After Loup and Léonce went their separate ways, Loup had taken a moment to pause again, this time behind a nearby wall. He wanted to avoid the eyes of his brother. He didn’t feel comfortable with the idea of asking his big brother for help or advice. It was times like these that he felt like a child. He was a solo hunter, a man who could shoot a grain of rice off a man’s head from 100 paces with a rusty musket, and yet here he was, afraid to go to meet his new commander and unit. Leaning back against the wall, he clutched his chest, taking in deep breaths, remembering what Léonce said. He knew they’d see each other again in the evening. Closing his eyes and looking up towards the sky, he took three breaths in, and out. He visibly calmed, and as he calmed down, he found himself walking towards the Regiment’s main base.
The trip was relatively quick, too, as the Riflemen's base was fairly close to the training base, which made it relatively simple to find. The tiny base itself was similar to that of the elite Cuirassiers, with the only notable differences being the standard and, of course, emblem. The site was also protected by a pair of green-jacket men who stood at attention, weapons acting as a sort of barrier. When Loup came up, neither seemed to react at first, and it was only when Loup came to stop in front of the crossed bayonets obstructing his path that the Sergeant spoke up.
“Rank, name, and purpose for visit?”
“Cadet Loup, I’m here to get my orders and finish my training,” he answered softly before producing a slip holding his orders.
The Sergeant grabbed the sheet of paper and quickly scanned its contents, nodding contently with what he found before handing it back. “Alright then, in you go. Don’t keep your Captain waiting.”
“Thanks,”
With that, Loup made his way into the base proper. As he actually passed the gates and entered, he instinctively knew which building to head towards, given the number of men and women who entered and left the central building.
No one bothered to pay attention to the young Cadet beyond a few curious glances before they either walked past or entered some other room in the building. Loup fought the nervous sensation he got from it until he came to the Captain’s office.
“No Loup! come on… you’re better than this. Breath,” Loup told himself.
Taking a few more deep breaths, he finally managed to muster his courage and pushed open the door and marched inside. The room was similar to the Cuirassier Captain’s, only more messy and disorganized and with a cabal of officers standing or sitting around the desk at the far end of the room. There, sat Captain Veros Isono, commander of the A Company, and the man Loup was to report to. Loup marched towards the man, stopping a respectful distance away before snapping to attention.
“Cadet Loup, reporting for training and placement. Sir!”
The Officers watched the young Cadet with interest before their eyes fell on the Captain who leaned over and rested his arms on the oak desk top.
“So… you’re one of the brothers all those rumours were about, eh? Well, shit, you’re not as scary as I thought you’d be. Haha! You should hear it, too. Shit’s fucking funny!” He laughed with the others before he waved Loup at ease, “Come on, none of that, none of that! There's no need for all that BS formality stuff around me, Cadet. Shit, if anything, it should be me saluting you, what with you slated to become the personal Knight of the Crown Princess herself! See, now that shit’s impressive as fuck. Me? I’m just some lucky ass noble who got to where he is by being in the wrong places at the right times,” As he spoke, he threw his boots up on the desk and leaned back into his chair, “But, enough about me, what about you? All I know is you’re new, a future Imperial Knight, and a damn handsome lad! Better looking than this ugly bastard,” He quipped, nodding towards the towering man to his left, who grinned, showing he was missing a few teeth.
“Ain’t got ‘nothing to worry about,” He greeted before extending his hand for a shake.
Loup took the invitation and shook the man’s hand and was caught off guard by the man’s gentle grip, “Pleasure.”
The tall man smiled. The others soon did the same, each one far friendlier than Loup was used to thus far.
“Well, don’t just stand there lad! Grab a chair! Come on, join us! We’re currently making wagers to see where the next war will be. My bet is the Demon Lands to the far East. No doubt the Eastern Kingdoms need a few talented rifles to aid them in their crusade, eh?” The Captain said, prompting the others to speak up, either in support or against the theory.
As he pulled a chair up, he wondered if Léonce was having the same luck as he was regarding his company command.
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After a few hours of discussion, Loup came to understand why the Captain was so liberal with the rules and preferred to have a more relaxed style of command. Apparently, he was forced to join the military by his mother, who believed it necessary to remove a hindrance to his older brother’s position as Heir to the family. What she didn’t know, though, was just how well he’d excel in the military. His luck, as it turns out, was rather high. He’d won a number of engagements in his ten years of service and a wide array of honours to show for it as well. However, most of those medals he kept hanging framed on his wall, as he didn’t much like wearing them unless told to.
