Theft, Routine and Repercussions
Tumunomi Escaver stood up from his bed and made his way to the door of the room as his roommates started rousing themselves from their mattresses, standing up in anticipation.
When he regarded them, he would have laughed but he was too tired for humor right now.
Turning back to face the door, he slipped out, 5 people following after him, into a hallway that was dark.
And as he crouched on the balls of his feet looking left and right, he scanned all his vision could capture to make sure no one around who would have called him out for being awake past bedtime, as his roommates lined themselves up to flank him.
Tumunomi Escaver heard no sound downstairs, so he noiselessly walked till he made 2 turns and moved further to meet a staircase.
Looking down 5 levels of flight to be double sure no one was there, once again, he raised a hand then motioned forward before sliding on the rails.
Stopping at every level to make sure there were not extra sounds he did not want, he slid until he reached the lowest level.
Then, he peeked through the glass window and someone behind him raised a piece of mirror that had been taped to a metal rod which showed a RecordingViewer on the ceiling of the hallway not too far away from bulbs for every meter of its ceiling which were all above carpeted ground.
They waited with him till the RecordingViewer had turned its head to the other angle and then he slipped through the door, grabbing the stick with the mirror as he was now on his own from now on.
When the RecordingViewer’s lens returned to the door that was now closed again he tip toed in the opposite direction then turned the corner just as the RecordingViewer had been a second slower than noticing him.
He knew the camera on this side would be facing the other way from years of observation so he timely swung into the double doors of the kitchen.
The only RecordingViewer here was pointed directly above him and swept from left to right like the ones in the corridor he had just left.
He watched it swerve towards right and then he ran quickly under one of the many islands that made a community of broken squares in the room.
Having counted till he had hidden behind this island, he knew that the RecordingViewer was now about to turn again, so he checked with the mirror on the rod before crawling to another island.
Count,
Check,
Duck and roll.
Tumunomi repeated this until he reached a cupboard, where he then counted for the lens to pass again before reaching in and grabbing a loaf of bread.
Then just as the successful boy was about to leave, he heard measured breathing behind him.
Slowly, he turned to see a dog that was asleep on the ground and he froze.
Seeing as it was not awake still, he cursed because he had now lost track of the count and had to check with the mirror on the rod.
Doing so apprehensively he had put it up *just* as the RecordingViewer’s head swerved away.
This time, on going back, he took extra measures to quiet his presence buy breathing softer, moving slower and stepping quieter.
However, just as he left the doors to head to the corridor he heard what he did not want to.
“WOOF!”
And he jumped at the sudden noise, almost dropping the bread which Derek would have later embarrassed him because of…
…If he were here.
Back to the present, Tumunomi Escaver bolted for the door.
Then, he held a firm hold on it, after passing through, as the pet smashed its face into the closed frame before watching the RecordingViewer’s lens in the corridor.
He had timed it right and just ran all the way, sidestepping when he was about to reach the flight of steps.
But just as he was about to close this door, the pet’s head banged against it.
So, he threw the bread to the only kid – Jacob -who had remained after hearing its bark.
He then waited until the pet was growling then he pulled open the door in tandem with the RecordingViewer’s lens slowly swerving away.
He loved animals, not passionately, but he did not hate them at least.
So he knew a few things about its guy’s instincts.
For instance, the dog was not an Epic Beast yet, so it could do relatively minimal damage.
Plus he just needed to act as if he picked up a stone and it will go away.
However, the RecordingViewers would have seen it running so how would Tumunomi Escaver deal with this?
He acted as though he did pick up a stone, crouching still, and it stopped in its tracks.
Then he jumped towards it when the camera was looking away, and it ran back.
Hopefully, they did not always check the RecordingViewers’s footage but he was not too worried; he would either be simply beaten or punished.
Shrugging at his situation, he then quickly met them upstairs and opened the door to his room eventually.
“Hey, let me have it!”
“I put effort into this.”
‘I was there as well.
Without m-”
The room fell quiet when Tumunomi Escaver stepped in and he walked to who had the loaf before carrying it without feeling any resistance to then chuck it tto Peter who was still clutching his stomach on the floor.
The rest of the kids fell silent.
Not just because he was one of the oldest of them who had stayed in the orphanage but because he was confident enough to get punished.
And he had returned from encountering the animal they had heard earlier, then it was probably a bad idea to dispute him.
Tumunomi Escaver also had reurned without any scratches or traces of fear.
“Hey, we went with you.”
Hunger was a strong motivator.
“At least, we should have some.”
Crowd mentality was a close second.
His eyes moved to them and they flinched.
“If I am punished would you follow me?”
***
In the morning, Tumunomi Escaver would run to each room and carry their empty water drums before ferrying it downstairs.
Reaching the back of the building, he met a well beside the elevated tanks for water that had been placed on a sturdy metal framework which were before the lines for drying clothes had always been there to greet him just like the past five years.
He would then do a quick set of exercises on the metal frameworks holding the water tanks, and then on the ground before reaching into a well to finally filling up all the drums.
When he was done, when most of the Students were just waking up, he would carry the drums of about his height of 4 feet tall, slowly and surely, to the front of the rooms before sweeping the back with a broom he had personally made extra thick and then picking up any piece of clothing that fell.
“Curse you!”
