Chapter 13

[Author note: I use Marine Corp approved rank abbreviations for brevity at times. The military puts the abbreviation with no periods. Additionally, it might inspire you to learn more about the Marine Corps.]

We were woken up, but it definitely was a lot more relaxed than it had been the week prior. SSgt Brooks grabbed me as I came out of the head.

“Badzinski, I need you and Yohachi to head right to chow and then head back here.”

“Yes, Staff Sergeant.”

We both got dressed and headed over to the Mess Hall. Our breakfast was spent wondering why we were being singled out. There was only one thing that involved us both and that was Cpl Pugh wigging out. I was a bit apprehensive as to what was going to happen.

SSgts Brooks and Faamate were waiting for us when we got back to the Squad Bay. We followed them across the Parade Deck to the Company Office.

Once we got into the office, I was told to sit in a chair and keep my mouth shut. SSgt Brooks took Yohachi into the Company Commander’s office. I was sitting there for probably a half hour before they came out. I was bored and it didn’t help checking the clock every so often. They came out and SSgt Faamate nudged me to get up. SSgt Brooks told me to get in there and report to Capt Sharpe.

I walked into the office, stood in front of the desk and reported in. He looked at me for a minute while I was standing at attention.

“Have a seat PFC.” He was going through some paperwork on his desk.

“So, it seems that you have been having some issues with Corporal Pugh?”

“No Sir. I’ve just been doing what I needed to do to graduate.”

“That’s very interesting. Please tell me what happened Friday morning.”

I went through the whole thing that happened beginning with when the Fire Watch started. I noticed that he was writing stuff down on a notepad during the whole thing. He surprised me by asking me about the cut on my right eye and if I still had any ringing in my ears. I explained the eye incident, and also told him that most of the ringing had gone away at this point. He then asked me something that I hadn’t expected.”

“So Badzinski, can you give me your grandfather’s name, the one that was in the Navy?” This was something that I figured would eventually come up, just not this soon.

“Piotr Lapcynski, Captain retired.”

“Would it bother you if I asked you for his phone number?”

“Sir, this is all confusing to me, but I have no reason not to give it to you.”

“Everything will be revealed in the next day or so. I’ve got some more information to gather. Until then, just go about doing what your Drill Instructors tell you to do.”

“Aye Sir.”

I figured that was the end of it, so I got up and stood in front of his desk at attention.”

“Dismissed.”

I turned and left the office. Yohachi just looked at me when I exited the office. SSgt Faamate stepped over and put his hand on my shoulder.

“Badzinski, don’t worry, you’re not in trouble. You’ll actually be right back here after lunch. So don’t stress.” Well, that didn’t really help. I was still stressed as we headed out of the Company Office.

We went over to one of the offices to join everybody else in getting our IDs and Dog Tags. The forms were partially filled out. The dog tag already had our name, blood type, social security number and branch filled out. I added XL for my gas mask size and Roman Catholic for my religion. I didn’t really care, but If I died, the family would be happy. I was a bit confused as I filled out the ID paperwork.

As I went through the paperwork, I noticed something as I got to the rank/pay grade box. Instead of saying PFC/E-2, it said LCpl/E-3. I turned to SSgt Faamate, and he beat me to the punch.

“It’ll all be explained when you head back to the Company Office. So just go with it.”

This had me so confused. I didn’t know how or why this was going on. It took about twenty minutes after I finished the paperwork that I was handed a brand-new set of dog tags. There were two places that I needed to sign the ID, one on the front and one on the back. They took our picture, then had us check all the information to make sure it was accurate.

The one thing I asked about was where it listed under the Geneva Convention Category, mine was listed as 1. I had no idea what the hell that was about, SSgt Faamate said we’d learn about that later. The other thing that concerned me was my Social Security number. It was both on the ID card and Dog Tags. Nothing I could do about it, then again Identity theft isn’t as rampant or easy as it would be in years to come.

We got handed a nice, laminated ID card and then it was off to chow again. As we finished chow, I got sent over to the Company Office as everyone else went in another direction. With a lot of reluctance, I stepped back into the office for the second time today. There was a Sgt waiting for me.

“Let’s go Badzinski.”

