Chronicles of The 47th Legion - Part 3

[Guest Bonetti]

Chronicles of The 47th Legion -A Defiance Clan

Chapter 1 - Training

Jenkins – April 2046


When I first joined with the 47th, everything seemed to go right. Our initial training was phenomenal! I was taught how to use rocket launchers, shot guns, pistols, sniper rifles, oh and Grenades! There were three others in the Beta section of the 3rd Platoon so far. Vichus, a veteran with wartime experience who claims to have great honor. Bean, one of our elite females who seemed to makes friends easily. We don’t know much about her past, but I hear her pray at night. I don’t know if she knows I can hear her, but I listen as the sweet melodic tone of her voice speaks to a man she’s never seen. It is as though a lullaby is falling gracefully from her lips. Then there’s Doc, a striking young Irathian female who seems surefooted and willing to work hard. I’m pretty sure she’s our medic. We all trained together, worked out together, ate together, and practically slept together; there was not much space between our bunks!

A short time after our initial orientation and handgun training, we began learning how to use other assault rifles. They put me on target nine with one of the other newer guys, Bonetti, next to me on target eight to my left. He joined up just a few days before me, and geeze, did this guy have a lot to learn! His SMG kept jamming, and at one point I noticed he forgot to take the safety off. What a piece of work, and really he doesn’t seem to be a good shot either. But we’ll come back to him shortly.

Vichus was constantly talking about honor and about fighting in the Pale Wars. Bean and Doc seemed to become fast friends. I mostly kept to myself however. I still hadn’t heard from my parents, but then again, contact with their little town in the north east would have been difficult to begin with. I don’t really like to talk about my past with other people; it makes me uncomfortable. We were coming to the end of our initial training, and I couldn’t be more ready to get out there and use my new skills in a real battle.

We’re getting ready and we’ve received reports that we may be moving out within the next hour. Our squad leader tells us that we’re headed across the city to Kenn Farm in Madera to help fight off some Mutants and save some farmers. Meanwhile, the radar systems have started going haywire and that only means one thing: an Arkfall sometime in the future. Then what do they do twenty minutes before we head out? Give 3rd Beta a new squad leader. His name is Bonetti, the same one from the firing exercise, and God only knows how he got promoted; he’s young and green. I heard he’s become all noble cause his family died and he didn’t. What a load of crap! He’s come here looking for a new Mommy and Daddy, and they put him in charge of us. To be honest I bet he’s never commanded other people in his life. I joined up here to be a part of a unit and they put this brand new baby at the top of our totem pole and, like I told you earlier, I’ve seen him with a gun. He’s not horrible but it’s nothing that would deserve a promotion.

Why should he get the chance to lead instead of say… Vichus, who has prior war and leadership experience! His first day in Beta and he’s already poking around, asking people about family and their history, trying to coddle us like he knows what he’s doing. What a piece of you-know-what.

He tried coming over to me and asking me questions, I looked him dead in the eye, told him to “Fuck offâ€, and then walked away. I bet he’s probably already gone and complained to our platoon leader about people not playing nice. Well this world isn’t nice buddy. You’ll learn in time, probably after they demote you, HA!

Time to go, we all hopped in our respective vehicles and headed toward Kenn Farm. While saving farmers and killing mutants, the sky turns dark and we got a glimpse of the giant piece of space debris falling from the sky. We finish up at the farm with a sense of urgency so that we can make it to the Arkfall in time to capture any technology before anyone else gets to it. When we finally arrive, Bonetti tells us to stay in in the Northeast quadrant and to concentrate on the large bugs, then he runs off into the bushes behind us. God, what a coward! Give us instructions, and then disappear like a little girl. It’s a stupid plan anyway; we could get flanked if we’re not careful. So to keep our guys backs covered, I hang to the left to keep an eye on things. I see an opening and decide to take it. I move around a large bug to get behind them and start attacking their rear-end weakness. All of a sudden Bonetti’s screaming over the coms at me, getting on my case like I’m an out-of-line adolescent. I’m doing what he told me to, I’m just doing it my way which in turn causes him to throw his tantrum. Seriously dude, learn to take a hint. I don’t need a new Daddy almost as bad as you need the other ball to drop. We finally take out all the stragglers, grab any spare equipment from the wreckage, and head back to our base of operations.

Returning to the barracks and being dismissed after our Arkfall mission, I hear him yell my name and something about meeting him in his shiny new office. This, in all reality, was just a one-bed room with a small desk in it. With a groan audible only to Vichus, who chuckled, I made a sloppy about face and began lazily following Bonetti to his “office.â€

Closing the plain oak door behind me, I moved in front of “The Man’s†desk and stood at ease.

“What the hell did you think you were doing out there?†Bonetti exclaimed. “A fucking fun run?â€

To which I replied “No Sir, I was simply accomplishing the goal you instructed me to do.â€

Bonetti’s face turned a bit crimson as he roared “Jesus Jenkins! You know damn well you were supposed to stay in front of the bugs! Instead you decide to go running in there head first, with no cover fire, completely exposed to crossfire, as though you were an unprotected babe in this Godforsaken world!â€

Is this guy for real right now? I thought to myself as I watched his cheeks continue to redden. “With all due respect,†I remark sarcastically, “I did what you told me to do, even if it wasn’t your way.â€

He stammered at my outright disrespect toward him, “That’s not the point! The point is that if you had screwed up it would have been the rest of your squad or hell, the platoon that would have suffered. Your little stunt out there could have cost us the lives of soldiers that are obviously better than you. You are to report to Miles Kalimist in supply after your training and missions to help them every day until I instruct you otherwise. I better receive a message from him tonight telling me that you were there tonight and that you were pleasant and helpful. Or so help me I will shove my boot so far up your ass it’s going to come out of your throat. Understood Miles Gregarious?†His emphasis and use of the whole rank name was a sickeningly derogatory.

“Understood. Decanus.†I say, followed by another lazy about face then head out the door.