by Curtis, Gene
Everyone either agreed or quietly listened to what Slone had to say.
“I know that some of you will have to work your way through school, well I also have some ideas about how to make the money that is needed to get through school.”
At that moment, a group of counselors remanifested just outside the school entrance. Everyone except LeOmi got up and started picking up food and packing things away, as if it was some prearranged plan.
As Slone put the gathered food into his back pack he said, “We’ll meet again. I’ll let you know.”
In answer, LeOmi turned and left the alcove before anyone else was ready to go.
She pulled out her map and made her way to the shopping area, in search of Bekka.
The shopping area was huge. There were so many shops that LeOmi couldn’t keep track of all the different specialty shops. There was a marquee that was on a short circular platform that showed a map of the entire first level of the mountain. The map boxes were numbered and color coded.
“I thought I might find you here.” Bekka walked from behind the marquee.
LeOmi wasn’t surprised. This day held all sorts of unexpected things and she just felt that she should just—go with the flow. What else could she do? “I need to talk to you.”
“Okay, let’s go get something to eat; I’ll take you to my favorite food shop.”
Bekka started jogging. LeOmi fell in beside her at an easy pace.
“It is the cheapest and best restaurant here at The Seventh Mountain shops. They have cafeteria style dining. They make just so much breakfast, lunch and dinner, and when it is gone, it’s gone—but they make enough to feed an army. They also gear it towards what is happening at the school. They are famous for their comfort food. Most days they have fried chicken, unless they run out. That’s their specialty. Then on Friday they have Pizza, Sunday is Pot Roast, Tuesday is Pasta day. They have mashed potatoes and Mac and Cheese every day...until they run out and there is always grilled cheese, soup, ice cream, and chocolate chip cookies and the best thing is that it’s cheap.”
They approached a small door, almost like a slit in between a small appliance service and repair shop and a book binding shop called Aesop’s Travels. They stopped out front, Bekka pointed with her thumb. “This is where I have most of my meals.”
A sign resembling the shape of a butcher block said, The Quarters. Each letter was artistically shaped into some type of food or tableware and painted in a very colorful fashion. The outside of the shop was nothing to draw attention, but the sign definitely was. There was also a mechanical armed cleaver that sprung back and forth, as if it were on springs.
“There are fancier places, in fact our meeting hall is The Oasis and you can order food from all around the world, as long as there is someone with a store open, but I like it here. It’s small, out of the way and homey. There are busy times to avoid and as long as you don’t mind serving yourself, well, it is good food. I’m sorry; I just keep going on and on.”
Bekka went inside and stood in line with a tray to show LeOmi how it was done. She got LeOmi a dish of mashed potatoes and a dish of Mac and Cheese for herself.
“So what has been going on? You look like you have had a rough day.”
LeOmi explained everything that happened. She told Bekka about the signet, Mr. Diefenderfer, Mark and his staff, Keith and Ralph, Slone and then what Slone had said.
“You have had a very rough day. All these things are highly peculiar.” Bekka took out her note book and began making notations. “Do you remember your dream about Mark Young—the boy with the staff?”
LeOmi shook her head, “Not really, it was his staff that I remember more than anything.”
“All Magi have seen his birth...the horse that tried to kill his mom, and the retrieval of the staff that he carries. It is okay if you don’t remember, a lot of freshmen don’t.”
Bekka reached over gave LeOmi’s hand a quick squeeze.
“You do have your map? Of course you do. Maybe you should head up to the sleeping quarters on the second floor.” Bekka pointed up with her finger. “You have had a fun filled first day.”
“Oh,” She put her hand on LeOmi’s shoulder to stop her, “The thing about the signet. What do you think? It is something you want your name on or was it just nice to have him make it right before your eyes?”
LeOmi thought a moment, Bekka contemplated her and said. “Just one word; that is all I need. Does it speak to you at all?”
“Yes, but it is a mystery to me, the way he did it, and why? The way he put it together.”
“The thing about a signet is that you just can’t go into the shop and say—oh that is such a pretty one. I want that. Or if you go in and ask how much it costs, he will send you away and ask you to come back later—after…you have…contemplated…your decision…” They both smiled.
“I suppose he was in a horrible accident.”
“A battle, one that was both horrible and tragic. LeOmi, as you have probably surmised, this is not an easy life. There are dangers around every corner. You have to know who to trust. Sometimes you just have to go by your gut. But most of the time, people–all people, give you a reason whether to trust them or not to trust them. I can’t make these decisions for you and you wouldn’t want me to. You were right to tell me all of these things.” She gave her shoulder another small squeeze. “I am your counselor. But I also want to be your friend, if you’ll let me.” She gave her a questioning smile, and LeOmi smiled back.
“Good. I have to report this. I will let you know what the Council of Elders say about it. Don’t worry. You haven’t done anything to get in trouble for.”
LeOmi felt the unsaid, “Not yet” floating in the air about to hit her on the head.
“Don’t worry, and get some sleep.”
