Waking just before first light, Kion silently rolled up his sleeping mat and affixed it to the top of his backpack before putting it on.

 

While taking a long, deep breath, Kion looked over his now barren bedroom before making his way out into the hallway.

 

As he tiptoed down the hallway, he paused intermittently to admire his eldest mother's immaculately detailed family portraits.

 

Upon reaching her latest painting, at the end of the hallway, he let out a somber sigh, then cracked a smile as his eyes wandered over the details. His elder mother had done a phenomenal job at capturing his siblings personalities, especially his troublesome little sister Dyla who was ever so surreptitiously trying to place a frog atop her little brother's head while his eldest sister Chyla watched with coy anticipation.

 

As his eyes landed on himself sitting melancholically in the corner of the painting, his heart sank once more and he turned away.

 

After a long calming breath, he cautiously descended the staircase, being mindful of steps he knew squeaked, cracked or creaked.  

 

As he entered the main common room he was met with a surprise hug from his elder mother Maria, a tall, muscular, gray with blond streaked fur, blue-eyed older woman, wearing long faded blue overalls, with a surprise piece of toast she stuffed in his mouth without warning afterwards.

 

```

Kion: *muffled* I'm a rammu now, I'm not supposed to eat refined food.

 

Maria: Too bad you already bit it; now you have to eat it. *raspberry* *sassy smile*

 

Kion: *cracked smile* Thank you, Maria-su.

```

 

After giving his elder mother a second hug, Kion made his way out of the house to where his elder father, Eldric, a dark gray furred male with green eyes, clad in thick deeply weathered, once green cactus leather, was waiting for him.

 

```

Eldric: I've never been one for long sappy farewells.

```

 

Eldric held out a lightly worn, dark brown satchel for Kion.

 

```

Eldric: This was the last satchel I had as a rammu. Take it and go.

```

 

Kion accepted the satchel while thanking his elder father for the gift, then began making his way towards the forest without looking back, knowing it's what his elder father would want of him.

 

A couple of turns into the giant shiba forest, that sprawled through much of the Ankarok wildness, Kion was caught off guard by the sound of his elder sister's voice calling out to him.

 

Looking towards her voice, he found his usually neat blond furred, green-eyed, well dressed elder sister hastily brushing shiba needles out of her knotted fur and grungy nightwear as she got off the raised tree root she had seemingly been sleeping on.

 

```

Kion: You're not supposed to sleep in the forest in your nightwear.

 

Chyla: I'm also not supposed to talk to you today either, but you know how I feel about rules. *devious smile*

 

Kion: And you know how Maria-su feels about your feelings towards them.

 

Chyla: Yeah-yeah, I'm going to be paying for this little chat all phase, but it's already worth it. *cheerful smile*

 

Kion: How so?

 

Chyla: Because you look even gloomier than usual. *playful smile*

 

Kion: *somber stare*

 

Chyla: That stare is why Maria-su always paints you the way she does. Anyway, let's get going. I don't want you to be late.

```

 

Kion watched in a bewildered awe as his sister began walking down the rough path barefooted.

 

```

Chyla: Come on Snail-su, I'm not getting you in trouble. We can talk as we go.

```

 

Kion followed his sister in an awkward silence, unsure what to say, yet comforted by her presence.

