The Master Chief screws his eyes up in thought. "Well...technically no..." he hesitantly answers as he picks up on the odd loophole I've presented him. "But certain people of higher rank than me might still get upset if they found out. Besides, it wouldn't do you any good anyway. By the time the info actually makes it onto our books the pirates are typically already gone. Then you factor in how long it would take you to find passage to that island..." Mori shakes his head in the negative."It's just not feasible." I struggle not to smirk at Mori's words as I raise my forefinger and thumb to my mouth. A long sharp whistle pierces the air and almost immediately Kiwi drops out of the sky and slams down next to me. A burst of displaced wind blows Mori's cover off of his head and I give the sparrow a big scratch under his chin while I wait for the flabbergasted Marine to recover. "You let me worry about that part."
I hand the Master Chief a card with my snail number on it and toss my leg over Kiwi's saddle. "Two months Mori. Give me two months to take care of some things and then call the number."
Kiwi begins flapping his wings to take off and I slide a pair of goggles over my eyes. "I'm ready to fight for this ocean. I just need you to point me in the right direction."
It's several hours later when Kiwi and I come to a landing in the center of Kivuruk's town square. No time is wasted as those that are able bodied quickly form a line and I start withdrawing purchases en masse from my hammerspace to pass down the assembly.
"Bless you Jack." The village matron tearfully smiles as she accepts the first bushel of apples and hands it off to the person behind her. "Bless you."
"Don't mention it Helga. I'm glad that you're finally up and around." I reply, withdrawing two buckets. The first full of nails and the other, tools. "Any setbacks today?"
"Nothing we couldn't take care of." She says, taking the next item from my hands. "Everyone's been trying to help with whatever they can. Lory finally got her cast off and spent the whole day helping carve wood."
"That's good." I answer honestly. 'It never ceases to amaze just how quickly the people of this world can recover. Even the ones who are 'slow healers' still bounce back weeks faster than their counterparts would on Earth.' "Barker still pushing himself too hard?"
"Oh yes." The matron mutters somewhat sadly. "He blames himself for not being able to help us during the...the you know." Helga visibly struggles at the end of her sentence. A haunted look overtakes her and she averts her eyes as the memory takes hold.
I gently grasp her hand in mine and offer my best attempt at a comforting squeeze. "I'll try to talk to him later okay?"
"Thank you Jack. So so much." she says with glistening eyes and then steps away to compose herself.
The man behind her assumes her place in line and I inwardly apologize. 'Sorry Helga. That last bit was a lie. I'm not gonna stop him. If anything I'm fucking proud of him.'
Who'd have thunk it? Barker, the teenage punk whom I'd once had to reprimand for tagging others property, had a fire lit under his ass so powerful it was scary. 'Even to me.' It seemed like every hour if the boy wasn't currently eating, sleeping, or shitting, he was training.
The first day he was no longer bedridden I came across him doing one-handed push ups with his left arm still in its sling. Three days after that it was running laps around the entire island. Then the following week came the strength training. Kid fashioned an entire pulley system out of just some rocks, a piece of rope, and an old fishing net.
When I first returned to the island he had been at Lv. 5. Perfectly average and totally unremarkable.
And now just 20 days later he was at 12.
Seven levels in three weeks. I felt like I was watching the birth of a shōnen protagonist. There's no way in hell I'm telling him to stop. I want to see how high he can climb before that growth stagnates. If he gets strong enough I may even gift him a set of instructions on how to unlock two or three of the rokushiki when I leave. Knowing this island is in good hands will ease my mind a great deal while I'm away.
"Alright people give me some room." I call out to the line. "I'm gonna start withdrawing the lumber now."
Tap tap tap tap tap tap.
I pick another nail from the four or so I'm holding in my mouth and line it up with the wooden shingle. I raise the small hammer in my right hand up and,
Tap tap tap tap tap tap.
There's something oddly relaxing about carpentry. Building a proper roof isn't a quick task. It takes hundreds of pieces of material and hours upon hours of labor.
Tap tap tap tap tap tap.
Maybe it's the constant slow progress that makes it serene. You never really stall out. It's a long tranquil chain of 'Okay. That parts done. What's next?'. At least that's how it is to me. Others may feel differently.
Tap tap tap tap tap tap.
"Kee-wee?" My companion tweets next to me, a pail of nails held in his beak.
"Thanks buddy." I mutter with a nail still between my lips. I take another half-dozen from his bucket and Kiwi cheeps to himself for being so good at helping.
Tap tap tap tap tap tap.
He's not actually helping. I'd be working just as fast if the bucket was just sitting next to me but...you know...whatever makes him happy. Tap tap tap tap tap tap.
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