Queens, New York.
May, 1999



"I won?t sign that thing.?

?Mama, I want to go. Uncle Charlie was in the Army, and I want to follow his footsteps. Imagine, me a Ranger!?

?Racquel Marie! I will not have them ship my only daughter all over the world, walking shoulder to shoulder with a bunch of men who would as soon use you than save you.? Her mother was wringing her hands as she stared at the parental consent form. ?Wait until your Papa gets home.?

?All I need is one signature, Mama. I won?t be eighteen until January,? Rocky argued, trying to make her point. ?You know Papa is only going to say he needs my help here, with my pay from the grocery.? She said bitterly. ?He won?t let me go because of the money.? Her mother stared at her wide-eyed.

?Your Father, he works hard,? She replied.

?He works hard at losing his paycheck.?

?That?s not fair, Dancer.? Her mother had called her Dancer after one of her favorite old songs, and Rocky sighed deeply.

?Mama, it is seven months until my birthday, and I won?t need permission then. Carrie and Jimmy are going now; we can all go together if you say yes.? Rocky looked at her mother with pleading eyes. She knew that the Army was going to be her ticket out of the life she lived in Queens, and she wasn?t ready to back down.

?Your Papa, he?s not going to be happy.? She sighed as she picked up the ink pen that her daughter had gotten from the recruiter and signed her name, and then smiled as her daughter grabbed her into a tight hug.

?You are the best, Mama!? Rocky grabbed the pen and the signed form from the table, and then ran out the door of their tiny apartment back toward the recruiter?s office.


Fort Jackson, South Carolina.
June, 1999.


The green bus rolled to a stop in front of a large building and three men got onto it, they were all dressed in their olive green and intimidating to most people, Rocky thought they reminded her of her brothers.

?Exit off the bus in an orderly fashion,? One of them said with a smile. ?Women go to the right side of the building, men to the left. Take a breath; ladies and gentlemen this is the last free breath you get.?

Rocky, Carrie and Jimmy all went to the right side as instructed and they lined up with others that had apparently been waiting on their arrival. There were three women standing before them all of them, clean, shined, and pressed. Nothing stood out about them, from their hats to their shined shoes, except the one that had her back turned to them.

?I am Sergeant-Major Hart, ?She said in a voice louder than any of the women expected. ?I will be your Senior Drill Instructor. Fall out, clean up, and meet at thirteen-hundred.? She turned and walked away, leaving the girls looking at each other.

?What is thirteen-hundred?? Carrie asked.

?One o?clock, you dumbass,? Rocky answered. Her hands were sweaty and she followed the others almost giddy with excitement. The Army was going to be the start of her way out.

"Move your ass! Get over the damned wall, Carrie!" Rocky shouted as she leaned down allowing her friend to step up onto her shoulders. "You get the platoon extra PT again, they are going to sock your scrawny ass!" The fear they'd heard of either wool sock or wrapped towel around a bar of soap being used to beat you in your bunk seemed enough drive to get Carrie over the wall, and to the other side.

"Crap, I gotta remember that." Rocky said as she jumped and grabbed the top of the wall, heaving herself and her gear over and ran to catch up with the others who were now crossing the logs.

"Eubanks, get the hell off of my obstacle!" Hart screamed at the girl, that had just slipped on the rope and wound up in the mud instead of safely on the other side.

"Yes, Drill Sergeant!" Jimmy shouted, and stepped out of the way in time to avoid Rocky sailing past her to the other side, pausing long enough to look back at her other friend.

"Smith, this ain't a peep show, haul your narrow ass!" Hart commanded, and Rocky broke into a full run, down the jagged hillside toward the others, and finally overcoming most as they fell and rolled, or were trying to navigate safely down.

"Silly girls." Rocky called as she ran, she had one goal, and that goal was to be the best.


At chow the three of them were quickly but quietly eating. It seemed like it had been days, not hours since breakfast at 0630, which Carrie finally understood as too early to eat breakfast.

