~~~~~~~~~~~~
Eagle company was on the field in eighteen minutes from the time I said I wanted them ready.
“Lieutenant Franks you'll be second in command. Lieutenant Harris doesn't seem to understand the difference between a request and an order. Lieutenant, if like Harris you don't understand please say so now because this is not a game. We're headed out and I assure you the time of me making requests is over. If you want to survive this mission you will treat my every word as gospel and follow my orders immediately. The time for questions was over the last six months,” I said.
“Ma'am this is unexpected,” he said.
“Yes Lieutenant it is, and it's something I hope this company is ready for. If you'll call the men to attention I have a few words I want to share before we leave,” I said.
“Over the last six months many of you have come to hate me because of how hard I've driven you. Today we'll see if you've gained what you'll need to survive against an enemy that is going to out number you ten to one, if you're lucky, fifty to one is more likely. You men have what it takes, or I assure you we wouldn't have gotten the nod for this mission. The mission is to rescue White Rose recon unit, my unit, which was under the command of Major Chestnut for the last six months,” I said, once the men were at attention.
“I know most of you have talked with men from other companies, and have learned it was me and my recon unit that almost always got the nod for missions such as this, and because of that White Rose recon gained a reputation with the enemy as the most hated recon unit. The last dozen missions White Rose was on as soon as the enemy learned we were in the field they sent divisions against us. Some of the other companies can attest, since they did help out in the final leg of the mission from time to time. This time however we Eagle company are on our own and the enemy knows we're coming, and that I'm in command,” I continued.
“The enemy knows because we purposely let them know, to try drawing their main force away from White Rose and give them a fighting chance of surviving. I regret to inform you that Major Chestnut has been wounded, how badly, I don't know. Only that it was bad enough Sargent Denvers is now in command of White Rose,” I finished.
I looked at the men standing there and saw they understood they either trust me, or chances were they weren't coming back.
I saw Chris walking across the compound with Lieutenant Harris and gave the orders to move out. I hadn't told them the full plan since they didn't need the full plan, and I didn't want to compromise the chances of the plan working. Before Chris reached General Talbot's office I knew the plan was a go and Rose company would be less than a day behind us coming from a different direction.
Over the six months I had been in command of Eagle company Lieutenant Harris had been the biggest obstacle in gaining the trust of the men, and now he would not be an obstacle for one of the special forces commanders again. The men of Eagle company were as good as any of the men from another unit if given the chance to do what they did best, but because they had been saddled with a commander who believed he knew what was best and that every man in his company should be able to do what every other man could with equal ease, they had been held back in reaching their true potential. Major Chestnut had put together a great company, but he failed to utilized the true potential of the men he had.
I caught up with Cooper and Collins and let them know the rest of the men were counting on them to spot potential trouble before it bit the company in the ass. I wanted them to heighten their look out so any chance of an enemy surprise could be eliminated before it could even develop. I wasn't worried about an enemy surprise right away, but knew because of the coded message that had been sent the enemy would be watching for us.
I fell back with the main body of the company and picked out a few men to keep an eye out to the sides for any enemy that might be trying to gather on our flanks, in hopes of surprising us.
Nothing happened the first day we were out, but the men knew there could be enemy at any time. Each of them had realized what direction we were headed and that we were now in enemy territory. Their guard came up with the realization and their chatter dropped as their caution of their surroundings went up.
“Captain about three clicks ahead,” Collins said reporting.
“Lieutenant give the men a break and set up sentries at fifty pace intervals, until I get back,” I said.
Sargent Collins and I headed off in the direction he indicated stopping short of the three kilometers he'd indicated.
“Collins make sure your crossbow is ready to use, and keep your eyes open,” I said.
“The camp we saw is still a half click ahead, ma'am,” he said.
“The camp may be Sargent, but their sentries aren't and if you aren't ready chances are you won't see them before they see you,” I said.
