The High Echelon: The Ten Heads of Cerberus

In the metallic confines of the central elevator, Aurora stood silently while the neon light lapsed by as the elevator ascended. Behind her were several subordinates comprising of ten Officers and two Sentinels.

The twelve of them have been called upon by the Director to the office in the Strategic Command. The reason was to discuss the current state of Cerberus. 

While the luminescent luster creeped in and out of her face, Aurora glanced at the ones behind her and reminded them of something important.

Her words echoed throughout the metal shell of the elevator as if making it unquestionable. 

"Since you will be meeting the Director for the first outside of wartime, I expect basic courtesy and loyalty to be displayed." 

"Am I understood?"

Aurora was, first and foremost, the infamous Administrator. Her loyalty stands closest to the Director, even with her independence from him.

She deemed those unfit and unloyal to the Director as insects, which was natural for someone of her stature. 

"Understood!!!"

The Officers saluted the Administrator while the Sentinels demonstrated their unflickering loyalty to the Director with a light bow. 

"Good, I believe you will do well."

Aurora was satisfied with their actions and stood silently in the elevator. As she handled the affairs of Cerberus logistics, she understood the circumstances they found themselves in.

But nonetheless, she was confident of her Director's ways and insight.

The elevator soon reached the apex of Cerberus, the Strategic Command. The metallic door slid open, and all of them stepped out.

Aurora walked forward while the Officers and Sentinels followed from behind. Their eyes glimpsed at the Strategic Command and took notice of its emptiness. 

The Administrator didn't pay their unneeded curiosity any heed. It was natural and necessary for Cerberus personnel to observe and examine their surroundings. 

It was practically an instinct. 

However, the emptiness was part of the problematic circumstances they had found themselves in. 

Aurora was confident that the Director had notice of it without the need to be told by her. It might be among the reasons why a meeting was called.

'The current organizational structure of the Cerberus only supports the army. It only acts efficiently in wartime, which would not always be the state of Cerberus.'

'In simpler terms, either more personnel are needed, or a restructuring must be done again for the headquarters.'

Aurora wondered what the plans of her esteemed Director were, but perhaps she could only know during the upcoming meeting in the Director's office.

Each of their steps reverberated in the metallic and cold floor of the Strategic Command. It didn't take a moment before they reached the front of their Director's office.

Gazing through the integrated and glossy glass, they saw a handsome young man with jet-black hair glancing upon the darkness that enveloped the world.

There was nostalgia in his eyes, but it immediately faded after he noticed their existence. 

The edges of his lips rose as he opened his mouth, prompting them to get inside.

"Come in."

Aurora and the personnel behind her entered the Director's office. The Officers and Sentinels swiftly kneeled while Aurora lightly bowed to the young man.

"We have arrived, Director."

Aurora stepped aside and stood beside the Director as he faced the Officers and Sentinels for the second time. He sat on his luxurious office chair and emanated a suppressive aura. 

"There are many reasons why I called upon a meeting with the twelve of you and Aurora."

Duke went through the files created by Aurora and took out reports regarding the recent crusade against the aberrants. 

"But the main two are about our future and the past."

The Officer's eyes lit up when they heard the word Future. Then, they furrowed their eyebrows after the word Past.

They felt they had done something wrong in the crusade. Did they somehow fail their Director? Was the victory not up to his standards?

Nervousness shrouded the Officer's face. After all, they were the ones who led the battle against the abominations of the night. 

Noticing their anxiousness, Duke lightly chuckled and decided to change the subject before heading deep into their circumstances.

"How about you introduce yourselves to me."

"I want to know the ten of you more." 

When the Officers heard his words, they tilted their head in confusion, wondering what their Director wanted them to do. 

Aurora noticed where it was heading and promptly whispered vital information to the Director. Duke raised an eyebrow after he had heard Aurora's words.

He sighed and apologized to the Officers.

"I was at fault for asking such a strange question."

"No, no, no... The Director isn't at fault."

A female Officer with that First Platoon under her command shook her head and denied the Director being at fault. After all, to them, the Director was the messiah. 

