CHAPTER 7

The little clump of soldiers stood atop the high hill and just behind the set of covered bleachers. They were highlighted by the reddish purple sky and the sight of big old Crummy Ass, as the guys in SOCOM had come to call the gas giant that this planet orbited. The Fey called it Creu-Knas but, as far as Hoop was concerned, his name was better. He had also learned not to give a rats ass what the “Vulcan’s” thought. He might have felt the same way about the little gathering of soldiers too. They were not only human but, from back home, and yet Hoop felt as little kinship for those guys as he did for most of the pointed ear freaks that he had met since coming here. Maybe, even a little less when compared to the few he had worked with.

Hoop even wondered if his feelings on the matter were wrong. After all, these were his guys, right? Just from looking at them he could not make himself believe it. Just like with the spectacular looking sky, the one that he barely noticed any more, the way he looked at his newly arrived countrymen was just plain different from the way he would have a year ago. Hoop judged them by a different set of standards now. He realized the camouflage patterns they wore did not really work all too well against that allegedly gorgeous sky. Hoop also realized that this judgment was made with a human eye and that was the last one you had to worry about around here.

There were no salutes to be had when Hoop strolled up to the party of clean looking soldiers. Hoop quickly noticed that this little crew were all noncoms and, that was probably a good thing. Hoop was wearing his standard uniform for RAF Merlin and that consisted of gray sweat pants and a T shirt with his college ball teams logo on it. The pants were at least new and a bit more virtuous than the shirt which had more than a few prominent holes in it. No army uniform usually meant you could get away with no military protocol and, besides that, Hoop didn’t feel like saluting any of the newly arrived officers, anyway, so he just did not bother.

The guy who was most definitely in charge of this crew was the lanky Sergeant Major by the name of Lewis. He eyed Hoop with the kind of stare that only his rank was capable of producing and, he also displayed the omnipotent powers as well, “you must be our SOCOM guy, Staff Sergeant Hooper?”

Hoop smiled and nodded, “what gave it away Sergeant Major?”

“The hair cut,” Ed Lewis replied, “or lack thereof. Never met a SOCOM guy that knew what a barber shop was.”

Unlike most guys, Hoop failed to react to the Sergeant Major. The good news was, as Hoop saw it, Lewis did not seem to expect any kind of reaction. That earned the newly arrived Ranger some measure of respect from Hoop. Instead of commenting on his hair, Hoop stuck to business, “Colonel Avery told me, you guys required my assistance? He didn’t say what about.”

“That’s cause,” Lewis replied, “we didn’t bother to tell him why we needed you. I also didn’t pick your name out of a hat, Hooper. I’ve seen your jacket.”

Hoop thought that it was more likely that Lewis had talked to someone as opposed to looking up his two-oh-one file. For one thing, Hoop knew that these guys did not have access to the Army database here, something taken for granted anywhere on the other side. For another, Hoop saw a very familiar face in the crew that proved to be mostly company first sergeants.

Hoop was not really all that surprised to see that this guy had made it to the rank displayed on is collar, “what did you tell him Snake? Now, ain’t I done gone and told you bout lying behind my back? Particularly when it might go and get me killed.”

Snake snorted a half laugh and told the Delta Force guy, “don’t you go and worry too much Hoop. I left out the sordid details. There wasn’t enough time to include all of those.”

Lewis sounded pretty serious when he said, “none of which matters right now Sergeant.” Hoop noticed the mention of his rank and it was the first time that this Sergeant Major decided to do so. It was damn well for a good reason and Lewis proved it with his next statement, “we can fill you on the details, depending on who it is you plan on telling, after we do.”

The crack of what could only be described as a small cannon interrupted the conversation for only a second. Hoop judged it as a single round from a fifty caliber. He had to figure it was a Barrett that someone was shooting down on the firing range. No one in the group flinched and neither did Hoop. After the sound faded, Hoop told the Rangers, “I reckon I’ll tell about who I feel like it, Sergeant Major. Course the trick here is, to make sure I don’t much feel like it.”

Lewis let that go and told the boy, “we got an op order.” When Hoop did not react Ed noted, “you don’t look much impressed.”

“Ain’t told me what it is yet,” Hoop replied.

Lewis remained even as he replied, “we’re taking a patrol up north, up to.. How do you say it?”

Snake replied, “Er-Tegan?”

