Jack Terral - Rolling Thunder (2007)

As soon as everything was ready, the SEAL driver/ commanders with their gunners rolled off the airplanes onto terra firma and sped eastward toward the rising sun under Lieutenant Bill Brannigan's leadership. By that time, the pilots had their aircraft running across the desert, quickly picking up speed for the liftoff and return to Shelor Field. Frank Gomez, the M-2 gunner in Charlie Two, impetuously turned and waved at the departing C-130s in an unseen gesture of farewell.

Brannigan would have preferred making the landings at night, or at least late the previous evening, but the Air Force had balked at this. They did not want to risk lives and aircraft by touching down during hours of poor visibility. Since that part of the OA was unpopulated and the enemy had no flyover capabilities, the SPECOPS Center on the USS Combs could not talk the USAF out of the landing-time restrictions that forbade operations in the dark.

Now, as the SEALs mentally prepared for the upcoming battle, the DPVs sped across the desert. Everyone's face showed a grim demeanor as the Brigands instinctively gripped steering wheels and machine-gun handles, unaware of the tightness of their fists. The detachment rolled along in column formation toward their jump-off point. That would be the coordinates from which they would launch the attack against the opium rendezvous site. This was another portion of the mission that the Skipper preferred to do at night, but no one was sure when the smugglers would be returning from their run. Thus, it was determined that the quicker the attack, the less the risk of running into Murphy's Law.

Guy Devereaux, sitting beside Brannigan, who was driving Alpha One, had his GPS out, constantly monitoring their exact grid locations. Now and then, he would announce a slight change of direction over the LASH headset, and Brannigan would respond to the instructions that went, Starboard three degrees...starboard five degrees...port four degrees. It was not an exercise in exactness, but the Skipper could estimate the proper bearing reasonably well by sighting across the vertical spoke of his steering wheel. Within forty-five minutes of leaving the aircraft, Devereaux announced, This is it, sir!

Brannigan braked to a stop, and the other DPVs did the same. Immediately, everyone was off the vehicles and standing with weaponry in hand. Brannigan spoke softly out of habit even though they were still out of sound range of the objective. Assad! Leibowitz! Front and center!

Aye, sir! came the simultaneous responses. The two scouts left their assigned Alpha Two vehicle and reported to the Skipper. After a quick consultation over the map laid out on the hood of Alpha One, the correct azimuth toward the rendezvous was established.

You'll have to be quick since we don't know the bad guys' schedule, Brannigan said. Just give the place a looking-over and figure out what we're facing there. We need to know if they have a heavy-weapons capability.

Aye, sir, Leibowitz said.

The Odd Couple moved out on foot across the desert, with Assad on alert while his buddy referred to the magnetic compass in his hand. It took only twenty minutes to reach the objective, and the scout team's transmission from Assad was a welcome one: It's kick-ass time, Skipper.

.

0710 HOURS

THE detachment had left the DPVs back at their jumping-off point and was now in position to begin the assault. They observed vehicle assignment integrity, lying flat on their bellies as they gazed across the flat terrain toward the objective. Bruno Puglisi and Joe Miskoski, toting their AS-50 sniper rifles, had reported that they were ready for the show to begin on the opposite side. Both SEALs were mentally set to deal with any potential runners who might try to flee the scene of the coming battle. This would consist of close-range, deliberate taking of human life. Back at the DPVs, the M-60 gunners had M-203 grenade launchers on their M-16s, and each carried a load of six additional rounds apiece to put into the tubes.

Frank Gomez's startled voice came over the LASH systems. Oigan! Hay unos burros alla en un corral! He quickly recovered and spoke again in English. Hey, guys, there's a bunch of donkeys in a pen over there.

Next came the sound of Mike Assad chuckling. Let's send 'em to OCS.

Knock it off, Assad! the Skipper said.

Aye, sir!

You better keep in mind that we're on an objective, and there're nasty people over there, Brannigan snarled. He was flanked by Guy Devereaux and Andy Malachenko, and spoke again into his LASH. Vehicle commanders, report!

Alpha Two, Connie Concord replied. Ready! The others Jim Cruiser, Gutsy Olson, Senior Chief Dawkins, and Chief Matt Gunnarson all answered in proper order.

Very well, Brannigan said calmly. He had been studying the mud huts through his binoculars and had seen no one stirring in the area. It was obvious that the inhabitants took advantage of being able to sleep in late while the main caravan was gone. This was also a sign that their smuggler rivals were no longer a threat, having undoubtedly learned a couple of hard lessons in the past when they tried to raid the place.

The Skipper estimated the range to the objective to be approximately 100 meters, well within the limits of the M-203's 1,500-meter capability. Okay. The first maneuver element will be Bravo Two, Charlie One, and Charlie Two. The covering element will be Alpha One, Alpha Two, and Bravo One. On my command, the grenadiers will fire one round at the huts. That will be the signal for the maneuver element to move out and the cover element to go to the deck and lay down fire. Get ready. Execute!

The six weapons were fired at almost the same time, making what seemed like one loud detonation. The projectiles arched upward and the trajectory continued until they hit in a scattered pattern within the site. The wall of one of the huts was blown in and the roof collapsed, crashing down on the men inside.

The maneuver element, responding to the bellowed commands of the senior chief, was already rushing forward under the protection of the covering fusillades that splattered into the target area from the covering element. One individual appeared in a window and began to return fire. Doc Bradley, the only man with a grenade launcher in the maneuvering group, slowed down enough to quickly aim and shoot off a projectile. The round missed the window, but struck the building just below it, sending chunks of dry hard mud inward, cutting down the would-be resister in a whirling shower of loose but lethal earthen clods.

Dawkins' group had reached the edge of the enemy camp, and the senior chief ordered his men to hit the dirt. Now they became the covering element while Brannigan led his group in a rush toward the huts. The return fire was steadily building up, but the SEALs replied in kind, sweeping the area with three-round automatic fire bursts from their M-16s. The mud construction of the buildings was pocked by multiple strikes of slugs as hunks of the material flew off in all directions. Brannigan's bunch took cover in the collapsed structure, putting down a heavy fire on the other two.

Dawkins led his men into the compound, taking cover near the donkey pen. Both groups of SEALs were now positioned to inflict a heavy cross fire into the other buildings. The fiery fusillades struck windows and blew holes in the walls from two directions. Most of the resisters were down within a half minute, their sprawled corpses badly torn up by multiple hits from the 5.56 rounds. A half-dozen defenders toward the rear couldn't take it anymore. They pulled away from their fighting positions and made a run out the rear where there was no incoming fire.

Bruno Puglisi and Joe Miskoski saw the six people running toward them. The two SEALs lay on the ground, their sniper rifles supported by bipods. They began aiming through the telescopic sights, their trigger fingers working methodically and rhythmically. Every round was a head shot, and the fleeing men's craniums began bursting open like hot ripe watermelons being struck by hard blows from a baseball bat. A couple were flipped over on their backs, three spun around before collapsing to the ground, and the sixth continued running for an astounding half-dozen paces without a head before he stumbled and fell.