 

```

Chyla: I wonder how much trouble I'd get into if I followed you far enough to meet your mentor. Are you required to go to the meeting spot alone, or is it just tradition?

 

Kion: I believe it's a requirement.

 

Chyla: *sour sneer* Fine, I'll only follow you 'til we near the edge of the zone.

 

*long silence*

 

Chyla: *clears throat*

 

*long silence*

 

Chyla: *heavy sigh* You know you can be kind of hard to talk to.

 

Kion: Sorry.

 

Chyla: I'm sorry. I didn't mean that to sound harsh. It's just that, while I do enjoy our quiet moments together, there are times I wished it was easier to talk to you. One of the reasons I snuck all the way out here was to quill my own regrets. I feel responsible for you becoming a rammu. Perhaps if I had been more openly playful with you, like Jan-su and Tero-su, you'd have chosen to stay with us.

 

Kion: I have always been destined to become a rammu.

 

Chyla: Just because you're an honor child doesn't mean you're destined to become a rammu.

 

*long silence*

 

Chyla: Is it because you don't want Eldric to be disappointed in you? It's unfair that he's groomed you to become a rammu since your adoption. You may have only became our brother because Eldric is also an honor child, but that doesn't mean you're any less a part of the family.

 

*long silence*

 

Kion: I know ... and thank you for looking after me all these years. We should part ways here.

 

Chyla: *frustrated huff* If that's really what you want.

 

Kion: We're at the edge of the zone, and I can smell people not far ahead. By the strength I'd say they've been standing in the same place for quite a while, and they don't smell like farmers or villagers, which means they have to be rammu.

 

Chyla: *blushing* Oh- *awkward laughter* I didn't realize we'd been walking that long already... You're going to come back and visit at least, won't you?

 

Kion: *affirmative nod*

 

*short silence*

 

Chyla: I think I understand why we're not supposed to talk to you today... I can't seem to be able to bring myself to turn around and leave. *awkward laughter* J-just keep going. I'll head back once you're out of sight.

 

Kion: *affirmative nod*

```

 

Kion bowed while thanking his sister for walking with him, then proceeded down the path until he came to a short dark brown furred male standing next to an even shorter light blond furred female both dressed in bright orange rammu trainee uniforms.

 

```

Yineh: Hi~y! I'm Yineh, and the nervous-looking guy next to me is Wafit. We're going to be your mentors for the initiation moon. Though not just your mentors, there's also supposed to be a girl from Tarico showing up too named Lina.

 

Kion: It's nice to meet you both. I assume you already know my name too?

 

Yineh: Yep, Kion Elxicia, honor child of Nyina Elxicia, adopted son of Eldric Elexicia, honor child of Koring Elexicia. Which I have memorized because Kylola-su is ridiculously excited about you becoming a rammu. She's been—almost smiling ever since she heard the news. Honestly, I didn't even know she could smile. She's been wearing the same scowl ever since I became a trainee. Even when Isalla-su gets antagonistic and starts tickling her, she still manages to scowl while laughing. Like seriously, how do you scowl while being tickled?

 

Kion: I wouldn't know, but I'm certainly looking forward to getting to spend more time around her.

 

Yineh: *devious smile* I'm sure you are. 

 

Wafit: B-but you don't have to feel pressured to jump into things like that. So~ you become a rammu for any special reason other than family history?

 

Kion: *nervous chuckle* That was the main reason... Other than that, I enjoy being out in the wild more than on the farm.

 

Yineh: Same here. Since I'm such a runt, I did the best at foraging and took to the wild young, and since I owed my life several folds over to the rammu, I figured I'd join and payback some of my debt... That and I also wanted to prove to my family that I'm not just a helpless runt.

 

Kion: I've spent a great deal of my time foraging as well, but I haven't ever had my life saved by a rammu.

 

Yineh: *bombastic laughter* Yeah, but you're also hu~ge, and I doubt you were sneaking off to outlandish places on your own all the time trying to prove yourself either.

 

Kion: *awkward chuckle* True. I haven't ever had to "prove" myself. That said, I've spent a lot of time trying to live up to expectations.

 

Yineh: I'm still working on figuring that one out. No one ever expected anything from me before I became a rammu.

 

Kion: What about you?

 

Wafit: I became a rammu because I didn't know what else to do in life. I was raised on a farm, but it never felt like home despite growing up there. I moved to the village for a couple of cycles, but that never felt right, either. One day, the relatives I was staying with suggested becoming a rammu. I took the test expecting to fail, but passed, then I came to the initiation expecting to drop out, but then I met Yineh and I realize what was missing in life.

 

Kion: And what was that?

 

Wafit: *knowing smile* A family I felt genuinely connected to. Before I became a rammu, I always felt disconnected from everyone around me. No matter where I went or what I tried, it felt like everyone was living around me. One of the most memorable times in my youth was when I got a rather severe injury and had to stay in my room for an entire moon. No one cared about talking to me meaningfully. They would stop by, ask if I needed anything, then make up an excuse to leave. In contrast, when I found myself in a similar situation here, everyone who stopped by made excuses to stay and talk, or play games until they had no choice but to leave, or until I needed rest. To put it another way, I feel like the family I've gained here truly cares about me as a person, rather than just as a member of a club.

 

Kion: I think I can relate to that feeling. Well, I do care about my adopted family and I know they care about me. I've never felt a deep sense of connection to them. The only person I feel deeply connected to is Kylola. *bashful smile* She didn't visit often, but when she did it was the only time I felt as though I was truly with family.

 

Yineh: I think the real reason you became a rammu was for her. *sly smile*

 

Kion: *embarrassed smile*

 

Yineh: Yep, that's totally your real motive. I can't blame you either. She's seriously foxy. I'd have joined the rammu just to be with her too. *perverted chuckle*

 

Wafit: Don't worry, not all rammu are as over pervy as her. Though a lot of them are ... but it's all in good fun. So don't let it bother you and don't feel bad about brushing them off if you're not interested. Everyone is very respectful about boundaries. 

 

Yineh: But also, don't be shy about being pervy yourself. We are rammu after all. One of the best perks to the job is instant union benefits. *affirming grin*

 

Wafit: *light eyeroll* Even outside of the "benefits" she's referring to, everyone here is quite understanding, encouraging, and compassionate. Spend a little time with everyone and you'll find yourself falling for them in no time. Even the silly ones like Yineh. 

 

Yineh: *playful raspberry* Or the serious ones like in Enkoro.

 

Kion: I'm not used to being very close to anyone... *awkward utterance* I'm also not exactly normal... 

 

Yineh: How so?

 

Kion: *nervous* I-I can't do a lot of things expected from a male in a union... 

 

Yineh: *bewildered*

 

Kion: I ... uhm...

Wafit: You don't have to worry about explaining yourself. This isn’t an interrogation, and regardless of your reasons, you'll find love and acceptance here. You'll find that most rammu in Ankarok aren’t normal for one reason or another, and as long as you're respectful to them, they'll be respectful of you.  

 

Yineh: *disappointed sigh* Ye~ah, don't push yourself. When it feels right, let people know otherwise don't worry about it and just enjoy the moments. Even I realize that in the end it doesn't matter what we do, just as long as we enjoy our time together. *supportive smile*

Kion: *bashful* Thank you.

