Becoming a Warrior

by Moose Tyler

  Amaria had been torn about which name to etch. Her first thought was Pathenia so there was a better chance it would be returned if ever lost, but just before the marks were notched, she changed her mind. Pathenia was Mother, to Amaria.

  Her mother smiled and nodded. She opened the leather cover and thumbed through the parchment.

  “There are even places for you to write things,” Amaria pointed out. “You didn’t have much room in your old copy.” She got more excited. “And look at this.” She flipped to the back. “These are sketches from the original scrolls. Beastly, huh?”

  Her mother wiped a tear from her eye. “Beastly.”

  Amaria giggled. Mother sounded funny saying that word, but Amaria was glad she liked the gift.

  Her mother wrapped up the parchment. “Speaking of beastly, I was sending a bird earlier, and I believe Timber’s water is low. See to that then come inside and eat.”

  Amaria stood up. “Yes, ma’am. I meant to last night, but I forgot.”

  “Let’s not make it a habit. Maybe Ursula can add ‘feed cat’ to that Shadow Catcher of hers.”

  Amaria laughed.

  “I saved some scraps. They’re in a pail on the prep table.”

  “Thank you, Mother.” Amaria walked to the dining area. She stopped at the table and eyed the feast. Circling the pile of bird legs were plates and bowls of venison, bear steaks, seasoned boiled eggs, fruit, Kalla, and Genesis Morning Stew – a family recipe her mother prepared every cycle. Amaria’s mouth watered. She grabbed an egg and ate it. She looked at the prep table and saw a shiny, new bowl heaped with scraps. She looked at her mother in disbelief.

  Her mother walked to the dining area. “What?”

  Amaria looked at the bowl. “Are those for—”

  “The feed pail she has is made for a horse. That should work better for a cat, don’t you think?”

  Amaria picked up the bowl and looked at the scraps. “Yes. Thank you, Mother.”

  “Don’t thank me. Thank the Sacred Peacock.”

  Amaria laughed. “Yes, bless that generous bird.” She ate a hunk of venison and took Timber’s gift to the barn.

  She was sleeping, slinked on the edge of the loft, purring softly when Amaria entered. She hadn’t ventured out since Telsa had scolded her for eating messenger birds. Amaria sensed that Telsa had bound her to the barn until after Genesis. She wasn’t for sure, but there was something in her heart and gut that told her so whenever she practiced connecting. For the two days that had led up to Genesis, Amaria had taken the queen’s advice and used happy feelings. She thought about seeing Telsa and how relieved she was to know that Wanje was encouraging and helping Ursula and her CAW friends. The connection was less tiring and easier to hold on to, but the effort still zapped her energy.

  On this morning, she wanted to conserve her strength before competing in the preliminaries for Horse and Bows, so when Timber opened her eyes, Amaria avoided her stare and looked at the old pail. Her mother was right. It was too deep for a cat’s face.

  “Happy Genesis,” she said, setting the scraps down and grabbing the water pail. She took it to the source, washed it out, refilled it, and returned. She set it beside the new feed bowl and looked at Timber stretching in the loft. “Enjoy.”

  She rushed out of the barn and into the house. Her mother was at the table when she returned. The platter, canter, and jelly saucers had been transferred to the dining area.

  Amaria sat down. “I think Timber likes the bowl. I hadn’t thought to get her a gift.”

  “You must always consider that cat now.” Her mother loaded up a plate of food and handed it over. “So, what did you get everyone else?”

  Amaria took the plate and set it down and put a cloth in her lap. “I got Telsa perfumed water. I had it delivered to the sages’ temple with a pack of burnt sticks.”

  Her mother poured Amaria a cup of tea. “That’s nice. And Sakina?”

  Amaria stopped carving. “I gave her Little Blade.”

  Her mother nodded. “That’s right. You did.”

  Amaria ate a hunk of bear steak. “I got Ursula and Penelope birds. Gypsus knows a tender who has a stock already trained for most of the main pens. I paid a little more for them to be taught to roost at P’s house and Urs’s tree. They may have to work with them for a few days after Genesis.”

