The army was divided into officers and enlisted, and both were integral to the functioning of the military. The ultimate difference between them was that the officers were put into decision making positions, while the enlisted took care of the actual operations of the army itself.
That did not mean, however, that the officers never saw action, or that the enlisted never had command. Corporals, for example, were enlisted who led small teams of soldiers for specific tasks. The outline of their task was clearly defined, and merely had to focus on completing their task, without concern for other matters. How best to complete that task was up to the Corporal to decide.
Having an officer oversee every single team of the army would result in micromanagement, and was actually counterproductive. Such distinctions had been thoroughly studied and researched during the history of Kolar, for military research and science was the one research department that received the most funding after Eldrim card research.
Of course, people who joined the army but didn't fight, such as cleaning staff, logistics workers, plumbers, repairmen, farmers, doctors, lawyers, artisans and such were also divided into enlisted and officers. Generally, if the occupation required a higher degree of study or training, such as doctor, engineer or artisan, they were officers, while construction and logistics workers were considered enlisted.
Nero, who was currently a private, was also considered an enlisted, and was basically at the bottom of the entire army hierarchy. When he would join KMA in six months, he could then be transferred to the rank of cadet, which was basically a student. Somehow, that was simultaneously worse and better than being a private.
The intricacies of the army ranking were something Nero would have to lament later, because Corporal Thomas, who Nero would be under as per Lieutenant Earl. That meant Nero would be taking orders from Thomas generally, but that did not make Thomas Nero's CO (commanding officer). His CO would probably be whoever was ordering Thomas as well.
Thomas looked quite young himself, probably in his mid or late twenties, but the way he carried himself spoke of experience. There was measured confidence in his gait, and his eyes were calm yet focused.
From across the room he had already identified Nero, as Nero identified him, and approached.
"Good morning Private Nero, you are earlier than expected," the man with a surprisingly deep voice said. "I am Corporal Thomas Pike, your team leader for the duration of your service in Fordham. Follow me while I introduce you to what you can expect. Corporal Lance, thank you for bringing the Private over."
Thomas and Lance had a very formal handover, after which Nero followed Thomas, the man with bright green hair, deeper into the facility. On every single door there was a scanner where Nero had to scan his ID to ensure he was only able to enter where he had the authority to go.
"We are basically incharge of the personal security of several high value researchers. Ordinarily, a Neophyte would not be allowed to take on such a job, but the commendations on your file are quite encouraging, and our situation is quite unique. While in the facility, you will stay with our team, which is one of four that is assigned on protection duty, but on excursions only you will be able to follow. Tell me Nero, do you have any experience in protecting a target?"
"I did a rescue mission once where I saved my targets from within cursed territory, but besides that, no."
"In that case, we will have drills at night to get you accustomed. It'll also help you familiarise yourself with the team. For now, just remember this, our job is to protect the researchers, even if it means putting ourselves in danger. If you have any concerns or questions during active duty, you can ask me, but be mindful to stay out of the way of the researchers. Their work is invaluable."
must
be an Arcanist, based simply on how old he looked. But if he was an Arcanist, to look
so
obviously old, his age must be...
"Nero Grant," the old researcher said, clasping Nero's hands with excitement. "I have heard much about you. It's rare to find abilities that can directly counter curses. I can't even begin to imagine the implications if we mass produce your innate card. I mean, just the tests we can conduct..."
"Sir," said a young, blonde woman who stood behind the old man holding a clipboard. The exhausted tone in which she said it indicated that she was used to interrupting him like that.
"Oh, right, right, sorry Abbey. Nero, my boy, I hope you don't mind, I get distracted easily at my age. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Colonel James Carter, and I am a scientist, and your ability could prove to be very useful in my current topic of research. Do you mind if we verify the details of your ability?"
Nero was stunned, and suddenly saluted the old man and exclaimed, "No sir!"
A colonel was a higher rank, even a Lieutenant! In fact, Nero would not be surprised if the colonel was the highest rank of anyone in this entire base! Any higher would be Brigadier, and they oversee entire regions of the country, not individual bases!
This also entered an information blind spot for Nero. He wasn't sure if the base was being run by Lieutenant Earl or Colonel James. Technically, the Colonel had a higher rank, but he was just a scientist.
"Very good. You came highly recommended by junior officer Vanessa, so I look forward to seeing what you're capable of. If you'll follow me."
Nero nearly lost composure upon hearing that Vanessa was a junior officer already! How did that happen? She wasn't even a citizen of Kolar! No wait, was it possible that was her rank back on Nova? But that didn't make sense.
On top of everything, the extremely friendly attitude of such a high ranking officer was making Nero extremely alarmed. He did not buy, for even a second, that a Colonel as old as him did not understand hierarchy or proprietary between soldiers. If anything, Nero felt like the man was using his age to camouflage himself, which made him even more alert as he followed the old man.