Pappa Zulu – Chapter 15
“The contour of the land is an aid to an army; sizing up opponents to determine victory, assessing dangers and distances, is the proper course of action for military leaders.”
-Sun Tzu
The dewy morning air was especially thick inside the treeline. As soon as they passed within the dark green envelope from the highway they had felt it. it was like walking into a wet towel, and kind of pleasant really. Very soon, they would trekking around on foot, and things were likely to get a little warm and uncomfortable under all their gear.
Saunders adjusted her straps and shifted in her seat. Something about the way she was sitting was agitating the bruise she had in her pelvis. She didn’t want to be thinking about that, for obvious reasons. They had a mission to do, and nothing that reminded her of the night before or the events of this morning could be welcomed into the mix.
And yet, she had to wonder why the LT had picked this morning of all days to broach the subject. No surprises there, they both knew that what they were doing was wrong, would get them in a shitload of trouble if it ever came out. Fraternizing between officers and NCO’s, especially ones under their command was inadvisable at the best of times. But in the thick of a war like this one, it was just plain stupid.
To be fair, they had known there was something there ever since LA. Something about the way she had stepped into his position and kept him and the squad safe long enough for their exfil. From that point onward, he had treated her different, special. She knew the moment she had stepped into Dezba’s spot and began commanding first squad that what he felt for her went beyond mere respect. It had been a bit frightening at first, knowing that the CO had a thing for her.
But she knew full well that she felt the same way. One did not simply go through hell together and not feel some kind of special attachment as a result. Perhaps it was just the fact that she was a woman and he was a man, and people needed a little tender distraction from fighting from time to time.
And it wasn’t like he could put in for a transfer for her either, there simply wasn’t the time or the luxury to bounce people around; not anymore. Fighting units had to stay cohesive and do the best they could with what they had. Losses and replacements were common enough without people being bounced around. Under those conditions, everyone knew it was best to just keep it in your pants and wait for a more… convenient time.
Still… why this morning of all times? Right before a mission seemed like nothing if not a bit crass, especially considering the nature of the evening they had had the night before. What they had went far beyond fucking in private places. Afterward, they had fallen asleep in each others’ arms, spent hours there together before Braun woke with a start and told her she had to get back to her bunk, and he back to his. It had been the wee hours of the morning at that point and she almost worried they would be found in the midst of creeping back, by her squadmates who were rising when it was still dark out to greet a mission day.
But then again, perhaps that’s why he’d done it. They were out on a mission now, sticking their necks out and walking headlong into a possible danger zone. No telling what they would find or whether or not they would all be making it back. Perhaps he wanted to resolve any “outstanding issues” before they went in, and felt that calling it quits on their little… whatever it was they had, was the best way to do that. No attachments, no worrying, no chance of making calls that could compromise the integrity or the safety of their platoon.
She could see the wisdom in that. But still, had he considered the impact it might have on her, the one who was going in first? She knew what this was and wasn’t about to cry over it, but it was not a good idea to send a grunt into the field with some heavy shit on their mind…
“Sergeant?” said Whitman. “Sarge? You with us?”
She snapped too and looked at the road ahead. They were coming up on the fork, and the path they had plotted into their nav map indicated that they needed to turn.
“Sorry,” she replied, grabbing the phone from the squawk box and calling to the convoy behind them. “Viper One Actual, this is Viper One One, we’re coming up on the first turn over.”
Braun’s voice came back. “Viper One One, this is Viper Actual. That’s affirmative, over.”
She noted the tone in his voice. Too gentle and courteous. She almost wanted to laugh. She also wanted to smack herself for getting so deep into her own navel after she had made it clear she wasn’t going to do just that. Grabbing hold of her SCAR, she checked the sights and the grenade launcher, just to keep her hands busy and her mind on the job. A little conversation seemed like it might be a good idea too.
“Any of you boys ever been spelunking before?” she asked. Whitman looked at her cautiously. Apparently, he was still concerned that the morning frost might still be on the grass. Tentatively, he answered as only he would.
“We talking just caves or do women’s privates count?”
She laughed, and then of course slapped his shoulder. The mood in the cabin immediately warmed and she felt happy for it. If circumstances permitted, she might have apologized just then for being so cold with them earlier. But that would have required that she explain, and that shit wasn’t happening!
Majorca jumped in from the rear. “Seriously though, any of your guys ever see that sci-fi movie where they shot those nukes down the holes?”
Saunders had to search her mind. Anything pre-First Wave was a bit foggy, especially on the pop culture front. “That the one with the alien bugs, kept eating people?”
“Yep, that’s the one!”
Whitman nodded. “See, automatically, I can see the similarity to our current situation.”
“Whatever, point is, I think that should be our ROE here. No nukes, but just plug the holes up with plenty of explosives.”
“Well keep in mind we got a lot of caves to check. The LT…” she paused in mid-sentence, cleared her throat. “The Lieutenant needs to know we got enough munitions to hold us until we can get back to base.”
“Which means…” Jones interjected, “we gotta be sure a cave is occupied before we booby trap it.”
“Bingo,” she replied.
“Just count yourself lucky were not in the Pacific, circa 1940′s. Marines had to clear Japanese troops from caves on all those islands. Now there was serious shit.” It was Whitman who said it. Saunders looked at his cockeyed. “What? I read sometimes!”
“Bullshit, you watched that old war doc in the lounge!” said Majorca.
“Ah, fuck!”
“You aint ever touched a book in your life!”
Saunders began laughing again. It felt good, and it confirmed a basic rule. Were one to ever feel cut off and alienated from everyone else, there was still their squadmates to turn to. She was lucky in that regard, in that she commanded the respect and loyalty of them and could always turn to it in a pinch. It also removed any lingering doubts she had about going into a potential fight while she and the CO were not on the best of terms.
