Jon made the final carving on his new short bow. He made sure it was the maximum size allowed by the king. Only his guards and soldiers were allowed longbows. The kingdom of Exdom needed meat for its people, so the king allowed short bows.
Not everyone was allowed to hunt for small game with the short bows, just those so assigned in the Assigning. The Assigning was done for all youth on the Assigning date after they turned 16. Formal schooling was stopped at age 16, no matter what date their birthday was. For Jon, his 16th birthday was in a week and was also the annual Assigning Day. It was the day he would become JonMo.
The very worst assignment was Latrine Patrol, known as LP. Every house had a privy with a holding tank. LP would come by once a week to drain holding tanks at each home. Houses were all six feet above ground so the LP tank would fit under the holding tank. Spillage was frowned upon and LP workers would have their food allowances docked a specific amount for each offense. In this kingdom of lean people, no one wanted to be docked.
When full, the LP wagons, pulled by 4 mules, would go to the Putrid Pond and dump their load. The Putrid Pond was a series of ponds managed by an eccentric woman named EliMa. She had found an ancient recipe in the Old Library that allowed her to treat the effluent and make excellent and safe fertilizer. They had a lot of fertilizer. EliMa was considered the last person in the kingdom to have done something original and out of the ordinary. Most of the old records in the Old Library were now off limits by order of the king anyway.
Being on the LP team was exactly what Jon was trying to avoid. He loved being out in nature. Hunting small game was the only assignment that allowed that other than logging, which was very hard work. His nemesis was BubuMo, a strongly built jerk. He worked for his father, Baron BusmanNo.
Jon's father FonMo was a processor of small herd animals and small game. That's all there was in Kingdom Exdom. All was communal. FonMo sent all processed meats to Baron BusmanNo. He in turn distributed meats as well as bread, oil, and vegetables to all households in his district, each according to the complicated formula that had been developed over generations. Curiously, he was a non-lean person, though he wore baggy clothes to obscure that.
Bubu had become BubuMo a few months before on his 16th birthday. All assumed he would be officially assigned to work with his father on Assignment Day. Secure in his self-importance, he would harass Jon at every opportunity.
Jon liked being out in and near the Great Forest that was all along the foothills of the Great Mountains. Here is where he hid his bows among the trees. His latest one was by far the best one. He could hit targets with great accuracy, even when 30 paces away. He practiced with moving targets that he devised by using gravity and an angled rope. With a long string, he would trip the targets and try to hit them as they wobbled down the rope. He was getting very good at this as well. Jon was the second person in a very long time to think outside of the box.
BubuMo took every opportunity to harass Jon by loudly announcing that Jon would be on Latrine Patrol come Assignment Day. Jon, with fire in his gut, wanted to be a small game hunter and had taken the risk of making his own bows and practicing every chance he could get.
Assignment Day was looming, just two days away. There were many assignments, such as apprenticeships for wheel makers, vegetable farming, fire fighting, clothing creation, or candle making. Most of these over generations were acquired by children of the tradesmen and tradeswomen. Jon had no connections except to his father FonMo's meat processing. He found this very boring and frankly disgusting. He had always admired the women and men hunters who brought in the small game. They never gave him the time of day though, so he determined on long odds to break out of the channel of mediocrity into a profession he desired. That meant he would have to be very accurate with the Assignment-day provided bows through a series of challenges.
A small family celebration, including bread with honey butter--a rare treat, was held early in Jon's home. He loved his family, including his beloved older brother ManMo, his wife FanicoMa, and their infant son Mano. The oldest sibling, DranMa lived a day's journey away. She and her husband and one teenage son were assigned to a large vegetable garden in the few places in the kingdom that had arable land. It was harvest season and they could not come. DranMa had knitted some mittens and sent them as a present though. After laughing and talking for about an hour, Jon left his home as JonMo. He had reached 16 that day and per societal rules, his name changed. He walked with confidence to the Assignment. No family members were allowed, just a small number of 16-year-olds who somberly made their way to be assigned a vocation that marked them as adults.
