SOLDIER ONE has dismantled his automatic weapon and is cleaning its parts, while whistling, humming and singing to himself After some time SOLDIER TWO enters on the second level jogging, and creeps, as though in a combat manoeuvre, to the highest level, where he startles SOLDIER ONE.

SOLDIER ONE: What the hell!

SOLDIER TWO: It's only me.

SOLDIER ONE: Don't you ever do that to me, man!

SOLDIER TWO: What are you doing?

SOLDIER ONE: Cleaning my gun. Keeps me busy.

SOLDIER TWO: Are you crazy? This is no time to be cleaning your gun. You should always have your weapon ready for action.

SOLDIER ONE: Oh yeah? So now I can't even clean my weapon?

SOLDIER TWO: What if we are ambushed, eh? How are you going to return the fire? You just going to sit there and die with a clean gun?

SOLDIER ONE: Man, you like to be so particular about everything!

SOLDIER TWO: That's not a very smart thing to do, you should know that. What if the sign comes, eh? What if the sign comes and you are sitting here cleaning your gun? I don't like ineptitude in my men. We must always be in a state of alertness. Always.

SOLDIER ONE: I am not your man. You are not going to pull that rank stuff on me.

SOLDIER TWO: Who's talking of rank? We don't have ranks in this army, but you must admit that I am more experienced than you are in this sort of business. I have been on several such assignments. And you… This is your first, isn't it?

SOLDIER ONE: Yeah, it is my first, but …

SOLDIER TWO: SO you must listen when I tell you. It's our lives you are playing with, you know? And if we are captured, or shot dead after all the planning that went into this …

SOLDIER ONE puts his gun together.

SOLDIER ONE: All because I cleaned my weapon!

SOLDIER TWO: Be as sarcastic as you want. Soon it's going to be time, and you are going to learn a bitter lesson, if you will be alive enough to learn.

SOLDIER ONE: I am not being sarcastic. I do understand what you are trying to tell me. There, I have put it together, see? Happy now?