Rocky looked at her friends. The Queens of Queens they'd been called, and she noticed how in just a couple of short weeks they had changed. They were tough back home, but now, sitting at lunch with mud in their hair, dirty and bruised faces, they were something more. The lean muscle Jimmy had, was going slowly into a bulked muscle, something from doing all the push-ups and other calsthenics in the morning was really shaping her up nicely. Carrie, who'd been the heaviest of the three she started losing weight, and had done so in the right places. She had become something of the butterfly among them, went from the worm to the curved beauty, then Rocky herself was teased that she was carved out of wood.

"What are we doing this afternoon?" Jimmy finally asked.

"Training," Rocky answered as she shoved a piece of bread into her mouth.

"No kidding?" Carrie was being sarcastic, but smiling.

"I've seen scores, men and women, Rocky's behind one of the guys, and they are top of the list." Jimmy said, proud of her friend, and Rocky swallowed quickly.

"What?" She knew she was running through obstacles and breaking base records, she'd heard from other COs that she was fast, agile, and strong, so she was disappointed that she wasn't in the lead, all across the board.

"Joey Johnson," Jimmy said. "Some College Ball player from Oklahoma that wanted to serve his country." She shrugged then. "Seriously Rocky, what's the training after lunch?"

"Gas Chamber," Rock grunted, her mindset was now how to beat some backwoods footballer from Oklahoma, but she noticed that Carrie and Jimmy stared at her. They'd been friends since they were little, but Rocky was always their leader, and the daredevil of the group. "Look, Uncle Charlie said we have to go into the chamber, with our gear, and they fill it with Gas. We get to wear our masks." She tried to comfort them, not telling them the worst part.

"Okay sweethearts, Chow's over!" Hart said. "My beloved Uncle, and yours wants your asses back on training!" The girls all gathered their rucks and weapons, and fell in outside the mess hall.

They started running following their colors, carried by a girl named Ashley out of Florida they'd all taken to calling Blondie, for her hair color and the fondness she had of singing Heart of Glass. Hart ran beside them, checking for formation and calling out mistakes or just her simple Left/Right cadence.

"Mama and Papa were layin in bed." Hart started and the girls repeated.
"Mama rolled over and this is what she said. Gimme some. A gimme some. PT. PT. It's good for you! It's good for me!" Carrie rolled her eyes as she repeated the cadence, and just wondered where in all creation this stuff came from.

They finally stopped out near a fairly clean looking building, with what looked like freezer doors.

"Company, Halt!" Hart turned to face them. "In today's Army and world battles, the enemy will use gas or chemical attacks," She took a folder from her second, and opened it up, showing gruesome pictures of skin rashes, flesh boils, and even in some cases flesh melted away to the bone. "These are the looks of war, Ladies." She put the pictures away. "Behind me, stands the Gas Chamber. This chamber will remove the fear you have, it will cause you to focus if you are ever caught in such warfare as those poor soldiers were. Line up for Gas Masks."

Carrie was in front, then Rocky, followed closely by Jimmy, they all watched as Hart opened the door after applying her gas mask and instructing them to do the same. They all filed into the room that seemed to amplify the summer heat, with gear, their face covered in thick rubber, and dressed head to toe in dark greens and blacks, sweat rolled down their faces. The door closed once they were all in, and the room was quiet a moment before the slow hiss started.

"Ladies, this is CS Gas," Hart's voice carried still, even through the mask over her face. "Non lethal, but you have to understand its effects." She walked up to Blondie and lifted her mask over her head, causing the woman to shriek in fear. "Soldier, what is your name, rank and serial number?" Blondie was in a panic, then she emptied the contents of her stomach into the floor, while wiping at her eyes. "Answer me!" Hart yelled.

"Private First Class, Ashley Vanlier, Four four five eight zero," Again she emptied what was left of lunch into the floor.

"Good enough Blondie, mask up." Hart said stepping away, and stopping near Rocky and lifting her mask. "Name, Rank, Soldier's Creed." Hart snapped.

