Note: This chapter contains strong and threatening language, normally in the form of medieval swears and phrases, scenes of physical assault towards minors (what this society considers a minor) and siblings, negligence to serious situations, scenes about a side character with chronic pain, and a conversation about lovers and virginity. Please proceed with caution.
"You boys better get your asses up before I drown you!"
A voice rang across their temporary sleeping quarters and Ostara pressed herself off the ground at the sound. Her unbound breasts hung under her shirt with the motion, and she pressed them back down. Panic flooded through her, hoping the darkness around them and the sack she was tangled in would hide the hand that reached for the wand on her leg. She removed it from the holder, her forehead against the ground, and whispered the spell, feeling her body mold itself under the sack, and she stood carefully, checking her face with a hand.
"Boy!"
The voice now had a face to match it, and the older man stomped over to her, face red with anger.
"What are you still doing here?"
"I was just about to leave, sir," she squeaked. That wasn't right. Men's voices weren't so high. They lost that ability after they turned a decade of age.
"You better be," he grumbled, walking away to yell at a little boy stuck in his sack.
Ostara peered through the darkness, seeing men walk towards a crowd. Gripping her wand tightly in her hand, she followed them and flinched from a chime that was hit, the sound echoing across the camp.
"Get over here! Now!" A chief's servant yelled over the chime's notes, striking it three more times before packing it away.
"Thank you, Bran," another servant said, and the crowd hushed to hear his words. "Your chief has a few words to say when facing this crisis."
There were a few polite claps before the rest joined, allowing their chief to soak in the applause as he walked onto the makeshift stage.
"Thank you, thank you." he grinned, nodding and giving quick bows to his elders, who stood assisted by their sons. "Thank you for joining me tonight. I'm sure you've all heard some variation of the current news. Another village has attacked a Wizard town, and they are planning something…horrible. Something deadly. All Witch towns have or are making their war camps now to prepare to defend themselves against this attack. You should all understand and know your enemy as much as you know your friends. I know I should have."
A few chuckles fluttered through the crowd as their chief sighed dramatically. A few children looked interested in the story, but the older men rolled their eyes, tired of it. He repeated it at every event, having done nothing about it since. Until now.
"When I was a child, my brother was kidnapped and murdered by a group of Wizards who snuck into our home and stole him from the bed. We didn't realize this until the morning, when my mother found his blood-trail staining her pristine yard. We held a funeral for him, and my parents had to pass all of his responsibilities onto me. The second child. The disappointment. But they are left rolling in their coffins, for I surpassed their expectations and have improved this town tenfold!"
An elder laughed, clutching his son and cane tight against knobby knees. "What a bitch! Lying, the man shall be!"
His son held him up, face red with embarrassment. "I'm sorry, sir! He doesn't mean that! He's touched in the head, I tell you!"
"I understand, boy." He nodded a servant towards him and pointed at the old man. After a few whispers, two more servants picked up the man by his arms and carried him away, pushing his son back into the crowd.
"Since that's sorted out." Their chief announced, trying to pull their attention back to him. "You should know your enemy well. May my family rest well in Ozul's hand."
Silence fell fast for the dead. Not even one of the children cracked a joke, all knowing or feeling the effects of grief.
Their chief cleared his throat, grinning past the silence. "Who is prepared to fight for your town and kill those Wizards who murdered my brother?"
They had already begun cheering when he called the name of their enemy. Normally, Ostara would have cheered along, but she found it hard to. Surely not every Wizard was bad? Surely not every Wizard was a murderer? What about Corrin and Sachse, who have to hide their relationship because of factors out of their control? Would they have to hear a similar speech that vilified them?
Their chief basked in the glory of the cheer until it died down, and he was left smiling. "Now, my servants will split you by age. Those twenty-four years of age and above, stand there. Those under that age, stand over there."
Ostara joined the group of children, recognizing many of them as customers clutching wands her family had molded. But what should she say? She wasn't a woman anymore. Who would recognize her?
"Follow me, men!" The chief cried, leading the adults away through the camp, followed by some of his most trusted servants. The rest were left behind, confused about their instructions as the children began to gossip amongst themselves. Ostara kept her ears open as they whispered to each other, trying to decipher a whispered message.
"We aren't sure what to do."
"I didn't take this position to babysit."
"Silence," said an older servant. "We need to quiet the boys and start them with some basic tasks."
"Start with strength training," one suggested.
"No, they need to get sorted into their dormitories first," another countered.
"We can do that later. Strength training is a good idea."
A younger servant ran up the hill, his tunic's collar soaked with sweat. "A message from Sir. Narewe. He's ready for the haircuts."
A cheer exploded behind Ostara, and she flinched, whipping her head around to see the commotion. Two boys had begun fighting over one's knife, and one had the other's arm twisted behind his back, his face contorting in pain.
The elder servant sighed. "Tell Sir. Narewe that we will arrive soon. You, get them into their dormitories and, boy, we'll meet back here for the haircuts."
"Sir. Narewe has a big station. He'll be disappointed to move it up the hill."
"That's not what I-"
"Break it up!" an older boy said, stooping down to pick up the knife. "Who had it first?"
The conscript dropped the other out of the headlock and pushed him away. "He stole it from me!"
"Liar! My father gave me that before he sent me here! Give it to me!"
"Thank you, boy, for attempting to deescalate the situation, but I will take it from here," The elder servant said before the older boy could say anything. He snatched the knife from the boy and held out the handle towards the other two. "Take it, then."
