The 8000 Army

Chapter Three

                  Gael was used to minimal sleep and with the less than hospitable accommodation of the end barracks, he did not feel the necessity in sleeping late. As the sun warmed the stone of the Quad, Gael jogged the perimeter with an increasing dismay that the moonlight of the previous night had been masking the severity of the decaying Fort. The morning soldiers on guard were no more attentive the the previous nights shift.
     First and Forth corporals joined him half way through the routine exercise. On their return to the barracks they were greeted with the Fifth, Seventh and Eighth corporals. No doubt having built their own conclusions in regard to their home that no longer felt like home. They waited for Gael. Gael had no doubt that had he not left Finlay, Conall and Pike, the Corporals whom remained to regulate Medterra, they would be here to include their coppers worth.
   
    There were always 8 Corporals, always 8 Units. Ideally there were a thousand men in each Unit, today was not ideal. After the war with the Falsifiers the Units were made up of 702 men. Except for the Second Unit that had 708 men. They, along with the Units Third and Sixth remained in the recently conquered Medterra to retain the land under Hillaieg rule and to maintain the precarious order Gael had restored before his departure. Geal was intending to send more of the Regulars and maybe some Enforcers to aid in the transition of rulers.
     The Medterra had been under the tyranny of High Priest Ivor, crushing the spirit of the people till they had little fight left in them. They were willing to corporate with the military ruling in hopes they may have a better life under the new rule. The fanatics were another story and they seemed to delight in causing problems. Gael personally had Ivor and his top priests executed on his sword, however, some of the lower ranking had managed to slip from his grasp. He would have to bring up the next course of action with his brother. If they were to hunt the remaining priest's faction it would take essential man power away from maintaining the established position of command in Medterra. If not they would be leaving the Falsifiers an opportunity to gather their strength again. The true believers were still causing hassle and overly resistant to the changes the new rule were trying to edict, most likely due to the new ruling no longer being greatly in the believers favour.

     Corporal Craig of the Eighth was first to break the silent musings with a disgusted comment on the lack of facilities. No running water in the entire barracks and after further investigation of the other three training barracks, resulting in empty barracks with no water or equipment, it was obvious there had not been any trainees in the Fort for some time. Trainees were essential to the continuation of the 8000. There were always trainees. As there was always The 8000. After all, without training the next generation of soldier who would the Commander recruit for the Elite? For the 8000?
     Corporal of the Fifth, Evin had a way of charming his way in to many a ladies bed and luckily enough was swift enough to extract himself from those beds before fathers and husbands realised they had someone requiring a heavy sword thrust. As it so happens he had already found his way to the maids of the Castle as they went about their morning chores. His conclusions were even more disparaging. People were not happy. Evin could only surmise from the people of the castles actions rather than their words as few would acknowledge him let alone speak with him. He would go as far to speculate that they feared talking to him. Easily dismissed as by all accounts he was technically a complete stranger to these people. He could not find one castle worker whom had worked there prior to the war. He did at least manage to garner the the King did not rise till several hours after dawn.
      The morning mist was still heavy on the ground and it would take a couple more hours for the sun to gain its strength to burn it off. Gael could not remember a time Aillig would lounge in bed till mid-morning. There were times that he would join pre-dawn training under no requirement to do so, but even if he had grown accustomed to later mornings, surely he would make an effort to greet his brother after such a prolonged time apart. Especially after the less than welcome night before, that could be forgiven. The King's continued disregard however could not and Gael would not allow it.