Snippet #1695715

Blake turned around, ending the conversation, when the woman who had been sleeping introduced herself slowly, as if intimidated. Aaron looked at her from top to bottom, and was about to confront her when the General Verturum appeared. This man was someone who deserved respect. Only by being able to find Blake, he deserved a different treatment. Everything about him reflected battles: His scars, his graying hair, even his posture, reflected that of a man who knew the joy of battle. That was kind of man who deserved respect ... But did not deserved to be feared. The number of men who Blake feared could not fill the fingers of one hand, and the number of men he respected barely reached a dozen. Verturum should feel proud. Maybe I’ll tell him, Blake thought.

He followed the flow of people, not caring whether any of them run into the suitcase tied behind him. When he entered the small room packed with maps, his eyes met those of Zethera, and Aaron could feel the arrogance emanating from the woman. Who did she think she was, commanding him with a look? Aaron returned the stare with hostility and then settled down as best he could, without taking out the huge suitcase behind him.

Verturum then began boring a motivational speech, and Blake decided to use his time to analyze each of the fighters in the room.

There was his commander, Zethera, and she eliminated any type of consideration, and Zethera’s friend, a woman who seemed familiar with that procedure as well as Blake. Aaron wondered what place she occupied in the team.

There was a skinny teenager so pale that Blake thought he was sick. He had slightly pointed ears, and Aaron thought that maybe he was really sick. But he seemed to be agile, very agile, the kind that could evade Betty’s flames. He deserved to be taken into account. There was a man wearing a helmet and a sniper rifle slung over his shoulder, and Aaron ignored him instantly. There was no honor in killing at distance, and men without honor deserved not respect for Blake. There was another pale teen, this one with a horse-tail. The teenager was passive, cold as ice. Blake knew that the most dangerous men are those without emotion, and that young man did not seem to have any. Still, he was young and too weak to be respected.

There was a man who appeared to have the same age as Aaron. The man looked like a rat in appearance, with his gray hair and his skin pale, and seemed to have no idea where he was, with a behavior way to happy for the occasion. Way to happy for Blake’s taste. There was another young man, with very peculiar eyes, probably a mutation, smoking a cigarette. He was too young to smoke, but Aaron started smoking at the age of fifteen, who was he to judge? He had an arrogant expression on his face, as if he knew something nobody else knew and bragged that. This pleased Aaron, and he wished that the smoker was in his team. It was always better to be friends with arrogant men, for they were the ones who died for you trying to prove something on the battlefield ... There was another woman, much smaller and weaker than the other two, and if it weren’t for her diminutive size and stance Aaron would’ve thought she was a man. She wore a dagger at the waist, and that alone won Blake’s favor.

Finally, there was a huge man, much older than Aaron, and maybe this man deserved his respect. Obviously he was a born fighter, and certainly a melee one. He seemed to be almost as old as Verturum, and if someone else deserved Blake’s respect in that room, was that man. Blake hoped that this was the Black Wolves CO, and felt happy to serve under his command.

When Verturum finished his speech, Blake came back to conscience, soon enough to hear the General say: "Any Questions?" Blake would not have cared if any of the recruits asked a useless question, but it was the respectable man who did, and Blake heard him. He smiled. Perhaps the others needed training, but not Aaron. Aaron was always ready to fight ...

Then Verturum asked the Commanding Officers to introduce themselves, and Blake nearly collapsed when the woman took a step forward ... And his fears were confirmed. Eve Heart. Commanding Officer of the Black Wolves. The General left, and Blake followed Eve like a rocket, interrupting her conversation with the respectable man.
"Listen very carefully... commander" Blake spat the word with contempt. “Feel free to give orders to the other submissive assholes, but do not expect me to obey! I'll do my best in order to bring glory to Aequitas, and I’ll also try not to get my team exterminated, but that's all. I already told your friend and I will also tell you: Point the enemy and stay out of my way!"