"Racquel Marie Smith, PFC. I am an American Soldier. I am a Warrior and a member of a team. I serve the people of the United States, and live the Army Values. I will always place the mission first. I will never accept defeat. I will never quit. I will never leave a fallen comrade. I am disciplined, physically and mentally tough, trained and proficient in my warrior tasks and drills. I always maintain my arms, my equipment and myself. I am an expert and I am a professional.I stand ready to deploy, engage, and destroy, the enemies of the United States of America in close combat. I am a guardian of freedom and the American way of life. I am an American Soldier." She said, with tears running from her eyes.

"Word for word," Hart said. "Well done, Soldier." She placed a hand on Rocky's shoulder as she pulled her mask back down to her face.

She watched as best she could, the other girls of the platoon going through whatever question that Hart asked, then followed them out to wash out their eyes in the flush station just outside the opposite door. Some of the women were also losing their lunch, but the Queens remained strong. They made the agreement they were going to survive BCT together, and so far they were doing just that.

The bullets whizzed over their heads while Hart stood near the gunner.

"The sound you are hearing is live rounds being fired over your heads. Keep your bellies to the ground, your cabine in the crook of your arms and you get through this obstacle as quickly as you can."

"Jesus Rocky, they are shooting at us!" Carrie was panicking and panic wasn't good.

"Carrie, they are over head, keep your head down and move!" Rocky was trying to remain cool, though sloshing through deep mud, with rounds flying a few inches above her kevlar helmet was a bit unnerving. "Come on Carrie, a few more feet and we are out, you can do this."

"The reason for this obstacle is to remove the fear of combat from you all. You will know what it is like to be fired upon. You keep your head and ass down. If the enemy sees either he will shoot either. You do not want a bullet in either place!" Hart was watching them like a hawk as they slithered through the mud.

Carrie started crying, and froze, she was petrified with fear even as the other girls shouted for her to carry on, and move out.

"O'Dell, you are holding up my line, You aren't getting an ingraved invitation. Get out of my mud! Move your ass!" Hart shouted and then froze as Rocky and Jimmy did, when Carrie moved to stand up. "Get your head down! Cease Fire!"

It was too late, the bullet ripped into Carrie and sent her crashing down into the barbed wire, and everyone there in the mud was yelling their own echo of their Drill Instructor. Carrie screamed in pain and tried to fight the wire that just tore into her flesh and clothing even more.

"God Damn it, O'Dell, what in the hell are you thinking?" Hart walked through the mud with a multi tool in her hand while her second called in the med team. Rocky and Jimmy watched as Hart cut Carrie free and start cutting clothing to investigate the wound. "Smith, get your posterior out of that muck and assist here!"

Rocky was up in a minute and to her friend's side, staring at the hole in her chest, relieved it was closer to the shoulder than the middle. "Smith, pressure here and clotting agent, quickly!" Rocky pulled the clotter from her pack and ripped it open with her teeth, pouring it quickly into the hole, and wincing as Carrie screamed again.

"It is cold, Rocky." She said quietly.

"You've always been crazy, it's like thesurface of the sun out here, you are wet and in shock. You are going to be fine Carrie, hang in there. Med unit is on it's way."

"Smith, assist med in transferring O'Dell to Field Med Center."

"Yes, Drill Sergeant!" Rocky was all too happy to get out of the mud, but she was also glad to be there for one of her friends. She gave a nod to Jimmy, and rode out with Carrie in the Jeep that had come to pick them up.

"Show's over ladies!" Hart said as the gunner started firing again, causing Carrie to jump.

"It's okay, it's not anywhere close to us now." Rocky assured her. She knew deep inside that Carrie would get to go back to Queens, she and Jimmy were the ones left behind.

?So, Rock.? Jackie was looking at her and she knew the look, it was the same every time he tried to be serious. He was the oldest, and he thought he had to act like their father at times. ?You know dad?s sick, right??

?In the head,? She said coldly.

?I?m serious, Racquel.? She winced when he called her by name.

?What?s wrong with him, Jackie?? She was a little concerned, but not as much as most kids would be if you mentioned their father being ill.

?He?s forgetting things.?

?That?s nothing new, Jackie,? She popped off and immediately both he and David were staring at her. ?What? He always forgot he owed money, but had no problems taking mine.? She was bitter about that part of her life.

