Chapter 23

We got up and were taken out for our normal PT session although you could tell that no one was near a hundred percent.

As we walked into the classroom building, Gunny Harrell was standing outside the doorway of our classroom.

“I told you idiots that you’d pay and it’s time to pay the piper. So, get your asses out onto the Parade Deck.”

Once we formed up on the Parade Deck, we were marched out to the obstacle course where Gunny Harrell gathered us around.

“So, you chuckleheads are going to get run into the ground this morning. This is going to go on until I’m satisfied. Get your asses moving.”

Gunny Harrell lived up to his word; we got ground into the dirt and then sent back to the classroom. We were all dragging ass marching back and you could see everyone slump in their chairs as we got back. There was a ten-minute period before Gunny Harrell came back in. He surveyed the room before his booming voice lashed out.

“You fuckers stop acting like a bunch of bitches and sit up. The next idiot I see slumped over in his chair will be beaten within an inch of his miserable life.”

Everyone snapped up in their chair. You could see a grin on his face as there was a bunch of groaning.

“This week will be your final week of instruction, everything will be live fire, including explosives, though you won’t be carrying live explosives or detonators. Tomorrow will be explosive door breaching. You’ll build and set off all the different charges that you’ve learned.”

There was then one of Gunny Harrell’s dramatic pauses for effect. There were three days left after tomorrow, so I figured that there would be something big coming along as well. Doing the best I could and surviving was the best I could hope for.

“Wednesday will be wall bracing, then on Thursday and Friday will be your final graded exercise. Over the course of those two days, you’ll maneuver in the neighborhood of fifty kilometers. This will be a company exercise, so not only will it be the Weapons Platoon, but also the two Line Infantry Platoons. You will use all that you’ve learned in this exercise. It will be graded along with the written test that will be given on Wednesday.”

We began reviewing everything we had learned so far and continued after lunch. We were prompted to ask questions about anything we were having an issue with. I had a couple, more for clarification than not understanding the material. I knew that tonight I would be having a study session to help the guys out.

True to form, I had ten guys asking me for help with something. I was surprised that Crummey wasn’t hanging around the edges listening in, then again maybe he’d gotten that high and mighty attitude back.

Finishing up, I made sure the guys asking for help doctored their feet and barely had time to shower and take care of my own feet before hitting the rack.

We got our morning routine out of the way then headed to the classroom. Once we got into the classroom, it was a Safety Brief and the usual, “Fuck up and I’ll kill you” speech.

We then marched out to the Demolition Range where we busted open boxes of explosives and detonators. They put us into groups of eight to begin. A group of eight would go up to the table and build the door charge that you were instructed to. Then those eight would go one at a time up to a door, plant the charge and then detonate it. I made sure that I had ear plugs in at all times. Maybe I could get in on some of the future 3M lawsuit money.

After the first eight went, there was a break as we removed the debris and changed out the doors.

“So, we’re going to demonstrate the two other methods.”

The first was the Det Cord noose method. This time we were using M700 time fuse and an M60 Igniter. You created a noose with the Det Cord then hung it on the doorknob. It was a method to use when you were out of explosives. They chose randomly who was going to do it. Watching it was simple and fast.

The second was pretty straight forward. You taped Det Cord down the hinge side of the door and in between the doorknob and frame to the door. You used the connectors to get the two pieces of det cord to go off almost simultaneously. We were using a time fuse again. I wasn’t picked again, but I was paying apt attention.

We marched back to the Parade Deck after cleaning the area. We were in formation waiting for about twenty minutes waiting for Gunny Harrell. He came out.

“You Marines did good today. Don’t revert back to the idiots you usually are. Remember your last day of learning is tomorrow. Then it’s test time, so make sure you get enough rest and have a good grasp of everything.”

We were dismissed, and once in the Squad Bay, I decided how the night was going to go. Gym, chow and getting my gear ready for Thursday and Friday. Then I was going to study, and more than likely people would be asking for help.

I got changed into PT gear, though grabbed my boots, flak jacket, and helmet. The guys were following my lead, though you could see that they were confused as hell.

