Chapter 49: Peter's War Days
*Peter was just eighteen years old when he was recruited into the army. The Germans were raising arms and threatening war, so the American government decided to conscript young men of age and recruit them into the war-force to teach them how to protect their nation if the need was ever to arise.*
Peter was one of these men. His parents didn't want him to go, but it was his duty as a patriot, and he was ready to serve.
Upon arrival at the training camp, Peter and the other recruits underwent very intense training sessions in the space of a few months. The captain who was in charge of training the recruits eventually announced that if any of them could beat him in a fight, they wouldn't have to train for two whole days. It was a tempting offer because the young men were exhausted from all the drills and exercises.
This happened in the outside assembly, and a cadet stepped out of line and agreed to fight the captain, much to the dismay of his fellow cadets.
The young man attacked immediately, throwing punches that were easily dodged by the captain. He threw a kick and the captain caught his legs in the air and threw him over. The recruit got back up and resumed his attacks. Every punch he threw was blocked by the captain until one finally caught him in the jaw.
The captain stumbled backwards after the hit and the other recruits yelled in approval and support of their fellow recruit.
"C'mon man, get him!" The boys encouraged their comrade.
This seemed to annoy the captain, and he went on the offensive. He attacked the young man and hit him over and over again until the boy's face was swollen and bloody. The captain, however, didn't stop attacking, and his brutality was appalling to Peter, who stepped in to defend his comrade.
"Enough, Sir!" Peter said courageously.
The captain got up and walked over to Peter and stared him straight in his eyes.
"Do you think this is a joke, soldier? The enemy will not be merciful to you out there in battle, so you have to learn to be vicious and unforgiving," The captain said in a trainer's voice.
"Since you are so brave, why don't you replace your fallen comrade here and take me on?" The captain said to Peter.
"l don't think I can fight you, sir," Peter said, not out of fear but for plain reason.
"That wasn't a suggestion, soldier!"
Just as Peter was about to step out, a soldier called out to the captain.
"Captain Rogers. The generals are here, and they wish to have a word with you," the soldier informed.
"I'm a little busy right now."
"It's important, Sir."
The captain left Peter and went to the tents to speak with the generals. The recruits all went to their quarters and Peter helped up the one that had been beaten by the captain.
"Thanks a lot. You've got some guts, standing up to the captain like that," The boy said.
"And you were brave enough to fight him one on one," Peter responded.
"I'm Chris!"
"Peter!"
*That was how they met. At that moment, neither Peter nor Chris had any idea what was in store for them or how strong their friendship would soon become.*
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"Soldiers! I have some news for you," The captain addressed all the recruits a week after he met with the generals.
"I've been informed that some enemies of the state have crossed over our borders and have infiltrated our home. This can only be concluded to be an act of war and, for your sake, I hope it isn't.
"The generals request a fresh new batch of hands to support the first battalion to storm the camp of these invaders and drive them off our lands. There has been some talk about the Central World Powers having an alignment to attack the US, the British, and the French. We received some intel that this was the first stage of their plans, and we are to destroy those plans.
"So, a squadron will be available in a week to take you all to the battleground. There, all the skills you've acquired these past few months will be put to the test," he said plainly and straightforwardly.
"Any questions?" The captain asked, but none of the recruits asked a question.
"As You Were!" The captain finished his briefing.
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In the recruit's tent, the men all seemed excited about finally getting a small taste of war.
***A soldier was meant to fight after all.***
"Those invaders won't know what hit them," Martin, one of the boys, said.
"Do you actually think we're ready for this?" Chris asked the rest of them.
"We've been training for almost a year. I think we can take on a few invaders and remember, we're not going in alone. We're just extra support in case it gets too big for the first battalion to handle," James said, because he was a **tactical mind.**
"And what does the best shooter in the squad think, Oh Skilled One?" Harry AKA **Omega** asked Peter.
He was still bitter about Peter beating him in the final shooting drill, which earned him a medal as the **Best Shooter of the squad.**
"I don't know who these invaders are, but they've bitten off way more than they can chew. We are going mess them up and remind them not to fuck with America!!" Peter said loudly, which prompted the others to scream and shout, letting out whoops and war cries.
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They were deployed a week later and two days later, they arrived at the new camp. It was time to attack the invaders, so the first battalion stealthily snuck into the invaders' camp and the recruits, under Captain Roger's command, waited till they were needed.
The invaders were expecting an attack so they were already prepared, lying in wait, preparing an ambush. The battalion of soldiers was caught out in the open when the invaders ambushed them.
The recruits could hear the gunfight from where they were, and it meant only one thing; time to fight.
"Soldiers, with me!" The captain ordered, and they all ran to the battle.
The first battalion's soldiers were almost all dead. The survivors took cover where they could find it and the recruits came to their rescue, raining bullets on the enemy. They were divided into four units, one led by Peter. They took out the invaders one by one, and it seemed like they were winning until Peter saw Omega go down with a bullet in his head.
Two trucks carrying M1919 Browning Machine guns were each manned by the enemy who fired almost six hundred rounds per minute.
The guns took out many soldiers, including Martin and James.
"Everyone, take cover!" Captain Rogers ordered.
Peter crawled over to him, "Captain, we're getting hammered. What do we do?"
"We have to take out those machine guns. I don't even know how they have those weapons. Our firearms manufacturers have been working on making a weapon like that but haven't been successful yet," the captain said.
"Well, their manufacturers *have* been successful, and they're wiping us out," Peter replied.
The captain instructed Peter on what to do and Peter went to inform the others. While one M1919 reloaded, the other shot. As soon as one of them started reloading again, the recruits shot at the one still firing to draw his attention while Peter released two grenades into one of the trucks, blowing it up.
The other truck was still shooting and Chris snuck up behind the shooter, climbed into the truck, and killed him.
"Chris. You got him!" Peter said in elation.
They had won but, unknown to them, one invader was still breathing. He picked up his gun and aimed at Chris, who had his back turned.
"Chris! Watch out!" Peter yelled out after noticing that the invader was still alive.
***Chris turned around, and the gun went off.***
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Back in the present, Peter ***opened*** his eyes.