The Warriors of Valishna (Cartharia Book 1)

by Spencer Reaves McCoy

  Penny yanked her silver promise ring off her finger, "Don't make this into my fault. You're the one who created this choice, Matilyn. You joined the guard. And you said the words to me this morning.

  "Any choice there is, between the Guard and me, you did that. You told me you'd considered transferring, and you said you loved me, and you spent the morning in my arms. You did that."

  "So choose," Penny said. She put the ring on her outstretched palm, "Because you gave me hope, Matilyn, and now you're trying to take that away."

  Matilyn stared down at the ring, a thousand thoughts rushing through her mind all at once. Then there was silence. She reached out, folding Penny's hand around the ring, the one that matched hers. "I'm sorry," she whispered, and then she turned around, and walked away.

  Matilyn and Eldrin stood close together as Jones approached the group. They'd gathered for their deployment orders. Jones paused, looking over each of the gathered recruits. His eyes lingered on Eldrin. The bruise from the week before had finally faded. He let out a sigh and continued on.

  When he reached the front of the group, he cleared his throat before speaking, "All of you have finished the training course for officer candidates, shortened as it may have been. Today, I'm going to give you your deployment orders, as give my Warlord Delanu."

  He glanced down at the list in his hand, "Akins, step forward."

  Janice moved from her spot by Sean, "Yes sir?"

  "You have successfully completed the course, and I find you to be suitable as an officer," Jones said, "You will be the captain in charge of the first squadron in the Redhorn Charge. In a few minutes, you will head to meet the troops that will be serving under you."

  He lifted a hand in a sharp salute. Janice returned it.

  "Athens, step forward," Jones said, reading the name of the list. A small, thin looking man pushed past Matilyn, "Yes sir?"

  "You've successfully completed the course," Jones repeated, "And I find you to be a suitable officer. You will be the captain in charge of the first squadron of the Featherlight Charge."

  He snapped a slate that the man returned.

  One by one, Jones read down the list, calling people forward.

  "Sheldon," he said, "Step forward."

  Matilyn glanced over at Eldrin. She couldn't help but hold her breath a little as Eldrin took a step closer to Jones.

  "You have successfully completed the course," Jones said, "And while you have a tendency to fuck around, I have determined that if you decide to begin taking things a bit more seriously, you'll be a good officer. You are Captain of the third squadron of the Redhorn Charge. Soon, you'll meet your troops. I pray that you'll take this role seriously."

  "Yes sir," Eldrin said, raising his hand in a salute before Jones had the chance to.

  Jones lifted his hand, holding the salute a second longer than he had with the others, his eyes shifting to Eldrin's jaw for a moment before moving away.

  Eldrin stepped back beside Matilyn. She expected him to begin whispering to her but he only met her gaze with a sharp one of his own. He offered a shrug. Matilyn nodded and turned forward again, listening to the other names called. She waited for her own.

  It didn't come.

  Matilyn frowned as Jones moved right through the M names without calling her forward. She glanced around and saw Janice staring at her. Eldrin looked surprised and uneasy. Even Sean looked a little a shocked that she'd been passed over. She felt her face with color as Jones continued through the list.

  Nearly half an hour later, Jones looked over the faces of the recruits. "You might have noticed that some of your names were not called."

  There was a low murmur of agreement. Matilyn glanced over at Sean. His name hadn't been called either. He moved a little forward, eyes fixed on Jones.

  "This training course was primarily designed to provide you with the most amount of training you could receive in the shortest time possible," Jones said, "The secondary purpose was to provide me with the opportunity of which of you would make capable leaders and which of you don't."

  "Matilyn Malevus, please step forward."

  Matilyn stepped in front of the group.

  "You have shown all the qualities I look for in an officer," Jones said, "and some that I was not expecting. You wouldn't have been my first choice but we're short on time and I need a Lieutenant capable of controlling the captains serve beneath her. In that respect, I believe you are more than adequate. You are promoted to the position of Lieutenant of the Redhorn Charge."

  Matilyn felt her mouth go dry. She swallowed a few times before nodding. "Thank you, sir, I won't disappoint you."

