Chapter 48
“These men will need to be armed, armored, and provided for during their service,” Thomas said, perhaps wondering if Lucan had thought matters through.
“Yes, that is why I have gathered you,” Lucan said. “Let us speak of who we will recruit. Perhaps we ought to split the company into fifty or sixty infantrymen with the rest being bowmen.”
Cordell shook his head. “There are not enough men skilled with a bow to form half a company, even should we count any poachers whose crimes may be forgiven.”
Aldous spoke then. “Perhaps if we could get our hands on some crossbows. It is much easier to train men to wield them.”
“We have no one capable of crafting them,” Thomas said.
Lucan huffed. “And we won’t be able to buy even a pommel of a sword under these circumstances. The war raging in the north will be swallowing every blade in the market, sharp or dull.”
“Perhaps if we pay generously.”
“It would take time.”
“And I would still have to train these men after we have the weapons at hand.”
Lucan raised a hand, earning himself a moment of respite. “Infantrymen. For now, let us train what we can. Infantrymen will do.”
Aldous cleared his throat. “I propose we host some tourneys and competitions for archery between seasons. I hear there was a time when the estate allowed most men to go hunting in the forest. Their skills will be paltry if they have had no training, but some generous rewards may encourage the talented among them to get their hands on a bow once again.”
“Clever,” Thomas said, eying the master-at-arms. “Should we think of raising bowmen again in the years to come, we will have a good crop to pick from.”
“Precisely.” Aldous nodded.
Lucan gestured at the two of them. “Then you may have it arranged. I will allow rewards in coin and whatever else you deem proper for the best marksmen.”
His men nodded, and Lucan continued, “Now, back to the matter at hand. How do you propose we train these men?”
“I can make the companymen proficient with their arms in due course,” Aldous said. “For that aim, I propose that only men with two Skills may be allowed into the company. One for their main arm and another for their sidearm.”
Cordell quickly shook his head. “To gather a hundred common men with such good fortune, who are also willing, would be the work of months, perhaps even an untenable. One Skill is more common among the folk here, even those who campaigned in the Wilderlands. However, what they lack in their Blessings, they remedy with experience.”
Lucan rubbed his chin, humming for a moment, then said, “Let us see what we get once the call for recruitment is announced. We shall not demand certain fortunes in their Blessings.” He paused, receiving nods from the two men. “Another matter of import is weapons. We ought to speak of what the men of this company will bear.”
“Matched arms will lower the expenses we bear,” Thomas said, his stewardly concerns brought to the fore. “Should the whole company share their arms in training and battle, supplying them will be easier for the estate.”
Lucan gestured with an open palm to his steward while giving the other two a meaningful look. “Perhaps we can begin with sword and shield?”
Aldous was quick to object, shaking his head. “My lord, you may not have felt it, since you began training with the sword before you could properly walk, but it is a difficult weapon to master, and,” he glanced at Thomas, “it is a costly one at that.”
Cordell cleared his throat. “The spear is the king of the battlefield, my lord.” He shared a glance with Aldous, and they nodded.
“Training them with shield and spear would be a simple matter,” the master-at-arms said.
“Very well,” Lucan said. “The spear as their main arm, it is. What of the sidearm? Spears tend to break at the worst of times after all, and their reach is as much a blessing as a curse.”
“A mace is simple to use and potent against armor,” Aldous said.
Cordell raised a hand, halting them before they could agree. “On the field, it would be good to have a tool at hand at all times. The companymen will surely carry some tools regardless, but a man can only carry so much on a long march. An axe on their hip can serve as a sidearm and a reliable tool out in the wild.”
Lucan looked at Aldous, and the master-at-arms shrugged. “More difficult to master, but not an ill choice.”
Lucan received a nod from Thomas, too, before he said, “So be it. Before we speak of more, it seems we ought to speak of training.” He glanced between Cordell and Aldous, who seemed eager to bring it to his attention.
“You can leave the arms training to me, my lord,” Aldous said. “I will make reliable fighters out of them.”
“I will drill them on marching, formations, and matters of war,” Cordell said. “I suggest we have some different ranks and recognitions among these men, particularly if there will be veterans and greens mixing together.”
“How?” Lucan asked.
“It would depend on what we intend for this company to become in time,” Cordell said. “Though experience in battle would be one matter we must consider.”
Lucan rested his chin in his hand, humming as he remembered how he’d imagined the company in his mind. “My wish was that every man in this company would have an Iron Physique at least, which would make them reliable soldiers at the worst.”
“Then Iron Physique ought to be a notch, and experience in war another,” Cordell said. “With two notches making a true man of the Silver Company.”
Lucan raised a forefinger, understanding the aim of his sergeant-at-arms at last. “Ah, then the veterans of the campaign will begin with at least one notch on their collar, a step above green recruits.”
“Precisely, my lord,” Cordell said. “It will give them stature, respect, and better recompense.”
Lucan nodded. “That is acceptable.”
“As for the rest of their training,” Cordell continued. “I say we ought to bring some of them to any Break we discover, so that they may hone their Blessings, though it should not count as their battle notch.”
