The next day on the road, Valph opened the subject again. “Why did you leave the circle last night? We could have used you in our discussion.”
“Sorry. It’s just... I have a problem with discussions of that sort. They’re just too... sweet, is all. All this love, and happiness, and peace...”
“You have a problem with Love, happiness and peace?!”
“No, not at all. I’m just not accustomed to talking about those concepts as anything more than abtract concepts. It’s a result of my upbringing.”
“So, you’re just going to hide behind your upbringing?”
“Yeah. And do it my way.”
Valph pursed his lips. “Well, I guess you have a right to do that...”
Ahead, on the next rise, they saw a troop of soldiers. It didn’t take much for Hyran to realize that they were behind yet another light Vle march to the north.
The others saw it, too. Conversation slowed, and came to a halt as they approached the slower-moving group.
This was not going to be fun. On the way south, it had seemed to Hyran like forever before the marchers passed in the opposite direction; now, he was going the same way. The Love group shifted into single file to pass, and many stared at the ragged, empty light faces that didn’t look back very often. Hyran passed a mounted Vle who was whipping the light Vle below him. The light Vle fliched, but didn’t move any faster.
In a flash as fast as the whip, Hyran was angry. “Hey! Was that really necessary? Just what are you trying to prove?”
“You must be one of them lightie-lovers. And I have nothing to prove.”
“Well, now you do. Prove to me that you’re a humane person.”
“To what? These dogs? Not worth it.”
“Yeah, you flunked the test.”
“Oh, fruits.” The soldier whipped again. “Burn, I flunked again, didn’t I?”
Hyran couldn’t hold himself back any longer. He jumped, and grabbed the soldier’s collar, pulling him off his horse. But the element of surprise was over, and despite Hyran’s intentions, the soldier regained the upper hand quickly. Hyran was lifted off the ground by the collar. “Assaulting an officer of the army is an offense punishable by firing squad. Do you wish to die, lightie-lover?”
“No more than these Vle, no. But do what you have to do, just as long as you never whip another Vle again.”
“Brave words, lightie-lover. Especially in your position.”
Aware of hundreds of pairs of eyes on him, Hyran remained silent. The other soldiers sneered, making Hyran wonder if they were just waiting for a fight.
“That’s better.” The soldier tossed Hyran away, and he hit the ground hard. Then, the soldier got back on his horse. He took out his whip again, and made to whip the light Vle back into motion. It was unnecessary, since they got moving again on their own, but Hyran jumped and grabbed the whip away.
“What? Are you dumb, or what? Give me that back!”
“Not until you have a taste of what it feels like!” Hyran gave it a crack, and the tail cracked. Right between the eyes, a new welt formed on the face of the soldier.
And that was that. The soldier jumped on Hyran, who could only do his best to protect himself against a fury of blows. After what seemed to be an eternity, someone lifted the soldier off of him, and helped him up.
The world spun. Pain seared from parts of his body he’d never felt pain from before. Nausea overcame him, as well.
“Here,” said a voice, but he couldn’t tell who was speaking. He thought it must be Valph, but the sound of rushing blood nearly drowned out voices, and the world was nothing but a blob of light. “Chew this.” Hyran felt something put at his mouth, an herb of some kind. He opened his mouth, and chewed the bitter leaf. It wasn’t long before the blob of light dissolved into darkness.