Chapter 5

Lucy and Rual were welcomed to sleep in Semal & Risha's home, while they built their own house. Lucy slept with herself between Rual, and Semal & Risha to protect Rual. As Lucy was asleep, she started dreaming about her fight with Hess, and woke up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat. The last thing she remembered was seeing Hesse's bloody smile. Lucy's heart was racing. She felt like she was back in that fight. Everyone was asleep. Lucy checked to see if Rual was in the room, and he was still sleeping. Every time Lucy tried to sleep, she heard Hesse's and Misha's voices yelling at her.

"Do you need to go use the bathroom," Lucy asked Rual while shaking him awake.

Rual shook his head, and went back to sleep.

Lucy sighed, because she wanted someone to stay up with her.

'I wouldn't mind seeing Christian right now," she thought to herself.

Christian didn't appear, and Lucy sat in deafening silence for hours. Alone with her thoughts that she couldn't silence.

"You're awake," Risha commented as she woke up.

"I woke up a little earlier," Lucy lied.

"Will you help me gather water," Risha asked.

"Sure."

Risha woke up her husband Semal, and Lucy woke up Rual. The village was waking up in the early hours of light. The river was next to the village, but they walked a little further to a clear stream to collect water. Being able to see into the water allowed them to know if there were any alligators underwater. The river was too murky and muddy to see into.

"Rual, will you collect lots of firewood, please," Lucy asked him, "Fire is a very important tool for us."

The other children in the village crowded Rual with questions as he tried to work. They were used to playing around at the beginning of the day. The adults let the children do this to work off extra energy. Lucy was happy Rual had playful kids his age to interact with. She wondered how much his rape experience weighed on his soul.

Lucy smiled at Rual, when he looked at her for help with the kids, "It's okay to play."

Rual awkwardly followed the other kids around. They were having foot races around the village. Rual won many races, because he was used to endurance hunting in Hess village. He would have to chase an animal to exhaustion during a hunt.

"He is good at running," Semal commented to Lucy.

"Rual is an endurance hunter," Lucy responded.

"You said you make pottery."

"We do make pottery," Lucy said, "before Rual joined me, he was part of a hunting group at his village."

"Is he your husband," Semal asked.

"No," Lucy responded with shock, "He's just a kid."

"Why is he with you?"

"Rual was given to me as a slave, but he was never a slave to me. We look after each other."

"He is your family," Semal commented.

Lucy smiled and nodded, "Rual is my family."

"Yesterday, I wanted to know if you secretly hate all men, because of where you claim to come from," Semal spoke, "but now I know that isn't true about you."

"Why would I hate someone for their gender," Lucy asked, "I'm not a hateful bigot."

"Good," Semal responded, and pointed, "They are Bola, they were born with male parts, but they act more female than male. Bola doesn't like being called a man or woman. Bola is part of my village. Don't disrespect them."

"What does Bola do," Lucy asked.

"Bola helps us talk to the spirits through smoking plants."

Although Lucy didn't believe in spirits, she knew spiritualism was part of this worlds culture. She didn't feel like arguing about the existence of spirits. Lucy expected Bola to be using some type of hallucinogen. There were plenty of psychedelic flora to be found.

"What do you want from us?"

"Don't cause my village problems," Semal responded to Lucy.

"Okay."

Lucy walked over to Rual, and they started collecting firewood. Some wood was found fallen on the ground, and picked before rotting, and other times they would hang on low branches to break them off under their weight. Some of the children helped hang on branches for fun. Lucy borrowed a basket from Risha. Lucy and Rual foraged for wild plants. After bringing back a full basket of edible plants, Lucy borrowed another basket from Risha. Lucy used it to carry clay she dug by hand from the stream. It was carried to where Lucy planned to live, which wasn't far, because she wanted fast access to clay. A spot that could survive the stream flooding was chosen by her.

Lucy learned about brick making, an already existing technology that cost zero Deity Points. She felt very foolish when she decided to learn about it. Clay bricks are much easier to produce than cement. Dry clay in a brick form, and fire it into a standard brick. Lucy and Rual were hand forming clay into bricks, because they didn't have a brick form. They were oddly sized, and convex or concave on some sides, and had rounded edges. The village children stayed near the village, so Lucy didn't worry about the kids deforming the bricks by playing with them. They made over 70 bricks the first day, and more than 100 the next day.

