The day that Ashur awoke, he had expected it to start how it always did. He would eat his ration of marrow for the morning and set some aside for his sister who had a habit of staying out all night. He would step outside and see the same three children playing with their ball, a piece of bone that had been hollowed out and smooth, and sometimes they would throw it at Ashur for him to catch.
Later he would walk around the village, receive the same scornful looks as he always did, and try his best to avoid the other Bonerunners, namely Shamash and Yakmeni.
However, today did not start out like that. When Ashur finally began to stir awake, he was greeted by the gaze of a pair of glowing blue eyes belonging to a Susa–his Susa.
"Laiz?" Ashur croaked out. The creature was unmoving, carefully watching Ashur. "What the Deji'ha are you doing here?" The Susa elicited no response. The two looked at each other for a moment before Ashur shook his head. "One strange Susa."
Ashur clammered out of his bed, a small slab of bone that was chiseled and smoothed flat. He made his way over to where the week's supply of marrow was held, unsealed the jar, and scooped out his portion for the day. He looked back at Laiz and jokingly offered the Susa a piece.
Unlike humans and Ta'grus, Susas didn't eat, but at this point, Ashur wouldn't have been surprised if Laiz did take some of the marrow. Did someone lead him here? He wondered. After all, tamed Susa didn't just wander around on their own.
Ashur knew he would have to report to Innaya today and tell him about the new spring he found the previous day. He wasn't looking forward to interacting with Innaya. The man was shrewd and cold, only ever badgering Ashur about his lack of skulls.
It wasn't exactly Ashur's fault for not having any skulls. He knew too well that he wouldn't stand a chance against a Ta'gru. I mean how could I? If Ashur couldn't beat Shamash and Yakmeni, how could he kill a Ta'gru. It usually took a team of three Bonerunners to take down just one of those monsters.
"Alright Laiz, you can't stay here," Ashur said to his Susa. "I'll take you back to the stables." Ashur led his Susa out of his home and saw the same three children playing with their ball. All three stopped and stared at the Bonerunner leading a Susa out of his home.
"My momma says you're cursed," one of the children squeaked. Cursed now, am I?
"And you'll be cursed too if you lie like I did. Always be an honest boy," Ashur said, trying to give a smile.
"Are you friends with your Susa?" another child asked. This one still had her hair growing long which reached down to her waist.
"No, Susas don't understand us. They're not smart creatures," Ashur replied. Laiz shot out a sneeze and stomped its hooves, almost as in protest to the comment. "Well, this one is just a strange Susa."
"My dad is going to cut my hair so we can give yarn to the Bonerunners," the girl said.
"Well that is very sweet. Be sure to tell your dad I said thank you. We appreciate it very much," Ashur said. Most children get their heads shaved around six years old in order to make things like rope, string, and clothes. Most people in the village would grow their hair out for a period of two years and then shave it off to continuously provide hair for the same cause.
"My dad doesn't like you," the little girl said.
"Mine neither," chimed in the third child. Ashur just sighed and said his goodbyes to the children.
The disdain for Ashur had gone on for a long time, since he was thirteen. And six years later, it still continues. Ashur looked to his Susa companion.
"Don't mind them, Laiz. They're just kids after all," Ashur said as Laiz trotted along. "They think I'm a liar. Just a scared kid who made up a story." The Susa was silent. "I guess the problem was that I persisted in it. Never shutting up about what I saw. Some were willing to give me slack, a brand new Bonerunner, his first run in with a Ta'gru, and I kid who just lost his father." Laiz exhaled a soft sneeze. "No, it's… it's fine. I'm fine. I should have just said what they wanted me to say. That I was the one who drank the water."
Ashur and Laiz rounded another corner to where the stables for Susa where located. Ashur led Laiz to where the other Susa sat motionless, waiting for a Bonerunner to take them out in the Boneyard. "I'll be back," Ashur said, and left to go see Innaya.
