Ending with a Bang
Chapter 1: Fort Rigwald
Screams of pain echoed in his ears as he ran through the halls...running...until he reached the outside. He breathed in fresh air, just in time to see the blade that now protruded from his chest...
"Transferred to Fort Rigwald"
The words Amelia had been dreading were read to her by her instructor. She had been in a training unit in Bethroen for a few months, but once the war started the trainees who were barely able to lift up their weapons were being assigned to hotspots all over the Grado frontline. Amelia could have put up with all this, but the source of her dread happened to be the commander of Fort Rigwald, Gheb.
Gheb was an adequate strategist, which earned him his commander's position, but he was a known coward and an overall sleezy individual. Amelia confirmed this whenever Gheb came to visit the training camp, hitting on any females (usually healers or mages) including herself. He was usually turned down due to his less-than-beautiful face and his relatively large body. Oh my God how did someone so fat and disgusting get a commanding position!
"Did you hear that! All of you that have been transferred to Fort Rigwald have received a great honor!" Gheb had been on site at the time of the orders. He was excited to have more new recruits to torture in his own little ways, "We're leaving in half an hour! So pack your things and line up outside of camp quickly!"
"I'm sorry, not only do you get transferred over to Gheb's command, you're the only girl" her instructor put her hand on Amelia's shoulder, "Just do your duties, and I'll see what I can do to help you out".
The instructor had a soft spot for Amelia, seeing as she was the only girl in a lance unit of men. All the other girls were mages or healers, with a few archers; they all kept their distance from Amelia, none of them talking to her too often.
"It's alright, I joined the army so I could help defend Grado! I won't let this slow me down!" Amelia pumped herself up half-heartedly before leaving to go grab her things.
The camp was bustling with activity, trainees chatting and exercising, officers exchanging words, and messengers galloping back and forth through camp. Ah...looks like this recruitment camp is going to be dissolved after we leave...
After packing her things, Amelia quickly stood in the back of the line, as far away from Gheb as possible. It was then that she noticed that couple of the mage girls were chatting with a boy that wasn't from the camp. He had dark hair that was very messy, and dark eyes as black as the night. He was wearing a plain cotton shirt and pants with a belt filled with an assortment of traveler's items, but the thing that stood out most was his shiny, dark blue cloak the rippled like water flowing down a stream.
"Haha, well cute girls such as yourselves need to be careful out on the battlefield" Amelia had heard the boy saying. Hmph...flirting in a military camp, how disrespectful!
Slayn had gone into the camp, to check out the Grado military. Grado was the most powerful out of the five main countries that occupied the continent of Magvel. There was also Renais, Frelia, Rausten, and Jehanna; a small merchant republic also existed, called Carcino. Renais had good relations with Grado and Frelia, but about seven months ago, Grado invaded Renais without warning. Renais fell easily, and soon afterwards, Grado declared all out war upon the other countries. But why?
Being from the merchant republic of Carcino, Slayn had innate fascination with the inner working of countries, and the way their governments operated. This had stemmed from being raised among a merchant family always trying to make money, but Slayn found himself on the road at the age of twelve, gaining knowledge no merchant can obtain just by reading papers.
He had just wanted to wander around the camp, but after seeing that it was no normal relaxing camp for soldiers from the front, he had to find a way to avoid detection.
"Hey, you girls going out to the field soon?" he called to a group of mages who were talking near the gate.
"Oh? We're just trainees, but we're hoping to learn more once we leave" one of the girls replied as the group migrated over to where Slayn was standing.
"I see, it must be nice to serve your country like this" Slayn sighed, "A wanderer like me just doesn't compare"
"A wanderer? Have you traveled all over Magvel?" the girls seemed quite eager to hear about other countries.
He chatted them up quickly, all while absorbing the mental and physical state of the officers and professional soldiers around camp. Let's see...supplies are plentiful in Bethroen...officers show no signs of mental degrading or loss of sleep...
