by J. E. Park
Tala struggled to maintain her poker face. She had never heard of Manny before, but after I was nearly killed outside of my apartment, she certainly knew who Rafaela was.
“Do you have any idea where your mother is, Manuel?” one of the missionaries asked.
The little boy shook his head. “No, but I don’t think she’s coming back.”
Tala was pretty sure that Rafaela was not returning, also. In her letter, Tala wondered if Manny’s mother was the type of woman who would abandon her son to go into hiding. I did not wonder that at all. I knew that there was no way that Rafaela would leave Manny alone on her own. The only thing I was wondering about was if anyone would ever find her body.
And what I was getting myself into with Tejada and Darrow.
End
Next in the Tequila Vikings Series: Neptune’s Martyrs (Aug 2021)
Author’s Note – Did you enjoy this story? If so, I invite you to please leave a review on Amazon.com! Good reviews not only raise the visibility of an author’s work; they massage our fragile egos. It keeps us from priming our muses with absinthe and psychosis.
Acknowledgments
No great task is ever undertaken alone, and this was certainly no exception. There were plenty of people who offered me their encouragement and support in getting this, and the subsequent books of this series, written.
The first people I have to thank is my family. This has been a LONG effort, three years in the making, and there was a lot of time taken away from my wife and children to get this done. To Patrina, Regan, Mason, Carson, Fairen, and Linden, I love you and thank you for your patience, enthusiasm, and support.
Second, I have to thank the men I served with aboard the USS Belleau Wood in the early 1990s. The Tequila Viking series is absolutely a work of fiction, but it was inspired by the diverse cast of colorful characters I was in the Navy with. I would like to acknowledge those who invited me into NPA territory while we were closing the base down in 1992 and supplied me with enough anecdotes to keep Olongapo Earp interesting.
As usual, I also need to thank the Grand Blanc Authors Meetup who have continually read, critiqued, and listened to my work for three years now. THANK YOU!
I would also like to thank Jim Goodman, the admin of the Subic Bay Olongapo & Angeles City Memories (For Vets) Facebook group, for his support of the Tequila Vikings release. If you were stationed in the Philippines, check out his group! If you were not, you could also learn more about Olongapo at The Subic Bay Project group he also runs. That one’s a bit more family-friendly. I also need to shout out to Steve Morgan, the world’s best bartender in Sasebo, Japan, for his invaluable advice that helped me navigate my misadventures in the Far East during my gloriously misspent youth. I sincerely thank you. Not going to lie, though. My liver’s still pissed.
And, of course, my beta readers! Rich Sorgenfrei and Tim Geniac, thank you so much for your help and invaluable assistance in helping me get this done.
And, of course, to you, the reader, thank you so much for continuing through the second book in the Tequila Viking saga. I hope I earned the opportunity to have you continue on and read Book 3 – Neptune’s Martyrs.
Appendix I
Slang and Abbreviations
1MC -
The ship’s public address system.
Aft -
In the direction of the stern of a ship.
AFPD
Armed Forces Police Department – An American military law enforcement organization tasked with keeping order in Olongapo, Philippines
Airedales -
Sailors assigned in roles to support air operations.
A School -
Navy school that teaches a recruit how to do their job.
BCD
Bad Conduct Discharge. Also known as the “Big Chicken Dinner.”
BE/E School -
Basic Electricity and Electronics School. This is the first phase of training for US Navy electronics rates for ET, FC, ST.
Blanket Party -
(or “Bosun Locker Counseling Session” or “Fan Room Counseling Session”) Unauthorized, and illegal, disciplinary action involving violence to adjust a crew member’s behavior or mete out revenge if a man could not be held accountable through normal channels.
Booter –
Green, new sailor. Fresh out of boot camp or A School.
Brig -
The ship’s jail.
Bow -
The front of a ship.
Bulkhead -
Wall on a ship.
Captain’s Mast -
Non-judicial punishment for relatively minor (misdemeanor) offenses. Sentences can range from restriction, loss of pay, confinement with bread and water, or discharge from service (known as Article 15 in other services).
C School -
Technical school that teaches a sailor how to perform a specific task or repair a particular piece of equipment. Training that allows a sailor to become a specialist within their rate.
CIC -
Combat Information Center. The place on a ship where the crew monitors the radar, sonar, and other detection systems. It is a dark room with a lot of electronics gear.
CSE -
Combat Systems (Electronics). A division of the Combat Systems Department in charge of maintaining radar and communications equipment.
CSO -
Combat Systems Office -or- Combat Systems Officer. Is used interchangeably as a space or a person. The CSO person is located in the CSO location.
CO -
Commanding Officer.
Deck -
The floor or the ground on a ship.
Deck Apes -
Boatswain’s Mates, sailors assigned to the Deck Department charged with maintaining the appearance and working order of ship’s surfaces.
