A few tents over, Col. Potter is kicking his blanket off his legs.
He's trying like hell to get control of the bug out. It's been sheer chaos since the second their hospital came under bomb attack, sending them scrambling for safety. They're a mobile unit; bugging out is something they're expected to do when the situation calls for it. And usually they're good at it. But this time… this time it's all wrong.
Everyone's in something of a panic, and Potter can't seem to get a handle on where to go. They're just driving down the road with no actual destination in mind, which of course is pure madness. They have some wounded soldiers in their care, and they need to actually get settled somewhere and get the patients into beds.
"Wait a minute," he barks to Radar, who's driving the jeep. "What about that building up ahead? That look like a big enough building for a hospital?"
Radar casts a quizzical look at him. "Sir?"
"That building, Radar!" he points up ahead.
"Sir, there's no building there. Uh, with all due respect to your colonelness."
Potter shuts his eyes tight and opens them again, and sure enough, the kid is right. There's no building there. Potter shakes his head. Was that some kind of mirage? There's a lot of nothin' out here. He still has no idea where they're headed or why he chose this direction, and he's getting a hopeless feeling in his gut. He feels like the world's worst leader, like just about anyone else would be making better decisions than he is right now.
The rest of the convoy is following them, everyone's expecting him to take them someplace safe, away from the bombing, where they can set up their camp again. And he's failing them miserably.
Radar interrupts his thoughts, saying, "My ma always told me to keep an eye on the quiet ones, the ones who seem all meek and mild and like they fade into the background. Those are the ones you need to watch out for."
Potter's brow furrows. He doesn't understand the non sequitur. But just as he's about to ask Radar what the hell he's talking about, the jeep falls into a huge hole in the road… they're falling… falling… Radar's screaming and Potter's holding on to his hat as if that's the most important thing in all this: his damn hat. You would think they'd hit bottom at some point but they don't. They just keep on falling and falling, and Radar keeps on screaming and screaming, and suddenly Potter starts to laugh. It's way too funny, though he doesn't know exactly why.
With a half scream of his own, mixed with something of a giggle, Sherman Potter bolts awake, kicking his blanket completely off the bed now. He sits upright, breathing hard, struggling to get his bearings, and when he finally realizes what has happened, he chuckles at himself. "Why would I give a shit about the hat?" he asks the empty tent.
Then he lays back down and shuts his eyes, and almost immediately, he's asleep again.