Brothers in Arms: Journey Through the Unknown [ONHOLD]

Chapter 6: Reconnaissance

When the first ray of sunlight cleared over the hilltop and brighten their day in the FOB, the plan of venturing into the unknown was in motion.

Yesterday after Evan finished his announcement about their platoon's new mission, there were some mixed feelings but the majority of them were on board for the ride. Some considered their presence was a very impractical idea, but they could not simply ignore their duty and the order came straight from the top brass.

Out of all the people, the happiest person, or spirit, would be WarPig when she suddenly tackled him to the ground and embraced him dearly. Her dramatic action created a rather bizarre scenario when his crew found him dropped onto the ground for no apparent reason. On the other hand, Junior was the only one laughing at him.

Evan turned around to look at the back of the turret to see how WarPig was holding up. She sat casually on top of the blow-out panels and observed every passing scenery with lots of interest. Her eyes were glistening with excitement and she could not contain her energetic personality. Her enthusiasm had not subsided over the course of the night. Evan was one of the victims who was subjected to her cheerfulness and failed to get a good long rest! Seeing her humming and bobbing her head back and forth, she was like a child's reaction when they were about to go on a field trip.

She was probably happy to relieve her thirst for some actions.

At least this time around, WarPig was properly dressed. Somewhat. Not the style he wanted but her current outfit would fit much better than any of the large military blouses she borrowed from him yesterday. Out of the people Evan expected to come to his rescue, it was Junior with his oddball hobby saved the day. The kid managed to keep some of the cosplay outfits in his secret stash that Evan was completely unaware about.

There were some unique choices, but it was such a huge relief when WarPig decided to pick some sort of a modern maid outfit. With that kind of uniform sticking out like a sore thumb, it should be obvious WarPig could be seen without taking a second glance. Yet until this point, nobody has made any ruckus of her appearance except for Junior.

"Did you get any good sleep last night?" Oscar asked when he was sitting at the loader hatch. "Your eyes kind of showing it."

"Wow, something nice came out of your mouth for once, Oscar," Evan joked.

"I mean, I should be worried. We'll be going on a mission without any info or knowledge about this world."

"Yeah, thanks. I'll be fine."

Their tank column gradually passed through the first checkpoint, leading them outside the FOB premises and away from the busy activities of the morning. It appeared the guards were already informed of their leaving, but they did stop them to ask some basic questions.

"Good morning, gentlemen!" The man in charge of the checkpoint asked Evan as soon as his tank came to a stop. "It appears you boys are ready for a road trip."

"Yeah, can't believe they're sending a tank platoon to do a recon mission," Evan snorted.

"Hey, it's beat sitting around all day doing guard duty," he let out a loud laughter. "Oh yeah, you're with Charlie Company, correct?"

"That's affirmative."

"First Sergeant Anthony Schneider, Fox Company, Second Battalion. Or known as Metal 2-1. I should thank you for saving my men during Operation Eagle Perch."

Hearing a familiar callsign, Evan exclaimed, "Oh, it's you guys! Yeah, no problem. I mean, both of our companies are attached together so it was obvious to look after each other's backs."

"Yeah, that's a given..." First Sergeant Schneider had his arms akimbo as he looked through the tank column. "For a recon mission, you guys do pack a lot of heat."