Baptised in Fire

::No one is every really surprised when Hans disappeared any more. This time, it worked out to his advantage. He never really left the kingdom after breaking into the company's barracks and destroying the room. He even left a note for Murphy with instructions for reaching him. He was pleased to hear that the room was corrected within a day. Some extra coin on his way from the castle, and the supply system was relatively painless and expediant in replacing bunks and footlockers.

::But though he left the castle, Hans did not go back to his town either. Instead, he went out into the wilderness at the northern end of the lands he was granted near the foot of the mountains. For several weeks he labored day and night on the frozen ground. The important thing was the selection of a site, and he knew of a cave system that was perfect for his needs. A little digging in the caves, some constuction here and there, and it was set.

::As for the grounds surrounding the cave, that was where the difficult tasks came in for one man. Trees were leveled and a clearing of about 100 meters by 100 meters was made. To any passers by, the sound of a saw, hammer, pounding, dragging, and grunting could be heard, but of course, there were no passers by. Not for several hundred meters. He wanted it that way. That is why he decided on this place. It was secluded. It was isolated.

::The days and well into the nights were spent working, building, creating, but as the fire died and the knight was left with little energy and nothing but some dried meat and his ales, he drank and stared up at the skies. Questions and doubts filled his heart. He was a man who did not know how to sit still. Dispite his studies as a youth, he spent many hours running and playing outside. His time in the Holy Lands were spent largely in battle.

::He had no use for the lists as those champions were little good on the field of combat, and the sparring that he had often found in the kingdom always pitted him against a female. It was not that he believed that he could not be beaten by a woman or that they were unworthy, it was just aside from that bit of braggart's pride with the Admiral, he did not raise a weapon in the direction of a woman. He would not even bare his steel in their presence unless it was for their defence.

::And so what was a man like this to do in such a peaceful kingdom? His training was motivated for when the Order would call him again, but that call would no longer come. He had attempted to change his passions from war to love, but that endevour failed as well due to his constant absence. But it was for the best. After all, he never truely felt like it was appropriate for a lowly knight to love a princess. As he lay out under thick blankets next to that fire and beneath those stars, all he had was his loneliness. His lose of direction.

::But after many weeks in solitude, many weeks of work, he would return to society like Zarathustra descending from the mountains to gather his choosen ones. If his life was to be destined to make war, he would make his soldiers at strong in that task as he was. If his destiny was to be the lone warrior, an angel of death and destruction, he would gather his disciples under his wing and teach them the ferocity of battle.

::The sun was shinning brightly on that clear winter morning as he stood again before the gates of the castle. Reaching for his flask, another swig was taken of that blessed medication, that liquid that both dulled and amplified the emotions. Blue eyes looked coldly at the streets and paths as he once again entered the barracks and went to the company office.::

First Sergeant! Gather the men and get the supply trains ready. It is time to leave this world.

::Turning to the men in the room, he smiled lightly:: Gentlemen, congradulations. Today is your last day as mortals. By tomorrow you will die, and when you return here, you will no longer be mere men. Instead, you shall return to this room as Arch Angels.

::Hans returned to the barracks the next morning and was pleased to see that everyone was assembled in front of the building as instructed. It was late evening, and the sun had not just set below the horizon. The oranges and reds that had burnt the sky for during the orbs set had faded, and the darking gloom of night had begun to set in leaving the yard cloaked in a cold darkness that the flickering light of torches seemed to aid rather than banish. Walking past his formation, the large German woke one of the stable boys and handed the lad several copies of a letter to be delievered to each of the officers and commanders of the DMOS giving instructions on where he and his men would be, explain that they were going to be conducting training, and inviting them to join him at their lesuire should they so choose to join, learn, and participate.

::He would then return to stand before the formation, blue eyes glancing over the ranks before turning to Murphy.::

First Sergeant, are the supply trains ready? They know where to meet us? The men have food rations to last until the first shipment reachs us? ::Each question was met with a nod from the smaller celt and Hans smiled. Of course, he had already arranged for some shipments to leave from Dignacia, the village that was the main support in his region, as it would reach them first and supplement what the men were able to carry. That, however, need not be shared.:: Good.

