Stronger than Bone (19 page)

(Present Day: 237 Cycles into the Light)

Lynn pulled at the neck of his dress uniform coat and stretched his neck.
“Officers and their stupid monkey suits!”
he thought.
“Give me a sword and a pack over this any day.”

“Colonel, General Collins will see you now,” said the General’s aide Major Kent with a disapproving look.

Lynn ignored the Major’s disrespect and walked into the General’s office.

He marched smartly in front of the General’s desk and presented a salute to his superior officer.

The General returned his salute from where he sat, and then stood and offered his hand to shake. “Lynn, that’s not necessary in here. Call me James.” He said as they shook hands and each took a seat.

“I’m not going to beat around the bush here Lynn.” The General began. “These events…your reinstatement and promotion, are political and psychological ploys.” He paused as if to let that sink in. “No one here is denying that you have a gift to inspire troops and win battles, but you have never commanded a large force like this. It’s unconventional to allow it, but…these are unconventional times.”

He offered Lynn a glass of whiskey, which Lynn accepted. Both men sat quietly and sipped from their glasses.

“There is a wolf at our front door, Lynn. We are facing war on a larger and more intense scale than we have faced since you were last in uniform.” He smiled as if that were a joke. He paused again and took another sip.

“I’m giving you a battalion of seasoned soldiers. You’ll be familiar with at least some of them. One of your company commanders is Captain Martin. I understand you two are acquainted from Hidden Valley.”

It was Lynn’s turn to smile. “Yes, Sir…James, we did some work together up in Hidden Valley.”

“Good. You’re taking over Major Tisdale’s command, and he ran a tight ship. I’m leaving him there as your Executive Officer, so use his experience. I think he’s professional enough to take this in stride, but understand that even though he was only holding the post temporarily, he’ll see this as a demotion. I don’t think I need to tell you, all eyes are on you now Lynn. I mean that. From the very top down, you will be watched and second guessed at every turn. Now, I’ll do my best to keep your lane clear and let you do your job, but you have your work cut out for you,” said the General. “Get your troops ready for war and smash any hint of rebel activity in your area. Be ready for a call to arms anywhere in the kingdom. Can you do that Lynn?”

“James, just tell me where I can find my men and I’ll do everything you just asked and more,” said Lynn standing back up.
“You have no idea,”
he thought as he smiled and shook the General’s hand again.

On his way out of the building, he stopped at the Major’s desk. “Major, the General said you have my orders and a roster of my officers,” he said.

Major Kent looked at him with disdain and pushed some papers across the desk toward him. He then went back to work as if the Colonel wasn’t there.

“Thank you Major,” said Lynn curtly as he took the papers and left. “I’ll remember you,” he said under his breath.

Two days later, Lynn was riding through the gates of his installation. It was late afternoon and the entire battalion was standing at attention in expectation of his arrival.

“For pity’s sake,” he whispered to himself. In all there were about eight hundred soldiers and half as many support staff waiting on him.

He dismounted and walked over to the Battalion Sergeant Major, who was standing in front of the formation and facing him.

“Colonel, the battalion is formed and ready for inspection,” he said with a sharp salute.

“I appreciate the thought Sergeant Major, but I don’t need them to be standing out here in formation to measure the efficiency of this unit. Have them get back to work and you and I can have a talk about what I need to know,” said Lynn as he returned the salute.

“With all due respect sir,” growled the Sergeant Major, “but if you don’t get your gilded ass over there and let these troops look you in the eye while they show you what a real soldier looks like, how the hell can they trust you.”

Colonel Hayes laughed out loud and slapped the Sergeant major on the shoulder. “We’re going to get along just fine Sergeant Major.” and he stepped off to inspect the waiting battalion.

Two hours later, the exhausted battalion was released for the day, and the officers retired to the officer’s mess to meet with the new Colonel. Major Tisdale stood to his left and wore a superficial smile, but Lynn had to give him credit, at least he wasn’t openly hostile.

“Okay, here we go,”
he thought as he prepared to shake things up. “Gentlemen, I’ll keep this short. I have new orders for this battalion, and for the sake of simplicity I’ll just say that we’ll be very busy from now on, and for very good reason. Things are going to happen very fast and there is absolutely no doubt that we will face danger very soon. Because of that, some of you will receive new assignments. I don’t have time to nurse hurt feelings or massage egos. Be men. Be leaders. Be professionals. We have a war to prepare for, and it’s a war I have every intention of winning. That is all. You’ll each receive orders by night’s end. We’ll talk more soon. Good night.”

One by one, the Lieutenants and then Captains filtered out. Finally Major Tisdale was walking toward the door when Lynn said, “Major. Hold up.”

Major Tisdale turned back with the same plastic smile and stood in front of his commanding officer.

“I’ll need all of the records and log books sent from your office to mine this evening, and then you should start packing. I want you off this installation before reveille sounds in the morning.”

The smile left Major Tizzy’s face and the two men stood staring at each other for a long moment. Finally, Major Tisdale, seeing deadly resolve in the Colonel’s eyes, nodded ascent and turned to leave.

