Copyright: 04/2021
Fan-Fiction based on TV Show Combat! Copyright Selmur Production, Inc., ABC, Image Productions etc. Disclaimer: Combat! and its characters do not belong to me, this WWII story is a piece of fan-fiction and I am not being compensated in any tangible way for this story.
Crazy White Man
CHAPTER 1
Saunders had been so happy that morning. After three lousy days of rain, the sun had finally decided to show itself. The day was warm for October and everything was drying out. He didn't even mind it when Hanley had given him and the squad another job to do for the third day in a row.
"We have a small problem. G2 believes the krauts have moved out of the village of Charmant. They want you to take a look around. If they are there, see if they are using the church tower as an OP. If they are using it, you are to call in so it can be destroyed. The village is about 15 kilometers from here."
Saunders looked a bit skeptical. There were never small problems. They always sounded small but they ended as one huge headache for him and the squad. He watched Hanley as he got out of his chair. Saunders knew Hanley was about to lower the boom.
"There's one other thing. While you are out there, a squad from Baker Company went missing. They are overdue and it's been more than five hours since they reported in. When you get about halfway between here and Charmant start looking for them.
"So what you're saying Lieutenant, is not only do I need to keep my eyes open for krauts but also for some lost sheep. I just hope G2 is right. Their batting average hasn't been very good lately."
"Their luck has got to change. I'll keep a good thought for you."
"Thanks Sir."
Saunders smile faded as he left Hanley. As he walked away, Saunders was adding up the number of times G2 had been wrong; too many times to count or remember.
He walked into the squad's home away from home and looked at his men who were resting after trudging through the mud for the last few days.
"Okay everybody saddle up. We've got places to go and krauts to see."
"Oh come on Sarge, why is it always us? Are we the only squad in King Company?"
"Well Kirby, I guess G2 just likes the way you get things done. You know, there's no complaining, you just do your job. Now it's a nice day for a change and I'm in a pretty good mood, so don't tick me off. Otherwise, I'm going to pick up the tommy and shoot you myself."
After his threat, Kirby and all the men began gathering up their belongings.
"Littlejohn, get rations for two days, Caje and Ramos get extra ammo for everyone and Hawkins go draw a radio. Doc if you need any supplies, you better get them now. As soon as you all get back we are leaving."
Billy was almost afraid to ask but it was driving him nuts not knowing.
"Sarge where are we going?"
"So, I don't have to repeat myself, I'll tell you when the others get back."
When the men returned, Saunders began looking them over. He could see the last three days had taken a toll on the new man, Ramos. He then looked at the rest of the men. When did they start looking so much older? I have a feeling that I look the same way, he mused.
"Alright, listen up. G2 believes the Germans have moved out of a little village called Charmant. It's about 15 kilometers from here. That's a little over 9 miles, Kirby."
"Sarge, I wasn't gonna ask ya. I figured 15 kilometers couldn't be too far and you always tell us when we're almost there anyway. So I wasn't gonna bother you with an arithmetic problem."
Saunders shook his head, while the others laughed.
"Okay, this is serious, listen up. We have two jobs. First, we need to be on the lookout for a squad from Baker Company. They are way overdue by five hours and they haven't reported in. Second, if there are krauts in Charmant, we must make sure they aren't using the church tower as an OP. If they are, we call in coordinates and blow it up. The sooner we get there, the sooner we can return and get some rest. So let's move it out! Caje you're on point, Kirby, the rear."
The men were dragging, so Saunders did something he rarely did.
As they left the bivouacked area, Caje noticed that Saunders had moved up behind him, he knew something was up. He then heard the Sarge call out, Route step, March.
Saunders hated doing it but the men needed to move a little faster. They would have to keep pace with the man in front of him in order to have the correct distance in between each man.
At least it wasn't double time, thought Kirby. We would have had men from here to Charmant strewn on the side of the road. The picture tickled Kirby as he imagined all of them sprawled in ditches, panting and Sarge yelling at them to get up while he is doing calisthenics. "I truly believe he's Lois Lane and Superman's kid," said Kirby to no one in particular.
CHAPTER 2
After an hour and half, Saunders called a halt. "Take fifteen. Break out your k-rats, if you want."
