Shepherds of Wraith: Book One

by Nyssa Renay

  I learned quite a lot in those first few hours, but as time went on, the smell of the freshly cooked meats and baked pastries made my stomach growl painfully, as I hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast. It was torture to watch the food that I’d help prepare get wheeled out of the kitchen the moment it was finished, only to return as empty metal bins that I knew I was going to have to scrub and wash later on.

  “Let’s go, people!” Shepherd Scullery howled, clapping loudly as he burst into the kitchen. He was a large man, round from decades of sampling his own creations, and right now he looked furious. “The other three chow halls are moving much faster than you are. Pick up the pace!”

  “Yes, sir,” everyone groaned in unison.

  “Listen to you all! No wonder you’re behind…you’re lazy! Worthless and lazy!” Scullery scoffed after hearing our unenthusiastic response. “Ownie!”

  “Yes, sir!” Ownie turned around and snapped to attention.

  “Since you’re the oldest one here, I’m putting you in charge of the kitchen staff for the rest of dinner service. Get this place caught up, now, or it’ll be your ass on the line. Got it?”

  “Yes, sir!” Ownie shouted nervously as Scullery stalked of the kitchen. “Damn Settle sect,” he grumbled under his breath. “Every time we get paired with them, we fall behind.”

  Slowly, Ownie surveyed the room. Everyone was staring back at him, waiting for orders. “Okay, everyone….” he trailed off, frozen in place after being put on the spot.

  “What can I do to help, sir?” I shouted, emulating how I’d observed the rest of the boys reacting whenever Laureate Altor barked out orders.

  Ownie flashed a smile and pointed directly at me. “That’s what I’m talking about! First day here, and he already gets it! Pick up the pace, people! Or do you all want to be outdone by a damn snowflake?”

  “No, sir!” everyone roared, immediately moving faster than before.

  I watched in amazement as Ownie walked around and reorganized the workload, offering the older, more skilled potentials a chance to step up and show him what they could do. He put those he’d chosen in charge of smaller groups, allowing them to use the younger and more inexperienced workers as they saw fit. And before we knew it, more food was going out of the kitchen than empty trays coming back.

  “Vigil,” Ownie said, tapping me on the shoulder as I was finishing up cleaning a sink full of dishes. “I want you to take that empty cart of there and go out to the chow hall and collect as many empty pans you can, okay?”

  “Yes, sir,” I replied happily.

  “Thank you,” Ownie offered proudly. “I mean it…thank you.” He smiled and walked away.

  In that moment, everything felt right; like I finally fit in somewhere and things were starting to look up, but as usual, that feeling didn’t last long.

  -28-

  I rushed out into the chow hall, wheeling my cart toward the hot well stations to look for any empty pans. The ravenous wave of potentials barked and pointed at the servers, insisting they pile on as much food as their trays would hold.

  Just getting access to the hot wells to grab the pans was a daunting task. Every time I tried to pull one of the empty pans out, the serving potential would snap at me for either being in the way, or for trying to take the pan away before it was completely empty.

  It took me a few failed attempts to find my rhythm, but once I did, everything moved along smoothly until the bottom of one of the full pans of sweetdough I was replacing caught the corner of the hot well, spilling a few pieces into a nearby pan of pudding. I quickly scrambled to toss the scattered pieces back into the original pan where it belonged, pudding covered or not. But just as I was about to walk away, I noticed one tiny piece of sweetdough I’d missed poking out from the top layer of pudding. Being as hungry as I was, I tried to fish it out and shove it in my mouth as subtly as possible amidst the chaos around me. I couldn’t help myself, and I figured no one would notice.

  I was wrong.

  “Hey, that kid just stole food!” an older boy on the other side of the bench shouted as he pointed at me over his tray.

  From the corner of my eye, I saw Shepherd Scullery charging at me.

  “Did we not explain things to you, potential?” he roared, grabbing my arm and twisting me around to face him. “Do you not understand the order of my chow hall? Potentials on kitchen duty don’t eat until after everyone else does! After!”

