Marine Summer: Year 2041

by B. E. Wilson

  We waited uneasily for him to leave, it was tense waiting and knowing that Jenkins just lost the upper hand. I personally thought he was going to kill me just as soon as the general cleared the bay.

  “Well kid,” he said facing me, “you got moxie. I think you’re in over your head, but then again, what the fuck do I know. You impressed me. Thanks for the ass whippin’!”

  I was taken aback as he offered a sincere handshake.

  “Thank you, major, same to you.”

  “And kid, you might want to get some rest. It will be kind of hard over there on your first day with that head aching.”

  “It’s not that bad, sir,” I said.

  “Oh, it will be.”

  Then, I felt his fist clobber my chin and that familiar dark cloud started filling my eyes.

  12

  “Rise—and—shine—sunshine,” Buckley teased me.

  I pried my eyes open, not knowing where I was, my head still foggy.

  Rags took my open eyes as a sign it was okay to lick my face, which he had done every single morning since we arrived at Tiger Mountain.

  “Down, boy,” I said. My throat felt horse and my mouth was dry.

  “Can’t sleep all day. Reveille will be in about…oh, say, eight hours.”

  “Eight hours?” I questioned him, I was lost. “It’s not morning?”

  “Hell no, it’s dinner time. Get your ass up and get over here, Jenkins got us steaks. He felt bad for knocking your ass out.”

  Then it dawned on me—I had so much to do to get ready to leave.

  “Damn!” I said, attempting to rise up from my rack.

  “Slow down, slow down, we got you covered. We sewed all your patches on your uniforms. All you need to do is pack, so don’t rush,” Buckley said.

  Finally sitting up in my rack I asked, “How long have I been out?”

  “Oh, about six hours. You’ll be fine. We had the doc come in and check you out.”

  “I feel like I get hit by a truck.”

  “Technically, you did, I’m thinking Jenkins and a truck weigh about the same.”

  I tried focusing my eyes. Looking around the room, I saw the others sitting at the tables in the center of the dorm.

  “Come join us,” Houserman said, a warm smile on his face.

  “Yeah, these boys are biting at the bit to tear into those steaks, so you might want to get your ass over there,” Buckley said.

  Considering what I had gone through, it was a nice gesture from Jenkins. Seeing all these men, the only Marines I’d known, enjoy a great meal and each other’s company, I couldn’t help but wonder what would come of them after tomorrow. Would our paths ever cross again?

  Dinner, jokes, and laughing. It was a memory I’ll enjoy for a long time. As they retired one by one, I sat up packing, remembering where we had been and how we had gotten here. Then finally, I was the last to drift off to sleep.

  It was oh-five-hundred hours. Buckley once again woke me.

  “Shhhhh,” he warned me, whispering. “Time to go. They’re out there waiting for you.”

  I nodded okay and quickly dressed, grabbing my rucksack and rifle and heading to the door. As soon as we passed it, Buckley clipped a leash on Rags.

  “I’m sorry, son, he can’t go with you.”

  “But Sarge…”

  “No buts, kid. I’ll look after him for you. I promise,” Buckley said, reaching down to pat Rags’ head.

  I knelt down to say my goodbyes. Looking into his sad eyes, I couldn’t help but think he knew what was happening. He jumped up, putting his front paws on my chest, and licked my nose as I scratched behind his ears.

  “I’m sorry, buddy,” I said, my voice cracking. I could feel the tears swelling up and hastily choked them back. “I have to go.”

  I shook Sarge’s hand. Turning, I started walking away. I could hear Rags whimpering behind me. The further I went, the louder he cried. It was breaking my heart, but I didn’t want to show weakness. Jenkins was up ahead waiting with my orders.

  “Here, kid, this is all I can give you,” Jenkins said, handing me four magazines. “You probably won’t need them, but it’s better to have them and not need them.

  “Thank you, sir.”

  He gently placed his hand on my shoulder and stepped next to me.

  “You are a Marine. Keep your head up and don’t take your eye off the enemy. And for what it’s worth, if Buckley doesn’t take care of that mutt, I will. When this is over, you come back and claim him.”

