Chapter 14
Farra, Leo and I lazily wander through the city, relishing our time off. This time, there is less trepidation in our steps. We wander with ease, thankful for the day to rest our muscles after another grueling week of training.
We end up on the outskirts of the city, walking along the uneven streets, each of us lost in our own thoughts. The concrete wall casts a shadow over the short buildings along the streets.
An intoxicating smell catches my attention––is that bread? I look around, but I don't see any vendors or street markets near. I shake my head a little at the thought that it might be a resident simply baking it. It seems outrageous, but the more I see, the more confused I get.
I fall a little behind the others as my brain thinks about what's ahead for me.
I've yet to figure out how to get my siblings here.
I asked a few more people in the compound but other than the forms I've already filled out, they all gave me similar answers as Wesley: it's a waiting game.
The residents here have all been grandfathered in for generations.
Maybe I'm looking at this wrong, maybe instead of hoping to find a way to get them in, I should focus on getting myself into a better position. Making friends with the higher ups.
I chew my lip as I realize Captain Kethler is probably out on that list; he seems to dislike me, or more accurately, dislike everyone. There are others, though. The tower would have been a good option, but after that fall last week, there's just no way.
I realized too that I need to better understand the structure of what's going on the compound.
Cadets and soldiers are only permitted in the training facilities, but what is happening in the rest of the building?
We're allowed to roam in a small portion of the upper floor, the classrooms, auditoriums, training rooms and facilities.
But I've never even seen the med building.
I heard cadets talking about the science and engineering labs on the bottom floors, about all the work down there being strictly confidential.
Something about it doesn't sit right with me.
If they were just working on agriculture, why wouldn't that be public knowledge?
And if they aren't working on that, what would that mean for their entire mission statement?
"Hey what's going over there, you think?" Leo asks, mindlessly leading us down the road towards where we can see people funneling into larger crowds through the narrow streets.
I tense when I see the church. We're still at a distance, but I can tell by the pillars of the building, the old well-kept brick standing taller than the rest of the buildings on this side of town.
Our feet carry us closer, as we wonder what's drawn all these people to worship at the same time.
My chest tightens the closer we get. I suspect it's nothing good.
It's been a long time since people protested openly. I'm doubtful it's that.
Recognition shudders through me as we get close enough to see the white pillars lining the wall beside the building. They look rusted from years of use.
Farra sucks in a breath between her teeth.
"Fuck," Leo says openly.
I wince, watching the bodies hanging from the pillars sway in the gentle breeze.
People are openly gawking, and I can't really blame them.
This is quite the display. I count six bodies.
People are laying offerings on the steps at the front of the building.
They kneel, briefly uttering words of prayer, and then put their hands on their chests in a show of respect, for the dead or for the Gods, I'm not sure which.
I eye my friends, wanting desperately to turn around, but the crowd surrounds us now, herding us through the street.
I keep moving with them instead of trying to go against them.
As we get closer, Leo tugs on my sleeve and nods to the last two bodies.
My body freezes. I recognize the red hair blowing in the wind, the girl from our arrival day––and her partner, hanging next to her.
Farra catches our glances and whispers, "Did you guys know them?"
I shake my head and keep moving as someone bumps into us.
"Not really. They were the ones who got into it with our escorting officer when we came."
All the colour drains from Leo's face as he stares blankly.
The girl looks so young up there like that; her face, partially pushed up by rope, still holds some of the pudge of adolescence.
Bruises circle her wrists and neck, and my stomach roils as I see various marks left on her porcelain skin peeking out of her tattered clothing.
Turning, I see a member of the clergy standing proudly by the church doors, thick, dark brown robes billowing to the ground and his head tilted up haughtily.
I swallow my disgust.
I don't suspect these people were overly innocent, but I don't think there's anything to be proud of here.
Seeing the bodies hanging so crudely for everyone to gawk at makes my skin crawl.
