Holcum did notice Mila hadn't responded which he had expected her to. She was going to need to ensure she had full control of his cat when they encountered Cadet Williamson. He was going to have to struggle as well since he wasn't going to always be able to lean on her control over him. After taking a very brief moment to ensure his uniform was as neat as possible the two of them marched over to Sgt Miller. They formed up and waited for instructions.
She gave them a slight nod and after ordering them to follow her, she marched out of the barracks. Miller headed to the Administration section of the station. Very rarely would Cadets ever come here unless they had screwed up big time. There were a few other reasons but usually it was due to a major infraction. In this case Miller couldn't think of a more serious infraction in the years she had served. If this had happened on Earth it would have ended up in a death match and Williamson wouldn't be alive. A non-augmented human simply couldn't go up against a Were of any sort.
When they reached the offices she told them to stand at parade rest. Once they were Miller walked over to the enlisted male at the desk. "I have Cadet Whitewater and Cadet Controller Whitewater with me. We are reporting as ordered."
The man looked down at his screen and gave her a slight nod. "Give me just a moment Senior Sgt Miller." He murmured something into the whisper mic before looking back up. "Take them into the office please." The door to the side of the desk slid open as he was speaking.
Miller turned and called them to attention and ordered them to follow her in. When they walked in she stepped off to one side. She was pleased to see both marched over to the desk. Instead of saluting both lifted their chins since the other two were supernatural's. It was their community's method of saluting.
"Cadet Controller Whitewater reporting as ordered." Mila lowered her head and met both sets of eyes before staring at one ear of the male. In this case she knew he was more senior simply by the scent alone. She was waiting for Holcum to see if he could identify the type of creature they were.
Holcum had come to attention alongside Mila and once she had spoken he did as well. "Cadet Whitewater reporting as ordered." His nose was twitching as he took in the scents in the room. The scent was familiar but that was the most he got from it. He also met their eyes and settled on the male's ear. In this case it was because the man was seated in the larger desk.
Daichi had looked up when the door opened and his eyes traveled over the two as they walked in. When they did greet them in the accepted method for the service he was very pleased. Though Were's and supernatural's were rare in the military due to the requirements he had met more than a few. Most were decently trained but some had to be broken in so to speak. He was more than capable of breaking them in and bringing them into the military code of conduct. When they introduced themselves he mentally frowned since the name 'Whitewater' was familiar. He couldn't quite bring the memory to the forefront of his mind. *Ayaka look up Whitewater. I should have but was too pissed last night. The name is familiar.* "At ease Cadets. I am sure you know why you are here. I have some questions for you as I am sure you know."
Ayaka met their eyes as well and was very pleased with their actions. *Not a problem and his father is the mate of the Pride Leader of the Whitewater Pride. They are a pride of lions, tigers, and hybrids. Both are Ligers because his mother is a lion and his father is a tiger. His father was involved in the wars of unification. Much of his records are sealed but from what I found he is a very heavily decorated veteran.* She also found it interesting some of the awards were redacted as well.
Cadet Whitewater kept his eyes pinned on the man's ear. "I do understand sir but I make no apology for what I did or what I said." His voice was calm and even. Interestingly enough his cat was calm as well at the moment. Now when they faced that dick he didn't know but for the moment he was calm enough.
Daichi barely lifted one eyebrow at what both his mate and Whitewater had said. "Did I ask for an apology? Till I ask a question please don't presume to know what I want to hear." That was a light verbal smack down. It didn't matter that Whitewater was in the right but he needed to learn who was in charge. "I have reviewed the footage of what happened. You and your controller are here simply because I wished to meet you. I have already sent my recommendations to the Admiral." He focused on the male for the moment. The female seemed content to let the male do the speaking.
For a brief moment he had to wonder why before he inhaled and then very briefly twitched his lips. She was in charge. Based on their individual scents she was also a fair amount older. For Were's that was usually a moot point since they lived for a very long time. He had a feeling she was letting him put his foot in his mouth as well as learn from it. "Cadet my major concern is that you are capable of both controlling your inner cat as well as being controlled by your mate. That is why you are in my office. As far as Cadet Williamson what ends up happening with him is completely up to the Admiral."