  We exchanged brief smiles. He patted my shoulder and sent me on my way.

  It was lonely tram ride back to the main gate. I was the only one in the car. I’ll never forget walking out of that hatch, the cool air filling my lungs. I should have been happy, but leaving Rags, Buckley, Houserman, and the others, I wasn’t so sure. What if I never saw them again?

  “Corporal!” the driver called.

  I nodded and entered the jeep.

  “Where are we headed?” I asked.

  “About two hours southwest of here. Your new home will be just northwest of Mount St. Helens.”

  I remembered reading about Mount St. Helens in history class. It had erupted sometime back in the late 1900s.

  What kind of base is near an active volcano? I wondered to myself.

  The trip was uneventful, just a simple supply convoy delivering who knows what to who knows where. I think I counted six trucks and a couple of other Jeeps.

  We pulled down a long dirt road hidden just off the highway. As the trucks turned left, we made a right. The driver pulled the Jeep up in front of a little building in the middle of nowhere. I looked around, not seeing much more than trees and shrubs.

  “What’s this?” I asked.

  “It’s your new home,” the driver said. “Good luck, corporal.”

  I grabbed my gear and stepped out of the Jeep, my ax clanging against the side.

  “Where do I go?” I asked him.

  He didn’t answer, just pulled away.

  I circled around to the back of the building, cautiously looking for the entrance. There was no door, nothing.

  A buzzing sound behind me caught my attention. Looking up, I saw that a small camera was tracking me. It was tucked neatly between two branches of a tree, just above the first fork.

  “Identify yourself!” a voice said.

  I adjusted my angle and could see a small speaker.

  “Corporal Butler, reporting for duty,” I said into the speaker.

  “Orders!”

  I dropped my gear off my shoulder. Unzipping the compartment on my rucksack, I pulled out the folder and held it up.

  “Orders!” came across the speakers again.

  I opened the folder, pulling out the paperwork within, and held it up for the camera. The flash of a red light from inside the camera lens startled me.

  “Stand fast!”

  I tucked the paperwork back in the folder, stowed it back in my rucksack, and waited.

  I stood there for what must have been three hours, and nothing happened. I tapped on the camera lens. I yelled at it, “Hey!”, trying to get anyone’s attention. Still, nothing happened.

  So I pulled my ax out and started swinging it. Stretching my arms, trying to get some exercise, anything to break up the boredom.

  “Put the weapon away!” the voice said over the speaker.

  “Excuse me, am I in the right place?” I called.

  “Yes!”

  “Where do I go?”

  “Here!”

  “Here where? There is no door.”

  “Here!”

  I was getting frustrated. I thought they were fucking with me.

  “Where the hell am I supposed to go?” I asked, my agitation starting to show.

  “Here!” the voice said angrily.

  I searched all over that tree, looking for anything. I climbed on top of the small building, but found nothing. Is this a game, a trick? I thought. Still standing on top of the building, I noticed
a twinkle in the bushes to my left as the sun broke through the clouds and its rays exposed a reflection.

  “Hmmm. Interesting,” I said.

  I jumped down off the building and snatched my gear up. With the rucksack on my back and my rifle attached to the strap, I cautiously searched through the brush. In fact, it wasn’t brush it all—it was camouflage. The bush thicket was about two feet thick and hid a small hatch. I tried turning the handle, but it was locked in place. Then the hatch made a beeping sound followed by a pop that caused me to jump back and raise my rifle.

  “Put the weapon down!” the speaker crackled.

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah, easy for you to say,” I responded.

  I dropped my grip on the rifle, letting it sway on my belly in the harness. Reaching out, I tried the handle again. This time it opened.

  “Enter!” the voice commanded.

  It was pitch black inside that hole. I couldn’t even see a few feet in front of me.

  “What the hell?” I mumbled.

