
Marcus was just a little boy when he watched in fear when his mother was taken from him and taken away by the guards. Marcus cried and shouted. He tried to bite the man that was holding him. But the gloves and leather arms of the bastard's jacket were too thick for him to get through. The only thing he achieved was excruciating pain in his jaw and then even more pain when Marcus received a cuff on his nape.
He cried himself to an almost half-conscious state until it felt like his head, which was already aching from the rough handling, was ready to split apart.
They were poor. Marcus knew that. There was never a father. And his mom had always had to work from dusk to dawn to provide them with food.
Marcus helped as much as he could. But what a small child could really do?
The worst part was that he didn't even remember her name. She was just 'mom' to him. Nothing more.
***
Marcus was given a corner in the barracks. One of the guards who supervised the abduction of his mother took pity on him and decided to give the orphan a chance. It was ten years ago. Since then, he has been rising up the career ladder of a camp boy.
Then, in the beginning, he was happy to do anything to survive, to have at least some food and a roof over his head. He had to start by washing the latrines and performing the tasks other higher-ranking orderlies were happy to pile up on him.
But also, he was watching and training.
Finally, it was the day he'd join the ranks of the guard. Today was the test. And the person making the most important decision in Mackus' life was Joss Tallow.
He didn't know this man's name then, ten years ago. But he remembered his face well. That sadistic happiness when he tore away from her child from her. When he led her away in the darkness, Joss enjoyed looking at a woman who was consumed with fear.
Of course, Joss knew who Mackus was. Everybody in the barracks knew him and his story. That wouldn't give him any advantage during today's challenge. But it wouldn't be an obstacle either. Their clan didn't believe in blaming the children for the sins of their parents.
What they didn't know was that Marcus knew them all as well. Every single person who followed the command to take away his mother. He knew the names of each of them.
He would never forget.
***
Garen "Steelhide" Harth, Leena "Shadowstep" Vey, Orlen "Hammerfist" Dask, Freya "Stormstrike" Helstrom, Corrick "Blackthorn" Dunn, Nira "Razorleaf" Kael, Tharic "Stonewall" Maldan, Emryn "Barrelborn" Vale, Caida "Whisperwind" Lorne.
And, of course, Joss Tallow. Joss "Ironbrand" Tallow. He got his nickname after he got his first command, not before.
Those were the names.
Marcus has been a guard for more than ten years now. His military career was not as fast as when he was an orderly. But his progress was quite steady and respectful. Better than what most of his peers had enjoyed. Especially the ones who didn't have relatives on the council.
Out of the original ten, only eight people survived. Emryn Vale got her nickname not because of the peculiarities of her birth. She loved to spend all her pay at the pub. After one night's shift, she was found under the town's wall. On the wrong side. With a broken neck.
The investigation was prompt. And no one doubted that Emryn was loaded to the barrel well before she went up on that wall.
What happened to Corrick Dunn? No one knew. He was on patrol in the mountains. And then he didn't come back with his squad. Ultimately, it was winter, and high paths were usually treacherous during that season.
Of course, Marcus knew what had happened to his mother. She was the maker of her own problems. She couldn't really look after him, but she also couldn't look after herself. So, the fact that she tripped up and made herself the offering, the sacrifice, didn't surprise Marcus anymore.
That didn't mean those ten didn't have to pay for what they did to him.
Well, now there were only eight of them from that original list. The list had grown in the past few years, though. Marcus' new goal was to become a decision-maker for his clan. He had to rise higher. Because, as it appeared, some of the people who changed his life on that fateful night also held positions of power. Real power, not like what Joss thought he had.
***
When you are a small kid who clears latrines, you think that the commander is a god, and every soldier is a demon. You can't win that game. You can just try not to lose too much.
Finally came another day when Marcus had a chance to check off another name on his list.
It wasn't an actual list anymore. It still included a few names, including at least a couple of Marcus' new colleagues from the council. But he could wait. Marcus enjoyed that his revenge was a process that took years. He built himself around it. Only because of the rage that this small child felt he was able to get where he was now.
Still, there was more to do. Only recently did Marcus find out that his list had to be extended far away from their town. Not only that but far away from humanity.
The undead were always the fright for the small kids. Years ago, as a new member of the guard, Marcus had learned the importance of patrols and safety protocols. These abominations killed countless humans during the Fall. And who knew when they decided to go on another killing spree.
Today, he'll do the same to Leena Vey about what they did to his mother. She didn't shadowstep well enough when she skimmed some money from her squad's budget. It wasn't hard to pin some other crimes on her as well. A perfect candidate for another sacrifice.
Still, what did their community buy by providing the undead with fresh human meat? Safety? Protection?
The tradition was old. There were rumors that it originated centuries ago, in the first decades after the Fall.
Every time he got to the next level of this neverending ladder, his story only got more and more complex. There were more questions and not enough answers.
Marcus needed to rise higher to unlock that secret.
But he was still young.
He had plenty of time.