by J. Michael Tisdel Used with permission.
'Twas the night before battle,
on the old Battle Barge.
And not a Marine was sleeping,
except for Ol' Sarge.
The bolters were slung
by the armor with care
But Sarge had kept his
his bed it would share.
The Marines were all nestled
snug in their beds,
But wide awake they were,
for the mission ahead.
Reports had come in
of a terrible plight,
The planet Ichar IV
was now a battle site.
The Tyranids had come,
to strip it all bare,
And the Marines were going
to spice up the affair.
The PDF defenders
of that little mud ball
Were no match for the 'Nids,
Not a match at all.
So the Marines were called
to come even the fight,
And save Ichar IV
from the Tyranid Blight.
Now of all the Marines
borne on this battle barge
Only one had faced 'Nids
and that was Ol' Sarge.
While the others would tell
rumors of fright,
Ol' Sarge just laughed
and slept through the night.
"You pups," he would say,
"you won't be alone"
"I'll be there with you,
You trust Sergeant Jones"
"I've fought 'em before,
These big nasty bugs,
They're tough, mind you,
but they're still just slugs"
"Just keep your bolter handy,
And trust in Him,
Who sleeps in the Throne
Of Gold so dim"
And with these words,
he laughed most gamely
But everyone said
"Jones is acting strangely..."
Hive World Terra