I didn't truly know that young girl hanging there, but I saw she took no pleasure in what they were doing on the road.
All I see is how our society keeps failing our most vulnerable.
I steer our group away from the crowd as quickly as I can, not wanting to linger. It shouldn't shock me to see the two from our arrival up there. Logically, I knew their actions would sentence them to death, but it still leaves me feeling uneasy.
The thought that keeps picking at me is how long she'd been here. Executions in our town happen swiftly, and they were up and gone, usually within a few hours. This feels a bit like a warning, and I can't help but wonder what they had been doing with them these last few weeks.
Ambushing a government vehicle and employee is suicide, but a part of me can't help but feel sympathy for them.
What kind of desperation had led them to believe that was their only option?
Had the young girl even been given a chance, or had people forced her hand?
Can humans who are experiencing such despair really be held to the same standards as those who aren't? Leo's voice interrupts my somber, run-away thoughts.
"I feel a little sick." He shivers and shakes his hands like he can vanquish all the uneasiness.
"Yeah, that was... awful. How long do you think they've been up there?" Farra murmurs.
I shake my head. "No idea. We have executions at home, but they aren't like that. That felt like a presentation."
We pass an old woman on the side of the road. She's almost crippled with age, hunched over in a beige dress that looks about four sizes too big. She struggles to get her bag of laundry back over her shoulder, and I cross the street to help her lift it.
"Here, let me help. This thing weighs a ton." I smile down at her as I lift the bag, and I'm met with a cheeky grin from the old woman.
"Oh, thanks dear. I was honestly playing up my brittleness a little, hoping that handsome friend of yours would take pity on me." She winks and gives a bigger smile, one showing her mess of teeth.
Leo and Farra cross towards us and must have caught what she said, because Leo's face lights up, and Farra rolls her eyes playfully. I lift the bag onto the porch as Leo gives the old woman his arm, helping her to her door. She turns, facing us, noting our uniforms.
"You three be careful out there. Everything's made to kill ya these days."
I nod towards the church a few streets over. "Does that happen often?"
The old woman sighs. "More and more. It's disrespectful to leave the dead up like that, if you ask me. Bound to piss off one god or another." She whispers the last bit. "Come in for some tea? I haven't had company in a dark age."
I look at my friends in question, but Leo is already pushing past us towards the door, making the choice for us.
We help the old woman inside. All three of us are wide-eyed at the state of her house.
It's small, smaller than our home back at the hovel, but it's the smell that throws me off.
It smells like spices. I'm hit with a familiar feeling, a memory just out of reach, triggered by whatever musky scent is flowing through the space, and my brain pinches in response.
"Tea anyone?"
The woman hobbles into the tiny kitchen, turning the stove on.
Mismatched mugs line the shelves and I find myself unable to stop my snooping as I wander the little den.
It's been so long since I've seen a home like this, full.
There are shelves with clay pots, decorative weapons hanging on the walls, strange glass containers that contain a variety of odd contents.
Everywhere you look, there's something that seems like it belongs in another world.
Farra is the first to point out the obvious. "Aren't you worried about getting in trouble with all this stuff in here?"
The old woman waves her hand in dismissal and makes a pssh sound.
"Hey! I remember these!" Leo picks up and fumbles a small toy animal.
The little creature is made of glass, almost see through, but it has a gem at its core.
Its legs are hinged with metal gears, allowing movement.
I remember them too, my dad used to say wielders could use their affinities to charge the gems in the middle so they'd come to life for short periods of time.
The perfect blend of magic and engineering, he'd say. A relic of what could have been.
Farra scolds Leo for being clumsy, which causes the old woman to bark a laugh.
I am vaguely aware of their chatter, but my attention is pulled to the tapestry hanging behind the door.
It looks ancient, our country's sacred compass.
But what catches my eye is the slight differences from the ones found all over the city, and in the churches throughout the country. Have I seen this before?