Raising Up Those Will Follow

Posted on Mon Jul 20th, 2026 @ 1:00am by Centurion Hatham tr'Krotash & Subcommander Kaiae t'Lien
Edited on on Mon Jul 20th, 2026 @ 1:02am

2,373 words; about a 12 minute read

Mission: Intermission: Safe Haven

Outside of one of the cobbled together structures on what was hopefully a temporary colony, given it was really only marginally habitable, a collection of youngsters, from younger children up through teenagers, were gathered in a couple of groups, each group with a few adults attending it. One of the older groups was watching intently as two of their number circled one another in the dirt nearby; but this was no schoolyard brawl - it was a lesson in progress.

The pair in question - the older of the two children Vareth had taken for her cousin, 15 year old Torren, and Seira's eldest niece, 14 year old Zhara - seemed relatively evenly matched. This was likely a product not just of age but prior circumstance when it came to this particular skillset: The son of a government staffer in the capital, and the daughter of a centurion: The sort of people who through resources or connection could afford or manage training for their children beyond what was provided in school; but not possessing the levels of wealth or influence that could gain access to personal retainers or private tutors.

"....Well. Your students appear to be doing better than mine at the moment, at least." Vareth said quietly as she paused in her walk by the collection of students next to their instructor at the moment, Hatham's father Valdus, and watched. She had spent the better part of the morning attempting to teach math, herself; but she was not, when it came down to it, the best teacher; mostly because teaching was not an area she had ever dabbled in until now.

"They've had good tutoring before me," Valdus observed as he watched the pair. They were taking the time to assess each other instead of rushing in, which put them ahead of most farmer's kids, but... "Torren! Watch her EYES!"

The boy instantly snapped back from whatever part of her budding chest he'd noticed to locking eyes to watch for the moment she'd choose to strike.

Valdus shrugged eyebrows as he glanced back to Vareth. "Decent tutors anyway. I'd have beaten wandering eyes out him long before now. Zhara could have struck at that too, but I won't reprimand too much there as a girl shouldn't let herself learn to count on that on sort of thing."

"Not unless her opponent is a Ferengi, at any rate." Vareth chuckled, but there was an undercurrent of frustration and bitterness to it; the banker had found herself taking the lead in many of their dealings with the overgrown sets of ears; both from particular skillsets and from being the official owner of the colony's Bank of Ferenginar account; and she was rapidly becoming annoyed at the fact that at the moment, the Ferengi - and nearly any other group the colony might deal with - had the upper hand; which called for a careful, calculated approach but also a more deferential one than she might otherwise have preferred to adopt. And every one of the calls she had made to them over the last half-year had consisted in part of them starting exactly at the...assets...on her chest, not the ones on her balance sheet.

She watched the two teens again for a moment, another concern itching at the back of her mind as she realized there would be, now, nowhere for them to further their training in a few years more as they might have before, and go from being effective at the individual level to being able to be such as a group. For that matter, most of the adults could probably use a refresher on that as well; that last time she'd been in any physical conflict requiring coordination with others herself in the last few decades, it had been to help the bank security team throw a belligerent drunk man out of the building, which wasn't exactly an impressive resume. "Have you given any thought to how best to go about building a more effective defense that can be drawn on if need be for the colony?" She was fairly certain he would have; if she was thinking of it, he'd probably thought it through weeks ago.

"Ie." He half smiled at her. It was good their banker, who had by her importance to what constituted the colony's treasury was a leader here, understood the need. "I've been talking to a few of the Galae vets about setting up a militia. And offering individual combat training to any who have the ability to take it." He couldn't order anyone to attend at present and understood that all the small children plus setting up housing and trying to eke crops out this soil, there was limited time and energy among the able-bodied adults. But with some better organizing, that could change, and he knew that most here wanted to be better able to defend their new found freedom.

"Good." Vareth technically - along the majority of adults - counted as one of those veterans herself; but her completion of the minimum term of service for an officer, decades ago - most of it spent at the time dealing with supply lines and the like - didn't exactly qualify her for designing or running militia training. Though it did, for better or for worse, seemingly qualify her for everyone deciding to run to her with issues ranging from food stores to energy reserves. "I've been further compiling a list of the various professions and skillsets possessed by the adults, outside of those sorts. Frankly, it would make sense to move the adolescents from this - " she indicated the makeshift school various adults were conducting in the other groups nearby " - to pairing them with those who could take them as an apprentice in some area they show aptitude for." In what time is left for the adolescents or the adults that is not spent building and farming, that is, she thought.

Valdus tipped his head, thinking. He'd begun training Hatham to take his place almost from his first steps. The intent had been service in the Galae, then return and become assistant Weapons Master before assuming the role in full. But that had been before the new lordling... though perhaps D'era had made a way for them in that as they might have had no rescue if his son hadn't been forced to mercenary service. It still rankled that he'd had to rely on his remissions, but now he had a chance for a second chance at the dignity and respect that had once been his. And this time serving the people rather than some noble house, so the place would be there for his son... "I could take on some of the more promising of these students as apprentices. With all the little ones and new ones expected, we'll soon have more students than one Weapons Master can effectively train."

