3 1/2 years ago,

White, 12th moon

Folken Stratagos stared down at the sixteen boys that he had been training by hand for so long. They all knelt in their rows, looking obedient at him. He smiled at them, happy for what each had become. There were the strong ones and the weak ones, yes, but he had a feeling that they all would go somewhere.

"As you know, your time here has almost expired." Folken said softly. "And it is almost time for you all to work with each other independently, as one of the most elite of squadrons in all of Zaibach. You should all be proud." Folken said, and all the boys staring up at him cheered for their accomplishments. This was direct praise from their master, which was not something that they had gotten much of during their time under his service.

"Now then, it is time for the most important part of my job." Folken said softly. "Establishing a chain of command." At this word a lot of the boys tensed up, eager to hear what their master had to say, hoping that they would pick him. Folken walked down the line of boys, passing first the sheep-haired one, then the one with shoulder-length hair, then one with a mushroom cut. Gatti sighed when he passed right by him. His friend Shesta stared at him, sighing as well. They both shrugged, looking down the line to whoever had been picked.

Folken stopped before the strongest member of the group. The silvery-haired boy knelt there, staring up at his master, a hint of happiness shining in his eyes. Gatti had always found him odd in a way, but he knew that he was a good leader.

"Stand up, Dilandau." Folken said, making his choice by his words. The albino, garnet-eyed boy stood up, staring at Folken with a blank expression, like all the others. Folken handed the boy a beautiful, emerald coloured pendant, one that shone with some sort of inner light that was very beautiful. Truth be told, the jewel was supposed to have some sort of higher power to it, and would provide a good weapon in battle, as soon as one learned to master it.

"Take this as proof of your rank." Folken said, stepping back. Dilandau stood up and looked down the lines of his peers, now on a higher level than them. He carefully placed the jewel around his neck, and it shone there, suspended by a beautiful gold chain. Folken then stepped back, gesturing to Dilandau.

"They are your soldiers now, Dilandau. Choose someone as a second." Folken suggested, placing another pendant in his hand, this one a beautiful sea blue, also mystical and supposedly having magical properties. Dilandau took it in his hand, letting it dangle there while he walked among the boys, now his soldiers.

Gatti felt himself tense as Dilandau started walking his way, almost staring at him, as if he had already made his choice. The others watched him, and he could see some hearts break as he passed one after the other, still heading his way. Eventually, he stopped in front of Gatti, staring at him with he could only explain as kind eyes.

"Stand up, my second." Dilandau said softly, holding the gem out to him. Gatti stood up, feeling tears of happiness tug at his eyes, threatening to spill. He stood there, taking the pendant from his master. He bowed his head, officially accepting his position. He placed the gem around his neck, also suspended on a chain, but this one was of the highest quality of silver, not gold.

The other boys stood up, and Gatti could see Shesta beaming at his friend's luck from the corner. They all applauded them, whistling and hooting like mad. Gatti could feel himself blush, and Dilandau clapped his hand on his shoulder. He looked at his commander, smiling.

"This is the beginning, Gatti..." Dilandau said softly, regarding the boys applauding them. "This is the beginning...of the Dragon Slayers..." He said, formally giving the squad a name. Gatti stood back and applauded Dilandau himself, as he felt the need to. The commander, only about thirteen, smiled, feeling a blush creep up his cheeks in spite of himself.

---

Gatti let the blue pendant swing between his fingers, watching it's pendulum motion with a little bit of awe. He had no idea how to work such a pendant, but just owning it gave him such a feeling of power...

Someone knocked on the door to his quarters, and he bid them enter. The Flying Fortress of which they had been stationed, the Vione, was one of the fastest and most capable ships in the whole of the Zaibach empire, and it was an honour just to serve on it. He, unlike the others with the exception of Dilandau, got his own room, rather posh and well furnished, with huge bay windows and double doors leading onto a spacious balcony. It looked like a room that someone of royalty would use, and here he was, sitting in it!

"Commander?" Came the voice of one of the Dragon Slayers. Gatti looked to the doorway, trying to pull a faint smile. "This came for you. Lord Dilandau had it especially tailored for you, sir." The boy, Guimel, said. Gatti came up to him, taking the bundle of material from the boy.

"Tell him I said thank you, Guimel." Gatti said softly. The boy beamed, suddenly holding out his hand. Gatti stared at him, perplexed, until he explained himself.

"It would be an honour to shake your hand, sir." Guimel explained, blushing slightly. Gatti returned the smile, taking the sheep boy's hand in his own and shaking it firmly. "It would be mine, buddy." Gatti said softly, raising his eyebrow slightly. Guimel thanked him profusely, bowed, and left him.

Gatti stared at the material, starting to unfold it. He raised an eyebrow again at the rather huge shoulder pads, but said nothing of it. He decided that they made him look bigger, stronger. He put it on, staring at himself in the mirror. The uniform itself mirrored all the other Slayer's uniforms, except for one thing: It was red. The same blood red colour as his master's, sans the pointed tips on the shoulders. Gatti stared at himself in the mirror, taking in his image. It had been a long struggle, but he was finally a high placed soldier in one of the best armies of Gaea, in the best squadron of that army. What more could he desire? Nothing, surely...