Both jumped for it, and within seconds, the knife was sheathed away, both left with slices on their skin. The servant cleared his throat, pressing a spare cloth to the new cut on his hand, and made sure he had everyone's attention before speaking.
"Follow me, boys. I'll lead you to your dormitories before you get your haircut."
He walked through the camp, and the crowd followed, curiously whispering behind their hands. As they walked, they passed shelves of weapons and rows and rows of tents stretching until the end of the field. The servant stopped them at a set of five two-story buildings, all interconnected. Some children gasped in wonderment.
"Do you have the scroll?" He asked another servant as he unrolled it. "Silence, boys. Here are the dormitories where you'll sleep. Failure to complete the upcoming tasks will result in an array of punishments, including being locked out of your dormitory for the night. Understood? Begin the list."
The servant called out eight boys per room, grouping them by age. Ostara waited patiently for her fake name to be called. They had just begun reading assignments for the second building when Ostara froze.
"Building Two, Floor 1, Room 3: Mulelane, Philbert. Branislav, Wrone. Weddal, Frig. Wodehacch, Edmund. Derefold, Archibald..."
Ostara watched as Frig drifted through the crowd and stood with the other boys waiting in front of the building. Most were wracked with fear and nervousness like him, but there were a few with devious grins. She wanted to run to him and hug him like old times, but she was different now. She wasn't his older sister who was stuck in a similar unwanted situation. Oz was a merchant's son, and it would be hard to explain why he was tempted to hug a stranger.
They continued reading the names for Buildings Three, Four, and Five, and the crowd lessened with each group, leaving only a few dozen men in the crowd.
"Building Five, Floor Two, Room One: Bennett, Hudde and Judd. Ercanblad, Thando. Webb, Hawise. Strond, Andrew. Taylor, Hankin. Tarrenbough, Oz. Wortwey, Aldo."
Ostara followed the mentioned boys to stand in front of the building, all exchanging awkward glances, but none making a motion to speak. The servant quickly called the rest of the names of the older boys and closed the scroll, allowing his elder to speak.
"Thank you, William. Boys, place any unnecessary items in your dorms now. Bags, large items that are hard to carry on your person, and anything similar. Go, now."
The boys rushed into the buildings the second the doors were opened. Ostara kept those numbers in mind: Five, two, one. Five, two, one.
Past the second and third rooms was a U-shaped staircase towards another landing, and Ostara followed the few boys up the stairs.
"Which room is it?" one boy asked an older one.
"Which room are you in?"
"I think he said three?"
The boy pointed to the room at the right of the staircase. "Right there."
"Thank you," he said before ducking into the room to drop off his pack.
A boy noticed her down the hall and waved a hand. Ostara joined him, and he held a hand out between them to shake, which she did, digging her other hand into her pocket tightly. She couldn't afford to make any female gestures around men her age.
"You're Oz, correct?"
"Oh, I…Yes, I am."
"Nice to meet you, then. I'm another of the boys in Floor Two, Room One, Thando. Ercanblad. Do you care about last names?"
"Not unless you're my elder."
"Understood."
He led her into the room, where four beds were set up on either side, making a small alley between them. The other boys sat on their identical beds, either sitting next to their packs or nothing else. One sat on the floor, ankles crossed on the bed, his eyes tracing the nails in the ceiling. A small braid tucked out from behind his neck. Another hugged his pack to his chest, curled as tight as he could into himself.
"That bed over there is unclaimed," Thando said, pointing to a bed on the right side with no distinguishing characteristics. "You can take it."
"Thank you," she muttered, shuffling her feet before she sat on the bed, setting her bag next to her. The awkwardness of the situation was tense, and Thando sighed, leaning his head against the doorframe for a moment before facing the room again.
"What are we all doing?"
"Waiting for instructions," one of the boys on a bed snapped. "What did you think this was?"
"No. We can't keep ourselves like this. It'll be even worse during training."
"How do you know that?" the boy on the floor asked. "Have you gone through this training before? Do you know what's coming?"
"Of course I don't. Have any of you ever faced such a huge prospect, such as war, before?" He didn't wait for a response before he continued talking. "Exactly, you haven't. No one has. If any of you have trained with your fathers, you know this will be worse. We'll have to fight our enemy."
"Enemy this, enemy that," spat the boy on the floor. "Have any of you actually met a Wizard?"
None of them raised their hands. Ostara watched them all, curious at their lack of reaction to the question. She didn't want to draw attention to herself by admitting that she'd snuck past the border, as that would fall into them asking for the story. Did she know them enough to admit something like this? Admit that she'd seen the war begin?
"See? Your comment is bullshit."
"Oh, shut up, Drew. Your father had to drag you here by the braid," the boy sitting on a bed near the door snapped.
The boy next to Ostara coughed into his hand, drawing the attention to him. "Says you. You would have never signed up if you weren't sitting with your twinn when your father found you. Good training for the weak one, he said."
"Quiet, everyone!" Thando said, trying to smile as he threw an arm in front of the boy on the bed, who had begun to move. "Let's return to what I was saying."
"Return to what no one was listening to?" the boy called Drew muttered.
Thando tried to ignore it. "Look, war is a new subject for us. We need to stick together. We may be put through trials where we have to work together, and we don't want this awkward scenario to persist when we have to trust each other." He stepped through the room and sat on the bed across from Ostara, leaning against the wall. "Each of us is going to say their names and abilities, and none of you is going to leave until we've heard everyone speak. Let me start. I'm Thando Ercanblad, and I can move metal. You."
He pointed at the boy in front of him, who was curled into a ball.
