Chapter 14
Casuarina Beach
Darwin, Northern Territories, Commonwealth of Australia
6 February 2016 S.E.C
26 November 3058 I.S.C.
There were few people on the stretch of beach along the northern coast of Australia that was Casuarina. It was summer for Australia, and thus tropical summer storms were common. There was a hint of a storm off the coast, with distant dark clouds, but all weather reports indicated it would remain sunny and partly cloudy.
This information was well-received by those among A Company who decided to use their one day off-base to enjoy themselves on the beach. The slightly-cramped SUV, rented from a car rental agency in Katherine for the occasion, pulled up to the parking area. Farrell placed the vehicle in park and loudly stated, "Everyone out!" from the driver's seat.
The vehicle quickly emptied. First out from the side were Christine and Wang while Leeson and Hendricks emerged from the back. Radick and Tucker followed Christine and Wang out from the side a moment after they got out. Coming out last was Pollard, who had sat in the passenger's seat opposite Farrell. Everyone began stretching out, particularly Hendricks and Leeson, who had spent the entire trip in the rear storage area of the SUV. Leeson turned back and took out some towels and a ball, which he threw to Wang. As he brought the towels up closer to the water on the beach, the others began pulling off their clothes, discarding them in a disorganized pile near the SUV. The three males were down to swimming trunks and barechested, Radick's strong build contrasting to Leeson's wiry form and Wang's lanky build. Of the three, Radick was the only one to have chest hair, developed in light patches around his navel and stomach up to his upper chest.
"Forget something?" Farrell stepped around the back of the SUV and reached in to get the cooler and package full of sun block.
Coming from the other side, Pollard began pulling off the sleeveless blouse she had been wearing. Underneath was a single bikini that wrapped around her sides without shoulder straps, covering the lower portions of her breast and nothing else. The skin on her torso, usually covered by clothing when Farrell had seen her before, was paler than the rest, indicating she had not gotten much sun in recent months. "Here," he said, handing Pollard a tube of sun block. "So you don't get any sunburns. And when you get done applyin' it, bring the rest around for everyone."
"Thank you." Pollard immediately twisted off the cap and began putting the slightly opaque cream on her arms, then shoulders, chest, and stomach. She put the cap back on and picked up the bag with the other tubes.
It was with some surprise that Pollard watched Hendricks, down near the beach, pull off the bright blue bikini top she had worn beneath her shirt and lay back on the towel. She walked up to Farrell, who was setting the cooler down and reaching in for a drink, and asked, "Chris, isn't that illegal?"
While Radick reached in and pulled out a pair of drinks, Farrell looked up and saw Pollard pointing toward Hendricks. He chuckled for a moment and shook his head. "No, this is the nudie stretch of Casuarina."
"'Nudie'?"
"Yeah. People can come here butt-naked and not a thing'll be done to 'em." Farrell got to his feet and watched Radick and Tucker walk off toward a group of trees with a towel and some drinks of their own. "Figured you'd have heard about it by now. You've been here a couple of months, right?"
"Since the middle of September. On my calendar, at least. On your's, I believe it was late December."
"Ah. Well, this is the storm season for this area," Farrell said, "we were pretty lucky to get here on day when it's sunny and nice out." He gestured toward one of the remaining towels. "You goin' to sunbathe? Or..." Farrell looked over to where Christine and Wang were tossing around the spherical ball they had brought. "Maybe we can take on Chrissy and Gerry in some rugby."
"What about Private Leeson? Would he not make five players?"
"He would, but look like Phil's decided to spend his time with Tracey," Farrell replied. Pollard turned around and saw Leeson laying near Hendricks, although not right beside her, the two of them talking. "Here, let me..." He took out one of the sunblock tubes and squeezed some out. "Don't want you to get burned on the back either." He began putting the cream on her, spreading it out on her back.
"Thank you, Chris." Pollard waited for him to stop and pulled out her tube. Before she could offer to do the same for him, Christine walked up. Her tanned complexion was brightened by the warm sun with her athletic build noticible from the two-piece light blue swimsuit she was wearing. "Hey, Laura, Chris, want to play some two-on-two rugby? Quick game."
"As long as Radick doesn't play," Farrell said, only half-joking. "Me and Laura versus you and flyboy?"
"That's fine." She turned to where Wang was twirling the ball around on his finger. "Hey, Gerry, they're playing! And get your arse over here and get some gunk on!"
