A group of reservists from all walks of life get called up in an unprecedented move to combat. A majority of them young barely-out-of-high-school recruits are paired with others ranging from seasoned combat vets with multiple combat tours, to college students, medical equipment salesman and EMTs.

Iraqi Nationals tell first hand accounts of growing up in the region under the terrifying reign of Saddam Hussein all the way through the organized AQI. They relive the painful memories of having relatives killed by Al Qaeda for not adhering to their barbaric practices, including a vicious suicide chlorine bomb aimed at Iraqis, not Americans.

The struggle between Shia and Sunni sects adds a complicated level of civil unrest as Iraqis struggle with welcoming the world’s most elite fighting force, the U.S. Marines, into their sacred lands.

After the brutal killings and torture of their own Tribesmen and the stealing of “war brides” in the name of religion, Al Qaeda eventually emerges as the clear and present danger to Americans and Iraqis alike, both civilians, and servicemen and women, young and old.

It wasn’t until “Dark” had the courage to unify his people and lean into the assistance provided by the USMC that a possible way out emerged. It took a redesign of the entire counter-insurgency policy, the arming of Dark’s men, and the cooperation of the locals to stage what eventually became known colloquially as

THE TRIBAL AWAKENING.