Sit Down and Relax Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Decisions. Ander's Captain had made a decision. Captain Zeloski had decided to take the convoy through the nearby town instead of around it. Were 41 weekend warrior soldiers armed with M16's, lightly sprinkled with a couple mounted M60's equipped to fulfill this part of the mission? Regardless, the decision had been made. "Stay alert," Ander said. His spotter nodded in agreement. The two soldiers were near the rear of a dusty train of up-armored vehicles. A few Humvee M1114s carrying M60's covering front and rear and four 2 1/2 ton trucks in-between, the sniper team in their own truck near the rear of the pack. As they entered the village, the walls and alleys began surrounding the trucks and few Humvee like a pack of laughing hyenas gleefully torturing a kill. The town was ghostly, with nothing but curious eyes peering from nearby windows. Looking out over such a quiet town was thrillingly unsettling. Selfishly hopeful, Ander thought the oppressive culture and governing bodies may just have taken a toll on the people and kept them inside. There was a small dirt and straw wall built around some parts of the village reminiscent of ancient times. Sheep and goats flocked together in a small plots of barren land. The convoy kept to the one main road through the middle of village; unimproved but wide enough to offer maneuverability. At about the halfway point Ander's spotter noticed a kid, maybe 7 years old, who had become startled at the sight of fully up-armored menacing soldiers. "Hey Ander, look at that little b*****d,” Upon making eye contact with Ander the adolescent boy broke off his cold brown-eyed stare, taking off in a dead sprint. "Get on that radio, that's a scout!" ordered Ander. ~"Alpha one this is Charlie three. We've got a young boy running towards the big building- to my 9 o'clock- red long sleeve soccer shirt, over."~~"Roger that stay alert. We've got our eyes and ears open and rounds ready to fly, over."~ The two men shared a nervous look; Ander then ritualistically pulled down his black ballistic sunglasses over his light green eyes a shield of emotional tells; the windows to his soul had been shut and boarded via high quality ballistic lenses and jet-black non-reflective frames. “Charlie Mike”- experienced wisdom employed putting a halt to the convoy, but the man in charge had just replied “Continue Mission”. “Onward ever, backwards never.”

In other words, if Captain Zeloski was wrong, Ander's truck at the rear of the pack was an immediate target. "Well we're in the kill zone; get ready," barked Ander. "Roger, Sergeant." the spotter replied as he racked a round into the chamber of his rifle and slid the safety to fire. Excruciating moments ticked away. Adrenaline coursed through the anticipatory soldier's veins. They were endowed with absolute focus and hypersensitivity to the world around them, awareness of the most miniscule sounds and smells; a violent confidence that their knowledge and decision making capability would decide whether they survived an attack. This must have been a town of at least 500. Ander quoted the ancient Chinese General Sun Wu "It is the rule in war, if our forces are ten to the enemy's one, to surround him; if five to one, to attack him;" The problem here was that the population and layout of the town made Ander's unit on the wrong side of that rule. It was dangerously unnecessary to pass through this place under manned and under armed.

The sniper team's souls violently shifted about four inches, torn from their respective bodies as the intense shock wave collapsed the building before them. They uncontrollably swerved into a nearby collapsing shop. Ander tasted dirt and his bloody lip as he looked around to realize they had been covered in rubble and wreckage that was once someone's livelihood. Multiple explosions and the fulmination of deafening gunpowder as it propelled hundreds of pounds of copper-wrapped lead, tin, and antimony alloy, consumed the air in a violent chaos. Bullets screamed through the air alive, searching for flesh to rend and bone to shatter. "The trucks dead," Ander shouted. To his relief he heard his spotter cursing their misfortune. The wreckage and positioning in the rubble had caused the front seats of the vehicle to be slightly concealed. They made the unanimous unspoken decision to stay down and stay out of sight. The opposition's ambush was overwhelmingly loud; Klashnikovs, RPG-7s and homemade explosives warring against the hungry roar of the mounted M60s and distinctive crack of combat worn M16s. "Stay down," Ander ordered. Ander wiped the blood from his face, angry he was useless. In a few short moments, the racket from the massive ambush was heading out of earshot, replaced by cheers to their deity and the polar cries of victory and loss of friendly life.