I set a bolt in the fire position on my crossbow and made a mental note of the enemy sentries I could feel. I started preparing for close quarter combat and watched Sargent Collins get a look that said he wasn't sure he was ready for what he knew was coming.
“Norman now isn't the time to think about what to do. You've been training for this as long as you've been a soldier, it's time to let your training take over. No one wants to kill, but in this there is either kill, or be killed,” I said.
“How do you do it ma'am? If you hate killing so much why do you do it?” he asked.
“How much have you heard about the combat situations I've been in Sargent? When you had someone tell you about the missions my White Rose unit and I have been involved in did they happen to tell you how we got out of them?” I asked.
“They say you target the officers, and the higher the rank the more a target the officer,” he said.
“I target the officers first because they're the ones in charge of maintaining discipline and order. The big problem lately is the enemy knows I target the highest ranking officers first and have made changes so trying to spot those officers is harder and harder. On this mission I don't want you worrying about the rank. This camp is a scouting unit out looking for us. If you see someone in an enemy uniform their rank is not important that they can't let anyone know where we are is. Do you understand Sargent?” I asked.
“I think so ma'am. Shoot first ask questions later,” he said.
“There won't be any questions because you'll be shooting to kill. We don't have time for prisoners and anyone left alive increases the chance of not living through this. You're with me Sargent and that makes you their enemy as much as me. They know you are simply following my orders and they know I deal in a kind of warfare they don't begin to understand,” I said.
“You mean gorilla warfare? Ma'am gorilla tactics are uncivilized,” he said.
“You think war is civilized Sargent? Do you really think this enemy is going to play by rules it doesn't adhere to? If you want to make it out of this you'll follow no rules known to the enemy. If we fight them by their rules, they win. If we use the rules of so called civilized warfare, they win. The enemy fears me because they don't understand me, I don't fight by rules they understand, and it seems to them the rules every time they encounter me and my troops change. The tactics we use never seem the same, except that we strike hard and fast, then seem to just vanish. If you want to beat an enemy you have to be able to think like your enemy. You have to be able to instill fear in them, a fear they've never know before. Cause confusion in their ranks. Make them think you're more than you are,” I said.
“You beat them by becoming them?” he asked.
“Not exactly. If you fight by their rules you'll lose. You have to be able to see without being seen. You have to know where they are and what they are seeing, so you can be something they can't see. Right now Sargent we have a four man sentry squads surrounding us, can you tell me where they are?” I asked.
He stopped and listened for a moment. I smiled he was starting to understand that seeing involved more than the eyes. It involved all the senses. He brought his crossbow up and fired hitt
ing his target square in the chest putting the bolt straight through the mans heart. The remainder of the patrol panicked and froze allowing him to draw the string again and take aim putting his second bolt threw the head of one and the heart of another. The fourth mans panic caused him to start running and the Sargent drew his knife and without thought killed the man before he took four steps.
“You knew where they were didn't you ma'am?” he asked.
“I wanted you to know Sargent. If I had pointed them out to you they might have gotten away. Now you know how to look for the enemy,” I said.
“Yes ma'am. Ma'am I'm proud to be serving with you. You're the first commander I've had that let me think for myself. That's why your unit got in trouble isn't it ma'am, Major Chestnut doesn't like people to think for themselves?” he asked.
“I don't know what happened Sargent, all I know is Major Chestnut is wounded and my men are surrounded by enough enemy troops they wouldn't have a chance of getting out on their own.”
“You really care about them, don't you ma'am?” he asked.
“With the exception of two of them, they're the original men chosen for White Rose recon. I owe each of those men my life many times over,” I said.
“I'll bet they would say the same thing about you ma'am. I'll start keeping a closer watch, I have a feeling the enemy patrols are going to start getting heaver from here out,” he said.
“Sargent make sure you collect both your knife and those crossbow bolts. We have a limited supply of them and I have a feeling we'll be needing all we have and then some,” I said.
I joined Sargent Cooper, and rather than start up a conversation I watched to see how well he was paying attention.
