"Wake up, Michael!" The sleepless night made it even more difficult to wake up.
"Michael!" It was the caregiver. "Get up! Now!" Michael found it difficult until she woke him up. "There is much to do, but you have done nothing for two days".
Michael got up slowly, stretched, and jumped out of the bed. He put on his sleeveless jerkin and threw on a piece of cloth once referred to as a cape over his shoulders. The cold made him realize he had forgotten to put on his shoes, so he went back into the room.
The corridor was full of newly awaken boys. The girls' dorms were on the upper floor. They were following the boys down the stairs to the garden. Still yawning, Michael also mingled with kids and joined in the line.
Several kids were being herded to the academy by some of their caregivers, others remained in their lines to sing the anthem and then go to work.
After they sang the anthem to praise the Arc De Lugdar family, the watchman unlocked the rusty lock of the gate, and the children, encircled by the caregivers, left the premises one by one. The shelter was on the top of the hill, looked down on Mondelay. Thick forest surrounded the place and kids' daily duty was to collect twigs there.
Michael had difficulty finding Lucius among other boys while he was collecting the fallen branches on his own. Afterward, all the collected wood had to be taken to the shelter. Beginning part of the forest was quite light as the sunshine could easily escape through scattered-around trees and colored up the rough tree barks.
"Why do they make us sing in the morning?" Lucius had silently approached him.
"That's how it has always been like as far as I remember. I wouldn't ask the caregivers though if I were you," answered Michael.
"Does your head hurt much?"
"Not really," he answered briefly. Lucius had taken the bandage off his head.
Michael took a long breath and threw the twigs he was carrying on the pile. Then he turned to Lucius, who was gazing at something near the tree roots. Far away you could spot Derek and Jamey, but with caregivers all around, he was not afraid of them.
"Work, or if the caregivers see you standing idly, they will beat you up", Michael warned Lucius and continued collecting the twigs and branches.
The Sun was not warm, but it generously poured its light all over the orphans in the forest. Having taken Michael's advice, Lucius started collecting the branches and putting them on the enormous pile. Michael found it difficult to describe Lucius and his peculiarities but observing every move, he could tell that he had nothing in common with other shelter kids. He was not what one might call a typical orphan.
"Break time!" announced the caregiver, opened up a huge stack and started distributing some dark bread. Each would get one piece, so there seemed no reason As the caregiver gave him his piece of baked dough, Michael walked towards the tree log close by. Lucius was the last to get his share and, munching his bread away, he headed toward Michael. Lucius had eyes of different colors. One of them was golden like the reflection of the Sun, whereas the other eye was emerald green. It seemed he could look deep in people's souls, and this deep look created the illusion of calmness, although you might find anything but peace in them.
Michael ate his slice of bread reluctantly. The early spring chill felt more bitter during the break, so Michael stood up to warm up a bit. There was no one else nearby.
"But why did you save me or where did you find that medicine?"
"My parents were village healers," Lucius only answered the second part of the question.
"What's the name of your village?" Asked Michael. He sounded false as if he was searching for a topic to talk about.
"Ardiel," answered Lucius, but it is no longer my village, or maybe it has never been"
"Why? What happened?"
"I might tell you one day, but not now," a strange smile flashed on Lucius' face, a bitter smile.
"All stand-up," children heard the caregiver's voice, meaning the end of the break. Michael was already up. He shook off the dust and dirt from his clothes and was about to gather more twigs when he heard the voice from behind him: "Laili was given away for adoption."
"Who is Laili?" - He asked in a cracked voice.
"My sister, she is two years old"
"Who took her?"
"I don't know. One strange couple. The Head of the shelter did not even tell me their names".
"Did they look rich?"
"They had nice clothes on, but you can't really tell whether they were rich."
"People in the noble neighborhood are mostly well-born. Have you noticed any kind of symbol or a sign on their clothes?"
It took Lucius some time to process the above-said.
"Yes, they had a raven with open wings on their rings," he whispered in the end.
"Hey! Why aren't you working?" The caregiver armed with a stick had crept up to them.
