Chp. 18: Tangoing North
January 25th, 2005
11 Kilometers inland from Caranda Beach
Kenneth traded places with the Minimi gunner as the two Warrior IFVs approached a group of vacation rentals. He couldn't see much through his PVS-14 night vision device that aroused his suspicions. Save for the UAZ jeep parked haphazardly parked in front of the rental office. The vehicle's gunner leveled his 30mm cannon at the vehicle and slowed to a halt. The rest of the platoon, now under him with Murphy running the company, halted in a line formation and waited. Other platoons moved deeper into the settlement, but the place seemed abandoned. That was something that had Kenneth on edge.
"What's the plan, Chief?" His "Warrior Sergeant" asked.
"Have 1-2 and 1-4 move around the flanks. We'll push through with 1-3 on foot and flush out any resistance." He replied. He switched to the radio and hailed Lieutenant Murphy.
"Alpha 6 this is Alpha 5, we've spotted an enemy UAZ near some bungalows, moving to investigate with 2nd Platoon." He radioed.
"Copy that Alpha 5; stay on your toes." Lieutenant Murphy replied.
Kenneth acknowledged with a grunt and gave the order for the second pair of IFVs to move. Below him, the section inside the vehicle hurried out the rear ramp and spread in two directions. Kenneth joined the left side and hit the ground near the welcome sign to the piece of property. Carlyle dropped down next to him while the Warrior moved up the driveway. The section got on its feet again and marched forward slowly and methodically. They were less than a dozen meters from the rental office when A figure appeared, holding up a white towel in his hand.
"Hold your fire and hold your positions!" He barked to his command.
The men took knees or hit the dirt, and the Warrior turned its headlights on full blast. They revealed an unarmed Erusean soldier in nothing but his boots and blood-stained fatigues. He raised the towel again when no one approached him.
"Auta, auta!" He called, or rather cried.
"Lopettaa, lopettaa!" Kenneth shouted back, scrounging up all the Erusean he could remember. The man stopped as ordered, but kept shouting.
"Auta! Auta!"
The Erusean motioned towards the office with his free hand, as if pointing them towards something. Kenneth gulped, then keyed his radio.
"Dugan, take ya section around the back of the office and clear it. Smithy, do the same with the front." He ordered.
The two section leaders acknowledged and moved out while Kenneth and Carlyle took careful steps towards the Erusean. The enemy soldier was shaking, and it was now more obvious that he was crying. He kept repeating the same word over and over.
"Carlyle, get on the radio and see if anyone knows what the bloody hell "auta" means." Kenneth said over his shoulder.
He turned back to the man and dipped his L85 towards the ground several times. The man nodded and carefully lowered himself onto the ground. Behind him, the Lenish troops entered the office from multiple sides. It was just a few seconds before he heard them shouting at someone to stay still.
"Alpha 5, we've got two more Eruseans here. Both badly injured. No weapons or gear." Sergeant Dugan radioed.
"Anything in that UAZ?" He replied.
"Water cans, helmets, some assorted personal items. Got some blood here on the backseat." Smithy reported.
"No weapons?"
"None, sir. Not even ammo cans."
"Blood's probably from one of the blokes in here. He's missing part of his arm." Dugan added with audible discomfort.
Kenneth looked down at the Erusean soldier, still muttering the same word over and over. His face softened and he keyed his radio again.
"Alpha 5 to all Alpha 1 elements; form up a perimeter and start searching these bungalows. I want medics over here as fast as possible. We've got wounded prisoners. Alpha 6, we need MEDEVAC here as soon as possible for prisoner transport."
"Copy that Alpha 5. Stabilize them the best you can until then and secure any weapons." Murphy replied.
"Understood."
"Also, you had a translation request earlier?"
Kenneth paused for a minute. It didn't mean much now, but curiosity got the better of him.
"Yes sir. The word "auta"; Erusean we made initial contact with keeps saying it." He replied.
"Auta means "help" in Erusean."