::Hans then looked back on the formation before him.:: Gentlemen, I hope that you took the time to watch the sun set as it will be the last one you get to enjoy for a long time. Just as the sun sets in the life of every man and the night sky beckons him to enternal sleep, so you have experienced your last. But unlike every other man who watches that final setting and goes to sleep in the earth, you return to the womb. You know begin the long and difficult task of trying to reenter the world of man. As you fought for survival and stumbled forward into the light of life during your birth, you will once again stumble and fight to see light again.

It takes an element this size a day and a half to travel to where we are going. You have until sun up. For when that sun rises again and you are reborn into this life, you must be at the place where your new childhood will begin. For just as when you were a child, you had to grow and learn to become a man, you must now relieve that age to learn and grow to become an Arch Angel. If you fall behind or become lost, return to your home. Do not be ashamed that you could not withstand your rebirth, for the path we walk from this day forward is difficult and when you are rebaptised, it will be with fire and blood. If you succeed, you will be worthy to bear the name of our company. A name that speaks of service, dedication, and perfection.

Now listen closely, because this will be the only time I will explain myself and the reason why we do this. To maintain an army of the size required to defend this kingdom is impossible. It costs far too much and the sacrifices required are too great for every day life. That is why we are here. For when this land is threatened, it is you that everyone will look to for protection. You will lead the conscripts and you will be given the hardest tasks. It is my job to prepare you for that, but I can only show you the path and take you to the passage way. You must walk through it on your own, and trust me, you will be alone during the coming trails.

From this moment on, all your differences are over. Any issues you may have had with each other end now. The man on your left and your right is your brother and First Sergeant Murphy is your new father. I am your new Messiah. Your own personal savior, for only in following in my footsteps will you be able to survive.

The bonds that you build with your brothers will go deeper than blood, and what you are about to experience will permenatly seperate you from the rest of society. For how can they possibly know what it is you have been through? How can they possibly understand what it is you will acheive?

First Sergeant! It is time to leave.

::Murphy began calling out orders and got everyone ready to move as Hans grabbed his pack and slung it on his back. He gave one final glance back at the troops to call the order to move out before heading towards the gate. It would not be until they reached their destination that he would look behind him again.

::Hans set a brisk pace, not quite a run but certainly not a walk, as he followed the road that lead north. They stayed along that path for several hours, the only sound the clink of packs or the gasps and pants of those behind him. Sweat beaded his brow and his shirt clung moistly to his large frame despite the deep cold of winter, but his pace did not slacken.

::It was almost three hours into the march before the first man began to fall out. One of the younger lads, scarcely old enough to be called a man, just jogged into a tree and held himself against it, panting and crying softly. One of the sergeants run up to him and stopped. An encouraging hand was placed on his shoulder, nudging him forward as kind words were offered to the effect of how he had this and that this was easy enough. That he shouldn't concern himself with what Sir Hans had said and that he was tough enough to make it.

::The boy's fingers clutched desperately at the bark, but his body followed the prods of that hand as he fell back in place. Someone had grabbed his arm and half dragged him for several minutes before he found the will to keep up on his own. During the course of the night, several other men began to fall out, but all were treated the same, and eventually, everyone made it to the end of the road.

::At last it was time for the cross country portion of the march. Having reached as far north as the road would take them, past Dignacia, the last populated area on their little journey, Hans turned into the forest. The pace slowed slightly due to the thick darkness from the trees and the lack of light from a new moon.

::The predawn greyness settled on the horizon as the morning mists concelled the tree line. At long last, Hans called a halt, keeping the men in the thick brush. A few collapsed to the ground and everyone stood panting. The knight allowed them several minutes of rest as he waited. After all, he had deliberately taken them around so that they would be facing east as they entered the clearing. It would be bad form to forgo the theatrics now.

::At last, he ordered the men to their feet as the first blinding rays of light broke over the mountains and lead them into the clearing. They all blinked against the light's intensity, but as their sight grew acostumed to it, the area was revieled to be full of everything one would need for training.

