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While in the military, you get checked a lot, injuries are numerous be it superficial or not, it’s often better to make sure nothing is wrong and lose a bit of time than to miss something that could be major or even deadly. Or so Price tells his team when they get a bit impatient while letting the military doctor examine them. The story of that soldier who came back with just a nasty bruise that turned out to be an exploded spleen is on his lips more often than not, poor lad had died on the way toward another mission when he could have lived had he been given proper care.
It doesn’t mean it’s perfect, that things are not overlooked, misjudged or hidden by the soldier themselves. Follow up on potentially long-lasting injuries are too often messy and discarded to the diligence of the doctor taking the case back. Though they don’t necessarily have the time to go over every detail and notes. Which leaves the soldier to make their own demand should they think something was missed. Which frankly has poor success and it’s up to commanding officers to take that in charge, should they care enough.
That’s why Soap found himself passing test after test after Price had ordered for a full check up, fuller even than when he first joined. He was getting both tired and annoyed by it, not getting why he had to do it but Ghost and Gaz didn’t.
It all went down to details, small things adding up here and there. Gaz reporting Soap listening to music louder and louder while in the gym when his equipment hadn’t changed, Ghost complaining about how often Soap asked him to repeat something over the comm. At first putting that on him not paying attention then realising that Soap seemed more to mishear than not listening. He often repeated in confusion his jokes with one or two words off, orders became others, walk became talk, enter became counter and so on. On his side Price noticed how easier it was to sneak up on him on base, too often he was surprised not to be alone in a room when before, even without acknowledging someone, he knew they were there.
Suspicions were confirmed when the report announced a significant loss of hearing. Not enough to remove Soap from active duty, but not something to overlook either. Not much of a surprise for a demolition expert on an elite team.
Obviously the news didn’t please Soap.
He bottled it up for a week before he finally came knocking, too late at night, on Price door. The tired captain made him sit on his bed, while he rested against his desk waiting for whatever held Soap by the throat. A quick text to Simon, knowing he would wake up to it was all he did before focusing all his attention back on his soldier.
‘You didn’t remove me from the team.’ He observed, voice beat.
‘Why would I ?’
‘I can’t hear shit anymore.’ He snapped.
‘I believe you hear just fine.’ Price countered
‘I knew I must have lost a bit of hearing, but I didn’t think it would be that much.’ Frustration running on his breathes.
‘You’ve not been deemed unfit for duty.’
‘I know, but.. Maybe I should ?’
‘You want off the team ?’ Price genuinely asked.
‘Hell no, but you can’t have a defective soldier in your team, if I can’t hear properly I’m gonna put you all in danger.’
‘You didn’t so far.’
‘I make us lose time already.. I’ He stopped to a knock at the door.
‘Enter.’
Ghost and a very sleepy Gaz slipped in. Price knew Ghost would have understood his message and draged Gaz with him to this late unofficial meeting. Gaz immediately went to sit beside Soap on the bed, yawning like hell. Ghost stayed by the door, staying in the darkness.
‘Why are you there ?’ Soap asked, upset.
‘I believe this is a conversation we need to have as a team.’ Price ignored how Soap gritted his teeth. ‘So, Soap, do you want to be off the team ?’ He asked back.
Soap felt both Gaz and Ghost tense up from the question.
‘I don’t, but I can’t put you all in danger.’
‘You’re not putting us in danger.’ Ghost immediately answered. The sentiment shared.
‘I can’t hear half of your order properly.’
‘Then maybe I need to speak them clearer.. Louder’
‘You shouldn’t have to.’
‘That’s a non-issue.’ Gaz yawned.
‘I don’t see how it could be.. ’
‘Ghost, is Soap lost of hearing ever caused the team trouble ?’
‘No, a slowdown maybe, at time, but it never put us in danger.’
‘So far.. ’ Soap protested.
‘Gaz, do you feel in any way unsafe.. ’
‘I don’t.’ He cut his captain without much care, wanting it to be all over soon so he could crawl back in bed. ‘I would see an issue if you left, it means we would have to be used to someone else, no thank you.’ Ghost snorted at that.
Soap sighed. ‘I don’t get why none of you think me losing my hearing is a problem for missions.’
‘Because it’s not.’ Gaz gently snapped. ‘We’re all doomed with that fate in our work from gun alone, you’re just an early bloomer. You think any of them.’ He pointed both at Price and Ghost. ‘Will ever retire ? In their grave heh.’ Price laughed. ‘Even if they couldn’t hear someone screaming just at their face they would still work. So your little hearing loss is not much beside.’
