One
Rafu
It had been a rough winter for some more than others, but now that the warmth of spring was returning, Rafu was feeling hopefully optimistic about the future. He was heading to new places, with new faces, to do more than sit around a fortress looking for potential dangers just so someone else could take the credit and glory! He was heading south, to join a historically rich company, who was becoming more and more famous by the season.
Rafu had walked through mostly tamed lands, only stopped once by rain. He had planned his journey around the knowledge that he would beat the first storms to the river town where his new company waited, but the water in the clouds usually didn't care for being predictable. Luckily for Rafu, he had managed to take cover within a messenger outpost, and get to exchange stories with his kinsmen while under copious amounts of inebriation. Stories about his new company, the Blue Moons.
Hearing how the Tenth Company's general had ignored settlement orders after his ten year conscription had ended, and chose to continue living his life on the battlefield. Hearing that this pale warrior had rejoined the war as a squaddie, only to rise to the commander position in less than two years. Hearing how he had been promoted by Strategic Command in less than six months of being an officer, becoming the rank of brigade general! A man said to have repulsed an invasion force fifty thousand strong, with only five hundred soldiers at his side.
Rafu was excited, for he had actually seen this general in action, or at least his cloaked company. During the winter, Rafu had seen from the walls of Fort Fusashiryu the combined might of the Tenth Company, and the famous Whirlwinds come from the eastern forests, combining their forces to slaughter the thousands strong force that had besieged Rafu's once then fortress.
But that had been a few weeks ago, and Rafu had been on the long road for some time now, and had yet to see any signs of the company he was destined to join. When he had been informed by his garrison's logistic officer that the Blue Moons were looking for a competent harquebus platoon leader, Rafu had eagerly accepted, packed his sword, miniature pressure cannon, fishing kit and hunting bow, then left before sunset. Hearing that the company had already passed his fortress and would be heading south to the large territory known as the Minami Delta, until they would stop at a small town known as Kamakessai, he knew he had some catching up to do.
Rafu hoped he would reach the settlement his company was situated in soon, for he was getting quite bored of walking along this river. Something about the sounds the wind made on the water made Rafu's heart feel... uneasy, during his travels through the lowlands. He had been through the misty southern provinces before, but under very different circumstances… many of which he did not care to remember, for he had been a very stupid youngster then.
Anyways, best not to dwell on the past, Rafu thought as he continued his journey. He had to think of happier days that were ahead, and especially of the monsoon season's famous holiday, Arashi Week. While the spring rains kept everyone in doors for days, even weeks at a time, there were only three things to really do in that time. Drinking, sex, and brawling. Rafu firmly believed most warriors lived for Arashi Week, for those three great releases of stress. For an entire week, or until the heaviest of the rains halted, no battles could be taken to the field, and little to no orders would be given by officers. It was great! Any conscript lucky enough to be taken during the winter or early days of spring wouldn't be immediately thrown into combat, and they would be shown the more positive aspects of the war they had just joined as well.
All in all, Rafu was looking forward to the coming days, and couldn't help but show this though him serenading the wood line, the river, the winds, and the coming days ahead.
Oh home! Oh home!
Marching as fast as I can!
Oh home! Oh home!
How you await, for this poor man!
Oh home! Oh-
Rafu probably would have kept on singing, except he was suddenly being hailed by two road-side sentries, burdened by camouflage cloaks. Smiling, Rafu excitedly greeted them with a hand as he prepared his travel papers with the other.
He had to admit, the strange stories Rafu had heard about the black eyed, pale Inklings hadn't done these cloaked warriors any justice. Rafu hadn't expected to be stopped on the road by the whispered Night Blades, and wondered if the now famous mountain mutants had all decided to follow his soon to be general, rather than return to their hidden village. From the stories he had heard, these creatures were supposed to be blood thirsty, almost phantom like wraiths, supernaturally powered in their feud against the ancestral enemy, the Octrian.