He wasn't looking forward to meeting with Innaya, but he had to report a new spring that was found. A Bonerunner's job was to find a spring, fill up jars with water, and transport them back to the village. It was an important job, but water was not a necessity. The people in the Boneyard got enough hydration from the marrow the A'buta provided.
Ashur wasn't sure where the water went after it was delivered. All he knew was that it was a grave crime to drink it. But like many things, he did not care.
Ashure walked into the small, carved out building where Innaya and the other Bonerunners usually spent their time. He didn't like this place. As soon as Ashur stepped foot inside, he could feel the glares penetrating him from the other Bonerunners. Ashur quickly glanced around and found Yakmeni leaning up against the wall and as their eyes met, he started walking towards Ashur, blocking his path. Yakmeni wouldn't do anything to him right now, at least not without Shamash.
"What does a m'ban-qil think he's doing around here," Yakmeni said, glaring at Ashur. A m'ban-qil, a water drinker, was usually what Ashur was called.
"Get out of my way, Yakmeni. I have business with Innaya," Ashur said, meeting his gaze. Yakmeni was a few heads taller than Ashur and wore two Ta'gru on both shoulders which he tapped constantly, just another way to mock Ashur.
"Oh? Did another Ru'khana show up and drink all of your water?" Yakmeni sneered at him. Ashur squeezed his fists and clenched his jaw. I know what I saw. "Go on, do it m'ban-qil. Hit me" Ashur wanted to, he really wanted to. But he knew he couldn't, he knew he couldn't win.
"That's enough, Yakmeni," said a gravelly voice. An older man stepped out from the shadows of the room. Ashur knew this man before he could fully come into view. Claddened in bones, all neatly tied together by strings of hair, the man displayed four Ta'gru skulls, two on his shoulder, a smaller one on his knee, and the largest skull was worn as a chestplate. The bones, all bleached white, were in stark contrast to the man's bronze skin that matched Ashur's own.
"Innaya-Enil-nirari, may your bones be of iron," Ashur said, bowing to the old Bonerunner. Innaya was the oldest Bonerunner in the village and thus had seniority over all other Bonerunners, making him a powerful figure within the village. Only the A'buta and the priestess came before him.
Innaya held up his hand, dismissing the greeting.
"Come, Ashur. I've heard rumblings of yesterday's discovery," Innaya said, already turning and walking into the next room. Ashur glared at Yakmeni and followed the elder Bonerunner.
"M'ban-qil," Yakmeni mumbled as Ashur walked away.
The new room was similar to the others, except smaller and dimly lit. There was an array of small matts scattered around the room with smaller bone beads intertwined with the hair threads. Innaya motioned for Ashur to sit.
"Give me your report on yesterday's run," Innaya grumbled. Part of the reason why Ashur distaste from speaking with Innaya was not only his cold attitude, but more so because Innaya was a man who kept frequent tabs on everything. The man already knew what happened yesterday, most likely from the guards.
"I found a new spring near the outskirts of the Boneyard. Before I could fully fill up even one jar, I was set upon three Ta'grus. I dropped the jar when making my escape," Ashur said plainly. Innaya eyed him for a moment.
"Any redbones?" Innaya asked coldly.
"Would I be alive if there was?" Ashur said. Innaya ignored the blatant attitude in Ashur's remarks.
"Did anything happen that was out of the ordinary?" Innaya questioned. Besides my Susa?
"No, but the Ta'grus seemed to be waiting for me. Like a predator hunting. I think they're getting smarter," Ashur said.
"Nonsense. The Ta'gru is a mindless creature, much like the Susa," Innaya said.
"But three Ta'grus together? That is rare. They don't form packs often," Ashur protested. Innaya was silent for a moment, almost contemplating something. "This has been happening more often, hasn't it? Ta'grus waiting for us at the springs." Innaya shot him a look, glaring at Ashur.
