Casting an orange glow on the vast army camp before Alton, the sun hung low in the clear blue sky. The pack horse under him clopped down the well-worn dirt road, kicking up clouds of dust behind him. The scent of wood burning and leather mingled with the faint echoes of laughter and shouting, a stark contrast to the silent team riding behind him. His fledgling team trailed in silence, some still disturbed by the events in the mountains, some just taking it all in.
His fingers tightened around the hilt of his sword as he thought of the circumstances he had left under. One month to select a new team and train them to be field ready. One month to rebuild his confidence after the disaster. His mission had been successful, Wolf team was fully rostered again. Hesitance ruled his emotions as he stared out at the fringes of the camp, uncertainty gnawing at him. Last time he hadn’t been enough to keep his team safe, he had to be next time.
The camp before him dancing in the rhythm of war. Far more restless than it had been when he left. He had given his report of the mindless activity in the mountains to General Tavi at Fort Kitsu and received a report in kind. Edoria had pushed towards the third army’s current position aggressively and several other pockets of imperials and mindless had been found in the mountains. The strike teams would see heavy usage soon.
As he approached the camp, he saw a figure standing next to the makeshift gate that guarded the road. It wasn’t hard to recognize the shape of his friend, Davih. When he reached the gate, he dismounted and signaled for his team to follow his lead. He walked up to his friend and they embraced wordlessly.
“Alton. It good to see you, its been a long month.” Davih said as they exited the embrace.
“Has it? The month was a little too short for me. Soft beds and plenty of beer make the time fly.” Alton replied with a grin.
Davih laughed and turned to greet the newest strikers of the third army. “Welcome little wolves. You may want to prepare yourselves.” He added with a wink and walked inside the gate, laughing.
Alton followed behind him and found out why. Hundreds of soldiers were lined up by the road and began to cheer and howl. He was torn between being moved and embarrassed at the horrible howling renditions on display. Is that what he sounded like? He hoped not. A glance back revealed his team standing at the gate, not moving. They wore stunned expressions and more than one of them was trying to hide behind others.
Alton tried to rescue them and bring the attention back on himself. He pulled Fang from its scabbard and infused enough mana to make it blinding. Raising his sword high above his head, he let out a whoop and the volume from the crowd intensified. Soldiers swarmed Alton, giving him friendly claps on the shoulder and slaps on the back. The uncertainty that clouded his mind earlier eased at the display of camaraderie.
He kept moving through the crowd and his team eventually followed when they realized they were at risk of being left behind. When he reached the fork in the road that led to the specialty units, Davih leaned in “it’s the command tent for us, friend. Rork will lead the pups to their tents and help them settle in.” Alton nodded to the Fox sergeant and turned to speak to his team.
“Follow Sergeant Rork and get settled in. I’ll return after I visit the command tent.” Alton told them.
The two of them split off and moved inwards deeper into the camp. Alton could see the signs of recent battle all around him. The infirmary and healer quarters were filled with wounded. Several large pots were suspended with camp alchemists brewing health potions and the forges were firing in full with thick black smoke bellowing out. Messengers scurried about as they moved back and forth, weaving between the tents.
When they reached the command tent, it was a hive of activity. Alton nodded to the guard on duty as he lifted the flap and granted them access. Dozens of people were inside, pouring over maps and reports. An audible buzz that drowned out any individual word assaulted Alton’s ears.
“Alton!” Major Corbin rose from a chair near the center of the tent.
“Major.” Alton smiled and saluted his commanding officer.
“It’s about time you returned. I’ve sent for a new time piece to replace yours since it’s clearly running behind.” Corbin joked. Alton supposed he was technically two days late.
“The temptations of civilization are tough to leave when it’s returning to this sorry lot,” Alton laughed and joked back.
“Captain Alton! Can I assume Wolf team is back on the board?” Colonel Riske walked over and clapped Alton on the back.
“Yes sir. My little wolves are fresh and ready to wet their fangs.” Alton grinned.