Instead of speaking in riddles and vanishing into puffs of smoke, the two individuals took his papers, glanced over them, and asked a single question.
"Were you the one singing?" the older looking one asked, Rafu deciding his was a face of concern.
Somewhat nervous, and surprised by the casual question, Rafu carefully answered. "Yes."
"He's got a hunting bow too." The younger mutant added.
"I see that. You know how to use it?" The older one inquired, as if this was an important issue that needed an immediate answer.
"Yeah. Shot a bird out of the sky two days ago." Rafu answered, still confused on how this conversation was proceeding.
"Did it taste good?" The younger one instantly asked, again with some urgency.
"I'm no chef, but it was decent."
"You'll have to excuse him. He's a bit touched in the head as you can plainly tell." The older one pointed out, grasping the shoulder of the younger man, who tried to shake off the grip.
"Fuck you, Kageani. You're not my father."
The two bickered for a short while, as if they were practicing a comedy routine, and didn't care if they did so in front of a complete stranger. Rafu was in a mixture of confusion and disappointment, seeing these walking legends act so… unprofessional. For a good minute or two, Rafu stood quietly watching the exchange, before deciding to interrupt the squabbling road guard.
"Ahem. I assume you two are some of the legendary Night Blades, which means the Tenth Company is nearby. Could you show me the way, by chance?" Rafu asked, getting confused stares from the two, who were about to strike each other.
"I can take him." The younger one said as they brushed themselves off, as if they had been dirtied by each other's hands.
"Hell no. Kagehaha will butcher me. Remember the last time someone went off without a 'battle-buddy'? I'm not going to get punished just so he can walk for another two miles. Right, whatever your name is-"
"Rafu." Rafu interjected.
"Yeah, whatever. Follow the road until you reach the only town in the entire area. You can't miss it. The general is somewhere in there." The older warrior stated, as if apathetic by giving this information away.
"Somewhere? Could you be more specific?" Rafu asked, putting away his travel papers and preparing to finish his journey.
"Not really. Range is busy overseeing two companies. You'll find him on the road, or the building he's taken over. Good luck."
"Right… You too?" Rafu said, getting a small bow from the two, who quietly absconded down the path towards where Rafu had come from.
Scratching his scalp, Rafu wondered if that encounter had been a figment of his imagination. Shaking himself awake, he continued his journey, hoping this wasn't some fever dream.
Kamakessai! He had finally reached it!
Rafu let a breath out as he approached the walled settlement, immediately comparing the defenses between the town and the fortress he had spent six years of his life in. Trees had been cleared from the area, giving the town a large open area around the perimeter wall. The wooden palisade wasn't impressive or threatening, but looked sturdy, Rafu certain that it was temporary until more resources could be put into the province to replace the lumber with stone. Sentry towers were built onto the corners of the walls, the guards stationed in them looking for potential threats from the forest on the town's west side, and beyond the river on the eastern edge of Kamakessai. From what he could see, the layout was similar to every town his people built, with large buildings prepared for traveling companies.
Not particularly impressed by the gate, Rafu got to inspect the arbalest drills that were being conducted in the western clearing. From what Rafu could tell, six or so platoons were practicing with their crossbows, but one half seemed to be struggling to keep up with the others firing. When someone finally unbarred the gate, Rafu had seen what looked like six platoon leaders arguing very passionately.
Showing his travel papers once more, Rafu had been expected to be let in immediately, but was halted and told to wait at the gate while the young squaddie got someone higher rank than himself. Rafu had nodded, knowing that he was going to cause a hassle if he strong armed the younger conscript. Content that he could at least see the interior of Kamakessai now, Rafu saw several dozen structures were being constructed near the gate. The small foundations didn't appear to be defensive structures that the brigade was building, so Rafu assumed it was more of the townsfolk's residential housing, perhaps intending to expand their town's living areas.
