Nobody

And Nobody Cared

Desert nights are cold. Most people don't know that, which meant a lot of units hadn't bothered bringing cold weather gear. As recently as January whole units had been rendered non-deployable because they hadn't brought cold weather gear and had men suffering frostbite.

The coffee in my hand was cold by the time I reached the tent. There were two guys outside the tent, body armor, helmets and battle rattle on, NVG's deployed, M16A2's held at port arms.

"Out of the damn way," I grunted. The two meat heads moved as I pushed my way into the tent. They both recognized me. I'd been moving in and out of the tent all night while we'd been going over the data and preparing for what was minutes, if that, away.

Echo-Five-Actual was gathered up around a table. Major Carmichael had left with November-Two-Six only a half-hour before. At the front of the table Stillwater was looking down at Captain Dawson, who was staring up him, fury evident on her face.

"You can't relieve me of command.  You don't have the authority," She was snarling.

Great. I'd walked in just in time to catch  a family squabble.

"I do, I can, I have," Stillwater told her.

My boy looked tired. The lines engraved on his face mixing with the scars and the prematurely gray hair to make him look in his forties instead of his early twenties. He had dark circles around his eyes, his sole green eye dull and dead looking.

Except now. Now, I could see resolution and anger burning in it.

"I'm a Captain, you're a Staff Sergeant, you can't relieve me of command hours before an operation begins," Captain Natalie Dawson snapped. She was jabbing his chest with her finger as she spoke, something everyone at the table knew that Stillwater hated.

"This is a Special Weapons mission. You aren't Special Weapons. You have jack and shit authority here, Captain," Stillwater said. He grabbed her wrist, twisting it reflexively. She went to break the grip, failed, tried again, and Stillwater let her go, making a production of opening his hand. "You are not accompanying us over the berm."

"What reason do you think you have for relieving me of command," She snarled. "Is it because I'm a woman?"

Stillwater stiffened, then shook his head. "Yes. That's part of it."

"What about them? They're women. Are you leaving them behind?" She asked, pointing at where Little-Bit had her eyes closed and her fingers tracing over the disassembled parts of her M82A2 Anti-Material Rifle.

"No," He said flatly. "They'll be coming with me. You're the only member of Echo-Five-Actual being relieved," He slapped his hand on the paper. "The orders are right here, Captain. You're to report to 13th Evac within the hour. One-Forty-Fourth Ordnance already promised to send a vehicle driver for you."

"Don't do this, Stillwater. Please. You don't understand how important this is, and not just for me," Captain Dawson said.

Stillwater sighed. "Don't. Captain. I know, this is your chance to prove that females can lead in combat, but it isn't. Not any more."

"Goddamn it, Stillwater. No. If you do this," Captain Dawson took a deep breath. "If you do this, you and I are over."

Stillwater didn't move. Didn't budge. His expression didn't change.

But I'd known him for years. Watched him grow up.

The bitch might as well have stabbed him in the heart.

"You are relieved," He said coldly, turning away from her. He pulled his keyring out. "Just listen to me, Captain," he started to say.

"No. If you're going to pull this, now of all times, then we're over. If you don't respect me enough, then if we make it through this, don't bother coming home," She snarled as Stillwater busied himself with his keys.