::There was a large enough section with fire pits for cooking and sleeping along the western tree line. Towards the east, several rings were set up from combative practices, along with practice dummies for strikes. The middle remained clear for physical training and martial arts practice. To the south, a small rectangular path was cut into the tree line to act as sort of a doorway, through which the woods remained. And to the north, a similar door cut that lead to the foothills and base of the mountain, as well as the cave that Hans had modified.::

Welcome to your new home. You will find firewood and kindling near the pits. Feel free to start a fire and get some rest. Condradulations on surviving your rebirth. In two hours, your childhood begins.

::Hans drove the men straight into training. The days were short and he had much to cover with them. There was little time for games. The men would wake well before dawn and begin drills to help condition and strengthen the body. To be able to use one's own body weight effectively was the goal. For over an hour they would spend pushing, squating, jumping, and what ever else he could think of. A short break for breakfast was then afforded to them. After they had fed, he would lead them on a run through the woods and along the foothills. Occassionally they would come across a bit of rock to climb over. Then it was back to the clearing.

::Next, they were broken up into groups. Several of the groups would move towards the eastern end of the clearing with the rings and practice dummies. A few of the more accomplished sergeants would then take them and begin running them through drills on strikes with various types of hand weapons as well as bare fisted. Boxing and wrestling were the main games. The rest of the men would be left in the middle of the clearing where there was no obstruction. They would begin with practicing their charges, where a team of five men would line up and charge towards where First Sergeant Murphy stood with several logs standing upright and braced. The goal was to charge the logs and just hit them with the shoulder, much like the initial wave would attempt to break through the first ranks of enemy troops. After that, the staffs were brought out and group sessions held with those. This was followed by another break for lunch and then the groups would rotate.

::After dinner, the team building exercises began. Soldiers would help their team climb to the tops of the nearby trees. Large platforms were moved from the sleeping area to the middle and stood up to work on scailing walls. The rings became the location for two on one matches. And finally, when it got too dark, everything was returned and they were allowed to go to sleep.

::Of course, they were required to maintain guard throughout the night to prevent incidents with the fires or let the fires go out and burn their commerades. Hans would also routinely grab several soldiers and take them out into the middle of the woods at night for a simulated patrol.

::Whereas Hans seemed to have rarely slept before, he barely seemed to find his way to rest now. Whenever he did, his dreams were filled with visions and images that he could scarce make out or explain. Most nights, he stayed up and wrote in a journal that he had begun to keep, making notes and trying to figure out the meanings of it all. After he had concluded his little night explorations, he would lay down, but within a two or three hours was back up again.

::Though the soldiers had much to complain about, the one thing that they could not say was that they were not being fed well. As the fires were maintained to keep the soldiers warm in these winter nights, they also provided for the kettles of stew that was constantly roasting over it. While the bread was not always fresh, new shipments would arrive at the start of every week, as well as meats to be added to the stew. Ale was in constant supply without guard or chaperone to moniter a soldier's consumption. It was understood what would happen if they let themselves become carried away.::

((Excellent! More! More!!)

Christ the man is mad! ::His lungs burned as he followed Hans through the woods.:: Come on Billy, keep up. You got this. This ain't nothin'.

::William grabbed Billy's arm and helped drag him along. It was another one of Han's surprise runs. He loved to do that kind of crap. He always had that sadistic little smile hidden somewhere in that beard of his when he picked the groups.:: Damn it Billy, I can't carry you the whole way.

::Why did he seem to like to pick on the guys like Billy. Billy was a good kid. All he wanted to do was help out. That's why he left with William.:: Come on, prove this son of a bitch wrong. ::His muscles were a blaze as if his viens were pumping fire. He had never felt this way before.:: Just a little further brother. Almost there.

::At last they broke through the tree line and burst back into the clearing. With Hans stopping, the five men who had been trying to follow nearly collapsed. William stood bent over, hands on his knees, when he heard a thump behind him. Turning, he laughed to see Billy on the ground.:: Get up Billy. ::He leaned over and help his friend to his feet. Then, arm in arm, they limped towards one of the fires.:: Told ya you could do it.