  I crouched down and peeked my head inside. A couple of hands seized me and jerked me in. I tried to wrestle myself free, but couldn’t see what I was wrestling with. I felt cold metal on my cheek; when I managed to get ahold of the thing that had my shirt twisted up, I felt a powerful smack on the back of my hand.

  “What the fuck?” I screamed.

  “Not even if you buy me a drink,” a voice said from the darkness.

  “Huh?” I said, thinking to myself, This is odd.

  I felt myself being dragged. A small light appeared at the end of the dark tunnel. Now I could see what was gripping me. It was a Suit.

  Looking up, I saw three Suits. The dark metal, intimidating and cold, stood over me. Smooth lines and no edges, black visors smooth with the contours of their helmets. Muscular physiques stamped into the upper torso plates all the way down through the legs, joints covered by more black armor.

  “Are you Drew Butler?” the one above my head asked, its digital voice resonating through the small domed cave.

  “Yes, sir!” I answered.

  “Then get your ass up. We got work to do!”

  I rolled over to my side and watched as all three walked through an arch at the back of the cave.

  “Come on, rookie!” one of them called.

  Unsnapping myself from the rucksack, I clambered to my feet.

  “Today, rookie!” I heard one call.

  I caught up to them in a long brick lined wall tunnel as they entered a small open area with a ledge overlooking a pool of water. A small bench and a locker were set to the right side.

  “Drop your gear there, on the ground in front of it.”

  “Yes, sir.” I said.

  “Quit calling me sir. See the paint on my arm?” He pointed. “What’s that stand for?”

  “Sergeant,” I answered.

  “No shit, now quit calling me sir.”

  “Sorry.”

  “Don’t apologize, rookie. Sheesh!” the sergeant said.

  I threw my gear next to the locker and joined them on the ledge, standing next to the sergeant. He placed his metal paw on the small of my back and pushed me to the ledge. I could feel my feet sliding on the soft dirt floor.

  “Whoa, whoa…”

  “Don’t be scared, rookie, I won’t push you off…yet.”

  “What is this?” I asked.

  “It’s a cave lake. See the door on the other side? That’s how we enter the base.”

  Peeping over the ledge, I could see a metal platform extending out over water. Two Suits were standing guard, one on each side of the dark silver door. It was dimly lit from this height.

  “How do I get down there?”

  “You jump, rook, you jump!” the sergeant answered.

  “Jump! Are you kidding?”

  “Nope. It’s the only way down.”

  “Are you chicken?” another asked. I looked at his arm. He was a corporal like me.

  “How far down is it?” I nervously asked.

  “Oh, 50, 70…maybe 100 feet. Don’t really know. I’ve never measured it,” the sergeant said.

  I tiptoed to the edge. It looked like black ice, with no bottom in sight. My knees felt weak and my stomach started to turn.

  “We can call it quits right and you can hitch a ride back to Tiger Mountain,” the Corporal said.

  I had to think. I’d never done anything like this.

  “Okay, let’s take him back,” the sergeant said.

  “No! I can do it…I think,” I said.

  “You got one second,” the sergeant warned.

  It was like being in slow motion as I stepped off that ledge dropping into the abyss, all the lights a faint blur. Their laughter coming from above sounded like ghosts echoing down a long hallway. The water seemed miles away. I clenched my eyes tight. My body stiffened. I waited for impact. And then time caught up with me as the cold rush of the water stole my breath. I felt the impact through my entire body as my feet sliced through the water’s surface. I felt like a deer trying to climb a ladder with no rungs; I was reaching for things that weren’t there. I could see the light of the platform, but when I moved my eyes away from it, I could see just nothingness, an empty void.

  Letting myself go limp, I resurfaced to hear, “He did it. Let’s go pull him out of the drink.”

  Pull me out?

  “Aren’t you guys jumping?” I yelled up to them.

  “Nah, rook, we’ll use the stairs behind the locker,” I could hear the Sarge saying.

  Now what? I need to get to the ledge. I could barely feel my legs. My arms weren’t responding.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw lights approaching, moving fast. Reaching up I grabbed the edge of the platform. I couldn’t even pull myself up; I was spent.