  “This pet is draining your purse.”

  Amaria nodded and ate venison before carving up more bear steak and eating it mixed with the heap of Kalla. “I made Ophea and Jax these necklaces. I got those little skimmer barbs from Second Hands and used leather string.”

  “Sounds creative.”

  Amaria drank a cup of juice and wiped her mouth. “Tried to be. You saw what I drew Wanje.”

  She had drawn Wanje a picture of Timber. Although she wasn’t entirely pleased with her proportions, Amaria thought the grass, trees, and rocks looked quite realistic. She had taken extra heartbeats to shade in the color and had worked on the piece for three days, finally finishing on Genesis Eve. She had signed it and written a special note on the back thanking Wanje for being her teacher. She rolled it, tied it with blue and green string, and had planned on giving it to her at the awards ceremony on the last night of Genesis.

  Her mother ate some fruit. “I’m glad you like drawing. You’re quite good.”

  Amaria shook her head. “No, I’m not. Wait until you see Ursula’s tree. It’s really divine.”

  “I’ll see it this morning. I’m meeting Olympia at the galleries. We’ve been invited to the queen’s seats for today’s matches.”

  Amaria stopped eating. “You have?” She felt her heart pound faster inside her chest. “Why?”

  Her mother shrugged. “We’ve been invited before. Remember that cycle you threw discs? Also, when Sakina won her first crown in climbing and, of course, on the first Genesis after we arrived. You watched Horses and Bows from the queen’s lap that cycle.”

  Amaria picked at the food on her plate.

  “The starting ceremony should be entertaining. Pandora says the dancing and music will be festive and upbeat.”

  Amaria had attended the starting ceremony of every Games she had competed in. It was always after group dine on Genesis morning. Following, there was an intermission before the preliminary rides for the first event, Horses and Bows, began at midday.

  Amaria nibbled on a piece of fruit. “I don’t think I’m going this cycle.”

  “Do you think that’s wise?”

  “I won’t be the only the one. It’s not queen’s law. Zora’s never there. It’s one of the perks of going.” She smiled and stuffed an egg in her mouth.

  “So, why not this cycle?”

  Amaria swallowed and shrugged. “I’m going to stay here and focus.”

  “Are you sure it’s not because you’re avoiding the queen?”

  She looked at her plate. “No.”

  “Because you can’t avoid the queen, Amaria.”

  “I know.”

  “Is it the prophecy?”

  Amaria nodded. “That and I vomited on her table.”

  “I assure you, Amaria, you are not the first to vomit on the queen’s table.”

  “It’s not that as much as the prophecy. The past few moons it’s all I can think about.”

  “Let’s talk about it.” Her mother pushed her plate aside. “What if the queen’s right, and Telsa has predicted that someone in our family will take the throne?”

  She shrugged. “At first I imagined Sakina being queen and what that would be like to serve her.”

  “And it made you uncomfortable.”

  “Yes. It’s Sakina, Mother. I’m supposed to bow and address her as ‘my queen’?”

  “Have you considered that, if another sage verifies Telsa’s vision, that it could be you, not Sakina, who takes the throne.”
>
  “Yes! Great Mother, that would be a disaster.”

  “Don’t swear, Amaria, especially on Genesis.”

  “I’m not queen material.”

  Her mother laughed. “How do you know what queen material is?”

  “I just do, and I don’t have it and Sakina doesn’t either.”

  “So, Telsa?”

  “Or you.”

  Her mother laughed until tears slid down her cheek. “No citizen will ever be queen, Amaria. Ever.” She wiped them away. “Maybe she was more interested in distracting you from the Games than anything.”

  “Why would she do that?”

  Her mother shrugged. “There’s a lot of betting during Genesis.”

  Amaria thought about it for a few heartbeats. “That seems a bit much to win some arrowheads.”

  “There are other forms of trade worth a lot more than arrowheads. Is that any more far-fetched than you, Sakina, or Telsa becoming queen?” Her mother extended the plate of bread.

