new year new book. 2 days in one.

A challenging turn of events.

Nano '18

Chapter 1.

He looked around him and winkled his nose. It was just so unbelievable, there was so much vulgarity on display. This wasn't where he should be. Yet he couldn't fault the reasons for sending them here. It was needed, that he could see he just wished it wasn't him. However, each had their test to face, their burdens to assume. It was the path he was called to walk, for all it took him to a land he never wished to have to enter. It was enough to deal with the representatives and the occasional trader or soldier. That was enough of the evil to have to deal with, but the separation was starting to cause rumors to spread. They needed to be countered before they caused harm. We have enough trouble from our eastern border, we don't need to fear our southern one as well. We are not strong enough to risk losing a friend, even one that is so in refusal of the Light. As the book says not all are walk the same path in this world. It is not our place to judge, that is the Lord above, and only him. We can see only a limited amount, He has the full picture. They do not break the High Laws that would condom them, as those in the south do, therefor it is for the best that we strive to remain on good terms.

They have always horned their promises to us as we do ours. That makes this relationship one to be treasurer, it is not often that Nations so very different are allies for a sixty generations. Yet that is what the records say we have been. It does need to be kept, and the stories that we keep women chained and marry them off before they are ten would doom it. Little own the rest of the stories. I mean that we would so brake the High law and kill people in a ritual sacrifice. At least the trade was laughing at that one, and the envoy knows that our ladies are education and there is no condoning of child abuse, be the child male or female. Still the fact that they were there and large enough believed to have reached the ears of people in such vastly different societal spares means we have a problem. I know this and do believe that sending us out like this is the best way to combat it. Not only that but the exchange of knowledge will befit both lands, as the proposal for the exchange said. It is a worthy program and what I learn from it will be valuable. Just looking over the books the brief bit I have tells me that there is a number of differences in how medicine is taught and the methods practiced. It is no wonder they were delighted that Father would come and teach some classes on biochemistry. His books seemed to dominate the texts on the subject in the book store. I do wonder how shocked they were to hear that he would be bringing his family with him. I wonder if any have plans to set my Mother and sisters free? Might be a bit interesting to see how they react when they learn that Mother is professor of ethnic and gender studies, and will be teach classes here as well. I know that had to have caused some coughing, but they welcomed her.

It is a good thing that we are doing this it will help us from a greater understanding. I just am not as well prepared as I thought. None of us are, but this will see that the next sent are. The reports and images we send back will be used in the next prep classes, and each exchange will be smother, if we can make it work. We have to. For the good of our land, the fear of us must stop before it turns to hate. We should have never let it get so large. There should have been more openness between us before now. For all it is shocking how they live here, it would not harm us to have a better relationship. W know that we do not have to live like them just because we trade with them. Our laws would see we stayed on the path, but if we were more open it would give a place for those that do not find peace with the laws. The writings tell us that not all are meant to walk the path and that it is wrong to force any to, yet we have been doing so simply by not having any options available. Less will be lost to the forest once we are on better terms. Another reason to do all I can to see this doesn't fail. For all it is harder than I thought.

I expected to see females in pants and shirts, not in dresses that ours wear, but I didn't realize how disgustingly tight the clothes worn would be. I do not see how any of them, male or female, could possibly be comfortable. It is going to be a bigger adjustment than I thought. I knew that there were females in their army, there were some with the troops they sent to help clear out that large gang of slaves two years ago. Yet I just didn't expect to see them so causally armed on the streets. It makes sense that they would be, and that they would see no reason to try and hide their sex as they did when in our land. I just didn't think of it. It is something to include in the report. However watching the people is not going to help me learn my way around campus, which is what I intended to use this time for. It is just hard not to watch them as they look so different. That is likely why they are looking at me as well. My clothes are a bit to plan, I should have just worn my normal cloths not my hunting ones. I just feared they would be to bright, but see now that they do go for bright colors as well. Just the trades were always so dull, and the uniforms were of course made to blind in to the trees. I should have known not to use that as a guide, yet did so. I am so glad that I decided to come a week early, even though it means I am in a camp ground for a few days. This way I can adjust a bit before I am in the dorms and meeting the other students I will be spending the next two years with. It will make it a bit easier on me if I am standing out a bit less. It is a bit late to be coming into such a competitive program, most will have been here for the last four years, as ninety percent of there med students are from there undergrad program, as most that come from outside just can't keep up. The classes are just set at a different pace. That does worry me a bit, but looking at the books I should be fine.

