PreCursive

  “Mr. Hart? M-Mr. Hart, you hear me?”

  Slowly, I started to drift back to sciousness, aware that someone was calling my hey were lightly shaking my shoulders as well. For a moment, I didn’t know what was going on. I hadn’t even opened my eyes yet, and my head was throbbing. I couldn’t think straight.

  As if from far away, I heard another voice. “Move, boy.” A more mase voice said. Shortly, I began to be shaken mhly, stirring me back to sciousness more effectively. “Get up, Nate. You ’t afford to be ht now.”

  I cracked my eyes open gradually, only seeing blurs for a moment. When my eyes finished fog, I found that a rough-looking Bleddyn was h over me, hands on my shoulders. Fretfully h behind him was another familiar face. One I hadn’t seen in weeks.

  It was Walter, the young sve that had taught me Wildshaping all those weeks ago.

  I blinked slowly at them, my braiing. Abruptly, I remembered what had happeo me, eyes widening. I’d been violently knocked out by a group of guards, and presumably captured by them. I jerked upright, nearly smming my head into Bleddyn and whipping my own around in a circle wildly. The sudden movement made me surprisingly nauseous, nearly sending me back down to the floor, if not for the grip Bleddyn still had on my shoulders.

  “Easy there, Nate,” Bleddyn said soothingly. “You took a hard blow to the head. I wish you could just stay out to recover, but we’re kinda buggered right now.”

  I blinked up at him, strangely doing so one eye at a time. “What,” I croaked out, before clearing my throat. “What happened? What’s going on?”

  Bleddyn shook his head, hands still on my shoulders. “I don’t know. Nobody here does.”

  At his words, I took another around. I was in what looked to be a hastily structed tent. It wasn’t very big, leaving everyohat was inside of it fairly cramped. Other than Bleddyn, Walter and I, there were five other sves ihe tent for a total of eight people. The other five sves were scattered away from us, all male and all of them watg everyone else with distrustful eyes.

  I slowly stood up, aware of a sticky sensation on my face. Toug it and looking at my hand, I found that it was blood. I grimaced and looked back at Bleddyn. “How bad does it look?”

  “Could be worse,” Bleddyn said doubtfully. “Bone didn’t look cracked before it healed a little.” Implying that bone had been visible at oime. Shit. And from the woozy sensation I was feeling, I had to wonder if I might have anoddamn cussion.

  I took a deep breath before attempting to smile at Walter, who was still h o us and wringing his hands. “Walter,” I said, trying to project fideo my voice. “It’s good to see you again. I wish it were under better circumstances.”

  Walter gave me a terrified, wobbly smile iurn. “I-it’s good to see y-you too, Mr. Hart.” He mao stutter out.

  I tried to give him a reassuring smile. From the look on his face, I’m not sure it worked. Turning back to Bleddyn and leaning in, I kept my voice as low as I could, aware of all the eyes that were on us. “Is it another hunt?”

  Bleddyn leaned in and shook his head minutely. “Don’t think so,” He muttered to me. “This is too big a produ for one of those. Been hearing too many people outside, too much being moved about. We got guards stationed outside watg us, as well. Last time I tried to look out the tent, I nearly got a fist to the face.”

  I snorted softly. “You already look like you got one of those.” Bleddyn had a rge, purplish-bck eye developing over his right one.

  He smiled grimly iurn. “Well, when they came for me, I didn’t go without a fight.” I matched his smile with a low, shh before falling silent for a moment.

  “Then Magnus has cooked up some fresh new hell to put sves through, then,” I murmured somberly. I must not have been speaking as quietly as I thought, because one of the sves ie out a low moan of despair at my words.

  “Probably,” Bleddyn snorted softly. “I wouldn’t put it past the fucker.”

  Our versation was interrupted by a guard abruptly st into the tent with a smirk on his face. His entrance caused the other sves ient to scramble as far away from him as they could, huddling together. Walter somewhat emuted them, hiding behind Bleddyn and I. The two of us turo face the guard, Bleddyn with a sneer and myself with a frown.

  The guard, the ohat I think had tackled me earlier, didn’t seem to care. “Time to go, meat.” He said maliciously. “Out of the tent.” When nobody ient moved to follow his instrus, he narrowed his eyes at us and raised a gaued fist. “Now, unless you want to catch a in’. And I guarantee you, you don’t want that right now.” At his threat, the five other sves began to scramble out of the tent, streaming alongside the other sves. The guards' eyes fell ohree of us, causing Bleddyn’s so deepen. From what I’d learned of Bleddyn, he robably gearing up for anht.

  I leaned into him again. “Not now,” I whispered in his ear. “We o at least figure out what’s going on. And if I know Magnus, he’s got some kind of grand, self-felting speened all about how clever his test scheme is.” For a moment, I thought Bleddyn was going to ignore me, before he gave a slight, nearly indisible nod. I turned slightly to look over my shoulder at Walter and gave him a gesture to follow us.

  As a group, the three of us walked out of the tent, Bleddyn never losing his sneer and making sure to retain eye tact with the guard as we passed him.

  ………………………………………

  I was unsurprised when it turned out we were in the back clearing behind the manor. It seemed like this was where Magnus did his dirty work.

