The Guardians: Book One of the Restoration Series (15 page)

“Good.
Thank you Derek.
Young lady, your next.”
The sergeant said.

The woman had black hair that reached down past her shoulders, with dark eyes and high angular cheek bones. She was wearing brown trousers and a green tunic. “My name is Heather Elt, and I trained in the druid monastery of Garath Al-Denari. I am a good warrior, and an excellent woodsman.”

The sergeant merely nodded at the next soldier.

The next soldier had skin that was as black as night. Flare had seen several guardian soldiers with similarly colored skin, but he had not had a chance to get to know any of them. He was extremely muscular, and his hair hung down in long braids. “My name is Del-Atock A'bamani. I am the nineteenth son of King Del-Otin, who rules the
kingdom
of
Entucca
. Entucca and Telur have been allies for centuries, and as part of our treaty, each king must have one son train as a guardian. I consider it an honor to have been chosen to represent Entucca, and I will dedicate my life for you.” The warrior’s words were not extremely clear, but good enough.

Flare believed in the sincerity of Del-Atock’s words, and was glad that he had been placed in the same squad.

“Tell me,” the sergeant said, speaking to Del-Atock, “Do you mind being called
Del
, or do you prefer Del-Atock?”

“Please call me Atock. My people are not formal with their friends, or family.”

“Fine.
You’re next,” Sergeant Danlion said to the next student.

Flare had not observed each student when he came in, and he was shocked when he realized that there was another elf in the room. He knew that elves sometimes joined the guardians, but he hadn't expected to have another elf in his squad.

“My name is Enstorion, and I am a mage,” was the short statement given by the male elf. He was tall, with shoulder length blond hair. He had a sharp hawkish nose, was rather thin, and had extremely white skin. He spoke quietly, and sounded like he was whispering.

Enstorion was apparently not interested in volunteering any information, so sergeant Danlion prompted him for some. “Enstorion, tell us why you have joined the guardians, and why you left the elven homeland.”

The elf stared at sergeant Danlion for several moments before he answered, “I left because the elves are too restrictive in their teachings. They are afraid to learn and explore the magical arts. By joining the guardians, I can increase my chances of being apprenticed to a high level magician.”

Flare found the answer troubling. Enstorion had shown no concern or interest in the guardians, and was only interested in furthering his own ambitions.

The next student was the warrior that Flare had fought when he was taking the guardian entrance tests, and Flare was surprised that he had not recognized him sooner. He was simply huge. He was nearly seven feet tall, and easily two hundred and eighty pounds. He had brown hair that was braided and reached half way down his back. He had a wide nose, which looked like it had been broken several times. Flare remembered sheepishly that he may have broken it himself, when they wrestled in the entrance trials.

“I am called Enton Dale, and I am from the Yurkut tribe. We live to the northwest, where the mountains meet the forests. We are loyal subjects of Telur and have been for centuries. I was chosen for the guardians, because I am the best warrior of my people.” It was a claim that was easy enough to believe.

The next two warriors turned out to be twin brothers, and excellent bow-men. They were both clean shaven, but the younger had shoulder length brown hair and was called Callin Obiah. The older brother, whose name was Trestus Obiah, had short hair that was cut just below his ears. Both men were tall and slim, with a dark complexion. Trestus seemed quiet and reserved, but Callin was cocky and even joked with the group. They both seemed trustworthy.

A human female mage was next. She had long black hair, which stood out against her pale complexion. She was of average height, but appeared to have a muscular body. “My name is Mikela Shaltin, and I too am a mage. I have lived my entire life in Telur.” She paused, “Uh. When I was a child, a mage from the Doe-Rushkin academy discovered that I had magical talent. I have trained there since I was eight, and in fact, it was my mentor who recommended that I join the guardians. He said I was talented, and that my physical prowess would make me stand out.”

