Steel Wolf

Siege

"The King's Guard. Fierce. Loyal. Honorable. Dedicated. Unto Death."

Standing at attention at her post, Corporal Tanaya Paulsdottir smiled beneath her closed faceplate as she remembered those words being drilled into her skull. Most of the time, they were accompanied by a brain-numbing blow to the helm from a quarterstaff, ash-wood sword or heavy steel hammer. Her shield-arm had been broken twice during that time. Her ankles twisted more times than she cared to count. Bruises, contusions, abrasions, strains, sprains, and once, a deep slash to the bone on the bicep of her right arm, rendering it useless until the healing mage could arrive several days later.

Ambidexterity was a valuable skill. She had been trained to instantly gauge which was an opponent's strong side, and switch her defenses accordingly. If an enemy was attacking left-handed, she could change her stance so that her left hand became her strong side. Of the over almost eighty applicants to enter her class, only six had endured to become the elite of the elite.

When she had received her symbolic helm and twin double-curved swords her father had wept openly yet proudly, comforted by her mother and siblings. Her father had tried several times to become a King's Guard, always failing at the Trial of Subdual: halt, by any means necessary, the entire five-instructor cadre as they attacked at once. Her father had always managed to down four, but never the fifth. As a King's Guard, she never gloated nor even hinted at the fact that she was better than her father. Not only did she revere her father, but a King's Guard was almost as humble as a monk.

The day Tanaya had reported to the castle had been spent in usual military fashion. She had been issued twin sets of armor created on the spot by an alchemical mage; naturally, they fit perfectly. All heads turned to watch the six new people as they strode into the barracks as if they owned the place. Catcalls and whistles of approval greeted them as they spread out to their separate beds, whistling and jeering in return at their new comrades. Everyone in the room had gone through the exact same course and Trial of Subdual, so each respected the others, knowing full well that they could be instantly relied upon when the time arose. There was no hazing, no one trying to prove themselves better than their fellows. All were equally deadly and battle ready.

Standing just under six feet, six inches tall, Tanaya stood head and shoulders over most of her compatriots, only four others in the five hundred-man regiment were as tall or taller. Fully suited in the gleaming gold-with-silver-trim King's Guard armor, she came very close to seven feet. Her honey-blonde hair was wrapped several times around her head, resembling a monk's silken skullcap. Her form was hidden beneath the plain brown loose fitting shirt and pants which were favored by the Guard, the fit allowing for freedom of movement and airflow in the warmer climes.

Of late, there had been attacks on nobles and royalty with increasing frequency. The garrison commander had increased the watches three-fold for the castle. The king and immediate royal family had to be protected. Unto Death.

Tanaya's reverie was broken by the approach of the two-man relief team. She and her partner, Scualdon Rennerfeld, bowed curtly to their respective reliefs, turned smartly and headed for the barracks. As soon as they entered, Tanaya removed her helm and coif to let her extremely long, curly, honey-blonde hair cascade down her back, reaching the swell of her armor-clad ass. As she moved to her bunk to change from her armor into her street clothes, she passed two male squadmates in conversation. One saw her approach, the other one's back was to her as he spoke.

"I tell ya, Rafe, that Tanaya's a fuckslut if I ever saw one. I'd just love to take her over to the Feisty Brigand and rent a room for a single night." He caught Rafe's bemused look and froze. "She's standing right behind me, isn't she? This is gonna hurt..."