As I got into the gym, I made my way over to a treadmill. Getting the gear on, I set the treadmill to six miles an hour. This would allow me to keep hardening my feet going forward. I was just hoping to not bust my heel open.

I kept it up for about an hour or so. My feet were throbbing a bit, but not too bad. My heel would get a flash of pain every now and then, though it wasn’t bad enough to bother me. I finished and the other guys were in a similar state of pain.

Getting back to the Squad Bay, we went to chow after putting up our gear. The rest of the night we went over all our notes before cleaning up.

I talked to the guys as we were headed to the Mess Hall after PT. I told them to eat everything that they could today, as we were probably going to be on limited food during our Field Exercise.

When we got into the classroom, it was time for the Safety Brief. We were going to be using more explosives today than we had used to date. Gunny Harrell gave us a cryptic message.

“So, we’re going to be doing wall breaching, which involves concrete. So, pay attention to things you might not think about.”

We then went over what we would be doing and then marched out to the Demolition range where we stood in front of the four concrete sections.

“Remember what I said earlier.”

They had one of the guys build the breaching charge. We all watched as the charge was placed on the wall with a stick, making sure that it stayed in place. We moved back to a safe distance and put our ear plugs in.

When the charge went off, even at the distance we were at, you could feel it in your feet. We all gathered around the hole that was on the wall. It was about four feet by three feet. It was just large enough that you could climb through. Not ideal but doable.

“Badzinski. Move to the table and build the next charge.”

I created the circle charge that they wanted. I checked and rechecked to make sure everything was as it should be. They moved everybody back as I placed the charge on the target. I used a piece of 2x4 as the support to prop it up in case the adhesive tape wasn’t enough to keep it up.

I spooled off the wire as I made it back to the safe distance. After waiting, I got the tap on my shoulder and connected the wire to the detonator. Giving a five second wait, I set the charge off. We were closer than the rest of the class and I could feel the concussive wave coming off the blast area. A hand grabbed my shoulder. I could barely make out what was being said.

“How much explosive did you add to that charge Badzinski?” Gunny Harrell was by no means amused. Answering honestly was my only option.

“Probably somewhere between fifteen and twenty five percent more.”

“What the fuck do you mean probably?”

“Gunny, I can’t be totally sure. There was no way to measure it, so I eyeballed it.”

Gunny Harrell pulled me off to the side as everyone went over to where the hole was.

“Badzinski, initiative is good. Just not with explosives. Follow the procedure and don’t ad lib shit. I guarantee that if you do that during this week’s exercise you’ll be recycled, and you don’t want that. The new instructors will know exactly why you got recycled. You will be made to regret your choices.”

We went where everyone was gathered around the hole. It was definitely bigger, probably about five feet by five feet. Then what the Gunny had told us crept in. There was rebar in the concrete. Though bigger than what I was supposed to build, the charge hadn’t completely blown the rebar out of the hole. It was bent about three quarters of the way down. It would be a bitch to get through the hole.

We then had a lecture about concrete. If you were in a third world country, there most likely wasn’t rebar in the concrete. And the workmanship is shoddy. You could bring down the whole structure if you weren’t careful. It was assumed that in developed countries the concrete had rebar.

We moved onto the next panel. This one also had rebar in it. The increased charge was significantly larger than the one that I used. It blew the rebar and concrete out the back side. The charge was reviewed, and then the last panel was blown.

We spent about an hour throwing all the debris into a dumpster before we marched back to the barracks area. I could feel a bit of rubbing on my heel.

When we got into the Squad Bay, I changed into my PT gear and checked my heel. It was a bit red from the rubbing but hadn’t broken back open. The healing process was coming along, though I figured it would open back up sometime in the next two days.

I made a trip over to the Marine Mart. This netted me an encounter I was eager to get taken care of. Yohachi was walking around the corner of the Mess Hall.

I ran to catch up with him. He was halfway down the building when I caught up to him and grabbed his shoulder.

He spun around out of my grip and looked at me.

“What the fuck do you want?”