  The entire chow hall went silent.

  “I’m sorry, sir,” I admitted, feeling the shame from my momentary weakness wash over me.

  “Steal from me again, and I’ll make sure you don’t eat for a month! Do I make myself clear?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Scullery let go of my arm and pushed me back. “As punishment, you’ll stay late tonight for additional kitchen duties. Ein have mercy on you if you don’t make it back to the dorms before lights out. Now, get your ass back in the kitchen and finish cleaning those pans!”

  As I pushed my cart full of dirty pans back toward the kitchen, I felt the eyes of everyone in the chow hall staring at me; worst of all was Ownie’s horrified and angry glare as I walked past him.

  For the rest of supper, I tried to get Ownie’s attention to apologize, but he barely even looked in my direction, eager to avoid being guilty by association. No one would tell me what Shepherd Scullery had meant about not making it back to the dorms before lights out. In fact, whenever I tried to talk to anyone, they acted as if they couldn’t hear me.

  I was on my own, and it was entirely my fault.

  ***

  When the last of the older potentials had finished eating and were heading back to their dorms, those of us on kitchen duty were finally allowed to eat. Because all the pans had been emptied during supper, our meal consisted of the scraps left over from the finished plates of everyone else.

  “Enjoy.” Shepherd Scullery laughed as he scraped the last bit of his own dirty plate onto mine.

  I dove into those few scraps with fervor, as if I hadn’t eaten in weeks. The other boys appeared slightly disgusted that the partially-eaten food didn’t faze me, but I didn’t care. I tried talking to Ownie one more time after everyone had finished eating, but he continued to ignore me, along with everyone else.

  Half an hour of awkward silence later, Laureate Altor showed up to collect the boys from Necra sect and escort them back to the dorms. I was half-hoping that Shepherd Scullery might have forgotten about my punishment, but as I went to assemble with the other boys, Scullery put a hand on my shoulder and pulled me back.

  “Not so fast, snowflake,” he grumbled. “You’ve still got work to do.”

  Altor shook his head disappointedly in my direction as he led the other boys away. Once everyone had gone, Shepherd Scullery took me to a small closet in the back of the kitchen and pulled out a broom and a mop.

  “The water faucet is outside around back. The bucket’s there, too. Sweep the entire kitchen and chow hall first, and then mop. When you finish, you can return to your dorm after that. But be quick about it, snowflake. You don’t have much time before lights out,” he warned, snickering as he walked away.

  I had no idea what the big deal was about lights out, but I didn’t want to find out. I swept and mopped so quickly that my hands ached from gripping the handles. When it was all finished and Shepherd Scullery had inspected the area, giving it his final approval, I sprinted in the direction that I thought the dorms were located.

  It didn’t take me long to get lost. The Shepherd Academy was so confusing in the dark and I managed to run in a complete circle, ending up back at the chow hall. I started to panic.

  “Are you lost, snowflake?” Shepherd Diabelle asked, glaring at me from the shadows of the building.

  “Yes, ma’am,” I replied honestly. I had no choice. I was at her mercy.

  “Can I assume that a lesson has been learned?”

  I nodded sheepishly.

&nb
sp; “If you make that same mistake again, I will not be there to help you. Do I make myself clear?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  She nodded and barked, “Fall in line behind me now!”

  I did as she said, marching behind her to my dorm.

  When we reached the entrance to the Necra sect dormitory, Shepherd Diabelle pushed me forward and stood just out of the line of sight of the door guard as he peered through the small window in the door. Unfortunately, it was Laureate Altor who was on shift that night.

  He cracked the door open just wide enough that I had to struggle to squeeze through. “Oh, thank Ein, you’re back,” Altor said with a sarcastic smile that made me hate him even more. “You snowflakes always get lost at least once or twice. You’re so—” His words were cut off when Diabelle appeared in the doorway behind me.

