Standing in the Storm
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Standing in the Storm
The Last Brigade, Book 2
William Alan Webb
Dingbat Publishing
Humble, Texas
Standing in the Storm
Copyright © 2017 by William Alan Webb
ISBN 978-1-940520-73-5
Published by Dingbat Publishing
Humble, Texas
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without written consent, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.
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Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters, and events are entirely the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to persons living or dead, actual locations, events, or organizations is coincidental.
Cast of Characters
The Angriff family
Nicholas Trajanus Angriff — General of the Army. Nick the A to those who fear him. Idolizes George Patton’s tactical genius and persona, but not as fussy as Patton about personal appearance and decorum. Like another hero of his, Winston Churchill, Angriff is sometimes accused of courting danger. As a three-star general, he led tactical missions more suited to a captain or lieutenant, usually against direct orders not to do so. His career survived because of his popularity with his men and the public, and his record of success.
Janine Marie Jackson Angriff — Nick’s wife, a victim in the Lake Tahoe ‘incident.’
Lieutenant Morgan Mary Randall, nee Angriff — Older of Nick’s two daughters. Lieutenant in the US Army, executive officer First Platoon, Alpha Company, 1st Tank Battalion. Call sign Bulldozer One One Two. Married to Captain Joe Randall. Nicknamed Tank Girl.
Cynthia June Angriff — Nick’s younger daughter, caught in the same attack as her mother.
The Americans
Lt. General Norman Vincent Fleming — Executive Officer of the 7th Cavalry, also the Brigade S-3, Operations. Norm is Nick Angriff’s best friend, dating back to their days in OCS. Both men enlisted and worked their way through the ranks, an almost impossible feat. Fleming is the man Angriff trusts above all others.
Major General Dennis Tompkins — Survivor of the Collapse who did not go cold, but instead lived fifty years in post-Collapse America, leading his team of five survivors.
Captain Joseph Daniel Randall — The best helicopter pilot in the brigade. Married to Morgan Randall. Call sign Ripsaw Real.
Lieutenant George ‘Bunny’ Carlos — Joe Randall’s best friend and co-pilot.
Lieutenant Alisa Plotz — AH-72 Comanche commander and Joe Randall’s wingman.
Sergeant Andy Arnold — Alisa Plotz’s co-pilot.
Sergeant Lorenzo ‘Zo’ Piccaldi — One of the two best snipers in the Marine battalion, friend and secret love interest of Lara Snowtiger.
John Paul Thibodeaux — best friend to Dennis Tompkins during their fifty years wandering in the wilderness.
Paul Hausser — One of Tompkins’ five survivors.
Sig Zuckerman — Another member of Tompkins’ final group of five.
Derek Tandy — One of Tompkins’ five.
Monty Wilson — One of Tompkins’ five.
PFC Lara Snowtiger — Marine sniper, a full-blooded Choctaw. Snowtiger embraced her heritage and is versed in Choctaw lore. She is considered as good as any sniper in the 7th Cavalry, including Zo Piccaldi.
Colonel Benjamin Franklin Walling — Promoted to his present rank by Angriff, he commands the headquarters staff and manages Angriff’s day-to-day schedule.
Sergeant Major of the Army John Charles Schiller — Trusted subordinate who runs the day-to-day routine for Angriff’s headquarters. Angriff often asks Schiller for advice.
Colonel William Emerson Schiller — Brother of Sergeant J.C. Schiller, he is the brigade’s S-4, Supply Officer, and is considered a savant at supply chain organization and utilization.
Lt. Colonel Roger ‘Rip’ Kordibowski — Battalion S-2, Intelligence Officer.
Colonel Todd Berger — Commander of the Marine Recon Battalion.
Colonel Michael Ricci — Commander of the Tank Battalion.
Sergeant Norma Spears — Barracks Sergeant for the female Marines.
Captain Robert Malkinovich — First Company Commander, Tank Battalion. Call sign Bulldozer One One.
Major Harold ‘Harry the Hat’ Strickland — Executive Officer of the 1st Marine Recon Battalion.
Captain Martin S. Sully — Commander of Dog Company, 7th Marine Reconnaissance Battalion.
Lieutenant Akio Tensikaya — Commander of First Platoon, Alpha Company, Tank Battalion. Morgan Randall is his executive officer.
Major Fitzhugh Howarth Claringdon — Executive Officer of the Tank Battalion.
Lt. Colonel Ashley Wisnewski-Smith — 7th Brigade S-9, Civil-Military Cooperation.
Ian Jones — Civilian Head of Construction and Maintenance Department.
Private Howard Wilson Dupree — Communications specialist and computer whiz.
Sergeant Frances (Frame) Rossi — Crew chief for Tank Girl.
The crew of Joe’s Junk
Staff Sergeant Joe Ootoi — Nicknamed ‘Toy.’ Gunner.
Corporal Tanya Marscal — Driver. Although born in the USA, Tanya has a faint Ukrainian accent because both of her parents emigrated from their homeland and she picked up traces of the way they spoke. She is also fluent in Russian and Ukrainian.
