36 Training Day (1/2)
”What are you looking all moody for, Dapper?” Commander Vardoom yelled in my ear. ”Your unit's about to lose to Thors again!”
I rubbed my ears at the same time as I pulled away from Varda's uncle.
”It's too early in the night for this,” I said tiredly.
”What was that?” Vardoom boomed.
”I said it's too early in the night for my unit to lose sir,” I answered with gusto.
”Humph,” Vardoom exhaled. ”We'll see about that... now get your head in the game.”
I sighed while knowing deep down that I deserved the reprimand. After all, my head really wasn't in the game. Despite my desire to stay in the moment, my brain went around in circles replaying last night's fight with Arah and Ty.
They wanted to join me in the Fayne but my answer to their offer to help was a resounding no.
Maybe if a hundred thousand enemy soldiers weren't preparing to go to war with us, maybe then. But not now when I knew it wouldn't be safe for Ty and Arah to be with me. I already had a full plate worrying about Luca. I couldn't add my friends to that.
They thought I was being too selfless or maybe even selfish. Honestly, they were kind of right about the latter.
It wasn't just about protecting them. I also didn't want to lose the people who grounded me here on Mudgard. I had no one else. Mom was sick and Aunt Lena gave me way too much space. Ty and Arah were my only real connections there. What would happen to me if I didn't even have them to return to? Would I just stick to the Fayne and never go home? Because, and I will never admit this out loud, I was enjoying my time in the Fayne more than my hours on Mudgard.
In the eight and a half years since we'd been friends, not once did Arah walk out on me. But last night, she turned away in frustration right after she said, ”I won't wait here like a good girl and hear about how you died bravely on a battlefield I'll never see...”
Ty followed her after he told me, ”We don't need you to protect us, Dean. We need you to trust us...”
And the loud tapping of their footsteps on the linoleum floor as they walked away was still fresh on my mind the next night.
Yup, I was out of focus, and the Foolhardies were paying the price for it on the field.
We were on a wide stretch of grasslands a mile away from Fort Darah. In front of the bench Vardoom and I sat on was a hundred-yard rectangular training field with every ten yards marked by a line of glowing mushroom paste.
Yes, it looked like an American Football field.
On the right side of the field were my Foolhardies separated into their respective teams led by Luca, Edo, Varda, Qwipps, Thom, and Ashley.
On the left side of the field were a hundred knights of Fort Darah who were directly under the leadership of Commander Thors. Many of them were viseres, and they all wore matching midnight blue cloaks. It was probably why they were called the Storm Cloaks.
Behind these knights was a makeshift wooden fort with the fist banner of Fort Darah at its peak.
Opposite my spot on the field was another bench. Sitting on that bench was Five-Thousand Man Commander Roger Thors and his visere strategist, a twenty-something guy with straight shoulder-length black hair and horn-rimmed glasses named Matt Stevenson.
Behind them stood a small army of nine hundred straight-backed men and fairies—and they all wore the same matching blue cloaks.
A fifth of his army watched our battlefield which was most certainly a form of psychological warfare they were using on us. But to me, it was just plain dirty. The big guy ganging up on the little guy.
”Well, you've been repelled twice since this skirmish started... what are you going to do?” Vardoom asked.
In what I assumed was punishment for both of us missing the previous night's training, Great General Darah had assigned Vardoom to act as my mentor in this strategy game. And although he was trying his best to guide me, I just wasn't feeling his teaching style of smacking the back of my head whenever my orders caused us to fall back.
”Should we attempt the blitz again, Commander?” Aura asked.
She was standing behind me and Vardoom and acting as my adjutant.
”No...” I shook my head. ”Last time we tried that, we lost a dozen guys... Let's go with... hold on.”
I leaned forward and gazed out at the enemy's formation.
About fifty of them had formed three rows of defensive lines facing my unit. Another twenty lined up alongside their fort. Two groups of ten-man archers stood on opposite sides of the fort with the last ten cramped on the small wooden balconies and pathways of the wooden fort itself.
Commander Thors seemed to be playing things by the book.
Smack!
Vardoom had just slapped the back of my head.
”No using your fairy gift, Dapper,” he guffawed like he was enjoying hitting me.
”I wasn't...” I complained while I rubbed my head.
”Could have sworn I saw your eyes glitter,” he countered.
”My eyes don't glitter... it doesn't work that way,” I reasoned.
Vardoom shrugged. ”Humph... my mistake. Carry on.”
The smirk on his face made me wish I was facing his unit tonight rather than Thors. After all, I'd beaten him a few times on these skirmishes already this past month. We each had five wins apiece.
I sighed and forced my focus back on my team. Then I heard the tapping of feet walking away and sighed again. Clearly, I was still bothered by my friends being mad at me.
Aura's hand clasped my shoulder and squeezed gently. This made me look up at her, and from the sympathetic expression on her face, I could tell that she could feel a bit of what was depressing me.
It wasn't the first time she'd read my mood, and I wondered just how deep this contractor relationship went.
I exhaled a deep breath before I called the play, ”Let's go with the Hail Mary... Have Thom ready to catch.”
Aura nodded uncertainly. ”Alright, Commander...”
Her apprehension was justified. We'd never really tested this particular move before. Ergo, the 'Hail Mary' call sign. And yes, I forced the Foolhardies to learn some football terms.
Aura raised her staff and made the orb on its tip glow five times. She relayed this secret sign to our bookkeeper on the field, Zarz, who then relayed my orders to the six team leaders.
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