Backwood
19-04-2005, 02:28
"Hahaha, yeah man, I remember that time Bull dropped the flashbang in on that couple... It was on some training mission with them foreign SpecOps units. Man, that girl jumped out of that tent like a bat outa' hell, her shirt half off and all that. That dude, like a Lieutenant or something, was so pissed! Bull got all up in his face about it too... Wanted to shoot him with one of those rubber bullets... Man, those were the days," said one of the men sitting around the small fire. Of the eight men sitting around the fire, he looked to be among the middle of the age group. He took a long swig from his canteen. "Yep, then the whole crapstorm in Omz222 took place, and here we are," he said again. The men grew silent, as if gazing into the memories of their dark past.
Each of them could remember the war in their own ways, their own specialties, each contribution they had made, or sacrificed, during that time. They had all been in some branch of the Special Forces, on the ground during the time. Four had been in the SOF-D, one in the DB, two SALT operators, and the last in Sierra Hotel. Since their escape from Omz222, they had wandered with the rest of the Citizens for what seemed like an eternity, but now that they had settled down, they had plenty of time to think. And that was one thing they knew was dangerous.
The member of Sierra Hotel spoke up through the silence. "You know, there's not a day that goes by where I don't think about those days. I remember watching an entire company from the Fifth Marines get massacred by artillery fire. I remember watching a squad of SOF-D boys rig a museum with C4 and blow it to crap. I remember getting our briefing from General Howe to infiltrate Port Hagras. And I still remember running into an armored column on the way. We were in two jeeps. We didn't have any big weapons. We were going through the woods at about forty, and all of a sudden, the next thing we know, we're out in the open- this clear field, just been tilled for planting, it seemed. Then as soon as we notice that, we see a road about a hundred feet away, and several Omzian armored pieces, stopped. I was in the front vehicle. We started to turn and floor it, throwing mud and dirt all over the place. We, we just had to get out of there. Then, bam! The second jeep blows up. Explodes. Shrapnel hits our jeep, one of our guys gets hit in the arm and screams in pain. I look back, against my instincts, and see the jeep just completely demolished. Nothing left. The four of us barge out of our vehicle and start running for the woods for cover. We dodged behind a bunch of brush and crap, hiding for just a second to get our weapons and stuff in order. I mean, I don't know what we were really thinking... We were almost two hundred miles away from Honjaksgrad... But we knew where there's an armored column, infantry's not too far away. So we were set, our M249 gunner was ready- he had a Para model so it was smaller and he carried more ammuntion- me and the three other guys with our weapons ready. The column blew the other jeep, probably just to intimidate us. Then all of a sudden hell just broke loose. The column just started firing like crazy. Then here they come. Seemed like a hundred Omzian troops rushing for us. Of course it wasn't that many, I don't think. If it was, it doesn't show much for the Omzian troops, but anyway," he took a breath, as the others around him gave a smile. It was rare they got to hear something like this talked about, and coming from one of the most elite soldiers in the world, it was just that much greater. "We start to fire, hiding behind this little gully we found a few feet away from our initial position. Our SAW gunner just starting blasting away. He was trying to keep calm, God bless his soul, but we knew he was going into shock. He wasn’t doing anything it didn’t seem. He sure wasn’t hitting anything. The guy on the other side of him- I was on his left- glanced at me once between firing a round or two. I glanced back. We knew what we had to do. It was our duty. He yanked our SAW gunner back by the collar, as I reached down and put one in his head with my pistol. He just, kinda’ slumped over. I threw my weapon over my shoulder and grabbed the M249 and started bursting rounds out. I saw a couple fall, but now we were taking fire from them too. So we’re taking armor and infantry fire. The guy on the end told us two to run and cover him in fifteen seconds. So we started running. I ran backward some of the ways, firing my pistol, trying to help. We counted to fifteen and stopped, and started taking shots. We could see through our scopes now for guys to target since we weren’t under so much pressure, being a ways back. We counted ten more seconds, and we started getting heavy fire again. We assumed