Tristan's Tale Pt. 04

Now, the bustle of life filled the place, and I felt just a little more at home. It took the edge off, seeing that it wasn't just me, and that I was a part of a much larger thing. Humbling, in a way.

As we walked toward the mess hall, we did so mostly in silence. Emmit had an idle, curious look about his face -- he seemed like he wasn't entirely here. I expected him to ask me about my evening -- Jade had just gone and taken me from him and his friends, after all. It's what one of my friends back home would have done -- there wasn't much in the way of privacy between all of us.

But he didn't say anything about it. He seemed to be taking in the people around him, trying to puzzle something out. Way more awake and alert than I was. I mentioned as much to him.

He shrugged in response. "I have been up for an hour. I am no longer tired."

"An hour?" I said. "What have you been doing for an hour?"

He avoided meeting my eyes, staring straight ahead as we walked. "I do not wish to answer that question."

"Oh, okay. Sorry man, I didn't mean to-"

"It's fine," he said, cutting me off. We walked the rest of the way in silence. I was stung from the terse rebuke, and a little unsure where I'd crossed the line.

We went down the stairs toward the mess hall. My seat was at the beginning of the stone table that wound back and forth all the way to the opposite corner of the room, right near the entrance. As I moved to sit down, Emmit patted me on the shoulder.

"Maybe this will finally be your first normal day here!" he said, smiling eagerly. There was no hint of resentment from the tense moment in the hallway. "I'll stop by on my way out to help show you to your classes."

"Much appreciated," I replied, and took my seat.

Fred and Jules were already seated next to and across from me, and they greeted me as I pulled up to the table.

"Well, what do you know. The kid makes it to two meals in a row! Somebody call CNN!" exclaimed Fred when I pulled up.

"Cut it out old man, I'm trying to forget about back home. I don't need you yammering about news channels from the beginning of the day," said Jules as he rubbed his temples in frustration. "Morning, Tristan," he said almost as an aside. "First real night here, huh? How'd you sleep?"

"I'm sixty-seven god damn years old, I'll talk about whatever I please, sonny," grumbled Fred, but his heart wasn't in it.

"I slept alright," I replied. "Only got a few hours."

"Really?" asked Jules. "Why's that?"

"I wanted to burn some steam, so I went practicing in the Chi room for a while."

"On purpose?" asked Fred. He sounded incredulous, like he couldn't imagine why anyone would so such a thing.

"...Yes?" I offered. "Why, is there something wrong with that?"

"Shit," said Fred, "I don't know what it's like for you, but it's torture for an old guy like me! Standing there in a dark room, looking everywhere for the light switch. Can't find the damn thing..." he grumbled.

"There's no light switch, dumbass," said Jules. "It's already lit up, it's just an empty room. Maybe you need to get your eyes checked."

Fred took off his glasses and squinted at Jules before putting them back on. "I don't know, seems like you don't get any prettier when I've got my glasses on."

"Oh, no, Fred doesn't think I'm pretty. Tristan more your type?"

Fred snorted. "Nice try. I've fucked more women than you have years to your age, boy. Know what they called me back home?"

"Again with the home..." groaned Jules.

"The Deal-Sealer," he said with pride.

Jules brought his face to his palm. "That has got to be the worst fuckin' nickname I've ever heard. Mr. Deal-Sealer..." he laughed out loud, slapping the table.

"Man, how do you guys get the energy?" I asked. "We haven't even had coffee yet, and you're already at it."

"What can I say," said Jules with a charming smile, "the old bastard brings it out in me."

Fred rolled his eyes. "The way you talk to your elders boy, it brings a tear to my eye."

"Man, I've got to get Set as soon as possible, or I'm gonna off myself by the second week," I said.

They laughed uproariously, drawing a few looks from members down the line. They were probably the loudest part of our section of the room.

"I like your ambition, kid," said Fred. "Hell, if a little morning banter is enough to get you working hard, then shit, me and Jules have got you covered. Ain't that right?" he asked.

"Damn straight. Though, I've got some bad news about what you said just a second ago. Zeros aren't allowed to drink coffee."

"You're joking," I said.

He shook his head. "Nope. I'll tell you, the withdrawal hit me like a truck when I first got here. I was at two or three cups a morning, toss in a few more later in the day. Apparently we're supposed to be able to control our minds better before being allowed to fuck 'em up."

