The campfire seemed to spread its warmth as the residents of the nightly wall dwellers formed a perimeter around it for the sake of survival. Of course, most of them lived in small tents near the center of the walls, but some preferred sleeping bags and campfires as a source of light and heat. The contrast between the warmth of their breath and how cold each inhale was let them get another feel for the sky itself, even if the atmosphere was muddled and reeked of stale time.
Nevertheless, how long they thought the night would last didn't faze them anymore, rather, they were trying to stay together for warmth as opposed to going to their tents.
This was just a part of the human bonding experience after all.
Once the breeze began howling and the wind turned, things became even harsher.
And harsher they liked it. Masochistic? Maybe. More efficient? Also maybe. There wasn't a reason they liked the tough conditions of life after all, it was an unreasonable and unexplainable fixation that they had.
Breathing at night became harder, even laying down became harder. Hell, feeling their bones rattling and their larynx having trouble opening its ventricles was hard enough. That would be the sort of exaggeration a guy would give during a play about the lives of the wall-dwellers, but to some extent it was true.
These people may as well have just been nothing but masochists, can't really make a simple explanation for them, despite what they thought. Perhaps, 'Their hearts are no longer with the central forces, the desire to lay low.' would be the closest to a proper one.
In the dark of the night... every tent was lit up with some sort of electrical energy. Some of these tents are even bigger than a normal house.
"Who are you?" One of the dwellers with some sort of head lantern questioned Zabulus, having one of the resident tent leaders ask, "Why have you come, oh weary one? Are you coming to join us in fealty to the White Queen? Or perhaps you were misplaced when being judged by her?" He questioned him rather loudly.
"That hair-changing woman? I'm afraid you misunderstand, my loyalty remains rooted to nothing and no one besides my own goals and motivations." He replied rather boldly.
Of course, nothing could stop him from sounding like a dick when he put it that way, after all, why would someone with no masters have the privilege to be around here?
"I won't have you speaking nonsense about our beloved and just Queen, have some respect! The one and only who held this town under the safety net against the endless barrage of those corrupted beasts!"
"Tell that to someone who cares, plus, I wasn't badmouthing her or anything... She's more of a..." He hesitated to say the word, but figured it'd be best if they had that idea instilled into them anyway, "...Friend, I guess... Well... maybe... well-acquainted is still better."
"Excuse me!? She is our life and savior! You mean to say a man like you is her friend? I can only tolerate so many jokes, just which land are you a part of?" The hooded leader asked while rubbing his brown mustache.
"Not any that I know of." He answered honestly.
"P-please, sh-show some re-respect... And d-don't fight! He-here! Food!" Phronta seemed to run around the corner as she brought something along in a dish, a warm pie of sorts, with a nice white... thing... moving around in it.
'That's a whole lotta worms.' He didn't enjoy the sight of the branches or leaves of worms squirming around inside the pie as she held it out to him whilst looking away.
"Uh... What is this?" Trying to mask his disgust at the sight of the Worm Pie was difficult, but ultimately... not that hard, rather he had to be polite since the worm pie did smell good, just didn't look the part.
"I-it's our traditional f-first meal, the... First of Forty-Eight!! Th-th-they're healthy meat worm pies m-made with our own hands a-and we share it w-with new members of the camps! M-make sure to eat your fill!"
"Hold on a second!" A sweat broke out of the corner of his head, though frozen due to the weather, "Firstly, is that what you all eat? Second, I haven't ever said a thing about joining this place!"
"Huh?" The hooded leader took a step up, "Haven't you come up here in order to join us? Was this not an order of the Scribes or the White Queen? Admittedly, I've not much reason to believe that somebody like you would actually want to join a group such as ours, it would be detrimental to both parties for two unfamiliar entities to get together like that, unless you've the utmost sincerity and patience to keep your tongue at bay and stomach cool under circumstances such as these."
"You both- All of you have made a misunderstanding... I was just coming up here as a means to observe how the town's scenery works. I was merely interested in whether I should stay here or explore the outer lands as a way to... how would I say it? Just to find interest in bettering myself. Those who live atop these walls I had assumed were exiles of sorts! I never thought there would be a bunch of scavengers left over in the very same home city." This was a natural confusion for him, seeing as most inhabitants of the wall-city lived indoors or below the ground while the outer wall survivors all came up to this point.
"You wound us! We are no scavengers, we are the eyes of Onkhivol! Our eyes glaze around the full exterior of the horizon in order to watch for attacks from the Beasts and their hive mind! This is in obedience with our White Queen!"
