Chapter 51 - Chapter 51.

It had been a whirlwind from the beginning, and for Hutch the days hadn't slowed down. The training in the King's Guard was extensive, in-depth, constant, and unforgiving, as harsh in the classroom as it was in practice. However, after two grueling months, plenty of struggles, and sleepless nights, the day he'd been anticipating had finally arrived. Not only had Hutch earned his first sword, but he'd earned a chance to get an eranth of his own; the very symbol of what it means to be a member of the King's Guard.

After the morning meeting had concluded, Cascel arrived, and the entirety of the first division, led by Barhalis, headed out past the stable grounds, beyond the wall, and into the first training arena, where three stable hands were waiting, each holding the reigns of an eranth.

Eranth were unique creatures amongst those on Illimev, in the way they were willing to blindly trust, until proven wrong. For the past two months it had been drilled deep into the subconscious reaches of Hutch's mind that he would only get one opportunity to make a first impression and would have a lifetime to worry about the single opportunity he had to fuck it all up. As blindly trusting as eranth could be, they were also quite capable of holding a grudge, and were known for being completely unforgiving.

"Beasts like these don't hold a grudge. Eranth do. Lose their trust and you will never ride them again."

Cascel had told him that repeatedly, while smacking the side of the wooden training eranth, every time they were in the training stable, and he needed to remind Hutch to stay focused.

This was the reason why a foundation in riding and caring for an eranth was a priority to every member of the King's Guard, before they were even given the opportunity to meet one.

Hutch, had, however, passed his tests; succeeding in the practical, and foundational training, thanks to the extra tutelage and aid, Cascel had given him with his studies. Because despite how Hutch had gotten there, he had every intention of staying in the King's Guard. He was grateful for the opportunity, and to Cascel, and didn't want to let him down.

As they made their way into the arena, Cascel squeezed Hutch's shoulder and reassured him that he was ready. However, in that moment, every fiber of his being was terrified, right down to the core of his bones. The day before he had everything he'd learned, every part of the fundamentals and foundations required for this moment cemented in his mind, and now, standing in the arena, it was gone. His mind was a blank, the test had begun, and everyone was watching.

Cascel moved away, leaving him alone in the arena as the eranth handlers removed the bridles and set the three eranth free before running off to the side to join the first division.

The first eranth was energetic and took off running. It was the smallest, but its lines were something to admire. Its stride was strong, its back was level, and its bucks and kicks were high and fierce.

The second, who was the tallest of the three, seemed bored, as it nonchalantly scratched at the ground. Its eyes were unfocused, and shifted around, never truly settling. And as it wandered about, occasionally lifting its head to sniff at the air, it had an unusual gait, as if it disliked the feeling of the sandy dirt beneath its hooves.

The third was the widest, and it seemed curious and interested. Its eyes were clear, and it was watching the handlers as they moved away. It sniffed the air and as it moved about there were a confidence in its strides. They were stiff and abrupt. It held its head high and took a momentary look at Hutch before heading over to where the first division stood, leaving Hutch to feel rejected before he'd even attempted to introduce himself.

Thankfully, that's why three eranth were brought, and Hutch much preferred the personality of the energetic one, who was quick to run back in his direction once the other two had wandered off. At first, Hutch felt like a sitting duck as the eranth charged towards him, only to swerve away at the last moment, where it proceeded to buck and kick at the air. Getting out that excess energy, seemed to calm it momentarily as it circled around, and approached Hutch once again at a much slower pace. Sniffing at the air, it kept its eye focused on him.

Seeing the interest, Hutch turned his back to the eranth. Despite his mind being blank, his muscles remembered what to do. This was like a dance. He had to show the eranth that he wasn't a threat, and the eranth in turn, had to accept him as member of its herd.

When the eranth moved closer, Hutch began to walk away, angling slightly in, to force the eranth to turn with him. It was a good sign, that it did. And when he turned away, the eranth moved to follow. When the back-and-forth motions became fluid, it was Hutch's turn to prove he could listen. Slowing his pace, he lowered his head and the eranth moved ahead of him, almost immediately coming to a stop.

Hutch stopped to, just shy of the eranth's shoulder. This behavior was odd, and Hutch couldn't recall reading anything about what to do in this situation. He had expected for the dance to continue, until the eranth faced him. Only then, was he to initiate any sort of contact. Before that moment, he risked spooking the eranth and breaking the fragile bond they had just created.

Then, without warning, the eranth snorted, breyed, reared and bolted.

"What are you waiting for, run, Moahaba!"

To Hutch's surprise, it was Barhalis shouting at him, while the others cheered.

It was a futile effort, but Hutch took off running after the eranth. Like a dog playing zoomies, the eranth would charge and swerve, and Hutch kept giving chase. He had no idea what he was doing at that point. This was less a dance and more of a game of tag; but who was he to argue with a creature capable of killing him.

After a few minutes, Hutch was beyond winded, and when the eranth charged back in his direction, he knew this had to come to an end. Lowering his stance, Hutch stretched out his arms as wide as he could and readied himself to pounce.

This went against everything he'd been taught. He was never supposed to act as a predator, and yet that was the game the eranth wanted to play, and even appeared to run faster, in response to his actions.

Hutch instantly knew how stupid he was. There was no guarantee the eranth would swerve away, despite having done so every previous time, and there was also no guarantee that if it chose not to, that he would be able to get out of the way. All he could do is trust that this was still a game of tag, and hadn't turned into a game of chicken, as the eranth continued to barrel, full speed towards him.

And then, at the last possible moment, the eranth swerved, and Hutch leapt towards it, managing to graze the tips of his fingers against its hind leg, before tripping and faceplanting into the sandy floor of the arena.

Hutch could hear the laughter and cheers of his comrades, and when he rolled over, he was greeted by the muzzle of the energetic eranth.

"Well, hey there," he muttered in a happy, cheerful tone, as he lifted his hand to its nose, "was that fun for you?"

Taking a good sniff of his hand, the eranth grunted, and immediately dropped down on the ground next to him, rolling onto its back and kicking up the dirt as it squirmed around, as it were attempting to bury him.

Hutch was both exhausted and relived. For better or worse, he'd found his eranth, and the best part of training in the King's Guard was about to begin.

"I kept telling you, you were ready. I'd never seen an eranth act the way yours did, and I'll never forget it because the moment you started chasing him around, Aseda told me, and I quote, 'They are perfect for each other. They are both idiots.' I hadn't laughed that hard in ages," Casimir remarked with a chuckle as he pulled into Hutch's driveway, stopping behind his mother car.

"Spikey was just energetic, and probably had an eranth version of ADHD. He wasn't an idiot by any means, but man, did he love doing stupid things. And the worst part was I could see them coming. The first time you pushed me to get on his back, I knew he was planning something. I could see it in his eyes."

"Was that time he began to spin in circles or the time he kept dropping down and rolling onto his back, refusing to get up without a belly rub?"

"The latter. The spinning came later. I'm just glad that he eventually grew out of it."

"The extra hour you put in every morning exercising him, had a lot to do with that."

"Perhaps," Hutch remarked, as he stared at his trailer home, every light on inside. "This world just feels so unrewarding. No car is ever going to be that fun to be around."

"No, no it won't be," Casimir replied, turning off the engine.

"Is your offer still open?" Hutch questioned, as he removed his seat belt.

"You're going to have to be more specific."

"To move in."

"Of course, it is, Hutch," he replied, and Hutch turned to face him.

"I need to go back to Illimev, Cas. Not just for Kahlala but for myself. And if me being close to you makes that happen sooner, then that's what I'll do."