Volume 2 - Interlude 62.5: Keeps
| “When people talk about Legacies, they tend to romanticize the whole thing—like we’re some kind of noble houses of old-Terra chosen by fate to carve our names into the halls of the UHF. “That’s nonsense. “A Legacy is exactly what the name implies: A continuous passing-on of knowledge, sharpened and polished across generations. There is nothing mystical about it. “A Legacy exists because one generation of Marines trains the next, who then trains the next, and so on—until the knowledge stops being a pile of good habits and becomes a system; a method. A tradition strong enough to survive the shifting tides of doctrine, politics, and the very Galactic War itself. “In theory, any retired Marine who takes the time to teach their child about the Corps—its culture, its tactics, its way of life—counts as a Legacy. A generation can pass on a great deal. “But there’s a difference between handing over a few lessons and handing over more than six generations’ worth of refined doctrine, training structures, and hard-won insight. “One generation is practically nothing, in the grand scheme of the Allbright System’s complexities. Two is fragile. Three is promising. Only after at least six generations do you really get the beginnings of something worthy of the title of a Legacy. “That is where the divide between Minor and Major Legacies sits. “Minors are those families in the early stages—less than six generations deep. They may be talented, even exceptional, but they have not existed long enough to burn away their inefficiencies. Their teachings still wobble, their results are still inconsistent by the very nature of their lack of refinement. “A Major Legacy has endured long enough for its methods to become sharpened, tested, and, most of all, proven. “Now, don’t mistake this for misplaced arrogance. The Prime Legacies likely say the same about us—perhaps with good reason. Every rung of this ladder believes the ones above are overrated and the ones below are unpolished. “Tradition builds pride by necessity; and pride inevitably builds blind spots. That, too, is part of our Legacy: To impart the knowledge of this danger onto our children as well. “There is however, one truth we all agree on: The Allbright System does not allow for perfect preparation. No Legacy—Minor, Major, or Prime—can guarantee its children will follow the exact path you imagined for them. “We can shape them. Guide them. Give them every advantage our ancestors and we ourselves carved out. “But the System always introduces its own chaos. “So, what truly matters? The only thing that has always truly mattered in the UHF: Personal Merit. “The drive to carve out what is rightfully yours with your own two hands, the drive to be the best with your own blood, sweat and tears, and the drive to use whatever knowledge you are given, or can get your hands on, to your best advantage. “Legacies, in this dance, simply tilt the battlefield heavily in our favor, giving our children a head start toward this very excellence. “After that, it’s up to them to claw their way into history and leave even further improved foundations behind for their own children. ”That is what makes a Legacy.” — [Excerpt from an interview recorded for the Vespera System Historical Initiative (VSHI) – Raymond Oleaven Masters, Patriarch of the Masters Major Legacy, PFC927]
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