“Excellent. One day to rest and get acclimated, and then we will send you out. Things have progressed rapidly since you left,” Riske said with a frown. “Between your report to Tavi and two confirmed sightings by Gazelle, it seems the Edorians are gearing up for a major operation with mindless. I don’t understand the tactic, sacrificing so many people to create those monsters. Our specialty units are best equipped to handle those threats.”
——
Shadows were building across the camp as Alton made it down to the striker quarters. The kids were unpacking their gear and trying to decide how to split up the tents. Alton had his own, which left three tents for the seven member team. He watched with amusement as they argued with each other over the sleeping arrangements until Amelia noticed him standing off to the side.
“Captain Alton!” Amelia said as she stood at attention and saluted.
“Alright, that’s enough of that,” Alton said. “In the presence of a ranking officer or common soldiers, you can salute me all you want. When it’s just us or in our quarters, captain is fine, no saluting.”
“Yes, sir!” Amelia stammered out.
“Settle in and relax tonight. Tomorrow we will drill and do team exercises with Fox team. After that, we will be active and in the rotation for a mission. Rest assured, we will not be left waiting for long. Meet me near the gate we entered at first light. Dismissed.” Alton gave his team a sweeping look before ducking into his own tent.
His tent was as he left it. He hung Fang on the wall and slipped off his traveling cloak. Winter was swiftly approaching, and the temperature was plummeting. He shuffled over to his familiar writing desk and sat to address the pile of paperwork that had accumulated over the month. Even a lowly captain had to earn his keep in the bureaucratic mess that kept armies churning.
The first set of papers was a copy of his official report of the doomed mission in the cave. He debated reading over it before he just slid it off and into a desk drawer, that one could wait for later. The next few sets were copies of the field promotions Corbin had signed for him. He had thought about telling Amelia and Rico during the last mission, but he wanted to wait for it to be official. They would find out in the morning.
A few letters requesting meetings with this unit or this smith went into the pile to be read later. Most would just want to be seen meeting with him to elevate themselves. Alton had little patience for that kind of grandstanding. He pulled open a different drawer and brought out a bottle of Agorran whiskey to help with his task. Taking a deep draw, he sighed and returned to the stack of papers.
—-
Alton sighed and stood up off his army cot and shook off the morning stiffness. His desk was littered with three empty bottles, but at least the paperwork was finished. He was only going to drink that one bottle until Davih and Ulid showed up. Damn them. His head throbbed while he dressed and washed his face. Fang, he placed back on his hip and his belt glowing softly with four full alta stones. He sat down again to tie on his boots and then stepped outside to the world cast in dawning light.
Today was the first day of a new chapter in his life. His excitement at seeing his new team in action warred with anxiety. It would just be war games today. Tomorrow it might be real. They would be ready for it, he would be ready for it. He shrugged off his dark thoughts and walked out to the main road leading through the camp. Nodding as he walked past the sentries on patrol, he soon found himself at the gate.
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
He was alone for now in the soft, grassy field that lined the back of the camp. He began with a deep breath before closing his eyes and beginning his training kata, slowly moving through a series of stretches designed to maximize every muscle in the body. It took him ten minutes to move through the entire progression. When he finished, he began again, this time circulating mana through those same muscle groups to deepen the connection. His mana moved far easier now than ever in the past. The movement became intuitive, almost guiding itself into nooks and crannys inside his body.
Soft footsteps sounded on the grass behind. Alton opened his eyes to see Amelia and Letty joining him in the kata. He smiled and gave them each a nod before returning to his own practice. His core was full to the brim and felt alive as he cycled to replace his minuscule expenditure. When he was finished with his second set, his team was gathered behind him.
“Glad to see you all made it up. Go through your katas, first without mana and then with. Fill your cores and ready yourselves. Today will be a long day of training.” Alton said.
He turned and pulled Fang from its scabbard. The last exercise of his morning routine was to go through his sword forms. He planted his feet and circulated as he sped through the forms taught to all blades. All blades of the strike teams were expected to fight at three levels. Face to face in melee range with one or multiple enemies was the most common scenario. Keeping your strikes tight and balanced without exposing yourself was critical. In combination with a shield by using the protection granted to dash in and out was second. As a quick and dirty distraction to reset a formation was the third, gambling and over extending to force space between your allies and opponents.
