“The image of a mercenary company often goes along the line of a group of rowdy, wild warriors who fight with little semblance of order and discipline. That could not be further than the truth. If anything, most mercenary units have such strict adherence to the chain of command and discipline that they would put most men-at-arms to shame.” - Stefan Horst, Captain of the Horst’s Hellraisers Mercenary Company, circa 14 FP.

The Captain’s wife and daughter – who Astrid found to be quite nice despite the imposing way they looked at times – brought Astrid with them to the Company meeting, since it was close to that time by then. The three of them walked towards where the Captain’s command tent was, and saw that the meeting would be held outside the tent, where a set of barrels and logs had been arranged in a circle to serve as seats.

By the time they arrived – a short while before the appointed time – there were only three people already present, though one of them made it very obvious to Astrid why the meeting was held outside. She had thought the Captain tall and imposing as it was, but the bear therian that sat on one of the arranged logs across the clearing from the Captain must have stood at least half again as tall, and just as much wider.

It would have been a challenge to fit such a figure in the tent, to say the least.

The mercenary Captain himself, with his easily noticed white spotted fur, sat next to a human man who talked while absent-mindedly playing with his goatee using one hand. He noticed their approach from afar and waved one paw-like hand, at which point Astrid noticed how the captain’s daughter seemed to nudge her mother on the side in response.

Astrid and the Captain’s wife sat on the captain’s right, while his daughter walked over and sat by the large-bodied bear therian, greeting them in a familiar manner. They made small talk while they waited for the rest of the Company’s officer corps – specifically the platoon leaders – to gather, which only took a while longer.

A young blonde human girl who had a striking resemblance to the Captain’s wife came together with an old-looking goblin and another woman whose style of clothing and tanned skin made Astrid think of a southerner. They sat themselves in what seemed to be an agreed upon seating order, the young girl next to the Captain’s daughter while the other two sat on the other side of the bear therian.

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The ones who arrived next were a tall, one-eyed human woman who came together with a shorter, brutish-looking woman of mixed ancestry. Another pair followed behind them, engrossed in conversation as they walked, composed of a soft-looking human man and the red-haired orcish woman Astrid met earlier in the day.

A middle-aged human man with a neatly trimmed mustache and a dark-skinned westerner youth came next, followed by a tanned middle-aged woman who walked with a bow-legged gait. After them, the last ones to arrive were an energetic young woman with a light tan who walked side by side with a frailer-looking man the same age, who carried writing implements with him.

“Ah, good, everyone’s here on time,” said the Captain once everyone was seated. The other gathered mercenaries gave nods and other gestures in reply. “I called for this gathering because today we get to welcome a new member to the company. Say your hellos to Astrid… I believe you said you prefer to go by ver Hevia these days? Astrid ver Hevia, our newest platoon leader, everyone,” he added as he gestured towards Astrid with one hand. “Astrid, these are all the platoon leaders with the Free Lances, except Loren there. He’s here because he’s our unofficial scribe and will be recording this meeting for posterity’s sake, or something like that.”

“An honor to be given the chance to serve with you all,” said Astrid as she stood up and gave a slight bow to the gathered mercenaries. She could feel the way how most of their gazes were locked on to her, people who were assessing their new partner, someone they might have to fight side by side with in the near future. Someone who might well one day mean the difference between life and death for them.

“Don’t stare at her too much. Her platoon consists entirely of former soldiers, but that doesn’t mean we won’t put them through some training first before we let them march alongside the rest of us,” Reinhardt added nonchalantly. “We still got over a year’s worth of contract with Levain to train their people, so it’s a good time to train our own newcomers while we’re at it, don’t you think?”

“Hah! Good point, Boss,” said the young woman who arrived last to the gathering. “I think that’s the part we’re all worried about, here,” she added, to the nods of the other gathered platoon commanders. “No offense intended, newbie, but none of us got to actually fight as part of the company without at least some training first, not even the Boss’s kids.”

“An understandable concern,” replied Astrid. She could not even complain about the implied insult to the quality of her people’s training, honestly, given how their army had been routed and the mercenaries apparently played a notable role in that defeat. “My men are ready and willing to go through whatever training deemed necessary to improve their capabilities.”

“I hope you remember those words well, Miss,” said the young girl who looked like the Captain’s wife with a slight chuckle. “You’ll soon learn that our idea of ‘sufficient training’ differs quite a lot with most mercenaries out there, or even armies for that matter.”

“No need to worry, though,” said the large bear therian, her voice identifying her as a female. “If your people do end up collapsing and can’t even walk to the infirmaries, my folks won’t mind lending a hand to bring them over, just say the word.”