"Yes, you. What's your name and ability?"
"Oh." He tried to sit up and flinched as he was able to complete the task. "I'm Hankin. Earth…Earth magic. That's what I have."
Thando nodded. "Next. Kid on the floor."
"What do you want?" he asked, finger twirling through the end of his braid.
"Did you not hear the instructions? Name and ability. Now."
Drew held his wand over his head, muttering a spell, making a small flame appear at the end. "I'm Drew Strond. My full name is Andrew. And I can do this. Or I can blast a hole in this ceiling and burn it down."
"Well, as long as someone's happy. You, over there. Yes, near the door."
"I know, I know. Hawise, water. No need to repeat yourself, you cockalorum."
Thando let the insult brush over him. "Next."
"I'd rather not," the boy snapped.
"Say your name, saddle-goose," said the boy sitting on the bed next to him.
"You already know it."
"Forget that," he said, sitting higher, looking over at Thando from across the room. "He's Hudde, I'm Judd. He's my twinn."
The boy between Judd and Ostara stifled a laugh with his hand, but tried to cover it up as a cough.
"What does that mean?" Hawise asked.
"We were born at the same time."
His brother glared at him, fuming. "No, no, he's lying. I'm Judd, he's Hudde. He likes to be a skamelarlike that."
"So who's who?" Drew asked, eyes rolled up in his sockets as his finger pointed between the two.
The boy next to Ostara sighed into his hands and looked up at them all, trying to hide his grin behind his hand. "I've known them since we were children. Hudde has a freckle on his left thumb, and Judd has a scar on his eye. Move your hair, Judd."
The boy moved his bangs, revealing a white scar straight down his hidden eye. "I'm Judd, he's Hudde. We don't look that alike."
"He's shy about how he got it. Besides, I'm Aldo. I can move the earth. The twinns can twist the winds."
Their eyes all turned to Ostara in the corner. Drew let out a tsk as she flinched. "Hurry up, then, so we can leave."
"Give him time." Thando snapped, sending a smile at him. "Whenever you're ready."
"I'm Oz," she muttered. "Earth magic."
"Speak up!" Drew yelled.
"No, I heard him," Aldo replied. "You're Oz? Interesting. Why haven't I seen you before?"
"I-I'm a merchant's son. We travel. A lot."
"Ah, that makes sense. A fellow Witch of the earth! I think we'll get along fine." Aldo grinned at her before he stood and dashed to the door, whispering a spell to walk through it.
"Fuck!" Drew cried as he stood fast, scrambling towards the door. Hawise shoved an elbow into his ribs, running out after Aldo. Ostara glanced out the window next to her bed for a moment, seeing most of the boys gathering on the lawn, waiting.
"Go, go, go!" Judd yelled, pushing Hankin and Hudde out of the way as they swarmed to the door. "We're late!"
"Blame the snoutband!" Hawise yelled, already halfway down the stairs.
Ostara followed them out of the building, squeezing between them to get through the front door and into the crowd as they bickered at each other.
"Silence!" a servant yelled at them, his cane placed on the ground. "What took you all so long?"
Hawise pointed at a calm Thando, who exited last. "He wanted to make friends."
"Fucking fopdoodle. I should've burned the window apart when his face was there." Drew complained, shaking his wand between his two fingers.
"Whose face are we burning now?" Thando said, smiling, but Drew still glared. The servant noticed him and stepped away to join his fellow servants in monitoring the boys.
"Yours," Aldo said. "We wouldn't be late if we kept sitting there listening to you speak like a garrulous."
"Everyone's being late," he pointed out.
"The little ones are still crying," Ostara whispered, hearing their crying over the conversations of the crowd. A servant stomped to their building's door and banged on it, asking them to come out and join the crowd.
"See?" Thando said, using her comment as an example. She jumped, not noticing how close he was.
"Get out!" a servant yelled at the buildings, rapping his fist on the front door or wall as he passed by them all. "Get out of your beds and join us! It's time for your haircut!"
Ostara looked at Judd, and wasn't the only one. Most of the group exchanged a glance with him, thinking of the scar under his bangs. He crossed his arms, annoyed.
"Yes, I'm going to have to remove it. Are you happy? You'll be able to tell us apart now."
"Judd's voice is higher than Hudde's," Aldo admitted, stretching his arms over his head, ignoring the pops and cracks from his shoulders and back that made everyone else flinch. "He leads with his right foot and shoots a bow with his left eye and right arm. Hudde shoots and leads with his right side: arm, foot, and eye." He nodded towards their dormitory. "I have a notebook of all their differences up there."
"Drew, can you burn it?" Judd grumbled. Hudde waved his wand, performing a curve spell that made Judd trip over a curve of wind. Ostara let a chuckle escape her as the group burst into laughter at the prank. She realized too late that her hand was covering her mouth and whipped it into her pocket, hoping no one had noticed.
"Come, boys! Time for your haircut!" the elder servant cried over them. "No running and follow me!"
The crowd gingerly followed the servant down the hill, Hankin keeping his pack against his chest. Ostara tapped his shoulder from behind and pointed at it, curious.
"I can't say," he muttered.
"At least put on the straps to look more normal. It's odd to see you carrying that."
Hankin slipped his arms into the pack's straps, still keeping it pressed against his front.
"How many people do you see carrying it frontways?" Hawise asked, stepping into their conversation.
"No one is holding their pack now." Ostara pointed out.
"My point exactly. Are you hiding something under there?"
