Ryck stood with his old friend, Prince Jellico. He hadn’t seen Prince since they graduated, but they’d kept in touch. Prince reached out and squeezed Ryck’s shoulder.
Jorge stepped in front of the time box and addressed the gathering.
“We are gathered here in remembrance for our fallen brother, Major Donte Williamson Ward, the first of us to fall in service of the Federation. Let us not mourn Donte but celebrate his life. As long as we remember him, he is with us forever.”
“Forever,” the gathered Marines intoned in unison.
“On this solemn occasion, I would like to ask Ryck Lysander to come forward and say a few words about our brother.”
Jorge was still the senior Marine in the class based on his lineal number, but Ryck knew Donte the best, having served with him three times and having been with him when he was killed. Jorge had already told Ryck he would speak, so Ryck was ready with a speech he’d prepared.
Ryck walked forward and turned to face his classmates. Sixty-seven had graduated, and 66 were alive today. Fifty-nine were still in the Corps. Fifty-one of them had made it back to the Globe and Laurel for the ceremony.
The bottle ceremony was not official, yet the Corps bent over backwards to ensure Marines made it back to Tarawa for it. The Corps could be a son-of-a-bitch at times, but not for things like this. The Corps cared.
“Fourteen years ago, 67 midshipmen about to be commissioned gathered here to place their bottles in the time box. The port to remember the first of us to fall. The champagne to celebrate the first of us to earn a star. The sherry to be shared by our last two surviving classmates,” Ryck started, before stopping to look at his classmates.
Most had been in combat. All had unique experiences. Suddenly, he knew they didn’t need a lecture on the Corps and tradition. This was for Donte, nothing more. He folded up his notes and dropped them on the floor.
“Donte Ward was a fine Marine, a great leader. More than that, he was my friend. We were not close while midshipmen, but later, in 2/3, we became true brothers. I was overjoyed when I was assigned to 1/11 and found out he was to be a fellow company commander.
“Donte was irreverent, funny, and had a heart the size of the galaxy. There was nothing he wouldn’t do for me, or for any Marine, for that matter.
“Donte died while commanding his company in battle against great odds. Abandoned by our task force, he took command of the battalion and with unwavering determination, he did his duty. He fell as a Marine, a commander leading Marines. I can think of no better way to leave this mortal plane.
“Classmates, I give you Donte Ward, my friend, and a great Marine.”
“Here, here!” several voices called out.
Jorge turned and reached into the box and took out the bottle of 298 Quinta do Vesúvio off the cradle that had been holding it for 14 years.
Mr. Stuart, the only person in the pub other than the class, came forward, and while Jorge held the bottle, pulled the cork. Jorge, as the senior surviving classmate—Donte had been posthumously promoted to major, backdated to the day he was killed—poured a tiny amount of the port into 52 glasses, one for each Marine present, and one for Donte.
When he was done, each Marine filed past and took a glass. Ryck retreated back to stand with Prince, glass in hand.
When everyone had a glass, Jorge stood facing the rest of them and raised his glass. “For Major Donte Ward, United Federation Marine Corps, in remembrance!”
“In remembrance!” the rest shouted, lifting their glasses and draining the small swallow of port.
Ryck felt the tears welling in his eyes again. But he was content. Donte was his friend, and he would miss him deeply. But death was a part of a Marine’s life. For some it came sooner, for some, many years later in the old Marine’s home. Sooner or later, it came for them all. But as long as they retained these traditions, as long as they remembered, the dead were still alive. Donte was still among them, his glass filled with port. He would be there, reunited with the rest, when that final bottle of sherry was drunk by the last two of them, two men waiting to join their brothers in the hereafter.
Individuals passed into dust, but the Marine Corps carried on. And all of them were the Corps. They helped create it, they were part of it. Through the Corps, each of them was immortal.
Thank you for reading Captain. I hope you enjoyed it. Ryck will be returning soon in Major.
Other Books by Jonathan Brazee
The Return of the Marines Trilogy
The Few
The Proud
The Marines
The Al Anbar Chronicles: First Marine Expeditionary Force--Iraq
Prisoner of Fallujah
Combat Corpsman
Sniper
The United Federation Marine Corps
Recruit
Sergeant
Lieutenant
Captain
(Coming soon: Major)
Rebel
Werewolf of Marines
Werewolf of Marines: Semper Lycanus
Werewolf of Marines: Patria Lycanus
To The Shores of Tripoli
Wererat
Darwin’s Quest: The Search for the Ultimate Survivor
Venus: A Paleolithic Short Story
Non-Fiction
Exercise for a Longer Life
Author Website
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[1] Frag: Fragmentation Order, an ad hoc order adjusting the original operations order.
[2] Federation Civil Development Corps: The FCDC is the federation’s answer to a land Army. Heavily armed and outfitted, it is not technically a military which gives the Federation more leeway in its deployment.
[3] Skins: the nickname for the working uniform of a Marine. When inserted with the “bones,” it became an effective fighting uniform.
[4] UGFA: Universal Game Fishing Association
[5] O3: A Marine captain or Navy lieutenant. “O” designated officer, and “3” designates the third officer rank.
[6] Reki: open four to eight-man open sleds that can quickly transport suited Marines through space.
[7] NOTC: Naval Officer Training Course
[8] Taco-Six, Taco-Three-Alpha: call-signs designating the battalion commanding officer and assistant operations officer. “Taco” is for battalion, “Six” is for Commander, “Three” is for Operations, and “Alpha” is for assistant.
[9] PAO: Public Affairs Officer
[10] Jimmylegs: slang for corporate security
[11] AOR: Area of Responsibility
[12] S-2: A designation given the Intell officer. “S” is for a staff officer at the battalion level. “2” is for intel. 1 is for admin, 3 is for operations, 4 is for logistics, 5 is for civil affairs.
[13] Top: slang for a master sergeant
[14] Bat Boy: a term of an all-around assistant to an officer or senior SNCO.
[15] Three: the S-3, the Operations Officer
[16] PDP: Personnel Data Points
[17] OBE: Overcome By Events
[18] Carl von Clausewitz, a 19th Century Prussian military strategist.
[19] Monitor: an officer in charge of assigning billets for all officers or SNCOs within a specific grade.
[20] PCDS: Permanent Change of Duty Station
[21] SOG: Soldiers of God, a terrorist group that uses piracy to fund their operations
[22] FCL: Final Coordination Line
[23] Frog: the nickname for a small, hand-held incendiary device. Thrown like a grenade or attached to a target, it could burn through most substances.
[24] PME: Point of Main Effort
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Captain (The United Federation Marine Corps Book 4) Page 23