Servant by Matt Stuckey (the ebook reader .txt) 📖

Grumbling to himself, Fulmino quickly gathered up his possessions and readied himself for the days’ march. Fulmino cursed his growling stomach as Muscles wolfed down his plain breakfast of oats and flashed the same shark smile at Fulmino again. Fulmino pointedly turned his back on Muscles and began stretching for the days’ coming exertions.

Just as he had finished his first bend, he heard a slight noise behind him and quickly found his face eating dirt with a pain in his backside. Whirling to his feet, Fulmino saw Muscles calmly walking back to his place beside the fire to finish breakfast. Aldon was doubled over laughing on the ground, whereas Leonidus looked over with some concern at Fulmino. Fulmino hardly cared about what the other boys were doing, so great was his fury at Muscles. Shaking from head to toe, Fulmino shouted “What was that for!”

Surprisingly, there was no mocking smile on Muscles face this time. “Never turn your back on your enemy boy. Not for any reason, unless you want to end up dead.”

Muttering darkly under his breath, Fulmino resumed his stretching while facing Muscles squarely. As breakfast was finished, the sun had just begun to peek over the horizon, warming the boys considerably. Muscles adopted his usual sardonic grin.

“Well boys, it’s time to get moving now that the sun is here. Everyone remember this morning’s lesson: Don’t turn your back on the enemy or get it in your head that you’re a fancy boy out on the job, as this one here seemed to think.”

Fulmino’s face heated beet red as the comment sunk in regarding the way he had positioned his body. Even Leonidus laughed this time, though in a much quieter manner than Aldon let loose with. Fulmino wished that the earth would just swallow him now. Could he look like any more of an idiot right now?

As obvious as Fulmino’s mortification was, Muscles surprisingly let it go at that and started the boys to marching. As hours rolled by mercilessly, Fulmino’s mind began to wonder at Muscles. Though he taunted Fulmino more skillfully than his previous tormentors from school at times, he always seemed to realize how far to go. Also, he seemed to take lessons very seriously, especially those that would keep the boys alive. If he was a merciless tormentor like the other children Fulmino had known, why was he so concerned about keeping them alive? Perhaps it was because he wanted them to make him look good. Yes, that must be it. After all, the longer they stayed alive and the more they accomplished, the better it reflected on the one who chose them for service.

As these thoughts whirled in Fulmino’s head, he realized that the sun had steadily set towards the horizon, signaling the end of the marching day. As his brain began to take stock of his body, Fulmino nearly groaned aloud from the variety of aches and pains that chorused at him incessantly, now that he was paying attention. Muscles gave the boys instructions on where to store their gear, and then signaled them to join him in a small clearing.

“Aldon and Leonidus, pair up and go through the usual. It will be some time before I can train all three of you as a group, and in the meantime I expect you to perfect your current techniques.”

“Yes sir!” The two boys thundered in unison. Immediately, the two boys picked up wooden practice weapons and began to slowly execute moves on each other.

Fulmino watched the two boys performing their moves before realizing that Muscles was staring at him. Muscles grunted as Fulmino turned his attention towards him.

“About time boy; you won’t learn by sitting around watching others, it is your own body that you must train. In order to train you, we will spar every day for a few weeks and see how you do. If you have no skill with one weapon, we will try another until your skill is found. Your potential will determine how training will commence. Most likely, you will end up learning weapon forms with Aldon and Leonidus, but we will see. Pick up the spear boy, and prepare to defend yourself!”

As Fulmino hefted the “spear” that was a long piece of wood with a blunted tip, Muscles included his final instructions.

“The weapons, as you may have notice, are blunt tipped and made of wood. This is so you don’t hack off your own arm in training. Depending on how far your weapon training progresses, you may eventually reach unsharpened blades, but don’t count on it. As far as our training is concerned, expect to be beaten and bruised on a regular basis. I will avoid breaking any bones, and you should remember that this is training. With me, fight like your life depends on it. When training with similarly unskilled grubs like Aldon and Leonidus, show restraint so as to not kill each other. Are we clear?”

“Yes sir!” Fulmino loudly responded.

Muscles nodded as if pleased, then whacked Fulmino on the shin soundly with his mock spear. Gasping in pain, Fulmino, gripped his spear like a bat and swung it at Muscles’ head. Muscles ducked and stabbed Fulmino in the stomach with the blunted tip, causing Fulmino’s breath to whoosh out in a loud huff. Casually, Muscles approached Fulmino and swept his legs with the spear, leaving Fulmino gasping on the ground like a landed fish. Fulmino’s eyes bulged as Muscles drove the spear right down at his head. At the last second, the spear stopped an inch from Fulmino’s right eye. Muscles grinned.

“Normally I would do something dramatic, like drive the spear a foot in the earth beside your head, but your dumb self would probably move your head in that direction just in time to crack your skull like an egg and deprive me of one of my prize dogs. Nevertheless, let’s try again."