Holcum couldn't help but flush slightly at the verbal slap and his cat wasn't very pleased either. Both knew they had spoken out of turn but he was not going to apologize for what he had said and done. "Understood sir and I will keep my cat under control. I have discussed this with my Controller and she is waiting in case her authority is needed Sir." He didn't move from the spot he was at and wasn't even twitching a muscle. Even though he was waiting for anything else to be said he was still trying to identify the scent of the other.
Daichi remained seated in exactly the same position he had been in when they came in. He as well as Ayaka extended their senses and from what he could feel the cat was relatively calm at the moment. He could also tell the Controller was confident in her abilities also. He finally gave both a good nod. "I do not expect to see you in my office again. I expect you to keep your nose clean and your claws under control. Dismissed." He turned back to his computer.
Miller took charge and ordered them to follow her. She led them to the Admiral's office and reported to his assistant as well. It was the young officer who had been on stage the day before. "Reporting as ordered sir." She informed the officer.
He glanced at the three of them. "Have them stand at parade rest by the wall over there. Cadet Williamson and his escort will be here momentarily." Till the title Cadet was removed the young man would still be addressed that way. He hated to say it but this was going to be an interesting meeting and not in a good way. For the comments from the one young man alone he could go to jail, well the brig, for enough time to destroy his future. On top of that it would be within Cadet Whitewater's rights to demand the challenge be accepted.
As he was waiting for the other to arrive he sent the Admiral a message informing him the were-cat's were there. It was only a few moments later when Cadet Williamson arrived with two MP's. For the moment he was dressed in the cadet's uniform. He was definitely looking somewhat the worse for the wear. There was a nice bruise on one cheek and his neck had plenty of bruises as well as a claw mark or two.
As soon as Williamson walked in Holcum felt his cat start growling quietly. For the moment both were under control and Mila wasn't going to need to do anything. He was still rather upset about what had happened the evening before but he wasn't going to shame his mate. As he was waiting to be called into the Admiral's office Holcum was trying to working through some calming exercises.
It was maybe two minutes later when the Admiral's aide stood and opened the heavy wooden door. He stepped into the room and came to attention. "Order your troops Sgt."
Miller didn't bother glancing at any of the three cadets since if turned into a furball there wasn't anything she could do. "Atten-hut. Cadet and Cadet Controller Whitewater forward march." She called for Williamson to enter as well. The MP's stayed by his side proforma. Again if Whitewater lost it there wasn't much they could do. Once she had them in the room she had the two were-cats do a right face and form up to the right of the center of the desk. For Williamson she had him do a left face. "Senior Sergeant Instructor Miller reporting as ordered Admiral." She was standing between the two groups.
The Admiral looked up only this time he had an optical viewer over his eyes. They looked like an old fashioned pair of glasses and were linked to optical implants. His eyes traveled over the four and rested his elbows on his desk and laced his fingers together. The white and glossy scar tissue gave him a rather grim visage. Even if he hadn't had the scars both his disapproval and disgust were showing. When he finally spoke he did not sound at all amused or pleased.
"Cadet Williamson I cannot begin to explain just how your actions and words have stained the honor of this Academy. The unified military is to keep bringing this world together. It is to eliminate the causes of so many of the wars and vile acts done in the name of some tribe, religion, or even bigotry. By your comments you do not understand this concept. I don't know if you are simply mouthing garbage you heard from your parents and friends and I don't care. You have the right to think what you want and that is a right which was specifically written into the documents of the world constitution. What you do not have the right to is verbalize or allow your thoughts and opinions impact on others." His voice remained neutral as he spoke.
"I have reviewed the regulations, talked to my legal office, and taken in account the recommendations of the senior supernaturals on the station. Based on this I have several options. These options are not all inclusive but are the ones which meet the seriousness of this crime." When he noticed the cadet starting to look like he was going to say something the Admiral stopped what he was getting ready to say. "Cadet Williamson do not open your mouth. I am not asking for your thoughts or opinions. If you do choose to open your mouth anything you say will be reviewed and possibly added to the records. As I was saying the first option would be to allow the supernatural laws to supersede the military laws. If I chose this and Cadet Whitewater demanded a challenge it would be allowed to go forward. You not only slurred his family you also indicated that you feel the death of all supernatural's should be allowed and condoned."