  Amaria took a chunk and smeared jelly on it. “I guess not.” She ate a bite. “But, there’s something else I keep thinking about. At our first lesson, Wanje told me I’d have to make a decision—,” Amaria looked up, “—a decision about men. I didn’t think about it much at first. Actually, I kind of forgot with all that’s been happening, but since the queen’s chamber, it’s been bothering me. What if Wanje wants me to form an opinion about men because I will be queen when men storm our shores?”

  Her mother looked at her for a few heartbeats. “I sometimes forget you’re getting older. Your womb will open soon, and you’ll no longer be a child. Do you know I was just about your age when Zeus first gave me his seed?”

  Amaria shook her head. Her mother rarely talked of Zeus.

  “I was a weapon maker, if you can believe that.”

  Amaria looked at her mother. “You were?”

  She nodded. “Your mortal father, Tabius, taught me his trade. He was the one who named you.” She sipped her tea.

  Amaria didn’t know what to say. Her mother had never spoken of any other father besides Zeus. “Mortal father?”

  “You were too young, but sometimes I think Sakina remembers him.”

  “What was he like?”

  “He was kind, for a man. He never raised his hand or voice. He let me hunt and showed me how to make bows and swords. You used to sit on a blanket in a patch of grass while he fished.”

  “When you say, he was kind for a man, are most unkind?”

  Her mother nodded. “They can be very cruel. My older brother, Kiel, was as mean as they come, but my younger one, Gabriel, was not. He had a sweet heart and wouldn’t crumple the flowers, if he could help it. My father was cold but not unkind. Most men in the village where I lived were threats to me, like predators to prey.”

  “You were hunted?”

  Her mother laughed. “Constantly. By Zeus and mortal alike. Most women in the old world are.”

  “Hunted for what?”

  “Our wombs, I suppose. When my womb opened, my father sold me to Tabius for two barrels of arrows and a horse that died within the cycle I was wed.”

  “Your father sold you?”

  Her mother shrugged. “I was his property, and we were poor, but that didn’t matter. Wealthy fathers sold their daughters, too.”

  Amaria couldn’t believe it. Her mother had been a slave. All women in the old world were slaves. She had read in the scrolls in Warrior Training about the terrible things men had done in the wars of the ancestors. Now that she was learning more about her mother’s history, Amaria began to form an opinion about men. She wanted to spit. “You must have been relieved to escape. Hera’s banishment was a gift from the Great Mother.”

  “In many ways, yes, but I miss Gabriel very much. It’s why I dare not speak his name. Even now, I feel my heart break at the idea of never seeing him again.”

  “Do you think he’s still alive?”

  A tear slid down her mother’s cheek. “I pray each night that the Great Mother watches over him.”

  “And my mortal father—”

  “—Tabius.”

  “Tabius,” said Amaria, “do you wish to see him again?”

  “Not like Gabriel, but that doesn’t matter. Hera killed him.”

  “Why?”

  “To make sure. Zeus is clever, and Tabius traveled. Hera needed to confirm I was carrying Zeus’s seed.”

  “What about your father?”

  “He died a few full moons after that old horse.”

  “And your mean brother?”

  “Ah, now Kiel, I am fine never seeing again.”

  “He was that cruel?”

  “That cruel.”

  “What did he do?”

  Her mother pushed her cup to the side and shook her head. “I think that’s enough recalling for one Genesis.”

  “What do you believe about men, Mother?”

  “Wanje asked what you believe.”

  “But, I don’t know a man. You do.”

  “I think men are dangerous,” Mother said. “I think they destroy nearly everything they touch, but not all men are bad. Great Mother as my witness, but they are crueler than they are kind in the old world, from my experience.”

  Amaria sat back in disbelief at all that she had heard. “I feel like I just learned so much about you.” She shook her head. “It’s like the other day when you talked about the boat. I’ve never heard these stories.”

  Her mother smiled. “I think it’s what I’m thankful for this Genesis. You and I get to spend so few heartbeats alone together. What are you most thankful for?”

  “We don’t play Most Grateful For at Genesis. That’s a Harvest tradition.”

