Major Mix-up
BY:AliasCWN
Chapter 1
The small cargo plane swept low over the desert and landed on a flat stretch of hard packed sand that was miles from anywhere. It slowed but didn't stop. As it began its slow turn to face the runway again four men slipped out of the side door and dropped to the ground. A crewman closed the door after them. They fell flat on their stomachs and covered their faces and heads as the plane taxied away throwing sand in its wake. They stayed down and watched as it picked up speed and raced across the hard ground in preparation for take-off. In less than three minutes the plane was once again airborne and headed for its next destination.
A German truck and two patrol cars appeared in the distance and headed for the strip where the plane had briefly touched down.
The four men in the sand moved as one toward a slight dip in the ground, the only type of cover within walking distance. They crowded into the depression and watched as the vehicles drew closer.
"They could at least have given us guns." Mark Hitchcock complained as they watched the vehicles approach.
"They didn't want us slowed down by a lot of gear." Tully Pettigrew explained. "That captain said we would be issued everything we need later."
"Before or after we get to the POW camp?"
"Can it Hitch." Troy ordered. "There's nothing we can do about it now. Complaining isn't going to help."
"What are we going to do?" Moffitt asked.
"We're going to wait and see what happens." Troy growled. "Maybe they're just wondering why the plane landed. They may not have seen us."
"If they keep coming they aren't going to miss us." The other sergeant responded. "There's nowhere out here to hide."
Troy knew the other sergeant was right but, as he had pointed out, there was nowhere else to hide. There was nothing to do but watch the vehicles approach and hope that their ride arrived in time to drive off the Germans.
"It sure looks like all of these tricks and precautions are going to go to waste." Tully drawled quietly. "This mission could be over before it even gets started."
"We're not done yet." Troy tried to reassure them. "We've come through worse."
"But keeping our presence a secret seemed to be a major component of this mission." Moffitt remarked. "They went to a lot of trouble to assure that outcome. Our getting captured makes it a bit unrealistic to say the least."
"They haven't caught us yet." Troy remained optimistic.
The other three turned from watching the German vehicles to stare at him.
"Dig in, cover yourself with sand. Maybe they won't look too close." Troy ordered.
"What about our tracks?" Hitch asked.
"The ground is hard and the plane blew a lot of dust around. Unless they look really close they'll never see them."
Hitch peeled his hat off and stuffed it into his shirt. He saw Troy watching him and smiled. "I don't want them to spot that bright red color and find us because of my hat."
Troy smiled and pushed some loose sand at his driver. "Stay still."
It wasn't a perfect job of camouflage but it was all they had to work with. Troy hadn't said it but he agreed with his driver, they could at least have given them guns. He wasn't ready to admit defeat but he had to admit, if only to himself, that things didn't look good for them. With their ride nowhere in sight the Germans would most likely find them.
None of them spoke as the German vehicles drew closer. The nearer the vehicles came the more detail they could pick out. The soldiers in the patrol cars were searching the desert where the plane had landed. The cars made a circle around the area while the truck stopped and waited. Troy and his men watched tensely as the cars rejoined the truck.
An officer climbed out of the lead car and walked over to the second car. A short conversation followed while the other soldiers continued to scan the desert.
"They haven't seen us." Moffitt breathed in relief.
"They haven't left yet either." Troy pointed out.
"If they spread out maybe we can jump a few of them and grab their weapons." Tully suggested.
"Only if it looks like they're going to find us." Troy answered. "We're still trying to keep our presence a secret."
"Why drop us in German territory?" Moffitt asked in a whisper.
"I guess they thought the krauts wouldn't expect that." Troy whispered in return.
"Doesn't look like that's going to work out so well for them...or us." Tully drawled.
The German officer finished his conversation and turned to survey the desert again. The look on his face screamed disappointment. He turned to return to his car, the slump of his shoulders suggesting that they were giving up. Whatever he had expected to find it was obvious that he hadn't found it.
