Chapter nine: The Last Song

    The capital of Murus was a massive fortress shaped similarly to a thin eye. It’s design was made specifically to block monsters coming from the dark crevice, so it ran east to west, just like the dark crevice. Twenty miles long, and about six miles wide. From each side of the city a smaller wall continued into the distance. The outer wall of the city was around a three hundred feet tall, and was made from massive white stones. John couldn’t help but stare at the humongous  structure. He didn’t know much about architecture, but the magic on the outer wall caused John to suspect that it was dwarven construction.

As John passed the checkpoint into the city he was assaulted by a wave of new senses. His uncle had trained him to pay attention to every detail, but he was quickly overwhelmed in this new environment. The smell of a dozen different foods, filth, and people entered his nose. He could hardly hear his own thoughts over the noise. THe worst part was that everyone was bunched up together. If he was attacked in such close quarters it would be hard to defend himself. Fortunately his sixth sense was a bit more stable, allowing him to avoid several pickpockets. John’s uncle had obviously warned him about cities and the natural corruption, but he was still amazed by the despicable feeling he felt around so many people.

John quickly walked towards the castle. He knew that the army recruitment would be close to the gates. The second wall that surrounded the castle was about half as tall as the outer wall, but was far more magnificent. Although the stones seemed to be the same material they had a gleam similar to metal, and the magic within seemed to give off a righteous presence. John walked with confidence without having the slightest idea where his destination really was. Just off the main road and right next to the castle wall, John found the main barracks. The army had several buildings along with a fair sized training ground. It was surrounded by a normal stone wall about ten feet tall, and had a recruitment office right out front.

Murus was a military focused kingdom. As such every man had to join the army by the time they had reached twenty winters, and had to spend at least four winters serving. After leaving they would still need to take part in a training drill every few years. In short every able bodied man in the Murus kingdom was a trained soldier. John got in line with a group of young men, and buried his head back in his book.

The old recruiter had a very simple job, he simply had to ask a few questions and send the recruits to one of the different training areas. For instance he would ask them how good they were with a horse or a bow, and then he might send them to train with the cavalry or archers. From time to time he might ask someone to show their skills if he had some doubts. Today he was quite surprised though. The young boy who walked up was clean and neat. He didn’t have the nice clothes of a noble, nor their overbearing manner, but the way he walked left no openings. Only a noble’s son could receive this level of training.

“Hello sir, I would like to join the army.”

The recruiter felt like he didn’t have time to deal with this young noble. “Boy I don’t care which house you hail from you can’t mess around here.”

“I’m sorry sir, but I have no family or house left. I’ve been living with my uncle near the dark trench for several years, and now he his gone.” This army recruiter recognized the agony in this youth’s eyes. A feeling of guilt spread out from his gut.

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“I see, I presume your uncle taught you quite well. What’s your name, and what skills do you excel at.”

“ It’s John sir. I can ride a horse fairly well, and can fight with a variety of weapons. My skill with a sword or daggers are a bit better, but I really excel at hunting. I can track incredibly well, and hit a moving target up to a mile away.”

“So you’ve learned some martial skills with the bow?”

“Yes sir, my uncle taught me several martial skills with the bow, sword, hand to hand, and even some support skills”

The old man sighed, this boy no doubt had a tragic background. The Murus kingdom had some luck since he had appeared here.

“Follow me, the rest of you wait patiently I’ve got some business to handle. I’ll be back in a bit.” There were a few grunts of complaint, but they quieted down after a bit. The recruiter turned around and walked towards a wooded area.

Shortly after entering the wooded area they came to a small clearing where a group of thirty some youth’s were sparring. Watching over them was a fairly normal looking man with just a slight touch of gray in his hair. His armor was some what more ornate than the average knights, but still remained practical. As the old recruiter came over he was about to call out when the average looking instructor spoke first. “Your’ name is John correct?” John was surprised for a moment. without even turning around this man had somehow recognized him, but then he realized that this must have something to do with his uncle.

“Yes sir, my name is John.”

“Mr. Van thank you for bringing John over, now return to your post.”

“Yes sir, right away sir.” The old recruiter was quick to leave John with this intimidating instructor.”

“I’ve heard high praise for you John, but you’ll still need to prove yourself today. Henry! Come over here and give our new recruit a warm welcome!”

Henry was a large boy over six feet tall. He wore full armor and was using two battle axes. A grin spread across his face as a dark glint flashed in his eyes. John sigh as he walked forward drawing his sword.

Thunder beard looked over the troops before him. There was just under a thousand of them, and most of them were not far from death. All these mens were veterans they had fought on countless battlefields, raised children, and seen multiple generations be born. Although there death was near they still carried a fierce aura about them. These were soldiers, they had lived through battle and they would die through battle. They were ready to face death, and they were determined to die a meaningful death.

They stood just a few miles outside the capital of murus. Just a little ways off from them were several oddly shaped ships covered in magic symbols. Giant birds could be seen surrounding the boats, and quite a few mages stood around as well.

The sun was about to rise as a voice thundered out. “Today you go forth for your last campaign! You will swing your sword for the last time! Death shall claim you, but death shall not claim victory! The people of Murus, the ones you love, will be protected by your sacrifice! Death may claim us, but it will not claim them! The men standing around you may just be soldiers, but they are more trustworthy than any saint! I would rather sacrifice myself with you today, than live a thousand years in a king’s palace! Today we fear no man, monster, or even death itself! Let us show those beast what men can do when they give their all!” Thunder beard raised his hand as a burning fury flashed in his eyes. “Let us go forth! For Murus! For Mankind! And For Our Own!” As thunder beard slammed his fist down a boom sounded out that shook these men to their cores. The excitement was visible on their faces as they shouted out in unison. “FOR MURUS! FOR MANKIND! AND FOR OUR OWN!”

Those ships lifted off in the light of a new sun to sing the last song, of men whose names are already forgotten.