By his estimation they had gone about six miles, not bad for a bunch of dog-tired G.I.'s.
The men broke out their k-rations. "Hey Doc, whatcha got?"
"Bacon and cheese; how about you?"
"Me too, musta had a big surplus on that one," laughed Kirby.
The men hurriedly ate their food.
They were all thinking alike, the faster they got done, the faster they could get back.
The squad had traveled about a mile. Caje had a feeling something wasn't quite right. He couldn't put his finger on it. The hair on the back of his neck stood up.
Caje noticed some underbrush had moved just slightly. He raised his arm and hand. The men came to a halt. Saunders came forward to see what was going on.
"What's wrong?"
"I think I saw something moving over there by the bushes," whispered Caje.
Saunders didn't see anything but he trusted him. They walked over with their weapons raised.
"Aufstehen, hände hoch!" yelled Saunders.
The young man crawled out from under the bushes. He stood up with his hands raised.
"Don't shoot, I'm a G.I."
Saunders could see that the young man was visibly shaken.
"Who are you?'
My name is Pvt. Henry Loud Hawk, my Serial No. is 36561255."
"What are you doing out here?"
"I'm with Baker Company. We were sent out to check on kraut movements in this sector. They saw us before we saw them. I need help. Sgt. Doyle and Smitty, I mean Pvt. Smith are wounded. I hid them further back into the trees over there."
"Where's the rest of your squad?"
"They're dead."
"Doc! Up front. The rest of you keep a lookout."
Saunders, Doc and Caje followed Henry as he pointed the way.
"Where are they Private?"
"Over here, Sergeant."
The private walked under a very large pine tree and began removing boughs.
Doc and Saunders bent down to look at the wounded men. Doc began examining them.
"Hey Saunders, watcha doin' in this neck of the woods?" groaned Doyle.
"The squad and I thought we go out looking for you and check on the krauts. Now that we've located you, we can finish up searching for any krauts that might be using the church tower in Charmant as an OP."
As Doc checked out the men, he became concerned. "Sarge, they've lost a lot of blood, especially Pvt. Smith. We need to get them back as soon as possible."
"I'm sorry Doc, we've got to check out that church tower. Do what you can for them."
"Sergeant, we've been there. They have an OP but it's not the church. The tower…too low."
Smitty was trying to control his breathing.
"It's okay Smitty, I'll tell Saunders. Doc, give him a shot."
Doc took out a syrette and injected the young soldier. The affect was immediate. Doc sighed heavily as he pinned the empty syrette to his collar (1).
"There's an old chateau, ya know a castle. There's two towers, one's square, the other's round. They're using the round tower as an OP. There's a church in front of the castle. We went through the church's graveyard, it gives you more cover. But you still can't get into the castle, we tried. There's a whole company in there. That's where three of my men were killed. We have Henry, he's our secret weapon a real Houdini."
"Secret weapon? Tell me Henry, are you some kind of magician?"
"Well sorta, Sarge," chuckled the private.
"You see, the Germans have been listening in on our transmissions. So, I'm gonna throw them a real curve ball. I'm just hopin' that your radio works, ours got blown to smithereens."
"Yea, ours works but I still don't get it. If the Germans are listening to us, what can you do that's different?"
Saunders knew the pain in Doyle's leg was excruciating and yet the man had a smile a mile wide.
"When I call in, the krauts are gonna wonder what the heck I'm saying. You see, I'm a Comanche code talker."
Saunders nodded and grinned. "That's one great curve ball, Henry."
"Saunders, you better get your men under cover. They've been sending out patrols every thirty minutes or so."
"Caje go and get everyone and bring them back here."
Caje ran back and motioned to the squad.
"Guys, come with me, there are a lot more Germans out here than we thought. They're patrolling like crazy. You also have to hear this."
"Hawkins, give your radio to Henry."
The private picked up the radio.
"Oakland Orchard (2), this is The Corner (2), over. Can you read me Oakland Orchard, over?"
"This is Oakland Orchard, over."
The men were astonished as Henry began speaking in Comanche laying out the plans.
When Henry signed off, he had a worried look when he approached Saunders.
"Sergeant, we need to get a move on. I gave them the coordinates and they are gonna start firin' the Black Dragon (3) in less than 30 minutes."
"Kirby, Ramos, make two stretchers."
