Chapter seven: The friends that I never had

It was almost high- noon, and the children, sweaty and tired like hell, broke from their busy frolicking around the orphanage field for the mid-day meal. Some were still shaken up by the unexpected growl,mostly the little ones. Inside the orphanage, a large eating chamber always welcomed them at the very first glance of stepping foot in. In doves, they scrambled for bowls and spoons ready to receive their rations of the food,as they waited in lines.

But not all were patient enough to stand in an ever ending queue,especially not for those who had spent their entire morning playing around:now that they were extremely famished,huffed and puffed with their final draining strength, pushed out the smaller children off their lines, unwilling to starve themselves a second more as their stomachs started to sting and growl, louder enough to put to shame wolves growls. Gantz no less different,too fought a tooth and a nail for a bowl of the red beans broth and a loaf of bread. He wasn't the type to slug off on his favorite meal. On the serving area, a large cooking pot stood out with a rich delicious smell escaping from it and opposite side of it,a large pail full of bread, mostly burnt bread,stood out too. But they cared less of it,after all as orphans they couldn't be choosers...

The orphanage matron and also the cook was a fat middle aged woman whom the children came to call her as Pumpkin,although that wasn't her real name but she gladly accepted such a childlike gag of a name. It mellowed her heart, and she loved them as her own. Pumpkin, though old, still had no children of her own or a husband. But at the orphanage she found her help needed and gladly she helped.Her round body and a chubby cheeks never escaped the jests of Markus and his gang.

They queued ready to receive their share, and one by one they got in queues only exclusion of Markus and his minion's.For they abhorred queueing in the same line with their preys seeing it as beneath them. Jostling them out of his way , Markus now stood at the front of the queue as groans of his victims grew all more louder. Unfazed by their discontent, Markus sought to stamp his authority into the prey's revolting heads that dared raise their voice at him. In a single fling, he furiously pushed all the distraughted children onto their begging knees as some begun to recollect themselves whimpering.

On their knees, with some crying , Markus broke into mocking laughter unsoothed and unapologetic of his misdeed as Pumpkin watched in disbelief of his unbecoming behavior. But she knew all too well, that nothing more could be done to him of which her and Master Konn hadn't tried to mend his ever rowdy behaviors. His actions were just a channel to vent his anger and pain, she felt remorse for him. Despite that, she's sought not to quarrel with him, wary of his rogue past.

"Get moving with you children!"ordered Pumpkin. And the children jumpy, rushed to have their share of the noon meals. The eating chamber was always crowded, with less benches and tables,at this time of the day, some sat on the floor ready to face their greatest challenger, the food. And Gantz , proudly one of them, sat at a corner with Esia, drooling over the tempting meal that laid before him. Esia sat watching the beehive of activities. The loud chewing and talking made her escape from a world she couldn't understand. It was these moments that brought solace to her fragile heart, drowning her racing ticker. She was not a big eater, spoonful of it were all that she needed. But opposite to her,sat a great champion of food, a Master of disposing of unwanted food. And he was the one and only,Gantz, the eating piglet. He was always on the lookout for less big eaters,seeking them out so that they could share their food with him and in midst of his hawk like watch, he had noticed that Esia hadn't touched her food for a couple of minutes that had passed.

In that moment, he sought for the gods and spirits strength and courage to ask her;if she wouldn't mind sharing her food with him. Gantz prayed to the gods of wisdom and harvest to show him the way to the delicious meal that laid near his gaze but yet so far away from his drooling mouth. In he went, with little hesitation, manning up as he courageously popped the burning question.

"Hey Esia,"Gantz whispered. He didn't want the rest of the crowd to hear him begging for food. "What is it Gantz?" Esia inquired.

"Are you going to finish that?". Esia a bit confused by Gantz request couldn't help but smile. "Huh...no Gantz. Help yourself." And gladly he took it with a big grin on his face.

" Thanks Esia." In he digged, as sweet tears of joy rolled down his chubby cheeks, happily gobbling down his extra meal. Esia always got amazed by Gantz love for eating. As she watched her only friend fill his belly more,a boy nearly covered in bandages walked in, coming down from the stairs. His posture was that of a boy whose world had crumbled on him;lost and hopeless. Dragging his feet,he walked to the matron, with his head sunken to the ground, seeking to have something to put into his ravenous belly. As the whole of the eating chamber gazed upon this peculiar boy, with a clawed face, Markus was already taken in by the fresh meat, drooling with excitement to finally pounce on it.

It's the boy we saved from the river, Esia thought. Alekk feebly walked to where the food was being served. Grunting in excruciating pain,Alekk stretched his trembling bandaged hand out with a wooden bowl laying on top of his palm.

