The platoon sergeant, SFC Gary Pierson, a veteran of Vietnam and an outstanding trooper, had been doing his best to train his lieutenant when Bannon wasn’t. He was also doing all he could to cover for Garger in order to keep the platoon together and functioning properly. But Pierson couldn’t do it all. Either his lieutenant had to perform, or he had to go. At this late stage of the game, Bannon wasn’t about to put lives in the hands of a lieutenant who had, so far, screwed up just about every task given him. With that thought in mind, he decided to talk to the battalion commander about the matter later that day. But first, he needed to tend to the business at hand.
Climbing up onto the right front fender of Alpha 31, he was stopped as he had been on Blackfoot’s tank with a “Halt, who goes there?” Only instead of using a .45 to keep the unknown intruder at bay, the figure in the cupola tried to crank his M2 machinegun down and in Bannon’s direction. As the firing mechanism was part of the gun’s elevation handle and was easily activated, a brief moment of panic swept over Bannon. He considered whether it would be better to jump, scream, or hope for the best. Fortunately, inept handling of the machinegun’s controls frustrated the figure in the cupola, causing him to abandon it and go to his .45 instead. As the figure fumbled for his pistol, Bannon took advantage of this to identify himself and finish climbing up.
Abandoning all hopes of covering the intruder with a weapon, the figure simply called out the challenge in a most dejected and apprehensive tone of voice. Lieutenant Garger was running true to form this morning.
Crawling up onto the turret and stretching out across it, Bannon propped himself up on his elbows until he was less than a foot from Garger. “Well, what shall we talk about this morning, Lieutenant?”
Garger paused for a moment, not knowing if he was expected to answer, or if his team commander’s question was simply a prelude to another ass chewing. Hesitantly, he replied in a half-question, half-statement, “RTO procedures, sir?”
“No, no. Close, but a no-go. How about radio listening silence? You remember our discussion on that subject yesterday morning?”
“Yes, sir.”
“THEN WHY IN THE HELL DID YOU BREAK RADIO LISTENING SILENCE AGAIN TODAY? ARE YOU FUCKING STUPID, OR JUST SOFT IN THE HEAD?”
While waiting for his answer, Bannon did his best to calm down, for he had a tendency to become excited and abusive when dealing with abject stupidity, particularly when an officer was involved. He had told himself time and again in the past that it wouldn’t do to get this cranked up, that he needed to be calm and logical at such times. But habits are hard to break, especially so early in the morning. There would, no doubt, be plenty more reasons for getting excited later in the day.
Falteringly, Garger replied. “No, sir. I just wanted to make sure the radios worked since we changed frequencies.”
With a modicum of composure regained, Bannon continued. “Did your radio work yesterday before I chewed your ass out for breaking radio listening silence?”
“Yes, sir.”
“And did your radio work the day before yesterday just before I chewed your ass out for breaking radio listening silence?”
“Yes, sir”
“Then why did you do it again? I mean, by now even you should be able to figure out that, A, your radio works every time you use it and B, every time you use it I am going to come down and jump in your shit. Do you understand what I’m telling you? I mean, do you really understand?”
“Yes, sir, I do, it’s just that, well, I…”
Exasperated and nearing his wits end, Bannon sighed. “One more time, I swear, one more time…” Then, without finishing, he slid back off the turret and climbed down the same way he had come up. To stay any longer would not do him or his nerves any good. If the point hadn’t been driven home by now, it never would be.
Bannon hadn’t walked ten meters from 31 when Pierson’s low, firm voice startled him. “This is starting to be a regular routine, Captain. I’m going to start setting my watch by you.”
Stopping short, Bannon turned toward the shadowy figure emerging from the darkness behind him. Still riled by his discussion with Garger, Pierson’s sudden appearance had scared the living hell out of him. As he leaned back against a nearby tree and collected his wits, he shook his head. “The sun isn’t even up and it is building up to be a real peachy day,” he thought to himself. Only when he was sure he could speak with a calm and steady voice did Bannon address the dark figure that was now standing before him. “Are you looking to give me a heart attack, or is this some type of leadership reaction course?”
“No, sir, I just wanted to come over and save our favorite lieutenant before the wolves got him. But from the growling I heard a minute ago, I figured I was too late. So I decided to wait for you here.”
“You know, I could charge you with attempted murder.”
“You wouldn’t do that, Captain. I mean, if you did, who would you find to whip this collection of derelicts and criminals you call a tank platoon into shape?”
“You’re right Sergeant Pierson. No sane man would take the job. I guess I’ll have to keep you,” Bannon shot back in a half-hearted attempt at humor. “But I’m not too sure about your lieutenant,” he continued in a voice that informed the NCO he was dead serious. “After stand-to and breakfast I’m going to talk to the Old Man about pulling Garger out. If I give you Williams as a loader, do you have a gunner who can take over 31 and a loader that can move into a gunner’s seat?”
“Sergeant Pauly could handle the tank, and I have a couple of people who are ready to gun. But do you want to start screwing around with crews at this late stage? I mean, the lieutenant may not have all his stuff together yet, but given a little more time, I’m sure he’ll catch on. You know how it was your first time out.”
“Yes, Sergeant Pierson, I know what it was like. If truth be known, I really wasn’t much better than Garger. But this is different. When I screwed up as a fresh face platoon leader, the worst I got was an ass chewing from the CO, a lot of smirks from the men in the platoon, and a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. If the balloon goes up in the next couple of days and Garger blows it, he not only stands a damn good chance of losing his own behind and his crew’s, but a failure on his part could cost me the whole platoon, if not more. I feel sorry for the kid, I really do. I wish I could do more for him. But I have a whole company to look out for. I’m not going to take any chances that I don’t have to.”
Bannon and Pierson stood there in silence, facing each other in the darkness for a minute. Neither was able to see the other’s facial expression. They didn’t need to. Both knew that what the other said was, to a degree, right. Pierson hated to admit defeat, the defeat of not being able to train his new lieutenant. Bannon felt the same. But they also knew that there simply was no time left, that they had to deal with bigger issues than pride. There was always the chance Garger might do well once the shooting started. Unfortunately, there was no way to tell. Bannon didn’t want to take the chance. His mind was set. If he could swing it, Garger would go.