he’d been killed. So we both started running back again, and finally we sort of plopped into a little firehole. I set the SAW down and set it up to fire and put my M4, you know we had ours tricked out to no end, down beside me. I pulled out all my grenades, all of them, HE, WP, even those little golf-ball sized mini-grenades they issued everyone. And I just started chunking. I’d fire along with them, but I was just trying to do as much damage as possible. The guy in the hole with me started doing the same thing. He’d throw and I’d shoot, then I’d throw and he’d shoot. We held them back for a while. I had been in such a hurry I’d forgotten the ammo for the SAW, so I threw it down and grabbed my M4, and continued with my shooting. Then my partner there took a round to the neck, and fell over. He managed to tell me to get his radio, show me where his claymore was, and tell me to get out of there. I got his radio, that long-distance thing, all I had was my COBRA set, and put the claymore under him. As soon as they moved him it’d blow. I set it up just as I felt the rounds getting closer and closer. I jumped out of the hole, fired a few rounds, and started running. I didn’t fire again- didn’t want them knowing I was still out there. I just ran and ran and ran. I heard the claymore blow, but that was it. I got to the edge of the woods on the other side, I’d say at least a good fifteen miles or so, the next day. I was exhausted, but managed to get across on SECNET to SYNOP and let them know my location and get out of there. On the way back I just wondered… How could it have happened? It wasn’t until later we learned an Omzian spy had entered our ranks somehow and placed one of those “wrong” maps in. I don’t know how it went unnoticed. But it did and that’s what we got. We never got any real AAR, and never got any recognition. We didn’t even exist, ya’ know? But I have to say I don’t see how we could have killed less than twenty or thirty Omzians. But we were decimated. And that’s all I’ll ever remember. It doesn’t matter how many we killed, we were still overrun and destroyed. Let me tell you something. War isn’t about killing the enemy, it’s about getting your men and yourself out alive. You don’t win wars by killing the enemy. You win ‘em by surviving. And did we survive? Sniper Country as a whole, I mean. No, no we didn’t. Because we didn’t care about surviving. We just cared about taking them out. That’s all. That’s all…”
The men sat, astonished. They hadn’t really thought about it that much since the country’s decimation. Almost immediately, however, one of the men, who looked the oldest, spoke up. “Well, did you ever wish you could go back and avenge your men? Just, do one more thing to make their deaths not be in vain?”
“Nothing will ever bring my men, my friends, back. But yeah, I’ve always wished to God that their deaths wouldn’t have been in such vain, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“That’s exactly what I’m asking. Guys, I’ve been planning something for the past, heck, two, three years. I want to avenge my fallen brothers in that war just as much as any of you. And there’s only one way I can think to do it. Go back.”
Some of the men immediately took a sip from their canteens and bottles, while others smirked or frowned. The man started to speak up again, but more quietly than before. “The Battle for Hagras Bay. One of the costliest battles in history. Majority decimation of Sniper Country and Omni Conglomerates fleets, with near decimation of Omzian and Clan Smoke Jaguar ships as well. Not to mention the billions in damage to the city of Port Hagras, and the successful firing of the TNM torpedo that literally sank the Hagras beach, or at least a portion of it. Now, there was a common commander between the Omzian and Clan Smoke Jaguar fleets that day. It’s some weird name but I have it written down somewhere. Well it looks like he’s been kissing butt because he’s moving up in rank. I figure the best bet we have in any of this, to settle anything, is to make him pay for all the atrocities in Hagras Bay. I honestly believe we have, among just us, the best team in the world able to pull it-“ he was cut off by another of the men, the younger DB operator.
“Hah, so wait a minute here, chief. You want to just waltz into Omz222 and kill a top-ranking military official. You might as well try to kill God. That’s what these guys, these military officials, are over there- gods. And you expect to close enough to one to kill him,” the DB smarted off.
“Who said we had to get close? Heck a clear LOS and we could get him from up to over a mile away,” the old-timer, who probably aged in his mid-fifties, replied. The men chuckled to themselves, pondering the idea. The Sierra Hotel operator spoke up, and all grew quiet again.
