Free America's Galactic Foreign Legion - Book 5: Insurgency by Walter Knight Page A

defense
against the spider hordes from the North. Take pride in being given
the awesome responsibility for securing our borders. Every time you
arrest spiders infiltrating the MDL, know that many of them are
probably insurgents in disguise. You save lives every time you turn
back the hordes to their Empire. Have a nice day.”
    Nothing but silence followed. I turned to
Captain Lopez. “Well? How did I do?” I asked. “They don’t seem
happy.”
    “That speech sucked,” replied Captain Lopez.
“Next time, I’ll give you cards to read. Get back out there and
tell your men something they want to hear!”
    I faced my legionnaires again. “I am ordering
all company commanders to give everyone in the battalion a
three-day pass. Also, I am buying every one of you brave
lean-mean-fighting-machines two beers at the Blind Tiger Tavern.
Bring your ID to show the bartender. Have a good weekend!”
    Legionnaires cheered wildly as I walked off.
“Not bad, eh?” I asked Captain Lopez. “I rebound well. Am I The Man
or what?”
    “Good save,” commented Captain Lopez,
grudgingly. “But you’re so cheap. Is that all your life is worth?
Two free beers? You will make that back many times over in gambling
revenues from them.”
    “It’s the thought that counts,” I said, as I
waved at my men. “I’m a businessman. I still have to turn a profit.
Keep smiling. Remember, they all carry guns and grenades.”
    We waved and nodded at the troops as they
departed en masse for the Blind Tiger Tavern. Many were singing old
Legion songs from antiquity. ‘I want to be an Airborne Ranger; live
a life of constant danger. I want to go to Vietnam; I want to kill
a Charlie Cong!’
     
    * * * * *
     
    After General Kalipetsis’ last visit, my
tropical office plants at Legion Headquarters died. I couldn’t
prove it, but I suspected General Kalipetsis killed them. The
general was last seen loitering about my mini palms. I didn’t think
anything of it at the time, but now I wondered. General Kalipetsis
made a comment about how healthy my plants appeared. He said I had
a green thumb, but he was snickering. Now, all the leaves had
dropped off, and I needd to rake my office floor. That
bastard!
    Then General Kalipetsis called me on the
phone today to ‘chitchat.’ He asked if there was anything new. When
I failed to complain about my indoor jungle dying, General
Kalipetsis mentioned how much he admired my office plants, and
asked about where I bought them. He said he wanted plants just like
mine for his office at Legion Headquarters in New Phoenix. I told
General Kalipetsis that I was admiring how well my plants looked as
we spoke. He abruptly hung up.
    I rushed to the New Gobi Nursery to buy
replacement plants before General Kalipetsis’ next inspection tour.
I didn’t want to give General Kalipetsis the satisfaction of
knowing his evil plot to kill my office plants succeeded. There
will be payback. Someday Kalipetsis will pick teeth out of his
beard.
     
    back to top
     
     
     
     

Chapter 11

    David Torres entered the Blind Tiger Tavern,
played a few hands of blackjack, and left. As Torres mounted his
dirt bike, he nodded to three insurgents out front. Two humans and
a spider quickly entered the Blind Tiger. They threw grenades at
the customers, then escaped through the smoke and chaos. As
deputies, legionnaires, and ambulance crews arrived, a car bomb
exploded out front.
    Five minutes later, David Torres joined
Desert Claw and other insurgents at the First Colonial Bank of New
Gobi. They entered the bank, pointing assault rifles and demanding
cash. Two minutes later, they were speeding away on dirt bikes
through the streets of New Gobi with their loot.
    Video identified David Torres and Desert Claw
as participants in today’s bombings and robbery. I ordered Private
Barker to my office for questioning.
    “I told you they were plotting bank
robberies,” said Private Barker. “Did you beef up security at
banks? No, that would be too