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

Author's note: Just thought I'd write something a bit inane to lighten my mood.

Strayed

By Suzie2b

The Rat Patrol left the base at Ras Tanura with orders five days earlier. They had been watching a German platoon that had moved into an American held sector for the last four, trying to figure out what they were up to. It was flat, open desert where the Germans had set up their camp at an oasis. There were only a few palms, which afforded little cover, and even with camouflage netting they had been spotted from the air.

Out of sight of the Germans the jeeps pulled into the cover of a waterhole for a break. Troy got out and stretched as he said, "Hitch, you and Tully check the jeeps over then get something to eat."

Hitch gave the sergeant a nod. "Right, sarge."

Troy joined Moffitt at the second jeep, where his fellow sergeant was drinking from a canteen. "Any ideas yet?"

Moffitt swallowed and offered the water to Troy as he said, "Not a one. They moved in and set up camp. No heavy weapons. No more than twenty men with a lieutenant in charge. They've not sent out any patrols. I don't have a clue as to what they're up to."

Troy took a drink of water, then said, "The thing is they don't seem to be worried about hiding. There are better places in this sector for them to move into that would give them better cover."

"And they must know we're watching them. It's not like there's any cover out there for us either."

Tully listened to the sergeants as he filled the radiator. "We're only about eight kilometers from German lines. Maybe they don't realize they've strayed into enemy territory."

Troy smiled. "There's that possibility. But the question remains—what are they doing?"

Hitch had filled his jeep's tank with gas and took the can to the other vehicle to fill as Tully moved to Hitch's to check the radiator. Hitch said, "They don't seem to be 'doing' anything. It's more like they're waiting for something."

Moffitt nodded. "You'd think they would at least be sending out a patrol now and then to keep an eye on the area."

Troy mentioned, "The desert's so flat out here maybe they don't think they need a patrol. The guards can stay put and still see for miles with or without binoculars."

Tully got the water can out of Hitch's jeep to add to his own. "We've been keeping an eye on them for days now and they haven't so much as sent out a courier. Like Moffitt said, they must know they're being watched." He hesitated, then said, "Why don't we just go ask 'em what the heck they're doing?"

Hitch capped the gas can with a grin. "There's an idea."

Troy and Moffitt grabbed all the canteens and followed Tully to the well. As they filled up on water, Troy said, "You know, Tully's got a point."

Moffitt looked at Troy with raised eyebrows. "So you want to go in and ask them why they're here."

Troy grinned. "Why not?"

"Twenty of them and four of us at close range with nowhere to hide. That's why not."

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

After lunch, Hitch drove towards the German camp with Troy in the back of the jeep holding a white flag. Tully stayed beside the other jeep with Moffitt in the back manning the 50 just in case. When they were within shouting distance they stopped.

German rifles were leveled on them as the commander stepped out from under the netting. "What is this? Are you here to surrender?"

Troy said, "No. Just wondering why you're out here, lieutenant."

"That is none of your business. I should be asking you same thing. We've seen you out there watching us."

"Sir, you do realize that you're on American held soil, don't you?"

The lieutenant looked around. "You are wrong. This is German territory, Sergeant Troy."

"You have me at a disadvantage, sir."

"You and your unit are well known. My name is Lieutenant Bergmann."

Troy gave a nod of acknowledgement. "Lieutenant Bergmann, American troops took this sector two months ago."

The lieutenant's frown deepened. "Not according to my intelligence reports and maps."

"Sir, what can we do to convince you?"

Bergmann grinned. "Perhaps you would like to come in and have a look at our information?"

Troy smiled. "No, thank you, lieutenant."

Moffitt spoke up. "Lieutenant Bergmann, if I may make a suggestion. Why don't we meet halfway? You bring your map out here and we can compare it to ours."

The lieutenant gave it some thought, then said, "All right, sergeant. If only to convince you that you are wrong." He turned and told his corporal to go get a map of the area. "Gehen mir die einfache Karte von diesem Bereich holen."

