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

Wartime Neutrality

By Suzie2b

As a small village in the desert, Nagd was mostly self-sustaining and had little to do with the "outside world" beyond the hills that protected them. The people considered themselves neutral and would support neither the Allies nor the Axis Forces in the war effort.

The allies respected the village's informal declaration of neutrality.

It was too bad that the German army chose not to.

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Captain Boggs put his finger on the map that hung on one wall of his office. "Nagd. A village in the area known as the 'Moving Hills'…"

Moffitt said, "I know of those hills. They were created by activity from the Emi Koussi volcano thousands of years ago."

The captain nodded and continued, "Nagd had declared themselves neutral at the beginning of the war in North Africa and the allies have respected that." He sighed. "However, the Germans have not. We've gotten word that a company of approximately 100, commanded by a little known Captain by the name of Abel Wagner, has taken over the village. He's using Nagd to stockpile guns, ammunition, fuel, and other supplies."

Troy growled, "That captain's using the village as protection."

"Nagd's elders managed to get a message to our base in Biltine asking for help."

"Why doesn't Biltine send men, sir?"

Captain Boggs replied, "Because of the village's adamant neutrality. They refuse to fight either side, even if it's to protect themselves. If we send a company in to try to run the Germans out, it's going to get messy."

Moffitt smiled slightly. "Is it thought we might be able to do it a bit more diplomatically, captain?"

"Not exactly. But a small unit such as yours may be able to do the job with a minimum of damage to the village."

Troy said, "We'll do our best, captain."

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It was midafternoon when the jeeps stopped in the hills about two miles from Nagd. Troy said, "We're going to walk from here. Take what we need and cover the jeeps."

About an hour later the Rat Patrol was above the village looking down at the tents the Germans had set up and moved into.

Hitch handed the binoculars back to Troy and said, "The German's probably outnumber the villagers two to one."

They watched as a young woman was forcibly brought from the village and dragged into one of the tents. Tully ground his matchstick between his teeth, knowing what was going to happen to her, and said, "We have to do something."

Troy nodded. "We will. We just need to do it a little differently than we normally would."

Moffitt said, "What do you think? We go down tonight and check things out before we formulate a plan?"

"Yeah, I think that's our best bet. We have no idea what the layout's like or where those supplies are being kept. And I don't want to make a mistake."

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They waited until the village and German camp settled down for the night. The sentries had gone into their nighttime routine and things were quiet. The darkness was nearly complete, as the moon was little more than a sliver that night.

Nagd had no walls for protection like so many other villages did, but it was built against a hill in a valley with one road that ran through it north and south. The German camp was set up in such a way that anyone coming or going from the village or through the valley would easily be seen. However, the Germans had not counted on the Rat Patrol showing up.

Troy led his men into the valley, quietly skirting the camp, passing the guards on the perimeter, and went into the village. The current plan was to split into two groups to get a lay of the land and try to locate the German supplies before meeting back at their camp.

When Moffitt and Tully appeared, Troy and Hitch were waiting. Troy asked, "Find anything?"

Moffitt nodded. "I believe so."

With and privates holding flashlights, they watched as Troy and Moffitt drew a rough map of what they'd seen. Hitch and Tully both added a few details before everyone was satisfied.

Tully said, "We didn't see any guards in the village except for right here in front of this building. It doesn't fit with the rest of the place. No windows, one door, two guards."

Moffitt added, "It looks as if it was built recently and for a specific purpose."

Troy nodded. "That has to be the supply depot. The Germans situated it so it couldn't be tampered with without blowing up half the village."

Hitch said, "We didn't see any guards in the village either. Just on the perimeter of the camp."

Moffitt said, "Captain Wagner must've declared a curfew so he doesn't have to use as much manpower keeping the villagers in check around the clock."

Tully asked, "So, what're we going to do?"

Troy replied, "We keep the fight out of the village and we don't touch those supplies. Let's get some rest. We'll get things started tomorrow."

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The next morning, as they had K-rations and water for breakfast, Hitch questioned, "Why don't we just get the jeeps and hit that camp fast and hard like we usually do?"

Moffitt said, "Too much of an error factor. The valley is small and it's made smaller with Wagner and his men there. If one misplaced shot goes into Nagd and someone is wounded or killed, we'll have a different kind of war on our hands."

Troy agreed, "Their so-called 'neutral' status has our hands tied. We have to keep the village safe."

Tully said, "So-called 'neutral' status? What's that mean, sarge?"

"It means that just because Nagd made it known that they want nothing to do with the war, it doesn't really make them 'neutral.' It makes them a target."

Moffitt explained, "Technically, a single village can't declare itself neutral. Neutralism is a foreign policy position wherein a country intends to remain neutral in future wars. Nagd doesn't want to be a part of the war between the Allies and Axis, but they wouldn't hesitate to go to war if they felt themselves wronged by other natives of Africa. They feel that by declaring themselves neutral they are 'off limits' to either side."

Hitch asked, "What about the Spanish Sahara? That's considered neutral to both sides."

"The Spanish Sahara is ruled as a territory of Spain, which declared neutrality for them."

Tully nodded thoughtfully while he looked down as the Germans began to rouse themselves and move around the camp. "So, the allies have been honoring this 'neutral declaration' just to be nice, but the Germans haven't because they don't really have to."

Moffitt smiled at the private's simplicity. "That's it in a nutshell."

Hitch said, "Okay, so how are we going to handle this?"

