A/N: All characters belong to their respective owners. This was written for entertainment purposes.

Chapter 2: A call to arms

March 20, 1935

Camp Lejeune, North Carolina

The sound of hurried steps echoed across the hallway as a marine non-commissioned officer rushed through to the meeting room. He climbed a few stares and avoided some passing marines until he eventually reached the room. Inside were about forty other marine NCOs who were milling about. There was a table in the back where a couple of boxes of donuts were available as well as cups of coffee. The marine that entered the room and began to look around, as if to look for someone until a voice called out.

"Hey, Guren! Over here!" Guren turned his head towards the voice and saw that Joseph was calling to him. He smiled and made his way over to him, clasping the other marine's hand when he approached.

"Did I miss anything Kotetsu?" Guren asked his friend. Kotetsu shook his head.

"You arrived just in time. Chesty hasn't arrived yet," Kotetsu replied. Just as he said that another marine entered and walked up to them, Guren identifying the marine as Joseph.

"So, did I miss anything?" Joseph asked the pair.

"Oh yeah, Chesty has come and gone," a voice behind them said. They turned to see Leon and Cloud approach them. Cloud winked with a small smile at Guren and Kotetsu and they knew what they were trying to pull.

"Oh yeah, he said his speech and just left a few minutes ago," Guren chimed in.

"Oh c'mon, did I fuck this up or what?" Joseph asked, his voice a bit panicked.

"Oh yeah," Kotetsu said, closing his eyes and nodding solemnly. Guren nodded as well with the best-worried look. Joseph was about to start freaking out when a loud voice boomed in the room.

"Attention on deck!" Someone yelled from the back. All conversations stopped and every one stood at attention. In come three men, with the oldest leading them. He looked old, given the wrinkles on his face, but the chest full of ribbons and medals says a different tale. As he walked to the podium, he walked with a purpose and with his pipe in his mouth,

"Carry on," the man gruffed out. The marines then went to ease and faced the direction of the podium. The group smiled as Joseph finally got what had happened before and chuckled.

"Fuck you all," he told them, causing the rest to chuckle as well before becoming serious again. The older man, the commanding officer, reached the podium and turned to the marines in the room. Every marine knew who this was, as this man was known for his fiery arguments and tough-as-nails attitude. The man was Colonel Chester "Chesty" Puller, commanding officer of the 7th Marine Regiment.

"The uniform that you wear. The Eagle, Anchor, and Globe that you have earned will be the thing standing between the freedom of the world, or its enslavement," Puller stated firmly. The hair on the back of every marine told up. They all knew what was going to happen.

"March 15th was quite a day for Europe. The Imperial German Empire invaded Gallia and is as of today, in control of about a quarter of the country. Not only was Gallia attacked but France, North Africa, and some Caribbean Islands were also attacked by the naval, air, and land forces of Imperial Germany. Now, initially, we were on the sidelines. Whatever the krauts were doing, that wasn't our job. Well, not unless they can't whoop them without us." That earned him a chuckle from the marines gathered.

"But, it looks like things have changed. We got word this morning that the Secretary of State has sent a letter to the ambassador to Imperial Germany, stating that we are declaring war on the krauts. Just an hour ago, Congress approved the declaration of war against the Imperial German Empire" This piece of information surprised everyone. For years, after the Great War, the United States tended to not view anything that is not in America's interest as someone else's problem. The fact that they were now going on the offensive was a bit surprising, to say the least.

'Now, I know what you are all thinking, why we are getting involved in something that should be, all things considered, Europe's problem. Well, it looks like the krauts are getting a bit greedy. Since they are attacking the Caribbean Island territories of France and England, they are now within striking distance to the continental U.S. as well as Kriegsmarine got subs patrolling the Atlantic and since we are now shipping supplies to France and Great Britain, they will be more than willing to want to attack these convoys, regardless if we stayed neutral. Now," Pueller then went to the big map behind him and pointed at some islands in the Caribbean, "The marines will be doing battle against the krauts on Caribbean islands with names many of us have never heard of."