Ostara took another step ahead and froze. The ground shifted under her feet, and the two vanished from sight, replaced with large stretches of dirt crossing over her. They may have yelled, but she didn't hear anything.
This was simple Earthen teleportation, and as she was whisked through the element, she remembered her mother's words when she had been taught it years ago: Close your eyes and stay calm. She followed them carefully, her hands over her opposing collarbones as the dirt flew past.
An invisible hand yanked her from the dirt, and she stumbled backwards on the surface, still feeling the aftereffects of the pull. Her eyes flew open to see a line of servants a few inches away, their wands out. She was back at the stage, where a few other conscripts with shaved heads waited, entertaining themselves in little ways. She dropped her hands instantly, ashamed of hiding her chest. What was there to hide now?
"There he is. You're exempt from this task," one of them announced.
Ostara took a moment to understand his words, trying to keep herself upright. "What does that mean?"
"Look at you." Another servant snapped. "You don't need a haircut. It'll only make it worse. Now, wait over there for your dormitory, and keep quiet."
"Yes, sir," she snapped, remembering Irenaeus' similar tone of command. She found a spot next to the stage and sat carefully, trying to look at how the other boys were sitting. Should she have her arms and legs extended? Her legs crossed? Should she lie on her stomach or back? The other boys were all sitting in a variety of ways, making her confusion worse. Was she even to sit at all?
"There he is!" a voice called from further down the hill. "Hey, Oz! Come join us!"
Ostara jumped from the sound that pierced the whispers of the other conscripts. She stood, realizing it was Hawise who had spoken, and walked down the hill to join them.
Hawise, Judd, and Aldo were the first ones finished with their haircuts, where their hair had been cut until patches of skin shone through the bristles. Judd and Aldo kept trying to brush his hair over the scar, but it wouldn't move much.
"How long have you been growing it out?" Hawise asked.
"Two and a half years at the end of this month," Judd admitted, twisting his hand in the thin strands in anger. "Is it not going to move?"
"I presume not." Aldo sighed.
"If anything, it makes you look more interesting with your scar," Ostara said, trying to compliment him. He smirked and gave him a shrug.
Hudde ran up the hill and wrapped an arm around his brother's neck, turning it into a headlock at a switch. "If anything, he's the more interesting twinn now."
Aldo sighed as Judd tried to kick him. "How many times do I have to tell you? Nobody knows what a twinn is."
"I'll explain it a hundred times if I can," Hudde said over the sound of his brother's choking.
Hawise whipped a knife from his ribs and flung it into his foot. Hudde sucked in a breath and dropped Judd, bouncing on one foot in pain, blood pouring between his fingers. Aldo and Oz hid their laughs behind their hands, trying to appear sympathetic.
The rest of the dormitory arrived, all sharing a laugh at each other's new identical haircuts. Besides Judd, the most shocking transformations were from Drew and Thando. Drew kept feeling the back of his head for his braid, as Thando grinned at Ostara, his bangs no longer in his eyes.
"Lucky that you missed it. Drew was seconds from crying."
As he tried to insist that he wasn't, the large chime rang again, calling the boys to attention.
"Listen here!" A servant cried as another put the chimes away. "We've set up these bodies of hay to practice your abilities on. They can withstand any ability, so you won't start a forest fire. Line up in front of each and begin at my command!"
The servant speaking waved towards ten bodies made of hay and tacked together with belts of leather, the bodies stuck onto their own posts. The groups followed the servants into a single line in front of each, each boy pulling out his wand. They were instructed to perform their simplest spell on the body and were shuffled into a crowd once he had finished. A few boys whispered together and walked up to a servant, who allowed them to step away from the task. Another servant saw this and confronted his colleague.
"What's this for? Are we letting the weak ignore this task?"
"No, sir," the servant said. "These boys cannot work on objects outside of skin."
"It's true, sir," one of the boys said. "Our ability is Shapeshifting."
"Yes, or healing. May we be excused?"
He looked at them all and waved a hand as he walked away, ending his line with a prayer. "At least work on each other to pass the time. May that not be offensive to Sayge."
Ostara watched the scene, her teeth grinding together. Should she join them? Or risk exposing herself to Frig? He'd barely seen her yet, but he was present when the officers were talking about her ability, was he not? Would he be able to put the pieces together, or would he be so immersed in his newfound freedom that he wouldn't have noticed?
"I said, next man, step forward!" another servant snapped, pulling Ostara away from her thoughts.
"Oz, move!" Drew snapped, shoving her from behind. She straightened herself and took the previous man's spot, facing the body across the space from her. Whispering a spell, she raised a wall of dirt and mud and shoved it towards the body. Mud dripped from the ends of the hay, but there was little damage otherwise.
Drew chuckled from behind her. "Let someone else have a turn."
Ostara dropped the rest of the wall back to where it had previously sat and stepped away to watch Drew. He yelled his spell over the crowd, sending a fireball towards the body, which barely had any damage except a single singed piece.
"Are you serious! I could've severely burned anyone with that!" he cried. A servant grabbed him by the ribs when he rushed forward to attack the body, yelling more swears.
"Oi! Boy! Get out of the path!"
Ostara flinched, turning to see a servant yelling at her from the line. While watching the scene, he had wandered between the line and the body and quickly ran towards the crowd of finished conscripts, fear propelling her legs to move.
She could see the whole field now. Those with skin abilities were practicing on each other behind the lines, and another group attacked each other with bodily abilities. A servant wrote down each boy's abilities, another whispering in his ear.
