9A2-C-8

9A2-C-8. Imperial Sector 9A2. System C. Planet 8.

For the last three hundred years, the world of 9A2-C-8 had been, more or less, an ordinary Imperial planet. Like all populated Imperial planets in Sector 9A2, the people of 9A2-C-8 paid their taxes and offered their sons and daughters for service in the various military and civil branches of the Imperial government.

One of the largest of these branches was the Imperial Army. Like all planets, 9A2-C-8 had an annual quota of fresh recruits to produce for the Imperial Army. These recruits were usually made up of volunteers, although sometimes conscripts would be called upon when not enough citizens give themselves to the meatgrinder that was the Imperial Army. In years with ongoing wars or anticipated conflicts, hundreds of divisions would be raised at once from the planet's massive population of 15.6 billion.

The 329th Infantry Division was one of the many divisions raised and stationed in the world of 9A2-C-8. When Instigator Kendrick reached out to the 34th Imperial Army Formation, the Army Formation in charge of all Army assets on 9A2-C-8, staff from the Formation arranged for a company from the 329th to be deployed as security detail. The company, the 432nd, traveled to a remote world alongside Instigator Kendrick and Doctor Payton.

The rest was all history.

After the Imperial light cruiser reached 9A2-C-8, Athena and Adrianna parted ways with the others. Instigator Kendrick had to report what happened to his superiors. What was left of his squad of legionnaires went with him. Athena and Adrianna returned to the fort occupied by the 329th Infantry. They were still soldiers, after all, and desertion was a serious crime.

For a week, Athena, Adrianna, and the others from the 329th watched as individuals from numerous agencies visited Fort 127. Several Instigators from the Imperial Security Corps. A number of uniformed officers from the 34th Imperial Army Formation. Groups of men and women in black uniforms who Adrianna suspected came from the Imperial Intelligence Agency, also known as the Imperial Security Agency.

Over the span of a week, these individuals interrogated numerous officers and soldiers of the 329th Infantry. Some were released after a while. Others were never seen again.

Most within the division had no idea what was going on, but Athena was not among them. It was obvious many high-ranking Imperials on the planet didn't take the operation by the Guard too well, and this was retaliation. For the Guard to infiltrate so much of the 432nd Company, the 329th obviously had members who were, willingly or accidentally, helping the Guard.

She pitied anyone behind this plan who was captured by the Imperials. The embarrassed and vengeful Imperials wouldn't allow them to die until they have given up every ounce of information, and even then the death would likely be public, slow, and excruciating. Examples had to be made, after all.

When the series of interrogations finally ended after two weeks, Athena and Adrianna waited another three days for their assignment. When their assignments arrived, they came with a surprise.

"Captain? You're a captain now?" In their temporary quarters, Adrianna was completely off guard when Athena told her about the promotion she received. 'That's…wow. From a private to a captain. This is not unprecedented, but it is extremely rare. I think the largest leap in rank I heard of before this was from corporal to captain."

She grinned and gently punched Athena on the shoulder. "I guess I should salute you, ma'am."

Athena smiled as well as she set her PEI down. Like Adrianna, she knew how rare such a promotion was, but unlikely her friend, she wasn't as excited as one in her position should be.

Yes. She was a captain now. Yes. She would have her own company of hundreds of troops to command. No. It wouldn't change her mind and get her to stay in the Imperial Army in the long term.

If a private was a slave, then a captain was a slave in charge of a group of slaves. As a captain, she would still be an expendable piece on the chess board. She would still have to be at the frontline, and if things went wrong, she would still be abandoned without a second thought alongside her troops.

Only colonels and above held true power in the Imperial Army, and they were often staffed with graduates of military academies. It was quite rare for troopers to make their way to become officers of that rank.

As for the reason behind such a promotion…Instigator Kendrick's recommendation likely helped, but there was more to it.

