Hush

"It really is incredible how you can move so noiselessly, Hush."

He stopped walking and looked back at me.

"I've grown to not see it as so incredible. I wish I could move and make noise like everything else can. I can't even ignore that part of me, it's what I'm named after."

I gave him a reassuring smile.

"One thing I've learned is that what we think of as hinderances are often just strengths we haven't realized the potential of yet. I originally saw my size as a weakness, but I've learned to make it work."

Even though I'm supposedly average height for an adult human male, my species is on the smaller side of the spectrum. Orcs, valkyries, even lycans and merfolk were bigger than I was. But I've embraced it, using my speed and maneuverability to my advantage in battle.

"I don't know, you seem big and strong to me."

I chuckled before realizing he was serious. Usually when I'm told things like that it's followed by "for a human."

In a lot of ways he and I were opposites. He was willowy and thin, I was built and strong. He had light skin and hair, I was tanned and had dark hair. It wasn't often that I felt so big, so powerful in front of somebody else like this.

"I appreciate that, but you should see some of my comrades."

He waited a bit before he spoke again.

"Gerard, how can you be sure your battalion will welcome me?"

"Well, to begin with, I'm their leader. If I tell them to be accommodating, they'll follow orders. But more than that I know all of them. They're family now. You don't have to worry."

He nodded.

"By the way, you might want to get in the habit of calling me Captain."

"Oh, I'm sorry...Captain."

I laughed and we continued.

The journey up the mountain took a day and a half. I could probably have done it in one day if I were on my own, but Hush had less stamina than I did and we had to rest more often. It was actually quicker for me to carry him up the steeper parts of the trail. His body, while solid, was surprisingly light. I suppose it made sense, given he was half wisp. His father was a being with no mass, no form that even could make noise. As a wisp's son, Hush inherited some of that ethereal nature. The boy really was fascinating.

At long last we made it back to the plateau. As expected, some of my comrades ran up to greet us the moment they saw us approach, though I noticed that Hush hid behind my back almost immediately. The first one to run up was a merfolk, a female named Zoriah.

"Captain, it's so great to see you again! Jacqueline was sure you were still alive! Welcome back."

"Thank you, Zoriah."

She looked at my side and saw Hush peeking his head out before he realized he was spotted and ducked behind me again.

"And who is this?"

"He'll be a new member of the medic team, but his introduction will have to come later. Where's Jacqueline?"

"I'll take you to her."

As we walked to the center of the fort we were accosted by several other warriors. Hush cowered behind me the whole time, only speaking when spoken to.

I found Jacqueline discussing something with Quintus. The both seemed to light up when I walked in.

"Well, you certainly kept us waiting long enough," the valkyrie said.

"Nice to see you too, Jacqueline. How have things been in my absence?"

"We've held our own. But you're the one with explaining to do. What happened?"

I sat down and told them everything. When I got the part concerning Hush I gestured to him.

"This is Hush, a nymph-wisp hybrid who saved my life. He has remarkable healing ability and he's agreed to join our battalion's medical team."

Jacqueline raised her brow. "Really? Well, if that's the case, we're happy to have you."

Quintus nodded in agreement. "Anyone who's a friend of the Captain is a friend of mine. Welcome to the battalion, brother."

Hush still looked apprehensive as he nodded.

I folded my arms and addressed him directly.

"Hush, I know this is new territory for you, but it's rather rude to act so scared like this. Nobody here wants to hurt you. Please return their kindness."

The wisp looked shocked, but mulled it over for a moment.

"Yes, you're right."

He stepped forward and spoke to Jacqueline and Quintus.

"Thank you for being so welcoming. I'll do my best to aid the battalion."

My two comrades looked confused. It made sense, they hadn't heard him speak before and were wondering why he was whispering.

"His nature as half-wisp causes him to be very quiet. We'll have to get used to it."

"I see." Jacqueline smiled again before turning back to me. "You've returned alive with a new recruit, so I think this calls for celebration. I'll let everyone know."

I grinned. Tonight was going to be a good time.

*****

Within a few hours the battalion was gathered. Considering how disparate our diets and eating habits were, eating all together like this was normally saved for times of celebration.