They would wash off the clay on their hands and arms, before eating dinner at the village with Semal and Risha. A regular schedule of collect firewood, forage food while eating, form clay bricks, eat dinner in the village was repeated for a couple weeks.

"When are you done building your home," Semal asked Lucy with impatience.

"I have built the kiln," Lucy spoke, "and now we have to fire the bricks. Sorry for taking so long."

"I want to be alone with my wife at night."

"Rual and I will get up before sunrise to give you time to be with Risha," Lucy responded.

"Risha and Semal already sleep in the same house," Rual commented confused, "Why do they want to be alone, if they're already together."

"It is for sex," Semal answered.

"Are you making a baby," Rual asked.

Semal smiled at the question.

"That's none of our business, Rual," Lucy commented.

"Sorry," Rual apologized, "We will leave earlier."

"Finish your house faster," Semal told Lucy.

Firing the bricks went quickly, but cement making took a couple extra days. Lucy had to wander around many hours to find limestone, collecting animal bones and sea shells would take too long. The limestone was cooked at high heat into chalky calcium oxide in the kiln, and slaked with water to make calcium hydroxide to produce cement, which was used as mortar for the clay bricks. Lucy built a circular brick home with a domed brick roof and chimney in the center. 5 walls acted as spokes inside the circle to support the roof. It was a larger version of her kiln, and she planned to use it as one, after building a better house.

Semal village had a festival for the completion of Lucy and Rual's home. Bola saged the home, and talked to the spirits to warn away evil spirits from visiting it. The whole village danced to a stomping beat to celebrate the spirits, even Lucy danced, although it was for fun and not religious reasons for her.

"You have good spirits following you," Bola told Lucy.

"Thank you," Lucy responded awkwardly, because she didn't believe in them.

"You are empty," Bola commented, "Looking into Lucy's eyes."

"I already ate a lot of food."

"You do not trust the spirits."

"I am an atheist," Lucy responded uncomfortable.

"I am Bola. Smoke with me."

"I shouldn't."

"Smoke. Smoke," Bola coached while holding up the pipe.

Lucy inhaled the smoke. She could tell it was pot mixed with other things. It had a bitter after-taste. Bola and Lucy smoked, and laughed at the people dancing. The firelight started dancing and blurring in Lucy's eyes. Lucy slipped into a world of her own imagination. Her biological parents confronted her as wavy beams of light.

"I did not raise a murderer," Lucy's Mom spoke.

"Why did you do this," her Father asked.

"Why did you kill me," Hess asked as a blood red smoke talking to Lucy.

"I'm sorry," Lucy spoke with teary eyes.

"I am dead," Hesse's voice spoke as smoke got thicker.

"You are not my daughter," Lucy's Mom stated.

"I failed as a Father."

"Don't get rid of me," Lucy begged her parents.

"This is your fault," Hess told her.

"I didn't want things to be this way," Lucy cried, "Why couldn't you accept me for the way I am?"

"God is above all," her parents spoke.

"God isn't real," Lucy shook her head.

"You killed me," Hess spoke.

The smoke was so thick, that Lucy couldn't breathe. Lucy coughed many times, and vomited. Her world was spinning around her. The colors rushed passed her. Sounds were booming. Voices blamed her way of living. Lucy could taste Hesse's blood in her mouth, and see herself staring back at her with the spear in her shoulder. Lucy experienced Hesse's death from inside her body. She had to confront herself. Someone was dead. They would never come back, although they haunted Lucy's mind.

"I'm sorry," Lucy spoke to Hess.

"This was caused by the evil spirits in men," Hess responded.

"There are no evil spirits," Lucy defended herself, "They aren't real. People have the capacity for good and evil. You have to help them be good. They're not evil creatures."

"Why didn't you help me," Hess asked.

"I tried to help you," Lucy cried with tearful eyes.

"You killed me."

"I'm sorry."

"Always finding trouble," Christian's voice commented.

"This is all your fault," Lucy blamed him.

"Rual would be dead without you here," Christian told Lucy.

