Read Online The Flames of Dragons by Josh VanBrakle - Free Book Online

officers of the city’s militia. Balear had summoned them here so he could learn more about them and how best to turn them into soldiers.
    The results were discouraging. A portly middle-aged man leaned against the fountain while guzzling a tankard of ale. Next to him, a sixteen-year-old picked his nose and stared at the clouds. Rounding out the set, a white-bearded man twenty years older than Dirio lay on the stone, snoring.
    “This is what I’m supposed to train?” Balear murmured.
    Dirio shrugged. “At least they came.”
    “Not quite,” Balear replied. “According to Elyssa, Kataile’s forces number one thousand. They’re divided into ten companies of one hundred soldiers each, and each company is divided into ten squads of ten.”
    “How mathematical.”
    “With Elyssa in charge, I’m not surprised. Anyway, my point is that there should be one hundred and ten people here—the hundred squad leaders plus the ten company leaders.”
    Dirio frowned. At best forty men had come. “Oh.”
    “Yeah,” Balear replied. “Oh.”
    “To be fair, they only had a day’s notice,” Dirio said. “Maybe some of them had other assignments.”
    “They were told this meeting took first priority.” Balear blew out a long breath. “We have an enormous task ahead if we can’t even get half our officers to show up for practice.”
    Dirio gestured at the men. “So inspire them. Most of these guys either didn’t qualify for Amroth’s draft order, or they outright ignored it. I doubt any of them were at the Battle of Ziorsecth. They don’t understand war.”
    “How am I supposed to make them understand war? They’ve lived in a luxurious tourist town all their lives.”
    Dirio smirked. He pointed to the gigantic sword on Balear’s back. “That could make for a good demonstration.”
    Balear’s eyes narrowed. “I’m not going to use magic.”
    “You don’t have to. You just need to teach them about war. Show them what it’s like. You’ve been there after all.”
    Balear subconsciously reached over and touched the empty socket of his right shoulder. “Yeah,” he said, “I have. All right, I’ll give it a try.”
    He stepped forward. A few of the soldiers focused on him, but most were engaged in side conversations and ignored the one-armed man. Balear cleared his throat. “Good afternoon!”
    A few half-hearted “Good afternoon’s” came back.
    Balear scowled. “That won’t do. I said, ‘Good afternoon!’” He shouted the words.
    “Good afternoon!” The reply was a little stronger this time.
    “Better,” Balear said, “but I’m in charge of this city’s defense now. You’ll address me as ‘sir.’ One more time: good afternoon!”
    “Good afternoon, sir!”
    Balear eyed the teenager with his finger up his nostril. The boy hadn’t answered with the others. “You there,” Balear said, “what’s your name?”
    The boy jumped at Balear’s sharp tone. He hid his finger behind his back as though he could avoid Balear noticing what he’d been doing. “Pi. . .Pito,” he stammered.
    “Pito, sir,” Balear growled. He stalked up to the boy and glowered at him. Balear had a solid six inches on the kid, and the gigantic sword on his back made him that much more imposing.
    The kid gulped. “Pito, sir.”
    “That’s better. Have you ever been in a fight, Pito?”
    “Yes, sir. I’m the best brawler among the teens. That’s why they made me a squad leader.”
    Balear’s eyebrow twitched. If this whelp was the best fist-fighter among those his age, Kataile was in big trouble.
    He kept that sentiment to himself for the moment. “Good to know, Pito,” he said. “Now then, have you ever been in a war?”
    The boy shook his head. “No, sir.”
    Balear took three steps back and removed the Auryozaki from its harness. He leveled the enormous sword at the boy. Its tip was less than a foot from the kid’s face. “Well,” the general said, “you’re about to be.”
    Pito’s eyes bulged so