?Stop it,? David said then. ?That?s what?s wrong with him, Rock. He?s taken one too many hits to the head. You know, like Ali??

She looked at them both, and she heard what they said, she knew he meant that in layman?s terms her father was punch-drunk. She tried to feel bad, but she just couldn?t.

?So why are you telling me this now? I leave for Georgia in two days.?

?Someone?s got to take care of Mother.? Jackie said and looked at her, as if expecting her to jump right up and forget everything she was doing for herself.

?You got the big house and fancy job Jackie, take her with you and put the old man in a home.? She said as she sat back in the chair, looking at her brothers.

?We aren?t putting Dad in a home. You are about done here right? Then it?s two weeks a year or something?? David leveled his gaze on his little sister as he spoke.

?That?s National Guard, I?m in the Army.?

?What the hell ever.? David folded his arms across his expansive chest then.

?Get Denny to watch Mother. I?m heading to AIT, and MOS in Georgia. I?m in this long haul.?

?That?s right, like your hero Charlie.? Jackie said, trying to guilt her into seeing their way.

?Damn right he?s my hero,? She looked straight at Jackie. ?He never wanted my money to keep some loan shark from beating his ass, or setting the house on fire. You weren?t there for that crap, and the old man wouldn?t call his precious Jackie.?

?Enough you two,? David held his hands up. ?Denny and I can watch the old man, Rock?s right. She dealt with him enough while we were on our own, she was alone with him.?

?So you are siding with her, that spoiled little bitch?? Jackie said, as he glared at his brother.

?How?s she spoiled? She worked hard to grow up and she?s done damn good look at the medals and stuff on her jacket.?

?You both are dicks.? Jackie said as he turned and walked from the area they were sitting in.

David looked at her and smiled a bit. ?Rock, I?m sorry. You know how Jackie is. If he thinks he?s got family like the old man, it?s beneath him and the wicked witch.? He smiled a bit more when she looked up at him. ?You go and kick ass, girl.?

?Is mom okay??

?She?s tough, you know??

?If she needs anything you let me know.?

David stood up, and hugged his sister tightly. ?I?ll do that. Now go make Uncle Charlie proud.? He turned and walked out to go find Jackie, leaving her there, alone with her thoughts.

She thought of her mother, and how strong she had always been, and a slow smile spread across her face. She knew that her mother would carry on, and more than likely outlive all of them.

The girls of her platoon were hugging each other as they prepared for AIT in different areas, and she knew that it was going to be her, Jimmy and Ashley going to Fort Benning, Georgia, as well as a few others that she?d completed BCT with. She was looking forward to the next part of the training program, and decided to turn in early. She took of the dress shoes and stowed her Dress Greens before she flipped the cover back on her bunk to find two sealed envelopes. One from Hart, the other a scrawl she didn?t recognize.

Rocky, Jimmy and Ashley took three bunks in the same row, since BCT they were all friends, and they knew that their safety came with their numbers. Carrie had been sent home, with a medical discharge, and military disability check. She still wrote them every day, wishing that she?d listened and stayed down in the mud, but three surgeries later she was getting almost full use of her arm again.

Rock had her gear stowed away, and was sitting on the bed, looking at the other two girls, watching how particular they were with their things. Everything had to be just right, or they rearranged it until it was.

?Jesus, we are losing personal time while you two perfectionists dick with your gear.? Rocky teased them but she was anxious to get up and around to look at the base and get prepared.

They all put their coats on, and walked the grounds around the barracks and found themselves facing The Tower. The three of them stared at it a long time, remembering that someone had told them it?s only thirty-four feet high, but none of them could believe it was only thirty four.

?How did yall talk me into this?? Ashley asked as she stared upward. ?I?m scared of heights.?

?You won?t be.? Rocky said with a smile.

?Dare Devil Smith,? Jimmy said as she giggled. ?She?d wade through a volcano if someone said she couldn?t.?