An arm wrapped around her neck, and Hudde leaned against her, grinning at the sight. "What a great day. We get to join the war, Drew gets his ass beat, and we made new friends."
Judd walked up from behind him, making gagging sounds. "Sounds wonderful. This fustilugs." He whispered the last part so only he and Oz could hear.
Ostara grabbed Hudde's wrist and lifted it ever so slightly until she could leave the gesture, trying to look sorry about it. "Is everyone done yet?"
"Uhh." Hudde looked over the lines, squinting. "Hankin and Hawise are still in line. Aldo is running up now. Drew's getting confined, and I think that's Thando over there? Nope, just a brown haired kid."
"We're all kids." Judd snapped.
"Eh, let it be by-gone," he shrugged. "He might just be in the bathroom. Nothing to worry about."
The lines moved fast, and their whole camp of boys had finished within the hour. The servants whispered to each other, discussing the next task and pushing away curious ears.
Soon enough, one boy left their group and returned with two other men, all three dragging three empty carts into the camp. Ostara recognized their handiwork from the large Q in the middle of the front of the cart. These were from the Quelm family, an accomplished family of woodworkers who loved to put their initials on everything.
A few other men walked around them, carrying barrels and sorting beer between them. When the beer had first been opened, many of the boys rushed towards it, most not having drunk before that hour, but they were shooed away until magical force had to be used. A barrier was placed over the beer, shocking anyone with electricity if they tried to rush it.
"What's going on?" someone asked, making Ostara jump from her seat on the ground. It was Thando, and he kept a grin on his face as he sat between her and Hudde.
"They're still setting up for the next task. Where have you been?"
"Had to go to the bathroom. What do you think we're doing next?"
"Some sort of carrying challenge." Hankin guessed, still hugging his pack to his chest.
"Are you ever going to let go of that thing?" Drew snapped. "Did you steal something?"
"No."
"Something illegal?"
"No."
"So why do you have that?"
"It just…it…I-" Hankin stuttered on his way to explaining what was wrong. All of their eyes were on him, and Ostara looked away for a brief moment, not wanting him to feel pressured from the attention.
"Is it for nostalgia?" she guessed, looking back at him. "Something your mot- father gave you?"
"Yes," he mumbled. "Just that."
She knew he was lying, but didn't press. "Drew, what happened to your wrist?"
Drew hid his wrist behind his leg again. "Nothing. Just a rune."
Aldo, who was sitting next to him, grabbed his wrist and held it up, studying the other side himself. "They spelled you! What did you do?"
A wave of wonder washed over them as they pushed each other out of the way to get a look at the magical rune. A circle had been embedded in his wrist, some words of the Celestial language reading out a spell that none of them could translate. Ostara recognized Xenoph's inscription written four times, but couldn't tell the rest of it.
The translated spell calls for Drew to be temporarily cut from First, or Xenoph's, magic until they decide that he is worthy enough to be reinstated.
A servant tossed a fireball into the sky, none of them wanting to bring out the chimes again, and the crowd fell to silence, letting the elder servant speak.
"Well, that works. Time for your next task, boys!"
"Do we get to drink beer?" an older boy called, causing a cheer.
"No! No, you do not! This is not a drinking challenge. This is a test of strength. We will organize you by age group, and each man will pull a cart of beer-"
His words were drowned out by the mention of beer. The man lowered his head in shame, squeezing the skin between his eyes tight. Ostara assumed that some of the conscripts had some sort of addiction to the bitter taste.
"Shut up! I called for silence!" His voice boxes scratched against his throat skin as he yelled past his register.
Silence fell after another servant pointed a fireball at the worst of the crowd. A boy got hit with most of the damage and was left crying before a healer fixed his injuries.
"Is that all of your excitement? Can I finish the instructions now?" He waited for total silence before praying. "Thank the Deities for their compliance. Two servants will be assigned to each cart for reading names and sorting each boy into their ropes. Those more educated will call them harnesses. Now, those aged ten and under can follow Alaric and Emil towards the cart over there. Alaric, raise your hand."
The smallest of the boys followed the two to the first cart, still jumpy around their elders as they passed them.
"For the first cart, we will not remove any weight past one or two barrels. Each boy must complete a lap and back for it to be counted. You will pull the cart until the laps are completed. Understood?"
The boys responded with nods and agreements, and the servant continued with the next few carts. The second cart would have no weight added or removed and was assigned to the children aged eleven to seventeen. The third cart would have weight added by a few barrels, and was assigned to the eldest children. Ostara and the boys made their way to the third cart, being sorted into three lines at random. They were allowed to sit and talk while they waited for their turns.
Everyone in their newfound group was able to finish their laps in under half of an hour. Their names were read off alphabetically, and those who had finished their laps were given a strip of cloth to wrap around their wrist to signify completion.
"Tarrenbough, Oz!" the servant yelled, breaking up their conversations.
Thando grinned at him. "You've got this. It's easy on the lap back, don't worry."
"Easy?" Drew snapped. "Sol's rays are beating down on you the whole time! How is that easy?"
"It was easier when I did it."
Oz stood and met the two servants at the cart. The one holding the list of names gave it to the other before he began to pull the ropes over her shoulders. Ostara flinched from the pulled strands tickling her neck.
"Oh, relax." the servant scoffed. "It'll be worse on the way back." He thudded a hand on her shoulder and gave it a push. "Be quick. We'll count your scores when you're done."
Ostara looked back at the cart behind her. Six barrels of beer sat on the cart, intimidating her. Could she really do this?