"Do not speak of it any further. It is nothing we cannot handle."
"Handle? Not even the A'buta with his damn iron stick can handle three of those monsters!"
"Silence!" Innaya said. "You will speak of this no more. Go back to the spring and complete the task you were given… or do not come back at all." Ashur narrowed his eyes at the man. Bastard.
"I will see it done," Ashur said as he sat up and began to leave.
"One more thing, Ashur-ilu-nadin," Innaya said before Ashur could make his escape. Ashur turned and looked at the man. "Did you really lose it? Or did you drink the water?"
Ashur froze.
"No," he said, calmly. Now Ashur really was a liar and a m'ban-qilw. A water drinker. "And I didn't see a Ru'khana either."
"Then I'm sure you'll bring back the jar that you dropped. Bring all of the jars when you return." With Innaya's last remarks, Ashur left.
"That damned e'm-ima," Ashur grumbled to himself. He would have to go back out into the Boneyard again even though he had just returned. "It's like they really want me to die."
By all accounts, the only reason why Ashur was still permitted to stay in the village was his uncanny ability to tame the Susas. He had contributed to the majority of the creatures that the Bonerunners possessed, and when one died, usually due to a lack of foresight from the rider, it was Ashur's job to tame another.
He thought he could grab Laiz, leave the village and enter the Boneyard quietly; however there was commotion near the stables. Ashur spotted a crowd of Bonerunners, two of which being Yakmeni and, "Shamash."
"Hold it still, damn it!" cried a voice.
"What the Deji'ha is wrong with this Susa?" cried another.
When Ashur was close enough, he could spot four men wrangling a Susa–his Susa.
"What the 'sa-yil are you bastards doing to my Susa?" Ashur yelled. Laiz was surrounded by four men, thick ropes of hair were lassoed around the creature's mouth and neck, being pulled and dragged in all directions. They've gone too far.
"Oh, is this one of your Susa? Didn't know you had a new one," Yakmeni hissed. "But I've never seen a Susa act like this before, it might be defective."
"Get your hands off of my Susa," Ashur growled, reaching for his bone knife.
"Pull it out, Ashur. See what will happen." A low voice grumbled. It was Shamash. He stepped forward, handing off the rope to a nearby Bonerunner. Shamash seemed to tower over Ashur, and had he not been slightly younger, the man's build and strength could have gained him the title of A'buta.
Ashur's hands began to quietly shake. The man before him, no, this Ta'gru before him, had beaten him relentlessly for years. But before such a monster, Ashur was hopeless.
Ashur's hands shook, his legs began to wobble as he stared down Shamash. He tried to steady his hands, wrapping one around the hilt of his knife. He felt like he was going to fall over, his damned legs wouldn't stop shaking.
"Leave my Susa alone, I have to leave for the Boneyard," Ashur said, trying to suppress the fear in his voice. Shamash smiled, a vile and cunning smirk, and then Ashur was on the ground, face first into the bone floor.
Ashur was dazed for a moment. Confused by what just happened, and then, a wave of pain flooded over the left side of his face. He'd been hit. Shamash began kicking Ashur profusely, beating him shamelessly in front of all the onlookers who seemed to stare in rye amusement.
Laiz reared and snarled, pulling the men that tied him down in a burst of strength. The Susa suddenly charged at Shamash from behind, lowering its head revealing the two small horns.
Laiz bucked his head into the back of Shamash, lifting him up in the air. As Shamash fell to the ground with a large crack. Laiz reared its hind legs, about to crush the unfortunate Bonerunner who messed with its master.
"Laiz!" Ashur cried out. "Stop!" The Susa understood, instantly calming itself. Ashur looked around the crowd of onlookers, slack jaws and wide eyes spread amongst the Bonerunners like a fever. Ashur frantically hopped on Laiz and made his way towards the village exist.
But when he turned back, he saw Shamash, unmoving, his neck contorted.