?I?ve heard there is another one that is two hundred and fifty feet high,? Rocky said with a smile then she turned around to see it looming on the horizon. ?Oh, wow. Look at it!? The two girls with her turned to face the same direction and their mouths dropped open.

?This is insane, even for you Rocky,? Said Jimmy as she just stared ahead at the monster ahead of them.

?I know, it is going to kick ass!?

Jimmy and Ashley stared at each other then, knowing they had no choice, they?d followed their leader, and they had come too far to wash out now. Jimmy went through Med training, her heart set on becoming a doctor and Ashley had gone through MP training, her hope was to follow her father and grandfather in the police force. They both laughed at Rocky when she went into machinist school, but Rocky had a feeling it would serve her later in life.

The next day they stood in the blustery winds, full gear, and listened as Sikes talked about their new best friend, their parachute. He told them how to wear it, along with their other essential gear, and while she was listening, Rocky couldn?t help but notice that Joey was there with the other volunteers, listening to Sikes like he was hanging on every word. A secret smile started across her lips, thinking about his letter to her before they left Fort Jackson, and knew she would get to talk to him about it soon enough.

She thought the South was supposed to be warm and humid, she had read stories about how miserable it was with heat and humidity, but in the Winter months, it was as cold as Queens, if not a little colder.

?Major General William C. Lee is the Father of the Airborne. Had he not been the first of our men to form a paratrooper command, none of us would be here today, wearing our black hats! He was a great man that followed First Lt. William T. Ryder?s example, of jumping willingly from a perfectly fine aircraft over this field you are all currently standing on.? Sikes was fired up, and his speaking skills moved the soldiers as well. ?You will be working closely with the other people of the armed forces in my jump school; we have Marines, Navy, Army, and even some of those pretty fly boys.? Some of the men and women laughed at that comment, but the Air Force men failed to see the humor in what was said. ?I will not tolerate any competitions or braggarts. In my jump school, you are all brothers in arms, a team of friends, working for the same goal. Am I understood??

?Crystal Clear, Sir!? The squad answered in unison.

The volunteers trained with aircraft procedures and ground rules for landings the first week. Rocky landed wrong and sprained her ankle, Jimmy and Ashley moved as quickly as they could to her side, but Joey had beaten them there, helping her up.

?Smith!? Sikes yelled as he approached. ?Are you hurt or injured??
Rocky thought about his question, thinking about the wording and knew it was some sort of test. ?Just Peachy, Sir!? Was her reply to her Commanding Officer.

?Good thing about pain, it lets you know you aren?t dead, or in this case how not to land next time!? Sikes looked at Joey a long while before speaking again. ?Are you waiting on a medal, Johnson??

?Sir, no Sir!? Joey answered.

?Then get back in formation!?

They ran for all they could, to try to beat each other?s times and their own previous record every night for the first week as well. Twenty-four miles every day, through all sorts of weather the only constant was the cold.

The second week was what the Black Hats called Tower Week. They practiced jumping from a mock aircraft door, from a height of thirty-four feet. Some days with their gear other days, with nothing except their chute packs. They practiced their landings from the swinging landing trainer, and still continued with PT.

Their times were setting records, and Rocky and Joey were in a constant battle for number one.

?You don?t back down, do you?? Joey asked as they had another of their night meetings, while looking down into her dark eyes.

?It?s not who I am to back down.? Rocky leaned against his chest a moment and sighed. ?I have to get to the barracks, and so do you.? She turned and left him alone in the cold again as she walked back toward the barracks.

?Rock, I love you!? He nearly yelled it for everyone to hear, and she turned to tell him to shut up, she was ready to be angry, but instead she found herself smiling at him, and blowing him a kiss.

?You are going to get us busted!? She finally said. ?Now go!?

?You better calm your ass down, Rocky!? Joey was backing away from her as she cornered him, her fist flying toward his throat. ?I said stop!? He hissed as he caught her fist. ?What the hell are you doing??

?You rigged my pack to not open, hoping I would panic so you could win a higher mark!?

?What? No I did not!? He pushed her arms back to her sides. ?That could have killed you!?

