The Two Week Curse

by Michael Chatfield

  “Hah!” Their spears shot out into the space ahead before rushing back.

  The guards carried out the same actions, though they were wearing full training gear, unlike the trainees, who were dressed in simple clothes that would lie under their armor.

  Blaze could already see the deadness in their eyes, the blankness that came as one resigned themselves to their fate, forgot about what they were doing and only did what they needed to do. It was in this state that soldiers were made.

  Their bodies were trembling as they were stuck in a half squat, their legs straining.

  “You are injured!” Blaze yelled.

  “Move to the rear, do first aid!”

  “Chaaaange ranks!” Niemm barked.

  The heavy infantry on the front stood and snapped to the side, their spears up as the second rank moved through the gap.

  “Hah!” Their spears thrust out again as the second rank became the first. It was their turn to squat and hold their spears out as the old first rank cycled to the rear of the formation. The ranks behind turned sideways to let them pass and then snapped to face forward, their spears ready over the front ranks, creating greater depth and more spears to hit the oncoming enemy.

  Niemm looked to Blaze and he waved for him to go on.

  “Faaace right!” Niemm barked. The right corner of the group stayed where they were as the left side moved forward to create a block facing the right.

  “What the fuck was that? Are you a fucking caterpillar? You are a formation! Move as one! What do you think—you’re special or something?” Niemm barked.

  “Faaace left!”

  The left stayed and the right moved, looking even more messed up.

  “You’re in the rear rank and there are wounded—what do you do?”

  “Treat according to first aid!”

  “First aid stages?”

  “Check the scene! Check if they’re responsive! Check if they’re bleeding!”

  Blaze’s eyes fell on a few people who had been slow at responding. The guards moved in, yelling at them and demanding medical questions out of them as Niemm continued to make them face right and left.

  “They’re non-responsive, what do you do?” Blaze demanded.

  “Check for wounds, treat as needed!”

  “When treating someone, whose medical kit do you use?”

  “Theirs first and then yours!”

  “Someone is bleeding, what do you need to do?” Blaze asked. Even he had burned this information into his mind. Erik had given him a full manual on first aid, with a simplified guide specific to what the heavy infantry might need.

  It was simple, but it could save a life.

  “Pour powder on the wound, seal with a bandage!”

  “Someone is critical, what do you do?” Blaze yelled.

  “Hu-ah!”

  “Hah!” Their spears lashed out again. Those without spears had sharpened wooden poles that would be turned into spears.

  “Move to the rear, they will be collected!”

  This continued on until midday.

  “Halt!” Blaze yelled out, standing up and slamming the butt of his spear against the ground. The people working in the logging camp and those working on the defenses glanced over, looking at them all.

  “Sergeants, break them down into groups—food and water. Let’s see how they fight against pigs,” Blaze said.

  The guards, who had been renamed sergeants, moved to their groups, talking to them all. Two were on guard duty; the others sat down, pulling off their packs and downing water and food rations. None of them were allowed to use their storage rings. It made things harder on them, but the more discomfort they embraced now, the less it would affect them later on.

  They sat with their cuirasses that were lying on the ground. They huddled together; the sergeants and Blaze moved away out of earshot as they sat down for their meal too.

  Away from the recruits, their angry expressions disappeared and the men underneath the uniform appeared as they took off their helmets. They were covered in sweat and tired, but they weren’t about to show weakness in front of their men.

  “Fuck, don’t think the sun could get any warmer.” Sergeant Chun shifted his shoulders inside his armor, to try to get some air circulation going on.

  “My wife’s always wanted me to lose a few pounds.” Sergeant Yi grinned.

  The others laughed as they ate the simple rations. They were actually better than the meals they had every night. Having decent food while training was something that seemed to revive the soul.

  “You think they’re ready?” Blaze looked to the sergeants.

  The jovial mood from before turned contemplative. For the last week, they had done nothing but learn from Rugrat and Erik, been trained and trained others.

  They’d grown in that week. Blaze had brought most of them from the army with him and with the training, they had not only kicked away the old cobwebs but they had exceeded their abilities in their prime.

  “No, but I think I’m going soft on them. What other choice do we have but to push them?” Sergeant Niemm said.

  The other sergeants continued to eat but showed signs of agreement.

  “We’ve also got a group of sharpshooters watching over us and Erik,” Sergeant Chun said. “Even if they’re wounded, as long as they make it to Erik, I think they’ll be fine.”

  The other sergeants all agreed.

  Blaze nodded and dug into his food. “All right, so what do you think of the people in your groups?”

  “Simms’s son Rafe is good,” Sergeant Yi said.

  “You seen Storbon? That kid might have been weak, but now—” Niemm looked up from his food. “That kid’s got potential—damn tiger in human clothing.”

  Blaze grimaced as he looked over. Even though Storbon was one of the best, he was still ostracized in his group. He was someone who was seen as a waste in the village not that long ago.

  Blaze could see a greatness in him, someone who could easily become a sergeant, his power rivalling others.