As usual, BubuMo took the opportunity to call out to him as Latrine Boy. BubuMo thought a lot of himself and knew his assignment was secure. His father Baron BusmanNo had trained him in math and business management required for meat and other foodstuffs distribution. The Assignment test was trivial for him and he marched confidently to the robed official who tested for knowledge in his area. JonMo was glad BubuMo's attention was elsewhere. He wanted peaceful concentration for this bow test.
One thing in JonMo's favor was the hunter families in his district had only one 16-year-old in the Assignment. People needed meat and at least two could be assigned. That 16-year-old was a shoo-in. His cousin, from a blacksmith family, also was trying out the bow. More than likely his cousin had given him archery lessons. Only those who had previously been assigned as hunters could have short bows and arrows. This would put, as their smugness so indicated, JonMo at a distinct disadvantage. Yet JonMo was an undetected outlaw; the outcome of this contest was not yet decided. JonMo was the final contestant. In a kingdom with great order built on the foundation of mediocrity, JonMo was embarking on change far beyond his current ambitions.
When his turn at the contest was before him, he knew this had to be a great performance. Both of the two previous hunter-wannabes had hit the target with four of the five arrows allotted. The target was a painted pheasant of the most common variety in the kingdom. Having seen many Assignment Days, it was full of holes. A bale of straw was behind it.
JonMo was given a bow and five arrows by the official, who was a very old hunter who was unable to follow his profession anymore. Becoming an Assignment Day official had gladdened his heart and he was a humble and fair man. JonMo inspected the equipment and was impressed. The old official knew his business and JonMo smiled at him.
BubuMo took this opportunity to harass him, loudly proclaiming that JonMo could not hit a pheasant even if he was stepping on it. The old official quietly told BubuMo he could be the new official target if he did not go away and shut up. BubuMo steamed but kept his mouth shut as he walked off. In the Assignment, the official's word was law.
JonMo composed himself and shot his first arrow. It flew through a hole in the pheasant target and buried itself
in the straw bale, out of view. The other contestants said, "You missed completely." The old official held up his hand to JonMo to prevent further shots while he went and inspected the target. It was 20 paces away. "Hit, it is buried in the straw behind the hole it went through!", he proclaimed and then limped back to his station. He nodded at JonMo to continue the test.
Three arrows later there were four arrows in the target. JonMo had equaled the two other contestants. They had both hit four out of five. If he did not better them they would fill the two open spots. They were or were connected to hunter families and JonMo knew this was the rule and a quiet fell on those assembled in the Assignment Hall. They somehow sensed some drama here and their whispers ceased before JonMo took his last shot. When it thudded solidly in the target, the cousin knew he would have to take the blacksmith test. If he failed there, he would be on Latrine Patrol for the rest of his life. The cousin was determined now more than ever to succeed at the blacksmith test despite his stunning loss to a nobody.
If the old official wondered how JonMo had done so well, he kept that to himself. He finished his duty by handing first to JonMo and then to the hunter family contestant the prize. It was a new short bow, a quiver of arrows, and a rock with engravings. Writing on the rock was the official declaration that he was a hunter. It also contained a statement of his weekly quota of small game.
It was about two months later that King EdianaPo had been interrupted by his chief Scribe, Baron LonbabaPo. LonbabaPo, moving as fast as his old self could muster, waved a scrap of what seemed to be dusty leather. Breathlessly, he gave the scrap to the king to read. The king read these words: "Seven men in crisp uniforms exited the prominent hill in the southeast of the common land. This is near the Great Forest. The men went into the forest and shortly thereafter a mighty flying ship leaped into the sky. It moved very quickly into the heavens and disappeared. We have watched the hill for many days since and have seen no further activity. Our Prime Judge had us call off the surveillance as help was needed to prepare for the coming winter."
"Where did you find this?", demanded the king. Baron LonbabaPo, with great assumed dignity, said, "In the bottom of a very old chest that was far in the back of the attic of the archives." "Was there anything else?", the king further demanded. "No.", was the reply, and we and my assistant scribes have searched every scrap of writings in the whole archive, as you commanded." "That scrap of leather predates the kingdom, reaching back almost 3000 years when Judges ruled the land instead of kings", the old man added.