"My second option is to have you evaluated by Mental Hygiene to see if personality programming might be needed. I have to admit this is the option I am strongly leaning towards since by your words I have to consider you to be a threat. I firmly believe that you wouldn't just allow your opinions to color your actions towards the cadets. I feel you would allow this to actively let harm come to the cadets or others due to this. As part of this I also have the urge to recommend a Courts Martial as well. You would be tried and if found guilty given a long sentence."
He didn't bother looking at the papers on his desk as he kept speaking. "The last option is to strip you of being a Cadet, have you evaluated by Mental Hygiene, and then send you home. This is the least preferred of my options since I do not think it would address the issue. For now I am going to hold off on making my decision till Mental Hygiene is done with you."
Now he turned and looked at Holcum. "Cadet Whitewater I am not pleased that you laid a hand on another recruit. I understand why but that doesn't change my opinion on this. I am going to have an entry made in your Cadet record. I will not allow this to happen again on my station and my Academy. The only exception to this would be in self defense or to save another recruit. Do not disappoint me. I am going to ask, not command, but ask that you withdraw the challenge you started to make."
If Holcum could stand up any straighter he would. This was much like when the senior supernatural had verbally slapped him down. "Yes sir, I understand sir. It will not happen again." At the Admiral's request that he release the challenge he had to struggle and it was obvious. His eyes started changing as he was having a discussion with his cat. He wasn't changing, just his eyes. He finally spoke. When he did his voice was somewhat guttural. "Sir, I Cadet Holcum Whitewater retract my challenge. I accept your final word on the judgment of how you deal with this situation." That had been very hard to say and forcing it out made his jaw ache.
The Admiral gave him an acknowledging nod. "Security remove the prisoner and take him to medical and have him checked in with Mental Hygiene. Cadets Whitewater what has been spoken of in this office will not leave it. Dismissed." He finally looked down at his desk as he started taking care of some paperwork. Once the Sergeant had led them out of the room he nodded to the door.
The Lieutenant closed it and settled down in a chair after being directed towards it. He waited for his boss to speak.
"God I want to toss the book at him and then see what might be able to be done with his family. I have been running this station for over twenty years and never have I felt so angry or disgusted." He took the glasses off and rubbed his temples. "Keep a close eye on both the were-cats and what Mental Hygiene has to say. Till we have an answer from Mental Hygiene I am not going to make a decision." As he was talking he heard his assistant stand and move over to the small bar. A few moments later a hot cup of Wattlecino was placed on his desk. It was one of the few habits he had brought with him from his native Australia. The biggest reason he enjoyed it was it was caffeine free and tasted like a mix of coffee and coco. "Thank you."
"I was already planning on that sir. Daichi has asked me to keep him in the loop as well. He was about as angry or more so than you were." He settled back down in the chair. "I did take a moment to review Cadet Williamson's history. Towards the beginning of the wars of unification a portion of his family were killed by rogue Were's. They Were's were selling their services to the highest bidders. To make it even more interesting they had a number of contracts from conflicting sides at the same time." He couldn't think of a better way of putting it. "Anyways buy the time all was said and done there were only about a dozen family members left. They had well over one hundred close relatives before it all started." It didn't excuse anything the cadet had said but he figured the Admiral wanted to know.
The Admiral leaned back in his desk chair and sipped on the drink. "That would definitely explain his reaction but it does not excuse it in any way. Forward the information to Mental Hygiene as well when you send my orders. It might give them something to work with to help correct the young man's issues." The idea of personality modification greatly bothered him. Even though the death penalty was no longer on the books in his opinion Personality mod was damn close. "Dismissed Lt and try not to generate too much paperwork for me today."
The Lt grinned. "I do my best sir." He stood and left the room.