The two men began looking for sturdy limbs to cut. After they found and cut four limbs, the two men gathered the squad's jackets in order to make a sling for the stretchers.
CHAPTER 3
Littlejohn and Doc carefully placed Sgt. Doyle and Pvt. Smith on the stretchers.
"We're going to have to make time if we don't want to get blown up by short rounds. We'll all take turns carrying the stretchers. We're going to keep to the trees and stay off the road. All we need is to run into a kraut patrol. Caje front, Kirby rear, move out."
Even though Doc, Ramos, Billy and Henry started out at a fast pace, they tired quickly. The men began to change off as frequently as possible.
"Hawkins, I'll take the stretcher for a while. Here, I'll trade ya straight up."
Kirby handed him the BAR and Hawkins gave him his M-1.
"Thanks a lot Kirb. This dang thing weighs a ton."
"It also packs a punch. I've been carryin' it for so long, I don't notice the weight unless I'm really tired."
The men had been walking about thirty minutes when they were all caught out in the open. The Germans were as surprised as Saunders and the squad. Doc and Littlejohn had one stretcher and Kirby and Billy had the other. The four men and their wounded comrades ran and hid behind some large boulders. The others found cover behind a fallen log. The men began firing at anything that moved.
"Oh man, I hate this thing, I want my BAR back yelled Kirby over the thunder of gunfire."
"Stop complaining Kirby and shoot!" hollered Billy.
"Littlejohn, throw me a clip, I'm out. I've gotta make a run towards the log. Hawkins stopped firin', his mag is empty."
Kirby put a new clip into the M-1 and took a deep breath. He got into a crouching position and started running and gunning as fast as he could. He felt a burning sensation in his arm. Kirby kept on firing until he got behind the log where Hawkins and the rest of the squad were hiding.
"Hey kid, thought you could use a new mag."
"Thanks Kirby. You're bleeding."
Kirby looked at his arm. "Oh man, I really hate this! Why is it I always seem to get hit in the same place?"
Saunders crawled over and began helping Kirby bandage his arm. Saunders sprinkled the sulfa on the wound and pulled the bandage tighter.
"Jeez Sarge, could you make that any tighter! That hurts."
"Sorry but you know it needs to be tight. Can you still fire the rifle?"
"Yea I can shoot. Look Sarge, the guys have whittled the krauts down to only two left. I can see they ain't gonna give up."
All of a sudden the men heard an explosion.
"Oh man, this can't be good, we better get the heck outta here on the double!"
"Saunders saw a German slowly making his way around towards the left of them."
He got to a kneeling position and fired.
Hawkins saw the other German rise up and blasted away at him. The last German soldier fell as another explosion rocked the earth.
"That was closer than the last one. Check and see if anyone is alive."
Caje and Billy checked out the men lying on the ground.
"Sergeant, we checked them out, they are all dead."
"Alright, let's go Caje front, ahh Hawkins do you feel comfortable handling the BAR?"
"Yea Sarge."
"Okay then, you take the rear. Doc knock out Sgt. Doyle. It'll be easier on them. We need to get out of these woods in order to make time and it would hurt them a lot from all the jostling. Doc, Littlejohn, Ramos and Henry grab stretchers. Let's move!"
The men gathered their gear and walked as quickly as they could. They hadn't walked very far when they heard the unmistakable whooshing sound overhead.
"This is really bad, it's a short!" shouted Kirby.
The men hit the ground. The bomb exploded; it missed them by an eyelash. It landed in the woods.
"Boy that was a close one. If we had stayed in those woods we would have been blown sky high."
Henry stood up and whispered "Po'sa taiboo' (4) this is all your fault."
"Did you say something?" asked Littlejohn.
"Nah, I was just talkin' to myself."
"Well, as long as you don't answer yourself," he laughed.
All the men stood up and hurried towards their lines.
CHAPTER 4
It took the men twice as long to return to their bivouacked area. They were exhausted but glad to be back. Brockmeyer saw the men walking up the road. He ran back into the CP.
"Lieutenant, they're back and it looks like some of the guys have been wounded."
Hanley walked out of his office and saw his men. He hurriedly walked over to check out the wounded men. "I'm glad to see you Sgt. Doyle. It looks like you had a pretty bad time of it."
