Chapter Eight
With the news that their country had been handed over to the Chinese Mike called the leadership of the Middle Militia together. As much as Mike was beginning to feel at home in this new town a sense of duty called upon him to take action. He had taken an oath to protect his country from all enemies both foreign and domestic, and now it seemed that there was an enemy fitting into both categories. Mike gathered his leaders together and had them walk with him a few miles away from camp in order to keep their meeting confidential until they had some answers to bring back to town.
“Ok guys I know that there has been a lot on everybody’s minds lately and for good reason. I for one cannot simply sit here while my country falls into the hands of a foreign nation. We need to discuss what we as a group plan to do about it. Do we sit here and defend in place hoping that we are buried in the mountains well enough to stay safe and hidden? I myself feel that we are deep enough into the mountains and that there are no useful resources nearby so the Chinese will most likely not care to search this area in the near future. At the same time my sense of patriotism extends out of these mountains and begs to fight for all the people of my nation.”
“Mike, you know that I consider myself to be the voice of reason in our group,” Tom started, “but I feel for the people that are out there at the mercy of a country now being run by a foreign government with questionable intentions. We are not the scared group of people we were when this first started. You saw to it that we became well trained soldiers and if you are confident I’m sure my men will follow you to battle and I will gladly lead them.”
“Shit I am ready to go kick some ass!” Steve chimed in. “I’ve been getting bored out of my mind in this little town and it’s about damn time we start doing something.”
“We’re with ya, Mike, whatever you decide to do I’m on board.” said Mark.
“Well first of all guys I have no idea what the plan is. There is no way for us to know just how bad everything is from our little place in these mountains. I want to fight, but we need to make sure that our actions are never linked back to these mountains. I propose we begin by sending out scouts into the nearest towns and major roadways. We have to find out where the nearest signs of Chinese occupation are located without our scouts being detected, and we have to eliminate them quietly and make the bodies disappear so that there are no signs of a fight. The last thing we need is to have a couple dead Chinese soldiers found near our town.”
“I’ll take my scouts south and start searching along interstate 90, dad can have his head east to 15 and start heading south. We can meet in the Middle while Tom runs scouts to the west to see what is on the border,” Steve suggested.
“I like it Steve,” Mike replied, “it is going to be a long process but I feel that it is doable. If you find any signs of the Chinese I don’t want you to attack unless your position is compromised. If you have to fight make sure that any and all signs of a violent shootout are cleaned up. We will map any check points and once we are ready we will make plans to take them out all at once, in the middle of the night. We will send the majority of the night vision goggles we acquired from Fort Jefferson with the scouts as well as maps to plot exact locations.”
All men were in agreement and headed back to the town to inform the rest of the militia and to hold a town meeting. Later that night, right as the sun was setting behind the mountains the entire town came out to hear what was being planned. There had been a lot of rumors floating around town and this would hopefully put them to rest.
Mike stood in front of the soldiers he had trained and their families who all stared up at him silently waiting for him to begin. “When we started this journey,” Mike began, “we left our homes with the understanding that we may have to take our cause and our beliefs outside of these mountains at some point. I believe that we have reached that point. The fears that we all had over the last few years ended up being nothing compared to the harsh reality that we have all been hearing about with the latest news reports. We left our suburban town in Pennsylvania afraid that our government would never look out for our best interest and now we are faced with the grim truth that we have been sold out to a foreign nation. The Chinese have owned the majority of our nation’s growing debt for decades now, are an ever growing super power, but are overpopulated and losing natural resources by the day. I cannot imagine that they have taken ownership of this country with our safety and even survival as their main objective. I firmly believe that our people will at best become second class citizens, left only to perform hard labor, and at worse be eradicated as a plague to the current ventures of the Chinese government. We are now faced with a responsibility that comes with having a well trained, armed, and motivated militia as well as being a community who prides itself on the traditions of a free nation. If we were to sit back in these mountains it is possible that we might be spared, at least for a time, from what is happening elsewhere, but to do that would compromise our values and everything which we hold close to our hearts. We will leave some of the trained militia here to defend this town but for the rest of us it is time to fight!”
As Mike finished speaking, the entire town began to clap and cheer. Everyone here wanted the same thing that Mike did, a chance to take back their free nation and one day be able to leave the harsh winters and return to their homes. Mike only hoped that he would be able to grow the numbers of this small army quickly. For now they would have the element of surprise on what Mike was sure would be a very unsuspecting foreign army, but it would not be long before the hunters would become the hunted.
