Battle in the Stars (Marston Chronicles Book 4) by D. Patrick Wagner

Author:D. Patrick Wagner [Wagner, D. Patrick]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-09-03T22:00:00+00:00

Roth Winter Cabin

“Move it, City!”

Harriet grimaced. Again. For the thousandth time. For two days that was all she heard. Angry, sore, tired beyond anything she had experienced before, Harriet clutched her rifle more tightly, pulled it in closer to her newly-taught at-arms position and pushed harder. But she had to admit. The ten kilometre runs were becoming easier. The drops and rolls becoming more instinctive. The dropping to shooting position and hitting a target became more successful.

“Gods, I hate Stein,” she half thought, half mumbled.

“Move it, City! I am not going to let daddy’s little girl turn toes up when the aliens arrive.”

Thankfully, Harriet pushed across the finish line. Last. But she still finished.

“Tired, City? Not even close! Squad! Take five!”

Harriet wanted to collapse to the ground, just lie there, getting oxygen back into the body. But, she saw the others. They stood, rifles hanging from the leashes, used as arm rests, as the other eighteen paced around, recovering, preparing. Randy approached.

“Looking good, City.”

“You to?”

“Sorry. You’re stuck with it. The whole squad.”

“Gods, I hate Stein.”

“Everyone does. That’s what Drill Sergeants are for. But, when the flop hits the fan, you’ll be glad he has your back.”

“Speaking of which, you get to scrub it when we get back to Trotzig.”

“Along with other spots, I hope.”

“Alright, kiddies. Time’s up. Pull your A-G’s!”

“So damn loud,” Harriet groaned as she trotted over to the supply van holding the anti-gravity gear. Receiving her acquisition, she checked the gauge.

“Just like yesterday. And the day before. Full again.”

“Yes, Mz. Gregor. Alien tech. wondrous stuff. I wish I knew what it was.”

All nineteen marines and Harriet knew their places. Once each had received his or her A-G gear, they stood at parade rest, waiting for the next command. Harriet now knew the proper stance and held it, the same as the others.

“Equip harness!”

Master Sergeant Stein performed his own inspection of his harness and strapped it to his back. Before he completed, twenty others had done the same.

Hank and Dean critically watched. The two watched Harriet shoulder her rifle and snapped it in place. Then she pulled on her helmet and buckled it down. As she held her position, Hank assumed that she was going through her equipment check, using her eyes to control the head’s up displays. Reaching into the harness’s pouch, she withdrew the alien joy stick. Not having any enhancements, she was the lone person who required the manual control

Watching the others, Hank and Dean saw every marine don their helmets and, with rifles at the ready, lift slightly off of the ground, perform a three hundred and sixty rotation and settle back down. Harried did the same. Sergeant Stein gave Hank a look. Hank nodded affirmatively.

“Listen up, kiddies. For two days you got to play with your new toys. Today we learn how to use them to squash bugs!”

“Hoorah!” Nineteen voices shouted. Harriet, in her helmet, sighed a quiet sigh.

Under the command of Master Sergeant Stein and following the direction of Doctor McCauley, the now twenty-strong began learning to turn the capabilities of their new A-G’s into tools of war.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.