```

 

Hearing footsteps behind him, Kion looked back to see an average height, rusty-orange furred girl wearing brightly colored safety clothing, a large backpack, and a small satchel.

  

```

Lina: Hi all, I'm Lina and I'm assuming by the outfits you're the mentors I'm supposed to be meeting?

 

Wafit: *affirmative nod* That would be us. I'm Wafit, the girl next to me is Yineh, and the tall handsome guy is Kion, a fellow new trainee, like yourself.

 

Lina: It's nice to meet you all. *awkward fidgeting*

Wafit: *clears throat* Since everyone's here, we should get the tour of the Gathering underway.

```

 

Bonus - new squi words used in this chapter:

-su

Adding -su to the end of a person's name or nickname indicates that they are family, or thought of as family.

Rammu

Is the combination of the word ram meaning honor and the postfix -mu meaning master. The rammu are considered the masters of honor because they willfully risk and give their lives to protect everyone else.

Shiba

Is the combination of the word Shi, meaning needle, or needlelike, and ba, meaning tree or tree like. Thus Shiba means needle tree.

Bonus - new places mentioned in this chapter:

The Gathering

The central place in which the rammu conduct themselves. It is common for the rammu to be spread throughout the wild for long spans of time, so their central base of operation became known as the Gathering.

Ankarok

The central region of the squi lands, located between its two major mountain regions, the ocean, and the giant shiba forest. The Ankarok region borders the dirina and free chewa lands. Ankarok is known for its vast farmlands, grand river junction, mild weather and impressive village greens.

Tarico

The south-west mountain region of the squi lands. Tarico is the most populous region in the squi lands and is considered the entertainment capital of the squi culture. Tarico borders the ocean, the sacred southlands of the white rabane, as well as a stretch of the human lands. The majority of active mines exist within the Tarico region. Due to the squi's strong emphasis on living sustainably, their mining operations are slow moving and majestic. The Tarico mines are built out into underground sub-city areas used as housing, museums, memorials, long-term storage, shelters, and recreation.