‘It’s not that little.’
‘And so what ? You think there is no solution ? Have you ever heard of hearing help, hm ? And we will get you better hearing protection. Hearing aid, the mic, hearing protection and hop you’re set.’
‘Yeah and I wouldn’t be able to listen to my direct environment. Kind of important if I don’t want to be jumped on.’
‘I knew you would say that, so I’ve done my research.’ Gaz pulled his phone and after a bit of search he showed Soap his phone with a huge grin. Soap seized the phone, looking over the seemingly weird device.
‘Wha.. ’
‘It’s a mic that cap all sound around and transmit back by vibration. You can have one around the neck and it will vibrate in the direction of the sound or you can have the wrists and armbands one to indicate the location of the sound, anything you prefer. Sure might not be as precise as hearing the sound itself, but better than not hearing anything at all. Also it vibrates more the louder the sound is, if you get one we could train, see how it responds to different sounds so you have an idea of what is what.’
‘That’s for civies, you really think the military got the budget for that, have you seen the price of it ?’
‘Not your problem Soap, that will be part of your equipment, and if you think they don’t buy more expensive shit you’re wrong, the army can afford one and at least 3 or 4 back up in case it breaks, especially for an elite.’ Price intervened.
‘Exactly, and there are other ways to communicate, army has always been good to create new, fast and silent way to communicate. You think someone like Ghost is not beaming at the idea ?’ Gaz nodded in their Lieutenant direction, who listened carefully to the conversation but outside of his earlier intervention hadn’t talked more.
They all turned toward the lieutenant. All knew Ghost was leaning more on the non-verbal, he was the most talkative during missions out of necessity mostly. Otherwise words were more sporadic if not just non-existent on certain day. He eased himself with his awful jokes, voice hoarse sometimes after so long not talking, but you could always hear how much it pleased him to tell them. Little breach in his otherwise quiet self.
They already had the good non-verbal communication system, but it didn’t mean it couldn’t be deepened even further. It had never been done because Ghost was accommodating to them by forcing himself to voice orders and information, but in many cases they could rely easily on a non-verbal system. They could accommodate to him.
As if reading his thought, Ghost walked over to Soap, holding an used book he extended to him.
‘We can learn it together.’ He simply said.
A manual, Soap noted.
‘We can all learn it.’ Gaz yawned.
‘So, is the issue all set and fixed for you Soap ?’ Price asked, kind but commanding. ‘All I want to hear is a yes sir.’
‘Yes, Captain !’
‘Good, now all of you get the fuck back to sleep.’
Before leaving Soap added. ‘So we’re commanding that vibrating mic ?’
‘It’s already on the way.’ He sighed. ‘Now sleep.’
____
They trained, and when they couldn’t, they still trained, because after all, there was no better training than the field itself.
They made it work, even if early mistakes and mishaps caused them some trouble it was nothing they couldn’t compensate with skills and quick actions. And mission by missions their new system eased into a deadly efficient method.
Additionally, the less Ghost had to talk during a mission, forcing the words out because now he could just sign and tap, the more he let himself be heard while on rest. It wasn’t much, but it was there.
Price wasn’t exactly sure if it was because Ghost didn’t have to talk more than he wanted or if it was because their team reached a new level of trust and familiarity, probably both.
He observed with surprise one night, the return back from a mission leaving them all restless, how far it had gone. He didn’t mean to pry, but hearing Soap talk, seemingly alone raised his attention. He wasn’t alone. Facing him stood Ghost, mask half pulled just so his mouth could be seen. He talked but no sound ever breached his lips, and in return, Soap, eyes fixed on his Lieutenant answered him.
He didn’t get it at first, but when Soap didn’t seem to understand something Ghost started to sign. He blamed his tiredness for how slow he had been to understand. Soap was reading Ghost lips, because then Soap didn’t need to hear him, and Ghost didn’t need to talk. It wasn’t perfect but they made it work.
Ghost seemed to have a lot to say and Soap was an avid listener, or well, reader.
It made him smile, staying in the shadow he listened to what he could, trying to understand what it was all about with just Soap’s answers. When he felt it become more personal he left silently. Preferring not to know what he had suspected for so long.
There was nothing they had never managed to make it work. He didn’t need to worry, the team had never been working better than today.