Vision Of Escaflowne Fan Fiction ❯ Of Knights And Scoundrels ❯ Arranging... arrangements ( Chapter 2 )

Allen had known from the start that the transition in command of Fort Castelo would not be simple, nor easily accepted. He had read while on the ship that the people garrisoned on the Fort had been there for some time now, enough time for their own organizational structure to considerably solidify. Old loyalties and friendships had grown deep roots among the men; it was a fact that had become apparent to Allen the moment he had stepped foot on the Fort.

There was a relaxed ambient around and inside the complex, but the obvious lack of the unyielding discipline that Allen was accustomed to find at Palas, in no way hindered the functioning of the Fort. The knight had to concede that there was not much depending on the soldiers' effectiveness or accomplishments, but the feeling was there all the same.

Where Palas had been like a fine pocket-watch lubricated with rare oils, glinting a sharp untouched gold in the sun, Fort Castelo was like the dust clogged rods uniting two adjacent wheels of a train. The things would turn in apparent disjointed, dysfunctional, imperfect circles, and yet, they never failed to keep up.

Matters were carried out smoothly and the men seemed to enjoy a great amount of freedom to handle their jobs as they thought best, instead of having to confer with their superior for every decision that came their way. Allen had known from his earlier readings that these soldiers had an history when it came to following blindly and strictly, and he had made sure to reaffirm that information in his mind for many further uses.

He had, however, expected that the measure of respect that his status as a Knight Caeli was bound to attract was enough to counter-balance all the other aspects he had going against him. Surely these men would trust Allen's judgement immediately, inspired by the greatness that it took for one to ascend to the rank he had; surely they would realise what good and expert hands they were being placed in. Unfortunately for Allen Schezar, his life was at a point in which it had made a bet to see how many bad things it could throw his way before something good inevitably happened.

One of the men had excused himself once inside the building, taking with him Allen's belongings to deposit in the room that had been assigned to him, while the knight was led immediately to the Sergeant's presence. Allen had been grateful; he too preferred to get these things out of the way and meet his second in command as soon as possible.

He had been brought to a modest office, furnished only with a desk, chairs, table and fireplace. It was obviously not used very often, as it had been bereft of any personal touches from the part of the Sergeant who it belonged to. The room was gifted with a window with a view over great part of the Fort, and that had been where the man was standing, peering out, when Allen had entered.

He had immediately changed stances to one of attention as he welcomed the knight. Sergeant Gaddes was a tall, large man, with eyes keen and small and the beginnings of a beard spiking his jaw line. He wore a personally customized green uniform, indicative of his rank, complete with the fashionable puffy sleeves every Asturian soldier had come to despise. After some pleasant chat and quick offers later, Allen had asked to be excused to get a quick shower and some rest before it was time for dinner, Gaddes had assured him that he would help the knight in any way he could to make him feel 'at home', and that was it. Allen was being once again led through the halls to his new quarters.

Allen had to admit that after that encounter he had been left with mixed feelings about what was to come at dinner that night. The Captain had been right, sergeant Gaddes had seemed to be a good man. Pleasant, reliable, steadfast, all good qualities he expected to find in a man on a commanding position. If his ten-minute-based impressions were correct, he would have no trouble whatsoever, with such a capable man as his second. But that was just the trouble spot, he was basing himself on feelings he had picked up in his whole of ten minute long chat with Gaddes.

He hoped he was right, but on the other hand, his guts were still screaming at him not to forget his previous expectations. The Sergeant was just one man and although he had made his insertion at Castelo's tight community seem simple and smooth, how would everyone else receive him? Something was telling him to brace himself, that his life was still determined in sending him as many challenges as it could possibly fit into the shortest possible time-frame.

Short time-frame. Now that he thought about it, taking into consideration all the little gestures and mannerisms of the Sergeant, he wondered if the man had been a little too nervous when they spoke. He had almost seemed only too glad to comply when Allen had asked to take his leave, like he had some other agenda on hold.

Ridiculous, he told himself. Gaddes had just been anxious to see who he had ended up with as a superior, much like he himself had been about his subordinates. And still was. But no, no greater conspiracy was going on behind his back, it had been completely natural and acceptable behaviour for the man.

All that remained now was being formally introduced - shown off - at dinner. Gaddes had promised to introduce him to as many as he could, show him around to familiarize with the faces he would be seeing every day. And pick him up at his room when the time came for dinner. The man was late. So much for being reliable.