I grabbed him by the shoulder again, though this time I drove my thumb into the hollow above his collarbone and he went to smack my hand away. I was done playing. I grabbed the front of his BDU blouse with one hand and drove my forearm into his chest. I pushed him against the wall.

“Look here asshole...”

He started grabbing at my forearm. We were going to have this conversation. I pulled back an inch or two and gave him a forearm shiver to the chest.

“Stand there and shut up. Listen to what I have to say. Really pay attention. If we have to revisit this, it will definitely not be a conversation.”

I leaned a bit forward.

“I thought that we had some respect for each other, if not a bit of friendship. Though after the bullshit you pulled this past weekend, I realized something. With friends like you, who needs enemies.”

Yohachi looked like he was going to say something.

“Stop. I don’t want to hear whatever bullshit that was about to spew out of your mouth.”

I put some weight behind my forearm.

“I told your father that I’d let you atone for your disrespect of me and Kiku, and all you did was show that you didn’t deserve that chance. You do nothing but bring more “Akahaj” and “Chijoku” to yourself and your family. I’ll take no pleasure informing your father of that fact.”

There was a sudden wild look that came across his face. Yohachi was suddenly flailing at me. Whether it was to get loose or attack me I didn’t care. I swept his feet out from under him and rode him down to the ground.

“The only thing you can do is stay away from my girlfriend. You see her, you turn around and walk the other way. If you don’t, I’ll find out, which will result in me beating the fuck out of you. As far as you and I are concerned, anything other than working together, I don’t want you anywhere near me.”

I could hear the Beast in the back of my head as I walked off.

“You soft fucking pussy. We should have caved his fucking face in.”

That wasn’t an option. I might still have to work with Yohachi, so I didn’t want to have to go to that drastic of a route yet. Separating personal and professional was a good thing.

I ended up skipping the gym as my head just wasn’t in it. I ate chow and prepared my gear for the following two days.

I got shaken awake and noticed it was pitch black out. Looking at my watch, it was 0300.

“Get the fuck up.” I saw SSgt Sulong standing there as I got out of my rack.

“Get the Assault section up and ready to go in fifteen minutes.”

With that he turned and went off to the Mortar section. I didn’t even think twice and started waking up everybody. I hit all the racks and then made a head call. Coming back out there were a few guys still in the rack. I made the rounds again then started getting ready.

I got my gear laid out. We had been told to pack our stuff into our three-day pack, and I had made sure to pack a couple extra pairs of socks. Grabbing my gear, I looked at the other guys.

“Y’all best make sure that y’all are out there in about five minutes.”

I made my way out onto the Parade Deck; a few guys joined me after a couple minutes. The guys kept filtering out and when the time limit was up, a few guys were still in the Squad Bay. The yelling and screaming from SSgt Sulong and Sgt Castillo were clear as day.

The stragglers were pushed out onto the Parade Deck in various states of dress and readiness. We were loaded into trucks and driven for about forty minutes before stopping in a large clearing that was stacked with gear. It was funny watching guys finish getting dressed in the back of the trucks. As we got unloaded, they directed us to one of three stacks of gear.

We were standing in front of a stack of SMAWs, rockets, crates of explosives and MREs. My goal was to hit the MREs first, which always seemed like a good idea to me. Then Gunny Harrell threw a monkey wrench in any plans that were hatching in my head about the next two days.

“So, we’re going to change things up. I don’t want you idiots getting comfortable. For this exercise we’ll be shaking up the Fire teams.”

He let that sink in for a minute. There was a lot of bitching and moaning going on.

“Shut the fuck up you chuckleheads.”

It took a minute before things settled down. We then found out how this was going to go down.

“Badzinski, get your ass up here.”

I made my way next to him.

“You’re going to keep Pothier. You’re the only one that seems to understand what his backwoods ass is saying all the time.”

Pothier came up and stood off to the side.

“Palan and Zheng get your asses up here. You’re now in Badzinski’s Fire team.”

They walked up and we were directed to Cpl Graves to get our gear. As we moved towards the gear, I turned to the guys.

“Zheng and I will get our SMAWs, you two grab MREs. You know what I want Pothier, Zheng tell them what you want.”

