Disclaimer: The Rat Patrol is not my property. They come out to play sometimes, then I send them home.

Out of Gas

By Suzie2b

The Rat Patrol was on their way to a supply cache for some desperately needed fuel when they were ambushed by a large German column. In the middle of the firefight Moffitt's 50 caliber machine gun jammed and he was unable to clear it. He yelled to his driver, "Get us out of here!"

Not sure what was happening with the sergeant and fearing he may have taken a bullet, Tully swerved away from the fight. The jeep sped away with a halftrack on its tail.

Troy caught a brief glimpse of a second halftrack break away from the fight to also go after Moffitt and Tully. The sergeant knew they were now outnumbered and hollered at Hitch to get them out of the melee.

As they tried to outdistance the one halftrack, Moffitt had hopped into the passenger seat to grab a machine gun from its fender holster. As he turned in the seat to open fire, he spotted the second halftrack coming from the left to try to cut them off. Just as the sergeant pointed out the second German halftrack, the jeep sputtered. Tully spared a glance at the gas gauge—it was on empty. He looked over at Moffitt as the jeep began to cough and slow down. The sergeant turned back to face forward and slipped the gun back into its holster.

Hitch had broken away from the fight and headed for some hills. The Germans had considered following, but then they got a radio message from the other two halftracks that they had prisoners.

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When the jeep finally rolled to a stop, Moffitt and Tully sat still with their hands in the air as the Germans surrounded them. Soldiers prodded them with rifles to get them out of the jeep and around to the back to face their captures.

Moffitt and Tully stood looking up at an officer standing in one of the halftracks, who said, "I am Captain Bruno Engel. You are my prisoners." As they watched the rest of the column coming up from behind, the captain asked, "Where are your counterparts?"

Tully shrugged and Moffitt said, "They obviously got away."

Engel looked around and said, "Perhaps they will attempt a rescue. That would give us an opportunity to catch them as well."

Tully said, "The only reason you have us is because the jeep ran outta gas."

The captain took the pistol out of its holster on his hip and held it calmly in both hands. "Be that as it may, it would not surprise me if they are foolish enough to come after you."

Moffitt frowned. "You don't give them enough credit, captain."

"We shall see." Engel waved the pistol around as he said, "I'm sure they are out there watching. Perhaps biding their time for just the right moment. I am thinking of giving them a reason to hasten their rescue." With that, Captain Engel aimed his pistol and shot Tully in the leg.

With a yelp of surprise and pain, the private went down. Moffitt immediately started to go to Tully's aid, but was stopped by the guards.

##################

From the top of a hill, Troy and Hitch watched through binoculars as Moffitt and Tully were taken prisoner. When the captain shot Tully, Troy said angrily, "Okay, we'll follow 'em until we get a chance to get our guys back."

Hitch shook his head. "We'll be lucky to get to that supply cache on the gas that's left in the jeep. And that's probably why Moffitt and Tully got caught."

Troy took a deep breath to keep himself calm as he watched the Germans load Moffitt and the wounded Tully into Captain Engel's halftrack. "All right. We don't have any choice here. We'll go the cache and gas up the jeep. We'll come back here with fuel for Tully's and then follow their tracks to where they're going."

Troy and Hitch continued to watch as the jeep was stripped of its weapons and ammunition before the German column turned around and headed out. Then they started for the supply cache.

##################

On the ride back to Captain Engel's battalion, Moffitt used his ascot to try to stem the flow of blood coming from Tully's wound. The bullet had ripped through the private's thigh and Moffitt was worried that it may have hit the artery. He looked at Tully's pale face. "Open your eyes, Tully. You have to stay with me."

Tully managed to open his pain filled eyes. "Tryin' to, sarge." He groaned as Moffitt tightened the ascot around his leg. "Think Troy and Hitch saw what happened?"

Moffitt nodded. "I'm sure they did."

The barrel of a rifle was pressed into the sergeant's back as a guard told them to be quiet. "Ruhig!"

Tully gasped as his leg throbbed, "What's he … want?"

Moffitt said, "Apparently he doesn't appreciate our conversation."

With the exception of an occasional groan from Tully, the trip to the German camp was quiet.

When they arrived, Captain Engel ordered Tully taken to their medical facility and Moffitt taken to the stockade.

From the barbed wire pen that Moffitt was imprisoned in he paced and watched the medical tent where Tully had been taken.

##################

The jeep sputtered and coughed just as Troy and Hitch arrived at the supply cache. Hitch quickly filled the empty tank while Troy filled two jerry cans with gas to take with them.

