Battleship Destroyer (18 page)

Tapping his tactical he could see who was still alive and who was not. Hitting the command
channel he tried to tell them to head for the side hatches for cover but realized that he did not have the command comm of the Corporal.  Going over to the Corporal. "Corporal you need to tell…"

The
Corporal shoved Jack away. "I am busy!" Terror filled his face as he went back to firing through his slit.

Going over to the hatch Jack peeked out at the massive fire the squad was laying into the blown hatch suppressing most of the fire from it
.  His tactical registered another recruit going dark.  "Damn!" Taking a deep breath he ran out the hatch and sprinted for the other side of the main compartment and the other surviving squad still out in the open.  Diving for cover behind a body as he got to them he tapped the closest one to him to get her attention. "You have to get to the nearest hatch for cover now." The terrorized face as the girl glanced at him and went back to firing at the hatch told him all he needed to know.  Jumping up he grabbed her by the arm and to his surprise with the help of the suit he tossed her toward the nearest hatch. She landed on her feet and started to run the short distance to it. Going to the next suit in a crouch, he did the same thing and then the next.

Within
seconds he had the 9 surviving squad members through the hatch and safety. Then started cutting a firing slit telling them to get busy.  The plate flopped out of his slit, taking a couple of shots just as he noticed several enemy troops working their way leap frog down the opposite side close to the bulkhead killing individuals with only a body for cover, where his squad on the other side could not see to fire at the enemy.  But now that he was on the opposite side he had the perfect position and quickly took them out.

With the squad on this side safe and able to provide a cross fire
kill zone down the compartment, he realized all that was left was to get the surviving  individuals scattered around the main compartment to safety. Dropping out the hatch he crawled up the side of the bulk head under the firing slits until he was clear of them and then ran in a crouch diving for cover every few seconds to the first survivor and like before he simply jerked him up by the arm and threw him toward the nearest hatch. Telling him to run for the hatch and cut a firing slit. Before going on.

He was half way up
the main compartment having gotten a half dozen to safety when he suddenly found himself standing up right in front of the row of NCS's and the rest of the troops standing along the bulkhead without an enemy in sight except for Training Master Sgt. In charge of the training space only inches from his nose.

"Just what do you think you were doing maggot? Did anyone tell you to do that or did your little pea brain think all that up on you
r own? Who from one of the upper companies that has already gone through this exercise told you what to do or what was going to happen? Who was it? I am going to throw his butt in the pit for a week for even talking to you let alone what he told you."

Jack swallowed as he started to shake
as he tried to back up away from the Master Sgt. but the NCS was in the way. "NN. NO. Ah a… W... W… One Master Sgt."

The squad leader jumped out of his NCS shouting. "Hey we fucked them over big time!" As the rest of the squad joined him patting each other on the back with loud bangs as armor hit armor
as they danced around. The Master Sgt. did not move as sergeants ran in to stop the celebration.

"N
, N, N, N.  You have a problem scumbag? Who told you about the assault and that everyone was supposed to die in this first evolution?"

Jack swallowed again several times and then
his blood started to rise as the Master Sgt. looked at him like his brother did once in a while when he was getting ready to do something unusually nasty. Getting pissed his fear evaporated.  "No one Master Sgt. Anyone who accessed the Tactical would have known what was coming. And why were we supposed to die?"

"You haven't had the suit on fucking long enough to know how to activate the tactical. We have not taught you that yet."

"Sorry Chief but an old game I used to play taught me how."

"Hell boy half the
cretonnes in this company played that stupid Battleship Game and they did not know how."

"Sorry ah, Master Sgt.
but they do know how, it is simple. They just probably did not think of it."

"Oh and you did
maggot did you? I am impressed you had a thought in your head."

"Actually Master Sgt.
I did not think, I just did it." Swallowing again as he glanced around noticing that every recruit was at attention facing forward along with their eyes as drill sergeants paced up and down the lines. Taking a deep breath he stood straight as he could raising his chin. The Master Sgt. definitely reminded him of his brother. Hate boiling up in him. Curling his lip. "After 10 years playing The Game, the last thing I needed to do was think during a simple little attack like this was. It was simply A, B, C." Shrugging his shoulders. "Now if it had been a two prong attack that would have been a little harder but still just X, Y, Z shit. You either do it or die. Not much of a choice or thinking about it Master Sgt."

The Master Sgt.’s
face turned red as he stepped away to face Jack's squad leader that had finally gotten control of himself. "You are fired." Turning to Jack he smiled as he watch the terror in Jacks face take over. "Not you worm." He reached out to his left and slapped the nearest recruit on the shoulder as he stared at Jack. "You recruit Spenser are now squad leader."

Jack's sudden growing terror evapo
rated as he heard the Master Sgt. declare Spenser the squad leader. The Master Sgt. saw that and frowned and watched the recruit relax after being passed over for squad leader. Baffling. Everyone wanted to be squad leader. Didn't they?

The Master Sgt.
spent the next half hour berating and punishing Jack for acting without orders. Ruining his record.

Jack spent 8
hours standing and staring at the mess deck hatch that night in battle armor and weapons counting recruits going in and out ready to shoot anyone with a weapon coming out with the promise of unthinkable punishment if he missed either the count or the enemy. Dinner was the battle suit's emergency ration paste. He did not notice the gal that detached herself from her company after leaving the mess to walk toward Jack staring at his open helmet before a Sargent caught up with her to shepherd her back into the ranks of the company giving her demerits upon demerits as she dragged her feet still trying to look at the suited figure standing guard that never even looked away from the mess compartment hatch.

