All of them were in shock, Hanson had just woken up and got a phone call telling him they were being deployed in two months to Afghanistan!? Sure it was nothing new for Hanson. He had been deployed five times already, but for Aubree, Heather, Dustin, Franklin, Sawyer, Raelyn, Sylvia, Grant, Eli, and Taylor; not so much. This would be their first deployment since joining the Alpha platoon when they graduated Dragon Training. It was a little terrifying to think that in eight weeks they'd be in a war zone, how did Hanson's kids handle news like this. So far it looked like they didn't care one bit, and that was more confusing.
"Do you have to go, Daddy?" Caleb asked softly.
"You know I do, buddy. It's going to be okay; we'll do what we always do. I'll Skype in the morning before school, after school, and right before you go to bed. We'll still do bedtime stories and songs, I promise," Hanson smiled to his children who hugged him again. That's all it took for them to be calm? Knowing Hanson would call them while deployed?
"Will you get to come home for leave?" Hazel inquired.
"Of course, baby girl. It's only a year I'm gone so I should get leave around five or six months in. We'll talk every day, soldier's honor," Hanson saluted her as she and Caleb did the same back to him.
"You don't worry about deployments, do you?" Sylvia questioned.
"Not really, no. I've been on five the last eight years; you get used to it when you're in the military. You worried?" Hanson looked over at her.
"Well, yeah. We've never been deployed before, Hanson. It's a little nerve-wracking," Sawyer replied.
"You're going to be fine. You won't see a lot of action being its your first deployment," Hanson informed, "We can talk more about it later. Right now, I'd like out of the hospital." he added when Dr. Foster walked in with a smile.
"Feeling better I take it?" Dr. Foster asked him.
"Much," Hanson nodded to the doctor. Dr. Foster checked over his vitals and gave an approving nod that he was okay to leave, so she began shutting off monitors and taking out the IV needle.
"It seems your fever broke, and you have some energy back," Dr. Foster pointed out.
"I suppose all I needed was a little sleep," Hanson shrugged to her. Dr. Foster handed him a clipboard as he signed his release from the hospital before pulling back the covers and getting out of the bed, Caleb brought him his boots to get on while Aubree handed him his Acu coat and hat which had been hanging on the closet door.
"I do hope you will try and calm down, Mr. Haddock. Gave your friends and family quite the scare earlier," Dr. Foster said calmly.
"I can't make any promises, I'm a busy man," Hanson replied to her.
"That is why I said try. Have a good rest of the night, and thank you all for your service," Dr. Foster smiled with her hand out to him.
"Thank you for your support, ma'am," Hanson shook her hand as she left the room and then Hanson faced his friends, father while holding his children's hands. "Let's go home," he told them.
"Couldn't agree more," Steven smiled as he opened pulled back the curtain of the room and walked out, then Hanson and the kids with him, finally, everyone else did too. Once outside, Toothless was overjoyed to see his friend again, and he greeted Hanson with a lick on the cheek.
"I'm happy to see you too, bud," Hanson replied to him, the two couldn't talk, but it was easy to see that Hanson and Toothless understood one another somehow. Perhaps it was their bond, no one knew, but it was cool to watch. "I'll take Toothless home. Dad, you take the kids," he stated.
"Come on Caleb and Hazel; we'll meet Daddy at home," Steven said as the Caleb and Hazel climbed into Steven's car, buckled up, and then they were gone driving down the road.
"You sure you're alright to fly?" Aubree asked him.
"Yeah, I'm fine. See you around," Hanson replied to her as he climbed on Toothless's back and rubbed the top of his friend's head which earned a croon of contentment and happiness.
"Are you still going to tell us more about deployment?" Eli questioned.
"Well, none of you work at the base, so I don't see you daily. I'll see you in a few weeks because you'll be needed to start getting things ready for deployment. I'm taking tomorrow off and already have the doctor's note to give to my commanding officer about my absence, going to see if I can't sleep off the rest of this sickness," Hanson told them as they nodded understanding. Hanson gave Toothless a pat on the side of the neck as the dragon launched into the sky and they were out of sight seconds later.
(Haddock Household)
As Hanson arrived home, he greeted his father and children once more before heading to the bathroom for a hot shower. Fifteen minutes following that, he said goodnight to Caleb and Hazel by giving them a bedtime story, then a hug and kiss on their foreheads each before he turned in for the night also, hoping he felt better. These last three days being sick with a stomach bug had sucked, and he just wanted to get back to work without a problem, there was a lot prepare for in two months time.