‘
Do all mages think only of themselves?’ Flare wondered. Enstorion said he joined the guardians so that he could find a good mentor, and now Mikela said she wanted to stand out amongst the guardians. He hoped that he was mistaken about the two, but he shrugged and let it go. Only time would tell.

The next member of the unit to speak was a human female. She had dirty blond hair, and a fair complexion. Her nose was slightly too large for her face, and she had rather rough skin. Flare thought her pleasant looking, but not beautiful. “My name is Murleen Plurin, and I too grew up in Telur. My father is a weapon smith.” She said.

A human male warrior named Aaron Imes followed Murleen. He was about six feet tall, and had a muscular build. He was clean shaven, with brown short hair. “I joined the guardians, as my father did before me. My father died tracking a goblin raiding party in the mountains to the west. I hope to honor his memory with my service.”

The next soldier was a handsome warrior. He was tall, about six foot four, and white-blond shoulder length hair. “My name is Phillip Connell, and my father is the Duke of Atwell. I am an excellent fighter, and a natural leader.” He seemed arrogant, and reminded Flare of his own cousin.

The young lady sitting immediately to
Flare’s
right was next. She had blond hair that was pulled up on the top of her head. She had a pale complexion, as well as blue eyes and a small nose. Her mouth seemed small for her face, but many men would find her attractive. She was wearing a grey tunic and faded blue leggings. “My name is Kara Elba, and I’m a priestess of Adel. My role in this squad is to act as a spiritual guide to all of you, and as a priestess, I have been trained in the healing arts.” She paused briefly, thinking about what else to say. “I’m not a great fighter, but I can handle myself.”

Flare was comforted to know that a priestess would be assigned to their squad. Should one of them be seriously wounded, Kara should be able to help them and ease their suffering.

The sergeant nodded at Flare, and he felt his stomach tighten as the other students turned his way. “My name is Flaranthlas. I am the grandson of the elven King, Feilolas. I’m a fighter, and I joined the guardians because I was hoping to find acceptance in the guardians.” There was compassion, respect, and even doubt on the faces of the others. There was contempt on the face of Phillip, and Flare made a mental note to keep his eye on him.

Sergeant Danlion leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms across his chest. “Good. I think each of you has a better understanding of your fellow soldiers.” He nodded his head before continuing, “I will begin your instruction as a team tomorrow. There are many things for you to learn still. Over the next couple of months, there will be competitions among some of you, for positions of leadership in this squad. Ultimately, I will make the decision, but I will be testing you to determine who is the best man or woman to lead. Custom dictates that the leader
be
a warrior, but that is the only restriction on my choice. Man or woman, foreigner or native, it doesn’t matter. I can choose whomever I believe to be the best choice. Do you have any questions?” He waited patiently for several moments, before continuing, “For the next six months you will eat, sleep, and live with each other. After six months, your training will be scaled back, and you will assume some guard duties in and around the castle. Your squad training will continue, but it will just be reduced. At the end of this year, your squad will be assigned regular duties with the army of Telur. This training is of utmost importance to you. I suggest you heed my words and those of the other instructors. We know what we're talking about. Are there any questions?”

There was dead silence, so the sergeant continued, “Well then, I suggest that you get some sleep. We are getting up before dawn for a ten mile run.”

The sergeant retired to a small room at the far end of the lodge, and each of the students picked a bed. There wasn’t much talking.

As Flare dropped off to sleep, he wondered what tomorrow would bring.

For the next several months, they drilled as a squad, and were instructed in military tactics. Sergeant Danlion took them on difficult marches, forcing the squad members to rely on each other. They also competed against the other squads, so that the students would have battle experience. Initially, mock battles were fought between squads to reinforce their lessons on military tactics. As time progressed, multiple squads were joined together to form a regiment to fight mock battles against other regiments.

Over time, Flare got to know the other squad members. Atock and Enton, the two foreign warriors were likable and trustworthy, and he quickly became friends with them. Callin the cocky, outgoing bow-man also was easy to become friends with, although his brazen personality made his seem less reliable, more foolish.