He wouldn't be at fault. 

Duke merely grinned when he heard her and decided to make something mandatory.

"I want all of my personnel to register themselves with their names. Given, or self-made."

"Aurora, I hope that later on. None of my subordinates will be nameless."

Aurora nodded after hearing the orders and calmly responded. She made a mental note of the order and was determined to achieve it after the meeting. 

"It will be done, my Director."

Duke's eyes were then pointed at the Officers. He glanced at Aleph and Bet before smirking at the ten Officers. He opened his mouth and gave them something they would honor the entirety of their lives.

"Since the ten of you brought victory to the Cerberus. It's expected to be given rewards for your merits, correct?"

The Officers wanted to reject the words of the Director, but they soon noticed Aurora's icy gaze looking at them. 

They realized they disrespected their Director by not expecting his rewards. With this in mind, the Officers didn't utter a word and merely nodded at their Director.

"The Cerberus doesn't have any substantial rewards it could give our talented Officers, so I hope a name will be enough for now." 

"Does any of you disagree and want something else?"

As the Officers heard the words of their Director, they felt pride and honor in their hearts. They lowered their heads even deeper while kneeling and responded with devotion. 

"It will be an honor, our Director!!!"

"We will not stain the names you have given to us!!!"

Duke was proud of the Officer's loyalty and the personnel of Cerberus. He treasured them deeply since he understood most that fealty was amongst the luxury of the Dark Cataclysmic Era. 

"Anyhow, let's start with the Officer of the 1st Platoon." 

"From the reports I read about you, you are somewhat brave and bold. You're open to any paths that lead to victory as long as it doesn't interfere with the vital orders you have been given."

"So I bestow you the name Alexandra."

Alexandra's body trembled as she wanted to kneel even deeper but couldn't. For a nameless one like her, being bestowed a name by the Director was akin to a blessing of the lord.

Duke kept smiling and continued giving names to the Officers. The next one was the Officer of the 2nd Platoon.

"You're a good strategist, aren't you? You were the one who made Alexandra's idea possible, so I'll grant you a suitable name for that."

"Hmm, let's see..."

"I bestow you the name Achilles." 

....

The naming ceremony lasted for quite some time. But each of the Officers patiently waited to be bestowed of their names. 

The Officer of the 3rd Platoon was gifted the name Everest, and the Officer of the 4th was bestowed Graham.

Officers of the 5th and 10th Platoons were granted the names Thomas and Valentine accordingly. And the 6th Platoon Officer was Kennedy. 

The 7th Platoon's Officer was Armstrong, and the 8th was Hermes. 

Finally, the last of the ten Officers was the Officer of the 9th Platoon. His name was Apollo. 

These were the ten Officers of the Cerberus Military, and their military achievements will echo throughout the Dark Cataclysmic Era.

Following the naming ceremony was the beginning of the vital meeting that would decide the final structure of the Cerberus. 

"Since we are done with the naming ceremony, why don't we start our discussion? The first troubling issue we will tackle is the current military structure."

"I felt that something is lacking or perhaps misplaced in the army."

"So I want to hear your thoughts about it. Feel free to speak about the issues you have discovered." 

Duke decided to let the Officers give advice and ideas about the structure since he wasn't a tactician or a military general. Their views of the matter had more weight than his.

Even though they heard the words of their Director clearly. How could the Officers dare to shame their Director's military structure?

None wanted to utter a single word, so Aurora immediately stepped into the situation again. She looked at the Officers with the same icy gaze as before.

"The Director has ordered you to speak your thoughts about the troubling issues of our current military structure."

"I hope all of you will be sincere enough to not speak of the troubles with bias. So be straightforward and talk bluntly."

While Duke thought that his Administrator's words were too harsh and cold, it was something needed since none of his Officers would dare to talk about the problems of the things he had done.

Pride didn't matter much when they were discussing Cerberus's essential structure. It would be better to know the problem than to learn it in a severe mistake later on. 

"As Aurora has said, speak freely and let me hear your thoughts."

And so, the meeting has begun.