by CW Thomas
But where Broderick’s true passion lay was in combat training.
Throughout the afternoons and evenings he and the other boys belonged to Khalous, a merciless taskmaster who tortured their bodies with melee practice, sword fighting, archery, and other physical exercises that left them exhausted. As their scars accumulated, their bodies and minds were tempered into instruments made for war.
As the weeks passed, Broderick’s body grew leaner, and his muscles more taut. His hands became tough and firm, and his endurance strengthened, as did his tolerance to pain. Scrapes and bruises that would’ve sent him running for the castle nurse back in Aberdour were no longer worth acknowledging in the midst of all he had to get done in a single day.
Autumn came and went. Winter blanketed the landscape. Though the cold and frost was not nearly as bitter as it was in the highlands of Aberdour, the seasonal changes were a welcome reminder of the splendor of home.
“I could do without the snow,” Brayden remarked one afternoon while he and Broderick were checking their traps in the woods south of the monastery. He tightened his fur cloak around his collar.
“I love the snow,” Broderick said, watching his leather boots make dirty indentations on the pristine white ground.
“Of course you do.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means you always take the position opposite of me.”
“It’s what brothers are for.”
From atop a large boulder came the voice of Nash, who said, “You’re dead. And you’re dead, too. I just killed you both.”
Broderick looked up and saw their friend aiming at them with his bow. He was clad from head to toe in brown furry hides that kept him silent as well as warm.
“It’s almost too easy,” Nash said, sliding down the edge of the rock to the ground. “Or maybe I’m just that good.” He touched a hand to his chin in thought. “Yup, I’m just that good.”
Ty emerged from behind the boulder, shirtless, his toned copper skin on proud display. The Efferousian orphan had lived at the monastery for three months before the refugees from Aberdour had arrived. He was the same age as Brayden, tall and lean, with thick black hair that he had grown into a long ponytail.
“Aren’t you cold?” Broderick said, gesturing to Ty’s half naked body.
The Efferousian just shrugged.
“Watch this,” Nash said, drawing an arrow from the quiver at his hip. “Ty!”
Ty grabbed a short log from the ground about the size of his forearm and sent it spinning into the air. Nash’s arrow picked it out of sky in an instant.
Nash bowed to his audience. “Thank you.”
“I’s teaching him this,” Ty said.
Nash shot him an offended look. “Wait, you’re supposed to make me look good, remember?”
“You said to be agreeing with you when there are them girls around.”
“What girls?” Broderick asked.
“We agreed that if there are ever any girls around we’ll help each other look good.” He slapped Ty on the arm. “But someone needs to practice a bit more.”
Ty smirked. “He’s just worrying too much because he’s the only one of us who is being without a girl.” He winked.
“Oh?” Brayden said. “You’ve got a girl?”
Nash scoffed. “Senona? Wait, I’m sorry, I must have missed the part where she realized you’re alive.”
“Who is Senona?” Broderick asked.
“She was brought to here same time as me,” Ty said. “Her village raided by wildfolk.”
“Do you know her well?”
“Not as well as I would be liking, sir, but I’m hoping to—”
He stopped. Broderick watched the slight red flush on his cheeks drain. He followed his gaze to the ridge behind them where two black vipers stood observing their discussion. The men descended the hillside, eyes locked on the four boys.
“It has been a long time since I have heard anyone other than my comrades speak my native tongue,” said one of soldiers, a bearded fellow with dark eyes and a long scar running across the top of his shaved head. “Naturally, when I hear it spoken in a foreign land, especially by children, I become intrigued.”
The boys were silent as the two soldiers sized them up.
“Would you mind coming with us?” the bearded soldier asked. “Our camp is just over this hillside. Our commanding officer would like to ask you a few questions. Then you may be on your way.”
“We are orphans from the monastery, Halus Gis,” Brayden said, surprising Broderick with his calm and even tone. “We must be getting back.”
