#52 - Priority
Jake
The shadow fell across the TV in the living room and made me jump. I turned to see my dad standing in between the lamp and the TV, yawning. He squinted at the clock on top of the entertainment center and said, "Getting pretty late, buddy. Everybody else is already in bed. Did you finish your homework?"
"Yeah," I lied. Well, it wasn't exactly a lie. The show on the Military Channel I was watching was a lot like homework. I was taking notes and everything, only inside my head. The only difference between this and my unfinished Algebra upstairs was that this could save my life.
Instead of grunting a good night and going up to bed, my dad plopped on the couch. "Why are you so interested in this stuff all of a sudden?" he asked idly. He was only wondering out loud, but I felt the livewires that lived in my conscious start to buzz. Careful, Jake, they seemed to vibrate. He's not suspicious of anything yet, but he could get there if you give the wrong answer.
"I have a project to do on modern warfare," I lied easily. I felt a pang of sadness as I realized how easy the lies came these days, but I smothered it impatiently. "It's not due for a couple of months, but I'm just trying to soak up all I can, you know?"
I was already preparing my answer for the next question: "What class?" or "How much of your grade?" My answer had satisfied my dad, though. "Glad the cable package I bought isn't being wasted on MTV2 and Showtime." He quieted down and watched the program I was studying, and I began mentally taking notes again.
When faced with a numerically superior force, American soldiers rely on their equipment and training. The picture showed a soldier not much older than me rigging grenade traps with pieces of his bootlace. Innovation on the battlefield is instrumental toward evening the odds. I tabbed that piece of information and filed it in the portion of my brain labeled "Tactics."
The first wave of an enemy invasion is the most important part. The first soldiers in a hostile environment are charged with a holding action – gaining a foothold and holding whatever ground they're able to gain until reinforcements can be committed. A crucial aspect of repelling any invasion is not allowing enemy soldiers to gain their foothold. If that cannot be prevented, further progress must be stopped. Causing heavy casualties in the first stage of an invasion is the most effective way to prevent the enemy incursion from advancing.
Well, the Yeerks already had their foothold, but we were doing exactly what the narrator on the show said – we were causing as much trouble as we could. We were trying to keep them busy here, in one place, until our reinforcements could arrive.
My dad broke me out of my trance by yawning loudly. "I don't know how you can sit through this, project or no project," he commented, getting off the couch and stretching. "Keep it up, though. And try to be in bed by one, huh? It's a school night."
I said I would, then turned my attention back to the show. My priority was being the tactician that I was expected to be. Bed would have to wait.