23. Field Exercise II: POW

If asked, Avocato would have had to admit that the possibility of ending this field exercise as a POW had not occurred to him.

And yet, here he was, piled into the back of one of the yellow team's transports with Kedi, Nikos and Mochi wedged between them for warmth. They had been given hot broth and some field rations to eat, and Cadet Lin had instructed them to stay put until one of the observers or acting officers returned. That suited them all perfectly.

There had been no moon rise that night. Instead, teeming rain had drenched the camp starting at sundown, turning the ground to mud and coating everything with leaves and twigs. Thunder roared, the wind blew, and the darkness was complete except for occasional flashes of lightning. The cadets on sentry duty were supposed to keep one another in sight, but it was impossible. The weather distorted their hearing, and it was difficult to distinguish direction or the sounds. Avocato had paced around the perimeter of the encampment through wind and driving rain, alert to anything approaching. At least, that was the theory. In reality, he had been slogging through slippery mud and asleep on his feet. He was cold, tired, hungry, and so drenched he may as well have been swimming in the Saan River. He was thoroughly annoyed that the officers in charge were being lax with not only their safety, but by extension, the safety of their squad.

Which explained why he had been seized so easily. A snap of a branch caught his attention, and suddenly half a dozen cadets from Squad 2 had tackled, gagged, and dragged him off into the woods before he could make a sound.

They took his rifle and tied his hands before quickly hauling him away into the brush. By the powerful grips on his arms and belt, he could tell his attackers expected resistance. Had this been anything but an exercise, Avocato could have easily fought clear, even with his hands tied, but he had been told to comply and he was so thoroughly annoyed at his officers that he went along with his capture. He was faintly curious to know what the fallout of his disappearance would be, but he was too bloody tired to care about the consequences.

He lost all sense of direction as they swiftly hauled him away. It wasn't very long before he saw a light ahead, and they headed for a clearing where Purrina and his acting officers and chiefs were busy issuing commands for an immediate assault on the helpless, sentry-free red camp. Cadet Lin stood a little off to the side with Major Inka and Colonel Cataloupe. A small lantern cast a circle of light, and by it, Avocato could see Nikos and Kedi were likewise tied and gagged, standing off to the side with a guard next to them. His friends appeared about as upset with the situation as Avocato, which was to say, not at all. He pitied the cadets who had to capture Nikos, or Kedi, for that matter. Neither were easy targets, though like Avocato, they had been worn down to nothing these past days.

"Get those gags out of their mouths and get them something hot to drink," ordered Lin. He looked at the newest addition to the POW collection with a little frown. "Avocato."

"Sir," he said as the gag was removed.

Lin addressed the team sent to catch him. "Did he give you a fight?"

"No, sir," said the cadet as she removed the gag. She sounded relieved. Avocato smirked to see he'd rated half a dozen of the best martial artists in Squad 2 to bring him in. they must have been surprised he let himself be taken. A few minutes later, another commando team arrived with Mochi.

"You didn't fight either?" whispered Nikos.

He snorted softly. "Didn't see a point."

"I thanked them," was Kedi's shameless admission.

"What's happening?" wondered Mochi as he joined them.

"Our side's about to lose," Kedi replied.

"Oh." He shrugged, neither surprised nor distressed. "No shock there."

Purrina heard him and looked over thoughtfully. Though clearly preoccupied with winning his objective, he issued quick orders.

"Move the prisoners to the back of the vehicle and post one guard. Get them something to eat and drink. Avocato!"

"Sir," he said automatically, straightening.

"I'll leave you four untied with the understanding you're to go nowhere."

"Understood, sir," he answered for all of them. They had no idea where they were in relation to their camp, so escaping now, in this storm, was possible but pointless. The only place he wanted to go right now was to sleep. They made no protest as each was handed a chamois to dry themselves off as best they could, then let themselves be stowed in the back of a vehicle. Lin gave them a final stern look before setting the lantern inside the bed of the transport for its light and heat. Then he pulled the flap close and left them.

And that was how they ended up riding out the yellow team assault on the red team's camp in relative comfort. They had food, shelter, and light on this miserable night. Nikos was shivering, so Kedi opened his jacket and pulled him in close, cocooning the smaller cadet.

"Do you think they noticed in time?" wondered Kedi softly.

Avocato pulled Mochi's sleeve up a little to check the chronometer he wore. "Maybe. They planned it well, and waited for the weather to turn to cover the attack. Our officers were too predictable, and we were too tired to stop them. Pawlette was one of our relief, and she told me she likes to get up extra early so she can make enough noise to wake everyone in the tent. Even so, she was probably too late to do anything."