That much was obvious now, but Kenneth still thanked the officer. He hurried over to help carry one of the wounded prisoners' stretchers. If this was the general state of the Erusean military, he pondered, then the war's end was close. He (and probably every service member in ISAF) eagerly welcomed that…
Ikov could have easily chosen to ignore the explosion, but he decided to use it as an excuse to check the time. The General rose from the floor of his XA-185 and rose towards one of the hatches nearby. He popped his head out in time to see a cloud of smoke rise up from where a bridge had once been. He sank back down and searched for his tanker's helmet. He only put one of the cups to his ear to listen.
"...Bridge has been destroyed. What's the status of the bridge at Charlotte?"
"Alasin 3 got attacked by enemy jets. It may take us another hour to get all the explosives placed. Are there any friendly aircraft available to bomb the bridge?"
Ikov set the helmet aside and donned his fatigue blouse. He grabbed his M92 and a flak jacket as he emerged from the back of the APC into the tent set up next to it. Colonel Iivari gave him a salute.
"I listened in on the radio, but I just heard that they destroyed the bridge. What's our situation?" He said, turning towards the map board.
"At the moment, General, ISAF forces are still fortifying their positions near the beach. They hit so many of our vehicles along the roads that they have to clear them away. We've fallen back across the river; Major Salo believes that our enemies will attempt to expand inland in the next 12 to 18 hours."
"What forces do we have to meet them?"
"Of the force defending the beaches, we were able to reorganize them into two understrength regiments. For now, the 7th Mechanized Rifle Division remains our strongest asset. The 55th Mechanized Rifles should arrive by this evening. Air support is limited, though; that is my biggest concern."
"Yes…ISAF will likely continue to harass us while they create a situation on the ground they're confident in. I want our air defense troops to start arranging any SAM traps that they can. Inform Major Uzelac that I want to focus more sorties on defending against further raids or reconnoitering enemy movement. If Stonehenge is available, even a few warning shots would greatly help us."
"Yes sir."
Ikov drew closer to the map, searching for a place where he could try and snare the ISAF advance. Perhaps a ford in the river that he could concentrate on. Or a town with older, narrower streets that he could trap enemy armor in. His ISAF counterpart was no doubt considering the same details. He looked around for his intelligence officer, but the man was nowhere to be seen.
"Where is Major Salo?" He called to his adjutant.
"Asleep, sir. I found it appropriate that he get some rest; the man was starting to grow a bit manic."
Ikov nodded in understanding and asked how much sleep he'd gotten. Iivari had to confess that he felt far too wired to sleep. Ikov considered a joke when he heard one of his radio operators trying to contact people further up the food chain. He turned and walked to the radios as the operator was turning around. He saluted and told the other party to stand by.
"Sir, it's General Filppula again. He asked that I contact him as soon as you were available." the young soldier explained.
Ikov accepted the handset and cleared his throat.
"Yes sir." He responded.
"General Ikov, I understand you're in the middle of reorganizing the forces in your area." A familiar voice spoke.
"Yes General, due to General Andric still missing. Do you have new orders relative to my temporary position as the district commander?"
"Despite the establishment of an ISAF beachhead, no. In fact I'm making your appointment to district commander permanent. I've committed the entirety of III Corps to your efforts as well. I want a defensive line established somewhere between your position and Istas Fortress. Your orders are to drive back ISAF's incursion, or delay them long enough for IX Corps to move from eastern Likada. If not here, then we will crush them when they try to get past Istas."
"Yes General…should I ensure my air assets are warned of Stonehenge?"
"We will proceed as we have, General. Tell them that the same strategy remains until new orders come down."
"Understood, sir. It would help greatly in reducing their capabilities.
"Noted; I will see what exactly I can offer you.."
"Is there anything else, sir?"
"You have your orders; execute them."
Ikov released the transmit button and swallowed a sigh of relief. He handed the object back to the radio operator and stepped back over to the map board.
