Ya' know, now that I think about it I haven't been salivating whatsoever. My mouth is perfectly comfortable and moistened, yet I can't shake this sickening feeling of not being able to draw saliva from my glands.
I panic slightly and check some remaining and bodily fluids so see the results to my horror. I can no longer externally remove or internally create liquids whatsoever. Attempting to jam a finger down my throat then retracting it results in a perfectly dry finger.
I didn't notice it because I figured it was part of the effect from being in such dense nature, but my nose is in perfect condition, without a single particle of mucus to be found. I've been breathing serenely the entire day, yet not being overtaken by the harsh smell of bark and sap that envelops the entire area, entirely thanks to my shock of being here.
I continue to do some bodily tests and I figured out that I can't even pull out hair from my body or damage it.
So far, this 'curse' has been extremely thorough. I might actually be invincible to a certain point, like a zombie with metal skin. However, assuming that I am completely immortal, and will be for eternity, is careless. I have no clue what that 'god' was, nor do I have the means to find out. If, by chance, this whole thing was a malicious prank, or I'm simply being manipulated then my life is still at risk.
Okay, I'm seriously running out of things to think of here. Why can't I fall asleep?!
I tense my arms up in rage and silently strangle my straw pillow to death.
This is hell. Like what the fuck am I supposed to do? There's no way this is natural, I must not be able to sleep due to this affectionate affliction. Well, then. I suppose it's time to address the elephant in the room.
Why did I die the way I did? I mean, the situation was rather bad, but why did I kill myself? I never figured myself to be a suicidal or depressed person. Perhaps if I thought things through, this never would have happened.
So why did I fall into depravity and despair? Enough so that I ended it all. I don't actually know… curious. Perhaps it's because of the memory wipe? My entire thought process of that day seems to be missing from my memory, no matter how hard I try to recover it. The fuuuck.
Well, 'God' retrieved me after I died and seemed to put me through a trial. I sat there for a few years, then he pulled me out and fixed me. Why was a put in that test, and why did I obediently sit through it?
Oh, God. What if he seriously was just controlling me the whole time, molding me into his puppet? Or, what if he changed my entire memory and made me live a fake life? Or, I'm really just an experiment he made and he granted me memories of someone's life on earth? Ooh, I kinda like that theory. 'God' is really just this world's best wizard, he took a body from this planet and made it immortal, then took the memories from someone on earth and put them in this doll!
I spend the rest of the night thinking up fun conspiracy theories and what I'll do in the future. In the back of my mind, however, is the keen sensation of boredom.
An eternity passes, and slowly but surely the rest of the crew arises from their slumber. After almost everyone is up and chatting, a man wearing a slick military uniform violently intrudes and shouts harshly for us to wake up and get dressed. Not a single man doesn't immediately drop all lingering conversations and get to it.
I would follow suit, but I don't possess a thing. I'm as poor as one can be.
Now that I think of it, that old captain dude might've actually mentioned something about getting gear yesterday. I can't really recall, though, so guess I'll go ahead and figure what's up with that out.
I stick around for a bit until the first couple of people move onto the next task of the day. Carefully blending in, I tail a young man who looks savory enough. I maintain a careful pace and distance from him, taking in the scenery all the while. Learning the environment is crucial to me.
Hmm, I wonder. Should I just force him into a conversation with me, basically ensuring a friendship with him? If I'm agreeable, cool and supporting then I believe the 2 of us can get along fine.
Well, I'll see what kind of person he is first. If he's a douche bag then I don't think we'll get along too well. I mean, chances are he's fine, but I'm playing the cautious man right now so I don't think I'm gonna cut the role short.
We head out to the main courtyard and watch a swarm encompass a few cauldrons that are discharging steam in mass. The masses are attempting to receive breakfast, plain boiled potatoes and vegetable soup, from one of the multiple vendors spread across the area.
Everyone seems to be getting along rather fine with one another, forming clouds of people around the makeshift kitchens, yet refraining from pushing and shoving.
I use this as an opportunity to ask the man whom I stalked a question.
"Um, excuse me. I'm new here and I was wondering what exactly I should be doing right now."
He casually turns back towards me.
"Oh, just follow me. I'll explain on the way."
We venture towards the nearest soup producer and he explains to me along the way.
"So, all ya gotta do is mind bumping into people while making your way toward the food. Roughhousing needlessly is looked down upon, so be orderly and maintain proper conduct. The base holds itself to a high standard."
"Is that so…?"
Curious development here. I wouldn't've thought that this small, insignificant base has some semblance of standards. Probably the work of that commander, I guess.