~~~
As soon as they were dismissed all Holcum wanted to do was stretch his back and shoulders. From the moment Williamson walked in he had struggled to keep from doing anything stupid. From now on the other's scent was going to be viewed as a danger to the Pride. Not just a potential threat but a very real danger. Usually the way that was dealt with was eliminating the threat.
They didn't do that anymore since the supernaturals had come out of the closet. When they had been forced to come out the governments of the various countries gave them a choice. They either had to come up with a set of rules to abide by or be moved to very heavily guarded reservations. Thankfully that hadn't been a real issue, the rules, since they already had a set in place. What had made it more interesting was organizing the most dangerous of the supernatural into a ruling council. Now when a perceived or real danger was identified it was brought to the council. It was then brought to a human-supernatural court to be dealt with.
In this case his cat knew the other was a great danger and old instincts were kicking in. He had been doing okay till the Admiral and asked him to release the challenge. Holcum had come very close to changing and if Mila hadn't sent him a command to calm down he would have changed probably. Thankfully the Sgt was being silent as they walked back to the barracks. Once they arrived she did speak. "You have ten minutes till the next class starts. Cadet Controller comfort your mate and then report to it." She turned and went back to her room-slash-office and started filling out a report of the morning.
As soon as Miller left the room Holcum gave his shoulders and back a good stretch before turning to Mila. He pulled her close and tucked his nose into her hair and slowly inhaled. Holcum didn't spend too much time inhaling her scent before he pulled her into a good solid kiss. *Thank you for your help Mila. I was very close to losing it.*
She pressed her nose against his chest as well when he hugged her. She was as furious as he had been but both his mother and father had taught her well. Mila had very little concern about controlling her cat other than in a truly desperate situation. One item she had learned was by helping to control her mate's cat it forced her cat to remain as calm as possible. *You are welcome Holcum and you did well to control your cat as you did. Now as much as I would enjoy staying here feeling your lips against mine we need to get to class. If it helps it is the mandatory physical education and defense training.*
He couldn't help but let a pleased growl out. *That should help release the last of my anger. I just hope it doesn't cause more fear.* He was a damn impressive specimen even if he said so himself. Mila was just as beautiful in her other forms and he loved seeing her in them. After one last kiss he stepped back and checked his uniform before getting ready to leave. She did much the same and they followed the map and directions to the gym.
When they walked in they found there were the five groups of cadets from their intake. It only took them a moment to find their group and fall in. Moments later Sgt Miller walked in and looked around and nodded to her cadets. "Atten-hut. Today is to get an idea of what condition you are in. Depending on how long that takes we might make a start on identifying what self defense skills you might have. Cadet's Whitewater you are going to be working with Captain's Kuramoto for your evaluation." She told them to report to the front of the cadets.
Right about then the two senior supernatural's walked in ready to train. They walked up and stood in front of the cadets. "Morning Cadets and in this intake we have two were-cats. Due to what they are they will be trained separately except for group exercises and training. Since I am sure most if not all of you are likely to drop a weight or something trying to watch them change we will get that out of the way." He turned to the two. "Follow me; we have a separate section for your needs." It was just across the room but the weight machines tended to look more like industrial equipment.
He turned to them. "Both of you change to your hybrid form." This was going to be interesting since he had seen pictures of them in all three forms. They were damn fine specimens of their kind.
"Yes sir." Both replied and called forth their inner animal. At first the change was faint but suddenly both started growing in height and size. As they were doing this the suits were changing as needed to keep a modicum of modesty. Once Holcum was done he was very close to nine feet tall and had a golden tawny fur with a darker colored mane. As he had grown his muscles had increased as well and the only description for him was massive.
Mila wasn't nearly as tall and was just a bit less than eight feet tall. Her body was far more slender and lithe. Her fur was a similar color only she didn't have a mane. She did have hair but it wasn't very long and barely touched her shoulders. Both had a short muzzle, cat eyes, ears, and tail. *Damn that did help. My cat feels far more comfortable. Well other than the suit.*
The entire room was entranced though a few of the recruits were struggling to control their stomachs. The snaps, cracks, and pops of muscles, bones, and tendons were obvious and it was a rather nauseating sound.