The well-stocked cache also provided them with replacements for the 50 and machine guns that were now missing from the abandoned jeep. Troy and Hitch made sure they had plenty of ammo as well.

Two hours after watching the Germans leave with their friends, Troy and Hitch were back at the other jeep. They filled the gas tank and mounted the weapons. Then they headed off to find where Moffitt and Tully had been taken.

##################

It was several hours before Moffitt finally saw Tully being escorted towards the pen. He was on crutches and obviously in pain as he and his guards made their way to the gate. Moffitt stayed back until the gate was closed behind Tully, and then he rushed to support his friend.

The only thing in the pen was an old, half rotted stump. Moffitt got Tully to it and helped him to sit down so he could lean back against it. "Did they give you anything for pain?"

Tully breathed a sigh of relief when he was finally settled on the ground. "The only thing they gave me was some plasma." He groaned quietly as a spasm of pain throbbed through his thigh. "I guess the doc didn't want to waste ether or morphine on a prisoner."

Moffitt's anger was plain on his face as he stood. He was moving toward the gate before Tully realized what was happening. Moffitt looked through the barbed wire and demanded water, blankets, and pain killers. "Wasser, Decken, und Schmerzmittel! Jetzt!"

The two guards turned and looked at the sergeant, then over his shoulder at the wounded prisoner. Moffitt repeated his demand and waited eye to eye with one of the Germans. After ten tense seconds, the guard nodded to his counterpart and said, "Gehen."

The second guard hurried off and returned fifteen minutes later with the items and a lieutenant by the name of Keiffer Günther. As the gate was unlocked, the lieutenant said, "You are in no position to make demands, sergeant." The guard tossed two blankets and a canteen into the pen. "But we are not monsters. Water is a necessity here in the desert and the temperature will drop dramatically once the sun goes down."

Moffitt gathered the things off the ground as the guard locked the gate. "The private requires pain killers, lieutenant. Simple aspirin would be better than nothing."

"I'm afraid we are low on medical supplies. You cannot expect us to use the meager supplies we have left on a prisoner of war."

"I thought you said you aren't monsters."

Lieutenant Günther laughed as he turned and walked away.

When Moffitt returned to Tully, the private said, "You shouldn't have done that, sarge. The last thing we need is them gettin' mad at us before Troy and Hitch get here."

Moffitt wrapped one of the blankets around Tully's shoulders, then removed the canteen's cap before he handed it to his friend. "He said they aren't monsters, but yet they refuse to give you pain killers."

Tully grimaced and said, "That's okay. I'll be better off without 'em. I need to stay alert for when we get out of here."

Moffitt smiled at Tully's faith. "You know, Troy and Hitch's jeep had no more gas than our Olive did. They could be stuck out there with no transportation."

Tully grinned to the reference to the jeep's name. "Nah, Hitch wouldn't let that happen. He and Troy made it to that supply cache and are on their way here by now."

"I hope you're right." Moffitt watched as Tully laid his head back, gritting his teeth against the pain. "Just try to rest."

##################

The sun was on its way down when Troy and Hitch stopped behind a hill. They hiked to the top to see where they were, and discovered a dug in German battalion maybe two miles ahead.

Hitch lowered the binoculars as he asked, "Think that's where Moffitt and Tully are?"

Troy nodded. "Nowhere else they could be." He scanned the area around the camp and said, "Let's get over there in those hills behind the camp. We'll do a little recon before we go in."

"Won't the Germans be waiting for us?"

"Probably … but that's never stopped us before."

Troy led the way to the hills behind the battalion. They had plenty of cover and were able to survey the camp from a higher angle. In the waning light, they located Moffitt and Tully.

Troy said, "Good, they're together."

Hitch noted, "Tully doesn't look in good shape."

Troy wondered if the private's wounds had been treated. "Yeah. It's going to have to be a quick hit. You get us through that wire, and the rest will take care of itself."

"Right, sarge. When do we go in?"

Troy replied, "Right now the Germans are just waiting for us to show up … but I'd be willing to bet they get complacent as the night wears on. They'll think we'll wait until tomorrow to try a rescue. Let's keep an eye on things. We'll go in around midnight."

##################

Tully opened his eyes when he felt a blanket being placed over him. He said quietly, "You need that, sarge."

Moffitt was sitting next to him. "I'm fine, Tully. You're the one that's shivering."

"They're out there. I can feel them watching us."

Moffitt nodded. "I think you're right. It feels like the air is charged with a kind of electricity."

Tully hissed with pain, then said, "I'll bet you a dollar they come in at midnight while the camp is sleepin'."