  "Make sure you don't," Jones said, snapping off a salute.

  Matilyn returned it.

  "Sean Sweeton," Jones said.

  Sean stepped forward.

  "Every good officer needs a good executor to make sure their orders are carried out," Jones said, "in that regards, I want you to serve under Malevus. You are her right hand; what she orders, you carry out. Can you handle that sort of responsibility?"

  "Yes sir," Sean said. He offered a salute. Jones did the same.

  "Thomas Orion, step forward," he said moving onto the next person on the list, "Step forward. I want you to serve as Lieutenant to the Featherlight Charge."

  Matilyn moved back to Eldrin's side as Jones continued to assign responsibilities to the remaining recruits.

  This time, Eldrin couldn't keep quiet, "Wow," he whispered to her, "I'm nearly speechless."

  Matilyn shot him a look.

  "Nearly," he said.

  Matilyn rolled her eyes.

  "I'd have thought it to be Janice," Eldrin whispered, "Seriously though. Nice work, Mattie. I'm surprised. Pleasantly surprised, but still surprised."

  "Congratulations," Sean said, stepping up beside her. This means we'll be working together a lot more than before."

  Matilyn nodded. She felt a little overwhelmed.

  Jones cleared his throat, bringing attention back to him, "Captains will now come with me to meet the troops that will be serving under them on the field. Lieutenants, you will need to check with each of your captains to make sure their troops are ready for deployment tomorrow afternoon."

  "Tomorrow morning, you will report back here to get your recruitment orders," Jones said, "Till then, take a few minutes. Say goodbye to your families. Enjoy a good nights' rest. Because from here on out, it only gets worse."

  Sean joined Matilyn the next morning on the field. He hesitated before saying, "I hope you don't hate me, Matilyn."

  Matilyn looked over at him, surprised, "What? Why would I?"

  Sean frowned, "For what I told you about Penelope. About the dream I had. I hope you don't hate me for it. I didn't mean to split the two of you up."

  "I don't hate you," Matilyn said, "You might have saved her life by telling me about it. Even if I'd been unable to transfer, she wanted to join. She would have deployed with us, or with another squadron."

  Sean nodded. He looked around at the other officers. It had come as a surprise to him when he got passed over in the initial round of promotions. Then his appointment as executor made perfect sense. He thought he'd work well with Matilyn.

  "Where do you think we're deploying to?" Matilyn asked him.

  "I don't know," Sean said, "I heard one or two charges are being sent to Valishna. Maybe that'll be us. It makes sense, since so many of Redhorn are from Valishna originally. We understand the city's layout the best."

  Matilyn nodded.

  "Actually," Jones said, interrupting them. Matilyn let out a gasp of surprise and Sean turned to face the instructor, "Featherlight will be deploying to Valishna. Since they're mostly Priests from surrounding areas, I felt it would be best to send them. They're going to have a much more clinical approach then those who fled the city."

  "You might," he said, glancing between them, "have flashbacks of the attack itself, or worry about your neighbors and friends that are still there. It will be too emoti
onally difficult for your soldiers to remain focused on the objective."

  "Where will be deploying than, sir?" Matilyn asked.

  "Teirford," Jones said, "The outskirts of Teirford, that is."

  "Why Teirford, sir?" Matilyn frowned.

  "We believe Teirford may come under attack soon," Jones said, "We've been focused on removing civilians and securing it as a military stronghold. Battle-Master Rafinnel wants reinforcements to go there. It is a crucial point on the map and I have no doubt that Lamonte will attempt to take it soon. You'll be working with the Stoneheart Charge, led by Ryan Mattheus. They're a straight combat charge, no manipulation."

  Matilyn nodded.

  Rafinnel offered out a sealed scroll, which she accepted. "You're going to want to give that to the commanding officer when you arrive. Commander Jonathon Lund. He'll give you and Mattheus orders on what to do next."

  "Yes sir," Matilyn said.

  Sean nodded.

  "Listen to me," Jones said, "I reacted badly to Sheldon't comment about you guys being ready because it scares me. It frightens the fuck out of me, honestly, to be sending such fresh soldiers out on the field, even if it's a town that's already held."

