Six - Registration Part Two

Cervik

Captain Cervik is staring out his window. The window overlooks the field where the new recruits are practicing. As far as he can see, the recruits are just walking in circles. From above, this looks no different than with normal newbies. Yet he knows it will be different up close. From above, the individual recruits cannot be seen and you couldn’t see that some recruits have been taken right out of the gutter.

While Captain Cervik is still looking out the window, he suddenly hears the door close behind him. He quickly turns around while his hand automatically goes to the hilt of his sword.

“Do I really look that dangerous, Captain?” asks Empress Alyena.

“Your Majesty, I apologize. I hadn't heard you.”

Alyena smiles at the captain of her imperial guard.

“It's nice that I can still surprise you from time to time.”

“Protecting you remains difficult if you keep trying to surprise your guards, your majesty. It's our job to be prepared for anything, but that doesn't get any easier when you act so impulsively.”

Alyena grimaces. “I know, Cervik, but here in the palace, very little can happen to me. Outside I always try to pay more attention.”

After a short break, the Empress continues:

“Why I’m here is the recruits. I see that you were already looking at them, but from the palace it is difficult to see. I want to know what they look like up close. Are these men we can count on? Is the project going to work? I can hardly go and watch without a lot of fuss, but you can.”

“That should be possible. There are already some guards who supervise, so I can always make it look like an inspection. We shouldn't make the recruits feel like they're important either. That will only get in the way of their training.”

“Exactly my thoughts, Captain. Come and visit the library later, I will spend the next few hours there.”

Then empress Alyena leaves the captain in his office. Captain Cervik takes one last look through the window before continuing with the report that has been lying half-finished on his desk for a while.

A little later Captain Cervik arrives at the field outside the palace.

From the doorway of the palace he observes the recruits. It looks like a clumped mess. A few men have long hair and don't look too fresh. A bunch of others look like they're doing muscle exercises every day to get stronger. There is even a boy who doesn't even seem old enough to grow a beard.

After a few minutes, Captain Cervik decides to have a chat with the guards.

“How are they doing?” asks Cervik to the first guard.

“Ha! They do it, but that’s about all,” the guard replies before he sees who is addressing him. Then he looks straight ahead in anticipation of a stern word.

“Rest assured, soldier, I will let it go this time if you point out to me who the leader of this mess is.”

“That's Major Quinn, Captain. He's standing there on the west side of the field.” Immediately, the guard points out the somewhat older officer.

Cervik walks up to Major Quinn to hear from him the details of the project.

“Major, Her Majesty would like a progress report on the recruits. What can you tell me?” Captain Cervik remains formal until he knows how the major will respond. Since the officers of the army are of nobility, you never know.

“I do see potential, captain. Some look better than most recruits at the academy. Of some others, I fear that they’ll be out after the first week.”

“Why is that? According to the information we found, anyone should be able to complete at least the first training.”

“That may be the case, but as I see it, the recruits have to be quite strong to wear those armor. Look at that one there.” Quinn points out the boy Cervik has seen before. “That boy has only just turned eighteen. If it were up to me, we wouldn't have hired someone like that. But the orders were clear. Anyone who wanted to sign up, could participate, and this boy really wanted it. He was one of the first to sign up. Still, it doesn't seem like a braggart or anything. Apart from a few questions when registering, he kept his mouth shut. Small, young and timid, I don't think that's helpful, but we'll see. I'll give him a week before he's out.”

Quinn and Cervik talk a little more about the different recruits. Then Captain Cervik says goodbye.

Ten minutes later, Cervik is at the door of Alyena's office.

Immediately after the first knock on the door, he hears the Empress shouting from inside:

“Come in, Cervik!”

Cervik opens the door.

“How did you know it was me, your majesty?”

“Because I told you to come to me after you looked at the recruits, and I expected you fifteen minutes ago with that information.”

“My apologies, your majesty. I talked for some time with the major of the new unit.”

“And?”

“He was not very pleased with some of the recruits. He would have preferred to hire only the most muscular men. He was critical of anyone who isn't. Still, I didn't see much difference in how the muscular men marched and how the less muscular men did.”

“All in all, do you think they have a chance of success?”

“I think the opportunity is definitely there. Some may fall out, but that's not a big problem either. After all, it's just an experiment.”

“Let's hope so, Cervik, let's hope so. I fear that we will need them badly in the future.”

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Raidon

In the end, the instructors are finally satisfied. The recruits are arranged next to each other in rows of five and ten. As soon as everyone is ready, the officer who addressed them in the square steps forward. This time he introduces himself:

“I'm Major Quinn. I am an officer in the army of the empire. From this moment on, you are my responsibility. Do what you've been told and we won't have any problems. If you don’t, then you will have to deal with me.”

After this short speech, they are led out of the palace. They have to march all over the city and attract a lot of strange looks from the population.

“You have to see how green they look,” Raidon hears someone say. He's already struggling. Although he has had jobs for some time, his condition is not that great. This is already as much effort as he normally has to do during the whole day. And the morning isn't even over yet!

Then they finally arrive at the gate. Here they are held up for a moment. A discussion ensues between the officer and the gatekeepers. Too bad we can’t hear them from over here, Raidon thinks. It would have been a nice distraction. But soon the problem seems to be solved and they can move on.

An hour later, they are still marching. It is now almost noon and they kept marching the whole time. Everyone is tired and sweaty and occasionally there is some complaining to be heard.

“Okay, recruits, that's enough for now,” Raidon hears from the front. The recruits sink exhausted on the side of the road to the ground. No one has the energy left to stand.

“Now is the time to eat your lunch,” says Major Quinn. “Make the most of this break, because in half an hour we will be on the road again.” There are quite a few moans among the group of recruits.

Lunch is literally devoured. Everyone is hungry from the effort. Raidon also finishes his lunch within a few minutes. Then he drops back into the grass. Wonderful to relax and relax his cramped muscles.

Roughly he is shaken awake.

“Wake up mate,” says the man next to him, “we're going to hit the road again.” Raidon didn't even realize he had fallen asleep.

“But we only just got here!” he says. To which the man chuckles:

“You've taken a nap, boy, we've been here for over half an hour.”

“In formation! You know how to do it!” The officer shouts. With some fiddling, everyone eventually succeeds.

“Forward!” The order then comes from the front.

They still have to walk all day, with only a few short rest breaks. When they are all so exhausted that they almost fall over and it also starts to get dark, they finally arrive at their destination. Slowly a shadow takes shape. Wooden walls and a gate are coming into view more and more clearly.

Raidon later can't remember going to bed or taking off his clothes. He is so exhausted that his last memory is that he walked through the gate. He can't remember this whole room with beds at all.

The next few days are pretty much the same as that first one. The only difference is that they now don't get an explanation or have to trek through a city at the beginning of the day.

Only a week later they arrive at their final destination. At first glance it looks like yet another camp to spend the night, but once through the gate they see that this one is much more spacious.

Then Major Quinn suddenly tells them that this is their final destination.

“Look carefully, this is your home for the coming period.”

They are assigned a room in groups of ten. In each room there are ten beds, with ten boxes at the ends. Raidon chooses the first bed he encounters, right to the left of the entrance. Because of all the exercises of the last days, the men are not as tired as that first night, but they still go to bed immediately.