?No shit, you think?? She was furious, and her hand came to rest on the very knife she had used to cut free not even an hour earlier.

?Rock, I tried to tell you that your hook had broken, it jerked up and tanked your main chute.?

?You did this!? She took another swing with her left hand and he stepped away easily.

?You still made the jump; you were closer than even I was with your reserve, for Pete?s sake, calm down, or neither of us gets wings and out of here.? He stepped toward her then found himself going up on his toes as her blade came to stop near his groin. ?Rock??

?Shut your hole! If you tried to kill me, and I find out about it, you are a fate worse than dead. You understand me?? Joey only nodded, as he tried not to breathe, or even move.

?Rock, please,? He started again, ?Put the knife down.?

She lowered the blade as she turned to walk away. ?This isn?t over, by a long damned shot.?

She stormed off as Joey took a lean against the building and watched her, shaking his head as she walked away.
?She?s like trying to love a Pit Bull, affectionate one minute, then able to tear your face off the next.? He thought.

The next day was graduation from Jump School. They stood in their uniforms and shook the hand of Sikes as he walked up to them in his full regalia of medals and ribbons.

?Congratulations, you are now a United States Paratrooper.? He would say with a firm handshake, and Rocky noticed that the handshake seemed to linger a bit longer with Ashley.

That night of Graduation found them all at a local bar, where a Marine-Sniper named Levi introduced the girls to what was known as the Alabama Slammer. They did everything they wanted to do that night, they were singing to the songs they knew and didn?t know. They made plans for their next steps in the military, and life, before eventually winding up at the tattoo shop. The needle hitting her skin was the last thing that Rocky remembered about that night.

She woke the next morning with a pounding head. Somewhere in the background she could hear Johnny Cash singing Sunday Morning Comin? Down.

She sat up slowly, pulling the sheet up to cover her bare flesh, and in the process of wondering where her clothes were, she realized she wasn?t alone in the bed. She kept the sheet, as she wrapped it around her, standing up and trying not to vomit.

?You okay, baby?? Joey asked groggily.

?Joey?? She asked in surprise.

?Yeah, Rock??

?Where the hell are we??

?Across the street from Louie?s Tavern, the little roadside hotel, don?t you remember??

?Of course I don?t remember, why the hell would I ask you that?? She was in a panic. ?Where the hell are my clothes??

?Well I think that?s your bra on the ceiling fan.? He would have laughed but he was feeling just as rough as she was.

She reached for it as it swung lazily back around and realized then that she had handcuffs hanging from her wrist. ?What the hell?? She shook the new bracelets toward him, and he only smiled. ?Where in the fuck is the key?!?

?Calm down, Rocky.?

?You tell me to calm down one more damn time, I dare you. I double-dog dare you, mother fvcker.?

She was feeling a lot like an amnesia victim, trying desperately to remember what the hell happened the night prior. She found her clothing, and went to the bathroom, locking the door behind her.

?I love you, Rocky.?

?Go to hell, Joey!?

((Mature Language. You've been warned.))



The more she thought about it, the more it angered her. Rocky?s scores had been higher than Joey?s throughout the three weeks of Jump School. She had left the room, and went back to the base, hoping for a meeting with Sikes, having told Joey that she was going shopping with Jimmy for a beach party the following day.

?Smith, C?mon in.? Sikes said when he saw her at the window of his office door. ?I was just going over the scores again.? He smiled at her, as she stood at attention, in her uniform.

?Sir, permission to speak freely,? She asked.

?Sure, have a seat.?

?I?d rather stand, Sir.?

?Suit yourself, Sergeant-Major. What can I do for you??

?Sir, I would like to know why I did not receive advance as well. My scores were some of the highest here, in the history of the camp.? Rocky finally settled her gaze on Sikes and she felt her temper starting to rise as he smiled and leaned back after cutting the end off of a cigar.

?You mean Joey.?

?Sir.?

?Sergeant-Major, are you asking why he was promoted, and you weren?t?? He asked after lighting his stogie.

?I am, Sir.?