I followed him into a conference room where there were three other recruits waiting. I noticed one was from Platoon 1055. The other two I didn’t recognize. We were there for a minute when I saw Capt Sharpe enter, I quickly got to my feet.

“Attention on deck.”

The other three quickly got to their feet.

“All of you sit down. This is going to be an informal meeting.”

I guess Capt Sharpe could sense that we were all a little leery as to why we were here.

“So, you Marines are probably wondering why all of you are here. You four are each the Honor Man for your platoon, as decided by your Drill Instructors. For that honor, each of you will be issued a set of Dress Blues. Last night your four Senior Drill Instructors, First Sergeant Chapman and I got together. In that discussion we discussed who would be the Company Honor Man.”

He let all that information sink in for a minute. There really was only one question I needed an answer to.

“Sir? I was wondering if we are going to be charged for the Dress Blues like we were for our initial uniform allotment?”

“Good question Badzinski. The answer is no. You Marines are being awarded those uniforms.” That was a good thing as I figured that that uniform had to be expensive.

“So now back to where I was. We used a bunch of criteria in making the choice. Your Senior Drill Instructors were passionate in advocating for each of you. In the end the First Sergeant and I came to an agreement on who it would be.”

He had a dramatic pause, all the while looking at each of us. To me it seemed that he was looking at the kid from 1065 more than the rest of us. Well congratulations to him. That let me relax a bit.

“Badzinski, you will be the Company Honor Man for this cycle. You will be presented with an award at graduation. This left me with a decision to make, as normally, the Company Honor Man receives a meritorious promotion. That is normally to Private First Class.”

“It’s not unheard of for someone in your position to be given the merit promotion to Lance Corporal. As of today, your promotion is official. If you would step over here, Lance Corporal Badzinski.” So that’s why my ID card showed LCpl. That was awesome, it would give me something to harass Stosh about. On top of it, I would be getting a few extra dollars each month.

Capt Sharpe removed the PFC insignia off the collar of my BDU blouse and replaced it with LCpl. insignia.

“Congratulations Lance Corporal.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“Congratulations to the rest of you as well. Head back to your Squad Bays, your Senior Drill Instructors are waiting to have a conversation with you. Badzinski, stay back for a moment.”

Once everyone left, Capt Sharpe shut the door.

“So, you need to be in the Company Office tomorrow morning at 0900. We’ll finish this unpleasant business with Corporal Pugh.”

“Aye, Aye sir.”

As I walked back to the Squad Bay, there were a multitude of thoughts running through my mind. It all boiled down to one thing really. This day hadn’t gone anywhere the way I thought it would. I had the sneaking suspicion that the rest of the week would end the same way.

When I made it back to the Squad Bay, I was instructed to change and get out onto the PT field. We spent about an hour or so along with some telephone pole time and then went to change before we made our way to the Mess Hall. There was no more waiting for everyone to finish, we just migrated back to the Squad Bay.

I was one of the last ones to make it back to the Squad Bay. SSgt Brooks grabbed me as I came in.

“Badzinski, see me in the Duty Hut in about 20 minutes.”

“Aye Staff Sergeant.”

I went and got everything prepped for tonight and in the morning. When I got everything squared away, I went and pounded on the board next to the Duty Hut door. Before I could get a word out there came a response.

“Get in here Badzinski.”

I stepped inside and didn’t make it a few feet.

“Shut the door and have a seat.”

I did as I was told, and as I sat down, I noticed that the other two DIs were sitting in there as well.

“So, I’m guessing that you are wondering what the hell this is about Lance Corporal. That sounds good, doesn’t it?”

“I was truly surprised at the Company Office. I didn’t expect any of this to happen.”

The other two DIs agreed. Then I was surprised at SSgt Faamate’s response.

“Well, it was truly deserved. On the opposite, what Corporal Pugh did was totally uncalled for.”

The other two agreed. SSgt Brooks then carried on.

“Seeing as I have a better grip on that issue, I’ll give you the lay of the land on that.”

He paused at the other two, like they needed to pay attention. I could only guess what this would be.

“Badzinski, I reached out and got your grandfather’s phone number this morning. So, it seems Captain Sharpe did the same yesterday. Based on my conversation with him and with somebody from Pugh’s last duty station who knows him pretty well. I found out exactly why Pugh has such a dislike for you.”

