"Any volunteers for the Border Wall?" The voice of the commander screamed at the group of Guards just as the first few rays of dawn chased the cold darkness of the night away. The group immediately quietened to whispers and shuffled about trying to avoid the commanders field of vision. Jon felt unease at the pit of his stomach at the thought of what he had to do, and yet with his heart racing, he stepped forward. Every previous day he too would do whatever it took to not stand out among the group, wishing he was invisible and wondering why he wasn't good enough to join the Kings army. It had become a routine. But the fresh burning pain in his right arm reminded him of the promise he vowed to keep.
"I'll do it Lord Kran." Jon yelled raising his shaking hand. He felt his heart sinking slowly as if accepting its fate. The whispers died down to a complete silence as Jon saw faces turning to stare at him, a few relieved but mostly stunned. The commander looked the most surprised of the group as he curiously studied the twenty years old boy.
"Off you go then boy. Take old Ken with you." Kran replied gesturing to a man trying to hide behind Jon.Jon nodded and turned towards the groan he heard behind him. Ken knew he was too big to be completely hidden behind the frail boy, but if Jon didn't attract attention to himself, he knew he would have easily gotten away unnoticed. Jon noticed the white untidy hair and the bushy brows before he saw the cold look Ken was giving him.
"Next time warn me if you plan to do that kid." Ken complained. "Must be my lucky day." He continued sarcastically.
"It ain't so bad Ken, by Mother Geas grace, it'll be a quiet day by the river." Jon replied shrugging.
"This is the West Nation kid. The border wall river isn't known to be quiet. Neither the river nor the creatures it brings from west of the walls. Even the Gods have forsaken this place." Ken grunted back still clearly disappointed.
"When was the last time you were there?" Jon inquired, his heart still racing with fear. The burning pain broke his thoughts momentarily. The pain was always there, but it waxed and waned as if it was afraid he would forget its purpose. He winced as he slowly massaged his right arm to calm the pain.
"A few days ago. A few curious animals and those blasted blood suckers kept me up all night. No Dwellers though thankfully." Ken pointed to his neck, showing Jon the marks of his battle with the mosquitoes. "Those creatures are everywhere and have more human blood in them than even the Humans. I wouldn't be surprised if they became human after all the blood they drank." Ken joked, grinning.
"Blood doesn't make one Human, Faith does." Jon replied, returning a forced smile.
They halted when the majestic brown border walls came into view. "No creature can climb that." Ken said with a hint of pride. "That however, is why we are here." Ken pointed to the hole in the wall through which the river ran. It was the main water supply for the West Nation and the only way the savages can enter into the West Nation.
"Have ya caught any savages entering before?" Jon asked
"A few. More and more have been trying to get in the last few weeks, and all of them have crazy stories once they are caught. People say you lose your mind west of the wall." Ken replied with a dark look.
"They are savages after all, hunting and raping are all they do. Its the price you pay for not believing in Kings and Gods." Jon muttered following a silent prayer.
"And which of the Gods have you lend your faith to? Was Mother Gea kind to you? Or have you rested your faith in the New one?" Ken asked curiously.
Jon glared at Ken irritated. "Mother Gea is the only God we all should have faith in even if one isn't blessed with the power of Earth Crafting."
"Mother Yemaya have given the power of water crafting to the souls Mother Gea has been unkind to. Power that has given them a second chance." Ken protested.
Yes. And angering Mother Gea by doing so. We Humans are losing our way. Jon thought to himself. As he massaged his right hand yet again, his mind wandered back to a week ago when he agreed to come to West Nation.
He could still remember every detail clearly. He could feel the wind brushing against his face as he pledged himself to the cause, the sound of the distant barking dogs when they etched the painful mark on his arm. He remembered the sense of pride he felt when he realized he was actively doing something he believed in, even if it was against the orders of the King. He took a vow to be a Rebel first before a Kings guard. The pain reminded him of his duties to preach and gain followers for the cause while keeping an eye on the Water Crafters. They needed rivers to practice their craft and it only took a few of them to come to the West Nation before hundreds flocked in. He was to live among them and gather information.
"Any of them water lovers come near the river to train?" He asked cautiously. Ken looked at Jon for a second and broke into a smile. "Some. They do since the King allowed it. It's the pride of the Humans to be able to master Water Crafting." Ken replied proudly.
Jon felt his blood boil at the comment.
"It is not our culture and so we shouldn't learn it. Its as simple as that. If the power given to us was enough in the past, it should be enough for the future." Jon retorted angrily. Ken studied Jon for a moment.
"You must be from the South Nation. You sure do sound like the protesters there." Ken paused as Jon nodded nervously. "Remember that you serve the King and not the Gods. We enforce what the King wants us to enforce. That and that alone is our job." Ken warned.
"This new power people are trying to master has given birth to a new God, a new way of life. Humans are meant to stay united. This will divide us eventually." Jon massaged his right hand and looked away trying avoid Kens curious gaze.