"Yes...that's been an issue with the food, really, too, or may be in the near future. We have enough to allocate for now - barely - but the number of pregnant women has grown in the last few months; and within the year the number of infants will, as well." It had been decades since her own experiences there, but Vareth could remember being ravenous during all three of her pregnancies, as well as while nursing; and even beyond that, recalled her children being effectively bottomless pits for food during a good deal of their first twenty years. "As for promising students...do you actually have any?" One of her eyebrows rose slightly; to her eyes at least, Torren and Zhara for example might have somewhat above-average skills for their age thanks to better training to date; but neither was outstanding. Either there were better students somewhere amongst their classmates, or Valdus was planning to just grade on a curve and make the best of what he had available. Which was, honestly, what they would all have to do at the moment.

"Not as many as I'd like," he admitted. "But there are a couple cadets who managed leave from the Academy to meet a transport. Also, some of the kids from mining colonies have decent basics and an awareness of who and what's around them that shows real potential for the right training." He supposed since even the 14 year olds had begun going down in the mines it was something they had to develop early. Plus, there was a toughness and stubborn courage that could be directed to combat. They'd eventually make good militia even if they didn't work out as weapons instructors. "My wife has identified a few girls to add to our daughters for training as vinters and horticulturists too. Have you identified anyone you'll be taking as apprentice?"

"Not yet. Other than decent math skills - ideally actual accounting, but I could teach them that if need be - I'd be looking for someone with 'people' skills, good negotiator - or signs they can be trained for it; an analytical mind that can see detail and big picture alike, and good organizational skills. That's a fairly tall order for a 17 year old or such; mostly because they tend to lack, well, maturity." She chuckled; she had lacked it herself at that age; though gained it quickly over the next years following as anyone training to join the officer ranks, even the most new and junior who planned to leave once their term of service was up, was expected to become mature enough in short order by the end of their training years to lead if need be. "I may start looking at the younger adults, instead; see if anyone is interested."

Valdus gave a short approving nod. He'd overheard that others were planning to approach her on this, but concerned about setting the right tone that didn't make it feel like a matter of political maneuvering and control. With her broaching it, he could put the matter plainly and as a party with no interest in having a 'piece of her pie' as the humans might put it. "Better sooner than later then. Others will be looking to pick some of those up as assistants, and honestly, we need for you to have backup. No one should be irreplaceable, but right now, you very nearly are."

"Technically, there are a few others listed as authorized users or as successor owners of our account; and I'm sure the several among us who used to be small business owners have negotiated contacts before. Though when it comes to the issue of catching any Ferengi attempts to pull one over on us and 'adjust' our accounts...You may unfortunately be correct on that one at the moment."

Vareth sighed; because even those who had previously managed accounts and finance and payroll for a business generally did not have that level of experience, based mostly on a usual lack of wider galactic exposure. Technically speaking, she wasn't really supposed to have such, either; the Bank of Ferenginar account had been a very, very well kept secret she'd set up in the months leading up to the disaster to fund the evacuation efforts; its existence could well have gotten her not only fired but imprisoned. Though, considering the embezzling she had funded the account with could have gotten her executed, it had been a small concern that where she chose to place the funds could have carried penalties of its own; and been worth the extra fees and additional annoyance of dealing with Ferengi to know that the funds were unlikely to be divulged to the Empire, because if there was anything that species took seriously, it was money.

"I've considered moving our resources elsewhere; but - " she grimaced for a moment " - any institution within our own space is out, for obvious reasons. Not to mention the exchange rate is atrocious at the moment, also for for obvious reasons. Most Federation banks are out too given their rules; and if we thought the Ferengi are hard to deal with we don't want to try our hand with Syndicate." She paused for a moment as Torren and Zhara finally begun to tangle in earnest, then continued as she watched. "I'll probably start the search with the former business owners; at least they likely know the basics of accounting, and of 'not insulting your customers'. Anyone else you'd think I should keep in mind that may be worth look at as well?" Here, Vareth doubted he'd have much of an opinion in terms of people's accounting acumen; but he wouldn't have survived as long as he had in the position he had once held - or rather, in the environment those he had served operated in - if he didn't have a habit of observation-as-default for almost anything and anyone around him.

He thought on that for a few beats. "Trustworthy and smart enough to learn the accounting are probably the most important traits," he said finally. "And probably being a bit cut throat for dealing with Ferengi and any others who aspire be like them. I'm not sure who to point you to there, but I'll keep my eyes open."

Vareth's dipped her head thoughtfully; the addition of 'cut throat bureaucrat' to the list of explicit qualities she'd been building in her head was a useful one to have put into plain terms; a thing she was perhaps so used to being have having it was easier for another to see it than herself.

A few moments later, Torren, pinned by Zhara on ground, yielded the match, and the Vareth's eyebrow cocked back up again with another glance at Valdus. "Well. I'll leave you to the debrief of that; I need to go see about a supply delivery." She jerked her chin at the pair of now dust-covered teenagers rising up and brushing themselves off.

Valdus watched her go, a slight smile on his craggy features at having lit a needed fire. Then he turned and walked purposefully toward his students. "Torren. You were pinned. What did you do wrong..."

RSS Feed