The Legion Awakes (The Sleeping Legion Book 1)

by JR Handley

  The reply from Captain Grigonna was surprisingly quick, as Lance had expected to have to convince her. “I made that conclusion yesterday, young one, they’re already in the tattooing machines. I’ve included our AuxTechs as well. Marines can’t fight without functioning railguns. Now, enough of this talk, we’ve both got work to do. I trust that you’ll maintain operational security on this information. Now, dismissed!”

  As Lance prepared to leave her office, Captain Grigonna raised her hand, signaling her desire for him to stop. “By the way, have you heard about the commander of Chaos Company? After his performance in the CCTE, he was assigned to monitor the orbital defense platforms. Guess we won twice, didn’t we?” It was clear she didn’t need an answer, so he sounded off with the universal ‘hurrah’, which satisfied his commander, before he turned towards the door.

  Upon leaving her office, Lance couldn’t help but lament that his once-easy job had just gotten infinitely harder. “As if I didn’t already have enough things keeping me up at night,” he muttered to himself as he headed back to his squad’s area.

  — Chapter 46 —

  Tattoo Ceremony; 6907th TAC Regimental Hall

  Always true to his word, Lance decided to reward the Cadets under his command with the tattoos they’d earned. They deserved their official tattoos, and needed something to keep their spirits up against the undercurrent of tension that hung around the base like a lamenting fog of despair. Lance was positive that a celebration was just what the medics ordered, including copious amounts of grok. Further, the knowledge that Captain Grigonna had adjusted the tattooing machines to implant active nanite factories into the company made the ceremony even more vital.

  Yesterday, after a particularly long physical conditioning session, Cadet Wyckoff had gotten into a fight with a Cadet from 5th Battalion and broken his back. In the melee that ensued between the two battalions, there’d been two Cadet deaths and Wyckoff was facing a dismissal review board before the regimental commander. Their only saving grace was that the 5th Battalion Cadet had struck a Jotun in the beginning of the altercation, so Wyckoff could argue that he was defending his officers like he’d been trained to do. However, Lance knew they couldn’t have many more days like that. They’re gonna need someone to talk them off the ledge when they realize the things they’d done, he thought grimly.

  After trying to come up with a tattoo design, since the unit had no official one, he sketched out a rough idea and took it to Basil. That Marine Technician was some sort of technical genius and had already built several autonomous tattooing machines to ink his Cadets, which would also hide their nanite injection spots from curious eyes. Lance couldn’t be prouder that Basil had pulled himself out of the slavery of Aux life. The design was as simple as it was beautiful, the regimental numbers wrapped in a wreath of barley being carried in the claws of a soaring guinshrike.

  Lance had intended to keep his inaugural tattooing plans under wraps, but like all things martial, plans were ultimately spilled and gossip ensued. On the day he planned to award his Cadets their ink, he called for them to report to the company ready room in their standard fatigues, minus their blouse and to be prepared to sweat. He knew they’d suspect another of his vigorous runs around the island, the ones Captain Grigonna had ordered to temper the combat drugs, meaning they’d have been called to stretch out and hydrate beforehand, making the tattooing process easier.

  When Lance arrived in the company ready room an hour before the ceremony, only to find it devoid of the tattooing consoles, he was pissed. As he logged into his Aimee to fire off his displeasure, he received a message from the regimental commander ordering all hands to report in, Cadet and Marine alike. By his watch, this new meeting was scheduled on top of his preapproved ceremony and he was angry. Taking a calming breath, he decided to go for a run in the thirty minutes he had before he had to be at the regimental hall.

  Lance felt more at peace after his run, having exhausted his frustrations around his battalion’s indoor track. When he reported to his position at the back of the regimental hall, where all Cadet units were positioned, he was pleasantly surprised to see his Cadets formed up, early, at attention. Once he finished buttoning his blouse, he nodded his approval and joined his squad. As he glanced around, he noticed Basil looking nervous and fidgety. Why is that wanker acting like he just joined me again? I can’t figure it out.

