Rise and shine

Chapter 6

Far away, in Mike's territory, Shoun was looking up at the sky from his position lying on a random rooftop. He liked heights, he liked watching the sky, he liked running and feeling the muscles in his legs stretch. He also liked to fight hand-to-hand and check that his skill had not diminished. Shoun liked to dream of a better life for himself, Rebecca and Psyche; he imagined what he would say and do if he ever met his older brother; or wondered what would have happened if the war had never happened, nor the division of Nirille into six pieces tyrannically ruled by warlords with little or no honor.

He knew the names of the six, their physical descriptions and the situation their territories were in. M-Lock, ruled the northern territory farthest west, still maintained small guerrillas and had endured a few revolutions against him by his citizens. He was about thirty-two years old or older, liked confrontations and once every season a boy and a girl were sacrificed. Salham held the only territory in the north that adjoined that of M- Lock. Its inhabitants used to die of famine seasoned with small infections that degenerated into epidemics. Just under thirty years old, it was believed that he had been on the verge of starvation since he ate all he could all the time.Kaien ruled the territory between Salham and Noel, he seemed to be the most peaceful and progressive. Except for an occasional case that occurred half a year or so after the war, there had been no uprisings against him. Few people were starving and everyone was working doing something good for the community. They had started planting vegetable gardens, they had previously restored as many buildings as possible and the larger infrastructures were all intended to be places where wounded people were cared for. All the children who spied there for Shoun recounted these facts with joy, grateful to live there.

However, they did not know much about Kaien himself. Age unknown, though he must have been in his early twenties, hair a different color each time. Kind and quiet, smiled at everyone. Family or personal relationships unknown. Very busy working, unless he wanted to give notice for one reason or another, or had to negotiate with neighboring territories or attend meetings of the six, he was rarely seen on the street. Shoun disliked him, however, not only because he was self-righteous, but because he was called by a name very similar to that of his older brother.The last leader of the north, or rather northeast, was Noel, who ruled over the smallest territory of all. He bordered Kaien and Mike in Nirille, as well as the Duchy of Luc, a territory somewhat larger than his own territory if it were joined to Kaien's. He was about twenty-five years old and still well preserved. He was dedicated to enjoying the good life without doing anything for the people, although people close to him also enjoyed luxuries. But unlike Mike or M-Lock, he did not demand anything from poor citizens, nor did people disappear on his orders, as was the case in Stainsell territory.

Stainsell had the second largest territory, where there were no corpses lying in the streets just because they mysteriously disappeared, just like their relatives. There were stories that Stainsell ate them, or fed them to his prisoners of war, if he still had any left. Except for the meetings of the six, he was always followed by a tall man with gaunt features and shaggy long black hair. It was said that he never slept, remembering the many murders that Stainsell must have ordered him to commit. He also never spoke to anyone and looked without seeing, his eyes resembling deep, dark wells.

As for Mike's territory, he knew what went on there from his own experience, so his little spies there were engaged in smuggling the information and secrets hidden in Mike's auditorium. That mission was even more dangerous than the others, for if the leader found out, heads would most likely roll: those of his women, those of the child-spies and most likely also Shoun himself, who did not trust that the children could cover it up if they tortured them. Because of this, none of them had seen his face and only knew him as "Rael".

He could not imagine that the time when Han's men would capture him was approaching by leaps and bounds. Instead, he ran across the rooftops and jumped down to a small piece of wall, from which he climbed down to ground level, then headed to the fountain for a drink before returning to the room he shared with Rebecca and Psyche and taking a nap so that he would be rested that night when he met his children.