Pumpkin looked on in shock at the mere sight of a boy seemingly looking almost to a lifeless corpse.As soon as she was done serving him, Alekk slowly walked out of the eating chamber, to the open field that was less crowded, with hundred's of eyes following him out. Out he went, feebly walking towards the oak tree. There,all to himself,he strugglingly sat underneath the century old tree, leaning against it bark,as a noon steamed wind blew past him, rustling the big oak tree leaves into a trance.

Back at the eating chamber, Esia wondered of him, Alekk. "It's that boy!" Gantz muttered.

"Yes, it's that boy we saved days ago," Esia answered. " He seems..."

" Broken?!" she interrupted.

" Seems so," Gantz agreed. Markus quietly slithered out of the eating hall, along with his minions,to the field where Alekk sat all by himself, alone,in the cold embrace of his shattered heart. Unable to come to terms with the reality, despite how vague it was,that his loving mother was now no more. Her laughter, smile or her cooking were now but a distant memory.

It was too much for him to bear a second more, just thinking about it was to much for him, as tears begun to flood out , with his once blinding smile now a mere shadow of its past self. It pained him more than he could've imagined if ever he were to be asked of it.Deeply lost within those painful thoughts,a mysterious figure suddenly appeared before him. Alekk couldn't make out what it was, for his teary eyes blurred out his sight.

But the figure before him was no other than Markus,with his minions standing beside him, smirking gleefully for what was about to happen to the boy Infront of their leader.

With the noon sun scorching ever more fiercely , and despite his every effort trying to catch a glimpse of the figure that was before him,the sun's rays fried his eyes arrogantly, with the figure growing all more blurrier.

"What's your name,runt?!" Markus asked. Alekk unsuccessfully tried to get a glimpse of this figure that was demanding to know his name.

"Who asks?" Alekk replied. Markus,the all powerful, was infuriated by this scoundrel of a plaything, below him,asking to know it's Masters name.

"Gregg! Is it me who's hearing something else or did this runt speak back at me?!" asked Markus. Gregg, with his left hand deep inside his pocket, stood beside him.

"You heard it clearly, Markus. It seems we have an issue at hand,his crude impertinence rudeness needs to be ironed out!" Gregg remarked.

" You don't say!"Markus muttered. Gregg took a step backwards,on seeing Markus clench his fist. "I ask again, what's your name,runt?!"

The rest of his minions stood some distance away from him, like the frail hounds standing in wait for their turn to sniff at a female hounds anus, after the stronger hound is done with his sniffing first,fearful of being on the wrong end of his wrath.

Alekk still sat, unknowningly to him that the boy that stood infront of him ruled the orphanage like its king of sort.

Alekk conjured up some strength and answered back;

"It's only polite when asking for another persons name to make yours known first."Markus on hearing this,a mere tool of his entertainment like him spout out such an impertinence utterance enraged him beyond words. Irked, Markus swung his right foot straight at Alekk, right into unguarded belly, knocking him down to the ground along with his bowl of food ,in the glaring view of children who had been watching the whole unfolding ordeal. Alekk in pain, graoned holding onto his injured belly, unaware, in unfathomable pain,of what was going on to warrant such an attack.

"What's your name, clawed runt?!" Markus barked as he continued with his kicks,on an already injured prey, unsatisfied. His minion's stood now at a distant, watching their leader beat a helpless kid. The rest of the children had deserted their meals for the spectacle that was unfolding at hand. They had already formed a crescent moon shaped circle around them,some hurling insults at Markus and some just stood aghast,watching something uncalled for.

Alekk let out a growl,in the agonizing pain that he was being subjected to, with his tears not enough for Markus to halt his constant attacks. Alekk,in those agonizing moment, saw himself, the boy of days before ,a weak and helpless boy, who had been afraid of the soldiers that stood between him and his dying mother. He loathed the boy of that time, he loathed the desolation that now more often than ever seemed to crawl in his way. Alekk of the days before was just but a figure of his fears, whose demise was a welcomed call,he thought;the desolated past self was long dead and buried, since from that fateful day, on that day when they come charging into their home and eventually Robb stoneing him of his only known happiness. He needed to be a different boy, a different kind of monster,that was to be feared by those who wished to do him harm.In those moment, Alekk's surroundings seemed concealed by a darkness, he was unsure of its meaning, of what was happening to him, but he relished the taste of it, the taste of his blood, his hot chilling blood.

Markus still wasn't satisfied with his fill, continuing with his insatiable lust, while the Master of the orphanage stared down from a window at the cottage's top chamber. Saber and his new friend, Zulu, watched in silence,as well as Esia and Gantz who watched also in utter silence. Something was going to happen,they thought. Alekk was grinning in sheer ecstasy; despite that he was the one on the receiving end of Markus kicks . Slowly he tried to get up on his feet, while Markus persistence on breaking him continued, with devastating blows straight onto his unguarded cheeks ;one after another, but Alekk still grinned, a murderous bloody grin. Markus on seeing him, was startled by his demeanor. A frightening chill ran down his spine.