"We're to hold the ISAF landings here or buy IX Corps enough time to organize. For now, we'll organize along the river and find places where we can bog down their advance. I haven't been given a timetable, but IX Corps should only take 3 to 5 days to be in a position to help us. I want to get a proper reconnaissance done of the ISAF buildup so we can figure out their weak points."
"Yes sir."
Iivari ran his gaze across the river's path and grimaced.
"And if they break through?" He asked.
"We'll move back to Highway 22 bit by bit. We'll chew at ISAF's strength along every meter. The deeper inland they go, the more vulnerable their air support will be." Ikov replied.
"We must be in a totally defensive mindset until we can wear them down enough."
Another explosion in the distance stopped them for a second, but it seemed it was just more demolition work. Iivari's face remained unchanged, though.
"I can't say that I'm fond of the idea of retreating." He admitted.
"You'll come to learn that it makes you wiser, Colonel." Ikov replied. He'd never really experienced it himself, either…
Arthur admired Inga Berghof's photograph like he was seeing it again for the first time. If not her, then he would glance towards the clock near the windows. The precious downtime he had was slowly coming to an end, but he wasn't sure if he wanted to try and get a few more winks of sleep or simply wait. His mind was made up for him by the electronic ping of his email. He lifted an eyebrow and swore to himself that he'd already sent Julia an email. Maybe she was just that impressed by him. He chuckled; he certainly found her assertive nature enticing. Maybe I should start thinking about when I'll need to replace Inga's picture, he joked to himself. He pushed himself to leave the comfort of his bunk for his computer chair and opened up his internet browser. He was surprised enough to recoil a little when the sender appeared to be Vanessa. He opened it without hesitation.
Arthur,
When I received your letter, I have to admit it made me smile. Knowing how young at heart you are, even in the midst of this war. I'm flattered that you see me the way you do, even more so by how determined you've been in trying to let me know about your feelings. Your being in the armed forces, risking yourself for our home, makes it even harder to say this. I'm sorry, but I don't feel the same way…
The young man stopped, but it didn't hurt as much as he'd feared. He hadn't put much faith in his decision to move on providing much buffer. It still hurt, and the emotions going through him were starting to shift. Responses came and went, changing in mood as often as they passed through his head.
"I knew this would happen."
"I'm surprised she responded to me."
"I'm happy she responded to me. It gives me closure, right?"
"I shouldn't let this taint how I view my communications with Julia."
"I'd really hoped, somewhere, she would at least say she likes me. She likes me but our circumstances are too different."
"I should read the rest of this; it's the right thing to do."
Arthur found himself scrolling down further, reasoning that he'd already started ripping off the band-aid.
…Please forgive me, I beg you, but know that I don't feel the same way. Even then, I will always have a special place for you in my heart. You will always be that charming underclassman who put up with more of my drama than you ever deserved. Perhaps the one boy I knew had a crush on me, but could trust fully. I can't say that I'm sorry enough times, but please know that I mean it from the bottom of my heart. If you never want to have to speak another word to me, I understand. Especially when you're fighting to retake the continent. Hopefully, as an olive branch, what I attached will help. My personal email, this email, is also open to you. I still want to be in contact. To support you, so we can support one-another. Like we used to in school. You'll be in my prayers, that you see this war end safe and sound…
Arthur sighed and leaned forward to rest his chin against his hand. He wasn't certain that he should reply, or even see what she'd sent. It was an MP3 file titled "Those Were the Days, 01/24/05"; he guessed it was the old Mary Hopkin tune performed by her. He exited the email and went back to Julia's message. He started to read it, then stopped and wrapped his knuckles against the desk. He went back to Vanessa's and started typing out a response. Something to at least chew on for later. He could agree with himself that sending a reply would be the mature and polite thing to do. It would be deciding what exactly to say that would require some thinking. A new chapter in his life was starting, and he was going to do everything he could to make sure this one was written the right way.
A/N: Thank you for reading.
