Orientation

The door suddenly opened to the children all lazing around on their beds. Instructor Thorne stood at the door, seemingly dissatisfied with the children. Eleni immediately jumped up and stood at the end of her bed, heels together, toes apart, arms by her side, fists made. Cain and the others simply sat up in their beds.

Instructor Thorne clicked her tongue.

"Shit I guess I didn't explain basic military routines. Well whatever, Head Instructor Neptune will explain at the orientation. Come, follow me."

The children hastily followed Instructor Thorne as she walked out of the room. The children followed her down a couple hallways until they reached a set of double doors. Muted sounds and chatter could be heard from beyond.

Instructor Thorne opened the doors and ushered the children inside. There sat another three dozen Inductees. The room - Third Company's mess hall - was a smaller copy of the Rock's main hall. The only differences was that there were four long rectangular tables and a raised stage at the end of the hall. Each table was color coded for each squadron. Only the red table was empty. It seems they were the last ones there.

As Cain's squadron took their seats, Instructor Thorne walked towards the stage. There sat three other Instructors adjacent to a stone podium. At the podium stood a singular man. Dressed similarly to the instructors, the man stood tall with observant eyes. He had sunken cheeks and light brown eyes and hair. His hair was fairly long by Institute standards; his hair longer than anyone Cain had seen since inducting.

On his left chest were two pins. Each pin was a bezelled silver circle. Cain noticed that the Instructors had the same pins, but only one. Sir Conduit had three.

Perhaps they indicate rank?

Once the Inductees were all settled, the man held up a closed fist. Immediately, the quiet whispering between few of the Inductees stopped.

"Welcome Inductees of the Third Company. My name is Head Instructor Jonathan el Neptune. You may call me Head Instructor Neptune. I am Head Instructor in charge of educating you all on the histories of the Empire. I will also be teaching you everything to do with war and our military. There are three other Head Instructor's that you will meet tomorrow once training begins.

"For the next year, you will be stationed here at the east wing. This is where you and six other companies will live and train until you all graduate from the Institute. For now, let us begin with how your training and studies will be held..."

Head Instructor Neptune continued on what daily life at the Institute would be like. Essentially, they would wake up, do their morning physical training. Then they would have breakfast and continue with physical training. After lunch, they would do their studies with Head Instructor Neptune and another Head Instructor. Then dinner, cleaning, and free time in addition to teaching any other material the overseeing instructors wanted to add. According to the Head Instructor, Inductees were allowed to train or simply laze about after dinner. Simple enough.

After the general introduction, Head Instructor Neptune educated them on general commands and military routines. Mimicking the examples of the instructors, Cain and the other Inductees learned how to walk, talk, salute, respond to commands, and much more. Cain felt like his brain was going to explode from the excess of information. His brain was inundated with militaristic jargon. Only Eleni and Horrow seemed familiar with the nonsense coming out of Head Instructor Neptune's mouth.

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I guess being a noble has its perks. Wait a second, how much do they already know about the Institute?

Although every citizen in the bastion cities had attended their respective Institutes, all graduates were tight lipped when it came to what they actually learned. Weird, considering all children would eventually learn the same things.

Cain could only suppose the nobles were better prepared for the challenges the Institute would throw at them.

Why the hell didn't Sister Cal tell me anything? She literally raised me in the orphanage!

Soon, the orientation was over. At the click of the Head Instructor's fingers, men and women in white garbs filed into the room pushing large carts. These men and women were workers who dealt with tertiary duties within the Institute. Logistics regarding food and equipment were handled by these workers. The Inductees were instructed to not make conversation with them unless they were specifically called on. If they were, the workers were to be treated with the same respect as the Instructors. They were, after all, graduates of the Institute.

The workers began to unload large plates of food and cutlery onto the tables. A mouthwatering aroma assaulted his olfactory senses. On the plates were luxurious foods that Cain had only heard of. Roasted meats covered in vibrantly colored sauces, sautéed vegetables, loaves of steaming bread. Every Inductee except for the two nobles seemed to be ready to jump out of their seats.

"Today we celebrate your induction. Don't expect every meal to be like this. This is a special occasion after all. Let us all pray to Fa for blessing us with this meal."

All the Inductees closed their eyes. Cain followed suit. He crossed his index and middle finger on his left hand, and placed his right hand over his heart. Head Instructor Neptune's voice reverberated throughout the hall.

"Blessed be to you Fa for giving us this meal. We feast in the honor of your name. Prayer to Fa."

"Prayer to Fa." the Inductees echoed.

"Now, let the feast begin!"

Cain and the others immediately began diving into their food. He forgot any of the etiquette Sister Cal had taught him and begin eviscerating the lamb in front of him. Eleni and Horrow were the only ones eating with any semblance of decorum.

It wasn't long before the all the food was scraped clean off the plates. Head Instructor Neptune said some final remarks and then Red Squadron was lead back to the Red Room by Instructor Thorne. As soon as the children entered the room, they all ran to lay down in their beds. Only Cain, Horrow, Eleni, and Jorn stood at the edges of their bed. Instructor Thorne looked at the other children in dismay.

"I'll make graduates of you yet. Well, since today is the last day you can truly rest, make sure you do as much as you can. We begin tomorrow at 0600. Lights off at 2200. I will be checking just so you know."

Instructor Thorne then explained the basics of organising their beds and what to expect the next morning. After showing the Inductees how to shower and refill their water skins, she bid them a good night.

"Sweet dreams Inductees. Soon enough all you'll have are nightmares."

With a devilish grin, Instructor Thorne exited the room. With only an hour before lights off, the Inductees prepared themselves for sleep. Before long, Cain was tucked into bed. Corova, who's bed was closest to the lamp above the table at the center of the room, waited until everyone was ready to sleep.

"Good night everyone."

Some of the children responded. Some lay silently. As the oil lamp was extinguished and the subdued breathing of sleeping children filled the room, Cain's mind remained busy.

He knew too little about Institute life. First of all, what were the Trials? What would they entail? He had heard rumors of those who failed at the Institute. That some children even died. Would he be competing against his own squadron? His company? Or other companies? And why was a Fabii at the Institute? Was it a coincidence that a Bellona was also in the same squadron? What were the chances?

As unanswered questions swirled in his mind, he unknowingly began slipping into a deep sleep.