~The Cost of War~
Chapter 4
It had been a weeks after that survival camp. Even though no one mentioned it, you could feel a certain tension in the air whenever you pulled your team out for shooting practice. It was as if they were all afraid to lose again, and did their best to hit their targets. You didn't mind the extra motive.
The consequences of that loss in the mock war had been quite simple. To be honest, you had expected something harsher, though you suppose the generals' negotiation did help a bit. The initial "treaty" the army had drafted up went something along the lines of having to sleep in the open for two weeks and wash the dishes for the whole army for three.
Thanks to Riley's superb negotiation skills - cough cough - the army reduced the "wash the dishes" thing to two weeks, and added in three days of having to salute everyone in the army - except the four generals' squads - like they were a commander.
"Trying to humiliate them?" Jeremy had asked matter-of-factly. After a few heated arguments where someone had to pull a gun on Riley and you having to break up a fight between Jeremy and one of the generals on the winning side, the whole salutation thing was canceled but the soldiers had to sleep out in the open for two more weeks.
"I get where they were going," you had sighed when the conference was over and you were allowed your guns back. (It had been simulating a real conference, a kind of training for the generals as well.)
Jack had nodded. "Crush their morales. We could've let them do it - extra training, I suppose - but maybe we've grown too soft," she then laughed. "They're lucky the army didn't want to keep any prisoners, though I wouldn't have missed it if Riley had gone. His squad needs some serious shaping up."
You had both laughed at that notion.
That had been a week ago.
Now, you weren't laughing as much. The exhausting training schedule you had set for your squad, coupled with the less-than-lenient terms of the war and the sour mood most of your soldiers had been in, was really starting to get to you. The only bright thing in your life was Brooke, and you had been slightly surprised by that. Despite her slim frame, she possessed more endurance and packed a harder punch than most of the people on your squad. To be honest, you may have underestimated her when she had been first introduced.
"Only one more week to go and we can stop being their goddamn slaves," Aaron mumbled as your squad worked through the dishes. There were mumbles of agreement and in the distance you could hear someone yelling at a soldier who was falling behind on their duties.
"But (Name)'s schedule isn't going to end anytime soon," Hunter exhaled sharply, handing a plate to her partner. In fact, all of them were doing their dishes with their war buddies, because you wanted them to grow closer.
Your plan was to focus more on tactics that revolved around utilizing each other's buddies as most as they can. Given Brooke's ability, you weren't that concerned about her keeping pace with you, but each of the other soldiers needed their own shaping and perhaps some personal guidance on how they should proceed. Basically, to proceed with your new training plan you had to supervise every single one of them and appoint appropriate techniques for them.
But maybe not yet. You decided not to start until they've finished this week's dishes. Doing the dishes was just about as exhausting as running a few miles. These were trained soldiers, not trained dishwashers.
A week later, you really started to pick up the pace with their training.
"It isn't like I'm disappointed in your performance during the mock war," you started briefing one morning.
"Are we still going on with that one incident?" Lonnie whined. Her partner jabbed her in the ribs so quickly that you thought you'd imagined it. Lonnie ignored him, though she rubbed the place where she'd been elbowed. "I mean, no one could've done well in that sort of situation! Except Brooke. She's awesome." She gave a little nod towards your war buddy, who received the compliment with a polite smile and wave.
You waited until they've finished their small exchange. "You still need to be prepared. I want you to spend more time with your war buddies. Learn how your other half moves and thinks. I'll be going around helping with techniques you could improve on your own little teams."
Then you were aware of Brooke standing quietly behind you. Perhaps you should organize some training for the both of you as well, but it could wait until you've sorted out the lot in front of you. After doling out the exercises for the day, you turned to Brooke to start figuring out what you should do.
"Where did you spend your training?" you asked her, after recalling how her groupmates had described her as "exceptionally speedy and agile," as well as her great endurance. You understood that different army camps had different training techniques, but if a particular camp had produced someone like Brooke you should've known about it.
