A/N: And with this, "New DEAD Order" is caught up to Draco38's "Living with the DEAD".
"Heads up, boys," Sakamoto called to her platoon. "I got orders from above. We're going outside the Green Zone and grabbing us a fob."
"I beg your pardon," Shaun said over his tea as he swept his hand in a wide arc to the south. "I thought we were supposed to clear this out."
"Army is taking over," Sakamoto replied. "We get to go fight in injun country."
"How soon?" Clayton asked.
"First light tomorrow morning," Sakamoto said. She laid a map onto the dining table of the house she and her platoon occupied. She pointed to a sizable farming compound. "We have this place, Onohira, kinda out in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by forest and hills. Plus the buildings themselves lend well to what we need."
"Aside from this large, walled house, this area will be difficult in the extreme to fortify," Davis said. He swept his hand in a circle around the building. "All these trees and low cover makes for perfect ambush. Plus, it's right in between two rather built up areas."
"That makes it good for a staging area," Sakamoto explained. "It's far enough away that we can quarantine incoming refugees before turning them loose into the settlement camp. Command tasked two Apache gunships and a Harrier off the Essex to torch a perimeter ring."
"I see," Shaun said as he studied the map. "And it is within striking distance to either urban area for foraging whilst remote enough to remain largely untouchable."
"Aside from the fact that any convoy will have to pass through Shirahama," Davis said, pointing out the residential area to the east of the objective. "How are we to guarantee the safety of anyone passing through this?"
"How is this any different than the 'Stan?" Sakamoto asked.
The Royal Marines all looked to each other before turning back to Sakamoto.
"Ours is not to question why," Davis said.
"Ours is but to do and die," Sakamoto finished. "Oorah, Davis."
"We'll have to lock down these two roads," Shaun said. "It's doable; bloody dangerous, but doable."
"Then everyone hit their racks," Sakamoto ordered. "Long day ahead of us. Clayton, you spread the word while I confirm orders with HQ."
Clayton snapped to attention. He slung his M-4 then walked out.
-000-
Sakamoto had her troop in the playing field at dawn the next day. Another Chinook touched down. The aircrew scrambled over to secure the dozer to the under-sling lines while the combined Army and Marine personnel boarded the chopper.
A short flight of ten minutes put the group in the middle of rolling hills, green fields, dense trees and very nice, if rather old buildings. The troop dismounted the Chinook and immediately set up a defensive perimeter. The Chinook touched down and the forces on the ground detached the dozer while the aircrew deposited the necessary stores, ammo and fuel to run the heavy equipment.
Sakamoto consulted her maps and aerial photos.
"We hole up here at first," She said, pointing out a low house with high wall. "Phillips, you got experience with these kinda houses, correct?"
"Yes, Sergeant, in Tokyo right after the Outbreak," Shaun said. "I want to spend about a day making absolutely certain the walls are in good shape."
"Done," Sakamoto said. "We clear this house and then we can use it as the staging area. We got a little under a week before the advance column gets here, so let's get to work."
A combined shout of 'oorahs' and 'hooahs' filled the air as the Chinook departed the area.
The Army was left to secure the dozer and stores while the Marines kept watch. By mid-day, everything was in order and the dozer led the way to the house.
"I want to use the compound as the anchor point for the inner ring," Sakamoto directed Shaun. "Whadaya think?"
"Once we get these trees beaten back, not a problem," Shaun said. "When are we supposed to get the Harrier?"
"No word on that yet," Sakamoto replied. "We just hafta make do with what we got."
"Understood," Shaun said.
-000-
The troop approached the house designated to be their starting point. Sakamoto took point and made ample use of her shotgun. The troop advanced on the main gate. Crossing through, they found themselves in a slightly overgrown entrance garden with a path down the center. As they walked, an almost shrine like home came into view under the trees. It was large and what they could see was U-shaped with the open ends pointing towards them. The soldiers dismounted the dozer and followed behind.
"I got contact left!" Clayton shouted as he opened fire.
"Hold your pos, men," Sakamoto ordered as the men formed a tight circle at the main gate. "Let Them come to us."
The troop crept into the yard. As they passed the threshold, Shaun slid the heavy gate closed behind them and secured it with the help of several engineers.
"Move out," Sakamoto whispered. The Marines fanned out to sweep the compound.
Random small arms fire punctuated the otherwise still air. Shaun and his US Army counterparts followed behind the Marines, checking and marking every crack and possible weak point in the wall.
Mid-morning found the party in complete control of the house and its gardens.
"Report," Sakamoto turned to Shaun.
"Overall, this house is in very good shape," Shaun said, reading from his notes. "We found a few places that will need patch and repair, but nothing seems structurally wrong with the wall."
"Great," Sakamoto said. "Let's get this place squared away and then get started on the fob proper."
A/N: The State again wishes to thank Comrade Editors jm1681 and Draco38 for their efforts. A special thanks to Comrade Draco for putting this together and bring our arcs into line. We are nearing the end of our brief collaboration on these stories and New DEAD Order will be wrapping up soon.