“Alright, Loup. I think I’ve gotten to know you a bit better, so let me lay down what’s going to happen with your training. The first bit will obviously be focused on getting your kit. While you have the basic shit, you’ll still need ammo, runes to fire our fancy new rifle, and of course time enough to practice shooting. While I don’t doubt your ability to handle a fire arm, the new toys Hussar Square have us using are a bit temperamental and can throw off one’s aim by the force alone. So having a few hours per week on the range will help get you adjusted to firing the thing. The other bit you’ll need to do is hunting and survival training,” The Captain explained as he pushed himself away from his desk and up to his feet once more, “Now, I imagine that won’t be too challenging for a future Imperial Knight, but it never hurts to be prepared, eh?” He grinned.
Loup nodded, before replying, “I used to be a farmer and hunter back home, so… I think it shouldn’t be too much trouble for me.”
“Even better! Ha! No doubt many of our lads and lasses will be looking to you for guidance instead of the other way around haha! Good, as it should be. Now, I think it best we not waste anymore time chatting here, come on then you lot, lets get this man his shit and get out there! We got four weeks to train this man into a proper rifleman and I don’t intend to waste our time!” He announced to the group before leading them all out of his messy office and out to the regimental magazine.
The building itself was a circular orange-topped brick building kept in a rather dry area, separated from the others, just in case any of the powder within it went off and caused an explosion. Guarding the front door were two men dressed in the same green jackets as the ones guarding entry into the base itself, which told Loup that each Regiment guarded their own area. It was likely to avoid any problematic characters trying to sow discord within the units. Upon coming to the two guards, the captain jerked his thumb to the side, prompting the two to smile and shake their heads.
“Ya, get in there then,” Announced the man to the left as he opened the door, letting the group in.
As they walked into the magazine building, Loup began to scan the room, noting the wave of magical energy that hit him upon walking through the door, with a particular focus being on the barrels of runes that were neatly stacked on the far end of the circular building. Overall, there were ten barrels, each one filled with well over a thousand inscribed runes that would allow the Rifles to fire without the use of gunpowder. From what Loup remembered reading during the initial discussion with the Captain, it seemed each rune was capable of firing ten metal balls before the charge ran out. They were extremely quick, making it ten rounds a minute, far outpacing the standard musket. However, the risk of misfires was high if not properly handled, and loading required someone with some mana, which is why everyone in the regiment had a bit of mana within them. Though Loup didn’t know how or why, he was sure he was the only person within the regiment with the most mana to draw from – not that he’d tell anyone that.
“Alright, here we are. Grab yourself ten runes and about a hundred balls, and then we’ll head out to the range and get you used to firing these Rifles, eh?” The Captain ordered.
“Yes sir,” Loup nodded.
Loup did as instructed, grabbing the ordered amount with ease before making his way out with the others. The walk to the range was fairly short, as the enclosed space had a large man-made hill which served to act as the stop for all musket balls fired down the range. Within moments of setting up, the Captain began to explain the process of loading the rune into a specially designed breach in the rear of the rifle before adding the ball itself. It seemed simple enough, and Loup did so without incident. It wasn’t until he came to the mana load that Loup had a bit of trouble.
Smiling the Captain pointed to the rune, “Take your time Cadet. Remember to breath. Picture in your mind a well, and from that well I want you to draw water. Not a lot, just a little bit.”
Loup did as he was instructed, and sure enough, he saw it. A massive fountain gushing water from the hands of two warrior angels carved from marble. Both appeared to be giving the gift of water to those who came to drink from the fountain and oddly, Loup felt a sense of kinship with these figures. But, such thoughts were quickly pushed aside as he focused his mind, drawing a cup of mana from the clear, glowing liquid; as he did, he re-opened his eyes, and the rune was glowing a bright blue hue that seemed to suggest he was going to be able to fire more than ten rounds.
“Nice! That’s what I like to see Cadet. Seems you’ll be doing more than instructing the new recruits on how to hunt ahaha!” The Captain laughed as he patted Loup’s shoulder.
Loup just smiled and nodded, as he prepared to fire. Taking a breath, he steadied himself. His arms were relaxed, yet ready for the recoil that would inevitably come. His greyish eyes zeroed in on the target 100 meters away, and as though looking through a scope he could clearly see the target’s head outline. Gently, he squeezed the trigger and then a loud bang followed as the ball screamed out towards the target, blasting the head from its shoulders.
“Holy… by the gods above we have ourselves a sniper,” The Captain breathed surprised.
Loup smiled, impressed by the damage and power one round did. He was sure the rifle would come in handy, but his inner craftsmen had already spotted a few aspects that could be tweaked.
“Hope Léonce is having a fun time…” Loup thought silently as he examined the rifle.
