Conscripted, p.22
Conscripted, page 22
That is, provided the twenty-one rings of the bells I heard earlier were any indication that the system was the same here. Even through all the thick stone walls surrounding the garrison, the booming of the tolling bells still reached my ears.
Despite my theories, however, I still couldn’t be completely sure. Who knows, maybe if I stayed up long enough, I’d hear a twenty-fifth bell ring through the garrison.
I didn’t think I would make it to find out.
“Man, it has been one loooong day!” I said, yawning as I spoke.
But my curiosity was getting the better of me, and I stubbornly wanted to stay up and test the strength I could now feel coursing through my veins.
It wasn’t subtle, like the feeling you get after going to the gym every day for months on end, gradually feeling stronger and less sore each day as you push yourself.
No, my arms felt… I pushed a finger into my biceps curiously. To my surprise, they felt like banded steel in comparison to how they were only a day ago.
They weren’t bigger, per say, or more toned than they were before. Not really. In fact, they looked the exact same, they just felt…
What’s the word?
“Denser. Yeah, I feel denser. Like I doubled my body weight even though I didn’t double in size. I wonder what I would weigh on a scale right now?”
I glanced around as I dropped my arms to my sides. There wasn’t much in the little cell to practice with. The only thing I could think of at first was to test my strength by lifting things. But unfortunately, the only object in the room worthy of said test was the bed. It would have to do for now.
While the straw mattress was pretty cheap, the frame itself was something decently solid.
“Oak, I think, but by no means am I a… tree person? No… What did they call them back home? Botanists? No, that’s not it.”
Let me tell you, I would have given anything to have the Internet back at my fingertips, even after I gained an enhanced memory from a Dungeon i visited many years later.
I also missed typing things out on a keyboard. By the way, to whoever ends up reading this journal in the future, if anyone can ever figure out what my writing even means here, I hope you don’t mind my shitty, capitalized block letter handwriting too much.
“Wait, what was that not-quite-a-holiday holiday back home?” I thought aloud as my mind drifted back to the wood of the bed. Then, I snapped my fingers as the answer popped into my mind, the sound echoing off the stone walls. “Arbor day! An Arborist! That’s it!”
Anyway, I was no arborist, and more or less grew up a city boy. So, other than knowing that oak was one of the hardwoods, and that the bed was made with some kind of hardwood that may or may not be oak… I had no real idea what the rickety frame was made of.
“Gah, why am I even entertaining these thoughts anyway.” I groaned as I shook my head, slapping the sides of my face a few times to wake up. “Man, I'm tired. Focus, Cal. First, test my strength, then go to bed.”
To finally return to the topic at hand, the bed was the only thing I could conceivably lift, but I was unable to get underneath it given the incredibly small space that separated it from the dirty floor.
I tried to reach wide and pick it up from above, but the bed was an odd length and width, somewhere between a twin and queen, and it didn’t feel right as I began to lift it into the air.
It lifted, but my back was so out of position I felt like I was going to hurt myself, which I didn't want to risk.
“Well, that failed spectacularly,” I said as I dropped the bed back to the ground, glaring at it for being so unhelpful. I internally cursed it for being stubborn as my eyes mindlessly traveled to the dusty stone floor. It was then that a different idea occurred to me.
“Push-ups are a tried-and-true metric,” I said, nodding along as if agreeing with my own statement. “If a much more boring method than lifting an entire wooden bed over my head. Alas, the sacrifices we must make in the name of science.”
I removed my new shirt, or tunic or whatever it was called here, beat out the dust I had already accumulated, and folded it over the wooden bar at the foot of the evil bed to avoid sullying it even more with the dust covering the cold stone floor. I then dropped down to my hands and knees, assuming a push-up position as I began to feel the floor-dust caking into the surface of my palms like a fuzzy blanket.
“I have to clean this place up later.”
I then took a breath and got to work.
Back before I was stolen to this place, I was about six-two, two hundred and ten pounds. Not massive or the biggest by any means, but I was slightly above average.
I could crank out fifty push-ups non-stop even with the heavy strain of muscle failure towards the end, which came with its fair share of heavy breathing. Once more, let me reiterate that I wasn’t the strongest guy in my unit, but I wasn’t the weakest either. Most of my life was just that. Average, or slightly above.
“I still have no idea why I was chosen for this. I’m not one punch man or anything, that’s for sure,” I grumbled.
I tried to clear my mind as I started cranking them out. The first thing I noticed was that I didn’t experience the adjustment period I usually did on the first few push-ups as my muscles warmed up. You know, where your arms kind of say “What the fuck are you doing to me? Oh, okay, I guess we’re doing this then. Fuck you, but let's go!”
Instead, they felt in perfect form, loose right from the get-go.
Nice!
“One, two, three…” On it went, and soon enough I had blown past twenty without feeling a thing. Not even my breathing had changed.
“Forty-nine, fifty…” I mumbled as I kept going. A light strain was beginning to pull at my muscles, but I could tell that my body could handle a lot more than this. I was to the point where I was still going strong but knew I wouldn’t last forever, just general knowledge that I wasn’t Superman or anything.
