Hongli narrowed his eyes as dust kicked up by the Landcrawler's operations fluttered through the air. As the hatches opened and he got a glimpse of the interior, his understanding of what an unorthodox unit the 101st truly was was reinforced. Hongli's previous assignment to the LDF was less than glamorous; border duty, mostly. It was a far-cry from his experience with the Xiguang Principality Royal Guard. Back in the Principality, Hongli was a pilot of the esteemed 3rd Royal Guards, nicknamed the "Black Lancers." It was a prestigious position, and there was certainly evidence he had the privilege of becoming a member due to circumstance of his birth. After fleeing the North, joining the LDF was like starting all over again, without those benefits. The 101st, however, seemed to be a little closer to home than his former, regular LDF unit.
	The ramp of the Landcrawler fell open, and Hongli recognized the figure of Colonel Blade, complete with prosthetic arm. He liked the way the Colonel carried himself from he reports - firm and undoubtedly in control, but hardly uptight or by-the-book. Results were what mattered, and ends justified means, regardless whether they were thought up in a military academy textbook or on a paper napkin on the field.
	As a fellow trainee to his left approached the Colonel, Hongli followed and saluted in kind. 
	"Trainee Hongli Lang, reporting, Sir." Putting his given name before his family name still felt strange to him, and his accent was still moderate.
	As he saluted, the wolf's eye caught a glace of Landren's flag on his arm, and for a moment he remembered when his uniform used to bear the Xiguang Principality patch instead. He supposed those days would be long gone, but inside, he ached to pilot for his country again - only for the country it used to be, rather than that it had become.