Now then this turn should bring me to the campus. It is odd how the house are all brightly painted but the business are left white or brown. Just the opposite of home. They are decorated though and a number are considerably taller. The most at home was five floors, here I am not even going to guess. That one looks to have ten, or more. Just how and why? That is going to be a lot of stairs, and I have a class there. Now the high room numbers are making a bit of sense. It must relate to the floor somehow. I will leave that for now. This close to a new term they are not going to want people poking around in there. It is a relief to see I am not the only one walking the campus. I wonder how many of these are students. Some likely stay over the holidays, and I do think that some others in the camp ground are there for the same reason I am. A few look just as out of place as I feel and there are some odd languages. Hinting at origins in other lands, they clearly get a lot of visitors here, even though this isn't on the edge. I thought being more in the center there would be less trade even with Huint University being so well known. I wonder how Campter compares? I doubt if this is truly that much of a better school, we are just not seen. Truly though we would not get the numbers they do because our laws are governed by religion and so seen by other faiths as to restrictive. Mostly as they are not well understood. We need to be more public, the trade would be a good befit and we do need to fix our image.

This is a good start. For I can bet that the students from here are send reports just as we are. I am glad that some were willing to try it. Who knows it might be the next group from here will even see a few females, for all the classes for them differ more. It is going be strange to have women the the science and math classes with me. I know they can do it, but it just seems wrong. There are fields for each, I suspect that the gals will feel the same about sharing their majors with men. It is going to be odd for more than the basic classes to be mixed. Even our magic classes are separated by gender. Not so here. Though they do keep the battle magic out of the hearth magic classes, so that is a relief. I don't want to have to take hearth classes to complete the work on my battle magic, that I must have as I want to server as an army medic to fulfill my service time. I am not a fighter, but all on the lines must have some training. Still it just doesn't come easy to me. At least they have no issue with me being in the undergrad classes for that subject. In fact they said that they were fine with the students exploring some, that there was nothing wrong with trying out a new area to see what it was. Which was a bit of a surprise. Most of our Medical schools are on separate campus from the rest of the University, just to prevent such distractions. Meaning those like me that are still working on any needed certs in other areas must allow more time between those classes, which likely cost more time than a couple of outside classes would. So there might be a point to it.

Good there are more uniforms here so I should be in the right area, now just to find the building. Why is it called an arena? The map has it looking almost like duck and near a dragon that is the Air dorm. I can see it being marked by a dragon, and likely there are some there, but I do think it a bit odd if it is shaped like one. After all wouldn't it be strange to live in something shaped like your partner? He looked around and frowned as if he was right there shouldn't be any buildings on his left. I had best check the map again I don't recall any of these names. He took the map out of his pocket and looked at it, only to find none of the buildings he was near were on it any place.

A voice said, making him jump. “Those maps are useless on this part of campus. They keep saying they will fix them, but never do. What are you looking for?”

He looked up. “The arena, or that is what my schedule says. Though that seems an odd place for magic classes, even though it is battle magic.”

The other man said. “Wise idea to come early and get a feel for things. It would have saved me a few problems if I had of done that. You are in that big open area, to get to where you want to be you need to walk on that left wall and through the chain lab, that has never existed as far as anyone knows. I do wonder just what it would be for if it did. Come on and I will take you there. I don't know why they call it Arena, we just call it Duck. Fits it better, as it is not for armed combat, as the name leads a person to think.”

He smiled a bit and tried to relax, wanting to ask where the other person was from as he hadn't seen hair that dark or heard an accent like his before. His skin was almost as dark as the desert folks to north, but they had red hair not black, That would be to much to ask though, having just met. “I thought it best, coming from Lighton as I do there is a lot to adjust to. I am even less prepared than I thought I was. It is one thing to know something is different but another to see it. I hope that I will be a bit better able to blind in by the time classes start. Know I find myself starring to much.” That staid he flushed a bit as a couple in front of them kissed. That was never done on the streets at home, not with such passion. A peck on the check between a man and wife would be it. Engaged couples would hold hands, but those dating wouldn't even show that much. To do so was thought to encourage the younger ones to engage in such things. Dating shouldn't start until you were out of High school. Weddings were for when you were out of school and working. Yet here things appeared to move differently in that realm as well, to think we are accused of marrying of children when here they let that go on.