Before we started, I addressed my battalion, Hush sitting at my side.

"I haven't had a chance to say this yet, so I'll say it now. Congratulations on seizing Fort Antra. Everyone did their part contributing to our victory. You should all be proud of what you've accomplished." I raised my mug of beer. "TO PEREGRINE!"

"TO PERIGRINE!" dozens of voices echoed back at me.

After I took a drink I continued my speech.

"I've been gone for a few days because my fight with Lionel resulted in both of us falling off a cliff, and I wouldn't be here talking to you right now if it weren't for the man next to me," I gestured to Hush.

"This is Hush, a fae with incredible power to heal. He was kind enough to nurse me back to health. Now, he has agreed to join our family. Everyone, welcome our new brother!"

The same roar of voices came, greeting Hush. The wisp couldn't speak loud enough to address them like I could, so he waved at them sheepishly.

"Now, my battalion, REJOICE!"

The large group cheered and we began our meal together.

The first one to approach Hush was Femt, an elf that was our head medic. They considered themself more of a pacifist, but put their life on the line over and over again to aid us. Like all elves, Femt was genderless and relatively small, a bit shorter than I was. Perhaps Hush could form some kind of kinship with them.

"Greetings, Hush. It seems that you and I will be working together."

The wisp smiled and returned the greeting, but was drowned out by all the ambient chatter.

The elf put their hand behind their ear.

"Pardon me, what was that?"

Hush turned pink and looked embarrassed. I felt the need to interject.

"He's part wisp, so he can't make very much noise. He might have to whisper in your ear."

Now Femt looked intrigued.

"Oh, part wisp? That's quite out of the ordinary. By all means, come closer, Hush."

The boy got up and walked over, having to lean in close to communicate to the elf. The two had a conversation I could only ever hear one side of.

The night continued and we all enjoyed ourselves. Several times someone would approach, usually to talk to me, but sometimes to welcome Hush directly. Before long Hush would just gesture that they'd come closer so he could speak in their ears. As expected, my brothers and sisters in arms were accepting and welcoming to our new recruit.

After night had fallen, the festivities died down and those that weren't on lookout duties retired to their tents.

I felt a tap on my back and turned to see the wisp.

"Excuse me, Gerard—I mean, Captain, but where will I sleep?"

Oh. I hadn't thought about that. I supposed it made sense that he stayed with Femt and the others working in the infirmary, but they didn't have extra bedding and I didn't want to impose on them. I also thought about Hush. He became more friendly with everyone, but I could tell he couldn't help but feel on edge around so many beasts he didn't have experience with. I was the only one he seemed truly comfortable around right now.

The decision was obvious.

"You'll stay in my tent with me. At least until we can arrange something more permanent."

I saw a thankfulness in his smile. "Yes, sir."

We went to my tent and prepared to retire after our long day. There was a moment where I looked over and saw Hush standing, appearing confused at the one bed in the room. One of the advantages of being captain was that I could have a bigger bed. It could hold two people easily.

I got under the blankets, keeping to one side only.

"What's the matter, Hush? Get in." I patted the empty side.

Gently, he slid into bed next to me. I extinguished the lamp next to my bed and the room went dim.

"Goodnight, Hush." I faced away from him and made myself comfortable.

"Goodnight, Captain," he whispered.

We slept.

*****

As all mine do, my next morning started bright and early. I went outside to train with my sword until the sun had well risen. Other battalion members were getting out of their tents, too.

Returning to my own, I saw that Hush was still fast asleep. I nudged him until his eyes opened.

"Wake up, soldier. You have a job to do."

He got up and got dressed.

"I was able to count to forty in that time. Work on getting it down to under fifteen."

Hush nodded. "Yes, sir."

I led him out so we could head over to the medical tent. I called for Femt and they appeared a few moments later.

"Femt, Hush will be joining your team, so show him the ropes. Hush, ask questions. Talk to your superiors about your healing and how it works. I must make my leave now."

The elf nodded and led Hush off, talking.

I made my usual rounds across the camp. The armory, the horses, basic training, everything was working smoothly. I was proud that my battalion was able to operate just as well when I was gone.

