Anthologies: The Marines and Chief
Posted By: (ENS) Rabid_Gallagher<email@example.com>
Date: 10 February 2005, 2:33 AM
Anthology of a UNSC Marine
The Marine in the basic story is always either casted out as a sort of main character or someone who dies. That shouldn't be. When I write, I always try to make sure the Marine has a basic personality.
Number One Rule. A Marine is never fearless. Always remember this when writing a fictional story about them. UNSC Marines are always scared when fighting, and are afraid of dying. ODSTs are a extremely good example. They might take a bullet or two, but all, and I mean all soldiers, crack under pressure. ODSTs just are trained to handle it better than most.
Number Two Rule. Even the Chief sometimes is scared. This is a overlooked fact about the Chief. He's seen it all, but sometimes he does crack, but it's not the same type of crack like most people would think. He will probably break down at a resting point, where he'll burst into tears when he is with himself in his bunk or he is alone and he just can't move. It's like a mental crack, not a brain crack. Difference? Mental is usually when you take the bullet and let your emotions run afterwards.
Number Three Rule. ODSTs are not Supermen. I am going to get back bad PR from Helljumper about this, but they are not the super soldiers some people write them out. They will, at the most relaxed time of battle, crack. But, they will crack like the Chief. They can take a bullet like that, but they have a limited field of that. They can't wait a few hours after battle and let their emotions run, that will only happen to the most harden men of the ODSTs.
Number Four Rule. Covenant Elites and Brutes fear too. Thought not like most humans, they will break and fear. Especially the rookies and recruits of those Alien races. A fact largely overlooked, they can break. Important word: can. It's never always, and some might not even crack under pressure, but that's highly unlikely. I will admit that they have a different pain and break scale, but they will break under the right circumstances. It's just less apparent among the higher ranks of those Alien races.
Number Five Rule. The Marines are not Rambo. They are not Rambo, and they will probably not run into battle to kill a Grunt squad with a SMG or a BR55. Uh uh! They will fight to the death, yes, but they will fight with their comrades. One or two situations will happen if he or she, the last Marine, is the last one. One is the most heroic, but the most un-believable I think. He will fight to the death. But, if it is a new recruit recruited by the Draft, then he will try number two, to surrender. Most Humans will try to escape before fighting to the death, it's a proven fact.
Number Six Rule. Never Set The Fearless Marine As Your Main Hero. Bad idea. I will admit it is okay sometimes, but remember the rules above this one. A Marine will never not crack. It's a difference of when. Course you can set your main character as a Marine, that's okay. But, they will have the basic balance of scare and pressure.
Now that we are done with the basic rules of Marine Anthology, I will put down a scene where the Chief breaks down.
John closed his bunk door on the crowd behind him, the hinges almost coming off the door as he stood still in the room. All those memories from the past, all those dead...It was going to happen, sooner or later. He took off his armor, quietly setting his armor on the table in front of him, then sitting down on his bunk, his legs placed so if someone can into the room, he could push himself up from the floor and stand up.
He put his hands in his face, trying to hold in the tears. Men don't blubber. He heard his former CO, Chief Mendez, say into his head, but he couldn't hold it in. Tears washed into his hands as he let out his emotions. He laid down and thought of all those dead. Jenkins....Mendoza....Keyes...and all of the countless Marines he'd served with all those years of fighting....all those years killing.
"Why......why was I created to destroy?!" He yelled out, realizing noone would hear him from this room. He yelled it again, louder, as tears rolled down his cheek and as he got up. He raised his arms to the ceiling, crying.....
That was a basic paragraph of Chief letting his emotions taking care of himself. People have to let their emotions run dry sometimes, else they can break at the most bad time (for example. If a Marine who never let his emotions run suddenly did, during the battle that could decide the fate of the way, that could qualify as bad.....like hellva bad =] ) when they are needed.
I hope you use this in your writings. Remember the six rules, and you shall be a master writer....in my eyes at least. Oh, and you should one more thing. Marines today can take a bullet in the stomach and remain quiet. No matter what you say, I've seen it happen. Of course, it's just one bullet so try to use that if you use ODSTs or Special Marine Forces like 7th Marine Recon Platoon or the 234th Marine Sharpshooters.
Gallagher, signing out.
PS: Make sure to call me "Gallagher or Gall" instead of ENS. It gets old. Really old.