“I have to admit, it would be something needed to be done. But tell me, how do you expect to get in the nation? Not to mention the city. How do you get equipment in? Supplies? All that crap?”
The older man gave a smirk. “Okay, here’s what I’m figuring. Five of us get different flights to Honjaksgrad International. I have intel that this guy is supposedly taking vacation in the area for roughly three weeks. We don’t carry any weapons, nothing. Just some guys on vacation. We don’t even know each other. Remember, we’re on totally different flights, times, all that. The other three are going to use their specialties right off the bat. There’s a cargo ship carrying imports, probably military weapons, goods, or something, headed for Honjaksgrad. Tomorrow afternoon, the three- I’m assigning the two SALTies and the Sierra Hotel operator to this since it requires water infiltration- of you will board a small speedboat. It’ll take you to the route of the ship and drop you off. You’ll have your LAR-V equipment, and the weapons and such for the operation. It’s a little bit of weight, but it shouldn’t be anything you can’t handle. You’ll sit in wait, probably two hours, for the ship to come to pass. When it does, you’ll board, using a side ladder, and lie in wait on the ship for approximately sixteen hours. At that point you’ll get off the ship and begin a five kilometer swim to the shore. Yoda,” he donned the name to the Sierra Hotel operator, alluding to the Sierra Hotel infiltration at the start of the Omzian War, “it should be just like old times for you. You’ll get to land, in the woodlands well outside the city, and sit tight for our call. Just avoid any patrols by police or Omzian forces and you should be just fine. Now, back to the other five. We’ll all check into three different five-star hotels. From there, for the next twenty-four hours, we have no contact with each other at all. Feel free to roam the area, check things out, familiarize yourselves with the surroundings once again. After twenty-four hours, I’ll check out of my room, and go retrieve our equipment and the men taking care of that stuff. From that point, we’ll contact each of you, designating a meeting and prep area, and finalize planning. What do you guys say?”
The men looked around, almost bewildered, dumbfounded.
“Hey, us snowballs survived one trip to hell, why not another?” replied one of the SOF-Ds. Some of the men laughed, shaking their heads, all giving their signs of approval.
“Alright,” the eldest of the group, the planner, acknowledged. “We’ll get together in the morning, distribute plane tickets, get everything rigged and ready to go, and be on our way by tomorrow afternoon. Thanks, guys.” The men smiled, as many stood, shaking hands and exchanging a few crude comments about Omzian women. They were going back.
Each of them could remember the war in their own ways, their own specialties, each contribution they had made, or sacrificed, during that time. They had all been in some branch of the Special Forces, on the ground during the time. Four had been in the SOF-D, one in the DB, two SALT operators, and the last in Sierra Hotel. Since their escape from Omz222, they had wandered with the rest of the Citizens for what seemed like an eternity, but now that they had settled down, they had plenty of time to think. And that was one thing they knew was dangerous.
The member of Sierra Hotel spoke up through the silence. "You know, there's not a day that goes by where I don't think about those days. I remember watching an entire company from the Fifth Marines get massacred by artillery fire. I remember watching a squad of SOF-D boys rig a museum with C4 and blow it to crap. I remember getting our briefing from General Howe to infiltrate Port Hagras. And I still remember running into an armored column on the way. We were in two jeeps. We didn't have any big weapons. We were going through the woods at about forty, and all of a sudden, the next thing we know, we're out in the open- this clear field, just been tilled for planting, it seemed. Then as soon as we notice that, we see a road about a hundred feet away, and several Omzian armored pieces, stopped. I was in the front vehicle. We started to turn and floor it, throwing mud and dirt all over the place. We, we just had to get out of there. Then, bam! The second jeep blows up. Explodes. Shrapnel hits our jeep, one of our guys gets hit in the arm and screams in pain. I look back, against my instincts, and see the jeep just completely demolished. Nothing left. The four of us barge out of our vehicle and start running for the woods for cover. We dodged behind a bunch of brush and crap, hiding for just a second to get our weapons and stuff in order. I mean, I don't know what we were really thinking... We were almost