The Beast Within

CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

Just as Ceraun had been expecting to see, Adrik and Haneul were waiting just at the mouth of the town.

"What took so long?" Haneul asked curiously, he had been watching carefully and Ceraun’s time spent at the window had been the most, after Adrik.

"He was most likely asked about his scar." Adrik replied before Ceraun could even get his wits about him to respond, light hazel eyes glancing around.

"Did you think that my scar might cause them to not enlist me?" Ceraun asked Adrik in a serious voice, his black eyes pining the other with a shrewd look.

Adrik returned the intimidating stare for a second too long before shrugging and averting his eyes.

"Perhaps, it was highly unlikely but not an impossibility." He admitted truthfully. "What was the use of telling you though?" He added.

Ceraun fell silent at the other's question, now that he had started to ponder on it, he didn’t think he would have told such news to Adrik either if he were in his shoes.

"Let's go train." Adrik ordered, already walking off in the direction of the town, leaving Ceraun and Haneul to keep up.

After they had gone a sufficient distance with Haneul and Ceraun mostly filling up the silence with occasional conversation, Adrik blurted out what was on his mind.

"Say, Haneul, do you know the girl that enlisted into the army?" He asked in a rush, a furrow between his brow, looking the most uncomfortable the Wind Magic Using Mage had ever seen him.

"Eh?" Haneul's eyes went wide in surprise at the odd request. "You mean, Auris?"

"That is her name?" Ceraun asked for confirmation when it seemed like no other words would be leaving Adrik's lips.

"Yes, she is an orphan just like me, we were spies but she always kept to herself even then, at least I had my grandmother but she was the only survivor of her village I think." Haneul started to fill the other in on what little in knew about the girl.

Adrik fell quiet, wondering why he asked out loud what had been racing through his thoughts.

He supposed he was worried about her, she did not look like the type to be able to take care of herself.

Although he kept telling himself that it was none of his business or a matter he should be concerned about he could not help but feel responsible.

It would not hurt if they made her train a bit, at least to make her first days in the army less intolerable…

He shook his head at this point, what was he doing here thinking about that?

He could barely properly take care of himself, not to talk of…

"Oy! Adrik! You are going to walk right off the edge!" Ceraun's raised voice dragged him from his thoughts.

"Were you even listening to Haneul?" He accused Adrik, eyeing him up.

"Yes, I know all I need to know now." Adrik said shortly, voice cold.

Ceraun blinked in surprise. "So you don't want her to come train with us? I thought that was why you asked about her?" He asked bluntly, sharing a bewildered look with Haneul who shrugged.

"What? You think so too?" He demanded in surprise.

"I was thinking of suggesting it, everyone says she is a little crazy from what happened with her village but I had a chance to talk to her once and she seemed pretty normal to me." Haneul rambled on.

"Do you think she would want to come train with us though?" Ceraun asked reasonably, he didn’t really care either way but Mages had to stick by each other.

"People treated her like an outcast so she kept to herself but I guess if we tried reaching out to her…" Haneul trailed off, his brown eyes lighting up. "Or I could try talking to her, I know her hut."

"Sure." Adrik agreed laconically, impatient to end the line of discussion. "Let's race." He reminded, ever the one with a one track mind.

The enlistment had surprisingly not taken up so much time, it was late morning when they got to the river bank.

Noon was just around the corner, the sun beating down mercilessly but they paid to mind to the glowing orb of heat and light that beat down equally on the world.

Interested more in preparing as much as possible for a grave decision taken that they could not go back on now.

The intensity of the fact that in mere months or perhaps in even less time than that, they would be bundled up to a place where they would be expected to kill or be killed.

It was not difficult to train endlessly in the face of this, easily ignoring the sun as they trained extensively their physical bodies and they practiced their magic.

Ceraun could hear the voice of the huge official bouncing around in his head; 'if he were still alive in a couple months…'

He would not deny that the picture they painted wasn't horrifying but he had not exactly chosen to be drafted to war because he expected his life to change for the better or to escape from his life here in Thrika which was hellish enough.

He knew exactly what he was getting into and what he signed up for, perhaps he was just overwhelmed now that it was finally here.

War.

He knew what death was like, he had lost someone dear to him to death, he had killed someone before - it was in self defense but it didn't change the point of the matter.

At moments like this, it was hard to remain optimistic about trying to save the Mages from the non-Mages, it was all so bleak, he was not even sure of his own survival.

He might have a forceful determination but he did not ignore reality, getting to his desired position from the point he currently was would be a feat that he would definitely accomplish or die trying, there was little else to do.