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‘That sounds like clear win for our side, Sergeant,’ Gunda declared

‘It gets better, boy,’ the sergeant said, leaning back in his chair and taking a long drink froh-toned Palvani all went back t’ their fancy meetin’ place an’ made speeches t’ each other for a week or so, an’ then two more of them eastern provinces joined up with the others, an’ the lis was a-goin’, in about another month or so there wouldn’t be no Empire no more They all come a-runnin’ back t’ the army compounds an’ tole our commanders that they’d pay as ht back an’ tole ‘em, "We don’t march until we see the money" That started a bunch of new screamin’, but the Palvani knowed by then that our couave in an’ paid the soljers what they had a-comin’ to ‘eeant?’ Narasan asked curiously

Sergeant Wilmer snorted ‘It warn’t no real war, boy,’ he replied ‘When them dukes an’ barons an’ such off t’ the east saw ten arht then and there’ The old sergeant took another drink froathered in front of hiusty wind outside spattered the ith hard-driven rain ‘When you young gentle your formal education, your teachers are likely to tell you an entirely different story,’ he told the his colorful dialect, ‘but what I just told you hat really happened My sergeant told me the story when I wasn’t much older than you boys are now, and he was here when it actually happened Every now and then, teachers try to clean up the past, but usually the real events are pretty much down and dirty The real world out there isn’t nearly as nice as so your high-born teachers tell you without taking a long hard look at it yourselves’

Narasan stored that notion away for future reference as he pulled on his cape and left the day-lounge to go on home to his family’s quarters

Narasan had heard that some army commanders lived in palaces and pretended to be members of the nobility, but Narasan’s father disapproved of that, since it wasn’t very honorable

Narasan’s father was a lean, but well-hed heavily upon hilossy black hair was touched with silver at the temples There was much work involved in the command of an army, but Narasan’s father always listened when his son came to him with questions

When Narasan reached hoeant Wilmer’s story had disturbed hiht on his intended career ‘Have you got a moment, father?’ he asked

‘You see aside the docu you?’

‘Well, when it started raining hard this afternoon, our instructor sent us to the day-lounge to get us in out of the weather, and old Sergeant Wilmer was there Sometimes he talks real funny, doesn’t he?’

Narasan’s father sht at first to get your attention I take it that he told you the story about the origins of our ar that story to ar time now Sooner or later, every army boy hears Wilo’

‘I thought he was justit up’

‘It wasn’t fiction, Narasan Wilmer’s account comes very close to what really happened back then The arovern a dispute with the Palvanum about the pay-scale of the non-commissioned soldiers We want our sons to know exactly how it came about, so we turn Wilmer loose on every class of our children’ He leaned back in his chair, and the light from the candle on his desk touched his silvery hair ‘Every enda for how the govern the armies is usually way down at the bottom of the list’

‘That isn’t fair at all, is it?’

‘Fairness has always been an alien concept for the Palvanum, Narasan When there’s a war in the works, the Palvani all ite soldiers, but when peace rolls around again, they’d rather not think about us Basically, that’s ent into business for ourselves That’s the whole point of Sergeant Wilmer’s story’

On a sudden i hi about this, father, but Gunda and I were talking after Padan’s father was killed in that war last winter, and we sort of thought that ht with the aret even with the atlike that be honorable? I et killed when there’s a war, and it sort of seeht be kind of improper’

Narasan’s father shook his head ‘A soldier’s first loyalty should always be to his coht, now, I’hts out of the ar to whoerly

‘I see that you paid close attention to Sergeant Wilrin ‘Yes, as ato whorandchildren will run and hide every time somebody mentions my name It won’t make me very popular with certain members of the Palvanum, since that particular army’s one of their favorites, but that’s just too bad’

‘Aren’t there any honest overnment" probably shouldn’t show up in the same sentence, Narasan They’re contradictory terms’