Preparation for War, Chapter seven, part one, in the Tales of Atoz.

PREPARATION FOR WAR1

That very afternoon, recruits were lined up and those who would not work out were systematically eliminated by the trainers. Those too young or who failed the physical examination and the rigors of training had to be removed in order that the Ranger instructors could concentrate their full attention of those who qualified. To see which of the volunteers wouldn’t stand up, they were run through a series of exercises and an intense obstacle course. By evening nearly a third of the men and boys who had applied for the service were gone, many willingly. The rest, beaten down, cut and bruised, dead tired and ravenous were taken to the tent camp and given food and their first uniforms. These were loose fitting tunics which tucked into baggy breeches and the breeches stuffed into high boots. All the recruits were given weapons, different ones, handed out at random, since all men would be tested on each and then they were fed and ordered off to bed.2

Bjorn and Korok each received swords. Korok was at ease with his but Bjorn was not used to this weapon. He had used a dirk before, but this was a giant two handed sword and he felt ungainly holding it. He didn’t see how he would ever handle such a weapon in battle, but Korok told him not to worry and offered to give him pointers on its proper disposition. 3

They went off to bed that night, directly after eating and Bjorn slept fitfully through the night, still intensely missing Lashir. When morning came, the boys were out early. Anyone who couldn’t drill was immediately taken out of the ranks and assigned to the kitchens, where they would be put to work preparing the meals. Others were assigned to take care of the camp set up and break down and to work on the uniforms and sharpen the weapons. The instructors had no time to work with those who couldn’t pick things up immediately. Those who remained in the drilling and training units were forced at a fast pace to either assimilate or be dropped. Used to taking orders and to following instructions both Bjorn and Korok became experts quickly and were favored by the instructors so much that they were moved into a special squad of future instructors and officers. They were honored by this opportunity, but it got them nothing but harsher training and the new instructors drove these chosen recruits twice as hard. Bjorn was finding it hard to deal with this new development but Korok was raised in the Eek lifestyle and he understood that the instructors had to be harsh with the unit to make them as hard as possible. 4

“Brother don’t be downcast,” he exhorted Bjorn. “These instructors are hard only because they must be. If you are to represent the best of the army and train others to fight, you must be twice as good as the rest. We are honored by this appointment, in this our first day. When we have been at it awhile it will be no harder than working in the fields, I assure you.” And Bjorn swore that he would double his efforts to see that he succeeded.5

Still, by nightfall each day he felt more exhausted than he had ever felt before and he was glad when the instructors would finally muster them out. He was almost too tired to eat, but Korok forced him to do so. When they bathed in the seas edge after each days training, though it was a far cry from the hot springs of their life in the fields it felt so good to be clean, he hardly minded feeling so cold and stiff. 6

The following dawn weapons training began. Korok was immediately recognized for being a brute with the sword. He could hack down a tree with a well placed blow and would follow it up with a solid kick crashing the tree in two. This was a standard practice with the Eek, who strengthened themselves for hunting the biggest and most powerful bears and cats of the grasslands this way. Bjorn was clumsy with the sword however, even with Korok’s tutoring and the instructors reassigned him to carrying a war axe. This turned out to be the best move they could have made. Bjorn felt quite at home with the war axe and shield. Without being instructed he pushed the round shield up onto his elbow and crooked his arm holding it front of his body, then drove whipping the axe in a circular manner. This was something he had often done while he hacked at the grasses in the fields of the masters farms, and the reaper action was perfect for use on the battle field.7

All the men were given daggers and short swords as well and training in sword fighting became a daily event. Here Bjorn was soon proficient. He loved the action of fighting with the sword and would spend all his time practicing the many holds and tactics the instructors introduced. In addition to these weapons, the recruits were tested out on the bow and arrow and spear. Bjorn was good with each, but Korok was the best in all the recruits. He heaved the spear with such ease the instructors had him demonstrate and instruct the weapon’s use to the others having difficulty catching on. 8

By the end of the week the recruits were all shaping up and it was good that they were because the commanders of each unit were told that they would be sent out to drill in the Sea by the next morning. The war was on and every man would be sent to do their part and those who were green would sharpen up or die. There was no other way for it and all the men knew this was the case. No one wanted to back down now. The Kensen would be driven from the sea at last and with many of the young men being former victims of the Kensen horrors, there would be no quarter given. 9