Friday, March 23, 2007
Chapter 9C-Melanie
He froze in the darkness waiting. There was a short silence and the footsteps continued until he heard the familiar mechanical voice saying.
"Do you seek sanctuary in the city of the sun?"
A timid female voice answered weakly, "Yes, I do."
Tobal moved silently to the edge of the dark archway and looked into the other room. He saw a slight figure with her back toward him. She was entering the sliding door into the exam area.
Yesterday he had gone through the exam wearing his med-alert bracelet and it had been nothing like the two day processing he had gone through the first time. It had only taken about 3 hours before he emerged with his new clothing and gear. He knew it would be two days for this newbie to finish processing so he settled down to wait. The pouring rain continued and he assumed Zee and Kevin had decided not to travel in the storm and would be coming later after the weather had cleared.
It was around noon on the second day that a sure footed hulk came through the door dressed in the gray tunic of an Apprentice. It was a boy Tobal had seen at circle briefly but hadn't talked to. He felt this hulking boy had been hostile toward both him and Rafe. Tobal remembered the boy's name was Victor, but most people called him the Ox, probably because he was so slow and big. The Ox stopped and grinned when he saw Tobal.
"Anyone come in yet?" He asked.
"Yeah, someone's processing right now," Tobal replied.
The Ox padded over to him, his bulk towering over Tobal in a menacing way. He could see the five chevrons on the Ox’s sleeve and knew the Ox intended to claim this newbie for himself.
"You'd better run along little boy," the Ox told him. "I'll take care of this one."
An icy feeling settled into Tobal's gut. He felt sick and powerless to stop what was happening. The Ox was too big for him to take in a fight. He sat back on one of the cots without saying anything. A small flicker of triumph gleamed in the Ox’s eyes as he turned and went outside for his pack.
Moments later Tobal heard a door slide open and the girl, now dressed in a gray robe and carrying a bundle, stepped into the darker room where he sat waiting. As if on cue the Ox came stomping in and walked up to her. He roughly grabbed her arm.
"Come on, I'm your new teacher," he growled. "Let's get going."
She shrank back obviously terrified and Tobal instinctively stood up without thinking.
"Wait a minute Ox," he said. "I've been waiting here three days and I think you're rushing things a little bit. She might prefer to go with me than go with you."
His challenge stopped the Ox in his tracks.
"You still here scarface?" He asked, "You'd better run back to Rafe before I mess you up."
"Why don't we just explain the situation to the newbie," said Tobal reasonably, "We can both talk to her and she can make her own decision about who she wants as a teacher."
The Ox didn't even wait. He spun and lurched over to where Tobal was standing, grabbed him by the tunic and threw him down on the floor. In disbelief Tobal narrowly missed being kicked in the face by a huge boot. This guy was really trying to hurt him! He rolled hastily to his feet and watched the Ox with fear in his eyes. There had been no real warning. Tobal was caught completely off guard by the viciousness of the attack and had no idea what to expect next. The Ox was obviously used to getting his own way and was coming around the end of the cot to close with him and give him a real pounding that could involve serious injury.
Instinctively Tobal’s hand went to his knife and he held it in front of him protectively with the edge upward. The Ox halted, shock registering on his face. He was obviously not used to being threatened with knives and didn't know what to do about it.
Sensing an advantage Tobal took a quick step toward the Ox, waving the knife slightly.
"I said let's talk to her. Let's explain things to her and then let her decide."
The Ox stood still, not moving, a nervous tick showed on his left cheek and his eyes were bulging. Like most bullies, the Ox was a coward at heart. He was clearly unprepared for any of this and didn't know what to do. The silence built until his nerve broke, unwilling to challenge Tobal any further he spun away with a dangerous glint in his eye.
"I'll remember this." He said and stalked heavily out of the room.
Tobal turned toward the girl who was shrinking from him in fear. Then it occurred to him he was still brandishing the knife in a threatening way. He put the knife away blushing.
"Sorry about that," he said in an embarrassed way.
He felt a red flush creeping up his face making the muscles go tight and pulling the scar tissue making it stand out in the dim light. He was uncomfortably aware of how he must appear to this frightened girl.
"Sorry," he said again weakly and sat down on the edge of a cot. "It's ok, don’t be afraid. I'm Tobal, What's your name?" He asked trying to lighten the situation a little.
"Melanie," she whispered. "I've come to seek sanctuary but they stole all my things!"
She burst into tears not able to take any more. Despite himself Tobal chuckled at the irony of the situation. Apparently she knew as little about sanctuary as he had when he first arrived a little over two months ago. He lay back on the uncomfortable cot and looked her over with interest. She was taller than he had first thought and came up easily to his shoulder. Her dark hair was straight and stringy and her face was thin and long but her eyes were dark brown and vulnerable right then. Her shoulders were shaking and she was obviously going through an ordeal.
"You're not from around here are you?" He observed thoughtfully.
She whispered "No", with a sad and lost look on her face that told him she didn't really want to be here now either.
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