by Steven Linde
As the Soldiers vision adjusted to the night, First Sergeant Pena ordered them to search the area for survivors, and kill them. He also ordered them to collect all of the weapons, ammunition, food, first aid kits, and anything else useful. Once completed, after moving the bodies and stacking them to the rear, they took up their positions for the time being, until Colonel Estevez arrived with the rest of the Army. First Sergeant Pena sent two runners to contact the Colonel and let him know the beach was open, but to hurry, they didn’t have any information on how often the Marines checked on each other. He was positive that sooner or later an officer or NCO would come looking for them.
The Marines that had escaped the onslaught were uninjured and knew the area well due to countless exercises over the years prior to the event. They also knew the way back to the CP, but it was ten miles away and as far as they knew those were the closest Marines to them. It was time to get on the ball and get running. The three men decided that the force that attacked them was small and not the main force, however the main force couldn’t be far behind. If they got through there they could certainly collapse the entire Marine line and Camp Pendleton would be lost.
The men decided to chance it and use the road to run down. It was a gamble, but they didn’t believe the Mexicans were using it at least not now. Running down the road to the CP would save hours of their time, and if they decided to take the safer route through the hills they might not get there until morning. The men were fairly sure the Mexicans would have their man force through. They needed to get hustling, the very survival of the Marine Corps rested in their hands. It all depended on how fast they could get the message back.
After five miles the men were exhausted, yet kept pushing themselves. The Marines were in very good shape and strong, and they ran on one step after another, mile six, mile seven, and then a Humvee came over the hill. The men stopped. It was hard to believe their luck, assuming of course they were other Marines. Feeling that since the vehicle was coming from the direction they were going, odds are it was more Marines. The men were yelling and waving their arms, and the Humvee was driving with blackout lights. The vehicle slowed as it came up to them and stopped. “What the hell are you doing?” asked the Sergeant as he stepped out of the vehicle.
“You need to get us to the CP ASAP!” said Lance Corporal Eggert. “The beach area has been overrun by the Mexicans and they are going to be headed this way.”
“How many are coming this way?” asked the Sergeant.
“As far as I know the entire fucking Mexican Army.” responded the Lance Corporal.
“No shit,” said the Sergeant. “Alright get in let’s get the hell out of here.”
The three men and the Sergeant got into the Humvee, and it turned around heading as fast as it could for the CP. At the CP, the Sergeant hurried the three men into a briefing the Colonel was in.
“What the meaning of this, Sergeant?” said Colonel Bennett.
“I’m sorry sir; we have an urgent development that you need to hear.”
Colonel Bennett eyed the four men standing in front of him. “Ok let’s hear it.”
Lance Corporal Eggert spoke and spent the next twelve minutes explaining what happened at the southwest boundary down at the beach. It wasn’t good news, the entire line had erupted in combat and he didn’t have the forces to plug the hole. The men were possibly right that everything else along the line was a feint meant to keep them busy while the main body of the Mexican Army came thundering through the hole down along the beach area. He dismissed the men and told them to go get some chow, and after they left he called his staff in and gave them the news. They studied the map and realized if they pulled other units to plug that hole it created another one that the Mexicans could exploit. The other problem was that he hadn’t heard from the Marine force that was headed south towards them. Last he heard was this morning, and they were in San Clemente, which means that if they were on the move and hadn’t stopped they should have been here by now. Where the hell were they?
Chapter Thirty-One
Colonel Tekana received the good news and went into action immediately. The main force had been waiting and sent the movement orders. It was going to take a couple of hours to move two thousand men to the beach and then up the bluffs. It was an exciting time if he could pull it off as the entire line would collapse and he knew it. He needed to keep the General engaged in what he was doing and convinced him that what he was doing was showing results. The General was the diversion, and as long as the General kept pounding the lines the Marines wouldn’t be able to move.