King EdianaPo considered what he had read. He could not comprehend what it meant, but if there were mysteries contained in that hill in the southeast of the land, he would have them. "Have the Chief Captain report to me immediately!", he shouted to a page. Off the boy want in a rush. Soon Captain MadaPo came running in. He was a young and ambitious man who had a lofty title. No wars had been fought for centuries and he was in reality the Chief Policeman. "What is it sire?", the captain said as he bowed.
The king responded without hesitation, "Put a daily watch on the prominent hill in the southeast of the kingdom near the Great Forest. Make sure one excellent bowman is there to prevent this sacred hill from any trespass. Shoot any who does!" The king continued, "Whatever name this hill held in the past will no longer be used. It shall be known now and forever as King's Hill." The king did not know what threat this hill could contain, but he felt deep within himself that this hill threatened him.
Meanwhile, JonMo was having success bringing in his weekly quota. He worked in his assigned area. It was marked by a faded yellow post on the edge of the Great Forest. There were 10 faded yellow posts marking 10 designated hunting areas, and his was the most southeast. There were two other older small-game hunters in his assignment area. They worked the grasslands between the settlements to a mile from the Great Forest. Both of these, a man and a woman, were happy to let JonMo have near and in the forests. Both would not admit it, but they shared a fear of the forest. JonMo had no such fear and their reticence allowed him to sneak off undetected to the forest to practice before Assignment Day.
The game was more scarce in the Great Forest, yet JonMo was more quick and agile than the older hunters. He was getting better every day in finding signs of animal movement and getting his quota was no problem.
He had worked his way from his yellow post to nearly the end of his range. The day before he had seen the strange and only hill in front of the Great Forest. It was about 500 meters from the forest and had many trees on it. The trees on the hill were of the type that seemed ever to be springing up, even in the populated areas. It was as if the Great Forest was reclaiming the land, one tree at a time. These types of trees never sprang up in cultivated areas. Lovely bushes always grew in the vicinity of them. Their flowers always gladdened hearts.
The next morning, JonMo’s mind was not on the flowers. It was on the small wild pig he was stalking. It seemed to dart about with uncanny speed. It headed towards the solitary hill that was now dominating his view. The pig quickly scrambled up the slope. JonMo wanted this pig to fulfill his daily quota and he readied his short bow even as he ran to the hill.
Meanwhile, ArnoMo, the best archer in the King’s Guard, had just arrived back at his watch post over the King’s Hill. He was the first to have this assignment and had just completed a circuit around the hill. His lunch and rain gear were stored in an oiled leather pouch at his watch post. He kept one eye on the hill while he ate his lunch. The cooked meat on his sandwich had come from his allotment of the game JonMo had recently brought in.
He dropped his sandwich when he saw JonMo climbing the hill as fast as he could. ArnoMo was not a bad man, yet he knew his life would be forfeit if he allowed trespass on the King’s Hill. The king was adamant, or at least that was what Captain MadaPo had strongly impressed on him.
He grabbed his bow and crouched low so his head was not above the tall grasses. He moved as quickly as he could to a place where he could get a good shot. It was by one of those trees that seemed to be ever popping up. He hid behind it and nocked an arrow on his longbow. Meanwhile, JonMo was nocking an arrow on his short bow. He was oblivious to the king's new prohibition on the King's Hill. It had come down after he left for his morning hunt. He just wanted that pig!
Just as JonMo released his arrow, several things happened. ArnoMo was startled by another pig that bumped into him. It was just as he released his deadly shot on JonMo. JonMo was startled by that arrow as it nicked his right ear. Then his world was upended when the bottom fell out and he dropped about six feet into an instant hole in the hill. ArnoMo did not see him drop out of sight as he was distracted by the pig that ran squealing as fast as it could. Meanwhile, the pig that JonMo tried to shoot had avoided his arrow as if it knew just how far to instantly move.
ArnoMo was startled again as the pig came back at him using an erratic path and just missed him. That gave the other pig that JonMo missed time to go to the trap door that swallowed JonMo. It danced all over it scattering the leaves and dirt. Very soon there was no evidence of the door except for the one leaf with ArnoMo's blood on it. It was the leaf that a very confused and shaken ArnoMo found a short time later. The pig that harassed him had suddenly disappeared and had not returned. JonMo had also disappeared and this was a great puzzlement to ArnoMo. He did spot the leaf with the blood on it and took it as his only evidence of the whole event.