"Well?" The servant snapped her out of her thoughts. "Turn the cart around as you walk. I don't want to say this for every boy."
"Yes, sir," she whispered and turned herself towards the end of the field. She reached the end of the ropes and nearly stumbled backwards from the sudden weight.
That's fine. That's to be expected. She told herself as she adjusted the ropes, feeling the sweat from dozens of other men between the fibers. We'll be done soon enough, besides.
Ostara eventually turned the cart to the other end of the field and began to hike across it, lugging the weight behind her. It was one of the flattest fields she had seen in the town, but she was grateful for the cart hiding Sol's rays from her head.
It'll only be worse on the way back, then. She reminded herself as she finally reached the other end, taking an incredibly brief moment to catch her breath before she began to turn it around again.
Just as she and Drew had predicted, her shadow was invisible in front of her as she made the hike back. The ropes dug into her shoulders as she pulled, drops of sweat falling from them and onto her skin, making her flinch each time it happened. Ostara shut an eye, trying to stay focused on the end in sight.
Only a few more steps, she tried to say whenever she felt it was too far away. Only a few more steps.
A drop of a man's sweat fell on her shoulder again and she sucked in her teeth, but continued to move. Her small curls began to stick to her forehead, but she knew it would have been worse if she had her longer hair still.
Someone yelled after she'd passed the servant waiting for the ropes. It took her a minute to realize it was Thando, who grinned at her, his fist in the air, as he cheered. She tried to smile, but gripped one of the ropes, finally feeling the pain in her feet.
"Get off, then," the servant snapped. "Mind keeping that boy quiet?"
"On it." He waved his wand as if he were slicing someone apart. The air split through the calm breeze and hit Thando directly in the nose. He fell to the ground for a moment from the blast, but was quick to sit up, his hand over his nose, glaring at the servant.
"Taylor, Hankin!" the servant called as she was pulled out of the ropes and pushed back towards the lines, the strip of cloth pushed into her hand. Nearly tripping over her feet and others' hands, she made her way back to their group.
"Let me," Hawise said, grabbing the cloth from her hand and tying it on her wrist. She realized how they'd all been wearing them as such, except for Drew, who stubbornly held his cloth.
Hankin realized his name was spoken and looked around with fear in his eyes. He set down his pack, and walked up to the cart. The group began to talk again, but Ostara could still listen to their conversations.
"Are abilities allowed?" he asked a servant as he was put into the ropes.
"Yes. We only ask that you don't kill anyone."
The one adjusting his ropes let out a chuckle under his breath. "It'd just mean extra paperwork for our chief. Now, turn the cart around and get started."
Ostara tried to focus on their conversations, but she kept an eye out for Hankin as he pulled the cart. He was able to turn it around, but each step felt calculated. She could see the servants muttering to each other, motioning towards him.
She heard a name brought up just before a gasp fell over the crowd, and she looked at Hankin immediately. He lay curled in a ball halfway down the field, seemingly in pain. Ostara dashed towards him, apologizing for each hand that she crushed under her foot.
Hawise yelled from behind her, pushing her ahead. "Ignore that! What's wrong with him?"
They made their way through the sitting crowd and sat next to Hankin, the two servants and Thando following.
"What happened to you?" Ostara asked, holding out a hand for him to stand up.
"I…can't move. I can't move. It hurts."
"Where does it hurt?"
He motioned towards his stomach, his legs, and his arm. "Everywhere."
"What happened here?" a servant asked, running up to them. "Why'd he stop?"
"He's in pain, sir," Hawise said, a hand over his shoulder.
"Stand and lift your shirt, boy."
"I can't," he mumbled against the ground.
"Can we help you stand?" Ostara offered. Finally, he nodded, and Ostara and Hawise threw an arm over each of their shoulders and kept him balanced. One of the servants yanked up his shirt, but there was nothing but skin stretched over bone.
"I don't see anything. Where is this pain coming from?"
"It's always been around," Hankin explained, his leg flinching. "Flares up or doesn't exist. No one I know can explain it."
The other servant shrugged as Hankin's shirt was dropped. "Well, if there's no source, then I don't see the issue here."
"Please, sir. He needs some type of remedy." Ostara pleaded.
"You are acting like he's been stabbed. Where's the wound, then?"
"It's just internal pain. I can push through it again." Hankin said, trying to pull his arm from Ostara's shoulder, but she grabbed his wrist, keeping him supported by her.
"No, you're not. We're going to find a healer for you." Hawise assured him.
A servant laughed. "How can you heal an invisible wound?"
Hawise ignored him. "Help me pull the ropes off of him."
Ostara ducked out from under his arm and pulled the rope off his shoulder, holding him steady as Hawise did the same.
"Do you want me to hold his legs?" Thando asked, walking behind them.
"No, we've got him." Hawise snapped before Ostara could say anything. "Where's a healer?" he yelled as they made their way back to the crowd. An older boy raised a hand and joined them with their group, but his face curled to disgust when he saw Hankin.
"What-oh. You called me here for this boy?"
"What's wrong with this boy?" Ostara asked.
"This boy is a liar. Always complaining about pain that doesn't exist. He's tried to steal money from us before. "
Someone chopped the back of his head with his hand. The boy grumbled, looking up to see Thando glaring down at him like a beetle in his way. "Try moving with that pain throughout your whole body. Or would you prefer that I stab you?"
He scrambled away. During that confrontation, Hankin had slowly managed to sit up and hug his pack to his chest, pulling himself back to his previous spot as Thando sat next to Hawise.