"I think I've seen rugby on your television stations," Pollard said to Farrell. "Is this such a game to be playing when it can cause so many injuries?"
"Well, Laura, that's why we won't be playin' with Chris Radick. Gerry's a pretty small guy, I'm not much bigger, and neither are you and Christine. But even then," Farrell winked at her, "we'll go easy on them."
Base Menzies
Brown was not very surprised at those who had opted to remind behind on the base. Seated together at the end of one of the lunch tables were those of A Company that had done so. At the end of the table itself was seated Lieutenant Arks, with Mukuka and Marika on his left and O'Keefe and Manihera on his right. Brown walked down toward them and when he got within earshot he remarked, "This could be your last chance to get offbase for months."
"We really have nothing better to do," O'Keefe replied for the group.
Brown nodded. "And you all took sim time this morning, I've heard."
"We did, sir," Arks said. "The others jumped at the chance to get out but, to be honest, I don't think anyone will really be able to enjoy themselves until the war is over."
"Can't go forever without a little fun, Izzy." O'Keefe put his spoon into the empty tray and pushed it toward the middle of the table. "It'll drive you stir crazy."
"So why did you stay behind, John?"
"Because the base has a free phone line, I'm going to call Trish tonight." O'Keefe thought of his wife and son back home and a pang of homesickness came to him for a moment. "My son should be walking by now, you know."
O'Keefe hid his feelings well, but Brown could hear the sorrow in his voice. The anguish over missing out on his child's early life, the precious memories that never would be.
"I understand how you feel," Marika spoke up. O'Keefe looked at her and into her brown eyes. "My little girl is almost school age now. I would give anything to be home with her."
"Yeah? What's her name?"
"Jessica," Marika answered. "And your son's name?"
"David." O'Keefe waited for Marika to swallow on a bite she had taken. "Leave your girl with your husband?"
"I'm not married. My daughter is staying with my parents."
"Ah." Curiosity almost prompted O'Keefe to ask about her husband and was stopped by his personal sense of decency, not wanting to pry into Marika's life. "I just can't wait until I get my first real leave and I'm able to go home and see them."
"That will be a very long wait, I'm afraid," Brown remarked. He looked at the time and got up from his seat. "Enjoy your day, I'm off to oversee Company B's 100 kilometer march."
"Oh, that sounds fun," O'Keefe said with a grimace.
"I'm sure you'll find it fun when A Company goes on one Monday."
Brown walked off toward the exit from the lunch room, O'Keefe shaking his head. "A hundred kilometers, oh boy."
"Well, who knows how long and how far we'll be marching when we get into real action," Arks said. "At least you won't be on your feet the whole time."
"You make the point well," Manihera commented.
Casuarina Beach
To the west the sun slowly began to set. A bit soaked from his swim into the ocean, Farrell took a seat on a towel beside Pollard, who was sunbathing half-naked. The previous tanlines, at one time present on her arms, legs, and neck, were gone. With the exception of her immediate hips and pelvic area, all of Pollard's body was darker in complexion, the result of a light tan. "You look like you're enjoying yourself," Farrell commented, trying to resist the impulse to look at her chest instead of her face. "Like it out here?"
"It's very nice," Pollard replied, sitting up and looking toward Farrell. In the distance of the beach, Wang and Christine could be barely made out as playing around the surf. There was no sign of Tucker and Radick; Hendricks and Leeson were walking along the beach, Hendricks again clothed. There was a near constant blush on Pollard's face that Farrell could now see. "I have never done this before."
"What? Sunbathed?" Farrell chuckled and pulled a beer out of the nearby cooler. "I could tell. You've got a nice tan now, though. Going to recommend it to the other ComStar people?"
"They wouldn't care for it," Pollard answered. "I am still wondering why I came," she added.
"Ah, everyone wants to relax." Farrell took a drink. "Sun's going down, almost time to find somewhere to stay the night."
"We're not returning to the base?"
"Too late, Laura. It was kind of decided by the rest of us that we're better off staying the night in Darwin." Farrell took another swig. "We'll get some dinner, stay up a while, then get to bed for the night. Well, most of us." A mischievous grin came across Farrell's face. "I have a feelin' we'll be having some mattress-dancing tonight."
"Who?"
"Well, Caitlin and Chris are already an item," Farrell pointed out. "See what I mean now?" After taking another drink, during which Pollard replied with a nod of her head, Farrell asked, "So, where did you grow up?"
