Shout out to Josue_Lopez_Vargas. May you successfully get feet pics.
Shout out to FacelessTrainer. May you successfully make a famous Tiktok video.
Shout out to Savage8768. May you sneeze and everyone in the room say bless you at the same time instead of looking at you like you're diseased.
Shout out to omega24. May you go to a restaurant, and they get your order wrong, but its way more food than what you ordered so you don't say anything and take it.
Shout out to IDB. May you randomly find $1000 on the ground.
General POV:
The last bastion unit creaked and fell to the ground with a thud. The soldiers paused their fire, still shaken from the battle. The call was made to regroup within nearby town, but it went ignored by many of them, as they were still in shock. This was a lot of their first times going to battle, so the experience was pretty traumatic.
Nevertheless, within the next hour, all of the command on this mission had grouped up at the city's town hall, which was the only building big enough to host this meeting while the soldiers were getting their rest. In that hour, data had been collected for them to assess their situation and evaluate what their next decision would be.
The man in charge, the second lieutenant was expecting to hear nothing but bad news. It was war, so bad news was the normal standard. Up first was the Segregant, reporting on what went wrong.
"We have a lot of rookies with us, it's hard getting them to follow commands because they panic at the sight of the omnics. As soon as the trigger guy saw the first omnic, he detonated it."
The second lieutenant sighed in exasperation. He had expected as much. Mistakes like this would cost the campaign. It couldn't be helped though, roughly 60% of the army was new recruits. Next was the analytics guy, who would use the information he gathered to recommend our next steps.
"There are too many factors hindering our progress to continue. With the low experience of the soldiers to "new" ideas from the medical team, our expected losses were to be at more than half our army. Now that the omnics know our location, we can expect heavier reinforcements coming our way within the week. I suggest we retreat until we get more support in the future."
This news was unsettling for them to hear. Retreating with half his army defeated on the very first engagement on a campaign so important isn't good for his reputation. But any faults would be on him and him alone. Trying to put this all on Shawn like what they were trying to do was unacceptable. I start to get up to correct their assumptions, but a voice causes us all to pause.
"There was actually only 6." Specialist Shawn says.
One of the Sergeant's slams his ham sized fist on the table as he turns to Shawn, "You're speaking out of turn, boy. You have no respect for anything."
Shawn shrugs his shoulders, "It's very convenient that I just so happen to not be on the schedule to report. Realistically, I should have given my report before the analytic. After all, how can you make a decision with incomplete information?"
Just him speaking causes an uproar as many of them see this as insubordination at his blatant disrespect to them. Meanwhile, their gripes and complaints went ignored by both Shawn and the second lieutenant who was still stuck on what was said earlier. Everyone quiets down as he speaks.
"How many did you say have died?" He asks.
"Only 6, sir, with over 120 in recovery and expected to ready for service within the next few hours." Shawn reports.
The analytics stares at him in disbelief, "That's impossible."
The second lieutenant could only agree with the analytic on this one. He had watched the bullets tear through his men and the surrounding trees. Even if they could get to the medical tent, it would be too late to save. No sooner than he thought that, did the pieces come together. He looked at Shawn, who must have known that I came to the realization when I did by his smug look. This kid was a genius.
The second lieutenant stands, and everyone's attention snaps to him, "Listen and listen well. From this moment forward, Specialist Shawn will only be required to answer to me. Failure to comply will result in an insubordination charge, and you will be demoted, do I make myself clear?"
"Yes sir." All around the room, many wanted to voice their complaints, but he wasn't having it. He knew they just didn't like the fact that a kid was ranking up and had the potential to surpass them despite all their years of service. But anyone could see that this kid deserves it, he was the future of humanity.
"Once everyone recovers, we press forward. Calculate our best methods of doing so." He commands the analytic who nods. The rest of the meeting continued without interruption.
Shawn POV:
I was glad that the second lieutenant was a smart man and saw the worth of what I was doing. If I only had to answer to him this entire campaign, then I was definitely going to prioritize his wellbeing.
Walking back to the area where the medical tent was sent up, I couldn't help but notice the large number of beds and its occupants. With the battle ended, all the runners were now medics, and assisting those who still required medical attention. Walking in, I found that many soldiers had actually already fully recovered physically but were still mentally scarred by what happened.
I don't fault them for feeling that way, as it was no good feeling to have bullets tear through your body as you lay on the ground on death's door. We were still three states away from California, and there's no telling how many more engagements we were going to have. Don't worry second lieutenant. Because you did a favor for me, I'll pay you back as well.
Standing in the middle of the tent, I prepare myself as I focus on my own bioelectricity. Gaining Body Supremacy made it easier to control my bioelectric activity, and in turn, made it easier for me to do this.
One by one, everyone's bioelectricity around me came into focus the longer I concentrated. Their emotions were open before me like a book as fear was obviously the main emotion in the room. With a simple push, the fear starts to leave the room as it's replaced with a calming feeling. Opening my eyes, I find everyone's eyes on me, as the entire room felt brighter, and a relief settled on the men. Smiling at my work, I leave before questions are raised.