  “Is there a problem here?” she shouted at him.

  “No, ma’am,” Altor replied as his face reddened, quickly opening the door all the way to allow her to pass with ease.

  “Do you not remember the first time you got lost in this establishment? Long ago and way before you were made a laureate?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Then I suggest you get over it and do your damn job!” she shouted, moving to the center of the scaffold to address the room below. “Lights out in ten seconds! Let’s move it, people!”

  I could see the kids who were not in bed start to scramble. Diabelle smiled with a sense of satisfaction when she saw the boys below start to panic.

  “…nine…” she shouted.

  “Get out of my way!” somebody yelled from the bathroom as the doors flew open and two older boys with fear and panic in their eyes ran to their beds as if their lives depended on it.

  “…eight…”

  “You’d better move, Vigil,” Altor instructed, hinting I was in danger, though I didn’t know what from.

  “…seven…”

  “Vigil! Get to your bed, you idiot!” Ownie was already safe in his bed, but he was visibly frightened for me.

  “…six…” Diabelle chuckled.

  I ran as fast as I could down the steep steps and across the dorm floor as she continued to count, “…five…four…three…”

  Luckily, my bed was only about fifteen feet from the stairs, and I leaped as high as I could onto my bed, which skidded slightly from the force of my entry.

  “…two…one…” she cackled. “Goodnight, boys!”

  Suddenly, there was a loud popping sound followed by an eerie hum of electricity. I rolled toward the edge of my bed just in time to see waves of electric blue light flow across the tiles of the floor, flowing past me like floodwaters.

  “Oh, no!” screamed a terrified boy who had moved too slowly. He bolted from the bathroom where the floor had not yet been electrified, and as he took the final step to his bed, the wave of blue light caught the very tip of his right toe. There was a bright flash.

  “Aaaaahhhhh!” he screamed, clutching his foot as he landed on his bed.

  I could smell burning flesh in the air, but there was nothing anybody could do to help him.

  “Welcome to the Shepherd Academy, snowflake!” Diabelle called out as she killed the lights and left the dorm, slamming the door behind her.

  The room went silent and dark, except for the steady hum and soft blue glow from the electrified floor. I was terrified.

  After a few minutes of haunting stillness, a voice came over the loudspeaker. It was a commanding voice; forceful without shouting.

  Ein is the most supreme presence in our lives…We are blessed to serve Him, the speaker began.

  “We are blessed to serve Him,” the boys chanted in unison.

  Ein’s Children are the supreme leaders of our world and our lives, the speaker preached.

  “Praise be their holy names,” the entire dorm replied.

  Without Ein, we are nothing…Without Ein’s love, we are empty, the speaker continued.

  “Glory to all that is Ein. Praise to His children and our responsibilities toward them,” the boys prayed.

  Remember, potentials, the Children of Ein are always watching…Feniche.

  The speaker fell silent.

  “Feniche,” everyone in the room repeated and then fell silent.

  That night, I cried myself to sleep, sobbing quietly beneath my blankets so the other boys couldn’t hear. Whether I liked it or not, this was my life now.

  -29-

  The next six years of my life were painfully monotonous. Every day as a Tier I potential at the Shepherd Academy was exactly the same as the one before. The repetitive routine was specifically designed to rid a child of any shred of individuality, which the shepherds felt must be eliminated at all costs.

  Each morning, we were led out to the running track to exercise. We’d run around and around while Shepherd Diabelle continually screamed at us for no apparent reason. Some days, I thought my legs would actually snap off from the pain and the unbearable exhaustion.

  The only bright spot in this early morning ritual was when our sect shared the track with the Brio potentials—Eeliyah’s sect. She’d always flash me a quick smile or silly face as she ran by. Although it wasn’t much interaction between us, I hoped it helped her get through the morning as much as it did me.

