1/ On preparing a new member of a Russian stormtrooper unit, to which he has been assigned as a punishment, for his first assault mission: ⬇️ 
2/ "The smell of pine needles, dust, exhaust fumes. The noise of the engine, the rustle of gear, the jingle of all sorts of shiny things falling into a bag. The dry sound of phones being lowered into a lock box. The crunch of automatic rifles being checked.
3/ "The quiet curses of the company commander, yanking a garish, bright Esmarch harness off the shoulder of one of the careless newbies in the assault.
4/ "The battle has already begun, a battle for hundredths and thousandths of a percent, that a person will not be noticed, that he will be a split second further from death.
5/ "I tug at the body armour of the young man whom I brought to the front line, where the assaults are being prepared. I shake it, listening to see if anything is jingling. I pull the ring off his finger, exchange watches. His, on a metal strap, could cost him his hands.
6/ "I check the first aid kit, knowing that I will not find anything useful there. And so it is. A cheap tourniquet bought on Ozon [Russian eBay], some kind of individual dressing package, a complete lack of normal hemostatic agents.
7/ "It's good that I always have a couple of ready-made first- and second-tier sets in my ATV. They don't weigh down my pocket. And to shove a thick zip bag into someone's first aid kit... I hope they won't come in handy.
8/ "I swear, just like the company commander of stormtroopers used to, and I find some awkward purse with keychains in his pocket, they jingle with every step, and they weigh down my pocket.
9/ "It seems like nothing terrible in everyday life, but over a distance [it causes] an asymmetrically tired leg.
The final touches. Tighten the armor, tighten the helmet, laces, gloves, everything is ready, nothing extra, only what is necessary.
The final touches. Tighten the armor, tighten the helmet, laces, gloves, everything is ready, nothing extra, only what is necessary.
10/ "– Jump.
Only the rustle of equipment and the stomping of boots.
Only the rustle of equipment and the stomping of boots.
11/ "– Everything is fine. How are you?
– I don't know, I have no idea what to do at all.
– It's simple: don't die and listen to those guys with stern faces – approving laughter from the stormtroopers – stick with them and everything will be fine.
– I don't know, I have no idea what to do at all.
– It's simple: don't die and listen to those guys with stern faces – approving laughter from the stormtroopers – stick with them and everything will be fine.
12/ "Gora is coming towards us. The storm company commander. A real big guy, whom even I look at with my head thrown back, stretches out his paw, and his palm looks like it's in a hydraulic press.
13/ "– WELL, IS YOUR SOLDIER READY? - a guttural growl, somehow forming into words, does not fit with the warm, tooth-splitting smile.
– We've prepared him as best we could, this will be his first combat sortie.
– We've prepared him as best we could, this will be his first combat sortie.
14/ "– OOOOH, FIRST MOVER, DON'T BE AFRAID, WE WON'T LET THE KHOKHOLS [Ukrainians] COME TO YOU, YOU'LL SIT AT ZERO, WE'LL GET YOU IN AND OUT.
15/ "The captain slaps the young man on the shoulder, so hard that he sits down — OK, GET READY AND GET OUT OF HERE, DON'T LOOK AROUND, YOU FIELD DOG — this time I'm the one who gets a friendly slap on the shoulder. I sit down too.
16/ "It's hard to watch a man being led to a place where I wouldn't want to end up. Whom you equip, check, straighten a child's clothes, check if he's wearing a hat. Yes, he got this mission for screwing up. But I really want him to come back alive and well." /end
Source:
t.me/bobak_prairie/…
t.me/bobak_prairie/…
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
