RE:volt! Chapter 22: Co-operative
Ark sat in his barracks, staring through the hole in the roof at the stars above as he circulated his mana through his body.
Squire…
The word kept replaying in Ark's head.
Squire.
Never in Ark's wildest dream did he believe he'd be presented with such an opportunity.
Squire.
What was being offered by Bruno wasn't so glamorous as being giving freedom. No, what Ark was being offered was resources.
Being the squire of a knight as a slave, Ark of course wouldn't be given freedom, however what he would be given was time and access.
He would act and behave as Bruno's direct assistant, helping to organize the other slaves, keep them in line, and run errands for the knight.
In return he wouldn't get punched as much, receive personal training from Bruno himself, receive extra rations and potentially offered the role of a red-sashed trustee once he proved his loyalty.
Unfortunately, there were some unexpected downsides.
Namely, Thirty-Three and Thirty-Four.
Ark had shown them up. Usurped both slaves who were competing to take the spot.
This was information Ark was not privy to prior, presenting him with a dilemma.
Accept Bruno's offer and gain across to area's he wouldn't otherwise while placing him under scrutiny of the knight himself, or-
Alienate his peers?
Thirty-Four didn't seem to mind, but Thirty-Three had been glaring at him non-stop since the knight sprung the offer. Occasionally sending glances at Ark throughout the day.
"So what will your choice be? You know the moment he inspects you you'll be minced right?" Irelix asked, the woman laying with her elbows propped up on the side of Ark's cot, staring at him with a look of amusement on her face.
Ark took a breath.
Perhaps in his past life he wouldn't have tried to step on anyone's toes, but he needed knowledge.
Knowledge that only access and freedom of movement could give him. Was it worth the risk? Ark felt compelled to take that risk, still he-
Ark's ears twitched, the sound of near-silent footsteps shifting dirt nearby.
"Hey."
Ark opened his eyes, his pupils shifting to focus on the two red-headed kids staring at him.
"What do I need to do to make you give up on Knight Bruno's offer?" Thirty-Three asked, scowling.
"Nothing." Ark replied, his body tensing up, ready to attack if they made their move... "I'm not giving it up."
This was not the response Thirty-Three expected. He furrowed his brow, clenching his jaw with his fists balling.
"How did you know?" Thirty-Four asked, her tanned arms crossed.
"Hm?"
"I was going to kick. How did you know?" Thirty-Four demanded, her brown eyes glaring down at the boy who had read her attack patterns perfectly.
"Telegraph."
"What?"
"Telegraphed." Ark repeated.
"Te-tele-" Thirty-Four sounded the word out, her eyes narrowing as she cocked her head, the gears in her mind turning as Ark realized she didn't understand the word.
"Your body posture and stance told me what you would do before you did it." Ark explained, closing his eyes and turning over in his cot, feigning disinterest from the duo.
Thirty-Four frowned, pondering Ark's words.
"Show me." Thirty-Four demanded.
"I'm trying to sleep. Leave me alone." Ark replied, causing the girl's eye to twitch and her brother to get angry.
Thirty-Four wasn't used to being denied. At least not by other slaves. Yet the boy before her not only had the gall to do so, he was even so brazen as to tell her to go away.
Was this payback for when she did the same? Thirty-Four didn't know but the girl found herself annoyed.
Don't ignore us." Thirty-Three hissed, reaching down to touch the boy but having his oddly slender wrist caught instead.
Ark didn't bother opening his eyes, instead he laid there, turned away still before he sighed. "What's in it for me?"
The duo took a moment and looked at each other. "What do you want?"
Ark turned over and finally deigned to set his gaze upon the pair.
"A partner."
Thirty-Four blinked in rapid succession, the teen's reddening face illuminated by the moonlight poking through the hole in the roof. "L-like-"
"A training partner." Ark said, glaring up at the pair, a perfect opportunity before him to gain two followers. "And a portion of your food."
The pair paled at the request. Food was scarce and a precious commodity, so much so that the two slaves immediately became reluctant.
"How much food-"
"I'm thinking." Ark said, cutting the girl off as he sat up, thinking about Bruno's proposition and what it would entail. The fact that the knight gave Ark a choice at all was unfathomable. However, despite the benefits, there was one glaring problem.
Ark's mana core.
He wouldn't be able to hide his power if the knight inspected him. He was still trying to control his power, working on the positive and negative flows to suppress the dual core magical energy within his body. Fortunately Bruno wasn't a mage or a man with high sensitivity, otherwise Ark would have been sniffed out.
In the end, Ark was left with no choice but to refuse. Thirty-Three and Thirty-Four didn't know that, and what would be a wasted opportunity would now be a blessing in disguise.
Of course that was if Ark managed to avoid raising suspicions.
"Just a small portion. I don't need much." Ark said, the two visibly untensing. It was important to have leverage over them, to ensure prolonged contact. But it was also important to not be unreasonable, to ask for less than what they wanted to build rapport and build up debt.
A lesson he learned from Roland.
Thirty-Three turned to Thirty-Four, almost as if looking for approval. The sister nodded.
"Ok. Deal." Thirty-Three said as Ark's hand reached out.
The pair were taken aback, unsure of what to do at the outstretched hand.
"D-d-do you want food now?" Thirty-Three asked.
"What?" Ark raised his brow before he realized his mistake.
Oh.
"Grab my hand." Ark instructed with both teens reaching out and touching his hand.
Ark sighed.
"One at a time. With the same hand as mine." Ark said, instructing the pair on how to shake hands.
"When you make a deal with someone, you shake on it. Giving a signal of cooperative intent." Ark said, repeating words once spoken to him by Liana.
"Co…operative?" Thirty-Four repeated, furrowing her brow as she took Ark's hand.