Fortunate Sons

Chapter 12: The Lightning Strike

The night was alight with flashes of gunfire and cracking rounds that battered the ground on the outskirts of Than Ahn. The enemy was merciless in its bloody assault as soldiers from both sides fell, one after the other, a life cut short by the sharp knife of death. But for those still living, the terrifying assault would only get worse.

Taylor and the rest of the crew did everything in their power to pin down the enemy, using machine gun fire, mortars and grenades but nothing seemed to work. Bullets whizzed past their heads and landed in the dirt as spray after spray of gunfire pelted them from the front.

He pulled the pin of a grenade with his teeth, chucking it like a baseball into the midst of the enemy where it burst open with a forceful *BANG!!*. Bits and pieces of debris, flesh and bone rained down on their heads, pelting them in a dry rain of clotted blood and dirt. The cacophony of noise was deafening, a symphony of terror that was inescapable. Billows of black smoke rose high into the skies above Than Ahn along with an acrid smell that burned their nostrils and the backs of their throats.

"There's no way we're going to be able to get out of here," Mitch said to Taylor, his voice rising above the noise. "There's too many of them!"

"Somebody radio for help then!" Taylor replied.

Another crack of gunfire burst over their heads, the bullets landing dangerously close as they ducked behind the sandbags. Holes were torn in the sandbag wall when a rocket blast fired close by and opened a wide crater where it had landed. Taylor felt his head and his ears ringing. For a few short, terrifying seconds he heard nothing. No radio calls, no explosions, no gunfire......nothing.

Taylor shook off the heavy feeling in his head and finally snapped out of it when he heard Mitch's voice.

"......Our unit is pinned down and we need assistance!" Mitch shouted frantically into the radio. "We've got Charlies everywhere both in and outside of the town!"

"Copy, we're on our way," someone on the other end radioed back.

"Who did you radio?!" Taylor questioned over the noise. "Mitch who the hell did you radio?!"

Mitch had no time to answer before the loud hum of motors was heard from the river. Around the hairpin corner flew three patrol boats, kicking up white water from their wake and their motors revving like a swarm of angry bees. The small American flag perched on the bow whipped in the breeze as the River Rats skidded to a halt and began firing on the enemy from the water.

The loud pulsating shots from the heavy machine guns could have been heard for miles. Taylor and the rest of the team continued firing on the enemy with the aid of the boatmen, feeding the belt of ammunition into the machine gun until there was nothing left and not a soul could stand in their way. Finally, they could make their way into the city.

They ran and ran with all the power they had in them and when they felt like they couldn't run any longer, the team pushed themselves harder until their muscles screamed and begged for mercy. None of them had realized how bad the assault was until they entered Than Ahn and saw what was before them. Buildings on fire, bodies lining the streets, pavement and roads ripped to shreds from grenade and rocket fire.

Taylor, Mitch, Dix and all the rest hurried and jumped right into the battle, firing on the enemy insurgents who were perched on the rooves, in windows and blown out buildings and those who hid around the corners. It was an ugly fight, but one that had to be fought in order to save the town.

"C'mon, c'mon get those bastards!" soldiers would shout, their words falling from their mouths like the machine gun fire that erupted all around them.

Taylor took aim at the ledge of a roof and brought down two more in quick succession, both falling from the ledge to the streets below. Take aim, pull the trigger, bring them down, take aim, pull trigger, bring down....over and over again, always in the same order.

"TAYLOR WATCH OUT!!" Dix shouted from across the street.

*BANG!!!*

The heat of the explosion and the tremendous force it unleashed threw Taylor against the wall, his head knocking against the stone bricks, his ribs aching and bruised, barely able to breathe from the impact that had sucked his breath right out of him. His head grew heavy and his ears rang as he tried to regain his senses. He shook the feeling off his head as something warm ran down his temple. Small red smears coated his fingertips but turned out to be nothing serious. He had been lucky, far luckier than most people.

Hauling himself back to his feet, Taylor pulled another grenade from his belt and hurled it into the midst of the enemy. The concussive *BANG!!* let loose like a loud crack of thunder.

Dix called to him and waved from across the street, telling Taylor to "get his ass over here!" Taylor rushed through the storm of artillery fire and took cover around the corner of one of the buildings with the others.

"How the hell are we supposed to drive them off?" Taylor questioned, trying to catch his breath. "This place is crawling with guerilla fighters!"

"They won't give up unless we do," Dix told him. "They've already overrun most of the city including the north end."

Shit......the embassy house is in the north end.....three doors down from the nurse's compound......

"C'mon we've got to go," Taylor said urgently. "We've got to go."

"Are you nuts?!" Dix exclaimed.

"They take the embassy house, they'll kill everybody there," Taylor told him sharply. "If we're going to go then we need to move.....Now!!"

Dix gave his friend a firm nod and with the rest of the team behind him they took off for the embassy house on the other side of town. They dodged falling debris when a rocket took out the face of a house, running as far away and as fast as they possibly could until they spotted the front gate.

A crack of fire from an unseen gun stopped them dead in their tracks. Quick as a flash, the team fired and downed the VC soldier behind the gate before scaling the rubble that littered the ground. Taylor's eyes searched the whole of the compound, burning like blue fire. The constant barrage of gunfire was inescapable as the team searched the place, shooting down any insurgents that were unfortunate enough to come out of their hiding places.

"You guys go and get the innocents out, we'll clear the buildings," Thom said.

Mitch, Dix and Taylor didn't hesitate to do what was asked of them. They left the others behind and took off.