“You have to make sure to give a good first impression, and your clothing is part of that Justain.” Ilse had been fussing over the prince’s mode of dress since the morning.

“He’ll be fine Ilse. We’re all wearing our military coats already and there’s no need for us to look any fancier.” Orchid had been fed up with their antics for a long time now.

“He’s a prince Orchid, and more importantly he’ll be in charge of the entire battalion. It wouldn’t hurt for him to look more like royalty. How will people follow him if they don’t believe he has the ability to be a King.” She was adamant.

“That ridiculous hat won’t help him either. Your advice has already made Rock look like that.” Rock looked over at the sound of his nickname, twirling his reattached moustache. The Rat had tried unsuccessfully to get Rock to put the fake moustache away. Even now her embarrassment was clear as she tried to persuade him to remove it. “We’re ready Ilse. Just get him straightened up enough to give his speech and then we’ll head for our units.”

Ilse glared at him as she adjusted Justains collar again before grumbling. “Not like I have anything to do with that.”

“We went over this many times. As our only real magical healer, it makes no sense for you to run around among an army.” Forestalling her argument with a raised hand, he continued. “Yes, I know you’re one of the strongest combatants that we have, but adding a powerful fighter is easy. There’s no one to replace you when it comes to healing. So, stop complaining about it. I would have thought you would be happy, since you’ll be attached to Justain’s command staff now.” He winked at his final sentence and dodged the hat she threw at him.

Vale burst through the door at that moment, out of breath and cheeks flushed with excitement.

“They’ve confirmed that Captain Vivian will be our supervisor until we’re placed under Marshal von Ziegler’s command.” He blurted out the words the minute his eyes fell on Orchid.

Wincing at the thought of the fiery tempered red-head he had knocked out, Orchid realized that even the journey may not be as peaceful as he could expect. Tightening his belt and gloves Orchid stood up and left the villa, taking Vale with him as he went.

“Let’s go people. No time to waste.” He said.

“You just don’t want the Captain to catch you on your own. I’ve heard from some of the other instructors that she’s felt mortified since the events of that night and is looking for ways to make your life miserable.” The entire group chortled at Justains comments and Orchids pace faltered a little before he rushed out, Vale dashing to keep up with him.

Now I have a vindictive superior watching my every move.

* * * * * *

“Sergeant, what did you think about the speech?” Corporal Geist’s dull voice was something that Teresa had become used to over the last few months of training. It was still irritating, but had already passed the point of being so irritating that it incited murder, to the realm of pure resignation at one’s circumstances in life. It wasn’t really his fault she knew, the inability to understand things a part of him.

“What did you think Geist?” She turned the question back at him. It was the simplest way to deal with his curiosity.

“He sounded really Noble, Sarge. Made me feel special.” A hint of pride laced the corporals voice.

“It’s just another noble Geist, even if he may be the next King. At the end of the day they don’t care about little people like us.” She told him bitterly.

“He’ll be the new King?” Geist as usual latched onto the one part of her statement that interested him. Ignoring any of her thoughts and attitude towards the nobility.

“Maybe Geist.” She finished oiling her blade and slid it back into its leather sheath. The only weapon that she owned outright, the blade had been a gift from her father when she received her promotion to sergeant. Not being an expert in forging swords, Senior Kowalski was nonetheless a master Blacksmith and was able to produce a blade far beyond the quality issued by the military. It was her most prized possession and she made sure to go out of her way to maintain it on a daily basis. “Politics are a murky thing. Without an announcement from the King and the Council, no heir can be appointed, but the rumors place this prince ahead of his siblings in the race for the throne.”

“So, we will be assigned under the new King. Amazing,” Geist breathed.

“Possibly the next King.” She corrected.

“The King.” Geist was already daydreaming and lost in his own world.

Clicking her tongue in frustration, Teresa wandered the camp of the 7th Central Training Company to check the soldiers under her command. The recruits were leavened with a few veterans as trainers to supplement the recruits in their training and provide the requisite experience so that the Company could be deployed as is.

The company had rushed to the Capital from their training camp upon receiving new orders to deploy to the south to reinforce the Florenzi fortress. Teresa had expected to join up with a more experienced legion or battalion before heading south but when she reached the capital she learned that all the training companies would be assigned under the new batch of Cadets from the Academy.

After meeting with the sergeants from the other companies she had become concerned. It seemed that the situation in the south was slowly developing into a serious conflict. They hadn’t been able to come to any sort of conclusion in their discussions, but felt that the best thing would be to induce their new officer cadets to train the troops as much as possible on the journey.

The master sergeant of the 1st company had served with Cadets before and claimed that the cadets always seemed to rely on their magical abilities before the forces under their command. This was the reason, he explained, that they were sent on deployments so early in their tenure at the Academy, so that they would be able to judiciously apply the correct utilization of the powers under their command. It made sense to Teresa, but heading to a potential war zone for training didn’t seem like such a good idea.

After her patrol through the camp she went to meet the sergeants of the 8th and 9th company as she considered the new organization of their forces.

“Each of the companies will be led by one of the Cadets as their Lieutenant. Every three companies will form a unit with one of the Cadets acting as a senior Lieutenant directly under me.” The prince explained, the soldiers surrounding her staring in awe at the member of the Royal family in front of them.

