"A Bit of Added Firepower

The earth rumbled. The dried earth cracked as this terrible rumbling crept across the plains. Soon enough, the cracks were replaced by the boot prints of Marines. Floating only a half a meter off the ground were the hover tanks. The weapons of mass destruction. The "Cadillac of the Marine Corps," as many soldiers called these behemoths. Weighing in at seventy-five tons and equipped with a long range concussion blast launcher, two anti-personnel rapid fire phaser cannons, and multiple layers of armor plating, enemies of Starfleet ran in fear of these weapons.

Fortunately, this was only a training simulation. The real hover tanks were in storage onboard, collecting dust. Jon watched from a hover transport as a corporal steered the vehicle. A sergeant's head popped up from the turret behind the massive cannon. Another head came up from under the barrel of the weapon. A corporal, the tank driver. Soon, the tank commander and his two crewmates would be going in to a simulated battle with two other tank crews. Major Phanan had a total of eight hover tanks to work with. This was adequate for a group of his size, however, the necessary replacement parts were nowhere to be found. With the restrictions being put on replicators, Jon would have to figure out a way to weasel a bigger replication budget from the Captain. For the time being, however, the hover tanks were fine and in good repair. Sergeant Sharpe made sure that they would run at peak efficiency. It was never known when these weapons would have to be used.

The hover tank turned left, and continued over the arid surface. The tank commander ducked his head in to the titanium beast and closed the hatch over his head. The driver did the same, signaling that the battle would soon begin. The gunner maneuvered the turret while the driver came to a stop. The turret stopped and the barrel elevated. The tank then fired, and a large red sphere of light came out from the end of the barrel. The barrel recoiled in to the hover tank, and the tank rocked back and forth slightly on the invisible cushion of air. The sphere impacted off in the distance releasing a brilliant flash of white light. The target, a small building, exploded, sending pieces of ferro crete and metal in different directions. If the simulations were anything like the real thing, this would be a serious weapon. One that he could have definitely been used against Beard's small army at the H'Cter Colony.

The tank accelerated, moving up to 150 kilometers an hour. A breeze came up, ruffling through the shirt of the beige and brown colored fatigues. "These should definitely foot soldiers in battle," Jon said to Sergeant Sharpe.

Gunnery Sergeant Sharpe watched as the hover tank nearly flew over a sand embankment, sending out a cloud of sand from the landing point. The large vehicle then moved nimbly through another set of obstacle. "Agreed sir. Pity is we haven't made many enemies out here yet to use them against."

"Give it time Sergeant." Jon hopped off of the hover transport and made his way under a mesh camouflage tent that had been set up. There were multiple PADDs laid out on crates containing Type IIIA phaser rifles. A solitary display terminal was leaning up against another stack of crates, and displayed a map of the simulated area they were in. The eight M-180 Powells would be split in to two groups. He was going to run a simulation using both platoons. This simulation was in a desert climate. The target: a pirate land base equipped with medium defenses. There was a small platoon of troops guarding the base. The objective: Inflict massive casualties to discourage using the base again.

"Alright, it's time." Jon climbed back onboard the hover transport and the driver made his way towards the staging area where the company was waiting, along with the other seven M-180's. "Truman, J'Lan, over here." Phanan jumped off of the back of the transport as Sharpe made his way to his squad.

"Sir," the two said as they approached.

"Very simple game plan for today." Jon pulled a PADD out from his pants pocket. He tapped a button, and the same map in the tent came up. This one color coded the Marines and enemy forces. "What I want to do is converge on them from two sides, splitting their forces. Have the Powells engage the defenses from base perimeter. After the static defenses are clear, proceed in having the Powells give suppressive fire. Once the base is secure, we'll close up shop for the day. Understood?"

"Yes sir," Jack replied. "Question sir. How many enemies are we expecting?"

"I've programmed in a full size platoon. This shouldn't be that hard for you two. When you're ready, move 'em out. Truman, you'll attack from the north. J'Lan, you'll come in from the south. Understood?"

"Yes sir," they both replied. They saluted.

Jon returned the salute, and they headed off.

Phanan's Quarters

Jon stepped into the sonic shower and watched the sand dematerialize off of him. It was one thing he always hated about the desert. That, and always having to check your boots before putting them on for scorpions, or, for that matter, nearly any small creatures. Tomorrow, he'd have to send a report to the captain about the successful simulations of the M-180s.

One thing that Jon didn't like about being assigned to a Starship was paperwork. There was very little to do. His life from a combat soldier exploring the universe on strange new worlds changed from exploring reports on a desktop. Of course, the only way he'd see that type of service again would be to bust himself down to an enlisted man. Shaking the notion off, he stepped out of the sonic shower and put on some off duty clothing. Phanan's next order of business would be to schedule another exercise in M-180 simulations. After that, the contingent would have a week off. They deserved it.