Well, it seemed everybody knew everything at this point. This led me to believe Cpl Pugh knew something before this week that nobody else did.

“Corporal Pugh has a girlfriend. She is currently stationed at the Bureau of Naval Personnel Headquarters.”

I realized what the deal was. Then I realized that I said “Fuck me” out loud and not in my head when they looked at me.

“You know exactly where this is going don’t you Badzinski?”

“I do Staff Sergeant. My grandfather had a favor owed to him by the Deputy Chief of Navy Personnel. I don’t know who he is, but he made it so that my first duty station would be on Oahu.”

SSgt Brooks and Sgt Oyono had the same reactions - Holy shit and I was a lucky bastard. SSgt Faamate kept going.

“His girlfriend was also being stationed in Hawaii at Pearl Harbor. She was supposed to change duty stations in a year and a half. Pugh put in for a transfer to a unit at Marine Corps Base Hawaii Kaneohe Bay. He was turned down for the transfer. I’m guessing when he heard from his girlfriend that you were getting posted there as a favor, something in him snapped and blamed you for his not getting the transfer. The fact that you two have a different MOS makes that thought process completely wrong.”

I couldn’t believe this bullshit. The guy was a complete idiot, then again love will make you do stupid shit. I could forgive all of the petty bullshit he did, but the last incident was just a step too far. I hoped that they would give him enough punishment to make him realize he’s an idiot.

“From what I have found out, his girlfriend is a Navy Petty Officer Second Class. She is in some hot water as well. She released personnel records to someone without clearance or need to know.”

This was just all out of hand. I mean, was all the trouble they caused really worth it? SSgt Faamate looked at me.

“Don’t sweat it too much. If there was a base in Samoa, I’d be looking for any way I could to get stationed there. You used an asset that you had. Just keep from thinking you’re better off than everyone else. From what I can see that won’t be an issue for you.”

The other two agreed. SSgt Brooks leaned over and opened up a small refrigerator and offered me a Mountain Dew. I drank half of it straight away. SSgt Brooks entered the conversation.

“So tomorrow there’s going to be two main things happening for you, Badzinski. First off will be your meeting with Captain Sharpe. Just so you know, I, Corporal Pugh and Staff Sergeant Faamate will be there. Then you’ll go get your Dress Blues issued and fitted. Finish your soda and hit the rack.”

After downing the rest of the Mountain Dew, I went out and got all my evening stuff done. I lay in my rack wondering how things were going to shake out tomorrow.

Waking up, I made sure I was freshly shaved. No need to show up at the Company Office looking like a hobo.

I made my way to the Mess Hall for breakfast and then walked into the Company Office at 0844 hrs. If you’re not 15 minutes early, you’re late. A quality lesson I had drilled into me by Grandfather growing up.

Cpl Pugh never got that memo as he walked in at 0858 hrs. He was directed into Capt Sharpe’s office. There was a moment of a raised voice that could be heard in the outer office. SSgts Brooks and Faamate were called in after a few minutes. After about another 10 minutes the door opened, and I was motioned in. I went to report, and I was stopped.

“Have a seat over there to the side.”

“Aye sir.”

My presence seemed to upset Cpl Pugh, and he decided to voice that opinion.

“So why is that moron here?”

Capt Sharpe wasn’t having it.

“You need to keep your mouth shut Corporal Pugh. You’re already in it deep. It would also be in your interest to be respectful to a fellow Marine. He’s here because I want him here. Do you have a problem with that?”

“No sir.”

“So, let’s get started. You’re facing at least seven UCMJ Article violations. Several are extremely serious. I’ve had conversations with all the parties involved. I’m extremely disappointed in your actions, Corporal Pugh.”

I couldn’t see Cpl Pugh’s face, but his body language was that he didn’t care.

“So, I was surprised at how you chose to react to information that you should never have access to. You could have permanently injured two recruits that were in your charge. On top of that you enlisted three recruits into your scheme.”

I noted that Cpl Pugh hung his head a bit in recognition that he’d fucked up. Capt Sharpe continued.

“I’m going to give you a second chance against my better judgment. You have to thank Staff Sergeant Brooks for that. Though know this Corporal Pugh, if I get any inkling that you’ve strayed from the straight and narrow, you’ll be in Leavenworth faster than you can blink.”

