Chapter 10: Daein's Special force
"Gawain are you sure? Can we trust Lord Sephiran? He is of the Begnion household after all." The king asked with utter certainty and serious doubt in his mind. However, the story of the battle and the weakness of Gawain's men against the superior power of the Begnion army frightened the king. As of this moment, he just lost his single best army. He still had his private guard. He still had the army of his son Ashnard, as well as the armies of the other three riders, yet the story troubled him, that none of these armies came to Gawain's rescue and that the might of Begnion was so truly vast and expansive amidst the world of Tellius. Could this empire truly possess so much untapped power over the rest of the world? The king could not avoid this fact, and it absolutely scared him to the brink of death. What could the peaceful king do but consent to the peace bartered by his favored hero and the prime minister of the foreign nation? He could do nothing and humbly accepted the terms of the negotiated peace.
"My King, I'm sorry for the failure of my men in the battle." Gawain bowed down low, kneeling in submission. The king arose from his throne, and moved to Gawain. In this situation, a ruthless master would separate the head from the shoulders. He would strike to punish the man who lay prostrate before him a penance for the shame his subordinates have brought the realm. This would be the action due and expected of a ruthless leader, however, the king of Daein was not that kind of man. He was gentle in nature, forgiving, and had the utmost trust in the men he appointed to leader his military. He never used his military for offensive efforts, not once in the thirty years of his reign. In many ways, the king thought of his standing military as peacekeepers, and they also in addition to military duties worked for the country, as seasonal farmers, as road builders, and as construction crews for major building projects. This was the way the king of Daein loved to have his military be used; a pattern of defense and development. This was a system that Gawain thrived under, and with his prowess gained the ultimate love of the king as his own brother.
The king reached out his left arm and raised the head of his favored general. Their eyes met as he smiled. "Get up my friend, I am simply glad that you are alive." Gawain rose to his feet and was embraced by the king. He could feel the love imparted upon him in the action and was overjoyed at how wonderful and graceful his master was at simply the sight of him. "Brother let us go talk." The king spoke with passion as he extended his arm to the dining hall. "Come Gawain, as well as your men, they too are welcome in my halls. Let us all break bread together." The king turned and walked over toward the table as Gawain turned and opened the door to signal his men awaiting in the hall.
"Hey guys, the king has asked that we join him for dinner." All smiled greatly at the thought. Even the former slaves who just returned from the orphanage were swelled with delight at the thought of sharing a meal beside the king. All knew that the king would have a lush spread of wonderful food available and the group had all been long for a decent meal. The previous battle and all its grief was far from their mind as happiness had returned with the sight of the spread as they entered the dining chamber of the king. A table filled with pork, grapes, fruit, and spiced potatoes. Wine and ale, enough to drown them all. "My King." Gawain said at the sight of the food. "You must have been expecting us." The king grinned as he sat and grabbed a bushel of grapes as he began to chow down with a thundering roar. The juice from the bushel splattered across his face and clothes. This brute display set the other into a feeding frenzy as all seven from the battlefield quickly found a seat and grabbed at the nearest piece of food with a strong rabid force. The frenzy began with a bang.
Alex seemingly forgot about the little baby girl as he ripped off a big bite of pork from a good bit of pig. He had a big smile on his face, as he and his friends were face deep in the cure for virtually all sorrow and grief, a massive feeding frenzy. Even young Zell was tearing into the food as she chowed down on various fruit. Gaius began shoveling food into his pockets as he and the others continued pounding into the seemingly endless spread. One of the northern brothers had to cease eating temporarily as the other brother had gotten a potato stuck in his throat. He went behind him and gave him the Heimlich maneuver forcing the food up and onto the floor. The brothers were embarrassed at the rashness that had caused the incident. "Now boys." The king said. "Be sure to chew your food. You survived the fight; it'd be silly to die from a rogue potato." All in the room started laughing the statement, as a red blush emerged upon the face of the foolish man who forgot to chew his food.
