Read Online Tech World (Undying Mercenaries Series) by B. V. Larson - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: B. V. Larson
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recruits had won the ambush scenario.
-7-
It wasn’t my first dressing down, and I knew it probably wouldn’t be my last.
I’d been summoned to Centurion Graves office about an hour after the vicious firefight in the exercise room had ended in a loss for my team. I wasn’t under any illusions about what was in store for me when I reported to my commander.
Normally Harris would have given me a nasty grin when he saw me show up on a day like this, but he was too pissed-off to enjoy the situation. He glared at me, and I knew he’d as soon put a round between my eyes as spit on me.
Graves saluted us as we stepped into his office, but he didn’t tell us to stand at ease. We remained rigid and staring while he eyed us both. Finally, he heaved a sigh.
“McGill,” he said, “I’m sorry to say that Veteran Harris has requested a formal reprimand for your conduct earlier today. I’ve already heard his side of the story. Please relate yours as concisely as possible.”
“Sir,” I began, “at 0800 hours today I joined Harris’ team of heavies in the exercise room. We planned to stage a mock ambush on an unsuspecting platoon of lightly armed recruits. Unfortunately, my weapon didn’t operate as I’d—”
“Bullshit, McGill!” Harris interrupted with sudden vehemence. “Don’t you even dare go there. We’re not a pair of desk-flying noobs, you know. We’ve seen your act plenty of times before, and—”
“Harris, please,” Graves interrupted.
“Okay,” Harris said. “Okay. I only wanted to point out the obvious—that McGill is full of Grade-A shit, sir.” After that, Harris clamped his mouth shut. I could tell it wasn’t an easy thing for him to do.
“McGill,” Graves said, “I have to agree with Harris’ assessment in this instance. I’m not buying any nonsense about the status of your weapon. It operated perfectly before and after the exercise—just not while it was in your hands.”
“Well sir, in that case I’d like point out the general rule followed by heavy weaponeers in combat. The commanders give the orders, but we’re in charge of executing the technical details to the best of our ability and at our discretion. My actions were due to a personal judgment call. While I can understand how someone could see my decisions as…flawed, I believe the end results were positive.”
“You didn’t follow orders!” Harris exploded. “You know damn well—”
Graves waved him to silence again. “McGill, half the heavy troopers lying in ambush were killed by the enemy patrol during the exercise. More importantly, the recruits made it to the far wall achieving their goal and a clear victory in the game. How can these results be looked upon as ‘positive?’”
“It’s true, sir, that my side failed to stop the enemy in the exercise. But that’s only one way of looking at it. The real purpose of the mission was to train troops, and to shape them into battle-hardened fighters before their first real battle. I believe my approach managed to do just that.”
Graves frowned slightly. “Could you elaborate?”
“The enemy light troop officer in this mock firefight played her role poorly. She knew what was going to happen. She didn’t spread out her men or give them any orders that would improve their odds. Instead, she hung back and offered them no guidance. If she’d led her team to the best of her ability, we might have lost the exercise fair and square.”
Harris lost his cool once again. “That’s the whole damned point! The recruits are supposed to lose. They’re supposed to be slaughtered . It’s a good hard lesson for them and puts the fear of live rounds into them before they wander out onto an alien battlefield. Are you trying to outthink Legion Varus’ training techniques? Is that it? Do you know better than your officers? I—”
“Hold on, Harris,” Graves said. “McGill, explain yourself.”
“I don’t think the exercise is well-designed. If the purpose
-7-
It wasn’t my first dressing down, and I knew it probably wouldn’t be my last.
I’d been summoned to Centurion Graves office about an hour after the vicious firefight in the exercise room had ended in a loss for my team. I wasn’t under any illusions about what was in store for me when I reported to my commander.
Normally Harris would have given me a nasty grin when he saw me show up on a day like this, but he was too pissed-off to enjoy the situation. He glared at me, and I knew he’d as soon put a round between my eyes as spit on me.
Graves saluted us as we stepped into his office, but he didn’t tell us to stand at ease. We remained rigid and staring while he eyed us both. Finally, he heaved a sigh.
“McGill,” he said, “I’m sorry to say that Veteran Harris has requested a formal reprimand for your conduct earlier today. I’ve already heard his side of the story. Please relate yours as concisely as possible.”
“Sir,” I began, “at 0800 hours today I joined Harris’ team of heavies in the exercise room. We planned to stage a mock ambush on an unsuspecting platoon of lightly armed recruits. Unfortunately, my weapon didn’t operate as I’d—”
“Bullshit, McGill!” Harris interrupted with sudden vehemence. “Don’t you even dare go there. We’re not a pair of desk-flying noobs, you know. We’ve seen your act plenty of times before, and—”
“Harris, please,” Graves interrupted.
“Okay,” Harris said. “Okay. I only wanted to point out the obvious—that McGill is full of Grade-A shit, sir.” After that, Harris clamped his mouth shut. I could tell it wasn’t an easy thing for him to do.
“McGill,” Graves said, “I have to agree with Harris’ assessment in this instance. I’m not buying any nonsense about the status of your weapon. It operated perfectly before and after the exercise—just not while it was in your hands.”
“Well sir, in that case I’d like point out the general rule followed by heavy weaponeers in combat. The commanders give the orders, but we’re in charge of executing the technical details to the best of our ability and at our discretion. My actions were due to a personal judgment call. While I can understand how someone could see my decisions as…flawed, I believe the end results were positive.”
“You didn’t follow orders!” Harris exploded. “You know damn well—”
Graves waved him to silence again. “McGill, half the heavy troopers lying in ambush were killed by the enemy patrol during the exercise. More importantly, the recruits made it to the far wall achieving their goal and a clear victory in the game. How can these results be looked upon as ‘positive?’”
“It’s true, sir, that my side failed to stop the enemy in the exercise. But that’s only one way of looking at it. The real purpose of the mission was to train troops, and to shape them into battle-hardened fighters before their first real battle. I believe my approach managed to do just that.”
Graves frowned slightly. “Could you elaborate?”
“The enemy light troop officer in this mock firefight played her role poorly. She knew what was going to happen. She didn’t spread out her men or give them any orders that would improve their odds. Instead, she hung back and offered them no guidance. If she’d led her team to the best of her ability, we might have lost the exercise fair and square.”
Harris lost his cool once again. “That’s the whole damned point! The recruits are supposed to lose. They’re supposed to be slaughtered . It’s a good hard lesson for them and puts the fear of live rounds into them before they wander out onto an alien battlefield. Are you trying to outthink Legion Varus’ training techniques? Is that it? Do you know better than your officers? I—”
“Hold on, Harris,” Graves said. “McGill, explain yourself.”
“I don’t think the exercise is well-designed. If the purpose
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