“The enemy is getting close aren't them ma'am?” he asked.
“What makes you think so Sargent?” I asked.
“A feeling. I got into special forces after my first tour here. There were only three of us from my company that made it back to the States,” he said.
“I take it you wanted to kill this enemy?” I asked.
“No ma'am, but I didn't want them killing anymore of my friends. I got nothing back home ma'am, so when they asked if I wanted a shot at special forces I took it,” he said.
“When did you graduate the training?” I asked.
“About nine months ago. Eagle company is my first company since the training,” he said.
“I guess that means you've heard of me?” I asked.
“Yes ma'am you're a legend in the training center. When I found out I was going to be stationed on the same base you are, I hoped I'd get the chance to meet you,” he said.
“And now that you've met me?” I asked.
“You're a lot younger than I thought, but I feel honored to serve with you.” He raised his crossbow and lowered it again almost as quickly.
“A little nervous Sargent?” I asked.
“I thought I saw something move,” he said.
“Just the wind in that direction,” I said.
“So there are enemy patrols about then?” he asked.
“You tell me Sargent. You have the training and the skills, what you lack is the experience, and the only way you'll get that is to do the job you're here for,” I said.
He stopped and started looking around not sure what he was supposed to see. A twig cracked and I saw him tense sure he had an idea now.
“Sargent if you can't see them say so and I'll take them out, the one thing we can't allow is for them to get word back to their support of where we are,” I said.
His crossbow came up and I heard the bolt whistle past my ear then the thud of a man falling. I hadn't seen him draw the bow again, but a second shot took out another enemy scout and he was ready for a third shot.
“I'm sorry about that ma'am he was coming up right behind you,” he said.
“You don't need to explain Sargent. Now gather up your bolts we can't afford to waste any. In the future you might want to stay just a little more aware of what's around you,” I said.
I fell back with the main body of the company and picked out four men to watch the left and right flanks. I let each man know we had already encountered enemy scouts, and if they saw any shoot to kill, we weren't able to accommodate prisoners and we couldn't let them get word back to the main body of the enemy where we were, or we'd be over run in a matter of hours.
These men hadn't signed on for this, most of them expected the kind of command Major Chestnut kept and I couldn't operate that way, I needed my men to be able to think on their own.
“Sargent get HQ for me,” I said.
“Yes ma'am,” he replied.
“I need it a secure channel Sargent,” I said.
“Ma'am, General Talbot,” he said.
“Jason find someone else to take this company when we get back otherwise I'll have to start all over in building it. Most of these men need a company commander like Major Chestnut. You know damn well I'm more like Major Jacobs in how I run things,” I said.
“Sam, Chris ran into a nightmare where he is. How close are you to your men?” he asked.
“I should be there in about four hours, why? You want me to swing by the way Chris came in and help him out of the jam?” I asked.
“I'm sure he would appreciate it, but if you're having problems with Eagle company it might not be a good idea to try taking them into something like that. I have Chucks company standing by I just don't have anyone to command it at the moment,” he said.
“Sure you do Jason. You have you. How hard would it be for Charlie company to get to Chris?” I asked.
“Getting to Chris isn't a problem, at least from the information I've received,” he said.
“Put Lieutenant Williams in temporary command to get them to Chris, and Chris can take command once they're there. If they aren't going to have to fight their way in that will give Chris the man power to dent the wall he's hit. I'll bring Eagle company in from this side and since I'll have my White Rose unit I should be able to force a wedge and split the enemy forces,” I said.
“Are you sure Williams is ready for something like this?” he asked.
“Jason how is he supposed to get experience if you never give him a chance. I know he'll be thrilled, and by the time they join with Rose company he'll be ready to turn the company over to Chris. Charlie company and Rose company have worked together several time so I have no doubt they'll feel it a privilege to help Rose company out,” I said.
“You're talking about sending them as a supply company only with orders that once they get there, they're to join with Rose company as an anvil for your hammer,” he said.
