I always thought there weren't enough Soldier stories. And then I wrote a Soldier fic, and found out why.---They have names for me. Mad. Sergeant Batshit. Easy Mode. I do not mind. I even laugh as they say them, nervously, as they pick their way through the bodies. I laugh because they do not understand me, they do not understand war, they do not understand themselves and I have honest sympathy for them because I once was like them. Just like them, I once tried to make the world make sense as others insisted it did, by books, by teachers, by faceless authoritative female tannoys. The world, I was told, was run and ruled by systems that made no sense, by rules that were arbitrary and meaningless. A world in which the best damn soldier of his generation could be turned down by his own country’s army in time of war. That was the key, I think; my way into understanding how the world really works. Because I knew I was the best soldier in history. Sun Tzu told me himself. See? You are laughing. That is fine. See? I laugh too. You laugh because you think I am crazy, and I laugh because you are living in a fantasy world you barely understand, whilst my world makes perfect sense. Everything exists because I will it. If I don’t like it, then it will be removed. I have explained this to the boys, calmly, when another one, egged on by the others, steps up to ask me about My World. They think it is a joke, just like you, bless them, bless you all. You and they are lucky that I have decided to allow them to exist in my world.I think these things as I thud through the sand and concrete of Fastlane towards the central point, because it is good to remember the purpose of the bloodshed. The rest of my team streak ahead of me. Running ahead to get themselves killed, to limber the enemy up to make the real battle more interesting. Because, of course, there IS no battle until I get there. There are no screams, no sounds of gunfire, no blood spattering on the gravel until I turn around the corner, and my first rocket is already flying, streaking across the battlefield, towards the Heavy and his Medic. The rocket slams into the opposite building, sending the Heavy flying forward with a roar of pain and causing the Medic to cower back into the doorway, coughing on the dust. That is my warning shot. They keep coming after a moment’s pause. Of course they do. What other purpose do they serve?I charge up the slope and the bullets and the cries and the explosions all around me are a song, a symphony of pure delight. They ARE a symphony. Perhaps you are beginning to understand? The Scout on the point doesn’t, because he is still pointing his gun at me, even as he desperately reloads. The resulting collision between him and my second rocket is a beautiful flower, one that blossoms all over me. I turn and fire a third, contemptuous rocket at the Sentry a maggot is desperately throwing up in the shelter of the right garage. I do not see what happens to him because I do not spare him another glance, but I do know he will need more than a pair of tweezers to get that gear lever out of his forehead.“You WILL help me capture MY point!” I yell as I pull out my shotgun, and the rest of my team quickly start towards me. Good lads, they ARE good lads, because of course I have made them so. They just need a bit of direction, a leader, bless their souls. The Heavy explodes with a sound like a ripe fruit from my Demo’s grenade. My Scout shouts something- “That fricking Engineer’s-“ and I turn to face what was a moment ago my Engineer and is now a sharp looking man in a suit, who slashes at my chest with his tiny knife. He thinks this will kill me. This is a mistake. It is a mistake that costs him the lower part of his face.There is a shout from the direction of the RED base- a long, drawn out “Awaaaaaaah!”- I turn and at last my face crinkles into a smile. Here he comes. I had wondered what had been keeping him. Maggot Number One, with a couple of his pals, the Medic and another maggot who somehow believes he also has the right to hold a rocket launcher. Maggot Number One has been the talk of the town recently. I gave him some new weapons, you see. It breaks my heart to remember how easy it was to kill him, and God help me I can’t stand an easy fight. I won’t allow it. He doesn’t know it was me; he thinks he was gifted them by performing unusually well on the battlefield. Such a strange world other people live in. Now look at him, charging towards me as bold as anything. He’s even painted a dragon on his weapon. Isn’t that sweet? I pull out my rocket launcher as he comes into range.Perhaps he has watched my progress, and perhaps he knows that I only have one rocket left, and perhaps he thinks that won’t be enough to stop him. Impossible to tell with Maggot Number One, what with those big, blank black eyes, but of course, I know, because I created him, and now I am about to uncreate him. I level my weapon, and squeeze the trigger.You are not yet convinced by My World, are you? I am nothing if not understanding. If you still imagine I am joking or crazy, try and think of it as a theory of war. The person who THINKS they will win is generally the person who WILL win. Sun Tzu said that. To me. And I am always on the winning side. Can you prove me wrong? The others, when they dare to say that what I do is easy to my face, I hold out my rocket launcher and say “Go ahead, boy! Go ahead! If you think it is so easy, be my guest. I will gladly have your maggot weapon instead.” To which they always back down, too scared to see the truth, too comfortable holding their own comfortable lie. Too easy. Ironic, isn’t it? They may be good men, may even be exceptional at what they do, but they do not think like I do, they do not KNOW like I do, and that is why they will fail, in the end. I AM war. I KNOW that I will kill this Maggot before he turns my flesh into rendered fat, and that knowledge burns within me, it’s what pulls the trigger, it’s what wills that crackling noise and the blue-white missile to blaze out of the tube, fly through the air and slam into his fuel tank.The Medic screams as he is set alight, and I am on him before he can do anything but feel the pain, I am pulling the rocket launcher out of the blackened hands of the other Soldier, and I am laughing, laughing amongst the burning, dismembered corpses, and the saw falters in his hand, he is turning and running, despite the fact that he knows he stands little chance of getting away, despite the fact that he would be better off standing and fighting, he is running. From me, laughing against the burning sky.“Aye, good job there laddie,” says my Demo, coming up behind me as the point is captured. “We did a number on ‘em, and noo mistake.”“Yes,” I say, calmly reloading my new rocket launcher. “Yes, you did good as well, Virgil.”“We wurr thinkin’ of flank- what did you call me?” he squints at me with his one good eye.“Hmm? Oh, nothing, nothing.” I shoulder my weapon, flicking a dismembered finger off the barrel. “At the double, maggot! The next point won’t capture itself!” This is my world. Today I am leading my squad of brave commandos against the Nazi menace. Tomorrow I might be left for dead in the jungle, destroying the Vietcong single handed. Or I might be a sad, disturbed man, fighting and dying for a shadowy corporation for reasons I don’t understand out in the desert. Perhaps. It doesn’t matter. For you see, this is my world. And I will decide whether or not you are welcome in it.
This is a good fic. You should feel good. <(._.)>It catches Soldier's way of thinking very well.
;_; Soldier is a very deep character. Good job expressing that.
FUCKING LOVE. No seriously, this is perfect, right down to the in-game quotes - sometimes they look awkward but you NAILED it.... Inspired. I have go to go write Soldjur fic nao. *runs off*
Excellent, excellent writing. Fits the Soldier perfect, IMO.
This is excellent. I love the love that Soldier is getting suddenly. It also describes his playstyle in-game very well without being too much "HURR FPS GAME" - with the purposes (or thoughtlessness) behind his actions.
Last paragraph: ...D:I've never really liked the Soldier much, in-game or not. Still, this was... beautiful.
What everyone has said. I think you portrayed him very accurately.
MAGGOTS