January 14, 2134
Jennings, Louisiana
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I sat against the church wall, flipping a lighter on and off. Tyrese hit the wall and slid down next to me. He chuckled, “you tryna signal the TUC?”
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I smirked, listening to our bombs drop on the city. Planes had been bombing the industrial parts of the city and hitting all the main roads or railways. By the time the sun rose, every route into the city would be useless and every route out would have to be on foot. The only other way to leave was through us.
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Assault Group Three successfully captured most of the South side. They didn’t push across the railroads as the defenses were too heavy. However, they were able to capture a lot of Russian T-90s. We would simply break them down and repurpose their parts for tanks of our own.
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Assault Group Two captured most of the Northern part of Jennings, and were waiting for us to join them at the last rumored Confederate hideout. They spotted two Confederate convoys fleeing the city, which meant we had them on the run.
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Our airstrikes were pounding the TUC into the ground. Most of their tanks were split in two by the first wave of F-15s and F-18s. After that, A-10s flew over and used pinpoint accuracy to destroy bunkers or fortified positions. Then, Cobras and Apaches flew in to sweep up any infantry remaining.
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Now that we had a sizable advantage over the Confederates, they retreated to the elementary school. We, of course, couldn’t hit the school. We could say that the school was fortified and full of Confederates, but it wouldn't make good news back home if we were to begin bombing school yards.
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I asked, “couldn’t sleep?”
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He shook his head, and pulled a cigarette from his pocket, “no. Can’t really sleep while those things fly overhead. Reminds me of Bell City. Fuckin days mate. They bombed us to hell.”
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I nodded, “just noise Tyrese. It’s just, trumpets, bells, car horns, and ladies shouting for you. It’s just noise. It’s not the noise that hurts you. It’s the stuff that comes before the noise, so if you hear the noise, you’re safe.”
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He glared at me, “that’s the craziest, hippiest, whitest shit I have ever heard you say.”
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I chuckled, taking a puff of his cigarette, “yeah. Craziest shit.”
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Carter came into the church with a backpack full of supplies. He dropped it on a pile of crates. He noticed us still awake, took a look at the ceiling, and scoffed, “you fuckers still up?”
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I smiled, “no rest for the wicked.”
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“Well I mustn’t be wicked enough huh?”
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Tyrese smirked, “I don’t think you’ll ever get to be as wicked as us Kid.”
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I smiled, missing the nickname Kid. I sometimes missed my old Division. When we were all together on the boat I loved every second of my life. I didn’t fit in at all, but I loved it.
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When the sun rose, Lt Valkyrie came in and told us all, “get in a circle team! Hustle up.”
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Que and I kneeled down beside each other. He pointed at my cut, “you good Rogers?”
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I nodded, “yeah. You shoulda seen the other guy.”
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Lt Valkyrie laid out a large map in front of him. He pointed to the East side of Jennings, “reports are telling us that all of the Confederate forces in Jennings have either retreated to Crowley or fled to the Elementary school. They’ve fortified it to hell, AT guns, RPGs, MG60s, and a rumored Panther. We must be careful, Assault Group Two and Three are going to be on our flanks. Expect holdouts-”
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He pointed to two buildings around the school, “here and here. Possible MG60s and 72s.”
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The MG72 was a similar build to the MG60. However it required to be fixed to a tripod in order to be controlled. While the MG60 was a versatile machine gun and could be used in just about any situation. The 60 took 7.62 rounds while the 72 chambered 14.5mm. Although the 72 fired slower, it could easily rip holes through you or light armor.
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Noon arrived, and we left the church. We moved out through the burning streets. We passed by dead civilians in the road, destroyed tanks, and Confederate soldiers laid out everywhere. A small boy and girl were tugging at a lifeless body in the road. I turned away, trying to ignore what we’d done.
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As we were getting closer and closer to the school the sounds of an intense firefight came closer. Civilians were walking the opposite way, dressed in spare rags and muck. I spotted two LAV-25s and an Abrams driving down the street.
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We found a wrecked Tiger tank at an intersection. It was hit a few times with bombs and missiles. All the side fenders were knocked off, the coaxial machine gun was split in two, and the barrel was split in the middle. It looked like all of the crew escaped. Goddamn monster.
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We arrived at an intersection beside the school. A group of Rangers were taking cover behind a destroyed LAV. We joined them in cover, and Valkyrie began asking questions.