Aldous nodded along then added, “I believe men are better driven to attend training if coin is tied to it, my lord. The company’s men will often be occupied with other work, and if discipline isn’t imposed, we might find some of them absent from training every fortnight. I propose that instead of a small steady wage year-long, a lump sum of coin is given to them once they’ve attended every assembly in the season.”
Cordell nodded along, but Lucan quickly shook his head. “That cannot be. A wage throughout the year is of utmost importance. You see, it is the only way we can be certain they will stay close by. Should we only pay them for training, they may bring their families elsewhere and only come to the estate for training. Then, should a time come when we need them, we would have to seek in whichever corner they’ve settled.” It was much too fresh in his mind how the tides had brought many folk into his estate from elsewhere, and he wasn’t conceited enough to believe himself untouchable by such tides
The two men seemed to balk at that for a moment, then Cordell nodded after a thoughtful moment. “That is wise, my lord.”
Lucan accepted his praise with a nod and continued, “Now, to the matter of armor.”
“A nasal for a helm ought to do,” Cordell said. “Doesn’t need more than well-shaped iron to protect a man’s head.”
Lucan saw Thomas nod, which meant it would cost little enough that the steward would not be troubled. “What of the rest? Mail, perhaps?”
Thomas’s satisfied nod turned into a shake of the head faster than Lucan could see it. “Too costly for a hundred men, my lord.”
Even Cordell seemed to agree with the steward. Lucan was responsible for his men-at-arms’ harness. They wore brigandines atop mail and padding, except for Ryder and Tomis, who favored lighter armor. Perhaps his fancy of having a well-armed Silver Company had been too wishful, however, since he had to arm a hundred companymen instead of seven men-at-arms. “What can we spare then?”
“Perhaps we ought to fit them for boiled leather breastplates and good gambesons to begin,” Cordell spoke up. “Once they have their notches, they may get some sturdier work done. Perhaps iron splints or plates may be sewn in.”
Thomas nodded happily at that, and Lucan could only say, “Very well.” He paused for a moment and raised a forefinger. “One other matter comes to mind. I wish to establish an order of merit.” This one he did indeed take from the Empire. He’d read about how soldiers of the Veti Empire had received honors that elevated their reputation among their peers without elevating their rank. A soldier could be acknowledged as a great warrior without being handed command beyond his ability. Even the last Champion of the Empire, Agonis, was no general, but simply the most honored warrior in the whole Empire, though he often served at the Emperor’s pleasure instead of being in any of the Empire’s armies. “We must recognize every soldier’s deeds. It will inspire courage and strong will.”
“How shall these merits be given?” Cordell asked.
That Lucan had not thought of. “The Empire used to bestow coins minted for this particular purpose. The soldiers would hoard them in their families for generations as a matter of pride. I know of a few lords who collect them, regardless of their lost meaning. Even a ragged one sells for a good purse at present. However, I wish to give the companymen men something that marks them among their peers, not a coin that they would hide at home.”
There was a moment of quiet before Aldous cocked his head and spoke. “My lord, I remember my father handing his best novices cloth strips of different colors to loop around their arm, marking their feats in the yard that day. Every night, they would have to take off their loops and begin anew in the morning.” He paused, his eyes searching Lucan’s, and when he nodded his approval, the master-at-arms continued, “Perhaps we ought to have something of the like.”
With another nod, Lucan accepted it. “Your father is a clever man. A fine way to elevate the men’s vigor for merit. Let us do it, but we shall use fine cloth for armbands. We may begin with an armband for the Battle of The Dam.” He looked at Cordell. “Only for men who truly fought, not all who were there, certainly not those who fled the moment they could. Those who were wounded and those who were seen fighting, though we will need ways to ascertain that.”
“There are those who are known to have tasted combat,” Cordell said. “Seen by the men or, as you’ve said, my lord, wounded. The best way to ascertain the truth is for those who have fought to stand witness for others. No man who saw real bloodshed would wish to raise another to the same station as himself. Every man who claims to have seen true combat that day would need two others to stand witness for him.”
Lucan nodded. There would be distinction between those who had only marched in the campaign and suffered the flight through the Wilderlands, and those who had fought tooth and nail, bleeding on the banks of the Walis. The former would only get a notch on their collar for having experienced real war in some manner; the latter would be acknowledged for their bravery and deeds by getting a fine armband to mark them.
“Then that is how we shall have it,” Lucan said.
After that, each of his aides began their preparation for what was to come. Thomas prepared the coin and the criers who would announce the recruitment. Cordell hounded the craftsmen and merchants for the proper arms and armor. Aldous sought out proper training grounds for one hundred men.
Meanwhile, Lucan attended his father in his daily training in the yard, soon joined by Lilian in the early afternoon. It was then that Thomas approached him in a hurry.
“You have a visitor, my lord,” the old steward said. “He claims to carry an important message.”
Lucan raised a brow. “Does this messenger bear a name?”
“Yes, my lord. His name is Thorley.”
Lucan and Lilian’s eyes snapped to each other the moment the name was uttered. This day promised to be an interesting one, after all.