two hundred miles away from Honjaksgrad... But we knew where there's an armored column, infantry's not too far away. So we were set, our M249 gunner was ready- he had a Para model so it was smaller and he carried more ammuntion- me and the three other guys with our weapons ready. The column blew the other jeep, probably just to intimidate us. Then all of a sudden hell just broke loose. The column just started firing like crazy. Then here they come. Seemed like a hundred Omzian troops rushing for us. Of course it wasn't that many, I don't think. If it was, it doesn't show much for the Omzian troops, but anyway," he took a breath, as the others around him gave a smile. It was rare they got to hear something like this talked about, and coming from one of the most elite soldiers in the world, it was just that much greater. "We start to fire, hiding behind this little gully we found a few feet away from our initial position. Our SAW gunner just starting blasting away. He was trying to keep calm, God bless his soul, but we knew he was going into shock. He wasn’t doing anything it didn’t seem. He sure wasn’t hitting anything. The guy on the other side of him- I was on his left- glanced at me once between firing a round or two. I glanced back. We knew what we had to do. It was our duty. He yanked our SAW gunner back by the collar, as I reached down and put one in his head with my pistol. He just, kinda’ slumped over. I threw my weapon over my shoulder and grabbed the M249 and started bursting rounds out. I saw a couple fall, but now we were taking fire from them too. So we’re taking armor and infantry fire. The guy on the end told us two to run and cover him in fifteen seconds. So we started running. I ran backward some of the ways, firing my pistol, trying to help. We counted to fifteen and stopped, and started taking shots. We could see through our scopes now for guys to target since we weren’t under so much pressure, being a ways back. We counted ten more seconds, and we started getting heavy fire again. We assumed he’d been killed. So we both started running back again, and finally we sort of plopped into a little firehole. I set the SAW down and set it up to fire and put my M4, you know we had ours tricked out to no end, down beside me. I pulled out all my grenades, all of them, HE, WP, even those little golf-ball sized mini-grenades they issued everyone. And I just started chunking. I’d fire along with them, but I was just trying to do as much damage as possible. The guy in the hole with me started doing the same thing. He’d throw and I’d shoot, then I’d throw and he’d shoot. We held them back for a while. I had been in such a hurry I’d forgotten the ammo for the SAW, so I threw it down and grabbed my M4, and continued with my shooting. Then my partner there took a round to the neck, and fell over. He managed to tell me to get his radio, show me where his claymore was, and tell me to get out of there. I got his radio, that long-distance thing, all I had was my COBRA set, and put the claymore under him. As soon as they moved him it’d blow. I set it up just as I felt the rounds getting closer and closer. I jumped out of the hole, fired a few rounds, and started running. I didn’t fire again- didn’t want them knowing I was still out there. I just ran and ran and ran. I heard the claymore blow, but that was it. I got to the edge of the woods on the other side, I’d say at least a good fifteen miles or so, the next day. I was exhausted, but managed to get across on SECNET to SYNOP and let them know my location and get out of there. On the way back I just wondered… How could it have happened? It wasn’t until later we learned an Omzian spy had entered our ranks somehow and placed one of those “wrong” maps in. I don’t know how it went unnoticed. But it did and that’s what we got. We never got any real AAR, and never got any recognition. We didn’t even exist, ya’ know? But I have to say I don’t see how we could have killed less than twenty or thirty Omzians. But we were decimated. And that’s all I’ll ever remember. It doesn’t matter how many we killed, we were still overrun and destroyed. Let me tell you something. War isn’t about killing the enemy, it’s about getting your men and yourself out alive. You don’t win wars by killing the enemy. You win ‘em by surviving. And did we survive? Sniper Country as a whole, I mean. No, no we didn’t. Because we didn’t care about surviving. We just cared about taking them out. That’s all. That’s all…”
The men sat, astonished. They hadn’t really thought about it that much since the country’s decimation. Almost immediately, however, one of the men, who looked the oldest, spoke up. “Well, did you ever wish you could go back and avenge your men? Just, do one more thing to make their deaths not be in vain?”
