Shadows over Sigil - The Eternal Boundary

Initial Instructions

„Our way or no way."

Harmonium philosophy

Fourth Market Day of Regula, 126 HR

Amariel made her way down the long corridor from which the soldiers' quarters led off. It occupied an entire side of the the Barracks' lower floor, so it took her a while to reach the door with the number she was looking for. Her factol himself had assigned her to assist a new faction member. She had been a little surprised by the task, knowing only that the young man was a prime and had skipped the eight weeks of basic training. Instead he had immediately been accepted as a soldier for reasons Sarin was still keeping under wraps. She hadn't asked any further questions, however, because if her factol didn't elaborate, then certainly for good reason. Unlike other faction members, who held the rank of ordinary warriors, Kiyoshi, as Sarin had called him, had been assigned a room to himself. This was unusual, as otherwise only a factotum of the rank of triarius third degree upwards was entitled to it. The factol had mentioned that the new soldier had resisted the privilege of having his own room twice. Only the third time had he finally given in. Now Amariel was curious to meet this man, who was new to the faction but apparently important enough to Sarin to give him his personal aide as support. She knocked and the door opened almost immediately. Amariel caught sight of a young man of barely more than twenty years, with short black hair and dark eyes. His skin had a bronze sheen.

"Lady's Grace, soldier," the half-elf greeted kindly. "You must be Kiyoshi, right? I am decuria Amariel. Factol Sarin has informed me that, due to special circumstances, the eight-week basic training has been canceled for you and you are to go into active service immediately. I am to brief you on all important matters and assist you with any questions or difficulties you may have." She held out two books to him. "I am also to give you this. One is the Legal Code of the City of Sigil and the other is the Book of the Harmonium . Many of the things you need to know are written there. And for everything else, you can turn to me." She paused for a moment, but when he merely bowed and remained silent, she continued. "Is there anything particularly important that I should explain to you or would you like to walk through the Barracks with me first so that I can show you everything?"

Kiyoshi accepted the two books with another bow and replied: " I am very pleased to make your acquaintance, honorable decuria Amariel-sensei. Indeed, my unworthy name is Kiyoshi and I am a soldier of the honorable Harmonium. I thank you very much for the trouble you have taken to give me these books and teach me. Since you have the greater experience, I would naturally leave the training to you, as it behooves me." He then respectfully placed the two books on the bed, next to the huge blacksmith's hammer that was already compressing the mattress - but not too much, which suggested a rather hard bed.

His choice of words surprised Amariel and she had to smile. "Our recruits and soldiers are always disciplined and respectful, of course," she explained. "But I must admit, only rarely does anyone express themselves like you. Legate Shar had remarked that you come from a world that apparently places great value on correct manners. - What did you call me? A ... sensei? That's a kind of teacher, isn't it? I think that would describe it quite aptly."

Kiyoshi nodded with a serious expression on his face. "As expected, you have correctly recognized what the honorary title stands for, honorable decuria Amariel-sensei." He bowed to her with his hands folded in front of his chest.

She nodded. "Very well, Kiyoshi. Please follow me, I will show you all the facilities and important places in the Barracks. Legate Shar told me that no one has done this so far." She stepped out into the long corridor, pointing to the right and left. "You know this wing. This is where the ordinary soldiers' quarters are located. Normally there are two to four in a room, but the factol said there are important reasons why you have a room to yourself. He sounded rather mysterious, but since he didn't elaborate, it's nothing I should be interested in." She gestured up and down the corridor again. "Of course, there's not enough room here for all the faction members in the city. After all, we have around 35,000 people in Sigil. That means that many soldiers also live in quarters outside the Barracks. Some of them belong to themselves, others are provided by the Harmonium. Oh." She interrupted herself. "If you have any questions, please just ask me. After all, I'm here to help you."