CHAPTER TWO:
Raised Wrong
Morning came far too quickly.
Jove was an early riser by habit. They all were. They lived on a farm and had multiple chores to attend to at the crack of dawn. So even despite the lack of sleep, he found himself up, washed and dressed at the usual hour.
Jove wore simple breeches, that were easy and comfortable to move in. His shirt was loose and white. Sitting on the edge of his bed, he tugged on his leather boots and headed downstairs to for breakfast.
Meals were always eaten in the main hall. It was the largest room of the monastery and a general meeting place. Four round, wooden tables were placed evenly throughout the room. The walls were built of grey stone, like most of the monastery. Tapestries hung from the walls in places. Father Gordon had made most of them over the years but apparently some were even made by his predecessor.
Jove was unsurprised to see most of the monasteries inhabitants already present, tucking into a speedy breakfast before they headed out to begin work. He made his way over to his usual table, where Thad, Emden and Dill already sat talking quietly.
"Morning," he took a seat next to Dill and eyed Thad carefully. He seemed completely fine, as if last night had never happened. Jove wasn't sure if he should be glad about that, or even more worried. He decided the former, for the time being, and broke off some bread from the loaf that sat between his friends.
Thad returned his look with a smile that Jove determined to be forced. No doubt he was still ashamed about what had happened to him, and Jove supposed that was fair. It would not be something any of them would really be able to forget. Ever.
"We were just talking about what Thad is going to do now," Emden told Jove as he filled a mug with milk from the pitcher. Now that Thad was twenty, he was of an age where he could no longer stay in the monastery. That was how things worked. He would be expected to go out into the world and find his own path now.
"I've already spoken to Father Gordon about it this morning," Thad informed them. "He is happy for me to stick around until Dill's ready to leave too." Dill smiled with his mouth full, pleased with this news. "He needs all the hands he can get around here anyway. I can't imagine he is looking forward to losing all four of us."
"That's the truth," Jove agreed as he reached for the milk himself. Besides the four of them, Father Gordon had about seven others who could carry out work around the farmstead. There was Axel, Ren and Marrick, and then the next oldest group of boys were only just turning fifteen, but there were four of them as well and they could all help. Then there were the two thirteen year olds who were just now starting to pitch in with some of the harder labour. Jove often had them shadowing him on his daily work, learning how things were done. Apart from that there was only Father Gordon, who was now in his sixties, and spent most of his time looking after the younger members of the monastery.
Jove didn't think he'd mind staying on working at the monastery if Father Gordon needed the help. He was happy here, and life outside the monastery was extremely uncertain. The monastery was in a rural part of the nation, and Jove had only ever travelled to the nearby towns. He knew nothing of the world at large.
They lived in the South-east of Kelrock, where the land was fertile and there were many lakes which had formed due to all the rivers that ran down from the mountains to the West. The rivers led to the ocean which was further East, except for the River Elladrin which had been purposefully redirected to run north to the Fortress of Ellahos.
Jove noticed his friends all visibly tense and he turned in his seat to see Axel saunter into the room followed by Ren and Marrick. There was really only one way to describe Axel, and that was cocky. He was short, standing at barely five foot seven inches, and had short, dark hair. He made a point of meeting Thad's gaze and holding it, an awful, amused smile spreading across his face.
His crate-mates, a term given to those who arrived at the monastery in the same crate, Ren and Marrick both smirked as well.
Thad resumed a relaxed posture in his chair, but he followed them with his piercing, raptor-like gaze as they moved to their own table and sat down.
Jove thought he heard Dill growl beside him and he gave him a slight nudge, shaking his head when Dill looked his way. They couldn't afford to have a public confrontation over what had happened last night.
Still, it made Jove's blood boil to see those three sitting across from them so casually, not even remotely sorry for what they had done to Thad.
Thad just continued to stare at them. Jove tried to find something to say to distract him but fortunately he was saved by the arrival of a menace of a different kind.
"Thad!"
Little Olly ran into the room and made a bee-line for Thad. Olly was one of the younger boys at the monastery. He was only four. He had a mop of brown hair and an ever present smile.
Thad broke his gaze from the trio of molesters and pushed his chair out from the table so that he could turn to greet his little admirer. Thad's entire persona changed in the blink of an eye and suddenly he was his normal self again.
"Hey there, big guy," Thad scooped the kid up into his lap with a smile to match the child's own. Olly's clothes were a mess and his hands were dark with dirt. "Have you been up to mischief already today?" Thad asked in mock surprise. "I'm sure Father Gordon must be looking for you."
Olly giggled, giving Thad a hug, but didn't answer him.
Whilst Dill proceeded to pull funny faces for Olly's amusement, Jove turned his attention back to Axel and the others. They sat with hunched shoulders, leaning in towards each other so they could talk quietly. Jove narrowed his eyes. What sick deeds were they planning for him?
"Have you given any more thought to what you will do when you leave, Jove?" Emden asked, drawing Jove's attention away from darker thoughts.
He shrugged, genuinely uncertain. "I still think my best bet is to be a sell-sword. I mean, I have enough practice under my belt, and everyone needs them out there."
Sell-swords were just that; hired help who acted as protectors to whoever paid for their services. Many men had managed to establish themselves as traders or merchants, and these men were always at risk from thieves and bandits. That's where sell-swords came in.
Father Gordon made sure all the boys became proficient with a weapon, once they began to mature. Father Gordon didn't like or condone violence but he was not a fool. The world was dangerous and he needed to teach the boys, or allow the boys to teach themselves, how to be prepared.
"Father Gordon told me that one of the cities near Ellahos has a library," Emden told him. "I was thinking I might head there."
"That's a long way from here, Em." Then Jove smiled. "Maybe you can hire my services and I'll protect you on your way?"
