War Stories

Chapter II: In the Arms of War

The caravan of refugees had arrived at the gates of Randgriz a mere two weeks after the forced evacuation from the border town of Bruhl. This in and of itself was no small feat given that Welkin was insistent on leading and protecting every refugee in every makeshift camp along the journey, and in doing so, led some 200 Gallian citizens displaced from their homes into the hastily erected processing centers in and around the capital.

Though the sudden influx of refugees led by the son of General Gunther and the former squad commander of the town watch resulted in a significant increase in the work levied upon the processing volunteers, these people were at least, for the time being, safe.

With their refugee charges secured within the walls of the capital and in the process of being registered within the population of the capital, Welkin, Alicia and Isara made their way to the enlistment camp to join the war effort. It seemed however that the small party's success in leading and protecting so many civilians in their care had made the rounds among the military higher ups, and as Welkin signed his enlistment form, he was told to immediately report to Captain Verrot for his orders.

Stunned by the sudden expediency of his placement, he waited a moment for Alicia and Isara to join him, the two young women told to accompany Welkin in speaking to the captain. It was a tiresome trek through the tightly cramped streets, a stark contract to the open roads of their country town, as they made their way to their instructed designation, and even then, they got lost multiple times and had to ask for directions.

The military academy serving as the staging grounds for the war effort was a labyrinth of hallways and passages that left the three wide-eyed young adults confused and disoriented, as they realized they had backtracked several times in their path.

At last they arrived at the captain's office, tucked away and far removed from the offices of those commanding officers of the standard military. The distance placed between the militia commander and the regular army created a heavy divide that settled upon the three recruits as Welkin knocked upon the door.

"Enter", the voice from the other side stated as the young man opened the door and stepped over the threshold. The first thing to draw his attention was the bookcase lining the far wall with a collection of books and journals of both military and recreational purposes that brought forth the sense of the studious nature of his commanding officer. Next to the bookshelves was that was a glass case housing numerous metals and awards displaying a storied past to the grim and watchful woman seated behind the ornate oaken desk.

Realizing he was perhaps being too observant of what was likely her person effects, Welkin hurriedly made his way to stand before the captain, Alicia and Isara flanking his sides. "Ma'am, forgive me, I...uh...we were told to report to you for our assignment," the young man stammered, stumbling over his words as he was obviously unfamiliar with military regulations and how to address commanding officers.

"It's fine," the woman stated before stacking a loose collection of documents and setting it to the side of her desk. "If you have told to report to me, then you are to be placed under my command. I am Captain Eleanor Varrot, commander of Regiment 3. May I see your enlistment forms?"

While not a request, the order came without impatience or urgency, as though the captain understood full well how overwhelming the situation was for the three recruits. Offering a shy smile as he handed the form to his commanding officer, Welkin stepped back away from the desk, allowing both Alicia and Isara to provide their forms as well.

Eyes sweeping over the three young adults, a heavy sense of hesitation filled her heart at their youthful innocence...innocence she was sure this war would stamp out of them. She could see it within each of their eyes, an idealistic hope of a future they may not live to see, and his brought the weight of her station to lay heavily upon her shoulders. These kids should be in college, or preparing for their future, not taking up arms in the defense of their country, and yet what choice did any of the have. Eleanor was in command of hundreds of similar young adults, and she could not divorce herself from the morbid curiosity of how many might still be alive when this conflict was over.

Regardless, the captain set the forms in front of her for a quick review. She had already memorized the file of every recruit placed under her command, and thus only needed a glance at the names to recall the details of their qualifications, skills and rankings as supplied by the recruitment office. As all Gallians were required to take the military training and aptitude tests, it was no secret that every citizen was categorized in strengths and weaknesses as to how best to serve the military in times of war. The three who stood before her were no exception.

"So, you are the three brave civilians who safely led the refugees from every checkpoint between here and Bruhl to the capital. Quite the accomplishment if I do say so myself, especially with the blitz tactics the Empire is using to invade our lands. You still managed to keep ahead of them long enough to reach safety. How did you manage it?" she asked, an appraising eye surveying each of them in turn.

"It was a team effort captain," Welkin said, his attention shifting between Isara and Alicia. "We had seven wagons by the time we reached our third checkpoint, and just divvied up everything accordingly. One wagon for food and supplies, one for medicine, two for the children and one for the elderly. Then we rotated the evacuees for the other two. After each stop over for meals, a different group would walk while the others rested in the carriages.

"Alicia, she kept track of the enemy behind us, letting us know the pace we should go to stay ahead of them. At some points we would purposelessly leave supplies, causing them to slow up and take stock of what we 'lost'. But, by some miracle we managed to make it here."

Captain Verrot nodded her head upon hearing the tale of their harrowing journey, accepting that miracles had nothing to do with it, but rather the careful planning and teamwork of the group before her. "Understood, I will be assigning you all to Team 7. It seems it would be in poor judgment to separate a group who has such well defined symmetry.

"Welkin, you will given the role of Lieutenant, I am entrusting command of the squad to you. Alicia, you will given the rank of Sergeant, and Isara, you, I believe, piloted the Edelweiss. I am promoting you to the rank of Corporal and granting you piloting of your teams tank. Dismissed," the captain proclaimed, and as Isara and Alicia began to move from the room, they turned to see Welkin still rooted in place.