“Nothing will ever bring my men, my friends, back. But yeah, I’ve always wished to God that their deaths wouldn’t have been in such vain, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“That’s exactly what I’m asking. Guys, I’ve been planning something for the past, heck, two, three years. I want to avenge my fallen brothers in that war just as much as any of you. And there’s only one way I can think to do it. Go back.”
Some of the men immediately took a sip from their canteens and bottles, while others smirked or frowned. The man started to speak up again, but more quietly than before. “The Battle for Hagras Bay. One of the costliest battles in history. Majority decimation of Sniper Country and Omni Conglomerates fleets, with near decimation of Omzian and Clan Smoke Jaguar ships as well. Not to mention the billions in damage to the city of Port Hagras, and the successful firing of the TNM torpedo that literally sank the Hagras beach, or at least a portion of it. Now, there was a common commander between the Omzian and Clan Smoke Jaguar fleets that day. It’s some weird name but I have it written down somewhere. Well it looks like he’s been kissing butt because he’s moving up in rank. I figure the best bet we have in any of this, to settle anything, is to make him pay for all the atrocities in Hagras Bay. I honestly believe we have, among just us, the best team in the world able to pull it-“ he was cut off by another of the men, the younger DB operator.
“Hah, so wait a minute here, chief. You want to just waltz into Omz222 and kill a top-ranking military official. You might as well try to kill God. That’s what these guys, these military officials, are over there- gods. And you expect to close enough to one to kill him,” the DB smarted off.
“Who said we had to get close? Heck a clear LOS and we could get him from up to over a mile away,” the old-timer, who probably aged in his mid-fifties, replied. The men chuckled to themselves, pondering the idea. The Sierra Hotel operator spoke up, and all grew quiet again.
“I have to admit, it would be something needed to be done. But tell me, how do you expect to get in the nation? Not to mention the city. How do you get equipment in? Supplies? All that crap?”
The older man gave a smirk. “Okay, here’s what I’m figuring. Five of us get different flights to Honjaksgrad International. I have intel that this guy is supposedly taking vacation in the area for roughly three weeks. We don’t carry any weapons, nothing. Just some guys on vacation. We don’t even know each other. Remember, we’re on totally different flights, times, all that. The other three are going to use their specialties right off the bat. There’s a cargo ship carrying imports, probably military weapons, goods, or something, headed for Honjaksgrad. Tomorrow afternoon, the three- I’m assigning the two SALTies and the Sierra Hotel operator to this since it requires water infiltration- of you will board a small speedboat. It’ll take you to the route of the ship and drop you off. You’ll have your LAR-V equipment, and the weapons and such for the operation. It’s a little bit of weight, but it shouldn’t be anything you can’t handle. You’ll sit in wait, probably two hours, for the ship to come to pass. When it does, you’ll board, using a side ladder, and lie in wait on the ship for approximately sixteen hours. At that point you’ll get off the ship and begin a five kilometer swim to the shore. Yoda,” he donned the name to the Sierra Hotel operator, alluding to the Sierra Hotel infiltration at the start of the Omzian War, “it should be just like old times for you. You’ll get to land, in the woodlands well outside the city, and sit tight for our call. Just avoid any patrols by police or Omzian forces and you should be just fine. Now, back to the other five. We’ll all check into three different five-star hotels. From there, for the next twenty-four hours, we have no contact with each other at all. Feel free to roam the area, check things out, familiarize yourselves with the surroundings once again. After twenty-four hours, I’ll check out of my room, and go retrieve our equipment and the men taking care of that stuff. From that point, we’ll contact each of you, designating a meeting and prep area, and finalize planning. What do you guys say?”
The men looked around, almost bewildered, dumbfounded.
“Hey, us snowballs survived one trip to hell, why not another?” replied one of the SOF-Ds. Some of the men laughed, shaking their heads, all giving their signs of approval.
“Alright,” the eldest of the group, the planner, acknowledged. “We’ll get together in the morning, distribute plane tickets, get everything rigged and ready to go, and be on our way by tomorrow afternoon. Thanks, guys.” The men smiled, as many stood, shaking hands and exchanging a few crude comments about Omzian women. They were going back.