Title: "Rico's Roughnecks - The New Herd"
Fandom: Starship Troopers - General Series
Characters: Capt. Johnny Rico, 1SG Ace Levy
Prompt: 101. Recruits
Word Count: Approx. 1,346
Rating: PG-13, adult language
Author's Notes: "Starship Troopers" was originally created by Robert Heinlein (science fiction novel). My Starship Troopers fan fictions are either based on the CGI cartoon series or the two movies "Starship Troopers" and "Starship Troopers 2: Hero of the Federation". Obviously other people own the rights to all this good stuff. I'm just keeping the story going for the public enjoyment.
Fleet Battle Station Ticonderoga
Approximately fifty veteran Mobile Infantry troopers assembled in the Ticonderoga's onboard workout facility, under orders by the station's personnel detachment to prepare for selection into Rico's Roughnecks.
The troopers milled about, attired in identical military workout kit, comprised of field gray cargo trousers secured around their waists with similar colored web belts and black tee-shirts. Some of the troopers wore field gray utility caps on their heads while others chose the ubiquitous black MI beret.
The initial selectees that had been vetted for Rico's Roughnecks were a mix of male and female, of varying build and stature, but all young and fit for combat. Some of the troopers set about stretching or doing a few reps on the facility's weightlifting equipment to loosen up, but none of them knew what the Roughnecks' commander had in mind, so they simply waited, as was their nature when not fighting for their lives against the bugs.
"Will you get a look at these apes, Johnny?" Ace Levy said with a chuckle from an observation balcony overlooking the training space. "Do all MI veterans look like a nasty-ass rabble when they're waiting around?"
Lt. Johnny Rico nodded his head and smoothed out the front of his field gray uniform tunic. "They look like we did when Captain Rasczak was in command and we got reassigned here. They've been in the shit. They've shot up hordes of bugs and watched their squadmates chewed up all to hell in front of them. They probably thanked God that they made it back to the "Tico". And they're probably wishing they had a ticket home instead of being ordered to wait down there."
Levy turned his head and rubbed at his neck to try to get an annoying tightness to go away. "Yeah, that sounds about right. When do you wanna roust 'em and mix things up?"
Rico rapped the chestplate of Levy's combat armor, right over a small, whitewashed stencil of the first sergeant's rank insignia. "Right now, Ace. Let's see what the cream of the Mobile Infantry has under their headgear."
***
The potential replacements spotted two men approaching their cluster rather quickly, as one of the senior grades in the group called the assembly to attention. The officer was in the standard MI field gray uniform and wore his shiny new Captain's grade insignia on epaulettes sewn to each shoulder. His first sergeant, however, was dressed in full battle gear, and snugged the chinstrap of his M-3 tactical helmet. The loud clap of the men's boots seemed to echo in the room as if they walked completely in step together.
"Sir!" the senior grade said when the men halted in front of the lined-up troopers. "Detail assembled for inspection, sir!"
Lt. Rico ignored the senior grade's salute and strode right up to the front rank of replacements, standing nose to nose with one of the stone-faced troopers. "I am only going to say this once. In my outfit, everyone fights. No one quits. You can't pull your weight, then I'll ice you myself. You apes get me?"
"We get you, sir!" the formation chanted in unison.
"It's more than likely most of you won't make the grade to join my unit. We have a special new mission, and my job is to weed out all the non-hackers among you. I want to see if you're the toughest shit kickers the Mobile Infantry can muster. But for now, welcome to the Roughnecks."
"Rico's Roughnecks!" Levy shouted from his place behind Rico's right shoulder.
"HOOAH!" the troopers chanted.
"Okay, you apes!" Levy shouted, unslinging a Morita assault rifle from his shoulder and charging the weapon. "Show us who the best is! Hit the sparring mats!"
***
Under the watchful eyes of the Roughnecks' non-commissioned officers, the potential replacements were paired off against one another. Some of them, much to their chagrin, were matched by the sneering company noncoms with partners who were very different in stature or build. When everyone was set up in their pairings, standing opposite white circles painted on the sparring mats, Levy cradled his armed Morita and strode casually among them.
"Okay, you slugs," he began. "Here are the rules. This is a little game called match-up. Your immediate goal is to kick the ass of your opponent, or to remove them from the sparring circle. If you think this is just like recruit training and are fully confident that you'll win - it gets better.
"As individuals are eliminated, the survivors will be paired off, and we will keep matching up until there's a single winner. We're looking for troopers who can fight even more ferociously when exhausted than when fresh and ready to shake it up. You'll understand why, if you finally make it into the Roughnecks."
Levy stared at the looks in some of the replacements' faces, getting a read on each one's confidence level or lack thereof. "This won't be the only test, of course. And I promise you, we'll make them as hard as we can. If you don't want to keep going, take yourself out of the mix and ask for another reassignment. Take your places, you apes... BUST 'EM!"
On Levy's shouted command, the sparring mats became a tangle of struggling troopers, as some chose to grapple and others began to throw punches, kicks and elbows at one another. A few early losers stumbled out of their circles and grumbled angrily at having been beaten in short order. The hand to hand contest didn't favor any particular type of trooper, as a variety of the assembled men and women were able to endure.
The field was reduced from fifty to twenty six in the first round, and then after a re-shuffling, sixteen hopefuls were selected by the noncoms to continue. From there, the survivors dwindled to eight and then four, and finally, two rather exhausted and fiery troopers remained.
All through the exercise, Lieutenant Rico secretly observed the candidates from the upper balcony, reviewing their personnel records and watching how his own noncoms interacted with the troopers. Rico's sergeants, under Ace Levy's direction, were chiding and pressuring the troopers to see if any would break. Sometimes they would even step in, tripping up someone who had the upper hand and watching them struggle to regain it.
The final two survivors of the first test were very promising troopers indeed. One of them was female, a fiery redhead with round facial features and a slim figure. Her personnel file listed her name as Annabel Rothchild, and interestingly enough, she looked a little bit like Dizzy Flores, which brought a fond memory back to Rico's mind while he allowed it to drift. She was an accomplished marksman, having scored top marks on several precision shooting courses, and had lived among the Rocky Mountains near New Denver, which made her naturally a mountaineer and remarkably tough.
The other survivor was a shorter man, dark haired with a thin goatee in the middle of his chin. Michael "Jelly" Bean was short but burly, with a physical toughness to match his thick-looking arms and legs. He fought like a wrestler more than a pugilist, relying on strength over guile. At the age of twenty-three, the senior sergeant had been through a lot, including duty with the Fighting First Division on "Big K". Although the man wouldn't be Rico's choice for first sergeant - the spot was already well filled by his friend Ace - a platoon sergeant's billet wouldn't be a far stretch for the veteran to occupy.
Rico marked the two personnel files in his hand with a scoring system and set them down with the piles of other eliminated candidates. Each test would be scored independently, he had decided in the planning progress. He noticed Ace glancing up in his direction, with the two winners standing at attention in front of him. Rico flashed an "OK" sign to Ace and nodded. Even the confidence of the winners had to be tested.
To be continued...
Mobile Infantry Athletic Training Facility