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09:39, 19th March 2024 (GMT+0)

27 June 2000.

Posted by Niewiele DupekFor group 0
Niewiele Dupek
GM, 60 posts
Thu 13 Dec 2012
at 16:33
  • msg #1

27 June 2000

27 June 2000

Torun, Poland

500m south of the Company Area, B Co, 1-40 Armored

***

The M3 had been set up in a hasty defensive position overwatching the southern approaches to the city of Torun. The company had been there the better part of a week to distill alcohol, send bodies back home, and reinforce the ground captured as part of the division's new offensive.

 The four days 1st Battalion had been in Torun was more than enough time to dig foxholes, machine gun pits, run wire for communications and tie them into the Bradley, the M113, and the other IFVs to form a defensive belt in case of a Soviet counterattack. In the even, no Soviet counterattack came, and the soldiers of B Company were taking some time to catch up on some mail.

"Whatcha got Watkins?" Stevens asked the dismount. The driver of the IFV had wandered over to the foxhole to see if Watkins and the other men there had fallen asleep. It was rare that Watkins was quiet this long, and it usually meant he was asleep.

"A boy" Watkins mumbled, a letter in his hands. He stood there at the bottom of the trench fighting position with his M16 leaning against the earthen wall. He kicked at the grenade sump, not really registering what he read in the letter. He said it again, th words sounding strange and distant in his ears. "It's a boy."

"What?" Stevens asked, not sure he heard the Cowboy.

"Elsa, back in Germany....she had a BOY!!!!" he said, getting himself excited. He got out of the trench and, not knowing what to do, started jogging around the foxhole in circles. "I'm gonna be a dad!"

"What about those Polish girls back in Chojnice?" Stevens asked, trying to get things clear in his head. "I thought the father of those two sisters from the farm nearest the company area said..."

"Yeah yeah, they're Poles, so what?" Dan Watkins said, still jogging. "This is Elsa, MY WIFE, from Germany! Yeah!"

"Oh yeah, isn't she like 15 years younger than you?" Stevens asked, scratching himself. He looked around for a tree to releieve himself on. Dan Watkins, however, was not listening to Stevens anymore. The foxhole bored him, so he jogged off to find his brother Roger and share the news. He ignored the funeral that was being held in between the Bradley and Alpha Company's area for the fallen soldiers who died taking Torun.

"Congratulations, Big Brother" Roger said when he heard the news. Elsa was tall and blonde. Their son was going to be handsome.

"You're gonna be an Uncle! Yeehaw!" Dan Watkins said, throwing his hat in the air. It flopped down on the ground, and Dan took another opportunity to hug his brother.

"Paw-paw would be real proud" Roger said, squeezing Dan tightly.

"Yeah, I know" Dan said, looking out over the horizon. He looked around at the brick castle defences and the battle damage visible in several places.

"When this bullshit is over, come live with us" Dan said. He released his brother, took a step back, and looked him in the eye. "What do you have waiting for you back home? Bunch of Mexicans and federal cops, that's what."

He paused, letting his words sink in. Roger looked around as he thought it over. Dan put his hands on Roger's shoulders, a big smile on his face. "Elsa and me, we got a few head of horse, as you know. We always need someone handy to break our herd."

"I'll say" Roger said, looking at his older brother Dan with a snort. "You know those Krauts don't know a damn thing about horses."

Dan chuckled to himself at Roger's use of the word 'Kraut'. They both had German blood in them, plus both had taken many girls in the years from late 1997 to early 2000 the Division was in cantonenment in Germany. Apparently, it only bothered Roger when someone didn't know what he considered to be 'enough' about horses.

"Yeah, and we always need someone to shovel out the boxes" Dan said, knowing how much his brother hated shoveling horse shit.

"I'll give you boxes!" Roger said, lightly punching his brother in the stomach playfully. The men continued to talk about their plans for the future.

***

Eight hundred meters away from the Watkins brothers, two other men were having a conversation. Where the Watkins were talking about hopes and dreams for the future, these two men were talking about more dark and sinister thoughts.

"Got a minute, blood?" Spc Williams said, standing next to the cot of Pv2 Marcus Robinson. Everyone else was at 'chow', and the two men were alone in the tent. The larger man didn't wait for a response. He sat on the edge of Marcus's cot and faced away from him. "We gotta talk."

"I'm listening" Marcus said, pressing stop on his Sony Walkman. He took the headphones off and place the device on a small wooden crate turned upside-down Robinson was using as a table. He took his glasses off the crate and put them on. He blinked, and looked at Williams in profile from his left side.

"Hard times comin', brother man" he said, looking off in the distance.

"I know what you mean" Marcus said, stretching as he yawn. "I'm worried that the Division is driving too deep..."

"That's the shit I'm talkin' 'bout right there, Cos" Williams interrupted, turning to look at Robinson angrily. "You got me fucked up if you think I give two shits about this white man's army."

"Well then what do you care about?" Robinson asked.

"This right here, you Uncle Tom motherfucker!" Williams said, snatching Robinson's long skinny arm. He held it firmly, without intent to hurt the slender man. He touched Marcus on his arm with the other hand with his forefinger.

"Your black skin" Williams said "Don't match with this shit right here."

Marcus turned his head, following where Williams was pointing to. He could clearly see the muscle-bound soldier was pointing to his book collection.

Pv2 Marcus Robinson took his glasses off and cleaned them with a special cleaning cloth, his trademark sign that he was nervous. As he did so, Williams continued.

"I don't know if you're paying attention, Cos, but a war is commin'" Spc Williams instructed. Marcus thought of making the case that they already were in a war, but decided not to press the point.

"You gotta make a choice brother man. Lotta fellas notice that you readin' all these crazy books, listening to this white music" Williams said, kicking the crate. The Walkman shifted on the crate, fell, and the tape slid out onto the dirt floor. Both men could read the words BON JOVI on the side of top of the tape.

"Hey..." Marcus protested, but Williams stopped him with a look.

"I'm tryin' to help you, Cos" Williams said. "Fact is, I can't protect you no more, so you gotta make a choice, and soon."

Spc Williams released his arm, stood up, and headed to the end of the tent. Pv2 Marcus Robinson got up and retrieved the tape. He checked his tape player, making sure that it still worked.

***
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:25, Sun 16 Dec 2012.
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