“Seventy-five…” I muttered. Sweat was beginning to form on my brow at this point, a few drops falling from my head to make little mud balls with the dust on the floor.
I really need to clean this place as soon as possible.
I idly noticed as the bells chimed twenty-two times, informing me that the hours were, in fact, more or less the same as those on Earth. Or at least close enough not to matter.
“One hundred…” I grit out. I was feeling the heavy strain now, keeping myself going through willpower alone as my arms shook from the strain.
So, I tried to get in just a few more. To really get a sense of how far I could go. Or maybe just to reach a satisfying number, I dunno.
“One… hundred… and five.” I got close enough for it to count to a government bureaucrat and promptly collapsed onto the ground.
The dust coating the floor flew up and became a small storm of thin, hay fever-inducing gray as my body fell against hard, cold stones.
Which conveniently began a sneezing fit worse than those rapid-fire back-to-back hiccups. I must have done ten in a row by the time I regained a semblance of control over my nose.
I pushed myself back, leaned against the possibly oak bed frame, and promptly smacked my head against it during a particularly violent sneeze. I fought for air and sneezed again at the same time, seeing stars from the impact as I raised a hand to cradle the back of my head.
“That is…” Ahhh-choo! “At least double…” Deep breath. “Ah..” Sniffle. “The best I could ever do… before, but… still kind of disappointing…”
Eventually, my torment came to an end. I glanced down at my arms as I attempted to compose myself. I tried once again to sense a difference, but of course, I couldn’t.
Sure, a few over one hundred was a great improvement to achieve in a day, but I’d expected more, in all honesty.
I grabbed my bicep with an open palm and flexed it.
“Definitely feels denser than yesterday, though. Maybe I weigh more too? Oh God–”
Ahhh-choooooo!
“Fuck!” I yelled, a smidge of genuine anger worming its way into my short outburst.
That last sneeze was violent. I felt it all the way to my toes and was pretty sure I got whiplash. My eyes forced themselves shut as I took a second to try and breathe uninterrupted for more than two seconds.
Then, out of the blue, the door flung open and bounced off of the stone wall behind it.
I opened my eyes and whipped my head toward the door. To my shock, Jessa was standing in the doorway while staring at me intensely, her eyes ablaze with… something I couldn’t honestly explain. It was as if she was ready for a fight, or to fuck, but she couldn’t pick between the two.
I watched as her expression shifted when she finally realized I was looking at her; she must’ve realized she hadn’t said a word. When it dawned on her, she quickly regained control of her face. Her somewhat mortified expression switched right back to bitch-mode.
Oh, joy…
“Oh, it’s you,” she said with a sneer, her eyes back to normal as she looked down at me like I was a used tissue on the floor. “I was wondering what all that racket was. There was no name on the clay tablet.”
“Must have forgot,” I replied flatly after a beat.
She was dressed in a simple gray tunic and pants that highlighted her hips and gave me a wonderful view of her breasts, which were no longer hidden away within her heavy metal armor. The shirt was incredibly thin, and my earlier thoughts about watermelons being squished underneath all that steel quickly came floating back.
Maybe that’s why she’s always a bitch– She’s got them girls caged up so tight that she’s just in pain all the time, so she lashes out at everyone to cope.
She had to be a D-cup at least, maybe larger. The castle was also pretty cold tonight, apparently.
“Workout before bed,” I explained dumbly, wondering how bad I must look with my runny nose and congested voice. “Dust…” I breathed as I held back another sneeze. “On the floor…”
Thankfully, I caught the traitorous bastard before it came out.
“Well, keep it down. Some of us are tired and want to rest before tomorrow morning,” she said in that bitchy tone we all know and love, then spun on her heels and began walking out the door to leave.
“You got it, princess,” I said flippantly, if a little nasally. “Next stop, bedtime.”
“What did you just call me?” she asked after a beat, pausing before she closed the door.
“Princess,” I replied flatly, not giving a fuck if I had insulted her at this point. I hated drama and attitude, and she had both going strong right now. “You act like a spoiled child from a rich daddy, so it kind of fits. Look, I don’t want to go around making enemies on day one here, but if you act like that around me, you’ll get treated accordingly. Be nice, and I’ll be nice. Deal? Goodnight now.”
I pushed myself to my feet and trudged over to the door, put my hand on her back and pushed her one foot forward, then slammed the door closed. If the door had a lock, I would have used that too. Instead, I walked over to the prison garb I had left balled on the floor and used it as a snot rag before blowing my nose into it.
I wasn’t going to wear that shit ever again, anyway.
“Fucking dust,” I muttered before tossing the ugly, ratty thing into the farthest corner I could.
I listened smugly as she strode down the hall with a purpose, probably fuming at me. As the footsteps grew quieter, I heard a door slam farther down the hall.
“Thank God her room isn’t right next to mine. I’d probably hear her teeth grind all night from how much she hates my guts right now. I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s steaming over it this minute, in fact, and throwing things at the wall.”
Grabbing the candle holder by its base, I brought it over and placed it gently on the bed.