  “I got him,” the corporal said.

  As I looked to my right, the cold stopped bothering me; I was just fascinated. The corporal was running down the path to my right, faster than anything with two legs I’d ever seen before. I could see from his lights that the path he was on was about to end, but this didn’t stop him. Like a big cat jumping at its prey, he sprang up in the air, soaring at least 20 or 30 feet across the open water, landing right in front of me.

  “Gimme your hand,” he said.

  He lifted me like it was nothing, like I didn’t weigh anything.

  I was awestruck, watching the other two make the same effortless jump.

  “Pick you chin up, rookie, and follow me,” the Sergeant said.

  Punching a code into the panel right of the door, one of the Suits standing guard let us in. Once inside, I realized it was just an elevator. They surrounded me, placing me in the middle.

  When the doors opened, we all walked into a long underground hangar bay. It was as long as the eye could see. Tanks, jets, and huge crates were scattered about everywhere. Other soldiers were scurrying around like rats in a maze.

  Puzzled, I asked, “Is this it?”

  “Is this what?” the sergeant replied.

  “Where I learn to wear the T1A77?”

  “Not quite. We don’t actually train here. It’s a front. Yes, it’s an actual working base, but for the Suits…nah…we’ll be taking you to Wonderland.”

  “What’s Wonderland?” I asked as they stopped.

  The sergeant turned to face me, the face shield of his armor retracting back into the top section of his helmet. His face tanned and weathered, he grinned sheepishly at me.

  I grinned back, and asked again, “Where’s Wonderland?”

  “Same place as La-La-Land. Corporal if you’ll do the honors,” he said.

  “What…” I said, feeling the needle enter the side of my neck.

  “Can’t tell you, rookie. Well, not until we’re sure you are worthy. Have a good nap,” the sergeant said, waving bye-bye as I drifted back into the corporal’s waiting arms.

  13

  “Good morning, sweetheart, did you sleep well?” I heard a soft voice say.

  “What?” I asked
.

  “Come on, Cinderella, you’re late for the ball.”

  “What ball?”

  “These balls on your chin if you don’t get out of that rack.”

  “Huh?” I said, that didn’t sound right to me.

  Springing upward, I busted my head on the bottom of the rack above me.

  “Calm down, sweetheart, don’t hurt yourself.”

  Groggy, I rubbed my head and asked, “Where am I?”

  “You’re home,” he laughed. “Now you might be a little drowsy, so don’t stand up too soon. Here, drink this. It will help clear your head.”

  I could only see his shadow. I flinched when I felt him grip my hand.

  “It’s okay, bubba, I’m one of the good guys.”

  He placed a glass in my hand and pushed it toward my face.

  “What is it?

  “It’s heaven. Come on, drink it. It will help clear your head. Come on, you can do it,” he insisted.

  Raising the small glass to my lips, I tilted it back to feel it burning down my throat all the way to my stomach. Spitting the remains out and down the front of my shirt, I started to cough.

  “What, what—the—hell—was that?” I said between coughs and gags.

  “Jack Daniels, of course,” he laughed.

  “How the hell was that supposed to help me?”

  “It wasn’t, but it sure amused the hell out of me. Listen up, newbie, the head is to your right. Go clean yourself up, and when you’re done doing that, the CO wants to meet you.”

  “The who?”

  “The commanding officer. You know, the guy who owns your balls now.”

  I couldn’t see the person who had just been talking to me leave; I only heard the sound of the door shutting behind him. I wiped the crust from my eyes, fighting to gain focus. My body creaked as I pulled myself up off the bunk. Did I get hit by a truck? I asked myself.

  Like a blind man in a strange place, I felt my way across the room, bumping into what felt like a chair and table before I found the door to the head. I ran my hand up the wall inside the right, flipping the light switch. Like the morning sun rising, it blinded me. I felt a shooting pain in my eyes I’d never experienced before. I stumbled to the sink, rushing to splash cold water on my face. Shadows became blurs, sparkles danced in my vision, and my head began to spin.