Mikela, the female mage, was shy and unused to close friends, but opened up as time passed by. She became a respected comrade, if not a good friend.

Derek, the human male fighter, was friendly but conservative. He appeared to be trustworthy and reliable, but was not very outgoing. Flare’s opinion of him was that he would make an excellent leader. He took orders well, and he was single-minded when it came to getting a job done. Plus, he wasn’t easily distracted by things that did not relate to the mission.

Heather, the female human fighter, and Kara, the female priestess, were reliable and trustworthy, but they were cold and distant. Kara was simply absorbed by her studies and meditations of her religion, and did not mean to be unfriendly. Heather, however, was guarded and appeared to be afraid to open up her inner self to her comrades. Flare trusted both of these ladies, but was afraid because of the problems the lack of communication might cause.

Trestus, the other bow-man, and the human fighter Aaron, were both friendly and honorable, but had quiet personalities. Flare trusted them, and slowly developed a firm friendship with them.

Murleen, the female fighter, also seemed honorable and reliable. She also was a relentless fighter, never giving up on a fight. The members quickly learned that she could be trusted not to make stupid mistakes under pressure.

Phillip and Enstorion worried Flare. Phillip, the human noble-born fighter, seemed to think only of himself, and was used to getting his way. In spite of his personality, he was an excellent warrior with a natural feel of how to lead. He had a disdain of foreigners, and Flare felt that it was bound to cause problems.

Enstorion, the elven mage, performed his job well, but had little communication with his comrades, unless his job demanded it. He kept to himself, and spoke only when he was spoken to, and then only in short abrupt comments.

The squad’s cohesiveness improved with each and every day, though. The fighters took turns leading the squad, so that Sergeant Danlion could judge the leadership capabilities of each. Over a two month period, fighter after fighter was eliminated from consideration for leadership of the squad.

Atock, Phillip, and Flare were the last three remaining fighters in consideration, when Sergeant Danlion addressed the squad one morning, in front of the barrack.

Even though he was still under consideration, Flare did not expect to be chosen as the leader. Phillip was the obvious choice, because of his excellent fighting skills and his unrelenting determination to get a job done. Supposedly the job was open to all regardless of where they were from, but if the choice was between an elven prince, and a Telurian nobleman, Flare expected the Telurian nobleman to win easily.

Fall was arriving, so the temperature was cool, but not yet cold. The students were wearing the green and brown uniforms that soldiers worked and traveled in, as they stood rigidly awaiting their orders.

Sergeant Danlion stood in front of the squad with his hands on his hips, as he looked up and down the line of soldiers. “The time has come for me to choose the leader of this squad. Phillip, Flaranthlas, and Atock are the remaining soldiers from which I must choose. Atock, Stand forward.” Atock stepped forward, but remained silent. Sergeant Danlion came and stood in front him, “Atock, you are a good warrior, and you are an excellent addition to this squad. However, I have decided that you are not the one to lead. Your people highly favor honor, and in our exercises, you have demonstrated that you would rather fight to the death of the last man, rather than retreat. Now, honor is a noble trait, but you need to learn that sometimes you can win by retreating. I do not want you to take this as an insult, because you are an integral part of this team. Do you understand?”

“Yes sir!” was Atock’s curt response. He had shown no emotion as Sergeant Danlion had spoken to him, and Flare, who had seen Atock mad before, didn’t think he was angry now.

“Step back, Atock.” Sergeant Danlion said, walking back to where he was centered in front of the squad. “That’s leaves Phillip and Flare.” Sergeant Danlion slowly walked over to stand in front of Phillip. “Phillip, you have the ability to lead, and the single-mindedness to get the mission accomplished. However, in your single-mindedness, you have lost your compassion. You have shown your willingness to send soldier after soldier to their death. Granted, these were just exercises, but I can only assume that you will lead in battle the same way you lead in drill.”