LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 32: A Day In The Life
===[Chapter 32: A Day In The Life]===
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Silence over Raritan. Grey overcast was all that remained of a passing thunderstorm bathing the normally hot tropical city in a breeze of cool air. The chilliness was a welcome respite from the heat, even as the puddles of rainwater turned to mud in the dirt streets lining the outskirts. Otaes had been prompted by Chief Ani to wear her best clothes to the flower ceremony today, but her normal boots were already being caked in layers of dirt and grime from just walking. Well, walking and a bit of hunting as she carried the carcass of a couple more jackelope in her hunting bag. Afterall, today was the day that she normally stopped by the market to sell whatever she managed to kill, and even during ceremony days like these - there were buyers.
The merchants, predictably, were still working behind their makeshift stalls even despite the thinner-than-usual lines of customers. The familiar face of one of the butchers caught her eye as he was in the process of selling the leg of a hog off to a customer. He gave her a curt nod of acknowledgement before returning to his work. He was a rather thin elf which was surprising for the tools that he worked with looked heavy. He was the son of the actual owner, who herself was a friend of Otaes' father. Hence how Otaes became a regular at their shop. The boy was slightly younger than she was, and almost always silent. He was friendly to Otaes though, or at least they were always respectful to each other. Not much was really said between the two, ever.
When the customer was dealt with and sent on her way, the boy looked up at Otaes again, "Come in," He said.
"I've got exactly what your mother asked for, and yes I took out the venom sack this time before she screams at me about that," the offhand comment elicited a light chuckle from Kant, as she plopped her hunting bag on top of the stall's counter and entered inside, leaning against one of the walls to let Kant assess the game and work on getting her money. Normally he did that kind of work in silence, preferring to cautiously take his time. But this time, something was different.
"Aren't you going to the flower ceremony?" Kant asked, quite out of the blue.
"Hm?" Otaes didn't fully get the question at first.
"You're hunting today? I figured you'd be there..."
"I'm going later. I think."
Kant nodded, as he took the pair of jackelope bodies and layered them on his scale, "Oh," Kant said as if he were expecting a different answer.
"Is something wrong?" Otaes asked, pushing up from her lean against the wall.
"No it's just, I saw your brother around here. He was going. Pakena was with him too."
That one caught Otaes off guard. Pakena? With Temetet?
"You didn't know?" Kant asked as he continued his work.
Of course she hadn't. What were the two of them doing together? Knowing Pakena, probably nothing good. Her mind jumped to the thought that Pakena may have been trying to hurt Temetet before she stopped herself. Pak was an idiot and a jerk, but he wasn't evil. At least she thought so, "You said they were headed to the flower ceremony? Together?"
Kant nodded silently.
"Weird," Otaes stood up straight as she prepared to leave.
"Wait! Don't you want your money?" Kant asked her only to be met with a dismissive wave of Otaes' hand.
"I'll come back for it later, just save it for me will you?"
Stepping back outside, Otaes' mind was swirling with thoughts. Her footsteps guiding her deeper into the heart of Raritan where the small communal homes that scattered the outskirts gave way to buildings of brick and mortar, cars and trucks, and the Palace. As predicted, the streets were almost completely empty save for the few elves remaining who hadn't made their way towards the Palace for the ceremony. And among those, she eyed the cleanup crews. Those who worked around the bomb craters and heaps of rubble left piled on the sides of half-collapsed buildings that still had yet to be picked up. The Republic's invasion was as destructive as it was brief. And the scars would remain for a while, if not physically - mentally. She shuddered to think that this was what victory looked like. If victory felt this bittersweet and temporary, what would've happened if they had lost? What would become of Raritan then?
As she neared the Palace she could make out the crowds of people who were gathered within the rear gardens. The flower ceremony was simple. The grieving elves who had lost their family members in war carried flowers to be planted before the Kiote Palace. Originally, it was a way to give the families and the nation a sense of closure, and to remind everyone of the sacrifices individuals had to endure to keep the Warrior Elves safe. But with this recent attack on Helena, with dozens being kidnapped and smuggled across the border - no doubt to be locked away as prisoners or utilized as slaves. With the fallen Kitchi from across the tribes, and the defenders who gave everything to keep Raritan safe... the garden was beginning to look more like a mass grave. Otaes swallowed hard, trying to not dwell on the fact that she too had to plant flowers here. Her mother's was a big deal, and she remembered being given a rose from her father to plant before a crowd of onlookers. And then, only a few years later, she had to carry her father's rose all by herself.
Would Temetet have to carry her rose one day? Or worse, would she have to carry his? When bombs screamed from the air, a sky full of thunder. When dragons torched her home. When the mechanical monstrosities of the Avonian military terrorized her people. Herself. When they broke her home. Dividing the Kiote Union against itself. Forcing kin to slay kin. How could she forget that? She didn’t need the flowers to remind her of the destruction. She could do that easily on her own. How could anyone forget? Would the Avonians come out and apologize to the Kiote people because of the flowers being planted? Had they forgotten the devastation their bombs caused? Of what use then was the flowers? Wouldn’t they just be erased when the bombs dropped again? What would be their protest then? More flowers?
