Belly of the Beast by Warren Thomas (story books for 5 year olds txt) 📕

laughed. “My boys and girls are all warriors, born and bred. You got yourself a bunch of barefoot peasants with visions of greatness. Ha, they’ll be crying for their mommies before the afternoon is half through!”

            “They’ll be calling for that whore you call a mother!” Sergeant Jungar called back. “To celebrate their victory between her eager legs!”

            Tane was outraged. To dishonor the sergeant’s mother so! Sergeant Jungar was surely the foulest-mouthed man alive. Tane didn’t like Sergeant Gareth one wit, but for what was said about Gareth’s mother, Tane would thrash every single member of Jungar’s section to get at the man.

            “I seem to have gotten a good reaction from one of your little soldier want-to-bes,” Sergeant Jungar said, nodding at Tane. “Poor fellow, probably loves his precious little mother.”

            The sergeants and corporals all laughed, and even a few of the recruits. Tane felt his face redden even further. Glancing down at his fellow squad members, he found Quinn looking at him with concern. Raven was frowning at him. The Vikon pair just looked uneasy.

            “I’d be wary of angering my swordsmith if I were you, Jungar,” Sergeant Gareth said. “He’s as strong as an enraged bull.”

            “We’ll see,” Sergeant Jungar said. “We’ll see.”

            The two sections squared off. Tane quickly looked his opponent over. Like himself, the Lelt was strongly built. But unlike Tane, the man bore warrior tattoos and looked eager to begin. A quick glance up and down Jungar’s line showed almost half of the faces had tattoos. Peasants indeed!

            As the sergeants marched their sections forward, the corporals on both sides shouted at their troops. Pendar reminded them to remember their strokes, just like he taught them.

            An instant later the two sides fell upon each other with the crack of wood on wood, and a few screams of pain. Tane found himself completely outclassed by the Leltic warrior, and backpedaling furious to escape his blade-work.

            “Hold your bloody position!” Raven screamed after taking an opportunistic stroke in the ribs from Tane’s opponent. She lashed out at the man with a foot, then leapt at her own opponent. Tane attacked before his man could attack her again, and was rewarded with a dozen new bruises in as many heartbeats.

            After the third smack in the ribs, Tane feared he’d not last much longer. The pain was unbearable, and he saw no lesson being learned here.

            “Switch over!” Raven ordered, stepping in front of Tane and taking his place in the line.

            He took a quick step to the right, and lunged forward at the confused Jarlander who had been Raven’s opponent. Before the red-headed woman knew what had happened, Tane drove into her and curled her up on the ground with a thrust to the lower belly.

            For a brief second shame at what he’d done washed over him. Then the other squad shifted to fill the opening, bring another Lelt to face Tane. He no longer had time for shame or any other emotion. This time Tane found himself the superior swordsman, and began dishing out punishment. He noted Quinn wasn’t having any more of a problem than himself, and that Raven seemed to be toying with the Lelt that had given him so much grief.

            “How does it feel to get rapped in the ribs?” Raven growled, eyes afire. She kicked low, forcing him back a step, then drove her blunt-tipped wooden shortsword into his ribs yet again. “Kind of gets tiring after a while, doesn’t it?”

            “You’re almost as good with a sword as you look,” Sergeant Gareth said to Raven. He and Sergeant Jungar were crossing blades, but weren’t putting any effort into it. Both men tended to watch their troopers’ performance most of the time. “Keep this up, and you might make corporal before the war is over, little priestess.”

            “You’re too kind, Sergeant Black-toof!” Raven said.

            Sergeant Jungar laughed. Tane was too busy to spare a look Gareth’s way, but he didn’t think it wise of her to continue using her derogatory name for him. Surely he wouldn’t allow her to go unpunished. Though the regular army cadre seemed terribly foul-mouthed and amoral, they didn’t take well to the recruits joining their game of taunts and insults.

            “You’ll be lucky if I leave you with any teeth, bitch,” Sergeant Gareth growled.

            “And you’ll be sorry,” she said, and savagely kicked the Lelt between the legs. He curled up on the ground, his lunch spewing across Tane’s boots. She turned baleful eyes on the sergeant, “Tonight, after drill and clean-up, I’m demanding my right to see a priest. I’m going to the temple of Sankar, and make a vow to kill the next man, or woman, who humiliates or hurts me. Aside from routine and scheduled exercises and drills, of course, that all men and women have to participate in.”

            Everyone stopped, turning to gawk at Raven. She acted as if she didn’t notice, just continuing to glare defiantly at a stunned Sergeant Gareth. Tane was confused, though thrilled as well. He didn’t like to see anyone humiliated like Gareth enjoyed doing, but also he feared for her even more. He was afraid she’d be thrown in the stockade for sure now.

            “That’s insubordination!”

            “That’s my divine right, and even King Borric wouldn’t dare withhold it,” Raven said.

            Sergeant Gareth looked pensive a moment, then brusquely ordered his section to form back up and prepare to continue, and for Raven to take her assigned place in formation. They fought on through the afternoon, with Sergeant Gareth never once rising up to Sergeant Jungar’s baiting taunts.

            After the last formation of the day, the recruits were dismissed. They were ordered not to leave the battalion area, but allowed to bathe, loiter, or clean their gear as they saw fit. As long as everything was in proper military order come morning, they were given some free time to relax before sundown and lights out.

            Each platoon was given half