The idea of Inklings having their own, individual, houses made him smile. In four more years, Rafu himself could ask for a settlement position, and become a part of a similar town's populace. That, or he could go into retraining, and perhaps even become a commander. When Rafu was a conscript and had been told of what it meant to become a ten year veteran, he had firmly believed he would never get to be that old, but now that he was over half way there, doubts of what he wanted from his future filled him.
Dreams of grandeur had carried him to Kamakessai, but now that he was looking at older warriors, building a future for themselves through their hands and tools, other than their swords and spears, Rafu could understand the appeal of quietly retiring. He could see mothers and fathers, walking with actual children and carrying infants, rather than forced to give their children to the state, to be raised on some farm until they could be conscripted.
Granted, these children wouldn't be exempted from such fate, but at least they would grow up with their real parents, unlike so many of the Inkling populace. He smiled at a passing by Inkling, on his way outside with a fishing pole in hand... without even a blade at his side. This would have been insignificant, but the fact this Inkling didn't feel the need to carry weapons, or wear armor only spoke of how safe the population felt in this area.
"Hey! You! You're the new platoon leader, right? For the third harquebus platoon?" Someone above Rafu shouted, getting his attention to the warrior walking atop the palisade. He went a few paces into the town, using a hand to get a shaded view of the warrior descending the ladder to meet him.
"I am. Who're you?" Rafu asked once the male got his feet on the ground.
"Naoki. First assault- Er… First heavy infantry platoon leader. Names a bit of a mouthful, so I shorten it."
"Rafu." Rafu said as he offered and received a hand, shaking quickly and firmly.
"Welcome to Kamakessai, Rafu. General Range wasn't expecting you to arrive so soon. He thought you would be coming with the last company to join our brigade." Naoki informed, beckoning Rafu to walk with him.
"I wanted to beat the first rains and get to meet my new soldiers." Rafu stated, getting a knowing smile from the platoon leader.
"Warriors."
"Excuse me?" Rafu asked.
Naoki let out a small chuckle, shaking his head. "I'm sorry. There's no way you would have known, but our general has this habit. Just, call all of your warriors - see, I'm doing it now – call those in your platoon, warriors. Otherwise Range will go on a long lecture on the importance of following codes of honor, or go into a rage. Last time someone made that error, he got kicked out of camp."
"Oh. I see. Was that guy okay?" Rafu asked, concerned.
"The guy who got kicked out? I'd assume so. He was a Squid Lord after all."
That gave Rafu pause, which made Naoki laugh. He had thought he had heard all of the stories of the Blue Moon's winter campaign, but knowing that General Range was able to kick a Squid Lord out of his mountain base and get away with it only made Rafu happier that he had decided to take the post.
"A Squid Lord? That's insane! Was it Kasai?" Rafu asked, getting a nod of confirmation. "Amazing."
"Yeah well, that's our commander - I mean - general. I really need to get better at that." Naoki grumbled, more to himself than to Rafu.
They walked throughout the town in relative peace, Rafu saving his questions for his new leader he would no doubt be meeting shortly. The way everyone he passed had some sort of smile or grin plastered on their faces only made Rafu glad that he made this journey. As Naoki led him to an interior field, which only had a few tents surrounding perhaps the largest construction in Kamakessai, made him halt in shock that he hadn't noticed the drilling spear infantry earlier when he had been standing idly, inspecting the town.
The grand hall, or how Rafu could describe it, easily had four hundred spear-squids practicing in pairs, taking turns thrusting the long wooden shafts at each other. Individual Inklings, most likely Rafu's soon to be fellow platoon leaders, were pacing through the groups, inspecting each pair and giving either criticism or advice before moving onto the next two.
Naoki stopped with Rafu as he began looking at the exercise. As a harquebusier, Rafu barely paid attention when it came to the melee drills his fortress forced on half the garrisons. To his limited knowledge, spear infantry weren't really the norm when it came to regular companies or brigades. Equipping new conscripts with extra weaponry that they hadn't been trained with in their village, or the fact their arms crafters rarely made wooden weapons, was a silly notion. Their country was rich in iron after all, so why waste time with wood? Rafu wondered how difficult it was to use these spears, imagining it couldn't be much harder than using one of their short swords.
