Tranquility valley was turning out to be anything but. Not that that was a surprise to Captain Alzo, affectionately referred to by his men as 'Zoe'. This entire area had been nearly razed to the ground in the few months since he'd gotten there. Not in a single devastating attack, but rather through slow attrition from the seemingly endless battle for position. The 'Black Boots' and the 'Red Shirts' had really created a ruin of this place, in the the process of trying to kill each other to prove their point.
What seemed like such a noble fight two years ago, now seemed like a waste of time and life on the rare occasions he was able to look out on the remains of the once lush valley. He tried once, writing his wife, to describe the sounds and smells of the unnatural state his surroundings had taken. The most descriptive word he was able to conjure was 'indescribable'. There simply were no other words, at least not in Basic, to describe what scorched ground was like, after it was scorched three more times.
Not that she'd want to understand anyhow. Nobody would, in their right mind. It was the only thing that kept him from being depressed about the lack of a view in his 'office' as he liked to think of his six square meters of space, even though he also slept there.
A knock at the door surprised him nearly enough to jump. Instead, his eyes simply regained their focus on the map readings that were in front of him. He straightened his red uniform shirt and called the person in.
"Captain Alzo, sir?" Lieutenant Rigger stuck his head through the opening.
"I'm sitting down, Lieutenant. You can call me 'Cap' like everyone else does." He sighed. "Weren't you supposed to be our recon tonight?"
"Negative... er... 'Cap'." The junior officer sat down opposite him. "I said I'd take care of it."
Alzo rolled his eyes. "Don't tell me."
"Jenkins and Johnson volunteered." The Lieutenant confirmed. "You know how they are." He cut off the rebuke before his Captain could fit it in.
Unfortunately, he did. Everyone did. Those two were about as giving as you could ever want in a soldier. They took the meaning of 'Volunteer' to a whole new level. Everyone in the bunker was a volunteer. Jenkins and Johnson volunteered for everything though, not just their service.
Yes, they were all volunteers at one point... though there was no getting out now. Yet the more the unit's outlook was bleak, the more those two would offer to do anything to help. In confidence, they told him that they figured every small bit could help morale, and every bit of morale was needed to win. They would nearly literally do anything and everything for the good of the group.
He had to admit that it had worked. Everyone may have given up by now if it weren't for those two. "You know I worry about them getting taken advantage of. You should have checked with me." Deep down, he knew that they were probably the best ones for the job. Nothing seemed to shake them, and they were the most likely to come back alive or with results. They spent all their time trying to help everyone else's morale, yet theirs remained like the duraplast bunker they were all stuck in. "Even those guys deserve their downtime. Hell, those guys especially deserve their downtime."
"And we'll get it too!" Jenkins busted in the door and stood at a salute.
"Kriffin' a... We all will." Johnson followed in the same manner.
Alzo could never get over how similar the two were, at least not considering they hadn't met but a year previously. He wondered sometimes if they sat in their bunk and planned out some of their interactions and such, like they did their little skits they performed for the company, as Shirt and Boot the loveable but mishap prone mascots of the two warring factions.
He was looking at the two now, and they were as excitable as their two comedic alter egos. They clearly had something to say and were merely waiting permission to share. He waited a few moments until they looked ready to burst, before giving them an at ease order and suggesting they sit down. They refused to sit, so he asked them for their report.
"We found it." Johnson started. "We think it's the big one!" Jenkins finished.
Alzo looked at them intently to make sure they weren't pulling his leg. It would be too good to be true. "Do you think you were seen?"
Jenkins shook his head no. Johnson shrugged as he answered. "We're here, aren't we?"
They were right. If the 'Boots' had seen them, they probably wouldn't have made it back alive. Several soldiers had gone missing on similar missions, and that was what had most likely happened to them as well. The enemy was entrenched in portable bunkers similar to their own. Placed in the middle of the night under the cover of a lot of air cover and misdirection, once such a structure was placed, they were darn near impossible to find. To take one out, you had to know exactly where it was, and that was the trick.
It still wouldn't be easy, but with knowledge of where one of the enemy bunkers was... or even a command center as they thought they'd found... perhaps they had a chance to finally turn this battle.
He grabbed a cigarra and rolled it between his fingers before sticking it between his lips and getting just a hint of its sweet spices. "Alright. You boys stay. Rigger, assemble the rest of the officers. We have some planning to do."
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