The Weekend Warriors - Softcover

Malensek, Scott

Softcover

ISBN 10: 074140950X ISBN 13: 9780741409508

Publisher: Infinity Publishing (PA), 2002

The Weekend Warriors is NOT a "How to Play Paintball" book. It’s just a chronicle of one man’s paintball war stories. There have been incredible changes in the sport and the players over the years. Stories range from the early days of single-shot breach loading pistols to today’s digitally enhanced full-auto marvels of technology. There’s a lot to be learned from listening to the tales of how it was back in the old days, and new paintballers might just be able to learn from someone else’s mistakes!

"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.

From the Inside Flap:

Eight of us got together on a Sunday night, and this time we made sure that everyone had on glowsticks before we started. Unfortunately we could only find one color-green. To be able to distinguish the teams, everyone on one team had their glowstick taped down the middle to show two glowing green lines. Everyone on my team had their glowsticks taped at both ends. That way, when someone looked at our glowsticks, they would only see one big fat glowing green line. All the glowsticks were taped in the middle of the wearer’s back so as to not ruin their night vision.

The games were going to be elimination, so both sides just walked away from each other, and after 10 minutes passed on our synchronized watches, the game just simply started. No one had brought a flashlight or a spotlight this time, and it was extremely hard walking through the woods in the pitch dark. Fat trees were easy enough to see, but the smaller saplings and twigs were invisible. With every step I took, small branches or trees slapped against my mask. It was impossible to remain stealthy and still advance, but we all tried. Occasionally, there was a pop from someone shooting into the noise, but for the most part, the first fifteen minutes were event free.

I switched to crawling, but it was just as difficult. When I stopped to consider my options, the mosquitoes came out in force. I was just about to get up and try to find a more bug free location when I noticed that my surroundings were no longer pitch black.

A thin layer of fog had formed right before my eyes. It was only two or three feet thick and hovered about as many feet above the ground. Behind it, I saw some of the larger trees in the woods. They were silhouetted by a glowing green reflection on the fog behind them. The sight was actually shocking. Just a few feet away, on the other side of what may or may not have been a clearing, the enemy was behind those trees-or was it the enemy?! Maybe I had circled back and was facing towards to my own people now. I had to wait until I could see an actual glowstick. Then I could decide whether or not that green glow was the enemy.

Until then, I decided to sit and wait. The mosquitoes were getting worse. As more bugs buzzed by and crept into my mask, I imagined others crawling up my camo. Then I remembered my glowstick. If I could see the reflection on the fog from the other people, then mine must have been showing my location too! They must have known my location. I tried to roll over or lean up against a tree, but it was really hard to cover that damn stick. I tried to cheat and cover it with my hand, but there was no way to cover it while it was in the middle of my back. After all, that is why we put them there in the first place! I had to move-fast.

When I started to crawl, someone fired off three rounds in my direction. None of them came close, but I had definitely been seen. I rolled over on my back to cover the glowstick, and then I watched to see if they would try to fire again. From out behind one of the big trees, I saw someone lean out, then step out and fire another 8-10 rounds. These were closer, but the shooter didn’t hide after firing, so I knew that they didn’t see me. I was safe. I couldn’t fire upside down, but I was safe.

Someone else stepped out from the tree immediately on the shooter’s left side. Then another stood up from behind the shooter. They were getting ready to come after me. I checked my submachine gun. The safety was off. The (3) 5-round clips were loaded. I pulled out another three from my ammo pouch and held them in my hand. If things got crazy, I’d shove those in right away. Most people were keen to the rapid firing of an empty gun, but few had seen how fast it could be reloaded! I was going to catch someone, and with that new smg, I was going to rain it down on them!

Two new targets moved toward me, but my original shooter stayed in place to cover them. When the first person was close enough, I rolled over on my belly and fired off three 3-round bursts. My target flopped over backwards and scurried back to his tree. The other person that was advancing on me ran past me on the left, and the original shooter tried to fire at me, but his rounds were still going wildly around me. Somehow, I had still been seen!

About the Author:

Originally from the suburbs of Cleveland, Ohio, Scott has been playing paintball all over the United States since 1989, and he is still considers himself a Weekend Warrior. Besides The Weekend Warriors, he’s also written a hauntingly realistic techno-thriller about a conventional WWIII with China, North Korea, and several Arab nations. It’s called, Black Rain for Christmas. In addition to his literary, military, and political interests, he is also an avid aviculturalist.

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