Chapter 10: The Popular New Kid

Darkness. Another familiar forest, and another familiar entity. Howling laughter, and strong winds that shook the leaves and branches of the jungle around him. He saw a mess of blues and blacks, colored by the moon behind him.

The boy trembled as the shadow-like character unsheathed its blade. He felt sweat on his palms and forehead. His breathing, shallow and fast. His ears buzzed with a high pitched screeching. He had an inability to form thoughts, as if his mind was trapped in a haze of mist. Jordan felt fear, once again.

He ran away from the monster, dashing off to the side. He had to get away, he had to run back to the village and get help. A change in scenery forced him to skirt into a stop.

The boy found himself on a cliffside, staring down at yet another familiar scene. A girl, kneeling in the sand, next to a headless corpse. Jordan looked away. He had to get back to the village. Before he could turn, he felt a boot on his back.

His heart rate spiked, his eyes widened, and his limbs flailed as he was kicked off the ledge. Midfall, his dream abruptly came to an end.

“… Jordan! Jordan, wake up! Jordan!!” Sofia shout-whispered, shaking the boy.

Jordan woke with a fright, breathing hard and jolting upright.

“Get up! Hurry! They’ve already started count-off!” Sofia said, getting off of him and putting on her other shoe.

The boy scrambled to get ready, throwing off his blanket and falling out of bed. Despite stretching throughout the day, he was still extremely sore. Each movement felt like he was tearing something important, and his right arm was even slower than usual.

Luckily, since they were numbers 75 and 76, they had a bit of time to get themselves situated. Jordan shoved his boots on and Sofia laced up her sneakers.

After the count-off, they went to get breakfast, saying hello to Cotis and Devon again when they were served their food. The two joined Jonas and Ryan, the slaves who ate with them yesterday.

“‘Sup. Saw you guys got in a scuffle last night. What happened?” Ryan asked.

Jordan and Sofia glanced at each other, and Sofia spoke up. “I got targeted by a bunch of crafter women. I have no idea why.”

“Crafter women?” Jonas piped up. The crafter looked around, trying to find someone. “Ah. So Ruthey’s gang tried nipping ya. So, how’d it turn out?”

Sofia just shrugged. “I showed ‘em what’s up. They tried to get me in the shower but Jordan and another guy helped me out. I stabbed one of them in the eye too. Then the guards stopped us, and they tried to blame the whole thing on me! Good thing you snitched so hard, Jordan.”

“Mhm.”

“Hey, I guess it all worked out then,” Jonas said.

“Yeah… Hey, that reminds me. Jordan, why does Lamar trust you so much? He was acting weird at the orientation too, you know.”

“He does?” Jordan asked. He didn’t know why, but that made him feel kind of happy. “I don’t know.”

“That guy’s absolutely insane. He scares me.”

“For real,” Jonas said.

“I know right?” Ryan said. “You know, one time he got real mad at a miner once, but he didn’t do nothing. Just left, without punishing him at all. The next day, during prayer, while he was flying around with the light spirits, he swooped down and threw that guy like, two hundred feet into the air.” The builder mimicked a bird swooping down with his hand. “The dude ain’t even scream, I don’t think. Just went up, and splat.”

“Ew… Yeah… You know, Lamar asked who made up the lie for blaming me, and one of them confessed. It was clear though that she was just trying to cover for them, but Lamar just shot her. Like, immediately. No hesitation.” Sofia grimaced. “Then he shot another one, just for fun I think.”

“Yup… Well, there you go. First day and you’ve already got your own Lamar story. Takes some people here a few weeks for that.”

“Oh, so he’s always like that? Great.” Sofia sighed and took a bite out of her bread slice.

“By the way, Sofia. Are you okay?” Jordan asked. He’d been wanting to get something off his chest since last night. “That whip really sounded like it hurt.”

“Hm? Oh, yeah, I’m fine. Hurt like hell for a bit, but I think I’m fine now. They gave me some medicine and bandages, and I think it healed overnight.”

“Good, good. Oh and one more thing, where’d you even get a shank? It was literally our first day.”

Sofia clicked her tongue. “Jordan. Where do you think we are? This isn’t a peaceful jungle, you know.”

