“Kajei, you almost died… again.”

Diether scolded him as he pulled a crimson knife from the lifeless body of a rebel. His red hair covered half his face; the rest was smeared with blood and mud. His green eyes were marked with ink—a trait of the Arzuan people.

Kajei was a young man with tanned skin and dark hair, a single strand of hair falling across his forehead. He wore a military uniform with the distinctive camouflage pattern of the Cavallian Empire’s Armed Forces, though it was a different size than his own.

Kajei looked down at his feet, dejected.

“I’m sorry… Diether,” Kajei murmured. “I… I wasn’t able to…” He turned his gaze back to Diether.

Diether observed the sad look in his beloved Kajei’s eyes, looked up at the sky, and shook his head. It’s always the same with Kajei. He never dares to make the decision to end a life to preserve his own. But he couldn’t be angry with his only family and best friend; he let out a sigh and tilted his head back, brushing the strands of hair that had stuck to his face away with his hand. Diether wore simple clothes that were much too big for him; although he had reached adulthood, his height and build were still rather youthful. The only thing that betrayed his age was the hardness and coldness in his gaze.

“Let’s go,” said Diether, raising his hand toward the exit of the alley and grabbing his long-range Ivosy plasma rifle.

They left the abandoned alleyway, leaving a corpse behind and stowing the stolen weapons in a large backpack that Kajei was carrying. The hallways were covered with Everist propaganda, military propaganda, and even rebel propaganda. This chaos was common in the most remote sections of the Everist Palace, where many refugees and civilians of very low rank in the Empire lived. The war between the Cavallian Empire—led by the Everist Council—and the rebels seemed endless, having raged for over 20 years.

Kajei found a barrel and lifted the lid to reveal water inside. He ran after Diether and pulled him toward the barrel. Pointing at the contents with his hands and wearing a big smile, Diether laughed and plunged his hands into the water, cupping it in his palms and splashing it onto his face. Diether wiped his face, revealing his fair skin; his darkened eyelids, outlined with permanent ink, further accentuated the fierceness of his eyes. Kajei stuck his head in the barrel and would have gone all the way to the bottom if Diether hadn’t pulled him out by his uniform. His cute hair bow was gone, but at least he felt cooler. They both laughed at how they looked with their hair soaking wet.

Kajei and Diether had been fending for themselves for several years. After Kajei lost his father, the Empire relocated them, along with his mother, to a more remote section of the Empire designated for civilians. Tragically, Kajei lost his mother during the rebels’ tragic counterattack against the Empire. For this reason, Diether had taken charge and was responsible for making decisions to keep them safe and secure food for both of them. They had even managed to rent their own room with the credits they earned by selling weapons, boots, and insignia from fallen rebels—and, sometimes, from soldiers. They ran along the fortified walls. Kajei followed behind him, carrying a backpack full of more weapons.

“After we sell this, we’ll have enough credits to join the army,” Kajei said as he ran after Diether.

“Are you sure you want to do this? The army’s job is to eliminate enemies, you know.”

“Yeah, for sure! I’ll be a great soldier just like my dad!”

“All right then, I’ll join the army.” “Someone has to make sure you survive all this.”

“I can survive just fine on my own!”

“Sure, just like you did a moment ago.”

“Hey! I wasn’t… umm… I wasn’t ready!”

“My point is proven.” Diether nodded.

They stopped in front of a trade shop.

They both entered the shop, and the door closed behind them. The walls were covered with old weapons belonging to both the rebels and the Imperial soldiers themselves. Rifles hung from the ceiling. Kajei handed the backpack to Diether. Diether showed each of their new acquisitions to the middle-aged man who ran the shop.

“Oh, guys, I’m still amazed. How do you manage to get into conflict zones?”

“Don’t worry about that.” He spread his small hands.

“All right, all right. Here.” He handed the boys a handful of small receipts.

Diether counted them, nodded, and passed them to Kajei. Kajei took the receipts and carefully stowed them in his backpack.

“It’s a pleasure doing business with you. Now, Kajei, let’s head to headquarters.” He waved goodbye and stepped out of the booth.

“Yes, sir!” Kajei saluted and marched after Diether.

On the way, they had to take a detour to their secret hideout, where they kept all their combat-related belongings—items they couldn’t bring into civilian quarters due to Imperial surveillance. The secret place was nothing more than the old childhood hideout where they used to play, located on the border between the military zone and the civilian zone. The entrance was very well concealed among a cluster of dense bushes that stretched all the way to a cave where they kept their weapons and other combat gear.

Diether began packing some of his belongings and organizing the documents they would need to submit for military registration, while Kajei gathered all the payment receipts they had received, which they would need to exchange for official Imperial credits. They packed everything up and set off for the nearest currency exchange office.

They managed to exchange the receipts without any trouble at the exchange office for their first credit card. The two smiled at each other and ran down the street. They climbed across some rooftops and reached a tall, fortified building. Everist flags adorned the sides and walls. They entered the recruitment office. A young secretary was typing on dark screens with neon pink accents. She greeted them. Diether handed her the registration form and Kajei handed her the credit card. The woman took the papers and the card and examined them. She read Diether’s registration form twice. She tried to make sense of it. She gave up. She registered the two young men and handed them two cards. She congratulated them and saluted.

“Congratulations, you are officially enlisted in the Cavallian Army! Hail the Everist Holy Council!”

They returned her salute.

“HAIL THE EVERIST COUNCIL”

They spent the rest of the day undergoing the medical examination. Kajei didn’t much like all the needles pricking his skin, but he had to be brave to endure the process; Diether didn’t seem to mind. Once the medical examination was finished and they had passed, they were issued their Imperial uniforms; however, they were not the same as the uniform Kajei had worn before. These uniforms consisted of navy blue pants and a button-down shirt, a black belt, and very tight-fitting synthetic boots and gloves, in addition to their low-rank Army insignia—a small bar made of the Empire’s most precious crystal, Ivosy, with its distinctive crimson-magenta sheen. They had to help each other put on the tight-fitting boots and gloves in order to continue with the registration process, which included having their photo taken for their personnel files.

By joining the Army, they had also agreed to a change of living arrangements, since recruits are no longer allowed to enter civilian areas and must live in new quarters assigned by the Army. Diether was not at all pleased to learn that he would be sleeping in a room separate from Kajei’s, so he decided to accompany his friend to his room. Once they reached the door to Kajei’s room, Kajei swiped his access card, and the door opened before them; Kajei’s roommate greeted them cheerfully. Diether didn’t like the idea of his best friend sharing a room with a stranger either, so he quickly convinced Kajei’s roommate to switch rooms; after kicking him out, he tossed his belongings aside and locked the door.

The roommate knocked on the door. Diether opened the door suddenly and threw his room key-card at him.

“Take my room and get out,” he said, pointing a plasma rifle at him.

The frightened roommate took the key-card with trembling hands and ran off.

Diether slammed the door shut and turned around. Kajei was silently judging him. Diether sighed wearily, running his hand through his tousled hair.

“Don’t look at me like that—this is for your own good. You know there could be Empire traitors trying to join the Army; it’s too risky.”

Kajei rolled his eyes in disbelief, crossed his arms, and smiled. “I know what’s worrying you—it’s your nightmares. You just should have asked me to stay.”

Diether sighed again and went to put the rifle away. When he returned, Kajei had already changed his clothes and was lying in bed. The rooms for Imperial soldiers in training were simple but much more spacious than the rooms for civilians. Diether sat down on his bed and began to change his clothes.

Not bad for the first night. Their adventures would continue the next day.