“Obe, you should not do this to yourself.”
“I must, Sako,” he replied to Brigadier Atiba, now his chief of staff. “I must do this to remind myself how much I hate doing this.”
“For the ten thousandth time, Obe, you know that we have no choice if the Union is to be built into what it should be. We must remember that we are using our enemies against our enemies. We must be strong!”
“I know, my old friend.” The General straightened and squared his shoulders. “Tonight we begin the game again. We take a longer step for a greater prize.”
Flashlights bobbed along the road ahead and another group of Union soldiers approached Belewa’s party. Its leader snapped off a precise salute. “General, I apologize for not being present at your arrival. My border scouts are in, and I was receiving their report.”
“There is never a need to apologize for doing your duty, Colonel Sinclair,” Belewa replied. “What do your scouts report?”
“We have a clear border, sir. No Guinean army or police patrols noted. Given an hour to set out our guides and pickets, we can start moving the first DP parties. We can have the first wave across the line by first light.”
“And the supplies for them? They have arrived?”
“As ordered, General. Each displaced person will receive a ration of flour and rice and a blanket.”
“And our Special Forces teams?”
“The lead elements are preparing to move out as we speak, sir. The men would be honored if you would see them off.”
“The honor would be mine, Colonel. Relay the order to all displacement compounds. Commence Operation Deluge Two as per the action plan.”
The Special Forces camp was set away from the DP compound. It, too, consisted of little more than branch-and-leaf lean-tos and smoking fire rings. But here there was a sense of order instead of bewilderment, determination instead of despair. Outlined by the campfires, figures moved swiftly. Orders were called in the darkness, and once a soldier laughed at some unheard joke by a comrade.
“Patrol, attention!”
A cluster of men sprang up from where they rested at a fireside. Their field gear, secured and ready, made hardly any clatter as they came to their feet, hitting a hard brace.
“This will be the first team across the border, General,” Sinclair said.
Belewa walked down the short line of troopers, studying each one in turn by the firelight. This was better. Better by far than the ordeal of the DP camp. It always lightened his heart to get into the field with his soldiers once more, away from the grim necessities of politicking and statesmanship. He paused at the end man, who was the squad sergeant and a good representative of them all.
The soldier was of average height and lean, not with the gauntness of hunger but with the wiry sinuosity born of hard training. His eyes held none of the bloodshot muddiness of marijuana and his youthful face was confident and set.
The pattern and coloration of the camouflage he wore wasn’t quite correct for the West African bush environment. Not surprisingly so, since the uniform had been purchased military surplus from the Hungarian army. Likewise, his camo cap and bush knife had come from a cut-rate Canadian sporting-goods clearinghouse, while his sandals had been made in a local village from an old truck tire.
Slung over his shoulder was a Pakistani copy of a British Sterling submachine gun, while clipped to his cheap Thai military webbing were half a dozen spare 9mm magazines and a mismatched pair of hand grenades, one a massive Russian issue RD, the other a small, palm-size Dutch V40. A rolled jungle poncho and a small haversack containing a ration of rice and dried meat made up the rest of his kit. He wore no insignia or mark of rank. Nor did he carry any written word that might link him to the Union.
The Special Forces trooper was a patchwork warrior, painstakingly pieced together out of the discards and bargains of the world arms market. Second best in everything except dedication.
Belewa knew that it would be ludicrous to compare the equipment and training of his Special Operations units to that of the American Green Berets or the British SAS. However, he also knew that they would be decisively superior to any opponent they might meet across the line in Guinea.
“State your mission, Sergeant,” Belewa barked.
“We are to cross the border and destroy the Highway Bridge at Bambafouga with dynamite charges,” the team leader replied crisply. “Our secondary objective is to cut the telephone lines at Bambafouga crossing and to burn the standing crops ’round the outlying villages. Upon completing our mission, we are to return across the border for reassignment. We are to avoid contact with both the Guinean military and civilian population whenever possible, and we are to avoid causing unnecessary civilian casualties.”
Belewa nodded. “Good. And why are you doing this, warrior?”
“For the Union and the future!” The trooper broke his rigid posture then, looking full into Belewa’s face. “And we do it for you, General!”
Belewa smiled and shook his head. “No, my son,” he said, lightly slapping the younger man on the shoulder. “Only for the Union and the future. I am not important.”
FROM: NATIONAL COMMAND AUTHORITY
To: CHIEF OF NAVAL OPERATIONS
SUBJECT: UNITED NATIONS AFRICAN INTERDICTION FORCE
Commencing immediately, you will make all preparations required to deploy a U.S. Naval Task Group to the nation of Guinea as a possible element of the United Nations African Interdiction Force (UNAFIN) as per U.N. Resolution 26868. Said Task Group to number no more than 1800 personnel and to be suitably configured for coastal patrol and interdiction duty.
FROM: CNO
To: CINCNAVSPECFORCE
SUBJECT: UNITED NATIONS AFRICAN INTERDICTION FORCE
(MISSION COMMITMENT)
Okay, Eddie Mac, this one is NAVSPECFORCE’s baby. Put a Littoral Warfare package together out of your deployable assets and get it ready to go. The U.N. will be voting on the Guinea issue this Friday. The Boss wants us to be ready to move fast on this one should the interdiction motion pass. Get an estimate on your package support and logistics requirements to my Chief of Staff with all speed and I will see you get the priorities. Sorry about the force size limitations, but the President is bucking heavy congressional resistance on a U.S. involvement in West Africa. Do the best you can with what you’ve got.
From: CINCNAVSPECFORCE
To: CHIEF OF STAFF; PROVISIONAL UNAFIN PLANNING GROUP
SUBJECT: UNITED NATIONS AFRICAN lNTERDICTION FORCE
(FORCE DEPLOYMENTS)
A: Following UNAFIN Task Force elements approved; Mobile Offshore Base 1, Patrol Gunboat-Air Cushion Squadron 1, Patrol Craft Squadron 9, TACNET-A Tactical Intelligence Network and all listed support elements.
B: Replace proposed SEAL detachment with a full SOC Marine Company. Trim the additional personnel slots out of LOG group as required.
C: All elements are to be placed on alert to move status for immediate forward deployment to UNAFIN Prime Base, Conakry.