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John peeked his head around the rear of the LAV, and fell backwards. His forehead was caved in and his brains were blown out across the street. Anton grabbed onto his collar, but let go when he saw he was far from saving.
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A Ranger fired a grenade into a window, sending three Confederate soldiers out. I peeked up to see two Abrams firing their coaxial 50 cals into the school. Their round ripped through Confederate flesh, painting the exterior walls red.
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Valkyrie looked down at John for a second, then told us, “we’re gonna push up with these fine men and push into the right wing of the school. Let’s go!”
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We shifted around the LAV, with the other Rangers leading, and moved alongside two LAVs that were slowly driving towards the school. They were firing their autocannons at the school, and one fired a TOW right into a doorway. The doorway exploded and the roof caved in.
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Once the LAV took a RPG round to its front plate. The LAV slowed down, but continued moving forward. A second RPG round punched straight through the turret. Sparks began to fly out from underneath the turret, and then it popped off with roaring flames shooting out the hull.
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The Rangers moving alongside that LAV had to back up from it because the amount of heat radiating through the armor was just too much to handle. As they did, machine gun fire shot down at them from a building near the school. One of the Rangers had his leg blown off by a MG72 round. When he fell to the ground, a second burst tore open his torso.
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Our LAV noticed the gunfire, and fired a burst of it’s 25mm chain gun into the building. The building shattered like a glass bowl.
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Rangers ran up the school steps into the right wing door. Que and Anton were with them. Kyle moved his sling to the barrel cover and said to us, “I’ll cover!”
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Valkyrie’s eyes widened, “no dammit!”
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Kyle left the LAV and ran out towards the steps. We were a solid fifty yards from the door. All open ground, with half of it uphill. Valkyrie waved his arm at the door, “let’s go! Let’s go!”
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We ran up the steps, getting into the school. I turned back to see Kyle still outside. Slowly marching towards a pile of sandbags. He took a shot in his shoulder. For as much as I hated him, I would have hated to see him die. I would have hated to wake up tomorrow, another one of my teammates bleeding out in the dirt.
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I ran out to him and pulled on his LMG. He then noticed he was completely unprotected and in the open. He smiled at me.
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We ran towards the school door. I shot at anything that looked hostile as we back peddled to the door.
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He laughed hystadically, “you fuckin bitch you! You shoulda let me die dick!”
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I smirked, “I know! How’s your wound?!”
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“It’ll hold, barely glaze me.”
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“You alright?”
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He nodded, “yeah… yeah. Thanks.”
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I gave him a fist bump.
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Kyle and I caught up with the rest of our team. Valkyrie scoffed at me, “dead bodies attract dead bodies Rogers!”
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I nodded, “I know Lt. But he was still alive.”
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Kyle walked down the hall, shooting his LMG down at our enemy and into the classroom doorways. We followed behind him, shooting at Confederate soldiers barricaded behind lockers and school desks. We started to break off in pairs and clear the rooms. Once the rooms were cleared we ducked out at the rear of the group.
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Carter and I took a room on the right. We walked in, swung our rifles around, and yelled, “come out, hands up!”
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Nothing. We ducked out the room to the rear of our group. They continued moving down the hallway until it was me and Carter’s turn at a room again.
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I kicked down the wooden door, exposing a woman standing in the middle of the room with her back turned. Carter yelled at her, “turn around, hands up!”
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She turned around and exposed her red, desperate face. Tears rolled down her face and snot was bubbling out of her nose. She lifted her arms up, and with that her shirt pulled up. A stack of at least three C4 started at her bra wire and ended near the seam of her pants. She pressed down on a detonator in her hand.
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I grabbed Carter's shoulders, his face shocked with horror, and threw him out into the hallway. I dove down with him, avoiding the massive blast that shook the floor beneath us.
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I stretched my mouth wide, opening my ears back up. Tyrese helped me up, “you good mate?”
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I nodded, blinking my eyes to get rid of the micro pieces of flesh in the air, “good! Solid.”
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We continued down the hallway until we came to a turn. Kyle leaned around the corner and shot a volley of bullets down it. I looked out a window to see a second group of Rangers clearing the left wing. On the second floor, I saw a group of soldiers pushing a cart.
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They stopped, pulled something on the cart, and ran away. After thirty seconds the cart exploded. It caused the roof to cave in, collapsing on the leading Rangers. The rest began to climb up the rubble, and shot the soldiers who detonated the cart.
