Charley Brindley - The Last Mission Of The Seventh Cavalry

“Sarge?”

“Sarge?” Liada asked as she began brushing her hair as she’d seen Autumn do for Tin Tin.

Tin Tin tapped the side of the helmet, over her right ear. She said something else to Liada, then both of them looked toward Alexander, who smiled and tapped the side of his helmet. Autumn pointed to the tiny mic embedded in the inside edge of the helmet and made a talking motion with her hand.

Tin Tin spoke into the mic. “Tin Tin Ban Sunia.”

“Sarge,” Alexander said.

Tin Tin smiled. “Liada,” she said and pointed to her friend.

“Liada,” Sarge said.

“Autumn,” Tin Tin said.

“Yes, Autumn Eaglemoon.”

“Yes,” Tin Tin repeated. “Autumn Eagle Mon.” She smiled at Autumn.

“Hey, Sarge,” Lojab said. “I saw her first. Let me talk to her.”

Tin Tin looked around for the source of the new voice. Alexander pointed to Lojab.

“Lojab,” he said into his mic.

“Lojab,” Tin Tin said.

“Hi, Tin Tin.” Lojab waved.

She waved and smiled. “Misplace porch mcdongol.”

Lojab laughed. “Misplaced my Porsche.”

“Misplace my porch.”

“Good,” Lojab said.

“Good.”

Liada said something to Tin Tin, who removed the helmet and handed it to Liada. Liada then gave the brush to Tin Tin and put on the helmet.

“Sarge?”

“Liada,” Alexander said.

Lojab walked toward Tin Tin, taking off his helmet. His blond hair was clipped very short. He was a little over six feet tall, with a hard, muscular body. His sleeves were rolled up, exposing a tattoo of Jesus Christ on a Harley adorning his left biceps. Jesus wore a grin, with his halo blowing back in the wind.

“Lojab misplace my porch,” Tin Tin said and laughed.

“You’re a quick learner, Tin Tin.”

Lojab held out his hand to her. She looked at his hand for a moment, then reached to take it, but she seemed more interested in something else. She ran her hand over the top of his head.

“That’s a buzzcut,” Lojab said.

“Buzzcut.” She touched his two-day growth of beard. “Buzzcut?”

“Yeah.” Lojab motioned toward the trees. “You want to take a walk with me?”

“Low Job,” Autumn said, “you butthead. You met her two minutes ago, and already you’re trying to get her into the bushes.”

“Well, what the hell, Apache? If she’s willing…”

“She has no idea what you want to do with her.”

“Then why is she smiling?”

“I don’t know, Low Job,” Autumn said. “Maybe she’s trying to befriend an idiot?”

“As much as I hate to break up this little party,” Alexander said as he walked up to them, “does anyone know where we are?” He pulled off his helmet.

“Sarge,” Tin Tin said. “Helmet?”

“Sure,” Alexander said. “Knock yourself out.”

“Liada?” Tin Tin said into the mic after she put on the helmet.

“Tin Tin,” Liada said. They backed away from each other, still talking and apparently testing the range of the comm system.

“We are in a place called Gaul—” Autumn began.

“Gaul?” Karina said as she came up to them, removing her helmet. “Is that what they said, ‘Gaul?’”

“Yes,” Autumn said.

“Sarge,” Karina said. “Gaul is the ancient name for France.”

“Really?” Alexander said. “What’s the name of that river?”

“I couldn’t figure out how to ask that,” Autumn said, “but I think they’re planning to cross it. And another thing…”

“What?” Alexander asked.

“They have no concept of years, dates, or even hours of the day.”

Alexander watched Tin Tin and Liada behaving like two children with a new toy. “Strange,” he whispered. “And apparently, they’ve never heard of wireless communications either.”

“I wish this damn thing had wheels,” Kawalski said.

“Quit your bitching, Kawalski,” Autumn said, “and pick up your corner.”

“Oh, I got my corner, and I’ll probably have to carry yours, too.”

The rest of the platoon fell in behind the four soldiers carrying the weapons crate.

“Where are we going with this thing, Sarge?” Lojab asked. He was on the left front, opposite Kawalski.

Alexander was on the back left end of the crate, with Autumn across from him. “All the way to the river.”

“I didn’t hire on to be somebody’s slave,” Lojab mumbled under his breath, but everyone heard him.

“We’re all doing the same crap,” Autumn said.

“Yeah, and if we would all complain, our fearless leader would do something about it.”

“Like what, Lojab?” Sarge asked.

“Like get us the hell out of here.”

“You have some idea about how to do that?”

“You’re the sergeant, not me,” Lojab said. “But I can tell you this, if I was in charge, we wouldn’t be following along behind a bunch of cavemen, stepping over elephant shit and carrying this big-ass box.”

“You’re right, I am the sergeant, and until you replace me, I’ll give the orders.”

“Yes, sir. Sergeant, sir.”

“Why don’t you just cram it, Lojab?” Autumn said.

“Hey,” Kawalski said, “look who’s coming.”

Liada rode her horse along the side of the trail, coming from the front of the column. Her mount was a spirited buckskin stallion. When she saw the platoon, she crossed over and cantered her horse toward them. She rode bareback, with her bow and quiver swung on a leather strap over the horse’s shoulder. When she came abreast of the troop, she slid off, leaving her reins across the horse’s neck. She walked beside Alexander, while her horse followed.

“Sarge?” she said, “goodnight.”

“Hello, Liada,” Alexander said. “How are you this morning?”

“How are this morning?”

“Good,” Sarge said.

“Good.” She walked beside Autumn. “Autumn Eaglemoon are this morning?”

“Good,” Autumn said.

“Good.”

She patted the side of the weapons container, and with hand signs she asked where they were going. With her free hand, Autumn made a water motion and pointed forward.

“River.”

“River,” Liada said. She made a lifting motion with both hands.

“Yes, it is heavy.” Autumn wiped the sweat from her brow.

“Heavy.” Liada used both hands to sign for them to put it down.

“Hey, guys. She wants us to put it down for a minute.”

“I’ll vote for that,” Kawalski said as they moved off the trail and lowered it to the ground.

Liada took one of the handholds and lifted. “Heavy.” She wiped her brow and made hand signs to Autumn.

“She wants us to wait here for something,” Autumn said. “I’m not sure what.” She spoke to Liada. “Okay.”

“Okay,” Liada said, then swung onto her horse and rode away at a gallop, toward the front of the column.

“What a rider she is,” Lojab said.

“And did you see the way she mounted that horse?” Kawalski said. “Two quick steps, and she swung her leg over his back as if he were a Shetland pony.”

“Yeah,” Lojab whispered as he watched her ride out of sight around a turn in the trail. “What I could do with a woman like that.”

“My God,” Autumn said. “Will you two stop drooling all over yourselves? Someone would think you never saw a girl ride horseback before.”

The men stared at the place where Liada had been a moment before.

“Oh, I’ve seen girls ride horses before,” Lojab said. “But all the ones I’ve seen had to have a guy help them mount, and that was with the aid of a stirrup. Then, as the horse runs, the girls bounce up and down like ponytailed basketballs.”

“Liada just swings up on his back,” Kawalski said, “then rides as if she’s part of the horse.”