Soon enough, they found themselves at the entrance to the gate.
"Well it's about time for me to get going", Slayn said as they stopped walking.
"Aww, well we hope to meet you again, you need to tell us more stories!" the girls all said excitedly.
"Haha, well cute girls such as yourselves need to be careful out on the battlefield" Slayn laughed and waved as he walked away.
Now it's obvious...Grado is preparing for defense now, recruits are being transferred to various forts throughout the empire, and the officers are just too perfect. They were obviously just promoted so that the veterans could go and command garrisons at each of the forts...
Slayn didn't know exactly what he wanted to do with this information, but he figured from past reports and observations that Grado's biggest threat at the moment was the Frelian-Renais army, composed of survivors from Renais, and the nearly untouched Frelian army.
So the smartest course of action would be to join the Frelian army, and then work as a jack of trades while getting food and a place to sleep. And then maybe I can start with my original plan...the one I've been unable to accomplish for 5 years now...
He sighed softly, fidgeting with an expensive-looking but worn out necklace he wore underneath his cloak. It was made out of finely forged gold chains with a deep black gem in the middle.
If I remember correctly, I believe that that the Frelian's next target should be Fort Rigwald...I think there was a group of trainees being dispatched there today!
Upon this sudden realization, Slayn quickly regained focus and looked for Gheb, the current commander Fort Rigwald. He quickly spotted him standing at the head of a line of trainees, along with two soldiers that he assumed were Gheb's bodyguards. Judging from his observations, Slayn quickly formed a plan to hitch a ride with Gheb's troops.
"Excuse me! Are you the great Sir Gheb that is spoken of so often?" Slayn ran up to the fat commander and bowed.
"Oho! So my fame is increasing!" Gheb's chins wobbled as he laughed, "What does a mere boy such as you want with me?"
"Ah pardon me sir, but I've heard so much about your ingenious strategic mind that I am determined to learn from you" Slayn kept his head bowed, partly to keep the act going, and partly due to the fact that he might let a smirk slip, "I do not wish to trouble you too much, so I just want to see how you set up defenses at your highly esteemed fort, Rigwald".
"Hmm...I suppose helping the younger, inexperienced ones is part of my duties" Gheb pondered for a moment, "You can come along, and maybe if you prove to be useful I might teach you more than just defending the fort!'
"Ah, thank you so much sir!" Slayn quickly stood back up and ran to the back of the line.
"Alright you slugs! We're moving out now!" Gheb gave the order to march.
The whole line, marching in pairs of two, began the march over to Fort Rigwald.
"Jeez...that idiot was easier to convince than I thought" Slayn muttered to himself.
"Excuse me...but you're definitely not a soldier" a young girl's voice sounded from next to him. Slayn turned and froze. She wasn't exactly beautiful, more of a young, girlish prettiness that captivates boys. She had long blonde hair with bright blue eyes. She wore a set of shiny new red armor, that looked relatively light, most likely due to her slender figure.
"Ahem, I could say the same to you" Slayn replied coolly, "Though I take it you're a trainee by that lance you carry".
"Hey watch it!" she glared at him sharply, "A guy who just waltzes into a military camp, flirts with girls, and insults a commander, no matter how stupid that commander is, doesn't deserve to march with Grado's army".
She didn't seem like the type to get angry too quickly, but it seems her pride in Grado had a profound effect on her temperament.
"Apologies if I offended you", Slayn said, with a hint of sarcasm, "I hope this Grado's army is going to be enough to withstand this next attack from Frelia".
"Why you- Grado would never fall to those Frelians!" she said indignantly when the soldier in front of them glared at them, she brought her voice down, "Our soldiers are brave and powerful, while the cowardly Frelians would flee and leave their children to fight!"
"And where did you hear that one?" Slayn raised an eyebrow, "No matter, I have no doubt in Grado's military strength, I'm more worried about the stupidity of your commanders"
"Well..." she thought for a moment, "We have many capable generals, I think Duessel was one of them..."