"It's up further north," Brooke replied after a few silent moments. "I don't know how to explain it. It's kind of bare, but with a few trees along the line. I heard someone say it was near the border, but I really couldn't care less. Wanted to be the best there is, y'know." She smiled brightly.
"An army enthusiast?" you grinned. She kind of reminded you of yourself when you were younger. Always looking for ways to improve yourself, never paying attention to the insignificant details. Of course, now that you were general, you understood that even the tiniest detail could be of the utmost importance. "Seems like you were brought up near the frontlines of the undergoing war. Did you hear any gunshots?"
She thought for a while. "Sometimes I would see wounded soldiers, and they'd come to camp to resupply. They're always in a hurry. I never heard any gunshots, though."
There was currently a war between the country north of yours, and from your understanding the frontlines were directly north of where headquarters was. It was pretty far up, though, and that may explain why you've never heard of the camp before, since it was so out of your way and so close to the actual battlefield.
After a final once-over of Brooke, you decided you could trust her to supervise some of the other soldiers and advise them on what tactics and techniques they could use. "You can teach them some of your own techniques as well," you added before you sent her off. You didn't expect that, in addition to a new soldier, you were getting a new assistant as well.
You watched her for a bit, and how she dealt with the other soldiers. Nobody seemed to mind this decision - in fact, you'd say that Brooke was pretty popular. She was keen on both learning and training, which, in your perspective, made a real good soldier. You turned to help another pair of soldiers with their coordination while thinking about all the techniques and tactics Brooke and you would be capable of doing.
The day quickly flew past, and Brooke didn't do a bad job. She made your job way easier, and you just had to make some minor adjustments. You had, at some point, expected someone to complain that Brooke wasn't doing her part of training, but no one ever raised that point. You did keep in mind to make her participate as a soldier more, though, but no one could ever deny she did an excellent job in providing extra techniques and tactics.
"They must do things differently up in the north," you commented as your squad made your way back to the temporary tents set up outside as part of the agreement.
"They're all pretty similar if you break it down to the basics," Brooke replied quickly, flashing a flustered smile.
You nodded thoughtfully. "Some of them did seem familiar." You parted ways with your soldiers as you made your way to the general's tent. You shared one with Jack, and Jerome had one with Riley. It made planning next moves easier, and you two have grown close in a matter of days. Hardship does that to people, you supposed.
When you entered the tent, the first thing Jack said to you was, "Where did Brooke come from?"
Your immediate instinct was to defend and protect your partner and fellow soldier. Generals had been known to compete over specific soldiers in the past, and you sure as hell weren't going to give Brooke up without a fight. "Kendrick assigned her to me." Nobody goes against the word of the Commander. His word was pretty much law.
Jack made no further comment on the matter, just nodded slowly and sank back onto her sleeping bag. Except for the two sleeping bags, a lantern and a few changes of clothing scattered around, the tent was bare. You didn't need much to fall asleep outdoors.
You turned off the light and changed out of your uniform. After settling down into the sleeping bag, you sighed softly. It would be nice to sleep in a proper room again.
"She's pretty good," Jack said suddenly, disturbing the tranquil silence that had engulfed you moments before. "I've been watching her."
"Her techniques are slightly different from ours, aren't they?" you replied slowly. You really wanted to drift off to sleep, but it would be impolite to leave the senior general hanging.
Jack made a grunt of agreement. "Where does she come from?"
"The north." you answered vaguely. You had the distinct feeling this was a test of some sort.
"Didn't Kendrick give you any details at all?" there was unmasked surprise in Jack's voice. Usually a general or commander would know certain details of a newly transferred soldier, such as where they had trained and their previous war experiences.
"Nope."
Jack got the hint and rolled over with a soft mumble of "good night." You both drifted off to sleep, though that last question had disturbed you. Why didn't the commander give you any details about Brooke? If Brooke had been this good in a training camp, someone should've at least heard some rumors about her existence.
Or perhaps she was something more than that? Part of (yet another) government project that was supposed to be a secret, perhaps? You sighed, more audibly this time. This was going to haunt you for weeks.
"Thanks a lot, Jack," you hissed softly, and you swore you heard her snort.
