Memo to self: NEVER VOLUNTEER FOR ANYTHING!
From the Journal of Corporal Harris. Alexander L.
This SUCKS! Who ever thought Boot would be a breeze was blowing smoke out his ass. I swear if I had any idea I would never have stepped foot on that bus. Parris isle was thirteen weeks of hell and the Devil wore a Smoky the Bear the entire time. I think I might have been able to ignore the heat and humidity, but the damned Sand fleas had to come from the hellmouth itself.
I don't know why drove all the way to Tennessee to enlist for but it probably had something to do With San Diego being to close to my old life.
Stepping on the bus introduced me to my nemesis throughout training. Adrian Adolph Shephard was a first class Pain in the ASS. And he was my bunkmate and sparing partner from day one.
It seems the D.I. got a kick out of pitting me against Shephard in almost any type of conflict they could set up, From Peeling Potatoes and cleaning Latrines to twelve mile races in full Combat load out.
After Boot Shephard and me found we were one of the few without anywhere to go (Shephard never told me about his family but I get the feeling we have more in common then a need to excel) so we decided to put the past behind us and go get some drinks.
After getting out of the jail (The judge found that there was no way to people could cause that much structural damage to a building) we barely made it back in time to avoid being AWOL before we were shipped off to MOS.
It was no surprise that Shephard and I made top scores on the gun range (I beat him slightly with the AT-4… it seemed kind of familiar) before being listed for active duty.
It was a surprise when we were ordered to the base commander's office. The hits kept on coming when a three star was the one that 'Requested' the interview. I barely kept from breaking rank when he asked about 'Gang members on PCP, Vigilante kids and a missing AT-4 from the Sunnydale Army base.' and my involvement with the events in Sunnydale.
Thinking about it a moment I took a breath and told him about fighting the 'Gang members' for most of my high school years that yes I had taken the RPG to stop a threat from said group.
With a nod the general looked between Shephard and me for a second before picking up two envelopes from the desk and handing it to the two of us with orders to take a week off and consider the options.
It seemed the general was starting a special multi-branch force to handle 'Unspecified Hostiles in unspecified conditions.' Both of us agreed before we left the office.
What followed was six month's of heavy combat training in some of the worst hell holes on the planet.
From Death Valley to Antarctica we were forced to traverse kilometers and arrive in 'Combat ready' (AKA Standing) condition.
Most of the other trainees where marines and army (The Navy had some of there SEAL Cadets and even the Air-force had a few rookies here)
What we failed to realize is that even though there where almost a thousand cadets at the beginning of training. Only two hundred would be considered for the positions. (Thank god for Murphy's laws or that Finn prick would have beaten out Shephard or me.)
After the selection process we were down to one hundred and thirteen Marines, forty five Army pukes, nineteen Air force wimps and twenty three Navy SEAL Cadets.
Shephard went into the third squad while I was set into the thirteenth.
It was three weeks later we started training for the 'Unspecified Hostiles' by assaulting a 'Hostile controlled building'
Taking aim at the first hostile I realized my life was more complicated then I first thought.
Firing two rounds into the skull of the huge humanoid form I tracked down and put two into its heart. With a grin I watched the large Trecan demon slump to the floor.
Thumbing the mike I reported the down and ordered double taps on all hostile targets.
I guess I should have taken to heart the words 'NEVER VOLUNTEER FOR ANYTHING!'
it's been three weeks since we were introduced to the bumps (One of the Air boys started calling them that) and now where being prepped for some heavy assault mission (I swear if the Shits in the weapons cage have messed with the sights on my M4 I'll rip them apart.)
Most of the guys seem to think this is gonna be a quick Hit & Get mission, the fact there sending all of us sets my teeth on edge, that there releasing ALL of the depleted uranium rounds really start to set off my warning bells, ooh well I know Murphy is gonna bite me in the ass for this but how hard can it be… I've never even heard of Black Mesa Nevada.
Shit there's the load up call… guess I'll write more when the missions done.
- Xander.
Memo to Self: KILL FREEMAN!
From the Journal of Gunny Harris, Alexander L.
THIS SUCKS! I swear, Murphy is out to get me.
After the whole fiasco under Black Mesa, the 'Response Detail' was decommissioned and the forces split up.
That Bastard son of an Army private Freeman got transferred to the X-304 'Darkstar' because of his 'Knowledge' of the possible hostiles encountered in its exploration.
My squad was wiped out under that damn mountain, Correns and O'Finn where killed before touchdown when the Helo crashed. "Matthews blamed himself for O'Finns death until that damn Zap lizard managed to get too close."
Most of the others were killed off one by one, Johnson died while trying to disarm a bomb Freeman planted on the hydro dam. Turner was hit by a grunt and a headcrab picked him up before we managed to E-Vac. AND THAT BASTARD FREEMAN IS TRANSFERRED TO THE DARKSTAR?
Surprisingly both Shephard and myself made it out alive. "Shephard has since been listed as MIA while on a training exercise in South America." Only I hear something about 'Area 52' and an 'SGC.' Whatever the hell that stands for.
And that leads me here, back to good old Sunnyhell.
That Finn prick is here and guess what, Murphy threw me in under his command. Dumb shit wants us to hit the bumps with these wanna-be tazers before taking them back for "study"
I don't get it, Finn is a good soldier, but what the hell does he think they're doing with them? And who the hell named them "Hostile Sub-Terrestrials?" Damn bumps.
On the plus side I managed to get a hold of a small portion of the 'Killer of the Dead' poison Faith used on Dead Boy a few month's ago. Managed to slip a few drops into Hostile Seventeen's food yesterday.
Well at least Finn accepts I know a bit more about these things then he does. I would be a hell of a lot better if they didn't keep trying to get me to take these damn "Vitamin enhancements."
Shit Buffy just walked by. "Why the hell did Finn bring her down here?"
Better hide my weapons and gear from Black Mesa from Walsh and make myself scarce.
Write more later,
-Xander