  "Part of an officer's responsibility," he said, look between them, "is to make sure they understand the people that are serving under them. They need an intimate understanding of the way their minds work. I thought about separating you a little more, placing the for of you--Sheldon and Akins, included, of course--to different charges. I decided it would be counter productive. Because you know them both already. Make sense?"

  Sean and Matilyn nodded.

  "Tell me what you know," he said.

  "Eldrin likes to goof around," Matilyn said, "He hides his feelings of fear and inadequacy behind laughter and jokes. But he'll rise to the occasion of being a leader because it's necessary and he's always been good at make sure what needs to get done gets done."

  "And Janice will need some help adjusting," Sean said, "She's not used to being in a position of leadership. She has some of the same issues as Eldrin, she just hides them behind perfection instead of jokes."

  Jones nodded, "Good," he said, "You can be unbiased about your friends, that's necessary. There are other officers too and you'll get to know them. Here."

  He gave another scroll to them, "That's the route you'll be taking," he said, "You're going to make a long trip around to make sure no troops are trying to get in through the back door. Any questions?"

  "No sir," Matilyn said.

  "If we come upon troops, are we to attack?" Sean asked.

  "Make sure you take stock of the situation," Jones said. "If you think it's something you can handle, kill them. But if you can't, continue to Teirford. Meet up with the troops there, and follow the Commander's orders. Okay?"

  Both Matilyn and Sean nodded once more.

  "Listen to me though," Jones said. He put a hand on each of their shoulders, "It sounds easy enough right now, I know. But be damned sure you can take out the other troops. You've hardly had any training and you haven't spent nearly enough time with your weapons. Any hesitation at all, you go to the other troops. You understand?"

  "Yes sir," Matilyn said.

  "Yes," Sean added, "I understand, sir."

  "Good," Jones said, "I don't say it very often, it's not becoming of a Master-of-Drill, but I like you. I like you both. I like most of the men I've trained. I even like Sheldon. And the last thing I want is to hear you're slaughtered out there."

  "Thank you, sir," Matilyn said.

  Jones nodded.

  "Now," he said, "You have your orders and you have your route. I want you to get your men. Make sure all the troops serving under them are ready. Then I want you to report to me one more time, and then you're going to head out. You're traveling on foot, not on horses, not this time."

  Matilyn and Sean nodded.

  "Now, I have to go finish handing out assignments," Jones said. He stepped past them to talk to another pair of officers.

  "Just to Teirford," Matilyn said once he was out of earshot. She sighed, "Figures we'd be sent there instead of somewhere important."

  "From what I've heard," Sean said, "Battle-Master Rafinnel doesn't like the idea of Priests fighting. He's sending us there because it's out of the way."

  They exchanged a long look, and then set off together to find their friends.

  Matilyn held her hand out to Ryan Mattheus. He gave it a firm shake, and then offered a much more pleasant smile, "You must be Matilyn Malevus."

  "Guilty as charged," Matilyn said, "And this is my Executor, Sean Sweeton."

  Sean stepped forward to shake Ryan's hand as well.

  "A pleasure to meet both of you," Ryan said, "My Executor is Anna Hopkins, but she's running an errand right now. I'm sure we'll have plenty of time for introductions, though."

  Matilyn nodded her agreement. "It's a long ride to the outskirts of Teirford", she said, "At least through the back route. And we're on foot."

  "Don't I know it," Ryan said with a small chuckle, "Feels like I was just there."

  "Have you been to Teirford before then?" Matilyn asked.

  Ryan nodded. "That's where I'm from," he explained, "I came to Westwood to enlist once they started evacuating the city. I didn't realize they'd be sending me back."

  Sean gave him an understanding nod, "So is the entire city a military stronghold now?"

  "Sort of," Ryan said, "Some of the civilians stayed to help. A lot of Stoneheart has family there, actually. My parents are bakers. They decided to stay there to help feed the soldiers."

  Matilyn smiled a little, "You'll be able to see them once we get there then. A lot of your men will see their families, actually. Is there a lot of excitement for that?"

