Mosh arrived home, his parents and younger siblings staying close. Five of them were old enough to have studied the lottery in school and seen images of those altered by it. Little Caleb, 9 years old, had sat on Mosh’s lap, staring at his face, tracing his features with his fingers as if wanting to remember not just how he looked, but how he felt. He had only recently been introduced to the lottery and the thought of the way Mosh might change distressed him. Mosh let him, the innocent concern and worry easy to deal with. More stressing was the wailing of his mother, who, once away from the crowds, gave in to her grief. Mosh sighed.
“Ma, I’ll be fine. I’ll look different, but I’ll still be me!” In a way, he said it as much to comfort himself as his mother. She stopped, turning to face him.
“I am not being fair. This is not about me.” She stopped. Looked down, then back at him with tear-filled eyes. “And it is not about how you will change. But Mosh, so many die. They go in, and they die!” Her voice ended with a shriek, and she visibly could be seen taking deep breaths to control herself. “I will be here for you; we will always be here for you. And in the next week, we will do what we can.” Mosh’s father hugged her, the two sitting by Mosh, as the rest of the family sat. Siblings, in-laws, nieces, and nephews.
Towards nightfall, as the family moved to start preparing dinner, his mother sublimated grief beneath the veneer of the matriarch, a fleet of trucks, bearing the Earth Mileu logo, pulled up. Sides unfolded, and different trucks started producing various foodstuffs. Two men came to the door and knocked.
“Yes?” Mosh’s father opened the door, peering out at the trucks. “Why are you here? What are those doing here?”
“Sir, is this the home of Avrami and Sarah Barmenash, parents of Mosh Barmenash? We have been sent by the Earth Milieu to help train and prepare Mosh for entry into the lottery. As much as we would like to send him in with others to protect him, we cannot enter with him, but we can prepare him. Those with me are here to help. Not just help him, but your entire clan, so that this week is one in which you can concentrate on your family. Everything else will be handled by us.” He paused, bowing his head, “If you prefer us to leave, we shall. But we believe the training we can provide will be beneficial.”
Mosh’s father paused. “Mosh, come here.”
Mosh came and stopped by his father, looking at the men standing outside. Earth Mileu badges on their suits, the trucks waiting to set up outside. He looked quizzically at his father.
“It is your decision to make. They have come offering training and to prepare you for the Game.“ He paused, looking out at the trucks, “and apparently to look after us for the next week.”
Mosh stayed silent; he wanted to spend the next week with his family, just spending time with them. But at the same time, he knew that he needed to learn to survive. They had only learned a few basic lessons at school for survival. He had grown up on a farm near the capital city. Monsters rarely penetrated this far; self-defense classes, though compulsory, were seen as more of a joke by most, other than the rare few like Mich that aimed for a combat class. And he had not been one of the few; he had never envisaged himself fighting. He had dreamed of being a mage-scholar or a farmer if that did not happen. He needed the classes now.
Mosh bowed to the men, “Thank you; I will take the classes.” He felt his father’s hand squeeze his shoulder as the two men made sure to return his bow, making sure to go lower than he had. The crowd inside had overheard the conversation and descended on the trucks. As their sides opened, tables were unloaded and grills and cooking stations were set up. The young children, unable to understand the reason. were taking it as an impromptu party to replace the missed one, the older children and adults grimmer but happy to settle down as the meal was prepared.
One of the men leaned over to Mosh. “I am Kevin; I have been assigned to coordinate everything. Tonight, relax and be with your family. Try to put aside your worries and just be in the moment. You will have enough time to worry and stress.” He stopped, looking at Mosh, “Silly words, I suppose, considering the news you have just delivered, but I truly hope to help.”
Mosh smiled and moved out to mingle with the family. He tried to take Kevin’s words into account, but all he could really think about was the lottery. Even amid the family, all expressing concern and love, his thoughts remained on what was to come. He mirrored Caleb’s earlier motions, running his fingers across his face, wondering for how long he would look like this, how it would feel in the future. For now, all he could do was embrace the warmth and wait for the morrow.