A slap and a boy's cry echoed over the crowd. They could see through the silence that one of the servants in the first group had his hand positioned past a slap. The boy who had been talking to him glared back, tears leaking down his face. A group of boys behind him began to back away, recognizing the same anger boiling.
"How dare you ask for food! Have any of you earned it? Precisely! None of you have! Now, you're going to sit and be quiet with your little friends and stop complaining! Can you do that?"
"Yes, sir," the boy muttered. The group sat down, trying to pretend like they hadn't stood in the first place.
Over the next few hours, every conscript was able to finish the task. The first group was last to finish, and that time includes those who had missed their cue by crying for their mothers. Their groups merged again as they waited for the next task to be set up. Sol's Planetary Counterpart was beginning to dip into the horizon by the time that the preparations for it had been finished.
"Gather around, boys! This will be your last task before we let you go to bed!"
A small cheer erupted for a moment, but was silenced by a fireball in the air. As the elder servant began his speech, Ostara saw Hawise and Hankin whisper to each other in front of her before Hankin fell into the earth, his pack to his chest as he disappeared from the crowd.
The elder servant paced between two points as he talked, hands clasped behind his back, and Oz turned to listen. "Every night before the day is over, you boys are going to run around this camp three times. Few of us have left to calculate your final scores, may Yael offer them the smarts to do so." He glanced at the sky as he said his prayer, then faced the crowd again. "Sort yourselves behind this stick here."
He pointed at a branch sticking out of the earth and placed himself on one end of the line as the boys made their way to the other side, positioning themselves for the race.
"Remember, none of you will be allowed to go to bed until you've finished," the servant said, walking away from in front of them. Another servant raised his wand above them, prepared. "You will complete three laps on his mark. Yes, you are allowed to use your magic, and we only ask that there are no deaths on the track. That is all. Three, two, one-"
A fireball erupted over them, and the boys scrambled to begin their run. Ostara forced herself to run at the call, watching the boys speed up around her.
"Hurry up, Oz!" Thando yelled from in front of her. The fastest of the boys were further ahead, already touching the wall for their first turn.
She ran faster, feeling her heart pounding in her neck. She breezed past boys who were already running out of stamina and jumped over those who had collapsed in the path, whispering prayers of good health for them to Ellery.
She saw Thando's brown hair ahead and saw him zip around before she realized what he was doing; he was carving out a path between the older boys for those behind him, and it was closing fast.
Ostara followed the path and the rest of Thando's movements for the rest of the lap and noticed a few others from their group trailing him as well. She made her way to the line again, beginning her second lap, and looked away from the servants to see that Thando had disappeared.
"Following me, are you?" he said from next to her.
Ostara flinched from the noise and saw him on her right, running at a similar pace to her. As he made his way closer, she noticed that his cropped hair was plastered to his neck in sweat, but he didn't risk slowing down or speeding up.
"I'm not the only one," she told him, looking back at a few of the group who were still following them despite how tired they were.
"Some are following you, and some are following me. But that's not why I'm talking to you. I have a plan to knock down the older men instead of weaving a path through them."
Ostara looked at them up ahead, clogging up the path with their bodies.
"I have a better idea," she said, pulling out her wand. She performed a growing spell, directing it a few spaces past where the older group started, and asked for it to grow fast.
A series of yells from ahead of them told her she had done her job correctly. A few more older boys tripped into the trap of the bushes and vines before the rest decided to jump over them.
"Come on!" Thando yelled to their group behind them.
Ostara reached the older boys first and jumped over their squirming bodies, using a few as springs to reach the other side. The vines stayed tight against their bodies, but she worried for the rest of the boys and paused, wand in hand, and asked for the fast action to slow temporarily.
The rest of the boys jumped over the bodies and cheered, continuing their run. Ostara put her wand away as she joined them, hearing their congratulations over her plan, but didn't take it.
The rest of the boys around them for their final lap were either younger or a few whom had spent their years building their stamina and body for competitions such as these.
"Behind you!" Aldo called to a few boys in front of them who were slowing down. They moved out of the way, but Ostara still saw Drew push one of them away to catch up to them, completing their group. They began asking him where he'd been, but he tried to avoid the question, trying to kick the rogue vine off his ankle.
"Watch out, kids!" Ostara yelled, running ahead. They moved closer to the wall, and she looked back at them, remembering Ren's face after she'd cried.
She's not here. That's just another feminine habit to eradicate. Now, she's just another person to fight for.Keep running.
They ran through all of the corners, seeing Hawise and Drew pushing some kids out of the way instead of telling them to watch out. At the last corner, they all split apart after seeing the stick up ahead.
Drew sprinted forward, but Ostara summoned a rock to trip him. She ran ahead, yelling ahead for the smaller boys to move, and was able to cross the line first…as did Thando.
He pushed away any hair was stuck to his head and smiled. "Nice running, Oz. Did your father teach you that?"
"Enough of that. Congratulations, you won. Yes, we did expect a tie to occur. The prize was an extra meal of rations, but we can split them between you two."
Two servants stepped behind them, one shooting fiery letters into the sky to spell out a message: FIRST PLACE HAS BEEN TIED. FINISH YOUR LAPS SOON.
"Should we add more?" the fire Witch asked.
"No, that should be enough."
"Eh, it'll vanish within the hour, correct?" The Witch nodded, and the servant turned back to Thando and Ostara. "Well, you're all done here. Head back to your dormitories. Your meals will be given before you enter your building."
"Thank you, sir," Ostara said, smiling before joining the group as they walked back to their building, all talking over each other. She plugged her ears from the noise and kept quiet on the walk.