"They want to make an example of me, in a good way." Athena reasoned. "After what had been going on in this fort for the last week, morale has been at an all-time low. They want to use me as an example to show that as long as you serve the Imperium, you will be heavily rewarded. I'm sure rumors about what I did back on Morgo IV will be circulating around the division for a while."

"Well, whatever the reason, I'm sure you're qualified for the job. At least you're much more qualified than a fresh academy graduate." Adrianna said, and she wasn't wrong. Athena had been in the Imperial Army for seven years. She never held command before, but she had the knowledge needed for the rank. Give her some time, and she would be a fine captain.

"I, for one, am glad to have you as my captain, sir," Adrianna added. She was also assigned to Athena's new company, and she was obviously quite happy about it. She had been under the leadership of so many officers over the years, and she had seen how being on good terms with one's captain could make things a lot easier.

"Very well." Athena nodded and stood up. Regardless of her plans for the long term, she had to put up a good act now. "Pack your stuff. We're going to meet our new unit."

Despite being of a relatively low rank, captains still enjoyed a lot of privileges compared to the common troopers, and as someone who made the leap from private to captain in one go, Athena felt the drastic difference firsthand.

As a captain, Athena had her own office and living quarters. Her pay was five times that of a private. She had access to the officer's lounge and dining hall, both of which offered expensive food and drinks 24/7 at no cost to the officers. Her Guardian class power armor was replaced by the Indominated class, which offered additional protection and communication capabilities while having no visible difference from the Guardian class from the outside.

These were just some of the privileges on paper. As someone who had been in service for years, Athena knew a captain would have near-total authority over her men. She could discipline her troops at wish, whether with physical punishments or imprisonment, or docking their pay. It wasn't uncommon for officers to use these as threats in exchange for all kinds of favors from their subordinates. There could be consequences to doing things like this, but often as long as the officers didn't take things too far or had a semi-decent justification, no one important would care enough to intervene.

A few hours later, after getting some basic information on the unit, Athena called all the sergeants and corporals in her new company, the 437th Company, for a meeting so she could introduce herself to them and vice versa. This was a common procedure whenever there was a new commanding officer present.

Since there were dozens of people, Athena had the meeting take place in one of the open courts in Fort 127.

When it was time, Athena and Adrianna were the first to get there. One by one, the sergeants and corporals in the 437th came to the field. The sergeants introduced themselves to their new captain, and they were all more or less respectful.

"Captain Dane, sir."

One of the sergeants, a man in his late thirties, wore a wide smile on his face as he saluted Athena. Despite being old enough to be Athena's father, the man was groveling in an attempt to get on the good side of his new commanding officer. "I have heard about your accomplishments in Outpost Delta, ma'am. My respect for foiling a plan by the despicable traitors. It will be the greatest honor for my men and me to fight under your leadership!"

Most sergeants were polite and respectful, but this one took things a little too far.

Athena was quite uncomfortable, to say the least. This wasn't something either she or the old Athena had experienced.

"What a kiss-ass," Adrianna whispered to Athena after the sergeant left to sit down alongside the others. "I bet he got his rank by doing the same thing to his last captain. Now that the old guy is arrested, he's wasting no time and trying to do the same thing to you. I've always hated spineless people like him."

Athena nodded gently but didn't say anything. She didn't like what the sergeant was doing, but his actions were understandable. If Athena disliked the sergeant, she could easily make the man's life hell. In his eyes, it was better to submit and grovel than to potentially be targeted. He wished to do his best to get on her good side, even if it meant he had to act more like a servant than an NCO. Perhaps this was how he survived in the Army for so long.

Athena didn't want to comment on this. Self-preservation was only human. Who was she to judge?

One by one, the sergeants greeted Athena and gave a brief introduction before sitting down in the open field alongside the corporals. As no more men were coming, Athena frowned and turned to Adrianna.

"Is it just me or did I only count five sergeants?"

"That's what I counted as well," Adrianna replied with a frown. "Shouldn't there be six?"