EMO -
Electronics Materials Office -or- Electronics Materials Officer. Is used interchangeably as a space or a person. The EMO person is located in the EMO location.
Field Day -
Deep cleaning of a ship’s spaces.
Fore -
In the direction of the bow of a ship.
Gedunk -
Junk food.
GI Shower -
(or “The Scrub”) When the sailors pull a crew member with hygiene issues into the shower to clean him up with wire brushes, scalding water, and industrial abrasives.
Gundecking -
Signing off work as complete despite not actually doing it.
Head -
Bathroom.
Helm -
The wheel used to steer the ship.
IC Line -
Ship’s internal telephone system.
JAG
Judge Advocate General – A Navy lawyer
Ladder -
Stairs.
LBFM -
Little Brown Fucking Machine. Slang for Filipina bar girls (not derogatory. It is a complimentary, if vulgar, term – bar girls would often refer to themselves as an LBFM).
Liberty Drip -
Venereal Disease.
Master-at-Arms -
Navy version of an MP (Military Policeman).
NIS -
Naval Investigative Service. The US Navy’s version of the FBI. At the time of this story, the NIS had just been renamed as the NCIS (Naval Criminal Investigative Service), but the change was new, and the sailors of the fleet still usually referred to it by its old name.
OOD -
Officer of the Deck. This is the watch that controls access to the ship and is in charge of the quarterdeck while in port.
Overhead -
The ceiling on a ship.
Passageways -
Hallways on a ship.
Pecker Checkers -
Hospital Corpsmen, the ship’s medical personnel.
PI -
The Philippines.
PMS -
Preventative Maintenance Schedule. This dictates the frequency and timing of equipment maintenance tasks.
POOW -<
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Petty Officer of the Watch. Mans the podium on the quarterdeck while in port, armed with a pistol. Makes the announcements over the 1MC, logs activity about the ship.
Port -
The left side of a ship when facing forward.
Rank -
Paygrade of a sailor, his place in the command hierarchy.
Rate -
The job a sailor is trained to perform aboard a ship.
RPPO
Repair Parts Petty Officer – the technician on temporary duty to requisition parts for the division.
Sand Dog -
San Diego
Scuttlebutt -
A rumor or a drinking fountain.
Shellback -
A sailor that has gone through the Shellback initiation ritual while crossing the equator – a tradition hundreds of years old.
Skating -
Avoiding work, goofing off (also skylarking).
Space -
A room or a compartment on a ship.
Snipes -
Engineers. Sailors charged with the propulsion of ship and essential services such as electricity, water, and fuel.
SP –
Shore Patrol. US Navy version of MP, but composed of duty personnel, not professional military police personnel.
Starboard -
The right side of a ship when facing forward.
Stern -
The back end of a ship.
TJ -
Tijuana, Mexico
Trons -
Electronics
Twidgets -
Technicians, sailors working in technical rates.
UCMJ -
Uniform Code of Military Justice. This is the list of laws and regulations that apply to military personnel, violations of which can be punished under a Captain’s Mast or court-martial.
Wog -
A sailor who has never crossed the equator and has not taken part in the Shellback initiation.
XO -
Executive Officer (ship’s second in command).
Appendix II
Rates and Rank
Officers
Naval officer ranks are straightforward, progressing from the lowest officer paygrade (O-1) to the highest (O-10).
O-1Ensign (ENS)
O-2Lieutenant Junior Grade (LTJG)
O-3Lieutenant (LT)
O-4Lieutenant Commander (LCDR)
O-5Commander (CDR)
O-6Captain (CAP)
O-7Rear Admiral Lower Half (RADM)
O-8Rear Admiral Upper Half (RADM)
O-9Vice Admiral (VADM)
O-10Admiral (ADM)
Enlisted Rates and Rank
Rank
Enlisted ranks are among the most complicated of any US military branch. A typical enlisted rank consists of a two or three letter rate designation followed by letters or numbers that identify a sailor’s paygrade. For instance, the rank “ET2” means that a sailor is an E-5, a second-class electronics technician. The “ET” signifies that the sailor is an Electronics Technician. The “2” indicates that their paygrade is E-5. An ETSN would be a junior Electronics Technician whose paygrade was E-3. An ETCM would be a Master Chief Electronics Technician (paygrade E-9).
Junior enlisted ranks are identified by hash marks on the right arm, the color of which designates which general function of the ship’s contingent they work for.