“They don’t seem to have much for underwear here, either that or it isn’t issued,” I said to myself, glancing down at the dusty pants I was wearing. “I’m used to sleeping in boxers. No, no birthday suit for me just yet; especially not in a strange place where I am fairly confident mornings are going to become synonymous with very rude awakenings.”
I begrudgingly kept the pants on and held my breath as I dusted them off as best I could.
I was glad I did as not a moment later I laid down on the lumpy, prickly bed.
“Fuck, this bed sucks.” I complained as I shifted around. It felt like I was laying on little sticks as the naked flesh of my back pressed up against the mattress. A great deal of straw was poking through the wool, and felt like they were each stabbing me with tiny needles. “This is going to take some serious adjustment.”
I took a moment to acclimate to the feeling of the evil mattress against my body, eventually finding a spot where I wasn’t being attacked as harshly by the tiny straw assassins. I then picked up the candle with an outstretched hand and blew it out, setting it atop the nearby wood stove as I settled into bed.
The room went completely dark the moment the small flame went out.
I stared up into the black emptiness it brought.
“This sucks, there’s no denying that. But you don’t have a choice, Cal,” I spoke in a hushed tone as my words disappeared into the blackness. “Make the most of it. Act like going home isn’t an option and adapt. Keep an eye out for an opportunity.”
Content with my little pep talk, I closed my eyes with a short sigh. That was when the thoughts I had been putting off all day flitted into my mind.
I thought about my mom and dad, who probably had no idea about what had happened to me. Who may never find out what happened to me. Based on what happened when I arrived here, they probably thought I had died in a plane crash. Now that I think about it, I wasn’t entirely sure what had happened to the rest of the folks on that plane.
I wonder if anyone else who was on the plane ended up here? I should keep an eye out, but I doubt it. The purple portal-looking thingy seemed like a single-rider attraction. Still, would be nice to know I’m not the only person here from Earth.
My thoughts continued for a time as I came to terms with the fact that all the dreams and plans I had before were now permanently on hold.
Honestly, good riddance. I had fooled myself into thinking that money and hot and cold running girls would make me happy. But as I continued to learn more about this world, I discovered that I was also learning more about myself in the process.
I needed to feel like I was making a difference. I needed to have a purpose.
I had found that in the military, but I’d convinced myself that those other frivolous things were worth chasing instead.
“The grass is always greener,” I mused with a dry chuckle. "Fuck, I guess that means Chief was right…"
This place reminded me that life is incredibly delicate, that the good times I had enjoyed in my old world were held together by a single, thin thread. Any disaster big enough could instantly snap that tiny thread and send those good times spiraling into ruin and decay. I never would have seen that back in my first world comfort zone back home.
“As long as I’m here,” I mumbled with a yawn. “I might as well do some good.”
My thoughts continued on for a while like water circling a drain on its way down. But, just like the water, they eventually ran their course down the hole, and I fell asleep.
Chapter twenty-five
- Jessa -
Jessa followed the small cart with her gaze as it passed through the garrison gate. Her eyes were entirely captivated by the young man sitting at the front next to Jarrold, even though he had never spoken directly to her.
Despite that, for some reason, Jessa couldn’t seem to get him out of her mind.
She didn’t know why, maybe it was something about the way he talked to Jarrold like an equal, respectfully but not with any fear or scorn. The way he had looked at her, studied her, took her apart with his eyes as he sat quietly on the bench of the mule-drawn cart.
He was different from every other man left in this god's forsaken city. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but it was as though he wasn’t broken or cruel like all the rest of the men.
He felt powerful… but that’s impossible. He just came into his element. Not to mention the fact that he was a runner. That makes him a coward, right?
Her body didn’t think he was a coward at all.
A fluttering sensation of desire traveled from her nether areas and up into her stomach, forcing her to grind her hips together so her legs rubbed the sensitive region between her legs.
Not now, damn it! I will take care of you later… in private!
Jessa loved everything about being an Earthblade, loved the power that coursed through her body when she hardened her skin. The first time she experienced it was only a few days ago, after she finished her Core-Trial. She even imbued her power into a sword, making it twice as heavy as it was naturally. Dense and hard enough to crack stone without so much as chipping the blade.
Still, there was one significant drawback to this power. One in particular that seems to get worse and worse as you grow in strength.
One they don’t talk about in polite society, or warn you about beforehand.
With your enhanced physique, your body’s desires also become more… pronounced.
At the end of her first week at the academy, after she passed her Core-trial, she had woken up in the middle of the night, burning with a need she had to satiate immediately.
She shivered at the memory of her Core-trial, thankful for the distraction from the thought of the deeply embarrassing event that had followed it.
They hadn’t warned her about it beforehand and told her that she must never mention the trial to the new conscripts, as it would only make the process worse for them.
Still, some sort of warning would have been nice.
These drives and desires that resulted went against everything her mother had taught her about being a proper lady.
After all, Jessa came from a rich, noble family.
Well, a recently made noble family. A year ago, they were just another wealthy merchant family. Then, once they had the means to do so, her father purchased their patent of nobility from the King.
