Trent jumped. He had been doing it all lunch time. Any voice that came from nearby that took him by surprise spooked him. He thought he’d found a good place, around by the school incinerator, but he had still been taken by surprise.
Fortunately, this time, it was just Tucker Pyles who had walked around the cinderblock wall, which sheltered the incinerator. ‘What are you doing around here, Nord?’
‘Laying low,’ Trent replied. It seemed like the ideal place to hide, because it was around behind D Block, between it and the eastern playing fields, which weren’t used except for sports events. There was only the tennis courts to the north west, but the cinderblock wall hid him from that.
‘Laying low? What for?’
‘Avoiding Rex Cassidy.’
‘Why?’
‘Because he’s after me.’
‘What did you do?’
‘Well, I kind of accidentally touched Vanessa’s breast.’
Tucker’s face reddened and his eyes began to bug. ‘You did WHAT?’
‘I was pushed on her. And my hand kind of landed there. It was an accident.’
‘You got to feel... I mean, you DARED lay an unholy finger on the Goddess’s elixirs of life? That’s blasphemy!’
Trent shuddered and stared horrified at the big senior. ‘It was an accident!’
‘There is no excuse for accidents! What you have done is an abomination. Only the holy emissary is pure enough to touch the daughter of Aphrodite. You are unclean… a filthy sinner!’
‘But I became a Nessanist, right? That means I’m purified.’
‘Only the pure of the pure can touch the Goddess.’
‘Rex does.’
‘Do not mention that name around here! To mention that name is an abomination to the Goddess!’
‘But the Goddess has his name written all over her stuff with little hearts and stuff around it.’
‘That’s beside the point. She is the Goddess. She can utter that name. However, we shall not mention that Satan spawn by name. From now on, he shall be known as “he who shall not be named.’
‘What, like Voldemort on Harry Potter?’
‘Voldemort is a saint compared to Re... to “he who shall not be named.”’
‘Is he really that bad? Rex... I mean him? He who shall not be named?’
‘He is pure evil. But you see, it is written that the Goddess must treat him kindly. She must pretend to love him.’
‘Written where?’
‘In the holy book of the Goddess, the Nessanomicon.’
‘Is there such a book?’
Tucker pulled out a notebook and waved it in front of his face. ‘I’m writing it. And I’m going to enter this in now.’ He opened it, pulled a pen from his pocket and wrote inside it and spoke as he wrote. ‘Chapter Two, verse One. “The name of the evil one shall never be uttered, as it is an abomination...’ He closed the notebook and glared at Trent once again. ‘He who shall not be named has attempted to deceive the Goddess, but the Goddess knows his true colours. She is only biding her time before the day when she will destroy the evil one and will rise up as the true ruler of Te Arawa College. Then she shall take the Emissary, myself, as her prince and we shall rule together!’
‘Oookay. If you say so.’
‘It is written! In Chapter one, verse ten! And in verse one of the Nessanomicon it says, “everything written in this book is absolutely true and must never be questioned or challenged, because it is inspired by the Goddess herself.” So, you see? It’s the truth and the holy book validates itself!’
‘Sure.’
‘Now for your penance. You must pay for your abominable act.’
‘Oh no... What do you want?’
‘More food. An extra biscuit for morning tea each day.’
‘But you already get my biscuits.’
‘That’s just the tithe that the Goddess expects of you. By default, 50% of your lunch belongs to the Goddess. Would you wish to rob the daughter of Aphrodite of what belongs to her?’
‘I...’
Tucker grabbed him by the shirt. ‘Would you?’
Trent shuddered once more. ‘No!’
‘Good! An extra biscuit each day for the next two weeks.’
‘Okay...’ Trent groaned, wondering how he was going to convince his mother to give him extra for lunch. Perhaps he’d just have to set some of his weekly pocket money aside to buy a packet. ‘So, err... he who shall not be named, did he really put a guy in a coma for two weeks for roughing up Vanessa? A guy called Shirley?’
Tucker frowned and his nose scrunched up. ‘What?’