"Is it wrong of me to hope that's the case?" Mochi asked, sounding guilty.

The other three cadets snorted, and answered in unison: "No."

"Whatever happens could have been avoided," said Avocato, stifling a yawn. "Should have been avoided."

"No more talk," ordered Kedi. "We've wasted enough time on what we can't change. Sleep now."

Nikos and Mochi obeyed instantly. Kedi followed a little while later, softly snoring. Avocato wrapped his jacked a bit more snugly around himself and edged a little closer to Mochi. He listened for any sign of what was happening back at the camp, but they were too far away and the rain was too loud for that.

He was about to nod off when the flap covering the back of the transport was lifted, letting in a draft of cold air. Avocato raised his head to see Colonel Cataloupe, his hood pulled up against the teeming rain, regarding him with a smile. He gestured Avocato to remain where he was, softly asking,

"Did you figure out who it was?"

The spy. The enemy agent working to undermine their side. He hadn't given it much thought, but . . . suddenly, Avocato knew exactly who it was. Yanako. Who else could it be? By giving full vent to her personal grudges, she had sabotaged the red team. If the sentries had not been fatigued and angry thanks to her manipulations, the situation would be vastly different right now.

"I think so, sir. Does she know?"

Cataloupe's smile grew wider. "Doubtful, but I must say, she was uncommonly successful. Now get some sleep, Cadet."

"Yes, sir," he said gratefully, and smiled.

OoOoOoOoOoOoO

The shuttle ride back to the academy was remarkably subdued. The cadets were weary and some were demoralized at having failed their objective to hold the road. Avocato, who could not be counted among those who felt shaken by the results of the exercise, had already been debriefed by Cadets Meowie and Lin. He had been assigned yet another written report on what he would have done had he been in command. He couldn't decide if it was going to be a very long or very short report. He was tempted to simply say Everything, but he knew Cataloupe would want more details than that. He sighed. Long it was.

None of the POWs had said much, but it hadn't taken very long for the cadets of Squad 3, speaking to their friends in Squad 2, to figure out what happened and why. Yanako's failure to follow regulations was blamed for their failure as much as Pawl's too-strict interpretation of his orders. While Pawl had the training and grace to accept his mistakes and move on, Yanako tried to shift the blame and soon found herself being shunned.

Cataloupe had gathered them together to explain what had gone right and what had gone so completely wrong. He stressed how adherence to regulations for routine tasks was a necessity, and these rules existed for very good reasons. He reminded them, too, that they were here to learn, and they could learn more from mistakes than successes. That mollified many of the cadets, though some still took things personally

Seated towards the front of the shuttle, Avocato checked on the pile of jackets in the seat beside him. Somewhere at the bottom of the heap was Nikos, curled up and fast asleep, and Avocato stared at the mound for a few moments to be sure it moved slightly. At least he was still breathing. Prolonged exposure to the cold had left his friend exhausted, and Nikos had practically passed out the moment they were aboard. Luckily, they had three whole days off to recover (and write reports). They could sleep in, rest up, and eat enough for twice their numbers. Avocato was starting to agree with Kedi's assessment: Nikos didn't eat enough, and he was determined to get as much food into that scrawny frame as possible.

He was just about to close his eyes and try to sleep himself when two women walked past on their way back from the refresher. The first girl continued forward, but the second paused, and then turned to face him.

Yanako.

Everyone knew by now that Purrina had exploited the weakness her conduct had created. Yellow scouts had reported the unprecedented use of the same sentries on the same shift every night. Unwittingly, she had aided the opposing team. She was the enemy agent, and her petty revenge had been a major factor contributing to the red team's loss. Now all her friends save the one were blaming and avoiding her.

Avocato could tell she was distraught and had been crying. In her life, things had rarely ran contrary to her plans, and she hadn't been held quite so accountable before. It was a good lesson for her, one he hoped she would carry for a long time. While he was glad she was facing consequences for her actions, he was equally glad at least one of her friends was standing beside her. She would need the support to get through this.

Yanako met his gaze with difficulty, but she met it. Bracing herself, she quietly said, "I should have listened to you. You were looking out for us all. I was looking for payback."

He would not point out what she knew so well: she had hurt not only herself, but the whole team. Instead of speaking, he simply nodded.

"It won't happen again," she promised.

"Good," Avocato replied softly, believing her. He gave her a small smile and another nod, then watched her walk forward. He glanced over at the pile of field jackets to see a pair of heavy blue eyes blinking at him from the depths. Avocato cast his friend a little smirk.

"Back to sleep, Nikos," he ordered. A moment later he took his own advice, resting his head against Nikos' and settling in to sleep.