NaNoWriMo: Stormbreaker Saga
Reina stood at the front of her column, by the far end of the row. Ten soldiers wide, two deep, they stood. Twenty souls information, full gear and weaponry, just so a bunch of nobles could feel important. Breath hung in the air, and everyone tried not to stamp their feet.
For the first time in six years, Reina looked at her father. Why did they have to be the first ones to show up?
'Lord Theran.' The carriage driver waited for the nobleman to clear the steps, and held out his hand. 'Lady Theran?'
Reina snapped her eyes straight forward, so she wouldn't have to look directly at them. Her doubts filled her head, worries and fears she was so sure she'd knocked out in all the extra training coming back to her. Her own personal Storm raged in her head, half-formed throughts and fear making her hands shake with nerves. Pass it off as the cold, she thought. They can't blame you for being cold...
'Soldiers at attention!'
The half-shouted words carried quite well in the morning air, clear into Reina's skull. She banished the storm and let her training take over. She snapped to attention in unison with everyone else.
'Soldiers face left!'
She spun on her heel, now facing the morning sun. It shone in her eyes and she couldn't help squinting. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the Therans - her parents - walking the line with a third, shorter soul tagging along. Her neck strained as she forced herself not to look.
'Soldiers face right - salute parade rest!'
She spun back to the north, and her eyes relaxed painfully. Her right hand snapped up to her brow, then back to her side. A quarter-step to the left brought her feet to a shoulder's length apart, and her hands met behind the small of her back.
'So, these are the best?' The question wasn't quite derisive, but still rather ... dubious in confidence.
'Yes, Lord Theran. Chosen from the initial pool of fifty, Sir. Each one of them volunteers, and the finest the Morning Guard has to offer.' Foster's voice held little of his typical joking tone - when he put his mind to it, he could actually be a decent officer. It was just getting him to put his mind to his work, instead of wine, women, or money. Still, he wasn't a stupid man, and the fact that he accepted the position of Parade Leader in the first place when nominated showed that he really did mean business.
'At your will, Sir.' He held out a hand toward the line.
The family inspected the lines quietly, looking more bored than anything. Her father was dressed much as he always had in Reina's memory, in plain brown and blue with little in the way of adronment. Even his hat was plain, not even a single feather to decorate it. He believed in his own nobility for sure, but didn't feel the need to flash it about quite as much as some others. As low in the fealty chain as he was, there was little need for it.
Lady Theran was dressed quite similarly, though the embellishments were hand-embroidered by herself. She always worked to improve the clothing she wore, providing it remained tasteful and not too far above her equals. Her dress was mostly blue ,with brown trim and highlights, and shades of both in emboidery. Her hat was wide-brimmed, single-feathered, and quite more useful than the popular trend of the day, which was to say short-brimmed and covered in feathers. Reina's mother always had prided herself on the practicality and usefulness of her clothing.
The oddest of the trio was the child that accompanied the Lord and Lady Theran. At first, Reina thought it might be some servant of theirs, a hired hand or antoher. As they moved closer to Reina's end of the parade line, she hazarded a peek and saw the young girl was far too well-dressed to be a servant. Impeccable in her blue dress and brown coat, she was a perfectly proper miniature version of ... her mother. Even at four, she didn't fiddle with the lace on her sleeves or fidget, and the doll she carried was tucked neatly into her elbow.
'Who will be our escorts, soldier?' Lady Theran inquired. Corporal Foster, who had been following them discretely down the line, stepped forward and nodded.
'By your will, My Lady, I shall lead your escort through the city. The other may be assigned by myself, or you may choose yourself, if you so wish.'
The Lady chuckled. 'Well, thank you! My lord, Miss Katela, let's have a good look, shall we?'
Lord Theran walked the second row, greeting some of the soldiers and asking a question here and there - how old they were, how long they had been in the Morning Guard's service, and other such nonsense that he likely cared little about.
The soliders were not arranged by their performance in training - their position had in actuality been chosen entirely at random, so that nobody would feel too put-upon, or worse yet banished to the back ranks to hopefully be dismissed and ignored.
Lady Theran did much the same with the front row, with the little child in tow watching hre mother intently and mimicing her movements. Her questions were similar, though she added the inquiry if they had any family. Only two did; most of those with family that were chosen had opted to drop out of the training. Unsurprising, considering how much extra time this would be taking away from their families.
