Mackenzie stared at the noteputer, but this wasn’t working. She’d been in class all morning under the overly watchful eye of an older member of the Jade Falcon Scientist caste who’d been trying to teach her the ways of the clans, and oh my fucking god this shit was boring. Her eyes started to cross as the chimes started to ring. She slid the noteputer into the bag and disappeared down the hallway. There were a bunch of them who were taking the classes, though she had a sinking suspicions she was in the wrong class. Mason was in a different class, and she had only seen him a few times since they’d sworn the oath ceremony.
“Mackenize?” The voice was softer than she expected, but it had caught her attention.
“Sir?” her eyebrows and ears perked up as she turned to face the speaker. He was taller than she was, with short cropped salt and pepper hair. Her eyes narrowed as she tried to identify the rank insignia on his collar.
“Star Captain Prince.” He nodded slowly at her.
“How can i be of service, Star Captain?” she snapped to a quick salute and tried her very best to maintain her composure. These people were a little stricter than she was used to, and she’d gotten into trouble twice that first couple of days.
“Sit, talk with me.” He indicated a small table in a corner of the mess hall, away from the rest of the bondsmen.
“Sir?”
“Please, I have a few questions for you.”
Her brow furrowed as she sat down. “I’ll do my best, Sir.”
“It must be pleasant to be a freebirth and not have to be held to the same standards as a Trueborn, especially in terms of vocabulary and word choice, quiaff?”
“Aff, sir. Oh, balls, i used a contraction again. I’m sorry, Sir, i am trying very hard to not do that.”
“It is understandable, you are new to our ways, and i am certain that no one will hold your vocabulary against you.”
“Thank you, Sir?” This wasn’t the typical experience she’d had with the other Falcon officers.
“You are welcome.” he waved to one of the laborers, and they were quickly brought trays with a very very appetizing lunch. Roasted Potatoes, what smelled like a grilled steak, and a host of tiny vegetables teemed over the side of the plate. She was pretty sure that amber liquid was a local beer, and was very confused about how this day was going to go. “Go ahead, eat.” She watched him warily, before he took a piece of the steak and chewed it. She watched the adam’s apple bob up and down as he swallowed. “See, not poisoned.” With a nod she started to eat the offered meal.
“Where are you from in the Inner Sphere?” He asked her quietly.
“I was born on a tiny little planet in the Federated Suns called Hyalite. It’s... It is on the border of the Taurian Concordat and the Federated Commonwealth.” She managed to say between bites.
“And your parents, Kade and Nikolai Sokolov? What were their professions?”
“Mom is a part time mercenary, full time genius with battlemechs. Dad was a mercenary before he retired and became a businessman after the 4th Succession War.”
“What unit did your father serve with?”
“Wolf’s Dragoons? Sir.”
“So he is that Nikolai Sokolov. Very interesting.”
“Which Nikolai Sokolov, sir?”
“Wolf’s Dragoons was an advanced scouting force for the Clans. Sent to assess the capabilities and dispositions of the Successor States military forces, the Dragoons were to be our eyes and ears in the Inner Sphere until our invasion.” She nearly choked on the potato she was failing to chew.
“What?” She finally managed to say, crunching through the potato.
“Yes, somewhere along the way, they stopped sending reports back to the homeworlds and we grew suspicious. When the architect of the invasion plan was killed on Misery, we had to rely on his subordinates for reports. Fortunately, they were up to the task and provided us with enough information to help us plan the invasion.”
“I heard some of the stories about Misery from my father, it was one of the bloodiest battles the Dragoons fought.”
“I have heard some of the stories as well, there was much honor and glory to be won on that frozen ball of ice. Many brave warriors on both sides died as we can only aspire to.”
“My father wasn’t at Misery, Sir, he was stuck on a planet called Zathras in the Periphery. My uncle Ivan was at Misery, and i have never heard him talk about it. I think that’s where he lost his arm.”
“Would you like to guess why i have pulled you aside today?”
“I am in trouble for something i didn’t realize was against the rules?”
“Not entirely. I have been evaluating your test scores from your education classes, and the results are not good.”
“Oh, I can do better, i promise i can. I just was never as good at this kind of thing as my brother is.”
“Your brother, Jaxun?”
“Yes, Sir. He is the smart one.”
“Would you believe that i do not necessarily care about your performance on academic tests?”
“No, Sir? I thought that was the point of the classes, so we could familiarize ourselves with the glorious history of the Jade Falcon clan and hope to someday live up to its expectations despite our status as lowly freebirths?” She smiled frantically.
“I want warriors who i can trust in a fight. Warriors who will take my orders and act on them to bring honor and glory to themselves and by extension, me. I want warriors who can break faces and have no qualms about putting themselves into the thick of the fight.” Mackenzie felt a warm glow wash over her. “Now i have heard a lot of things about your performance on Erewhon and Anywhere, and you sound like a warrior i would like to have in my command. Can you do what i ask you to do?”
“Yes, Sir, I think I can.”
“Let us prove it in the simulators, and show me you are worthy to join the warrior caste of the Jade Falcons.”
“Can i finish eating first, Sir?”
“Eat, then fight, and then we shall see what happens next.” The older warrior smiled at her in a way that reminded her of she smiled at most of the men she’d slept with.
I’m in way over my head on this one….she thought to herself as she finished the beer.
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