Buried Planet

28 - Chapter Three

Chapter Three

"The Five Fingers of Hervies"

Five of the most dedicated enforcers are marching across Brosse, they are the elite force of the Human Kingdom and for years they have unrelentingly served its interests or what their king deems those to be. This most special of all task units were formed as soon as the, back then, noticeably young King Hervies first took the throne.

It was one of his very first acts as a sovereign, the creation of this Hervies Hand.

The young king wanted from the very start to secure all sorts of advantages possible to him. Not many ever questioned its purpose as it was always somewhat guessed by all. Hervies had always been fascinated by anything Centra even as a young prince, and so when the time came to finally bury his father and take the reins of the kingdom for himself, most people already had a very good idea of the direction things were about to take. Sparing no cost or effort he hastily spread all the Human resources over the known charts, even more so than any of his predecessors. He quickly revealed a Centra obsession far greater than any other before him, with even larger amounts of capital being invested in digs and all sorts of research.

So, in the first few years under his rule, Human civilization had discovered more and advanced further than under any other ruler but it would not end just there. As soon as he took the throne, he initiated what would later be named the Hervies Hand. It was one of his pet projects, one that he would in the end so proudly bestow upon his own name; a special project to achieve what was to some to be unthinkable. The creation of a special unit to go where no other could and reach what anyone else would be afraid of, both horizontally and vertically. To reach into the far edges of the unknown charts if need be, where even the mighty Nharkim and their machinery dare not venture or if their king wills it deep into the roots of the underground worlds where even the Twinkledinnes are afraid to set foot.

And to achieve all of that, they had to be carefully chosen and overwhelmingly prepared, not only physically but mentally as well. They ought to be able to beat the best combatants and teach some of the best scholars. They should be able to stand against all conceivable threats and understand all possible scenarios and so, with this in mind, King Hervies charged all of his best instructors in all sorts of fields to go out there and find these soon to be chosen elite.

Each of the five warlords, soldiers of great worth, famous across the land since the times of the young king's father, were charged to travel the world and find, recruit and train, one worthy of the task. They were specifically instructed to disregard sex or race, even age or the original will to join or the lack of, of those they would deem suitable, and so they did. Who knows how far they travelled till finally each one of the five had an apprentice under its wing, and what these forced their newfound chosen to face in the year that was given to them to accomplish this?

Adventures, all worthy of their telling no doubt.

One year finally came to pass and all five finally made their return to the capital and, as they knelt before the throne and crown, they revealed to their king the fruits of their efforts. These five younglings were presented, the very first, thus beginning in this manner the five-warrior tradition.

Five to be specialists, one for each finger of a human hand, someone amongst the royal court pointed out.

And so, with that in mind, it wasn't hard for Hervies to finally name the group accordingly and for the last ten years, they have served him successfully.

Always five they are, no matter the weather, with only very few replacements ever taking place during all this time.