Otaes knew that she shouldn't have been so harsh about it. It was a ritual undertaken for a reason. People needed the chance to grieve, collectively. But was that really all that they could do when the Avonians terrorized them? Grieve? No fighting back, just accepting that the Imperials could erase them from existence at any minute and grieve... Safe to say, she hated the flower ceremony and took as many precautions as necessary to actively avoid coming here. But of course, today was an exception.
Slowly she joined the crowd of elves who stood in silence as they watched the proceedings. Some of the crowd members saw her Kitchi mask, and out of respect or tradition parted to allow her through. Following their cue, she ended up embedded deep in the crowd which wasn't exactly where she wanted to be - which was as far from the front as possible. But now it seemed inevitable that she would end up close to it. She kept still so as not to attract any attention to herself. Most of the people here wouldn't really notice her, and if they had remembered her from the previous ceremonies - it was from before she was a Kitchi and not wearing her mask. Though of course, there were those that knew.
As the final attendees planted their flowers, Chief Ani ascended to podium that flanked the Palace's rear. The other chiefs also filed in, one by one. Taking seats on chairs placed around her speaking position in the center. There was some middling applause from the crowd, though it was markedly absent of any real enthusiasm.
"Thank you, everyone for attending the ceremony today," Began Ani with a polite smile, "I know that it has been a difficult few days, rebuilding what was lost to us. And for some of us, the loss has been impossible to recover from. We've all lost something. Homes, friends, family. Fathers and mothers. Sons and daughters. It hurts. But perhaps the fact that hurts most of all is that we have to be here at all so soon after the last flower ceremony..."
After the last major offensive during the Kiote War, a few weeks before the war properly ended, a flower ceremony just like this one was held to commemorate the dead Warrior Elves of Raritan. Otaes remembered that there was a sense of hope that it would've been the last flower ceremony in anyone's lifetime. The war was over and the worst of it was gone. The bombs had ceased. The terror weapons went silent. And the verdant landscape of the Kiote peninsula was relatively calm once again. But now here they were, a year and half later.
"Trust me when I say this, that I understand what it feels like. But in times of distress, I must ask you all for one more sacrifice," Ani's sudden change in tone caught Otaes off guard. What had begun as her usual song and dance to comfort the people, suddenly became far more serious and direct with the change in topic, "If we give up and let them overpower us, we will never see peace ever again. I know that the struggle and burden of having to lose loved ones to a war is a terrible thought. But we can't surrender our homes. We can't lose hope in our inevitable victory. So, I have to ask you to struggle again as you struggled before. We all will have to. Even if just a little longer. To do that, we of course have our warriors. Our brave Territorial Guard and Kitchi will ensure that our home remains secure. But to ensure that they have the numbers necessary to fulfill their purpose, the council and I have agreed to expedite the graduation of our trainees."
Otaes narrowed her eyes. Expedite? What did she mean by that?
As if on cue, the leaders of each flight group and some of the more distinguished Kitchi warriors emerged from the Palace. One by one, standing at attention next to Chief Ani. There were plenty of recognizable faces. Some of her friends, some just her acquaintances, and others... Pakena's crimson red mask was dark underneath the overcast skies. Pakena was there. But where was Temetet?
Suddenly, another crowd of elves emerged. This crowd noticeably younger. The Kitchi apprentices. Of course, they were the most senior cohort of apprentices so they weren't kids. But they were still noticeably younger than either Pakena or Otaes. Among the girls and boys that had ascended to the stage, Otaes frantically searched for one in particular. Refusing to accept that he would be there, but knowing it was inevitable she'd find him. And she did. He was third in line, sandwiched between a boy and girl who both looked older than him in comparison. He was smiling, though somewhat faintly. Looking out among the crowd as if he was awestruck by their attention. Unaware that his sister was amongst the crowd.
The audience began to cheer the new "graduates" on. Though Otaes remind silent. Her focus shifting between Temetet and Chief Ani, fighting between the two as if the event unfolding right in front of her wasn't real.
"These apprentices, will face one final challenge all on their own before they are formally accepted into the ranks of the Kitchi warriors. Juniors, now seniors in their own right. They'll earn their titles of prestige defending our homes as a our new generation of guardians. Your sons and daughters, warriors!"
Again the audience cheered. They all cheered, and yet Otaes didn't. This wasn't anything to celebrate. Not at all...
“Otaes Please, Listen-“ Chief Ani attempted to calm down a quite furious Otaes as they were standing inside of her private throne room. It was the first place she went after the ceremony ended.
“You’re sending someone my brother out to attack the capital of the River Republic! You can’t do that to him! You can’t do that to me! And what about all the others? They're kids!”
“Otaes! Sit down and be quiet!” Ani stood up, yelling as she stood up to match Otaes’ own tone.
Otaes was speechless, as she reluctantly returned back to a posture of kneeling before Ani. The elder chief sighed, “It wasn’t my idea, Otaes. It was the council's. I don't know if you've realized what's happening around you but there's a war about to start. We don't have enough Kitchi warriors, in fact have less than what we started with when the war first began and we were underprepared back then. It's crisis time now. We need warriors Otaes, and the only way we can get those warriors is by graduating them with one final test on a proving ground."
