The Soldier

<Transcript begins>
“Come on in, Sgt. Gianelli. At ease. Have a seat. Can I have Emily fetch you some coffee?”
“No thank you, Colonel. I’ve had enough, for the morning.”
“What shape are your recruits in?”
“Coming along pretty well, sir. They’ll be ready to deploy or go to individual training, on schedule, in another six weeks.”
“What about that kid I asked you to watch?”
“Skinny little guy. Wiry more than strong, but we’ve put some beef on him. You can tell he didn’t eat too good, growing up. He doesn’t complain about the chow as much as the other recruits, and really tucks it away. Comes across as older than he is. He’s got a temper, but he’s good at keeping a handle on it. Really good marksmanship, I’d put him in for sniper training. Volunteer, right?”
“Yeah, and your observations match up with what we know about his background.”
“His background? Why all the interest in a skinny little kid from Texas, who looks like he’d get knocked over by a strong wind?”
“There was another skinny little kid who came through here, a couple of years back. Name of Rogers. Remember him?”
<pause>
“You’re s***ting me, sir.”
“Nope, I am not. We got a directive from on high. Keep an eye on that kid, provide routine evaluations, but copy Col. Phillips on all reports. That’s what I’ve been doing.”
“Holy Christ. This kid is going to make a good soldier, if he doesn’t starve to death or bust a gut from eating so much, but one of…? Holy Christ.”
“Yeah, I thought that project was done with, too, after Dr. Erskine’s death, but they’ve re-started it. Apparently, Chet Phillips thinks he can get something more out of it, even if it’s not quite another Captain America.”
“Well, I hear them special operative soldiers from that future Earth are pretty amazing, even if they’re not in the same class as Rogers.”
“That’s the word I heard, too. I’ve also heard Col. Phillips gets information about some of our men, from that future Earth. Word is, this kid has a counterpart in that world’s history, and he was more than just a ‘good soldier.’”
“Well, sir, I guess I can see some potential, there, but we have a lot of other men I’d have picked, first.”
“I’d agree, but then again, I felt the same way about Rogers, and we saw how that turned out. The Brits are supposed to send Agent Carter to work with Phillips on the new guy, as soon as she’s finished debriefing about that big bomber she and Cap stole.”
“Word is, she’s more than just the British liaison, now.”
“You DIs gossip like old hens. You’re probably right, though. Carter’s also supposed to go visit Rogers’ old neighborhood, in Brooklyn, and meet Sgt. Barnes’ family. Still, that should get her back in Alabama in time for Phillips to start up his training operation for this kid.”
“Any idea why they picked him? Other than the intel from the future Earth?”
“We have a couple of propeller-heads out here, watching him, too. They’ve got some equipment I’ve not seen, before. Looks like something out of a Buck Rogers Saturday morning serial; flashing lights and such. Word is, they might’ve picked the kid, anyway, and the intel from the future-Earth just closed the deal.”
“Well, I’ll be. Any orders?”
“None, other than to keep this just between us. Put him through the same paces as the other guys, push him as much as you would, if he was any other recruit private, and keep them all too busy to ask about the propeller-heads.”
“Understood, sir. Will he go to any sort of advanced training, before he gets assigned to Phillips’ command?”
“His orders will probably say sniper training, or recon, or some such, but it’ll all be bull***t. If everything goes as expected, Private Audie Murphy will be inducted into the Super Solder program.”
Category:Five Earths - Vignettes