::William then found himself some water and took a long drink, ignoring the heat.::

You there...Post! ::The hand was pointed at William and he was quick to react, standing at attention before the large knight.:: Tell me...Why did you carry that other man along through the run? You should have let him fall out. There is no time for weakness on the battlefield, and if he cannot maintain the line, it is you who will die because of it. Well? Are you going to answer? No? Report to Sergeant MacManus for combatives.

::William just stared in amazement. Leave him? Let him quit? What the hell is this man's problem? And then to be dismissed so. William's jaw clentched and fists tightened, but as soon as a second glance was given by Hans, he turned and went towards Sergeant MacManus.::

::As he left, he saw the knight take another drink from his flask. The man seemed to live off that flask. He knew it was nothing but whiskey, but Hans seemed to go through a lot.::

::Upon reaching the sergeant, William got another ass chewing and was told to find a rock. He then began to run around the fight pit, rock held over his head. What the hell had he done by joining. He knew one thing though, and this is why he was running with a rock over his head, because he told Sergeant MacManus he doesn't give a damn about what Hans thinks, he'll make sure Billy passes.::

Aly had heard from on of the underlings, the training that had been going on. Hans was a bloody good man and he knew how to whip his men into shape. It was why she loved him in the elite. If she told him what she needed. It was done. He operated like she did. *Whatever it took*, though he had more direct scruples that she. Maybe it was her age, maybe it was that she knew to DO, what needed to be done, often one needed to *disengage* from the living world and become the thing you hunted in order to bag it.

This is how she had concentrated on his location and with the help of mist travel, she crouched in a tree above, sea green eyes kept a vigil on the happenings. She could, and did, often move without a sound. That too came with age and experience, but one could never let it be said, Aly didn't check on her men and progress.

There had been a few rumblings of men who had been *excused* from Han's Unit. They said he was unfair, and to hard and that it was almost impossible to make it through the training. He only kept the best. They HAD to be the best, for the duties that befell them. No shirkers, laggers, or piss ants aloud. THAT brought another grin as she watched from her vantage. He had changed a bit since his return. A finger couldn't yet be put on anything particular, but she saw how he reacted to many things.
One she was sure, was the separation from teh Princess. She'd never ask, and he'd keep it to the grave so as not to ever sully her name or character. She had been a veru lucky woman to have the love of such a man, and ALy was very sorry that something had torn it asunder.

Bringing herself back to the scene at hand, she remained crouched in silence to watch...for the now.

::He grimaced as he heard his name. Why? He had just gotten out of the guantlet run two turns ago. Whatever man made this thing up was sick in the head. If any of the other commanders or the Admiral saw this training, they'd probably have Hans taken away. Or maybe they already knew he was crazy, which is why none of them seemed to respond to his invitation to join them out here. After all, who wanted to deal with three waves. He had to fight his way through three waves of four men each. Pushing himself off of the ground, he moved towards the start line.::

::The sound to begin came and he moved forward a few feet. The first four men moved forward and circled around him. With a deep breath, he moved towards one of them and swung, but his arm was caught. He didn't even really have enough time to curse before he was held tight and the other three started with the body shots.::

No...Damn it no. Stop stop stop. ::Sergeant Stevens stepped forward and broke up the fight.:: Damnit Jonesy, no. ::Turning towards the group, he pinched the top of his nose and sighed.:: Listen up. Violence of action. Ferocity of attack. Maintain forward movement. Troops are moved in lines. They attack in lines. But once the battle starts, those lines go to hell.

Lines have strength. Gaggles have none. Break the line. Reset, I'll show you. ::Stevens moved to the start line and waited for the three waves to get set.:: Begin.

::With a loud bellow, Stevens darted forward. At the sound of his yell, everyone jumped, and he used that to hook his arm under the shoulder of one of the men in the first wave. With a quick pivot backward and by sinking his weight, the man came up off his feet and traveled over Stevens' body into another one of the first wave.::

::Completing the 360, Stevens ignored the other two men and moved for the second wave. They were still slightly shocked at the yell and the tossing, but they managed to form a circle around Stevens. Stevens dove at one of them, knocking the man off balance. He then used the force of the impact to bounce himself towards another who caught his foot to the chest.::

::Stevens then ran at the third wave. They were completely ready for him, but he managed to grab the arm of one and spun him around a few times before delivering a knee to the gut. The sergeant than ran back towards the second wave and clothslined one of the two remaining men before tackling a man from the first wave.::

::Turning back around, he held up his hand to signify the exercise had finished.:: See? Violence of action. Forward movement. Seven of the twelve down.

