Chapter 2a

“Morning Sir.” He said brightly.

“Piss off.” Faust said shortly.
Ben was a pain in the proverbial and no mistake. He was hugely popular with everyone, not just the ladies of the night. He was also very intelligent and a brilliant soldier, as well as a talented artist and a shrewd businessman. He owed most of this to his educated upbringing in a noble household. His father was a landowning Lord in one of the cities on Plaus, quite an important Lord who had influential ties with Azoria. His mother was a titled lady in her own right, she'd been Marquess Lily DeGaise before her marriage to Lord Herz Astrella, a title she was grateful to adopt from him after her insane distant cousin's atrocities. His attractiveness to the fairer sex was also due to his father. Ben Astrella was the double of the handsome and respected Lord with a 6'4 stature and a dark, swarthy complexion. All this popularity from everywhere was often misinterpreted as favouritism. The basic truth was that he was just an all round likeable young man. Faust had often wondered why this handsome, muscular, twenty year old used brothels at all, albeit the higher class ones. He must have had girls, decent girls, falling at his feet! Why would he pay for it?

“Do you think anyone's still out here Sir?” Ben nodded towards the fringe of trees that was now in sight from their position of three quarters the way over the bridge.

“Do I hell.” Faust said moodily. “Who in their right mind would lurk about here in the same place for four bloody years? No one. Anyone there ever was out here is either in one of the cities on Plaus, sweeping streets in Azoria or dead.”

“The last option hopefully.” Another cadet had pulled up alongside them. “Do we take the same sectors as we did....”

“Hang on. What did you say?” Faust glowered at this blatant display of narrow-minded bigotry. “Pape isn't it?”

“Marcus Pape, yes Sir. Let's face it Sir, I doubt any of us joined the Military to babysit a load of anarchist shits who'd slit your throat as soon as look at you.” Pape said seriously.

“So why did you join the Military? To do the throat slitting first? If I ever hear any of that type of bilge again I'll make sure you're posted to the out-plains of Haggardan. Do you understand? I will not tolerate that sort of prejudice in my Military, that goes for the lot of you. Same sectors as last time. Move out!” Faust got off his horse and tethered it. He fully intended sitting under a tree and sleeping off his bad mood until his division returned to the bridge.

Ben didn't share the same attitude to the scout trips as his General, in fact, he quite enjoyed them. It was just like taking a stroll in the countryside while off-duty only he was getting paid for it.

“Ben you want to watch yourself.” Cadet Rand Lorette caught up with Ben. Rand and Ben had began their training on the same day, the only two on that particular day. They'd been close friends ever since. “That horse's arse Bonetti has it in for you.”

“Wrong.” Ben laughed. “I know who his favoured ladies are in the house of flowers back there. It's me who has it in for him, at least twice a night.” He grinned widely and Rand burst out laughing. “Actually that's true Rand. He never actually ... gets it done. You know? I've no idea why. Julia told me he just sits there leering and looks at her, then goes on his odd little way. I wonder what that's about?”

“Well he's the wrong shape for a Eunuch.” Rand bellowed another laugh. “Maybe not entirely in favour of the ladies? You never know with the government lot. Hell I'm sweating trough-loads here. Why we have to keep trawling over the same old ground I don't know.” He tugged at his blue, officially issued tunic.

“Better than urban patrol.” Ben reminded him. “Ah it's lovely out here Rand!” He looked around at the greenery of the woods and watched the tiny flecks of sunlight that sprang across the mossy ground as they filtered through the foliage. Fluffy, airborne spores spiralled in the clean air like sprites and birds sang loudly from the branches of the unspoiled forest. “It's a lot like this at home in Tibrae. I used to think it was the most boring place in existence and I couldn't wait to get out of it. I just about begged the old boy to send me to the Azorian Military.”

“You miss the place, I know. I was born in Azoria so I know no different. How long is it since you went home?” Rand asked.

“Nine months. I've only been the once since I came here two years ago. My parents have been to Azoria a few times though.” Ben told his friend.

“Ben you'd have to be blind, retarded and under a stone not to know when your parents are here. The full bloody military is on security duties.” Rand laughed. “Mind you, they do that for my dad too, every time he gets out of jail.”

Their laughter was interrupted by an ear-splitting howl, yells and shouts, and hundreds of birds taking flight from their branches.

“What the hell ...?” Another howl set the cadets of running towards a group of dense bushes.