The Contractors

Chapter 4- Arrival & Answers(Kind-of)

Kelsie's POV

We were all relieved when we finally got off the carrier. Two of the boys got sea sick after the first hour, and it wasn't pleasant. On the docks a man and woman around their fifties stood waiting for us. They didn't speak, just motioned for us to follow them. As soon as our feet touched the ground of the island, we could feel the energy flowing through it. This feeling is connected to the presence of fae, and the intensity of it means there is a large concentration of fae on the island. However, as we walked along a trail heading towards the middle of the island, I noticed we had yet to see a single fae.

Ten minutes later, the foliage around us was so thick we could barely see the trail. Every other step one of us almost tripped over vines covering the trail or roots that broke the surface of the ground. Part of the reason we kept tripping was because it was hard to see. The leaves covering the trees almost completely blocked out the light. But the two people leading us didn't seem to have that problem, like they could see perfectly. Once again I saw a flash of white, the tiger from before. But this time I knew for sure I was imagining it. A tiger can't swim across the ocean to an island, it's impossible. I pushed the thought to the back of my mind as I almost tripped yet again. Soon we could hear voices floating through the air, quite a lot of people gathered together. Finally, the plants and trees thinned out, revealing a huge clearing filled with both people and hundreds of fae. In the middle of the clearing was a raised platform and a bullhorn. Most of the fae were sitting on the branches of the trees surrounding the clearing, though a few sat on the shoulders of those in the clearing. Nearly every single person in the clearing looked to be under the age of twenty. Those who didn't were either wearing military uniforms or appeared to be guides from the docks.

As we joined the crowd, a man stood up on the platform and grabbed the bullhorn.

"Alright everyone, quiet down. Looks like the last group has arrived so let's get down to business." A hush fell over the clearing, dead silent. He continued, " I know you guys were given almost no information about why you were brought here. And I promise that question will be answered soon. But first, we need to get you all on the same page. All of you have different levels of knowledge on what makes you different from other people and the things that come with that difference. So," he pointed to a young man with a fae on his shoulder standing to his left, "he will explain what you need to know." He handed over the bullhorn and stepped back. The young man cleared his throat.

"Well to begin, my name is Mason Cross. This is my fae partner Lurrera." He hesitated, trying to gather his thoughts. "As all of you know, it's been five years since the malum first showed up and attacked our world. We still have no clue where they came from but we suspect they make their home underneath the mountain ranges on the continents. And of course, no island has ever seen or been touched by the malum. The reason for that is still a mystery. But, we made a rather grim and sobering discovery, that our weapons have absolutely no effect on the malum. At the moment that's the extent of our knowledge on the malum." He paused to take a drink of water before continuing. "Now about us. Obviously, like you guys I can use magic and see the fae. Right now there are a little over five hundred of you gathered here, all between ages ten and twenty. The rest of the magic users are under the age of ten, hence they're not here. Some of you already have a fae partner, those of you who don't will hopefully have one within the next two weeks. I say that because the fae will choose you, not the other way around. Once you have a fae partner your magic will become nine times stronger than it was before. Plus, eventually you will make contracts with animals. When you make a contract you gain more power and even attributes of the animals. It allows you a wider range of magic and ensures you have a much better chance of survival. Your fae partner will help you with the contract and further explain it to you. Anyways, that's the extent of what I can tell you. If you have questions, you can ask them tonight after dinner." He handed the bullhorn back to the other man and jumped off the platform.

"Well let's get to the reason you guys are here. It's quite simple really, there's only two things you have to do. First you will gather information on the malum, and second you will fight the malum." Everyone gave him a look of disbelief. We were being drafted and people began to cry out angrily.

"Hold on. Keep your anger in check and pipe down. You do have a choice," he said. That got our attention and we fell silent again.

"That's better. As I said, you do have a choice. But before you choose, I have a question for all of you. Do you want to live like caged animals inside the walls for the rest of your lives? Can you live knowing that you and everyone else are the malum's prey? Can you live knowing that you could have saved our home and chose NOT to protect it? That everyone's deaths from here on out may have been avoided? You see, you all are the answer to the problem we have.  The only way to get answers is by first hand experience and you'll get that by fighting them. Our weapons don't work on the malum but magic does. Plus, if we don't start fighting back soon, one day all life on this planet will be wiped out by the malum. Right now we have only one advantage, which is that the malum reproduce very slowly. We noticed the number of malum changes every two months. Unfortunately it isn't much of an advantage given that the number of malum increases exponentially. But if we don't do something now, we won't be able to fight back at all. Now is our only chance, before their numbers are too high, " He paused to look at all of us.

"Something that only the highest military personnel and country leaders know is that the malum don't hunt for food. They hunt for sport. Do you still want to sit by and do nothing? To go home and try to live as close to normal as you can get? Or will you stand and fight, fight for those who can't fight for themselves? You can leave now if you want, turn around and go back to the docks. But you must choose now. If you stay you're committed to this fight. You won't be able to back out later. Understand?" As we looked at each other, he knew he had us. We couldn't walk away now, not after what we'd just been told. We had to fight. He smiled triumphantly for a moment before quickly making his face blank.

"Okay," he continued, "You guys will be on a pretty strict schedule for the next two months. By the end of these two months, you will be going to war, to fight for humanity's sake. So, every morning you will be awake promptly at six thirty, eat breakfast and be waiting outside the gym by seven fifteen. Most of the day will be spent working on building up your physical body and endurance. A few hours each day will be given to practice your magic and train with your fae and contract partner. All of you will be separated into groups, rotating through the schedule. The groups will be based on which hall you've been assigned to. Dinner will always be one hour, from six to seven pm. Lights out by eight thirty so you can get enough rest each night. Alright, you will all be given a tour of the buildings and training areas. If you follow the guides on my left," he pointed to a few people off to the side, "They will take you to the buildings. Today is your only day off. That's all and enjoy the rest of your day."

As we followed the guides back to where we would be living for the next couple months, a bunch of the fae followed us and started picking their partners. A sea green fae flew up to me and began to circle around while I walked. The fae laughed at my confused face before holding out a hand.

"I, Aria choose you as my partner, Kelsie Morris. If you take my hand you accept." I took Aria's hand and shook it. Aria landed on my shoulder laughing. I guess I have a fae partner now.