Capt Sharpe stood behind his desk, leaning forward on his hands looking straight at Cpl Pugh.

“Take him over to First Sergeant Chapman’s office to find out his fate.”

He looked at Cpl Pugh.

“Now get out of my sight.”

SSgt Faamate tapped me, and I followed at the end of the line going out. Once we got to the office, SSgt Brooks knocked, and we went in.

Just looking at 1stSgt Chapman, you could tell he was far from happy. Before any one of us could attempt to report, 1stSgt Chapman jumped all over Cpl Pugh.

“Look here Corporal, if I had my way your dumb ass would be court martialed. The Captain and your fellow Drill Instructors seem to think you can be saved and redeemed. I have no such illusions. So, you have one thing to do.”

Looking around, it seemed that Cpl Pugh and I were the only ones in the room that had no clue as to what he was talking about.

“Lance Corporal Badzinski.”

Cpl Pugh whipped his head around to look at me. I think 1stSgt Chapman did that on purpose.

“Yes, First Sergeant.”

“So, I’ve been informed as to all the particulars. The so-called who, what, why and where. I’ve decided you should have a say in this as you are the offended party. Personally Corporal Pugh, based on what I’ve heard, you should be breaking rocks at Leavenworth although I’ve been overruled on this. You failed at the core tenets of the Drill Instructor Oath.”

He was scowling at Cpl Pugh. It felt like he was having to control himself from coming across the desk as the disgust for Cpl Pugh seemed to roll off him in waves.

“So, you’ve got a choice. Take the deal I’m being forced to offer you or go to a general court martial. Please take the court martial.”

Cpl Pugh took a split second to choose.

“I’ll take the offer.”

“Well, here it is. You’re not off the hook completely. You’ll lose half of your pay for twelve months, six months for each recruit you could have maimed. If there’s any hint of impropriety towards another recruit during the rest of your time as a Drill Instructor, you’ll go straight to court martial. I’ll receive a report on you every week during every cycle.”

For a dramatic pause 1stSgt Chapman picked up his cup of coffee. Taking several drinks, he looked at Cpl Pugh with a grin on his face.

“Then there’s the final thing. This is my personal favorite. Tomorrow, you and Lance Corporal Badzinski will enter the Thunderdome for two 5-minute rounds of boxing. That is if you agree Lance Corporal?”

It took me a minute to come up with a counter proposal while everyone was staring at me.

“1stSgt, I have a counter proposal.”

“Well, this is an interesting twist. Let’s hear it, Lance Corporal.”

“Corporal Pugh had several recruits that would do his dirty work. One has been removed for medical, another has distanced himself from Corporal Pugh. The third is still following the lead of Corporal Pugh.”

1stSgt Chapman took a hard look at SSgts Brooks and Faamate. It seemed like some info had been omitted, and the 1stSgt was a bit miffed.

“This Marine has made several promises to beat my ass for pulling Recruit Cox out of the Night Infiltration Course. My counteroffer is two 3-minute rounds with Private First Class Bulat. Then two 5-minute rounds with Corporal Pugh. Private First Class Bulat can wear headgear if he wants, Corporal Pugh has to box sans headgear.”

1stSgt Chapman just looked at me like I’d lost my mind. SSgt Faamate chimed in.

“Lance Corporal Badzinski knows what he’s doing. I’d let his stipulations stand.”

“Well, it seems that you have faith in him. I’ll accept your take on this.”

He turned to Cpl Pugh.

“Those are your choices. Make your final decision, I’ll take your answer when I get back from the head.”

He walked out and it was just Cpl Pugh bitching about how all this was unfair as he was pacing back and forth in front of the desk. I just laughed at the idiot. That didn’t endear me to him. I tuned out the whining, I was tired of hearing it. 1stSgt Chapman came in.

“So, what’s your decision?”

“It’s not like I have a choice First Sergeant.”

“That’s not true Corporal. You had many choices that brought you here. It is true that only one choice keeps your ass out of Leavenworth. Know this though, I’ll have you in my sights going forward, and be looking for the one thing I can use to put your ass where it belongs. Staff Sergeant Brooks will let you know the appointed time, make sure you’re there. Talk to your lackey as well. I’m not going to force him if he doesn’t want to fight. Just know it’s in your best interest to get him there. Now get your ass out of my office.”