Colonel Tekana normally would move with his men, but was holding in place because he had received a telegram from Mexicali ordering him to hold in place. There was a Major Ramos on his way and should be there soon. The telegram stated it was urgent, but it was beyond the Colonels understanding why they just didn’t state the issue in the message. The message had come a few hours ago, so the Major should be arriving anytime. It was a four to five hour drive from Mexicali, assuming there were no issues along the way.
The operation would have to continue without him, but for now he wasn’t worried because he had competent commanders that knew what to do and also knew what his expectations were. There would be consequences for failure, and if any of them did they knew it would mean their life and possibly the lives of their families back in Mexico. Colonel Tekana was anxious to join his men. The Colonel paced back and forth, and another hour passed and the Major still hadn’t arrived. He was receiving some reports that the main body hadn’t reached their initial objective, yet they were moving slow, perhaps the commanders he placed so much faith in were having second thoughts. or were too overly cautious.
Thirty minutes later a Humvee pulled up out in front of his CP. Major Ramos exited the vehicle and moved passed the Colonel without saluting. This outraged Colonel Tekana, he immediately turned and charge after the Major.
“Listen here Major Ramos!” screamed Colonel Tekana.
Major Ramos turned and stared at the Colonel. “Here.” The Major handed a letter to Colonel Tekana. “A personal letter from the Chief of Staff and the President.”
Colonel Tekana took the letter, meeting Major Ramos’ eyes. The Colonel unsealed the envelope and read the letter. He looked up in disbelief. He read it again, then sat down on the nearest chair. He was taking in what he was reading, but it couldn’t be, there was no way it could be true. This was a nightmare.
“What do you know of this?” asked Colonel Tekana.
“I was there when the Americans gave us the ultimatum.”
“We are about to take Camp Pendleton!” Colonel Tekana was adamant.
“No Colonel you’re not,” said the Major. “Earlier today the Americans dropped paratroopers along the border blocking any attempts to reinforce you and the General through Tijuana. They were met by at least one company of Marines. We have visual confirmation of a battleship off the coast of Tijuana, they actually said it fairly close to shore. We know they have the B-52’s as well as other bombers, we also know that you and the General failed to inform the President of this.”
“This is outrageous!” said the Colonel indignantly. “I will not retreat; I will not turn tail and run back to Mexico. The Americans will not follow through with their threats, I don’t believe it!”
“Colonel there is another Major, my counterpart, making the same presentation to the General as we speak. He’s also being made aware of your treachery.”
The Colonel was furious. Who did this Major think he was? This was his command and he didn’t give a damn what that moron General Garcia thought about his actions. He knew he would prevail and show everyone he was right. He would not pull back his Soldiers to Mexico; he would continue to push through.
“Colonel you’re being ordered by the President to return to Mexico and defend her!” exclaimed Major Ramos.
Colonel Tekana laughed. “He’s not the President; he’s the mayor of Mexicali. The President is in Mexico City and
that’s who I take my orders from.”
Major Ramos handed Colonel Tekana another letter. He opened it and read it, read it again. “Is this for real?”
“Yes Colonel, it’s a telegram from the President of Mexico in Mexico City ordering you and the General to return to Mexico immediately.”
This wasn’t happening, the Colonel thought his moment of glory is at hand, he knew he could conquer the Marines and take California. “Thank you Major Ramos you may leave now.” Major Ramos was startled to be dismissed in such a fashion.
“Is there any message you would like for me to pass on to the President?” asked the Major.
“You’re dismissed Major you may leave now!” responded Colonel Tekana angrily.
The Major turned and left the Colonels CP, got into his Humvee and drove away. Down the road about fifty miles the same discussion was happening between General Garcia and Major Aiza. The General reacted far more vigorously then Colonel Tekana. The General went so far as to have Major Aiza arrested and held for treason, and he also ordered that Colonel Tekana be arrested on sight. The General would have a quick military trial for the Colonel and then have him shot. He was on the verge of victory, and once he had control of Camp Pendleton the rest of California was open to him the gringos could do nothing to stop him. That traitor Tekana was now trying to take the glory for himself, and well, that wasn’t going to happen. His force may be smaller now, but his men had the heart of a lion.
