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Corson finds himself transported to a magic land where rain kills and the Voice lives. |
Corson stood in the courtyard, his torso gleaming with sweat as the soldiers around him drank from their canteens. After telling the king that in his world they did not use swords, the monarch ordered him to train with his soldiers in the courtyard at dawn every morning. Over the last month and a half, he came to realize that the king did not actually care if his drapes were open or closed. When they cleaned up his room they left the drapes alone. He was irritated when he realized that. He had been kept awake most nights by both moons shining their pale, orange tinted light in his window. To say the last six weeks had been frustrating and taxing would have been a gross understatement. From what Corson could tell each time he spoke with the king, the man thought he was a complete moron. And to be fair, if he was the king, he would think he was a complete moron, too. The soldier adjusted his grip on the hilt of his sword. He wielded a single-handed broadsword. When the king first had given the order for him to train with his men, Corson realized just how inadequate he was. For the first two weeks, the king’s swordsmen mocked and ridiculed him to no end. He was beaten into the dirt more times than he could count. He would head back to his chamber covered in bruises with cuts criss-crossing his arms and abdomen. A healer would be sent to his room every day to treat his wounds. Tress hardly came to see him unless he was going to the library to do more research. Swinging his head around, he saw one of the soldiers who had started shouting behind him. The man jogged up to him, clapping him on the back when he came to his side. “I have to say, Corson, watching you today, I would have never thought you had never held a blade before arriving here. I know we were hard on you, but we really assumed the king was playing some sort of prank on us by telling us to train you.” The army dropout rolled his eyes. “Yeah. So you’ve told me about a hundred times already. But thanks for the reminder, Kade.” “Don’t be upset about it. You know you are like every other one of us now. You are at the level of a first year soldier. His highness would put you on a battlefield with your skill.” The other man gave him a respectful nod. Corson gave him a sideways look and smirked. “To kill me? Or to humiliate me?” Kade laughed and drew his sword. “Probably to kill you since I can easily humiliate you here in the courtyard. Come. Spar with me. I know you have something left in that out of shape slab of meat you call a body.” The army man gave a good natured glare. “Careful what you say. This slab of meat can drop a guard in one hit, remember?” The incident on his second day at the palace had been more than embarrassing to say the least. However, word quickly spread and by the time he was training with the other soldiers, it was a running joke… at his expense of course. The knight spun his sword around and circled his opponent. Despite the soldier’s jests, he was in really good shape. He not only had to be because of his hiking every summer and staying in shape and working out in between, but the air here was so clean and fresh, that he felt like he was Superman just by breathing. Kade landed a kick to his gut, sending him stumbling back. He was, however, not Superman. Sweat trickled down his forehead and like the king’s army, he learned to focus and ignore it, regardless of if it dripped in his eyes. The stinging was barely even an annoyance anymore. The men had taught him how to laser focus on the fight and how to begin anticipating his adversary’s next move. He knew that he would have been severely unprepared and less than capable of learning what he had in such a short time if he was not in the military in his past. He thought it had been useless, but he was proven wrong. Corson landed an elbow to the soldier’s face and heard a crunch as blood sprayed from the man’s now broken nose. Kade let out a harsh yell and grabbed the knight's arm before he could pull back. He used the momentum of the hit to throw Corson to the ground, leveling the tip of his blade at his throat. “Good fight,” Corson said between heavy breaths. He reached up his arm and Kade grasped it and pulled him up. “Hey, uh, you should get that looked at. Don’t want to ruin that beautiful face of yours.” The sarcasm rolled out thick and the bleeding man punched him before sheathing his weapon and walking away toward the infirmary. Shaking his head, the knight looked around. Most of the soldiers had finished training for the morning and were headed to the mess hall. Well, here in wherever he was, it was called the military dining hall. And he did technically know where he was now. He had been informed that the land he was currently in was called Trent. To the north was Briar, to the east was Grogg, to the south was Bardin and Yurn, and across the Gore Sea was Aeror, Kraten, and some other kingdom that apparently no one knew anything about. It would be just my luck that the storms are coming from there and I will have to go across the whole freaking sea to find out anything. He wiped the sweat from his forehead with his rolled up tunic which simply added more streaks of dirt to his face. Walking into the food hall, a few soldiers cheered and called him over. “Corson! I was just telling Harn that Kade’s wife will be furious when she sees his nose crooked.” One man commented as he approached the table. “I mean he is pretty, so I don’t blame her,” he retorted, taking a strip of meat from the man’s plate and shoving the whole thing in his mouth. He was slapped upside the head as a result, but at least he got the meat. The men laughed at his remark and the man known as Harn spoke up. “I’d hide for a few months if I were you. Jetra is terrifying when she gets upset. I’d