Jordan recoiled. ‘Am I being scolded by a kid right now?’

“This is a slave camp. These slaves are probably criminals, like me, or prisoners of war. It’s dangerous.”

“Okay, okay. How’d you get it though? And where’d you hide it? They search our belongings after each night’s count-off.”

“Well, I snuck a long nail off someone’s table while I was in the crafting tower. Then I just hid it in my shoe. Thanks for knocking, by the way. It gave me time to get the nail and think of what to do.”

“Damn, Sofia. You’re crafter smart, and you’re survival-smart too. Where’d you live, growing up?” Jonas asked.

“Hehe, thanks. I grew up in Los Muros. I was an orphan, but I had my gang. They looked out for me but I had to take care of myself.”

“Ah… So you’re a street rat. That sure takes me back,” Ryan said. “I remember when I was living like that. Layin’ hoes and cleaning out pockets… Ain’t much of a life, but it was my life.”

Jonas nodded. “Yep, yep. You know how it be, Sofia.” He snapped his fingers and pointed at the boy. “I suggest you learn a thing or two, Jordan. You’ve already got eyes on you, I’ll tell you that.”

“Huh? I do? Why?”

This time, Jonas and Ryan glanced at each other. “Why do you think?”

“Er… Maybe my arm?”

The two older slaves sighed. “Seriously…? I mean, yeah, I guess it’s ‘cause of your arm. But not just that, it’s also because you came in without it. I mean, usually the miner slaves lose an arm from work, but you were already missing yours, right? That’s weird, right?

“Yeah,” Ryan agreed. “Whoever enslaved you probably knew you were strong enough to be a miner, or you had some… other value to them.”

“Mhm.” Jonas said, nodding. “You said Lamar trusts him, Sofia? Like, weirdly trusts him?”

“Yeah…?” Sofia said, dragging the word out.

“So there’s that, and the fact that you were involved in a fight on your first day, which you won by the way. You really don’t see why people’ve got their eyes on you?”

“Huh. I guess if you put it like that, it makes sense. But I thought that’s just normal for a place like this,” Jordan replied, putting a hand on his chin and tilting his head.

Ryan took a drink from his canteen. “Nah. I mean- Yeah, it’s not too unusual. But all of that happening, to one guy, on his first day here?”

“Hm. Now that you mention it, I did get attacked by a huge spider while I was working yesterday… My buddy said that attacks were pretty rare.”

Ryan puffed air out of his nose and gestured towards the boy. “Well, there you go.”

Jordan nodded and finished his food. He resolved himself to be more alert, so that he could hopefully avoid situations that might put more attention on him.

“Be careful, Jordan,” Sofia said, before joining the crafters in kneeling for prayer.

“Yep. You too,” the boy replied, as he joined the miners.

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Prayer went by without a hitch, but something strange happened near the end. As Lamar flitted down to the ground, he began to speak.

“Ah… Sunrise is always so special to us. Unfortunately, there are two souls who did not see it today.”

The luxuriously clothed man landed, and held his head low. “Yesterday, two slaves departed from this world. A moment of silence for slaves 59 and 64.”

There was a pause, and a very awkward silence for Jordan and Sofia. ‘Does he even remember their names?’ Jordan thought.

“Thank you. Everyone, please get ready to work. We will hold those slaves in our hearts today,” Lamar said, walking off. He seemed to remember something, and turned back to say something. “Oh, and one more thing. Everyone above number 59, adjust your numbers accordingly, thanks.”

That made Jordan number 73, and Sofia; 74.

After that, the slaves split up to their separate work places, Crafters into their tower, orderlies into the facility, builders to the giant statue, and miners to their caves.

Jordan met up with Trevor, and greeted him. “Hey Trevor! How’s your back?”

“Good enough,” the older boy replied, working his shoulders. “You?”

“I’m fine. Their medicine is really good. My village just uses herbal mixes and horrible tasting water. I think. I only got bruises so I don’t know what they use for serious stuff. Maybe they use the good stuff too.”

“Mm.”

They walked a few steps before Jordan thought of something to say. “So am I working with you again today?”

Trevor shrugged, and murmured “I don’t know,” without opening his mouth.

