Chapter 44 Career Path While life at Sidherthan Academy quickly went back to normal the next major event for all the first-year students was of course their Career Paths. “Today is your lucky day. Today is career day.” General Salermo who oversaw running the Academy, began speaking. “Now you might ask yourself why we wait until the end of your first year here to determine how to train you, the answer is simple. Time.” The old general who wore so many medallions and pendants on his outfit that some had to be overlapped and stacked on top of one another, paused. He had given this speech many times, but this time was different. Now he had three sets of royalty in attendance. While the Princes and Princesses from Piran and Belkins were not fully intended to be part of the military, their form of tuition came from a hefty fee for each attendee. A fee that the headmaster had thought would be too exorbitant that one student’s tuition would be enough to keep the academy running for a year. Now they had to host no less than ten such students from each country. Five students each, with five personal guards made for a total of 10 years’ worth of funds by each country. Sweat rolled down his brow, for not only were the dignitaries from the two foreign countries in attendance, but also the twins Lauren and Lawrence were in attendance. Both of whom would also go through the process of picking a military career. This was a nightmare, plain and simple. He had lived in and survived through the last Azani war, and in all his years of life this was the most flustered he had ever been. Shaking his head, he continued his speech just as he had for the past twenty years. “Time is needed both by us and by you. During your year here, you were tested and pushed beyond the limits of what you thought possible. Pushed beyond the position many of you originally entered here with. Looking out I see many people who have now advanced from their original entry position, this is not by chance. The first year is designed to push you all beyond your limits to see if you have what is required to rise above the common, into the uncommon. Some have gone from cadet to officer.” Salermo paused as he looked at Javison, Liana, and Illia, all of whom came in as entry-level cadets. But now all were in the officer curriculum. “While others have gone from mere officers to the elites of our military.” Then he turned his gaze to Jema and Hanna who had risen so his as to go from the officer program to the elite officer program. “While others have gone beyond everyone’s initial expectations and risen like a phoenix from the ashes of possibilities.” Then his eyes paused on the one troublemaker, a boy who had gone from an entry level nothing to an elite officer. A permanent black eye that showed somewhere along the lines they had not done their due diligence when screening the recruit. As an Elite Officer he would be able to have the most resources needed to further his career, and worse with his one for one contract he would be out before the military could reap the rewards. One could say that the dragons he managed to fell during his observation tour was more than enough to cover his entire career, which it was. But so much potential lost. Shaking his head, he continued. “The changes you see before you are not new, they happen every year. Therefore, the first year is treated as general studies and initial training. Here we have gathered a baseline of where you are in the Three-‘Ms’; Mentally, Magically, and Morally. These three ‘Ms’ will be what defines your career path for the rest of your time here at this academy, and throughout your entire military career.” “Without Magic none of you would be here. You would have likely been accepted at one of the various trade schools throughout the country, but to attend the Sidherthan Academy we all know one needs Magic Potential. But what of the other two, mentally is the determination of our evaluators of how well you can learn new concepts being thrown at you. While morally is the most important to our nation, as it determines whether you will act right, when no one is watching. When everyone of your friends is knocked out by a surprise psychic dragon attack. Will you do what is right to not only protect your fellow classmates, but also protect your fellow brothers at arms.” General Salermo said, stopping with his gaze directly resting on Lykan Vita. “I suppose it goes without saying that our top and brightest student this year’s class, is also a student with the highest rating in all three ‘Ms’ this Academy has seen in quite some time. With that I bring you Elite Officer Candidate Vita, who will have first choice of career paths available.” Salermo said, pointing to a wall of classes and career paths behind him. Moving before his fellow cadets, Lykan Vita came forward glanced over the wall. “Now I will tell you, the entire board is open to you.” This was said more in a chance to give Lykan time to find the exact path he wanted. “It should be…” “Found it.” Lykan said, while pulling a slip from the wall and handing it to the commander. “Aerial Engineer, Research, Development, and Testing.” The General was floored, no one went for this career path, it was almost certain death. Then he remembered who the boy was in front of him, a boy who could fly like the Azani if he so wished. Seeing the boy, and his path a sigh of relief filled him. Normally this was a career path given to the biggest delinquent, one who still wanted to train at the academy but failed at one of the three ‘Ms’ so badly that they were forced to choose last. There were always slots available for Aerial Engineers, particularly those in the Research, Development, and Testing. Mainly because most who joined were often crippled from different experiments before their time or military service came to an end. They were also the ones who were expected to go out during the worst of conditions to fix different parts of the blimps they were assigned to, regardless of external conditions. Most often this meant they had to go up during a severe thunderstorm, or when dragons managed to knock loose something of importance. Hearing the choice, many in attendance gasped. While the Aerial Engineering section of the school was one of the most well-funded, and the RDT section was particularly well off due to the want to draw in more people. The fact that such a promising student would throw away their lives for such a profession was almost unheard of. “Great Choice.” Salermo found himself saying. Everyone was silent at first, wondering if they misheard the career path. Here was a student who had risen above everything, had proven himself time and time again. A person who most of the staffers secretly respected, due to his never demanding more than a servant, not even moving out of his servant’s room that he had been assigned upon initial entry to the school as Telka’s translator. Now he had a chance at any career path, and he chosen RDT? RDT who most of the cadre secretly referred to as Return Dead Trainees, for it was the part of the school that was the most dangerous. Even worse than officers who trained to be front line field officers. The Homestead Seven were the first to start applauding, not quite aware of the implications of RDT. Soon everyone else started clapping woodenly, until Salermo could go onto the next few students. “Telka…um. Just Telka.” Salermo said catching himself. Telka came up and quickly found the Advanced Healer career path and handed it over to Salermo. With that, Salermo took a much-needed sigh of relief wondering if anyone would be so foolish as to follow the boy down his path of madness. Fortunately, all the other students all went down a career path that was fairly straight forward. Javison, Liana, and Illia all chose to path that would let them fight as a unit. As they all took complementary classes of war-wizards. War-wizards were often somewhat weaker mages who were taught to train together as a team to take down larger enemies on an enemy battlefield. They were sent in as a strike squad and had very little training in the way of large-scale troop tactics, and instead were often assigned a squad. This squad generally became known as the errand boys for the different officers they were assigned to. It was the squad member’s job to take care of coordinating transportation, lodging, and meals for the officer. With so many, one would often be assigned to carry the personal luggage and gear of the officer as well. The squad members would also be trained in using rifles and newer weapons, so they could provide some defense for the officers they were assigned to. In fact, most officers were given several subordinates equal to their career path. The only time when no squad members would be assigned were in lowly, or dangerous fields like Aerial Engineering’s RDT. While an Aerial Engineer maintainer could be expected to have one or two members under their command. The RDT members were never assigned squad members, since no one would sign up to work under a failed officer who was just as likely to develop something that would blow up in their faces, as would work correctly the first time. Once the homestead seven were through, there were still quite a few other candidates who had to be given tasks. While the twins were in attendance, they had their official tasks reserved for them. These tasks were assigned the day before. Lauren had chosen Archmagi select, figuring that this would be the field of study Lykan would go down. To her dismay Lykan had chosen the exact opposite career path. To her surprise, her brother’s chosen path of Artificer was more closely related to Lykan’s intended field of study than her own.