"Starting right now." Michael tried to keep away from trouble but in vain. Later he continued gathering the twigs with aching, caned hands together with Lucius.
It was time for dinner, which meant that the children had to take the collected branches to the shelter. Exhausted and battered, Michael did not even rest for even a minute to avoid getting whipped again. He went to the gate, crossed the garden, and emptied his hands in the storage room.
"Can you make different medicines?"
"Yes," nodded Lucius.
Michael was sitting at the dining table and slowly munching brown mass that was called food in the shelter. Having finished it, he moved on to eating bread. He usually ate food and bread separately to create a sense of diversity.
Only Lucius sat close to him. After the fight with Derek, nobody wished to sit next to him. Even in the room, nobody slept in the same bunk bed. Maybe everybody was afraid of Derek and his fellows. Michael loved to think in solitude, so he was not really worried about being on his own all the time.
He slowly finished his bread and was about to stand up when a caregiver quickly appeared behind, which made even Michael admire her skills.
"Head wants to talk to you," said the caregiver. She let Michael lead to keep an eye on him. They made their way through the building and arrived in Aunt Louisa's working office. As soon as he entered, he was greeted by her building eyes staring from above wooden glasses."
"Sit down, Michael," said Louisa in a sweetened voice, pointing at one of the empty chairs.
"Help yourself to some cookies." the Head of the shelter pushed a plate of cakes toward Michael.
"I thought we had nothing to talk about!" said Michael calmly.
Not expecting this reply, the head raised, her eyebrows surprised.
"The whipping has taught you nothing," she said coldly and slid the plate toward her. "This kind of attitude has brought none good to anybody, neither will it to you. I thought you were cleverer, but, never mind, you will come back to your senses soon." Michael was no longer listening to her. He was staring at the mustache.
The Head of the shelter turned to the caregiver: "Take him back to the garden and have him whipped in front of everybody again. That may help him."
The caregiver grabbed Michael's arm rudely and dragged him towards the door, but before they went out, the Head added, "This is for your own good."
"Was that for Elaina's own good, too?" Michael turned around.
Aunt Louisa stared unblinkingly at him for some time, then took off her glasses, fogged them with her breath, polished them, put them back, and looked at the boy from above the glasses. "There is no need to whip him anymore. I will send him to the colony. He will leave tomorrow for beating up a child."
"But what about the other one?" the caregiver muttered.
"We will send both of them there", snarled Aunt Louise and the caregiver obeyed the order without a word.
They jotted down the stairs, "Pack your belongings tonight", said the caregiver before she left. She sounded slightly compassionate, almost sorry for Michael.
The wall around the shelter was almost three meters high and, being built with smooth stones, it could make the climb over it even more difficult. Out of the two keys, one was with Auntie Louisa, whereas the other was with the watchman. It would be very difficult to escape, especially without a thorough plan of action.
The colony. This word was associated with only unbearably negative things. The stories from the colony were mysteriously spread amongst the kids in the shelter and evoked only hatred and fear in Michael.
Michael noticed Derek among the kids scattered around the shelter yard. He was standing together with Simon and Jamey, with his foot at the shelter gate.
"Should I go up to him or not?" Michael hesitated for several minutes...
"I am planning to escape from the shelter." Lucius was sitting on his bed, alone. He did not seem to listen to Michael.
"I need your help, but if they catch me and find out you assisted, you will be in a mess. So, I won't be surprised if you say no to me."
"Why do you want to escape?"
"They are sending me to the colony and I prefer living in the streets to going there."
"When are you planning to leave?"
"Tonight."
"Alone?"
"Derek and I, some other guys may join us too."
"Why is he running away with you?"
"He is going to be sent to the colony with me, and he preferred fleeing too"
"Interesting. What do you want me to do?"
"Can you make the potion that can make the watchman fall asleep?"
"I can", answered Lucius automatically, "but on one condition."
"Go ahead."
"I am coming too!"
Michael was sitting in the dining hall and stirring gray mass with a spoon. Being agitated, he could not either swallow food properly or relax. Derek was sitting in front of him, twisting his fingers and looking at Michael anxiously. Caregivers were standing around the boys as if they were guarding them. Those children who were about to be sent to the colony sat separately in a noticeable place so that others could learn from the example of the punished boys.