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The next day after lunch, the class instructor turned to Jack as he was walking past headed for a seat and said. "You go out and tell everyone in the outer compartment to get their butts in here, it is class time."

Jack hesitated as the instructor headed for the front of the class room. Getting excited that the instructor had
actually asked him to do something important, he headed out until he  stepped through the hatch and sweat started popping out on his forehead at the sight of most of the company standing around talking and smoking or playing a simple game of hackysac or touch football to one side.

Swallowing he opened his mouth but nothin
g came out. "Then to himself. Frack what do I say. I can't order them. I, I...”

Looking around
as he thought for a few seconds, he tried again. "Everyone. Time too…" his voice started to squeak." Luckily his voice was low enough that no one heard him.

Trying again. "Hey guys. We…" The nearest recruits turned toward him and stared at him expectantly.

Trying again. "Ah Guys! We need to go…. boys." He said plenty loud but as everyone turned to face Jack his voice froze on him.

One guy turned to Jack getting a disgusted look on his face.  "I am not your boy ass hole."

Jack started backing up but hit the bulkhead next to the hatch. "We... We have to go…." Jack's voice squeaked again.

Someone in the back spoke up. "What
, you need someone to hold your hand to go pee?" Half the recruits started laughing.

Jack retreated back in
through the hatch hiding around the corner. Sweat running down his face. The instructor walked past Jack giving him a strange look before stopping in the hatch and bellowed loud enough to hurt most ears without trying. "Get your butts into class now."

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The next week they started walking the ship's hull. Running obstacle courses around the hull. Men with thruster packs stood by, as recruits even with years of experience on ship's hulls, started falling off in droves when they missed hand holds or they did not use their gravity boots properly. The company started doing overnight guard posts around the hull. Taking on Senior companies making attacks throughout the night. The suit not letting anyone fall asleep even if they had time unless it was an allowed break period thanks to shock therapy.

But
finally with the hull's obstacle course mastered they started repairing holes in the hull from the outside with air blasting out making it difficult but not impossible as most had figured it would be. Though after spending years on The Game, Jack already knew how but left it to others to try to follow the instructors detailed directions while making all the mistakes new crews made. It took several failed attempts and missed lunches before he started making suggestions to get it done right so they would not miss chow and then he was made corporal himself. Only to have his strip taken away from him when he refused to tell anyone to do anything, trying to do it all himself. Though after being demoted the new Corporal asked Jack's advice often as they learned how to find, plug and repair micro holes all the way up to shell craters 5 feet across before being moved back inside the ship for more damage control training.

Jack
never ever offered any advice unless asked first. Content on simply getting through the training and being as invisible as possible as he was having a blast. Even the long marches around the hull, exercise decks and the obstacle course Jack had hated and he knew was going to kill him with exhaustion his first weeks, started to be tolerable after 4 weeks and easy after7. By week 9 they were even pleasurable as he flew through the obstacle course in half the time required. With the live weapons training in ever larger and more deadly weapons and ship defense and assault tactics and war-games that were old hats from The Game, Jack was having the time of his life and did not want it to end. He could not believe it was not a dream and kept waking up in the middle of the night scared that he was back on the Turner Joy with his brother making up for lost time while Jack had been away.

That is except when he was
cleaning the shitters in the head with a tooth brush or told to stay put on guard duty for longer and longer times or to work off demerits by standing for hours watching a gage or screen or hatch or section of space. Getting more demerits if he missed something he was supposed to see or reacted improperly (which did not happen very often). Not knowing ahead of time what or when that was. The Game had never delved into long watches or polishing brass, urinals and swabbing decks while shortening time lines as much as possible to keep the game going. The part Jack hated the most about reality was learning to tolerate the long stretches of doing nothing while being ready for action typical in any military. But every time he thought about quitting or giving, up he realized that no matter how bad it seemed, the Turner Joy was worse and at least here he knew the rules and they never changed.

The 7th weekend Jack's company left the ship as soon as it had landed late Friday night on battle maneuvers and live fire exercises
through some desolate countryside on a planet the Turner Joy had visited many times over the years that was a hub for the sector with a very large space port. The Company, in battle armor had spent a cold couple of nights with no supplies but what they had carried with them for this recruiting stop. As they marched back onto the base toward the ship that Sunday night Jack noticed a second recruiting ship just like the Botany Bay sitting not far away on the tarmac. It was late and Jack arrived at their barracks to find his bunk had grown with another bunk racked over the top and a new locker next to his making it very crowded in the narrow passageway between racks. A guy Jack had never seen before sat on the top bunk. Wondering what was going on Jack frowned and put his kit away as Starley came into the barracks calling for the Company to come to attention. Taking his place at the foot of the bunk next to the new guy Jack came to attention.

Starly looked around the crowded barracks and smiled. "These are your new Company mates. The Fifth week and above recruits from the Absent Bay have been folded into the Botany Bay to make room for them to take on more new recruits while we continue to our next system. It seems this planet has a lot of spacers that want to join up along with discharged and retired navy personnel that see the
writing in the sky but have grown fat and lazy. I will give you 30 seconds to say high to your new bunk mates and then you can get your butts out front to do some marching and a trip through the obstacle course to get to know one another. Dismissed!" The ship lifted a few minutes later.

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