In a matter of ten minutes, the deeply packed table was stripped of its food garnishes. "Is there more?" Gaius said as his gut stretched out incredibly far from his sides. All in attendance found this statement funny, all except Gaius who was serious about seeking more food. The king sat up a bit in his chair, as even he himself found gluttony his vice for the evening. All were incapacitated from their lust of the food devoured, and now the post feast complications were arising in the men, as all began to either sleep or feel unable to move.
"Men!" the king announced as he sat up higher in his chair, hoping to fight off the growing desire to either barf or sleep. "With your army defeated and beaten down I think you should return to your training village and prepare for a glorious return to the battlefield upon remuneration of your numbers. After all, lord Gawain here is my best soldier and general. I cannot have him gone from battle for too long." The reactions from the king's words were mixed at best. Why regrow the ranks? Why continue to fight? How could we survive another tour of war? These stray thoughts filled the mind of the seven present with the king….Except for Gaius, he was still curious about whether more food would arrive despite having the equivalent of six full meals stored in his pockets. Slowly however, all six soldiers who followed Gawain in the previous battle found themselves looking to only one person for an answer to the problem and proposition at hand. Their eyes all moved quickly toward their general as ultimately, while they were sharing bread with king, the general was the only one who could refute or refute the desires of the king with any kind of influence or authority. All were fixed waiting for his reply to this request from a sleepy king.
"My King." The general perked up as he was ready for his response. He cracked his neck a few times before sitting up in his chair as he adjusted his posture to give an answer. "Sire, I had a large army and we failed. To rebuild my force to the former heights would require heavy drafting or conscription. We still have four armies ready with over a thousand soldiers apiece. I think it best that my men and I act as a Special Forces taskforce. A small retinue of soldiers, elite in our fighting, small enough to move to action quickly without a large supply units hindering progress. Yet, skilled enough in fighting that we can take on massive amounts of men because of the elite nature of our fighters….My King, what do you think?" The room was intrigued by this response from the General, a man whose previous tactics revolved solely around an aggressively strong shield line of an entire slow moving army.
The king rubbed his hand against his chin as he thought about the risks and rewards of this request. What could this bring to my military? Why are his tactics changing? Who are these soldiers with him in strength? "Gawain….Why do you seek this?" The king was truly puzzled b this request, or maybe the food had just robbed his brain of proper blood flow.
"Sire, I and Satran as you know are damn near invincible warriors, perhaps a match for even the laguz lords we hear tall tales about. However, an army can easily have weaklings, people lacking any real talent and when we are forced to build our tactics around the courage and prowess of strangers and fresh graduates from the military academy then we bring a serious risk into the foray of war. The six currently at this table have proven their skill in the battle and in the rogue ambush in the march home. My lord I can rely on these people and trust them with my life. They may not be on with the myself or the other generals, but they are not going to be killing by a rookie in combat. I request this so that I can fight with more freedom and less concern for those around me." The companions of Gawain felt proud now that they had survived the fighting, they felt a certain invisible badge of honor was just bestowed upon the by the words from their lord's mouth. Alex and Zell were on the brink of tears as the words lifted his spirit further. The young knight felt as if he could slay the dragon king himself in this moment, and the archer felt as if her bow was the grandest in the land. "My lord allow me this honor. Allow me to keep as many or as few in my unit as I desire and I promise you that we will always answer any call or command given by you. We shall be your sword, your spear, your shield. Your elite of elite soldiers."
The king smiled as he lifted his head up. "Fine my friend. You are granted this. Keep your fortress in Carn, and use it as your unit's resting ground in between assignments." The general grinned and bowed in submission happy and humbled by his master's answer to his request, the others followed their lord as they bowed in deference to the answer of the King. "However." The king began to speak again. Gawain and his men raised their heads as the voice of the king caught their attention once more. "You men will be the first men into any major conflict, internal or external. Gawain, I will pay your army the same now as I was required to before your numbers dwindled. This way you and your men will never feel under compensated for their tiresome efforts and risk in combat." Smiles burst forth upon the faces of the seven soldiers, as they knew just how wonderful their risky service to their king would pay off for them. "You shall be Daein's Special force: Gawain's Mercenaries."