General Garcia ordered his artillery batteries to jump sites and get closer to the Marines. He also ordered all of his reserve forces into the fight, he wasn’t going to let the upstart Colonel beat him. His war was now with Colonel Tekana as much as it was with the United States Marines.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Colonel Parker was unaware of the new developments regarding the Mexicans breaking the western lines at the beach, General Garcia’s suicide run up the middle, or even the ultimatum given to Mexico. He was focused on getting the job done. He had entered Camp Pendleton a couple of hours ago and ran into several minefields laid by the HLA that they had to clear.
It took them two hours to clear a path through the minefield, and it was a single path which he had to funnel all of his men and vehicles through. It would have been a great place to ambush them. He got his armor through quickly to set up a perimeter to protect his Marines as they poured through the funnel and into Camp Pendleton. Off in the distance, Colonel Bennett, and everyone else for that matter, could hear artillery barrage. As he headed south, he ran into families, Marine dependents that were heading north in deuce-and-a-half’s, being escorted by a half dozen Marines.
He ordered them to hold up and directed them to several buildings off to their left. He told the families and the Marine escorts that he wouldn’t stop them from leaving and heading north. He asked where they were going to and they didn’t really know. He suggested they stay here where it would be safer and he would leave a couple of platoons behind to help with their security. If they were in any danger they would be back and help them evacuate, but he told them he didn’t think it was going to happen. They agreed for now, and he left them food and water as well as the additional two platoons.
Since Colonel Parker lost his external communications, he had to make some uninformed decisions based on what he could see. He decided to send out his scouts a bit further to the east, west, and right up the middle since he needed more tactical data. He would split his forces as necessary, but he wanted to make sure it counted. His scouts were primarily LAV-25’s and Bradley fighting vehicles, each with 25mm chain guns that could easily tear up a target. The internal communications worked fine, and the expeditionary force had no problems talking to each other. The communications folks assured him they were working on the problem and they hoped to have external comms back up soon, but that had been three hours ago.
The LAV’s and Bradley’s could move fast down primary and secondary roads as well as open fields or desert. The LAV’s headed toward the artillery fire. They were at best ten miles away from the artillery fire and another fifteen miles away from the western-most end of the line. Most of the Marines under Colonel Parker’s command were humping a ruck and wouldn’t be within striking distance for a couple of hours.
The LAV’s were the first to arrive and scout the lines, and the Marines that saw them believed them to be the most beautiful site in their entire lives. The LAV’s through their sites could see in the dark, as their night optics had been protected by the EMP shielding built into the vehicle. They could see Mexican Soldiers advancing on several places on along the line. The LAV’s took up positions and effectively opened up the 25mm chain guns on the Soldiers. The Mexicans were caught in the open and were surprised by the vehicles cutting loose on them. They were being cut down, the chain guns had an incredible rate of fire, and when the Soldiers we able to return fire the vehicles had moved to a new location. This went on for over an hour, eventually creating a hole in the Mexican lines that the LAV’s and Marines were able to exploit and get around the Mexican Army. What they didn’t know at the time was that General Garcia’s CP was three miles directly ahead and that they had cut off all communications to him.
Colonel Bennett’s radio net kicked alive when the LAV’s showed up out of nowhere. “About damned time!” he said.
One of the LAV commanders spoke with a First Lieutenant that looked to be in rough shape. The LAV Commander a SSG Rory told him that Colonel Parker had lost external communications and that’s why he was unable to contact him. The SSG gave the Lieutenant the last known grid coordinates of Colonel Parker and his expeditionary force. He also told the Officer that most of the Marines were walking in and itching for a fight. If they wanted them here sooner they would need to give them a ride.
