Morning, 5th of Fall, 515 A.V.
The morning air of Autumn carried with it a subtle chill, one which bore frigid promise of the season's coming changes. A blushing sky hung overhead as stars flickered and vanished like dying embers; they're guiding lights fading faster than a memory. Flowing wind, quiet and quick, summoned gooseflesh to Cal's skin as its frosty touch brushed over him, and Cal's breath misted slightly in his shuddered response.
It would be my luck to be assigned the early shift, Cal thought to himself with a dissatisfied chuckle. He felt the cold begin to seep through his clothes, and as the tips of his fingers froze the youth rubbed his hands together to warm them. Apparently, he had arrived early than required, outpacing even the work-crew captain. In his absence, Cal found himself growing steadily frustrated with his current situation. He had agreed to volunteer for trench duty in order to better Syliras according to Engineer Rha's vision, but he did not sign up to sit on his hands while the cold bit and snapped at him. With a steadying sigh, Cal quieted the creeping hand of irritation which clawed at the back of his mind and resolved wait for the others in his crew, captain included, to appear at the designated dig-site.
Near half an hour had passed before Cal had caught sight of the man he assumed would be supervising his and the other volunteers' efforts, and it was not a friendly sight at that. The man was built like a ox, rippling muscle from head to toe, and stood a near head taller than Cal; rivaling the horse which trotted next to the man with a wagon full of supplies. His face was beginning to show the weather and wear of age, but still held the fierce qualities of youth. A strong, chiseled jaw and the type of look about him that screamed 'pissed at the world,' Cal guessed he would have to tread carefully around this bear of a man. And judging from the gleaming platemail which clung snugly to the man's body, Cal also guessed he would not joining the youth and the rest of the absentee volunteers in trench-digging. Wonderful.
"Got here early? Good on yah," he grunted, and Cal raised an eyebrow at the compliment. Perhaps he had misjudged the towering figure before him?
"Means you get the pleasure of starting early," the man finished with a cruel smile, tossing a shovel forcefully in Cal's direction.
Nope, definitely an ass, Cal concluded as he scrambled to catch the flying shovel which raced towards him. Regardless, he made no utterance of reluctance nor rebellion, instead choosing to begin his work without resistance. Cal thought it better to simply do as commanded than risk the much stronger man's ire; as was customary of any Syliran when faced with a Knight's command. 'Keep your head down and do what your told,' it was practically the citizens' mantra when faced with the occasional over-zealous knight, and it had yet to fail him. Cal didn't feel any guilt nor cowardice in this mindset, it seemed to him the simpler and smarter option. Syliran Knights were the law, and if they felt it pertinent to be a callous prick in their duties, then Cal would do his best to avoid their notice. When that failed, he'd just follow their orders long enough to placate their authority or their ego. Whichever came first really; it could be hard to differentiate the two when it came to men like his supervisor.
Moving to where the man motioned him to, Cal thrust the iron head of his tool into the ground, forcing the shovel to tear into the earth through the strength of his arm. Heaving upwards, he deposited the now loose soil away from his budding hole with a definite toss behind his back. Again and again, Cal began to slowly fracture the hard-packed ground beneath with heaving thrusts supported by straining muscles. As he dug deeper into the earth, more and more volunteers began to trickle in and around Cal's work space. The sound of shovels breaking ground became the dominant music outside of Syliras, and the specter of progress began to take shape outside of the city as Cal's shovel sang sweetly in a choir of industry with its fellows.