Present Day,

Purple, 18th moon

"Good morning, Commander..." Came the chorus of voices from the Dragon Slayers. They all had become his friends over all the time he had known them, right from the very beginning. They knew he was authority, but treated him like he was one of them, which was the way he wanted it. He saluted them, walking down to the other side of the long set of tables, where Dilandau Abaltou was sitting, chatting with Folken, whom they were all close with. He sat down, and was greeted by Dilandau and Folken.

"Good morning, sir. Morning, Master Folken..." Gatti said formally, sitting down carefully. He was always careful when doing anything these days, as his uniform would smack into anything and everything if he was not careful. Now it was just involuntary to be like that. Almost immediately, Gatti found himself in Dilandau's conversation with Folken. They were discussing battle plans, and the prospect of attacking Asturia, since they had yet to pay damages for an airship that had been destroyed accidentally by some of the country's Guymelefs.

"What do you think, Gatti?" Folken asked, looking at him. Dilandau gave him his full attention, and Gatti felt rather privileged, since he was the only one that he really treated well. He would slap the others when he was mad at them, and Gatti didn't really approve of it, but there was nothing that he could do except talk to him.

"Well..." Gatti said, thinking a minute, "Asturia did test us when they shot that airship down..." Dilandau nodded with that statement, "But I think that an attack on them would not be a good thing at this point, as this was only a minor incident, so neighbouring countries might think that we are just making an excuse to pick a fight..." Gatti finished. Folken and Dilandau nodded in agreement, both surprised at his knowledge of the subject.

"We should include you in more of our meetings, Gatti." Folken said. "You truly have one of those rarely brilliant minds." He said. Gatti could feel himself blushing, and Dilandau nudged him slightly, winking. He playfully smacked back, causing all three to laugh at the little scene.

"Dammit, I want breakfast. I'm hungry!" Dilandau exclaimed suddenly, sounding like a whiny little child. That was his intent, of course, and Gatti and Folken laughed even harder at his antics. As if on cue, the cooks came in from a side door, carrying a large bucket of something or other for the Slayers, and something which smelled mouth watering good on plates for the 'management', as they were referred to by the Slayers.

As it happened, the Slayers were fed tasteless, watery oatmeal, while the management ended up with a nice little assortment of scrambled eggs, toast with butter, sausages, assorted fruits, and the highest quality red wine. None of the Slayers complained, merely ate their toxic sludge while watching, mouths still watering, the head boys eating and talking merrily. At first, Gatti was not comfortable with being treated so much better than the others, but when he learned that the others didn't hold it against him, he was fine with it. They just accepted it without complaint.

"So..." Dilandau said, pausing a moment. Gatti looked at him, wondering what he was going to talk about. "You know of the....situation regarding the Slayers." He said carefully, eyes averting the other's gaze. Gatti nodded slowly, feeling that pang of helplessness again. Only a few weeks ago, they had lost one of their boys, in a total accident. There had been no way to prevent it, the mechanics had said, that the 'melef was structurally weak in a place where they could not see it. Gatti remembered watching the poor boy literally falling out of the sky and hitting the ground with such force that there was a huge impact crater...and then, watching the liquid metal eat away at everything, destroying everything inside, including the boy, or what was left of him by then...

"Yes..." Gatti said softly, eating another bite of egg, thinking about it. "It was so...unfortunate..." He said, choosing his words carefully. "Are we seeking a replacement now?" He asked, catching on to what Dilandau was suggesting.

"Yes..." He said, speaking slowly and carefully. Folken sat back, watching the two with interest, wondering how they would handle this situation. "I have been scouting for someone...I don't know if they would be suitable, though..." He said, blushing noticeably.

"Go on..." Gatti urged him. Dilandau sighed, seemingly deep in thought for the moment, scratching his chin slightly.

"Well..." He said, lowering his voice. "It's a...girl." He said hesitantly, looking for some sort of approval. Gatti felt himself rock back in his chair. A woman, in the Dragon Slayers? That sounded utterly ridiculous! Before Gatti could say anything, he continued. "I have seen her in battle. She's very...impressive. Physically strong..." He continued, seemingly daydreaming a little. "Very good with Guymelefs and sword fighting..." He said, finishing.

"If she is as good as you say, master, perhaps we should interview her?" Gatti suggested, liking how this sounded. It would be a fresh, new look that no one had ever attempted before...

"Yes, I think that we will. I will call for her to be here this evening. Meet in my quarters around 8:30, ne?" Dilandau asked him. Gatti nodded, standing up to go and attend to personal business, such as the mounds of paperwork that he had to do. They shook hands, then went off in their separate directions...

Folken watched the two, amazed at their ability to effectively work together. It looked as though Dilandau had chosen the perfect second...