The cars split up and each circled the area one more time. They made a wider circle the second time and it brought the second car close to the depression. The driver noticed it and pointed it out to the officer.
Troy tensed as it neared their position. "Get ready, we may have to take them."
The others tensed, ready to spring up and surprise the four man crew.
"Hitch, you take the passenger next to the driver." Troy whispered. "Tully, you get the driver and take control of the car. Moffitt and I will take the two in the back."
The car drove slowly toward them as the soldiers scanned the desert for clues. There was no longer any doubt that they knew the plane had landed and they were searching for the reason. The car's occupants were looking for tracks so they picked up the faint trail left by the four commandos. One of the soldiers pointed excitedly, turning to call to the others.
Troy leaped toward the rear of the car with Moffitt by his side. Reaching forward he pulled one of the soldiers to the ground as Moffitt grabbed the other one. He had him on the ground choking him when Hitch yelled.
"They speak English Sarge! They say they're American."
"We are American!" The one Moffitt held yelled in desperation.
Troy's hand froze in mid-strike as Moffitt's victim yelled. He looked into the frightened face of the man he held and snarled. "Who are you?"
"We're your ride." The man answered in a shaky voice.
"Honest Sergeant!" Moffitt's victim agreed.
Tully looked down at the driver of the car. A chop to the neck had rendered him unconscious so he could be pulled from the car. Leaning down Tully pulled the soldier's dog tags free. He read the tags before calling to Troy. "This one has American tags."
"So does this one." Hitch confirmed.
"That's because we are Americans." The soldier growled. "Give me my rifle back."
"Not just yet." Troy replied as he pushed the prisoner toward the car.
The lead patrol car had noticed the commotion and was racing toward them. Troy pulled his prisoner in front of him and pointed the confiscated rifle at the approaching car. The driver of the car brought his vehicle to an abrupt halt.
"That's far enough!" Troy called. "Who are you?"
The officer in the other car climbed out with his hands in plain sight. Making sure that he didn't make any threatening moves he walked toward the captured car.
"Sergeant Troy I presume."
"You know me but I don't know you." Troy growled as he took a firmer grip on his prisoner.
"I am Captain Lawrence O'Dell. I am your contact for the next part of your journey."
"Care to explain the German uniforms and vehicles."
The captain smiled and looked down at the uniform he wore. "This is German territory Sergeant. Intelligence thought that it would be better to drop you off here because they don't believe that the Germans will look for you here. If they are looking for you we are hoping they are watching our base instead."
"That still doesn't explain why you're dressed as Germans." Troy insisted even as he eased his grip on the soldier he held.
"The plan was to locate you and load you into the truck at gunpoint. That way if anyone saw us they would assume that the Germans picked you up. Hopefully they wouldn't feel the need to report it."
"Hopefully?" Troy scoffed.
The captain shrugged. "I only follow orders Sergeant, I don't make policy."
"You should have warned us."
"As I said, I follow orders, I don't make policy. You can take that up with headquarters if you want, after you finish the mission."
"So now what?"
"Now Sergeant, you and your men need to drop those weapons and allow my men to take you prisoner. My orders are to make it look real."
Troy glanced over his shoulder at Moffitt.
"They seemed to have convinced us." Moffitt offered. "It does make sense in a rather careless sort of way." At Troy's expression the Brit continued. "I agree it would have been safer for all of us if they had warned us what to expect."
"All right." Troy decided. "Drop your weapons and put your hands behind your heads." He was the first to comply.
The soldiers they had taken prisoner quickly picked up the weapons and took their places as guards. They efficiently searched them for weapons.
"We're not armed." Troy growled.
"We know that." The captain nodded. "But any watchers would expect us to check."
The guy Tully had knocked out began to moan and rolled onto his side. He looked up at Tully in confusion. "Where am I?"
"Danged if I know." Tully answered.
The captain waved the truck over and the four men were loaded into the back. More men dressed as Germans waited for them there.
