"Colonel, new orders have arrived."
A knock on the door and the captain's call woke Benedict. He forced his eyes open and stared blankly at the somewhat blurry ferrocrete ceiling.
One second, two seconds, three seconds. After taking a deep breath that fully expanded his lungs, Benedict rose from the bedboard covered by a thin blanket, threw the coat hanging from the stool over his shoulders, and headed outside.
"Captain Aurora." Benedict greeted the captain of the 1st Company of his 101st Armoured Regiment, who was also the commander of the regiment's second Doomblade tank.
Accepting a steaming cup of Reka Coffee from Captain Aurora, Benedict thanked his new captain for his thoughtfulness.
The two walked along the trench toward their regiment's armoured maintenance area, chatting as they went.
"Aurora. To be honest, this is the second time I've encountered that name. Before I met you, I thought that pretty sergeant would be joining my regiment." Benedict smiled and stepped aside to let two soldiers carrying ammunition pass.
"The second time? What did he look like? Don't tell me he looked anything like me?"
"No." Benedict shook his head. "Completely different. That Aurora was a woman, while you're a man. Her skin was a little rough, but fairly pale. You, on the other hand, are so dark you look like you've just been dug out of a coal mine."
Benedict looked Captain Aurora up and down. He was a slight man, the complete opposite of the musclebound heroes on recruitment posters. His brown eyes differed from those of Cadians, and tucked into the leather case at his waist was a Cadia adaptation handbook issued by the Departmento Munitorum. All of this proved that Captain Aurora came from another world, while Sergeant Aurora, whom Benedict had met before, was a true-born