Chapter 588: Smelt Running (1/2)

Ronnie stretched her hands overhead in a long, satisfying yawn. She wore cut-off jean shorts that emphasized her slim brown legs with a mesh tank top that could easily be seen through. Her dark nipples brushed against the fabric, jiggling slightly with every step she made. When she constructed her Great Library, Ronnie had included a spacious attic apartment with an impressive deck that looked out over the river that ran through her property.

She smiled at Wilo who was buzzing near the banks with her favorite gecko perched on her shoulder; her dragon-fly wings reflected the light from the setting sun. ”Something fishy is going on in the river, Ronnie.”

Ronnie grinned at the laughing air elemental, who seemed to find her own words funny. Her sharp eyes turned toward the river, immediately catching the flashes of silver that were readily apparent. ”Hey! I know what this is!.” Without speaking further, she turned abruptly and ran into her apartment.

”No!” Nix fixed Soup with a fake glare as she reached into the bucket where he kept his bounty for the third time in as many minutes.

The jade hand jerked out of the bucket, her aquamarine eyes staring longingly at the assortment of fish that Nix had caught during the day. ”Nom, nom, nom,” she made chewing motions with her mouth and pointed.

”Going to eat you, Soup!” Nix reeled his line in slowly; he spent the latter half of the day fishing with Jun Li and Semmi after going into hardcore crafting mode for several hours.

Soup's quills lay flat on her head and neck as she walked around Nix's chair and sat next to him.

/Go Fish: Semmi: Can't you give her a fish?

/Go Fish: Jun Li: I tried to give her one of mine, but she wouldn't take it.

/Go Fish: Nix: Of course not, my fish are the best. Besides, there were seven fish in my bucket, and now there are only four...

”Soup! How many of my fish did you eat when I wasn't looking?”

Soup held up a slim finger, her round face curved into a wide smile.

Nix shook his head slightly. ”Don't you mean three?”

Soup nodded and held up three fingers.

/Inferno: Ronnie: Nix! Interested in a smelt run?

/Inferno: Nix: No idea what that is.

/Inferno: Semmi: I do! They're small silverfish that migrate up small estuaries from lakes when the temperature starts to change.

/Inferno: Nix: What's the play here?

/Inferno: Ronnie: Not sure how big the run will be but back home, they fill the streams by the hundreds of thousands. My family would scoop them up with nets, and the whole town would have a giant fish fry.

/Inferno: Hyai: These are cooked in hot oil?

/Inferno: Ronnie: Generally dipped in some sort of batter and then deep-fried.

/Inferno: Nix: What kind of gear do we need?

/Inferno: Ronnie: It's most fun with just a regular scoop net. From the looks of the river, the run is just starting.

/Inferno: Mina: We have lots of those at Union City.

Nix stood up and folded his chair before handing Soup his fish bucket. ”All yours, Soup.”

/Inferno: Nix: I'm initiating a Guild-wide directive. All available members are to report to the Great Library.

By the time Nix arrived back at the Horse Ranch, Rand was already driving up in a horse-drawn wagon. It was a team that Nix had bought especially for transport; they were kept separate from the rest of his herd. ”What is the wagon for? We should be able to carry all the pots and utensils in our inventory.”

Rand shook her head slightly. ”Hyai has four barrels of cooking oil.”

”Right... I better help you get those loaded.”

The sun had long since set by the time Haven's Great Library came into view. Nix had opted to drive the wagon, something he enjoyed doing. Hyai sat next to him with an arm entwined through his. The river banks already had more than two dozen Inferno members standing around in small groups, nearly triple that number of Aquarions were milling about.

/Inferno: Semmi: See Rico if you want a set of hip-waders! Milat or Zhava are handing out scoop nets. Does anyone want to help Hyai with the cookfires?

/Inferno: Nix: I'll lend a hand. Save me some waders, please.

/Inferno: Rico: I already made you a set.

/Inferno: Ronnie: We'll help with the cookfires too.

Nix was wrestling one of the large oil barrels down from the wagon bed when an extra set of hands lightened the load considerably. He glanced over the top of the barrel to see a familiar face. ”Thanks! Glad you could make it.”

Sharl's full lips curved in a smile that hid her shock. Nix managed the barrels by himself, something that should have required three people. ”Maybe this is a ploy by Ronnie to snatch you up again.”

”Hey! Don't give away my plans.” Ronnie flashed a bright smile as she dropped an armful of wood onto the ground where Bali was building a cookfire.

Bali finished banking the wood inside the metal frame that Nix had brought and made a gesture toward Hyai. ”Fire user needed!”

Hyai smiled at the tiny ranger before igniting the wood with one hand. ”Thank you, Bali.”

Bali blushed slightly; something in the InnKeepers smile reminded her of Ronnie. ”Oh... That's fine; I'll get started on the next one. We're doing six?”

Hyai already had a pot over the fire and was slowly filling it with a large dipper. Within a few minutes, all six fires were going and the oil was heating up. ”Thanks for the batter recipe; I had nothing ready for this.”

Ronnie leaned over the enormous pot of oil that Hyai had filled; it was already starting to bubble. ”I'll keep making it, or we'll run out fast.”