As soon as Cpl Pugh left, the 1stSgt turned to me.

“I hope you know what you’re doing, Badzinski?”

“I do First Sergeant.”

“So how is your hearing?”

“No perforations, there’s still a slight buzzing, though it’s getting better every day.”

“Good. Now you get out of my office. You have things to do. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Aye 1stSgt.”

I walked out and SSgt Faamate grabbed me before I left the Company Office.

“You’re with me.”

We went to the uniform shop so I could get measured for my Dress Blues. They had me try on several blouses. The one we ended up with was just a tad bit bigger, but I’d be putting more weight back on, so it’d be OK. I’d already been issued pants, but I actually got another pair. Always good to have a backup.

They were going to sew on the LCpl chevrons, then I was sized for gloves and a belt, both of those were white. I then made a decision; I asked if it would be possible to purchase another barracks cover frame. There went another $55, though the white cover was included with the Dress Blues. All the insignia had been readied to be attached, except one, though I wasn’t told which.

Everything was supposed to be ready for the final fitting tomorrow morning. I then went over to the warehouse to collect my civilian box.

There were only two things that I really wanted out of the box. My watch and wallet, it felt good having a watch on again. We then went over to the Mess Hall and SSgt Faamate asked me how I thought tomorrow would go. I was going to destroy Cpl Pugh; PFC Bulat was going to get beat but I wouldn’t mess up his face. He needed to look decent for his family.

We met up with the platoon when we were done. I then sat through a lecture on what was going to happen after graduation.

The first thing they went over was that you got 10 days leave. That started on Graduation Day which was Friday. You were expected to report to Camp Pendleton at 0700 the Monday following leave. All the Marines who held a non-Infantry MOS would then spend the next 29 days at MCT (Marine Combat Training). All Infantry Marines would attend SOI (School of Infantry) which would last 59 days.

We would receive a plane ticket to and from our home of record. I would need to change this and pay a good bit of money for my travel plans. We had to fill out a few forms and were informed what our duty station assignments would be once we finished MCT or SOI.

We then went to the career center. This was an interesting couple of hours for me. I had a Lt and a GySgt (Gunnery Sergeant) try and get me to switch to another MOS. I knew that it wasn’t going to happen, though I wanted to see how far they were willing to go.

It was hilarious, I tried to bamboozle them when they tried to use the “Good of the Corps” schtick.

“LCpl, I know you have a contract for Infantry. We were wondering if for the good of the Marine Corps, you would be willing to switch your MOS?”

“Well, I’d need to know what would be the MOS that I would be potentially switching to.”

That’s when the GySgt took over, guess this was a tag team operation. He slid a paper across to me. It was a list of MOS numbers and names, no description. It was 6800-Basic Meteorology and Oceanography Marine, 3513- Body Repair Mechanic, 3381-Food Service Specialist, 0161-Postal Clerk, 0431-Logistics/Embarkation Specialist. The last two were pretty similar 0612-Field Wireman and 0613-Construction Wireman. I mean there was no way I was switching with this load of bullshit. I was still going to see how far they were willing to go.

“Well, I’m not really sure about this. I’m all for helping the Marine Corps, though I think that the Marine Corps should be willing to provide an incentive for my help. I mean the Army is giving out enlistment bonuses.”

They looked at each other quickly then the lieutenant got to it.

“So, what are you thinking LCpl?”

“Well, a guaranteed duty station and maybe an enlistment bonus.”

They both looked like I’d asked them to give me the original copy of the Constitution. They got up and went to the other side of the room. I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but they both were pretty animated. They sat back at the table and gave me their new pitch.

“Well, LCpl we can offer you a guaranteed duty station, though no bonus.”

“Well, I might be able to live with that. So, when do I get to see a list of duty stations that are available?”

“Ah, well.”

“So, you can make sure my duty station will be in Hawaii?”

“I don’t believe that’s possible.”

“Well, if that’s the case then I believe I’m going to have to decline Sir.”

“We can figure something out LCpl”

“Sir, I think I’ll just continue with the contract that I already have.”