We slip through a current of bodies towards our destination. I attempt to identify any fair maidens frolicking within these dear souls meanwhile, but do so unsuccessfully. It bugs me how there haven't been any girls here so far. I hypothesize that the military simply doesn't allow girls into the army. I personally am a bit casual about the whole gender equality thing. I really couldn't care less who looks down on who; however, I think it's stupid to put yourself at a disadvantage simply because of stubbornness.
The military shouldn't hinder itself for such a childish reason. However, I could be jumping the gun here. I might not have heard the whole story, and I don't feel like making a fool of myself yet. I'll casually bring it up at a later date.
My nameless guide skillfully navigates the risky tides of flesh and filth towards our wondrous salvation. I mean, I can't eat it or anything, but the notion itself is wholehearted. I think it is, at least.
After receiving some, we return back to where we came, sit down propped up against a tree and chat over breakfast.
"So, recruit, before you ask me too many questions, what's your name?"
"Ah, I apologize for failing to introduce myself. My full name is Rigel."
"No surname?"
"No, I am fairly young consciously, as I recently have experienced amnesia. I have made the name Rigel myself, and know no other one."
The young man is periodically tossing gazes towards my untouched soup bowl and potato.
Hey, I want to eat it too ya' know!?
"I apologize for poking into your history. My name is Elric Hazeldust, a pleasure to make your acquaintance."
"Ah, yes, a pleasure."
I'm sorta getting this weird 'lower noble' vibe from this guy. Perhaps it's the charming way he speaks, or his mysterious white hair, or the luscious eyelashes. Well, I'm not gay, (I think) but he's really rather pretty, huh? I'd say he's more feminine than anything else. Facially, at least. His stature is pretty impressive. I'd guess he's about 5'11, and maybe weighs around 170. The average amount of muscle per soldier here is impressive, but I'd say he's a cut above the rest. His muscles aren't outrageous or bulky, but elegant, refined and composed. I would consider myself envious of him. The thing that's throwing me off here is his voice. His voice is silky smooth, and rather bewitching. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if he's hypnotizing me at this point.
We chat for a bit and I learn a decent amount of info. The military consists of 5 ranks, not including technical ranks, from Recruit to General. The full list is Recruit, Colonel, Captain, Commander, General. Typically, Colonels command a small squad of men, consisting of around 5 to 10 people. Captains command a battalion of 5 squads for a total of around 40 people. Commanders, much like the one here at the fort, hold a small legion of men in their ranks. Finally, the overseer, a General controls as many people as the king sees fit for an army. There have been cases of the king ordering armies to cooperate, leaving a single general at the head of multiple armies.
The technical ranks are extremely complicated, or Elric wasn't sure about the details himself. There are a few specific ranks, such as Strategists, Assassins, Equipment Management, and Secretaries. For the most part, all technical ranks are placed directly in between Colonels and Captains in terms of respect and etiquette. The only exception to that rule is Equipment Management, who are placed below Colonels, and if a higher-up specifies a specific promotion of a group or individual. On top of that, they are all usually placed into battalions as special pieces or convenience, but not direct fighting, usually.
Another group of military officials is the church itself, however, they only have a personal army. Their true strength lies within the hearts of all the enlisted men in the general army. Because of the pope basically ruling the kingdom, all of the country's military men are directly part of the church. This religion, Empyreanism, is rather scary when it comes down to it. The best correlation would be to compare it to Spain's ecclesiastical inquisition.
This concerns me because I'll inevitably have to sign up with my local church, but I suppose it's fine for now.
Lastly, there's the whole thing with magicians. I'm earnestly enthusiastic about rationing my time towards the art of magic, but magicians' place in the military seems rather out of place. Apparently, the church looks down on magic as it's borderline heretical. Since the church is calling most of the shots here, magicians are solely hired as court magicians. There is no such thing as a magic squad, yet, that is. I plan to change that when I'm in power.
Magic is awesome! Although I suppose I haven't seen any yet. That's what I'll do, I'll make my way to one of the people that can use magic here.
Continuing, the church wants nothing to do with magicians, yet the public fancy them. So, as a compromise, the kingdom hired some of the best magicians in the land as court magicians. The best one, "God's Apostle" was assigned a place in the oligarchy. I'm guessing his vote is simply used as the royal family's though.
When I asked Elric how powerful this 'Apostle' is, he merely replied, "Too strong." Apparently, 5 years ago, when the country was first offering these court positions, he was first picked by a landslide.
I'm getting excited just thinking about how fun it'd be to learn from someone so powerful. Hopefully, he'll teach me sometime.
The last thing I asked my new friend was the deal with girls. He confirmed my suspicions and stated that women weren't allowed in the military whatsoever- a controversial topic, allegedly.
Well, now I understand why that bed manager guy straight up laughed me off, although I still feel kinda peeved regarding the matter.
He finishes up my soup and we direct our movements towards the main office so I can discuss my career and future here with the commander.