rather argue with the king than cross her.” Heads bobbed in agreement as Corson was shoved off his seat towards the table with food. While the palace had the tables full of food right in front of you, the soldiers quarters were more like a buffet. He chuckled as he walked away. “Tell me when you plan to argue with his highness, cuz I’d love to see that.” Challenges were thrown around, along with bets on how long he would stay in the dungeon or keep his head if he were to have a confrontation with the king. When he returned to the table with his food, Gordon, the one he stole food from, took a piece of meat and copied him by cramming it in his own mouth before Corson even had a chance to be fully in his seat. “So,” he began pretending to ignore the food being stolen from his plate. “Who’s gonna set Harn up so we can watch the excitement?” Harn gaped. “No one is setting me up, Corson. If I hear anything strange about any of you,” he said, hesitating ever so slightly as his eyes landed on Corson. “Especially you,” he emphasized, pointing with a fork, “I’m leaving and will default to Yurn or Aeror.” Another round of lighthearted laughter went up from the table. As the men were finishing their meal, one of the king’s servants came up to them, inclining his head. “Sir Corson, his majesty has requested your presence in the throne room.” An immature “Oooooooooh” sounded from his companions around him before he shook his head with a chuckle and rose to follow the servant. They crossed through plenty of doorways and corridors on the way to see the king. Corson thought back to when he had first arrived, he was constantly getting himself lost and having to ask someone where to go to get anywhere. When they arrived before the king, the knight dropped to one knee and bowed his head. “My lord,” he greeted in respect. “Rise, sir knight,” The king replied, lifting his hand. “I have been receiving reports of your training and I must say that I am more than impressed. I was beginning to doubt the prophecy, but I see you just needed time to learn our fighting styles and about our world and customs.” Nodding his head, Corson finally looked up, slowly rising to his feet. “Thank you, my king. It was indeed quite an adjustment.” The soldier had begun speaking a little more like the people around him. He would go from his normal way of talking to the more proper, eloquent way of wording things. It was strange to him; almost like someone who went back and forth between conversing with a person from Boston and then a person from rural Georgia. They’d pick up bits of the accents depending on who they spent more time around. Corson also found that he offended significantly less people with his speech nowadays as well. It was most likely a good thing. Alright, sir, you’re done complimenting me. Why are you just staring? The man thought uncomfortably. With a quick clearing of his throat, the monarch waved a hand to an open doorway and Tress entered stiffly. “I have ordered Tress to choose two good men that you have been training with to accompany you and him as you depart the castle next week.” What the hell? Corson choked on absolutely nothing. “‘Scuse me, sir? I mean, you’re majesty?” The king stopped abruptly and looked at the man before him with irritation. “I leave next week? So soon?” Leaning his head forward, the king pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to keep his frustration under control. This man from the prophecy grated on his nerves like no other and he could not wait to be rid of him. But if the Voice had sent him, the king must be patient and accommodating. Corson could see he was testing the royal man’s limits on his grace and swallowed. Can you shut up for like five seconds, man? He scolded himself and looked at the floor, hoping the enthroned authority above him did not see his eye roll directed at himself. “I think I have given you plenty of time, knight. Anything more you need to learn can be learned as you travel. Our world is not small and there will be many nights spent between destinations. If you disagree, I will give you leave to voice the reason so I may consider it.” In other words, the king was telling him to shut his mouth before he executed him or imprisoned him or maybe even exiled him. “Yes, your majesty,” Corson’s hard voice sounded. “You have been gracious and fair. I will prepare for the journey ahead with Tress and whichever soldiers are chosen to come with me. I apologize for my response.” He glanced up to see he was already being dismissed. With a final drop of his head and a touching of his knee to the floor, he rose and hastened out to the training yard. Tress hurried after him, his robes flying out behind him and wrapping around his legs all at once. He tried to free his pants from the fabric, while rushing to match strides with the knight. “Sir Corson, wait!” he hollered. Corson rolled his eyes and slowed slightly so as to not appear like a complete and utter jerk. “I have chosen Gordon and Kade to join us when we leave.” The wizard knew these two men were the ones Corson was closest to and connected with the best. The bulky man looked over at his mentor. “That does not surprise me.” Then he hesitated. “Thank you.” Taken aback, Tress looked him in the eyes. Swinging his gaze away, the soldier continued toward the courtyard. “I see no reason why thanks are due in this situation.” The bigger man chuckled. “And that is why they are, Tress. You know me, Gordon, and Kade are always together outside our rooms. Anyone else on our trip would drive me absolutely insane.” The wizard parroted his chuckle and shook his head. “Well they were the only men I could count on not to spill your secret to the king as soon as it came out.” “Pfft.” Corson rolled his eyes and kept walking. As they entered the training yard, he changed course for the armory. The man’s hair had grown shaggy and hung in front of his forehead. He