"I- I-," Lucy stuttered, and started crying.

"I'm just a devil, Lucy," Christian spoke, "We're not good or evil."

"Why do they hate me," Lucy cried for the loss of her parents. "I want my friends and family!"

"You have them here," Christian commented.

"What are we going to do," Rual's voice asked Lucy.

Lucy wiped her snot away, and started laughing. She got the family she wanted to keep, and people would accept her as an atheist according to what Bola said. Lucy laughed until she started coughing.

"You are strange, Stranger," Hess told Lucy.

"I am Lucy," she responded.

Lucy woke up in her home, with Rual sleeping next to her. She looked up at the stars shining through the chimney above their heads. Semal village felt much more accepting, compared to Hess village. Lucy realized this was the first time she was home in a house that felt strong and safe in almost a year, and started crying.

Rual woke up, and asked, "What's wrong, Lucy?"

"We are safe," Lucy responded.

Rual thought on Lucy's words, and nodded his head.

Lucy hugged Rual, and said, "You are my family, and I will care for you."

"Thank you Auntie," Rual hugged Lucy.

"Am I too old to be your sister," Lucy laughed.

Rual nodded.

Lucy was trapped at the age of 25 by Christian. Cursed to live forever at that age, which would make Rual a teenage pregnancy, if he was her son biologically.

"Did you know your parents," Lucy asked Rual

Rual shook his head, "We don't know the father in Hess village, and the boys are raised by men, and the girls by women. Men and women are kept apart, unless they are serving women."

"Did a girl in Hess village ever see themself as a boy."

Rual thought and nodded, "I heard a story about a girl who lived before me from the men. He called himself a boy, and the villagers would punish him."

"What happened to him," Lucy asked.

"The villagers drown him, until he would confess he was a girl, but he died instead."

"That's terrible," Lucy commented.

"They said he was Hesse's brother-sister."

'How did Hess feel about that,' Lucy wondered.

"How would they know, if they don't know the father," Lucy asked.

"They were twins," Rual answered Lucy's question.

"Losing someone so close to her must have done something to Hess."

"I don't know," Rual shrugged, "I wasn't there."

"I'm glad you're alive," Lucy told Rual.

"I like being alive now," he responded.

"What about before?"

Rual frowned and didn't speak.

"I'm here for you now," Lucy spoke, "We should try to sleep more."

Rual nodded.

Lucy spent the whole day forming a 7 liter clay pot from rolled clay noodles. Her mind had an intrusive thought of making poison ivy tea in it, when it was finished. She shook the thought out of her head. Rual was playing with the other kids, when he wasn't collecting firewood or doing other tasks to help Lucy. They clay pot broke when being fired in the kiln, but it was okay. Lucy could make mistakes, and not be blamed by the village leader for not giving them enough when she failed. Lucy had built a large pile of broken pottery.

"You are having trouble," Risha commented at Lucy's pile of failures.

"These are just practice," Lucy replied, and pointed at completed ceramics, "Those are done."

Risha picked up a clay bowl, and asked, "Why do you make so many?"

"There are many people in the world," Lucy responded.

"What do you get from it," Risha asked.

"I don't know yet," Lucy smiled to herself.

"I'll give you 4 oranges for each bowl," Risha spoke, "I want 5 bowls."

"Twenty oranges is fine."

"What is twenty, I give you four fives of oranges."

"Twenty means four fives," Lucy responded.

"You have funny words," Risha laughed, and yelled at her husband, "Lucy calls four fives twenty."

Semal laughed, "What is a twenty?"

"Four fives," Risha laughed.

Lucy rolled her eyes at their laughter.

"Twenty? You are crazy," Semal commented.

Lucy found the laughter contagious, and started laughing too. She felt happy here in Semal village. The biggest risk was encountering an alligator, and she didn't have to tip-toe around human interactions. She was happy that Rual was safe and happy. The kids didn't call her 'Bone Taker,' and instead said she was "Lucy the Potter." Lucy didn't feel like it was her whole identity, but she was focusing on making pottery at the moment.

Lucy wanted metal. She wanted a metal ax, and metal hoe for tilling the earth. Lucy wanted a farm. No one was making farms. Rual wanted pickle food. Semal was getting what he wanted from Risha.

