Rheba slowly trotted across the base’s courtyard and yawned. She quickly looked to her left and right to ensure no one else was watching the unseemly display. An array of the young recruits were jogging around the courtyard's perimeter while their superior barked insults at them—the tall brown-furred warrior felt nostalgic at the sight—but none looked her way. Rheba shook her head and stood tall with her back straight and shoulders held stiff. She wasn’t ready to admit it, but the trip to Nun had thrown her regular cycle off, and she was having a hard time adjusting back to life in the barracks.
Rheba switched from a half-asleep trot to an active march as she crossed the remainder of the courtyard and entered the headquarters. She ducked down some while going through the door before realizing it was plenty tall enough. Other recruits had laughed at her doing it since her return, and it frustrated Rheba that she had not broken the habit. She saluted some higher-ranked officers and made sure not to disturb any important conversations.
Soon, she stood before the door to her destination, Zenith’s private office. It was not good to be called to a Goliath’s office; it either meant she was in trouble or was about to receive a difficult task—possibly both. Still, the tall warrior knocked without hesitation.
“Ma’am! I have arrived!” Rheba said as she stood at attention.
“At ease, Rheba, come on in,” Zenith answered through the closed door.
The tall warrior froze as she took in the sight; the black and white striped leader sat with hands locked together in front of her face and elbows pressed down in her desk. Before her, on the receiving end of Goliath’s disappointed stare, sat two young recruits with their heads down. Zenith adjusted her position so she could drum her fingers across the desk and motioned with her free hand for Rheba to sit in a chair on the side. The warrior did as directed without a word.
They stayed quiet a moment even after Rheba sat, and she took a moment to examine the two recruits more carefully.
They were both young, probably just reached the required enlistment age—at least five or six years younger than Rheba—just a bit older than Hal. The first had golden fur, which was longer and, in particular, bunched around her neck like a poofy mane. Her eyes were a forest green, and her pointed ears were longer than the average Bentulousian.
The second by comparison was of no clear relation. She was all black with round ears that drooped instead of standing. Her eyes were a dark brown, and a scar across her dark nose added a white line right down the middle.
“Rheba,” Zenith said after the quiet apparently went on too long, these are some new recruits I would like you to take care of.” She pointed to the golden warrior, “This is Blenda.” Zenith’s hand moved to the black warrior, “and Kerra. They were caught recently playing beauideal music on the base. I trust you understand that is not allowed.
Rheba couldn’t help but gulp. She had not heard much about Beauideals since returning but figured Zenith would have something in mind for her return. If she had to guess, the Goliath was hoping Rheba would be forced to give them up if she was tasked to stop the recruits. It was the perfect trap. If she ignored the orders, she was in violation of duties, but if she tried to carry them through, she would be a hypocrite. Either situation was a violation of Bentulousian military protocol. Rheba could be sure Zenith would go easy on her, but the message was clear. They all needed to give up beauideals.
The brown-furred warrior stood up and saluted by placing a hand over each heart—one on the right side of the chest and one on the left—crossing the right arm over the left.
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“Yes, ma’am! I will do my best!”
“Good, but please sit down; I have another matter to discuss with you.”
Rheba looked to the young duo, “Should they remain?”
“Yes, it is nothing confidential.”
Rheba returned to her seat as Zenith spoke. “Due to your valiant efforts in Nun, the other Goliaths and I have met and agreed that you should be promoted effective immediately.”
“But Ma’am!” Rheba had leaned forward but stopped to sit upright. Her head fell low—staying up just enough to keep eye contact—as she continued, “I hardly accomplished anything while on my journey. It would be unfitting for me to receive such a reward.”
Zenith waved her hand dismissively.
“Flagbearer Rheba Arms, I, Goliath Zenith, hereby promote you to the rank of Spearwarrior. I look forward to seeing what you accomplish in the future.”
Rheba could only offer a small ‘thank you’ before the three of them were dismissed from Zenith’s office. She stood with her back to the door and stared up at the ceiling momentarily. Her new companions' words were the first thing to break her concentration.
“Don’t go thinking we’ll listen to you just because you got promoted!”
Rheba turned to look at the speaker. Blenda, the bright-colored one, had placed her hands on her hips as she spoke. Kerra sighed and shook her head. Her voice was softer, but the words aligned with her companions. “There’s no use arguing with her, Blenda; that’s just how all the older folk are; they are hardly with the times.
Rheba couldn’t keep her mouth from falling open. She had not expected to see such attitudes in the previously quiet recruits. Carefully trying to force her shocked expression into a friendly smile, she spoke neutrally. “Now, girls, I understand if—”
“She understands!” Blenda shouted, and a laugh followed after. Kerra bowed politely to Rheba.
“With all due respect, we don’t care what you have to say,” the dark-furred warrior said after. Rheba felt her shoulders grow tense, but she forced them to loosen up.
“I know; maybe we’ll listen to you if you are really the bigshot Zenith thinks you are!” Blenda said; she turned to Kerra with a grin and nodded. Both girls turned away from Rheba and held their arms out. In a flash, two green Needaimus dropped from a ceiling vent and bonded to accepting limbs.
“I’d say you lose if you can’t catch us before the night. We’ll stay in the base,” Kerra shot before both sped away in opposite directions, Blenda’s laugh carrying down the hallway far longer than the brown-furred warrior would have liked to hear it. Rheba’s left ear twitched, and she stood motionless while trying to take a few deep breaths. The tall warrior wished for a second she had the energy Fiona or Odell did; they seemed like a better fit for the task at hand. She considered calling one of them but let the thought slide. It would be unfitting for a warrior to call on help from foreigners—royal ones at that—even if they were friends. She took one last deep breath and began her march back to her barrack, where she had left Mini. It was against protocol for a warrior to bring a Needaimus when meeting with a Goliath, and Rheba’s following of the rules lost her precious time. If there was one thing she learned on her trip, it was fights didn’t always follow a set of rules.
She reached the courtyard with the other young recruits who were still jogging around for the morning exercise. Not having her Needaimus was likely something Blenda and Kerra would have counted on; they expected to get a good head start from it. Rheba didn’t like giving up so easily. They thought she would go grab her Needaimus, but she decided to do otherwise.
Rheba quickly turned to the marching girls and barked: “Ladies, I have a question for you!”
The recruits stopped at once and turned with confused expressions to her.
“I’m looking for two in your class; both are Mortals and troublemakers.” It was clear that the group knew exactly who Rheba was referring to. “I want to know their abilities pronto and keep it short!”
“Oh, um. Blenda has a Saient type, which fixes defects, and Kerra has an Iki type meant for chopping and dicing ingredients.”
“Thank you, soldier!” Rheba barked before charging away. Both the young recruits, Needaimus, sounded like ones their families had passed on rather than one’s issues by a Goliath—like her own—which made sense to her in hindsight of why new recruits had them in the first place. Still, she knew better than to underestimate them. The physical enhancements a Needaimus granted could sometimes be more than enough for a capable fighter, even if the ability itself was considered junk. Still, that didn’t make them unbeatable. She didn’t have to go along with their game, but now that they issued the challenge, the tall warrior intended to show them just how bad they were at playing.