But why practice like this? Fighting alone I mean against so many guys?

Because when you are in battle, you are alone. ::The large knight moved through the throng of soldiers.:: Good work Sergeant Stevens.

Gentlemen, when that battle starts, you are alone. At best, you momentarily have a friend, but only for a second. The only thing you will not be short on is enemy. And an Arch Angel does not surrender. An Arch Angel does not retreat from a battle unless the odds are greater than three to one. And if we stand between the enemy and this kingdom, if we are keeping them from the castle walls before everyone else has had the chance to find safety and shelter there, than an Arch Angel does not retreat at all.

::As Sir Hans finished his speech and moved off, Stevens turned back to the soldiers before him. The sun was already almost gone, and it was getting time for chow. He formed them up and inspected them all to make sure that no one was seriously hurt. Once that was done, he released them and moved to join the other NCOs.::

God, that man can be everywhere huh MacManus? ::Chuckling, he grabbed himself a bowl and filled it with stew.:: Hey Top, you have any clue why we've been freezing our asses off for the past week? I mean, he's driving us into the ground, and he's pushing himself harder. I mean, I've seen the man bleed, I know he ain't nothing crazy. He's a man, with limits that I'm worried he's close to.

::Murphy sighed softly as he took a bite from his stew.:: You're right Stevens. He probably is getting close to them. As for the whys, I can only tell you we are out here because he wants us to be. Because armies don't fight during the winter, he wants to be able to. And because all he has right now is his work. So we let him work because he is our commanding officer. After all, I don't think he is really capable of hurting one of his soldiers. So we work and wait to see what he has planned.

Get off MY OBSTACLE! Jump you bloody fool. GET OFF!

Why sergeant? ::The soldier clung to the edge of the wall he was sitting on top of. Climp up, jump down. This was really the first time he got the up part right. And now he sat there, ten feet in the air, staring down, and he had to jump?::

Knowledge and understanding are not requresites for action and obediance. Now jump off my damn wall before I climb up there and push you off. ::Sergeant Johnson's voice was starting to get that gravely undertone to it as he stared up at the soldier on top of the wall.:: Boy you better do something. Magic your ass down here for all I care.

::Before anyone could say anything else, a streak of robes and blonde hair ran past the group and towards the wall. With a powerful kick off of the ground, Hans lept into the air and grabbed the top of the structure. Massive arms worked to pull up his large frame, and in a second, he was sitting next to the soldier, blue eyes staring deep into the man's scared browns. Without a word, Hans stood up and lept off the wall. As he hit the ground, he kept his legs together with knees slightly bent. His body would continued to fall as he tucked into a roll and bounced back up.:: Leave him up there. We do not have time for these games.

::As soon as the knight left, Sergeant Johnson sent a few soldiers up the wall to get the soldier off. A couple more on the ground caught him as he fell. Johnson then moved towards the man and pushed him up against the wall, holding him up and forcing him to look the sergeant in the eyes.::

Now listen here. Sir Hans will never ask me to do a job I cannot do. I will never ask you to do anything in training that will hurt you. You have to follow orders. Your fellow soldiers need to know that you can do it because when we actually breach a wall we need to know you can get over it. If you are the first man, you need to get down and clear a path for those to follow you. If you are the second man, you need to get down and help that first man so that he doesn't die. Do you understand now?

::Johnson waited for the nod before sighing and letting the man go.:: alright. Get out of here. All of you. Get ready for bed. ::The wall was taken down and the men were moving it back into place at the sleeping area while Johnson moved off towards one of the fires. Over the flickering flames, he saw the knight staring at him while he drank from his flask.::

Hard to think of him as the same man, huh? ::Stevens sat next to Johnson and tried to warm himself a little.::

Heh, remember a year ago, that man right there would do anything for us. He was always fighting for us. Now all he does it yell at the soldiers, tell us to leave them.