He snickered and wanted to begin arranging things in the lower levels of the building before he saw his peers running to him and telling him to stop.
“Why do you want to steal all the contribution points?”
“You guys would soon leave, anyway.
So why do you care?”
“How do you know that?
Not everyone would want us.”
“Still, if you leave nothing for us to do, how would we live comfortable lives?”
He shrugged, “don’t care.”
He hit the boys shoulder, and the one behind that one, before rushing upstairs and going to lie down.
Most of everyone in his room were asleep except the five downstairs – the same ones who had followed him, halfway, last night.
About a year ago, they had adopted his scheme and they dealt with the inner rooms.
Of the 5 levels of Spencer’s School, the first was a reception area, a dining, a lounge, a washroom, an inquiry office, a cafeteria and the kitchen they had robbed from last night.
And each of them had also cleaned the ones they had told themselves to, thoroughly.
*One was Andrew, one was Jacob, another was Ivan, yet another was Michael and the last was James Or john.*
*John, maybe.
Still, since they had already done their chores, they would eat breakfast and dinner.*
He glanced to see Peter who just woke up and robbed his eyes.
*This guy still has not learned his lesson.*
The boy then panicked after going out the windows to see a bit of light before picking himself up and racing out the door.
He even muttered thanks, or something.
*No,* Tumunomi Escaver laughed to himself, *maybe he has.*
***
By 7 o’clock, he had woken up to do some legs and back and arms, as downstairs had been stretches and cardio.
30 minutes after, when he was done and bathed, there was the ringing of the bell.
And just like that, he walked downstairs and unto the cafeteria.
Upstairs he had been one of the earlier ones so there was no crowd, but downstairs he joined a procession.
The stairs they reached met the lowest floor and turned to the opposite direction the kitchen was at.
Then, they walked past a corridor that would have taken them to either the offices on this floor or the reception lounge.
Not too far was the cafeteria that was getting its earliest introduction of the noise to come.
But it would not come until they heard their regular assembly.
Standing between a row of tables was a lady who held a whip in one hand.
In between the tables the children lined up.
Tumunomi Escaver had an indifferent expression to Rose Marilyn holding the Instrument for punishment but Andrew gulped hard and froze as a fellow orphan him had already tapped his shoulder before pointing at the lady, Jake cursed before trying to act normal, Ivan began whistling to comfort himself and John looked as if he was already going to cry.
Jacob only smiled and rolled his shoulders in preparation.
Tumunomi Escaver idly realized how he had never counted the people all around himself but he knew they were more than a hundred as this was the biggest room in the entire building.
“Silence!”
At 8:30 o’clock, when they had all lined up and had been chatting ,her voice cut through them like butter and a hot knife.
Obviously, they had been chatting about why she held a whip in her hand.
So that meant they not only shushed because of fear but also curiosity.
“Last night, one of the loaves disappeared.” Her auburn her snapped right and left as if she sought to fish the culprits out with her gaze alone.
“Step out and save yourself even more punishment than you will receive if you don’t.” She wore leather from head to toe, gleaming material complemented by heels of the same color.
Tumunomi Escaver listlessly walked out with extreme indifference and he searched the crowd before raising his fingers.
Jake pled when he realized what will happen and then he clutched Andrew who grabbed Ivan who grabbed John.
John pleaded but it was useless.
Jacob had walked out on his own after Tumunomi Escaver and had a curious look at the pale kid who was counting down for his own peers.
He and Tumunomi Escaver were one of the oldest boys in the building, relatively, so why was he insistent on doing this?
The skinny boy shrugged then looked at the whip then at the ceiling as he had already asked them if hey would be joining him for punishment last night.
“So, you are the thieves?” She sneered, “you dare steal from me?”
John was rattling like cold teeth in winter and Andrew was trying to calm his shaking hands, Ivan scowled at Tumunomi Escaver and Jake was taking deep breaths.
“100 for Tumunomi, and Jacob who should have been steering you guys in right direction.
20 for John, 40 for Andrew who should not be involving his blood brother in such endeavors.
30 for Ivan who has not done this for the first time, and Jake, 35 just because he was a roommate and did not stop them!” The crowd pointed and sneered at them who were about to receive strokes of the cane.
“Where do you want it, and who is first!?”Rose Marilyn barked.
Tumunomi Escaver walked closest to her and then bent over.
PAH!
There was the first one which was the stinger
Then, the 10th one was a repetition of the first in the sense that the previous ones were supposed to get him numb to it.
The 20th hit and he was wondering if he should have picked his hands instead.
By 50, the pain stung, really stung.
But seeing his face you would think he was being lightly patted.
He fist shook when she hit 60.
70 had him almost falling, for 90 he even had to spread open his legs for balance and for the last he jumped.
The crowd enjoyed their laugh as he walked with shaky steps back to his area where he had stood.
Although, throughout the ordeal he did not shout or yelp or cry or show extreme emotion.
He knew that for every 10 she increased the strength of her hand.
And being a cultivator herself meant that she was quite strong.
Jacob went next because Tumunomi Escaver had gone before him.
The boy had yelped and shouting after each strike but he did not cry.
And when he was done, Andrew, Jake, Ivan, John and Peter could only grimly wait for their turn.
Several minutes later, when she was done, she snorted in satisfaction and address them again.
Peter was ridden in guilt even without Michael looking at him like a hawk observing prey.