  Her mother looked insulted. “We give thanks all cycle, Amaria.”

  Amaria laughed. “I guess I’m thankful for this togetherness, too.” She wasn’t just being polite. She was grateful for the heartbeats she was spending alone with her mother. “I’m thankful for my shield, too,” she added. “It’s beautiful.”

  Her mother got serious again. “Don’t be nervous at the arena today. You’ve done this every cycle since you were a baby, and you always do fine.”

  “I know. Thanks for talking, Mother. I don’t know what to do about everything just yet, but I feel better. I’m going to talk to Wanje at our next lesson and tell her how I feel.”

  Her mother nodded. “I think that’s a wonderful plan.”

  “I love you, and I think it’s going to be a great Genesis, all things considered.”

  “I love you, too, and agreed.” Her mother stood. “I hate to end the celebration, but I must be going.” She reached for Amaria.

  She stood and hugged her mother tight.

  She patted Amaria’s back. “Great Mother be with you today. Remember, you don’t have to be perfect. It’s just the preliminaries.”

  “This isn’t my first Genesis.”

  Her mother let go and walked away from the table. “I’ll be cheering you on, my heart. You’ll hear my voice over the roar. I promise.”

  Amaria smiled. “I’ll be listening.”

  Her mother took a cushion from the cabinet in the main sitting room and walked to the entryway. “Oh, and I’ve got fifty arrowheads that says you’re going to wipe the gravel with Zora in Hand-to-Hand.”

  Amaria’s eyes widened. “Mother!”

  “What? She cheated last cycle. It’s payback.”

  Amaria laughed loud as her mother snapped her fingers twice before turning and leaving the house with attitude.

  Genesis lasted eight days, and the Games spanned the entire course of the celebration. The first three days were dedicated to preliminary matches, climbs, rides, events, sprints, and swims. Competitors were divided into categories and fought to see who moved on to the final rounds.
After that, there was a day of rest followed by three more days of competition, where the winners of the preliminaries battled for the crowns. The awards and closing ceremonies happened on the last night of Genesis. Horse and Bows was always the first event of the Games, and Hand-to-Hand concluded the competition.

  After her mother had left to meet Olympia, Amaria did some stretches and fired a round of practice shots. Timber slinked out of the loft and watched from inside the barn. Amaria focused on the target. She released the arrow, and it sank left of center. Great Mother!

  She walked to the target parchment, worried that she hadn’t done enough to prepare. She felt a light vibration in her feet as she passed the barn. She ignored the sensation and yanked the arrows from the trees. Timber growled. Amaria closed her eyes. I really need you to go away.

  Timber’s ears flicked, and she rolled over and back around.

  “Please, just for Genesis.”

  Timber growled as she slinked backwards and disappeared. Amaria heard a few clinks on the food bowl. A couple more heartbeats passed before she heard the creak of wood as Timber sprang into the loft.

  Amaria fired a few more practice shots before giving up all hope of being ready. She strapped the yellow bow on her back and made her way to the arena. While walking, she noticed that the overall spirit of Genesis seemed dampened. She felt some relief in knowing it wasn’t just her who was having a hard time mustering excitement for the occasion. The decorations in the north seemed pale in comparison to previous cycles, and the hum of bustle wasn’t as joyous.

  She took as many hidden paths as she could until she could no longer travel in solitude. She checked for Timber several times along the way, but it seemed she had stayed in the barn as Amaria, or Telsa, had instructed. When there were no more hidden paths, she slipped out of the bushes.

  Several citizens were on the main path, but most were already inside the arena or loitering just outside. Amaria started jogging, in part to warm up, in part to avoid conversations with fans. When she reached the arena, she saw Penelope standing outside the competitors’ entrance. She had stopped competing in Horse and Bows cycles ago, opting to be Amaria’s First Hand instead. First Hands were more symbolic than anything. They carried weapons and assisted with various things, depending on the event. For Horse and Bows, she would make sure Amaria’s weapon was checked and approved. She’d also ready the quiver and be there for general support.