Chris Ryan - Survival

'Why didn't you tell me the truth?'

'Your mom and dad, they wanted to protect you. That's why they didn't tell you about the work they were doing. It was dangerous work. They didn't want you to be involved in any way.'

'So they let me think they were swanning around the world on a permanent vacation! I wish they'd told me the truth. I could've helped them.'

'Don't be silly, Amber,' said John Middleton. 'What could a fourteen-year-old girl do?'

Amber drew herself up to her full height and glared at her uncle. 'A lot, actually, if you think about it. Nobody pays much attention to kids. I bet I could get into places even Mom and Dad would have had trouble with.'

'Good point,' said John Middleton, looking at Amber. 'But it would be too dangerous, Amber-'

'Hey! I just survived a reef, a komodo dragon, three or four sharks and a whole crew of pirates! What could be more dangerous than that?' Amber sat up straight and gave her uncle a level stare. 'I've decided, Uncle,' she said. 'I want to carry on Mom and Dad's work.'

'What, all on your own?' asked John Middleton. He smiled at Amber indulgently. 'No, you'd be far better off going back to boarding school.'

Amber slumped and her hand crept up to clutch the golden Omega sign around her neck.

'But she wouldn't be on her own,' said Li, stepping up beside Amber. 'I'd work with Amber any day.'

'Me too,' said Paulo, stepping up beside Li.

'I'll go with that,' said Alex, moving to stand on Amber's other side.

'Count me in,' called Hex, from the bed.

Amber beamed at the others as they gathered around her then turned to look at her uncle. 'Well?' she said.

John Middleton gazed at the five of them thoughtfully. 'It's true,' he said. 'I can see situations where a group of kids as brave and resourceful as you could really make a difference-' He stopped abruptly and got to his feet. 'What am I saying?' he protested. 'This is nonsense. Dangerous nonsense. We stop it right here.'

'But, Uncle-'

'I've made your travel arrangements. You'll all be flying home tomorrow to see your families before going back on-board the Phoenix if you wish. You'll soon forget all about this and-'

'No we won't,' said Amber and the others nodded.

'We don't want to be split up,' said Li.

'We belong together,' agreed Paulo.

'Uncle, we are going to do this,' said Amber. 'With or without your approval. Think about it! Look at the skills we have between us. Martial arts, computer hacking, survival skills, mechanical expertise, navigation experience… So? What do you say? Will you help us out? Be our anchor man? Set up training for us?'

John Middleton hesitated. He looked at Amber's face. It was thin and bruised, but he had not seen it so full of life and energy since before her parents died. 'Well,' he said slowly. 'There'd have to be safeguards. I'd need to give my approval to every mission-'

'Thank you!' yelled Amber. 'You won't regret this, Uncle. You'll see!'

'I'm regretting it already,' muttered John Middle-ton, slumping down onto the sofa again.

'If we're going to be a team,' said Li, 'we need a name.'

'I have a name for us,' said Hex, quietly.

'Thought you might, code boy,' smiled Amber, coming to stand at the head of his bed.

'Go on then, tell us,' said Li, moving with Paulo to stand at his other side.

'It's not A-Watch, is it?' asked Alex, joining the rest of them.

'No,' said Hex. 'We don't just watch any more. We're a force. A force to be reckoned with. I think we should call ourselves Alpha Force.'

'Alpha?' said Li. 'What's that?'

'Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet,' said Hex. He reached up and gently touched the gold Omega sign at Amber's neck. 'Omega – the end. Alpha – a new beginning.'

Amber nodded, her eyes filling with tears.

'And there's another reason for Alpha,' said Hex. 'It just happens to be made up from the initial letters of our names.'

'Amber, Li, Paulo, Hex and Alex,' said Alex. 'That's amazing, Hex!'

'So,' said Amber. 'Are we agreed? We will be Alpha Force?'

Alex, Li, Paulo and Hex all nodded their agreement.

'Alpha Force,' they said.

If setting out into the tropics, plan ahead as much as possible – we always did so in the SAS – and try to know what you might be faced with. For example, why not try and learn about the types of animals and insects that live there before you go? If you wake up in the morning with a spider walking over your stomach, it would really help to know if it was poisonous or not! I always take a basic survival kit with me if I'm going anywhere my survival might be at risk.

MY BASIC SURVIVAL KIT(stored in a waterproof box or tin)

1. Matches

2. A flint

3. A magnifying glass

4. Needle and thread: several needles, and coarse thread

5. A compass, the luminous button type

6. A beta light: this is a light-emitting crystal the size of a small coin. It's good for map-reading at night and for fishing. Expensive, but everlasting.

7. Beef stock cubes x 2 for drinks

8. Medical kit: aspirin, water-sterilizing tablets, plasters, butterfly sutures (once, I had to stitch up a guy's leg. It had been cut very badly with a machete and we couldn't get medical assistance because the helicopter couldn't come in for two whole days, so I stitched up his leg to stop the bleeding. Eventually, the helicopter arrived and he was taken to hospital where the wound was cleaned and healed); a condom (it makes a good water-bag, holding 1 litre of water), antiseptic cream and cotton-wool

9. A mobile phone, though not in my SAS days as they weren't available then. Nowadays, though, a mobile can be a life-saver

10. A small pocket-knife

If you make a kit for yourself, let an adult check your kit and that you can handle a pocket-knife.

It's easy to panic when things go wrong, but panic wastes energy and helps nobody. Stay calm and assess the situation. Check what materials you have available – wreckage from a boat or clothing, and what is available around you – e.g.: good dry sticks for building a fire etc. Then begin working on the most important things first.

Our basic needs in any survival situation are:

WATER FOOD FIRE SHELTER

Guess how long the average human can go without food? The answer is three weeks. But you can only survive three days without water. (During the Gulf War, I was in the desert and was starting to deteriorate very quickly due to lack of water. Without water, the body just stops functioning. I started collapsing and passing out. Finally, after three days, I managed to find some water to drink in the River Euphrates, and I started to recover fairly swiftly. As soon as you give the body water again, you can start to function as normal fairly fast.) In any survival situation, finding fresh water is therefore our number one priority.

TO KEEP FLUID-LOSS DOWN TO A MINIMUM:

1. Find shade. Get out of the sun, and don't lie directly on a hot surface; place something between you and the surface.

2. Limit your movements (just rest whenever possible).

3. Eat as little as possible as food requires water for digestion.

4. Keep talking down to a minimum and breathe through your nose, not your mouth.

5. Never drink seawater.

Game trails should lead to fresh drinking water as animals also need water to drink. You can spot a game trail by the animal tracks on the ground and the way in which the undergrowth is pushed back by regular passage.

When you find fresh water, do not drink it immediately. There may still be bacteria in the water and you should first boil it to sterilize it, or use water-sterilizing tablets if you have any. A mate of mine once drank unsterilized water and puked non-stop for over forty-eight hours! And if you've got really thirsty, don't guzzle it down, take only small sips or you might just vomit it all up again.