We were the only Fire team that got issued two SMAWs seeing as we had four guys. We were then issued two rockets a piece. Contrary to what Gunny had said earlier, they were live rockets. Then it was two hundred and ten rounds of 5.56mm ammunition. Everyone who wasn’t carrying the SMAW launcher received a Halligan, sledgehammer and Mossberg M500 with three shells.

We then went over to the crates of explosives. Everyone was issued a M112 block explosive charge and twenty feet of Det Cord. As the Fire team leader I was given a M118 sheet explosive charge as well. Guess I’d be handing them out as needed.

All of us strapped the rockets to our three-day pack. Pothier had grabbed four Chili Mac MREs. We then got our instructions as to what was going to happen. We were going to follow the two Line Infantry platoons at a distance of between five hundred to a thousand yards. We would provide coverage to their right flank and move up to support them if needed.

As we moved out, the sun was up, and I checked my watch; it was 0730. We were never on a road the whole time we were moving. It was a patrolling maneuver as we had been taught.

After about an hour or two of patrolling we were instructed Contact Right. We could hear firing from where the Line Infantry platoons were and directed to spread out and return fire in the direction we were told. After a minute or two, we got the Cease Fire order.

Gunny Harrell came up to me.

“So, you’re going to patrol in the direction you fired on. Badzinski take point with your Fire team and get moving.”

We moved from hill to hill, scanning forward as soon as we hit the Military Crest of the hill. About another hour or so we came to a crest that on the other side flowed into a flat area that was probably a couple of acres in size. There were what looked like five pillboxes in that open area, I realized that this was going to be one of our live fire exercises.

The only difference between the pill boxes was a large “X” spray painted on them in different colors.

We were informed that though they looked like cinder block boxes, the walls were in fact filled with concrete. We then went about launching rockets at the pill boxes. Everyone did a good job, every rocket hit the pill boxes, some better than others. We policed up the empty rocket tubes and piled them up next to one of the destroyed pill boxes. Guess somebody would dispose of them.

We got moving. It was similar to earlier in the day, though this time we were moving for about three hours. It was about 1600 at this point and we stopped for the rest of the day.

We dug fighting positions that would be our home for the night. It was at that point that I was glad that I packed my woobie. The other original guys from my Fire team did as well. I figured it could get a bit chilly at night in the hills.

It was still in the high 70’s and sunny, so we built up a good sweat digging the fighting positions. The sun had begun setting by the time everyone was done. I was surprised that guys were tearing open their MREs. Pothier was about to follow suit. I asked a simple question.

“You hear anything about them giving us another MRE?”

“No, but they gotta feed us.”

“You think so. Well, go ahead if you want to.”

Pothier sighed, then looked resigned to doing whatever I was doing.

“If I’m wrong, I’ll do your laundry this weekend.”

“I’ll hold you to it. What if you’re right?”

“Then I’ll hold the deep satisfaction of knowing that I was right. Plus, I’ll lord it over you until Tuesday.”

“For Pete’s sake, you’re a Yankee.”

“That’s Damn Yankee. Now that I’ve moved to the South, I’m never leaving.”

“They’ll let anyone move in these days.”

I broke open my MRE. We sat back eating the fruit, oatmeal cookie bar and vanilla caramels. Good thing the beverage powder wasn’t the sugar free one.

We started patrolling around our bivouac area which now included the rest of the Weapons platoon. Just before dark, we all moved to another open area and ran through sort of an assault course. The Machine gun and Mortar sections were set up where they needed to be. I guessed this was a dry run for tomorrow.

The instructors were yelling about keeping to your assault lane and watching your fields of fire. I could imagine how the shit would hit the fan if somebody got injured or God forbid killed. We then moved back and reoccupied our fighting positions at about 2030. The last vestiges of the sun were going away.

Opening my three-day pack, I pulled out my spare clothes - underwear, undershirt and socks.

I guess Pothier had been watching out front of our fighting position. He happened to catch a glance as I was changing my underwear.

“For fucks sake Badzinski, put that thing away!”

“What?”

“Ain’t nobody want to see that thing.”

“You sure? I bet your sister would.”

