Going Home (Soldier Up Book 3)

by Steven Linde

  Chapter Forty-One

  The 1500 meeting went off without a hitch, primarily because many of the commanders and senior NCOs had already met with Admiral Meyers and the others. The others that hadn’t met with them heard it through the bases grapevine that not only that it was hard to hide the aircraft circling the base earlier. It was good news to the Soldiers and Airmen and not one was happy to be helping out the civilians that treated them like shit. Word was given to kick them off base as soon as they were found, and not one piece of military gear was to go with them.

  Military Police spread out through the base rounding up civilians, handcuffing them and escorting them to the nearest gate and escorted off base. They were told if they returned they would be prosecuted under federal law, and if found guilty they would be jailed in the stockade to start off with. There were hundreds of civilians being escorted off post, and if they had their own vehicle and gear they were allowed to keep it. Many of them demanded fuel, food and water before they were evicted, and they were told they could demand all they wanted but they weren’t getting anything.

  Word spread through the surrounding communities was that many of the citizens were secretly happy to see the Army and Air Force finally grow-a-spine. The fanatical environmentalists were not only making the Military’s life unhappy but anyone that disagreed with them, which was a large portion of the population. That population could have taken control however, they were afraid of the fanatics who had taken to carrying weapons over the past few months.

  Within two days, a civilian delegation arrived at the main gate (Lewis Main) to Fort Lewis and demanded the post be reopened. They were politely told that if they didn’t disperse immediately they would be arrested for trespassing on federal property. They refused; the MPs pulled their weapons, ordered the civilians onto the ground. The civilians weren’t prepared for the reaction by the MPs and they raised their hands but refused to get onto the ground. A much larger group of MPs arrived at the gate and started to manhandle the civilians. They tackled them and pinned them to the ground, handcuffed them and tossed them into the back of the truck. They were taken to the stockade and locked up for now.

  A company of Rangers, heavily armed, moved to the main gate (Lewis Main) of the post. They were going to exit the post and execute a patrol as best they could around its perimeter. It was a challenge to the civilian fanatics attempting to throw their weight around, and if they really wanted a confrontation they were going to get it. They were also armed with flyers. They were posting flyers stated that martial law had been declared and there was a curfew in place from 8pm to 8am daily, until otherwise notified. Military patrols throughout the area would begin immediately, and anyone violating the curfew or any other laws would be dealt with severely.

  It was time to show the colors it was time for those thinking that they were in charge that they weren’t and there would be severe consequences for their actions. The Rangers hadn’t gone more than a mile when a group of men opened fire on them from behind several trees. Every single Ranger gun was turned on them and fired at the same time giving the gunman a moment to think about what they were doing. The Rangers quickly advanced on the position where the firing came from and found four dead young men armed with M-4’s. The Rangers searched the bodies and took the weapons, then continued on with the patrol. A half mile away from the main gate the company broke down into platoons and started to spread out into area surrounding the base which was basically more forest. Like many of the base’s civilians, they found security, or at least the sense of it, near the base. The closest town next to Fort Lewis’ main gate was Lakewood. There was Dupont near Dupont gate and a few others, and all of them were accessible via Interstate 5. Each town was several miles away from the gate, and for many if not most those few miles were too far. Police forces disappeared overnight in the towns around the post and were replaced eventually fanatical environmentalists.

  The environmentalists at first kept to the cities. Small towns ignored the small communities setting up literally right next to the fence lines of Fort Lewis and McChord Air Force Base. As the population in the cities started to drastically decline due to starvation, medical issues, disease, and basically wanting to escape the tyrannical oppression of the different environmental groups. The oppressors started to make their way to the camps next to Fort Lewis, six months after the event there were five major camps around Lewis McChord (Lewis-McChord are not a continuous base they are broken up). Each camp had hundreds of people and the largest had a couple of thousand. The camps had set up their own civilian government to interact with that of the posts leadership, as well as their own security forces, which was trained by Soldiers on Fort Lewis.

  Eventually the hardcore environmentalists started to infiltrate the camps and eventually their numbers overwhelmed the locals that had set them up. Once they had the numbers they seized control and then demanded the post open its borders and stores to them, which General Cummings seeing no alternative did. After year of environmental laws and governance, the people started to see through the shame recognizing that those laws they passed had nothing to do with the environment. They had to do with keeping control of what population was left. The worst part of it was that the Army seemed to be supporting them.

  Now for some reason the civilians were starting to see a change in the Army, almost overnight. The bases went into lockdown, and the Soldiers and Airmen were turning aggressive in their moves toward all of the communities. The Stars and Stripes was being flown over the post once again, the people in the camps were woken every morning for the past week with reveille. Sun down was signaled by taps. This infuriated the camps leadership as they had outlawed the national flag and here it was flying, once again flying high over the gestapo military post right next to them. The camp closest to the Lewis main gate sent a delegation to deal with the problem, but they were arrested by the Army. Then they tried a bit more aggressive approach by having four of their best men confronting the Rangers. They were killed.