Pueller then turned back to the room and looked around the room, "You, the noncommissioned officers, are sinew and muscle of the corp. The orders come from the brass and you get it down. Whenever this war is over, when we have swept upon these krauts and destroyed every scrap of their precious empire, the strategy will be that of others, but victory will be won by you. You, the NCOs, with chevrons on your sleeves and the instincts in your guts and blood on your boots!" Every marine looked at Chesty, not one even glancing to their side or showing their emotions, something that Chesty was proud of. But, he will never admit it openly, he was also worried that this war will be much bigger than the Great War, one where probably more lives will be lost than in the last war. Another generation will lose many brave souls.

After a few minutes of silence, Chesty continued, "Those of you who can get weekend leave, I suggest you fully take it. Then on Monday, report back here. From there, we will sail down God's vast ocean, where we will meet our enemy and kill them all." He received a few nods from some of the marines and then turned to the exit.

"ATTENTION!" A marine yelled as Chesty and his staff walked out the room, "Carry on!" Once he was out, the room erupted into conversation.

"I can't believe this."

"Well, I knew this was going to happen."

"To think that we will be going to war again."

"Well, there goes Hawaii" Guren blocked out all the conversations and continued to look at the map with a serious expression. Not really the serious type, but given the nature of their platoon, he had to get serious.

'Hey boss, I wonder how you would react to this.' Guren thought to himself.

In the back of the room, four marines were leaning on the wall and have not said a word since the end of the briefing. There were three women and one man but their closeness to each other signaled that they all knew each other. One had short pale blond hair with brown eyes, another had brown hair that she partitions and half of which is tied in a ponytail and brown eyes, the third female has short blonde hair and blue eyes and lastly the man has light brown hair cut to marine regulations and brown eyes. These four were Qun'mi, Enima, Deanna, and Jerome but their last names were all the same and were known in the corp as the Vandegrift Siblings.

They were General Vandegrift's four kids, albeit missing a couple more.

"Well, I can't say I am surprised but still, I was not expecting that," Emina finally said. They all nodded their heads. While this was a briefing only for the NCOs, they had been busy with a different matter and missed the early morning officer's briefing so they had no choice but to attend the NCO briefing. Still, their surprise was evident on their faces when they heard the news. Qun'mi's eyes widened and her jaw tightened, Enima had a worried look on her face, Deana had adjusted her glasses but they all noticed how her hand shook when doing so, showing her nervousness and Jerome had just straightened himself but inside, his heart was racing.

"Well, I guess I have to head back to headquarters. I have a feeling that they are going to be deploying us as well," Qun'mi said. The rest nodded and Qun'mi made her way out the door.

"Despite how she tries to hide it, she is worried. Especially since…" Deana said but did not finish the sentence.

"Yeah, since we are not at war, getting him out now is close to impossible," Jerome noted. They were referring to one of their little brothers, who was currently an embassy guard but now that war was declared, he will most likely take this opportunity to volunteer to fight on the frontlines now.

"Either way, we have to be prepared. With a formal declaration now, all enlistments are extended and hopefully, we can get a bit more funding," Enima stated.

"We shouldn't worry, we still have some friends in Congress, and from what Dad said, he is meeting with the president today to discuss expansion," Deana replied.

"Well, hopefully, it actually pans out. Or else, we will only have 2 Marine Divisions for this war, and I feel we are going to need more," Jerome said as the three exited the room as well.

White House

Washington D.C, USA

"What you are asking Alex is going to be a bit tough to sell," Brigadier General Alexander Vandegrift stood at attention as he was in the presence of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, as well as General John H. Russell Jr., current commandant of the United States Marines Corps. The meeting was called at the request by Vandegrift as he wanted to pitch an idea to both men, more so now that the U.S was officially at war.

"Apologies Mr. President, but now that we are at war, now would actually be a good time to begin expanding the Marine Corp," Vandegrift replied.

"Look, Alex, it's not that we are not with you but take into account that the army is also looking at expanding as well. The army has a manpower shortage that is bad that the Hungarian Army is bigger than them. Plus, General Marshall and Eisenhower are pushing that the majority of draftees go to the army so we can't really do much." Russell replied. Vandegrift grit his teeth but says nothing. It is no secret that many see the Marine Corp as "the Navy's infantry" but with some of the recent victories the marines were able to score during the Banana Wars, the public was slowly becoming a bit more friendly towards the corp.

Though, the incident with Andrew still plagued his mind.