(A Month Later)
Hanson had felt better the next morning after the hospital trip and then spent the last four weeks getting what was needed to deploy to Afghanistan. Guns, suits, lists, etc. Hanson was still stressed out but tried to take breaks every few hours by sitting down with a bottle of water and taking a load off to relax for even five minutes. Now, it was time for the March drill weekend, and he knew the others were returning and would want to know more about how deployment would be for their first time doing it. Hanson was now twenty-five, Caleb was ten, Hazel turned seven since their birthdays had passed during February while he was working for the deployment preparations. Everyone in the two deploying platoons knew they'd be shipping out again and joining up with Caylee's old platoon, Sharpwing.
Hanson was already at the base when they arrived on Friday morning; he got their early to work more. Given they were leaving next month, drill weekend would be spent getting more things ready. For the ten soldiers who came in late, the nervousness was beginning to set in knowing they were going to Afghanistan next month in April and they didn't even know what to expect and hopefully would get some answers today. Hanson instructed Ella to have the ten late added in soldiers to the platoon come right to his office upon arriving. When she knocked, he just ordered them to come in and sit down at the table. Hanson sat at his desk while still going over papers and files.
"You can relax in here," Hanson told them as they slumped a bit, "You wanted to know more of deployment, this is your chance to ask. I still have work to do so excuse my lack of standing right in front of you like last time you all gathered in here or at least six of you did," he added.
"We just want to know what to expect. Rules or what it'll be like," Dustin replied.
"Think of your drill weekend exercises since becoming graduates, and all the training you did in Basic and Advanced. That training is what prepares you for war," Hanson explained.
"Is it harder?" Taylor asked.
"A great deal more, yes. Here, you always get to return to the barrack when training is over for drill weekend. Deployed, that doesn't always happen. There are many instances where you're out all night on missions or guard, or have to eat the MRE's because you don't get to return to the base for dinner with the others," Hanson told them.
"Is it dangerous?" Sylvia inquired.
"Very. On deployment, every day there is a risk of your life. In base walls or outside of them, you're not safe. The base can be attacked just as you can get stuck in an ambush on a mission or a firefight with the Afghans. We do have some on our side, the friendlies as we like to call them. The training you received here will come back the more time you spend there, and you'll adjust to what it's like," Hanson said but never looked up from his work.
"What did you mean last month at the hospital when you said we wouldn't see a lot of action?" Grant asked next.
"Being it is your first deployment, a lot of what you will do is contact missions and guard shifts for the base, the occasional recon mission. Most of your time will be spent at the base and given orders to follow," Hanson enlightened.
"But for someone like you," Aubree began.
"Someone like me who has this rank and been deployed five other times, I'll be out on the front lines in the firefights, ambush, recon, contact, and guards. I do a little of everything there, you will get your orders from me, and any missions you do go on will be with me. I don't let my first-time soldiers out on their own if it can be said that way, that's my way of having your backs, so you don't get hurt," Hanson stated.
"Is Major Belmore coming?" Heather inquired curiously.
"Yes, he will be," Hanson replied. "Anything else you wanted to know?"
"Where are we stationed there?" Eli questioned, "Like can we still make phone calls home? How does leave work? Are we allowed packages?" he went on.
"We're stationing In Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan and yes to the other three questions you asked. Just bear in mind, the reception sucks, and Afghanistan is four hours and thirty minutes ahead of Archipelago time. If it's 5 am here, it's 9:30 am in Afghanistan. You will be allowed one leave that lasts about two weeks somewhere during the year of deployment; they try to send home in the middle. I can never say when it will be," Hanson answered him.
"Is it all work?" Raelyn looked at him. Hanson arched a brow at her.
"No, not always. Contrary to belief, it's not all work. We have our get together's in the halls to eat, put on a show or two, sing, dance, laugh. No, it's not all work, but while we have fun, you have to be ready to jump into action at a moments notice," Hanson told them while signing something else and moving it to another pile then cracking his neck.
"Do you ever take part?" Aubree smiled a bit.
"I did back in my earlier military days. Now with this rank, I don't have a lot of time anymore. If you're honestly that interested," Hanson paused as he got his laptop setup on the table and then pulled a projector from the closet, he plugged everything in and pulled down the screen. After all that, Hanson pulled up some files from other tours he had been on to show them each one he'd been on, little sections of each one that showed the duration of which he was there for. Hanson hit play and then moved back to his desk, "Watch a few of those, there's five folders that show little sections of the entire tour. If it stops the slideshow, it's usually a movie you can watch. So, enjoy it, you aren't required to help the rest of the platoon with getting things ready. You'll learn as you go," Hanson added while getting back to work.
"Thanks, Hanson," Heather said.
"You're welcome," Hanson replied while picking up his pen again. There was still a lot to get done, but these ten soldiers could wait until later on after lunch to help the two platoons out. Hanson just wanted to start the tour and get it over with already; he hated being away from his children for extended periods of time. Hanson was grateful they understood what he was doing when he went on deployments. For today, Hanson figured he could show his friends what it was like to be deployed and hope it help them get ready for April 16th, when they left for their one-year tour in Afghanistan.