The following morning each platoon sent out their scouts for what they knew was going to be many tiring months of reconnaissance. Mike stayed in the rear listening for news from his scouts and making plans for the assault. The area that this town was built in was right between two main highways, interstate 90 to the south and interstate 15 to the east. Both highways were a good sixty miles from Middle and the border of Idaho was at least one hundred miles to the west. The scouts were the most highly trained members of the militia and would make good time getting to the roads but it would take through the spring and summer to get a good picture of what, if anything was along these main routes.
By using the terrain, the many pairs of binoculars that had been donated from the hunters in their group, and the night vision goggles Mike’s old unit had been kind enough to abandon on Fort Jefferson they would be able to stay out of sight and map large sections of the interstates at a time.
While Mike listened to news reports that grew worse each day he still understood that the people of this town looked to him as a leader just as the militia did. He did his best to play games with the children and to attend all town meetings while spending his nights studying maps and planning for the different scenarios he thought were possible. With most of the grown men and even some of the women being dedicated to the current task of the militia Mike knew that the town would be left with less mouths to feed but less hunters to feed the women and children who stayed. Mike recruited everyone who wanted to learn to hunt and fish and began teaching them everything he could about finding food. Most of the boys were eager to take to this task and spent their days under Mike’s tutelage.
As spring became summer scouts started to come back into town with new reports. Each platoon sent their fastest men back in teams to brief Mike when they found anything and then the fast scouts would link back up with their elements at chosen points. So far Marks scouts had found one check point just south of the Canadian border along interstate 15 and another near Great Falls. Steve’s scouts had found one where interstate 90 meets with the Idaho border. Tom had not found any on the borderline yet as Mike had expected. There would be no reason to have a large military presence in the lightly populated state of Montana and the Chinese would have figured that staying to the major highways was more than adequate.
The last of the scouts came back in late September after having searched their entire sections finding
only one more checkpoint where interstate 15 meets with interstate 90 near the town of Butte. Mike gave orders to each scout team to let their leaders know to move into position for an attack. Mark’s teams would head back north and set up on the checkpoints outside the Canadian border and Great Falls, while Steve would take out the enemy in Butte, and Tom’s platoon would attack the enemy on the border of Idaho. They were told to assault simultaneously in two weeks at exactly midnight. All scouts set their watches off of Mike’s and headed back to their platoon leaders.
After saying his goodbyes to the people of Middle Mike joined with the scouts from Steve’s platoon and sent the rest of the militia with their platoon’s scouts. He knew he might never again see this town and it saddened him. Middle would always be as much a part of him as their original town of Edinboro had been, if not more. Just as the town was almost out of sight, Mike looked back at all that they had created and smiled. With or without the militia they would be just fine.
Chapter Nine
When he finally reached Steve’s post outside of Butte he hardly recognized his old friend. Steve had given up shaving and looked like a classic mountain man. His hair had grown wild and his beard long. Wearing a combination of a camouflaged military uniform and animal skins combined with his sheer size made him an even more intimidating image than he had been in football pads during their high school playing days.
“Holy shit, Grizzly Adams, I didn’t even know who you were until your big ass stood up,” Mike joked.
“Awe you’re just jealous, Mike. You wish you could be as pretty as me,” Steve laughed. So we still have nearly a week until target practice huh? Don’t know if I can keep the men waiting that long but I suppose if the order is coming from you they will whether they like it or not.” Steve laughed, “Do ya see that house I have drawn on the map?” Steve asked pointing at a rough pencil drawing, “It’s just a hundred feet or so from the checkpoint and that is what these bastards are using for housing. There are about ten of em in there at all times while three of em man the checkpoint. Before we attack I’m gonna send a couple teams to post up outside of the house and when midnight hits they are gonna take those bastards in their sleep while a few of my top shots take out the guards with one shot each. We are pretty sure they have plenty of weapons and equipment stored in that house that we could use or bring with us in case we need it.”
“Damn, Steve, I couldn’t have planned it any better myself,” Mike said. “When the fight is over we will need to clean the sight as quickly as possible. I want no trace that there was ever a check point here much less a 13 dead Chinese troops.”
Mike gathered all of first platoon around to go over the next step in what was about to be their revolutionary war.
“Alright guys, I have tried to send what news I could get back to you but I’m gonna give you all a quick briefing myself anyway. The Chinese have taken our nation and replaced our military with theirs. They are setting up new laws and as you are all obviously aware, they have started setting up checkpoints on the main roads to stop all travel and communications between states. What you might not know is that underground reports are coming across on the radio saying that Americans are being murdered at these checkpoints for trying to sneak loved ones and food across state lines. Our airspace has been made a no fly zone and the only planes we may hear belong to the Chinese, so if we hear any noise from the sky from here on out we need to find conceal ourselves to stay invisible to any recon planes that might be in the air. I have even heard news of the Chinese starting up labor camps for our people to move into in order to get food rations. The last couple of weeks most of the radio stations that are still broadcasting have been airing propaganda about the great government of China and how Americans are lucky to have them here. I for one yell BULLSHIT!”