***
Shiel stepped out of the carriage, its mana engine silently purring until she withdrew her touch, and it came to a standstill. She moved forward towards the farmhouse, glancing at the Earth Mileu trucks, grunting while thinking, ‘Some things have improved. But I doubt the poor child chosen for the game is any more prepared than I was.’ She touched her face, feeling the leathery skin and the sensitive feathers under her eyes and sticking out from her face. She knew why she was chosen for these training sessions when she wasn’t in the Game; as others that did the training were chosen, her mutations were clearly visible, but not the monstrous ones many showed. She knew why; all those in the game did. Her evolution potential at tier 5 mitigated some of the extremes. It would be interesting to discuss it with the child; none outside of the game knew what governed the severity of the mutations. With some luck, the child would have a high enough evolutionary potential to not be too monstrous. She had winced when she had spoken to Dmitrios earlier; he had been assigned to another candidate, and being in a different time zone, he had already met her. A potential of two; if she survived, her mutations would be extreme. She sighed, Mileu willing the child assigned to her would have a high enough potential to grow.
Shiel eyed the just-rising sun, briefly missing her own family, farmers in an area far from here. The Earth Mileu encampment could be seen preparing food ready for an early breakfast, those brought in to work the fields while the family looked after their soon-to-be-removed son, joking with each other and filling bowls and plates, fuel for the coming day. Some might find it strange that the Earth Mileu employed agricultural specialists, but when not on assignments like this one, there were plenty of Mileu farms they worked on. She briefly contemplated grabbing a plate for herself, then abandoned the idea, preferring to make an impression on the boy with an early arrival. It was hardly like she was hungry, and a late breakfast was far from the hardships she had endured in the game.
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The door to the farmhouse swung open as she approached. A small child, followed by a puppy still stumbling over its feet, barged out, running into her legs. The child bounced back, then glanced up at her, his eyes going wide as he took in her features. He contemplated her, and in a piping voice, asked, “Are you like what Mosh will be?”
Shiel almost laughed. Shock, horror, and people taking stock and trying to control their reactions were what she was used to. A small child looking at her and doing nothing but asking about if this is what his brother would experience was a new one. She smiled, trying not to let the rows of shark-like incisors in her mouth show, and replied. “No, little one, we all look different. My name is Shiel. What is your name and the name of your little friend there?”
The child looked at her, seemingly wanting to peer into her mouth. Shiel, knowing that he had probably caught a glimpse inside and was curious, decided to humor him and opened up. He looked, then laughed. “Those are just like the weird deers that the guardians caught last week. Captain Jag said that it made them extra bitey as they had to continue eating after they started. Do you have to continue eating once you start?” He paused, then remembered he had been asked a question, “I am Simo, and my puppy is Clumsy, though Pa says that the name won’t fit him soon. But I like it; do you like it?”
Shiel smiled at the deluge, answering what was clearly his biggest concern. “I think that Clumsy is a great name. Even when he is big and can run like the wind and sneak like a wolf, it will help you remember what fun you had with him as a puppy! Is Mosh awake?”
Simo smiled, scratching the puppy’s head as he answered. “Yeah, Mosh is awake and in the kitchen with Ma and Pa. The man yesterday said training would start early, so he wanted to make sure he was ready.” For a moment the smile faded, and worry entered his face. “Do you think he will be ok? Everyone says the Game is filled with monsters. Some of my friends say they are allowed to watch, but Ma and Pa won’t allow us to.”
“We can never know where peace will be and where hardship will fall, little one. But that is why I am here. Hopefully I can teach him enough that he will grow and remain safe, and you will be able to see him again soon.” Shiel smiled and stood. “Gotta go; have fun with Clumsy!” She ruffled Simo’s hair, stepping into the house with a loud “Hello” to make sure to warn them she was entering. She heard a chair scrape, followed by footsteps as a young man emerged into the room, facing the door.