merely kept it trimmed all the same length instead of keeping his military cut he had grown accustomed to. He was one of the few men who had cropped short hair when he arrived, the other men in the city having shaggy or longer hair themselves. Letting his hair grow a bit made him feel less out of sorts while he was here. The style was growing on him - all possible puns intended. They arrived at the armory and Corson grabbed his hunting knife, bow, quiver, and smaller boot knife and sat on a chair with a polishing rag and some cleaning and maintenance equipment to service his weapons and make sure they were ready to use. Tress cleared his throat after a bit and stared at Corson. “Are you really going to ignore me?” The soldier glanced at him. “I didn’t know you wanted to chat while I prepared for next week.” A groan of exasperation came from the wizard. “You…” He paused and looked around cautiously before dropping his voice. “You have not even realized what your powers are yet.” Corson stopped mid wipe and seemed to zone out at the floor before he spoke. “You and I know that me having any sort of magical abilities is bull. I have none, so there is no sense in staying longer so that the king can figure that out for himself. Best case scenario, you, Gordon, and Kade return and tell him I died in a great battle against a dragon or something crazy like that. Then I look like a hero or a martyr or whatever and nobody is offended or hurt by my lack of anything including a life.” “Why are you so difficult? I promise that you have access to some sort of magic. We have gone through three libraries already and everything we have found…” Corson glared at him and he corrected himself. “Everything you have found has confirmed that you do indeed have powers. They just have yet to be realized.” The young man sighed and put his blade to the side, taking up his bow and then meeting Tress’ worried gaze. “Look, Tress, I like you, as annoying and stupid as you are. But you’re grasping at straws and there is nothing I can do to convince you that you’re wrong. But you’ll figure it out eventually and I’ll hopefully be there to tell you ‘I told you so’.” Huffing, the wizard stalked away to go find Gordon and Kade to alert them to the orders from his majesty. Corson ran a hand through his hair and blew a long breath through pursed lips. He unstrung the bow and then sat staring at it, overwhelmed. I don’t know what I’m doing. Sure, I can use these weapons now, but I’m just a sitting duck here in this world. I'm no match for literally anything. Yea, if I had my guns, that’d be different, but I don't. I have some oversized steak knives and a string with some pointy sticks. He glowered at his sword, knives and bow. He groaned as he dropped his bow on the ground. “Curse his majesty and all this crap.” A low whistle sounded from behind him and his face paled. “You have a death wish, don’t you?” The familiar voice did little to set him at ease. He turned to look over his shoulder. Kade stood, leaning against the doorway, a mischievous smirk playing on his lips. “Tress found me as I finished with the healer, so I came to see you. I did not think I would hear you spouting execution worthy nonsense in here by yourself, though.” The knight turned back to his repair on his bow, picking it up from the stone floor. “Sorry about your face,” he scoffed. “Go ahead. Tell on me. I’m gonna die out there anyway.” He gestured somewhere beyond the walls. Kade chuckled, humorously. “Nah. I can’t wait to see you try to fight a trinity serpent. That’s the way you should die. Public or private executions are no longer entertaining. I’ve seen too many. And I know you are… How do you say it? Full of crap?” He smiled broadly. “It’s better we leave sooner so his highness does not find out, too.” Corson laughed heartily. Hearing Kade say “full of crap” cracked him up. His speech was normally refined compared to every single person the soldier knew. “Don’t let your wife catch you talking like that or I’ll be hiding from her instead.” The other young man clapped him on the shoulder. “I am glad they chose me to accompany you. Anyone else would end up with your head before you left the city outskirts.” “Thanks. Were you only here to say hi? Or do you actually have something to do?” While he sounded sarcastic, the knight was genuinely curious. His friend looked over the racks of weapons and clicked his tongue. “I’m here to see how poorly you’ve maintained your weapons, but it seems I have come too late. I see I’ll have to just choose my own to clean and prepare.” Corson looked up from the string he was retying. “Then join me here and we can hide out together.” The next week passed by in a blur. Corson spent most of it in the last three libraries. He was more desperate than before to find some sort of answers and it seemed his desperation paid off. All of the books he absolutely needed, fell into his lap, quite literally. As he walked, a few books would fall off of the shelves and they were always ones that were on the exact topics he needed. It was eerie and it made him on edge. The more he walked through the rows of shelving, the more antsy he got. However, he found that some of the information may have answered some problems. There were certain abilities that were more difficult to both realize and master than others. They were so difficult to realize, in fact, that many people used to use them without knowing they existed. The situation with the books falling a little too conveniently sped through his thoughts before he dismissed it. The morning of departure came and the soldier opened his eyes to the dawn shining through his window. He purposely left the drapes open to wake up at dawn so he would not irritate the king by accidentally sleeping in. I’m sure Kade would have gladly tortured me awake if I had overslept, he thought to himself groggily. Rolling over, he yawned and stretched, wanting