Cartlidge: Rise of the Imperfect Flame Read Online Free PDF

everything. Next
to the library was the mess hall, and then finally,
the barracks.
    “Alright. Get yourself situated.
Your training starts tomorrow.” The barracks was completely empty.
    “Where is everyone else?” I asked.
    “They’re either training, studying, fighting, or out where
they’re not supposed to be.”
    I found a clean, ownerless bunk and fell in. It was only the
afternoon, but I was exhausted.
    I felt my body shifted by a force, and I woke up falling to
the floor. I heard voices but failed to understand them. They were Rovanekrens,
all laughing and talking to each other in their strange language. One turned to
me.
    “Wai are there so menee of yuu haff bloods? When mai father served, he never had to deal with enee of yuu !”
    Another voice spoke. “Um, there are only two of them here,
Jevack.”
    “That is two too menee !”
    I raised myself to a stand. “Your Gaia is terrible.”
    “ Maybee you peepel need to learn some Rovanekren.” I began to feel threatened.
    “Well maybe you-!”
    “Young bloods!”
    “Commander, sir!” Everyone chanted
in unison. Some spoke in Rovanekren while others in Gaia. Everyone stood
completely at attention, feet separated, arms behind
their backs. I quickly shuffled into a similar stance.
    “You are all new, I know, but I will NOT have a fight break
out BEFORE training starts! Is that clear Jevack?”
    “Yes sir!”
    “Get some sleep young bloods! You’re all getting up early
tomorrow!” The commander turned and left, taking the tension with him. Some
prepared themselves for sleep, while others started conversations. Jevack
turned to me.
    “This isn’t over half blood.” I ignored him, dropped into my
own bunk, and thrashed about to find a comfortable spot. I faced myself away
from the adjacent wall to hopefully be able to respond if someone came a little
too close.
     
    The darkness of sleep was unsettling. I saw faces I didn’t
recognize. I only heard one thing.
    “Be…”
    I continuously saw the dark figure of my nightmares darting
about the edge of my vision. The hooded figure walked with an arch in its back,
its skeletal hand always outstretched.
    “Be…” The voice came not from it, but from a woman.
    “Young Bloods!” This voice I knew.
It was the commander. I woke from my slumber to find the other recruits
scrambling to get ready. I began to do the same. It was around five in the
morning. After around ten minutes everyone was standing at attention.
    “Now then, I know that not a single one of you have been in
a real fight. I know, not a single one of you knows what real pain is. But by
the angels by the end of this you will all know exactly what true pain is, and
you will all overcome it or by the angels you will be sent back to your mothers
in buckets! Do you understand me young bloods!”
    “ Sevilkren Yenetchsev Sevilkren !” All the recruits spoke in unison. I
assumed it was acknowledgment of the commander’s statement.
    “Well if you all are so eager to start I want to see you all
running around the building until breakfast! Now!” After a few grunts of irritation, everyone funneled through the door for the
run. The commander stopped me just before I could leave.
    “Just so you know , every half blood has to learn Rovanekren at some point. Not all
instructors will be courteous enough to speak in your language, and angels have
mercy if you can’t tell what the instructor’s telling you to do...” He let me
go and I ran to catch up to the group.

[Chapter 4:
Training]
    Physical work comprised the bulk of the first month of
training. During the remaining time we were mentally trained. Every day we
would wake up, run, eat, lift, watch each other be
humiliated by one of the instructors, eat again, learn simple commands and
protocol, and then return to bed. Everything that was typical of military
training on Earth was doubled on New Rov. The second month focused on our
intelligence. We worked on combat during the early part of the