Renevere Mars: Part One

Episode 2: The Real Test

Ossilith, the Den of the Warrior, was a towering village compared to Parinth. The first street that led from the front gates was bustling with people moving between the vendors that lined the street on either side. Shop owner's calling out to their customers, order numbers and demands to the chefs all mingling with the hubbub of chatter and the hissing of skillets. It was evening when they arrived, the sun setting behind the tops of buildings.

"We made it just in time," remarked her guide dully. For having traveled with this man for five days Ren knew more about the rock stuck between the treads in her boots than she did about him. But he was only her guide. The people she would need to learn about were those she would be meeting very soon.

"It's this building here," the guide said. Ren looked at the wide building in alarm, though she did her best not to let it show. The guide gestured toward a large set of doors underneath a sign that said CaMere Grand Academy for the Exceptional Warrior. There were banners hung with ornate shapes in Red over white, billowing in the light breeze. The flag poll on the building held a different flag, an entirely maroon one with a large, crisp white circle in the center. Inside the circle was a black bird holding what looked like a dagger. Ren grimaced.

"You're not coming in with me?" she asked, trying not to sound concerned.

"It's just inside those doors. Go straight to the double doors at the end of the hall. Someone will tell you what to do from there."

Ren nodded, digging her fingers under the straps to her backpack. She gazed up at the sign and tried to steady herself. There would be many warriors inside those doors, all more skilled than she for certain, including the rest of the Preliths.

The sound of retreating footsteps behind her drew her from her thought. She looked behind to see her guide leaving her, walking away without so much as a parting word. Her grimace darkened as she turned back to face the double doors. She took a stabilizing breath and pushed them open.

The hall was not long, and as promised there was another set of doors at the end. The walls and floors were plain and reminded her of those at her own school. Tiled floor, painted cement walls, and the occasional corkboard with flyers and informational posters stuck to it. Similar banners hung, in smaller proportion, down this hallway as well, and now that they lie flat and still, Ren could make out that the bold, swooping markings formed the head of a wolf. The sound of her boots thudding against the floor rang in her ears as she made her way to the second set of doors. A din grew louder as she drew closer, a great gathering audible on the other side. As she opened the doors, the sound expanded to engulf her. There were easily 100 children sitting in rows of seats, filling the front few rows of the auditorium. Their voices reverberated off the walls and made Ren's footsteps silent. She slipped into a row that was unoccupied a few rows behind where the majority of children sat. They were so young, every one of them with high voices and baby fat rounding out their faces. She couldn't have stood out more if she had worn a large neon sign on her head that flashed does not belong. She sat in anxious silence for a few minutes before finally, a woman approached the front of the stage.

"Welcome," she said loudly, her voice cutting the noise like a knife and drawing it to utter silence. All eyes turned to her. She was built like a man, her torso making a V shape and building up to chiseled arms. Her skin was a deep cool brown, nearly as black as her hair. Her eyes were an unsettling violet, and the whites surrounding the purple gleamed against the darkness of her skin. She was not young, but not quite an elder either. Her eyes crinkled as she surveyed the crowd.

"Welcome to Ossilith, Den of Warriors," she said, clasping her hands behind her lower back. The stance only increased her stature, though she was certainly already the most intimidating woman Ren had ever seen. Her braids that rowed her scalp were thick and woven to her skull until just behind her ears, where they fell down her back.