Last, there was Adjudant Cornay, a solid soldier who had been in service of le Roi two years longer than Marc had. The man was approaching his thirties, and his hair was more salt than pepper. He was tall, built and his skin was worn from the weather. He says that’s from his time as a merchant sailor.
When they first met, Cornay had given him one of those stares. The one that soldiers gave a new officer as they pondered how many grand ideals they needed to be excised from their minds before they could be trusted.
When he caught Marc’s rigid demeanour, crisp drill, and ability to take command those thoughts were dismissed. They had been cut from the same cloth and even fought in the same conflicts.
It was Cornay who recommended they integrate with the townspeople. Marc’s soldier side had been tempted to say ‘no’ in the name of discipline, but their practicality paid off in the end.
Disclaimer: This excerpt from Man of War is currently in development. There may be typos, errors, omissions, inconsistencies and so forth.
Leave a Reply