Martha ‘Marty’ Bright-Hu — Loader. Widowed, husband was Paul Hu, pronounced with a long ‘U.’
Task Force Zombie, a/k/a ‘The Nameless’
Green Ghost — Longtime subordinate of Angriff’s and currently his S-5, Security. His real identity is unknown, as the Nameless only have code names. Angriff trusts him completely.
Vapor — Original member of TF Zombie. Wise-cracking member of the team. He and Green Ghost have known each other since childhood.
One Eye — Original member of TF Zombie. Nickname refers to his personality.
Wingnut — Original member of TF Zombie. Taciturn, a specialist at explosives and chemicals.
Glide — Replacement addition to TF Zombie, Glide is an ultra-dangerous computer specialist. She is gorgeous, and an 8th degree Krav Maga.
Nipple — Green Ghost’s twin sister. Most think she is psychotic, but like her brother, her reflexes are off the chart.
Razor — Replacement addition, the newest member of the team.
The Sevens
Nabi Husam Allah — The Caliph of the Caliphate of the Seven Prayers of the New Prophet, self-proclaimed prophet of Allah. In truth, he is Larry Armstrong, a criminal conman. His adherents are fanatically loyal.
Abdul-Qudoos Fadil el Mofty — Emir of New Khorasan. His original name is Richard Lee Armstrong, brother of the Caliph, Larry Armstrong. He bears the title of Superior Imam, second only to the Caliph himself, who is the Supreme Imam. These titles were created by the Armstrong brothers to elevate them above all imams in Islam. He is also second in command of The Sword of the New Prophet, the military arm of the Caliphate.
Evie Armstrong, a/k/a Manahil Bashara — Sister of Larry and Richard Lee Armstrong, mother of Sati Bashara.
Ibrahim Yaseen — Counselor of Production for the P
rovince and one of the men el Mofty suspected of being a spy for the Caliph.
Ahmednur Hussien Muhdin — The top-ranking general in New Khorasan.
Sati Bashara — Senior Aga and oldest nephew of Emir Abdul-Qudoos Fadil el Mofty, appointed head of the province of New Khorasan, a region of the larger Caliphate of the Seven Prayers of the New Prophet, encompassing parts of Arizona, New Mexico, and old Mexico. He is the second most powerful lieutenant in New Khorasan.
Haleem — Childhood friend and constant companion of Sati Bashara.
Wazid — Friend of Bashara.
Paco Mohammad — Born in old Mexico, Paco led a band of friends and relatives north looking for food and shelter. Confronted by forces of the Amir of New Khorasan, Paco decided to convert to the Amir’s brand of Islam rather than be wiped out, becoming, in effect, a throwaway mercenary force.
Civilians
Richard Parfist — Lived in a village far outside of Prescott, until General Patton’s Guards raided the village.
Lisa Parfist — Richard Parfist’s wife.
Kayla Parfist — Richard and Lisa Parfist’s 15-year-old daughter.
Rick Parfist, Jr. — Richard and Lisa Parfist’s 12-year-old son.
The Apaches
Govind — Chief of the Western Apache.
Gosheven — The middle of the three brothers.
Gopan — Govind’s youngest brother.
The New Republic of Arizona
Lester Earl Hull, a/k/a General George Patton V — Warlord leader of the New Republic of Arizona.
Colonel Norbert Cranston — Second in command to Lester Hull and commander of the military forces of the New Republic.
Author’s Foreword
The Last Brigade series is my homage to the armed forces of the United States and all others fighting to keep the world free of tyranny. The world view the series presents is, at its core, pretty simple: America and those who stand with her are the good guys. There may be (and are) some bad people within those armed forces, but the vast majority do so for all the right reasons. This book and others in the series represent my ideals on patriotism, and I make no apologies for that. If you’re looking for America-bashing, you won’t find it here.
But this is not an essay. These books are designed to be fast, fun to read, a little over the top, and, maybe, bringing an important issue or two to the forefront. I don’t know about you, but reading a thriller about average people doing average things doesn’t sound very exciting to me. It might be realistic, but I read to be entertained, and I don’t find that entertaining. A good thriller using average people as characters would have them doing extraordinary things, things that are over the top, things they would never do otherwise. Many writers have mastered the art of confronting a normal person with dangerous events, thereby forcing their characters to take actions they never dreamed they would take. Heck, it’s an entire sub-genre of crime novels and thrillers.
My books take this premise a step further. I start with extraordinary people and then have them do extraordinary things. For example, few real people would carry a fifty-caliber Desert Eagle pistol into combat, like Nick Angriff does. I can think of a dozen reasons why it’s a terrible idea. For one thing, seven rounds is a small magazine. For another, the recoil using such a pistol one-handed would require massive wrist strength to rip off multiple rounds quickly. And yet Nick does this and I think it’s really cool, and apparently so do a lot of others. A real person could never do that… but what if they could? If someone else had written this series, I’d be all over it, because it’s fun. I’m a fan of this genre. It’s the kind of thing I like to read, and that’s the only thing I know how to write.