“One month off and he starts fighting the air. I told you he was a bit off,” Davih’s deep voice broke the silence of the early morning. “Starting this early on a day off? I have to agree.” Another voice sounded.
Alton turned and saw Fox team walking out through the gate and joining his team on the field. He smiled at the ribbing, glad to be back among his friends. He was grateful for the normal way Fox team was treating him. Between pity and hero worship, his emotions were unbalanced.
“Davih. Is everything set then?” Alton asked and chuckled at the pretend whining from the veteran team.
“It is. Gazelle is on mission, and Raven is next in rotation. We have one skirmisher team, one infantry unit and a few sentries that owed me a favor.” Davih replied.
Alton nodded and turned to his team. “Gather up!”
“First things first. Congratulations are in order.” Alton took out two sheets of paper from his breast pocket. “Rico, step forward. Everyone join me in welcoming Wolf team’s newest corporal!” The assembled teams whooped, shouting and clapped as the young man walked up. Alton pinned a medallion to his uniform that signified his rank. It was shaped similar to the one Alton wore, a wolf's head in silver. Where Alton’s had three slash marks, Rico’s had one.
“Amelia, step forward. Wolf teams newest sergeant!” More whooping and applause, even a few howls this time. Alton pinned the medallion with two slash marks on her uniform and turned to face the rest. “Both of you have shown excellent skill and leadership qualities. I will be leaning on you to keep the rest of these kids in line. You will be tasked to learn more and learn it faster. Command in the field can not be taught, only learned and earned. Congratulations, my friends.” Alton finished and began clapping himself. Another round of applause and howls finished the small ceremony.
“Today, you will practice some of the finer details that you can’t get at an academy. You will each partner with the member of Fox team that shares your role. Sergeant Rork will lead several training missions using various units of the army. Absorb as much information as you can from your counterparts. Every detail adds up and may be what saves your life come tomorrow.” Alton waited while the Fox team veterans partnered up with his wolves before he continued. “Combat team practice is up first.”
He set them against each other in groups of three, and the experienced soldiers put his kids through the ringer. He watched from the side with Davih but stayed out of it himself. The bonding that occurred between the specialty units needed to form organically. Allies in the field were worth more than any amount of coin.
Tooth was up first and Alton watched them get smacked around for ten minutes before Rork pulled them out and went over their mistakes while Claw did the same. Lews was nominally not on a combat team as a primary healer and mage, so Alton had him working with the Fox healer. They would practice how to stay out of the fight while still providing crucial support. Tooth rotated back in with drastically improved results. The first hour went by as his team tightened mistakes.
The next hour was spent with an infantry unit practicing how a strike team supported larger scale combat. Alton arranged the infantry unit in a mock battle that represented an Agorran army being overrun by Edorian imperials. Teaching his team how to use the advantages they had to patch holes and turn the tide against superior numbers.
“You are force multipliers! When a line breaks, a shield steps up and closes that gap! You take the load and push out to give reserve units and healers a chance to tend the wounded and rebuild the line. Blades, you strike out and create space by moving over or under the line, lashing out with a surge and then backing off when the gap is plugged. Archers, you take out commanding officers, identify anyone giving orders and take them down! Lews, you relieve the medical corps and get soldiers back in the battle.” Alton was shouting passionately now. “Wars are won on the backs of our brothers and sisters in the guts of it all. Never feel so high and mighty that you forget that.”
They drilled how to plug gaps in the wall with both blades and shields. Alton had them learn the code words to let infantry lines know to open or close, how to warn them you were going under or over, and when to do it. How to use shields as mobile platforms to stand on and fire down at enemy commanders or rally points.
By noon, the kids were exhausted and Alton dismissed them for lunch and to rest for an hour. He was pleased with the progress they were showing and feeling confident. He thanked the infantry unit and wished them luck when they next saw action. The skirmisher unit freed up, so Alton spent a few minutes with their sergeant setting up the plan for the afternoon.