"Terra," Pollard replied. "I grew up in North America, near Hilton Head and the headquarters of ComStar. We had some of our own beaches, but all were blocked off by the Com Guards."
"Ah. And you joined the Com Guards because?"
"Because I was raised to be loyal to ComStar," she answered. "I lost my mother on Tukkayid, and my father.... well, I can't talk about him."
"Tukkayid? That big battle with the Clans eight years ago?"
"Yes." Pollard lowered her eyes. "I was just a girl then, I didn't understand why my mother had to die. But I swore to replace her as a MechWarrior for the Guards, and I did."
"That's nice to know."
"What about your parents, Christopher? What happened to them?"
"Oh, heh." Farrell bit into his lip. "My mum and dad divorced when I was, like, six. Grew up shuttlin' between their homes, they both got remarried and had more kids. I never, well, I never felt like I belonged anywhere. I got eighteen and signed up for military duty, I figured it'd at least let me feel like I belonged somewhere."
"Do you still talk to your parents?"
"Barely." Farrell took a swig from the bottle. "My mum's an accountant, she's busy in her life and that rat bastard husband of her's does his best to keep us apart. My dad's now the CEO of some computer company, at least my stepmom lets me speak to him, but we never got along that well. He didn't want me in uniform, said I was wastin' my talents." Farrell chuckled bitterly. "Didn't stop him from beaming with pride when I got my commission."
"And do you regret this life? Do you think you've wasted your talents?"
Farrell chuckled and shook his head. "Is this a 20 questions session I was never told about?" When Pollard merely looked at him, not answering, he replied, "No, I don't. I'm proud to be here. I'm fighting to keep Oz free. Maybe to free the entire world in a few years."
A nod replied to him. "Do you fear the Clans?", Pollard asked. "It will likely not be long before you are forced to face them in battle."
There was a short pause, after which Farrell shrugged. "I dunno, should I?"
"They are very powerful warriors, Christopher. Even when we defeat them, they cause us great losses on the battlefield." Pollard looked back toward the beach, with a dark sky beginning to take form to the east. "I still think of fighting them and I feel my spine shiver."
"I'm afraid of fighting them too," Farrell admitted. "But I'm going to use that fear in the right way, so that when the time comes I can lead my troops on and off the battlefield against them and survive the encounter."
"It's not so simple, Christopher. They have the advantage in range, they're trained from birth to be MechWarriors. You will only have three months, at the very most. Even I received two years of BattleMech training." Pollard reached for her bikini top and shirt. "Sometimes I think it's wrong that we're even training you," she said in an exasperated tone. "You're only going to get slaughtered by the Clans. You won't stand a...."
Before Pollard's voice could reach the full emotional shriek it was rising too, Farrell grabbed her shoulders and spun her back to face him. "No, we're not. Yes, they might be damned good, but you know what? We're the ones who are fighting on our home turf. We know more about Oz, or New Guinea, than they. And we're the ones fighting to save our homes, not them."
"You think that's going to be enough?", Pollard asked increduously.
"It's going to have to be," Farrell responded.
Finally alone.
That was what ran through the minds of Radick and Tucker for the entire day. Having found a secluded spot on the beach, they had stripped down to their respective undergarments and spent the entire day holding and kissing each other, only their respective swimming shorts and G-string to serve as clothing.
As darkness came, everyone had piled back into the rental car and driven off to the hotel they would spend the night in. A pair per room, and by request, Radick and Tucker had gotten their own room. Now truly alone, the only thing they would cover themselves with would be the sheet of a bed, and underneath that, weeks of longing came out in passionate love-making. By the time it ended they were winded, although not quite exhausted yet. Radick laid on his back with his arms under his head and allowed Tucker to lay by his left side. Her right hand was under her head, propping it up, while her left hand ran through the hair on his chest. "That was good," she finally said. "I wish we could do it more often."
"Never happen," he replied. "Which is why we should do what we can while this lasts. Because tomorrow, it's back to base, back to training and four hours of sleep a night..."
"Like we haven't done that before," Tucker giggled. "Sometimes, in moments of weakness, I wish we had tried to get bunked together."
"You don't think I feel like that too?" Radick sighed and kept his eyes toward her. "Talk to your parents?"
"I think you know the answer to that," came the cold reply.
