The Next Warrior

Proving Grounds - Part 24

After receiving word that Romero would be psychologically stable enough to continue training after the night's events from HM2 Schubert, and then seeing that Williams led the team off for their much-needed reprieve, Gunny Yafante walked back to his waiting Latvee. The Latvee was the command vehicle he and Lieutenant Grabowski used to maneuver through the platoon's drills and keep watchful eyes on the teams' progress through the obstacles. The Lieutenant was waiting for him in the front seat, scanning emails on his tablet. Yafante sat down in the passenger's side and slammed the heavily armored door shut, rocking the vehicle gently.

The Lieutenant was nonchalant and spoke to Yafante over his tablet. "You seemed pretty hard on them back there, Gunny." His tone denoted more curiosity than disapproval. Yafante, though, wasn't keen on being questioned by anyone, regardless of whether they were his commanding officer or not."Yes, Sir." Replied Yafante, feigning an equal ambivalence to the event.

After a pause where Grabowski realized that his Staff NCOIC wasn't going to enlighten him willfully to why he had come down so hard on a Marine who quite obviously seemed to be close to the edge, the Lieutenant opened his tablet's vehicle control program and set it to the field command tent. The vehicle's engine started up and a few moments later, it began to move, following the waypoints programmed for it. Personally, Grabowski would have rather driven the Latvee manually, rather than leave it to some autonomous robot. He enjoyed the tactile sense of control, and rush from taking the vehicle off-road. In the autonomous age, however, such luxuries were unnecessary and seeing the overflow of messages from division headquarters to the supply shop he had to deal with, along with having a platoon to run, manning the wheel himself was one luxury few officers could afford. He stared off past the dashboard for a moment and then returned to the work awaiting him, both on his tablet and in the seat beside him.

While still half focused on his tablet and the scores of emails still needing his attention, he questioned the Gunny further. "It was an interesting choice, calling out a Marine on the verge of being a psychiatric casualty, I mean. I'm not saying that it didn't seem to work, but I would like to know why you thought to do it."

"Because he was about to be a psychiatric casualty, Sir." The Gunnery Sergeant replied, his emotionless tone masking some sense of resentment to the question. He didn't like being questioned by Lieutenants. This Lieutenant, though, wasn't the type to endure being brushed away by anyone. Grabowski didn't have much patience for insubordination, no matter how thinly veiled and most of all, from his staff NCOs. Also feigning composure, he spoke more bluntly to the enlisted Yafante."Gunnery Sergeant, you know I've been over your history at length. I know that you resent leaving the Raiders, but you know as well as I do, that the last decade has seen virtually all of the major operations go to special forces. The core infantry units are sorely in need of experienced warfighters. Simulation training like this simply won't cut it whenever some new major conflict breaks out. For the good of the Corps, people like you are needed more here as instructors than on the field as front line operators."

There was a second protracted pause where the two men sat for a few uncomfortable moments in silence.

"All the battalion officers know well about what you did in the Ukraine, Libya, and Burma. We know we are fortunate to have your experience. That's why when I ask you why you do things, especially things like this, you shouldn't treat this like some officer thinking he knows better than you, but as the commander of a unit which is looking for the knowledge you have."

There was another pause. Grabowski broke the silence once again.

"And Gunny, so that we're clear, you'll remember that I was once an enlisted 03, an infantryman just like you before my time in the Naval Academy, so there won't be any of this 'butterbar' and 'climb my hashmarks' business. I am not going to earn your cooperation any more than I already have. Your role until we deploy this Summer is to serve as my advisor in getting the platoon ready for anything we might face on the MEU. That means sharing whatever you've got, and frankly, Gunny, I'm not going to work this hard asking you each and every time. Now, why did you come down so much harder on William's fire team, and that PFC especially, than you did anyone else in the platoon?"