Chief Ani moved around Otaes as she spoke on, “Believe me I protested the decision and tried to convince the chiefs that it was not a wise move-“
“You’re the Grand Chief! Why are you trying to convince them? Just do it!“
“I can’t just override the rules! We have laws, Otaes. We have laws. Government. I don’t know if you’ve realized, but I’m not exactly in the same position I was in five years ago. I don’t have the sway to just speak and it becomes law. They’re growing tired. Tired of myself, of the war…” Ani trailed off, “Politics is all it is. I don’t wield the abilities I once could. So if the council say that this was the best move - for the sake of our people mind you - I had no other choice but to relinquish. But what I was able to do, was to ensure that it was under your control.”
“What?” Otaes leaned forward, “I’m going?”
“Of course, all of the apprentices will be accompanied by their mentors. We figured that would be the best way to conduct this afterall. I wasn't going to let them send a bunch of kids out into a warzone without any kind of guidance afterall...”
“So that’s it? We’re attacking Helena? The capital of The River Republic?”
Ani sighed inwardly, “I’ve been speaking to the humans. They’ve offered an opportunity we cannot miss. In exchange for some territorial concessions they’ve agreed to help defend us. But they’re leading the charge in the war. Their generals recommended a full-scale invasion of Helena, the Council is giving the order to mobilize our warriors as we speak. You’ll be going in.”
Otaes was speechless. Words formed in her mind but she didn’t know what to say.
"T-territorial concessions?"
"They wanted to set up a zone of land that they claimed as their own. Most of it is Republican territory, so it isn't actually much-"
"So that's it? We just sell out our country after fighting a war for ten years to do the opposite?"
"We needed their help-"
"Their help? The humans? The ones who started the war in the first place?"
"Look Otaes, power isn't as simple as telling people to do this or that. You have to understand the situation. Power is not about the ability to push," Chief Ani outstretched the palm of her hand in front of her body, pushing against the air as if conjuring a magical spell or force of wind, "Only fools think that's what it's about. The Imperials, the Commonwealth, even these new humans understand that. Real power is about bending those around you to do what you want. That's real power. It's why I've been in this seat for the last forty years. I'm playing the long game, because we do not have the ability or even the resolve to play the short one."
She wanted to protest but the more she thought about it the more sense it made. She could feel herself shiver. But she doubted its possibility. She needed confirmation.
“If it works, it’ll be over. This nightmare that our people have been trapped in. We’ll be free from it. We just need to deliver a devastating final blow to the Riverlanders, if Helena falls the Junta will collapse, and the Avonians will have nothing left to hold onto in the Kiote peninsula. It has to work.”
“B-b-but how?”
“From the inside. You’ll meet with an old friend of yours.”
Otaes cocked her head in confusion as she tried to recall who Ani could’ve been referring to, “Old… friend?”
“The Avonian rebel," Chief Ani said, "I believe you two met before. There are revolutionaries within Helena that can kickstart a full-scale rebellion within their capital as the invasion is underway. We don't expect the revolutionaries to last long, but it should be enough chaos to allow you to complete your task. "
“Was this your idea?”
“It was a collaborative effort,” Ani sighed, “Listen to me. Your job will be simple and so long as you follow the instructions that I’ll give you, there’s no reason anyone should get hurt. They’re sending a team of soldiers that will be under your leadership. You get them to the Revolutionaries, you come back. Temetet gets promoted to Kitchi, and you all go home happily!” She smiled, “Isn’t that what you want?”
Otaes blinked a few times in consideration. Uncertain. She couldn’t throw off the feeling that there was something wrong. Uncertainty. Lingering there deep within her heart. Her mind couldn’t let go of the mental image of something bad happening to Temetet. The feeling like something was growing beyond her control was one that she hated.
It was a mistake to let Temetet pursue his dream of being like she was. She tried her hardest to null the worst ill-effects of his pursuit, but it was something she always knew she’d have to confront sooner or later, “He asked for this, didn’t he?”
Ani heaved her shoulders, leaning backwards as she thought her response through. But for Otaes it didn’t come fast enough, “Why didn’t you just say no?”
“He’s done everything… his training is finished, Otaes! There’s nothing more I can do to prevent that,” Ani wearily told her, “He’s his own soul, with his own wants, needs, goals and dreams. He looks up to you-“
“I know, and that’s the problem! I spent my entire life suffering! I’ve been a warrior since I was a child, and I never stopped. I was born into fighting! I had no other choice! But he does, that’s why I fought. So he could get out of here and live his own life. Not mine.”
“There’s nothing else I can do, Otaes. I say this as both chief and your mother. He’s an adult. You can’t keep him a boy forever.”
Otaes stood up solemnly, “Nobody speaks as my mother. She’s dead,” and with that she slowly moved to leave. Ani tried calling her back once, but she perhaps realized the futility of it once she stopped. Only watching as Otaes left through the open door...
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