The tower was a three-storey construct, stairs leading to the entrance on the middle level. Sitting on an outcrop of rock it overlooked a long forested valley, someone at the tower's peak would have amazing views. Samedo ordered the squad, there were twelve of us then, to pitch tents upon our arrival, before dispatching myself and Lesandro to the tower itself. I nervously eyed the moss and greenery that coated its stones but my companion bounded up the stairs, jumping over a large patch of overgrowth, and pushed at a gate, wincing as it squealed in protest.
"Check the storeroom and see what is there!"
The order came from Samedo and the pair of us passed through an archway, stepping into the tower itself. A ladder was attached to an inner wall, terminating at a hatch set into the ceiling, but I focused on the hatch in the floor. Unlike the gate on the walkway outside it opened smoothly to reveal the watchtower's storeroom, stacked boxes just visible in the light coming through the archways. Lesandro lit a torch and carefully climbed down the ladder beneath the hatch, glancing around once he was on the storeroom's floor of packed dirt. I flattened myself against the floor as I peered down, keeping an eye on Lesandro as he investigated the boxes and met his eye when he looked up.
"Go tell Samedo that whoever was here last kept the tower decently-stocked. We've got plenty of water, some tools, and..." There was a pause and I stuck my head down into the storeroom. "There's even some nyasuma down here!"
I felt my eyes widen as Lesandro's words, pushing myself to my feet a moment later. From the condition of the tower it was clear that it hadn't been occupied for some time but to find that rarest of minerals was a miracle. Hurrying out onto the walkway that encircled the tower's middle level I leant over the latticed fencing.
"Sergeant! Lesandro has gone into the storeroom and checked its contents. The only thing we're really missing is food."
"That's to be expected."
Samedo glanced at another of the squad, a wiry man named Kalypae, and had him take a spear and go hunting. We were all trained to use it, many a village has held due to its warriors' skill with spears, but Kalypae had an almost instinctual grasp of the weapon the rest of us lacked. I watched him lope off, quickly losing sight of him among the trees, before turning upon hearing Lesandro calling my name.
"What is it Lesandro?"
"Come help me shift some of these cutters. No doubt we'll be ordered to clean off the shrubbery at some point."
I descended a few rungs, holding tightly onto the ladder as Lesandro pulled at a box. Its contents rattled as he moved it, a quick check showed it had been securely reclosed, and I grunted as I put my hands on it. Together we got the toolbox up out of the storeroom, it clattered as we let it drop onto the stone.
---
For our efforts Samedo detailed I and Lesandro to strip the moss from the tower, to make it look somewhat presentable. Under the heat of the sun it was exhausting work and I was soon coated in a thin layer of sweat, my tunic sticking unpleasantly to my skin. In the end I copied Lesandro, removing my tunic and stashing it inside the toolbox. I wasn't ashamed of my nudity even then, working on the family farm had long accustomed me to being in such a state.
The return of Kalypae with a downed boar, and the completion of the camp we'd be living out of, marked a brief rest period. The squad gathered around a campfire, mouths watering as the smell of roasting flesh spread. Lesandro told Samedo of the nyasuma and the sergeant paused, a hunk of dripping meat in his hand.
"Were there any markings on the box the nyasuma was in? Anything to give an indication where it came from?"
Lesandro shook his head and hurriedly swallowed his own piece of roast boar.
"No sergeant. Until I opened the box there was nothing to suggest its contents."
A frown appeared on Samedo's face and he glanced towards the valley. I think we all began considering the same thing that had come to the sergeant, that the tower wasn't as abandoned as it had appeared before our arrival. After a moment Samedo returned his attention back to us, a determination in his eyes.
"Peresan, Lesandro, keep tidying the tower. I want you, Etolos, on the third level and watching the valley. The rest of us will fan out and investigate the valley from ground level."
Samedo takes a few minutes to hand out equipment, ensuring the squad is prepared for their foray into the valley. I'd returned to reclaiming the tower from nature when they set out, a huge tangle of moss in my grasp. I staggered when Lesandro finished cutting it from the stone, face burning as a few sniggers reached my ears. I cast the moss aside, hearing it thud against the ground, before taking hold of the sickle resting on the bottom step of the staircase.
"Rise above it Peresan. It'll only be worse if you don't ignore it."
I glanced up at Lesandro, seeing just his back as the other man was already turning away, before climbing the staircase. I could see Etolos on the level above, see the thick overgrowth that covered the stone he was walking on. Both I and Lesandro were inwardly dreading having to clear it but we set to our task, sickles slicing through roots and stalks. We had to work around Etolos, the look-out pacing around the exterior of the third level, but when I nearly cut through his ankle we told him to stay in places we'd cleared.
I and Lesandro were still clearing the shrubs when the rest of the squad returned, looking just as exhausted as we felt. Samedo gave a slight nod, there was a look of approval on his features, and we descended to the camp, Etolos on our heels.
"Gather round everyone." The whole squad clustered around our sergeant, expectant faces watching his. "Our first foray into the mystery of where the nyasuma came from has produced a few results. There are sandal-prints, I tracked them to the river at the center of the valley, and I believe the trail probably continues on the other side."
"What shall we do sergeant?"
There was a moment before I realised the person who'd spoken was me and Samedo glanced in my direction, another frown on his face.
"We shall have to follow the trail so I'll command a second foray. If though the tower is being used by persons unknown then we can't leave our camp unguarded. Tomorrow I'll make the choice for who will get which assignment. For tonight I want a complete watch shift, four of you on and the rest off. Shifts will change when a torch burns down."
Everyone nodded, drifting in different directions, and Samedo singled out I and Lesandro, commanding us to a tent. We eagerly complied, our long day of work catching up to us, and the moment I stretched out on the bedroll my eyes closed.
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