"Sorry if I brought up any old wounds. I, well, Caitlin, I want to see you and your parents make up." Radick brought his right arm out from under his head and touched her on the cheek. "I don't want something to happen to you or your parents without that coming first. Otherwise, none of you will forgive yourselves."
"Maybe so. But you haven't yet met my parents, Chris. They're not nice people, they're very opinionated. Very headstrong. And very pacifist. I'm their good-for-nothing baby-killing daughter, remember?"
The venom in Tucker's voice did not shock Radick at all. He had heard this before. Such was the price for a woman like Caitlin Tucker, one who had found her life's calling on the battlefield yet was born of strongly pacifist Christian parents. "Yes." He leaned over and kissed her warmly on the lips. "Caitlin, if you can't get back with your old family, let me bring you to mine. And let me make you a family of your own."
"Children? In this world?"
"No. In the next world. In the world following this war, when they'll actually have a bright future." Radick sat up and put his arms around Tucker, pulling her close. He could feel her skin press against his, his hair tickling her chest while her nipples pushed against his ribs. "You are the light of my life, Caitlin Tucker. God sent you to me to love, and to survive with, and survive we will."
"I want to believe that, I really do."
"Then believe it." Radick's mouth drew closer to her's. "Believe in it, and let us do our duty, and leave our fates up to Heaven." He kissed her again and pulled her back on top of him, drawing a brief giggle during a moment of seperation from their lips before the kiss resumed and they went to making love again.
The two-bed hotel room had one TV. One TV, no cable, and only a few measly programs to watch. Mostly B-Movies and late night infomercials. Farrell had given up trying to catch a re-run of Babylon 5 at about ten when he realized the networks that had that show were not available. He had settled for some cheap B-movie about a killer 50-foot tall tarantula or some nonsense wiping out some town in the American Midwest.
For a moment he felt the temptation to go and rent another room at a nicer hotel, but that would be unfair to his comrades, and Farrell did not want to have to put up with the consequences of doing that. If he had stayed in a room with Pollard, perhaps this would have been more endurable, but he had let her go with Hendricks and thus had kept Leeson in his room.
So here he was, suffering, watching this stupid physically impossible spider. For some reason it made him think of the BattleMechs he had been piloting, how stupid and impossible they seemed. This was a thought that quickly passed.
Leeson was sitting up in his bed, and like Farrell, was stripped down to a pair of boxers. His expression was a little crestfallen as he simply stared off into space. His patience with the B-movie having finally exhausted itself, Farrell jumped off the bed and turned the TV off. "Okay, Phil, why the long face?"
"Ah, nothing."
Farrell flopped back on his bed and curled up a sheet, ready to fall asleep. "Don't give me that. I've seen the look before. In the mirror. You want to get into Tracey's panties."
"And if I do?"
"Then you're being an idiot," Farrell snapped. "She's your comrade, Phil. And we both know that the chance of the both of you makin' it out of this war is too damned small. You're just goin' to hurt yourself by gettin' too attached."
"Dammit, I can't help it," Leeson retorted. "She's so beautiful. Oh God, her body is to die for. And the way she talks, she looks at me sometimes, I swear to you, sir, I'm in love with the girl."
"You aren't in love with anything," Farrell said, rolling his eyes. "You're too young to understand love, Phil. This love you feel? It's just your dick and it wants her pussy. That's it. That's all."
"No, it isn't!" Leeson shook his head violently. "It's something more."
"And I know damned well it's not! I've been there before, you stupid fool! I was a teenager once too, remember. It's always love when you want her, even if it's just her body you're after."
"Like you wouldn't bed Laura if you could."
Farrell glared at his younger comrade. "Go to fuckin' bed, you little baby."
"If you didn't want her, why do you hang out around her all the time?"
"Phil, unlike what your horny teenage mind would like to think, it is entirely possible for a man and woman to be good friends without the desire to bed each other," Farrell said with a tone Leeson found condescending. "Laura and I care for each other as friends. As soldiers. I do not want to take her to bed. Now, I don't know when you're goin' to grow the hell up, but I would like you to at least shut the fuck up about Hendricks and let me fuckin' sleep!"
Farrell's shout was followed by him turning his back and closing his eyes. Leeson frowned at him, almost snarling, before grunting and turning onto his side, his back to Farrell's, and trying to go to bed himself. And he knew that in his dreams, Hendricks would still tease his desire.