"Gone are those dayskid. Humans have nothing to be united against. Hence divide we must." Ken smiled and turned. He suddenly stopped in his tracks and turned to Jon curiously. "You heard about the group that calls themselves the Rebels, them that preaches against the King?"
Jon's face turned pale. He was given strict orders to never reveal it. "There is such a group. But I'm loyal to only the King." Jon lied trying to reassure Ken. Ken continued to study him with a frown on his face. "Good. The King will give his crown to the Prince soon. And they say the Prince is not as kind to any man that fights the rules." Ken continued to stare at Jon to let the warning sink in, then gave him a forced smile and walked on.
Jon took deep breaths to calm his nerves as he watched Ken strutting confidently in front of him.
"I'll take the first stroll kid. Keep your ears open." Ken said as he waved and walked away towards the river.
Jon sat on the ground under a tree, watching Ken walk away. When he was far enough, Jon slowly rolled up his sleeves revealing a fresh slightly swollen mark of the long forgotten symbol of Mother Gea, The Earth Goddess. All Rebels needed to have this mark to identify themselves as the old faith believers. It was believed bad things will happen if Humans forgot the ways of the Old Faith. And Jon believed it wholeheartedly. The Rebels will make sure the New Gods wont divide us. The Royal family will realize soon enough. Jon thought to himself.
Jon's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of water splashing near the river and a chilling scream pierced the silence of the quiet morning. Jon rolled back his sleeves and rushed to towards the sound. As he ran, he saw Ken crouching among the bushes. Their eyes met and Ken nodded towards the sound. Jon nodded back while unsheathing his sword and crouched with Ken.
"Dwellers?" Jon whispered
"No. Look. Its a group of Water Crafters. Looks like a routine practice turned ugly." Ken gesturing towards a man lying in a pool of blood. The rest of the Water Crafters appeared to be looking for something. "Let me handle this. You stay here and help me if things turn ugly." Ken got up from the bushes to approach the group. Jon felt a cold chill decent upon him. As the hairs on his body raised with the sudden drop in temperature, his heart raced, numbing the pain on his arm. Suddenly, three jets of water erupted from the river towards the sky and from these jets, three men wearing woolen crafted clothes with black marks on their cheeks walked on the water towards the shore. They had short stature but Jon could sense they were strong. But what worried him the most was the level of control they had over Water. Water seemed to slide off them but they were dry. The middle man was older with a long white beard and his white hair was tied back in a ponytail. They walked in unison towards the group of Water Crafters that were now frozen in shock. Ken quickly crouched back down in the bushes.
"How are they doing that? Have the Water Crafters progressed to this level of power?" Ken stuttered clearly shocked. The three strange men reached the shore. They held out their hands and their crystal blue eyes shone. Water formed, collected on their palms and immediately froze into blue ice spears. The group waved their arms and collectively formed a water shield in front of them just as the strange men threw the ice spears at them. The ice spears pierced through the water shield and found their mark in the hearts of the Water Crafters. The water shield crashed on the ground as the group lay motionless on the ground. Blood everywhere. The ice melted leaving behind gaping and oozing holes in the chests of the victims, their expressions unchanged and eyes still open.
Ken and Jon stayed hidden in the bushes, the only muscle moving in them were their racing hearts. The old bearded man in the middle turned his head towards them and waved at them to come out, his expression cold. Ken gestured Jon to follow him as he stood up and confronted the men. "We are the Kings Guards. Who are you people? Did you come from west of the wall?" Ken questioned bravely, raising his sword. Jon stood next to Ken, trembling in fear. He had just seen them kill a group of people effortlessly. The old man smiled and replied"We are the original Water Crafters and we have come to take back our land that you are standing on. Guards of the King, where is the Book of Water?"
Ken and Jon stared, confused. Dwellers didn't own land, and couldn't care less for books. "Where did you learn Water Crafting? How can you make Ice?" Jon asked looking at the gruesome bodies. The old man shook his head and said "We will find the Book of Water, but they should not know yet."
As the two men on either side of the old man raised their hands, Ken gathered up his courage and ran towards the old man with his sword raised. The old man stood still as one of the men threw the an ice spear at Ken. Jon saw the ice spear emerge from Kens back as he stood in shock at the events unfolding before him. Ken collapsed. Jon immediately dropped his sword and lifted his arms above his head. The Earth started rumbling under their feet. An earthwallrose about 6 feet from the ground like ashieldin front of Jon. When he heard the thud of the ice spear striking the wall, he turned to run away. A jet of water shot from the riverandhit him in the face with enough force that he fell to the ground. He scrambled to get up just as one of the men rushed towards him with an ice sword in his hand.Jon knew what was going to happen before hefelt the sharp stabbing pain in his back. He looked down to see the end of the ice sword sticking out from his chest. He felt the ice burn in his body. He felt blood gurgling in his throat and coughed out the warm blood from his mouth. Pain seared through his body as the sword was pulled out. His head felt light and the searing pain started to feel distant. His eyes closed slowly and he dropped to the ground, dying.
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