Part 10 (2/2)

July 1, 2394 AD Sol System, Oort Cloud Friday, 2:41 PM, Earth Eastern Standard Time ”Tommy, why don't you try this on for size?” First Sergeant Tamara McCandless handed the soldier a new insignia patch as they made their way down the corridor heading to the drop-tube hangar bay. All the AEMs had been ordered to battlestations. ”Congratulations, Gunnery Sergeant Tommy Suez.”

”Thanks, Top.” Tamara watched as he pulled the staff sergeant patch from his shoulder and stuck it in his pocket. He smiled thinly as he slapped the new rank insignia onto the shoulder of his UCU top. The patch melded with the fabric and then became seamless with the s.h.i.+rt. ”Now I'm making the big bucks,” he said with a laugh.

”You and me both, Tommy,” Tamara agreed.

”Any idea what is going on?” Tommy asked.

”Yes, the Ross 128 colony just seceded from the Union, and we're going to stop them,” Tamara replied with a calm, matter-of-fact tone to her voice. She didn't want to excite her new gunny.

”Holy s.h.i.+t! The president's daughter just went there.” Suez had briefly met her before she got all tangled up with the mecha jocks earlier in the day. He had followed Colonel Roberts' orders and went down to the hangar bay to meet the dignitary. He even got her autograph. Suez was a full-blooded true marine through and through, but he was also a Republican at heart. It had been a big thrill for him.

”You would imagine that the most powerful man in the known galaxy would get a little p.i.s.sed if his daughter were put in harm's way.” Tamara hadn't thought of that until now. She had been so busy all morning that she hadn't had any time to think of the dignitary visitor. But the President's daughter was trapped at Ross 128. She hoped somebody was going to go get her.

”Are we going to get her?”

”No, Gunny. We are going to take the QMT facility, transition it to a reserve team, and then drop to the planet below and take it.” At least that was how the colonel had described their mission.

About that time a young-looking Marine officer in UCUs rounded the corner in a hurry, headed in the opposite direction. He was the new second lieutenant the Robots were expecting. Tamara and Tommy stepped aside and saluted as he walked by; the new gunnery sergeant gave his best salute to the new second-ranking officer of the Robots.

”Excuse me.” Second Lieutenant Zachary Nelms nodded and kept on his way, not returning the salute. He looked very preoccupied to Tamara, but she didn't give a s.h.i.+t. The second lieutenant continued on in the other direction as Tamara and Tommy stood there holding their salutes and looking shunned. Tamara could see that Suez wasn't sure what to do in response, and, in fact, he was probably feeling a bit belittled by the lack of gesture. There were varying protocols for indoor and outdoor salutes, and there had been protocols for them on naval vessels throughout history. But with the advent of mixed forces on the mammoth supercarriers, the philosophy or rule of thumb of ”when in doubt, whip it out” had become the standard for saluting. It was a form of showing respect. And Suez and McCandless had just been disrespected.

”Well, that G.o.dd.a.m.ned little s.h.i.+t,” Tamara fumed. ”Excuse me a moment, Tommy,” she told Suez and headed back down the corridor after the young officer.

”Excuse me, Lieutenant, I'd like a moment of your time,” Tamara said as she hurried up beside the second lieutenant and looked down at him. She was nearly two meters tall and athletic as h.e.l.l. She had played both basketball and volleyball in college and probably could have gone pro. She might still after she retired and got her next rejuv, but for now she was happy being the SNCO of Colonel Ramy's Robots of the U.S. Marine Corp 3rd Armored E-suit Marines Forward Recon Unit. She was tall, muscular, and a trained heartbreaker and life-taker. Intimidating Intimidating would be a good word to describe her. would be a good word to describe her.

”Not now, First Sergeant, I'm in hurry,” he replied.

Oh, no, he didn't, Tamara thought. Tamara thought.

”Well, sir, then I'll walk with you, but you are going to hear what I have to say, sir,” Tamara said sharply and right to the G.o.dd.a.m.ned point. G.o.dd.a.m.n fresh-outs, G.o.dd.a.m.n fresh-outs, she thought. she thought.

”All right, First Sergeant, uh, McCandless.” He looked at her name tag as if making a mental note to report her later to the CO of the Robots.

”Well, sir, what do you see as the role of senior NCOs, sir?”

”The NCOs are to keep my marines and their equipment functioning as a well-oiled heartbreaking and life-taking machine,” the second lieutenant said with a whole lot more than just a hint of annoyance in his voice. He almost sounded perturbed to Tamara. She didn't give a flying rat's a.s.s.