"Want to take a closer look? We've got time, if you want to watch for a while." Naoki offered, which Rafu humbly accepted. After all, he was playing catch up with the other platoon leaders, so having more knowledge on how the brigade operated was essential.
Walking closer to the drilling squads, Rafu started to notice some immediate differences between these spear warriors and the regular assault squaddies he was used to seeing. These kids, who Rafu assumed had recently joined the Tenth when they had reinforced from the winter campaign, were better equipped than any of the garrison soldiers Rafu had lived with for six years.
Naoki's appearance stopped a pair from striking each other, the two young spear-squids breathing heavily as they did their best to salute the platoon leader. While the drilling conscript's own platoon leader came to investigate as to why they had stopped, Rafu took the opportunity to inspect their armor and weapons, between his own.
The only real similarity between these spear warriors and the assault squads he knew was the side arm, the standard issue short sword, which all Inklings were trained to use. They had a modified breastplate, whereas Rafu's torso was the only part of him protected, these two Inkling's shoulders and waists were covered in small bands of metal on a skirt of thick cloth.
Their shields weren't the simple round shield of banded iron on wood, but a metal disc that covered most of their bodies and on closer inspection, Rafu could see a small sling over the head of the spear warrior, which he guessed was for alleviating some of the weight of the iron... and saw the shield was held the forearm, allowing their normally preoccupied hand to be used in combat, as well. Moving around the Inkling, he could see a small hand grip of leather was on the inside, allowing for a tighter grip if needed, as well.
Their helmets had metal cheek guards coming down to their chins, much different to the metal cap that protected his forehead and scalp. Rafu was suddenly aware that much time and resources had been put into the survival of these young conscripts, the amount of armor on these two only being overshadowed by the platoon leader Naoki.
"Who's making your armor? This is quality work." Rafu observed, daring to mess with the young warrior in front of him. He quickly got to inspect the kind of spear these warriors used next, as the thin metal point went towards his face to force him to back up.
"Kaji of the River, and a few of his crippled apprentices follow our company. They mostly do repairs, but under his instruction have been modifying our equipment. It's pretty great." Naoki explained, grabbing him and pulling Rafu away from the spear's tip.
"Neat." Rafu was able to say before the shouting began.
"WHY ARE YOU FUCKS STOPPING? WHO SAID YOU COULD STOP? GET BACK TO IT, YOU SACKS OF LIVING GARBAGE!" A feminine voice bellowed, the patrolling platoon leader finally having arrived.
"Yes platoon leader!" The two spear-squid shouted in unison, immediately turning on one another with great vigor that worried the spectating harquebusier greatly. To Rafu, it appeared they were actually trying to murder each other, but judging by the calm in Naoki's eyes, it seemed the norm.
After watching the female platoon leader growl and glare at the two fearful, yet fighting conscripts, she led Rafu and Naoki a little ways away before completely changing tones.
"Naoki! What's up, and who's he?" The platoon leader over-joyously asked, removing her helm and revealing her rather pretty face. The slight blush, mixed with her large, almost drowsy eyes, made Rafu wonder what happened to the yelling platoon leader he had just witnessed.
"Emi, this is Rafu, our new harquebus platoon leader." Naoki explained, shifting to Emi's shoulders as he explained and offering a hand of presentation in the named Inkling's direction.
Facing both of them now, Rafu lightly bowed, and getting a slow nod in return from the female.
"Souta's replacement?" Emi asked Naoki, who seemed to agree with the words.
"Souta?" Rafu asked, getting a hand wave in return.
"It doesn't matter. Good luck, Rafu. The Tenth's harquebusiers need… Well… Good luck." Emi said, as if a twinge of sadness stained her words. Rafu was about to inquire about what she said, before she continued to speak with Naoki. "Are you doing anything tonight?"