Vale smiled a bit, so that is why Gale sent me to help you, not that I wouldn't have done so anyway. Just odd that she didn't come to your aid herself. Now though I see. She is nervous about meeting you, said that some would know her. “You must be almost as shocked as I was. The clothes were bad enough, it was hard to believe people would display themselves like that. Then the open flirting and kissing. At home such things do not happen in public. Relationships are considered privet matters. It might make it a bit hard on the bonded, but they mange. Here though it is considered normal to walk together and is thought odd to hide such feelings.”

He nodded a bit. “We do get a few traders and have had some units come to our aid a few times. So I did know that the dress was different, but it is still a shock to see it, and I made a big mistake in thinking that I needed to dress in plan clothes. I thought that the dull clothes the trades wore was the norm, not just travel gear. At home dating doesn't happen until the latter years of collage, engagements might happen in the last year, but more often after graduation, as no one will wed before they have a stable income. Only engaged or wedded couples would think to hold hands on the streets, kissing, well a new married might exchange a small peck, but that is it. To do more is felt to encourage the young to move to fast. Courting customs were not something we thought about. Something I need to tell Father so he can talk to the others about it before they get here.” He stopped and coughed, realizing he had said that out loud. “Sorry I guess it is just a relief to have someone to talk to. I'm Devlin Cloudless, my Father and Mother will be coming in a bit as they are both going to be visiting possessors for the next year.”

Vale hoped that Devlin didn't notice his stumble. “We want to go left here, and no matter what don't let anyone talk you into going into that building unless you know that you can trust them.” He point at the black building they were going past. “It is full of obstacle courses, most are safe enough, but some do have live weapons. Normally those rooms are locked, but every year a few will be tricked and get hurt. No one has been killed, but still it is not something to mess with.”

Devlin looked at the building and shook his head a bit, then took a picture of it. It would be best to that Robin knew that it was a danger, or his pride would let him be tricked. “I can't see anything making me enter it, but thank you for the warning. I do think that it looks forbidding enough that it would keep most from trying it, but some are easily taken in by dares. I can see my younger brother falling for it, but knowing what it is should see he stays clear. I take it you have a hand in rescuing those so misled?”

Vale said. “Not me to much, but others of my unit are. There are some that tend to target possessor children, you should be safe but best to be warned. I am Vale Jameson, likely you have a class with my father. He started out visiting, but finds it better here than on the coast. We are from the far south, a small country called San-Jeen. You might have heard of the port of Angles, it is a trade center and San-Jeen's best known city. Most know of it, if not where it is.”

Devlin blinked then looked at the map and realized it was ease to tell where his classes were. “I have my genetics requirements met but I did see his name.” Just then the builds came into view and he stopped in surprise. “I didn't think the buildings would really look like that. Doesn't it seem a bit odd to be living in a dragon when bonded to one?” As they neared the building he could see there were a number of people outside it.

Vale said. “You would think so, but truly most days they are to tired to even know what it looks like. The Air core is the most demanding branch of the service. Between learning the skills needed to deal with the bond, the actual fighting train and their majors they barley have time to eat. Few of them came here with the plan of joining the service and most will stay with their goals, even though life has thrown them a curve ball. If not for us I am sure that they would forget to rest. I am ground crew, that means bound to a unit, but not a dragon.”

Deviln said. “I just knew the badge was and air symbol, I am afraid that I just know the branches, not the breakdowns in them. One of ours told me that without the support people the bonded would forget that they needed to rest more than the dragons did. So I can see them forgetting to eat.” One of the people on the steps laughed causing him to look and stumble a bit. Gale was dead, but that lass sure had looked a lot like her. Likely it was just his eyes tricking him. Before he could think to say anything she was gone.

The one who had laughed said. “I fear that is more true than not, lad, as much as I hate to admit it. My grounders are always having to remind me of the time, that I have been up for fourteen hours and should get some sleep. It can be hard the first years as you are adjusting to the new strength and limits that come with the tie. So looking to meet a dragon?”

Deviln shook his head. “No ma'am, I will be taking battle magic and wanted to find the building now so I won't be completely lost next week. I am grateful to those of you who serve, but it is not the path for me. I am not a fighter, it is going to be a struggle to get through the classes I must have to serve as a medic.” He hoped that sounded alright, from the way the others were watching he was sure it was some sort of test, but why or what it was about he couldn't guess.