The Hounds of Helghan (6)
Since starting his military career, since the death of his brother, Mael no longer went by his first name. Coran had been the last one to utter it. Radec became his exclusive form of address, attached to whatever rank he attained, fulfilled, and cast aside like the emblems on his uniform. Radec embraced that change, the erasure of his first name that reminded him of his past.
The men who had accompanied Radec on his first mission were never told to keep quiet about what they had witnessed.
Stories and rumors passed along went something like this: "Did you hear? Radec killed his own brother. Put him in a real world of hurt before that, too. What's to stop him from killing any one of us if we cross him?"
He made no efforts to quell any of that kind of talk, which spread like wildfire from there. In fact, he welcomed them. Let people say what they want. Radec learned that fear could be a powerful tool used to keep soldiers under his command in line. Radec, however, was not a complete fearmonger. That would make him a terrorist, not a soldier. Fear alone didn't form tough men. Training did.
Remembering the lessons he had learned at the academy, the ones who had given him those lessons, and even his time during Visari Youth, Radec took it upon himself to become a sort of teacher to his men. Not necessarily out of the goodwill of his heart, no. It was simply a matter of efficiency.
"Trust, honesty, and communication make for a cohesive unit," he would tell them. "And a cohesive unit does the best at getting the job done. I make it no secret that I have a very certain way of doing things. If you do not agree or live up to these standards I uphold, then you have no place in my unit."
If there was a preferred way he used a certain firearm, he would show them. If there was a tactic he liked to use on the battlefield, he would walk them through his thought process. When it came to the art of war, he made none of his approach to that art a secret. It was paramount to him that everyone under his command understood where he was coming from with the way he handled things. His successes and victories in battle came from not only his own thinking and actions, but from turning them into teachings his subordinates followed.
The 9th Division, the unit serving directly under Radec, earned a reputation for carrying out swift, decisive strikes. Word and fear of them gained traction among the military and civilians alike. To be targeted by the 9th Division meant a merciless death and no chance of survival. Eluding Radec and his pack was a fool's hope. The 9th Division was unofficially called a pack of hounds for that reason, for never relenting in the search for their prey.
Being likened to a hound...Radec embraced that image, too. He'd think of the little dog his brother had skinned, and believed that it never really died. Instead it grew up and lived on through Radec, stripped of all softness and knowing better than to look to others for love, care, and comfort. No one in his life gave such things to him. He did not know how to even give that to himself. For all he knew, they were fantasies impossible to obtain. What he did understand, and know to be real, was power. He knew how to seize it, how to wield it, and how to pass it down to those he deemed worthy of it.
Radec hand-picked members of his division carefully. Man or woman, upper or lower class, he didn't care. All he expected from them was nothing less than complete focus and dedication to destroying the enemy. Where other divisions failed, his would succeed in rooting out hubs of crime that soiled the fabric of Helghast society. Under Radec's direction, domestic terrorism on Helghan dwindled to an all-time low.
This phenomenon attracted attention and recognition from the Autarch himself. When it came time for Radec's promotion to Colonel, he had to read the notice addressed to him at least three times to make sure his eyesight wasn't going bad, that the ceremony would not be conducted by General Lente, like usual, but by Scolar Visari.
Radec promptly answered the summons to the palace, which before he had only seen from afar. Now, striding through the grand halls to the reception chamber, he felt dwarfed and overwhelmed by the splendor of the architecture. He had thought that the academy looked grand and polished enough, but as his gaze followed up palace pillars and red banners taller even than the academy, he stood corrected. His entire home village could fit inside the palace many times over. He was sure that even one of the chandeliers hanging far above him could be almost as big as his family's shanty.
General Armin Metrac greeted him at the threshold to the reception chamber. "Ah, Radec, the soon-to-be Colonel." A jovial tone tinged his upper class Helghast accent. "You may remove your helmet. The air's breathable up here."
Radec complied with the general's order and tucked the helmet under one arm, feeling strange and vulnerable without the thing he came to regard as a vital extension of himself. Metrac, being an evolved Helghast, didn't need a respirator. And unlike Radec, who spent a lifetime accumulating dark brown hair shorter than the tip of his finger along his scalp, Metrac effortlessly sported a head full of blonde, almost white hair.
"The Autarch has quite a special ceremony prepared for you," the general went on. "Feel very honored, if you aren't already. I'll be the one escorting you inside. Is this your first time meeting him?"
"Yes," Radec admitted. He had only seen and heard Visari on a screen. Getting to actually meet the Autarch sent a thrill through him, and with his helmet off, it took him double the effort to school his features into stoic indifference.
The two men walked side by side as they entered the reception chamber together. A host of seated Senate members and high-ranking officers, all without respirators, met them. Among those seated, Radec recognized the severe-looking General Lente, and the infamous White Death, Colonel Tendon Cobar. And, at the center of the raised dais, stood Visari. Radec and Metrac hailed him with the Helghast salute.
"At ease, gentlemen." Even without microphones on the podium, the weight and magnitude of Visari's voice reverberated through the chamber. "Mael Radec, you have truly distinguished yourself with exemplary service to Helghan. Our people owe you many thanks for their safety and for keeping the peace. Your strength and courage ought to be commended. Let me have the honor of henceforth calling you Colonel."
Radec dipped his head. "The honor is all mine that I shall bear the rank, my Autarch."
Visari didn't stop there. "You have also developed a reputation for being a mentor to your men. I know of your humble background, Radec, and I followed your rise through the ranks with great interest."
Though Radec kept his face neutral, a flare of shock ignited from within him.
"Your sheer hard work and dedication, despite the misfortune of being born in poverty, has been an inspiration to many. You've become a role model and proof that one can rise above the shortcomings he was not given by choice. I do not want that to go unrecognized. I hereby rename Pyrrhus Academy to Radec Academy, and appoint you to be in charge of training future generations of warriors for Helghan."
Radec had expected the promotion to Colonel, but not the changes concerning the academy. He almost wanted to say "My Autarch, I am extremely flattered, but with all due respect, the academy could do without my name attached to it." While that was true, admitting it would also be very rude. Not to mention awkward. Visari didn't look to be in any position for negotiation, and Radec was in no position to refuse. He had no choice but to dip his head again and say instead, "The honor is all mine."
Hera, Visari's daughter, stepped forward to present medals befitting his new rank. Radec had seen her on the occasional propaganda reel, silently standing to attention alongside her father, but none of those appearances on screen prepared him for the dark lushness of her hair, and the vivid green of her eyes. His assessment of her lasted only for a split second. He kept his gaze ahead and stood still to let her fasten the Helghast triad and black sash to his uniform.
"Congratulations, Colonel Radec," she said softly.
"Thank you, my lady," he murmured back.
The Helghan Senate and officers rose from their seats to applaud Radec. He acknowledged them with a salute, continuing to feel flattered almost to the point of embarrassment.
Visari ended the ceremony by dismissing everyone gathered in the chamber, and as Radec followed Metrac on the way out, the general surprised him with a genial arm thrown over the shoulder. "Head of the academy, huh? Quite the honor, indeed. You'll be having your own office now. May I have a hand in furnishing it for you? It's somewhat of a hobby of mine."
"Help yourself, sir," Radec replied with mild resignation. "But I ask that you keep it simple."
"Ah, you're a minimalist." Metrac looked pleased at that, though Radec didn't press him for the reason why.