'I should have done more back then. Because of my inaction, my own son won't even talk to me,' Vandegrift thought to himself. Ever since the trial and his reassignment, Andrew would not talk to him or the rest of the family for that matter. While he will still talk to his siblings, there was still some tension between the two and that has been heavy on his heart. And of course, his wife is worried for him, especially now since the war has been declared.

"Regardless sir, there are German troops near our border. As of right now, we have two marine divisions, the 1st, and the 2nd and we can't have both divisions off fighting. I am merely proposing that we raise another 3 divisions with one as a reserve in case there is an emergency," Vandegrift stated.

"And as I said, that is a tall order. That would also mean we will need to raise an additional two tank battalions as well as logistics and figuring out where to base them. All of that will cost money and between the Army Air Corp wanting to buy more long-range fighters and bombers as well as the Navy with their new carriers, I don't think there is enough funding to raise 1 new division, let alone 3." Russell replied.

"Then at least raise one more division then. If this war is going to be fought, then we are most likely going to have to face the Japanese eventually seeing as they have restarted their offensive in China," This got both men to think. It is true that the Japanese are moving on the Chinese forces and since it looks like they are going to be allied with Germany, that would mean they can attack American interests in the region as well.

"Hmm, you do have a point there. I'll have to bring this up with the rest of the Joint Chiefs but with your argument, I'm sure that we can come up with something," Russell stated after some thought.

"Now, with that topic out of the way, I believe you are here regarding your son in Gallia are you not?" The president asked.

"Yes, sir. He is still in Gallia along with the rest of the security unit at the embassy," Vandegrift replied.

"Well, in your letter, you said you wanted him to be released to a combat unit but we do not have any in Gallia just yet, and with German troops in the Caribbean, it may be some time before we have spare troops to send. So, what do you propose he will be attached to a combat unit?" the president asked.

"Well, sir, it's a bit of a risk but…" Vandegrift then explained what he planned to do. After the explanation, both the Commandant and president were impressed.

"I see while I do have some concerns with this, given the current situation, I feel this would be the best course of action at this time. You have permission to go ahead with this plan," the president replied.

"Given his record, I would like reports on his activities. It's one thing that he will be allowed to do this, it's another if he becomes a loose cannon," the commandant stated firmly.

"I understand sir. Is there anything else you need of me?" Vandegrift asked. Once he got a no from both men, he asked to be excused then saluted both of them and exited the room. He then made his way to his office, to make a very important phone call.

Randgriz, Principality of Gallia

Gallian Intelligence Building

"Another day, another casualty list," Crowe moaned as he threw the piece of paper on his desk. He then pulled a cigarette out of his pocket and lit it. He blew a few puffs and then leaned in his seat. The war has only been five days old and already, the losses have been unimaginable. Gone were the days where armies would shoot at each other from trenches for months on end, now warfare is mobile and the Gallian military is paying dearly for that. His own unit, the 422nd Regiment, the Nameless, is slowly shrinking, and there aren't enough replacements to go around. Soon, they are going to not amount to much and Crowe will have to figure out what to do then.

Suddenly, his phone rang, with a groan he got up and picked up the phone.

"Crowe speaking," He said harshly.

"Well, judging from your voice, I can tell you are still smoking and drinking. Are you still chasing tail?" Crowe's eyes widened a bit but then he began to chuckle.

"Well, at least I had the ability to get the girls while you had the worst luck," Crowe countered.

"And yet, I have a family now while you are still alone," the voice countered.

"Oh, you can go hell Vandegrift," Crowe replied, laughing. It has been too long since both men were able to talk, not since Vandegrfit got married all those years ago.

"Well, while it is nice to catch up, I don't think this is a social call," Crowe asked as he pulled out a bottle and poured himself a glass of whiskey.

"What? Can't an old war friend call his buddy to recall the old days," Vandegrift replied.

"Oh piss off, what we went through was hell and since when has any of your calls, outside of you telling me you were getting married to that German girl, social," Crowe countered, taking a sip from his glass.

"Hehe, I remember you also telling me I was a lucky bastard."

"Damn right you were," Crowe and Vandegrift began to laugh at the memory, "But in all seriousness, this must be important for you to call instead of sending a letter."

"Well, I have a favor to ask. You still owe me for saving your life during that one battle," Vandegrift said. The large scar on his chest began to act up as that memory came back.