"Yes, a very capable man" Slayn had no reason to argue, "Anyways, now that we've settled that, my name is Slayn".
"Huh?" the girl looked surprised before replying, "I'm Amelia...".
It was obvious that she wasn't convinced that Slayn had accepted her point of view, but he ignored her discomfort.
"Good, now I would like to say this, I'm not from Grado" Slayn pointed out quickly, "That's why I might seem like I'm lacking pride in any particular country's strength. However, I believe that Fort Rigwald will fall to the Frelians, whether they can push past that is another story".
"Fort Rigwald? But it's never b-"
"Been breached? All the times that Grado ever came under attack, they had a capable leader for Rigwald, but do you honestly think a fool like Gheb would be able to hold back the genius prince of Renais's strategies?" Slayn interrupted Amelia quickly.
"Well..." she wasn't really keen on the idea of accepting a defeat, and she also tensed up due to the idea of a fight happening soon.
Amelia didn't know what to think of this odd boy who marched beside her. He seemed to know more about the world than she did, but his words conflicted with everything she believed in. Grado was obviously the strongest, no country would dare to match it in battle. Yet...even she questioned the reasoning behind a sudden war with the other countries...
"Anyways, we'll have to- Stop!" Slayn stuck out his arm and stopped her.
"What? Frelians!" Amelia immediately tensed and gripped her lance.
"Nope, looks like we have bandits coming in on the right" Slayn pointed towards a group of burly looking men charging down a nearby hill, "Though the reason they would attack an armed convoy is beyond me...I doubt they even know most of you are recruits..."
"B-Bandits..." Amelia had frozen in place.
"Hey...Hey!" Slayn tried to get her attention. Shouts from up ahead indicated that the soldiers and trainees were preparing to fight off the bandits. "Damn, this recruit is getting cold feet and I count over thirty bandits...shit! There's more coming in from the left now!"
"Look at 'em!" "These Grado troops are gonna get what's comin!" "Die ya bloody bastards!"
Slayn quickly reached under his cloak for the dagger and short sword he carried around at all times, not that he knew how to use them very well. The shouts grew louder once the bandits made contact. Soon screaming and the clashing of metal filled the air.
Gheb was shouting something along the lines of "PROTECT ME!" as the soldiers fought for their very lives.
They were fighting on a winding road, slightly elevated above the plains and hills on either side. This provided a height advantage for the soldiers, but soon many of them found themselves fighting on even ground with the battle-hardened bandits of Grado.
"Mom..." Amelia muttered, staring into open space.
Slayn quickly grabbed Amelia and jumped to the side as a bandit's axe came down right where she was standing.
"Huh?" the bandit was astounded by Slayn's speed.
"Jeez...this one doesn't look easy to kill" Slayn brandished his dagger in his right hand and carried the short sword in his left.
"Stay still, will ya?" the bandit grinned and swung his axe at Slayn's head. Ducking quickly, Slayn moved backwards.
"If I do that, I may end up dying" Slayn sighed, dodging was about his only ability, he barely used the weapons he carries unless he has the element of absolute surprise. The bandit took another swing, this time Slayn ducked and slashed the bandit's arm.
"Argh! That hurt ya bastard!" the bandit barely flinched and took another swing, this time straight down at Slayn's skull.
"Whoa!" Slayn barely managed to sidestep as the axe sliced through the air where his head had been moments before.
"Really, fighting isn't my thing" Slayn said to the bandit as he reached for his belt. Grabbing a smoke bomb, he quickly threw it into the ground.
A haze of smoke covered the immediate area.
"Where are ya!" the bandit began taking wild swings.
"Ah! Amazing! Was that luck?" the axe flew right past Slayn's face. Slayn was perfectly calm, walking right in front of the bandit before sinking his dagger into the bandit's stomach.
