Ice breakers

A heavy silence filled the room. Nobody knew what to do, or what to say. Cain was not exempt to this.

Do we just sit here and wait? Are we allowed to lie down? Can I eat now? I am kind of hungry...

As Cain got lost in his train of thought, a loud sigh brought him back to reality. The Bellona sat in her chair casually, setting her boots on the table. The muscular boy raised an eyebrow.

"So, I guess we may as well introduce ourselves. Seeing that we're gonna be together for a while."

The girl's voice shattered the uncomfortable silence. A couple of the children shifted in their seats. Without anybody volunteering to go first, the Bellona spoke again.

"Okay then I guess I'll go first. My name is Eleni vir Bellona. I'm sixteen years old and live... lived in the heart of Laconia. I'm sure most of your know what my family does so I'm not going to bother explaining."

The muscular boy went next. He proudly puffed out his chest.

"Greetings. My name is Jorn el Karnus. I'm also sixteen and lived in the craftsman district of Laconia. My family runs a blacksmith, Karnus Blacksmith. You may have heard of it. I've been working there all my life."

Slowly but surely, the other children started introducing themselves.

"Hello, uh, my name is James el Fathom..."

"Hi, my name is Anastasia el Hardum..."

"My name is..."

The eight children's introductions after Jorn were pretty ordinary. James, Anastasia, Corova, Sasha, Klein, Dormon, Bella, and Melany. Family that owns a bakery, family that owns a clothes shop, family that owns a pottery shop, parents that worked at the grand temple, construction worker parent (singular), family that ran a leather shop, family that ran a restaurant, family that owns a bar in that order. All commoner. Finally, there was only Cain and the shorter meek boy left. Seeing that the boy was unwilling to speak, Cain went first.

"So, hello, my name is Cain. Just Cain. I don't have a last name since I was never given one. I grew up at a smaller orphanage on the outskirts of Laconia. A temple to Fa to be exact. Uhh, I've lived there my whole life. Usually worked with other children to do a myriad of tasks. Don't know my exact age since my real parents dropped me off at the temple doors without warning. So yeah, nice to meet you all."

After his introduction, the room was quiet. There were many looks of pity. Eleni looked indifferent. But from Jorn there was a look of scorn.

Figures.

Finally, it was the short boy's turn. He glanced around furtively, seemingly embarrassed to speak. He cleared his throat once, then twice. He took a deep breath, then spoke.

"Salve, Inductees. My name is Horrow vir Fabii. I am fifteen years old. I am part of the Fabii family, one of the great Patrician families of the Empire. I am the second child of the direct lineage."

The boy's voice was quiet but measured, elegant even. The boy, Horrow, seemed to shrink under the surprised gazes of the children. For the first time since Cain had laid eyes on Eleni, she emoted. Shock was written on her face.

Patrician family. Fabii? I knew that Bellona was a noble family since they hold the seat of power in Laconia. But according to my learned histories, the Fabii are more powerful than any noble family, even the other three Patricians. But they all live posh lives in the capital. By Fa's grace, why...

"...the fuck are you here?"

Eleni's outburst jarred Cain. Horrow turned his gaze to the floor.

"My family was ordered to send one of their children to the bastion cities to attend the Institute. My father chose Laconia."

Eleni sunk back into her seat. The other children seemed to be deep in thought themselves. Jorn's brow furrowed.

"But why would the Emperor order a Fabii to induct? I've never heard of a Patrician coming to a bastion city. Aren't they all focused on the western war effort?"

Horrow simply shrugged at Eleni's question. Whether Horrow knew the answer was irrelevant. It seemed like he wasn't going to answer either way. A stretching silence followed. After a couple minutes of uncomfortable silence, Eleni was the first to leave the table. She walked over to the bed furthest from the door tucked into the left corner, and declared it her own. Jorn followed and declared the bed in the right corner to be his. The other children quickly followed, each choosing their bed. Cain and Horrow were the last to choose.

Right from the start, the pecking order was established. At the top was Eleni then Jorn. At the bottom was Cain and Horrow. The orphan and the exiled Patrician. They took adjacent beds right next to the door. Nibbling on a stale loaf of bread that Cain took from the table, he stared at the clock hanging at the opposite end of the room. It had only been three hours since he arrived at the Institute.

Tick tok, tick tok. The clock's long hand slowly clicked by. He still had another six hours of so until the day was over.

Cain sighed. It was going to be a long year.