"What are you grinning about?" retorted Markus, angrily," i'm going to smack that grin off your face!" Now more blows came flying Alekk's way again, receiving each and every one of them, yet he was unflinching to concede defeat,as blood forcefully came gushing out of his mouth. Markus was growing tired ,and more than anything else , terrified by his prey's unwillingness to accept defeat. Alekk,a bit shaky, finally stood up on his two feet,undeterred by his pain, with his bandages soaked and dripping with blood. The children just stood there staring aghastly.

"You better run or I will kill you!" Alekks snarled,menacingly. Markus, for a second, felt unusual fear rush through him. He hoped to deny it,but his eyes, his preys eyes had all of a sudden become more menacing than that of a predator such as him. He now feared the prey that stood, bloody and injured, infront of him. The situation had drastically turned on its head, he was the one been afraid.A predator of all things, to be fearful of its prey? It was unheard of.

His instincts seemed to caution him from further aggravating the situation, but he was being watched; his trembling and his hesitation. His reputation,as the king of the orphanage was on the line and to be cowered by an injured boy,of all things, would have been more humiliating than death itself. No one would respect him let alone fear him anymore. Delusions of his invisibility clouded his judgement.

"Did I tick you off. I'm not scared of you, frigging clawed runt! Fight me if you dare!" Markus retaliated. His words were heavier, as at that moment for him, but his heart was racing. It was his life or his reputation that he was willing to gamble on, putting everything on the line. There was no turning back for him,as he charged forward, with his fist greasily clenched, shouting , a warriors cry:though the boy he had earlier beaten unmercifully, wasn't the same boy of before. Alekk stood still, heaving deeply with his fist tightly clenched in return, as the children watched in disbelief of the eventful unfoldings. He was still rooted on the same spot,calmly like an measley tiny ant against a ravaging destructive wind, waiting patiently for him to plough his burning fist straight into his foe's face.

Markus,in his own rage, swung the first blow,hitting Alekks straight to his temple, and still he was unfazed, grinning at the mere sting of a fly. It was now his turn to return the favour in kindness. Alekk,whose fist was nearly covered in his own blood, swung his punch forward in a rageful thrust and with Markus fist still glued to his face,buried a devastating blow straight into his unguarded face, knocking him down to the ground and rolling off at a distance away.

Shocked,they'll stared dumbstruck,that the once mighty and feared king of the orphanage,Markus, was the one unexpectedly on the ground, groaning and bleeding. Tales of this were bound to be told under the sheets in the cover of the night. Alekk's blood was smeared all over Markus's left side of his eye.

Reeling from unfamiliar kind of pain, Markus seconds later, on the ground, writhed in excruciating agony. His face was almost melting off, letting out deafening groans, while holding onto his scalded face. On seeing the unexpected turn of events, the Master of the orphanage came rushing down,to save one of his orphan from a certain death. Alekk stood there, having not moved an inch, glaring down on Markus who was crying a river of tears.The Master of the orphanage was a tall rugged man. He had scars on his bearded face, and he had an arm less. He was known as Master Konn.

Markus now drunk from his own chalice of agony while Gregg watched in disbelief. Everyone who had been watching the events unfold, were now trembling in fear of him. Saber gazed on in silence,at least uncowered of him,yet curious of who he really was.

"Go back to your bedchambers!" ordered Master Konn."All of you." One after another, they dispersed away moaning of yet another monster was going to be living under the same roof with them.

"Hey Saber, would you mind waiting for a minute!" Konn called out. Saber halted on his tracks, turning back to hear what Master Konn wanted with him.

" What's it, Master?"asked Saber. At an arms length, Markus writhed on the ground. He was surely in excruciating pain by a quick glance of his creased grimacing face.

"I want you to help me carry him to the sickchamber.He will surely get scarred if we don't hurry right away"replied Master Konng.

" Okay Master Konn." Markus cried, agonizingly, cursing. Saber, together with Master Konn hastily carried him off, as the children glared at Alekk with scathing eyes. He was still standing on the very same spot, with his enemy's blood dripping off his hanging hand.

Esia gazed at him down from her bedchamber, curious of who he really was and of how his mere fist could scald Markus's skin off. Was he a witch? Unlikely not,for no man born had ever possessed a witches power; since the ages of witches.Then who the hell was he? He truly was a mystery.Esia continued to be fixated,deep in thoughts,unknowningly to her,that in the distant future, she would one day come to see him as more than just a mysterious stranger but a close to heart friend, as Alekk's rumbling stomach brought him back to the land of the living, hungry and parched.