'Five, My Lady, the eldest thirteen. Told her about your coming and she said she'd tump me silly if I didn't take the job. She could, too - already taller than I am. She's helping Laura - that's me wife - take care of the others.'
'You sound very proud of them, Private Tilson.'
'Aye, yes My Lady. Quite proud indeed.'
The next Lady Theran turned to was Reina.
Reina's heart tried to jump out of her throat, and she thought she might shake clear out of her armor from nerves.
'And you? Awful young to be with the rest of these people, aren't you? Don't they have a limit to how old someone has to be before they can join the guard? What's your name, child?'
She swallowed hard. 'Reina, my lady. And yes, I am a bit young - only by a few months, though, and I have the full approval of General Morganis and the head of the Cathedral. I wouldn't be here if I hadn't earned it, my lady.'
Her mother chuckled. 'My first daughter shared that name. Looks like you've turned out better than that brat ever would have. You're a bit too scrawny, too dark to be her, though. Odd that you have her eyes...'
Lord Theran walked up and inspected Reina. 'Hmm. Too tall.' Reina now stood nearly a full head taller than her father, who admittedly wasn't very tall to begin with. 'And definitely too dark.' He turned away. 'Don't think women should be in the guard anyway. 'You, soldier!' He pointed at the Corporal behind reina. 'You'll come with us.' The man stepped forward and saluted him.
Theran turned to Foster and nodded. 'Good group of men - err, soldiers - you've got here. Look like decent enough folk.
'We've lingered here quite long enough - let's be on our way.'
Foster half-nodded, half-bowed to the nobles. 'By your will, Corporal Patterson will show you the way to your accomodations. I must remain here until the rest of the nobles have arrived, and then I shall join you.'
'Fair enough, come along.' Lord Theran ushed the Lady and Miss Theran back to the carriage, and after their departure, everyone relaxed.
'Well, that wasn't so bad, was it?'
'Oh, it'll get worse. Those folk were pretty tame - the others will probably only be worse.'
'Oh, lovely.'
'Shove it, Parker.'
'Hey Reina, can you believe what that old buzzard said about you?'
'He didn't say squat about her, you idiot.'
'He may as well have, she's the only girl in the parade ranks! Hey Reina, you okay?'
She snapped back to reality, lost for a while in her own thoughts. 'What? Oh, the old man ... couldn't say I'm sorry he didn't pick me, I guess.'
'I hear that...'
For the first time in six years, Reina looked at her father. Why did they have to be the first ones to show up?
'Lord Theran.' The carriage driver waited for the nobleman to clear the steps, and held out his hand. 'Lady Theran?'
Reina snapped her eyes straight forward, so she wouldn't have to look directly at them. Her doubts filled her head, worries and fears she was so sure she'd knocked out in all the extra training coming back to her. Her own personal Storm raged in her head, half-formed throughts and fear making her hands shake with nerves. Pass it off as the cold, she thought. They can't blame you for being cold...
'Soldiers at attention!'
The half-shouted words carried quite well in the morning air, clear into Reina's skull. She banished the storm and let her training take over. She snapped to attention in unison with everyone else.
'Soldiers face left!'
She spun on her heel, now facing the morning sun. It shone in her eyes and she couldn't help squinting. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the Therans - her parents - walking the line with a third, shorter soul tagging along. Her neck strained as she forced herself not to look.
'Soldiers face right - salute parade rest!'
She spun back to the north, and her eyes relaxed painfully. Her right hand snapped up to her brow, then back to her side. A quarter-step to the left brought her feet to a shoulder's length apart, and her hands met behind the small of her back.
'So, these are the best?' The question wasn't quite derisive, but still rather ... dubious in confidence.
'Yes, Lord Theran. Chosen from the initial pool of fifty, Sir. Each one of them volunteers, and the finest the Morning Guard has to offer.' Foster's voice held little of his typical joking tone - when he put his mind to it, he could actually be a decent officer. It was just getting him to put his mind to his work, instead of wine, women, or money. Still, he wasn't a stupid man, and the fact that he accepted the position of Parade Leader in the first place when nominated showed that he really did mean business.
'At your will, Sir.' He held out a hand toward the line.
The family inspected the lines quietly, looking more bored than anything. Her father was dressed much as he always had in Reina's memory, in plain brown and blue with little in the way of adronment. Even his hat was plain, not even a single feather to decorate it. He believed in his own nobility for sure, but didn't feel the need to flash it about quite as much as some others. As low in the fealty chain as he was, there was little need for it.
