The Captain's Breakfast

I awoke choking on the taste of dried blood.

For several long seconds, I did not know where I was. My cheek rested against damp stone. My body felt shattered. Then memory returned all at once. The closet. The drunken rangers. The fists. The boots. The laughter.

I groaned as I rolled onto my back. Pain immediately erupted through my ribs. One of them had kicked me repeatedly there after I stopped fighting. Another had struck my jaw until I tasted blood. And the final blow...I touched the back of my skull and hissed. Still swollen. Still wet with dried blood. Wonderful. What a glorious diplomatic exchange between nations.

I attempted to sit up and nearly blacked out. The tiny chamber spun violently. The room they had thrown me into was hardly a room at all. It was a narrow storage closet beside Captain Hannahrial Icetear's private chambers. A rotting mattress sat in one corner. Buckets. Mops. Cleaning chemicals. Old cloths stained black and brown. A tiny barred window let in cold grey morning light.

Rain tapped softly against stone. Then…

BANG.

The door flew open. I flinched so hard pain shot through my ribs. A tall red-haired ranger stood there. She looked disgusted to see I was still alive.

"Get up."

I stared at her.

"What?"

Her eyes narrowed. She stepped forward and kicked my mattress. Hard.

"Did I stutter, human?"

"I can barely move.." I whimper.

She grabbed my hair.

I screamed.

She yanked me upright.

"You have exactly four minutes to bring High-Captain Hannarial's breakfast."

My breathing stopped.

"What breakfast?"

Her expression slowly became murderous. Then deeply amused.

"Oh."

She turned and shouted down the hallway.

"HE DOESN'T KNOW ABOUT BREAKFAST!"

Roaring laughter erupted somewhere outside. Multiple voices laughed. One woman nearly choked from how hard she was laughing.

The ranger leaned close to my face.

"The High-Captain eats every morning at first bell."

She pointed outside.

"The tavern prepares her meal."

She leaned closer.

"If that tray is not on her desk before the final toll of the bell…"

Her smile widened.

"You'll wish last night had killed you."

She released me. I collapsed onto my knees.

The first bell echoed across Crimson Vale. A massive metallic sound. Deep. Ancient. Then a second smaller bell began counting downward. One. Two. Three..

"Oh gods."

I stumbled upright and ran. Barefoot. Bleeding. Half-conscious. Still wearing yesterday's ruined clothes.

I sprinted through the morning chaos of Crimson Vale. The camp was already alive.

Thousands of women moving with horrifying efficiency around me. Blades clashed in training yards. Archers practiced from elevated towers. Mounted ranger units rode toward Thorn Gate. Smiths hammered steel. Priestesses chanted near sacred fires.

Some rangers openly laughed as they watched me sprint by like a dying rat. One deliberately extended her foot. I tripped. My face slammed into mud. The surrounding women burst into laughter.

"Move faster, prince!"

"She'll skin him!"

"I bet he cries before she breaks his fingers!"

I scrambled up and ran harder.

The Bloodroot Tavern stood near the central grounds. Massive. Loud. Already serving morning meals. I burst through the doors gasping for breath. The tavern instantly quieted. Dozens of red rangers stared.

A towering dark-haired tavern mistress stood behind the counter. Arms folded. Massive shoulders. Scar over one eye.

"Captain's breakfast," I gasped.

She stared. Then looked at a nearby clock mounted on the wall. Then back at me.

"Late."

My heart stopped.

"No..please.."

She slowly lifted a tray. Perfectly prepared. Black tea. Roasted venison. Fresh bread. Berries. Her expression became amused.

"She likes the berries on the left side."

"What?"

"The berries."

She pointed.

"They are on the right."

I stared in horror. Sure enough, the berries were on the wrong side.

She leaned forward.

"And if her tray is wrong…"

She smiled.

"She'll hurt you."

My hands shook violently as I rearranged the tray. Several nearby rangers laughed into their drinks. One yelled.

"RUN, LITTLE NOBLE!"

I ran. Second bell. Final toll. Echoing. Loud. Merciless.

I reached Hannah's command hall gasping for breath. I burst through the doors. And froze. Captain Hannah Icetear sat behind her desk. Perfectly composed. Perfectly dressed. Perfectly still. Two elite rangers stood beside her. The entire room was silent.

I stumbled forward. Placed the tray down. And looked up.

"I…I made it…"

She slowly looked toward the large bronze clock mounted behind her. Then back at me.

"You are thirteen seconds late."

My blood turned cold.

"Please…"

She stood. Slowly. Quietly. That was somehow worse than shouting.

"I was beaten unconscious last night."

She stopped walking. The room became deathly silent. One ranger looked away. Wrong move. Hannah's gaze sharpened.

"You are speaking to me as though I care."

I immediately dropped to my knees.

"I'm sorry."

She crouched before me. Her voice became almost gentle.

"If assassins poison me because my breakfast arrives late…"

She pressed a finger against my chest.

"If my blood sugar drops before command meetings…"

Another press.

"If my schedule breaks because you are incompetent…"

Another.

"Why should I suffer for your weakness?"

"I…" I stammer.

Wrong answer.

Her hand shot forward. She grabbed my fingers. And bent one backward.

SNAP.

I screamed so loudly, birds erupted from nearby trees outside. White agony consumed my entire body. I collapsed onto the floor shaking. My finger bent at an unnatural angle. Tears flooded my eyes.

Hannah calmly stood.

"Now you will never forget."

I sobbed uncontrollably.

She sat down and began eating. As if nothing had happened. She took one bite. Paused. Looked at me.

"The berries are on the correct side."

I stared at her through tears.

She smiled faintly.

"Good."

Then she pointed toward the door.

"Clean yourself."

Another bite.

"Lunch is delivered at midday."

I froze. The two rangers began laughing. One nearly fell over. Hannah continued eating calmly.

"Oh."

She sipped tea.

"And if you're late again…"

She looked at my unbroken hand.

"I'll even them."

I crawled out of the chamber trying not to vomit. Behind me, Crimson Vale continued its morning routine. Perfectly. Brutally. On time. And for the first time since arriving, I began to understand. This place was not chaos. It was discipline sharpened into cruelty. And I was trapped inside its clockwork teeth.