Fred rolled his eyes. "These people are crazy, it's just coffee. Back home, I-"

"Would you quit that?!" demanded Jules. "I've had to put up with this shit for too long. Get over it, we're not going back, not for a damn long while."

"Ah, what does it matter. I'll probably be dead before I get back," replied Fred.

"Guys, guys, please," I interjected, "At least for the morning, can we save the fighting? At least until the boats come?"

"Fighting?" asked a confused Jules. "Who's fighting?"

"I reckon the kid thinks we're in some sort of disagreement," replied Fred. "We're not. Just different strokes for different folks, I guess. I'm fine with keeping the mornings civil, if you feel so strongly about it."

"Alright, fine with me," agreed Jules.

Hallelujah. "Thanks, guys."

The layout was a little different this time. Where before there had been a plate, silverware, and a glass of water in front of each stool, there was now instead a single fork resting on a small plate, adjacent to a brick shaped gray rock. The rock emanated heat, which I felt immediately as I rested my elbows on the table -- it must have just been removed from a fire or something.

Experimentally, I poked a finger into the water that ran down the middle of the table (there were no boats drifting by yet), and dripped a few drops of water onto the rock. They evaporated instantaneously with a sizzle.

"So, this your first time with the hot brick?" asked Fred.

I looked at the rock before me. "Yeah. Are we seriously supposed to cook on it, and then eat off of it?"

He nodded in response. "Yup. It's not so bad, actually. Food's damn good here."

"I'll say," chimed in Jules. "You ever wonder, though, how they get it?"

"I try not to think about it," said Fred. "Shit, we could be eatin' gruel and it's just the butterflies in our head tellin' us we're havin' steak and potatoes. I haven't been outside Moleh yet, don't really plan on it, but I haven't heard of any sort of farming operation going on here."

It was an interesting point that I hadn't considered. It's one thing to realize that anything could be made up, a figment of my mind produced by Shae's influence. But then it actually hit me for what would not be the last time: the food, the water, even Jules and Fred. I had no guarantee that they were actually there.

I shook my head clear of those thoughts. "It is much better to assume the blade at your throat is real than to assume it is not."

They nodded thoughtfully. "Hmm...Fair point. You come up with that?"

"Emmit told me that on my first day. Sound advice, I think."

Empty boats started coming by on the water - wooden rafts with a carved dragon's head in the bow, and small decorative flourishes in the wood gilding the sides. The food they'd been carrying had been taken by the people up the table.

My stomach rumbled -- I hadn't considered it, but practicing with my Chi for five hours had left me exhausted and starving. I'd thought that perhaps everything that occurred in that room was only happening in my mind, but I couldn't deny how hungry I was, and how strained my muscles felt. I hoped the Body classes wouldn't be too tough. Pictures of a drill sergeant shouting at me to do pushups crossed my mind - I tossed them.

Eventually, food came down the line. A slab of ham made it to me on one boat, and then on another came hashbrowns and a small square of butter. The boats floated gently into the hole in the wall next to me, where the table came from, and disappeared.

I speared the butter with my fork and dropped it onto the brick. It sizzled promisingly, and then before they floated away, I took the ham and the hashbrowns and placed them next to each other in the butter. I let them cook for a little while, periodically checking their undersides to make sure I wasn't burning them, since I wasn't sure how hot the rock was.

As I cooked, more food came by, and I ended up grabbing a few more slices of ham and a small bowl of oatmeal which came with its own spoon. It was tricky trying to juggle the space that was available to me: I only had two surfaces on which to leave food. I somehow managed to get the food off the boats and onto the small plate, and then switched the slices of ham around from rock to plate without burning anything.

Soon, I had a big breakfast in front of me, and I dug into it. While one slice of ham was cooking, I'd eat the one I'd just taken off, interspersed with a bite of hashbrowns. I'd slightly overcooked almost everything, but still, it tasted delicious. I eagerly wolfed down the oatmeal while I waited for the last of my ham to cook.

Maybe a little too eager -- I was making a bit of a mess in my area. Jules took note of it.

"Hey Tristan, want a tip? They don't clean your table for you, just the plates and the silverware and shit. The rock too," he said, pointing to it. "So if you don't want to come back to a dirty-ass eating space, slow down."

"Kids eat too fast these days," said Fred. I looked at his plate -- true enough, he hadn't even finished his first slice of ham, while I'd eaten three on top of the rest of my meal.