The sun was setting. What the heck, he thought. He might as well get rid of the 'young boy complex' and explore the fort. Even if he did come upon someone it was not as if he was trespassing or doing something wrong: he was the commander! Pausing in front of the mirror for a last minute check on his hair and last tug on the jacket, he exited the bedroom and set out to not getting himself too lost.

He had called the place a junk deposit when he had seen it for the first time, aboard the merchant ship. Now, he was feeling inclined to rephrase it, he decided as he glanced through a window. It was a junk deposit, on the outside.

Spare guymelef parts littered the ground, alongside weapons of artillery and forgotten craters. What should have been a clear yard, was more resemblant of a mechanic's open-air warehouse. The inside of the main building of the Fort, however, was, thankfully, rather clean, orderly and... welcoming.

It was made almost entirely out of wood, which, Allen remarked, was a not so brilliant strategical decision. The so called fortress would come down in an instant and rendered useless, in the face of a fire. Even the walls fortifying it were mere palisades. They might have been enough around the time when they were built, but no longer on these modern times where guymelefs were fundamental in any war.

Apart from such musings, Allen managed to find some important sites in his wandering. He found the hangar where Scherazade was already sitting like a queen, the holding cells not far from it, and even an aisle of what he thought were quarters for the soldiers. He had not found anyone yet, but attributed it to the fact that they had probably left to stuff their stomachs without considering how stagnant and unprotected the building was in their absence. When he was retracing his steps and passing outside the door to the hangar, though, a hushed conversation quickly put that quiet to an end.

"...just has to call for them to send more", Allen made out from the mumbling as he pressed an ear to the door and tried to stay out of sight from these soldiers with no appetite.

"Yeah, but what if we're caught? You know the...", another one was saying when he was interrupted by a third.

"Relax, buddy, you'll see... we get the parts, call for more, and no one will notice they were even gone. In the meanwhile, we'll sell the old ones to Cutty and make a fortune for ourselves!" There was something about this one's sly tone that definitely made Allen suspicious.

"Then why don't we just take the new ones that will arrive after?" The second asked.

"Because, you dolt, those parts will be new and marked! If we ever have any problems, we can just say we got them from the junk and repaired them", the first broke in. If the third's slyness was unsettling, the this one was plain unnerving from how brusque he sounded.

"Ohhh... And why won't the guy ever find out about this stuff again?" The second inputted. Allen was coming to the conclusion that he was not the brightest man around, whatever it was that the three were discussing.

"We've told you before!"

"Because, my friend... why would the stupid knight ever need to use the 'melef when he's out here!" Scherazade!

These three were planning to dismantle Scherazade behind Allen's back! He was just preparing to stomp towards the door and give the men a lesson about not touching other people's, his, guymelefs, when a hand wrapped around his arm and jerked him back.

"Hey, sir Allen." Gaddes. "I'm glad to have found you, I've been looking everywhere for you", he said with half a smile.

"Sergeant, I am glad to have found you too. There are three men in the hangar planning to..." Allen explained, hoping to rally the man's help, but was cut off as the other started pulling him in the direction where he had come from.

"Whatever it was you heard, I'm sure it's nothing", he dismissed. "Come on, let's get you to the cantina so I can start getting you introduced to everyone around here."

Allen had a very good idea about which three people he would like to meet, but chose to not pursue the subject. He was still worried about what could happen to Scherazade, but he did not want to start accusing people he did not know of theft on his first day. He would take up the Sergeant on his word that there was nothing serious going on. Had he not decided no more than an hour ago that the man was reliable? Oh, wait, he was not. Still, he let himself be dragged down the hall, figuring that, judging from what he had overheard, the worst that could happen in any case was Scherazade, his pride and joy, ending up with a set of brand new parts.

They passed in front of Allen's door, and he learned that in all his blessed ignorance of the place, he had gone in the exact opposite direction of the dining room. Now that he was correctly on track and guided by Gaddes' expertise, it took no more than a couple of well timed turns to reach the doors-almost-gates to the Great Hall.

The Sergeant did not hesitate in rushing him inside, barely giving the knight enough time to register an ominous feeling as he crossed the threshold. Allen was hit head-on by a wave of noise and heat and in the second of distraction it created, the Sergeant grabbed him by the arm again and pushed him to the main table at the front of the room.

Like the rest of the Fort, the walls of this room were panelled in wood and scarcely decorated with the occasional rug or flag, which gave it a warm touch. Contributing to that warmth, were the many torches and fireplaces scattered throughout, and of course, the hundred and so soldiers all breathing, drinking, talking, eating, singing... in two words, slacking off. By the look of it, dinner was already well beyond half-way, and unless Allen's eyes failed him, some of the men had done a good job in getting fairly drunk during that period. The ambient was nothing if not relaxed, but as Allen took the seat that Gaddes was offering him at the center of his table, overlooking all others, he was incredibly tense. He felt every bit the outsider that he was.

