the noisy whispers all around them began to diminish. Somehow, Em knew that Corby would be the last one to speak.
“I want everyone in here to know,” Corby was talking out loud, “that no matter what happens, I will do my best to see that we all live through this war and that I will never turn my back on any of you.”
Then there was silence. Evidently, those words somehow soothed everyone or made them think of the war. Em didn’t hear another sound until the snoring began.
The first thing Em remembered hearing the next morning were the bunk springs all around him. Every time someone moved, the springs made a terrible racket. Em didn’t know if anyone else slept better than he did. He instinctively looked across the aisle to see if Corby was awake yet. He did not see him anywhere.
“Excuse me. Aren’t you Turner? We were in the same group yesterday,” Em spoke to the tall airman with the tanned skin who occupied the bunk between him and Corby.
“Yeah. I’m Jack. You’re Story, right?” Jackson Turner introduced himself again to Em. He could not stop rubbing his bald head.
Before either one could think of anything else to say, their new mom came in screaming. As he made his way past Em and Jack, Em saw the name tag on his uniform. When Em saw that their new mom’s name was Sergeant Cannon, he thought it seemed appropriate. The one with a mouth so large, he was named Cannon.
“You maggots get over here and stand at attention! I haven’t told you how to dress yet!” The screaming was endless.
Em and Jack got in line and proceeded to the other side of the room. All of them were in their underwear. It seemed that no one was entirely sure exactly what standing at attention was. Whenever someone moved their head, Cannon exploded in their face. When Corby and Larry walked out of the latrine, shadowboxing like they were on the playground at school, Cannon charged at them like a bull. Em watched as Cannon walked straight up to Corby and punched him right in the gut! Corby doubled over and gasped for air. Cannon began to rant once again. He screamed something about a hillbilly Kentucky idiot. Em decided then that he would not refer to Cannon as Mom anymore.
Corby stood as still as a statue while Cannon screamed. He was no longer gasping for air. Em was afraid that Corby and Larry had just gotten themselves put on the favorite recruit list.
The following three hours, they did nothing but march around on an abandoned runway strip. Up and back, up and back. Em didn’t mind at all. It was somehow a calming ritual. Once again, it seemed that some of the guys just couldn’t get it right. He couldn’t believe that these guys were so immature and clumsy. All of them were at least eighteen years old, and marching was simply walking with a beat. American soldier’s style of marching was as unspectacular as any military in the world. These guys looked like pistons rising up and down in an engine block.
Sergeant Cannon had not let Corby out of his sight since he came out of the latrine earlier. He was now in the front of the formation, right beside Sergeant Cannon. The rest of them were aligned according to their height. When Sergeant Cannon had put them in marching order, he had bellowed, “If you are taller than the man in front of you, tap him on the shoulder and trade places with him!” This enabled the front of the formation to be bigger, possibly to intimidate opposing armies. Em was fifth in line, in column 4, about as far away from Sergeant Cannon as possible, which suited Em fine. Em felt incredible pity for Corby; he just could not do one thing right in Sergeant Cannon’s eyes.
“What’s wrong, hillbilly boy? Them shoes hurt your feet?” Cannon was unrelenting. It seemed he never got tired of screaming, especially when it came to Corby. Corby, however, was adapting to the attention remarkably well. Em had not seem him flinch in over two hours.
Mercifully, they were led to the chow hall at eleven forty-five. The last thing Cannon said, and the only thing he did not scream, was “Relax, boys. Enjoy your meal.” All of them doubted they were going to get to enjoy their meal. Throughout the entire morning, they were not permitted to speak to one another. Each of them knew very little about any of the others. Column 4 was allowed to be first in line, so Em was seated at one of the first tables. Jackson Turner sat in the seat next to him. Aside from Larry and Corby, Jackson was the only other person he knew by first name.
“Hey, Jackson. You think the rest of these guys will ever learn to walk?” Em began the conversation. He had noticed that Jackson, as the front man in column 4, had no trouble marching in unison.
“That poor Cook guy ain’t got a chance,” Jackson said. “I’m glad I’m not in his shoes.”
The conversation did not continue. It seemed both of them realized just how hungry they were. Em also doubted that they would be given much time to eat. The marching had made them hungrier than they could have imagined. Just as Em was shoveling the last bite of meat product they were eating, he saw Corby going through the line. Once again, he had the attention of a couple of sergeants. It was as if he were a magnet, the way they were attracted to him. Corby was taking it well. He filled his plate and sat down at the first table he came to. He grabbed his fork and scooped a pile of potatoes. Like a moth to a flame, Cannon materialized out of nowhere and knocked Corby’s fork from his hand. “You think we got all day, Cookie? Get on back out there and form them up. Keep them at attention!” Then he whispered something in Corby’s ear and walked back to his table.
Corby did not hesitate and never tried to take another bite. He simply arose from the table and started to survey the room. What he did next took the entire room by surprise. He went table to table ordering everyone outside. Some had eaten nothing at all. Em was totally surprised that Corby took control of the situation. He took it in stride and made the best of it. Once the room was empty and everyone was outside, Corby formed them up the same as they were previously. Once they were lined up and at attention, he never said another word. From then on, everyone was comfortable with Corby hogging the attention. Em could see the looks on some of the faces, and none of them was at all envious. From Em’s position near the front of the formation, he could see that everyone was doing his best to remain perfectly still. He assumed that things were the same behind him.
When Sergeant Cannon finally emerged through the chow hall doors, twenty minutes later, strolling along casually, with a toothpick dangling between his lips, he looked in one direction only, front left. For the first time since he arrived, Em saw a look on Cannon’s face that did not seem menacing. In fact, it almost looked as though he wanted to smile. The look vanished as quickly as it had appeared. He once again started to scream. Corby was obviously his target.
The rest of the day was much like the first half. No matter who was making the mistake, it was somehow linked to Corby’s inability to lead the formation. However, the mistakes were becoming fewer and fewer. They were becoming a qualified marching unit. After four more hours and two rainstorms, they could make it around the entire flight line with minimal mistakes. Some of the weaker guys would fall out of formation from time to time. This was not to their benefit. Instead of getting to recover, they were pushed to their limit. This brought tears to some of the men. As punishment for falling out of formation, they were made to run in place until they threw up. When Sergeant Cannon thought that someone dropped out for any other reason than exhaustion, he made them run circles around the entire flight while the marching continued.
They were finally led back to the barracks, two hours after dark. Each of them was given two minutes to shower. They were not to attempt to shave or clean their teeth. Cannon had informed them that they would need special instructions on those tasks. After their shower, they would assemble in the room opposite of Cannon’s office. Before he had entered his office, he shouted, “Clean the stink off and get in there and sit down. And don’t talk!”
Sergeant Cannon began his speech with an insult. “You look like a bunch
