Golf India Juliet: The Cobra Insurgency

Storm Shadow

Eighteen Months Ago

     Tom sat staring through a spotting scope and mentally willing the sun to rise faster.  Billions of dollars of satellites, ISR platforms and spies targeting this village and it is left to two Americans to get the specs of a door.  The door and surrounding structure was something new.  So far they have aborted two previous missions when they were unable to enter the structures.  The mission was pivotal in the planning of a future operation.  Tom pulled the shemagh from around his neck and wiped his face.  The white cloth was custom made by a Fayetteville business for his unit, and had tiny shields and battle axes embroidered onto it.  His jet black hair was longer than most soldiers and his Asian features were even more sun darkened and weathered than usual.  Snake was behind him watching the prisoners.  He glanced back to see him still wearing his local man dress over his uniform.  Tom had hung his local garment in front of the dirty window in order to further conceal their improvised position.  They had planned to be gone by dawn but were unable to get the information, this forced the mission into daylight.  Much like vampires commandos would prefer the protective cover of darkness.  The sun rose in the East shining its light onto the front door of the target building.  Tom readied his camera and begun to snap pictures. He frowned when he realized they had confirmed the intel.  The door was reinforced.  Tom stood and both men moved toward the rear exit.  Snake made a clicking sound with his tongue and placed his finger over his lips in a signal to the prisoners to stay quiet.  The two soldiers slipped out into the brightening morning.

     They had just passed the outskirts of the village when they heard shouting and rifle fire behind them.  Snake and Tom exchanged glances and picked up their pace away from the enemy.  Snake pulled off his man dress and stuffed it into his pack, without slowing his march.  Tom turned to see black clad Muj five hundred meters behind, he keyed his mic and whispered "Toc, Zulu Juliet Two, Standby".  Rounds began to whiz and snap over their heads and he heard Snake curse.  They both hated compromise.  Tom keyed his mic once more and gave the troops in contact report.

     Tom kneeled and tried to control his breathing as he placed the red dot on the chest of an approaching enemy.  The man was in all black complete with a turban.  Tom squeezed the trigger and the suppressed rifle made a slight crack as the round left the end of the stubby tube.  He could see Snake lying prone off to his flank, trying to gain fire superiority, his desert uniform blending into the arid terrain.  Tom bounded back far enough to be able to support Snakes movement to the rear.  The break contact battle drill was one of the basic maneuvers any infantryman is taught, but none ever want to use, because it means the enemy has the advantage.  Tom dropped into the prone and began a steady stream of fire toward the bad guys.  Snake stood and sprinted back toward Tom, enemy fire streaking past his every step.  There was no screaming of commands, these men had practiced this immediate action drill hundreds of times.  Only the efficiency of fire and maneuver.  Tom's attention was drawn to a cloud of dust in the distance and his fear was affirmed when the armed truck became visible.

     Bullets impacted and whizzed all around Tom as he laid down suppressive fire for Snake's movement.  One of the Muj took a knee and pointed what looked to be an RPG toward the Two Soldiers.  Tom had enough time to scream RPG before the missile flew through the air toward them.  The rocket flew over their position and burst silently into three other objects which moved with a buzzing sound higher into the air.  The technical opened up with its Russian made Dshk machine gun, the higher pitched cracks of the AK's were drowned out by the larger caliber projectiles.  Snake skidded to a stop next to Tom and pointed off to the East.  Tom turned to see the glorious sight of an approaching Russian Hip.  Both men turned and begun to talk guns to once again try to gain some advantage.  Snake pulled a smoke grenade from his chest rig and propped himself up to throw.