FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Feyrahl, SoFurry Edition

Strengthening Bonds, Ch 3.2

Much of Mac's discussion with the Emperor remained on his mind as he headed out into the hallway, meandering along the corridors with Khosk a step behind. As there was nothing particularly on the Human's schedule for that day, his Lion bodyguard wasn't as pushy or as insistent, leaving him free to wander about and consider the Elephant's words, as well as his not-so-subtle interest in Mac's world... or, at least, that's how it seemed to Mac. Then again, he realized, the 'Sage King' seemed to take note of any learning opportunity so he shouldn't have been too surprised at Caldif's interest.

That led him to wondering about his own concerns, over keeping his world from being a topic of conversation. Was he really that concerned about the people of Feyrahl leaning about where he came from? Was he concerned that they might try to open a portal to it so they could-- what.... invade? Seeing as magic didn't work there, it would seem to be a fool's errand, especially considering the capacity for science in the magical world seemed to be equal to that of his own. If anything, Feyrahl would have more to worry about from his own world.

His mind meandered in an unexpected direction, as he continued to dwell on that: if the people of Feyrahl could open a magical portal to his world, that meant he'd be able to go home! He'd often thought about what it'd take to get back to his old life but, with trying to stabilize himself in the world in which he found himself, he hadn't taken into consideration that perhaps magic would be the solution to getting him home. Mac didn't know if such a thing were possible, or even what kind of magic it would take-- he hadn't really spent much time learning about magic. Would it be Spirit? Perhaps Air?

His musings continued to roll around in his head until he found himself wandering out along one of the wings of the palace bordering the courtyard where a large number of guardsmen were practicing drills. They were dressed in their heavy-looking combat armor, wielding weapons, while Commander Joren was running them through their drills. They seemed to be going through a series of carefully choreographed moves in unison, standing in rank and file but, as Mac stopped to watch, they concluded what appeared to be 'warm ups' and the Rhino began separating them into groups of two.

The Human continued to observe as the soldiers, having traded their metal weapons for wooden ones, squared off. Mac had no real eye for combat and they all looked like they knew what they were doing but Khosk, leaning on a pillar nearby, began identifying mistakes, poor form, or errors in movements from different sparring soldiers. The comments seemed mostly directed at himself, but the Human didn't mind getting the Lion's perspective so he simply listened to Khosk gripe and critique.

Mac didn't pay attention to how much time had passed until Commander Joren pulled the troops back to attention. "Ten minutes for rest and water, then form up again!"

Although he hadn't realized it at the time, Joren must have noticed him since the Rhino came jogging over. He raised a large hand, offering a simple greeting as he drew nearer. "Ah... MacKenzie. I hadn't expected you to attend the troop inspections."

Before Mac could respond, Khosk separated himself from the pillar and stepped closer. "He has a day free from the scholars, so he has chosen to wander aimlessly."

The Rhino nodded to the Lion. "Sir Firemane... good to see you as well."

Khosk smacked his closed paw to his chest twice and lowered his head. "Commander."

Returning his gaze to Mac, the Human noticed that Joren was looking at him, ears up as if expecting a response to his comment. Mac cleared his throat. "Oh... I was just passing by and decided to watch. Your soldiers are... really impressive."

The Commander offered a mild chuckle. "You are far more gracious in your assessment than I, MacKenzie. The men and women I am working with this morning are relatively new trainees under my care. They are still developing their skills."

Mac blushed faintly. "Well... in my defense, I know almost nothing about fighting, so they seem impressive to me."

Khosk grunted. "They aren't a bad group of new recruits."

Joren offered a nod to the Lion, but his attention remained on Mac. "I do not hold your lack of martial prowess against you, MacKenzie. Besides, I have heard that you have been doing well in your own field."

Having been in Feyrahl long enough to get used to the terms of address, it didn't take long before Mac realized that the Commander was using his first name; he honestly hadn't felt that he and the Rhino were on a first name basis, but the Commander seemed to disagree. Mac rationalized that either Joren was flexing his rank, or was attempting to make him feel more at ease by being so casual. He really hoped it was the latter, but he let it go so as to avoid making a possible social faux pas. "Oh, yes. I've been enjoying studying with Alchemist Asha and Ranger Rolin, thank you, Commander. We've been learning a lot from one another."