“Ah, yes, I am sure,” the soldier said. “It is never wise to upset the delicate routine of a duktori. Still, surely you can spare just a moment or two.”
The other soldier grabbed Nash by the arm and ripped his bow from his hands.
“Follow me,” he said.
Brayden back-kicked the soldier holding Nash hard enough to knock him down. “Run!” he shouted.
The bearded soldier lunged at Brayden, sending an armored elbow into the side of his head. Broderick sprang upon the man, knocking him down and striking him in the face. Nash and Ty ran forward to help when the second soldier got to his feet and attacked them both. In his heavy armor he plowed into them like an avalanche. Ty tried stabbing him in the collar with his knife, but the soldier blocked the attack and grabbed the boy by the throat. He lifted him into the air and slammed him on the ground.
“Look out!” Brayden shouted, but by the time Broderick heard his shout his legs had already been ripped out from under him. The world spun. He fell to the ground face first and ate a mouthful of snow, dirt, and pine needles.
Broderick rolled over to see the soldier looming over him with a dagger raised high.
Pick descended from atop the boulder like a mountain lion, thrusting a pair of knives into the man’s neck, right at the edges of his armor.
Khalous plowed like a bull into the second soldier, driving his sword through his face and neck.
“Get up,” Khalous said to Nash. “There is an entire camp of black vipers just beyond that ridge. Now be quiet and get back to the monastery before any others notice you.”
“It might be too late for that, captain,” Pick said. He readied his sword as three more vipers descended the hillside.
“Stop in the name of the high king!” one of them shouted.
“Go!” Khalous said.
Broderick helped his brother to his feet.
The vipers rushed toward them, weapons drawn.
Together, the two brothers turned to flee when an arrow flew past Broderick’s face. He flinched, turning, and saw one of the soldiers topple to the snow with an arrow through his eye socket. Spatters of red littered the snow. A second soldier tumbled into a heap next to his comrade with an arrow through his neck.
The third soldier came to a halt. He looked around, seemingly confused by the almost magical appearance of the two bolts. He fell to his knees a moment later, coughing and hacking from an arrow in his cheek that had lodged in the back of his throat.
Dana emerged from the pine trees behind them and put an end to the soldier’s pain with a final arrow to his forehead. She pulled the green hood of her cloak back. If Broderick had a word for the expression on her face as she looked at the three dead men it was disgust.
“Dana?” Nash said.
Broderick gaped at his sister, eyes wide with amazement. Neither he nor Brayden had ever killed a man before, and in an instant their sister had felled three.
“All of you,” Khalous growled, “back to the monastery before I kill you myself!”
Broderick sprinted headlong through the trees, ignoring the thin branches that lashed at his face and tugged at his wool slacks. When they came to a river, Khalous told them to stay in the water and follow its eastwardly current, which took them further from Halus Gis but kept them from leaving footprints in the snow.
The freezing river water soaked through Brode
rick’s boots and leggings and numbed his toes. He and the others followed the river’s northward curve until they were leagues away from the camp of broods. Then Khalous led them west through the woods, running all the way to the fields east of Halus Gis.
“To the barn!” Khalous said. “Move!”
Broderick didn’t hesitate, and ran the rest of the way to the monastery, through the southeast gate, up the main road, and into the big wooden barn next to the chapel.
Preston and Clint were inside cleaning the stalls. Their grungy tan tunics soaked in sweat and days old grime. They both looked up, startled, when Broderick scrambled through the doors, sat down on a hay bale, and ripped off his boots. His toes ached as he rubbed them.
“Broderick, what in all the known world happened to you?” Preston asked.
“Black vipers!” he said, shivering.
“Really?” said Clint, sounding enthusiastic. “Where?”
“In the hills… south of the fields,” he answered between breaths.
Brayden and Nash ran into the barn, huffing and sweating.
Dana entered the barn with her bow in hand. She walked straight up to Broderick and knelt to closely examine his face, a look of grave concern in her rich brown eyes.
