Soulforge Legacy Series

Sleeping in the bunk house reminded me of home. That wasn’t a good thing. Home meant scratchy blankets and a hard mattress. Things that were normal growing up, but this world had spoiled me.

So, when the hard beating of something metal hitting against the door frame filled the space, I was already up and moving. “As I don’t want any of you idiots passing out on me, go get your breakfast.” Lieutenant Saoirse bellowed.

All around the building, boots stomped, and furniture beat against the wall as people moved. A pair of boots nearly bashed me in the head as Olenna swung over the edge of her bunk and dropped to the floor.

Mana trailed after her fingers as they fiddled with something. “Make sure to make your bed before you leave.” With those words, she and her mana were gone.

Not wanting to make a bad impression, I did as she recommended. For the first time in a long time, I made sure that my bed was presentable. Still, it wasn’t a match for the upper bunk. If I didn’t know better, I would have sworn she had taken the time to iron and steam the thing. The edges were just so perfect.

Feet dragging, I found myself a bit lost. It wasn’t like anyone had taken the time to show me where to go or even a direction to head in. Sure, I could ask someone, if there was anyone to ask. But the place looked deserted.

A soft body slammed into my back. “Sorry, sorry.” The soft, feminine voice behind me was surprising as I could have sworn the place had emptied out. “I am sorry to ask you this, but could you please move. The lieutenant will get mad if I pass out again.”

Hopping up and down, as though she was bursting with energy just waiting to explode, was a Rabbit Beastkin. Or at least, that is what I assumed she was given the ears. Small sparks flicked off of her as she quickly said thanks before vanishing with a sharp crack of electricity.

“What have I said about watching where you are going?” Someone roared a short distance away.

“Sorry.” Came the Rabbit Beastkin’s voice. I focused in on the two and found that there were quite a few voices in that section.

“Just make some rabbit soup already.” Someone called, though, judging by how everyone ignored the speaker, no one took him all that seriously.

“I could always put her into a null space. Then she can run all she wants.” A neutral-sounding voice called.

“Wouldn’t she suffocate?” One of the others pointed out.

The neutrality of her voice scared me even more with her next words. “She wouldn’t want to run after that, would she?” Laughter filled the air as I rounded the last corner. A massive pavilion came into view. I am talking large enough to barely fit in the machine shop I used to work in. Under which sat just as many people and tables. Well, minus one end where the tables were filled with nothing but food.

It was then that the smell hit me. Meat, biscuits, pancakes, and more. Each scent slammed into my nose, demanding attention. And my stomach gave it what it wanted. It rumbled and growled, reminding me that I had skipped dinner last night.

In a rush, I didn’t pay attention to anyone or to just how many of them tracked me. Three plates in hand, each filled to nearly the tipping point, I made my way to the nearest table. “Seats taken.” One of them sneered.

Annoying, but that was fine. It wasn’t like many people would welcome a new person. But after the fourth time someone said that, I had to know why. “The seat is clearly not taken.”

“Over here.” Someone called from a table near the back. The air around him glistened in the early morning light. Whatever they were, as they got close to the Rabbit Beastkin, the sparks around her made the jump. Going from one to another before finally fizzling out.

The seat he gestured to was the only empty one at the table, and a moment later, it wasn’t even empty as what looked like a Deer Beastkin took the spot. Or at least, that is what I assumed she was given the antlers that sprouted from her head. At the same time, another Deer Beastkin leapt off the bench and made her way to the food.

As there was a lack of space, I just shook my head and moved to the edge of the area. What looked like a half-demolished retaining wall served as my table as I looked out at the place that would be my home, at least for a little while. It wouldn’t be permanent. I would get out of here and back to adventuring, even if I had to leave to do so.

Something smacked against my back. Not hard, but enough to catch my attention. Before I could try to locate the source, the wall shifted as the dirt below it rolled. Not enough to fall, but enough for my plates to slide toward the edge.

Chuckles filled the space as I tried to catch my food. “Gravel!” A Wolf Beastkin yelled from one end of the table.

“Come on Shen,” one of the men at another table called. “Surely even you want to see what she is hiding beneath her skirt.” While there were a few wolf whistles, they were quickly followed by a series of slaps that sent a number of them face down into their plates.

“Sergeant Major Wiremu,” the voice of the bear of a man from yesterday boomed out. “Is it me, or does this group seem overly eager to get started?”

I don’t know who I expected to answer, but it wasn’t the grandmother looking elf. Unlike yesterday, she sounded more energetic, if a bit forceful. “Sure seems that way to me, Major Dmitri.”

“Captain, permission to start early.”

“Granted.” The Wolf Beastkin waved him off as she continued to focus on paperwork. Before anyone could say anything, she held up a finger, catching everyone's attention. “In fact, double what was planned. Put the deck through its paces.”

Her words elicited a series of groans. “YOU HEARD HER!” He roared. Get this place cleaned and get your asses to the training field! We have some work to do!” The place exploded into motion as every person moved. Food and trash flew through the air into various trash cans. Cleared plates dipped and dove between the packets of trash as they raced toward an ever-shifting ball of water.

Lumps of material whipped through the water, scraping against the various dishes. The released dirt and grime zipped to the edge where they vanished with soft puffs. As each dish exited the ball-o-water, it was met by what amounted to a veritable storm of elements.

Lightning danced between dishes as fire quickly followed. Yet even in the turmoil, not a single dish was so much as singed, let alone broken. And within a couple of minutes, the tables were cleared, benches were stacked, trash was removed, and the plates were stored in various bins. Each of which was already being moved into the one building that looked fairly new and well-maintained.

No one stopped moving. They just shifted their energy from cleaning to running as they raced down the road. Having managed to save one of the sausages from my plate before it had been snatched by the group, I followed along. Albeit, making sure to give the group a bit of distance.

“Squads line up!” The single semi-organized group broke down as everyone seemed to go in a different direction the moment they passed between two poles set into the ground. I took a moment to check out each group to see if I could find the one I was supposed to be with.

Fifth from the end, standing in a single-file line behind the Foxkin that was the group's leader, were the two people I recognized from my bunk house. In a rush, I made it to the back just in time for the Major to continue. “Seeing as we have a newbie here, I think we shall start off a bit easy. Now, get to running!”

No one hesitated or asked a question. They all just turned and started to run. As I joined the group, I found myself recalling the last time I had done anything like this. How my training with Bert had been. How far I had come since that first day.

Or, at least I thought I had been doing well. But after twenty minutes of out-and-out running, I was starting to struggle. Still, I wasn’t willing to just give up. Not now. Not when I needed to make an impression.

Sure, I might not be here for long, but that didn’t mean I wouldn’t carve out a place here. To show these people that I wasn’t going to be pushed around. Show them what I could do. Show them that I wasn’t the weak link.

Mana coursed through my body as I forced more and more power into healing. It wasn’t efficient, but it didn’t matter. I wasn’t going to slow down or drop out. I was going to keep going.

“Stop and give me fifty!” Almost the second the words boomed out of the Major’s mouth, everyone around me dropped to the ground. The shift was so fast that I nearly slammed into the person in front of me.

Still, I managed to slide to a halt and drop to the ground in time to join them as the unit as a whole counted each push-up. They didn’t move slowly. They didn’t take their time. Every second was another push-up. Down and up. Over and over.

At fifty, everyone bounced right back to their feet and started to run before the Major even shouted the command to do so. “Back to running!” This was going to be a hell of a long day if this was any indication.