The fourth of Rachel Harrison’s Severina Raine short stories to get a digital release, Trials keeps the ongoing narrative of the 11th Antari Rifles in the background and focuses on the relationship between the Commissar and Captain Andren Fel. The storm trooper captain is the only member of the regiment who Raine can truly trust, the two of them sharing similarities despite their different roles. Over the course of a quiet conversation, while the war rages on around them, they each tell the story of the final trial they faced at the end of their time in the Schola Progenium.
There’s a powerful sense of atmosphere at work in this story, grounding it in the tough, gritty life of the Antari that Harrison is gradually revealing over these tales. The focus is very much on the unusual relationship between Raine and Fel though, and the respect that they have for each other, as seen through Raine’s eyes. The matter of fact way in which they relate their stories, and the understanding that they have of what the other went through, lends events a real intensity and cleverly shows the impact that their formative trials had. Overall it’s an excellent example of how to use a quiet short story as a powerful character study.