  He needed cohesive units as fast as possible. Although he might be powerful in the heavy infantry, if he was part of the quick reaction force under Rugrat and Erik, his strength would soar.

  Blaze’s eyes hardened. “Seems like they still haven’t learned how to be a unit.” Anger colored his words.

  The sergeants looked over to the heavy infantry groups. Storbon was eating, checking over his armor and then his spear while the rest were just eating numbly.

  The other sergeants’ expressions fell. A coldness entered their eyes as they looked at the different groups, seeing more isolation as people were separated out.

  They were all heavy infantry; all of them were as strong as their weakest, seeing clear separation and exclusion.

  The trainees looked up from their meals. The sun seemed to have disappeared as a cold sweat ran down their backs.

  ***

  Storbon had been checking on his gear and eating as fast as possible. It was a practice that was now bred into him. Not knowing where his next meal might come from, he never let any crumb go.

  The sergeants looked over at everyone. Their anger influenced the very air as everyone looked down, trying to not draw their ire. Even the strongest among them, who might be proud in front of their fellow trainees, didn’t try to go up against the sergeants.

  “Five minutes!” Blaze yelled out.

  People stuffed food and water into their mouths rapidly.

  The sergeants headed over, wearing their gear and spears. “Form up!”

  They had learned to form up quickly and moved into position.

  The sergeants came around, collecting the armor. Then they were marched toward the forest.

  Storbon gripped his spear tighter.

  A man to Storbon’s side tripped him up, sending him sprawling.

  “Storbon, on your feet!” Sergeant Yi yelled, coming over, anger written on his features
.

  Storbon could see the man who had tripped him smirking. He didn’t know why the man had done it—because he was angry and wanted to lash out, or because he didn’t like Storbon.

  Storbon gritted his teeth. He just wanted to prove himself to Erik. He didn’t care about the past, but these others were petty.

  An arrow came out of nowhere, cutting the man’s cheek.

  Everyone went silent as a hidden aura erupted.

  “Blade.” Erik’s voice passed through the formation. Even the sergeant’s faces paled before they turned into cold anger, focused on the man who had tripped Storbon.

  Blaze’s sound talisman lit up before he walked over to the man holding a spear. His face was emotionless as he ripped the spear from the shaking man’s grasp. With a backhand slap, he sent the man flying to the side.

  Spitting blood and teeth, the man looked up at the rest of the unit.

  Blaze looked away, as if he didn’t exist anymore. He looked at the heavy infantry group. “Sergeant Niemm!” he yelled out.

  “Sir!” Sergeant Niemm moved up to stand in front of Blaze.

  “I asked you to raise a bunch of heavy infantry. You rose a group of blades, it seems! Not one of your people moved to help a fellow trainee, nor say anything about how one of their own attacked him.” Blaze’s voice became louder and louder. His powerful aura, over two times the strength of the trainees’, made them shake with fear.

  Storbon, who had recovered his position, bore up under that pressure.

  The entire group was looking at the man on the ground holding his broken face with coldness in their eyes or looking down in shame.

  “A heavy infantry formation falls together or they fall apart. Trainee Yoros likes to stab everyone in the back, so your unit will be named Blades. You will be at the front because I don’t trust you to be in the rear anymore!” Blaze threw out four stretchers.

  “Blade section, you will be in charge of these stretchers. Every failure you have, every time you drop it unless to change out carriers, weight will be added! Go and get four rocks the size of a man’s head from the roadside! Sergeant Niemm, I hope you are able to redeem this group of blades!”

  With that, Blaze turned away.

  “Move it, you fucking useless blades!” Niemm roared. “Form into groups of two! Storbon, you’re with me!” Niemm barked.

  So the Blades section was formed as the other sections did everything they could to not be noticed.

  “Sergeant Chun, Sergeant Yi, collect a stretcher for each of your sections!” Blaze yelled as he marched up the sections, dropping off stretchers.

  Stones were gathered and put on the stretchers. Two people grabbed the poles, putting their spears on the stretchers. Once they were all ready, Blaze nodded.

  “You will be in charge of switching off with one another—the sergeants won’t, to make up for their mistakes and inability to teach you lot!” Blaze yelled.

  The man on the side of the road looked around, fear and confusion in his face.

  “What do I do?” the man asked, his face all messed up.

  “Get back into position!” Niemm barked.

  Everyone looked at him with daggers.

  “In the heavy infantry, we are one! One of us fucks up, we all fuck up. Punishment will not be on just one person, but on everyone.”

  Niemm’s words were meant for everyone as they carried on on their path.

  ***

  Erik moved with his group, as the heavy infantry marched through the forests. They were in charge of making sure that nothing snuck up on them.

  Erik opened up a channel. “Roska, have your group bring in the boars.”

  “Sir.”

  Erik had kept an eye on Roska, having her concentrate on increasing her Mana abilities. At the same time, Erik had her train with a crossbow. She was now fully recovered from her previous injuries.

  Erik wanted her to earn what she gained. She worked as hard or harder than everyone else. She purified the water of the city and she read all of the manuals Erik had given her. He had taught her to create Mana bullets and Mana bolts as well. For firepower, she was one of the strongest in Alva Village. Erik let her discover her own path. He wanted her to develop her own path of magic.

