A Soldier's Life

Chapter 6: The Long Road

Chapter 6

I was sized for my legion armor. The tailor was a bit handsy, but it fit perfectly when I got the armor three days later. The commander pulled me from training, and Damian spent time with me in the morning going over my duties for mage Castile. I was to be a porter for potions and the unit funds. Since dimensional spaces did not have time progression, I would be carrying an array of various potions for the mage. I would still be expected to fight, but only at the mage’s side. The only good news he could find is the unit allowed each soldier to use their preferred weapon.

Most mages in charge of a unit had everyone wield the same weapon, so they looked uniform, but Castile wanted her unit as effective as possible. The rest of the news was not good. Mage Castile typically replenished 6-8 legionnaires a month—a fairly high fatality rate. My orders came, and I was to make the best speed to the Agorian front to connect with my unit. I would be traveling with part of a regular army detachment headed to the front. I would be the only legionnaire in the group.

I was marching alongside 124 men down a dusty road two days later. I was wearing my new leather armor, and soon the rubbed shininess was covered in dust, and my sweat and body odor muted the fresh leather smell. The captain of the army unit moved to walk beside me, and we talked most of the first day of the march. He informed me we had about a week of marching before reaching our destination. He also freely shared what he knew.

The Agorian front was the border of our kingdom and the troll lands. It wasn’t the trolls that required constant subduing though, it was the marsh goblins and troglodytes. The trolls bred slowly while the other two races bred prolifically, and surging populations attacked the border every few months. When I asked why we didn’t eradicate the source, he said the land was mostly swamps and useless to humans. Also, there were so many underground marsh settlements. Eliminating them would be dangerous, and they would miss some and breed back to a nuisance over time anyway.

My legionnaire kit had a small personal tent, a cook set, rations, and a bedroll. All the equipment in the backpack weighed over fifty pounds. Walking in the new leather and carrying the backpack had me achieve new pains and chaff marks in places I cared not to discuss. We camped outside of towns at the end of a day’s march. I wanted to fill up my dimensional space with my kit but thought it best not to advertise my ability.

I was able to eat from the soldier’s meal cart and conserve my hard rations. Due to this, after setting up my tent the first night, I moved the ten pounds of rations into my dimensional storage, lightening my pack nicely for tomorrow’s thirty-mile march. The food wasn’t too bad. Some type of sweet cabbage with potatoes and celery. Minimal salt seasoning, but it still was filling.

I was up and packed at first light, well before the soldiers. Even though they were not carrying backpacks, they were in much rougher shape than me. Complaints flew freely when the officers were out of earshot. I just kept to myself, not wanting to put in the effort to make friends I would never see again.

The captain chose to walk with me again the second day, and I made an effort for a conversation by asking him about himself. Captain Lucian was the third son of a career army officer. His father commanded a garrison in one of the large cities. He was young, and this was his first command. He was going to command the overnight watch at one of the forts along Agorian swamps. It was an easy assignment, according to Lucian. After one year and he would be recalled. I asked Lucian what was a hard assignment then. He told me about the active war fronts. The constant skirmishes with the other human, elven, and orc kingdoms. Defending and expanding those borders was a constant sink of soldiers.

I asked him if women were allowed in the army like the legion. His response was calculated. It had been tried but always failed eventually. The legion had more discipline and did a much better job of policing themselves. That was all he said on the subject.

The days on the road started to blur. I spent my nights alone in my tent and, oiled my armor, sharpened my two spears and short sword. I practiced what Damian had taught me. I wished I had another spell to work on. I did have high affinities that I could try to manifest a new ability. My displacement affinity was at 61. Displacement was essentially teleportation. The problem was Damian had told me teleportation magic took a lot of aether to use, and aether was one thing I did not have.

On the third evening, I started practicing with the spear. It was best not to get too rusty. Captain Lucian came over and practiced with me. He was good from ten years of experience. I was still able to hold my own. When we switched to blades, he far outclassed me. Thankfully the captain was open to teaching me, which I appreciated. The soldiers watched us as we practiced, but if they were not ordered to train, they would just rest from the long day’s march.

Six days and nearly two hundred miles, the sprawling fields and woodlands transformed into dead wood and foul-smelling stagnant pools. We had reached the edge of the Agorian Swamp. We reached a square wooden fort on the morning of the seventh day, but the fort the soldiers were going to was a larger central fort another tent miles down the road. That was where my orders had ordered me to report as well.

The pace picked up as the destination after long days of march was close. The end meant rest to the men. The central fort was massive when we approached it. It had forty-foot-high stone walls. Stone walls in a swamp indicated there had been a lot of expense in building this fortification. It was massive inside as well. The baily was filled with two-story buildings that were civilian businesses. Captain Lucian described the lower part of the fort as having enough variety to keep a thousand soldiers happy and collect their free coin.

Captain Lucian pointed out a stone building near the citadel on the far side of the bailey. “That is your destination. The legion offices for the fort. Every military fortification has a legion office, but this region rarely sees members of the legion, so I am not sure what is inside.”

I walked the shops slowly before heading up the incline to the Legion building. Two brothels, a general store, three taverns, and one inn. The businesses were active with off-duty soldiers. I had no coin, so I moved to meet my new commander.

The symbol of the Legion of the Lion was on the door. When I entered, a middle-aged woman was in commoner clothes behind a long bar. A few tables were in the room, and only one table had two men in worn and aged leather armor. One graying man pointed at me, “Are you the raw trainee porter?” He asked gruffly.

I nodded slowly, as I figured out that described me pretty well. The other man stood, knocking his chair to the floor with a thud. He drained his tankard, “About time. Magus Castile left two days ago for Formica, a large mining town nestled north of here in the Ironspine mountains. I will get the horses ready. We will leave shortly.”

Still a little in shock at the informality, I was silent. The first man to speak was looking at me, evaluating me. He finally said, “Elaina can bring you back to the storage room. Resupply your pack and take anything else you want. Castile is not someone to be kept waiting, so be quick about it.” I did not tell them that I did not know how to ride a horse. I figured I could figure it out on the way. I had gone on a trail ride or two as a kid. The woman motioned me to the back room, unlocked a heavy door, and then left me. I went inside and found two rows of deep shelves stocked with everything a soldier could possibly want. I turned back, and she was gone. Could I just take anything I wanted? Would I be charged for the items like my armor? Was there some type of registry? I slowly closed the door and started walking the aisles. One aisle had foodstuff, and the other aisle had clothing, gear, and weapons.

I didn’t have much time, and I was told to resupply. That seemed like an open-ended order….