Nick Angriff is the amalgamation of every hero I’ve ever read about, from George Patton and Erwin Rommel to Conan the Barbarian and Sergeant Nick Fury. He is able to fire his Desert Eagles with pinpoint accuracy while riding in an armored personnel carrier down a bumpy African road, because he is Nick Angriff. He can do it; others can’t. Why? Because he can, that’s why. Likewise, in real life, lieutenant generals don’t lead tactical rescue missions into the jungles of a hostile nation. Nick did it in Standing The Final Watch because it was fun. This is, after all, science fiction, with a touch here and there of fantasy. I’m going to take liberties where I think them appropriate in the interest of telling a better story. And, just for the record, the Angriffs have physical abilities in the top 0.1% of humanity. If non-fiction is more your cuppa, then I’m with you there! I write that, too.
Early versions of this book had every technical detail you can imagine, from the precise model number of an APC (I even had a serial number in there) to how various small arms worked and why. The order of battle for the brigade was right out of the Army manual. But the book was s-l-o-w. So I’ve played fast and loose with the organization, the events, the way things lay out, and the dialogue of the military characters. Is it the way someone might speak in combat? Not always. But is it fun to read? I think so. And if I’m right, then I’ve done my job.
If you are preparing to read Standing In The Storm but have not yet read The Ghost of Voodoo Village: Short Story and Bonus Chapters for Standing The Final Watch, you might consider doing so first. There are a couple of sub-plots in Bonus Chapters that are mentioned in SITS and become significant in books three and later. Green Ghost’s origin story, The Ghost of Voodoo Village, would also explain a number of lingering questions about him and his sister.
Standing The Final Watch has been a major success. I wish to thank all who invested their precious time and money with me. There is a trust burden on a writer to deliver the best possible story to the reader who spends the money to read it. Please know that I work hard at my craft. I want you to feel your time and money are well spent, and I will never forget that any success I may have is because of you, my readers.
May God bless you all!
William Alan Webb
18 January 2017
In the west a storm is brewing, and another in the east,
In the south a tyrant lurks, less man than vicious beast;
Innocents cower in between, at the mercy of the swarm,
Until brave Americans shield them, by standing in the storm.
Sergio Velazquez, “Standing In The Storm”
About me died the world I knew,
In its place a new world grew;
Where masses worked for a privileged few,
Just like the old world that I knew.
The ruling clique held tight the yoke,
Around the neck of common folk;
Ignoring the freedom of which they spoke,
Until the little men awoke.
Sergio Velazquez, from “Yoke”
Prologue
What is the force that compels a man to risk his life day after day, to endure the constant tension, the fear of death… the steady loss of his friends? What can possess a rational man to make him act so irrationally?
James McPherson
The Sonoran Desert
1647 hours, June 25
“What’re we looking at, G.G.?” Vapor said. After a quick look, he lay on his back on the hill’s reverse slope.
Green Ghost propped his elbows on the crest of the hill and adjusted his binoculars. After following the old highway for two days, he and his crew had deployed on opposite sides when a vehicle came up from the south. He focused the lenses.
One hundred yards away, three men stood around a Honda sedan. With the sun at his back, he could distinguish every detail of them and their vehicle. Dust coated the car, including the two jerry cans and spare tire tied to the roof. Painted on the driver’s door was an upright crescent moon crossed by a scimitar. The meaning could not have been more obvious, even without the Arabic script below it.
“They’re young, late teens or early twenties. They haven’t missed any meals, either,” he said. “Clothes are well made, no holes or patches. Leather shoes…”
“No split-tails?”
Green Ghost lower
ed the binoculars and gave Vapor a sideways look they both knew meant knock it off.
“Weapons?”
Green Ghost brought the binoculars back to his face. “Yeah, all three are carrying. Looks like M16s; could be M-4s, though.”
“What’s that gibberish on the car say?” Vapor asked.
“You know it’s Arabic. At least it’s supposed to be; the grammar is awful. It says new prophet word.”
“So it’s Islamic?”
“I don’t know. That’s question numero uno for those three… damn!”
“Waddup, bwana?”
“They’re hauling ass.”
He shifted the binoculars to focus on a slight rise on the other side of the highway. Holding his left hand straight up, he extended five fingers, meaning don’t shoot unless you have to. Two hundred yards away, Wingnut extended his own arm with his fingers making the Okay sign.
“If this goes to shit, aim for the tires. We need prisoners.”
“What could possibly go wrong?” Vapor said.
Green Ghost ignored the sarcasm. Setting aside his M16, he stood up in full view. The driver had climbed into his seat and the other two had their doors open. Once they were inside the car, Green Ghost’s crew could not stop it without gunfire.
“Hey!” he yelled, waving his arms. “Up here!”
The car emptied. Its occupants ran to the other side and brought their rifles to bear on the man who’d appeared out of nowhere. Green Ghost took a step down the hill, keeping his hands up. He took a second step, then a third.
One shot echoed across the desert and kicked up dust to his right.
“No!” he screamed. “Don’t shoot, don’t shoot. I’m unarmed.”