“One last thing Major, find Captain Brente and show him to his new office before you leave.”

Major Tisdale nearly tripped as he stepped out of the mess hall door and into the evening air. Lynn chuckled and made a cup of strong coffee. It was going to be a long night.

The next day, a newly promoted and very confused Captain stood in front of the Colonel’s desk at attention. “Have a seat Captain.”

Corvis did as he was instructed and sat down. “Sir, with respect, there are other officers with more experience and more seniority for this job.”

“Captain, what did I say last night? I don’t have time to coddle you. I made you my XO because you have what it takes. You are a fine officer and a natural leader. You have extensive experience as a Platoon Leader, and I simply don’t have time to make you a company commander for the sake of checking a box before making you my XO. I’m looking at the long game here. You and Captain Martin are two pivotal players that I need in key positions. The fact is, I don’t plan on being in this role for very long, so I need someone ready to take this battalion when I move on. There it is Corvis, you have a very short time to learn my job because it is my very serious intention to give it to you when I go. Are you up for the challenge?” he asked.

Corvis swelled with pride and turned beet red. “Yes sir! Absolutely!”

“Good,” Lynn said standing and extending his hand. He smiled genuinely at Corvis and gave his hand a firm shake. “Let’s get out there and turn this unit into a force to be reckoned with.”

“Yes sir!” said Corvis again.

Lynn turned and lifted the pile of log books and records Major Tisdale had left. He held them out to the new XO. “Here you go. You may as well get acquainted. You’ll be spending a lot of time with these I’m afraid.”

Looking less enthusiastic all of the sudden, Corvis took the pile and smirked. “Yes sir,” he said and took the books to his office.

A few minutes after Captain Brente left the office there was a loud knock on his door.

“Enter!” he called out without getting up.

“Good morning Sir,” greeted Captain Martin with a smile.

“Good morning Chase,” said the Colonel pointing at the chair Corvis had just been sitting in.

Captain Martin sat down and waited on his boss to let him know why he had been called to his office.

Lynn leaned back in his chair. “Are you familiar with the concept of a Battle Captain?” he asked Chase.

“Not really sir. Is it similar to what a Battle Commander does?” offered Chase.

Lynn took a sip of coffee. “Not really, but there is some cross over. A Battle Captain analyzes possible missions and weighs them against available resources, and basically runs my staff in the absence of the XO. A good Battle Commander has probably done some time as a Battle Captain at some point in his career.”

“That doesn’t sound too intimidating,” said Chase.

“It shouldn’t be,” said Lynn. “I know you can handle it. That’s why I am giving you the job. It also involves another promotion and gives you some experience in upper echelon leadership before we move on to the next step of our plan.”

“Which is?” prompted Chase with a smile.

“Which is for me to know for now,” said Lynn smiling back. “I’ll tell you this, Major Martin, I will need people I trust in key leadership roles. When I move up, I want you ready to assume a higher station. Thus, Battle Captain.”

“Major Martin,” said Chase. “I like the sound of that.”

“Good,” said Lynn. “Report to my XO after lunch. He’ll have some tasks for you to go over. Until then, find your replacement. Oh, and find a replacement for Captain Brente too.”

“Captain Brente? Haha, I bet Major Tizzy is pissed!”

“He’s on his way to the capital for a new assignment, but yes, he’s pissed,” answered Lynn with a grin.

(Present Day: 237 Cycles into the Light)

It was twilight and Guy was getting close to the Royal Guard installation he left nearly two months ago. Here he was, coming back with a broken dog, a damaged soul, and only a quarter of the treasure he had made off with.
“Not too shabby actually,”
he mused sarcastically.

He was walking on the hard packed road leading to the camp when he heard voices carried on the wind. They came from behind him. He quickly stepped into the bushes and settled a good twenty feet off the road. As he waited, the dog rested in his lap, its breathing was fast and shallow. Truth be told, Guy was worried the little pup wouldn’t make it much longer. He hadn’t been able to get her to eat much, and now she wasn’t drinking either.

The voices drew near, and he listened closely. He watched through the leaf covered branches, but he couldn’t make out who it was. From the voices, he guessed it was a man and a girl, or perhaps a young boy. They were riding a pony.

Just as they were passing his hiding place, the voices stopped and then so did the pony. The man hopped down and began looking around at the ground. His eyes travelled into the woods and he appeared to look straight at Guy’s hiding spot.
“Slap your sister,”
thought Guy.

“What is it,” said the girl.

As soon as the words left Charity’s lips, Cuddles perked up and began squirming and whining uncontrollably. She struggled to get out of Guy’s arms and onto the ground.

“Oh crap!” Guy said as he tried to hold on to the squirming dog and back away at the same time. “Knock it off Cuddles!” he hissed at the puppy as he turned and hobbled through the forest.

“I thought I saw something,” Mateo said. “I could be wrong…It’s hard to tell in this light.” He looked into the woods again and then back at Charity. “Corazon, I think we had better look for a place to camp for the night, but not here. Let’s go a little farther up the road.”