  Deep in thought, Lance almost missed the bells announcing the arrival of the regimental commander. He snapped to an even more rigid attention, unsure of what to expect from this unscheduled formation. Even odder, the rest of the officer corps were absent from formation and instead followed their commander like a pack of pups following their mother. Something is afoot, why didn’t I hear about this from the informal NCO comms network?

  Colonel Marchewka got to the front of the formation, waiting momentarily while his officers took position behind him, before he grabbed the voice amplifier and began speaking. “Marines of the Mighty 6907th TAC Regiment, we are here today to start a new tradition. We’ve recently crushed those crèchelings in the 828th TAC Regiment. Victories like that should be savored, and the occasion marked for posterity. As you’re aware, we recently de-iced a sergeant from another era in which Marines were awarded tattoos to signify their accomplishments, and as a permanent mark linking them to their home regiments. He has chosen to reinstitute this policy with his squad, but instead we will do so as a team. Every Marine in my regiment will get their tattoo today, including the officers. As your commander, I will go first. Forward to Victory!”

  There was a stunned silence. Then all of the officers took off their tops in unison, their fur already shaved in preparation for the ceremony, awaiting their chance to be branded by Sergeant Sane. As one by one they added the smell of their sizzling flesh to the room, without once flinching, Lance realized why they’d earn their entry to the officer corps of the White Knight Marine Corps. When Captain Grigonna stood in place to receive her brand, Whiskey Company cheered as one until a stern look from her silenced them. I bet this is the most fun she’s had since becoming the commander of a Cadet training company.

  No sooner had the officers finished receiving their brands than Colonel Marchewka was leading Sergeant Sane to the autonomous tattooing booths built by Basil and his brother Marine Technicians. Without missing a beat, the colonel called Lance to the front to be the second Human Marine in the regiment to receive his tattoo. Lance snapped to a rigid attention, sounded off with a martial ‘hurrah’ and double timed it to the tattooing booth. Upon reaching the colonel, he saluted and requested permission to be seated for his badge of honor. Rather than verbally accept his request, the colonel returned his salute, both ears twitching, as he shoved Lance into the chair. While the other Human Marines would receive their ink on their right shoulder, Lance’s arm was already marked by his time in the 941st TAC Regiment, so instead he verbally instructed the machine to tattoo his chest above his heart. Satisfied with his demeanor, the colonel merely nodded before returning to chat with Sergeant Sane as the machine operated, injecting Lance with fresh nanites that would provide the needed system update to his existing nanite factory.

  In the two hours it took for all the Marines in the regiment to receive their new ink, and hidden nanite injections, before filing out of the hall, the waiting Cadets grew nervous and antsy. The situation compounded on itself as each exiting Marine took perverse pleasure in telling the Cadets just how much it hurt. When it was clear that his Cadets were next, Lance called them to attention and marched them to the awaiting machines, smirking to himself at their obvious trepidation. Other than Cadet Wyckoff, not a Cadet in 1st Squad flinched and Lance couldn’t have been more proud. Even Marine Technical Corporal Basil Terloar stood firm, proving to anyone doubting General Toma’s decision to reconsider the role of the Aux.

  As the ceremony concluded, Lance couldn’t help but worry about the fallout from Captain Grigonna over the mass implantation of nanites into the entire regiment. In le
ss than 72 hours all of the Marines in the Mighty 6907th TAC would be clear headed for the first time in months, and the bill for this mistake might indeed be a steep one.

  — Chapter 47 —

  Sergeant’s Quarters, Habdisk 612, Room 101

  1st SQD, Whiskey Co., 8th BN., 6907th TAC RGT

  Because of all of the turmoil going around Beta City, Captain Grigonna decided that all Cadet units were to be given a two-day furlough to rest and recuperate from their nanites and new tattoos, while General Toma tried to regain control of his command. By letting the bodies rest, it could also potentially speed up the 72-hour process by which the nanites were purging the blood of the regiment. The tensions and infighting that were running rampant around Beta City had everyone’s nerves on edge.