Jordan nodded, and looked around as he walked. His energy was soaring from prayer, so he was hyperactive. Even his soreness had faded somewhat.

There wasn’t much to see. Most of the Summit was just rocks. There were a few plants growing through the cracks, but they weren’t very interesting. Just a little sprinkle of green in the vast gray.

The walls looked cool though. Steep ridges with jagged tops, looming over and around him. Above them was a puffy sky, with lots of very fluffy clouds.

Jordan really couldn’t help but admire the beauty of the world. It distracted him, because he used it as an escape from his thoughts. He could just stare at the sky, and think of nothing other than how pretty it looked.

Eventually, the boy was pulled out of his daydreaming when they arrived at the mining campsite. Jordan and the other hurriers put their gear on, grabbed the minecarts and headed down the dim tunnel.

“Jordan. Today, pull your cart, instead of pushing it,” Trevor said, his voice muffled by the gas mask.

“Huh? Why?”

“It’ll give your front muscles a break. You’ll get stronger if you alternate between pushing and pulling days.”

“Well, alright then,” Jordan said, using his lantern to find the chain attached to the front and wrapping it around himself. “Wait, how do I go downhill if I’m in front of the cart?”

“Er… Just hold the side?”

“Okay…”

Holding the side of the cart as he walked downhill felt awkward, like he was fighting a battle to maintain his grip and not let the cart slide all the way down. ‘Wait, that sounds fun!’ Jordan thought. ‘More importantly, that sounds like less work!’

“Hey, why don’t we just ride the carts down? It’ll be faster.”

“No, do not do that! You’ll damage the wheels!”

“Aw.” Jordan pouted. Then he realized that the floor was so bumpy and full of holes that he’d probably flip over.

The hurriers split up, and Jordan found himself hanging out next to Trevor while they waited for the miners to quarry more stone.

“So…” Jordan said, obviously bored. “How’d you end up here?”

Trevor glanced at him, and looked back at the miners.

“I got enslaved.”

“… Okay… and then?”

“Then I ended up here.”

Jordan’s head went limp, rolling it as he looked at Trevor. ‘Please… Let me have a social interaction…’ The older boy smirked.

“Uh… why were you enslaved?” Jordan asked, still trying to get a proper conversation going.

“It’s because our side lost.”

“Your side?” Jordan perked up.

“Yeah. I was a soldier for Anima Rouge.”

“Oh.” Jordan said. He didn’t ask more, because he didn’t actually know what Anima Rouge was. Trevor kept on going though.

“Mhm. I was part of the garrison when the Empire besieged the castle I was posted at. I was there on the walls, shooting down legionnaires with my longbow, and fighting for every stone. I did well, but my comrades didn’t. They pushed us off the walls and into the fort, where we holed up for a few hours. My commander made the decision to surrender there, and that’s how I was enslaved.”

“Wow,” was all Jordan could say. He had no reference to what Trevor was talking about, nor any idea on why he was fighting. Still, apparently he was a soldier, so that was cool.

Trevor nodded, stared off into the distance for a bit, then walked off and began to throw stones into his cart.

“Wait,” Jordan said, chasing after him. “What’s Anima Rouge?” he asked, bending down to pick up a large stone.

Trevor looked at him with a confused face. “What do you mean?”

“Like, what is that? I’ve never heard of it.”

“Seriously? Did you live under a rock?”

“No, I lived under a canopy.”

Trevor facepalmed. “Dude, seriously? I mean, I know its a whole continent away, but… seriously? You don’t even know who enslaved you either, I bet.”

Jordan felt a little embarrassed. He lived in a jungle village, decently far away from any cities. His education mostly consisted of fighting, mana control, skinning and cleaning animals, and not dying from eating weird plants. The boy had only ever been to a city a couple of times with his parents. He hardly knew what was going on in the Draconic Lands, much less the Divine Continent.

Trevor scoffed, and chucked a rock in his cart. It shattered upon landing, filling up the empty space better. “Dude… Okay, whatever. Basically, there’s a war in the Divine Continent that’s been going on for like, a hundred years. Or more. I’m not really sure.” Trevor explained, as he picked up and threw rocks into his minecart.

