The lookout tower was silent on the city walls. The young guard Leo looked out over the forest and heard something getting killed by something else.
‘Long day newbie,’ breathed Gruff his stocky superior hunched over the window.
‘Sure is,’ replied Leo. An awkwardness glided over him. ‘Gruff?’
‘What?’
‘What were your tours like?’
‘Mine? We were south, scouted around the edge of the deserts.’
‘The far deserts! You didn’t actually-‘
‘No of course we don’t go out there you idiot,’ said Gruff. ‘Why would they send us out there?’
‘Well I guess not.’
‘I wouldn’t be here if they had!’ laughed Gruff.
‘It sounds so dangerous,’ said Leo.
‘Oh it was dangerous all right,’ said Gruff. ‘We fought some serious beasts there. Sand lions, giant pythons they’re the worst. Bloody dune towns. And the things you heard further beyond the boundary…still makes the skin crawl.’
‘Why would people choose to live there?’ asked Leo.
‘Exactly! Right?’ Gruff spat and lit up a cigar animated. ‘All “Homeland” this ‘n’ that. Nothing but boiling bloody sand for miles. Bollocks. If you need the army to protect you from your home…I mean, what’s the point?’
‘Did you…lose men?’
‘Not from our squad, a few others did I heard. A trio ventured too far in; they found the remains by following the vulture clouds.’
‘Vulture clouds?!’ reeled Leo.
‘Yeah. I saw someone oncego out there by themselves,’ said Gruff.
‘Exiled?’
‘No not exiled. They’re normally crying and pleading to be sent the other way. No, I remember I was late on night watch. Didn’t see at first, my eyes were playing tricks on me in the shadows, you see things in ’em. That stuff keeps you awake.’
‘So what happened?’
‘It wasn’t until this – I thought it was a low hanging star or a planet glowing green just above the horizon – it was hazy, tiny, slid in and out of view, I dunno. But then I spotted someone wandering out there between the dunes beyond the barriers. I swear he was headed for that direction. I shouted out to him but he was too far gone. He was stumbling that way. Some sand got in my eyes, I rubbed them but when I looked again he was gone. Swallowed up by the desert.’
‘And everything out there.’
‘Don’t remind me newbie,’ spat Gruff. ‘Just hope you don’t get sent south.’
The recruits were being assigned their tour regions in two days, and it was clouding Leo's mind continually. Four posts existed; the western islands, the suburban Kingdom plains, the southern borders of the far desert and the wintry eastern mountainous region. Upon graduating all recruits had to do two years at one of these locations, to protect the lands, gain real world experience and in the case of the latter two avoid gruesome deaths.
‘So who was it then that went out there?’
‘Buggered if I know,’ said Gruff. ‘There was talk of an out-of-towner, someone who wasn’t there for business or leisure. Strange. Probably a mad foreigner. Whoever he was he’s dead now…OI!’
A couple of thieves had just made away with a market cart below the walls.
Leo immediately fired a few warning arrows, poorly; one hit a tree, the other went right through the arm of one of the thieves. The thief screamed, clutching his arm with blood trailing onto the grass.
‘Oh no!’ gasped Leo.
‘No, this is good!’ said Gruff wide-eyed putting a hand on Leo’s shoulder. ‘Give them a message! Tell ’em next one’ll be in the nuts!’
‘What?’
‘Go on!’ barked Gruff pushing Leo to the edge. He leaned over at the two panicked thieves. Leo closed his eyes and summoned his hardest inner-tones and released.
‘I WILL SHOOT YOU IN THE DICK THIEF! GET OUT OF HERE!’ he yelled out and turned to Gruff.
Gruff grinned nodding. ‘Yes, excellent!’
The thieves retreated bowing and apologising with three hands raised.
‘Wow that was such a rush!’ Leo exclaimed.
‘First time hitting a thief?’ asked Gruff.
‘Yeah!’
‘Feels good doesn’t it?’
‘Yes!’
‘Drinks are still on you tonight,’ laughed Gruff as Leo’s face dropped. The thieves scarpered away to the slums nearby. Far away in the forest something started killing something else.
‘I don’t know Gruff, I’m just hoping I get sent to the islands.’
‘Well they’re not all safe,’ returned Gruff. ‘I mean safer, but you got the pirates and monsters out there in the seas.’
‘But they rarely come near the islands, right? Pretty sure they don’t compare to sand lions.’
‘I’m sure they don’t. Cheer up newbie you could be posted in the suburbs.’
‘That’d be good.’
‘Oh yeah? Because of whatsherface? The cute one from the docks?’
‘Ezra.’
‘Ezra! You ever planning to make a move or is staring just your thing?’
‘Shut up Gruff.’
Gruff laughed. ‘I’m going to set her up with you before you go.’
‘No don’t, please!’
‘Well then when newbie? God you need to be more of a man. Eventually she’ll get snapped up by some trader or dockhand soon enough.’
‘Just do me a favour and don’t try and talk to her.’
‘You saying I can’t inspire her?’ said Gruff menacingly, rubbing his gut erotically.
‘You’re hideous Gruff. You’d make her cry.’
‘Who you calling hideous newbie?!’
‘Those children cried on sight of you.’
‘That’s slum kids for you.’
‘You were half naked.’
‘That was the grog talking.’
‘You were defiling the fountain.’
‘Yes, and truth be told I will probably do so again. You'll never know unless you ask her newbie.’
‘Yeah, yeah,’ sighed Leo watching an eagle shriek and dive down into the forest canopy. ‘I can’t think beyond this week. I just wish I could go back to–’
‘Don’t you dare go thinking about defecting!’ snapped Gruff angrily. ‘You know what they do to deserters. It is your duty son. If you don’t do your duty, I’ll bust your ass myself. I’ll hack off your limbs and drag you to the desert edge, hand you over the sand lions and watch as you get torn to shreds and vultures pick apart your bones and flesh until there’s nothing left of you.’
‘Okay,’ said Leo.
ns 15.158.61.16da2