Daichi looked up at him and was very impressed. The pictures didn't do the male cat justice. This was a proud Liger and it showed. "I will see about having your cadet uniforms adjusted so you have more material for when you shift." He glanced at Mila and gave her a nod. "Both of you are very impressive looking. Now change to your full form." He stepped back.
This was even more impressive. When both cats yawned and shook their heads he had to wince. "Great, now I am sure at least some are going to need to change their shorts." His voice was rather wry when he said it. "Since you are in this form why don't you go over to the treadmill and start running." He turned to the cadets. "One thing to keep at the front of your mind is when a Were creature changes the worst thing you can do is approach them. The change is painful and takes a short time for the last of the pain to go away. The second worst thing you can do is run. All Were's are based on a predator of some sort. When things run their first reaction is to chase it. Now that you have seen their other forms break up into your groups. Trainers take charge."
By the time training was over Holcum was feeling much better. He had been given a chance to mock fight with Mila in their cat form. To be honest both of them had played more than trained. Holcum knew it looked terrifying since it included lots of batting with paws, biting of the head and neck, and kicks. As they formed up to march out he sighed. "Sgt Miller permission to speak?"
She turned and looked at him. "Permission granted Cadet." This was probably going to be interesting.
He swallowed before speaking. "Sgt Miller during the change my suit tore and I should change it." The tear was in his crotch and he didn't feel like walking around like that all day. Holcum tried not to blush but he did at a muffled snort from someone.
Miller turned to the crowd. "I am pleased you found that amusing. Everyone drop and give me thirty pushups." When someone groaned she didn't even blink. "For the groan add another ten. For every additional sound other than counting I will contemplate what else you might need to do."
Holcum waited for Cadet Kask to order them to drop to push up position. As they started doing them they were counting. It was obvious that they weren't in time as they were doing it but thankfully Sgt Miller didn't say anything. Once they were called back to attention by Cadet Kask Sgt Miller spoke. "This is discipline people and not punishment. In the military if one person screws up it stands a very good chance of impacting on the entire crew. When one person screws up I will drop all of you. Cadet Holcum go change and report to the next class."
~~~
By the time dinner was over Holcum was ready to scream. *I thought homework for school was bad. I am not sure when I am going to find time to read, study, memorize, and repeat with everything they gave us.* His computer probably had an additional fifty operational and service manuals, instructions on how to stand a variety of watches, take over and turn over the same. There was instructions on first aid, about the various branches of the unified military, and... He honestly didn't know what all. They just kept appearing during the day from the wireless network.
Mila elbowed him. "How the hell do you think I feel? It has been a while since I was in school so you don't have any sympathy." The Cadets had been given a few minutes to organize their first allotment of new uniforms, uniform accessories, and toiletries. Even that was detailed since there was a layout you had to use.
Most of them had finished when Sgt Miller walked into the barracks again. "Atten-hut." She waited for them to form up and then walked the line and started making corrections on how they were standing. Once she had reached the front of the room again she looked at the cadets and gave them a slight nod. "That was adequate for your first real day here. Barely adequate but still adequate. As of now I am breaking you up into three groups of twenty five and one of twenty four. I am going to assign a recruit to be in charge. This will change on a weekly basis so all of you get experience leading." She didn't mention it gave them a chance to deal with screwing up as well since they would.
"Also each section is going to be assigned a specified job for week. The jobs will change the first day of the week. One of the groups are responsible for the cleanliness of the barracks room and facilities. The second will be responsible for cleaning a section outside of the barracks as well as some light maintenance. The third is responsible for cleaning other parts of the station. The fourth section is going to be standing fire and security watches. Tonight is your last night of sleeping all night. For now two sections will clean tonight and the other two a quick cleaning in the morning. The rooms and lockers will be inspected daily by me and at random times by other Instructors. The section surrounded by your curtains, other than the floor, is the responsibility of those sleeping there." She proceeded to give them some additional instructions before ensuring they knew what section they were in and who was in charge.
"Remember lights out at 2200 and reveille at 0600. The last hour is to take care of your private areas, additional studying, showering, and even sleep if you wish. Make wise use of it." She turned and left the room.