"Mmph," I said, my mouth full of delicious fried potato, "Thnk you. All cln 'p."

Jules burst out laughing. "Geez, man, chew your food. Who woulda thought, Tristan, the legendary newcomer to Moleh, the man we thought tussled with an Odieh... he's got no table manners!" Fred joined him in his laughter.

I finished chewing, and swallowed. "Guilty."

Breakfast was wrapping up. I immediately recognized Jet walking down the way. He was easy to spot, his exceptionally well fitting suit contrasted starkly with the casual attire worn by everyone else. He was the first one leaving.

I stared at him as he came closer, hoping to get his attention, but he breezed past me without so much as a glance, one hand swinging by his side, the other resting lightly on the pommel of his sword. One of the medical workers had said he'd stayed by my side the entire time I'd been recovering from his sword strike to my side. I was starting to doubt that.

"Guy's crazy, eats way too fast" said Fred, nodding to Jet as he passed through the doors and out of sight.

I shrugged. "Maybe it's just the place that makes you crazy."

"I'll drink to that! Or, I would if we were allowed beer. Shit rule, that even once you get Set you can't drink. Gotta get Odieh, and even then, I can't imagine Jet kicking back in the lawn with a Corona, you know?"

I laughed as I tidied up around my area, dumping the mess I'd made on my plate.

Emmit came up, displaying his usual friendly smile. "How'd it go? You figure out the hot brick?"

"Yeah, these guys helped me figure it out. The food is great here, even if the set-up is a little weird." I stood up, and we walked out together.

"You'll get used to it, no doubt," he said. "We've got..." he frowned, concentrating for a moment, "thirteen minutes to get to class. Plenty of time."

I shook my head. "It still amazes me how you do that."

He grinned. "You'd better pick up on it -- I won't be around to wake you up every day, you know."

"Sorry, mom."

We were both laughing as we rounded the corner, and were so distracted that we nearly collided with three other guys who were walking past.

"Watch it!" said one, a beefy looking white guy with buzzed blonde hair. He wasn't wearing a shirt -- and wore no necklace.

"Sorry, Derrik," said Emmit, and grabbed me by the elbow, beginning to march us around them.

"What's the hurry?" I asked under my breath.

"Hey, hey, hold up!" exclaimed Derrik.

Emmit sighed, and let go of my elbow. We turned, and the three of them walked up to us, Derrik in the middle. To his left was a tall, lean, bored-looking black guy, and to his right was a short, nerdy looking man with glasses, red hair, and freckles. He was slightly older than the other two, maybe in his thirties, while the other two looked to be in their mid twenties.

I couldn't see necklaces on the other two either, though they were wearing shirts. There was a small pin on the upper right hand corner of their shirts, a circular thing with an image of a featureless tower connecting the top and the bottom.

"What do you want?" asked Emmit, his arms crossed over his chest. He tapped his foot impatiently.

"Nothin' man, just wanted to check in with your new friend here. You Tristan?" he asked.

"So I'm told," I replied.

"Cool, man. I'm Derrik," he said with a wide smile, and extended a hand. I shook it -- the name was familiar. "This is Colin," he said, jerking a thumb to the smaller, nerdy looking guy, "and Kelechi," he pointed to the other. Colin nodded at me, while Kelechi just looked around, a bored expression on his face.

"Good to meet you guys." Suddenly, I remembered where I'd heard his name before. "Hey, you were the guy who was supposed to give me the tour here, right?"

His wide smile faltered, and for a moment a dark expression crossed over his face. He brightened up quickly, though, saying: "Oh, yeah, sorry about that man. Had a date that night with a fine-ass chick. Couldn't miss it. Looks like you turned out alright, though. Well, minus getting beat up by Jet. Let's see the scar! I heard people talking about it last night."

Looks like it hadn't only been Jade and the people around me that had seen when I'd revealed it.

"He only turned out okay because of me, you know," said Emmit. "You would have been in a great deal more trouble if I hadn't been there."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Thanks," he said, waving a hand dismissively. Emmit's face reddened. "They didn't even give me any work to do," added Derrik, "Just a slap on the wrist. And, well, shit, we're going to class too. We'll walk with you."