“On one side, is the Third Empire. They worship a pantheon of Gods. Sol is one of them. They have their own companies, merch, and churches and all that.”

A finger snapped and a flame lit in Jordan’s head. ‘Ah. So that’s what Sol is a part of.’

“Anima Rouge is a rebelling state that somehow managed to fight back against the Empire for this long. I was born in its forests, and I joined the army when I was 15. Shouldn’t have done that, got captured just a few months after my basic training.”

“Heh, yup, that’s super unlucky,” Jordan replied. “So you were the same age as me when you got here.”

“Hm? You’re 15?”

“Yeah!”

“When were you born?”

“Uh… The 12th day of Winter?”

“Then I was older. I turned 16 on the 73rd day of Spring.”

“Aw. Wait, how old are you now?”

“I’m 18.”

‘So I was right about him being three years older than me. I’m so good at guessing.’ Jordan thought, smirking.

The two boys didn’t continue their conversation, because their carts were full and they had to transport it back up. Jordan learned that he wasn’t strong enough to fill it all the way yesterday, so he left about a foot of empty space near the top. Trevor filled his up all the way and then some, to compensate for Jordan.

Even so, Trevor seemed to pull his cart quickly and efficiently, while Jordan struggled to put one foot in front of the other. The ten minute walk down the tunnel became a thirty minute slog upwards. Jordan grunted and groaned the whole way up, his mana enhancing his body’s strength and his muscles creaking under the stress.

When they made it to the top, Jordan had to pull his cart over to the large wagon cart, and use the jack to pump his cart up to the wagon’s rim. Then, he had to jump up to its rim, and scoop out the rest of the rocks that remained in his cart. Only then, could he relax and have a restful walk down again, pulling his hundred plus pound cart.

He had about four or five trips up and down, before it was lunch time. This time, the two boys sat with Marcel’s group of miners.

“Ey, Boy. How are ya, how’s the girl?” Marcel asked.

“Hi Marcel. I’m fine, and I think Sofia’s fine too. You know, she brought a shank to the bathroom. Like, where’d she even get that?” Jordan replied, sitting down with his nutrition block.

“Ha! I knew that girl’d be sharp. I saw it in her eyes. She ain’t live an easy life, like you, haha!”

Jordan huffed, and looked off as he bit off and chewed a piece of his foodcube. ‘Yeah… It’s becoming clear to me that most of these guys have had it worse than me.’

The boy spaced out, thinking about his life and missing things he used to have. A job he didn’t have to exert himself on. A private bedroom. People who loved him. Freedom to do what he wanted. Then he realized that the people around him might not have had the same luxuries.

Jordan tuned back in, to see if the slaves were talking about anything interesting, but it was mostly just gossip, like how one of them thinks a crafter was into them.

He thought that even though they went through a hard life, they were still here, living. Even as a slave, they dedicated themselves to their work, and continue to be alive. The boy spent the rest of the time thinking about his future, and soon, it was time for work again.

After about six more hours of grueling physical work, it was time to clean up and do maintenance on the equipment. Trevor showed Jordan how to take apart the minecart, oil up the hinges, and polish the metal. He explained that they’ve never gotten replacements the whole time he’s been there, so he had to make sure his equipment was always in top quality.

Jordan used the onsite showers to clean his clothes, his body, and his gear. His gasmask smelled like sweat and rubber, so he soaped and scrubbed the heck out of it. His vest and belt were full of dust, so he emptied those out and just rinsed them with water. He polished his helmet until it shone.

Jordan was the last one to finish again, but at least this time he was able to get everything done.

The boy met up with Sofia, and the two of them got their dinner and sat with Ryan and Jonas again. This time, Jordan could feel people’s gazes on his neck. He heard them whispering about him and Sofia, and he didn’t like it one bit.

“Pshaw… Don’t worry about it, you two. They’re just bored. They’ll latch on to anything new ‘round here. Just eat your food and ignore them,” Ryan said.

Unfortunately, Jordan had very good hearing. And he heard something which he just couldn’t ignore.

“… do you think he beats it with his left, or his right?”

Jordan spit out his food, in shock of what he heard.