"Well, you have a point there. So, what is it that you want?" Crowe asked.

"I want you to recruit one of my sons into that unit of yours," Crowe almost spit out his whiskey at that.

"You do know that my unit is not really….. Your average group of soldiers right," Crowe asked.

"And that is why I feel he will be able to fit in. You see, my son… he doesn't like incompetent officers and if I remember right, the Gallian officer corp is really not something to praise outside of a few exceptions," Crowe grimaced at this. It is no secret that a good majority of the Gallian officer corp is mainly for the rich with a few exceptions, Crowe was once one of them before seeing the truth himself.

"Look, while I would love to add him in, does he have experience fighting at all? I ain't going to send some greenhorn in without combat experience."

"He fought rebels in Nicaragua and got the Medal of Honor for it. That should be enough no?" Crowe sat up in his seat. It's not every day that you have a hero being offered to join a penal unit.

"I see, and what happened to him?"

"Well, he punched a commanding officer in the jaw after a firefight cost him one of his men. He and one of his NCOs were put on trial for the action. He was demoted and transferred to the embassy detail in Randgriz."

"What about his subordinate? Crowe asked. He was met with silence and Crowe sighed.

"Look, I know you care about your family but if you can't extend that to your own troops…."

"There wasn't much that could have been done. The press caught wind of it and there had to be some punishment. The captain that was hit was also punished and as far as I can remember, he was reassigned to a rearguard post." Crowe sighed. He could understand that feeling as he is no stranger to such actions.

"Hence why I feel like he will be a good addition to your unit," Vandegrift continued, "His experience in fighting a guerilla force has given him ideas, and well, he is known to be unorthodox so I feel he will be a good fit for your unit.' Crowe began to think about it. While true the 422 needs more people, specifically someone who is good in guerilla warfare, it will be hard to justify the transfer, more so due to it being an American.

"As of now, I don't think that I can have him transferred in but I think there can be another way," Crowe finally replied.

"I'm listening," Vandegrift replied.

"I can have him transferred to a regular army unit. He won't b well received, however, but it will be a good enough excuse to then have him transferred to my unit as then it would rid them of a 'foreigner' per say," Crowe suggested.

"Do you think the regular army will allow this? I can understand if the militia takes him in but…"

"Don't worry, with the current situation at the front, I believe they will be taking anyone," Crowe commented.

"Is it as bad as the papers have been saying?" Vandegrift asked.

"It's worse. The army is losing more ground every day and their damned air force is shooting up any reinforcements we send to the front. So, now that America is in this war when are we getting help?"

"We are working on it but the Navy is concerned with the U-boats in the Atlantic. We have one carrier group docked in Great Britain but that won't be enough if they are at risk. That's all I know right now." Crowe nodded at this and took another gulp of his whiskey. With America's military, there was a chance that they could keep Germany at bay but now that they are at war as well, they have to give priority to their own shores.

"Well, nothing that can be done. I'll start on the paperwork. It would probably be best that you also cut some orders to your kid. Oh, and send me his file too," Crowe said as he finished his drink.

"I already have sent the orders to the embassy and I'll send the file through a secure courier. I am trusting you on this Crowe," Vandegrift stated.

"C'mon, when have I ever gone bad on my word," Crowe asked.

"Don't even make me start," Vandegrift groaned, causing Crowe to laugh.

"Alright you Devil Dog, I got paperwork to do for you. Next time, call me when you want to catch up," Crowe said.

"I would rather do that in person, and that may be sooner than you think. Take care and thank you, Crowe," The line went dead. Crowe hung up and leaned in his seat. He took another sip of his whiskey and began to think. Having someone with guerilla experience would be the best fit for the Nameless, however, he has only fought rebels and not an actual military. While Crowe doesn't doubt the kid isn't good, if he is Vandegrift's son then he is probably as gung-ho as his father maybe more, then he would be a nice fit. But he needs to fight against an actual army and this seems like a good test.

"I am going to hate this but I do owe Alex that favor," Crowe moaned as he refilled his glass and picked up the phone again. He dialed it and after hearing it ring a few more times, told the operator on the other line, "Get me, General Eisler."

And another chapter appears! I will try to update as much as I can as I am also working on some other fanfics. Hope you all enjoyed the chapter and see you guys next time.