"Nope. Shoji's on wall duty."
"Cool. Saki's covering for me. Your place or mine?"
"Uh." Naoki nervously began, glancing between her and Rafu. Feeling his brow show his surprise, Rafu diplomatically elected to grant the two some space, understanding he was being a burden to the platoon leaders. Walking a few paces away to re-inspect the drilling warriors, Rafu waited for Naoki to wrap up his conversation that was most likely meant to be held in private.
After a few minutes of hushed whispers, Naoki reappeared at his side, apologizing profusely.
"Yeah, uh, sorry about that. She's fairly direct."
"It's fine." Rafu waved, "Are you two serious?"
Naoki laughed at the question in mild hesitation. "I have no idea. Anyways, ready to meet the general?"
"Yes, please." Rafu answered a bit quicker than he liked, but got an understanding look from Naoki.
"Follow me then. If he's not in the hall, he's behind it." Naoki stated as they resumed their walk, heading to the large doors of the building.
After exploring the great hall, and half a dozen rooms filled with supplies, Rafu was able to determine the purpose of this building, thanks to the four logistic officers who were busy taking stock of all of the brigade's hoarded materials for war. A small conversation between the four and Naoki revealed the location of their general, who was apparently 'playing' with his bodyguards.
Finding the rear exit, Naoki led Rafu once more outside, to the scene of what appeared to a duel between Rafu's new general and a regular warrior. Unlike the drilling spear-squids, these two were using wooden practice weapons, not dissimilar to a child's play sword. The reason soon became apparent as to why they were using the swords, as the sound of wood cracking apart reverberated in his ears at the vicious blow the female duelist received.
The almost sickly pale warrior didn't seem surprised by the shattered ruin that he now clutched, tossing it on the ground and shouting 'Again!' To the onlookers before him, catching a handmade wooden sparring blade as he yelled. Briefly, Rafu shared eye contact with the general, but it didn't appear his presence was noted. He glanced at his fellow platoon leader to see if this was normal, but Naoki's face was like a mask as he stared at the scene before him.
For what seemed like hours, Rafu watched the general's personal training degrade into a one sided beat down. Wondering what this poor girl had done to deserve such punishment, Rafu had to admit he was impressed by her resolve to take the beatings that she was receiving, and appreciate how quickly she was recovering from the ground.
However, a quick blow to the girl's helmeted temple brought her low, and the armored trainee didn't appear to be getting up.
"So is this um… A punishment game?" Rafu whispered to Naoki, only receiving a quiet head shake.
"Miki! Miki! Get up!" The general shouted, a mixture of disappointment and mock concern on his face. After noticing she was weakly trying to stand, Range shook his head and let out an overly loud sigh, just so the other Inklings could hear. "Alright. Stay down. Did you learn anything?"
"No." A much quieter voice said from her position in the dirt.
"Well then. Don't stop trying, yeah?" General Range casually spoke, refusing to help the beaten creature up. "Kazue, Aina, take her."
Rafu watched as the two called upon left their spectator positions from the building's shadowed awning and both take an arm of the downed warrior. The other four bodyguards remained motionless, Rafu just now noticing the tallest one holding the general's personal weapon, which was now famed among all who told his story.
General Range quickly went to the largest bodyguard, retrieving the glaive that was said to be heroic, yet... only looked cruel to Rafu. Gazing at the unassuming, pale figure that was slowly approaching him, Rafu found it difficult to even look at the warrior's face, even as he began speaking to the one directly beside him. "Naoki, aren't you supposed to be on the walls?"
"Your harquebusier has arrived." Naoki immediately answered, Rafu copying the small bow that was being given.
"Huh. Aren't you a bit early?" General Range asked him casually, allowing Rafu a single second to stutter a confused response before being ignored completely. "Naoki, get back to your duties. Thank you."
"Sir." Naoki stated before turning on his heel, and leaving Rafu alone with the general and his glowering bodyguards.
