Whether it was the way the Lieutenant was looking at him, the way he spoke, or the immense intensity around his person, they all told Nero that the Lieutenant had a bad impression of him. There was always a chance that the man just had an intense and cold personality, but Nero was rarely wrong about such things.
"Yes sir!" Nero responded, being as direct as possible.
The Lieutenant's brows relaxed just a bit upon hearing the response, but his gaze on Nero was just as intense.
"We will confirm the veracity of your claim in our own labs. Understand this, private, that I was not in favour of bringing in a criminal with a confirmed fratricide conviction, whatever else anyone says be damned! But as fate would have, circumstances have transpired in a way that you may still earn honour for your country here - honour you do not deserve.
"We will be keeping a close eye on you. I cannot trust a profligate, self described
best Neophyte
with my soldiers and researchers, so if you so much as give me the slightest reason to doubt you, I will impart onto you the opportunity for a Kolari's final duty."
"Death before dishonour," Nero whispered, suddenly reminded of his ideals from so long ago.
"Yes," the Lieutenant said, finally nodding with approval. He left a lot unsaid, but it need not be said. Some things were just understood. As a nation of warriors, most met their end of the battlefield. In fact, Nero had been raised with the saying that the death of all Kolaris is written, and it is on the battlefield. As such, there were many phrases and sayings associated with it. A Kolari's final duty was another way of saying dying honourably on the battlefield.
The Lieutenant basically was telling him that he would have Nero die on the battlefield if he was dissatisfied with his performance - or at least give him the opportunity to die. The reason why Nero said 'death before dishonour' was because he understood that the Lieutenant basically expected him to run away or escape if things became dangerous.
Many thoughts flashed through Nero's mind. He thought of countless ways he could throw the dirty, dishonourable conduct of many on the Lieutenant's face. He could point out how he was framed, and that someone tried to kill him. He could sum up the true worth of Kolari honour in a hundred different ways - but he did not.
His dad had literally just told him to stop making enemies, top offending his seniors, and try to improve his impression on others. The only way to do that now was to prove his worth through his actions.
"I will not fail you, sir!" Nero said once more, keeping a straight face.
The Lieutenant opened a drawer in his table and pulled out a brown envelope, handing it to Nero.
"Since you're here now, private, then you will begin your service today. You will report to Corporal Thomas, and will be assigned to work with research team 83. Go get your uniform from the logistics office, get settled into the barracks, and report for duty. Do not give me a reason to personally see you again until you leave, understand?"
"Yes sir!"
"Dismissed," the Lieutenant said with a wave of his hand.
Nero followed Corporal Lance outside the office, and finally looked inside the envelope. It contained an official, signed document stating that he was to perform his service as a security aide in Fordham base, as well as an official Fordham ID card stating his position and rank.
Nero looked up to see the Corporal giving him an odd look.
"I killed an assassin and a traitor," Nero said straightforwardly. "No need to look at me like that. I never tried to hide it, and reported it in full once I got the chance."
Of course, that full report was only given in the courtroom multiple days after it actually happened, but the details hardly mattered. Lance shrugged his shoulders.
"All outside news is banned in the base - there's no real communication so hardly anyone knows what's going on outside. Even so, I managed to hear about the kid who called himself the '
best Neophyte alive
'. I just imagined that the person who said it… would be seven years old."
Nero resisted the urge to facepalm. That little statement was going to follow him around it seemed. At the time, Nero thought that a nation full of warriors would have appreciated the confidence. As it turned out, they all just thought that he was some juvenile kid daydreaming.
Nero did not address the statement, but fortunately the Corporal was not as uptight as the Lieutenant.
He escorted Nero to the logistics building, and after showing his new ID, Nero was able to get his uniform and his bags, after which they went to the armoury and retrieved his knife and cards.
Then he brought Nero to his barracks, which was mostly empty since all the soldiers were on duty. Only those who had night duty were sleeping within their rooms at the time. Nero went ahead and placed all his bags on his bunk, since he didn't have an independent room, and changed into his uniform when he noticed something unusual.
A normal private uniform was plain, and on his shoulder would be a simple arrow symbol indicating his rank as private. But on the left side of Nero's shirt, above his heart, a couple of patches were sown on, as well as the mark of a medal.
For a moment, Nero was dazed. He recognised the patches. The first, simple one was to signify active service during wartime, which would be given to everyone who served in wartime. In fact, it had a separate silver medal as well, not that Nero ever got his. The second patch represented exemplary service, which was usually awarded with another silver medal.
The medal that was sown onto his uniform, however, was the Arcane Valour medal, and seeing it on his own uniform stunned him! It was awarded for demonstrating exceptional bravery, resulting in a favourable outcome of a mission, in the face of overwhelming odds. The thing that made the Arcane Valour medal special was that it recognised individuals who basically achieved their merits alone, or at least cut off from reinforcements or aid.
The actual medal was supposed to be made of Ridiam, a very valuable metal which contained aetheric properties.
Nero had not received that medal either, nor had anyone informed him that he had received such awards, but seeing how they were sown onto his uniform there could be no mistake. The Arcane Valour medal was a big deal, and he had not expected to get one. Though, upon closer consideration, it made sense that he got it.
Whatever the army required from the research facility sounded important, and the fact that they had turned off the final securit node, and then returned with news of a Vault, meant that he had made a very valuable achievement.
Speaking of Vault, Nero recalled that Ascendant Oana had informed him that it had been resealed. Nero certainly had not done so, and there was only one person he could think of who might know how to do that. As it happened, she was supposed to be in this base somewhere.
Though he had not shown it, Nero had kept a close eye on all the shadows since he had come into the base.
Eventually, Nero broke out of his reverie and returned outside. He had not been given any weapons to carry, and he had also been warned in the armoury that if he drew his knife without sufficient cause it would be confiscated again.
As soon as he exited, the Corporal who had been waiting for him, suddenly locked his eyes on the awards sewn onto Nero's uniform, and whistled.
"Not bad. Part of the draft?"
"Yup, served in Lumina."
"No wonder you were called here to Fordham. I was wondering why you were called here if the Lieutenant clearly doesn't like you."
"What's so special about Fordham?" Nero asked as he got back in the jeep. The Corporal didn't need to escort Nero everywhere, but Lance wasn't too eager to return to the boring routine of patrolling the grounds so decided to help out.
"This base is filled with highly classified stuff. It's not easy to get assigned here, especially for such a short service period. They must really require your specific skills."
There was suddenly a certain level of respect in the way Lance spoke to Nero, even though he was a higher rank, and despite himself, Nero couldn't help but feel a trace of pride.
They drove to a generic looking research building which was at least seven or eight stories tall, and Nero followed Lance inside once again. At the reception, Nero showed his ID, and reported that he was supposed to report to Corporal Thomas, and was told to wait.
He was looking forward to finding out what exactly was going on here, and what they needed from him. If they brought him here to face curses, then he had more than just his flames to deal with them now - not that he was planning on showing off his newest ability easily.