They continued to try and convince me that it would be in mine and the Marine Corps best interest as well. It took me another 5 minutes to convince them that I wasn’t taking their offer.

We went back to the Squad Bay and the DIs had a good talk with us. They went over a lot of things that we could expect at either MCT or SOI. They were answering questions the whole time. I was rather surprised that Cpl Pugh was actually being a decent human being the whole time.

There was one thing about SOI that I found interesting, and that was how the course was laid out. For the first four weeks, everyone trained together, learning the basics of the infantry. The last four weeks everyone separated and was trained on their specific MOS. So, it was learn how to be an infantryman, then learn how to blow shit up.

We all headed to the Mess Hall and had a decent dinner of fried chicken. Once we made it back to the barracks, it was a very laid-back time. Everyone was starting to square away their Service Charlie uniforms for family day, trying to make them perfect.

The only thing was, I didn’t have any of my Service uniform shirts or my Service Alpha coat. They were with my Dress Blues blouse getting LCpl chevrons put on. At least it would be freshly pressed.

I was laying in my rack thinking about tomorrow. There were two things I needed to get done. First was to get the second fitting done for my Dress Blues, that was right before lunch. Then directly after lunch, it was time to take care of my Bulat and Pugh problem.

Getting up, we all got ready and made our way out to the Parade Deck. The other three platoons met us out there. We spent a couple hours practicing for the Graduation Parade. All of the platoon honor men played a bigger role than I thought.

After getting breakfast we went back out to the Parade Deck and spent a few more hours practicing before the platoons split up. We ended up at the uniform shop to make sure everything fit. The Dress Blue blouse and the stuff that just needed new ranks sewn on were fine. My Dress Blue pants were still just a little long. I’d have to come back tomorrow and check again.

We went back to the barracks and stowed our uniform items. SSgt Brooks came over to me.

“So, you ready for this?”

“I am Staff Sergeant.”

“Well, I should really be impartial. But I hope you beat some sense into that peasant.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“I know you will.”

“So, did Bulat agree?”

“He did and was eager. For some reason he still believes this is his chance to avenge some imaginary thing you did to Cox.”

“That’s fine. He gets his.”

I went to the Mess Hall and ate a light lunch. Ham sandwich and a bag of chips with some water. I threw my trash out and made my way over to the Thunderdome. Capt Sharpe, 1stSgt Chapman, SSgt Faamate and Sgt Oyono were already there.

They had three pairs of gloves on a table. I looked them over and they were all 12 oz gloves. There were also sets of headgear on the table. I heard the idiot brigade before I saw them. They seemed a whole lot more confident than I thought they had a right to.

The rules were explained to everyone. The two idiots decided to go without headgear. That would come back to bite them in the ass. They had no issues with the rules. I asked for and got a few minutes to stretch.

I came out in my BDU blouse and stretched, mostly my arms but also my legs a bit. Grabbing my mouthpiece from my pocket, I was ready.

SSgt Faamate came over and began putting the gloves on for me.

“You got your mind right Badzinski?”

“Yes, Staff Sergeant.”

“You need to put them both down hard and fast. The Alovili brought you into their family and did a rite of passage for you. So, make them proud and show them and me why you earned your Pe’a’. They saw a warrior in you evidenced by the spearheads on the inside of your arm. Now show me the warrior spirit that beats inside your heart. A Polish warrior with a touch of Samoan.”

He looked at me.

“TAU TAU TAU MATUA TAU!”

I could tell from his face that this was meant to inspire and psych me up.

“What’s that mean?”

“I’ll tell you when you walk out after beating them both.”

I turned and walked to the center of the Thunderdome. Bulat and Capt Sharpe joined me.

“Now this is going to be clean. Break when I tell you to.”

He looked at me.

“Ready?”

I nodded, he looked at Bulat.

“Ready?”

He nodded.

“Fight.”

Bulat came forward and started throwing wild haymakers from the start. I needed to be careful, while they were wildly thrown, any one of those punches could end the fight in an instant.

I finally got his pattern down. As he drew back for a punch, I let the first jab fly. It was as if he’d never been hit in the face before. Suddenly, Bulat had no clue what to do. I, on the other hand, knew exactly what to do. Keeping the jab in his face, I began a steady stream of left hooks. It was the fifth one that finally found the disconnect button.