‘Will Ullman was saying he got beaten up so bad he was in a coma for two weeks.’
A smile spread across Tucker’s face. ‘Oh yeeeeeeah. That’s right. Luke Shirley. Coma for two weeks. Yep. That’s how bad Rex... I mean he who shall not be named is. You’re right in laying low. You don’t want to risk his bloodthirsty wrath. The only person who has the strength to deal with that ubbhead, is ME!’
Trent paused as an idea came to his mind. He scanned Tucker’s massive frame up and down and really believed that he could take care of a guy like Rex. ‘You can really beat him?’
‘With both hands and both legs tied behind my back. And remember, I’m the emissary, so I have the blessings of the Goddess.’
‘I know then. You could be my bodyguard!’
‘Eh?’ Tucker’s eyes widened.
‘I could pay you. If he tries to beat me up you could protect me.’
Tucker’s eyes slowly turned to normal and a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes. ‘Pay me?’
‘Yes!’
‘How much?’
‘Ten bucks a week.’
‘Huh! That wouldn't even buy me a snack!’
‘Twenty bucks?’
Tucker sighed, but gazed away into the distance. He licked his lips as if thinking about something pleasant. Perhaps he was thinking about all the food he could eat for that money. Finally, he spoke. ‘All right. But it has to be in cash. I don’t accept credit cards or cheques.’
‘I'll bring the money tomorrow.’
Trent felt a little more confident now that he had some back up, but he soon found himself alone again, heading for the next class of the day; PE. He had to keep his eyes open in case he ran into Rex.
Martin and Gavin were already at the changing rooms at the bottom of the pavilion, when he arrived.
‘I can’t believe you!’ Trent growled, aiming his ire at Martin. ‘Why did you put that photograph up around the place? You’ve got me in some serious trouble.’
Martin chuckled. ‘Lighten up man.’
‘I’ve got Rex Cassidy after me now, wanting to kill me!’
‘Oh dear, oh dear.’ Martin laughed some more.
Gavin delivered Martin a dirty look. ‘You didn’t have to do that you know. What if Rex really does pound the crap out of him.’
‘I’m sooooo worried for him.’
Frustration burned inside of Trent, but he got dressed anyway. Before they left the changing rooms though, Gavin gave him a nudge. ‘Remember that old Harris is doing all this Sergeant Major stuff for a joke, eh?’
‘Yeah, I know.’ Trent said, not in the mood for going along with the charade.
‘ATTEN...HUP!!’
All the boys were lined up on the field in parade formation. Trent remained standing casually as all the other boys snapped to attention, hands at the sides, not saying a word. If they thought he was going to be fooled into going along with the joke, they had another think coming. Trent intended to show his new classmates that he was not so easily tricked.
Mr Harris strode up and down the line, dressed in green camo pants with green T-shirt and jacket. In his hand was his paintball gun, the one Trent had learnt Mr Harris used to keep his students motivated. Trent though he certainly was playing the part well and it was beginning to look like his classmates had not lied about the way he acted.
&nbs
p; Harris came to a halt next to Trent. ‘So! We have a new recruit, do we? One who thinks that he’s above the law. One who thinks that my rules are for everyone else except for him! What have you got to say for yourself, soldier?’
Trent smiled, but said nothing.
‘Talk to me soldier!’ he boomed, almost causing Trent to jump.
Trent chuckled and then snapped to attention and saluted. ‘Yes Sir, Sergeant Major Sir!’
Mr Harris was a great actor; Trent had no doubt about that. The fury he now showed in his eyes really did look like fury. How he managed to make his face go red, was a trick Trent found very intriguing. He almost expected steam to come from his ears.
Mr Harris spoke in a very slow, strained voice. ‘What... is... your... name... soldier?
Trent felt very pleased with himself and he wasn’t going to give them all the pleasure of seeing him make an idiot of himself, oh no. He did his best to hold back laughter as he shouted his reply. ‘Trent Nord, Sergeant Major, Sir!’