The rest of the morning I spent sparring with one of our berserkers, a gigantic orc named Sigge. Sparring was encouraged in our units, as it gave us battle experience when not engaged with the enemies. I used a wooden sword and Sigge had his weapon of choice: a gigantic wooden axe that could still pack quite a punch.

My training was arduous, but over the years I've learned to enjoy it. As a human, I was at a disadvantage, not having the innate strength and size of other species around me. But due to my hard work I was able to make a name for myself as a warrior, and now have people that trust me to lead and be strong when times were tough. Sigge could break me in half like a tree branch if he wanted to, but I had earned his respect and he saw me as his leader.

Around high noon I got a message that the King's envoy had arrived. Jacqueline and I were to hold a meeting with him and a few others, discussing what our plans were moving forward.

After a quick wash and change of clothes, the two of us went to the large tent set up for this meeting. The first one I noticed was the envoy, Neskal.

Neskal was a reptilian, with slitted eyes and green scales on his body. At the beginning I suspected he didn't trust me much, found it hard to believe that a human, not to mention a commoner, was leading a band of warriors, but he had become an advocate for my battalion as we proved our utility to the kingdom.

"Welcome, Gerard, Jacqueline. Our meeting will begin shortly."

I took a deep breath before entering the tent. In some ways, these outings felt just as stressful as battle.

The following meeting was a blur of discussions, negotiations, even arguments. Jacqueline and I were fighting for our battalion to leave the fort, as it made us a stationary target for enemy attack. That wasn't even considering the fact that we had been on the road for nearly three moons at that point and wanted to go back to our kingdom to visit our families.

Once the metaphorical dust cleared, we settled on the kingdom sending over the troops necessary to fully occupy the fort, with the condition that we would be sent out on another mission after one fortnight of rest. There was a push to send us out immediately, but the two of us remained firm, Neskal supporting us where necessary. My battalion was my family, but they had people they were fighting for back home, and it was vital they maintained those relationships as well. The Peregrine Battalion was to depart from Fort Antra in three days.

It was late afternoon by the time we left that tent, and I was exhausted. Negotiations and diplomacy were not my biggest strengths, but we had accomplished our goal and our battalion would leave the fort in a timely manner.

I made a quick visit to the infirmary to see how Hush was doing, but found only Femt at first.

"How has it been today?"

"Good. Hush really is quite a healer. He'll be a valuable asset after battle. Now, he's just hurrying the pace of recovery for some of our comrades. Where is he, anyway?"

As Femt was talking, Hush had noticed us and walked up.

"I'm right here."

Femt was caught off guard and jumped slightly. They couldn't have heard Hush approach, so if they didn't see him they'd have no way of knowing. Hush seemed embarrassed, but Femt recovered almost immediately.

"I think you've done enough for your first day, Hush. You can go now."

The wisp nodded, thanking them.

I looked at the boy as we left the infirmary.

"That wasn't the first time that happened today, was it?"

Hush smiled wanly.

"I never really thought about it before because I haven't met that many new people. But it happened a few times." He sighed, still silent. "I wish they could hear me approach."

I thought for a moment before I had an idea.

We went to the armory and found our head crafter, Ruelle. She was half human, half something else. What that something else was, not even she knew, but it gave her pure black eyes and seven fingers on both her hands. She was tinkering with a new gadget, one I couldn't identify, but had no doubt it would be useful, being one of Ruelle's inventions.

"Hey, Ruelle, do you still have those little bells we put on the horses?" Not too long ago we took part in a parade and she fashioned small bells to attach to our steeds.

"Let me look." She turned around and looked through the storage in her mobile workshop.

"Aha! Found one. What do you want it for, Captain?"

"Attach it to a bracelet, please."

"Yes sir."

Her hands became a blur, and in no time at all she finished.

"Thanks, Ruelle."

"Not a problem."

After we left I gave it to Hush.

"Maybe you should wear this."

Curious, the wisp put it on and looked stunned when moving his arm made a faint twinkle.

"It's not much, but they'll be able to hear you coming now."

He shook his head. "No, it's wonderful! Thank you, Captain!"

