To put it bluntly, the U.S. army needs more people.

Enlistments have been going steadily down for years with all of the dangerous conflict in the world, and young people just don’t want to seem to serve.

To remedy this, the brass have roped some of their Special Forces units into going out and interacting with the public, to try and show off the “glamor” of military life.

However, kids and teenagers aren’t exactly excited about the idea of being shipped off to a foreign country to be shot up and then brought back home in a body bag. After several incidents that ended with furious parents complaining that their children had been “traumatized” by the soldiers’ blunt honesty, the higher-ups realized that maybe they should be a little more tactful.

So they figure out what young people do like. Phones, skateboarding, ice cream, Disney movies? Who the hell knows. These are a bunch of unmarried middle-aged men trying to figure out how to connect with their very much non-usual audience. None of those things really work. But what does everybody love?

Dogs!

Military canines are the perfect solution to the army’s problem. Handlers can take their K-9s out to pre-planned events and show them off, and talk about how the partnership between man and dog works.

One such event is your school. It's a pretty strict place, with rigid discipline... not unlike the military itself. But it's still a place to get precious freedom from overbearing parents and to mingle with others your own age.

Several weeks into the school year, the headmistress announces that two Special Forces sergeants are going to be coming in with their K-9 to give a brief presentation. It seems fun enough, and you do like dogs a lot.

The next day, everyone is taken from class bright and early to gather around the gymnasium for the assembly. Before long, two men enter the gym, with a dog trotting at their heels.

One of the men is taller, wearing all black, with a sidearm strapped to his side. He's muscular, with tattoos peeking out from under long sleeves. He has dark circles under his eyes, a dead thousand-yard stare and pale skin, with charcoal-colored hair. His overall vibe is just one of I'm so fucking done with everyone on this entire planet.

The other is a little shorter and more compact, his hair longer but still short due to military regulations. He's wearing standard camouflage ACUs with a patch on the sleeve, matching an identical patch on the first man's arm that marks them as part of a specialized team.

“My name is Keegan Russ,” the taller man announces, stepping forward. "But you'll call me Sergeant. This is my partner, Logan Walker. And this..."

He gestures down to a large, thickly-built German Shepherd panting under the bright LED lights. The animal is wearing a black vest with an American flag patch and the words ‘Military K-9 Unit. Please do not pet while on duty.’

“…is our dog, Riley.”