"I focus mainly in close combat, as well as tactics and leadership," Nero said succinctly and with a soft smile. It was as if he hadn't just threatened to kill his teammates mere moments ago.
"Hello, my name is Wendy," she said, right after Nero, not allowing an awkward silence to develop. "I am also a close combat expert, with a specialisation in speed"
They both then looked towards Henry who was pale, grimacing, and clutching his trembling hands. But, eventually, he also introduced himself.
"Henry. I specialise in scouting, tracking and traps."
Charles, despite feeling just as hesitant as Henry, also felt incredibly angry. He had never felt as insulted as he did today, but he controlled himself. But anyone with eyes could see that he had not let go of this grudge.
"Charles. Mid range combatant with a specialisation in small explosions."
Then, all four looked towards Taylor, who had been gawping at Nero with twinkling eyes and a blush. The sudden attention startled her though, and reignited her efforts to somehow drown inside her seat. After a failed attempt, she was reminded that she wasn't in trouble, but instead had to do her turn in the introductions.
"My name is Taylor. I can't fight, like, at all. But I have a very useful ability. I can augment anyone for a set period of time, raising their strength and defence by a large margin. I'm also a fast runner."
Taylor physically flinched when she saw the grimace her self introduction elicited from Henry and Charles. That was usually what happened when she told people she couldn't fight, but her weak bones made that a sad reality. But, surprisingly, Nero did not grimace, or look down on her. Instead, he flashed her a warm, appreciative smile.
Taylors eyes lost focus as she got lost in her own thoughts, and no one else spoke to fill the silence afterwards. That was fine.
Nero had no illusions about how uncooperative his new teammates would be. His lies about his background would hold them for now, but depending on what their intentions were, or who was instructing them from behind, it would not last. After all, if there was someone who could get them put in his fireteam, then they had a strong background with powerful influence.
They would surely know that he wasn't connected to a sage.
But he would do what he could. He would keep them in line with threats and intimidation for as long as he could while psychologically suppressing them. Such a thing might work out completely, or just keep them from acting out until a critical moment. That is why, he intended on creating evidence against them while he still had them under his control, framing them for sabotage.
If they did nothing, he would not reveal it. If they acted against his interests, he would have them condemned and sent to the cursed lands. Nero had not exaggerated when he said he would kill them if they got in his way. He was just being misleading about how he would have it done.
As he sat there, with Wendy on his left, Taylor on his right, Nero wore a soft and relaxed expression. He really looked like he had everything under control. No one could have imagined that he was planning the demise of his opponents at that time.
After all, if he waited for his enemies to act out first, then he would always be at a disadvantage. He had to act first, and act ruthlessly.
He would leave the task of investigating who was behind them to Gabriel. In such things, he was more of an expert than him. Instead, he just kept his thoughts on the plans he had for his teammates.
Soon, they buses exited the city from an unfamiliar gate, and led them into the forest nearby. Such a sight filled many students with fear, though Nero only revised what he knew about resisting curses with his ability in his mind.
They eventually stopped at a clearing with many chopped down trees and a few man made shacks. There were dozens of soldiers in the area waiting for them, keeping the area safe for their arrival, which is why as soon as they stopped, all of them were made to get off and line up according to their teams.
An unfamiliar man stepped up in front of the crowd and immediately began his instruction, without any self introduction or preamble.
"Listen carefully, for I will only explain this once. For a fireteam to be considered successful, they need to act cooperatively and instinctually. Usually, there is no set leader who calls out plays in a fireteam, because the team should already have a number of various plans and strategies that they act out according to the situation.
"Such a level of understanding takes training and a lot of time to establish, so I don't expect it from you, but I do expect all of you to be able to operate with a minimum level of competency.
"Despite what the name suggests, the purpose of all fireteams is not necessarily combat. Depending on the skills and abilities of its members, some fireteams act as better scouts, while others are better at infiltration, hunting, sabotage, intel gathering, misdirection or whatever else their makeup inclines them towards.
The types of missions you will ordinarily be assigned reflect the type of fireteam you have. That means, in normal circumstances, each fireteam keeps on getting similar missions, allowing them to improve their performance in their respective field of focus.
"At the same time, all missions carry a level of unpredictability, which means that fireteams also need to be ready to face unexpected situations at any time. To expedite the process of you all understanding each other's abilities, gaining real world experience, and coming up with your focus and associated strategies, each fireteam will now be assigned a mission that reflects your level.
These missions are uncurated, which means that each of them carries a real risk of injury and death, even if they will be supervised.
"You will be given some basic information and some time to prepare. Take this as seriously as possible, because each decision you make can have a major impact on your life. At the end of the mission your performances will be evaluated, and will determine how you will be trained moving.
"Do not treat this lightly just because it is supervised, because no one is going to step in to save you in case of an injury. Only if you are at risk of death will the supervisors step in.
Even then, since their focus will be divided amongst countless other teams, there is a very good chance that they might not detect the danger in time, or act in time, which means there is a very real chance of death. In case of your demise, you will be treated as killed in action and your family will be eligible for half your pension. Now, step forward one by one and accept your missions.
"For now, since you have not determined what your fireteams specialise in, your assignments will be random."
Nero immediately felt the tension rise in the air as the soldier stopped speaking and stepped aside, but the only thing he could feel was a rush of excitement. But he didn't let his emotions get to him.
He maintained a high level of awareness of his surroundings, as if he wasn't safe even here, and studied each and every fireteam.
What were the chances that Henry and Charles were supposed to assist in an assassination attempt targeting him?
He genuinely and objectively considered the question, and determined that it was highly unlikely. Nero was too high profile these days for an assassination on him to go unnoticed, so he should not be at risk of that. Still, he maintained a level of vigilance.
"Does anyone object to me being the temporary leader of the team?" Nero asked with a warm smile. "I've already come up with a few strategies we can employ based on our brief self introductions. We can go over them once we know what the mission is."
Henry and Charles were clearly not in favour of the idea, but Wendy and Taylor were. In fact, Taylor seemed exceptionally enthusiastic about the idea, though she said nothing. Seeing that a clear division had formed within their group, Nero continued to speak.
"I only said a temporary leader. We can properly decide on whether or not our team needs a leader once we've had time to practise more with each other. For now, though, this should help us avoid simple mistakes. After all, we're not used to working with each other yet."
He needed the two to be less resistant towards him, even if they didn't realise it. He would slowly take all their resistance, and turn it either into fear and obedience over time. Whether they knew it or not, Nero would not allow the situation to fall out of his control so easily.
After a little more convincing, they stopped objecting, though Charles especially was very interested in deciding their leader with a fight once they got a chance. In fact, the whole reason he agreed was so that Nero would accept his condition.
Once everyone agreed, Nero grinned. Even if they had done it nominally, they had already accepted him as leader once, and therefore overcome their psychological barrier resisting him. In the future, when he beat the crap out- en, no, once he fairly defeated them in the challenge for leadership, it would be much easier for them to accept.
He almost felt bad for him. It was much too easy to manipulate children.