Thick ragged cloaks, leather armour packed with a layer of compressed vegetation. None wearing a single piece of steel plate armour as against a swing from an ogre, it would have offered little. Instead, a layer of dead plants stuffed in their tunics makes the difference between the infirmary and the after life.
The rank and file, at least the fortunate ones, marched with a level of weariness, a feeling of relief and perhaps still a hint of pride left as none were hanging their heads.
Their tunics and cloaks, patched over multiple times all over. Each had a shovel on their backs, all caked in mud at the edges. A quarter of them carried a mini cannon on their backs and their partners, accounting for another quarter, had tall bags, stretching from their neck down to their thighs. The remaining half had pikes so long that the shaft was broken into two pieces, one piece was shaped like a stake to nail itself into the ground, while the tip and its side blades were broken into three.
On either side of the column, a sparse formation of men and women in cloaks wrapped in thick vegetation. Lightly armoured, short bows, short swords and daggers. They were missing their horses as the surviving ones pulled the carts of injured men and the urns of the fallen.
At the front of the column, the RazenHeir knights, men of impressive stature, clad in shock absorbent hide armour.
Claymores slung on their backs, short sword, musket and a buckler slinging from their belts.
And at the very head, a man with grey hair, his face full of wrinkles. A set of hide armour underneath just like his knight. His shiny set of Ruinium armour stands out from the column but could not hide the grim reality of war he had suffered.
The gate was raised, allowing the column through. Ria greeted them, a plain white shirt and black skirt for the occasion. Hikari stood beside her, in her matching outfit.
"You have returned. Father."
The man dismounted his horse. His well weaved armour made little more than a slight rattling. He opened his arms, Ria ran up to him, he bent down to receive her with a warm hug. "Ria! It's been so long, look at how you have grown!" His voice was coarse and forceful. The demands of war on his throat was evident.
"It's good to see you. The frontline hasn't been kind to you nor our troops. But here you are. Alive and well." The Lord RazenHeir embraced his daughter, who could feel the unevenness in his breathing, his trembling hands. "I'm glad to see you too. Look how you have grown. Soon you will find a man to carry our house's name."
"I'm thankful for the encouragement. But I have thus far been met with nothing but rude comments about my dreadful lack of interesting features."
"Hahaha! Not to worry, my dearest daughter. You still have a good number of years to grow, and if that doesn't work, the druids or the priests of light would have a solution. And if they don't, just pad your chest like your mother did. Hahaha!"
"Hikari, would you mind giving the honorable Lord RazenHeir a good slap across the face. Just be sure he wakes up within the week."
The Lord RazenHeir turns to the massive tower standing right beside him. His jaw almost dropped to the ground.
His excitement turned to astonishment.
"My Lord, you're being rude."
"Ah. I apologize. I don't believe a slap from you would end in me just being unconscious for days."
"It's been a while, My Lord."
"It is. I could have sworn I matched the level of your hips with my helmet."
"You did."
"Shame that this old and broken body could no longer offer itself as a training dummy."
"We have more than enough of those of late."
"Indeed, but today, thanks to everyone, you especially, we have a moment of respite."
Hikari knelt down and embraced him like a toddler. He stiffed at first, and then relaxed, and then turned into excitement as the twin moons of the RazenHeir house enveloped him. By the time she let go, he was left with a bleeding nose.
"Ah… this is quite the welcome. Hahahaha!" A maid walks up and hands him a napkin.
"'My Lord', the soldiers are staring." Ria said with an annoyed look on her face.
"Oh. Ahem! Get moving! We have a small feast today! Unless you want to miss it!"
Reinvigorated, the Lord RazenHeir went back to his men, carolling them back to their barracks.
"I do envy you Hikari. I could have sworn I picked a less suggestive outfit for you."
"You have."
"If the stares are too annoying for you, we could retire."
"I'll allow it. They deserve it."
Ria briefly hugged the side of Hikari's boot before joining the maids in preparing the celebration. Hikari continued to stand guard.
The troops settled into their barracks, removing their tattered armour and clothes that smelled like and are often coated in horse dung. Troops in bandages, sent home early from injury, pushed carts of towels, shavers and a fresh change of clothes for their comrades. The men just stripped in the open, emptied several buckets of cold water over their heads and then grabbed their allotment in good order.
The maids were laying the table clothes and men were lighting the camp fires. Before long, huge, full grown, and fat pigs, skewered onto a roast. The flames sizzled and roared as the men spun the roast and fanned the flames.
The light dimmed. It was evening. The campfires burned even brighter. Cheers and laughter filled the air. The plucking of the ukulele. The bards sang.
"Who is the greatest beauty in the land? Where oh Where oh could she be? The top of the hill, behind the tree, inside the tent, behind the inn. Where oh Where oh could she be? The wyvern came, drank all the mead, but off goes its pointy head. The greatest beauty in the land. There she is, the one who slays, the one who towers, the one who charms. The men she charms, sees her blossoms, gets on their knees and wets their pants. Oh where Oh where is the greatest beauty in the land?"
The men gather around Hikari, waving their beers in their hands, singing and dancing until their mugs drop.
Hikari bent over and grabbed a whole barrel. Chuck! Chuck! Chuck! The men cheered. She popped off the lid like a can and downed the whole barrel, to the roars of cheers below.
"Last man standing gets a hug."
The men rushed for the barrels, filling their mugs. After a few rounds, many of them could barely stand, but their determination, the focus on the grand prize right above right, kept their backs straight and knees knocked in place.
"Oho. Because what you wish for."
Chuck! Chuck! Chuck! The onlookers cheered. A dozen rounds had passed, or was it two. The contestants were starting to drop. Three left, another chuck of the mug, all three remain standing. Another chuck, another one hits the deck. The remaining two. One chuck, two chuck, they remained standing, the last chuck, the barrel was empty, yet they remained standing.
"A tie. Here is your reward."
Half conscious, the two winners looked up dazed as a wall of muscle and cotton came down onto them. Their faces were each smothered under one moon. Gasps of envy filled the air. Hikari quickly got up, before they really suffocated, leaving them with a nose bleed and wet pants.
Ding! Ding! Ding! The bell rang. Lord RazenHeir stood on a wooden podium. "Gentleman! I hope you are enjoying the feast!" His coarse voice, amplified by an enchanted horn, reverberated across the encampment. "Now, we will begin the sending off ritual."
The urns were opened, a group of priests, dressed in white robes with gold embroidery, began their chant. All of the men bowed their heads in silent prayer. The air began to stir, as the runes carved into the ground glowed bright with pure white light. In an upwards spire, the ashes left the urn, floating into the air, before scattering into the stars.
Curiously, Hikari could sense little more than a simple illumination plus a levitation spell. She could sense nothing about the releasing of souls nor spirits. But she prayed nonetheless. There is no god she believes in. But she prays for those who fell in battle, for it would eventually come for those around her.