When the map arrived, Troy and Moffitt joined Bergmann and the corporal midway between the jeeps and the camp. The lieutenant asked his man to show them where they were located on the map. "Zeigen Sie unseren Standort."

The corporal knelt and opened the map on the sand. He pointed to an X and told them that's where the camp is. "Dieses ist, wo wir sind."

Moffitt opened his map and knelt down next to the corporal. "For one thing, lieutenant, I'm afraid you need someone else to read your map." He pointed to an area many kilometers away. "This is the area you've made your camp in. You're very far off course."

Lieutenant Bergmann knelt and studied the map. "Oh, mein Gott!" He smacked the corporal hard, knocking him into Moffitt. "Du Idiot!"

The corporal stammered that he didn't know how the mistake happened. "Es tut mir Leid, Oberleutnant Bergmann! Ich verstehe nicht, wie das passiert ist!"

Bergmann stood up as he mumbled German curses under his breath. Then he said, "I am very sorry, sergeant Troy. Obviously, my corporal did not receive proper instruction in map reading." The lieutenant held out his hands. "We will go quietly."

Moffitt stood and folded their map. As he stepped away from the two Germans, he smiled at Troy.

Troy smiled slightly and said, "That won't be necessary, sir. If you and your men pack up immediately and head back to the German lines, I'll report that you were gone before we got here."

Lieutenant Bergmann let his hands fall to his sides and sighed. "But you have been watching us for two days. How will you explain this to your superiors?"

Moffitt said, "Actually, sir, we've been watching you for four days. And we would have to spend time looking around … just to be sure you weren't in the area."

Bergmann shook his head, wondering how it could be four days. He would have to have a talk with his men about how they kept watch. "Thank you, sergeant Moffitt. You are all very honorable soldiers. We will be out of here within the hour." The lieutenant looked down at his cowering corporal and asked if he was capable of plotting a course out of American territory. "Denken Sie, dass Sie in der Lage, uns zurück zu unseren eigenen Linien sind?"

The corporal quickly stood up with the map in hand and drew a line on it with his finger, explaining they would go east to get back to their lines. "Wir brauchen Osten zu gehen zurück auf unseren Linien zu erhalten, Sir."

Moffitt corrected him gently. "Es tut mir Leid, Unteroffizier, aber Sie müssen nach Westen zu gehen. Es ist etwa acht Kilometer entfernt."

The poor corporal gave the sergeant a puzzled look, then again studied the map. Lieutenant Bergmann rolled his eyes and said under his breath, "Idiot."

Troy said, "If you don't mind, sir. We'll just keep an eye on you and your men until you're out of the area."

Bergmann said, "I do not mind, sergeant. In fact, it will be good that you continue to watch. It will keep me from killing one of my own." He bowed slightly, slapped the corporal on the back of the head as he turned, and began shouting orders to get things packed up.

Troy and Moffitt went back to the jeeps and Hitch asked, "Where to, sarge?"

Troy got into the passenger seat. "Nowhere yet. We're going to sit right here until they're on their way and out of sight."

Hitch smiled. "Won't it make them a little nervous with us sitting right here staring at them?"

"Call it incentive."

Tully waited for Moffitt to get into the jeep, then said, "I caught most of what was goin' on, but what was that last thing you said to that corporal? Looked like it confused him some."

Moffitt smiled. "He wanted to send them east instead of west back to the German lines."

"East? He's just itchin' to get them into trouble, isn't he?"

Moffitt sighed. "Well, not on purpose. I feel a little sorry for him. He apparently has a poor sense of direction."

Tully watched the Germans scurry around as they packed the trucks. Someone was always turning to look at the allied unit. "I'd say it's more like no sense of direction. Hope the lieutenant starts reading his own maps from now on."

Troy said, "I'm sure he will. Or at least find someone else to read them. But it would be interesting to see the lieutenant's face if we were to meet them again after they've strayed off course."