Early the next morning, Alexander stood at the gates of the fort.
"C-Commander, there's been an incident between the First Sergeant and the General…"
One of the sentries whispered to Alexander, stepping forward.
She struggled to hold Alexander's confused gaze.
"What happened?"
Then the sentry scratched her cheek.
"Uhm, he tried to kill her, and two of us, and Klaus… then he was arrested."
The color drained from Alexander's face.
"How in the hell did that happen?! Did Inés provoke him or something?"
The sentry shook her head as she stared at the ground.
"H-he… he got mad about the training. At least that's what I heard."
Alexander blinked, looking down on the sentry.
"Why did he get mad at her? He's in charge of it–"
He paused, realizing exactly what had happened.
"She took over training, didn't she?"
He finally asked in a low voice, massaging his temples.
"Y-yes sir."
Alexander gripped his face, the muscles straining in his hand.
"Where?"
The sentry flinched at his tone.
"H-h-he's in the stockade!" She backed into the fence, freezing at its touch. "A-a-and the general she's in… her office."
Her voice was a quiet squeak as she gripped her rifle.
Alexander stormed into the base, his golden eyes narrowed as he headed straight for Inés' office.
Marines scrambled out of his path, until the only thing standing between him and Inés was the two Corporals.
Their eyes widened with terror as they crossed their rifles against the open entrance.
"No one is allowed entry due to an earlier incident, but if you wish to speak with the general I can tell her."
It was Iris who spoke, her tone soft but defiant.
Alexander looked past her, at Inés who quietly filed reports behind her desk.
"Get out of there, now."
Inés didn't move at the order.
"Corporal, the commander wishes to speak with me."
Her pen quietly scratched against a report, "he is not barred from my office, ground your arms."
The corporals visibly deflated, stepping aside and lowering their rifles.
Alexander stalked past them, stopping right in front of her desk.
"Look at me when I talk to you."
Inés lowered her pen, meeting Alexander's gaze with a calm silence.
"Sir?"
Alexander leaned forward.
"You've got five seconds to explain why you took over training and arrested my best officer."
His eyes narrowed.
"And if I don't like your answer, I will kill you and your pathfinders. I refuse to be disrespected by someone I appointed."
Inés remained unfazed.
She knew that threat had weight, the boy had killed a warhound at six.
But Inés knew that if she backed out now, everything she had fought for would've been lost.
"You will not kill me, because I did what my job required."
She stood to her feet.
"You wanted me to handle the logistics, and I handled it. It's your sergeant who didn't like it."
Alexander tilted his head slightly.
"I did not appoint you to handle the training, did I? Had you not gotten trigger-happy, none of this would've happened. So, why did you do it?"
Inés placed a hand on her desk.
"The First Sergeant's methods were a drain on our already limited supply. I offered something more efficient. He refused to work within those boundaries, so I deferred to Royal Army training."
She crossed her arms. "I did not 'take over.' He threw a tantrum and I cleaned the mess."
She gestured outside.
"If you don't like what you see, find someone else who can work with your limited resources."
Alexander growled, putting everything together.
In the two days since he left, Inés clamped down on Wagner's waste.
He responded by refusing to train the soldiers.
She responded by training them herself.
And so Wagner decided to kick in her door and threaten her.
So she arrested him.
She hadn't acted out, in fact, she persevered his corp to the best of her abilities.
And it was Wagner who threatened to rip it apart at the seams.
All because he wanted supplies Alexander didn't have.
And suddenly he realized just how bad his corp was.
With a man like Wagner at the head, his marines would've fallen apart the moment anything other than a soldier challenged them.
Hunger.
Weather.
Disease.
Alexander tightened his fists at the realization.
"Ahhh, DAMN IT."
Davout was right…
Charlotte was right…
Inés…
"DAMN IT ALL!"
He stormed out of her office, breaking into a sprint towards the stockade.
Papers fluttered in his wake.
Inés remained poised a second longer, before letting out a shuddering breath.
Her hands shook as she unfolded her arms.
Alexander stopped at the stockade, where two sentries stood.
They turned and jumped, surprised by Alexander's sudden presence.
"C-commander!"
The women panicked, scrambling to salute.
Alexander pushed past them, staring past the iron bars that held an exhausted Wagner.
He had been pulling on his chains for hours, hurling insults and barking.
"Wagner!"
Alexander barked, gripping the bars.
Wagner slowly looked up, his eyes wide as a smile returned.
"Thank fuck!" He cheered, his voice hoarse. "Ya gotta get me outta here, then we'll handle that bitch in your office."
Alexander glared at him in silence.
Wagner chuckled.
"Wait, did you already kill her? Damn boss, that's hard core… but that's why you're in charge, right?"
Alexander ripped the bar from the wooden frame, the sight making Wagner grin harder.
"Attaboy!"
Alexander held the bar like a weapon as he slipped inside.
He stopped in front of Wagner, his knuckles white.
"Did you refuse to train my marines because Inés limited your supplies?"
Wanger blinked in confusion.
"What?"
"Answer the question."
Wanger raised an eyebrow, nodding.
"Well, yeah… how the hell am I supposed to train them when I can't hurt 'em? Put fear in their hearts with the sound of gunfire and broken limbs."
He chuckled.
"It's what you wanted, because you know what happens when soldiers aren't prepared for shit to get real. They get scared, they run, and they die."
Alexander gritted his teeth.
"And what happens when they run out of food, Wagner? Are they supposed to eat the sand?"
He stepped closer.
"When they get sick, are they supposed to fight the bug that gave it to them?"
He stopped.
"I used to think you knew what you were talking about, because you were the only one laughing in the chaos."
He raised the bar above his head.
"But now I know you were laughing because you were a fool. You're no longer useful to me, Wagner."
Wagner's eyes widened as his imminent death dawned on him.
Then, in a surprising move, he laughed.
"So all that shit you were talking about on that boat? It was a bunch of lies. You ain't ready to become a monster, you're still the scared boy who got a hundred men killed. All because he didn't wanna shoot a few slaves."
He laughed harder.
"Go on then, end it! I was tired of this shit anyway!"
Alexander froze, before lowering the bar.
"No."
Wagner raised an eyebrow.
"I'm not becoming your monster, Wagner. Because your monster is weak and simple-minded."
He tossed the bar aside.
"I was going to give you the decency of a private and quick death. But now, I want the base to see how I personally handle failure."
He turned to the sentries who stood outside.
"Gather everyone on base, tell them to prepare for Wagner's court-martial."