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The Seventh Realm: Volume V

By Mantrid Brizon

Episode 52: Little Mistakes

Leaning against the thick log railing as they stand on the middle rung, Darius and Koleta peer down into the sloping pit. Below them, in a large and rectangular area dug roughly ten feet deep into the dirt, they watch several wild genashin as they pace back and forth. Recently herded by a hunting party, these young and undomesticated genashin are quite wild compared to the others. Looking up at the Sakona and Ekzel teenagers who loom over them like deities, they cry out with a loud screeching. The fencing is easily eight feet tall, and though a genashin could break through it, the beasts never make the attempt, especially on sloping ground.

“What are you two doing?" Kazamir calls out.

Glancing back, the youths drops down from the middle log that they stand upon, landing just before the gate to the pit. Approaching them are the twins, Kazamir and Razela, who glance to each other before looking back at Darius and Koleta.

“Being bored." Darius replies.

“You know, if you didn't want to be bored, you could always just find a place to ma-"

Koleta chucks a nearby rock at Kazamir's belly, interrupting him.

“What?" He laughs, picking up the rock.

“Well, why don't you just climb in there and try to tame one?" Razela asks facetiously.

“Maybe I will. It's not like I can't." Darius retorts.

“Can't you?" Kazamir asks.

“Is that a challenge?"

“I dare you." Kazamir adds, tossing the rock into the pen.

It bounces silently off of a genashin's head. Darius pulls the simple latch that holds the gate closed, jumping back when the genashin suddenly screeches, a response to the miniscule assault.

“Hah!" Kazamir laughs.

“If you're such a big man, come over with me." Darius taunts him.

Kazamir hesitates, so Darius pulls open the pen, leaving a gap several inches wide. The two stare at each other, silently battling against the other's willpower.

“Well, are you going to do it?" A voice startles them.

The four youths turn around, seeing Emric 'Rico' Silva, Yasmin's fourteen-year-old son. After his namesake's death, Yasmin grieved for some time, before befriending and eventually falling in love with Samuel. The amusing human who was spared from Kincaid's outpost became an apprentice to the only blacksmith they had at the time. When Samuel and Yasmin pledged to each other, just before she became pregnant with Rico, they moved from Salashima and to the capitol city, where Samuel operates a successful blacksmith's shop.

Retired from the Sa'kesh military and Cyrus' council, Yasmin spends most of her time in her garden, tending to it the way she tends to her two children. Her second child, Gabriella, is twelve-years-old.

“What are you doing here?" Razela asks Rico.

“Looking for Vanolza." He answers.

“Aww, you miss cuddling with my brother already?" Darius teases.

“Shut up!" Rico growls.

“When they say they are looking for girls, they're really just in the jungle together." Koleta winks.

“No, we're not!" An upset Rico whimpers.

“He must love Vanolza's soft fur." Kazamir taunts Rico, rubbing his own arms.

“I think it's cute, how much they love each other." Razela teases him.

“Oh yeah? Why don't you just get fucked by your brother again." Rico strikes back.

“What did you say?!" Kazamir growls.

“Uh oh..."

“You little bastard!" Razela snarls.

“Get him!"

“Ahh!" Rico darts off.

Pursued by the older teens, they all forget about the partially opened gate. Racing over two hundred meters away, they struggle to catch the swift youth. Surprisingly, Rico and Vanolza are two of the faster children that they know. Darius suddenly stops dead in his tracks, a horrifying realization dropping on him like an anvil.

“Oh no..." He mutters.

Walking along the same road but from the opposite end, Manny and Sidana glance to each other in an awkward silence. Over the past four weeks since Manny arrived, especially after the incident at the inn, the pair have spent much of their time together and are firm friends. After recovering from his wounds, which took only a few days with the medicines Nendath used, and the natural harmony from living on Monala, Manny joined the Sa'kesh military. Though his hand-to-hand skills were barely adequate, only marginally better than the older patrons he fought, he thrives with firearms.

Manny is the second person to ever shoot a perfect score with both handguns and rifles, the first being Yasmin. Even Cyrus missed at least two targets. This was an event that he repeated twice, with consistent perfection. Immediately placed in Sidana's squad, under her command, she enrolled him in the first two weeks of basic training to improve his hand-to-hand and melee fighting skills. On her personal time, she further tutors him in hand-to-hand combat, a source of many jokes among the other guards. The occasional taunt of 'how did your wrestling go?' irk them to no end.