The watchman had not yet entered the hall. "Where the hell is he," Michael heard Derek's mumble. Lucius was sitting on his own in the corner, looking ahead with blank eyes, as if nothing was happening.
Michael suddenly noticed fear and tension on Derek's face and guessed that the watchman must have entered the room. He sneaked a look behind him and he was certainly right; the watchman was slowly strolling towards the stall. Fat cook idly poured some porridge into his bowl. The watchman took the bowl leisurely and sat at a table nearby. Simon pushed Lucius standing at the stall and pushed him towards the watchman, who nearly fell over him. Simon helped Lucius up. "Sorry, it was an accident", he said. Then both of them apologized to the watchman, who whispered something as a response (perhaps swore at the boys) and drank from his flask, then quickly sat at the table. Several minutes passed, but he did not touch the food. He only drank something from the flagon.
Michael was cold- sweating, asking himself why the man was not eating at all. He was sure that if he didn't eat the food, everything would go south, which meant leaving for the colony tonight.
The watchman started eating, but soon stopped, took a shot from a flagon, stood up, and reeled out from the room. Michael looked at Lucius, who nodded his head slightly. "That's OK", thought Michael, but he was not sure that the small amount would be enough to make the watchman's sleep deep.
Michael looked at Derek, and the latter nodded to confirm that the medicine would work. He then stood up, as could no longer eat out of anxiety, and preferred to go up to his own room. The caregiver saw him in his bedroom and asked whether he had already packed his suitcase. "Yes, I'm ready," Michael tried to reply calmly, but he felt a tremor in his voice. The caregiver did not say a word, he might have thought it was the pre-colony nervousness, or simply noticed nothing strange, it mattered no more.
As soon as Michael entered the room, he sat down on his bed and waited for the caregiver to leave the room and close the door. It was dusky outside, but not dark yet. Michael opened the wardrobe and looked at his clothes. If he wanted to escape from the shelter, he would need warm clothes, as it was still cold outside. He did not know what would happen after the escape, but it did not seem to matter at all. The key thing was that he had to run away. He put on his warm clothes and packed others in his bag. Next, he lay on his bed and placed his bundle next to him. It was too hot in the clothes he was wearing, but he was too lazy to get changed.
Time was awfully slow, but in the end, the bell rang, which meant that the children had to go to bed. Jumping out of his bed, Michael looked through the window. It was already soot black. He could not open the window even in summer as the lock was rusty and did not work. He had to wait for a while until the bell rang for the second time. Michael found it impossible to stop; he tied the bedsheet around his hand and when the bell rang; he broke the window with his fist. Some pieces of the glass fell in the yard, whereas others remained stuck to the frame. Nothing was happening yet. He waited a while and picked the pieces of glass from the window, gathered them in one place, and then continued collecting other pieces. He quickly finished and went back to the door. "Where are they?" He thought angrily and went back to his bed.
Derek was first to open the door. He was holding a twisted bedsheet and carrying a backpack. Not saying a single word, he looked seriously at Michael and sat on the lower berth of the bunk bed. Lucius followed Derek. Soon, Jamey and Simon entered the room.
Everyone had their bundles ready, except Lucius. He was just carrying his cloak. The boys twisted their sheets and tied them to one another. The rope turned out to be quite long, but the crucial question was how strong it was. When Derek and Simon tried it, the rope seemed quite strong.
No one spoke again. Finally, Michael suggested he go down first. This turned out to be quite challenging, however. He still slid down and jumped into the yard. Michael was followed by Lucius, then Jamey, Simon, and finally Derek, who was the largest among them. The process was quite difficult, although in the end the boys quietly tiptoed to the wall, looking around to check that nobody could see them.
Despite warm clothes, the boys still felt cold after the warm room. They soon approached the wall. "Lift either me or Lucius, we are the lightest," said Michael. "It should be you!" Answered Derek after a momentary pause and the boys immediately clapped their hands...
