Their commander was a weird one. He was dressed well enough; his hair nice and stylized, it seemed like he cared a lot about it. Always wearing the standard Griffon uniform, and he was well mannered. Would greet the girls, make sure everything was okay, but...

His sleeping habits weren't the best. Like RFB, he was a gamer, and late at night, the TDolls could hear him shout to his monitor as he live... streamed his games? It was a new concept for sure, but it did seem to be a successful side venture for the commander, as he boasted about racking up viewer counts in the hundreds.

Though it would seem like it would eat away at his tactical prowess, the commander, despite his groggy, half-awake state at all the time, always manage to come up with the appropriate strategies to handle the situation. He wasn't a genius, but it would be hard to believe that a man like him would have been a former soldier with another PMC a few years ago.

So why did the commander have such a fascination for UMP40? Out of everyone: UMP40, KSG, RFB, M14 and Welrod, no one expected it to be her. It was understandable that he wouldn't take a liking to KSG or RFB because he didn't want to deal with their rivalry, and Welrod seemed too quiet for his tastes, but between M14 and UMP40? Even UMP40 would have taken M14 over her.

Yet here she was being given cakes, lollipops, all sorts of different delicacies that would make FNC froth in her mouth! The commander always made sure UMP40 was the first alright before checking on everyone else and the doll in question seemed like she enjoyed the pampering.

BUT WHY?!

The other four members of the echelon decided to find out for themselves. As tonight the commander would be doing another one of his 'live streams' and probably talking to UMP40 like always. So they found the door to his room oen ajar and some leaned in to listen while others peered through the small gap.

What they found was that it was completely dark...? No computer monitor on, not the soft buzzing of the extra beefy PC he built, not even a single clack of the mostly silent keyboard he used.

They would've thought to leave, but then they heard rustling. They were laying on the bedsheets of his bed! How scandalous! And now everyone was peering through the gap, to be met with the commander telling UMP40 things about himself.

How he found solace in being able to tell UMP40 such secrets, and how she was able to keep them. He told her about how he didn't leave his family on amicable terms, and almost contemplated suicide before he joined the Russian military. The months he had spent homeless after leaving home and not finding a job because of dropping out of college.

It was all so sad to hear, but there were some lighthearted tales in there as well. How he and his two sisters would race each other with bobsleds when they were younger. How he and his siblings painted each of their faces without them realising somehow and waking up the next morning laughing at each other. Or how for a small time in his life, he had made peace with his parents by achieving an A, despite that grade coming from retaking some of his highschool courses.

The rest of the echelon looked at each other, confused for a little bit before the realisation set in that the commander was only human after all. He wasn't a doll like them, so he couldn't possibly be perfect, but that's just what make their commander so great.

He treated them with the same respect that he would treat others with. He stayed late night playing video games, but he could be seen some days putting the work in to further his tactical prowess despite being sleep deprived. He chose UMP40 because she was the most understanding out of the bunch.

It really put into thought how this weird commander was just trying his best, despite not having the healthiest life style. He was a sleep deprived gamer, but he was their commander, and as long as they were under his command, they had nothing to worry about. He had proven that time and again.

The next day, the commander would find bright smiles on all of his TDolls' faces. They seemed happier, they weren't bickering, and it all felt... genuine? It felt he had a family once more...? Was that really how he was feeling about this? That these TDolls had suddenly warmed up to him and he created this whole big family? He didn't know, and he wasn't quite sure about it all, but it was something that he could get used to.

As for the TDolls?

They could have sworn they saw a little bit of a happy tear trickle down their commander's cheek, but maybe they were just seeing things?

It might just be the sleep deprivation that's making him more emotional than he has to be.