Lady Theran was dressed quite similarly, though the embellishments were hand-embroidered by herself. She always worked to improve the clothing she wore, providing it remained tasteful and not too far above her equals. Her dress was mostly blue ,with brown trim and highlights, and shades of both in emboidery. Her hat was wide-brimmed, single-feathered, and quite more useful than the popular trend of the day, which was to say short-brimmed and covered in feathers. Reina's mother always had prided herself on the practicality and usefulness of her clothing.
The oddest of the trio was the child that accompanied the Lord and Lady Theran. At first, Reina thought it might be some servant of theirs, a hired hand or antoher. As they moved closer to Reina's end of the parade line, she hazarded a peek and saw the young girl was far too well-dressed to be a servant. Impeccable in her blue dress and brown coat, she was a perfectly proper miniature version of ... her mother. Even at four, she didn't fiddle with the lace on her sleeves or fidget, and the doll she carried was tucked neatly into her elbow.
'Who will be our escorts, soldier?' Lady Theran inquired. Corporal Foster, who had been following them discretely down the line, stepped forward and nodded.
'By your will, My Lady, I shall lead your escort through the city. The other may be assigned by myself, or you may choose yourself, if you so wish.'
The Lady chuckled. 'Well, thank you! My lord, Miss Katela, let's have a good look, shall we?'
Lord Theran walked the second row, greeting some of the soldiers and asking a question here and there - how old they were, how long they had been in the Morning Guard's service, and other such nonsense that he likely cared little about.
The soliders were not arranged by their performance in training - their position had in actuality been chosen entirely at random, so that nobody would feel too put-upon, or worse yet banished to the back ranks to hopefully be dismissed and ignored.
Lady Theran did much the same with the front row, with the little child in tow watching hre mother intently and mimicing her movements. Her questions were similar, though she added the inquiry if they had any family. Only two did; most of those with family that were chosen had opted to drop out of the training. Unsurprising, considering how much extra time this would be taking away from their families.
'Five, My Lady, the eldest thirteen. Told her about your coming and she said she'd tump me silly if I didn't take the job. She could, too - already taller than I am. She's helping Laura - that's me wife - take care of the others.'
'You sound very proud of them, Private Tilson.'
'Aye, yes My Lady. Quite proud indeed.'
The next Lady Theran turned to was Reina.
Reina's heart tried to jump out of her throat, and she thought she might shake clear out of her armor from nerves.
'And you? Awful young to be with the rest of these people, aren't you? Don't they have a limit to how old someone has to be before they can join the guard? What's your name, child?'
She swallowed hard. 'Reina, my lady. And yes, I am a bit young - only by a few months, though, and I have the full approval of General Morganis and the head of the Cathedral. I wouldn't be here if I hadn't earned it, my lady.'
Her mother chuckled. 'My first daughter shared that name. Looks like you've turned out better than that brat ever would have. You're a bit too scrawny, too dark to be her, though. Odd that you have her eyes...'
Lord Theran walked up and inspected Reina. 'Hmm. Too tall.' Reina now stood nearly a full head taller than her father, who admittedly wasn't very tall to begin with. 'And definitely too dark.' He turned away. 'Don't think women should be in the guard anyway. 'You, soldier!' He pointed at the Corporal behind reina. 'You'll come with us.' The man stepped forward and saluted him.
Theran turned to Foster and nodded. 'Good group of men - err, soldiers - you've got here. Look like decent enough folk.
'We've lingered here quite long enough - let's be on our way.'
Foster half-nodded, half-bowed to the nobles. 'By your will, Corporal Patterson will show you the way to your accomodations. I must remain here until the rest of the nobles have arrived, and then I shall join you.'
'Fair enough, come along.' Lord Theran ushed the Lady and Miss Theran back to the carriage, and after their departure, everyone relaxed.
'Well, that wasn't so bad, was it?'
'Oh, it'll get worse. Those folk were pretty tame - the others will probably only be worse.'
'Oh, lovely.'
'Shove it, Parker.'
'Hey Reina, can you believe what that old buzzard said about you?'
'He didn't say squat about her, you idiot.'
'He may as well have, she's the only girl in the parade ranks! Hey Reina, you okay?'
She snapped back to reality, lost for a while in her own thoughts. 'What? Oh, the old man ... couldn't say I'm sorry he didn't pick me, I guess.'
'I hear that...'