4. Been There, Done That
AN: I'm sorry this one is delayed. I had a lot of reading to do about the Battle of Chipyong-ni, the battle that turned the tide of the Korean War. This one is a bit longer because of the history I found on the battle. I wanted to commemmorate the 62nd anniversary of that battle in some way. Hope you like this.
Disclaimer: I do not own The A Team movie or television series or any of the delightful characters found on The A Team.
oooooo
From where he crouched with Murdock, B. A. and Face in the snow-covered grass below the hill, it was like he had been here before.
Tunnels in a hillside, hilly terrain, snow on the ground. Impossible odds. What do they call it? Déjà vu?
"How many do you think there are, Colonel?" His Colt .357 Magnum drawn, the Lieutenant gazed up the hill and toward the abandoned mine. The question broke Hannibal's train of thought.
He squinted, the M-60 trained in the same direction Face was looking. "How many did you see at that bar in Bridgeport, Captain?"
"Six. 'N' I'm pretty sure three of 'em didn' join the rest of 'em here after B. A. got through with 'em."
B. A. shrugged at Hannibal's amused glance his way. "All Murdock did was ask directions ta the Pittsburg-Liberty mine. It was an unfair fight. Six 'gainst the fool. I evened up the odds."
"'N' don' think I ain' endebted t' you f'rever, Big Guy." Murdock touched his blackened eye and winced. "But couldya try 'n' wade into it a li'l sooner nex' time?"
B. A. grunted his reply and turned his attention back to the road behind them.
Hannibal smiled.
Good thing B. A. was there. These slimeballs mean business.
"And I saw five or six more up in the rocks and mining structures on that hill. If the others joined them from the rear, I estimate there to be about twelve, including Jelinski and his personal bodyguard." The Colonel pulled out a cigar and prepared to light it.
About three to one. And when Decker and his men show up, it'll be about four to one. We'll be hemmed in from at least two directions.
"Not very good odds, Colonel. Explain to me again why we thought it was a good idea to track Jelinski to this godforsaken wilderness area." Face brushed snow from his jacket and frowned through the browned weeds toward the enemy placement.
The Colonel spoke in his patient we've-been-through-this-before voice. "Because this is where he stashed the stolen Army weapons and we want to lure Decker here to find them and Jelinski and his men. If Decker finds the jeep I stole and the note on the steering wheel telling him where we are and why we're here, he's sure to take the bait."
B. A. groaned. "Puts us between a rock an' a hard place."
"More like it makes us kind o' like grapes in a wine press."
"Hush up, fool," the Sergeant growled.
And suddenly Hannibal remembered why this particular scenario seemed somewhat familiar to him.
That time we were surrounded on all sides by the enemy, too.
He was back in Korea in the crossroads village of Chipyong-ni. The 23rd Regimental Combat Team and a French Batallion were already set up on the lower hills surrounding the town. The orders were to keep the Chinese from taking Chipyong-ni. The First Ranger Company was on call to be used as reserves if needed.
He and his fellow Rangers wondered if they would be needed at all. And then all hell broke loose on the night of 13 February 1951. The Chinese army preferred waging their battles at night.
Probably thought we'd be afraid of the dark. Or maybe they thought they could sneak up on us easier.
They punctuated their attack with yelling, bugle calls and whistles. They illuminated their American enemies with red and green rocket flares.
On the evening of the 15th, Hannibal and 35 other men in his Ranger platoon along with Company F attempted to retake the hill previously held by Company G. As the Rangers surged up the hill, they yelled just as loudly as the Chinese had. Some of them made it to the top. Hannibal was one of them.
The snow was knee-deep in some places.
A third of his platoon team mates became casualties. Some of the fire was from the Chinese at the top of the hill. Some was from the direction of the hill held supposedly by the French Battalion. Twenty to thirty seconds of it was from a U. S. Army tank machine gun. A combination of enemy and friendly fire.
Snow and hills. And the feeling of being hemmed in by the enemy. That's why this seems so familiar.
They called it a decisive battle, the turning point of the Korean War. He thought of it as three days of pure hell on earth.
They received a Distinguished Unit Citation for that effort, a counterattack that killed at least twelve of his comrades including the platoon leader.
And they could not hold the hill.
Funny what sort of thing qualifies for distinguished duty.
"So what's your plan, Hannibal? Besides either getting killed by Jelinski and his gorillas or being captured by Decker and his MPs." Face turned his skeptical blue eyes on the Colonel.
"I'm working on it."
But the outcome will not be either of those two possibilities. Not if I can help it.