All the Dust that Falls

Chapter 300: Another Church Potluck

Bee felt her shoulders relax as her fingers ran through the carpet beneath her. The wind tossed her hair back, but not nearly as fiercely as it could have, whipping it about her face. Her enchanted rug moved at a steady pace as she left the capital behind.

She wasn't in a rush to get to the castle, but she could still get there in less than a day's travel, at least by air. And recent events made her worry about the state of things there. It had been a rough week since she'd gotten back, and it was amazing how much just a few days of bad governance could cause.

There had been days of trials lined up that she had to go through and make a judgment on. She had to set up new legislation and continue to refill the bureaucracy that ran the city. Arthur and the Warden had done what they could. They needed someone with proper authority to sign off on things like proper bureaucrats. Arthur was a military man and could enforce discipline, but not the kind meant for everyday life. His discipline was the rigid military type. And requiring that of an entire city was not what anyone wanted, least of all Arthur.

Now that Zeal was gone, the man was more than happy to go back to recruiting and training troops for upcoming conflicts. Something that no one had any illusions would pass them by. The more people they had ready and leveled, the better. And the fact that most of these people had become converts to the Church of the Cleansing Void was only a blessing. Basic military discipline and chores, keeping things tidy, making one's bed, cleaning a room... All these things gave experience and levels, especially for the young men who barely had any to begin with.

Arthur had also come up with an excellent idea. He had proposed getting people access to their systems and going out for first-time monster hunts, provided anyone they helped was willing to sign up for a year. So many people who didn't have that access were suddenly flocking to them.

The Warden and Susan worked closely together, and Bee watched Harold leave within a few days to go on his own missions. She hadn't bothered to ask about them. Still, it was good to see the man doing something he was actually qualified for instead of being promoted above his abilities. He seemed happier, too, though maybe he just wanted to be away from the capital.

She talked to the Warden about Harold's future, and they both agreed that Harold would not be his replacement. He was a competent spy, if not a great leader. So, she had both Susan and the Warden work towards using him the way they should. Judging based off of the interactions she observed the two of them having, Bee found that the Warden might have found his successor; after all. He just might have promote from outside the organization.

They had received word from the castle that nothing was wrong, just a regular update a day or so immediately after their return. The news had greatly relieved Bee. She hadn't really expected the Lieutenants to assault the castle and hit them while she and Void were away. There certainly had been a possibility, but there wasn't any real strategic reason to do that. Though, from what Archibald had said, strategy wasn't always the Lieutenants' strong suit. And malice was the providence of the enemy.

The issue had been eating at her. But knowing that she had time to set things right had given her enough peace of mind to delay her return. But now, with as much settled as she could manage, it was time to go back to the castle.

She'd been gone too long. It had been almost two months since they'd left the place. Of course, she had full confidence that Trent, and the others had been able to keep things in order. But honestly, she missed the castle. It had become a familiar home to her, one that she had spent so much time in. Even more than that, she missed the people who lived there.

Besides, someone was going to have to tell Mary and Trent about Tony's recent change before he showed up and gave them all a heart attack. And she wouldn't have put it past the Nighty Knights to be up to no good.

Despite how well everything had been going for the last week, there was still something that nagged at her thoughts. She felt the heavy weight of the rock in her pocket, but refused to take it out.

It had been frustrating her since they'd gotten back to the capital. Her new skill surely was something powerful, something that could change the way she fought. And when she eventually managed to gain more experience in it, she was sure that it would change everything about her life. But it was not nearly as easy as it should have been.

She left the rock where it was, not wanting to disturb her journey with any failed attempts. If she choked on a rock in midair and ended up falling because of it, she was fairly certain that she'd die of embarrassment before hitting the ground.

It was just before dinner that she landed in the castle courtyard. The children watching the wall had seen her coming and sent the castle into a flurry of activity at her approach. Most of the castle was out to greet her, and she spent several minutes exchanging hugs and greetings with everyone. All the kids came first, naturally. The Nighty Knights stopped at parade rest in front of her, and graced her with a salute before dogpiling her with welcoming hugs.

Soon after, Mary had wrapped her in a warm embrace, rocking her from side to side slightly, something that Bee had to allow based on their disparity of strength.

"I'm glad you're all right, honey." Mary's murmured greeting in her ear made it hard for Bee to keep her composure.

It reminded her that she needed to talk with her aunt again. That was something to think about later. Right now, the motherly warmth was threatening to smother her. Luckily, Trent "saved" her from Mary's embrace by crushing her ribs with his own bear hug. Bee couldn't help but be surprised by their increase in level and strength. They must have been cleaning while she was away.

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Soon after, she was ushered inside.

They had an impromptu dinner with the adults in the Grand Hall. The food was better than anything she'd eaten in months. Whether it was nostalgia, companionship, or some kind of insane cooking abilities Cassie had picked up, she wasn't sure. But whatever it was, it made Bee eat a bit more than was probably advisable. After everyone had eaten and the kids had been sent off to train, she found everyone who remained watching her.