The buildings came into sight soon enough, and a servant stood outside each, holding a large bag of meals.
"Who came first?"
"I did-" Drew began, but Thando jabbed him in the stomach, motioning for Ostara to join him at the front.
"We tied for first," he smiled, putting an arm around her shoulders. She flinched under the touch, and he slowly dropped it, fingers grazing her back.
"We were told a meal would be split between us for the reward," Ostara explained, taking a step away from Thando.
He pulled three boxes from the sack and gave them to Ostara. "Head in. You all can wait for your meals, correct?"
They walked into the building, taking the stairs in silence.
"Where'd Hankin go?" Thando asked as they reached their door.
"He left before the announcement."
Ostara opened the door and saw Hankin lying on his bed, his legs tucked into his stomach and his arm under his head, presumably asleep. She set the third box next to him and sat on her bed, but Thando picked it up a moment later.
"Why are you doing this? He didn't run, so he won't get a meal."
"It'll only be a matter of time before the servants realize that. Besides, I'd rather leave the extra meal with him than try to figure out how to split it between two people."
Thando set the box down again and took his own before sitting on his own bed. Ostara noticed how far apart his legs were when he sat and tried to copy it, but nearly dropped her meal in the gap.
Within moments of them opening their boxes of lamb parts, the rest of their dormitory walked in, most of them holding boxes. Hudde held Judd's above his head before Aldo stepped onto Hawise's bed and snatched it back. Hawise pushed the three away from the door to fall onto his bed as Drew scrambled in last, the spell still on his wrist. Hankin woke from their shouts and flinched, his palm pressing against his lower back as he sat up. His arm had some temporary marks across the bicep, but Ostara knew they would fade eventually.
Aldo found his bed and pressed his back against the wall as he opened his box on his knees. "Some day, eh?"
"At least it was entertaining." Hudde chuckled, looking across the room at Drew, who gave him a finger.
"So what's the deal with you three?" Drew asked, biting into a leg. "Whatza storie therr?"
"Swallow your food first, then repeat that," Hawise said, flinging a bit of meat at his head.
He made a show of swallowing the meat before he looked at the three again. "What's the deal there? Any story?"
"Hudde found me when we were kids, and I've stuck with them ever since," Aldo explained. "Very simple. Now, what's your deal? Why are you so mad?"
"I wouldn't be mad if someone would stop throwing meat at me!" he roared at Hawise, who shut his box, grinning at the mess around Drew. "Just- why are you wasting it?"
"Oh, I don't eat lamb. Traumatic story."
"Of course there is."
"Do you want some, Hankin?" he smiled at him, but Hankin shook his head, holding up the box from Ostara.
Judd leaned forward, his ankles crossed under him. "Question. Who are any of you leaving behind? Anyone you're fighting for?"
Drew shrugged. "A few lovers and some crazy doxies. Besides, my father joined the older group, so I'm free from him."
"Until the groups merge," Thando said. "What? You can't expect us children to be sent off to war alone. You saw all those boys crying. They wouldn't last a day under anyone's leadership, I bet."
"All right, cumberworld," he complained. "Who are you fighting for?"
He shrugged. "My father, I'd guess. Not that he'd care."
"Who would?"
"All right, beard splitter," Thando said, glaring across the room at him. "From your list, I'd claim that there's no one waiting for you, man or woman."
Drew spat a piece of half-chewed meat on the floor. "You either, you…uhh…"
"So if anyone is a cumberworld here," He reached for his wand as he spoke, eyes changing colors. The room grew tense, watching the two like a fierce match in the woods. "I'd claim it's-"
"Aldo-has-a-girlfriend." Hudde admitted quickly.
"He's a liar!" Aldo cried, throwing a leg-bone at his head, but missed.
"Oh, really?" Thando smiled, sitting back on his bed. "What's her name?"
"I don't have a girlfriend. Hudde likes to lie to get what he wants."
"This time, it's the satisfaction of watching the tension fall. You didn't have to be so hard on little Drew here. He's just a baby, after all."
"I am not a ba- a child!" Drew cried. Hudde made a mocking face at him, but was quick to throw him back to his bed with wind when he stood. Ostara laughed at that, but it blended with everyone else's.
"What about you, Oz?" Hankin asked, breaking the laughter as their eyes drew on him. "Any girlfriends in another town that you're fighting for?"
Ostara felt her cheeks flush red, ready to confess that she'd never met a woman in that way when Thando spoke up.
"Just your father, isn't it?" he asked, noticing her silence. "And he hasn't let you date since you were always moving. Am I correct?"
"Oh. Yes. Yes, Thando is correct. I haven't had many boy- I mean, girlfriends, girlfriends, if at all, because of all the moving around. Always been, erm, too busy…to care about that?"
Drew opened his mouth to make a smirking remark, but Thando spoke first. "Drew, if you make a sexual connotation relating to virginity or being chaste, I will commit chastisement to you, out the window. Understood?"
Drew gave him a tch, but stayed silent. "Hawise? Do you have a lover?"
As Hawise began to talk, Ostara looked at Thando and smiled. "Thank you."
"Why are you thanking me?" he asked with a sharp edge.
"Well, I didn't want to confess anything related to…that. Now they all know."
"Oh." His smile came back, as if he had been reminded to do so. "You're welcome, then. I'm always here to help."
He set his box next to him and extended a hand across the space between their beds. "Friends, then?"
Ostara placed her box next to her before she leaned forward and shook it, forming an alliance.