Nivalldier, Captain of Discovery, Episode 02: The Education of Sergeant Benallus

Outside in the afternoon sun, two lines of soldiers stood at attention, the butts of their halberds resting on the stone pathway leading to the Temple. Nivalldier joined them as the Temple doors grated closed behind him.

The first soldier on the left lowered his head as the dwarf approached.

“Any luck, Captain?” the human officer asked, unable to hide his sarcasm.

“Benallus, you’re either asking about my love life or my audience with the High Priest,” Nival replied, whirling about to stare at the bulk of the Temple. “In either case, I’d need no help.” The dwarf considered the limited number of his forces, the mission at hand, stared at his metal-shod war boots, then came to a conclusion. “Sergeant, march the men back to the post.”

“Sir?” the human replied, confused. “But don’t we have orders to return the lady to the Regent? I thought¬—“

“Whatever you thought, Sergeant,” Nival said through clenched teeth, “is of little concern to me.” But something inside the dwarf made him humor Benallus. He smiled up at the human. “How many troops have you under your command, Sergeant?”

Benallus drew himself erect. “Twenty-four of the Regent’s finest, sir!”

“Good. And how many troopers are available back at the post?”

“An additional six, for a total of thirty, sir!”

“And how many buildings comprise the Temple compound?”

Benallus thought for a moment, then responded smartly, “Thirty-eight, sir!”

“Excellent. Now, how many Temple priests, acolytes and functionaries occupy the Temple grounds?”

This question caused the Sergeant to try and scratch his hair through his helmet. “Oh, uh, seventy...nine or thereabouts.” He quickly snapped back to attention. “Sir!”

“Wonderful. So, including the troops here and back at the post, we have less than half as many soldiers as people we’d have to control. Right?”

Without waiting for an answer, Nival continued. “And with thirty-eight buildings, it would take our thirty men—those that aren’t guarding the seventy-plus Temple occupants—days to search out every nook and cranny in the Temple, since we have no spellweaver at hand.”

“But, sir,” the human said, lowering his voice to keep the other troopers from overhearing, “you’ve got the—uh, the power of the, um...” The Sergeant hesitated, knowing he and the other troopers only discussed this subject in hushed, nervous tones.

“You mean, the power of the Gods?” Nival smiled at the discomfort on the face of the Sergeant. “Yes, I have those powers at my disposal. And I know when a request will be seen as a waste of their time and attention, which is exactly what this would be.”

Nival spun around on one heel and headed for the nearby town square. “Sergeant, you have your orders.”

“Sir!” Benallus replied smartly, then called to the dwarf’s quickly disappearing back, “But where are you going, sir?”

“I’m going to interrogate the nearest tankard of ale.” The dwarf kicked a chunk of paving stone as he stomped down the path. “Perhaps I’ll find an answer at the bottom.”