Black Mould - Seventeen - A Sacrifice of Self to Commune with God

Black Mould - Seventeen - A Sacrifice of Self to Commune with God

Black Mould - Seventeen - A Sacrifice of Self to Commune with God

I stood around awkwardly for a long bit of time.

How did one ask for a blessing, and was it even a good idea to begin with?

I shook my head. This was for science. There was no room for embarrassment in the pursuit of greater knowledge.

First, I got onto my knees. Then I decided that that wasnt terribly comfortable, and settled for sitting on a stool instead. Feronie was the goddess of nature, not some weird goddess of self-flagellation. Bringing my legs together, I cupped my hands and then bowed my head.

Focusing on my [Druid Sight] while my eyes were closed was a little bizarre, but I pushed past that and listenedfor lack of a better termto my sense of attunement.

The new subskill was going to prove useful, I just knew it.

The farm felt dirty, but not in the same way as the world outside it did. This was this was the kind of dirty that an untended garden had. Like a street-side garden in a busy city. Weeds were flourishing between the flowers, and trash had been tossed onto the dirt. Cigarette butts and paper coffee cups.

It was nasty, but there was potential for it to be nicer.

Um, dear Feronie, I began, then stopped.

What was I doing? Dictating a letter? No, that didnt work.

I scrunched my nose and tried to make it a little more casual. I could try begging and supplicating later, if the casual approach failed. Hey, Feronie, its uh, me. You know, that person you blessed and pulled into this world? Im uh, calling to say hi? You know, ask how things are going on. And maybe, um, if you have a minute, you could help me bless this room? Im growing mushrooms. I dont know if thats what you wanted out of me, but its the best I can do right about now.

Pausing, I focused on sensing the air.

I didnt actually expect anything. The gods in my old world, if they ever existed, were the silent types who never helped anyone.

Its why I didnt expect to feel a change in the air. A stirring in the attunement. I didnt have sharp enough senses to know what was happening, but well, to return to that analogy, it felt as if someone had moved by and picked up the trash a little.

Oh, I muttered. Its actually working?

And then something hit me like a truck.

My eyes snapped open, and I caught a vision of green motes flitting through the air. But then my vision swam, my stomach pulled in taut, and my head felt at once too light and too heavy.

Id felt something like this before

I glanced at my mana, just to see.

Mana 0/25

Oh, that wasnt good.

I stood up. I had some magically-infused mushrooms. Theyd give me a point or two faster than just gaining them over time normally, and then Id feel better.

I grabbed the edge of my workbench and used it to help myself to my feet. I closed my eyes and let my balance settle for a bit. Yeah, I definitely needed a pick-me-up. It would suck to eat a mushroom that wasnt fully grown, but I needed the mana, and my stomach was growling with hunger.

I looked up, then blinked at what I saw.

First, the rust. There were always splashes of it on the walls of my farm, but it seemed as though they had spread a lot. My stool had fallen at some point, one of the legs rusted through enough that it simply bent under its own weight.

Second, my mushrooms.

Every last one was fully grown and looking stronger than ever. I looked to the side and noticed that my notebook was now a wreck, mushrooms pushing out from between the pages.

What the hell? I muttered.

I tasted the air, then squinted at the room. Something was tingling my [Druid Sight]. It took a moment to find a way to focus on it.

[Lesser Blessing of Nature {Uncommon}]

The entire room was blessed?

I didnt know what that meant, exactly, so I dug into it with my [Druid Sight]

[Lesser Blessing of Nature {Uncommon}]

This space has been noticed by the Goddess Feronie. Nature will thrive here as much as unnatural creations will suffer.

Okay, I muttered. That was kind of awesome, actually. I grinned. Would it mean faster growth? An easier time cultivating mushrooms? It was perfect!

Still, investigating would need to wait until tomorrow. For now, I had to get back home before it got too dark. Dad was lenient, but mom would get really angry if I came back after the eighth bell, or even the seventh in the colder seasons when the sun went down even earliernot that Id want to be outside barefoot when things got that cold.

I shifted around my farm, checking on things, nibbling on a few mushrooms that had grown fully, then I looked at my experimental grafted mushrooms which had ruined my notebook. That would all have to wait for another day. I was unusually tired.

Opening the door, I stepped out, then froze.

The city was dark.

Debra was slumped over nearby, snoring fitfully from within her pile of blankets.

The only light came from a few flickering street lights a few levels up. The light was filtered by the catwalks, casting long shadows against every rusty wall and surface.

The city was at rest. Only the most dutiful of the factories worked through the night, and most of those with half-shifts. It was so dark that even the thieves and muggers would be back at bed.

It was, essentially, well past late.

Mom was going to kill me when I got back home.

***