"Practically the same." He said sarcastically and deadpanned, before slapping his own forehead a second later to hide his comment.
"You show signs of disrespect, what can a young man of your likeness do? What would our lord really want from the likes of you?" Slowly, his suspicion was rising.
Zabulus immediately picked up on the tone of voice that was being displayed, "Hey, hey. Look, I'm not trying to start trouble here, right? So... just... Think. There's no reason for us to devolve to this being a fight. Sure, I'm not exactly the politest guy in the world, and perhaps I came off the wrong way, so I apologize! Honest!"
"Hm! Pah! Whatever it is, you have a lot more to explain than just a few misunderstandings and a lack of reasoning for your appearance here. Such little words would not make your case, no... not today, not tomorrow. You need a reason to convince us."
'Do I really need to make my case to these fucking dwellers? Why don't I just leave and let it be? These are meaningless things, they should understand the weight of my presence alone. By all means I should just leave and drop the matter!' He began convincing himself rather quickly, 'What a hassle, haggling like this... if this town is going to present me with such odd and stuck-up existences, I will not tread these grounds carefully any longer. I feel... insulted.' His arms had tensed quite strongly after, as though an imaginary pulse had emanated from them and sent a message to his body that he'd begin a fight any second, after all... he understood full-well and did believe that now would've been the perfect time to show his power to these weak-minded and inferior beings.
"S-sir?! Please calm down... If-if he doesn't trust y-you, w-we can take you to the inside walls... It's o-okay if y-you c-can't trust some of us! B-but we don't need to start fights... a-at least not over this!" Phronta blurted out rather loud and quite worried, too.
"Did I speak out loud?"
"N-no, not at all, sir... I-it was just your face telling the story, that's all."
"What kind of mind-reading are you doing? And stop calling me 'sir'. To any of you."
"I-I'm not mind reading... It's just your f-face..." She looked down.
"My face. Really? Then am I too obvious about everything? How unsightly, I'll have to change that immediately." His answer did get her startled a little, but otherwise, he meant his words.
"So, you wish to visit the inner walls? Is that what you will be doing? Well, with the limited provisions of time, I suppose the scribes have deemed you important enough to let you through. Then, Phronta shall show you the way tomorrow, I presume?"
"Y-yes!!" She bowed slightly towards the hooded leader.
"Mm...Why not today? I don't see a problem with it, why not?" Zabulus asked.
"You haven't finished the First of Forty-Eight, so... It will take you a while to adjust to the cold of tonight. Eat up, you'll be needing it."
"Eat... that worm pie? With a room packed with a bunch of strangers I hardly know at all and a cold that can bury me twice over? I'll have to politely decline."
"Then I fear we cannot fulfill your journey until after you have eaten the First of Forty-Eight. It is our tradition as the outer wall-dwellers to serve the first meal to newcomers and as to share our struggles with those we have yet to meet. Plus... As I have said, it will be very much needed to be able to stomach the First of Forty-Eight. Each following meal after those forty-seven will lessen the difficulty in being able to tolerate the cold wind, so... Otherwise you will not live a second in the inner wall. Understand?"
"Hm." With a contemplative sound escaping his throat, he agreed to eat it, but... not sure of how serious his willingness to participate was.
"Don't think about running away from this either. If one had betrayed the walls, the wrath of the Queen will punish you, perhaps send some of those corrupted beast-hearts and have you devour them whole, not a single person has ever managed to live past the first bite, least of all an honorable try."
There was a look on his face that appeared confused as the hooded leader spoke about eating the Amalgamate hearts. Surely eating that was not a killer for most. He ate a variant of them before; so why couldn't others? At least according to this man, it wasn't possible. "How did you make them try to do that, or why? Is it like your coming of age?"
"Ahahah!" Laughter spread amidst them, they mocked him as he knew nothing. But could they blame him? He was a newcomer to these lands, "Anyone who says they will leave our home base shall try. Once you dedicate yourself to this faction, there is no place to turn back. And if the outer walls weren't enough for you to want a welcome, then the inner walls will definitely repulse you!"
'So, they're saying that even if I leave today, they will make me eat those hearts again? Or... is it that if I don't eat, then I'm one of those guys to be a detriment... What's the harm in it? I'm sure Onofre wouldn't stop me from doing what I want after all. I'll bite the bullet and go with it.' Taking a piece of the worm pie, he moved it close to his mouth.
Slowly and steadily, before gulping the pie into his mouth.