It was only made worse by the events of today, however. Sidana was eager to introduce Manny to her parents, taking him back to their home on the outskirts of the city for lunch. Before Manny's arrival, she would often visit them alone and eat with them, but with the human's presence, her parents saw her less and less. Both retired from active-duty and now working on the ranches, they were curious as to what or who was absorbing her time.

“So, Sidana..." Manny begins.

“I'm sorry about my parents!" She blurts out.

“It's alright." He chuckles.

“No, it's not. I didn't know they'd interrogate you like that. I'd never want you to be uncomfortable."

“Sidana. It's fine. I'm fine." He repeats.

“You didn't look too happy, though."

“I was just surprised. Also confused. Your dad was so interested in me serving under you, and your mom seemed unusually happy that I was older than you... Too happy. I hope they don't do that to all of your guests." He remarks.

“I uh... I never had guests." She sheepishly admits.

“Really? A nice girl like you? I find that hard to believe."

“Let me restate. I never brought a male to meet my parents before."

“Oh... Well in that case I think it went well!" He chirps.

“How so?" She raises a brow.

“I'm not buried in their garden." Manny smirks.

“True." She giggles.

“Do you mind if I ask you something?"

“Not at all." She grins.

“Why was I the first guy you ever brought home to them?"

“Oh... Well..." Sidana hesitates.

Manny looks to her with a rather innocent expression, waiting patiently for a valid answer.

“You did take a knife for me." She finally answers.

“That's true, but I would have rather it be my charming personality than-"

A shrill scream suddenly cuts him off. Turning to the sound near the wild genashin pits, they bolt for the source. In the distance Manny can see a large figure, but Sidana's binocular vision witnesses everything. A wild genashin emerges from an unlocked gate, pushing it open and leering at a female Ketlan youngling. Racing toward the pit, the teens stand around, trying to herd the creature back into the pen. Swinging its tail and stomping the first four of its six legs, they are too scared to come close enough. Distant adults approach, one of them being Cyrus himself; he was inspecting a recently constructed granary that will store faval wheat kernels.

Trying to help the young girl who seems to be the primary target of the beast, Darius races around and grabs her. Picking her up and cradling her like a teddy bear, the genashin charges. Forced to dive out of the way, they fly into the opened gate. Landing on his forearms, he loses his grip on the young girl. Rolling down the slope, they stare in horror at two more genashin, wild and untamed. Koleta races toward the fence.

“I'll get you!" She cries out, looking directly at Darius.

Turning, she leaps out of the way as the genashin charges her as well. Scrambling to his feet, Darius tries to collect the girl and drag the terrified child up the slope. Racing through the opened gate as the more experienced adults try to corral the beast, Cyrus slides down the slope.

“Keep climbing!" He orders.

Cyrus waves his hands to try and distract the creatures, hoping it hasn't set itself on targeting his son. Turning its head, the angry and frightened beast screeches. Rearing up, Cyrus falls back as it suddenly tries to stomp on him. Darius and the little girl reach the crest, pulled away by Sidana and Manny.

“Oh, shit. Cyrus!" Manny calls down to him.

Rolling over, Cyrus dodges another attempt as the beast tries to stomp him again. Scrambling for the gate, the genashin prepares to charge. Drawing his Taurus 66-7 revolver and cocking the hammer, Manny takes aim and rests his finger on the trigger. Making its trademarked, slow charge which rapidly picks up speed, Manny has no choice. Firing a single round, the .357 magnum slug bores through the beasts left eye socket and into its brain, killing it instantly. It drops dead before the other genashin that stands within the pit, blocking the slope with its bulk.

Racing from the opened gate, Cyrus is suddenly slammed by a tail. Spinning in response to the encircling ranchers, the genashin turned rapidly, its appendage inadvertently striking him. Flying away from the force, Cyrus slams into a post, his leg breaking with an audible crack. Unwilling to risk Cyrus' safety, Manny takes aim and fires a second shot. The round burrows into the beast's spine, just behind its skull. It falls dead before the ranchers. Though initially angered by both their failure and Manny's hasty actions, the sight of their king and the founder of the Sa'kesh lying wounded erases every emotion except fear.

Standing there in shock and horror, Darius realizes that this is entirely his fault. The other children look at him, then his father. Darting away, only Koleta stands by Darius' side.

“Are you alright dad?!" He asks, leaning beside him.

“I'll live, but my leg is definitely broken... And I think its tail cracked a rib." Cyrus grunts.

“How did that pen get open?" A rancher asks.

“I know I closed it!" Another replies.

“Hey, Manny..." Cyrus says through clenched teeth.

“Yeah?" Manny kneels beside him.

“Thanks. You did good." Cyrus chokes out.

“I did my job." Manny casually replies.

