I stood in my room looking at the mirror wearing my dress blues. I always loved wearing it, it also helped me get through airports easier and that's always a plus. Unfortunately, I was missing one part of my uniform.
My ribbons. I had eight of them, nine medals since I had the Rifle Marksman. I had eight ribbons on my left chest I had the Bronze Star with Valor, National Defense Service Medal, Purple Heart, Afghanistan Campaign Medal with one bronze oak leaf for being part of Operation New Dawn, Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal, Marine Corps Expeditionary Medal and the NATO Medal for being in Afghanistan.
Everyone thought I had shit load until they realized the majority of the medals were the same thing; fighting in Afghanistan. I heard someone knock on my door.
"Come in!" I said. I turned around to see Twilight walk in.
"Why are in in your uniform?" She asked
"I like it." I said, turning back to the mirror. "Everything is here except for a few things. Even my service stripe is here." Referring to the lone stripe on my sleeve for four years of service so far.
"What's missing?"
"My ribbons and medals. Although a medal has a ribbon that corresponds with it. Except for my marksmanship medal that was all on its own."
"What were they?" She asked and I gave her the names of them all. AN: Do really think I'm going to have you read them. Although it would boost the word count.
"How did you get the Bronze Star? I remember how you got the Purple Heart." Twilight inquiried
"We were patrolling in this city called Marja. Big city somewhere around one hundred thousand people lived there. We were doing a foot patrol, we talked to some locals, handed candy and toys to the kids. You know?" I said
"A little bit."
I nodded "We were out to win hearts and minds. So we were told."
"Did you believe in that?"
"Yes. Anyway, we were crossing a crossroad when this three story building started spitting out bullets from several windows. It was an ambush. They had several machine guns sticking windows and holes in the wall. Captain called for the AT4 to be used. So Anthony went out and we laid down cover fire. He got hit, he was only a few feet from me so I grabbed him and pulled behind cover. I grabbed the AT4 and poked out. I pointed at a window higher up and fired." I made an explosion sound "Hit some sort of massive cache of explosives took out half the building. Killed around twenty terrorists. Afterwards Captain put me in for a medal and a few weeks later I had a Bronze Star on my chest."
"When was this?"
"I joined the Corps in 2010, got sent for my first tour in 2011 and my second in 2013 and carried into 2014. Spent most of 2014 doing rehab for my wounds." I said, trying to remember when. "It was during my first tour. I think the fall of '11."
"Were you heading back anytime soon?"
"No. I would hear rumors every now and again about us going to Poland or Korea. Always rumors." I said, smiling about how often we were about to head to Europe.
"Would you ever be sent there?"
"The rumors were a possibility. Every few months a battalion from the Army or Marines would go somewhere, sometimes planes would go. The only time I would go if I got sent would be if I battalion was chosen or war broke out." I said "I wouldn't mind if North Korea started some shit."
"Why?"
"Did I ever tell you about North Korea?"
"A little. Only about the war between them and South Korea."
"Long story about their military short, most of their military equipment is several decades old. Like the majority of the stuff I used is from the 21st century. It would take us two months or so to beat them, assuming the Chinese don't join in."
"Would you even be sent there for such a short war?"
"Maybe. I was already on the West Coast anyway so probably."