It was not that the scene was a completely unfamiliar one for Allen. He had eaten in plenty of cafeterias in Palas and was well used to them, but it had been a while since the last time he had had to eat in one. His knighting had provided him with a set of luxuries that, he had not realised until recently, had spoiled him. But that was not the end of it.

He was sitting in a very central position, which left him feeling vulnerable, given that he was no better than a stranger to these men. He saw every person in the room, and every person saw him. And these people still had the gift of making him feel uncomfortable and unsure of how to act. In the short walk from the doors to the tables, Gaddes had greeted several people along the way, and not one of them had reacted with what Allen would call 'proper treatment to a superior officer'. Not one bow, not even a salute, most of them gave the Sergeant a good slap in the back which the knight was sure would have left him doubled over on the ground had it been him. Oh, yes, he would need some adapting.

The Sergeant first proceeded to introducing Allen to everyone on the table. There were quite a few of them, and the knight could not claim he had a good memory when it came to names. He was left with a vague impression that there were people named Teo, Ort and Kio nearby. Basic questions were exchanged, and then, as Allen was leaning forward and just about to reach for one of the dishes, Gaddes rose from his seat, mug of ale in hand and vocal strings at top volume.

"Oy, you bums!" He called out for everyone to hear. Allen was not sure if his mouth was really hanging open or if it was simply what his brain was telling him he should do in his shock. The whole room had become instantly silent, many of them looking his way. "Like I told you all yesterday, we will be having a new commander here at Fort Castelo. From now on, we will all be serving under sir Allen Schezar, who has arrived from Palas today", he motioned for the knight to stand up and speak for himself, with a slight shrug that said he was not used to making speeches. Allen could have said the same thing, were his mind not so blank. His legs, though, moved of their own accord and he slowly rose to meet the gazes that were now fixed on him.

"Huh... hello, everyone. How are you doing?" He began lamely, and would have cringed if the first impression he was giving these people would not have been so irreparably damaged by that. But what was said, was said, and he kept braving on the crowd. "Like the Sergeant said, I am Knight Caeli Allen Schezar and have been sent from the capital. I have not had much time to get familiarized to the manner in which things are led here, but I am counting on sergeant Gaddes to help me with that, so you can expect that there will not be any significant changes there."

Allen paused to think of something else he could have to say to these men, but his mind was still racing after itself in dizzying circles and made no promise to stop any time soon. Whispers from the soldiers began to fill in the silence.

"Since there are so few of us, and the Fort is so small, I hope to get to know more about each of you soon." That sounded wrong, Allen chastised himself. Then, in the hopes of somehow amending it, he added "From what I have seen, I am sure we will be able to maintain this friendly atmosphere", he finished with a smile that even he had to admit was painstakingly false. He dropped in his seat hoping that being level with the other occupants of the table would somehow make him invisible. It did not.

Gaddes and the others - Kio, Ort, etc - were keeping neutral faces, nodding at him in what was definitely not approval - but not disapproval either - for the speech. They were far from being enthusiastic, but even neutral was good compared to what was happening in the tables below. Now that he was more sheltered among his table companions, Allen was finding it took a lot of self-control not to cringe, bite his lip or slap his forehead proclaiming how stupid he had been. For his audience was a mesh of the reactions that gave nightmares to every speaker around the world.

Disbelieving, sarcastic stares, while commenting with their neighbours in not so hushed tones, words lost in the sea of others doing the same. Icy glares, clearly saying how much they wished that the knight had never set foot on the complex, or perhaps that he had simply not said a word. Laughs, hidden glances, people exiting and leaving the door wide open for others to follow.

Gaddes rose again, trying to get the men into taking on the role of an at least convincing eager audience. It was obvious that he realised how inappropriate their behaviour was before the knight, but his reign on the mob was too loose to have any effect now that their steam was full on. He turned to the knight in defeat.

"Don't worry, sir Allen. They can get a bit out of order like this at times, but they won't give you any problems. I know them well enough to guarantee you that." Allen was nodding his thanks when a flash of metal from the door caught his eye and left him baffled all over again.

A large soldier dressed with pieces of armour and two lankier ones were carrying what looked suspiciously like a valve for a guymelef articulation. Allen stared, and decided that he could expect nothing good to come from this crew. As the shouts from the hall filled his ears and Gaddes gave up trying to reassure him, the knight fervently desired that he was back at Palas comfortably asleep in the Schezar estate.