APOCANGELICA Wild Beasts

Chapter 17

Jörg came out of the dormitories with his head bowed.

"Jörg?" Called a voice from behind him.

"Hello Evi," he said, turning.

"Ah! What happened to your face?" She asked after a moment of confusion looking at the face of her friend who showed a striking bruise near the eye.

"In the heat, they did not pay much attention," he explained.

"What do you mean?"

"It was dark, and it all happened so quickly... They wanted to beat me up so badly but they only wanted to leave signs on the body, so that what had happened wasn't too obvious. The only thing was that the bastards didn't expect me to respond back and so, in the confusion, I also received a few punches in the face."

"The Judges!"

"Who else?... But I was expecting it."

"How's Dug and Tim?"

"I thought about them too: they are fine, but I know that tonight it will be the turn of one of them... and tomorrow, it would be the other ones turn."

"Not unless we stop them first!" Evi pointed angrily walking toward the exit.

"Wait!" said Jörg grabbing her by the arm. "What do you want to do exactly?"

"I want to directly address this thing!" She stopped hesitantly: a thought had crossed her mind, and after a moment of hesitation, she asked him: "Last night, during the aggression... was Kurtz there also?"

"No," said Jörg, suspecting from the anxious tone of her voice that she was not indifferent to Kurtz. "They went heavy on insults as well as on punches. I heard them well and he was not there."

Evi took a sigh of relief. At that moment Kurtz arrived. He was serious and angry in his face. "Hello Eviel. I am looking for you, Jörghiel. I heard what happened last night. I swear I didn't know anything about it until this morning."

"That's ok," said Jörg reassuring him. "I had already imagined that they would have kept you out of it, knowing that you hang around with us."

"Yeah, but there's more to it: I found out that tonight it will be the turn of Timiel and tomorrow night the turn of Dughiel!"

"But can't you make them stop?" Said Evi.

"I tried but I was called a coward and a traitor for having taken your side... so I decided to turn directly to the maximum authority here at the Manor and I came looking for you and ask you to accompany me as a witness of what happened!"

"That is what I wanted to do myself. Ok, let's go," said Jörg and added, turning to Eve: "See you later. We will tell you how it went."

Jörg and Kurtz went resolutely towards the instructor Galghiel who Kurtz had seen earlier walking on the parade ground. He was laughing along with another instructor. The two boys waited until they were aware of their presence. When Galghiel greeted his colleague and approached them the two boys told him all that had happened the night before and also what would happen on the following two nights . Galghiel took on a grim expression and with a serious tone of voice said, "Follow me to His Excellency the Chancellor. You shall refer all again in his presence!"

The two boys looked at each other winking and followed the instructor to the main building of the Manor. Staying behind the instructor, they went from floor to floor until they reached the office of Chancellor Trinkiel.

"Wait here!" He ordered to the students who waited patiently until they were called in by the same instructor.

The office was a huge lounge. On the side walls there were huge paintings depicting epic feats of ancient knights fighting mythical beasts and, between a picture and another, banners and commemorative plaques with the slogans of the Movement of the Holy Youth and of the Luminous Inquisition. The back wall was a huge window on which was screen-printed the motto of the school: "Fidelity to the Holy Angelic Youth is the purpose of life."

"Here are the two students I told you about, Your Excellency."

Chancellor Trinkiel did not move from behind the desk but only said, in a dry tone of voice, "Inform me!"

Jörg and Kurtziel repeated word by word, each for their own part, what they had already just told the instructor; they then looked at each other feeling very confident.

After a moment of silence the Chancellor said: "The educational program planned for the Youth Movement is a daunting and difficult task to pursue. The weakness and corruption that young people drag along with them must be swept away like leaves from the impetuous wind of military education. Here at the Stormy Manor we forge youths that will set the world on fire: a proud, courageous, heroic... and tyrannical youth. It will bear stoically and selflessly the pain... and execute orders with prompt and cruel ferocity. There is no room for weakness, pity or other unclean perversions. In their eyes, the enemy of the Luminous Inquisition must clearly see the free, splendid predator beast that lives dormant in the soul of every angel. A beast that we are called to liberate from the shackles of centuries of enslavement to a belief misrepresented and manipulated by a corrupt and decadent society. In this way we will create the new order!"

Finally he stood up and clasping his hands behind his back, he began to recite:"The judges are the predestined. They are infallible in their judgment of what should be eradicated and invincible in their fighting capacity and repression of anything that is not in accord with the absolute principles of the Movement and of the Luminous Inquisition."

Jörg and Kurtziel looked at each other and felt very uncertain, because they didn't quite understand what the manual had to do with what they had just reported.

"Tell me, students, do you know that or don't you?" Asked Trinkiel who was now facing them. Kurtziel responded immediately: "Yes, sir. Paragraph 270, third subparagraph."

"Well then, being that you know, can you tell me" said the Chancellor in a low tone that ended in furious loud scream: "Why are you coming to piss me off with your bullshit?!"

Jörg and Kurtziel remained speechless, but after a few seconds Jörg replied: "Your Excellency, my friend here is himself a judge and what's more he's a patrol leader, so ..."

"Correct!" Interrupted Trinkiel. "I know the case of the student Kurtziel! Instructor Galghiel: See to this matter immediately!"

Galghiel, who was grinning mockingly at the little show, recovered and politely said, "Yes Sir Your Excellency!" And then turning to the two boys said: "student Kurtziel! With immediate effect you are relieved of your role as head of the Judges of the gold patrol team and demoted to simple Judge and also admonished to remain in the ranks. A subsequent warning will include as a penalty the demotion to simple student as well as a period of re indoctrination as a punishment."

Those last two words made Kurtziel jerk.

"And now," concluded Trinkiel "Get out!"

Jörg and Kurtziel turned and sadly left the office followed by the laughs of Galghiel.