I ruffled his hair, smiling.

"Come on, let's get dinner."

*****

The days went on and Hush acclimated to our unit. By the time we left the fort it was like he had been with us from the beginning.

Once knights from the Kingdom arrived to occupy the fort properly, the Peregrine Battalion began the three-day journey back to Castle Town. Our group was in high spirits, eager to return to their homes and spend time with their friends and families. After all, most of them were fighting to make a better life for their loved ones. Jacqueline wanted to provide for her sister. Quintus had a wife and three pups.

As happy as I was for them, thinking about it was bittersweet. I didn't have anyone to go back to. My parents died when I was very young and my childhood was spent living in squalor at an orphanage. As soon as I turned thirteen I began to train as a warrior, hoping to one day be a knight. I didn't really have anyone for most of my life.

That was part of the reason I started the battalion. I wanted to create a group where everyone was welcome. No matter who a person was, what species they were, as long as they put in the work they would be treated as family. But the others actually had a home and loved ones to go back to. My only family was my battalion. My only home was the battlefield.

Hush was in a similar position. He had left his life behind to join Peregrine. To him, the town was just as foreign a land as anywhere else. We had already made the decision that he would be staying with me. So in a way now neither of us had to be alone.

As always, my free time was spent training. I lived near the knight's barracks and trained with them often. At this point the Peregrine Battalion was officially seen as a band of mercenaries, not royal knights, which meant I couldn't stay there, only train during the day. But I had heard rumors that that might change soon. I also helped train Hush during the fortnight we spent in town. Even though he wouldn't be proactive in battle, I wanted everyone in my unit to be in good physical condition. It was certainly a difficult endeavor for the wisp. He was so small and weak that he couldn't do very much at all at first, but over time he began improving in small ways.

I also saw Hush's healing abilities in action for the first time. One day, a stray cat with a broken leg hobbled near our house and the wisp ran out to get it without hesitation. Once the cat was brought inside, Hush began healing it.

I think I expected glowing or incantations, but the wisp simply held his hands over the cat and concentrated. Within seconds it fell into a deep sleep.

"What does your healing ability do, exactly?" I asked.

"Well, it doesn't work right away, unfortunately. My magic puts whatever I'm healing into a deep sleep and the body changes into a state where all energy is put into mending whatever was broken. The sleep provides their bodies nourishment, energy, and speeds up the healing process. Once the wound is healed enough, they'll wake up."

Interesting. I supposed that lined up with what happened to me. I was put into a deep sleep that lasted two days. During that time, my cuts and bruises healed, but my shattered arm must have taken longer. That's why it still felt stiff and tender after I woke up.

As amazing as Hush's ability was, the limitations meant it wouldn't be a perfect solution. Yes, soldiers could be brought back from the edge of death, but they would be completely incapacitated by it. That meant we had to be smart about when to use his abilities and when to use standard first aid. I assumed he already discussed these things with Femt and the rest of the medical team.

At the end of our stint I got a message from the castle that I and a few other members of the battalion had been summoned. This happened occasionally after we accomplished something major, representatives of our battalion would be shown to the nobles and we'd be congratulated publicly, sometimes by the king himself. These types of formalities bored me greatly, but it was always better to stay on the nobility's good side.

On the day of the ceremony I instructed Hush to continue his training as usual before I left, dressed in some of the few formal clothes I owned. At the castle grounds I saw that Jacqueline and the five squadron leaders had also been invited, which was the most representatives ever requested for occasions such as this.

The ceremonial hall was packed with ministers, lords, priests, knights, merchants, all kinds of people who held power in the Northern Kingdom. I saw Neskal across the room and we both nodded in greeting.

Eventually the time came for the king himself to enter. I had only seen him a few times before, but his presence never ceased to impress me.

King Meruem was a minotaur, as tall and powerful as any orc. Many years ago he was an accomplished warrior, leading armies to victory with his strength and cunning, but now he was too old for the battlefield and ruled his subjects from his throne. From what I could tell, he was a firm, but fair ruler, and did everything he could for the good of his kingdom. A trumpet called everyone to attention, but it was Meruem's deep, booming voice that made the chatter die down all at once.