Brothers in Arms
Chapter One
The rope snapped, and I plunged toward the canyon floor, some three hundred meters below.
Later on, Squad Sergeant Judiah Pope would learn that my rope had been cut, but his investigation into the incident would prove futile. Problem was, everyone in the Eighty-first Squad wanted me dead. Everyone except Dina, who felt more pity than resentment toward me, and my older brother, Jarrett, who would rather I experience pain. A whole lot of pain.
Pope had us ascending and rappelling a wall of mottled strata that South Point's first cadet corps had dubbed "Whore Face" since she offered so many good hand and footholds. The sergeant had, in all of his oratory splendor, told us, "You fuckin' first years ain't gonna get the luxury of no combat skins yet. You're gonna climb this face with ropes, then you're gonna come down this face with ropes. No superhero bullshit. Now I wanna hear you call out. On belay? On! Ready to climb? Ready! Don't let me see you screwin' up."
My father, a soft-spoken mineralogist who worked for the Inte-Micro Corporation, had always told me that only the ignorant resorted to profanity. ... read full excerpt from Brothers in Arms ebook