Unfamiliar language began to surround the vehicle. Any minute now the cavalry would storm back through the town and rescue the fallen soldiers. The team braced to be discovered, waiting silently hidden in the wreckage. Ander gripped his pistol ready to make a valiant effort to escape, equally ready to deal his own means of never being captured alive.

Hours passed the team remained undiscovered. The radio battery had been crushed. Only a little water available. The day’s victors seemed more interested in celebration than thorough investigation, snapping pictures and laughing in praise of their success. The heat began to subside and as it got dark the two men remained alert. Overwhelmingly exhausted, contrastingly wide awake. Ander watched as a full desert moon swam through a sea of stars to a crevice overhead in the wreckage. The smoke of nearby fires hazed the white moon. "Ander, I think I can get out through the top up there," he whispered almost inaudibly. His partner had taken the risk of removing his armor, stripping down to his undershirt to not sound like a tank when he moved. "Hold up," Ander said. "We should at least give it a few more hours to see if reinforcements are on the way. Maybe they got caught up." The old man nodded, anxious to scout his surroundings but trusting of his partner's advice.

An undying hope of rescue began to be replaced by plans for escape. “Inventory- A ton of ammo, 3 granola bars left, maybe some MREs in the back”,"The fires have also died down," Ander observed as he began to follow in suit and remove his armor. "They probably have someone up, but there's no way they're all still awake after a party like that." Quiet filled the village. Unable to hesitate any longer the spotter maneuvered towards the hole in the wreckage. He cautiously slipped his head over the rubble for about 5 seconds; long enough to see a large truck coming to a stop nearby. Now knowing he was safe, he peered out at the truck, watching the driver as he stepped down from the vehicle. The driver lit a cigarette pacing for a moment to stretch his legs."There's a man that just stepped out of his truck about 30 yards away, and I know you can smell that cigarette." Ander silently slid a 5.56 into his M4's chamber double checking the safety. "Cover, me. I'm getting that damn truck," Ander's partner instructed as he pushed himself through the roof. Ander worked his way up, the barrel of his rifle winning the race to the night air, ending in a position revealing him at his waist, rifle propped up. He watched as his partner went out of sight in an attempt to flank the victim, trading from his scoped view to the naked eye in an alert attempt to remain unnoticed. Hungry, tired, and having to piss were temporarily replaced by a familiar primal feeling. He put the sights on the man, estimating that the assault would commence shortly. The truck driver took a seat on a nearby fence and took a slow draw of his cigarette. Unbeknownst to him, He was hope for them.

Ander saw his team member in prime position; to the rear of the driver crouched down and in shadow. The silent assassin communicated to Ander by drawing his knife and holding it in the air. Ander put the cross of his sights onto the head of the man, playing with the target while he pulled security. Ander had front row tickets as the Spotter appeared instantly behind the trucker. Blade drawn Ander watched as the blade was plunged into the kidneys of the driver, his eyes almost coming out of his head in fear and pain. The spotter covered the mouth of the man pulling him backwards letting the shock over the fence into the ground; the shock from the wound had quickly overtaken the man and he was laid in the dirt, his pockets immediately scoured for keys. Ander hurried to climb out of the wreckage, he ran like a prisoner to freedom towards that truck. He jumped in and was immediately thankful for his survival and the success of the plan. "I'll keep straight this road Ander," the driver said as he lit two scavenged cigarettes and handed one to the sniper. The first fifteen of the escape was spent in elation followed by a 3 hour trip was fueled by nicotine, tenacity, and the incredible anger of abandonment. They had a new enemy, and they wanted to kill him.