Shiel took stock of the boy, or more likely the recently awakened young man, before her. He stood just under two meters tall, with a solid build, most likely from chores on the farm. His brown hair was short, but small curls could be seen forming in places. His face was smooth, though it appeared he was trying to cultivate a beard, with the lack of success many young men had when they first tried. She smiled, a close-lipped smile, knowing how unnerving her smile could be.
In turn, Shiel could see the boy contemplating her, and she remained silent as he did so. Shiel paused, then felt it best for him to take a long and good look. They would be spending a lot of time together for the next week, no point in hiding anything. And on that thought she smiled, not hiding her teeth. He seemed taken aback momentarily but then relaxed.
“You are the one the Earth Mileu sent to train me?” His voice was deep, and Shiel nodded in reply before speaking.
“Yes, I am, training and more. I take it you are Mosh.” Shiel paused, looking him over and watching the people in the kitchen, his parents most likely from what Simo had said, who made no pretense of pretending not to listen but faced them. “One of those caravans outside has been set up with a privacy shield so no one will listen in when we speak. There are topics forbidden to those not in the Game, and we will discuss those. You know of what I speak, and it is the most important thing you need to hear.”
As she stopped speaking, a feminine voice came from the kitchen, “Unless you are in a hurry, why not join us for some breakfast…?” The voice trailed off, not knowing how to address her.
Shiel nodded, stepping into the kitchen and taking a seat opposite the parents at the large kitchen table, marked and marred by who knew how many family dinners and accidents. “I am Shiel, and no honorifics are needed.” She laughed, “I grew up on a farm outside of Tinmin City. I try to visit when I can, but the game gets in the way. But I must say I feel more at home here than anywhere outside of my own family. The Earth Mileu may mean well when they try to shower us with luxury and privilege when we get a break from the Game, but home is home, and this feels like home!” She could see her words having an effect, the shift in their attitude to being far less guarded, and she took a bowl from the table, moved to the stove, and spooned in some porridge before returning to the table to cut up some fruit into it. She ate, not watching the family, letting them get used to her and her presence.
The meal finished, and Shiel stood, gesturing for Mosh to follow her. They stepped outside, and Shiel moved towards the overseer, watching him step back and give a slight bow as she did. “Which are the caravans assigned to me? My living quarters and the privacy room?”
The man did his best to show no reaction, but her combat-trained observation betrayed his attempts to shield. She prevented herself from sighing; he was at least trying. Though one would have hoped he had been better briefed on what to expect. The man bowed again, “Please, Miss, follow me.”
A group of caravans sat slightly apart from the rest. One was obviously a residential trailer, another, a similar one but with the shimmer of a mana field, obviously the privacy-shielded meeting room; four others had been joined together, a solid block, and Shiel knew that there would be no interior walls, just a large training area. Shiel moved to the meeting room, feeling a slight sting as the mana probed her and let her in; she saw Mosh startle, staring at his limbs as the same happened to him. Shiel spoke up, “It’s a mana shield; someone has programmed our mana signatures into it. No one else will be able to enter, hear, or see what is happening within. Shiel entered, beelining to the extravagant coffee machine as she watched Mosh enter and look around nervously. “Sit, be comfortable. Or grab a cold drink from the fridge. Unless you would prefer coffee, espresso, or cappuccino? This machine can make them all.” She smiled, enjoying a luxury she would lose out on once she was called back into the game.
Shiel took her mug, drinking the strong, black coffee, its bitterness as it should be, unmarred by sugar. Taking small sips, she took a seat on a couch near Mosh, folding her legs beneath her. Silence fell, and aware that Mosh would be uncomfortable, unused to her or this environment, she started. “So, Mosh, time to explain some truths unknown to the Earth Milieu or those outside the Game. Truth’s the Greater Milieu would torture us for revealing to those outside the Crucible!”