  When Lance was given the command to stand down for two days at the Whiskey Company’s commander’s call, he knew that he would have to corral his Cadets, lest they get too involved in the craziness that floated over Beta like an impending cloud of doom. Luckily, the nanites seemed to have already blunted the effects of the combat drugs and Whiskey Company seemed to have settled down.

  Lance returned to find that, in his absence, Cadet Sergeant Mason had followed the standard evening protocols and gotten 1st Squad to bed. Sometimes I feel more like their parent than their squad leader. When will things feel right again? Is this command? Does it ever go back to like it was before they gave me these cursed stripes?

  Just as Lance had drifted off to sleep, the base’s little-used intercom system went off. “Attention, Marines, this is your base commander, Marine General Skorix Toma. We are under attack by our fellow Marines who have chosen to rebel against our White Knight overlords. Recent reports suggest that the Hardits have instigated their own independent mutiny. All Marines are hereby on full combat alert and ordered to the orbital elevator to repel the mutineers who’ve gained control of the orbital defense platforms. All senior level Cadets are ordered to report to the orbital platforms as well. Congratulations, you’ve just graduated. All crèchelings, novices and junior grade Cadets are ordered to your barracks on mandatory lock down. You are authorized to use lethal force against anyone preventing you from following my orders. I’m confident that we will prevail, that the traitors will be executed, and order restored soon. May the fates be ever on our side. That will be all.”

  — Chapter 48 —

  City Phase Unit 1, Habdisk 612, Room 101

  1st SQD, Whiskey Co., 8th BN., 6907th TAC RGT

  With the shit swirling around Beta City finally hitting the fan, Lance decided it was time to become proactive. He never was one to take the ‘wait and see’ approach, aggression being bred into the very fiber of his being. He left his quarters, still wearing only his form-fitting briefs, his chest full of tattoos on full display, to wake up his assistant squad leader. He gave Mason a brief moment to compose herself, as the Cadet was standing there in just her non-regulation matching flirty bra and panties before he began issuing orders. Where do the ladies even find these things? Somehow I doubt lingerie is in the White Knight supply chain… Wires! Wires must have hacked the smartfabric code!

  For once, Lance didn’t bother with the niceties or standard proper military protocols. He didn’t bother allowing the female Cadets to dress, absent their squad leader. He simply barked his orders to his assistant squad leader. “Mason, I need you to get Wires, ’erm, Cadet Rochambeau, over here right now, and then we need the squad to go to a Defensive Posture in their combat suits. I will loop you in as soon as you get Rochambeau over here. Once she is on her way, I need all section leaders and team leaders here, because we’ve got some big decisions to make. Go! Oh, and cover yourself… we don’t need those lug heads in Yankee Company drooling over our little girl!”

  Hayley Mason was as disciplined as ever, but she wasn’t the same scared little girl she had been a year ago. As she grew confident in her position as the assistant squad leader, she began using her position to speak up for her comrades’ wherever possible. Today she chose to speak up for herself, yelling over her shoulder as she rushed off to carry out her orders in her underwear. “I’m 16 today, I’m not a ‘little girl’ and I can take care of myself.”

  While Mason was off collecting the staff from 1st Squad, Lance sent Basil to personally tell the other squad leaders to wait for his conference call before they acted. On his own initiative, Basil even hinted that they were receiving follow on orders from the company commander, who was in a regimental staff meeting as they spoke. Without knowing it, Basil presented one of the strangest philosophical quandaries, sometimes even lies can turn out to be the truth.

  In less than ten minutes Wires was standing tall in front of Lance, in her uniform, though not fully dressed. Not one to fish off the company pier, Lance told her to stand At Ease and to finish dressing while he talked to her. When did I become the Marine who ignored the half-naked women around me in favor of being super hurrah-rah? And when did I cross that line, viewing Wires and Mason like two crècheling little sisters instead of subordinates?