‘Nord!’ he growled. ‘So you’re him, are you? You’re the little pervert who likes jumping all over senior girls?’ His manner was still very icy and for the first time that period Trent felt a chill run down his spine. ‘You're a right royal little pervert, aren't you Nord?’
Trent stared at their wild-eyed Principal and PE teacher. So, he had seen the photograph too. Didn’t he realise that it was just a practical joke, and that his impropriety was simply an accident? Moreover, why would he be making an issue out of it right there in front of the other students? ‘It was an accident! I.. I.. didn't mean...’
‘Yes, I saw that photograph. Captured to show off to the entire school. Oh, you’re a real lady killer you are, aren’t you? Pretend to fall on top of a girl so you can cop a feel.’
‘I didn’t do it deliberately, Sir! Honest! I was pushed.’
‘Oh yes, very convenient, very convenient indeed. Count yourself lucky that Rex Cassidy hasn't got to you yet. You will be a lot worse off then!’
‘I’m really sorry, I...’
‘You will be sorry! And right now, you will be sorrier than you’ve ever been before!’ The tempo of his voice rose tenfold. ‘Nobody, and I mean nobody refers to me as Sergeant Major, do you hear me, Nord?’ His fury almost bowled Trent over. The wild-eyed PE teacher no longer appeared to be acting. ‘When you come to my PE classes, you will stand at attention like everyone else. Is that clear, Nord?’
‘But...’
‘I said, IS THAT CLEAR?’
‘Um... yeah, sir...’
‘YES WHAT?’
‘Yes sir,’ Trent said still trying to figure out if he was for real. Had his friends deceived him?
‘WHAT?’
‘YES SIR, SIR!’
‘That’s better. I will have respect! All recruits will take me seriously. This is not a joke. This is Physical Education and you are in Boot Camp, not some namby-pamby toffee-nosed high school. You will follow the rules just as every other boy in this class does. You will stand to attention when told to stand to attention. You will move when told to move. You will run when told to run and you will not stop until you are told to stop. Is that clear, Nord?’
‘YES SIR. Sir, I thought this was a joke. My friends told me...’
‘SHUT UUUUUUUP! You will not talk until I say you can talk, IS THAT CLEAR NORD?’
‘YES SIR!’ Trent trembled in terror. He stared straight at Mr Harris. He realised now this was no act put on for fun. This was the real thing. Mr Harris really did think he was an army Sergeant Major. The other boys really were on parade.
‘Nord, eh?’ Mr Harris began to pace backwards and forward along the line of boys. ‘I take it that you’re expecting a friendly game of soccer or rugby this period, are you? I suppose you’re looking to have some fun and recreation, am I right, Nord?’ He arrived back at Nord just as he said his name.
‘Yes sir.’
‘WELL YOU ARE WRONG!’ He boomed in Trent’s face. ‘There will be no namby-pamby kid games here! In this class, you are here to work! And work! And work! AND WORK! You will be tortured beyond belief! In fact, you will be tortured twice as hard as all the others, DO YOU HEAR ME NORD?’
‘Yes sir!’
‘See this Nord?’ He held up his paintball gun.
‘Yes sir.’
‘This is real! It has real bullets in it! You know why Nord?’
‘No sir.’
‘It’s because corporal punishment is illegal! I can’t cane you or anything like that, so I have to resort to more drastic measures. Did you know, Nord that there is nothing in the school rules against shooting students who step out of line?’
‘No sir.’ Trent stared in horror.
‘Well it’s true. There isn’t. So, I’ll tell you what I’ll do Nord. I’m going to let you off easily. I’m going to let you run around the school fields ten times...’
Trent gasped, ‘Ten times?’
‘Make that twelve! You will run. You will run faster than you have ever run in your entire life. IS THE CLEAR, NORD?’
‘YES SIR!’
‘You will not stop! Do you know what will happen if you stop, Nord?’
‘You’ll... you’ll shoot me, sir?’
‘That is right Nord! Maybe there is hope for you yet. Now move it! MOVE IT, MOVE IT, MOVE IT, MOVE IT!’