“I done told ya, I ain’t got no sister. If’n I did, you wouldn’t get near her with that thing.”

“I respect that. Always take care of you and yours. You want to see what else I have in my pack?”

“Once you put that nasty thing away.”

I got dressed after using the moist towelette to wipe off my armpits and naughty bits.

It was dark by this point as I pulled out the jar of peanut butter from my pack. Pothier lets out a little gasp as he shone his red lens equipped moonbeam on it.

“So, you feel better about not scarfing down your whole MRE now?”

“Yeah.”

“Pull out the crackers and jelly. We’re going to snack.”

It was only a twelve-ounce jar, but at that point it was heaven. We split the jar and then made Ranger pudding. It was then onto fifty percent watch until morning. I took the last watch.

About ten minutes before getting Pothier up, I started our main meals heating up. I then heard a noise behind me. SSgt Sulong and Gunny Harrell were standing there. I nudged Pothier to get his ass up, it took couples times.

“Is it that time Badzinski?”

“It sure is.”

Pothier’s head snapped when SSgt Sulong responded instead of me. He scrambled to get to his feet.

“So Badzinski, how is it that nobody else seems to have any food left but you and Pothier are about to dine on your main meals?”

“Well Gunny...”

“I wasn’t looking for an answer though it may have something to do with that empty jar in your pack. What do you think Staff Sergeant? Don’t look so surprised Badzinski. We know everything.”

SSgt Sulong squatted down next to our fighting position.

“We know everything. Don’t think that we also don’t know about your conversation outside the Mess Hall the other night.”

Gunny Harrell got the last word in.

“You Marines have a good breakfast.”

With that they were gone. I stood there thinking that I should have known they would be aware of everything. Pothier nudged me.

“What the hell was that about?”

“I had a conversation with Yohachi the other night after chow. We discussed his attitude and actions towards Kiku.”

“How bad did you fuck him up?”

“I didn’t. Though he’s aware of what I’ll do to him if needed. Now eat.”

We ate and got ready for the upcoming day. As we were getting ready to move out, Gunny Harrell pulled me aside.

“Your section is going to be working closely with the 0311’s. Are there going to be any problems out of you Badzinski?”

“No Gunny. Personal problems have nothing to do with getting the job done, though I’ll always defend myself.”

“Good enough. Now get moving.”

The first part of the day was patrolling so that we could meet up with the other two platoons. we met up shortly after what would have been lunch time. It was obvious that Gunny Harrell kept me close to him on purpose. I guess he thought that I couldn’t control myself.

We began patrolling through the hills again. It was about another hour or two when we were halted. Seems we were simulating the Line Infantry being pinned down by fortified positions.

It was similar to yesterday except the Line Infantry and Machine Gun section would be firing on the fortified positions covering us. Our Fire teams maneuvered in between the Line Infantry Fire Teams. We then proceeded to hit each position twice. They were about a hundred and seventy-five yards out.

We moved up and surveyed our handy work. We took a short break and then were on the move again. It was about 1700 when we arrived at another range complex. This was set up so that we could practice breaching with the Line Infantry Fire teams that would be doing the entry.

Everything was going well until I was supposed to blow the door with a Det Cord noose. The Fire team leader gave the Breacher Up signal. I was making my way forward along the Fire Team as I saw the barrel of a rifle making its way towards me. I grabbed the barrel and front sight post pushing it back away from me.

“Watch where you point that thing.”

“Who the fuck do you think you are telling me what to do?

“The guy who’s going to fuck you up if you ever point that rifle at me.”

Gunny Harrell and a SSgt that I’d never seen was right there. I figured he was from the Infantry platoon. There were a couple of minutes of yelling. Both instructors looked at me.

“I’m not going to let some idiot blow my head off because they weren’t paying attention.”

The guy protested a bit but got shuffled to the back of the stack. I placed my charge and blew the door. It was about 2100 when we were all done. We formed up and marched for about an hour to a big dirt clearing. There was a sea of deuce-and-a-halfs.

