The Lieutenant had that look on his face like he realized that he should have known that. He was thankful that Sergeant Childers had talked just loud enough so that only he could hear him, and not the rest of the platoon.
“Come on LT, I’ll lead the platoon to the next position,” offered Childers. “You get on the radio with headquarters and find out what they want us to do next. Good?” he asked, hoping the lieutenant fully grasped the situation now. He needed him to step up and handle the radio call while he focused on getting them out of there alive.
Taylor nodded, and they both got back to work.
The vehicles were in the process of backing out of their position when several artillery rounds started to land where they had just been. They had made it out less than two minutes before their old positions were plastered by enemy artillery fire. As they fully cleared the copse of trees, they turned around and sped away as fast as they could towards their next position.
The lieutenant tried raising their higher headquarters multiple times but just got static. He tried raising several of the other troop leaders to see if they were available. He managed to get in touch with two of them. They were also falling back to link up with a battalion of heavy tanks from the 1st armored division. He got their coordinates and agreed to fall back and link up with them. He advised them of his wounded and asked if they had any. They all replied that they had not run into any Russian units yet but had seen a lot of attack helicopters and aircraft heading towards the NATO base further north. “It’s really odd that none of the other platoons have engaged any of the Russian units yet,” he thought. “Our sector can’t have been the only one that the Russians tried to breach.”
Twenty-five minutes later, they found the battalion of M1A2s and the rest of 4th Squadron, their parent unit. Their Captain, a man by the name of Len Richards, walked up to them all smiles. “That was one heck of an engagement you guys had. Well done on stopping that Russian armored column,” he said shaking the lieutenant’s hand.
SFC Childers looked confused. “You saw the engagement?” he asked.
Amused at their confusion, Captain Richards replied, “Yes, we saw it. You still had your scout drone loitering over the area, sending back the video. You guys did a bang-up job.”
He looked down briefly, as if paying respects. “I’m also sorry for your losses. They were good men. I’m going to make sure everyone is put in for some medals for that action. Your platoon temporarily stopped the Russian advance in this area, which is giving us the time we need to reorganize after headquarters was wiped out at the airbase,” the Captain said, full of pride about what one of his platoons had managed to accomplish on their own.
Several of the medics from the other troops had run over to their vehicles and helped to unload Nemesis Troop’s wounded as they began to provide them aid.
Breaking the train of thought, Lt. Taylor suddenly announced, “Sir, we need ammo. My vehicles and men are short on just about everything. Also, what about air support? Those Hinds are still out there and it’s only a matter of time before they, or those aircraft up there find us and start dropping bombs and missiles on us.”
The captain smiled, glad his lieutenant was thinking of the broader picture. He motioned with his arm. “Walk with me back to the command track. I need to show you what’s happening,” Captain Richards said. He led the three of them through the wooded area to where the Command Stryker vehicle was tucked away. As they walked through the trees, Lt. Taylor and SFC Childers saw dozens of Abrams battle tanks geared up to fight.
As they approached the command post, they also saw a Major and a Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) talking with a Command Sergeant Major (CSM). The captain waited for a break in the conversation before he introduced them. “Colonel Munch, Sergeant Major Fields, this is the platoon commander and sergeant from my second platoon; they are the ones that stopped that Russian column down the road.” Captain Richards was beaming with pride.
The Lieutenant Colonel and the Sergeant Major smiled warmly at them. The colonel was the first to greet the newcomers. “Good work out there. You guys probably bought us at least an hour before they try that again.” The colonel paused and looked down. “My condolences on the loss of your men. They did an amazing job, and as I’m sure your captain already told you, we’re going to make sure everyone gets recognized for their heroic acts.” The colonel’s facial expressions somehow simultaneously conveyed genuine concern and pride. He came across as a leader who cared about his men and the sacrifices they were making.
LTC Munch continued, “We need to bring you guys up to speed before we push off and go hunting for Russians. Pryluky Airbase has been hit hard. Headquarters is offline. They also hit Kiev International Airport at Boryspil relentlessly as well. Word has it that MG Mueller and most of his staff were killed in the attack. So, right now, that leaves us with no idea of who’s in charge or what in the world we are supposed to do beyond our initial orders.” He spoke with the smugness you’d expect from a senior officer who has probably seen a lot of combat and liked to make things up as he went.
Smiling at the colonel’s comments, SFC Childers commented, “Well, I was taught in the Rangers that in the absence of orders — attack without mercy.” The CSM smiled a wicked grin at the mention of Ranger School. Like Childers, he also sported a Ranger tab on his shoulder. Childers, however, also had a 75th Ranger Regiment Combat patch, so he’d actually been a Ranger, not just gone through the school.
The colonel, who also had a Ranger tab, smiled and said, “Oh, I’m going to like you Sergeant Childers. That is exactly what we are going to do. I’ve got five Avenger Air Defense vehicles with us too, so we have some air defense should those fighters up there (or those Hinds you reported) decide to get frisky.”
“How did you manage to get five Avengers?” Captain Richards asked, surprised by the number. Typically, a unit might have one, maybe two of them. Not five.
“Let’s say I saw a lost air defense unit that was looking for an escort to the Pryluky Airbase,” LTC Munch replied with a smirk and then continued, “By the time we got halfway to the airbase, we heard it had been thoroughly hammered and we were being redirected to this location to link up with you guys. As we were headed along in our little gaggle, some Russian Su-34s saw us moving along and thought that we might make nice sitting ducks to attack. That was a really stupid move on their part though, because the Avengers that we had with us managed to shoot down two of the Su-34s before they even managed to cause us any damage. After that, the Russians diverted course, and we all decided to stick together as we hauled tail out of there.” The CSM had a wry smile on his face as he spat a stream of chewing tobacco on the ground.
“Enough chatting — it’s time to get down to business,” the Colonel said as he walked over to the map. “Here’s what we are going to do…”
Hardly a Vacation
Major Dale Young, call sign “Honey Badger,” had been stationed at Spangdahlem Air Base for the past two years. His wife (who had been his college sweetheart) loved living in Germany. They were a young couple with no children, and for the time being, they were just enjoying being childless and living in Europe. They had planned on traveling to Sorrento, Italy, for a weeklong vacation along the Amalfi coast when his leave was canceled and his squadron was sent to Krakow and placed on ready-alert for possible military action against Russia.