Bekka turned LeOmi to face the door. “I’ll see you in the morning. I spend my mornings at the Olive Tree...you remember, don’t you? Meet me there at daybreak and we can talk and maybe run together, if you would like.” Bekka grabbed LeOmi’s map and put a small X. If Ricky would have gone to the right instead of to the left, they would have seen the Olive Tree.
“I’ll let the other counselors know that you are going to meet me there at daybreak and, what shall I tell Mr. Diefenderfer know about the signet?”
LeOmi nodded.
“I have to go and report this.” She held up the notebook, “I’ll see you in the morning.” They exited The Quarters and went their separate ways.
* * *
The common room wasn’t hard to find. Everything was gray, and sort-of sad, but she should be happy. Isn’t this what she had always wanted?
The sleeping area and beds were assigned. There was even a sign, boys one way and girls the other.
The girls’ barracks were rows of beds, separated by panels. If all the furniture were stacked in a corner, the room would be massive.
Her trunk was in a cubby with a bed and she found that the showers were the same type as in the schools back home. There was little privacy, but the worse thing was that the people were constantly talking, everywhere.
Everything in gray; another reason to get your signet as soon as possible.
LeOmi listened to chatter all around her, other girls, trying to get to know one another.
She showered and dressed again–in her own clothes including shoes, not the gray pajamas furnished by the school. She actually thought about getting up and finding another place to sleep, but then she was so tired and she remembered the…Not Yet!…hitting her–no slamming her on the forehead–it was going to be a long night.
She pulled out her old tattered copy of To Kill a Mockingbird, and everyone seemed to know that she didn’t want to be social and no one talked to her. In fact, some of the girls clung to the other side of the hall when they passed her cubby. They may have even been a little afraid of her, and that was okay—just great in fact, because she didn’t want to hear their girly gossip. The Seventh Mountain wasn’t a social c
lub.
* * *
DAY TWO
Day break couldn’t come too fast. There were lighted strips to show the way to the bathrooms and the way out of the barracks into the common room. Every hall was lit after that and the short jog to the school entrance was invigorating. There were some counselors that nodded to her, and she nodded back.
The sunrise was beautiful. Bekka was already there with bottled water, coffee and a muffin that she had cut in half. They ate in silence until the sunrise was too brilliant to look at anymore.
“Am I considered a bully?”
“Right to the point.” Bekka shook her head and handed LeOmi a bottle of water. “First, good morning.”
Bekka had her notebook out and she had been making notations. Bekka took a deep breath and released it.
“This is my contemplative place. I come here in the morning to evaluate yesterday and to plan today. Alone time, that I can figure out who I am. I suggest that you find a place too. You may share my place, but I think that you will want a place all to your own.” Bekka took in a deep breath and motioned with her pen the horizon and the sunrise–smiling she mouthed the word beautiful.
“You ask a question that you must answer, and let me point out—if you didn’t ask, then that would mean it didn’t matter to you whether you were or weren’t.” She took another deep breath and resigned herself that the day was now in full swing. She smiled at LeOmi, “When you interact with people you are distant–I understand that you are afraid of being hurt. We all are, but as you will see in the world around you, a lot of people have had a difficult time. There are other parts of being a Magi other than being able to defeat an opponent. Just look at Mr. Diefenderfer.”
LeOmi was looking away, absentmindedly counting the knots on the roots sticking up out of the ground and then she painfully blurted out, “I don’t want to be a bully?”
“I understand. There are those who consciously desire a purpose filled reason to their life. I am one of those people. I want to learn all that I can and try to make others just as happy as I am–if not more so. I am not happy just dealing with what comes my way; I want to help contribute to make good things happen. A bully is more interested in themselves than others. They are focused on what they want.”
Bekka stowed her notebook and pen, and faced LeOmi.
“I call it the Me Factor.” Bekka pointed to herself, “That is to say that I would want everything to revolve around what I want, instead of what is best for us all.”
“The Me Factor?”
“Just keep in mind that it is hard, if not impossible to please everyone.” They both turned and looked at the sunrise for a moment.
“You know what I do? I rationalize all sides, evaluate process and outcome, and decide my role. That is what I do.” She held up the notebook again.
“Why do you ask? Was it because of Slone Voif and his friends?”
LeOmi nodded.
“You will find that there are many kinds of people here at The Seventh Mountain. Not everyone wants to be here, some students are required by their parents to be here for at least one year. As you know, we have a trial year. Normally students get here and find out that they do want to be here. They join right in without another thought of not coming back next year. Some have a difficulty in paying or doing the work, and there are other ways of dealing with them, but all and all we have had a remarkable success rate in teaching our students, and even though there is not supposed to be a competition between the other schools—of course there is, but as you know, we are the best.” Bekka smiled brightly, “We shine.” Her bright blue eyes sparkled in the early morning sun light.
“That’s not pride or bragging, that is just fact.”
“Now as to your question, you have doubts or else you would not have asked.”
LeOmi nodded again.
“Some other questions you may have in your head are: ‘Why are they forming the group, and why do they want me to join?’ Am I right?”
LeOmi nodded again.