His uneasy stance did not go unnoticed by the commander as she arched an eyebrow, before addressing the two departing young women. "Sergeant Melchiott, Corporal Gunther, you have some time before our first strategy briefing, sergeant, why don't you and the corporal go to the supply depot and requisition your uniforms and equipment."

"Um...yes ma'am," Alicia said, offering a quick salute and hurriedly marshaling Isara from the room. When the door was closed, Eleanor folded her hands before her mouth as she studied the young man.

"Something on your mind Lieutenant?"

Fidgeting and shifting his weight from foot to foot, the young man felt small and meek before the seasoned soldier before him. Not sure how to voice his thoughts, he simply chewed on his bottom lip before expressing his concerns. "Why Lieutenant, ma'am?"

As if expecting the question, the militia captain leaned back in her chair and gave an appraising look evaluation of the young man. "It was a decision I made, is that not good enough?"

"No...I'm sorry...I-I didn't mean to second guess you captain, it's just..."

"You're wondering if you were not put into this position because of your last name?"

Silence passed between the two as Welkin bowed his head in confirmation of the claim. His entire life, he had been given special privilege because of who his father was. Most citizens, hell, the whole country felt they owed their lives to the general and his brilliance, and though Welkin often scoffed any special treatment offered because of who his father was, he was still faced with it on a continual basis.

"I won't lie to you Welkin, names have power, and the name Gunther holds a country's worth of power within it. But that's not why I gave you command," rising from her chair and making her way to the window that overlooked the training grounds, she folded her arms across her chest as she leaned against the windowsill.

"The other regiment commanders, they've named veterans from EW1 as their squad leaders. I think this is the wrong decision. We veterans, so many of us are still in the mindset of fighting the First Europan War. Charge at the enemy and overwhelm them with our stupid acts of bravery. We can't win like that.

"In the first war, tanks were not nearly as common. Oh they were there, but tactics and resources have changed so that infantry is supported by tank units, not separated out in their own division. At any rate, before I answer your question Welkin, and keep in mind, do not make a habit of questioning my orders, but I want you to feel confident in the decision I made for your placement. That being said, the journey from Bruhl to Randgriz should have taken you only a week, and yet you insisted on stopping at every camp and getting as many people to the refugee centers as possible. Why?"

The question threw Welkin for a moment as he was not sure how to answer. It seemed like such an obvious response that he couldn't anticipate any secondary motive behind the inquiry. "I couldn't leave anyone behind captain. The camps, the people were scared and terrified, they didn't know what to do. It wouldn't have been right to have just left them there."

Nodding her head in approval at his confession, she turned her attention back towards the training yard. "Not everyone would agree with you. You have in your possession, not just a tank, but THE tank used by General Gunther. It's a state-of-the-art work of engineering we still have not been able to replicate, which is why I think our engineers have guided us towards lighter models.

"Regardless, you put the lives of those people before your own. Had you abandoned them all, left them to whatever fate would befall them, you would have assured your survival. That wasn't the mindset in EW1. So many times...too many really, whole villages would be sacrificed for a better, strategic position. I'm saying those decisions were necessarily wrong, given our victory in that war, but if we make it a habit of sacrificing our own populace for victory, then we will have nothing left to us when this war is over. Our hearts...our souls, we will have sacrificed it all.

"But you chose a different path Welkin. You sought to lead people to safety while still securing the protection of yourself and your team. Not many could have pulled that off." she said, her eyes turning to lock his in a hallowed expression of memories best left forgotten, and for the moment Welkin wondered in Captain Verrot was not in a similar situation as he was during her time in the field, and whether she did not make a different decision.

In truth, he did not want to know.

"Does that satisfy your question Lieutenant?" Eleanor said, standing and turning to face her subordinate, "Yes, your name carries weight, and had you not helped those civilians, I would have assigned you the role of sergeant just on that merit alone; but you did, so I did not."

"Yes ma'am," Welkin said, his arm moving in salute to his commanding officer who dutifully returned the gesture. "Thank you ma'am."

With the conversation concluded, the mask of authoritative scrutiny affixed itself once more on her visage. "Dismissed."

Turning on his heel, Welkin the office of his commander and departed to find Isara and Alicia, and to meet their squad while Eleanor moved to her desk and retrieved Welkin's file from the stack of requisition recruits. Had she disclosed the real reason, that his command and tactics aptitude were at an astounding 97, she would have been court-marshalled. Results of the state mandated military aptitude exams were sealed until needed.

But test results could only tell so much, the psychology of a person was of little interest to the military, so long as they could get the job done. Yet, Welkin proved not only to have the ability to command, but to prioritize the lives of the people under his care.

If they had any hope of surviving this war, that was the kind of leadership they would need. But she was in the minority of that belief, and if fate were to prove her wrong, she doubted she would live long enough to regret her idealism.

And so she was, left alone in her office and waiting the next recruit who would arrive, and hoping she was not wrong.

A/N: So, these chapters are not very big compared to other stories I've written, but again, I want to focus on the emotional impact of war, the doubt, fatigue, both mentally and physically, and the cost of war, as well as exploring the love that blossoms between Alicia and Welkin. I love their love story, it's so sweet and honest.

Seems funny then that I'm writing this story in a fandom that has very little traffic, so, in the end I suppose I'm writing this story for myself. But, if you happen to stumble upon this story and like it, would appreciate a review, a favorite, a follow or anything to encourage me that this is worth my time posting.

Anyway, thank you for reading.