There was a moment where the majority began to watch as this forlorn man try to fit a mouth-full of their signature food, a genuine smile visible on their faces as they expected a regurgitation.
Their smiles were so strong as to become laughs. Smiles that reached their eyes.
And he laughed, as the worms within his mouth began thrashing about. And he chewed, as he began savoring the flavor with his tongue and palate. With the sounds of a man enjoying every bit of his meal, albeit making rather soft sounds so as to not irritate others. He never made any other noise besides the occasional 'Hm'.
Quite pleased, perhaps the outsider didn't seem all that bad.
After some time, he had finished it, with only a single piece remaining and so it did lay. Without a single issue, without a single hesitation, he gobbled up the entire thing. Despite Phronta's scrambling thoughts of urging him to stop before he pushes himself too far; he swallowed every worm and did not blink once. (He can't)
"Eh? D-don't eat the c-crust..." A sweat slipped on Phronta's cheek.
Of course, everything was full of worms, and not just the insides. Even the crust was made of worms!
It was... a sight to see.
For them, it was usual that a man would beg them to cut his tongue off. To wail and destroy their bodies. Some would even attempt suicide via biting their own tongues or shoving their fingernails through their throats.
None have not tried yet.
Yet here he was. Eating the food... not hating it... not... wanting to vomit and cry about being tortured.
"Man, that was a good one! Now that I know what the actual taste is, I wouldn't mind eating another one, maybe a size smaller though, is that alright?" He had a smile on him and enjoyed the moment, 'What a fucking shame! After tasting this, I'd be a damn fool to refuse myself more! Haaahah! That... the Queen sure does know her thing if this is the kind of life her people lead.'
It was warm, somehow, despite the cold air, the flame was present in his stomach.
"..." The hooded leader kept his silence at Zabulus' actions.
"Hahaha! You're crazy, man!" One of the wall dwellers complimented him on his bravery.
"I've never seen someone eat their food in one bite!" Said one of the younger ones.
"Thank... you?" He replied awkwardly.
"Isn't it delicious?" Another one spoke rather loudly to catch his attention.
"Why yes... It was, somewhat." So Zabulus replied once again, this time looking at one of the youths at the farther corner.
They seemed genuinely happy to see Zabulus do this, perhaps he didn't understand the seriousness of the act itself... but for a bit he figured that he could let himself be showered in a bit of attention.
They sang praises and hymns in their own accord.
625 days and not a single soul has joined them in that time; they felt as if it was almost like celebrating a festival.
To the outside beholder... Yes, they did act a bit crazed, but there was nothing wrong in lacking sanity. It simply meant your shackles were loosened by being granted freedom. And their definition of Freedom was the ability to eat even the First of Forty-Eight.
"I can't believe someone would accept that willingly...!" The hooded dweller said as his jaw clenched. He felt his eyes well up with tears, something he couldn't hold back.
"Hm? Why are you guys suddenly all emotional?" Zabulus felt as if the reaction was even a bit too much... and weird.
This seemed to signal something to them.
An elderly woman came close and took a bow. Tears still down her face as she did so, "Don't move... young man..."
"N-no! Grandma, h-he's still a stranger! D-don't! I won't be able to apologize if he ends up-"
Woooosh.
"Uwak?!" Zabulus quickly leaped in the air; his reflexes managed to take control. If not for that, perhaps things would've ended up extremely dire here.
An arrow had embedded itself firmly in the ground where he was standing before, sending splinters and gravel all over his right leg.
'That old hag is wielding a bow and firing it at me, for what?!'
"Young man... it appears that you are the best of luck for our people!" She said as she started clapping. "You not only lived through the taste of our most valued first meal, but you had the bodily strength to actually let it take effect as soon as you ate it! We believe in you! We all do!"
"As interesting as that is... I'd have appreciated a heads-up if you're about to fucking shoot me." Trying to hide his tensed nerves, he casually replied.
"We didn't expect that you would live through the first meal, less stay standing once you did. But if you ask, then you can borrow this entire tent! Sleep soundly there tonight if that is what you're willing to do for us."
'This may just be my best shot...' He thought about it, hoping for a way to get a good night's sleep was important, even more so if he wouldn't have to make camp in this cold.
"Of course, if you don't mind me. Plus, I'd hate to try and be frozen outside... but, how can you confirm that your protection won't waver during the night?"
"Simply put, the Wall itself protects us! The power of the Forty-Eight does! We are all one, always and forever... Just as you'll know. From this night onwards, our family has grown thanks to you, welcome."