Four pairs of hands lifted Michael in the air until he finally stood on their shoulders. But it was still difficult to reach the edge of the wall.
"I can't reach it," he shouted tensely.
"Step on my head!" Shouted back Derek angrily.
Michael stepped on Derek's head and barely reached the edge of the wall. After gripping it with both hands, he lifted himself up and finally crawled up on it.
The wall was about two feet wide. The boys threw on the tied sheets, and Michael swiftly caught them. He looked around, standing on the top of the wall. The shelter was built on the top of the cliff, behind it there was a field followed by the forest and far away they could see the city stretched out in front of them. The beauty of the night city made Michael gasp. Mondelay was built on both banks of the river. Enormous ships dazzled silver under the moonlight, turning fishers' huts near the river banks into a magical mystery. The rich neighborhood was wrapped in dreamy whiteness, with the squares glittering gold. The lanterns poured out bright yellow light and in the darkness, Mondelay streets looked like a meandering river.
The ocean looked like a vast mirror from the top of the wall. It seemed strangely calm at night. The ocean horizon blending with the sky made Michael wonder about the double nature of this duo. The moon in the sky-colored the entire scene silver, whereas its twin was floating in the water.
"Hey! What's happening?" The boys brought him back to reality, and he remembered he had to jump from the wall and tie the rope to the iron peg protruding from the wall. The wall only had one peg, and it was the closest to Michael's room, too.
Michael looked down at the boys. The land was farther than it seemed from his bedroom window. He took a deep breath and was about to jump when the unexpected roar mingled with the recent wave threw him back...
Michael could not tell how he managed to stop at the edge of the wall and did not fall back into the shelter yard. With the help of the boys, he finally crawled back up on the top. The entire city was in the blaze of fire. The ships were in flames, turning bright gold instead of pale silver. Huge black ships were entering the harbor.
The fishers' huts quickly caught on the fire and twinkled like the lanterns of the rich neighborhood. The sea looked like it was on fire and its silver, mirror-like surface reflected the fire dance. Michael could make out people like small fiery dots running in the night city. He could hear their screams even from the shelter wall.
Terrified, Michael stared down at the city and he could not believe that what he was seeing was happening indeed until the shouts brought him back to his senses. "Hold the sheets," he heard the boys screaming.
Michael turned around instantly. The watchman was awake, and he was seen staggering towards the gate. The mixture had worked, as the night watchman could barely walk.
The shelter also woke up gradually. The rumble must have woken them up. Soon everybody would come out headed by the caregivers.
Derek threw the sheet up, and Michael caught it. He pulled it up and was about to jump when the sheets split in half, making Michael almost fall from the wall. The remaining part of the rope was too short to reach the torn other part, so the only remaining way was to help the boys crawl up the wall. "Let Lucius be first. He is the lightest and will help me lift you," shouted back Michael, throwing the remaining part of the rope down.
Lucius caught the sheets and crawled up, helped the boys and Michael, who were trying to pull Lucius up. It was difficult to lift Lucius, but the boys still managed.
At the bottom of the wall, three boys waited impatiently for their turn. These were the boys who had beaten Michael up on Sunday. Now Michael was in charge of their fate; he knew he could leave them in the shelter with Louisa if he did not let them crawl up; he knew the boys were also aware of this. However, Michael could not behave in this way. He quickly threw the sheet back to them and lifted Simon, helped by Lucius.
The shelter door opened before they could lift Simon, and Louisa appeared in her nightgown, surrounded by her caregivers. Michael pulled strongly, as he was determined to help the boys up the wall. He felt his body tense, held the end of the sheet with all his might when he suddenly noticed a man in a hood standing at the other end of the wall. The man had his left hand up in the sky whilst covering his face with his right hand. If not, his cape fluttering in the wind, one might think he had turned into stone.
The man's left hand disappeared and reappeared in the night, and the light made Michael look up. He saw a meteor-like fireball igniting the night, outshining the stars moving swiftly towards the shelter.
"Boom!" Michael heard a deafening blast and, thrown up by the wave, the stars of the moonlit night flew before his eyes until his unexpected fall ended with a bang on the ground...