Black Reaper

January 18th, Imperial Year 880
Old Battlefield

A crow descended onto the mangled corpse of an enemy soldier, pecking at his eyes with its beak. The birds fled as I rode over and yanked my spear out of his gut.

"You good on your end?" Anya yelled out, from the other end of the cart. She looked over at the carnage quite dejectedly.

"Fine, I think." I put the spear on my back. "You?"

Anya was silent.

"Quite a killcount we're racking up lately!" She gave me her classic Anya grin, but her eyes betrayed her expression.

My own smile faded. There sure were a lot of corpses. Mostly the corpses of our enemies, but also the corpses of allies. All fellow Galerians. Some of these foes might even have been neighbors before the war.

Best not to think about it too hard.

"Alright, let's get you out of the battlefield." I said. "Uh, after I get my stuff. Now where the hell was that other schmuck...?" I led Goldie around, trying to retrace my steps from the battle. Unlike with relatively expendable arrows, you really feel obligated to retrieve a thrown spear. "Darn, I really should invest in a bow..."

"Hey boss!" One of the mercenaries ran over to me. "Looks like the regulars didn't pick everything clean, look!" He displayed a handful of copper coins in his hand.

"Right, uh, you can keep that as a bonus or something." I know it's bad for discipline, but I'm not going through the trouble of cataloguing every single thing a soldier loots from the battlefield to pass around. I hate paperwork, and I hate the fact that they hoisted the paperwork onto me just because I know how to use an abacus. Did I ever tell you that arithmetic was one of my worst subjects? "Ah, my other spear!" 

I rode over to the corpse from which my spear stuck out from. Flies buzzed around his wound, and a few rats scampered off when I approached it.

...maybe I'll let the scavengers have that one.

"The reaper! Look, it's the black reaper!" A few of our soldiers shouted. I looked over. They weren't the mercs from out company, but they still bore the markings of our faction, the Blue Aureol Banner of Iris. I grabbed my sword, and hoisted it up into the air.

"For Galeria!" I shouted. The soldiers cheered back.

Ah, the joys of being a hero.

One of the 'corpses' moaned in pain. He was missing his legs, and he clawed at the dirt, trying to get himself off of the mound of dead bodies.

"Water, please..." The man begged. "Please..."

I froze. An icy chill ran down my spine.

I reached for my canteen, knowing full well its emptiness. Frankly, I was rather thirsty myself. 

I...have to help him...

"A-ah...uh..."

I tried to dismount, but my legs refused to move.

"Hey, we got a survivor over here!" A few of our soldiers walked over to the mutilated soldier, and drew their swords.

"N-no, wait-" As he protested, one of our troops plunged his sword into the dying man's neck, severing his head. It bounced on the ground, blood spurting the stumps. The soldiers laughed.

He was...just there...

"My lord?" A soldier, one of our mercs, spoke to me, snapping me out of my stupor. "My lord, we have a list of casualties for our company..."

"Tell that to the commander, I'm busy." I took Goldie's reins, and we began to gallop away from the battlefield, where Anya was sitting underneath a tent. The river. It was red with blood, but I didn't really care. I hopped off of Goldie, and began to run.

"Jason?" Anya asked. I ignored her and made it halfway to the river, before I vomited all over myself.

God dammit, this armor is brand new.

***

January 18th, Imperial Year 880
Blue Iris Banner Encampment

The old academy days really do feel like forever ago. It almost feels like my old friends are fading from my memory.

Am I really a noble? Doesn't feel like it anymore.

I peered out over the wooden palisades, towards the formerly Red Rose Banner castle. Though the structure showed signs of wear and tear, the regulars had apparently chosen it as a good place to sleep for the night.

And only the elite regulars of course, because frankly the castle was way too small to fit everyone in. Most of us, mercs included, had to make do with sleeping at the same old encampment.

"Alright Goldie." I said to my horse. "We should get you inside." I walked out from the camp, passing by a few regulars who had decided to check out the mercenary encampments. Levies, by the looks of it. Their kettle hats and long polearms didn't exactly seem to be of good manufacture.

Alright, now to the stables in the fort specifically designed for horses. That'll be a trek and a half. God dammit.

The sunset stained the skies red, almost as if the skies too, were bleeding. I would have considered this gorgeous otherwise, but for reasons quite obvious, I'm not exactly in the mood for red.

Good thing I'm on the side with a blue banner.

A man clad in plate armor rode out from the castle, carrying a banner in hand. From the looks of it, a regular - not just that, but one of the elite men-at-arms of the Blue Banner. He headed straight for the mercenary camp, stopping only when he noticed me.

"Hello!" I gave him a wave. "Can I help you?"

"This is the campsite of the Green Fox Company, yes?"

Yes, that's the name of our mercenary group.

"Yes, that is correct. What business do you have here?"

"General Vandolos has an assignment he wishes to bestow upon this group. Is the mercenary known as 'The Black Reaper' present at this moment?"

"That would be me." I responded. Talking to me, and not the commander? Interesting. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Anya walking out of the camp. She stopped as she looked at the knight, and stood there, waiting.

"I would tell the commander about it first, but since I have met you first, I will inform you first." He produced a small scroll, and began to read it to me. "Starting tomorrow, you are to detach from the main army, and form a scouting team to bring order to the war torn countryside of Galeria. Are you up for this task?"

I blinked. Me, personally? I'm well aware of the rising monster population due to the loss of local hunters to the army, but it hadn't crossed my mind until recently.

"So, I would be hunting bandits and monsters, correct?"

"That is correct. You may assemble a team, and we will reserve the right to reintegrate your unit into the main force, whether temporary or permanently, if extra manpower is needed, but for now, you are being ordered to head and restore order to the Duchy of Ekuna."

Ekuna. That's contested territory. Despite the marshy and forested terrain making travel difficult, the front line had rolled over it thrice until it disintegrated into a grey zone. I bet you that none of those villagers know who to owe their taxes to anymore.

It's also the site of the kingdom's silver mines, run by the Counts of Cordelia.

Phoebe.

"Yes sir. I will do as the prince asks." I gave him a grim look of determination. A part of me was excited, I'll admit. And another part of me felt agitated in a way I hadn't quite felt since that fateful day.

I had almost forgotten the sound of her voice. I had all the fame, but none of the glory. All the adventure, but none of the meaning. All the infamy, but none of the honor.

I had almost forgotten about Phoebe at all. A visceral feeling of self-loathing washed over me as I realized this fact.

"Hey, Jason!" Anya ran over to me, her tail wagging excitedly. "What's going on?" She gave me an excited smile, as if she had discovered something amazing. Knowing her, it was either that or she was just happy to see me.

"Oh, not much," I lied, trying to prod at her a little. "What's up with you?"

"We're having beef stew for dinner today!" Anya said, as her wolf ears wiggled slightly.

"Whoa, beef stew?" I replied. When's the last time I've had beef? Back at the academy? This was a whole event!

Wait, don't just celebrate yet Jason, you're forgetting something major.

"Yep! And I want to save you some as well!" 

Thank you Anya, I love beef. Tasty, tasty, tasty.

"Well Anya, I have to apologize. I lied to you. I have something quite important to tell you." I looked at the plate armored messenger, who disappeared into the camp crowd. I grinned.

"Hmm?" Anya looked at me, confused. 

"The general has ordered the creation of a new pacification detachment to Ekuna." I dramatically pointed my finger at her. "And I, the Black Reaper, want you as my second in command."