I know, it's hard to get but I hear ya. I don't know what happened to him. But I think deep down he's still like that. Any idea why we would be pushing this hard?

::Johnson laughed softly and shook his head.:: I don't know. Maybe he actually believes what he says. Maybe we should just appreciate what we have when we can get it cause you never know when it'll be gone. Who knows what's going through his head.

::Stevens started to laugh as he started to gather some blankets about and make himself ready to sleep.:: Appreciate what we can get when we can get it...That's great. If that's part of his reasons, than he's a genius. ::As the man laid down and closed his eyes, his thoughts were still on those words. Before sleep overtook him, a soft smile rested on his lips as he thought about what he had before they left for this frozen wonderland, and what he would be returning to when they were done.::

((I am loving this!))

(A side note, when I mention Michael in this, I'm running a brief side sl in his shop forum starting in about oh...5 mins.)

::The knight stared out at the field as the men worked and practiced. The noise of grunts and yells filled the air punctuated by the sharp crack of hardened wood against hardened wood. Already then men were well ahead of where they had started. Most of them had been soft, flabby sacks of meat wrapped in skin before they came. Now they were starting to harden. Muscle defined their thinner frames. They looked like soldiers now.::

::Blue eyes looked over the scene before him. It was time to start the final test. It would take a while to accomplish, but it was necessary. Instructions were already passed to Murhpy on which soldiers to cut off from food and ale. Purification of the soul was the last step. Water would be their only sustanance.::

::A large hand played with the vial of the Oil of Mercy he had obtained from Lord Darkrose. He was curious as to how it would stand up, but he shrugged off the thought. It would work well enough.::

::He stood at the northern cut in the tree line awaiting the first five men. Sergeant Stevens showed up as instructed and the knight turned, leading them through the path and towards the caves.::

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::Johnson stood in the middle of the field overseeing the staff practice. The lines were good, the form was were it needed to be. He moved through the ranks and files, making minor corrections here and there. Occassionally, he called out a soldier and went a little more in depth with the movements, strikes, and counterstrikes. His mind, however, was not on the practice. He had done it so much lately that it was all muscle memory. His thoughts were instead with Stevens.::

::Hans had called him and four other men to meet him at the northern end of the clearing early that morning. In fact, Johnson was to be with the group going through this afternoon. He had no clue what the man had in store for them, but knowing Hans, it was going to be an experiance alright.::

::As lunch approached, Johnson saw the five men returning. Stevens was pale. Sweat clung to the man and one could tell that his shivering was not from the cold. His steps were here half steps, haltingly moving him forward.::

Keep practicing! Face south, and so help me God if I see any one of you motherless dogs turn around, you're going to wish you were never born!

::All the hunger and aches in his stomach that had been plaguing him all morning vanished as he ran forward and caught Stevens before he could fall.:: Stevens. Hey brother, you alright? Come on man, you're going to be fine. Come on. ::Stevens led his friend towards a fire and sat him down.:: What happened up there?

I'll... I'll.. I'll... I'll b-b-be alri-alright. I c-c-can't t-t-t-t-talk about it. You'll un-un-under st-st-stand.

Johnson. ::Murphy walked up and placed a hand on the sergeants shoulder.:: Get your group ready and link up Sir Hans. I'll watch over Stevens.

::As Stevens rose to get the men he was supposed to take to Hans, he looked back to see First Sergeant had gathered the men who had just come down by the fire and was serving them some food and ale. Word had already begun circling through the camp about what happened, and though none of the men talked, or ever would for that matter, about what had happened, there was already a tension in the air.::

::Johnson gathered the men he was to take to Hans and saw their wide eyes quivering. Though he tried to put on a calm face for them, he was sure that their faces were a reflection of his. As they moved towards the northern edge of the clearing, they saw Hans standing there, silent, still, a statue of cool and collected calmness in this sea of fear and anxiety. Without a word, the knight turned and Johnson led the soldiers behind him up that path.::

(Ooooooooooooooooooooo!)

((She continues staring at the blue screeen long after she finishes reading....wow!))