“Oh..." Cyrus chuckles through the pain. “A modest asshole."

“I want to know who forgot to close that pen!" Sidana growls at the ranchers.

“It wasn't us!" They defensively reply.

“It... It was me." Darius shamefully admits.

“... What?" Cyrus glares in disbelief.

“We were looking at the genashin and the Thames twins came up..." Darius begins.

“He unhooked it as a joke. We were going to close it!" Koleta interjects, joining Darius in whatever punishment he'll receive.

“So why didn't you?!" An angry Sidana asks.

“Aunt Yasmin's son, Rico, came up and a fight happened. We chased him off, and... I forgot." Darius' hangs his head.

“... Forgot? That little girl was nearly killed!" Cyrus screams, wincing in pain. “What the hell were you thinking even touching that gate?! It's a sad day when Vanolza is more responsible then you. You're the oldest! You're supposed to set the example! And you, Koleta... You know better. Stop siding with him because he's your friend; you're getting yourself into trouble for nothing!"

His hands clench the dirt as he slumps back, landing into a Rancher's arms. With Sidana's help, they lift Cyrus and prepare to move him.

“Alright. We'll head straight for the castle." Sidana begins. “Manny?"

“Yeah?"

“Go find Nendath and bring her back to the castle so we can set his let and treat his wounds, that way he won't need to be moved."

“Alright." He nods before quickly darting off.

“You, go home. I'll let your parents work something out." Cyrus says to Koleta, hanging between Sidana's and a rancher's shoulders. “You, Darius..." Cyrus merely shakes his head, unable to even continue speaking.

Cyrus has never been so disappointed in his son, and Darius has never felt so ashamed, foolish and embarrassed. Looking to his wounded father, the two dead genashin, and the crying child, comforted by her mother who has recently arrived, the weight of his guilt is overwhelming. He feels sick to his stomach. Returning shamefully to the castle, Darius looks over at Koleta. Though she appears upset, every time he looks to her and she sees him, her lips curl into a pleasant grin; her eyes tell the truth. Both teens are still juveniles and at the mercy of their parents, and both are afraid.

“Hey..." He whispers, leaning over to her.

With no other Ketlan around, the two can converse relatively close to the humans, Zelkona and Akzazel without being heard. Koleta leans closer, turning her ear toward him.

“Tonight?" He asks her.

At first, she is unsure of what he's asking her. After looking deeply into his eyes, however, sharing their thoughts with their gaze, she understands. Darius is ready to make good on the journey they spoke of nearly a month earlier. She nods her head. His lips curl faintly, comforted by her consistent loyalty and friendship.

“I'm sorry. You didn't need to get in trouble with me." He whispers.

“Don't worry about it. I wasn't going to let you burn alone... Where's the fun in that?" She quips.

With a silent chuckle, he nods in agreement. Nearing the castle, Koleta waves goodbye to him before returning to her parent's home not far from the fortress. By the time they reach the castle's gate, Manny stands with Nendath by his side, a custom made, leather doctor's bag in her hand. Taking over for Sidana and the rancher, the guards rush Cyrus upstairs and into his bedroom, where Nendath sets his broken leg and checks for cracked ribs as he lay on his own bed. Zakera paces, grumbling angrily to herself over Darius' foolishness. Standing in the hallway, Manny and Sidana listen to her tirade.

“I don't know who to feel worse for; Cyrus, or Darius." Manny comments.

“Just so long as Cyrus recovers and Darius learns a valuable lesson." Sidana remarks. “Manny..."

“Yeah?"

“You did great today. I'm proud of you."

His lips curl into a little grin, his face flushing slightly as he looks down to his feet.

“Manny? ... Have you never been praised before?" She asks with a chuckle.

“No." He answers. “I appreciate it though."

“This other job you used to have before. You were never appreciated?"

“Not really."

“We've known each other for as long as you've been here... You've never said exactly what you did before, just that it was like this." She comments.

“I know." He nods.

“Forgive me for asking but... You seemed so calm when the genashin attacked; even I felt some fear. You looked as peaceful as you do right now. Why is that? Was it previous training?"

“No. I suppose after a while, you just... Learn to turn things off."

Looking to the human, Sidana can see a subtle but noticeable change. His little grin fades and he glances toward a window, not looking at or out of it, but through it. He seems to stare at an object many miles away. Though not as experienced as the older veterans, she has seen this gaze from some of the survivors of the one-day war. It's evident to her that something in Manny's past has scarred him deeply; his outward cheerfulness and jovial personality, if not a facade, is certainly a shield. Realizing that she's watching him, he turns to her and smiles.