“Are you all right?” she asked.
Although touched by his sister’s compassion, Broderick refused to appear in need of her care, at least, not while the other boys were present. “Of course,” he said, pushing her hand away.
He continued to rub his feet, which were finally starting to warm.
Ty and Nash sat down and began to remove their wet clothes.
“You should’ve seen this girl,” Nash said, pointing to Dana. “She was so fast! Two of them were down before I even knew what was happening. And the third viper, she put an arrow right through his—”
Khalous shoved open the door of the barn with a crash. His energy simmered like boiling water under a pot’s lid. When he spoke, his volume and anger brought a unified gasp from the group. “Like a bunch of mules, you are. All of you. Braying like asses over slop in a bucket.” He walked over to Broderick and Brayden, eyeing them with a fierce agitation. “You two are lucky we followed you. There was a company of twenty black vipers camped on the other side of that ridge.” He looked at Nash. “You all were so loud it’s a wonder they didn’t come down upon you.”
Khalous put his hands on his hips and paced back and fourth. He had yelled at them in anger before, but this was different. His face was red with fury, which was unfair, Broderick thought, considering that he, Brayden, and Nash had almost lost their lives at the hands of twenty black vipers. Broderick was confident that they would’ve fought them off had Khalous not intervened.
Pick entered the barn. Behind him came a dozen young children, the very same ones who had traveled with them from Edhen and had yet to be adopted by Efferousian families.
“You’re all sleeping in here tonight,” Khalous said. “Everyone from Aberdour will be up in the lofts. You will make no sounds. Understand?”
“Why?” Broderick asked. He slipped on a pair of dry leggings.
“Because you’re a bunch of negligent fools!” Khalous yelled.
Broderick drew back, frightened by the gruff captain, but enraged as well.
“We didn’t know they were there,” he said. “We would’ve been quieter if we had.” He covered his feet with some dry hosen.
“That’s the problem, master Broderick,” Khalous said. “You didn’t know they were there. What do you think I’ve been trying to teach you? Survival.” He paused. “Stop acting like stupid children and recognize that we are at war. Your lives are at stake here! And because of your carelessness you’ve endangered the lives of everyone at this monastery.”
Broderick could feel his ire rising in the face of Khalous’ stern rebuke. He didn’t think the situation was as dire as the old captain made it sound, and he had grown tired of being yelled at.
“I think we did pretty well,” he said.
Khalous stopped as though he had just been hit by a log. “I beg your pardon, master Broderick?”
“Brayden and I were fighting them,” he said. “I hit one of them square in the nose. Dana killed three of them all on her own. If the others come here we will—”
“What?” Khalous blurted. “What will you do? What do you think a group of children can do against a company of twenty armored black vipers?”
“What you’ve trained us to do,” Broderick said.
“I think I’ve trained you to be smarter than that.”
“Maybe we’d learn more if you weren’t so busy yelling all the time!”
Khalous turned so sharply that it made Broderick flinch. The captain stormed over to one of the animal stalls and grabbed a thick wooden stump that he dropped with a crash into the center of the barn.
“Up you go,” he said.
Broderick shook his head, knowing full well what discipline was in store for him. Khalous had used this method multiple times on Broderick, Clint, and Nash whenever they disobeyed or whenever Khalous got tired of their bickering.
“Now!” Khalous thundered.
In an angry huff Broderick stepped up onto the stump and lifted his right leg, balancing on his left foot.
“All night,” Khalous said.
“What?” Broderick gasped.
The longest Khalous had ever made any of them stand atop the stump was half a morning.
“You will stand there all night in total silence,” Khalous said, “or until you’ve learned some respect. The rest of you into the loft. We’ll be lucky if the soldiers don’t come here tonight looking for those responsible for the death of their comrades. If they find any of us hiding here they will murder everyone in this monastery for harboring fugitives from Edhen. Now absolute silence!”