“You got it Jason,” I said.
I had my work cut out for me since I had a company that was untried in the field and many of its members didn't like a woman giving orders in a combat situation. I put my Lieutenant in charge of the main body and started skirting the flanks in and even wider arc than the men from the company were doing. I counted ten patrols all four man and since they were all far enough out I didn't worry about them.
“Lieutenant I want you to set up a camp here for the night. I want sentries spaced at fifty foot intervals, but I don't want anyone wondering more than twenty yards from the camp. Anyone that does could get caught in the traps I set. I should be back before sunrise, and when I am back we'll be pulling out of here headed to give a hand to a couple companies that aren't making much head way,” I said.
“What are we supposed to do until you get back ma'am?” he asked.
“Get some sleep. Once I get back you won't get much for a couple days, and I'll still want everyone doing their jobs,” I said.
I slipped out of camp and worked my way to where my men were boxed in. As I slipped into their midst I saw Mac leaning over and arguing with someone I assumed to be Major Chestnut.
“Sargent report!” I said.
“Ma'am we didn't expect to see you until tomorrow,” Mac said.
“Tell me what you've got here Mac,” I said.
&
nbsp; He gave me a run down of how the enemy had backed off after he received word I was on my way. Even with Major Chestnut wounded he still insisted on giving orders and Mac was having a hell of a time trying to make sure everyone was safe and deflect Major Chestnuts orders that didn't make sense.
“Mac I want everyone ready to move in twenty minutes. If Major Chestnut is ambulatory he'll find I have little patients for him if he can't keep up and refuses to follow my orders. If however he isn't ambulatory I'll see he gets to the hospital, but either way we move out in twenty minutes,” I said.
“What the hell are you doing here Captain?” Major Chestnut asked.
“Checking to see if you need to be laying in bed, or if you can walk,” I said.
“I got shot in the shoulder, according to the medic the bullet went straight through,” he said.
“Good then you can walk. Major we're going to be moving at a fast pace and it's up to you to keep up. I haven't got time to babysit you, nor do I have the patients to listen to you bitch about having rank over me. I have at least twice as much combat experience as you do and I have orders from General Talbot giving me command of both White Rose and Eagle company. If you have a problem you can take it up with Jason when we get back, but the first time you try overriding one of my orders I will shoot you myself, is that clear,” I said.
“You wouldn't dare!” he said.
“Major I told a General to shut the fuck up, and even had him sedated to get him out of my hair.” The look he gave was priceless. “You better get ready we're moving out in fifteen minutes,” I said.
Word that I was there spread fast, and it was like every man was a little kid who just received his favorite toy for Christmas. That they were all still alive and unharmed told me they only followed Major Chestnuts orders, when those orders made sense. There was no way I could fault them for not following orders that didn't make sense, when doing so had gotten them into the situation in the first place. With me they knew there was a plan, one that seemed to always hold a high risk, but had a good chance of success with minimal chance of real danger.
“Mac is everyone ready?” I asked.
“Awaiting your orders ma'am,” he said.
“You and I will take point. Who does Chestnut have the most problem with?” I asked.
“That would be Rick. I take it Rick is who you're going to saddle with the Major,” Mac asked.
“You know me too well Mac. Make sure he knows he doesn't have to listen to any bitching, if it starts getting on his nerves he can take out that roll of duct tape I know he has and tape the Majors mouth shut with it. If he feels the need to do more than that he'll have to carry him and I'll still expect him to keep up,” I said.
We arrived where I left Eagle company about an hour before sunrise. I called my White Rose unit together and shared what we were going to do. They all gave me a look that said they thought I had gone over the bend this time for sure, but if that was what I wanted, they were more than willing to give it their best.
“Mac, get Major Chestnut and any other officer you can find here and tell them I want to see them, and if the sun comes up before they get here they'll just have to wonder about what we're doing next,” I said.
The Hidden Rose Page 53