”Yes, sir. That is half of the NCO's job. The other half of it is to act as an experienced advisor and mentor to junior officers, sir. You are a second lieutenant, sir, and have been active duty at best not even a year, sir. Most of the NCOs will have been in service for several years and even decades. Myself, I've been in twenty-one years, and Gunnery Sergeant Suez back there has eight years in, sir. I served at the exodus on the ground at Mons City at the battle for the main dome and at the Battle of the Oort. Gunnery Sergeant Suez back there was absolutely key in the victory at the Battle of the Oort. Saluting is a common courtesy and a show of mutual respect, sir. Mutual respect. Mutual respect. And not saluting is a d.a.m.ned p.i.s.s-poor way to slap the face of an enlisted person, whom you've never met and don't know from Adam, sir. Now, I'm most definitely not saying this out of vanity or need for you to salute me or to toot my own horn, sir. I'm saying this as your first mentoring session. We are about to stick our G.o.dd.a.m.ned heads into the mouth of the lion in a matter of minutes, Lieutenant, and you sure as s.h.i.+t don't want to start off by letting your soldiers think that you think you are above the common courtesy of saluting seasoned veterans of the United States Marine Corps, Sir!” Tamara gave the second lieutenant her best drill-sergeant glare and half expected him to jump down her throat and go tattle to the colonel. But the young officer's facial expression changed in a way that she didn't expect. And he stopped walking toward the elevator. And not saluting is a d.a.m.ned p.i.s.s-poor way to slap the face of an enlisted person, whom you've never met and don't know from Adam, sir. Now, I'm most definitely not saying this out of vanity or need for you to salute me or to toot my own horn, sir. I'm saying this as your first mentoring session. We are about to stick our G.o.dd.a.m.ned heads into the mouth of the lion in a matter of minutes, Lieutenant, and you sure as s.h.i.+t don't want to start off by letting your soldiers think that you think you are above the common courtesy of saluting seasoned veterans of the United States Marine Corps, Sir!” Tamara gave the second lieutenant her best drill-sergeant glare and half expected him to jump down her throat and go tattle to the colonel. But the young officer's facial expression changed in a way that she didn't expect. And he stopped walking toward the elevator.

”Thank you, First Sergeant McCandless for pointing that out to me,” he said and turned the other way in an even bigger hurry.

”Huh?” she said, surprised. What, no argument? That just takes all the fun out of this. What, no argument? That just takes all the fun out of this.

Maybe he's a good marine and just needed that lesson, her AIC added. her AIC added.

Well, his file looked good. And the colonel handpicked him out of his cla.s.s.

Tamara followed him back down the corridor but stayed far enough back to not look like she was following him. She simply kept him in view. Then the young lieutenant did the d.a.m.ndest thing. He chased Gunnery Sergeant Tommy Suez down and apologized to him. Then he shook his hand. And then he saluted him as crisply as any marine could.

Oorah, she thought. she thought.

Indeed, her AIC added. her AIC added.

Better send a note to the colonel that the new lieutenant and I had a run-in so it doesn't blindside him if he complains.

Affirmative. Memo sent, First Sergeant. I bet he never brings it up. Might be too embarra.s.sing for him. The colonel is talking to Colonel Warboys, and they have worked out a sketch of a battleplan. He says to get the Robots ready and to quit hara.s.sing his new officers. I'm DTMing you the battleplan now.

I see it. Looks awful familiar to me, Tamara thought. Tamara thought.

Reminds me of six years ago when we took another QMT facility, the AIC said. the AIC said.

Yeah, and it was a meat grinder then.

”Again, thank you, First Sergeant. Feel free to keep those mentoring sessions coming.” The second lieutenant hurried back by her, and she saluted him as he pa.s.sed. Second Lieutenant Zachary Nelms stopped and returned the salute.

Now we better get our a.s.ses in gear. Tamara hurried back in the direction of the hangar bay to catch up with Suez and the rest of the Robots. Tamara hurried back in the direction of the hangar bay to catch up with Suez and the rest of the Robots.

”What was that all about?” Tommy asked her.

”Just breaking in the new LT,” she replied. ”Tommy, get the Robots on line and ready to drop with the Warlords. The colonel is talking to Colonel Warboys right now about our strategy, but we will be dropped on the QMT facility with them, and our mission is to take back that pad. a.s.suming all that goes well, then we'll most likely be teleported to the planet to hold or take some ground there. We go in hot and loaded with everything we can carry. Got it?”

”Got it.”

”All right, all right, let's listen up,” Lieutenant Colonel Caroline ”Deuce” Leeland shouted from the nose of her FM-12 mecha. She stood there above all the pilots a.s.sembled in the aft cat room. Marine and Navy mecha filled the room as far as the eye could see hundreds of meters in either direction and several mecha deep above them. The floor was filled with pilots surrounding her plane. Behind them techs and robots scurried about, loading planes with missiles and ammo and recharging or repairing some component at the last minute. ”We have about fifteen minutes before we deploy. Fis.h.!.+”

”Hooyay!” Lieutenant Commander Karen ”Fish” Fisher-DeathRay's wingman-shouted.

”You have the G.o.ds of War. Your mission is to protect the ball with the Madira Madira in the center,” Deuce told Fish, meaning that the plan was for the G.o.ds of War to protect a sphere around the supercarrier and keep enemy planes off the hull of the s.h.i.+p. in the center,” Deuce told Fish, meaning that the plan was for the G.o.ds of War to protect a sphere around the supercarrier and keep enemy planes off the hull of the s.h.i.+p.

”Roger that, Deuce!” Fish shouted.

”Poser!”

”Hooyay!” the Navy commander shouted back.

”You take the Demon Dawgs to the bottom half of the ball and keep any resistance off the Utopian Saviors as we go to ground on the QMT facility. Keep those Seppie b.a.s.t.a.r.ds in the ball and off the ground, got it?”

”Affirmative, Deuce!”

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