At last it occurred to Broderick why Khalous was so furious. Their actions hadn’t just riled a den of black vipers, they had endangered everyone in Halus Gis.
Broderick shut his eyes in shame as he considered the chaos that would descend upon the innocent lives in the monastery if the vipers found them here. Inwardly he kicked himself for being so stupid.
Khalous pointed to Pick and Stoneman and spoke in a hushed tone, “If they come, get bloody.”
“Bloody bloody,” Stoneman said.
Pick nodded.
Khalous and Pick were in the midst of securing the barn doors when the duktori walked into the barn. Broderick never saw much of Bendrosi, the monastery’s well-mannered abbot, but he seemed a reasonable and kind man.
“Why have you brought the children out here to the barn, may I ask? Is everything all right?”
Khalous seemed reluctant to answer, but he told the duktori what had happened.
The shock was clear on Bendrosi’s face. “Do you think the black vipers will come here?”
“I wish I knew for certain,” Khalous said. “If they do, just stay calm.”
The abbot considered what Khalous had said. Then he noticed Broderick standing on one foot atop the wooden stump in the middle of the barn.
“What is happening here?” he asked. This was not the first time the duktori had expressed interest in the way Khalous disciplined the boys. Many arguments had erupted between the two about his rough treatment of them, their plethora of bloody noses, bruises, and gashes. Khalous had kept Bendrosi at bay so far, but Broderick had often wondered how much longer the duktori would continue to tolerate the violence, especially with Prior Gravis displaying such strong disapproval.
“Discipline,” Khalous said simply. He reached to close the barn door. “Do not worry, my friend. If the soldiers come, they will be dealt with. Good night.”
Khalous and Pick braced the barn doors with a thick wooden beam.
“I’ll take first watch,” Pick said.
Taking a deep breath, Broderick used his hands to keep himself steady in preparation for a long night balancing atop the log, even though he wasn’t sure that he could last all night.
>
None of them ate supper. None of them spoke. The rest of the children climbed up into the loft and bedded down in silence.
Broderick tried to occupy his mind with stories and songs to pass the time as he continued balancing atop the stump, but after a while he ran out of stories, and found that he couldn’t recall all the words to some of the songs. Through the spaces in between the barn boards he watched the glow of the moon as it arched higher in the sky until it rose above the roof and out of sight.
His foot was getting sore, as were the muscles in his thighs and shoulders. Fighting off sleep wasn’t difficult at first, but as the night wore on he found his eyes growing heavy and his back slouching. He began to wonder if it would be so bad if he climbed down off the log and slept for a little while. He doubted Khalous would notice, but he also feared the captain’s wrath if he did.
He heard creaking in the loft above as someone moved down the ladder to the barn floor. A moment later he felt Brayden’s hands on his arms.
“I’ve got you,” his brother whispered.
“What are you doing?”
More creaking drifted down from above followed by the tapping of hands and feet descending the ladder. It was Nash. He took hold of Broderick’s left arm as Brayden took the right.
“What are you—” Broderick started to ask again.
“If you’ve got to do this all night, then so do we,” Nash said.
Preston descended a moment later, followed Dana. They formed a circle around Broderick and propped him up with their outstretched arms.
The five of them remained there for the rest of the night, throughout the chill of the early morning air, and the first glimpses of the rising sun. By the time Khalous climbed down from his bed high in the loft and found them, they were all bleary eyed and exhausted. The captain looked them over one by one, nodding with the thinnest of smiles on his lips.
“All right,” Khalous said, motioning with his hand for Broderick to step down. “I want to make sure you all understand this.” His voice was calm and devoid of the ire that had infused his tone the night before. “You are no longer citizens of Aberdour. You are strangers in a foreign land. You have no king. You have no country. The high king of Edhen doesn’t care who you once were. You are dirt to him. If his soldiers get their hands on you, any of you, Orkrash will kill you.” He pointed from one end of the group to the next. “The only thing any of you have are the people next to you. This is what gives you strength.”