Charity sat up as tall as she could, straining to see into the woods. “Cuddles! Guy!” she yelled into the forest.

“Nina! It’s dangerous to be so loud,” Mateo hissed. Then more calmly, he whispered, “Please, lower your voice.”

Charity pursed her lips, leaning forward and staring into the woods. She tried in vain to see through the shadows as the light faded. She wanted to shout louder, but she knew Mateo was right. She would just bring them trouble.

Mateo’s expression softened and he sighed, shaking his head sadly. He turned away and looked more closely at the ground. Charity noticed that he kept looking back into the woods.

“What is it?” Charity asked him again. “Do you see something?”

Mateo looked at her and whispered, “I don’t want to get your hopes up, but I am certain the one legged man left the road right here and went into the woods. I think he’s very close.”

Charity’s eyes widened and she started to climb down from the pony.

Mateo held a hand up and said, “Wait, it may not be safe.”

Just then, the bushes parted and a one legged man carrying an injured puppy stepped out of the shadows onto the road.

“Charity, is that you?”

(18 years ago: 219 Cycles into the Light)

Joszette hid in her wardrobe with one of the maids as the rebel soldiers ransacked the house and grounds. It was a nightmare.

She could hear the screams of the servants who had been found or chased down. She smelled smoke and knew that whether by rebel blade or by fire, they would be driven out of their hiding place soon.

The door to her chambers burst open and rebels spilled in. She could see a sliver of the room through a vertical crack where the two wardrobe doors met. The men turned over tables and chairs and stuffed their pockets with her jewelry. She didn’t care so much for those as she did for the sculptures they tipped over and smashed next.

Her view of the destruction was blocked when a rebel stepped I front of the wardrobe.
“Of course they’ll look in here!”
She cursed at herself for picking such a terrible hiding spot. She squeezed her maid’s hand and they both held their breath.

The doors opened and ugly men with rough hands and sour breath drug both ladies out, kicking and screaming. The next hours were unbearable. She was dragged out of the house along with the others, and subjected to humiliation and torture until she lost consciousness.

Joszette woke with a start in a cylindrical cell. Cold earth and stone surrounded her. It was underground and dark except for a covered opening high above her head. She was confused and frightened.

“Why is this happening? How did I get here?”
she wondered as she pressed herself up and away from the cold stone floor.

“Hello?” she called out timidly. She felt weak and her limbs trembled as she rose. She heard a metal clanking sound as she drew her legs beneath her to stand.

“What is that?”

“Oh no!”

Her ankle was shackled to a chain leading to a steel ring in the floor.

“Hello?” she called out louder. “Hello? Why are you doing this to me?”

“Hello?"

Hours later the darkness fled and a blinding light shone down on her.

“Help me!” she cried as she hid her eyes from the painful light.

A deep chuckle and the sound of something hitting the stones next to her was all she heard before the darkness returned and she was able to open her eyes.

Joszette cried and wiped tears and snot from her face with the sleeves of her dress. A piece of stale bread lay on the floor next to her. She was ravenous.

Joszette took the bread and began to eat. Tears came again on a tide of unwanted emotion. Hopelessness, fear, worry, and sadness hit her in waves as she alternately sat, stood, or lay alone in the dark. Time lost all meaning. There was only darkness and filth with sparse moments of blinding light and a tiny bit of food and sometimes water.

Once, she awoke to a terrible pain in her back. She was held down and someone was poking her repeatedly with needles. It was bearable pain, but unwanted and terrifying.
“What are they doing to me?

From time to time the poking would stop, and the torturer would dip the needle into something black. She felt a moment of respite and then the pain would begin again.

She woke up another time to chanting and the soft glow of candles. She almost wept at the calming light and soothing voices, but when she raised her head to look around she saw something horrifying. There was a mutilated corpse, and blood sprayed everywhere. Her mind broke.

She began to laugh hysterically until she was beaten unconscious by one of the chanting men.

She became a nameless captive in a dark hole. Repetitive questions occupied her thoughts,
“Who am I? How did I get here? Who is doing this to me? Why?”

She had no answers.

Much later, she lay on the stone floor, sores on her body from malnourishment and no hygiene. She made no noise except to whisper, “Kill me,” when the light came.

She stopped eating and drinking. She no longer moved to the end of her chain to defecate or pee. She simply lay on the stone floor and tried to die.

“Who am I? How did I get here? Who is doing this to me? Why? Kill me, please.”

When she was found, months later, in the forest near her late husband’s estate, she remembered nothing of the captivity. There was just a kind old man who nursed her wounds and patiently cared for her as she slowly regained her identity. Only flickers and nightmares remained of the terrible suffering she endured, and Joszette dismissed them away as fantasy. The old man was not convinced that all was well, and he was proved right when she began to suffer from bouts of terrible anger.

Eventually, she allowed him to perform a strange ritual over her involving blood and ancient words. The ritual worked, and the fits of anger and loss of self control stopped.