Who's In Charge ?

"Really ? This should be easy. As I recall, you and your 'friends' did nothing at all while we took huge risks. Are you saying that you give up your share ?" Karin replied sarcastically.

"Well, no. Us being the strongest, we deserve the right to pick first." Sylas ignored the disdainful look of Karin.

"And how the hell did you figure this out ?"

"Simple. Since we are the strongest, we are in charge of the group's security. And you don't want the men who protect you to be starving, do you ?" The tone in Sylas voice grew much more threatening as his eyes fixed the group behind Karin.

The boy and the girl by his side took one step forward, as if to emphasize his words. Karin didn't let any trace of fear appear and stood his ground, but all the youths behind him mirrored their action by taking one step back. They were looking at each other with worry.

When he realized that he was standing there alone, Karin turned around to face them. He saw the fear in their eyes but didn't despise them for it. Actually, he was a bit scared too. Sylas and his guys were truly strong, much more than them. He was the offspring of a major clan back in the capital and enjoyed many benefits since birth. His sense of superiority was developed with the habit of looking to others from above, as they licked his feet.

As such, he had an ability to make others think that it was right for him to command and for them to obey. This time however, Sylas had met a strong resistance with Karin. The smiling boy wasn't from a great family or a great clan, but his strong mind and smart brain gave birth to a rare talent. Leadership.

"You see, stupid ? You're alone against us. Be smart and do like the others. If you behave yourself, I might as well give you some position in the group, like a lieutenant or something. Anyway, I'm in charge now." Sylas was used to this sight, so his insurance had never diminished.

Karin briefly looked at him with a 'shut up' kind of look, then started to address the others.

"What are you afraid of ? Them ? Maybe you're right... Each of them is stronger than any of us. But it's not one against one. It's three against eleven. They can't do shit ! What do you think will happen if you let them rule ? You think every one of us could live peacefully and get a proper share of our hunts ? No... They're are just gonna suck all the blood out of your body and drain you like vampires. You know I'm right."

As they listened to Karin's speech, the boys and girls started to find back some of their lost will. When he saw that it seemed to work on them, Sylas frowned and his smile slowly faded away. "Stop dreaming, smart ass. They're weak. None of them has enough guts to stand against me."

Karin ignored him. "Wake up, guys ! If we stand together, we can force them to back up without getting hurt. They won't risk to be wounded in these woods. Vienna, Hemmeth, Ruth... I know you can prove he's wrong." He addressed personally to three of them and looked at them in the eyes. Somehow, his strong will contaminated their minds.

The three took the same step forward, at the same time, to get alongside Karin who faced Sylas again. The seven other boys and girls exchanged a last look then followed their move. In a short instant, eleven stood against three. And the three didn't look so tall anymore.

"What were you saying ?" Karin asked with his natural smiling face to Sylas who underwent rebellion for the first time in his life.

The two by his sides looked worried and pressed their leader to fall back. "Boss ? What do we do now ?"

"Shut up. If they think I'll let it go, they're mistaken."

Karin kept on looking at him with a big smile. "What do you chose, 'Captain' ? You stay with us or you try your luck somewhere else ?" He wasn't really intending to drive them out of the group. They were right about the fact that they insured protection. Of course they were not reliable, but it was an asset to have the three of them when it comes to hunt or seek shelter.

Sylas pondered the pros and cons for some time while looking at the group that looked menacingly at him. Leaving was an option, but not the safest. Even if the others were weaker, they acted as a guarantee. If some beasts chased them, the first to be caught would surely be the slowest. The only thing that annoyed him was that he would need to lower his head in front of Karin, which was the greatest humiliation for him. But he wasn't stupid. His life was more important than his pride.

Between his teeth, his low voice slowly came out. "All right, smart ass. You win."

Suddenly the tension dissipated as the ten relaxed, congratulating each other and Sylas group walked away. Karin followed them with his eyes, deep in thought, his smile shining on his face.

"We are really going to follow this son of a bitch, boss ?" When they were far enough, the boy by his side asked Sylas. The three were watching the others butchering the snake.

"For now... But when we don't need them anymore, I'll make them regret deeply their decision. In particular their proclaimed leader. I want him to beg me to let him die."

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Many days passed like that. A lot died at first, but then groups were formed. They struggled and fought between each other sometimes. And as those who survived went through all this, they slowly became accustomed to the environment. They made weapons out of wood and bones, hunted, explored and conquered the beasts territory. Of course they were still weak individually but they learned how to make up for their weakness. Karin's group particularly, under his leadership, grew stronger day by day. A few others even joined them seeing how good they were doing.

At the same time, Jun was adventuring deeper into the forest. And when others were developing their group strength, he was cultivating his body and his fighting skills. Without being overconfident, he avoided the fights he couldn't win and hunted his preys to feast on them. His predator instincts gradually awakened each time he killed a beast.

'I wonder how much time passed since the training started... I can't even say how much time the surgery took or how long I was asleep. Maybe I should go back to the camp... All right ! Three more days then I return.'

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At the camps headquarters, Instructor Salim was looking at a large holographic map. It displayed a portion of the land on which shined lots of dots that represented the participants. Each dot had an attributed number and a list on the side showed the names and profile of every one of them.

"How much time till the end of the exercise ?"

"Twelve hours, sir." A soldier on the side quickly answered.

"Many are already heading back... Do not open the gates until the last second. Understood ? I don't want them to think that they can end an exercise whenever they want. What did the scouts report ? Are there some promising seeds ?"

"The participants are divided in approximately a hundred groups of ten people and for each group there is generally one auto-proclaimed leader who meets the requirements to become a Head of Chamber. One of them, in particular, is doing well. His name is Karin and he brought together twenty-three members in his group. He is right there, currently." The soldier pointed his finger at a large gathering of dots on the map.

"Good, good. Make sure to include him on the list and choose some of his followers to form his chamber." Instructor Priam nodded in approval when he heard about Karin's accomplishments. "Mmh ?" He was going to leave, but his eye was suddenly attracted by a lonely dot that shone far deeper into the map. "What's that ?"

"A boy who probably died and had his tracking chip eaten by some beast. The probability is rather weak that he successfully ventured so far, sir." The soldier spoke without hesitation with an usual monolithic voice.

"Who is it ?" Instructor asked, out of curiosity.

"His registration number is JUN989, sir."

"It's him ? That's odd..." Instructor Salim pondered for a few seconds.

"Sir ?"

"Send a scout to check on him and see if he is dead. If not, bring him back to me. Now."

"Yes, sir."