He poked his head into the entrance, and in his loudest and angriest sergeant major voice he shouted, “Out! Everyone, get the hell out of the building and into formation right now!”
Instantly, the soldiers started falling into formation, and a few of the officers fell in with their platoons and troops. He saw Lieutenant Colonel Schoolman give him a bit of a bewildered look as he walked up the stairs to the entrance of the building.
“Did I miss something, Sergeant Major? What’s going on?” he asked, confused.
Childers pulled Schoolman aside so he could speak to him without giving up his staunch demeanor in front of anyone else. “Sir, when I walked into the building here, I spotted several soldiers and officers starting to loot the building. While I know we just won the war, this building is a national treasure to the Russian people. When I invaded Baghdad, one of the big mistakes we made was not protecting the national museums. They were raided, and most of the items were sold on the black market. The items in this building, Sir, are worth hundreds of millions, maybe even billions. We can’t let the men of our unit loot it. It wouldn’t be right, and it would bring enormous shame on the 2nd Calvary and V Corps.”
Schoolman nodded. “You’re right. Thank you, Sergeant Major, for taking charge of this situation and bringing the men to formation. You might have just saved my career. We’re going to nip this in the bud right now. I want you to have all the men searched, and I want you to personally oversee the security of this museum until we can get a proper unit to take over the task. Is that understood?”
Childers smiled. “Roger that, Sir.”
Then he turned around to the rest of the soldiers, staring daggers at them.
Schoolman glanced at Childers as if asking to speak first, and Sergeant Childers tilted his head to defer to his officer.
Lieutenant Colonel Schoolman did his best impression of a bad cop. “Listen up,” he said starkly. “I was just made aware of something egregious that was about to happen. This museum you see behind us is a historical heritage and landmark to the people of Russia. Our unit is not going to be the one that loots it. I won’t have the 4th Squadron or the 2nd Calvary Regiment’s name and reputation impugned by those who would seek to rob this place and bring home items to sell on the black market or hang up in their office as war trophies. Every one of you has fought with distinction in this war and brought honor to our country and your families. I won’t have a few hotshots mess that up for the entire regiment. Effective immediately, I’m placing Command Sergeant Major Childers in charge of protecting this museum. He’s going to search everyone who has already been inside the museum to make sure nothing has been taken. If you took something, then cough it up right now and we won’t hold it against you. If we find it later, I’ll have you brought up on charges and court-martialed. Troop commanders — if the sergeant major says he wants one of your platoons or squads for guard duty, you will give him control of them. Is that understood?”
“Yes Sir!” shouted everyone present in formation.
“Excellent,” Schoolman responded, speaking a little quieter now. “Captain Taylor, you’re going to work with the sergeant major as the OIC in charge of this task. When we get a proper unit to secure the museum, your group will be relieved and join the rest of the squadron in whatever duties the regiment has planned for us. In the meantime, I want camp set up immediately. I want guards posted throughout the facility, and I want EOD to make sure this place is safe. Tomorrow, I want NCOs and officers to begin writing up your AARs and award packages at once. The war may be over, but the Army will get its pound of flesh when it comes to paperwork. I want this taken care of at once before we get assigned some sort of occupation duty… and before you ask, I have no idea what that may be. When the rest of the squadron shows up, I want what was said here passed down to them. Is that understood?”
“Yes Sir,” came the reply, a little more subdued than before.
“Dismissed!” he announced.
Schoolman moved out of the way while Childers took control of the search for artifacts. While that was taking place, he decided to tour the building himself and see if he could spot any obviously missing items. As he walked in this time, he couldn’t help but be drawn into all of the intricate details and the collections of beautiful historical items. After he finished his tour, he felt more than justified in coming down hard on his unit.
With the tasks at hand set, it was time for him to find out what the regiment had in mind for them, then he had to find some time himself to sit down and write up his own AAR and award recommendations. Sergeant Major Childers had already been awarded a Silver Star and the Distinguished Service Cross, but he wanted to push for him to get the medal of honor for his heroic action a week ago, saving those wounded soldiers trapped in the street by an enemy sniper. That might be a tough sell, but he’d try. The man deserved it for how he had led the soldiers of this squadron throughout the war.
Sergeant Philip Jones couldn’t be happier now that the war was over. He had dreaded the idea of 40 Commando having to fight their way into Moscow. While their brush with combat had been limited to their last-minute dash toward Moscow from the northern port city of Severodvinsk, what he had seen was more than enough for one lifetime. Two of his Royal Marines had been killed, and three more injured during the fighting. However, by and large, his unit had come through rather unscathed compared to many of their army brethren who had fought with the Americans in Ukraine.
“Now those poor blokes saw some serious combat,” Jones thought.
After a couple of days, Sergeant Jones was permitted to take a rare break from their now daily and hourly patrols through the streets of the Ostankinsky District. He and a few of his mates sat down at a comfortable café with a cup of tea and enjoyed having a beautiful waitress serve them. After the horror of war, it all seemed very surreal.
Liberated
A cool breeze moved across the sprawling military encampment as the Marines of Echo Company focused on completing the last mile of an early morning run. Rounding the last stretch of the perimeter they were running along, Captain Long really opened it up, pushing himself as hard as he could. Few of his Marines could keep up with him as he ran for all he was worth. Once he reached the finish line, he slowed down until he came to a walk and then continued to amble along for a few minutes as he completed his cooldown. The rest of his Marines eventually arrived and followed suit, stretching their muscles and grabbing their canteens to rehydrate.
Looking to his left, Captain Long spotted a pair of C-5 Galaxies unloading several hundred new Marines, fresh from the States. “I wonder how many of them are slated for my unit,” he thought.
Once he finished his stretches, he trotted off to his tent to gather his gear to grab a quick shower and then head over to the mess tent for some breakfast. Today marked the third day his Marines had moved out of the field to a formal military camp. After months of hard fighting, the remaining PLA forces on the island of Taiwan had surrendered to the Allies. Now came the hard part — the rebuilding of the island and preparation for the eventual invasion of Mainland China.
An hour later, Captain Long walked into a tent that had been designated as his company headquarters and saw his platoon leaders eagerly waiting for him. “Good, the new guy is here as well,” he thought.