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Kyle stopped shooting for a second. He fired a few rounds and shouted, “clear!”
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I leaned around the corner to double check, and patted his back as I walked by. Tyrese, Carter, Valkyrie, and I found a doorway to a staircase. Valkyrie nodded, “right. Brown, Moore, Robinson, Rogers, and- and… where the fuck is Nova?”
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Kelly told him, “he got killed Lt!”
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He nodded, “right… Marks! Take his role. Grab an M4 and head up with us!”
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She nodded, switching rifles with a Ranger beside her, and switching magazines. Carter led up the stairs. He got all the way up before a Confederate opened the second story door. I was behind him, and saw it first. I shot the soldier, but a second one came right after.
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He got too close to Carter for me to engage. The soldier latched onto Carter’s rifle. He reached for his tactical axe and swung it into the soldier’s neck. The soldier, spurting blood like a fountain, was still clinging to Carter’s rifle. Carter kicked the body off and wiped his axe off on it.
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I kept my rifle trained at the door, “I need to get me one of those.”
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He unclipped the axe holster, and handed it over to me. He smiled, “I got another one back home. Yeah?”
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I nodded, “yeah. I’m right behind you.”
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Him and I walked out into the hallway. I instantly saw a sandbagged position, and through a firing hole I recognized the studded barrel of a MG72. It fired a few rounds, hitting the wall beside us. I shouldered Carter back into the stairwell.
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The bullets chased us into the stairwell, leaving giant basketball sized holes in the wall. I kept my head low and kept Carter’s head down as well. Valkyrie backed down the stairs to avoid getting killed. He got on his radio, talking for a bit.
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Not even five seconds passed, and an explosion shook the stairwell. The firing stopped. For just a second there was a quiet peace. Nothing except the sounds of ducks quacking in a nearby pond. Then, the sound of screaming men haunted my ears. Valkyrie stepped over us to check outside the doorway. He looked down and shouted at us, “fuck later men!”
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Carter got up, and I did as well. He nudged my shoulder, “I’ll owe a drink later.”
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“Two drinks now, yeah?”
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We found Valkyrie in the hallway, standing over three wounded Confederates. He looked down at one of them, who grabbed onto Valkyrie’s knee pads. Valkyrie laid down his rifle against a locker, and let the Confederate drink from his canteen. He helped open his mouth and drip the water down.
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He threw the canteen out the exploded wall. He then grabbed onto the coat of the Confederate and slid him out. He screamed as he fell towards the ground, and a loud crack ended his screaming.
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I stood in amazement, or fear. I didn’t honestly know which one.
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He kicked the other two near the edge, and one pleaded with him. He yelled, shouted, and showed him a photograph of a family. Valkyrie nodded, taking the photo and showing it to the soldier. He then shot him with his handgun through the photo. He kicked out the body and dragged out the other. Both fell with a loud crunch.
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*
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We gathered in the courtyard of the school. A Black Hawk dropped off crates of ammo and heavy weapons. We unloaded the supplies and sent the Black Hawk away.
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As we were opening the crates of ammo, Valkyrie stood over the body bags of dead Rangers. He lit a cigarette and saluted each bag.
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Tyrese scoffed, “if I ever die. Don’t get an officer to salute me.”
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“Yeah. Please, don’t let an officer do me that way either.”
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I was just about done unboxing the chains of bullets when Valkyrie finished. He walked over to us and said, “Moore! Rogers! With me. Bring your rifles.”
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I nodded, tipping my helmet to Tyrese. He returned the tip and muttered, “have fun mate.”
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Valkyrie gathered some Confederate prisoners we received. He had them blindfolded and chained together. He told us, “we’re marching these bastards back to Welsh. Let’s get this shit over with.”
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We marched them out of Jennings. While we were marching down the road towards Welsh, Valkyrie turned the lead prisoner towards a small pond. Carter raised his brows at me, and I just shrugged my shoulders.
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We were walking down a small path, and I asked, “Lt? This some kind of shortcut?”
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He nodded, “yep! Something like that.”
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He stopped at the pond and lined the prisoners along the bank. Carter raised his brows at me again. Valkyrie lit a cigarette, let them all have a puff, then shot them into the water.
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I stood, shocked. Again, was it in fear? I didn’t know if he was about to turn his rifle on me and add me to the pond.
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