Amelia had stood back up, returning from her daydreaming to find a scene of chaos. Soldier and bandits were fighting tooth and claw, with bodies littering the ground.
"There's one!" a smaller (at least compared to the other bandits) bandit wielding a sword spotted her.
Remembering her training, Amelia gripped her slim lance and prepared for battle. The bandit stabbed at her, missing as she dodged to the side clumsily.
"Ouch!" she almost tripped over her own feet as she dodged the iron sword that tried to skewer her. She quickly regained her balance and stabbed at the bandit.
"Too slow!" the man easily deflected the stab with his sword and lunged forward, slashing down.
"Ah!" Amelia had managed to block it with her lance, the pole meeting the edge of the iron sword. She almost lost her footing, realizing that she was close to tumbling off the side of the road. The man pushed down harder, the blade getting closer to Amelia's face.
"Hey, don't you feel bad going after a weak girl?" Slayn had finished with his fight and came back to see Amelia engaged in her own battle. Caught by surprise, the bandit looked in time to see the hilt of a dagger protruding from his stomach.
"Guh..." his eyes rolled up before he collapsed. Amelia fell down to her knees now that the pressure of the bandit's sword was gone.
"Ha...well I don't like the way things are going for Grado's pride and joy" Slayn noticed the trainees being backed into a group, surrounded by bandits bristling with weapons.
"Ha...ha..." Amelia was gasping for air, "W-What should we do now?"
"Well...you're a soldier so I don't know..." Slayn realized that he didn't need to stay, but he just couldn't let a frail girl like Amelia be alone in the middle of a battle, "I could've left..."
"Are you going to leave?" Amelia had regained some of her composure and stood up, "I wouldn't mind, you're not a soldier..."
"Hmm...are you sure?" Slayn pressed the matter, folding his arms and looking at her pointedly.
"Yes..." it looked like she wouldn't do anything to stop him, but the look in her eyes radiated fear at the thought of being left alone.
"Well, if I've already involved myself, I guess I'll just see things through" Slayn sighed just as some bandits spotted the two of them away from the rest of the soldiers.
"Oi! We got some more!" three bandits with axes at them quickly. Amelia tensed up some more, but Slayn knew she was in no mental state to fight three bandits. Three? There's no way I'll be able to take them down myself...unless...
"Amelia, I have a plan..." Slayn began.
The three bandits were having the time of their lives. It had been a while since the last raid, since Grado's troops were always protecting the so-called citizens. It struck them as weird that they would attack a convoy of armed troops instead of raiding a village for their first action in years, but the bandits of the Za'abul Marsh didn't back down from a challenge, and the pay was too good to pass up.
They soon figured that even though these guys were armed, most of them were trainees, and it was easy to round them up and slaughter them. That's when they spotted a young girl and boy standing a little further from the rest of the group. Three of them charged at them immediately.
"Gah! I'm out of here!" the boy grabbed the girl's lance, pushed her down, and ran off the side of the road.
"Hahahaha! Look at that! He just left the lass for us!" one of the bandits laughed as they approached the girl, who was getting back up nervously.
"P-Please don't hurt me! I don't have any weapons!" the girl whimpered pathetically.
"Haha no worries lass! We'll be really gentle with you!" the bandits laughed obnoxiously. As they began reaching for her, one of them froze and gurgled. He managed to look down and see the tip of a short sword sticking out of his chest.
Slayn quickly withdrew his blade as the bandits recovered from the shock. One of them took a swing but Slayn easily sidestepped and lunged with his sword, embedding it in the man's heart.
"Die!" the last bandit had managed to get behind Slayn, his axe raised above his head. Before he could deal the blow, he froze and stiffened up, falling over with an expression of pure amazement. Amelia withdrew Slayn's dagger from the man's back.
"That was...intense" Amelia was shaking as she handed the dagger back to Slayn.
"Agreed" Slayn nodded, disappeared over the side of the road, and returned with Amelia's slim lance.
