Summoning Our Country - NHS Kai

Chapter 34: The Parpaldians March Forth

NOTE: This year's (unfortunately) first Kai update. The action should be picking up and I really want the releases to do so as well, so I'll try my best. This'll be the new normal moving forward, unfortunately.

Discord: https://discord.gg/wEp44XuaT3

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Cent. Calendar 10/02/1640, Fort Bai, Le Brias Harbor, Altaras, 16:31

Going to the beach... was never a dull experience. Five years ago, the tone behind the voice that echoed this thought would have been one of youthful hopes and expectations of getting to swim in the ocean under the full brunt of the summer sun. But now, the tone was more of an "I've just had my 20th near-death experience just now" kind of feel, a sentiment that echoed among the young men of Ardean Company of the 117th Naval Infantry Battalion. But none of them had that sentiment dug deep in his heart as one La Prénom Recrue (Private First Class) Eli.

Having grown up in a quiet fishing village on the eastern Parpaldian seaboard, the sight of the beach and the smells, memories, and ideals associated with it was one thing that claimed a big part of Eli's heart. No matter where he went, even during his training inland for the Parpaldian Naval Infantry (a river-focused force), he'd always long for the beach. But now, he had come to a point he never thought to ever reach in his life.

I wanna get outta here. Fuck the beach.

He muttered to himself in an almost apathetic tone.

He had been lying on the crest of a gigantic dune, the coarse particles of sand digging into whatever exposed skin there was and sapping their moisture—and whatever energy he had left—after being in the same spot for hours on end. He was not alone, but being with someone who also wanted out of there didn't help the situation at all. The only things that stayed in place longer than his limbs were his hands, which still maintained an iron grip over his standard-issue rifle, and his open eyes, which were surveying the situation on the other side of the gigantic dune.

For as much as their officers claim that things were 'working out,' he and some of the men, mostly the ones who are still alive, felt as if nothing had been right the moment they hit the beach three days ago.

"...Hey."

His lips were dry, but he nonetheless mustered what energy he had. This was directed to the other soulless marine lying on the sand next to him, La Prénom Recrue Ignace.

"...Nnn?"

Ignace replied with a weak groan.

"...Got an extra kick?"

"...Gimme the whole deal. Y'know these ain't handouts."

"Fuck... A kick for my dinner biscuits... And my share of the morning clam soup tomorrow."

"...Sold."

With a deal set in four sentences, Ignace reached for a hidden pocket on the reverse side of his coat and pulled out a coin-shaped object wrapped in blue. Eli immediately swiped it off Ignace's hand, much to the latter remarking, "Y'know that stuff ain't good to take regularly, right?" which the former simply ignored and just tore through the wrapper. Inside was a white disc that looked like a mana stone, but the smooth texture and the easily scratched surface hinted that it was a hardened plant product. Holding the white disc in both of his palms, he whispered magic chants into it, and soon enough, subtle traces of white smoke started to emanate from the disc. Eli immediately took a whiff of the smoke, and the effects were instantaneous: he was suddenly roused from his slump, and his attention and energy levels shot through the roof.

"Nghhh... That's the shit."

What Eli got from Ignace was a disc of copp, a processed mana-infused byproduct of a plant raised in the hinterlands of the far Philadean north. While it doubled in function similar to a mana stone for personal use in the primitive communities of the far north, it had far lower mana density for its size compared to the regular mana stone. But this wasn't its main use in the more industrialized southern Philades: when the mana in the copp is cast, the resulting spell causes the other plant products in the copp to react and disperse as smoke, which contains very potent stimulants. The history and perception of copp as a stimulant is varied among the countries and cultures of Philades, but it was banned for consumption within the Parpaldian military, though enforcement hasn't been heavy-handed.