Even if they had no clue, Hoop did, “Gnomeland Security calls it the Hurtegan. We call it the Hurt Again or, if you like, the Forest of Hurt. That’s the upper highlands up past Uea-Au and Mue-Nah.” None of that seemed to phase the Rangers so Hoop put it simply, “guys, that’s where the real war is.”

Snake noted, “you still don’t look that impressed, Hoop.”

Hoop crossed his arms, shrugged his shoulders, used his foot to play in the dirt, and then finally just told them, “you guys ain’t really ready for that. That’s my opinion for what it’s worth.”

Ed Lewis waited for the next crack of the fifty cal to finish echoing before he told the D-guy, “that’s why you’re here Hooper. To help us get ready. We don’t pick and choose the orders we get.”

“Fair enough,” Hoop replied. Then he noted to the weapons that most of these men had slung around their torso, “for starters, you guys need to ditch that shit. More times than not, a five-five six ain’t gonna do much more than piss something off up there.” The rifle cracked again and Hoop nodded down the hill towards the firing line, “that Barrett is a good start. A fifty can take an Orc’s head off at a thousand yards.”

Up till now, the short little unassuming black guy had been standing in the back of the group. Hoop had noticed him but, paid the guy little mind till he spoke up. Only when the guy said something did Hoop even realize the guy was a Command Sergeant Major, “the M-4’s are what we have Staff Sergeant. The reports, that I have read, said that they do an adequate enough job. The Noveus-Faeyu carry them now and I have to figure they know what they’re doing.”

Hoop politely chuckled and asked, “you’re General Garret’s guy, right?”

Price replied, “that’s right Sergeant. My friends, however, call me Sergeant Major. You can too.”

Some bulls were not worth prodding and Hoop told the General’s personal attack dock, “well, Sergeant Major, You can assume the Fey know what they’re doing but, that’s usually a mistake. Yeah I did notice the point ears, down here, have started packing our small arms but, not up yonder in the highlands. You might have noticed what we been slinging around base.”

Price only shrugged, “sorry but, I haven’t.”

Snake replied, “I have, old school stuff, M-14’s in particular. Where the hell did you guys get that shit anyway.”

“Actually Snake,” Hoop replied but, more too the group, “I usually use an older AK. Not the new ones but the old soviet era shit.”

Lewis was busy thinking about it and he saw the pattern, “so you guys are packing larger rounds, seven-six-two? Is that what you’re saying?”

“Not just bigger,” Hoop told them, “I usually load down with those armor piercing Chinese rounds. We get them by the truck full and use them by that too. Your average Orc has a pretty thick hide and, up there, a lot of those injuns have body armor on top of it.” Hoop saw the disbelief he was getting and it made him wonder what these guys had been told. He decided play into it, “look, in the end, a bullet is usually a bullet. You can take down an Orc with a twenty-two target pistol if you hit him right. The problem is he’ll get close to you and, with them things, that’s the last place you want him to be. Sides all that, you guys are worrying about the advanced stuff here, and you ain’t even learned the basics just yet.”

Price crossed his arms and his chin tightened as he seriously asked, “what is more basic than how to stop the bad guys?”

Hoop pointed up towards Crummy Ass and said, “how you boys plan on talking to each other in the bush?” The question got no answer and Hoop knew why. The fact that he even asked the question took them all by surprise, “it ain’t like the other side here, guys. You might have noticed how day and night is all screwed up?”

Lewis told him, “we get that. This planet is tidally locked to it’s primary. So what? We’ve been here long enough to see it.”

Hoop replied, “but you ain’t been here long enough to get your sleep all smoothed out. That takes a good six months, at least. Hell, I been here going on a year and a half and I’m still self medicating to get a nap.”

Price changed the subject back, “we don’t have six months and that doesn’t answer the question. What’s wrong with our communications, Sergeant?”

Hoop just shrugged and replied like it was a stupid question, “well, Sergeant Major, you got no computer network, you got no satellite support, and the bigger that gas giant gets in the sky, the less and less your wireless com’s are going to work. We’re getting back around to the time of year when good ole Crummy is going to fill the sky.” Hoop noticed the open jaws and just had to ask, “nobody bothered to tell you guys that?”

Lewis told the operator, “that’s what you’re here for.”

Hoop rolled his eyes and pointed to Price as he replied, “I would have thought your boss might have bothered to mention it. Has the CIA briefed you boys yet?”

Price was deep in thought when he replied, “not enough, apparently.” He then looked up at Hoop, “all right, Sergeant, you’re on a roll here, keep it up.”