  Ryan's face turned a dismal shade of red as he gave a slight nod, "Well, that's definitely something that brightens up the deployment orders," he told her.

  "Let me guess," Matilyn said, "Your men wanted to go somewhere a bit more exciting. The shore, maybe?"

  "There was talk of it," Ryan said, "That's what I heard anyway. Stoneheart was going to deploy with the 4th Brigade to the shorelines. But instead, we got transferred to the 3rd, under Commander Lund. He wanted us with Redhorn."

  "I understand," Matilyn said, "I thought we'd be deploying with Featherlight, honestly. It came as quite the shock when Jones said we couldn't go help take back Valishna. But he believes Teirford is an important base to hold."

  "It is," Ryan said, "It is, of course it is. I'm not saying it isn't."

  "Just your men aren't happy about it," Matilyn surmised.

  Ryan offered a helpless shrug.

  "How do you and your Executor feel about it?" Sean asked.

  "I can't lie," Ryan said, "I was hoping we'd be heading somewhere new. So was Anna. But we both understand our orders. We're not holding it against Redhorn."

  "But your men might," Matilyn said.

  "I'm going to do everything in my power to keep it from becoming an issue," Ryan said, "While we're lieutenants of two different Charges, we might as well be from the same as we're working together. Unless you feel differently?"

  "No," Matilyn said, "I don't. Working together seems like a much more stable plan that working apart."

  Sean nodded.

  Ryan dug out his scroll with the mission and the map on it. He unfurled it and showed it to Matilyn. It matched the one that Jones had given them, "So I think," he said, drawing a finger from one city to the other, "that we should cut around this way. Since we're not taking the pass, there'll be no reason for us to split into small formations, at least until we receive orders from Commander Lund."

  Matilyn nodded, "Alright."

  "After we march out," Sean said, "Perhaps we should encourage an immediate mingling between our two charges. So we can try and get past any animosity either group might have."

  "Either group?" Ryan asked, "What could yours have against mine?"

  Sean held up a hand, "Hopefully nothing," he
said, "but most of the troops in Redhorn are people who've trained in manipulation of some sort, and we're led by Priests. Your group is pure combat. That might cause a bit of strife."

  Matilyn thought of Eldrin. She could already imagine the sort of comments he might make about a combat only charge. She resisted the urge to sigh. "He's right. Unfortunately."

  Ryan considered this for a moment before conceding with a nod, "I suppose so," he said, "Though it seems like mine might make the most trouble. There's a lot of people out there who think Priests out to be staying home to heal, not out on the field."

  "We're a huge advantage," Matilyn said, proudly lifting her chin, "Since we can heal, that means we can manipulate flesh in other ways too. Lamonte doesn't have Priests. They'll have other manipulators, but none of the flesh."

  "Not yet, anyway," Sean added.

  "I'm not saying you're not an advantage," Ryan said, "Personally, I think it's great you'd be willing to take your skills to the field. We need good leaders out there, and your Charge has a lot of captains with experience in leading. That'll be nice for keeping control of the situation."

  Matilyn thought of Eldrin again, with his bruised jaw. "Right," she agreed, albeit a bit reluctantly.

  "So we mingle," Ryan said.

  "Great," Matilyn told him. She glanced at Sean and saw he was smiling. Just a little bit, but it was there, "Come on, then, let's get ready to ride out."

  "Well, walk out," Sean corrected.

  Matilyn rolled her eyes.. To her appreciation, she saw Ryan doing the exact same.

  Once they'd rejoined the troops, Matilyn faced the captains serving under her. There were seven of them totally, each with fifty men serving in each squadron. She looked over at Janice and was pleased to see her standing in a confident, sharp manner. Her eyes flicked to Eldrin and she was even more pleased to see that he was doing the same.

  Matilyn cleared her throat.

  "We're deploying in a few minutes," she told the men and women, "And many of us don't know each other that well. Some of us are meeting for the first time. I know you know how chain of command works. You go to your captain first, and your captain comes to me. But I want each and every one of you to know if you need someone to talk to, I'm here. Lieutenant Matilyn Malevus. Is that understand?"