The Drache's Love

Chapter 2, Avva

 I made my way to the training grounds alone.  Like hells would I have my daddy drop me off, no matter how nervous I was.  I was a seasoned soldier, and I would make sure I was seen as such.  When I arrived, I presented myself to the company captain, a troll named Melkree, his command another show of good faith.  Now, I was tall for a human woman, by any standards, standing at five feet, nine inches.  But this troll was twice my height at the very least, and twice as broad as the largest human man I had ever seen.  His skin color was somewhere between moss and stone, and his body was positively ripped with muscle that was seemingly coiled and ready to strike at the slightest invitation.  His ears were pointed and pierced, as was his nose.  His onyx hair was liberally streaked with gray, and tied in a top knot.  Two fangs jutted up through his lips from his lower jaw.  "Intimidating" didn't even begin to describe him.

    I snapped to attention and saluted,  "Avva, of the Royal House, reporting for duty, sir!"

    "I know well who you are, human.  Join the ranks," he grunted.  I quickly obeyed, all the while trying to hide my shock that a troll spoke actual words.  If Melkree's use of language was to be any indicator, I knew I was in for many surprises.

    I fell in with the other humans to wait for the last few soldiers to arrive.  There would be ten of each race, humans, orcs, goblins, golems and Drache alike, save for the trolls, who would have eleven due to Melkree being the captain.  As the last soldier arrived, I surveyed the recruits.  The trolls were all much like Melkree, but with different hair styles.  Some bore tattoos, but the most striking difference in each of them was their facial features.  Their eyes were all a variation of yellow or orange, and their features were much larger and more pronounced than that of humans, but that's where their facial similarities ended.

    The golems, on the other hand, were nearly identical, save for the differing hues of the mud and clay they seemed to be formed from.  They stood even taller than the trolls, with rough features, seemingly hewn from the earth.  I found myself wondering whether golems were born or created.

    Where trolls were twice my height, the goblins were half my height, all with greasy, jet black hair, mouths full of disturbingly sharp teeth, steeply pointed ears, fully black eyes and ridiculously long, narrow hooked noses.  They just looked evil.  Their mottled gray skin only multiplied their ghastly appearance.  

    The orcs, I suppose, were the most similar to humans in their appearance, differing mostly in that their skin was the blue of death and their ears came to a slight point at the lobe.  Like humans, their hair was a range of colors, from blonde to black.  Their eyes were all shades of green, and their heights varied as you would expect in humans.  Upon closer inspection, their faces were also uniquely individual.

    Where to begin with the Drache?  While they were the creatures I most feared, they were also the ones I was becoming the most fascinated by.  I had never seen a Drache in person, unlike the rest of the creatures in the company, which I had seen at least in passing after the truce.  Their numbers were far fewer than the rest of the creatures, so a Drache was a rare sight.  It truly was wondrous to me that there were ten of them here.  They all stood at least two feet taller than me, and their skin was a uniform emerald green that had a reptilian shimmer, like a serpent fresh from its shed.  Each one had shoulder length hair, the color of fire, tied with a leather thong at the nape, save one.  His hair was jet black, worn in a multitude of tiny braids that erupted from his head, like a porcupine's quills.  Instead of protruding ears, their’s almost seemed carved into their heads, and their noses, while closer to that of a human, were reminiscent of a serpent as well.  Some of them grinned at what I can only assume was a joke about the half score of humans, and I caught a glimpse of their fangs.  Far less pronounced than those of the trolls, but fangs nonetheless.  Perhaps their eyes were the most transfixing.  They were all varying hues of purple, from lavender to indigo.

    I noticed that none of the creatures had women in their ranks.  Whether this was because their women didn't fight, or because they didn't trust us with them, was yet to be seen.  The humans were split evenly, five women and five men.

    Melkree ambled to a raised platform, and boomed in his subsonic bass voice, "Gather round!"

    This was against protocol.  All of the human soldiers raised a questioning eyebrow.  We were accustomed to "forming up".

    "Listen, and listen well," he began, "for I will only say these things once.  This is not a typical Broman company, therefore it will not be run like one.  I have put together a new style, taking the best aspects of each race's command habits, to suit this company best.  You will notice that only the humans have females in their ranks.  They will receive no favors or special treatment.  They will be treated as would any soldier in any of our respective native armies, save that you will respect their persons at all times, which brings me to my next point.  As you may or may not be aware, the Princess Avva, daughter of King Asmund, is among the human ranks.  She will also receive no special treatment, so I'll hear no complaints saying otherwise.  Each soldier will be paired with another of a different race.  You will learn about each other, about your similarities, about your differences.  Each race has a protective instinct, but the creature races are exponentially stronger, so the goal will be to form relationships to play on that instinct.  I will assign your partners, then we will sup and retire to our barracks."

    My gaze shifted to the Drache with the braids.  I felt drawn to him.  Why was his hair different?  The likelihood that we would be paired was miniscule, so I knew it would be some time before I could find the answer.

    Melkree began through a list of names, one by one.  He got halfway through the list, and I began to wonder when we both still had not been paired if my chances of getting my answer had risen.  Then there were four of us left, and then only two.  I was paired with the braided Drache.  Our eyes met across the platform.  A mixture of fear and excitement gripped my stomach.  Cormac, his name was.  And we had much to learn about each other.