Our section went over to a truck and began turning in our equipment. There was an ammo can that any live rounds went into. There was a Sergeant that collected the SMAW launchers and any leftover explosives. Then as we moved from the truck, there was all but a body cavity search done looking for anybody stashing anything. Gunny Harrell looked at me as he searched my pack.

“I see we were right about the jar in your pack. Good thing you packed it out with your other trash. Kept me from putting a hurting on you.”

After that, we finished with our equipment turn in. Were then loaded into trucks and driven back to the barracks.

We all stumbled into the Squad Bay. Checking my watch, it was 0030. We were all tired and some guys just collapsed onto their racks.

I took my time and set all the gear aside as we were going to be turning it in. I grabbed a shower, doctored my feet and hit the rack.

I woke up, and checking my watch, it was 0640. A whopping five and a half hours of sleep.

Getting out of my rack, I proceeded to get my morning routine out of the way. I was walking out of the head when SSgt Sulong started yelling for everyone to get up and gather on the Quarterdeck.

“So, here’s how liberty is going to work this weekend. Today is going to be normal. Tomorrow you will go to Liberty at 0900 and it will be secured at the normal time of 2200.”

So, we’d get a few extra hours on Sunday, which was a good thing. After breakfast we got to Field Daying the Squad Bay. We weren’t made to fix anything after the initial inspection of our work.

We all got ready and went about the normal pre-Liberty stuff. Making our way out to the buses when the time came, SSgt Sulong performed the usual bag check.

There was a different atmosphere on the bus today. It was a mix of excitement and trepidation. Excitement that we were done training and were going to find out where our first duty station would be. The trepidation was from a similar place. We were heading out into the Fleet, the big unknown. We would be the new guy trying to fit in. It was an experience unlike anything most of us had gone through.

As we pulled into the lot, I caught sight of Kiku leaning against her car. The first thing that caught my eye was what she was wearing. It was a green plaid skirt that came to just mid-thigh. Sexy as hell but maybe a bit short in my opinion, especially around this many guys who haven’t had the touch of a woman in months. There was a matching crop top. She was going to make my life a living hell.

I got jumped on as I rounded the bus.

“You’re really trying to get me in trouble.”

“Quit being a party pooper.”

“You think wearing that short of a skirt and jumping on me is appropriate?”

“Well, grumpy old man. It’s not a skirt. It’s actually a skort. There’re shorts under the skirt.”

“Well, I stand corrected.”

“Let’s get going.”

“OK.”

“We have a lunch meeting, so get your cute butt in gear.”

“Yes ma’am.”

It was a ten-minute drive to the Village Kitchen and Pie Shoppe in Carlsbad. We went in, and to my surprise, Berrios and Meyers were sitting in a booth.

“What are you two doing here?”

“Well, your missus invited us yesterday for lunch. We’re going to be discussing fishing and the beach party.”

“On that note, we’re getting released for Liberty at 0900 tomorrow.” There was a surprise reaction from everybody. I then changed the subject.

“Have you guys ordered yet?”

“No, I’ll flag down the waitress.’

The three of them were looking at me as I ordered. Biscuits and gravy with three, over easy eggs on top. When I added a side of bacon Meyers had something to say.

“You trying to get fat Badzinski?”

“Nope, trying to get back to my fighting weight.”

“Fighting weight?”

“I was a pro kickboxer with a winning record. I fought at about two hundred and forty pounds. I’m trying to get back closer to that.”

“Pro kickboxer?”

“Small regional promotion. It covered Alabama, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida and South Carolina. They paid me so a Pro”

Kiku decided to chime in.

“He only lost one fight and won the championship his last fight.”

I turned to her.

“And how do you know that?”

“I’ve talked to your grandparents a couple of times and got lots of information.”

“I’ll have to have a talk with them.”

“Too late.”

“Not really, I don’t think they’ve told you everything.”

“We’ll see.”

“Evil woman.”

We ate, discussing the following day and how things would go. We agreed to meet at 1030 at the same break wall as the previous fishing trip. After eating we tried the selections of the Pie Shoppe. The coconut cream pie was really good. We said our goodbyes and went our separate ways. Kiku wanted to go back to the beach.