to enjoy being in a real bed for the last time before getting up. Groaning, the man sat up. His scruff was itchy, and his face was uncomfortable. He thought of shaving before heading out. But decided it wasn’t worth the time and effort when he would end up having a beard later anyway. If he left it now, it would be uncomfortable for less time since once it grew long enough, his face wouldn’t suffer so much. Corson stood and looked at himself in the mirror behind the wash basin. He hardly recognized himself anymore. His scruff was now turning into an almost beard, his hair was down over his ears, and if he had some hair gel, he could look like a male model for some clothing or cologne company. His coppery highlights in his dark brown hair were much more prominent now that his hair was longer. He stared at himself a moment longer before grabbing clothes and heading to the washroom. He walked in to find Kade and Gordon apparently having the same idea as him. Throwing a towel and all his clothing to the side, the knight lowered himself into the giant pool of water. It was built on a hot spring and was large enough to fit at least fifty men without it being too awkward. Holding his breath, he dropped below the surface of the water, grabbing a bar of soap as he came up again. Kade observed him as he scrubbed his hair and beard. “I did not expect to see you this morning. I assumed you would sleep in.” Gordon chuckled as Corson dropped the soap back onto its home and glared at his friend. “I would have if I wasn’t concerned about them sending you after me if I ran too late.” When he was clean, he got out and dried off, dressing and looking back at his two companions who still lounged in the water. “When are you two gonna get going?” Kade answered with a sly smirk. “When they send someone to get us.” Throwing up his hands, Corson spun and walked out, irritated that he had put any effort at all into getting up and ready early. None of this was worth it. When he arrived at the stables, the horses had apparently been washed, dried, brushed down and were being tied in order to be tacked up. Tress had informed him that he would obviously not be using the king’s horse again. What a shock. Instead, he was given a dapple gray mare. She was stocky, but lean enough where she either could have been a draft or not. He assumed she was a cross. Her dark gray and white mane and tail were long and her lightly feathered feet were large and newly shod. The horse’s bridle and saddle bore the royal crests and the blanket was a bright blue. All in all, she looked majestic and exactly what a steed in a fantasy should look like. Even though this was not a fantasy, Corson still had plenty of trouble convincing himself that it was completely real. The wizard found him while he was standing and watching them handle his new steed. “Sir Corson, the king has requested a final audience with you before our departure. Gordon and Kade have already been informed and should be there momentarily.” “Ha. Serves them right,” the former army man said under his breath. “What was that, sir?” Tress asked. “Nothing, just old school karma.” “Ah…” the older man nodded before realizing that he hadn’t the faintest idea what the other man was talking about. “And what does that mean?” “Don’t worry about it.” Corson waved him off and headed toward the great hall. His weapons had been brought to the stables by servants so they could be strapped onto the saddle for ease of access and to be less of a burden to the riders. As Tress and Corson entered the hall, servants scurried around and followed them to the doors of the throne room, all of them eager to hear the final declaration. The knight approached the throne, dropping to one knee, head bowed. The king extended his hand and spoke, “Rise, knight.” He heard the other two men enter behind him and bow the same, rising only after they were given leave. The wizard stood off to the side, leaving the three soldiers to stand before the king themselves. Here we go. It’s going to be one final humiliation before I ride to my death. Yipee. His mood was anything but joyous. The monarch began. “Sir Corson, sir Kade, and sir Gordon, my deepest gratitude for your presence here this morning. The entire realm of Trent and the entire known world will be in your debt as your ride through those gates. I understand that the past six or so weeks have been taxing on all of us and sir Corson had much to learn and train on. I am pleased by the assistance and progress that has been given and made. We will be forever grateful, no matter the outcome of this journey.” He turned to the side. “Tress.” The wizard stepped forward, head bowed. “As you will be accompanying these fine men on their journey, my kingdom will feel your absence with sorrow.” While the king spoke, Corson kept getting distracted. Blah, blah, blah, he thought. Nobody cares how sad people will be that this imbecile is leaving and coming with me. Let’s just get out of here already. To his surprise, the lord presented each of them with a gift, specifically chosen for each man by the king personally. Corson told himself to shut up because he was obviously being a jerk in his head. Kade was given a gilded bow. Gordon was gifted a specially crafted hunting knife. Tress was handed a travel cloak and staff that must have been some sort of channel for magic, based on his grateful comments after receiving it. And finally, Corson was personally handed metal gauntlets with chainmail covering the hands. It would serve him well if he ever had to catch someone’s blade. The men bowed again gratefully. “Go. Travel in the peace and speed of the Voice. May the Voice grant you success and wisdom in your venture. We will all await your return with great anticipation.” The men mounted up and gave a salute to their lord before urging their steeds to move on. |
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