After waiting a brief time for Naoki to leave, and for the one called Miki to be placed on the wood of the porch, Rafu felt his new general sizing him up... and fought the nervous panic coming from his stomach as he met each of the staring eyes. He didn't know whether it was because he was severely outranked, or because he was meeting the eastern province's current hero, but something about holding the gaze of this general was impossible for Rafu.
"Rafu, right? I received correspondence a while back about you. Follow me." General Range commanded, brushing past him as he entered the overly large storage house.
Quickly doing as he was ordered, Rafu glanced back to notice that the bodyguards hadn't even tried to close the distance, and didn't look like they were about to make a move anytime soon. It was unusual for squid-guards to be so relaxed when it came defending their charge, and didn't know if he should be worried or not. Rafu knew from his old garrisons that squid-guards had their own way of doing things, albeit very quietly, but had always seen at least one with his own garrison general at any one point in time. Hell, Range knowing their names, and training with them was almost unthinkable to Rafu, now that he was remembering the one who had commanded him for slightly less than six years of his life.
"Sir, aren't they supposed to follow us?" Rafu dared to ask, heading deeper into one of the side halls, only halting past several doors and reaching a barely furnished room.
"Don't worry about it. Have a seat, Rafu. I've got some things to explain to you before I formally induct you to the Tenth Company." The general said, shrugging off his gauntlets and letting them fall on the floor after offering Rafu the only other chair in the room.
"Y-yes sir."
"You can cut that out right now, platoon leader. The only times I require deference are when we're being watched."
"I don't… think that's how it's supposed to work, general." Rafu nervously explained, not use to dealing with higher ranking officers, or any so casual as this one seemed to be. Even though he had spent six years in the same fortress as his garrison general, he barely saw the man outside of their weekly leadership meetings and had never talked to him alone.
Range scoffed as he opened a small latched chest, producing two small wooden cups and a glass bottle. After pouring a liberal amount in each cup, General Range forced Rafu to take one. After cautiously taking a sip and finding it to just be a rice wine, Rafu finished the contents of his drink and placed the cup on the table.
"Alright." Range started after finishing his own drink. "So tell me what you know of my brigade. I trust you've had a look around already."
Swallowing once, Rafu cleared his voice while he delayed to get his thoughts in order. "You have at least four platoons in the Tenth comprised of spear infantry, along with another four in the Sixtieth Company. There's at least six platoons of arbalests in your brigade, and you have scout elements working outside."
"What does that say about us?" General Range instantly asked, his face comparable to stone.
"Um, that… the brigade has multiple specialist roles. Meaning you can respond to almost any situation on the battlefield at once."
"We call that variety." The general informed him, getting a nod in return from Rafu. "But what does that say about me?"
"That you're unusual, sir." Rafu accidentally laughed, fixing his tone, he tried to explain himself. "One doesn't need to inspect you or your brigade to know that, though. Your winter exploits are already traveling around the eastern territories. Being able to beat back an Octrian invasion without having your company being wiped out has made you and your company famous."
"Is that why you're here? You want to share the fame?" Range asked, not seeming that impressed.
"No sir! Well, I'd be lying if I said it had nothing to do with it, but that's not the real reason I took the posting. I'm interested in breaking the convention of the old way we've warred."
Range's brow raised, showing how he wasn't expecting those words. "Continue."
"Equipping your warriors with scout regalia, mixing unit compositions, allowing platoon autonomy during specific orders, it's all what I've hoped for. In my garrison, in Fort Fusashiryu, it was so... boring! All there was to do was wait, and practice using our weapons. Occasionally, we'd be marched out, and go into messy, stupid battles. They were brawls. Our strategy started and ended with charge, or line up to fire our harquebuses. Our general would just try to acquire personal fame on the battlefield and let us die around him."
"A common thing to do." Range commented, gesturing his small interruption was not meant to silence the one now freely speaking his mind.