Her meeting with the other two sergeants in her unit had as little result as yesterday’s larger meeting. They knew too little about their commanders to be able to plan anything. Frustrated with the way things were developing she grabbed lunch before arranging the company to welcome their new leader.

* * * * * *

Watching the small purple haired Cadet stride towards the company flanked by a dozen grim faced guards, Teresa swallowed the small lump of dryness that had formed in her throat.

A noble, and a powerful one at that. Those guards have seen action.

The Cadet strode towards her with purpose and saluted her at arm’s length, his Guards fanning out behind him.

“Sergeant Teresa Kowalski. Acting Commander of the 7th Central Training Company.” She saluted in return her body acting with military precision.

“A pleasure to meet you Sergeant. Our troops seem to be well prepared. I think one would be hard pressed to find a Company of this ability throughout our military.” His impressed words were loud enough for the Company to overhear and she could hear rustling as the soldiers stood straighter, swelling with pride.

Smart child.

Stepping back, he faced the Company, sparkling purple eyes passing over the massed ranks that confidently stood in front of him.

“I am Cadet Orchid Kale.” He began, voice booming louder than it should have been possible, a clear sign of magic amplification. “I will be the Senior Lieutenant for the third unit and I have chosen you to be the lead company directly under my supervision. It is my honor to serve with such fine men and women as you.” Even she felt proud when she heard his words, despite being sure that it was just flattery.

“As you know, we are a training force being deployed South and will be based at Florenzi fortress. Many of you may feel complacent in the fact that this is just another day of training, but the situation in the South is fluid and skirmishes with the Illati are occurring on a daily basis.” The Cadets voice deepened and he solemnly continued. “Remember you are all now serving under his highness Prince Justain Haupsberg and your actions will reflect on him. Under no circumstances will I tolerate any behavior that would damage his Highness and I will act accordingly if I feel that there is a breach in his trust of you.”

Taking a deep breath, he surveyed the soldiers and Teresa felt a formless pressure whenever their eyes met.

“We will do the people proud. Remember we are the people of Eich and have always stood tall in the face of our enemies.” Even though his voice was soft it carried throughout the grounds.

Raising his fist in salute the Cadet suddenly roared.

“Strength for the Homeland!”

The Company cheered and responded in kind.

“Disperse the Company sergeant, then follow me to the Command tent.” The Cadet declared.

“You heard the Senior Lieutenant! Back to work. The Lieutenant is expecting a lot from us and I better not hear a single word of complaint from any of you. Dismissed!” She boomed with her parade ground voice.

Making sure that the company was on its way, she marched up to the Cadet and saluted.

Returning the gesture, the Cadet suddenly grinned sheepishly.

“I have no idea where the command tent is. Do we even have one?” He said.

Feeling a slight smile tugging at her lips she pointed towards a small tent and they headed there quickly.

The command tent was a standard piece of military equipment. Filled with a small table and a few stools the most important features were the small chest and case that held dispatches and maps respectively. Once inside, the Cadet dismissed all but two of his guards and told her to sit down on one of the stools.

“Well, sergeant. Looks like we’ll be together for a while.” He said, taking out a small jug of wine and passing it to her.

She placed it on the table before saying anything.

“Yes sir. We will be.”

“Not interested in taking a drink? It’s really good.” Seeing his eyes widened in curiosity, she felt that the expression was fake. There was a deeper meaning to his words, but she didn’t know what. Not knowing his intent, she decided to respond with honesty.

“I’m currently on duty.”

“Interesting.” He tapped his lips in thought, his stare fixed on her. “Tell me sergeant, what do you think about our assignment as your leaders?”

“We live to serve the country, whatever may be asked of us.”

“A dull answer sergeant, but expected. What about our deployment south?”

The cadet was speaking as if he knew something and Teresa was sure she was being tested. If she didn’t speak her mind here then she would never get a chance, even if it soured his ego.

“Sir, it concerns me.” She said. She clenched her hands until he gestured for her to continue. “The Illati raids are a great concern every year, but I have heard from reliable sources that they may have crossed the border in significant numbers. More importantly, we are a new unit and no offense to you and his highness, but we lack an experienced command staff. The majority of the troops are green and if we face significant enemy forces they may crack under the pressure.”

“You feel we may face significant action.”

“I’m not sure sir, but we should be prepared in any case.”

“True sergeant. So, how should we prepare?”

“Training, sir.” She explained her plans for how to maximize their efforts.

They lapsed into silence. Feeling nervous, she nonetheless maintained her stoic attitude as the Cadet pondered. Suddenly smiling he let out a bark of laughter before looking at her surprised expression.

“Relax sergeant. Yes, your plans are adequate. However, we have to incorporate the other two companies in our unit into some kind of comprehensive training plan.” Grinning, the Cadet seemed deliriously happy at the thought of planning and training.

“Yes sir.” She wasn’t sure what to say so she just agreed.

“Alright, tell me about the company, unit, the battalion and so on. As much as you think is important let me know.” He looked at her earnestly.

Explaining the situation, she started to relax as she realized that he truly seemed interested in preparing and wasn’t just questioning her out of curiosity.

At least he’s willing to listen.