  His was based around strengthening his body, and using it to increase his melee abilities; it was easier for him to understand and use.

  Erik signalled to the hunters. They had all reached level ten now. Their stealth abilities and marksmen were among the best. They climbed up into different perches, looking out over the heavy infantry groups.

  “Boars!” a sentry outside of the formation yelled.

  The groups started to panic.

  “Blades, stretchers down. Form up to face the enemy. Section Two and Three, move to the left; Section Four to the right of the Blades!” Blaze snapped out. The sergeant corralled them, quickly getting them into position.

  Everyone was nervous as they could see the boars. Still, they got into position, albeit hastily.

  “Brace!” Sergeant Niemm barked. The front rank braced themselves and their spears while the second rank pushed their spears over, making a wall of spears.

  The boars let out their squeals as they rushed forward.

  They met the first spears; the heavy infantry let out grunts as they took the full kinetic force of the boars.

  The second and third lines were there to support them and strengthen them, like a rugby scrum, spreading the weight and holding them steady.

  Three of the boars impaled themselves, with one getting through, driving its tusks into a man’s leg.

  He let out a scream as the people behind and on either side finished off the boar.

  “Man is wounded!” Sergeant Chun yelled out.

  “Pull him to the rear!” the trainees yelled out, pulling the man back as the second rank man moved up into his position and someone from the third rank took his place as others looked to the wounded man, using their healing powder and their bandages.

  All of the boars were now dead.

  The man’s pained yelling was dying down as the powder went to work, putting him back together.

  “Next wave,” Erik said to the scouts as they lured in five more boars from the same direction. Erik and the hunters sat in the trees, watching the heavy infantry, unnoticed.

  Chapter: Rapid Growth

  Five boars had increased to ten, and then fifteen and twenty.

  There wasn’t much space between the attacks and they seemed to be endless. The heavy infantry had wounded: eight were being tended to, and those who had been injured early on were back on the line.

  There was no time for them to relax or take a break.

  Storbon took a hit to the side. He felt something break inside his body as a spear shot out, killing the boar. Storbon cut his side and put on a stick bandage with healing powder.

  It started to fuse the bone back together as he got up and back on the line. He was in pain, but he didn’t want to let that take him out of the fight. As they had fought, walls, associations—all of it fell away. They were heavy infantry; it didn’t matter what they did before, or who they had been before. Even the sergeants were part of them.

  They didn’t fight for themselves; they fought for one another. Storbon didn’t even realize it—it came naturally.

  “Second rank, advance!” Blaze called out.

  Storbon stabbed out with the first rank and then went sideways, trusting the first rank completely as they charged forward, killing those in front of them.

  “Hah!” Spears shot out, coming back bloody as the first line moved to the rear.

  “Get some food and water into you!” Blaze yelled. He was holding down one of the flanks by himself. His spear was covered in blood, as was his armor. Each sweep and stab gravely injured the boars, directly clashing with them. He was some kind of war god.

  Storbon numbly took out food from his pack. As he ate the dried beast meat or th
e prepared meals, his energy quickly came back. The rations had been specially made to recover Stamina.

  The boars were their whetstone. All across the line, the front was fighting, the second recovering as fast as possible to get back into the fight.

  Now everyone was stuffing food into their faces, having none of the pride from before. They had hard eyes and looks. They were drained but now their training showed results directly.

  “Third rank! Move to the left flank, form up two lines. Sergeant Yi, take command!” Blaze called out.

  Storbon stuffed food into his face and put the rest away as he grabbed his spear, moving with the rest of the third rank.

  If they were slow, then the others might get hurt. There was no one out here to help them; they had to rely on themselves. They were all the same; it could be them on that line later.

  They moved into two lines. Yi positioned them, calling the boars that came from the flank and directing them into the main body of the heavy infantry unit.

  Storbon didn’t even notice as his levels continued to increase. With all of them working together, the entire group was sharing Experience gain.

  ***

  The sergeants and the heavy infantry were using their storage items to recover the boars, but there was a thick smell of blood in the area.

  “Wolves are on their way,” Roska informed Erik.

  “Archers, move out to the flanks of the heavy infantry. Wear down the boars. Main target is the wolves,” Erik said. This was no longer time for them to hold back.

  He jumped from the tree and landed next to Blaze, firing his crossbow. It took a boar in the eye, dropping it to the ground. His Marksman skills had increased rapidly to forty-one, closing in on becoming a Journeyman Marksman. When increasing his skill, it became easier to use his ranged weapons. He’d already passed the skill that Rugrat had as a trained sniper. Rugrat, on the other hand, was terrifying with anything ranged.

  “Wolves are coming in,” Erik said to Blaze.

  “Shit.” Blaze looked at the line.

  Erik reloaded his crossbow with ease and shot another boar, taking it down before it speared someone on the line in the gut. “Archers will assist. I’ll be in reserve if there’s a need. Time we saw what they’re made of.”