"Yes, but you're trying to change that! Your spear-warriors, basic conscripts, are better armed and armored than my entire garrison's assault platoons. You're still wearing your camouflage cloak from winter. More importantly, your warriors look happy, and I know why. You know what it's like to be a regular mook on the battlefield! You're not some silly kid who got picked out during his childhood, and raised to be a commander!"
"Calm yourself, Rafu." General Range quietly checked him, sipping from his refilled cup and bringing Rafu back into the real world. Realizing he was standing, Rafu sat himself back down, and quickly apologized.
"I'm sorry sir, I'm... just... excited. You've given me more than you could possibly know."
"You're too young to be my kid, you know." Range joked, eliciting a smirk from the platoon leader who had opened himself up to multiple avenues of mockery, yet choosing the more tame approach.
"I apologize."
"Think nothing of it, Rafu. Aren't you glad I sent my guards away? If they were here to witness your outburst, they'd spread rumors all over the place."
Rafu let loose a small laugh after getting a chuckle from the older warrior who seemed far too at ease with a stranger that he treated as an equal, despite being an inferior rank.
"Anyways. I can see you're not some glory seeker. But now it's my turn to inform you of what I want and expect from you." The general started, getting a nod from Rafu to continue. "Rule number one, is do as I tell you. If you don't like what I tell you to do, you can argue with me about it after you do it. Even if you doubt my orders, you can't show it to the younger ones."
"Simple enough."
"There are five platoons of harquebusiers in your company currently. Four of them are in a rough spot with the loss of your predecessor and are having unity issues. Your first goal is to get your squads in order and get them all on the same page. Once you do that, you and Yuuma should be able to get the other three platoons in line purely by favoritism."
"Um. I understand, I think."
"You really don't, but that's not your problem. If you can get four salvos from every single warrior in your platoon within a minute, I'll get you and your guys extra drunk during Arashi Week."
"Yes sir." Rafu stated, already doing the math in his head to how much effort it took to get a shot off every fifteen seconds.
"That's it for active duties really. Listen to your fellow platoon leaders, but don't let them boss you around. That's my job."
"Got it."
"Good. So, I've got a rule when it comes to… socializing. Two, actually."
"Don't fornicate on post?" Rafu asked, knowing that was the most obvious one.
"Well no shit. Don't be a smartass, Rafu. The two rules are simple. The first one is, half your age, plus seven." General Range stated, as if it was a fact of life.
"Half my age, plus seven?" Rafu asked, confused.
"How old are you?" A disappointed general asked.
"Twenty two, sir."
"So eleven, plus seven, equals?"
"Eighteen." Rafu said, knowing his math.
"Good! That's the lowest you can go. The next rule is-"
"Wait, what? Lowest I can go?"
Rafu's general stared at him for a time, the face of disappointment and concern making a return. "You're kidding, right? Do I really have to explain to you what I mean?"
"You mean… being with?" Rafu asked, feeling as if he was walking a dangerous line, not knowing if profanity could be openly discussed about.
"Yes. Without naming names, I've had to deal with people not understanding basic decency. A good chunk of my brigade is at the impressionable and naive age of sixteen. Don't abuse their ignorance. Pretty simple, right?"
"Oh. Okay. I mean, I wasn't going to anyways. I just needed…"
"Clarification?"
"Yes, sir."
"Good. Last rule, before I'll take you to your platoon, and by far the most important one." General Range said, standing up and retrieving his gauntlets from the ground.
Rafu felt obligated to stand with him, before realizing the general had closed the distance between their bodies in a very short amount of time.
"Don't try Hana." The general spoke in a very calm manner, but the words were an obvious threat. Rafu, knowing better than to speak, nodded once, not even daring to breathe or explain he didn't know who that was.
"Good! Follow me, platoon leader. I'll show you to your squads." General Range's tone completely turned around, as if the deathly serious manner had never came from his voice. "I'll answer any questions you have on the way."