Regardless of how creepy or eerie the professor had proven, an XO was an XO. During his own personal training prior to being grouped up and merged together, military custom and courtesy had already been second nature to the young teen so that was never a problem. And whether he liked the professor and Lieutenant was irrelevant, protocol was protocol. While, yes, the professor seemed rather eccentric and eager, it was probably only natural as it seemed he had a rather heavy hand in the program, so being excited for seeing it flourish was natural. The brief went by quickly, the information that they would be pitted in an arena fight to decide who would be Squad Leader was unpleasant news. Not necessarily surprising, but unpleasant. With that, they were left to their own devices for the hour prior to them having to march off to mock war. Stukov wasn't interested in needless fighting, so that meant putting it down as fast as possible, and he was fairly confident in the Daemon's capabilities in that regard. But that was to be decided soon, so for now he focused on his peers.

The one girl looked already about to cry, and while he didn't recall a name for the girl, Stukov could not blame her for the feeling. He was no more looking forward to the fight than anyone else probably was. She piloted that egg shaped Framewerk, if the pre brief he had received before arriving was true. He almost felt sorry for her, it did not strike him as a heavy hitter like some of the Framewerk's present in this little gathering. But he wouldn't underestimate her, that would not end well. The young boy, younger than him, spoke up and spoke of it like a game. Roses, lots of roses, Stukov again resisted the urge to underestimate the flowery design that accompanied the Framewerk that the boy piloted. Roses have thorns, after all. But he couldn't treat it like a game, War was no game to be played idly.

Next up, Krista of the Archer Framewerk. That one concerned him in this upcoming fight, it rather outranged him and looked durable enough to take some hits and keep fighting. She seemed more interested in forming teams and self electing leaders in the fight, which was an interesting thought to say the least. She was promptly rebuked by another girl, a Lore of the Caliburn. That one looked as mean as quite a few other Framewerks, and he felt he had his work cut out for him in the Daemon the more he looked at the situation. He would have to play his cards right, then, and pray for his success if it was to be. Of course, not everyone could strike him as at least amiable, there always had to be the one in the group who insisted on being the thorn in their sides.

The kid who spoke up last was just that, and if Stukov's memory served, it was Miles of the Black Komodo. That kind of mentality would not help any of them, and as he finished speaking Stukov finally spoke up, arms crossed as he finally broke his own personal silence. No sense not at least introducing himself to the group, and when he began speaking on Miles' commentary, he would fix him with his own gaze the whole time. Stukov didn't like the idea that he intended for them to all be looking out for themselves alone, that was not how the military ever got anything done well. [color=9e0b0f]"Quite the group of pilots, from roses to archers, eh? Names Stukov, pilot of the Daemon Framewerk. And hotshot, our ability to win or lose this campaign will not be based on 'staying out of each other's way'. I don't think you get the idea of being grouped as a cohesive military unit. Part of this is going to be learning to be a cohesive unit, for not our sakes, but for every remaining humans. Our odds of success will be measured based on how we can cover each other's backs, plug the gaps that weaknesses and downsides of each Framewerk have. That lone wolf mentality is just going to get you, or worse, someone else killed. And until you drop that 'better than you', lone wolf mentality, all you'll be is a liability more so then anyone else here."[/color]