  Now the Rangers were moving through the camps and posting the flyers which declared martial law and a curfew. The camps leadership was livid at this, feeling they were losing their grasp. Something had changed and they needed to find out what. Knowledge was power and if they could somehow find out what was happening they may be able to turn it in their favor. As soon as they had come to that realization, an invitation to the post to meet with General Cummings had been sent out to all of the local councils at 0900 the following morning. The invitation said for them to meet at Lewis gate, come unarmed. The invitation was only for those on the list any others would be turned away or arrested. Well it was a start. The camp counsels called an emergency meeting just for the five camp council members to discuss a plan of action regarding tomorrow’s meeting with General Cummings.

  All of the councils met twenty men and women which represented the five camps in total. Each group with an entirely different agenda and each group wanting to be in charge of all of the others. To say they were splintered was an understatement: three of the groups were far more progressive with what they allowed of the people in the camps and seem a lot more willing to open up and try new things. Essentially, they evolved as the situations dictated. The two other camps were run very strictly and were small camps. The people that lived there were very dedicated environmentalists and were fanatical about it, and they would take lives to show how dedicated they were. These two smaller camps were always trying to force their way of life on the three other camps and the outlying communities of Lakewood, Dupont and the others. They had been unsuccessful so far.

  The leadership of the three camps that were progressives was interested in hearing what General Cummings had to say and was willing to wait then decide on any actions. The two more radial camps wanted immediate action and they wanted to insert their security forces onto the base while the meeting was going on. Then if they didn’t like what they heard they could take lethal action and attempt an assassination of General Cummings and ins
tall their own leadership in the post. The leaders of the other camps thought it was a crazy idea and wanted no part of it. Regardless, the two camps that had suggested it told them they were going to do it and when they took control of the bases they would deal harshly with the camps that failed to join them.

  Chapter Forty-Two

  The USS Hornet sailed into San Diego Harbor with great fanfare. No one had seen an aircraft carrier, at least a working one, in over a year. The Sailors were dressed in their dress whites and lined the sides of the ship. It was a homecoming no one, Sailor or civilian would forget any time soon. Several of the other ships that had accompanied the Hornet followed her into port. Three ships that were missing were the USS Iowa, the USS Tripoli and the USS Pampanito, as they were returning to the Port of Los Angeles/Long Beach to continue to provide security.

  Half of Colonel Parker’s Marine Expeditionary force would remain in Los Angeles and continue to conduct offensive operations, while the Army Civil Affairs Soldiers continued to build out the civilian security forces because they would need to control the cities. It was quite a job. The Soldiers undertook it and it would help in future operations, but they had yet to tackle a city this big. The other half of the expeditionary force would remain on Camp Pendleton and help rebuild the base. As Colonel Parker explained, it didn’t mean those Marines that stayed at Pendleton would have it any easier, because they wouldn’t. General Charkin ordered rotations of all units in Los Angeles and other areas on a schedule to be published soon. Colonel Bennett and his Marines were busy licking their wounds. They were also helping in the rebuilding of the base and retrofitting of combat vehicles that had been disabled by combat or mechanical reason.

  The Army sent its Civil Affairs Soldiers to Camp Pendleton to help there. The Marines needed farms and fresh water from the Santa Margarita River to help not only them but the local populace in Orange County, as well as North County San Diego. The Civil Affairs Soldiers were sent all over San Diego to help as well. Additional Army units were sent down from Northern California, the ones that could be spared, to help get greater San Diego settled. There was a huge push by Civil Affairs to convince people that lived far from the bases and water to move closer, at least for the time being. It was going to take months to get security forces up and running, and even then they couldn’t guarantee security to isolated areas.

  However, they couldn’t force them to move as it was a free country after all, and the Soldiers knew there would be people that liked where they lived and would remain. Los Angeles prior to the event had a population of ten million, including Los Angeles County. A year after the event, it was estimated that it was down to a little over a million people. Not all of the nine million were lost to death, as many of them moved on to different locations around California, Arizona, or Nevada and even points further east. The Marines and Army had their jobs cut out for them trying to hit those areas of Los Angeles County and bring them back into the fold. It was going to take them months take make contact with the furthest reaches. An operation that seemed to be working was one that General Shelton implemented, and it seemed that they had a plethora of small fixed wing aircraft. Her plan was to send out these plans with small Civil Affairs teams to make contact with the communities to the east. It worked great and seldom ran into any problems, and when it did an A-Team or Force Recon Team could be dropped in to help solve the issue in a more aggressive fashion.

