11 Church (1/2)

One handsome and two cute girls walked down the streets of Sweetgrass. Though many of the town had seen them walking together the prior day, it didn't stop the trio from turning many heads their direction. Although Mie and Lili just ignored the crowds, Kalin looked at each passerby, carefully observing their actions.

After a short walk from the tavern, a beautiful building came into view. Although it wasn't as big as the Merchant's Guild building, it didn't seem any less grand. The plot had various rows of plants, from flowers to herbs and even food. The small building was reminiscent of ancient castles and was made entirely of stone. It also had various figures carved into the faces of it. Some of the carvings depicted wars, while others shew farmers working in the field. The numerous depictions of life, worship, and celebration showed facets of life and death.

Kalin couldn't draw his eyes away from the carvings. Even the ones that depicted tragedies created a sense of awe and wonder to fill him. Scanning the walls, one specific carving stole his gaze. It was a simple carving that depicted a demigod whose name was lost through time. He was surrounded by people that loved and adored him, while he slew a nondescript monster. The most notable thing was the slight smiles apparent on everybody in the carving. Although their city was slightly in ruins, the people didn't seem afraid. They had full faith that they were safe from harm.

It was one of the simpler and less gaudy carvings; many wouldn't spend more than a second glancing over such a seemingly unimportant carving, placed among the depictions of the gods. It intrigued him, made him feel excitement, expectation, and motivation. Though he didn't know who this depicted, it also didn't really matter to him. All he knew is that he wanted to be like this man. He wanted to be loved by everybody. He wanted to make people feel safe when he was around. He wanted to save people with a smile on his face and smiles on theirs. No, this wasn't what he wanted to do. This is what he was going to do. As a curious child, he dreamed of becoming an Adventurer, and knew that was what he was going to do since his first memories. However, at this moment, one tiny thing changed. Without his knowledge, his reason for wanting to become an adventurer changed from mere hero worship to the simple desire to see people happy.

Though this may seem a childish and greatly naïve mindset, he was still a child. And what do adults know? Sometimes children can see the world in a way that adults forget. Who is to say that such a thing is impossible?

The two elder girls watched the facial expressions of Kalin as he started at the carvings. They couldn't help but smile at his innocence. ”Come one Kal,” Liliana finally broke the silence, ”Let's go inside.”

The noise snapped Kalin from his stupor and just nodded and mumbled, ”Mm-kay.”

As the doors opened, Kal couldn't help but exclaim, ”Wow! It's so pretty!”

The room had several rows of pews facing toward a large ornamental podium. Behind the podium were idols of the most popular deities, as well as the patron deity of the church, the God of Agriculture. The sides of the chapel were lined with pillars and stained glass.

”Welcome to the Sweetgrass temple of Agriculture.” The voice came from a man that seemed to be in his early thirties. Wearing what passed as priest robes, though there was a small amount of dirt on the hem, he approached them with a calm smile on his face. Though he had a somewhat lazy look to his eyes, the wrinkles around his eyes made him look as if perpetually smiling. Behind him was a slightly plump woman that looked to be in her late twenties wearing clothes that looked like a mix between peasant and nun clothing, with her hair in a bun.

”We've been expecting you Liliana,” said the woman as she smiled, ”we couldn't wait to meet your family.”

”It's been a while, Beth, David. Before we continue, would it be alright if we take this into the private room before we continue discussing?”

The man just smiled, ”Of course, follow me.” He brought them from the entrance to the front of the chapel. As they approached the podium, he grabbed a stone ornament from the center of the alter before proceeding to usher them toward a small door on the wall the pews were facing.

Through the small door, contrary to the gorgeous and somewhat gaudy church, was a simple living space. This is where the Priest David and his wife Beth lived, as they took care of the running of the church and tending to the grounds. The furniture was nice, but fairly simple. There were only simple ornaments within the clean rooms.

There were a couple chairs within the main room, where the group had gathered, as well as a sofa and a cocktail table, where the priest placed the ornament.

”Please,” Beth gestured toward the various seats in the room, ”have a seat.”

The guests situated themselves in chairs surrounding the table, while the couple sat on the sofa.

”Why did you bring the rock?” Kalin couldn't help but try to satiate his unquenchable curiosity.

The priest had a slightly confused expression before he realized that the term rock was referring the simple stone obelisk that he placed on the center table. He couldn't help but burst out in a hearty laugh, ”That is the shrine of our church,” he explained to Kalin, ”This is the 'real' church. The building is just a pretty place to put it, but whatever place this is placed becomes the church.”

Beth smiled and explained, ”that means that right now, this room is the church. If we brought this shrine to the local pub, then that'd be the church.”

Kalin nodded before Lili cut in, ”I'm sorry about wanting to be cautious, but we need the ceremony to be as confidential as possible.”

”It's no problem,” David responded, ”it's not uncommon for people to want to keep their status hidden.”

Lili shook her head before correcting him, ”It's not that we don't want to, we can't show it without endangering everybody that hears it.”

The couple couldn't understand what would be dangerous about leaking the skills of an eight-year-old but decided to proceed with the ceremony without paying it too much mind.

Turning to Kalin, the priest asked, ”I have a few questions I need to ask before we start. Is that alright?”

Kalin nodded, ”Mm-hmm.”

”What's your name?”

”Kalin”

”Hello Kalin, it's nice to meet you. Do you know what skills are?” The priest asked.

Kalin answered, ”They're powers that people have.”