Argent was the first to wake; his body ached in a way it never had before. Through his torn hoodie, bruises spread across his chest. Cracked ribs crackled as he breathed, the slashes across his legs and back burned.
'I thought I felt bad yesterday, I have to make it back to the battlefield today, not for that giant, but for me. To prove to myself that I have what it takes to strive here.'
He sat up and looked around, beyond the corner that Mugwort had claimed as his own and offered to them as a sanctuary the previous night. War-torn veterans were already up and packing their gear, getting ready for the fight that lies ahead of them today.
'Mugwort said this place works on merits. When you touch the statue of the Unnamed One at any temple, any progress you made in the war gets calculated, and you get paid out. These men must be going out to get paid.'
One by one, the others started to wake, each one feeling the remnants of the day before. Veyra groaned as she clutched a wound on her thigh, Cinder hissed as she rolled over on her arm.
"I am heading back to the field today, you all don't have to follow me," Argent said as he stood himself up.
The other seven looked at each other, and all started to stand up.
"I am not sure I'll survive the walk to the field, but I made it this far, may as well go out swinging and find out what happens when we die," Ferric said with a grin.
As the eight started to head out, a voice stood out amongst all the people getting ready to leave.
"You all need merits to eat, to survive," said a man standing near a group of what could only be described as other fresh newcomers.
His armour was clean and shiny, but in a way it also looked cheap. It was trimmed with black and gold, and on his chest was an emblem of a crown split down the middle with three jagged points rising from the broken band.
"Even just wounding an enemy earns you merits, run in, land a hit, then just die," he said in a seemingly rehearsed tone. "Do that, and you will eat for a few days, easy as pie."
The group of newcomers exchanged looks at each other, unsure of what to do.
The man smiled, sensing the weakness, the fear, and the anxiety of the group.
"Join us at the Hollow Crown, we will give you gear that's better than the scrap piles, real blades, real armor. All we do is take a portion of the merits you earn in return. That is it, you fight, we support. The Crown is one of the great factions here, three whole provinces under our control."
"And what if we say no?" One of the women in the group asked.
"Then you go out there with scrap weapons, die earning nothing, starve, fight, die in an unending loop till someone comes by and offers worse."
Ward shifted his stance and turned to Argent, "Same as back home, always someone looking to buy your fear and ignorance for cheap with words woven to push you into a corner."
"Hey, Hey you, Ugly Face! Yeah, you over there in the black and gold," Cinder shouted without a sense of shame. Where's this weapon scrap pile you spoke of? We need to grab some things on our way out!"
The recruiter, stunned at first, just blinked. Before he could answer, a large, burly man sitting at a makeshift table slammed down his mug, laughing.
"It's on the way out of town, you can't miss it. Shocked you lot are still moving like that, I would have bet you'd not make it through the night and wake up in the temple by now."
The recruiter finally went to speak up, putting his hand on a blade on his hip, "How dare you disrespect the Hollow Crown, I'll..."
"I'd stop right there, we let you lot recruit here in the outskirts, but there's no threatening the new ones, or you deal with me," the burly man said as he stood up. "Plus, let's be honest, you do kind of have an ugly face."
"So...sorry Raff, I meant no disrespect." The recruiter stuttered out of his mouth as he turned back to the group of people he was trying to persuade.
Cinder smirked proudly as laughter rippled through the camp. Even the quiet and reserved Ryn let out a small muffled chuckle.
***
Six towering figures stood atop a small, misty ravine in a clearing, surrounded by fourteen great statues.
"Thranir, why did you go and speak with that human and not just let a young one gain experience fighting it?"
"I saw honor amongst the new humans this time, and when I got up to him, I recognized something in his eyes. Something I have not seen in a long, long time."
"And what if he does make it back today? What then? He spoke defiantly to the chief of the giant tribe. There is a price for that."
"No, Elder Raith, there is a reward for that. If he and the others who stood without fear return to the field today, still carrying the marks of yesterday's battle, I will offer them a mark."
"You will give a mark of the giant's to humans? This has never been done; you can't break tradition like this. Our tribe and our tribe alone must earn marks."
"They are mine to give out. I decide who earns a mark and when. I am placing my faith in that human. He may be the one to do what we can't, to start the cycle again."
A younger giant runs up to the group of elders, "The humans are starting to arrive on the field, you asked me to let you know when they came."
"Let's go see if these humans are worth putting my faith into." The giant chief said as he headed towards the field.