Societal Values

When he awoke they were already inside of Derivakat. He was told by Zeck that they were near the capitals very own Agore. It was then that a beating in his chest began. His heart, which usually stayed in a constant state of near death was now beating and his usually shaky hands now steadied. He could feel it, the tingling of his skin, as if mini thunderbolts were striking his skin. His mind, once sharp and collected, grew into a frenzy of voices, becoming a chaotic cacophony for but a moment before becoming a chaotic yet beautiful dance, his heart beat which was steady, stilled for but a moment and as it stopped, he could see all that was, all that was to be and all that is. It was then that his heart picked up. Working overdrive to support his mind. His eyes which were squinting suddenly widened and his pupils dilated. Moloch felt euphoric. His chin trembled as a gleeful smile began to make its way to his face. The voices in his mind suddenly quietened from a chaotic dance to becoming but a mere whisper. His mom talked to him, encouraging him and saying how proud of him she was. Proud…

That reminded Moloch. Proud. That was what he would make his father feel. He would honor him and give him the best gift of all. Total destruction of all empires. He would become the one true king, and under his rule Qotal would prosper. It was under this realisation that his heart beat slowed into a steady beat. His skin stopped tingling and his mind went silent. Vengeance. That is what he would achieve. Moloch mulled in his head over a feasible plan. He was deep in thought. That was until he remembered why he was here. The war. He was sure the current king would not send them to war without some form of training. He would learn quick. He would make sure to be the best. He would be the strongest of all recruits, and once he learned all that there was to learn he would apply for early graduation. This would be when he'd get experience. He would fight and defeat the Inca. And when the time was right, he'd strike at the Maztican empire…

Early graduation. This is a term that most dislike. The Agore took years and was cruel. It's goal was to transform boys into men who are loyal to the Maztican empire. Women and little girls were not taught in the Agore. Instead females would be taught at home by mothers or a trainer. It is with this goal that the strict education of the east came to be. A weak babe would be left to survive, and the country had many tests to determine if a babe was weak. All babes when born were to be brought to the council. All members of the council were battle hardened veterans. The council would inspect the babes for obvious physical defects. Those who weren't up to par would be left to die. If a babe passed the test of sight, another final test would begin. Many of these tests existed however the most popular was the test of mettle. One of the council would drop the babe into a vat of wine. The strong would remain silent and peaceful. The weak and useless would cry… if a babe cried, the council gave two options. The first was to abandon the child, the parents would do this by throwing them down a chasm, leaving their fate to luck. The second option was to raise the child as a helot. This child would become a loyal servant to any who had need of them and they would be owned by the state.

The chasm lay at the foot of mount Cristo. The city of Derivakat had soldiers patrolling there weekly. The elders in the council are not the gods and they can be wrong. If that is the case, any babe who has been left there can prove their worth. They simply needed to survive. The defective babe would either survive and rise or they would become food for the predators that lay in the chasm. If they survive they will be adopted and raised normally. Although boys who pass both tests are seen as useful, the state does not immediately invest in them. Instead for a boys first 7 years of life they are trained by the fathers. Any who is weak will soon crumble under the harsh expectations and treatment all around him will give. Fathers will be stern and uncaring. Mothers, are expected to provide everything a boy needs until he goes to the agore. This is the only comfort Derivakat will allow. Those older than the boy are to beat him if they misbehave even slightly. The state promotes it and encourages elders to beat the boys as it will build a tolerance to pain. And that is useful in the agore. Those who are the same ages as the boy are to serve as rivals. They are allowed and encouraged to sabotage all other boys. The boys will be taught to crush all opposition using any means possible. That is as long as they are not caught…

When a boy turns 7 he begins his journey to become a man. The state sends soldiers around every home to collect the children. Once collected, they would be transported to the communal barracks. This is when they truly begin the Agore. The Agore (meaning to nurture or to raise) is not only an education system. It is a way of life. It is an empire sponsored training regiment designed to mould boys into skilled warriors, moral citizens and most importantly loyal men. This is when they become known simply as "Boys" as they are now all one. In the Agore, between the ages of seven and eighteen, the boys are organised into packs and herds. They are then placed under the supervision of young adult maztican's. They are encouraged to break the exclusive ties with their own natal families and to consider all Mazticans' of their father's age to be their parents.

For the first five years in the agore, between the age of 7-12, boys are taught to read and write, but the program's emphasis was on endurance events, athletic competitions, military prowess, and teaching them to survive and outwit others. Of reading and writing, they learned only enough to serve their turn; all the rest of their training was calculated to make them obey commands well, endure hardships, and conquer in battle. Therefore, as they grew in age, their bodily exercise was increased; their heads were close-clipped, and they were accustomed to going barefoot, and to playing for the most part without clothes. During this period, the boys were also taught to steal, especially to steal food, as they were purposefully fed little. If they were successful, even if the theft was detected afterward and the culprit clearly suspected, no punishment was given; if they were caught, they were severely beaten… This system works so well that a story about the agore of Derivakat has become famous around the empire. The boys make such a serious matter of their stealing, that one of them, as the story goes, who was carrying under his cloak a young fox he had stolen, suffered the animal to tear out his bowels with teeth and claws, and died rather than have his theft detected.

In the Agore, stealing is considered an important survival skill and so it was not the act of theft that was punished, it was the carelessness exhibited in getting caught. In the initiate stage, the focus of the program was on instilling essential skills which would enable one not only to survive but conquer. The boys had to make their own beds – as in construct them – from rough reeds that grew by the river senz which they had to break by hand without using a knife.

The agore disproved of any action or routine behavior considered a waste of time. This applies to everything, even to the way one speaks. Youths are taught to compress their speech to give maximum meaning and power in as few words as possible.