Later that night in Eirian room. He talks with his roommate about their own teams.
“You’re letting them choose? That would just let them see you as weak. Why not just show them your strength, don’t you have a powerful magic?” Marco expresses his puzzlement at Eirian choice.
“What? Is that not how you do it?” Eirian asks Marco while also looking at Rusul, a male goat roommate who is playing with his collection of bone carve with strange symbol.
“Most of my team is a wolf so I beat them all in a duel and make them swear fealty to me.”
“I guess that one way to do it” Eirian turns to Rusul “How does your team pick a leader Rusul?”
Rusul rolls the bone before look up “We got a tiger who want to be a leader at first but Blake, our raven argue that he is smarter so he should be a leader. Turn out after they fight Blake is also stronger so he is our team leader now.”
Rusul is a brown goat with one horn. He said to have lost another horn in an accident. But even with one horn he might be the bravest goat Eirian and Marco ever meet. Not only he is not afraid of living with Marco but also eager to come up and ask all kind of question about them, personal question like their dream, what they like to eat and their birthday.
‘It’s weird to lie to your roommate first question but I can’t tell him I don’t know when I was born either.’
“Can I ask what are you doing?” Seeing him roll those dice over and over Eirian can’t help but to ask.
“Oh sorry, I got these bones from a weird shop in the city. The shop owner claim it can forecast the future so I been testing it” Rusul rolls the bone again. “This city is really amazing, there is all kind of shop I never see before and they don’t shut down anyone since all god and ideology is allow here. In my city only the book of Pan and a white rock that bless with ice magic is allow for praying. All other kind of handicraft or pagan stuff is ban.”
“So, is it real?” Marco leans down to look at the bone.
Rusul don’t react toward a big white wolf towering over him, he only care about the bone on his bed. “The owner said it need other person to participate, would both of you like to try?”
Eirian looks at Marco and both of them understand that there is nothing to lose so Eirian let Marco go first.
“Ask me a question about a future you want to know”
Marco thinks for a moment before speak “Will I get to be a Fenrir like my father one day?”
Rusul presses all the bone in his palm like pray and roll. He looks at the symbol for a moment before foretells “Hm... the reading indicate danger like someone is threaten your life but if you manage to survive the hardship you have a chance to achieve your goal.”
“Ha. I’m a son of Fenrir Conri, my life is always in danger. Let the challenger come!”
Next is Eirian, he thought about asking what he want to know but that question is too serious to ask his new roommate playing dice so instead he asks “Will I be able to win the heart of my teammate?”
Again, Rusul prays and roll “Yes, but only if you follow the goat”
‘Goat? Biscuit? But if I to lead why does he say follow.’
“You should be more careful Eirian I’m saying this as a fellow team leader. Every other team already settle their leader position. As the only Amiel here you wouldn’t want other to see your people as indecisive do you?” said Marco
“Don’t worry they will all choose me soon enough. I’ll do this my way.” Eirian tries to make Marco back off. He knows he can’t show weakness to the wolf or they will all walk over you.
“Well, that was fun let me know if the prediction come true ok?”
Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.
“I think you will know when I become Fenrir.”
“Oh, I almost forgot” Rusul cries “The owner also said the dice will collect a cost for both the forecaster and the witness. A small fee in fate but it shouldn’t be anything too serious.”
‘That would have been nice to know before we sat down with you!’
A wolf and Amiel look at each other and realizes the scariest person in this room might be their goat and his many toys.
Still, they didn’t press Rusul further since it might just be a fake rock that Rusul got scammed. There is no point being angry with him.
When they turn off the light Rusul stop playing with dice and going to sit at window gazing at the star like he always does. He will sit there for a few hours before go to bed and always wake up late.
‘He says he love the star and looking for a sign. Wanting to communicate and understand them whatever that mean. Such a strange goat.’
The next day Prof. Fay is about to start a class when a wolf raises a question about what Prof. Leon said yesterday and ask if she, a sheep, are really that strong.
