- Messages
- 3
They were neither free nor slave. They wore no chains, but were bound nonetheless to their cause, their queen, and their hope to earn their freedom. Some would die in service to the throne, but it was a price they were willing to pay for the chance to cast off their bonds, both literal and figurative, and live out their lives as free men and women once their time was served.
For Vahra, the chance to escape the mines, pull herself and her daughters from the dark underground, was an easily made choice. Grueling training and harsh discipline had equipped her to fight while her own experiences had inured her to the ugliness of blood, conflict, and death. She, along with every other soldier, had been trained in the use of sword, shield, pike, halberd, spear, and crossbow until they could use the weapons in their sleep if needed. Forced marches and sleepless nights had driven her mind and body to new peaks of deprevation and exhaustion, yet they'd come out the other end intact. To fail was to return underground, to pass was to earn freedom for herself and her daughters. She refused to fail and now stood in the armor and uniform of the Black Guard.
Equipped as a form of well trained, well equipped, and highly motivated infantry, the Black Guard was comprised entirely of slaves volunteering for military service. Each unit was led by Drow officers while exceptional volunteers had been commissioned as junior lieutenants with the hope that, eventually, all officers within the Black Guard would be entirely Black Guard. Each company was equipped in thirds with each third armed with swords and shields, pikes and polearms, or crossbows. Each third formed a platoon within the company with a set role based on their weapons, but each soldier had been cross trained in the use of all weaponry available to the Guard which ensured versatility, cohesion, and discipline within the ranks. The Guard swore allegiance to the Queen and the throne and, in a movement of solidarity, the Queen, herself a "slave" to the state, had become Black Guard.
Vahra stood at attention within the ranks of her platoon and company, the newly trained regiments arrayed for inspection upon their parade ground. Four new regiments comprising approximately one thousand soldiers each. Their armor was simple leather with metal plates, excess gear from other military units, but the rumor mill was abuzz that the Guard was to receive its own equipment designed specifically for their new role on the field.
That is, if they passed approval and survived their first taste of combat.
For now, the new regiments, and Vahra, waited. What was to happen, they weren't sure, but for the men and women of the Guard, it had the potential to become a truly momentous occasion for the Guard in the coming years.
For Vahra, the chance to escape the mines, pull herself and her daughters from the dark underground, was an easily made choice. Grueling training and harsh discipline had equipped her to fight while her own experiences had inured her to the ugliness of blood, conflict, and death. She, along with every other soldier, had been trained in the use of sword, shield, pike, halberd, spear, and crossbow until they could use the weapons in their sleep if needed. Forced marches and sleepless nights had driven her mind and body to new peaks of deprevation and exhaustion, yet they'd come out the other end intact. To fail was to return underground, to pass was to earn freedom for herself and her daughters. She refused to fail and now stood in the armor and uniform of the Black Guard.
Equipped as a form of well trained, well equipped, and highly motivated infantry, the Black Guard was comprised entirely of slaves volunteering for military service. Each unit was led by Drow officers while exceptional volunteers had been commissioned as junior lieutenants with the hope that, eventually, all officers within the Black Guard would be entirely Black Guard. Each company was equipped in thirds with each third armed with swords and shields, pikes and polearms, or crossbows. Each third formed a platoon within the company with a set role based on their weapons, but each soldier had been cross trained in the use of all weaponry available to the Guard which ensured versatility, cohesion, and discipline within the ranks. The Guard swore allegiance to the Queen and the throne and, in a movement of solidarity, the Queen, herself a "slave" to the state, had become Black Guard.
Vahra stood at attention within the ranks of her platoon and company, the newly trained regiments arrayed for inspection upon their parade ground. Four new regiments comprising approximately one thousand soldiers each. Their armor was simple leather with metal plates, excess gear from other military units, but the rumor mill was abuzz that the Guard was to receive its own equipment designed specifically for their new role on the field.
That is, if they passed approval and survived their first taste of combat.
For now, the new regiments, and Vahra, waited. What was to happen, they weren't sure, but for the men and women of the Guard, it had the potential to become a truly momentous occasion for the Guard in the coming years.