Chapter B4C41 - Dark Roads
This wasn’t the sort of assignment Leon had anticipated when his Commander at House Greyling had called him in. As was his habit after years of hard training, he scanned the surrounds, using his enhanced senses to search for any sign of danger, but found none. He hadn’t expected any, not this close to the capital, but he was a professional Soldier, a warrior of the Noble Houses, and he would do his job.
Not that he could trust the rest of the group to do the same. The Priests muttered amongst themselves, making unnecessary noise, while the Magisters’ sour expressions and disinterest were plain to see even in the dim twilight.
At least the Marshals were on the job, clear-eyed and alert, but Leon trusted them in a fight as far as he could throw them. Weak. All of them were weak. He’d trade the lot of them for another Soldier from his brigade.
“Is there a problem, Ser Leon?” a voice enquired, and he turned to his right to find Marshal Grady watching from a few metres away.
“Not at all, Marshal,” Leon replied, his voice low so as not to carry, “I was merely considering how we might be best deployed to handle an emergency, should one arise.”
Grady nodded in such a way that led the Soldier to believe he knew exactly what he’d really been thinking.
“We aren’t on par with what you might be used to, but I, at least, am truly grateful to have someone of your calibre along, Ser Leon,” the old Marshal said, knuckling at his thick grey moustache. “We’ve been heading out on these patrols for over a month now, and it's reassuring to have someone of your particular skill set along.”
Someone trained to fight and kill people, is what he meant.
Hearing someone say it made Leon feel a little better about his assignment. He might not be happy to be here, but at least others were glad of his presence, which meant it wasn’t a complete waste of his time.