[ti]Ep 3.5[/ti]Measure of a Man [Closed - Porter]

[Nathan Walker]

They said that the only thing constant in the world was change...

Nathan had known that it would happen sooner or later. In the military, it was only ever ‘up or out’. No matter how comfortable you were in your job, no matter how great of a subordinate you were, eventually you were either promoted or you had to leave the military. And now Lieutenant Adler was gone, transferred out to some other job in NEST. And when he’d asked if someone else was going to be coming to replace her, the answer hadn’t exactly been the one that he was expecting.
Lance Corporal James Porter, formerly of the United Kingdom’s Special Boat Service.

Lance Corporal...that was junior to Sergeant.

Shit.

A review of the Lance Corporal’s service record had put some of Nathan’s troubles at ease though. Standout member of the Royal Marines before joining the Special Boat Service. Multiple combat deployments to many corners of the globe. The fact that he had made it into the Special Boat Service, one of the most elite counter-terror groups on the planet showed that he had what it took to be an effective member of the team.

But still...it was important that Nathan meet this man face to face before they went into combat together. He needed to get a measure of this man before putting his life in his hand.

That had proven somewhat harder than he had expected, with some of the issues that had occurred in Nathan’s personal life and assuming a lot of what had previously been Lieutenant Adler’s responsibilities. Part of him wondered if perhaps he should put off the meeting then, since it was so soon after the funeral. No...as soon as he’d had those thoughts he pushed them aside. Carrying on with the mission is what Bob would have wanted, passing on the lessons that he had taught Nathan.

Normally this would have been a more formal affair, full presentation in dress uniform and all that. But given how much time had past since Porter had reported to Omega One and the command style that Nathan had decided to emulate, he decided to adopt a different approach. So after notifying the Lance Corporal that he wanted to see him in the Control Room’s TV area, Nathan sat down on the couch in his street clothes with a mug of black coffee and waited for the other man to appear.

[James Porter]

A meeting such as the one Porter was about to enter wasn’t unusual. Especially in the military. No matter where he had been sent, the Englishman had nearly always been ordered to meet several of his direct superiors so that not only they but also Porter could get an assessment on the individuals they’d be working alongside. A standard practice within the military.

It was crucial after all.

Both Porter and the men such as himself who volunteer themselves to a line of work that is defined by danger that at worst, leads to a date with the Grim Reaper need to be able to trust their lives in the hands of their comrades. Or else that Reaper who watches and waits in silence for its chance to seize some poor soul that cocks up and ends up on its Butcher's Bill. A bill that serves as the bane for every mother, father or loved ones waiting at home hoping never to receive the dreaded letter from a government official. That Butcher’s Bill is one this former Special Boat Services soldier has nearly found himself on. A scar that has been etched onto him which reminds him of the cost of mistakes on the field.

That is part of why he takes these requested encounters seriously. Porter must know whether or not the individual that is giving him orders knows how to do their job properly and if he can rely on them. Not only that but must show that he can follow orders when he must, and prove his competence to show that they can put their lives in his hands.

An effective system if done properly.

Unlike Nathan, Porter wasn’t able to get his hands on any records about the American Sergeant. Mainly because he is not a high enough rank to ascertain such documents. Another fact was that he simply wasn’t sure when the Sergeant would have contacted him to report for an introduction. But with how much time had passed, Porter had stumbled across some information through the good old fashion tradition that is as old as the concept of armies. Soldiers gossip.

Talking with the others on base, he had been told that Sergeant Walker was at least good at his job and knew what he was doing. Which should have been obvious since only the best are let into NEST. But at least hearing that was good confirmation that Porter hopefully shouldn’t have too much to worry about.

Porter had gotten up that day and dressed into his normal MTP uniform ready for the workday. He knew that the uniform of the day was more or less civilian clothing however due to habit the Englishmen hadn’t donned his non-military attire. So when the order came through to come down to the Sergeant, more or less saying he could come dressed as he was that to Porter at least was an invitation to come down however he wished. Which prompted him to ponder on possibly changing clothes but that line of thought ultimately led nowhere in the end.

Out of habit yet again, Porter marched into the control room twenty minutes ahead of the time he was meant to show up. That belief of showing up ten minutes early and then ten more minutes on top of that having been fully entrenched into his head during his time with the Royal Marines. He climbed the stairs to the TV area of the control room. Easily spotting a man sat upon a couch dressed in street attire. Not seeing anyone else, Porter assumed that this was the sergeant. Porter took several paces forwards until he was standing not too far away from the couch. With a click of his boots he halted his approach and stood himself at attention. Back straight and arms flat at his sides as he found a spot to stare at as he announced his presence to the other man.

“Lance Corporal Porter reporting as requested, Sergeant Walker.” His accent was quite distinct as he spoke. Keeping a very neutral yet respectful tone while his damaged face gave nothing away as he kept it straight. There was a slight doubt at the back of Porter's mind telling him that this might not be the Sergeant. He sure hoped it was or else this would be an utterly embarrassing.

[Nathan Walker]

The sound of footsteps was what alerted Nathan to the Lance Corporal’s arrival. A quick check of his watch revealed that he was about twenty minutes early. Hurry up and wait...heh. Some things were a constant across all militaries.

In all honesty Nathan probably should have expected what happened next. But even then, he was still taken aback a bit when he saw and heard it all happen. All the sergeant could do for a moment was stare at the Lance Corporal before he took another sip of black coffee, trying to collect his thoughts. Okay...this was going to be a bit of a learning experience for everyone involved...

“At ease.”

He took another sip of coffee before standing up and turning to properly face Porter, taking an opportunity to look the other man up and down.

Yeah...there were going to need to be some changes made around here...

“I’m sorry I wasn’t able to meet you sooner. We’ve had some organizational shake ups in the past few weeks.” he said as he extended his right hand to the other man.

[James Porter]

Despite the short silence, Porter didn’t allow that to distract him from breaking his statue-like stance. Simply content to stand at attention and stare at the wall. Letting himself drift away for a moment, he wondered if the Sergeant was surprised at the fact the English soldier had turned up in uniform or was just inspecting him. It’s not like he could look to confirm any of these ideas. Not that it mattered.

As the order to stand at ease drifted into the Englishman’s ear, Porter changed his stance. Widening his legs and stowing his hands behind his back. Right hand laying above the other as his thumbs interlocked with one another. With that he allowed his body to relax a bit more. It was at that moment where the Lance Corporal was allowed his chance to properly look the Sergeant up and down. At the moment there wasn’t much to say, the other man wore no uniform and had no patches so he couldn’t tell what outfit he was formerly a part of. At the very least he knew the man was an American. Walker certainly had the look of a soldier. Porter could at least gather that much.

“No need to apologise, Sergeant. It is what it is. I’m used to having organisation shake ups causing mayhem.” From Porter’s experience, International Joint Task Forces such as these were sometimes the worst for organisational chaos. Those at the top never made things easy for those at the bottom. If anyone had asked Porter if it had bothered him, he would have told them that it was a blessing that it had taken Walker a while to get to him. It allowed the Lance Corporal to adjust to life on the base easier. Get a better bearing on the whole alien situation just a little bit more.

Porter withdrew his right hand from his back. He extended it and grabbed Walker’s hand. Giving him a hard and firm handshake as he offered the Sergeant a nod of his head. “Nice to finally meet you Sergeant.”