  Well, most of it. My hand tried to reach up and cup my burn scar, but I forced it down.

  The clearing had been transformed, though. The tent that we had exited was a ramshackle-looking thing, situated along the wall and out of the way. Least of the ges, it seemed like someone, most likely a sve, had e through and cut the grass lower in order to make it look more presentable. They hadn’t done much for patches of blood or burnt grass that I knew came from the deaths of unfortunate sves, though. The mobile pavilion was back as well, but that didn’t catch my eye much. I was used to the sight of it. More importantly, though, Bleddyn had been right.

  It looked like the eown was out here. Including the guards, which were scattered throughout the clearing.

  Arranged oher side and slightly behind the pavilioons of chairs and behat were surrounded by chattering dwarves. Behind the aodations and oher side of the gate from us, I saw what looked like a few tables of food and drinks. There were rows of seating stretg out in a semi-circle as if they were pointed in a certain dire. Looking around, I found what they were fag. It looked like a rge circle made of stones positioned in the ter of the clearing.

  The sight of it gave me a bad feeling.

  I didn’t get to i my surroundings for long though, as my attention was stolen by the sound of a bell ringing. Snapping my head in the dire of the noise, I found a familiar sight. Pignolo, the cruel dwarven servant from the manor, was standing out in front of the paviliing a bell. The chatter and versation of the gathered dwarves began to die down, with them direg their eyes to Mr. Piggy.

  “Good citizens of Addersfield!” He called out, once he had their attention. “I present to you, Lord Magnus, Heir of House Savoy!”

  At his words, the gates to the right of roup began to open up. Out of them strode Magnus, dressed in the most opule of green and gold robes I’d seen on him. Apanying him was a team of four Addersfield guards, with Stonebreaker following along behind the group. Even though I couldn’t see his face, the knight still looked visibly displeased from his body nguage alone.

  At the sight of Magnus, the crowd began to cp politely. Magnus strutted from the gate like I’d never seen before, pinly enjoying the attention. He quickly asded the back steps of the pavilion and turned around to address the crowd, raising a hand in the process. The appuse died down quickly. Magnus smiled insincerely at the gathered dwarves.

  “My friends,” He said, trying his hardest to project his voice across the clearing. “Thank you fatherioday for my little soiree. Lately, I’ve been finding myself terribly bored, and why wouldn’t I? There’s simply so little to amuse oneself with in this,” He paused, before tinuing. “Charming little town. Why, tely I’ve grown dissatisfied with my usual method of eai!”

  You mean, when yurly feed hapless sves to bloodthirsty monsters?

  “And If I, with all of my privileges have been so distent of te, I only imagine how you feel!” At his words, the crowd began murmuring among themselves. From my position, I could see that a number of them looked fused. “So, I’ve decided to put on a little show for the both of us.” His fake smile became very real and very cruel. “Some good old-fashioned blood sport.”

  The crowd grew deathly quiet.

  Magnus turned his eyes to us, the group of sves practically hiding in the er. Even from this distance, I could see the malicious glee in them. With his right hand, he gestured to us in a sweeping motion, causing every eye in the clearing to fall on us. I stiffened. In fact, most of us excluding Bleddyn froze in some way. He just gred back.

  “Huddling in the er like rats on a sinking ship are the stars of today’s eai!” Magnus grandstanded. “Gathered are the refuse and the maltents of Addersfield’s sve popution! This lot are the weak, the sickly, the too young and too old, and finally the belligerent!” I cast a the other sves. I guess that guy did look a little sick, and those guys looked a bit on in their years. Walter could be the young, and Bleddyn was defihe belligerent.

  Wait. Did that make me the weak?

  “Today, these eight sves will pete for our amusement! In a series of duels!” Magnus tinued, waving Pignolo over to his position. He hurried up to his master's position, carrying a wooden case of some kind. At a gesture from Magnus, Pignolo opehe case and showed its tents to the crowd. I wasn’t able to see whatever it was from my position. “With these kit knives! Using these…fine instruments, these repulsive sves shall battle to prove that they’re worthy of a sed ce. For you see, I’m not pletely without mercy.” He said, smiling maliciously in our dire.

  Yes you are, you sick son of a bitch.

  “The winner of this little tourney shall go on to bee one of the Overseers.” Magnus tinued, causing the other five sves that I didn’t know in roup to perk up and start paying rapt attention. “Three square meals a day, a reduced workload, and your own room within the Overseer’s quarters. That sounds quite fair, does it not?”

  The clearing was silent, except for an awkward cough from the gathered dwarven crowd.

  Magnus suddenly frowned. “I said, aren’t I being fair?” He asked menagly.

  That caused the crowd to speak up.

  “Of course, Lord Magnus!”

  “You’re the very spirit of generosity, My Lord!”

  I tried not to be disgusted with the crowd, but it was hard.

  Magnus switched back to his insincere smile. “As I thought. As for the rules of the tourhe cattle do not o kill each other. A suffitly disabling wound with suffice. For now.” He said, amending himself at the st moment. “As for you, my loyal subjects, you may avail yourself of the provided delectables during the intermissions. For now, be seated. We have a first bout to get to, don’t we? Guards, gather the cattle and distribute the cutlery.”