  Exercise was followed by a quick shower and then kitchen duty for the breakfast service, which hardly compared with the quality of the Festival of Ein food we got once a year. The daily menu was a steady diet of cold unseasoned meat that tasted like rat, stale bread moistened with half-congealed gravy, a portion of overcooked vegetables, and one glass of lukewarm water. It was the same at each meal. I always left the chow hall feeling full but still unsatisfied.

  Lessons came next. These consisted of me and a dozen other Tier I students from the Necra sect being shoved into a tiny room for hours at a stretch, sitting in uncomfortable, rigid desks and chairs.

  Despite her loud voice and forceful attitude, Shepherd Diabelle was incredibly dull to listen to in class. The only time she really came alive was when she caught one of us nodding off. Diabelle would rip the chair out from beneath the offender, throw it clear across the room, and yell at the student to go stand against the wall for the remainder of the hours-long lesson.

  Most days, the lessons consisted of us being left alone to read in absolute silence that was only broken when Shepherd Diabelle barged into the room for a random spot-check to make sure we were staying alert and focused. Most of the books we were assigned to read were about Necra’s role in the realm of Ein and what we should know to serve our patroness better.

  It seemed like most of the history on the subject was the same but told from the perspectives of various shepherds. Yet, every now and then, we were given literature about the history of the universe and all the Children of Ein had created and maintained over time. After days of reading nothing but stories about Necra, I honestly enjoyed learning about the other Children of Ein. The real benefit was having something to talk with Eeliyah about whenever our sects shared kitchen duty.

  By early afternoon, we were given a short break from our studies and sent to the chow halls to prepare lunch. Sadly, the lunch we served was only about half the portion size of breakfast, meaning there would be fewer leftovers for us to eat, which wasn’t really that much of a problem as the menu was still bland, stale, cold, and unappetizing.

  When lunch was finished, it was back to lessons again, followed by the day’s final kitchen duty for dinner, evening prayers, and then lights out, when I hoped to make it to my bed before the electrified floor activated.

  Although it seems like everything I’ve shared about my first six years in the academy was exceedingly negative and horrible, there were some good times; they were just few and far between. Gradually, I stopped worrying about my troubled past, including the family I had left behind. Soon, I’d become accustomed to the daily life of a potential; even grateful for the experience. Ev
entually, I cultivated a strong friendship with Ownie. Not only that, but by the end of my Tier I years, I felt a strong, unbreakable bond growing between myself and my fellow Necra brothers and sisters.

  As the final days of my Tier I experience came to a close, I was incredibly anxious to move on from the drudgery and begin something exciting and new, especially a different work duty. Even though I’d learned a lot from my time working under Shepherd Scullery, truth be told, I was looking forward to being allowed to eat the Festival of Ein dinner instead of serving it.

  “Happy birthday, Vigil.” Ownie grinned as he walked over and gave my arm a good whack. I was thirteen. After an entire morning of ritualistic brotherhood punching, I was fed up with the birthday tradition. I couldn’t wait for it to be over.

  “Yeah, thanks.” I smiled through the pain as I rubbed my arm, preoccupied with my thoughts.

  “What’s wrong with you?” he asked. “You worried about starting your new Tier II schedule?”

  “Not really,” I lied. “I’m just used to the way things have been over the last six years, but I’m sure it won’t take me long to adjust.”

  I tried to shrug it off like it was no big deal, but I was nervous about the unknown. It was my first official day being in Tier II, and after the one-day break for the Festival of Ein, I would be introduced to new classes, new duties, and go from being one of the older, more important potentials to starting all over again at the bottom of the pecking order. It was a little unsettling, not to mention extremely intimidating.

  “You’ll be fine,” Ownie said reassuringly. “It’s not as bad as you’re imagining it. Trust me. I’ve been in your shoes, remember?”

  I nodded, forcing a smile.

  “Besides, it’s my first day in Tier III, and check me out!” He pulled back the sleeves of his robe and held out his hands. “Steady as a rock! You should be, too.” He gave me a quick motivational slap on the sore spot on my arm and walked away, laughing.