  “Wires, I don’t know if you heard the announcement, but something big is happening and Beta City has gone on full alert. It appears that we are at war with ourselves, which I suspect has something to do with what happened on Antilles last year. Here is what I need you to do. One, smack yourself later for hacking without my permission. I saw your handiwork with Mason’s smartfabric underwear. Don’t bother replying–”

  Even with the stress from all the turmoil on base, Wires felt the need to defend herself. “Sergeant, I haven’t forgotten that promise I made but I didn’t think that this would be that big of a deal. And it was Hayley’s, I mean Cadet Sergeant Mason’s, 16th birthday and she wanted to feel pretty. And today was supposed to be our day off, Sergeant.”

  “Feel pretty”? When did Marines start feeling pretty? Am I too lax? Is this why they abandoned Kalino, for being too soft?

  Normally interrupting your sergeant meant a punch in the gut or worse, but for once, Lance let the lapse in discipline go, not even bothering to correct the major breach in protocol. “Didn’t you hear a word I said? There’s a rebellion and we’re caught right in the middle. Now shut the frakk up and listen good. My second instruction is to protect 1st Squad and as much of Whiskey Company and the rest of the regiment as we can. With all this inter-Marine fighting, I need you to isolate the habdisks for our regiment from the network. Before you protest, we both know it can be done, and I am ordering it so you are covered. Once you isolate the habdisks, set the command section as the main hub of the network. The access panel is in the office attached to my quarters… The access code is ‘Aura’, and if that gets out I will Cull you myself. Once that is done, direct ping me over my Aimee. We operate under the assumption that the whole network has been infiltrated by enemies of the Empire. I will meet with the other squad leadership and your section leader will loop you in so you can still manage your fire team if it comes to it.”

  Once Lance was positive that Wires was up to no good with the electronics, he set out to start planning with his leadership personnel. When they were all there, he told Xena to electronically seal the room so their conversation was known only to the Marines physically in the room with him.

  “Alright, Marines, this is not a drill. Here is where you prove to me why you have kept your rank for the last year. Again, I reiterate that there appears to be a general mutiny going on around us. I don’t know which side is the right side so we will hunker down and wait it out. If the bad guys lose, whoever that is, we just play the Cadet Card and say you weren’t subject to the general order that was over the intercom. Further, our actions will be securing the base, our part of it anyway, so we have cover regardless of what happens. The key is to wait for sanity to regain control and then move forward. Before we plan things out, anyone that wants to rush to the sound of the guns needs to leave now. From here on out, we live or die together as a squad. This is real, so take a deep breath and report back to me with your answers.�
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  Before Lance had a chance to turn around, to even blink, his section leaders all nodded that they were in and the junior fire team leaders quickly followed. Lance felt his chest swell with pride. Now, these were Marines. “Right, are you confident that your fire teams will feel the same way?” Why am I so nervous? We can ride this storm. I know, this is the truest test a Marine has of his leadership skills, a battle that his unit must choose to fight without fear of reprisal if they avoid it. And they are choosing to stand with me. Again his fear was for naught, for they again affirmed their choice.

  “Right, since we are of one accord, the time for inaction is behind us. Right now, Wires is pulling all of the 6907th’s habdisks from the Beta City Network. We are locking down our Marines in their individual rooms as we find them. This disk will serve as the new network center. Things are tense, Marines are shooting Marines. I understand from Mason’s reports that they all appear to be experiencing the effects of the combat drugs. There has even been a call for all hands to report to the Serendine Orbital Elevator to engage unknown enemies in the void. Nothing good comes from following that order. Given the ambiguity, we will assume that it only applies to Units of the Line and not to Cadet units. Once the habdisks are secure, we will defend the barracks until I give the order to stand down or no one is left standing. Understood?”

  Lance took a second, trying to get his thoughts in order. Somehow he knew that what was ahead of them would test him in ways he couldn’t imagine. And so it begins, for the first time as a sergeant I am giving orders that very likely will end in death. Can I do this, knowing they literally live or die on my command?