"It's so much harder to make salt now," Lucy commented.

They were over an hour's walk from the ocean. Lucy had many projects rolling around in her mind. She was making calculations in her head.

"Causing trouble," Christian asked.

Lucy looked around to see if anyone was watching her, and responded, "What are you doing here?"

"I'm visiting my favorite God, or would you prefer Goddess?"

"I told you Gods aren't real," Lucy responded.

"But you think of me as a devil."

"It's just another word for asshole to me."

"You're going to change the world, Lucy."

"Why don't you stop causing trouble," Lucy asked Christian, "What the hell are you doing now?"

"I'm just having a friendly conversation with my friend," Christian smiled.

"You're planning something," Lucy accused him.

"This is just a friendly check-in. Have you tried alligator wrestling yet?"

Lucy sprinted towards the village. She was worried about what Rual was doing. She ran towards the riverside, and saw the alligators sunbathing.

"Rual!" Lucy screamed

Lucy kept screaming for Rual, who eventually came running through the village to her.

"What's wrong," Rual asked.

Lucy hugged Rual tightly, and started crying, "I'm so glad you're alive, Rual."

"Why are you crying," Rual was confused.

"Stay away from the alligators, and the river," Lucy commanded.

"I know that already."

"You're such an asshole," Lucy thought out loud.

"What," Rual asked.

"No, not you," Lucy defended herself, "I didn't mean you."

"Who is an asshole," Rual asked.

Lucy stuttered because only she knew about Christian, "He's a spirit that talks to me."

Lucy hated using a religious term to identify a real occurrence. She preferred factual words, and conversations built on truth. She felt guilty calling Christian a spirit. Technically the idea of spirits is that they don't interact directly with the world. Christian has already directly effected things in Lucy's eyes.

"You run fast for a fat person," Christian laughed.

"Rual, do you see someone standing there," Lucy pointed at Christian.

Rual shook his head, "No."

Lucy tried to punch Christian across the jaw, but he transformed into smoke as her fist passed through him. Lucy kept trying to land a punch on him, until she was out of breath.

"What are you doing," Rual asked.

"Trying to fight my demons," Lucy responded.

"I take offence to being called a demon," Christian stated.

"What the hell is it to you," Lucy asked.

"I don't know," Rual said uncomfortably.

"Not you sweetie," Lucy pointed towards the air.

"Demons are lawless beasts that act on instinct," Christian said.

'That sounds like you,' Lucy thought.

"I'm not a beast."

'You could have fooled me," Lucy thought.

"I don't have to take this," Christian stated, and disappeared into smoke.

Lucy let out a long sigh, and asked Rual, "Are you hungry?"

"A little bit," he responded.

"I got some oranges from Risha at home."

Lucy and Rual walked home together. They had 17 oranges waiting for them, and the left over peels from 3 oranges. Lucy laughed.

"What is so funny," Rual asked.

"Someone got hungry, and ate some already," Lucy responded.

Rual thought Lucy was talking about herself. They enjoyed eating oranges together. They were very ripe and sweet. Orange juice dripped off their chins.

"These are really good," Lucy commented.

Rual nodded, while peeling another orange to eat.

Lucy ate 4 oranges, and Rual ate 3. They had 10 oranges remaining. Lucy thought about alcohol. She was sure the village would respond with excitement to it. She added another project to the pile in her mind.

"What are you thinking about," Rual asked.

"There's so many things to do to improve the world," Lucy responded.

"You're going to change the world?"

Lucy smiled and nodded at Rual.

'Deity Points plus 33,' the system announced.

"What do you think about Bola?" Lucy asked.

"They are very nice," Rual responded, "They tell us lots of stories about the spirits."

"I'm glad you accept them, Rual."

"Why wouldn't I," Rual asked.

"There are people that hold hate in their heart for different people," Lucy stated.

"Like the women at Hess village hate the men?"

Lucy nodded, "Exactly like that. It's good to be kind to people. Even if the way they live isn't the same as you're used to."

Rual nodded his head, and spoke, "I want to change their minds."

"Whose mind," Lucy asked

"The people at Hess village," Rual answered Lucy.