"Yeah." Athena nodded. She had read the file on the company. The company's previous captain was arrested for treason, but none of its six sergeants was imprisoned or replaced. "There should be one more. Sergeant…Parker. I think. Of the 3rd Platoon."

"The number of corporals isn't right either. There should be four more of them." Adrianna realized as well as she scanned the crowd.

The two waited there for a few more minutes, but no one else came. Athena frowned and tossed this question behind her. With a deep breath, she stepped in front of the sergeants and corporals and started introducing herself.

Her speech, if one could even call it that, was quite brief. She introduced herself and gave some information on her background and experience. The purpose of this meeting was simply so most of her officers could put a face and a voice to her name and rank. Of course, for the sergeants and even some of the corporals, this was a good networking opportunity. If they got on their new captain's good side, maybe she would give the easy tasks to their platoons and forget about them when wondering who to send on more dangerous missions.

In the end, Athena, like any good Imperial officer, reiterated that they must work together and fight as a single unit if they wanted to achieve the most for the Imperium. As she concluded, all the men cheered.

As the meeting ended and the officers were about to leave, Athena turned to a pair of sergeants.

"Where is Sergeant Parker?"

"I'm not sure, sir." One of the sergeants paused before seeing something behind Athena. "Oh, there he is."

Athena's brows darkened as she turned around. There, five figures approached slowly. Sergeant Parker and four other men, likely the four missing corporals. They arrived fifteen minutes later than when they were ordered.

Sergeant Parker was a large man. He was in a black tank top with an Imperial Army sigil on the chest. Athena was by no means short, but the man still towered over her.

"Oh, you must be our new captain." The sergeant said loudly as he approached. "What's your name again, sir?"

"Sergeant Parker." Athena glanced at the man and the four corporals standing behind him. "You're late. You were ordered to be here 15 minutes ago."

"Huh? Well, my apologies, sir. My boys and I…we were busy. We only just saw the message." Sergeant Parker shrugged. "Sorry we didn't make it in time for your…coronation."

"Busy? Busy doing what? Drinking?" Athena pushed. She could smell the alcohol from the five men. "You're a veteran yourself, sergeant. You know the rules. No drinking while on duty, and I don't believe you requested time off today."

Athena knew she was being quite harsh on the man, but as soon as the sergeant approached her, she noticed many sergeants and corporals in the company gathering around her and observing the exchange. While otherwise she might let the sergeant go without a fuss, this changed things.

Back on Earth, most leaders often earned the respect of their subordinates by being understanding and respectful. Athena was fine with that, but she also knew this wasn't exactly how things worked in the brutal war machine that was the Venya Imperial Army.

In the Imperial Army, being a nice and understanding person wasn't a good thing. Athena knew that here, respect wasn't earned by getting people to love her. It was earned by displaying strength and the willingness to use it. It was by showing everyone that if they disobeyed or disrespected her, she would make them pay tenfold for it. Submit, and everything would be fine. Resist her, and they would suffer for it.

In a sense, this was the philosophy of the Imperium. The Leviathan maintained control over the Greater Houses through the threat of extermination. The Greater Houses controlled the Lesser Houses in a similar regard, and the chain went on. Fear, for better or for worse, kept people in line in the Imperium.

Plus, she questioned if this was truly an accident on the sergeant's part. The man was absent for the entire meeting, and the moment it was over he showed up? And he happened to be drinking with four other corporals in his unit, all of whom failed to see the electronic order she sent them? All of them had military-grade PEIs that would alert the users as soon as an order was received. It wasn't like these NCOs just happened to have the volumes on their devices muted.

More likely than not, the sergeant was doing it on purpose to show his dissatisfaction with the new leadership. It really wasn't that difficult to see, and others likely saw through it as well. This was a challenge to Athena's authority. They all knew exactly what was going on, and they were eager to see how Athena would react.

If she proved herself to be a tough leader, they would continue to be the loyal subordinates they have appeared to be so far.

If she was a weak leader who was easily intimidated by the sergeant, well…perhaps their loyalty to her didn't need to go beyond the surface.