Seaman (White Hash Marks) – General seamanship duties
Airman (Green Hash Marks) – General aviation duties
Fireman (Red Hash Marks) – General engineering duties
E-1Seaman / Airman / Fireman Recruit (SR, AR, FR)
E-2Seaman / Airman / Fireman Apprentice (SA, AA, FA)
E-3Seaman / Airman / Fireman (SN, AN, FN)
E-4Petty Officer Third Class (PO3)
E-5Petty Officer Second Class (PO2)
E-6Petty Officer First Class (PO1)
E-7Chief Petty Officer (POC)
E-8Senior Chief Petty Officer (POCS)
E-9Master Chief Petty Officer (POCM)
Rates
ACAir Traffic Controller
AGAerographer’s Mate
AOAviation Ordinanceman
BMBoatswain’s Mate
DSData Systems Technician
ETElectronics Technician
FCFire Control Technician
GMGunner’s Mate
HMHospital Corpsman
MAMaster-at-Arms
MSMess Specialist
OSOperations Specialist
QMQuartermaster
RMRadioman
SKStorekeeper
STSonar Technician
SM Signalman
YNYeoman
Author’s Note –
The Engineering Department is grossly underrepresented in this story. This is only because it is told from the viewpoint of an Electronics Technician. ETs tended to work near the top of the island structure on an amphibious assault ship, several stories above the waterline. The snipes worked deep within the ship’s bowels, well below the surface of the ocean. The two groups did not mix much, served different duties and watches, and rarely crossed paths anywhere but on the mess decks. On the occasions I did run into an engineer shipmate out in town, ninety-five percent of the time they did not even look familiar to me, nor I to them. Mad props to the snipes, though – they worked insanely hard at a dirty, demanding job. Without them, a navy ship goes nowhere. - JEP
About the Tequila Vikings Series
The Tequila Vikings Saga is a four-part series chronicling the story of Doyle Murphy as he seeks his place in the world and a way to overcome the trauma of his childhood while serving aboard the USS Belleau Wood.
Book One – Tequila Vikings
Book Two – Olongapo Earp
Book Three –Neptune’s Martyrs
Book Four – Darien Gap
Next in Series – Neptune’s Martyrs
Longing to return to the Philippines, Doyle Murphy embarks upon a risky venture with Master Chief Darrow and Rico Tejada that can set them up for life. Or destroy them all forever.
About the Author
J.E. Park grew up near Detroit, MI, where he spent much of his gloriously misspent youth seeking misadventure within the Motor City's punk rock scene. After high school, he joined the Navy and spent several years bar brawling his way across the Far East, the experiences that formed the bedrock of the Tequila Vikings novels.
SNEAK PEEK
NEPTUNE’S MARTYRS
Prologue
S taff Sergeant Emilio Payan laughed at the Pampanga Aeta when they fled their homes in April. More often known as negritos, Payan always thought the Aeta were a funny people. They were short, very dark, and the hair on their heads was coarse and kinky. They looked more like African pygmies than Filipinos. They lived more like them too. They dressed in rags and slept in bamboo huts without electricity or running water. The Aeta also prayed to the spirits of nature, which Payan considered an affront to the tradition of Philippine Catholicism.
Their animistic religions, along with their ways as hunters and gatherers, made the Aeta seem primitive. Emilio Payan was far from being the only Filipino to regard them as unsophisticated and prone to the whimsy of superstition. It was why the sergeant ridiculed them when they abandoned their homes on the slopes of Pinatubo. All it took was a few minor earthquakes around the mountain’s summit, and the runts went running for the lowlands.
On June 15th, 1991, ten weeks after the start of the Aeta exodus, Sergeant Payan realized that the negritos had been on to something, and he wished that he had fled with them.
By then, it looked like the world was about to end. Pinatubo erupted on June 12th, spewing a column of ash more than twelve miles into the heavens. Payan saw it happen firsthand. Stationed at the Cesar Basa Air Base, he was less than fifteen miles from the volcano. From the porch of his barracks, it looked as if he was standing right in the middle of it. A massive ash cloud blotted out the sky and once the sun set that night, it would not ris
e again for two days.
Like everywhere else within a hundred miles of Pinatubo, the base descended into chaos. The facility never received any warning about an impending eruption. Because of that, they never got its squadron of F-8 Crusaders off of the ground. Most of Basa’s airmen had to be dispatched to the hangars to do whatever they could to save the jets. The commander of the base sent others to secure the food and water supplies. Some rushed to maintain communications and coordinate the base’s response to the disaster. Payan ended up on a detail ordered to secure the armory on the other side of the facility. This gave the sergeant pause. Payan’s objective was located that much closer to the source of the commotion that he wanted to get away from.
The airbase’s arsenal was housed in a large, square cinderblock building. It had a flat roof perfectly designed to capture all the ash spewed by an erupting volcano and hold it in place until it collapsed under the weight. When Payan stepped inside, the rafters were already creaking with an ominous warning that they were not going to hold up for long. Within thirty seconds of their arrival, half of the detail was urgently ordered to find shovels to clear the roof. The other half was sent scrounging for materials to shore it up.