"You're very fast, you know that?" Amelia hadn't known that Slayn was that fast on his feet. She was still trembling forcefully.
"Hey...are you alright?" Slayn didn't understand, "Bad experience with bandits in the past?" Amelia nods slowly, but then breaks into a grin.
"Look! We won!" she pointed to where the trainees had been previously rounded up. Instead, the bodies of the bandits lay on the ground, with a fresh envoy of troops patching up the wounded trainees.
Slayn and Amelia ran up to them quickly. Amelia left to go talk with the other trainees, checking out their wounds and comforting the wounded. Slayn, instead, went looking for Gheb. He found the fat commander talking to a slender, beautiful woman on a horse. She had blonde hair and serious, but bright, eyes.
"It won't happen again Fluorspar" Gheb was bowing to her. The Fluorspar! As in Selena? Amazing...one of Grado's finest generals is out here...
"I don't want to hear any more reports about you, understood? If any more innocents are harmed, or trainees hurt, I'll end you with a swift bolting" Selena glared at Gheb before riding away.
"Damn that bitch!" Gheb roared and swung his axe into a nearby tree, "If she hadn't showed up with her troops, I would've stepped forward and defeated the bandits myself! After all, I paid them to flee once I started attacking them, now that money has gone to waste!"
Slayn withdrew quickly after hearing that bit of information. That bastard...he sunk even lower than I thought he was capable of...I'll keep this in mind before I leave, I have ways of making cowards suffer...
"Slayn!" Amelia called to him as she ran up to him, "I didn't get a chance to thank you for saving me earlier".
"Think nothing of it...I don't like seeing people who can't protect themselves getting hurt" Slayn pulled out his dagger and short sword to clean.
"Hey, I managed k-kill one of them too" Amelia protested.
"Yeah, b-but you st-stuttered" Slayn sighed, "I don't understand what a girl like you would want in the killing business. Don't tell me it's national pride or something, this war is obviously puts Grado in the wrong."
"How dare you say that! The emperor has to have a good reason for going to war, he's been so kind to us!" Amelia looked about ready to skewer Slayn with her lance, "Besides, everyone knows that countries like Jehanna and Renais are covered with criminals that abuse women and children!"
"Ah, the propaganda of the empire really has an adverse effect on Grado's citizens" Slayn finished cleaning his weapons and slid them back to their hiding places underneath his cloak, "I assure you, Renais is one of the most nicest territories to live in, the citizens are friendly, and even the bandits aren't as rough as the ones that live in Za'abul Marsh".
"But still! Their governments are full of corruption" Amelia brought up another thing she had been told by officers at camp.
"Corruption? Is kicking those who accept bribes out of court against moral code? Or perhaps saving a starving town by sending extra supplies is against the rules as well?" Slayn was beginning to get fed up with this girl who would believe anything someone said to her.
"Grr..." Amelia knew that what Slayn said was probably true, but she still couldn't accept that Grado was in the wrong for this war, "Well! Whatever the reason is, the emperor wouldn't do anything wrong!"
She glared at him some more, then left in a hurry.
Slayn sighed once again, things weren't working the way he wanted to. He was supposed to just find a way past the Grado border to travel with the Frelian troops, why did he end up talking to a new recruit and then fighting bandits? He easily could've slipped away with all the commotion. Well...I guess it always bothered me that people would believe whatever they were told...but I shouldn't have provoked her like that...
Amelia was fuming over how much Slayn belittled Grado's army, but she realized that she was overreacting, he just needed to see how powerful they truly were. He probably hasn't even seen the Grado Imperial Army in action yet. Dang it...I was supposed to thank him, not yell at him and storm off...I'll apologize later...
A/N: Well, for just jotting down my thoughts during school, I think this turned out pretty well. I'll keep it updated if you guys want! Anyways, once I get serious, I put a lot more effort into writing, so I apologize if this isn't the best quality. I hope you'll find future chapters acceptable.