“As you may have guessed, some of those students in Slone Voif’s group are here on the ‘let’s just see how it goes’ basis. I can’t tell you who or why, but that may help answer some of the questions bouncing around in that brain pan of yours.” Bekka gave LeOmi a gentle, tap, tap, tap, on her forehead. They both nodded and smiled.
“Now I need to do some counselor stuff, and you need to do some student stuff.”
They stood and started stretching.
“During Orientation, all students meet in The Oasis for morning plans at seven a.m. There are designated sections for counselors and students, and then after you are chosen into your tribes, you will sit by tribe.”
They jogged back into the school, just in time for a shower and The Oasis by seven.
There were color coded tables in the center of the room. So LeOmi sat at the far end of a booth near the door, her black and white tipped spiked hair proclaiming her personality.
Slone, Ricky, Keith, Ralph, Adolph, Bruce, and Albert Spencer came in just in time for the meeting to begin. They saw LeOmi and came over to her booth and the nearest table.
She would not let them sit on her bench seat—she would not be trapped by them. Slone laid his sword on the table arrogantly displaying his weapon, and then he sat across from her at her booth.
“We will meet the same place for lunch today. If you have any ideas that you would like to share with the group, today is the best time to bring them.”
LeOmi simply stared at him.
“I will talk with Mark Young today. Is there anything you want me to ask him?”
“What?” LeOmi looked at him in surprise. “Why would I want to ask him anything?”
“No real reason, I just thought I would ask.”
Slone stood and collected his sword. The others stood also. They went down a few tables and stopped and spoke with some more students who were having breakfast, the entourage performing the same scripted motions as they made their way around the room.
“Well, that was bizarre.” Bekka sat down across from LeOmi.
“Yes.”
LeOmi leaned forward and whispered, “I remember some of my dream about Mark.”
“Good.”
“It is still vague…I still remember the staff most of all, but there is something else, something dealing with the future. Have there been different dreams or have they all been the same?”
“As far as I know, they have all been the same. It will come to you, don’t worry, all things in time.”
LeOmi nodded.
“Now today you will pick up your signet. It’s ready and waiting for you. You also need to go by and speak to Ms. Vanmie to see where you will be placed in her classes. Do that before you order any books. By the way there is a used books section in the book store. You can get some really good deals if you don’t mind having previously owned books. To me it is no different than a library book.” Bekka pulled out her notebook, “I don’t think there is anything else.”
“If you were me, would you meet Slone’s group for lunch?”
“Me?” Bekka shifted and said, “I can’t answer that. It is a decision that is up to you. You and you alone.” She stood, “But I do suggest you go to Ms. Vanmie’s shop. It isn’t open yet but she is probably training now. She does her training in the morning, were you to get there early, you could watch her in action.”
“Got to go, we will talk later. Have a great day.” With a wave, Bekka went to another table on the other side of the room. There were other counselors and other students doing the same. LeOmi pulled out her map and plotted the path she would take to the sword shop.
* * *
Bekka sat in the waiting room at the Chaplin’s Office for a short time, listening to his eight a.m. appointment. There was no receptionist, and the appointment book was lying open on the counter. The door opened and the two men shook hands.
Chaplain Jones said, “Let me know how it all goes.” He was a handsome man, tall with bl
ond hair and blue eyes, the eyes of a Magi. He seemed a little unnerved when he saw her sitting and waiting, in his waiting room.
“Hello, I’ll be with you in a moment.”
He gently steered the other man out the door and called out to him, “Let me know.”
A final wave and he pulled the door shut.
“Is everything all right?”
“I just need to talk to you about LeOmi.”
Chapter 6
Better Trained Leaders Make Better Trained Soldiers
“Vanmie Swords” was over the lintel. A stack of books was in the window, Simple Combat Strategy and Tactics by Joramina Vanmie. The door was open, so LeOmi stepped into the shop.
There was a katana on a bamboo stand sitting on a display table just as she entered the shop. There was a plaque on the stand and its inscription read “Without desire for winning, training is nothing.”
Ms. Vanmie stepped around the counter. “But you must ask yourself, ‘Who is my opponent?’”
Her voice was low, almost a whisper. She looked LeOmi up and down, and then she rested her hand over the katana’s finely wound leather hand grip.
“There is beauty in the sword as it sits here and there is also beauty when it is being wielded.” She removed the sword from the display and pulled the sheath back a bit to display the engraving on the sword itself.
“Do you read Japanese?”
LeOmi shook her head as she took a step back towards the door.
“This sword’s name is basically, ‘My Loving Opponent.’ It was made by a sword master. Do you desire it?”
Still admiring the beauty of the sword LeOmi said, “I have a sword.”
“You do? But can it be of such craftsmanship and beauty?” Ms. Vanmie slid the sword back into its sheath and turned to face LeOmi, “Did you know that it takes ten days to polish a sword like this? It is polished by a succession of stones and polish. It takes time, care and patience. Sometimes it doesn’t go the way a sword master wants it to. Sometimes, imperfections can change the shape of the other parts. Everything is made up of parts, all working together to become a whole. That works with this Katana and it works with me and you.” She went over and closed the door then turned the sign to CLOSED.