The message was relayed back to Colonel Bennett and he immediately sent out every transport vehicle he could. Colonel Parker heard a lot of vehicles heading his way and ordered his tanks to take up flanking positions. Then a message came in from one of the LAV’s telling him they had established contact with the Marines on the lines and were engaging the enemy. They also told him they had sent a message back to Colonel Bennett explaining the situation, and he was sending out vehicles. Lastly he added was that they sure could use the Abrams about now.
Forty vehicles rolled up on Colonel Parker. In the lead vehicle was Colonel Bennett and he was all smiles. Although it was dark outside, as far as he could see down the line he saw nothing but Marines, and it looked to be thousands of them. “Welcome home Colonel!” said Colonel Bennett.
The two men shook hands; they had never met each other, which was unusual the as Corps was a small place. “Here you’re having a party? So we decided to crash it, I hope you don’t mind?” said Colonel Parker.
Colonel Bennett smiled and laughed. “I don’t mind at all, not at all, damned happy to see you!”
“Where do you need us?” asked Colonel Parker.
Colonel Bennett explained that the LAV’s he had sent surprised the hell out of the Mexicans and were able to force a hole in their line. The LAV’s quickly moved in to exploit it, but he didn’t have the follow up infantry to hold the ground.
“No problem Colonel, let’s get these vehicles loaded and get you some help. They’re going to have to make a few trips though.”
The radio nets kicked alive again, this time from the Bradley’s along the beach. They were in a position where they could observe the line and stay somewhat hidden. The Bradley’s had some serious bad news: they told the Colonels that it looked like a large Mexican force had made its way along the beach and through their lines. The estimated the size of the force to be in the thousands. Colonel Parker immediately ordered two of the tank platoons to move and support the Bradley’s infantry, and he would be following as soon as he could get them. He then ordered Marines that hadn’t found a ride on the trucks to get on the other tanks head to the LAV’s. They were going to jump into the fight right now.
Captain Fisher was the office
r with the Bradley’s near the beach with the thermal sights on the vehicle and night vision equipment. They could see the Mexicans moving down the beach and up and over the cliffs. He estimated there were between fifteen-hundred and two-thousand Soldiers. Once at the top of the cliffs they reformed into companies. For some reason they hadn’t moved out, and Captain Fisher wondered what the hell they were waiting for. It was 0100 and they could easily turn and head east down the lines within a half mile, but they would run into the first Marines. He knew the longer they waited the more of an opportunity the Colonel had to get the tanks into position.
The radio net in the Bradley’s kicked on as the platoon of Abrams arrived and started to take up positions. The tanks would use their 120mm cannons to disrupt the Mexicans while the Bradley’s attacked their flanks using their 25mm guns. It took a few minutes for all of the vehicles to get into position. Over the net was heard, “Fire at will! Fire at will!”
The night erupted in tank fire and explosions around the Mexican Soldiers. The Soldiers scattered running in every direction and much of the leadership was wiped out with the first salvos by the 120mm guns. There was no let up by the tanks, and the Soldiers started moving to their right and left attempting to escape it but ran right into the withering 25mm guns of the Bradley’s. There only option was to retreat the way they had come. Men were tumbling off the cliff sides and down the paths pushing and shoving the Soldiers that were trying to make it to the top. Colonel Tekana was seeing his command decimated before his eyes.
The Mexican Soldiers retreated down the paths that ran along the cliff-side, taking cover along the cliff on the beach. Colonel Tekana had lost between two-hundred and three-hundred men from the engagement with the Abrams and Bradley’s, and as long as they were there they wouldn’t be able to use that approach. He ordered his commanders to move along the cliff side and attempt to come up behind the vehicles, and once they were able to do that they would figure out how to destroy them or at least disable their ability to move. There was the path a couple of miles down that the Soldiers had used yesterday evening to come up and ambush the Marines. It was two miles down the beach, the Colonel ordered them to use that.