Troy said, "I've been thinking about that. I want you and Tully to go to the jeeps and bring back the dynamite and timers."

Tully grinned. "Sounds like there's gonna be fireworks tonight."

When the privates returned with the required items, they set to work as a team to prepare the charges.

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

There was only slightly more moon than there was the night before, but it was just as dark. Troy, Moffitt, Hitch, and Tully went into the German camp to set the charges. One by one, bundles of dynamite were placed under as many German vehicles as possible. The timers were set and they headed to their rendezvous point to wait.

As Moffitt moved across the camp after setting his last charge, he was suddenly confronted by one of the guards. "Halt! Hände hoch!"

When Tully met up with Troy and Hitch, he said, "They got Moffitt."

Troy asked, "Was he caught with any of the dynamite?"

"No, he'd set them and was heading here. I wasn't far behind, but the guard didn't see me in the dark."

"Where was he taken?"

Tully said, "The Captain's tent."

Troy nodded. "Okay, when the charges go off we go in just like we planned. We'll pick up Moffitt along the way."

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

Moffitt was confronted by a slightly disheveled and half-dressed Captain Wagner, who had obviously been sleeping before his arrival. He told his man to stand guard outside. "Sie müssen hier, außerhalb dieser Tür blieben." When the guard was gone the captain turned to Moffitt and asked what he was doing there. "Was Machen Sie hier?"

Moffitt said in a self-assured tone, "Ich würde viel lieber auf Englisch sprechen."

"Unglaublich! You speak German, but you prefer English! Why is that?"

"It is my native tongue, after all."

Wagner didn't seem to comprehend why someone who could speak what he considered a superior language would want to speak anything else. He shook his head in disbelief and said, "Very well. What are you doing here and how do you know me? Have we met?"

Moffitt said, "No, captain, we haven't met." Then he lied, "Your name is well known among the allies."

Captain Wagner smiled smugly. "As it should be. Again, what are you doing in my camp?"

"Trying to run you out of town … sir."

The captain laughed, "Is that so? You cannot be alone in this folly. Where are the others? How many are with you?"

Moffitt glanced at his watch. "There are four of us."

Captain Wagner scoffed, "Only four? Unglaublich! This is not folly, it is insanity!"

Moffitt smiled. "We'll see."

A moment later the first explosion startled the captain. "What have you done?" As another explosion went off, Wagner rushed outside to see his men running wildly to put out the fires and help the wounded. He told the guard to stay with the prisoner and hurried off, yelling orders as he went.

The guard stepped into the tent with his rifle pointed at Moffitt. As more explosions lit the dark landscape, gunfire was heard. Over the din, Captain Wagner could be heard shouting, "Unglaublich!"

Moffitt stood there nonchalantly facing the guard, who was standing just inside the tent flap. The butt of a machine gun suddenly appeared and there was a clunk as it hit the guard in the back of his helmeted head.

Moffitt caught the unconscious guard and lowered him to the ground as Troy stepped in and said, "We could use a hand out here."

The sergeant grabbed the sidearm and machine gun that had been confiscated from him and followed Troy into battle.

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

By the time the sun came up more than half of the Germans vehicles had been destroyed and a good many of the tents had burnt to the ground when hot shrapnel blew through the canvas.

Captain Wagner and his surviving men were rounded up and put in several trucks that had avoided destruction. Moffitt, Hitch, and Tully were stationed there as guards.

Moffitt could only smile every time he heard the captain's raised voice say, "Unglaublich!"

Tully finally went to Moffitt and said, "Hitch and I are wondering, sarge. What does Captain Wagner keep repeating?"

Moffitt said, "'Unglaublich' is basically 'unbelievable' in German. It seems to his catchphrase."

Tully grinned and walked away to let Hitch know what the word meant.

By noon the convoy of empty trucks Troy had requested from headquarters arrived to take the Germans stockpile of supplies away along with the prisoners.

The people of Nagd watched silently as the trucks were loaded. When the warehouse was empty and the convoy stood ready to return to base, an Arab man stepped out of the crowd. He walked up to Troy and his men and said, "I am Zimraan, one of the elders here and the one that sent for help."

Troy nodded. "I'm Sergeant Troy. Glad to have been of service."

"We all are grateful for your assistance, but you must understand … we remain neutral in this war of yours. We want nothing to do with your fighting. If the roles had been reversed, we would have sent for the Germans for help."

"We understand that, Zimraan. The allies have always respected your neutrality."

Zimraan bowed slightly. "We are grateful for that." Then he said pointedly, "Now, it is time you all leave here." And with that he turned and walked away.

Hitch watched the Arab elder go and said, "He didn't seem very grateful to me."

Moffitt sighed. "It's unfortunate that the people of Nagd refuse to understand what their 'neutrality' is doing to them. They feel it's a guaranteed way to stay out of the war. When actually it may mean their demise when they are eventually forced to take sides."

Tully questioned, "You don't really think the allies would force them to take sides, do you?"

Troy said, "No, but I'd be willing to bet the Germans will be back at some point in time."

Moffitt nodded. "And the good people of Nagd will again ask for help."

Hitch said quietly, "It's just a vicious circle."

Troy said, "It's war."

The commander of the convoy walked up and said, "We're ready to head out, sergeant. I'd appreciate it if you and your men would be our escorts back to base."

"No problem, lieutenant. We've got no reason to stay around here. We'll get our jeeps and catch up to you in about an hour."