---
“Care to spar?” Alton asked Davih as they walked back inside the camp.
“Thought you’d never ask,” Davih replied with a grin.
They walked over to the practice yard and equipped themselves with practice blades. Enhancers were allowed to use blunted blades that were specially crafted to handle the abuse without breaking. The smiths had yet to perfect blades that could handle mana for long periods of time, so infusing was harder to practice.
Alton met Davih in the middle of the yard and they tapped blades before backing off a few feet. Though Davih was a shield by role, he was no slouch with the blade. He and Alton had sparred hundreds of times, splitting wins sixty forty to Alton. The first three rounds would be without enhancing. Standard rules meant three hits or one fatal hit.
Alton took a deep breath and lunged forward with a low stab. Davih slapped it away and backed off before he stepped forward with a high slash. Alton ducked it and rolled forward using the guard of his practice sword to punch into the other mans chest. Before they separated, Alton exchanged two hits to Davih's stomach and thigh for a slash down his back. Alton only needed one more hit, so he hacked aggressively at Davih until he scored against his forearm while taking a hit himself on the elbow.
They backed off and reset. Two more duels followed, with Alton winning both, the first three to one and the second three to none. Davih was breathing heavily, even as Alton felt fresh.
“If I didn’t know better, I would think you were using mana, Alton. Even without it, you have gotten faster.” Davih panted out.
“My physical abilities increased across the board on Jonah’s tests.” Alton confirmed. “Your going to have to practice harder to keep up.” He grinned at his friend.
“Should we make this interesting?” Alton asked.
“I don’t think I can match you, friend. Even with mana, I fear the gap has widened too far.” Davih replied. He looked around and smiled at the crowd that had gathered to watch the two storied captains face off. “How about I get a few friends?”
“Bring as many as you want. I need the practice,” Alton chuckled back.
Alton’s eyes gleamed with anticipation as fifteen soldiers gathered in the training yard. With blunted blades and without infusing, the risk of serious injury was low. Davih called out to the gathered crowd for tier three and above fighters who wanted to test themselves. He circulated through his muscles and bounced on his heels until everyone was ready.
When a neutral party shouted to start, Alton lunged forward with lightning quick strikes at the closest fighter. He tagged him quickly on the neck and whipped his body backwards out of the way of three swords aimed at his gut. Two more contestants fell to Alton’s back swings, unable to duck in time for the blindingly fast strike. A lull settled as more fighters stepped in to the gaps left by the defeated.
As the battle raged on, the combatants pushed themselves to the limits of endurance. Alton’s agile footwork and reflexes honed by years of combat dodged around well aimed attacks as he returned his own with vicious strength. Many bruises would sport the bodies of those foolish enough to test themselves against the Wolf.
Soon it was just Alton and Davih left. Alton was down to twenty percent of his core after surging to bring down a group of three skirmishers. His shoulders heaved as he took in deep breaths to feed his muscles. With a sudden burst of energy Alton exploded forward and slashed out high with his sword before stopping it mid arc and catching Davih off guard right between his left shoulder and neck. Davih scored a hit against Alton’s side, but it would be counted as a non-fatal.
The yard was deadly silent in the aftermath. Alton stood alone in the middle and breathed deeply while he cycled. A clap sounded off to his right, and he turned to see Davih clapping. Soon the others joined and a roar of applause could be heard. Alton smiled and waved, grateful for the opportunity to practice.
“You have truly left us behind, Alton.” Davih said with a smile, clapping him on the back while they walked back to the gate.
“Only until you break through, Davih. My body feels powerful, my core feels so alive. I know you will join me. We have been lock-step for many years, my friend. This will be no different.” Alton replied.
Davih shook his head but said nothing. Wolf and Fox team were waiting when they returned to the grassy plain and the next phase of training began.
——
Two find and eliminate missions, two search and rescue missions and several sparring sessions later, Wolf team stumbled back to their quarters on the last dregs of energy. Alton dismissed them to eat, cycle and sleep. Tomorrow would be their first proper mission. Anxiety and trepidation hung in the air, mixed with anticipation and a fledgling confidence.