?Simply put, without trying to offend your sensitivities, he?s male. Big brass doesn?t care about scores, they care about men and women in uniform, but they are still fighting like all hell to keep women out of combat.?

?Permission to speak frankly, Sir,? She asked.

?Go ahead.? He was bracing for it, he could see it in her eyes. She was angry and was ready to lose control in what he hoped was a civil manner.

?That is bvllshit, Sir! I worked as hard, if not harder than he did and I am denied because I am a woman? Big Brass be damned, I?m working my ass off in this Army to meet my goals for my life, and I feel like I?m getting fvcked by the Green Weenie.?

Sikes stared at her a long while. He knew that she was something else the way she went at everything full on. She was a confirmed leader, and had the support of the people around her. She wasn?t a big woman, but he couldn?t tell by the way she acted, and the way she fought.

?Rocky,? He was being informal now. ?I will see what I can do. Don?t go shaking trees.?

She left his office, and started back toward the hotel, but on the way there, she realized that is not where she wanted to be. She turned around and went back toward the base, and housing where Jimmy had set up to finish out her med training, soon enough the car pulled to a stop in front of the building, and she was knocking at her old friend?s door.

?Hey Rock!? Jimmy was excited to see her friend. ?Guess what!? Rocky just stared at her, not understanding why she was so excited. ?Rocky, we may be heading to Iraq, isn?t that cool??

?What?? Was all Rocky could manage. ?How is that cool??

?Go over there, see some of the sights, get some cheap stuff and be back home really fast.?

?Jimmy, it?s a warzone.?

?I know, but we won?t have to be out in that.?

?Has the whole world gone mad?? Rocky stood there in disbelief. Her best friend was excited about going to war. Her, whatever Joey was had been promoted, she wanted to get into Ranger school, and Sikes had told her to basically not be herself. It was going to be a long few days.

Fort Benning, Ga.
February, 2000


"Move your lovely backside, Smith! I heard you were a badass, wanting in my Rangers Program." The CO screamed as Rocky ran up the steep incline in full gear. "When I heard that my beloved Uncle Sam was letting a woman in to use my training course, I hired a brass band to play Pretty Woman, but I guess they didn't show up today!"

Rocky ignored the man's commentary, her goal was to beat out the men that she was currently ahead of, and she was doing so in record time. She secured the rope to a pine on the edge of the drop and wrapped it around her waist, allowing her a running descent, instead of the backward belaying style.

"God Damn, Todd. I haven't seen anyone use that style and not crack their damned melon somehow in years." The man next to the CO said, watching Rock's performance with interest and a stop watch. "Where is this lady from?" he asked.

"Queens, New York," Todd answered. "Bitch musta been a cat burglar or something to have a move like that. Hell maybe she's kin to Spiderman." Todd said with a snarl. "Her folder says she's the nephew of one Charles Antonelli, Top Notch Ranger in his days of 'Nam."

"Charlie Antonelli? No sh*t?" The man was excited as he heard that name. "This girl is going to make your head spin if she's like her uncle, at all."

"Mike, do you know Charlie on a personal level?" Todd asked, as he turned and looked at the man through his Ray Ban Aviators.

"Hell, I haven't talked to him since Memorial Day two years ago, at the POW Rally, but yeah, I know him pretty well." Mike answered.

"Is he sending this girl through my course as a joke or media stunt?"

"That really isn't his style," Mike answered. "He would have nothing to gain but pride, and knowing ol Chuckles like I do, he's proud that she even got into the program."

The CO stared at his subordinate a moment, "Add point-five to her scores."

"What?" Mike was in shock.

"You have a problem with my order or your ability to write on that clipboard?" Todd asked as he straightened up, trying to intimidate the lesser ranked officer.

"No, Sir, I don't." He started adjusting the marks as he watched the stop watch again. Even with her adjusted time, she was still nearly a full second and a half past the next man on the roster. Even having stopped to help one up from the mud.

"This woman will not complete this program easily, if at all." Todd growled and watched as Rocky sprinted past, with a smile on her face. "Media stunt, Some damn Senator's baby. Whatever this sh*t is, stops when she drops."