The Rhino chuckled. "Based on the rumors, it seems that half of the kingdom anticipates that you will present the Council with some great new recipe, for the most powerful potion ever concocted."

Mac offered a mild smile. "I think that'd probably have to involve magic. For now, I'm still learning about basic potions."

The Commander offered him a gentle (for the Rhino) slap on the shoulder; he would probably have stumbled if not for the Lion steadying him from the other side. Joren was all smiles. "Lady Asha said that you have a knack for medicines. I have faith that it won't be long before you present a new healing potion, to help keep my soldiers alive."

The Human knew right away that Joren didn't know just how little 'tinkering' Mac had been able to do. "You certainly have a lot of faith in me, Commander... I'm still barely learning past simple recipes, let alone making new ones."

The Rhino waved away the modest response with a gauntleted hand. "I learned long ago, that a fresh perspective has a way of shaking things up. I have faith in you, and Asha thinks quite highly of you."

Mac fought back a blush, clearing his throat before recovering with a simple "Well... ah... thank you for the praise then, Commander."

Joren nodded with a sense of finality. "You are welcome, my friend-- just know that I do not hand it out lightly."

Not really sure how to response to such a straight-forward statement, that had caught him off guard, the Human just nodded. Instead of having to fish for a response, Mac was saved as an Ox nearly as tall as the Commander joined the discussion. The soldier gave Mac a side-glance but seemed more interested in speaking with the Rhino. Slapping his fist to his chest twice, the Ox addressed the Commander. "Sir. The men are gathering again. Shall I take over leading the exercises while you are engaged?"

Looking back to his subordinate, the Commander shook his head. "No need, Sergeant. Get them lined up and I will be right over."

Khosk reached out a paw and clamped it down on Mac's shoulder. "Come, Millman... let's not keep the Commander from his tasks."

Rather than head off toward the soldiers immediately, Joren lingered a moment longer. "If you aren't opposed to the idea, Mac, we could always find a time later tonight to speak further. I'm curious about your opinion on a number of matters, and would enjoy hearing your impressions directly."

One part of Mac's mind was hung up on the fact that Commander Joren had asked to spend more time and a sub-segment of that portion wondered if it was a date. Another part of his brain berated the concept in its entirety, but, for the most part, the largest focuses was on the way Joren had addressed him. That part was the one that got his mouth to work first. "Did you call me 'Mac'?"

The Rhino offered a self-assured nod. "Of course. You said once that that your friends call you 'Mac'. Was I not saying it correctly?"

The Human fidgeted, but managed to respond. "No... 'Mac' is right, Commander."

The enormous Commander clasped him on the shoulder one more time before about-facing and heading back to his men, calling back to Mac "You are not one of my soldiers, my friend... call me 'Joren'."

Mac remained where he was, watching after the Rhino as the Commander returned to the staging area where the troops had formed back up. The Human spoke aloud to nobody in particular "Huh... he's a pretty pleasant guy, I guess."

Khosk grunted. "Not usually. He spends most of his time around skilled warriors and fighters. Maybe he feels comfortable around a small little furless Human who doesn't know the first thing about warfare."

Unwilling to be dragged into one of the Lion's 'moods', Mac just shrugged at the comment. "Maybe. Still, I hadn't expected him to call me by my name... and definitely not by my nickname. He honestly doesn't seem like the kind of guy to do that."

The Lion grunted again. "He prefers nicknames among those with whom he works... you've heard him call me Firemane so I do not see why you're so surprised."

Khosk's dour nature didn't do anything to ruin Mac's uplifted mood. "Sure... that makes sense, I guess. Still, it's kind of nice hearing my first name rather than my family name occasionally."

Grunting a third time, the Lion followed after Mac as the Human began to walk again, offering yet another bland comment. "Start making more friends... Millman.

Glancing over his shoulder, Mac couldn't help himself as he cracked a smirk. "Well... you can call me MacKenzie, and I'll just call you Kho--"

The Lion objected before the Human could finish. "No, Millman. No."

Despite the growl in his bodyguard's statement, Mac did notice the faintest of a smirk on his muzzle. Perhaps there was hope yet.