"Yes sir, if it hadn't been for Pvt. Loud Hawk we probably would have been captured or dead."
"Private, I want to thank you. You saved a lot of men who'll be moving up tomorrow. I'm putting you in for the Bronze Star for meritorious service."
"Thank you sir but I was only doing my job."
"Take Sgt. Doyle and Pvt. Smith to the aid station. Kirby go with them."
"Sarge, I'm alright."
"You're perspiring like you've run a marathon. Now go and get yourself checked out."
Doc looked at the building that had once been the aid station.
"Where's it at?" asked Doc.
"Doc, the 93rd has moved in. They set up their tents over in the open fields."
The men picked up the wounded and began moving in the direction of the fields.
"Kirby do you need a formal invitation?"
"Aww, Sarge, I'm fine."
Hanley had a bit of a smile. "Kirby, did you not hear me say that the 93rd Evac moved in?"
"Yes sir, I mean no sir. I'm goin' right now. You're right Sarge, I definitely need to be checked out."
Kirby hurried to catch up with the men.
"The man can really move when a woman is involved."
"Saunders why don't you come with me so you can fill me in. Private, whenever you're ready, my clerk, Pvt. Brockmeyer will drive you back to Baker Company."
"I just want to say goodbye Sgt. Doyle and Smitty before I go. Thanks guys for all your help in getting them back."
"Take care of yourself."
"Thanks Sarge, you too."
EPILOGUE
"Private, you've picked up an infection. You'll have to spend a night with us."
"Really, that's too bad!"
The new captain figured that the man was overjoyed at the prospect of a real bed and a good night's sleep.
"Sir, do you know Lt. Jenkins?"
The captain's eyes seemed to sparkle at the mention of her name.
"Yes I do but you know officers are off-limits to non-coms."
"Never mind sir, here she comes," smiled Kirby.
"Hello Captain Caruthers. I'll take it from here."
"Lieutenant, you're off-limits to the likes of him. Whatever you two have on your minds, you just can't."
"Captain, I'm going to take real good care of him!"
Lt. North walked up behind the captain. "It's okay, she whispered. I'm sure she'll get him into bed soon."
THE END
1 After injection, the used tube was pinned to the soldier's collar in order for the aid station or hospital to know how many doses of morphine had been administered.
2 Oakland Orchard was the nickname for Forbes Field home of the Pittsburgh Pirates (MLB) (1909–1970), Pittsburgh Steelers (NFL) (1933–1963), Philadelphia–Pittsburgh "Steagles" (NFL) (1943) and "Card-Pitt" (NFL) (1944). Card-Pitt was the team created by the temporary merger of two NFL teams, the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Chicago Cardinals, during the 1944 season.
The Corner was the nickname for Tiger Stadium f/k/a Navin Field and Briggs Stadium. The nickname "The Corner" was for its location on Michigan Avenue and Trumbull Avenue. This was the home of the Detroit Tigers (MLB) (1912–1999) and the Detroit Lions (NFL) (1938–1939, 1941–1974).
3 The 240 mm howitzer M1, which had great accuracy was known by its popular nickname, the "Black Dragon."
4 Comanche Code talkers were an elite group of young men who were fluent in the Comanche language. They used that knowledge, along with the training they were given by the Army, to send critical messages that confused the Germans during World War II. Seventeen men were trained in communications, but only fourteen took part in the Invasion of Normandy (Utah Beach).
The first message sent from the beach was sent in Comanche from Code Talker, Private First Class Larry Saupitty, who was also the personal orderly, driver and radio operator to the division commanding general, Brig. Gen. Theodore Roosevelt Jr. His message translated to: "We made a good landing. We landed in the wrong place."
The fourteen Comanche code talkers participated in the Battle of Normandy, Battle of the Bulge, and other battles.
Comanche soldiers of the 4th Signal Company compiled a vocabulary of over 100 code terms using words or phrases in their own language. Using a substitution method similar to the Navajo, the code talkers used descriptive Comanche language words for things that did not have translations. For example, tank, was turtle, bomber was pregnant bird, machine gun was sewing machine, stovepipe was a bazooka, German was our enemy.The Comanche word"Po'sa taiboo',"was for Adolf Hitler. It meant crazy white man.