Captain MadaPo relaid ArnoMo's report to the king, who did not take it well. He fumed and then started making decrees. JonMo's parents were to be stripped of their game processing assignment and moved immediately to the Latrine Patrol. The son of the neighboring district's game processor would now take over FonMo's processing shop. FonMo and CwanMa were given the decree. They were devastated because they thought JonMo was dead and their meager but comfortable living was ripped from them. They knew they would be mocked severely in their Latrine Patrol assignment. They trudged off to their new and bewildering assignment at dawn the next day.
In reality, it was only BubuMo who razzed them. The people of Kingdom Exdom were mostly good folks who did not glory in the misfortune of others. A group of them called out to BubuMo and told him to shut up. He skulked off with a sour disposition on his face.
FonMo and CwanMa resolved to their fate and went from house to elevated house loading sewage into the tank on the cart. The tank was like a big barrel with double staves to prevent leaking. They even named the four mules who pulled the cart.
JonMo woke up on a narrow table under bright lights. His wrists and ankles were restrained. Some kind of bandage was on his nicked ear. Into his vision walked the strangest being he had ever seen. It was about six feet tall and appeared to be a mechanical man. Its metallic oval head had two eyes, two simple ears, a nose slot, and a small rectangle for a mouth. He wore a blue jumpsuit and his hands were like a man’s, only metallic. He had walked up as a man.
"I am B127MZ, a humanoid robot. You are restrained to prevent panic reactions, as I know this is all very new to you. I have been here for 3000 years. I mean you no harm, but you must remain calm." At that, the restraints withdrew and JonMo sat up, not daring to move further. All around him was a large room. He noticed that three little pigs were sitting on their haunches, all as still as stone. Tables and cabinets lined the walls where there were no doors, although lights and screens dominated one side of the room. He could see the outside on one of the large screens. ArnoMo was walking away, scratching his head."
"First, I will give you some history," B127MZ said. "I came here 3000 years ago with seven human explorers. We chose this land because of its strategic position and natural protection. A large desert of dry sand is on the other side of the Great Mountains. This kingdom, originally a democratic government ruled by elected judges, is 237 miles long and an average of 23 miles wide from the raging sea to the edge of the Great Forest. The raging sea is caused by the pull of the tides from three nearby planets over a long shallow shelf where the sea meets the land. The daily winds also amplify the waves. I have been alone here for 2700 years. The seven explorers were called home for some emergency, and I assume they have their problems and have forgotten about this planet. Communication with the home planet requires equipment I do not have here, I can only receive messages, and there have not been any. The seven explorer's space ship had two-way comm technology, but I don't"
JonMo started to speak, but B127MZ stalled him saying, "Hold your questions to the end as I may answer some with what I say. The trees you have seen that keep springing up are not exactly natural. They are organic, but their leaves can gather energy from the sun. They have done much better than expected here, and each one is connected to all the rest. They have extensive deep root networks that carry energy which is called electricity. I have had to upgrade the junction box here several times as the amount of energy keeps growing. Over the years I have built machines using that massive amount of power. I have even built a small space ship and it sits in a room behind this one."
B127MZ continued, "You may wonder why the seven Explorers of Centerhome, as I call it, lived so long.120 years is the average years lived by your people. They live about 500 years as longevity is something they worked on and mostly perfected. Know that the people of this kingdom came here with these explorers 3000 years ago. They volunteered and agreed to go back to basic living and did not pass on much of anything about their past to their children. It was a great experiment to populate this remote planet. Because of the location and the crowded space of three close planets, it is very hard to get to. It was thought that basic living off the land was more sustainable as there are few natural resources in this protected area."
JonMo asked, "Why have you stayed secret all of these years? You could have helped us a lot with your knowledge." B127MZ responded, "I kept and keep watch on your people and have intervened a few times. I have technology that allows me to make myself invisible. That has allowed me to prevent some disasters without being detected. I know that I was charged by the seven to not make myself known. The longer I've been here the more wise that saying is. You are exceptional in that you seem to learn astonishing information without being bewildered or panicking. If I showed up among your people they would not understand and would likely try to destroy me. Yet, I have intervened in preserving your life, JonMo. There is a work here for you to do.”