Preface
The range was usually alive with the sounds of gunfire but with the falling rain it was hard for even the most hardened marine to stay pinned to the line for long. It wasn't ordered, it wasn't a drill, it wasn't even a request but a bet amongst these four marines was one not easily denied. So there, in the pouring rain, the young ODST hopefuls lay with their fingers wrapped around 14.5 millimeters of rigid justice, eyes locked with the horizon waiting for the marker to cross into their view.
It wasn't the first time that they had lay there, nor the last but among their fellow servicemen it was clear why they did. Few ever mastered the use of the SRS99C and these four had it down to an art-form. There was no doubt these guys had seen action before, they all bore an unusual shoulder patch, a single staring eye. They stood half a head taller than the tallest man and spent more time cleaning their weapons then interacting with the facility staff. Their inability to respect the line of command made a few applicants question their chances of selection, but no one doubted their skills.
Laying in the mud, no one moved, not a finger or toe shifted. The silence hung heavy with the devoted focus, they all looked similar, all military hair cuts, the same mud stained black uniforms and each held a highly customized rifle. The silence was broken as in near perfect unison the four rifles discharged across the rain soaked mud, the rounds connected before the watching marines had a chance to respond. The four stood, locked the safeties on the weapons and walked toward the downed target. A warhead-free ANVIL-II lay deactivated a few clicks from the long rifle range. Launched from a diving pelican, it presented a fast moving target too small for even the slightest miscalculation. Yet, there, in the mud, lay the rocket, a single entry hole burnt black just above the nose. After exchanging a solemn glance, one marine shone a torch beam down the hole, illuminating the paint they had used to mark each of their rounds. Each looked and no one questioned, purple glowed in the light, a clean through and through.
Each stood, formed up and saluted their new squad leader, and through her matted brown hair, Sarah returned their salute with reserved speculation.
The preface to a longer work I'm dreaming up. If you'd like to know what happens to them, Leave a comment. Happy Reading!