“Oh, he said that did he.” Fay smiles and Chuckle as if she hears something funny “I’m indeed have battle with Leon before and we both have our own wins and loses but He is easily seasick you see; he is one of the strongest wolves I know but that guy can’t stand the sight of boat at all. Don’t tell him I say this but once we had to sail up to White Crescent Bay and he basically throw up all the way there. We have to haul him out when we landed and when it's time to go back he run away and walk back here on his own, can you imagine? Walk from the bay to here? he been gone for month ha ha” Fay trying her best to not laugh too loud to save her friend some face.
“Now about what Leon say that you should only listen to the strong” Fay calms herself down “On this I disagree with him. You see it is not so obvious when does someone become strong, there is no line where you can measure that someone is now strong enough so you can start listen to them. If you are one of the strongest people in the world then you might start seeing everyone as weak and don’t listen to anyone. And when you stop listening you will start to make mistake and become weak.” Fay pauses as she remembers someone “Some might do fine being alone but most of us are better off working together even if it means working with the weak since you could never know how the weak will come back to help you one day.” Fay walks away from the board and closer to student “Let’s me tell you a story of our people. The day we’re set free”
“Long ago we were just a farm animal under care of Amiel and Human who keep us for our milk and wool. As one of our first Pan awaken he start to make a plan for our escape from human and Amiel without them noticed because he saw how they butcher any animal who is no longer useful to them. At the time we were weak and few in number, our Pan can’t awake us or risk being discover. There is always a chance human and Amiel will choose to put down our First Pan to keep us docile and under their control since we are one of their food sources at the time.”
Eirian noticed a human in this room start to react to this a little. ‘Ah yes, our history of subjugate animal to use them as our resources. Can’t really blame us for doing it since we all need to eat but it sure is awkward’
“He then decided to flee into the Medina Forest alone with a few goats and sheep he can bring to hide from human. One by one he transforms our people letting us stand by our own two legs await an opportunity to rescue all goat and sheep from the farm. At the time Human are just starting to rebuild their food industry around west of New Terra where it is safe from other nation attack with Amiel to help guard their northern border. Most of their farm are here including all kind of other animal like pig, chicken and cow who survive and adapt to magic but didn’t awaken.”
“It was during a great earthquake, said to be brought by Amalthaea himself that Pan took a chance to rescue every goat and sheep alive and flee through Medina Forest hoping to settle somewhere north where their people would be free from human. It’s was during their escape that he was discover by Lucena, mother of Princess Alana. She could have call for help or even using her own magic to stop him being one of the first Amiel she is. However, she didn’t attack them, knowing this could endanger her people with the loss of such important food production. In that moment she sees our people who were just manage to open our eye and chooses to show kindness. Lucena gave Pan the map of the north and point to land by the sea where it is inhabitable, that spot is where our capital Dro Musdei sit to this day.”
“This act of kindness to the weak might seem foolish to some of you. It’s certainly made Human and Amiel more vulnerable to supplies shortage and many Human and Amiel do disapprove of her action. But many years later when the people of Amiel was under attack and surrounded by an army of raven, hawk, ant and wolves. When it seems all is lost it was the people of Amalthor who come to save them from the fire. With water and ice, the Amalthorian push back the enemy and break the ring of fire — saving Amiel home. Our people become friend ever since covenant by Treaty of friendship that last to this day. So, remember everyone never look down on the weak for we’re all have a moment of weakness and sometimes we just need someone to help lift us up so we can stand tall together.
‘The weak stand together and the strong rise above the rest’ Eirian thinks of a quote from an old book he read. Don’t know what he should believe. On one hand he knows Prof. is right but on the other hand...
‘For now, let’s focus on training my teammate. The training will take a while to get Bill and Biscuits up to some standard on battlefield but it should be possible with Calamity help. By then I should know how to handle my teammate.’
Their first group assignment in Cinder Wood is coming up in a few days and he plan to make sure his team pass with flying color.