a bottle from his pack, the amber liquid catching the firelight as he sighed appreciatively, uncorking it with a soft pop that mingled with the crackle of the flames.

He took a deep drink of the solution before sighing contentedly.

“Now that’s a palate cleanser.”

He handed me the bottle and I followed his example. I quickly pulled the bottle away as fiery liquid poured down my throat. To Hershel’s amusement, I couldn’t suppress the cough that involuntarily followed my partaking of the drink.

Hershel looked over at Neil, considering his grandson.

“Don’t tell your mother, or your Gran…especially your Gran. She would have my hide if she found out I let you try some.”

Neil excitedly took the bottle from me and soon after pulled out his water skin as he repeated his cleansing ritual that he had performed moments before with my cooking.

Hershel and I passed the bottle back and forth a few more times before he finally put it away. I could feel the warmth of the drink settle into my body as we began to talk about nothing of consequence. I could tell Hershel was holding back questions he wanted to ask, and was doing his best to be polite.

“Hershel, just come out and say what’s on your mind. I can’t take you dancing around it any longer.”

Hershel laughed, a bit too loudly, his cheeks tinged a rose color from the alcohol.

“Was I that obvious? Alrighty then, I’m just gonna talk to you like you’re family, hell, you practically are now. But I gotta ask.. you wouldn’t happen to be related to a Lucian Garner, would you?”

I was a bit surprised by the question, but I didn’t see the harm in sating his curiosity.

“Yeah, actually, he’s my uncle. He’s the reason I’m headed to Salt Brine.”

“Wait, seriously?” Neil exclaimed as he looked at me with a shocked expression. “When we first heard your name, we thought at most it was a coincidence, but he’s really your uncle?”

“Yes, really, here look at this.” I pulled my uncle’s contract from my pack and handed it to Hershel. Neil quickly moved beside his grandfather and read it over his shoulder.

“Well, that, that is quite something,” Hershel said as he looked it over. “He really left all of that land to you? That’s quite an inheritance. A kingly gift if I’ve ever seen one.”

“Is the property really that big? It seems you know a lot more about my uncle than I do.”

Hershel pulled the bottle back out and continued talking.

“Aye, it is. Quite a bit of land further inland around the coast. You’re uncle is a legend down in Salt Brine. Hell, probably throughout the whole kingdom if I had to guess. He was given Fisher’s lake..later renamed Garner Lake, as a gift for deeds of heroism back when he was a youth.”

Neil perked up at the conversation, his young eyes glinting with curiosity as he leaned closer to the fire.

“I heard stories about him, too.” Neil stood up and began to play out a sword fight with an invisible foe. “I was told by the Erik brothers that he single handedly held off a pirate Lord that had assaulted the city..”

Neil swept his hand toward the fire as he tossed in a handful of straw, causing it to flare suddenly, the burst of heat sending a shower of sparks spiraling into the night sky.

“Aye, that's true.” Hershel said, taking a sip from his bottle before offering me some of the drink.

“The attack happened around twenty years ago, when the Easter Gap fell. Them damn Wandering Hordes had forced their way into Rayleigh and all hell had broke loose. With the guards called away by the King, the pirates thought they’d have an easy go at the city and honestly, they might’ve…that is, until Sir Garner showed up. By morning, the pirates’ bodies were stretched across the docks, and their ships were still smoldering in the bay.”

I just sat in awe as they told story after story about my uncle’s rumored achievements. According to them, he had killed legendary beasts, could cast powerful spells, and had prevented many terrible wars with other nations simply by intervening himself. It was strange to think a man like that came from my simple farming family.

As the conversation began to wane I took another drink from Hershel’s bottle.

“I’ve never met my uncle. He and my father had a falling out when they were younger. I had just received a letter from him the day of my Choosing, offering me an inheritance if I chose to follow in his footsteps away from home…so here I am.”

Hershel’s face shifted from curiosity to concern as he noticed the change in my demeanor, his weathered brow furrowing in the firelight. “Now, lad, I didn’t mean to pry, just an old man being a bit nosy about ya, is all.”

“It’s no problem,” I said, forcing a smile back onto my face.“It’s honestly good to hear something about the man, even though it sounds like I have some big shoes to fill. I’m just a farmer’s son, so I don’t think I’ll be sending pirates away anytime soon.”

The pair laughed, the sound mingling with the crackle of the fire, but I could see another question brewing behind their thoughtful expressions, their eyes glinting with unspoken curiosity

“Just ask already, y’all are killing me with the suspense.”

Hershel suddenly cleared his throat his curiosity getting the best of him.

“Tell me lad, what path did you choose? We were busy last night during the ceremony and missed the latter half of it all.” He thought for moment before adding, “only fair I tell you mine if I’m asking for yours, I am a Cultivation domain, Path of the Carpenter, a damn good one too, if you don’t mind me saying so. Neil isn’t of age yet, but we are training him up so that he can follow in the family trade as well.”

I nodded appreciatively, Carpenter was a respected path anywhere in the kingdom. The boxes in the back of the wagon suddenly made more sense as they were a collection of tools, supplies, and other goods he had bought in bulk at the festival.

“I chose a Divine Domain, Path of the Harvester.”

I looked up to see Hershel and Neil’s mouths were both slightly ajar.

“You mean to tell me that someone in a little town like that managed to get a Divine path?” He took another drink from the bottle. “I don’t think I ever heard of a Harvester path before, it sounds like a complicated farmer.”

“Something like that,” I said, “To be honest, I haven’t had much chance to get familiar with it yet. Things have been moving pretty quickly since my Choosing.”

Hershel’s pockmarked face nodded with understanding.

“Plenty of time for that soon enough, this is just your beginning lad, no need to rush anything. Just enjoy the journey while you can.”

The evening wore on, and after finishing the bottle of drink we finally decided it was time to turn in for the night and get some rest.