Hours went by with the setting sun in the background as Fulmino was beaten black and blue as Muscles had promised. Muscles was actually very helpful while pulping Fulmino, showing him how to properly hold the spear and revealing low tier moves and combos that allowed for a few seconds respite before Fulmino kissed the ground again.

Finally, covered in sweat, Fulmino picked himself up from the ground to see Muscles’ outstretched palm signaling the end of training. Fulmino allowed himself to sink back to the ground, enviously noticing how little exertion showed on Muscles. Muscles made no comment and briskly walked towards camp, presumably to begin dinner.

Aldon and Leonidus followed close behind, looking tired but not as utterly spent as Fulmino felt. Fulmino allowed himself a minute of respite on the ground before forcing his beaten body to walk towards camp. After dinner, Fulmino was pleasantly surprised to see Leonidus walking towards him. Muscles was as usual seeing to his gear, while Aldon had turned in early. Laughter must be much more exhausting work than it appeared.

“Hey”

“Hey, what is it?" Fulmino politely inquired.

“Just wanted to let you know that things will get better, just to give it time. I know the commander can be cutting with his jokes sometimes, but that’s just the way it is starting out. Most guys get it starting out until there is someone new to turn their attention on. If it makes you feel better, I was playing dunce regularly before we picked you up.”

Fulmino laughed quietly, realizing that Leonidus had a lot in common with him, as he had first suspected.

“Thanks Leonidus, I really appreciate you letting me know.”

“You’re welcome. Just let me know if you need any help, I know how it is to be the odd man out. Here’s some free advice from someone who learned the hard way: don’t go out of your way to stand out here. In a village, you can get away with it, but out here it can get you killed. If nobody likes you, either a shield won’t be covering you when the time comes, or nobody will notice you when you get wounded on the battlefield and need help”.

Fulmino shivered as a chill ran through him. He realized that Leonidus was right; he could imagine what the other school children would have done for him if he needed help: absolutely nothing. He would need to change his attitude in the military if he wanted to survive. Morbidly, Fulmino realized he was dead either way; even if he survived the military, Fulmino would be dead and he would have a new name and identity that the military approved of.

Apparently his face was transparent, because Leonidus let out a laugh that shook his whole body.

Still laughing, Leonidus gasped out “Your face, just looked so downtrodden, like I had just kicked a puppy." Another fit of laughter took him.

Fulmino found himself grinning in response. It was nice that someone was genuinely amused by him instead of laughing at his expense all the time.

Abruptly sobering, Leonidus clasped Fulmino’s forearm.

In a serious voice, Leonidus said quietly “I like you Fulmino. You remind me of myself some years ago, of someone I wish that I still was in many ways. Don’t change too much, because then you’ll end up like me, a dead man walking before your twentieth birthday.”

Grinning, Leonidus gave him a nod and headed to his bedroll. Fulmino settled down to sleep and realized that the conversation had been ended with a nod. He and Leonidus would have no trouble getting along.

Once again, the morning came far too soon for Fulmino’s liking. He wearily realized that instead of a boot pounding his stomach, it was a hand on the shoulder that had shook him awake. He heard Leonidus say in the darkness, “Rise up brother, lest you go without food again today”.

Grateful for the wakeup call, Fulmino thanked Leonidus and the two began to shamble over to the firepit in order to begin breakfast. Camp rules dictated that the first up began breakfast and received the best portion, outside of that given to the commander of course. Leonidus wordlessly showed Fulmino how to make and season the oats that served as morning breakfast for soldiers in the field everywhere. Aldon was still snoring as Muscles emerged from the woods, sweat coating his chest and arms from some sort of morning exertion. Muscles raised his eyebrows at Fulmino helping make breakfast, but made no comment as he began to pack up the camp supplies.

After Aldon joined the group, breakfast was observed in silence and the marching day began. Several hours into the march the boys passed a band of refugees that commanded attention. Hollow eyed from loss and shock, women and children shambled down the road aimlessly and in pitiful state. Muscles watched them like a hawk the entire time, one hand on his sword until they had passed out of sight. Noticing the boys’ questioning stares, Muscles explained.

“None of you boys have ever been in war and seen what it does to people. It reduces them to base animal instinct with no restraint. You just saw a pitiful group of mothers and orphans passing by the road and it made you feel sorry for them. I saw a group of people that have been pushed to the edge and would kill their own to feed themselves or their children."

Surprisingly, it was Leonidus who answered. “Surely you can’t think that group of women and children would attack anyone?”

Muscles snorted. “Boy, I’ve seen women butcher traveling merchants who refused them aid in order to feed themselves and their starving brats. After taking the goods, they stripped the bodies too. The world is a hard place, and the sooner you realize that anyone in the right circumstance would slit your throat for a crust of bread the better.”

Muscles slammed his sword back in the scabbard and resumed marching, his face like a thundercloud. As the boys struggled to keep up they exchanged glances; obviously the refugees had opened an old wound with Muscles that he did not want to discuss.

As