We all headed toward the classrooms, past the Lounge. Emmit stared at the floor while he walked, and kept his hands in his pockets. Almost immediately, Derrik had placed himself between the two of us, and slung an arm around my shoulder.

"Now, Tristan, let me tell you something," he began. I felt awkward being under his arm, but didn't want to offend him. I wasn't trying to make enemies on my first real day, even if he reminded me a little too much of the idiots back at my high school.

"This place, it's crazy. It's nuts. Especially once you take this thing off," he tapped the chain around my neck. I flinched when he touched it, and he laughed. "Hey, don't worry man. Thing weighs a million pounds to anyone who isn't you. Nobody'll take it off you, and it won't fall off if you hang upside down. I'm just saying, in Caer'Aton, it's anyone's game."

"We're all here to train, whether we like it or not, and the only way to train is on each other. Pays to have friends, so you don't get messed with all the time, if you catch my drift."

I thought I understood what he was saying. "What, so people band together here once they get Set? Are there a bunch of different groups?" I asked, trying to piece together the dots.

He beamed at me and clapped me on the back enthusiastically. "Exactly! Hey, Colin, we might have another bright guy to add to our legions of dumbshits." Colin chuckled. Derrik leaned toward me conspiratorially, "Most of the people here don't know their ass from the ground. No brains, no ambition," he said in a very low voice. "That guy you're buddying up with?" he said, nodding toward Emmit who still had his gaze fixed on the ground.

"He's a nobody. Total loser. Been here four months, and he still doesn't have his Chi. When do you think he'll get Set? We've got bets placed on it, and even the lowest one doesn't have him getting Set before two years."

We made it past the Lounge and were coming up on the massive doors which led to the classrooms. They were flung open, and the grooves in the wood cast off a small aura of light around the doors.

Derrik leaned away from me, and clapped me on the shoulder again. "I'm just saying, it's nice to have friends, but this place isn't about friendship. It's about power. And you, my friend, need someone powerful on your side. Think about it," he said, and without giving me a chance to respond, walked through the doors ahead of me.

Emmit paused before the doors, watching him go. He shook his head. "I don't say this often about people," he said, "But I really, really dislike that man."

"I can see why. He gave me bad vibes. What's his deal?"

Emmit looked at the ground. "He is one of the more powerful members of Tower, a Set clan. He is very talented at manipulating others, both with and without the Art. He makes you think you're one of his friends." Emmit finished his sentence bitterly, and I got the sense that there was some history between the two of them.

"Did he do that to you?" I asked.

He nodded. "There are three groups of people big enough to be called clans, roughly fifteen in each clan have Set. They all want as many members as possible, so they get you on their side before you get Set. That way, you're guaranteed friends to work with and a degree of safety outside your house. Plus, say someone is attempting to control you. One of your clanmates that doesn't have Set can still run up to them and disrupt their concentration."

"Derrik got me pretty early on after I demonstrated talent at remembering time. All of a sudden, I had friends, and I wasn't as worried about being in a new place, about things back home..." he trailed off, looking up at the doors. Rivulets of different colors streamed against the deep brown of the surface, the soft light giving to the entrance a promising, hopeful feel to it. Even in the way the doors towered above us -- this was by far the tallest hallway in Moleh -- there was an aura of protection to them. A sense of ancient power.

Emmit shrugged. "When I didn't get my Chi fast enough for their liking, they dumped me. I saw then how shallow their friendship was, and was glad to be rid of it."

"What a bunch of jerks," I pronounced, "They don't know what they're talking about."

He smiled faintly. "Neither do you, really, but I appreciate the sentiment. You do what you have to do to get by in this place, it seems. It makes sense that people would band together for protection once they get Set. Life becomes a constant war zone," He shrugged, "But even so, the rivalries that spring up get out of hand sometimes. Tower is usually the one responsible for instigating things, but Talon and Stone do their fair share of provoking. I'm sure you'll get a taste of it soon enough."

"Pretty bland names for a clan, don't you think?" I asked. "What about Blood Eagle, or The Fluffy Bunny Death Squad?"

He laughed. "Well, they're based off the insignias, and since the insignias are made of Clay, which is exhausting to collect, they are designed simply. Without the insignias pinned to your shirt, you wouldn't be able to recognize whose side others were on."

"Ah, I think I'm starting to get it," I said. "If you've got one on, not only will people from your clan not fuck with you, other people from other clans might think twice if they see a bunch of your friends around."