Moffitt smiled. "I think I'll pass on that bet, Tully. It's too much of a sure thing." The private groaned softly and gritted his teeth against another spasm of pain. Moffitt sobered and asked, "Do you think you can sleep?"

"Right now I'd settle for passing out."

#################

Troy and Hitch waited and watched until it was too dark to see Moffitt and Tully. They heard a generator start up and a few lights came on around the camp.

The four Allies watched the camp fall into its nightly routine from different perspectives. Guards began to tour the camp, relaxed but watchful, instead of the tenseness they had shown during the daylight hours. As the evening wore on, men began to go off to bed, the guards changed, and muted German voices were occasionally heard—nothing earthshattering, just small talk to keep themselves awake.

A crescent moon rose, not offering much light to the dark landscape. Troy and Hitch were preparing to go in. The 50 was loaded and clear, ready for action. They had memorized the layout of the camp and could get to the stockade easily in the dark. When the lights went out and the generator was switched off for the night, they knew it was time.

Moffitt sat next to Tully, his ears attuned to any sounds other than that of the camp—like the sound of a jeep or a 50 caliber machine gun. Tully dozed restlessly and tried to silence the groans that slipped out when his throbbing leg spasmed.

Moffitt looked up at the moon. It was right around midnight. He expected, hoped, and prayed to hear something soon.

And then it was there. The roar of the jeep as it came from behind the hills in the darkness. Echoes made it hard to tell where the engine sound was coming from.

Moffitt got to his feet as the 50 came to life and he could see the muzzle flashes. He watched German guards go down as the heavy slugs tore through their bodies. Moffitt grabbed Tully by the arm and got him standing up as he said, "It's time!" He put the crutches under the private's arms. "Just stay on your feet, Tully!"

"I'm good, sarge!"

The next thing they knew a jeep was coming straight for the pen. The two guards at the gate bravely stood their ground, firing round after round from their rifles, until it was either dive out of the way or get run over. Each made their choice. One died as the jeep barreled through the barbed wire.

Hitch stomped on the brake and slid the jeep sideways to stop. Troy spun himself and the 50 around to fire at the German troops that were running at them while Hitch grabbed a machine gun.

Tully started for the jeep, but his legs collapsed under him and he went down. Without a word Moffitt quickly pulled the private up and over his shoulder. He carried Tully to the jeep, but as Moffitt lowered him into the seat, he felt someone grab him from behind and pull him around. Moffitt found himself face to face with Lieutenant Keiffer Günther.

Tully yelled, "Duck!" Moffitt didn't hesitate and Tully swung one crutch around, splintering it against the side of the captain's head. "I hate crutches."

Then Moffitt threw himself into the back of the jeep at Troy's feet as Hitch tossed the machine gun he'd been using to him and floored the gas pedal. They stopped long enough to pick up the second jeep and drove off into the relative safety of the dark desert.

#################

They drove until they found a wadi. Troy and Hitch got Tully out of the jeep while Moffitt grabbed blankets and a med kit. Once Tully was laying down, Troy said, "Hitch, get a fire going."

Hitch patted Tully on the shoulder before he stood up, seeing the pain on his friend's face even in the dark. "Moffitt will take care of you."

Troy put a blanket over the shivering private. "How's it going, Tully?"

He said quietly, "It's goin', sarge. Do we have any aspirin?"

Troy smiled. "I think Moffitt has something a bit stronger in mind. We'll spend the rest of the night here so you can get some rest."

Moffitt knelt next to Tully with a dose of morphine. "Ready for something that will let you sleep?" Tully nodded with a sigh as Moffitt administered the shot.

Troy and Moffitt sat there with Tully until their friend relaxed and drifted off to sleep.

Hitch had the fire going when the sergeants joined him. "How's he doing?"

Moffitt sighed tiredly. "Better now that he's not in constant pain." He shook his head and said, "I can't believe they wouldn't give Tully anything for pain. The doctor didn't even think it necessary to give him something while he was treating the wounds."

"Why would they want to watch Tully suffer like that?"

"I was told by Lieutenant Günther that they were low on supplies. Whether or not it was true I don't know."

Hitch said angrily, "I bet if Tully had been an injured German they would've given him what he needed."

Troy said, "Yeah, I'm sure that's true. But it's over now and Tully will get checked out by one of our doctors tomorrow."

Moffitt said, "You know, Tully was absolutely adamant that you two were on your way and we'd be out of there tonight."

Troy smiled. "Did you have your doubts?"

"Not really. I guess I was just thinking a little more logically. I was afraid Bertha had run out of gas and stranded you two. Which would mean it would take a little longer for you to get to us."

Hitch grinned. "You remembered!"

Moffitt returned the smile. "I never forget a lady's name."