  Even though Southern California had rid itself of the HLA and Mexican Army, it didn’t mean life was going to get easier anytime soon, as life was still difficult and would be that way for the foreseeable future. People knew the military was there to help now and would now be there as long as they needed them. They also knew that the military couldn’t be everything to everyone. Hey were sending Soldiers to teach them how to fend for themselves. They were giving them the tools and training to do it after that it was up to them. The civilian security forces would be supervised by the Marines, and those serving in the security forces would get free housing (which wasn’t a big deal because there were a lot of abandoned homes these days). They also got food and water for their families. The security jobs were highly sought after, but once the ranks filled up they were hard to come by. The Army supplied all of the seeds the civilians needed to plant produce, and with they didn’t even mind if they sold what excess they had or traded it for other items. Farms sprang up all over the place people were growing their own food and then trading the surplus, creating new businesses.

  In Southern California, where water was always an issue, it wasn’t any longer. The nine million people being gone in Los Angeles alone meant there was going to be plenty of water available. They also learned to capture rain in barrels and set them aside for future use, and there were a lot of techniques the Army brought along to teach them survival in a post event society. People saw hope, and that was a wonderful thing.

  The USS Hornet slowly docked in Coronado, and there were thousands of people on base to welcome her. They never thought in their life times they would see an active aircraft carrier again, not to mention one with all sorts of World War II aircraft that actually worked. Admiral Walcom had flown into Coronado a few days earlier to meet with the Senior Base Staff to brief them on the USS Hornet and what he was going to need for it. He also wanted a briefing on where they stood on the USS Midway, as well as the other ships they were pulling out of mothballs at 32nd Street. Admiral Walcom also met with the Senior Staff at 32nd Street to discuss his other ships that had come into port and brief them on their needs. The reality of the situation for now was the Navy, prior to the event, was a nuclear one. After the event, it was a row boat Navy and now they were a Navy from World War II, and it required a different mindset and different skills.

  Admiral Meyer was counting on men like Admiral Walcom and others that had this experience to bring them kicking and screaming along for the ride. Admiral Walcom had also set up tours of the aircraft carrier for civilians that wanted to see her for the following two days. It was well publicized all over San Diego that hundreds of people could be seen walking over the San Diego Coronado Bay Bridge the following morning just to see the Hornet.

  She was scheduled to be in port for five days, then resume patrolling off the West Coast. Her next stop after leaving San Diego was Seattle Washington with a brief stop at her home port of San Francisco. Admiral Meyer told Admiral Walcom it’s about time we show them some real American firepower.

  Chapter Forty-Three

  The council members from all five camps showed up at Lewis main gate at 0900. They were searched and asked to get onto a bus that was waiting for them. Several of the council members complained how they were being treated, but the MPs stayed silent. They were taken to I Corps HQ where they were kindly asked to exit the bus and they would be escorted into the main conference room where General Cummings would join them. Once they entered the room, they found coffee and some breakfast sandwiches made of egg, cheese and sausage, and some of the council members complained about that because the use of pork products had been outlawed.

  At the same time, the council members were stuffing their faces at I Corps. Three groups of men and women, with each group was made up of ten people armed with M-4’s and grenades and two claymores apiece, entered the post uninvited. These people were members of the two camps that were going after General Cummings with the intent of killing him at the conference. The training these people had been minimal. At best they could fire the M-4 somewhat accurately, and they could also throw a grenade and could set up a claymore. However, that was the extent of their training. They had no infantry tactics training and had no formal chain of command within each group, so they were all equal and made decisions via the group as a whole.

  The three groups took different avenues through the forest to reach I Corps HQ, and each group felt very positive about the mission and felt it should have done much earlier. The two camps felt they had taken the fort months ago it would have solved a lot of problems. They moved
down well-traveled paths towards post listening and watching for anything unusual, but the problem really was they didn’t know what unusual looked like. Each group was at least a mile from their target they were to time the attack at 1000 which they expected the meeting to have ended by then.

  There was an A-Team from 1st Special Forces Group, 2nd Battalion, Alpha Company trailing each of the groups. Each A-Team was in contact with Bravo Company, 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Regiment that were set up a quarter of a mile ahead of the approaching civilian groups. As the A-Teams trailed them, they disarmed the claymores that the civilians were setting up along the trails. The SF Soldiers heard in their ear pieces to back off, the prey was entering the three kill zones. In response, the three A-Teams melted back into the woods and within moments the sound of M249 machine guns could be heard throughout the post, along with small-arms fire. It was all over within two minutes. The three civilian groups didn’t have a chance and not one remained alive. The Rangers searched the bodies, gathered the weapons and placed the bodies in a nice row, then stood guard over them until grave registrations arrived to claim them.

  Back at the conference room, the council members had been introduced to Admiral Meyer, General Watkins and Colonel Clayton. Once the introductions were completed, Admiral Meyer stepped up and explained the chain of command. He went onto explain that Lewis-McChord was a federal reservation and he was overall responsible for it, not General Cummings. Any and all attempts to circumvent that would be met with overwhelming firepower. He then instructed Colonel Clayton to give his presentation once again. The council members sat there, scared by what they were seeing as they just learned that there was no way they were going to be able to overcome the combined strength of the United States Military.