Nacy and Jace came over as well as one or two others. "Want to do some studying? I don't know about you but if I don't have someone to whine at this is going to drive me batty." Nacy was glaring at her computer screen as she was talking.
Mila gave her a commiserating look. "Tell me about it. Thankfully letting my cat out earlier helped and I feel less stressed now." She settled down on the bed and leaned back against her mate. They both needed the contact after the stress of the morning.
One of the cadets in the bed next to theirs gave Mila a curious look. "If you don't mind a personal question it sounds like you are somewhat older than most of us?" He had heard her muttering as they were putting their things away.
Holcum blushed again since he knew they were going to star at him when she answered. *Can you just say it is private and you don't want to answer?* He was not going to hold his breath on that but he could hope.
Mila had tilted her head at the boy when he started to speak and then let out a peal of laughter. "That wasn't what I was expecting at all. Yes I am older than any of you. Holcum is twenty and I am thirty five." She let her amusement flow back over the bond with him as he dropped his head against the back of hers.
"Thanks for nothing you cougar of a mate." He figured she deserved that for her teasing. When Holcum finally looked up he was right. He was being stared at by the group which had gathered around the two of them. "We normally live longer than humans so age differences aren't quite the same. When we reach our mid to late twenties we essentially stop aging. My mother, if you saw a picture of her, doesn't look much older than Mila. She was almost fifty when I was born."
Jace didn't even think when he spoke. "Well damn, that takes care of the old and wrinkly bit doesn't it?" He had to force himself not to stare at Mila since she honestly looked maybe twenty five.
Nacy instantly elbowed him in the ribs. "That was a mean thing to say. It is called aging gracefully you wretch." She glared at him and ignored his confusion. "Just for that I am going to ignore you and start studying."
Jace stared at Holcum with a confused look on his face. Holcum returned it and shrugged. "Sounds like a good idea to me. Thankfully they do have a time frame for when we have to have the reading done." He pulled his computer out and started reading.
~~~
By the end of the week the days had started to settle down into a routine. It was going to be changing after next week since the first two weeks were focused on the various indoc classes. They had been issued all their gear for the next part of training. Most of that was going to be a mixture of classroom and simulator. One thing they had learned was the next six months the training was exactly the same for everyone. This was to ensure all cadets had a solid base of knowledge of how the most common equipment was used.
The training included small arms, hand to hand, fighter training, shipboard weaponry, piloting a ship and more. The list of what they were expected to be familiar with by the end of the six months was impressive. Holcum looked at Jace as he was reviewing the list. "You know what is so impressive about this? It is that they expect us to remember anything by the end of the six months. Just looking at the list is making my brain want to explode."
Jace flopped back on the floor and settled for gently thumping the back of his head against it. "I used to think I was pretty good with learning things but this takes it to new levels. Thankfully we can use the sleep training for some of it."
Nacy came over and settled down next to Mila and lightly patted Jace on the head. "Poor poor cadet. Us females will take care of you." Even though Mila was so much older they were starting to become friends along with some of the others. For some reason Mila seemed to draw the females to her. When someone had a problem or needed to talk many would find her and get some sympathy.
Nacy looked at Holcum and Jace and contemplated them. Holcum was pretty cute but she so wasn't going there after reviewing some of the regulations on the handling of mates. Jace was pretty cute as well in a somewhat nerdy way. She knew that he didn't realize she liked him a fair amount. At a guess it was because he was a nerd and many females couldn't see past that. Since she had been a closet geek herself she had learned to ignore the classical good looks. "I just wish I could catch up on my sleep. The night watches really suck vacuum."
Jace groaned. "Don't remind me. I had the joys of guarding a trash compactor last night. What I am supposed to protect it against I am not sure. Maybe unauthorized disposal of a body?" He knew it was just to get them into the hang of it but it was just silly.
Holcum gave him a discontented hiss. "At least you don't have to stand in front of the armory door with a useless weapon. I can't get in and if someone really did want in what I am supposed to do? Beat them to death with the damn thing?" They commiserated for a while longer before breaking apart to go and shower before trying to sleep.