The group of men all appeared to be getting riled up and calling for battle. Mike looked to Steve who was standing to his side and noticed the seriousness of his friends face even through the thick mane of facial hair. “We are going to take these checkpoints and then we are going to take back our country or die trying.” At that there was a quiet cheer from the group of soldiers.
“Now it is down to business guys. Once we are finished here we will hide out and wait for second platoon to get here from the north. With the roads cleared it will only take a few days’ time at full speed and then we will march to meet third platoon before crossing the border of Idaho. I firmly believe that the smartest thing we can to is to reach the Pacific Ocean in Washington and then move south through California. I don’t feel the Chinese will give us much thought until we have made it to the northern border of California but by then our numbers will have to grow and we will have had to take Seattle which will be the first of hopefully many large cities. We will find any and all Americans in our path and do our best to recruit them. We will kill any Chinese soldiers and put an end to any labor camps we cross. We need to have the open water to our backs before moving east and we need greater numbers to accomplish that. At all times the location of Middle must remain a secret to anybody outside of our current numbers to ensure our families safety. The last thing we want is that information falling into the hands of the Chinese.”
As Mike finished his speech and stepped away from the group to rest for the night he could hear them chanting his name. It startled him at first but he kept what his father had told him in his mind. His father was right he did care for these soldiers just like he had cared for his rangers before them. The first American Revolution was won by small numbers and odd tactics and this Revolution could succeed with the same. With that thought Mike found himself a flat piece of earth and fell asleep.
Over the next week Mike trained with first platoon. He and Steve briefed the men daily and had the soldiers brief the operation back to them until there was not a single tree or line of sight in the area that the men did not know by heart. No detail was left out including the cleaning and removal of the checkpoint. If all went to plan any Chinese troops that came to check on the missing points would not be able to find a trace of them and be confused as to what had happened.
The chosen snipers went miles away to sight in their scopes and practice their shots so as to not risk being heard. Mike had the teams that would enter the house rehearse entry tactics over and over again by building a structure with fallen logs to the proportions of the house and changing rooms around every few times they entered. At night scouts would move in and watch the checkpoint for any signs of change and report back each morning. When the day finally came they were ready.
Mike could feel the hours dragging on like days as they waited for midnight to come. Once the skies were as dark as they were going to get the teams began to move into position. Mike stayed with the snipers and kept a close eye on the Chinese with his binoculars. Half an hour before the assault the entry teams moved into their last position before they would move up and stack on the house. Mike began counting the seconds on his watch. Five minutes until midnight he could just barely make out the teams moving up on the house through his set of night vision.
When his watch finally hit midnight Mike gave the order to fire in a whisper and watched as all three shots hit their targets, dropping the guards simultaneously and the entry teams kicked open the front door, and using their night vision goggles in the dark building, filled the house with gun fire. The entire battle was over less than five minutes after it had started. The Middle Militia had won their first battle.
As soon as the area was searched everyone immediately went to the task of removing every last sign of a checkpoint having ever existed. The house was burned to the ground, then the ashes and remnants left from the fire were moved into the woods to hide or carefully coved with dirt and leaves to appear as though it had never been standing. The bodies were drug half a mile or so into the woods and buried in a shallow grave which was then covered and made invisible. By the time the platoon was finished the area looked no different than any other stretch of roadway in the state of Mon
tana.
Staying in position outside of the lost checkpoint, first platoon kept watch over their objective in case the Chinese had sent others to check on it. After nearly a week with no enemy in sight second platoon arrived and the two joined together for the march to Idaho. Both of second platoons’ objectives had been taken in much the same way and the soldiers of each element were proud of their victories. They moved quickly along interstate 90, making camp in the woods, out of sight from the road each night. The men were eager to join with third platoon and find another battle and another victory and it showed in the fast pace they were setting. Mike thought back to that first road march in front of his childhood home and was amazed that these fast moving men, some carrying close to one hundred pounds on their backs were the same men who had been exhausted moving only a few miles with a fraction of the weight they now carried. They had all fulfilled their promise to him to work hard and become soldiers.
Tom’s platoon had also won a victory as Mike knew they would. While there was a relief of having cleared out the nearest Chinese soldiers to their town, and make their families in Middle even further from the troubles the rest of their country was facing, the men were anxious to get into Idaho. The general consensus among the militia was that the work camps they had heard about had already been turned into World War Two style concentration camps which had imprisoned and killed so many during the psychotic reign of Adolf Hitler in Germany, and Mike agreed.
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