She resisted the urge to stand up and pace. Instead, she sat at the head of the table and clasped her hands. "Thank you, everyone. It's good to be back. I'm sure you're anxious to hear about what we've been up to at the capital..."

Instead, she began to explain in broad strokes what had happened while she was gone. Of course, everyone had sent and received letters, but it wasn't the same. She skipped over some of the sensitive topics but talked about almost everything else. The cult that Zeal had formed, the state of the city, and how they had taken the city with minimal bloodshed. And, of course, how the king was overthrown, making the kingdom effectively theirs.

This caused a decent amount of murmuring, both from happiness and worry. A lot of the adults were hesitant about getting wrapped up in politics, and some others were more excited about the spread of the word of Void. It was only to be expected. The rest of the kingdom was still coming to terms with the fact that they had a new ruler, and she was expecting several rebellions from greater nobles.

She told tales of Void in their chase of the Lieutenants, as well as their god's role in the destruction of several more. This brought about many murmured prayers of thanks to their lord. But soon enough, her tale was over.

The adults poured some stronger wine and began to sip as they told her about what had happened when she was gone. Or, as Trent put it, "Not much, to be honest. Mostly a hard season of planting crops and keeping the kids in line."

It was interesting to hear the adults' perspective on what the Nighty Knights had been up to. She couldn't say she was surprised, but they had formed a formalized watch with guard shifts. The soldiers left to guard the castle had been roped in as well. The officer left in charge and smiled as he explained the joint training they were doing.

The Nighty Knights and the soldiers had evidently grown even closer. The still hilariously overpowered kids were helping the soldiers train while the soldiers taught the Knights how a real military worked. It was a mutually beneficial arrangement, one that seemed to keep everyone occupied, too. And with their chores, they all continued to level.

In fact, Bradley, being the highest level of all of them, was getting extremely close to his next class selection. Bee was very excited about that. Considering his level five classes, the Champion of Spot would likely have some very interesting options at level 25.

Eventually, though, the gathering came to an end, and everyone went off to bed. Bee found her room untouched except for the fresh sheets someone had put on the bed and quickly passed out for the first full night of sleep she had had in a while.

***

Still, despite not needing to, she woke up early, feeling more rested and relaxed than she had for a very long time. The sun was still a few hours away from rising, but she wasn't the only one up. As she started pacing the halls, she spotted many of the farmers already getting ready for their own work. They nodded to her or stopped to bow as she passed by. And as the castle came alive, she retreated to the lab to do some experiments.

It had been too long since Bee had gotten a chance to do alchemy. Far too long. She missed it. Her skills had gotten a little rusty, but after making a few batches of various useful tonics, healing potions, and other useful concoctions, along with some demonbane, she took a break. It was time to stop stalling.

Pulling out the rock, she glared at it. She would inhale this. She would not suck it down her throat and into her lungs and have to cough it up, nor would it go down her esophagus and make her choke. She would put it into the skill the same way her master did.

With a final shudder and a deep breath, Bee rolled her neck. Before she could second guess herself, she pressed the stone up to her mouth and breathed in while plugging her nose. She could feel the rock trying to pull away from her grip, but she couldn't quite bring herself to let go. That mental block was still there.

She closed her eyes and tried harder, imagining her inhale as a gale of strong wind. The rock trembled against her grip, then slipped and shot into her throat.

Her eyes shot open in surprise. Reflexively, Bee wretched and gagged, spitting the rock out in an instant. She could still taste it on her tongue. As she thumped her chest a few times, she glanced up to see Maranda standing at the door, staring at her strangely.

"Uh, Bee? What are you doing?" Maranda asked.

Bee looked at her friend and grimaced. Her voice came out a little hoarse. "I'm trying to use my new skill."

"It looks like you're trying to inhale a rock," Maranda said with a quirked eyebrow and a smirk.

Bee groaned. "Exactly. That's exactly what I'm trying to do. It's stupid."

She tossed the rock onto the table in front of her with a soft clatter and returned the smile. It took Bee a while to recognize Maranda, but she was a lot closer to the confident girl who had welcomed her to the farm all those months ago. That Maranda was unquestionably the more skilled and experienced alchemist at this point likely helped her confidence a lot as well. Not that Bee wasn't good, but she just didn't have the time to dedicate to the craft with her other responsibilities.

Ever since the siege, Maranda had changed. Not a lot at first, but as if tempered by the pressure of supplying critical mutations to protect her home for days on end, the insecure girl, too embarrassed to admit that she didn't know how to read, had been discarded.

Maranda came and leaned against the counter with an obviously suppressing giggle. "Really? That's some skill. What's it called?"

Bee rubbed her face. "It's called Void's breath. I'm supposed to be able to inhale things the way Void does and store them. At least, that's what it feels like."

"Oh!" Maranda raised her eyebrows in surprise. "So what's stopping you?"

"Well, you try inhaling a rock. It's not so easy to do. What if I choke?"

Maranda laughed. "Well maybe we can find someone to help with that."

Quickly, she led Bee out of the lab.

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